《The Grand Duelist》


 Chapter 1: A Young Mans Desperation

    Chapter 1: A Young Man''s Desperation


    <Final Notice Before Disconnection>


    What arrived at the mail today served as a death sentence for the young man. The words, "Final Notice before Disconnection.", was akin to a thunderbolt crashing down from the heavens towards his heart and soul.


    "So, this month is finally thest. I wonder... what should I do once everything is over?" The young man mumbled in a voice filled with bitterness. He turned around and stared at the cold, and dark living room. where only he alone existed.


    But everything wasn''t like this three years ago. Before both his parents died in a freak ident, this living room was filled with smiles,ughter, and mirth. But now, three yearster. Not even a trace of that era could be found. And this month, the end of that era would finally arrive.


    Last month was Joseph''s eighteenth birthday. When he turned eighteen, he aged out of his parents'' pension that he relied on so that he could live properly after both his parents died.


    Thankfully, thepanies eyeing his parents'' properties gave him a grace period so that he could prepareeverythinghe needed for his departure.


    The young man''s family wasn''t rich, nor they were poor. In fact, his parents amassed enough wealth that they could live using their empire of properties when they finally retire.


    But sadly, when the second death anniversary of his parents came...


    Notices started appearing, and Joseph realized that both of his parents not only gathered enormous wealth but also debt that thankfully wasn''t passed on to him fully. Unfortunately, due to that debt...


    Joseph now had nothing on his name.


    In thest year before he would grow out of histe parents'' pension...


    Joseph became thrifty.


    He saved every cent that he could, but everything was so expensive in his country that his small savingswould undoubtedly be zero and he would inevitably be homeless if he changed nothing in his status quo.


    The only silver-lining that served as motivation for Joseph was the world of Victory. A VRMMORPG that was finally avable to the public two years ago.


    When Joseph saw that money inside the world of Victory could be converted into real money...


    He instantly bought the most expensive Gaming Capsule and also bought a one-month membership of the game, thinking that he could recoup all of his investments in just mere months by grinding.


    But unfortunately, the world of Victory was more unforgiving than he thought. Since money within Victory could be converted into cash for the outside world. Crimes were rampant, Joseph frequently suffered from yer-killers and not only that, monsters only had a certain chance of dropping money.


    Out of a hundred monsters, you''d be lucky if you could pick up at least five copper coins. If converted into real-world cash, that five copper coins of yours were only about five dors. What''s worse was that hunting a monster could easily turn deadly if you made a single mistake.


    It was basically like Dark Souls but harder if you''re not athletic in real life or fat.


    Each and every monster was iparably formidable for Joseph that didn''t even have any proper equipment. Using the equipment provided by the game towards newbies, Joseph could hunt a hundred monsters in twelve hours and he would only earn about five dors or so on average.


    The monthly amortization for the game membership was about a hundred dors a month. Joseph earned about a hundred and fifty dors for a month.


    It was enough for the game membership, but it wasn''t enough for maintaining payments on his parents'' house and the monthly cost of electricity due to operating the Gaming Capsule.


    Within the past three years, Joseph suffered too much. Too much for a young boy who was still at a young age of fifteen. Although now, he was eighteen.


    Holding the Notice Letter within his hand, Joseph gritted his teeth and crumpled the paper. Tears welled in his eyes and it fell down his cheeks.


    "Mother, Father... Why did you have to leave me alone?" Joseph cried silently on the couch.


    After a short while, he sat down and stared at a family portrait where he along with his parents looked happy. Before that sudden ident, everything was perfect for Joseph. He had everything that a child could ask for and he knew that he had a bright future.


    But the heavens were envious of lucky ones. Within just a few weeks, Joseph''s world turned outside down. Now, he had nothing to rely on. Nothing, but himself.


    Standing up, Joseph washed his face and headed upstairs. No matter what happened, he must protect this house, this house where every memory that he had with his parents was created. He must not let those greedy bastards take this precious house and sanctuary of his.


    He entered the world of Victory once again.


    Once he logged in, amotion appeared among the yers within Victory.


    [Oh, look atthis, guys! That suicidal bastard is finally back?]


    [Wait, he''s back? I thought he''s finally giving up!]


    [Bro if he wanted to give up, he would''ve done it a long time ago. Now that there are only a few days before the event ends, do you really think that he would want to give up and waste his efforts sincestmonth?]


    [Hahaha, yeah right. Let''s see, let''s see!]


    [Count me in! It''s always fun seeing bastards like him that do not know the difference between heaven and earth dying miserably.]


    [What the hell? You''re disgusting for thinking of that man...]


    [Who cares?]


    When Joseph returned to the world of Victory. His eyes shed with determination once again.


    Ignoring the gazes of schadenfreude around him...


    Joseph signed-up once again for the Festival of Battles event. The name itself was pretty self-exnatory, but Joseph didn''t care about the fighting at all.


    He only cared about getting the jackpot of about a million dors if he managed to defeat that cheeky brat at the end of them all.


    [Are you sure that you want to join the Festival of Battles?]


    "Yes!"


    Joseph replied and a ray of light engulfed his body.


    When everyone saw what happened, they screamed in delight.


    [Here he goes! Here he goes again! He entered the Arena again!]


    [Let''s go watch!]


    [Hahaha, Like I told you guys,everytimethat bastard goes online, he does nothing but enter the Arena. He doesn''t even go outside and level himself up.]


    [In that case, he must be pretty desperate for that million dors, eh?]


    [Definitely, but isn''t he stupid? Hoping to win that million dors, does he really think that the game would easily give him such a huge amount of money?}


    [Yeah right, but how many times has he been to the Arena already?]


    [Oh, mister. This must be your first time seeing such a circus show, right?]


    [Yeah, I just came here from the neighboring city. I heard that the Festival of Battles here was still going on?]


    [Oh, you came from a neighboring city? Could it be that you''re also thinking of fighting in the Festival of Battles, mister?]


    [Yeah, that is why I''m here.]


    [Then in that case, I''ll advise you mister that you shouldn''t join the Festival of Battles in this city.]


    [What do you mean?]


    [Well, take that young man for example. He has entered the Festival of Battles for about 342 times already. He always arrives at the top but in the end, he also always fails when facing that Great Magician.]


    [What did you say? 342 times? In that case, I understand why all of you are calling him stupid. The entrance fee alone for the event costs ten dors, and if he did that 342 times. That meant that he already spent about 3420 dors for nothing...]


    [That amount of money isn''t something cheap and that further confirms that he''s stupid. That guy alwaysshows usa good show so I can''t miss watching him die, Hahaha!]


    "You dare challenge me? How dare you!" A man who looked to be at the age of thirty red dangerously at Joseph.


    Joseph coldly snorted to himself: "Dare challenge you? If not for the fact that I would have to start from the bottom before going up, then I would''ve directly challenged thest boss that had the jackpot on her head!"


    Joseph went forwards and met his opponent in battle. Since he has entered this Arena for several dozens of times already and his enemies never changed. He already knew their attack patterns, and how they moved.


    "He''s going to attack my foot so I must jump, then jump dodge to a somersault and thrust towards his heart from behind."


    He quickly made his n and the NPC shed at his foot, aiming to restrict his mobility.


    However, Joseph knew what the NPC wanted to do in the first ce. Dodging was easy and he merely jumped, stepped on the NPC''s head, somersaulted in the air then thrust his sword at the NPC''s back for an instant kill.


    "Ah! Impossible!" The NPC screamed in despair and his body turned into innumerable light crystals which eventually scattered into nothingness.


    "Ah?Impwosibble!" Joseph copied the NPC''s words in annoyance, it was really irritating that the lines spat out by these NPCs stayed static and never changed even though he had met them for dozens of times already.


    The next NPC in line that would fight against Joseph entered the Arena and said: "Oh? A new challenger?"


    "Ow? A newChyallenger, my ass!" The NPC didn''t even finish his introductions as Joseph instantly killed him with a few steps and a slice at his neck.


    Joseph repeated these events a few times before he finally arrived at thest boss where he was stuck sincest month.


    [The Great Magician Lilibeth has entered the stage!]


    Joseph''s nerves pulled tautly and he readied himself for the next battle.


    "There''s only a few days left in the Festival of Battles event. Before the event ends, I must defeat her and im that prize!" Joseph reaffirmed his resolve as he took a stance.


    At the same time, a meteor came crashing down from the skies. It exploded right in front of Joseph, and Joseph who knew what would happen had alreadyid his body t on the ground so he would avoid damage from the flying debris


    When he stood up, he assumed his stance once again and what greeted him was a cold maiden that had a detached look on her face. She stared right into Joseph and said: "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    Joseph was instantly irritated once again.

 Chapter 2: Knowledge Built Up From Experience

    Chapter 2: Knowledge Built Up From Experience


    "I fought against her for several dozens of times already, I know what she will do..." Joseph tightly held on his sword.


    Even though his equipment looked like a washed-out rag while his enemy''s equipment looked incredibly dazzling and pristine. The system made it so that the two would be even when it came to equipment.


    So, it didn''t matter even if Joseph fought stark-naked with only a sword on his hand, or if he fought with full armor from his head to toe.


    "Blessing ofIfrith..."


    "Okay, she''s using her slow casting Fireball to attack me from afar again?"


    Joseph visibly calmed down. Although attacks from a distance were fast and dealt devastating amounts of damage. For Joseph that experienced everything that this so-called Great Magician had in her sleeves... He was reading for everything.


    Except, what he expected didn''t happen.


    Instead...


    "Assassination of the Fire God..."


    Apletely different skill than he expected came out, and when his ears registered these words and his mind recognized what it meant. It was toote for Joseph. His expression paled as a notification sprung right in front of him.


    [You suffered from an Assassination and instantly died.]


    "Wha..."


    The moment these words came out, Joseph couldn''t evenplete his curse as his body fell down and crumbled into innumerable light crystals.


    Death within the world of Victory had a penalty where you couldn''t temporarily enter the game for a certain amount of time. It scaled by one''s level, so for Joseph who didn''t bother on leveling himself, his penalty onlysted for a few minutes.


    Joseph exited the Gaming Capsule and hurriedly went towards his desk where several dozens of post-it notes were stered on his walls. Each note contained important information regarding the Great Magician Lilibeth. It was the first time that the Great Magician used an Assassination skill at the first exchange of attacks, so Joseph was so shaken.


    Ff the NPC''s attack pattern changed into something that he didn''t expect or if the NPC used different skills than what she used against Joseph within the past months, then Joseph''s ns would miserably fail.


    "What the hell? Whydid she use the Assassination of the Fire God as her first attack? This is the first time that her attack pattern changed! What the hell are those developers doing! Do they really want to screw with me that bad that they would interfere in an event that they made for us yers!"


    Joseph violently cursed, his post-it notes didn''t answer his query as to why the NPC suddenly changed her attack patterns. In this case, there could only be one solution.


    Joseph must challenge that NPC, again and again until that NPC''s attack pattern returned to normal so that Joseph could finally defeat her with the strategy that he made using the knowledge that he built up from experience.


    "In that case, then let''s do it again!" Joseph entered the Gaming Capsule and once again returned to the world of Victory.


    Several minutester...


    A meteorite crashed from the skies, a cold maiden that had a distant expression on her face greeted Joseph as she stared right into his eyes.


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    "Assassination of the Fire God."


    "Guah!"


    "Again!" After being forcefully logged-out from the game due to dying. Joseph once again entered the world of Victory and joined the Festival of Battles. He ughtered his way towards the top where a meteorite once again descended from the skies and exploded right in front of his face.


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    "Assassination of the Fire God."


    "Yawa!!"


    ....


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    "Assassination of the Fire God."


    "Giatay!"


    ...


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    "Assassination of the Fire God."


    "Tangina!"


    ...


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    "YoU''rEfInaLlyheRe,ChalLenGer." Joseph repeated the NPC''s words in a sarcastic and irritated manner.


    "Assassination of the Fire God!"


    "INATAAAAY!!!"


    ...


    [Holy shit is he not giving up? This is his twentieth time entering the Festival of Battles!]


    [I told you about him earlier Mister, that guy is desperate for money. Look at him trying his best on winning just for the sake of cheap change.]


    [Bro, don''t mock him like that. A million dors may be a cheap change for you, but seeing his desperation. it could be the difference between life and death for him.]


    [Hahaha, I''m just joking mister. But really, if he''s that desperate. There should be a good reason why.]


    [There should be... A man cannot be that stubborn for no reason.]


    [You call him a man? I think he''s just an immature bastard that knows nothing about the difference between heaven and earth. If not, he could''ve just used the money that he used as entrance fees for battle into something much better than what he is currently doing...]


    [...]


    "You''re finally here, Challenger."


    Josephid down on the ground as the rocks from the meteorite that exploded went past his body. He wasn''t in his best condition for the repeated logging-out and logging-in within the world of Victory within a short period of time was taking its toll on his body.


    [Warning: User''s body is now unsuitable for continuous use of the Gaming Capsule V.01 Beta]


    Joseph wouldn''t take his chances anymore. Back then he hoped that the NPC''s attack pattern would return to normal if he repeatedly challenged her to a fight. But now that he fought against her so many times yet her attack pattern still didn''t return to normal.


    Joseph knew that he had to do something.


    The entrance to the Festival of Battles wasn''t cheap for someone like him. He had to do something else and change the current status quo himself. Instead of waiting for an opportunity, he reckoned that he must do something and create an opportunity for himself.


    Taking a stance, Joseph stared at the cold maiden a distance away from him and steeled his resolve. The Assassination of the Fire God, from what Joseph experienced. Always attacked him from behind, using this information. Joseph formted a n that he could use on evading this attack.


    "Blessing ofIfrith..."


    However...


    "Fireball!"


    The moment that the cold maiden opened her mouth, Joseph instantly threw himself down and hugged the ground. But instead of the cold, yet raging de of the Assassination of the Fire God...


    What came hurling at him was a ming ball of fire.


    Joseph''s face paled when he realized this fact. The sudden emergence of the Fireball meant that Joseph barely had any time to do anything against it, but he didn''t give up. Rolling backwards, he used the momentum of that roll to propel himself up in the air and dodge the fireball!


    "Bang!"


    A great explosion urred. Joseph and the NPC wordlessly stared at each other, the emotions within their eyes greatly contrasted. Joseph''s eyes twinkled with excitement, while the cold maiden''s eyes didn''t have any emotions within it...


    It was as if she was looking at an ant that she could easily step on and kill.


    "Yes, those eyes! Those eyes are what I wanted to see!"


    Josephnded back on the ground and the cold maiden silently chanted: "Blessing ofIfrith... Icicles!"


    She pushed her palm outwards, towards Joseph who was running at her in a straight line. Normally, this was a suicidal move. But using his experience. Joseph predicted the trajectory of the cold maiden''s attacks and he dodged them all in a hair''s breadth.


    Arriving beside the maiden, Joseph executed [Slice] and he hacked at the cold maiden''s arms. Blood instantly spilled out of that arm, and the cold maiden hurriedly retreated.


    But Joseph had experienced her might from afar, so many times...


    He knew that letting her go and fighting her at a distance was the moment where all hope would be lost, so why would he let her escape from his clutches? The cold maiden activated Teleport, and she instantly reappeared at a new location, several meters away.


    However, Joseph knew the pattern of her emergence whenever she used Teleport. When she emerged from the void after her Teleport. What greeted her was Joseph''ssword.


    [You dealt 2,500 damage.]


    Blood spurted out and the face of the cold maiden now had a wound from her forehead down to her chin. But she didn''t disy any pain. She remained expressionless like she always did from the start of the Festival of Battles.


    With a burst of light, she counterattacked and sent a ray of light towards Joseph''s directions.


    But Joseph knew what she usually does whenever she counter-attacked.


    Back then, whenever Joseph sessfullynded an attack, she often used an attack filled with the Element of Light as retaliation since it had the fastest speed of all elemental attacks.


    At that time, when faced with this attack, Joseph had no other choice but to evade or tank the attack depending on the situation.


    But now?


    Joseph grinned.


    He hurriedly raised his free hand and revealed a mirror that looked to be at the same size as his palm. He pushed it before him and when the light element attack struck the mirror. It bounced and returned back towards the cold maiden at the same speed.


    [You dealt 5,302 damage.]


    Joseph proudly stashed the mirror back into his inventory as he continued his onught. The cold maiden clearly didn''t expect that Joseph could reflect her attack. Her reaction to what happened was a step toote...


    When she realized it, Joseph was already right in front of her and had his weapon above in the air;


    "Downwards sh!" Joseph screamed, but when he saw that the cold maiden''s right hand suddenly moved towards the back of her waist. Joseph suddenly stopped his attack and forcefully leaped backward in order to evade what wasing.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Explosions rang out from Joseph''s initial location. If Joseph hadn''t retracted his attack and dodged, then he would''ve suffered immensely from that hidden attack.


    With Joseph''s retreat, the cold maiden finally had time to breathe. She stared right into Joseph, frowned before she finally spoke for the first time since the event startedst month.


    "You... Just who are you?" She said in a trembling voice, her expression still looked cold. Yet, one could feel the emotional upheaval that she was currently experiencing. But I mean, who wouldn''t be scared of an opponent that could read her mind and dodge every attack that she threw?


    Joseph merely smiled at her inquiry. His smile looked bittersweet. Everything that happened in this battle so far was the fruits of hisbor. All that he knew was knowledge, built upon the failures that he experienced. This day, Joseph finally believed in the phrase, "Failure is the mother of sess".


    Using everything that he had built up from day one until today. Joseph finally defeated the Great Magician Lilibeth without suffering any damage ever since the battle started.


    "You..." The cold maiden uttered as a mouthful of blood burst forth from her mouth.


    Those who saw such a heart-breaking scene couldn''t help but curse at Joseph, but most of them felt gratified...


    Gratified that the young man whom they considered as stupid, who tried and tried until he was branded as a retard, finally defeated the final opponent that he couldn''t defeat since day one.


    [You defeated the Great Magician Lilibeth!]


    [Youpleted the Festival of Battles and defeated the Final Boss.]


    [You acquired the title, "Watched by the God of Fighting".]


    [Victory!]


    When the word, "Victory", written in a gigantic font appeared right above the Arena where the Festival of Battles was held, screams and cheers rang out.


    Joseph who still stood at the same pose that he had when he executed his final attack at his enemy, finally returned to his senses as tears streamed down his cheeks.


    "Finally... Victory belongs to me!"


    Joseph thrust his sword towards the skies and shouted as loud as he could.


    Tomorrow, his victorious figure would be branded on the front page of various media outlets with the headlines...


    [The Madman of the Festival of Battles, finally victorious!]


    [Those who struggle are rewarded, Madman of the Festival of Battles, Victorious!]


    [Victory for the Madman of the Festival of Battles!]


    [Once branded a retard, now renowned as a hero! Madman of the Festival of Battles, Victorious!]

 Chapter 3: The Most Suitable Payback

    Chapter 3: The Most Suitable Payback


    For a while, turmoil circted within the world of Victory. But it only existed for a short while. For those that had enough power knew that what Joseph did wasn''t really something special. In fact, a lot of them even mocked him as a money-hungry retard that desired too much about some cheap change.


    "Festival of Battles? Ah, that ridiculously hard event which has a million dors as its cash prize? Yeah, that event was difficult. But the guy that you guys call as the Madman of the Festival of Battles is really a madman. I bet that he only won by memorizing the attack patterns of thatst boss..."


    "Well, he did an amazing feat by defeating the final boss of the Festival of Battles. Even though some people will say that his win was something that anyone could do through repetition. Not everyone has the same determination as him when ites to that event..."


    "After all, it isn''t really fun dying under the hands of the same boss, over and over again."


    These were the words that the popr top-yers of Victory said to everyone when they were asked about what they thought of the Madman of the Festival of Battles. But it wasn''t only them that were astonished by Joseph''s aplishment, even P.H Works.


    Thepany behind Victory was shocked about what Joseph achieved within the game.


    Several minutes after Joseph defeated the Great Magician Lilibeth...


    Ray Gabriel was the one who stood at the core of the 42-man team that built the first realistic virtual reality system which changed the scenery of the gaming scene forever. He led the team, developed Victory and also established P.H Works. Thepany behind Victory.


    His achievements meant that he always stood at the spotlight, whenever he went all around the world.


    His influence surpassed even the leaders of the United Nations, and it made him subject to the envy of the world.


    Sadly, being under the spotlight meant that he was always on the move. In fact, he barely had time for himself and recreational activities. But did he regret everything? Of course not!


    He made a world ording to his ideals. Everything that happened to him after he published the world of Victory for everyone was something that he chose in the first ce.


    Even though he knew that he would probably dedicate his entire life to maintaining the world of Victory and creating content for it, he wasn''t particrly bothered about it. In fact, he was proud of it...


    Proud of his creation that captivated the hearts of billions around the world.


    "Oni-chyan, someone is calling you~~~"


    A voice that sounded familiar to Ray Gabriel''s ears rang out...


    Even though he was asleep and was currently exploring the world within his dream, the moment that the feminine voice entered his ears and registered in his brain. His eyes snapped open...


    His body that stood at the edge of copse due to several months of continuous fatigue instantly became lively.


    "Oh my beloved Sister~ Could it be that she''s the one calling me? But why is she calling me right now in the middle of the night? Aiyaaa, nevermind. Let''s... just... see~"


    He excitedly mumbled to himself as he picked up the phone but he froze. it was because he saw that the caller ID didn''t belong to his sister, but belonged to a fellow scientist from P.H Works


    "Why are you calling me thiste at night? What''s going on?" His voice turned cold, bereft of the excitement that it exuded just moments earlier.


    A frantic voice came out of the phone and Ray Gabriel''s eyes widened in shock when he heard the message. He yelled out his reply as he said: "What did you say?! I''ll be there right now, prepare to report to me about everything once I arrive."


    "Don''t worry about the distance and time, I''ll be using my chopper. Prepare the helipad for my arrival!"


    Ray Gabriel dressed himself up and he hurriedly ran towards his backyard where a helicopter casually stood. He climbed into it and flew towards the Headquarters of the P.H Works as if his life depended on it.


    "Okay, now tell me what happened."


    Upon arrival, Ray Gabriel never greeted anyone. The Overseer of the Game Operations Team, Elizabeth bowed her head and replied.


    "It has been thirty minutes now sir since everything happened."


    "Okay, show me the logs!" Ray Gabriel cried out and Elizabeth handed over a bunch of documents to him.


    "Interesting! To think that someone could break through the special limited-edition event that I made ording to Noah''s wishes." Ray Gabriel mumbled.


    The Festival of Battles was an event that the Supeputer Noah created and rmended.


    Even though Ray Gabriel said that he had made the special limited-edition event, he only did about a quarter of the work required so that the event could smoothly run. His work covered the designing of the final boss that when defeated, could them a huge prize which was about a million dors.


    At first, Ray Gabriel never thought seriously about how strong he would make the final boss. But when the Supeputer Noah said that the final boss could bestow a hidden quest towards the user. Ray Gabriel instantly increased the difficulty of the fight towards the limits.


    Not only he increased the damage that the NPC dealt against yers. He even added such a cheat attack called, "Assassination of the Fire God", which was within the tier of [Unstoppable Attacks].


    As the name said, attacks within this tier were couldn''t be blocked, and almost unavoidable. The only way that one could possibly dodge such an attack was possessing the Foresight stat which should be at least more than 1500.


    In the current stage of the game, where yers had levels that were only about 120 on average meant that there was no one qualified enough to dodge an [Unstoppable Attack].


    Ray Gabriel saw within the logs that the Supeputer Noah increased the difficulty of the Festival of Battles to the very limits when it noticed that Joseph was now iparably familiar with the attack patterns of all BOSSes within the Festival of Battles.


    However, after about twenty or so tries. The Supeputer Noah recognized the determination of Joseph and returned the attack pattern of the final boss to normal.


    The Assassination of the Fire God, a skill that was normally used when the BOSS only had an inkling of Health Points left in order to revert the situation was disabled by Noah as a sign of respect towards Joseph''s desperation and determination.


    "That guy really is lucky. It''s been such a long time since the Supeputer Noah acted whimsical like this, and yet he perfectly captured that opportunity and won the million dors. But then, how about the hidden quest?"


    Ray Gabriel used his rights as an administrator and found that the specific hidden quest after that final boss event wasn''t triggered. He couldn''t help but sigh in regret when he saw this. After all, that hidden quest contained far better rewards than a million dors if someonepleted it.


    Ray Gabrielpletely believed that someone as determined as Joseph had the capability toplete that specific hidden quest.


    "It''s such a pity that it wasn''t triggered... Well, that could only mean that he isn''t fated for the quest." Ray Gabriel stood up and turned to look at Elizabeth before saying.


    "I''ll go back to sleep now, even if something interesting happens. Don''t wake me up, I''m really too sleepy right now." He yawned and Elizabeth deeply bowed once again before saying her goodbyes towards her immediate superior.


    Back at Joseph''s residence, a trembling Joseph could be seen holding a smartphone in his hand. Reflected within his eyes was a "1", followed by six zeros.


    "A million dors!" Joseph inwardly screamed, everything that happened was still so surreal for him that he couldn''t help but keep pinching his cheeks and logging-out then logging-in again at his bank''s online banking app to make sure that the money within the app wasn''t caused by a bug or a system glitch.


    After about several hours of staring at the line of zeros after the "1" within his bank ount.


    Joseph finally calmed himself down. But a bitter smile emerged on his face. The money that he earned for today wouldn''t stay with him for too long. But he had a way of making sure that this money left him in a spectacr and memorable manner.


    Joseph arranged the Notices that he had received within these past several weeks. These notices said that he needed to pay a specified amount so that he could keep staying within his house, etc, etc, etc...


    Although the reasoning within the notices was somewhat absurd for Joseph. He did not n on hesitating when ites to paying them...


    After all, once he paid them he would finally be free from everything.


    But he had no ns on negotiating with them for he doubted if those scums could evenprehend humannguage. He was tired of dealing with their shenanigans.


    Joseph nned on paying thesepanies properly. But there was onepany that specifically irked Joseph the most. It was apany called Easy Cash. Thispany was the most aggressivepany when ites to asking for the monthly amortization that they demanded


    Joseph even had to sell some items that had sentimental value for him so that he could pay them the minimum due and have them stop their harassment. Now, it was time for payback and a fierce p on the face.


    Joseph wore an evil smile as rung up some numbers on his phone.


    His evil smile turned dangerous when the person on the other side of the line finally answered his call...


    "Ah, hello? Is this the iza''s Trucking Services? Yes, I will be renting several trucks for my personal use and transport... Okay, I will go and settle the contract personally at your office. I will pay through spot cash, ah there''s a discount? Thank you..."


    After a short while, Joseph called his bank.


    "Ah, hello? Is this PNB? Ah yes, this is Joseph and about the inquiry that I made earlier. I won''t have any problems paying the transaction fee for as long as my request arrives at the time that I require it. Will that be okay? Okay then, thank you so much, I''ll be there by tomorrow morning..."


    After this call, he swiftly arranged everything to be paid and when all of that was over. Easy Cash was the onlypany left unpaid. Thepany that Joseph hated the most.


    The next morning, an Easy Cash employee named Robert had a smile on his face as he printed some notices towards delinquent customers thatpsed on their payment to thepany. He hummed a tune as the mechanical sound of the printer constantly rang out in front of him.


    He really loved this job of his. After all, this was the only legal job where he could see people at their lowest point in life.


    But Robert didn''t feel any guilt whenever he extracted joy from their suffering. The sensation of schadenfreude excited him the most for he knew that even though he wasn''t well-off in life. At least, he wasn''t swimming in debt like these bastards.


    Most customers of Easy Cash were pretentious people that took loans just so they could afford theirvish lifestyle when they really couldn''t afford it in the first ce...


    For trashes like them, Robert felt that he had the right to feel disdain at them. Seeing those pretentious and arrogant bastards break down and cry before him for forgiveness was something that Robert couldn''t really get tired of. But of course, there were some clients that gave Robert a headache.


    It was those clients are too hard to break. One of those clients was Joseph whom he would visit right now after printing Notices that he would serve to his other clients.


    "Is anyone here?"


    The door to Robert''s office within this Easy Cash branch suddenly opened. Speaking of the devil, the person who entered was Joseph. A client whom he despised the most among the stubborn ones.


    "Oh, sir Joseph. What services do you need from us?" Robert greeted with a smile.


    But his eyes were already narrowed into slits. If Joseph asked him for a loan once again. No matter what, even if Joseph offered him some bribes like the jewelry that Joseph offeredst time. He would never offer Joseph a loan once again.


    But why?


    It was because Joseph never paid at least the minimum payments of the monthly amortization written within their loan contract. Since Robert was responsible for the creation of that contract and he was the agent that gave Joseph that particr loan, he suffered the most within thepany and had his payment docked for not reaching his quota.


    Joseph merely turned his head around the office as if he was looking for something.


    Robert saw this and he couldn''t help but sneer inside: ''Is he looking for another agent that would offer him a loan? How futile, does he not know that his credit history is such a mess right now that no agent in their right mind would offer him a loan? But oh well, I guess someone like him can''t possibly understand something like credit history."


    Robert inwardly mocked Joseph before speaking in an amiable tone: "Are you looking for another loan again, sir?" He asked in the gentlest tone as possible. He wanted to bait Joseph into asking for a loan once again, and when that happened...


    He would shut down Joseph''s request in the cruelest way possible.


    ''Hehehe, once that happens. Let''s see if this guy still manages on keeping his head cool and collected.''


    Robert inwardly snickered, but Joseph replied in an unexpected manner.


    "No, I''m here to make a payment. I am just looking around, making sure that there are enough employees so that my payment could be processed faster." Joseph shrugged, and Robert was stunned for a moment before lightlyughing.


    "Are you sure that you can pay for everything that you owe us, sir?" He still kept the word, "Sir". But clear disdain could be heard within his tone of voice.


    Joseph turned to look at him with a challenging manner: "Well, how about you give me a receipt about my payment first then I will make you see that I can pay everything at once today."


    Robert felt the confidence within Joseph''s tone but he still felt doubtful: ''Why is this bastard so confident about paying everything today? Did he perhaps receive some money from histe parents? No, that''s impossible...


    ''Unless his parents didn''t dere every asset that they had to the government which is illegal. There''s no way that this guy could receive money from their foreclosed and frozen assets... But what if he received money from his rtives?''


    ''Wait, that''s impossible. His total debt is about three hundred thousand dors. There''s no way that a mere rtive could be so altruistic towards him and give him such an amount for his debts...''


    Robert rationalized everything and came to the conclusion that unless Joseph won the lottery, he should be bluffing about having the ability to pay for everything.


    And as for winning the lottery?


    Joseph''s luck within these recent years was so bad that he was considered as a cursed child by his neighbors within the block where he lived.


    After all, not only did his parents died prematurely. Their only son also fell victim towards those opportunistic loan sharks like Easy Cash, which resulted in him ving away for monthly payments and was now on the verge of homelessness.


    All of these factsbined all together meant that it was impossible for Joseph to pay all of his debts today...


    In other words, he was merely bluffing.


    Robert calmed down before casually writing a receipt and even printing a debt clearance certificate that onlycked Joseph''s signature beforepletion.


    He calmly handed it over at Joseph before saying.


    "Now that you have the receipt... Where''s the money?"


    Joseph lightlyughed, signing the debt clearance and the back of the receipt. He took a walkie-talkie from his pocket and said: "Now everyone, ce everything down."


    Brrrrrr~


    The loud movements of hydraulics along with truck engines outside the branch caused amotion that could be heard even within the thick walls of the Easy Cash branch.


    Joseph opened the doors of the office and there, Robert saw several trucks carrying one-peso coins.


    Those trucks threw all peso coins that they carried and it quickly formed into a mountain of silvery peso coins.


    "You..."


    Veins bulged on Robert''splexion as he roared out: "That''s not allowed! We only ept dors, why are you paying with Philippine Currency!"


    Joseph turned to look at Robert and it was his time to show disdain towards Robert''s ignorance: "We''re in the Philippines and, the Philippine Currency is the legal tender of this country so it should be epted in every local establishment within the Philippines..."


    Robert paused for a moment before crying out once again: "But it''s stated in the contract, that..."


    "Yeah, it is stated in the contract that US Dors is the rmended currency for payment. But it was never stated that it is prohibited to pay using Philippine Currency..." Joseph lightly smiled.


    He turned around and swept his gaze towards the astonished employees within the Easy Cash office.


    He then dered.


    "I do not have a grudge towards all of you in this office since I bet that most of you only earn the minimum wage with additional pay ording to your quota..."


    "But the people that each and every one of you victimized for the sake of thispany''s profit and your own are probablyughing right now and in support of my move. With the atrocities that youmitted towards them, don''t even say that I am unreasonable for doing this against all of you..."


    Joseph stared right into each employee for a moment before turning around.


    He walked outside and never looked back nor returned.


    On that particr day, a crowd of people could be seen loitering around the front yard of that Easy Cash Branch. Most of them were scavengers, homeless people and some belonging to the workforce of the country. But why were they gathered in the front yard?


    Well, they were united by money. Seeing several mountains of silvery peso-coins triggered their greed and they wandered around. Looking for an opportunity where they could run towards the mountains and grab whatever that they could then run.


    What''s even worse was that. The Easy Cash branch not only didn''t have any capabilities on counting these peso-coins, but they also couldn''t even move it quickly enough so that other people couldn''t profit from their suffering.


    Salt was even added on their wounds as several employees resigned on the spot leaving Robert with a few loyal employees of Easy Cash standing before the mountains of peso-coins whilst tears streamed down their cheeks as they simultaneously dered.


    "I RESIGN!"


    Robert ran away from hispany and never returned. He didn''t even bother on getting his paycheck for that month as long as he could hasten his escape from thatpany.


    In the future, Joseph would hear some news about Robert and he would find that Robert now worked in a Charity Non-Profit Organization dedicated to those devastated by loan sharks...


    With his rich experience in the inner workings of loan sharks, he achieved high status within the organization and was now revered by most people within the city.


    Meanwhile, at the one and only International Airport of the City of Sibu.


    A young woman dragging an expensive-looking suitcase with her could be seen.


    "Finally, after a year... I''m back at Sibu... The smell of the countryside is really refreshing. But more importantly, I wonder, just how is my darling Joseph doing after a year?"


    A sarcastic expression appeared on her face as she thought of someone whom she considered as her friend, a year ago.


    "I wonder... If the sheep that I painstakingly fattened up... already ready to be ughtered?"


    She sneered she thought of Joseph. Every kindness that she gave to Joseph all those years was her gesture of sowing seeds in Joseph''s heart. Now, after almost a year of hiatus. It was finally time for the harvest.

 Chapter 4: Blasphemous Brat

    Chapter 4: sphemous Brat


    After paying every debt that he had, Joseph went to a local wet market where he sourced most of his food since his parents died.


    Back before the tragedy happened. Joseph had everything that he wanted.


    Even though they weren''t rich to the extent that they could purchase private inds and have private jets...


    Joseph didn''t have the issue of money. Only the issue of avability existed for him.


    From food down to his education, Joseph had the best that the city had to offer.


    But after that tragedy. Everything crashed down so suddenly that Joseph didn''t know what to do.


    Both rtives of his parents didn''t want him, thinking that Joseph was just a spoiled child that would never get used to living as an average human being. But in fact, they were wrong. Very wrong...


    Although Joseph struggled at first. Humans still were the best when ites to adapting, and Joseph wasn''t an exception to that evolutionary trait that enabled humans to reach where they were right now.


    Joseph''s strategy included skimping everything that he could, but since he was still used to his life as someone who had everything ever since he was a child. He never skimped on food and would buy whatever that he wanted with quality, yet at a reasonable price.


    Quality meals included vegetables, chicken skin, some powdered stock that he could boil back in his house and some meat so that he could create a bnced meal.


    But there existed a particr store that he frequented within the wet market. That store sold all sorts of meat such a Liempo, Rotisserie Chicken, and Chicken Skin. Although he always bought Chicken Skin from them, he had never bought their Rotisserie Chicken even once all these years.


    Joseph always thought that they were somewhat extravagant due to their extraordinary cost.


    But since he could see a long line of customers in front of the store, he reckoned that their Rotisserie Chicken should be good enough that once you''ve tasted it, you''d always want it.


    "Ma''am, can I get a whole chicken?" Joseph approached the stall and the elderly woman behind the stall sweetly smiled when she saw Joseph.


    "Oh? You want a whole chicken now?" She asked in a delighted voice. Joseph was one of the loyal customers of her stores, yet this was the first time that Joseph actually bought a whole Rotisserie Chicken. She had a face full of smiles when she saw Joseph ordering a whole chicken.


    "Yes, I want a whole one."


    "How about the Crispy Chicken Skin that you absolutely like?" She asked. Crispy Chicken Skin was always a staple of Joseph whenever he visited their store.


    Joseph nodded again, but this time. A smile hung on his lips as he replied: "Give me a whole Chicken Rotisserie and three packs of Crispy Chicken Skin."


    His smile looked ordinary and calm, yet Joseph could feel his heart, beat faster than ever. Ever since that fateful day, Joseph could only afford a single pack of Crispy Chicken Skin that he had to ration for the whole day and a multivitamin to make sure that he had his nutrition covered.


    "Hahaha, way blema na. Come again, okay?" The olddy handed over five packs of Crispy Chicken Skin.


    Joseph looked visibly stunned when he saw what happened: ''Did she not hear my order correctly?''


    "This..." He mumbled in a somewhat confused manner and nervous: "Ermm, excuse me but there''s a mistake in my order." Joseph suddenly realized at the end of his sentence that his nervousness came from the prejudice that he didn''t have enough money that could satisfy the payment for this order.


    "Just take it. Now that you have the capability to buy a whole Chicken Rotisserie without looking so pale and miserable at the prices alone, don''t you want to celebrate? Just take these extra Chicken Skin and celebrate for me!"


    The olddy sweetly smiled once again, and Joseph was so moved with her gesture that he had to pretend that dust entered his eyes as he turned around and rubbed the tears that welled within his eyelids.


    Handing over his payment, Joseph turned around and swiftly escaped. Afraid that he might burst to tears if he stayed there even further.


    "Wait, the change!" The olddy cried out when she saw that Joseph gave her a thousand Peso bill. But Joseph pretended that he didn''t hear anything as he continued his run towards his next destination.


    "That young man, he finally found a lucky break... I think he may note to our stall anymore."


    She turned to look at her husband that also had a gentle and amiable smile on his face. All this time, he didn''t say anything when he saw her wife''s conversation with Joseph. He merely stood at the side and kept on smiling.


    He nodded his head to what his wife said before he replied: "Well, of course, a healthy young man as him shouldn''t really eat what we sell every day... This is what they call, you know? Putok-Batok. Hahaha."


    "Hahaha..." The olddy lightly chuckled and the two continued on their job.


    Joseph''s next stop was a local bakery that sold really good and soft bread at a reasonable price.


    Back when Joseph lost his budget for the week due to the sudden spike in electricity cost. He found that the bakery had strict quality control regarding their baked goods and a lot of their bread ended up being marked as rejected.


    Rejected goods were baked goods that didn''te out from the oven like what the head baker expected.


    Joseph had to swallow his pride back then and ask for a single bread from the bakery just so he could satisfy his hunger throughout the day until the next week arrives along with his allowance from his parents'' pension.


    He would never forget that moment where Reynaldo, who was the head baker and the owner of the bakery at the same time. Weed him inside and listened to his story...


    This was the first time that Joseph found sce from others and he greatly appreciated Reynaldo''s gesture towards him back when he was starving and hopeless.


    Not only that, Reynaldo himself became Joseph''s supplier of free Rejected bread. Of course, Joseph didn''t take a mile after given an inch. Even when Reynaldo repeatedly offered him several additional pieces of bread for his consumption since he was a so-called growing young man by Reynaldo''s description.


    Joseph always rejected his offer and if he didn''t manage on refusing Reynaldo''s offer, he would hand over his excess bread towards the needy and poor.


    "Joseph! You''re right in time, we just finished baking some pandesal and there are a lot of rejected pieces of bread from the furnace." Reynaldo, who looked to be at the age of fifty-years-old smiled when he saw Joseph from afar.


    A sour sensation welled up in Joseph''s throat and he had to gulp a mouthful of saliva in order to suppress the upheaval of emotions that he was having.


    Joseph hurriedly went inside the bakery and found at least several dozens of rejected baked goodies.


    Witnessing such a scene, tears welled up in Joseph''s eyelids.


    "What''s wrong? Go on and take some. Don''t be embarrassed, we''ve been doing this for so long. It''d be toote already if you act embarrassed right now." Reynaldo lightlyughed, but then hisugh turned into a dangerous kind of cough as his chest violently heaved.


    "Kuya, are you okay?" Joseph once again pretended that dust entered his eyes as he hurriedly rubbed his eyelid before he asked Reynaldo in concern.


    [Author Note: Kuya means Brother, but if you are younger than the one you are speaking to, must be male. Then it is used as a sign of respect.]


    "Yeah, I''m fine, I''m fine... I just need some water." Reynaldo found a bottle of water, and he drank from it before he continued on what he was saying.


    "Like I said, don''t be embarrassed. Just take whatever you want, not just what you need. You''re a growing young man after all."


    "That line again..." Joseph mumbled in a hoarse voice.


    "What?" Reynaldo looked visibly confused.


    "Kuya, don''t you remember saying those lines to me back when I first visited your bakery for some bread?" Joseph whose eyes were now red from tears desperately hid his pathetic expression from Reynaldo. He was afraid that if he turned to look at him right now, he might bawl his eyes out.


    "I don''t really remember, that was such a long time ago after all. What''s going on with you? Why are you being so melodramatic." Reynaldo asked then Joseph replied in a whisper-shout.


    "I know about everything! I know that those pieces of bread weren''t Rejected breads. You purposely made them like that so that you could use it as a reason so that I wouldn''t feel guilty about taking food from your bakery!"


    Joseph finally said what he wanted to say as his shoulders violently trembled from the emotional turmoil that he was undergoing.


    "You... What are you saying?" Reynaldo''s expression turned stern, yet one could seeplicated emotions within his eyes.


    "I knew it was strange from the start! How could such an expert baker like you that took pride in your title as a head baker, produce so many Rejected Breads?!" Joseph cried out once again.


    Seeing Joseph''s reddened expression that looked like he was about to cry.


    Reynaldo finally sighed in defeat before replying...


    "Yes, you''re right. I intentionally made them like that... Is it wrong that I did that so that I can give to those that needed them the most?" But Reynaldo''s reply was a question.


    Still, Joseph had to suppress himself from crying out loud as he replied in a hoarse voice.


    "No, you weren''t wrong... You weren''t wrong, but you are sick! Shouldn''t you prioritize profits instead of sacrificing them for the sake of others? Why are you so good at them instead of focusing on yourself?"


    When Reynaldo heard Joseph''s words, he couldn''t help but sigh. He turned to look at the ceiling and replied in a soft voice and in a slow manner.


    "It''s because I don''t have much time left..."


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock.


    "What do you mean that you don''t have time left? Are you retiring? Are you going on an extended vacation?" Joseph turned his back towards Reynaldo and pretended that dust once again entered his eyes.


    Reynaldo, who heard what Joseph said couldn''t help but lightly chuckle.


    "Since you''re so clever to the point that you already knew about what I did in secret. Shouldn''t you know about the answer to that question already?"


    Reynaldo seriously said and Joseph finally turned around to face Reynaldo...


    His expression looked miserable, his eyes reddened from crying and his cheeks were soaked with his tears. His chest continuously heaved and his throat emanated wheezing sounds as he constantly tried his best on suppressing his tears.


    But his efforts were useless and to no avail.


    In the end, he couldn''t stop his tears and he had no other choice but to cry in front of Reynaldo.


    Normally, Reynaldo would mock Joseph at this moment, saying that he shouldn''t be such a crybaby.


    But right now, his expression remained peaceful and collected. It was as if nothing in this world could bother him anymore.


    Witnessing Reynaldo''s peaceful expression...


    Joseph''s crying intensified and he replied with several stammers, in a defiant, yet conflicted voice.


    "No... I thought you''re just trying out a new diet that''s why you''re getting thin... as for your cough, I thought that you only missed drinking your cough medicines so that''s the reason why it''s so persistent..."


    "A persistent cough thatsts for two years and makes me lose this much weight? There''s no such thing like that." Reynaldo lightlyughed, he sincerely wished that his disease was something like that instead of this dreadful disease.


    "No, this can''t be true. You''re lying right, I mean yeah. You''re lying to me again like back then when you said that you''re giving me two breads but you gave me five instead. Yeah, I knew it you''re lying..."


    Joseph entered a trance-like state as he repeatedly mumbled.


    In the end, Reynaldo had to fiercely m his right hand into Joseph''s shoulder as he shouted.


    "Just ept it already!"


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock. His trembling stopped, and more tears came out of his eyes that further drenched his cheeks and chest.


    Reynaldo was an adult that was at the twilight of his life, he should have enough strength that he could easily topple a young man like Joseph. But Reynaldo''s fierce m felt as light as a feather. His expression looked like he exerted a lot of strength but in the end. It had no substance behind it.


    Joseph''s crying further intensified when he saw Reynaldo''s skeletal hand. It was the first time that he noticed such an extreme change since Reynaldo frequently covered himself with thick clothing whenever he was in front of the furnace and crafting his baked goods.


    But this time, Joseph finally realized.


    Does it even make sense to wear such thick clothing before an iparably hot furnace?


    In the end, he couldn''t help but run outside and escape from the tight confines of the bakery... He ultimately couldn''t face the truth. No- he did not have the courage of facing the truth. At least, not in front of Reynaldo''s presence.


    Reynaldo didn''t follow him outside. Instead, he just stared at the direction where Joseph disappeared.


    He just stood there for a long time, as if he was frozen in time...


    He, that didn''t have any child treated Joseph like he was his precious son. In fact, whenever Joseph visited his bakery for his Rejected bread. The so-called Rejected bread that he gave to Joseph wasn''t really Rejected, but bread reinforced with soy protein flour and some moringa leaf powder.


    He did this so that the struggling Joseph could grow steadily into a young man without any deficiencies...


    Now, several yearster. He was faced with a Joseph that had immensely maturedpared to the Joseph that he met back then.


    He felt gratified that his efforts paid off...


    A smile hung on his lips before he turned around to face the furnace of the bakery. His smile felt somewhat bittersweet. It was because he knew that today was most likely thest day that he would see that young man.


    But he also felt iparably good that the struggling young man who had to bring down his pride just to ask for a single rejected bread finally grew up into such a fine young man...


    Reynaldo walked towards the shelves of the bakery. And there, he took a ss and filled it with whiskey that he slowly savored as he waited for the passage of time...


    But then, his phone''s ringtone suddenly rang out.


    He took his phone out and what he saw gave him the shock of his life.


    [ount 000002301XXXX has sent you $200,000]


    [Note: Like a father, you provided for me when I needed it. Now, like a son. It is my turn to help you while you''re in need... Use this money wisely Kuya Reynolds! Don''t go cockfighting or use this money to buy a lot of alcohol! Hopefully, if God really does exist, I sincerely wish that he extends your life...]


    After recovering from his shock, Reynaldo lightly chuckled: "That sphemous brat."

 Chapter 5: Back in Victory

    Chapter 5: Back in Victory


    After Joseph paid his utility bills for several months in advance. He then shopped for groceries and made sure that he had enough food tost him until next month since he ced all of his remaining money inside a high-yield savings ount that he couldn''t withdraw from until next month.


    Joseph didn''t mind it. After all, the annual interest rate was at 4%. But of course, Joseph only did these after making sure that he wouldn''t starve before next month arrived.


    When Joseph moved upstairs and saw the closed door of the bedroom where both his parents used to live in...


    A small smile lifted on his face as whispered into the air: "Mother, Father... I disappointed you in these recent years. But now, now that I have Victory. I will earn lots and lots of money so that the two of you can be proud of me as your son."


    He bowed his head for a moment before returning back to his room where he saw the dozens of post-it notes that he had on his walls about the final boss of the Festival of Battles.


    "Hahaha, I really didn''t expect that I would be this dedicated towards that boss." He lightlyughed. Joseph frequently had everything handed over to him without any effort on his part when he was still a young boy. He always thought that if he just waited, everything would fall into hisp.


    But the tragedy that happened three years ago told him otherwise. It gave him a hard lesson that without effort, and sacrifice. Nothing could be achieved.


    Staring at post-it notes. He contemted removing them all. But in the end, he decided on keeping those post-it notes as a memento of his struggles against the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    [You arrived at the City of Reinhardt, capital of the Kingdom of Nether.]


    [You are in an area where the average yer level is at least a hundred levels higher than yours.]


    [You are despised by everyone thanks to your weakness.]


    [NPCs will openly mock you and some may not even acknowledge your presence.]


    When Joseph opened his eyes, a bitter smile emerged on his face when he saw these system notifications.


    When Joseph purchased a Gaming Capsule and entered the world of Victory. He did all of these because he wanted to win the Festival of Battles and acquire the million dors.


    But whenever someone wanted to join the Festival of Battles, they couldn''t do anything other than to move to a nearby city and for Joseph, it was the Capital City Reinhardt. Unfortunately for Joseph who had no time to waste on leveling-up. He had to move towards the Capital City as a Level 1.


    Joseph was sure that his level was the reason why he was hated by everyone. Yes, Joseph knew that everyone in this City hated him. Even the coachman that he hired just so he could enter the City of Reinhardt charged him three times higher than the market price.


    Joseph sighed and erased all unnecessary thoughts. The first thing that he should do was find a way of returning back to one of the Beginner Viges.


    He couldn''t possibly defeat any monster within the outskirts of this City. After all, there was a real reason why the Beginner Vige was called the Beginner Vige in the first ce.


    Joseph finally moved from his initial location and surveyed the area. At the northern entrance of the City. There were a bunch of coachmen with their carriages in a line while hawking their services towards NPCs and yers alike.


    Joseph approached one of the coachmen, but before he could even open his mouth to speak. The coachman stared at him with cold eyes and clear disgust as if he was staring at utter garbage before he said.


    "Get out of my face, trash."


    "Ah, I''m sorry... I''m sorry..."


    Joseph froze in his tracks before he repeatedly apologized. He inwardly cursed the coachman in his heart, but he knew that he had no other choice but to move away and try another coachman. After all, Joseph didn''t know about what would happen to him if he offended an NPC at his caliber.


    He deeply sighed and moved away from the coachmen.


    Just as he turned his body around, he was suddenly thrown towards the ground.


    "What the fuck!?" Joseph cried out and he hurriedly stood up. Scanning his gaze around the area, he found a young boy that looked to be at the age of ten staring at him with disdain.


    "I didn''t expect that someone as weak as you mister would dare to enter the City of Reinhardt. Even my cat is stronger than you..." The young boy sneered before petting the cat that he had in his bosom.


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed, ''Are NPCs this goddamned rude nowadays?'' He stared right into the cat who growled at him in return. When this happened, the level of the cat in the bosom of the young boy popped up and Joseph felt shaken about what he saw.


    [Cat Alexander - Level ???]


    What are those question marks? At first, Joseph didn''t know that answer to that question. But with his two months-long experience in the City of Reinhardt. Those question marks only meant one thing if they were located beside the word "Level".


    The level of that particr NPC or yer was at least ten levels higher than him. In short, even the cat had a level that was higher than Level 10!


    "Impossible..." Joseph fell to his knees. Now, he was thoroughly scared of the Capital City Reinhardt.


    He was scared of this City back when he first arrived here...


    But this was the first time that he was thoroughly shocked.


    How ridiculous was this? Even a domesticated house cat was at least Level 10 above?


    Joseph fell into a trance-like state as he contemted his chances of returning back to the Beginner Vige. He had the money, but his money wasn''t enough to the extent that he could pay three times the average market price of renting a carriage.


    "Ah, fuck it... I guess I''m stuck..." Joseph inwardly cursed, he reeled too much on his misfortune that he didn''t notice themotion happening around him.


    "Oh, isn''t that the Great Magician Lilibeth?"


    "Wait, let me skip the line and I''ll give you five copper coins. It''s an honor that I can have the chance of carrying such a Great Magician in my carriage."


    "Fuck you! Even money will not let you skip the line and give you that honor! I came first so I am first!"


    "Wait, why is she going towards that trash?"


    The coachmen didn''t expect that the Great Magician Lilibeth would instead approach Joseph that had his knees on the ground like a beggar.


    "What are you doing, kneeling on the ground like that?" Her voice sounded cold as ever. But when Joseph heard this voice, he quickly suffered a Vietnamese shback as he shot up and stood straight.


    "Great Magician Lilibeth!" He cried out and Lilibeth stared at him in amusement.


    "What were you doing? Is that some kind of meditation?" She said in a distant manner, yet Joseph felt like he could feel the sarcasm within her words.


    But just as he was about to reply, the coachman who mocked Joseph earlier suddenly spoke up.


    "Great Magician Lilibeth! I will be your coachman for today, it is my honor that someone like me can have the chance of carrying such a great person like you towards your destination."


    Joseph stared at the coachman and he couldn''t see the mocking and disdain that the coachman had for Joseph earlier, in fact. His attitude changed too much that Joseph doubted his eyes.


    "Is this the power of levels?" He mumbled to himself.


    "You haven''t answered me yet, why were you kneeling on the ground?" The Great Magician Lilibeth didn''t even spare the coachman a nce. She just stared right into Joseph as if she wanted to see through his mind and body.


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. His mind quickly spun as the spectating yers around the area sneered in disdain.


    "Look at him acting in a fluster in front of that beautiful NPC."


    "Hahaha, a toad lusting after swan meat?"


    "Who knows? All I know is that what''s happening is kind of amusing so I''ll continue on watching."


    "Hahaha, yeah right."


    After a short moment of contemtion. Joseph finally found a n and his expression turned solemn. He stared right into the cold maiden''s eyes before saying.


    "I kneeled and prayed to the gods so that we could meet and see each other onest time before fate separates us again..."


    Before the Great Magician Lilibeth could react. Laughter erupted in the surroundings as the spectating yers couldn''t help butugh out loud when they heard what Joseph said.


    "Pffft~!"


    "Holy shit, that''s cringey as fuck!"


    "What in the..."


    "Did he really say that?! Lmao!"


    But despite their tant mocking...


    Joseph''s expression remained determined, while the Great Magician Lilibeth now stared right into his eyes.


    "Ready the cameras! We''re gonna capture the spectacr ping from a Great Magician NPC!"


    "Okay, wait, wait, wait. This is gonna be a hit!"


    "Are you guys serious?"


    "Of course, we are! It wouldn''t be a problem since that bastard right there obviously has a problem with his brain. He cannot possibly sue us all since I doubt that he could evenprehend the word ''sue''."


    ""


    But the reply that the Great Magician Lilibeth said, baffled everyone.


    "You''re strange... You are saying those words as if you''re proposing to me, but I cannot feel any desiresing out of your eyes..." Her cold expression finally had some cracks, while her eyes shed in amusement and interest.


    "Wait, you are clearly in desire for something... But it''s not my body... Interesting, you remind me of someone." She said before turning around and walking towards the direction of the coachmen.


    "Wait!"


    Joseph screamed, he had to take advantage of the opportunity in front of him as he once again cried out loud: "Great Magician Lilibeth, please take me with you!"


    His scream pierced through the skies.


    Normally, one would be amused if they witnessed someone saying these words. But towards Joseph whom everyone thought that was as weak as an ant. The NPC in the surroundings looked like they would beat up Joseph if not for the presence of Lilibeth.


    "Damn this is bad, if she ends up not taking me away from here then I may get beaten up by these crazy bastards..." Joseph felt the killing intent of the surrounding NPCs. He nced at the side and found that even the cat that had the name of Alexander stared at him with malicious intent.


    The Great Magician Lilibeth stopped in her tracks. But she didn''t even turn around as she replied.


    "If that''s what you want then follow me. As someone who managed to defeat me in the Festival of Battles, I am quite interested in your skills." She then continued walking towards the coachman who first offered his services towards her.


    "Wait, Festival of Battles? Holy shit! That mental bastard is the Madman of the Festival of Battles?! No wonder that he had the balls on asking out an NPC at the level of a Great Magician!"


    "What in the actual heavens... I didn''t expect that."


    "Yeah man, like what the... In the first ce, why would someone as strong as him look like a beggar on the streets."


    "Maybe he did it on purpose so that he could eat the pig by pretending to be a sheep."


    "Then who are the pigs..."


    "It should be... us?"


    Silence ensued.


    "Well, I can only admit that he really did us dirty right there..."


    The spectating yers simultaneously said before they turned around and left the area.


    On the other hand, Joseph cried out once again.


    "Wait!"


    "What is it?" Lilibeth stopped in her tracks again.


    "Can we not board the carriage of that coachman?"


    "Wha... You... How petty..." The coachman couldn''t help but speak up and re at Joseph.


    "How petty? My attitude depends on how you treat me. Since you treated me with disdain earlier. Why would I respect you?" Joseph sneered at the coachman before running towards Lilibeth who nodded her head and boarded the carriage that was second-in-line.


    "By the way Ma''am Great Magician, where are we going?" When the carriage was finally moving, Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    "Well, where do you want to go?"


    "I want to go to the Begin- ah no. The Vige of Baguhan." The NPCs referred to the Beginner Vige as the Vige of Baguhan.


    The Great Magician Lilibeth frowned and she replied: "Why do you want to go to such a remote ce? Going to that ce will only inhibit your growth!"


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock for a moment before his shock turned into excitement when he saw the hidden meaning behind the Great Magician Lilibeth''s words.


    "Then, does Ma''am Great Magician have a rmended ce that I could go into so that I could further improve my skills?"


    She stared at Joseph with a frown before saying: "Leave out the Ma''am Great Magician. Just call me Lily, you are someone that defeated me in the Festival of Battles. I do not deserve such an honor of being called like that by you."


    Joseph froze for a moment before smiling: "I will never let her learn the truth about how many times I had to challenge her before I managed to defeat her..." He inwardly swore.


    "Okay, Lily..." When these words came out of Joseph''s mouth. The Great Magician Lilibeth trembled for a moment before shifting her head away towards the side.


    "What ce does Lily rmend that I go so I can further improve my skills?" Joseph continued, but when he saw that the Great Magician Lilibeth was acting in a strange manner. He couldn''t help but slowly ask...


    "Ermmm, could it be that Lily''s embarrassed of being called as Lily?" Every time that the word "Lily" came out of Joseph''s mouth, the Great Magician Lilibeth''s shoulders visibly trembled. If that wasn''t embarrassment, then what was it?


    "Quit speaking nonsense!" A cold and unfeeling aura burst from Lilibeth''s body.


    "..." Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva in astonishment.


    But before he could apologize, Lilibeth spoke once again.


    "It''s the Divine Sword Sect! You should go to the Divine Sword Sect! That ce suits you the best. Find a drunkard called Juzo, tell him that I sent you there and he will lead you the way."


    When she finished her sentence, a bunch of system notifications suddenly appeared before Joseph.


    [The Great Magician''s Rmendation]


    Quest Difficulty: F


    You caught the attention of the Great Magician Lilibeth. She rmends that you go towards the Divine Sword Sect and present yourself to Juzo, who will lead you the way once he knew that you came due to the Great Magician''s Rmendation.


    Quest Clear Conditions: Present yourself to Juzo.


    Quest Rewards: Be a disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. A status envied by everyone.


    (Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect) - Everyone, includingmoners and nobles, would be amicable towards you. It will be easier for you to find jobs and your affinity with some members of royalty and specificmoners would rise.


    Quest Failure: Kicked out of the Divine Sword Sect.


    You are no longer able to enter the Divine Sword Sect.


    Any disciple of the Divine Sword Sect will be disgusted at you and openly mock you.]

 Chapter 6: Infinite Regret

    Chapter 6: Infinite Regret


    The Divine Sword Sect located at the center of the Kingdom of Nether looked out of ce. This was what Joseph thought when he saw that there stood a huge mountain at the center of the kingdom. Everything within the mountain and around its base belonged to the Divine Sword Sect.


    Apart from the huge gate that surrounded the entire mountain, one would think that there was nothing special within the mountain since Joseph could only see a bunch of trees beyond the gate. He couldn''t see any building or something that would specify that the area was inhabited.


    "Lily, where is the Divine Sword Sect?" Joseph asked and Lilibeth turned to look at him as if she was saying: "How are you so natural on calling me as Lily, don''t you feel embarrassed?" But in the end, she maintained her cold look as she replied.


    "Don''t be fooled, you will understand everything once you get inside." She said before handing over a letter to Joseph.


    "If that drunkard Juzo doesn''t believe what you said, then show him this letter."


    Joseph received the letter.


    [The Great Magician''s Letter of Rmendation]


    Show this letter to anyone that doubts you within the Divine Sword Sect and they will instantly trust your words


    (Note: You must not casually take advantage of this letter, you must act in a manner that wouldn''t bring shame to the name of the Great Magician!)]


    "Take care now... I don''t know when we will meet each other again, but when we do meet once again. I hope that you will be stronger than you are today." Lily snapped her middle and index finger together and Joseph''s scenery rapidly changed.


    When he realized what happened, he found himself standing before the gates of the Divine Sword Sect.


    The world of Victory was harsh and ever-changing. There was no such thing like customer service in this game so yers must move using their ownmon sense and adapt ording to the changes happening in the world.


    yers weren''t the only ones that had the capability of changing the world.


    The NPCs also had those capabilities, such as the King of a Kingdom or a powerful Supreme Magician. They had the power to change the world, and yers had to adapt to those changes. One of those changes were the existence of Sects.


    Back when Victory was first established two years ago. These sects didn''t exist and the Kingdom of Nether unified the entire continent under its banner. But due to wars and the actions of powerful NPCs...


    Everything changed, two more Kingdoms were born and Sects governed by godly NPCs were established.


    One of them was the Divine Sword Sect. yers that possessed the Mercenary Main ss often registered themselves as members of the Divine Sword Sect. It was because each of the four main sses only gave the basics of skills necessary for a mercenary.


    If yers wanted to acquire other skills, or if they wanted to expand their skill tree. They needed the help of skill books, or the acquisition of a second-ss.


    There were four main sses in Victory. These main sses only established the foundation of a yer''s path. It never determined the path of the yers. Since Victory pursued realism, it had a vast number of second-sses avable to the general public.


    Even the developers of the game itself weren''t so sure about the number of second-sses avable in the game for the yers. Only the Supeputer Noah who regted the entire world knew about the answer.


    Of course, even though realism was the strong point of Victory, it was still a game in the end.


    And since a game was meant to be enjoyed. The barrier in utilizing sses wasn''t set so high so that people could still enjoy the game properly without sacrificing precious time on understanding their second-sses.


    Joseph had the Mercenary Main ss, and so. It was just right that he entered the Divine Sword Sect. But the problem was that most yers that entered the Divine Sword Sect were at least Level 50. It was unthinkable that a Level 1 could enter the vicinity of the Divine Sword Sect.


    Thankfully, the coast remained clear as Joseph studied the terrain of the Divine Sword Sect. But this tranquility onlysted for a few minutes before a disciple of the Divine Sword Sect spotted him.


    "Hey kid, what are you doing here?"


    Joseph trembled in shock and nervousness. He kept his footsteps silent and he hung his head low and even used the surroundings so that he could hide his body from the passing disciples.


    But in the end, the capabilities of the disciples of the Divine Sword Sect exceeded his expectations and a disciple spotted him in just a few minutes.


    "This disciple greets Senior Brother. I am just exercising." Joseph eyed the youth and found that a green inverted triangle was floating above his head. It was a sign that the young man was an NPC.


    d in white with a sword on his waist, the youth really looked like the perfect example of a Sect Disciple that Joseph frequently found within the wuxia and xianxia books that he read back then.


    Since Joseph had a lot of experience regarding Sects due to the books that he read, he also knew how to properly send his greetings.


    "You''re lying."


    The Sect Disciple said and Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. Since he was just at Level 1. It was impossible for him to defeat or escape from the lowest Sect Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect.


    "Why is Senior Brother saying that I am lying? I''m really exercising..." Joseph even made a live demonstration in front of the Sect Disciple by moving his waist in circles and doing some jumping jacks.


    "You''re not a Disciple of my Divine Sword Sect, just how did you enter here, you thief!" The Sect Disciple suddenly unsheathed his sword and red right at Joseph.


    "Wait, calm down. Violence cannot solve everything and I also have this!" Joseph took the Rmendation Letter that Lilibeth gave to him and handed it over to the Sect Disciple.


    "Oh, you''re someone that the honorable Great Magician rmends? Why did you not show me this earlier? Dang it, I apologize for what I did fellow brother." The Sect Disciple''s attitude suddenly turned around and he now acted amiably towards Joseph.


    "That''s not a problem, brother. We''re all civilized people in here after all."


    "Yeah, right. But I think that you must definitely show that letter immediately towards those that doubt your abilities or those that are causing any problems against you. In that way, we could avoid the possible offense of sacrilege against the Great Magician and we would have another friend too!"


    Joseph felt strange about the sudden change in attitude, but he took the letter back from the Sect Disciple before he said: "Can you help and guide me over to Juzo, brother? Li- ah, the Great Magician told me that I must meet him once I arrive at the Divine Sword Sect."


    The Sect Disciple nodded his head with a smile: "That is not a problem. This way, brother."


    Joseph sincerely thanked the Sect Disciple. Now that he had a guide, he finally didn''t have to act so low-key and move slowly around the Divine Sword Sect.


    He even found that the Sect Disciple who intercepted him earlier actually had some status within the Sect, since those who met him bowed their heads and made a road for the two of them to use as they went deeper into the mountain of the Divine Sword Sect.


    In just a few minutes, the two of them arrived before the humble abode of Juzo.


    "Wow, this strong smell of alcohol is..." Joseph frowned when he noticed the strong smelling out of Juzo''s house.


    "Elder Juzo, someone that the Great Magician rmends is here to meet you!" The Sect Disciple cried out before disappearing without even saying his farewell towards Joseph.


    "Huh?! Someone that the Great Magician rmends? In that case, that bastard should be strong, eh?" Deep and loud footsteps echoed within the house. The footsteps were so heavy that Joseph could feel the earth underneath him shaking every time those footsteps rang out.


    When the figure within the house finally revealed himself, the strong smell of unrefined alcohol intensified to the extent that Joseph had to step back.


    "Is that a person?" Joseph thought to himself when he saw the gigantic figure of Juzo. The gigantic and fatty Juzo still had a jug of alcohol on his hand while his free hand held his gigantic greatsword.


    "You''re the one that the Great Magician rmends? In that case, show me that you''re worthy of her rmendation!"


    [The Great Magician''s Rmendation''s difficulty is updated from (F) to (SS)]


    [The Great Magician''s Rmendation]


    Quest Difficulty: SS


    You caught the attention of the Great Magician Lilibeth. She rmends that you go towards the Divine Sword Sect and present yourself to Juzo, who will lead you the way once he knew that you came due to the Great Magician''s Rmendation.


    Quest Clear Conditions: Be acknowledged by Juzo.


    Juzo, the renowned good for nothing and drunkard of the Divine Sword Sect. Although despised by everyone, his skills are the real deal. He may look brash and tough, but his heart is made of cotton and easily moved.


    Quest Rewards: Be a disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. A status envied by everyone.


    (Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect) - Everyone, includingmoners and nobles would be amiable towards you. It will be easier for you to find jobs and your affinity with some members of royalty and specificmoners would rise.


    Quest Failure: Kicked out of the Divine Sword Sect.


    You are no longer able to enter the Divine Sword Sect.


    Any disciple of the Divine Sword Sect will be disgusted at you and openly mock you.]


    "Be recognized by Juzo, this fatty is Juzo?!" Joseph stared at the gigantic fatty and found at least threeadditional Health Bars under Juzo''s current Health Bar.


    In short, this monster of an NPC had four Health Bars in total!


    Inparison, the Great Magician in the Festival of Battles didn''t have that much Health Bars!


    "Damn that Great Magician, she sent me to my death!" Joseph resigned to his fate and just closed his eyes. He didn''t think that being a disciple of the Divine Sword Sect was worth his efforts.


    After all, Victory didn''t only revolve around Sects.


    In this world, you could be whatever you wanted.


    Why would you restrict yourself to some Sect?


    Bang!


    [Your Health has dropped to the minimum. Death is impossible in Duel Mode.]


    [You failed the Quest: The Great Magician''s Rmendation.]


    [The Divine Sword Sect is now hostile to you]


    [You are kicked out of the Divine Sword Sect]


    [You lost the Item, "The Great Magician''s Letter of Rmendation."]


    [Aspensation for losing an item of great value. You are given a random item in return.]


    [Acquired: Juzo''s Favorite and Beloved Jug of Beer~]


    When Joseph opened his eyes, he found himself standing before the gates of the Divine Sword Sect. Bitterly smiling, he turned around and walked away in anger. He swore to himself that he would never associate himself with these crazy bastards from the Divine Sword Sect that wouldn''t even wait until someone gave them an exnation about something.


    "Directly attacking someone that didn''t even challenge you, does that even make sense?" Joseph wanted to cry but no tears came out of his eyes. Only bitterness and anger lingered in his heart as he slowly made his way, away from the Divine Sword Sect, afraid that the hostile disciples of the Divine Sword Sect may stumble upon him.


    But inside the Divine Sword Sect...


    When Joseph died, he dropped a letter that Juzo picked up and opened.


    [Juzo, the bearer of this letter is someone that I rmend to you as the sessor of that style of yours. After all, I know that you don''t have much time left...]


    [Right now, he''s weak and maybe timid. But if he knew that he had a sliver of chance on seeding in something. This kid''s determination is unbelievably vast. Take care of him and train him well.]


    Juzo violently tore the letter open as he screamed out loud in anger and frustration.


    "Why did you not show me this letter as soon as possible when you arrived?!" His shout rang throughout the entire Divine Sword Sect and afterwards. Juzo''s gigantic figure turned into a blur.


    He rapidly dashed towards the direction of the gates of the Divine Sword Sect, but when he arrived. Joseph wasn''t there anymore.


    Infinite regret filled his heart...

 Chapter 7: Earning Money

    Chapter 7: Earning Money


    Ray Gabriel, one of the scientists who led the creation of Victory observed Joseph whenever Joseph was online. But why Joseph, you say?


    It was because Joseph was amusing...


    He was only Level 1, yet he made connections with a Great Magician that had an interesting past.


    "Oh, so now he''s in the Divine Sword Sect? He has the rmendation letter of the Great Magician Lilibeth so he''s guaranteed to be epted."


    "Now he''s in front of Juzo, the drunkard. Okay, show him the rmendation letter. That rmendation letter is one of a kind since it contains the personal request of the Great Magician. If Juzo reads that letter then you''re in luck."


    "Wait, why are you closing your eyes? Give him the rmendation letter! Hey, retard! Why are you... Ah, now he''s dead..."


    Ray Gabriel was frustrated. But now that he saw everything that happened today. He finally confirmed that the hidden quest wasn''t really fated for Joseph. If not for that then his misfortune of getting kicked out from the Divine Sword Sect and acquiring their hostility wouldn''t happen.


    "Ah, what a poor guy." Ray Gabriel shook his head and stopped his surveince. Since Joseph failed the quest that the Great Magician Lilibeth bestowed onto him. It''s now impossible for him to continue on the path of that hidden quest anymore.


    In other words, Ray Gabriel lost his interest on Joseph. He finally concentrated on his work and didn''t bother about Joseph anymore whom he thought wasn''t fated towards that quest...


    Inside Victory, Joseph was finally back at the Capital of the Kingdom of Nether.


    However, aside from being too exhausted from walking back to the Capital since the Divine Sword Sect was located a few kilometers away from the Capital City of Nether. Nothing really changed.


    Joseph still earned the mocking of every NPC. Even the entrance guards didn''t allow him inside the Capital. He only managed to get inside the City by hiding himself among the crowd.


    But now he was back at square one. How could he get to the Beginner Vige? He had no money. He could use his money from the outside world on buying money here in Victory. But all of his money was inside his high-yield savings ount and he''s prohibited to withdraw from it until next month.


    "I must earn money!" Joseph concluded. At three times the average market price. He must have at least ten copper coins or a single silver coin so that a coachman would help him towards his destination. But why won''t he just walk towards the Beginner Vige?


    Well, it was the issue of monsters. Monsters ruthlessly attacked anyone that wasn''t inside carriages that had Monster-Repelling Runes stuck on them. Apart from that, bandits often patrol the area for any stupid yer or NPC that they could kill and steal from.


    It wasn''t really a problem for Joseph to walk his way towards the Beginner Vige. Only if he wasn''t at Level 1.


    At Level 1, a yer''s stats were too low that a single punch from a random bandit could probably kill them in an instant.


    "But how do I earn money?" Hismon sense told him that to earn money, he must provide his services or sell something towards someone that would pay for it. But his affinity towards the NPCs in this area was at the lowest, and he doubted that a yer would take his words seriously.


    If Joseph wanted to sell something... He needed capital so that he could produce whatever goods he wanted to sell.


    But since Joseph didn''t have any money right now, how could he produce goods that he could sell to other yers?


    ''Something that doesn''t require capital to make yet sells like pancakes...'' Joseph thought to himself before his eyes shed with excitement. "I do have something like that!"


    Joseph eximed before he hurriedly went towards the Central Square of the City.


    The Central Square of the City could be considered as a huge local market. But, instead of NPCs. Only yers sold their merchandise in here. But of course, everything could be sold here. Everything that has value to someone could be sold, even a handful of sand or you name it.


    Every six hours of Victory, an hour would pass in the outside world. In short, right now it was night time and night time meant that the number of yers online and ying Victory was at the peak.


    Joseph scouted the area and he stood near the entrance of the Central Square of Reinhardt. After this, Joseph went into the forums and typed in some information about what he was selling.


    In just a short moment, a yer approached him and said.


    "Are you the Madman of the Festival of Battles?" The yer that approached him wore a straw hat. His ID was hidden since Victory automatically concealed the IDs of those yers with their faces covered.


    Joseph didn''t mind this. He simply replied: "Yes, that''s me. Are you from the forums? Interested in the hidden quest given by the Great Magician Lilibeth to me?"


    "Yeah, but you are asking too much. A hundred gold just for a piece of unverified information? Are you kidding me?" The yer said. Joseph merely shrugged and said.


    "Brother, I wrote at the forums that the quest isn''t just a simple quest. The quest that was given to me by the Great Magician Lilibeth should be a hidden quest."


    "A hidden quest?" The yer''s interest was piqued.


    "Yes, a hidden quest." Joseph''s smile intensified.


    "Then why did you not keep it to yourself? I doubt that you would sell that kind of information to everyone." The yer doubted.


    Joseph stared at him. After pressing some buttons in his Settings Tab located at the Main Menu of the game. Joseph''s level popped up above his head.


    "You... You''re a Level 1? How did you defeat the Great Magician Lilibeth?!" The yer was thoroughly shocked.


    "Calm down, calm down. Did you forget that the Festival of Battles had Equipment Disparity Compensation? In other words, it doesn''t matter what equipment I wore, we would still be even..."


    After Joseph''s exnation, the yer visibly calmed down. But then he asked once again.


    "How is that connected to the reason why you are selling information about that quest?"


    "Well, It is because that quest required me to fight something that a mere Level 1 cannot possibly defeat. That''s the reason."


    "Wait, you need to fight against someone?"


    "Of course, did you think that a hidden quest would be so easy?"


    "And then, who did you fight? Are they strong?" The yer continued asking.


    But Joseph now had a frown on his face as he replied...


    "I already gave you an inch, now you want a mile? You cannot bait me into giving you further information than that. Now, decide if you want to buy theplete information or not."


    The yer hesitated. A hundred gold for a piece of information about a hidden quest wasn''t expensive for someone like him. However, it wasn''t also cheap.


    After all, the yer couldn''t properly determine the worth of the information just by Joseph''s words. It would be pretty stupid if he just paid money for a piece of information that wasn''t even guaranteed.


    Joseph could sense the hesitation within the yer and he couldn''t help but shake his head.


    Of course, he knew that the information that he was selling was quite expensive among the unverified information sold within the forums. But Joseph believed that once the information that he had was verified, the value of the information would soar.


    But in that case, selling the information that he had would be meaningless since a lot of yers would have acquired the information that they needed from other secondary sources of information by then.


    That was why Joseph had to gamble, gamble that yers were greedier than he expected and they would bite at the carrot that Joseph had which was called, "hidden quest".


    A hidden quest in the world of Victory didn''t guarantee bountiful rewards.


    Some hidden quest granted trash rewards, but most of them granted rewards that any yer didn''t regret acquiring. That''s the reason why Joseph had a higher than fifty percent chance of seeding on selling more of his information if just a single yer bit his carrot.


    Through that yer''s testament, people would believe him easier than the first time.


    "I can see that you''re hesitating. But how about this? Give me half the amount and once you confirmed the legitimacy of the information then you can give me the other half." Joseph said and the yer''s hesitation finally disappeared.


    But still, the yer couldn''t help but ask.


    "What if I didn''t give you the other half after verifying the information?"


    "Well, in that case... Forget about receiving further valuable information from me." Joseph''s smile turned sly and the yer finally gave up.


    He felt that Joseph was really cunning. If he confirmed the legitimacy of Joseph''s information, then he would''ve established himself as a reliable source of information. In that case, if he reneged with his promise with Joseph, it would make him lose out in the future.


    After the first yer bit his carrot and after Joseph acquired that yer''s testimony. His business significantly boomed for that day and in the end. Joseph acquired five hundred gold coins in pure profit.


    On that same day too, the Divine Sword Sect was thrown into a turmoil...


    A bunch of yers suddenly appeared in their Sect shouting that they were rmended by the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    Juzo heard what was going on, and he promptly smacked down those bastards acting like they were genuinely rmended by Lilibeth.


    Unfortunately, those yers never gave up...


    Using their curse of Immortality, the yers returned from the grave and repeatedly caused a ruckus in the Divine Sword Sect saying that they were rmended by the Great Magician Lilibeth and Juzo should honor the Great Magician''s rmendation.


    "Just who the fuck are these bastards?! How do they know my connection to the Great Magician Lilibeth? If this continues, I''ll be fucking kicked out of the Sect because of the disturbance that these cursed bastards are doing!" NPCs referred to yers as cursed beings.


    They referred to the act of respawning as the Curse of Immortality. Not aging, fated to live forever and seeing their loved ones die one after another. If that wasn''t a curse, then what was it?


    But that wasn''t the point of Juzo''s anger for today. He was angry because the yers kept on disturbing his rest and drinking with the mindset that Juzo would eventually give them their hidden quest if they just kept on pestering him.


    However, that wasn''t the only basis why they kept on pestering him.


    It was also because of a particr system notification that they received when they first arrived at the Divine Sword Sect and shouted that they were rmended by the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    [The Great Magician''s so-called Rmendation]


    Quest Difficulty: F


    You heard from a reliable source that something special will happen once you inform Juzo, the famous Drunkard of the Divine Sword Sect that you were rmended by the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    Quest Clear Conditions: Be acknowledged by Juzo.


    Juzo, the renowned good for nothing and drunkard of the Divine Sword Sect. Although despised by everyone, his skills cannot be underestimated. He may look brash and crude. His heart is made of cotton and easily moved.


    Quest Rewards: ???


    Quest Failure: Nothing.]


    A quest that had clear sess conditions and had no repercussions when failing. It was the perfect quest! And looking at the difficulty of the quest.


    As long as they keep being persistent, they knew from their experience that the rewards that they wanted wereing for them soon...


    In the end, after six hours of Victory-time. Juzo finally gave up and acknowledged everyone.


    "Since all of you bastards are so persistent, then I will give up..."


    "Okay, I will now hand over to each and every one of you all the alcohol jugs that I kept inside my room! You bastards take care of them and don''t sell them to others, ya hear me?! Only those acknowledged by me, Juzo should have permission to drink them!"


    The yers excitedly stood up and received the jugs of alcohol from Juzo. But when they appraised the jugs of alcohol that they received. Their bodies trembled in anger...


    [Youpleted the Quest: The Great Magician''s so-called Rmendation!]


    [Acquired Juzo''s Favorite and Beloved Jug of Beer~]


    [Juzo''s Favorite and Beloved Jug of Beer~


    Juzo of the Divine Sword Sect loves randomly drinking a jug or two of this fine beer. Made from the malt of barley, a crop considered as a staple in the Kingdom of Nether. It has a nice bitter taste and sweetness that could make anyone forget about their problems!


    Unique Effect: Intoxication.]


    "That sham... We must find that bastard con-man!" They simultaneously cursed at Joseph.

 Chapter 8: Beginner Village

    Chapter 8: Beginner Vige


    A single copper coin equaled a single US Dor. Ten copper coins equaled a single silver coin, while ten silver coins made up a single gold coin...


    In other words, the value of a single gold coin was a hundred dors. This meant that the five hundred gold coins that Joseph acquired had a tremendous amount when converted to US Dors.


    "Damn, I never thought that earning money was this easy..." Joseph lightly chuckled. He approached a nearby coachman who frowned and said to him: "We don''t ept beggars as customers. Please get away from us."


    "Oh? You don''t ept beggars as customers? What if that beggar had this?" Joseph flicked his wrist and he threw a gold coin towards the coachman. He didn''t bother haggling for his time was more precious than a few silver and copper coins.


    He must get back into the Beginner Vige as fast as possible and raise his levels so that NPCs within these big cities wouldn''t be so hostile to him like now.


    [Coachman Juander''s affinity towards you has increased!]


    "I am at your service, sir!" Coachman Juander bowed his head and Joseph felt astonished when he saw the system notification floating before him: "Money can raise an NPC''s affinity?" Joseph nced at Coachman Juander and when he saw the light of greed and delight within the NPC''s eyes.


    He sighed and thought to himself...


    "I think this method only works towards greedy NPCs."


    Nevertheless, such a piece of information made Joseph d. Though his happiness would certainly diminish if he knew that such a method of raising an NPC''s affinity with you existed a long time ago.


    Joseph enlisted the service of a coachman and he arrived quickly at the Vige of Baguhan, or also known as the Beginner Vige among the yers.


    When Joseph arrived at the Beginner Vige. He found a lot of yers within the area. Not only that, since Victory was a world-renowned game...


    Some, if not most of the yers within the Beginner Vige were foreigners. Others looked like Westerners and Middle Easterners, while some definitely had the blood of Asians within their veins.


    Victory boasted of realism. Although one could change how they looked like within the game. Their looks would still somewhat resemble what they looked like in reality. Also, if one was a male in real life. They could only y male characters within Victory.


    Joseph swept his gaze around and found some yers surrounding an NPC. When one of them inappropriately touched the female NPC. That yer suddenly disappeared into thin air, which caused a great amount of shock to his colleagues.


    "Hahaha, those stupid bastards. Every NPC is protected by an anti-harassment system. One cannot simply just grab them by the ass and call it a day."


    Joseph chuckled, before moving his way towards the Vige Chief.


    When he arrived at the Vige Chief. He opened his [Beginner''s Manual] and flipped it to a page that contained some information about how you could coax an NPC on giving you a quest.


    Joseph quickly found a line among the dozens of lines listed within the Manual on coaxing an NPC. He approached the Vige Chief and said: "Ah~ Vige Chief of the Vige of Baguhan... I can see that there is something in your mind, are you perhaps willing to share such worries to a stranger like me?"


    "Ugh..." Joseph inwardly cringed when he finished the sentence. He didn''t really want to say those lines, but since it was rmended within the [Beginner''s Manual], saying that it had the highest rate of sess. Why would Joseph use other lines that had a higher chance of failing?


    As expected, the Vige Chief turned to look at him teary-eyed.


    "Ahh, yes... Recently, a bunch of wolves is stalking around the Vige and they are taking our livestock whenever we have our backs turned to them. Young man, I can see that you are quite strong. Will you be willing to help an old man like me and protect our vige from starvation?"


    [Who Let the Wolves Out?]


    Quest Difficulty: F


    You heard from the Vige Chief Rhode that the supply of livestock of the Beginner Vige is dwindling due to the fact that wolves are around the area and stalking the vige for their livestock. Kill those wolves and ease the Vige Chief''s worries about food!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Kill 0/20 Wolves


    Quest Rewards: Experience


    Quest Failure: Affinity with the Vige Chief will sink to the lowest. You will be mocked by everyone within the Beginner Vige. Probability of quest acquisition within the Beginner Vige will dramatically reduce.]


    Joseph quickly went his way towards the outskirts of the Beginner Vige. There he found that dozens of new yers were around the area fighting against some stray wolves. Some were even in a party, aggroing every wolf that they found before killing them at once for an explosion of Experience Points.


    Joseph couldn''t help but smile as he stepped outside the Beginner Vige. Ever since he bought the game, this would be the first time that he would get to thoroughly enjoy what the game has to offer. Now that he didn''tck money and wasn''t on the verge of getting kicked out from his home...


    Joseph could finally y the game and enjoy.


    "Yosh! Let''s do this shit!"


    Not even ten minutes into his ying with the doggos outside the Vige...


    "Bro, this is our spot. Can you go somewhere else?"


    [Author''s Note: Spot iming is pretty popr in MMORPG games. I have also been a victim by that when I was just a newbie in BDO :''( ]


    Joseph turned around and took a look at the area. He found that there were several stray wolves within the area and no yer had them engaged in a battle.


    "Seriously?" Joseph frowned.


    He didn''t even nce at the yer who stood behind him and he just kept on attacking and dodging the attacks of the wolf that he aggroed.


    "Wow, you are really a newbie. But in that case, seeing that you''re still quite ignorant. I''ll be your big brother and teach you some lessons in politeness." The yer''s voice turned cold and Joseph finally killed the wolf that he aggroed.


    "You''re going to teach me a lesson? How about I teach joe?" Joseph lightly chuckled and stared at the yer with derision.


    The yer frowned and said: "Joe?"


    "Joe mama!" Joseph''s figure moved and he thrust his sword at the yer when he finished his sentence. Shocked by the sudden esction of the situation. The yer didn''t manage to dodge the attack and he was struck at the chest by Joseph.


    "You... You stupid beginner..." The yer coughed a mouthful of blood. Indicating that Joseph''s attack at his chest, near his heart, inflicted some serious damage.


    Victory pursued realism as best as it could. Even if a yer was Level 1 and you were at Level 1000. If that yer managed on piercing your heart, then you would suffer heavy damage.


    "I''m stupid? Aren''t you the one that''s too arrogant? The surrounding area is so empty, yet you insist on kicking me out?"


    Joseph coldly replied.


    But the yer sneered and said: "I am saying that you''re stupid since you attacked me first! Now that your name is orange-colored. We will not suffer any consequences when we beat the hell out of you!"


    The yer jumped backward so that the sword stuck in his chest woulde out. Meanwhile, Joseph felt a shiver down his spine as he felt dangering from behind him. He quickly turned around and raised his sword before his chest, but before he could even block the iing attack...


    The yer behind him who retreated backward sneakily attacked Joseph from behind.


    [You have suffered 232 damage.]


    [You lost more or less half of your Health in an instant, causing shock and stiffness to your bodysting for a second.]


    A second of stiffness in a battlefield with numerous enemies equaled death. Joseph wasn''t an exception to that rule.


    [You suffered a lethal blow!]


    [You died!]


    When Joseph woke up back at the Central Square of the Beginner Vige. He found that he lost every Experience Points that he had umted from killing that wolf earlier. Thankfully, new yers were protected from item loss and level demotion when dying so Joseph didn''t lose any items when he died.


    However, the rage within his heart still burned as fierce as ever.


    He ran towards the Southern Entrance of the Beginner Vige and there he found that a lot of new yers were barred from exiting the Vige and leveling up.


    "Damn those bastards, they are too greedy... Monopolizing the entire leveling area and keeping us away just because they are in a group!"


    "Dang it, I can only level-up at this time of the day. I won''t have any time for levelingter, so I nned on taking advantage of this break to level myself up, but these bastards..."


    "They''re hateful! They''re too hateful!"


    Everyone wildly cursed, but none of them dared to take even half a step outside the Beginner Vige for fear of being killed and losing every Experience Points that they had umted while they farmed earlier.


    Joseph stared at these yers and an idea came up in his mind...


    He then loudly announced "Guys, how about we group up together and push those bastards away from the area? If we did that then peace would return and we can continue leveling-up at our own pace."


    But the yers self-mockinglyughed as one of them said: "Those bastards are not a bunch of beginners at all! Especially that bow-wielding guy right there, he''s too strong! Even though he doesn''t receive any Experience in this area. Just his presence is enough to keep us away from leveling-up..."


    Joseph stared at the distance and found a bow-wielding yer standing on a tree branch. A mocking smile could be seen on his lips as he stared at every yer within the Beginner Vige.


    Joseph''s rage burned even more fiercely than before. He moved deeper into the crowd and he eventually reached the edge of the Beginner Vige. But just as he was about to take a step outside. A yer caught his hand and prevented him from going outside.


    "Don''t go..."


    Joseph turned around and found that a female fellow yer was the one that prevented him from going out.


    "Why?" Joseph asked and she pointed at the distance.


    Joseph followed her hand and found that the bow-wielding yer now had an arrow pointed at him. He reckoned that the yer would attack even if he just took a single step outside.


    When Joseph saw this.


    He finally understood why these yers were so scared of going outside...


    But he still didn''t think that this was enough to make them cower in fear like that. He swept his gaze at the yers and said.


    "If you guys are too scared toe out and fight, then fine... But don''t stop me from fighting for my rights. Every yer has their rights. One of those rights is the right to ess a leveling area where a yer could develop his skills and be stronger..."


    "I don''t agree that we should cower in fear in front of them just because they are much stronger than us, and what basis do they have on keeping us away from the leveling area?"


    "Just because they are stronger? Hmmph, I don''t think so! One must remember that there''s always a mountain higher than oneself. They must also not forget that they were also a beginner back then..."


    "That is why I won''t let them continue this farce."


    Joseph turned to face the bastards keeping them away from the leveling area before he said: "But if you''re gonna ask me why I am going this far?" Joseph smiled and nced at the people behind him and continued: "It''s because I have nothing to lose!"


    He finally took a step outside and then..."


    Heok!


    An arrow urately struck his heart. The arrow flew in a trajectory that couldn''t be seen with a low-leveled yer''s naked eye.


    [You suffered a lethal blow!]


    "Guah!" Joseph spat a mouthful of blood and he stared daggers at the yer holding a bow at the distance.


    "It''s either you die, or I die!" He screamed, but then another arrow arrived and struck him right at his forehead. This time, he didn''t have the chance to scream for his body turned into light crystals that soon scattered into nothingness.


    [You died.]


    The yers within the Beginner Vige all looked at each other before nervouslyughing: "Well, I guess... I''ll juste back at ater time."


    "Yeah right..."


    Most of them logged-out of the game and decided that they would just return backter.


    Those that logged-out of the game also included the female yer that gave Joseph a warning earlier.


    [You died from the hands of Ray#2314, a yer from the guild Crimson]


    Back at the Central Square of the Beginner Vige. Joseph stared at the system notification floating in front of him in anger before he opened up the forums.

 Chapter 9: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

    Chapter 9: Borrowing a Knife to Kill


    A post appeared within the Forums of Victory.


    [Content Title: Shameless High-Leveled yers Bullying Newbies!


    I just bought this game and when I thought that I''d have a good time ying it, a bunch of yers from the guild Crimson is preventing us all from getting out of the Beginner Vige andpleting our quests.


    Is this how the yers from the Guild Crimson works? Do they have no shame? Did their parents die when they were young since they didn''t receive any lectures from them in manners? If not for the fact that I am just a low-leveled newbie I would''ve crushed them under my feet!


    But even though I am low-leveled and don''t have any capability of sending them away. There''s no way that I can just watch them doing all of these atrocities towards us low-leveled newbies that just want to enjoy the game!


    But how about you? Are you just going to watch and see the world burn? Come to the xx Beginner Vige and let''s push these bastards away so that justice will prevail!]


    Within thements...


    OmaeWaShindeiru answered: Holy shit? Is this true? Those bastards from Crimson are really going too far!


    Innocent Bunny Reinesse answered: I think that they are doing a paid taxi service? But to push every beginner away frompleting their quest just so they could efficientlyplete their taxi service is too much and hical!


    MotivatedSloth answered: As a member of the guild "Knights of Justice". This is something that I cannot just stand by and watch, even though my guild''s rtionship with Crimson isn''t so bad that we won''t kill each other at first sight. But man, this is really going too far...


    Shifty Daoist Mage answered: Oh yeah~ The Knights of Justice is here~ Will there be a fight? Wait for me~ I need to capture that fight, gather some viewers and earn dem moon balloons~


    Rianolinon answered: Ughhh, Shifty Daoist Mage is here... But anyways. That is definitely going too far. As someone that also has the alter ego that the OP has. I can''t just stand back and watch those bastards shamelessly bully newbies from the Beginner Vige. Although I don''t have any conflict with Crimson, as aw-abiding citizen. I can''t let this stand!


    Overlord_Venus answered: My Large Omitted is again, again, again, again, again, again, again, again unable to go down!


    xNurie answered: But OP, I didn''t expect that you would even mention their parents. Now that''s savagery right there on a whole new level!


    Joseph chuckled upon seeing theirments: "Yeah, everything is alling together..."


    He checked and found that the number ofments had already reached a thousandments. He slyly smiled and after depositing the money that he acquired from selling that information recently towards his high-yield savings ount...


    He finally returned to the game.


    Ray, the bow-wielding yer who attacked Joseph earlier was a yer of the Guild Crimson. He was at Level 103, this level meant that he had undergone specialization for his main ss and he also had a second-ss that he probably chose when he was between Level 15 and Level 100.


    But although Ray sounded quite strong at first impression...


    His level was actually low ifpared to other yers that started ying at the same time as him. But this never bothered Ray. He had the Intermediate Bow Mastery Level 1, that he acquired after earnestly training himself with the bow under the supervision of a ruthless instructor.


    Ray''s efforts paid and he acquired the attention of Guild Crimson, a guild consisting of top-rankers within the world of Victory. At that time, Ray thought that his life had changed. Entering such a famous guild guaranteed riches and infamy, but then the opposite happened.


    Since he was a new yer within Crimson...


    His senior guild members would make him run errands for them. Some errands that Ray ran for them were too dangerous that Ray hesitated on epting them. However, since he was just a new yer in the guild. He had no choice but to ept, afraid that he would be kicked and reced.


    Ray knew in his heart that his position was something that could be easily reced by anyone.


    So, he endured everything. Including all the dangerous errands that his senior brothers gave to him. He endured them all, all for the sake of acquiring a more solid position within the guild.


    In short, Ray wanted to be in the spotlight. He wanted to be a core member of the guild.


    The only sce that Ray had in his suffering was seeing other yers lower than him. Ray was the type of person that could thrive amidst his suffering so long as other people were suffering like him or even suffering more than him.


    "At least I am not like them..." Ray thought whenever he saw a bunch of new yers suffering under his hands. He thought that all of them were pathetic.


    Not only they were low-leveled, but they were also cowards.


    Ray didn''t even understand why they wouldn''t fight against him. Low-leveled yers were under the protection of the game.


    They would lose Experience Points, but their levels wouldn''t be demoted and they wouldn''t drop an equipped item whenever they died. In that case, why were they so afraid of him?


    "A bunch of scaredy-cats..." Ray judged them all as trash that could never achieve greatness within this game.


    But the truth was that not every yer wanted to be great. Some of them just desired to y casually and enjoy the realism that the game had. But Ray didn''t understand this thinking. No- he didn''t try to understand them. What he knew was that for him, all of them were trash.


    Except for that yer that he killed earlier who now stood before him once again.


    "Why are you doing this to us? We just want to y the game, but why are you preventing us from stepping outside andpleting our quests?" Joseph cried out in a righteous manner. Ray was taken aback by the tone of Joseph''s voice. But in the end, he sneered and said...


    "So what? What if I am doing that? What can you do? You''re nothing in front of my bow."


    "I see, so that''s how the Crimson Guild works. I see. I see..." Joseph nodded his head in understanding, while Ray frowned. He couldn''t help but feel that something was wrong underneath all of these.


    "What are you saying?"


    "What I am saying? I am the one that needs to ask about what you are saying!"


    A scream rang out and Ray coughed a mouthful of blood as an arrow prated his back and went through his chest.


    "Wha... A sneak attack? You bastards!" He hurriedly turned around and what he saw caused him a great deal of shock.


    "We, the Knights of Justice are here to liberate the Beginner Vige from the hands of the shameless Crimson Guild!"


    At least a dozen yers from the Knights of Justice rushed at him.


    "The Knights of Justice? Holy shit! Everyone, retreat!" Ray shouted hismands, but the yer who enlisted his help as a taxi merely frowned and said.


    "Ray, I paid two grand for your services. But you cannot even handle a bunch of yers from that so-called Knights of Justice? And here I thought that the Crimson Guild is the best."


    Anger surged within Ray. But he suppressed it for he really required the money. His Senior brothers not only made him run errands but also made him buy materials for the guild using his own money. For Ray who was only a student relying on his allowance, those purchases were too extravagant.


    "Sir, with all due respect. Those yers are members of the Knights of Justice Guild. I could fight with them, but I cannot ensure your safety." Ray still managed to act respectfully towards his client...


    But his client snorted and replied: "You really are useless, I paid you so much money but you are wasting my time. Let''s just forget about all of these..."


    Ray was astounded by the sudden change of events.


    But he still mustered his courage as he stared at his client and said: "But sir... what about the two grand?"


    "The two grand? Just keep it, it''s mere cheap change..." His client then disappeared from his party.


    "That arrogant nouveau riche!" Ray clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Meanwhile, all yers from the Knights of Justice finally arrived in front of him and stared at him menacingly.


    Ray consumed a potion for recovery whilst retreating.


    "Leader, shouldn''t we retreat?" Ray''s party members responsible for keeping the new yers away from their spot finally gathered around him. One of them couldn''t help but ask when they saw the number of yers from Knights of Justice gathered around them.


    "No shit, sherlock!" Ray angrily answered and the party member who asked could only keep his silence.


    "Sir, this is quite strange... The Knights of Justice usually do not care about the Beginner Viges..."


    "Not only that, there are at least thousands of these Beginner Viges in Victory. Yet, they specifically came to this Beginner Vige at the right time and at the same location. Judging from what they are saying, they came for us too."


    Ray nodded his head, what hisrade said made sense and he swept his gaze at Joseph who still nearby, casually watching the show with his arms crossed in front of his chest


    "So, you''re the bastard that caused all of these? Borrowing a knife to kill, is it really fun?" He turned to look at Joseph in anger.


    He engraved Joseph''s face in his heart. For he knew that they could never escape today. He and the characters of hisrades were sses that suited fighting, not escaping nor running.


    And so, in this case, what''s the move that they should do?


    Ray nced at hisrades. He wanted to escape at first, but seeing that they were already surrounded. Why would they bother doing something that had a high chance of failure?


    A man could be defeated, but never humiliated. Even though they would die today, at least they knew that they died in battle.


    Of course, they will fight!


    "KILL!" Ray cried out, he faced the arrows and magic spells of his enemies. But unfortunately for them, it was a one-sided ughter.


    The yers of the Knights of Justice who always hated Crimson Guild found that this was a sensible reason for ughtering the guild members of Crimson without garnering the hate of thetter.


    Because of that, why would they stop themselves from killing?


    Each and every one of them unleashed might that shook every new yer that observed the fight inside the Beginner Vige. The yers from Knights of Justice noticed that this was a good opportunity on showing these beginners about how strong their guild was. Due to this, they didn''t hold back.


    A main-ss specialized Magician even summoned a meteor thatnded directly at Ray and hisrades...


    The strength of the famous Knights of Justice was too strong for Ray and hisrades to handle and they quickly became corpses. Leaving a few items behind aspensation to the winners.


    Joseph who saw all of these happening quietly retreated to the side. A small smile lingered on his face as he went towards the line-up of carriages within the Beginner Vige and enlisted their help so that he could enter a new Beginner Vige.


    He decisively abandoned his remaining quest within this Beginner Vige.


    Why?


    Because he knew that those bastards from Crimson would definitely get their revenge against him.


    In that case, wasn''t it better to move?


    There were thousands of Beginner Viges within the world of Victory to cater to its massive poption of newbies back when it was first established two years ago.


    Joseph understood that it was highly unlikely that a guild such as Crimson would dedicate their manpower to hunting him instead of leveling-up and strengthening their forces.


    And so, Joseph hopped into a carriage and once again begun his new adventure in the world of Victory...


    In a new Beginner Vige, of course.<ol><li>[Author''s Note: yers can undergo specialization for their main ss only at Level 100. While, yers can choose a second-ss after Level 15. Although it is rmended to choose a second-ss only when you are at Level 100 or sufficiently high-leveled for more opportunities for better sses.]</li></ol>

 Chapter 10: Strange Events

    Chapter 10: Strange Events


    Joseph decided on settling at the 69th Beginner Vige. It was because this Beginner Vige was the nearest to the Kingdom of Nether.


    One may say that such Beginner Vige would bring more danger than benefits to Joseph now that he was hostile to the Crimson Guild. But Joseph thought otherwise.


    It was because he always believed that that the safest location stood the nearest at the danger.


    His enemies would never think that he was just beside them.


    The 69th Beginner Vige didn''t look any different from other Beginner Viges. Apart from the different names of the NPCs, nothing really changed.


    There was still a Vige Chief near the Central Square of the Vige. A smithy for item repair, a kind aunt next door and some rowdy children running around as they yed.


    "Man, this world really is astonishing..."


    Now that Joseph had a good look at the Beginner Vige. He saw that it definitely felt real. Theughter and cries of the children as they yed. The gossips of the aunties, and the grumblings of the worried Vige Chief about their food for the iing winter. Everything looked and felt surreal for Joseph.


    Nevertheless, Joseph knew that he must not forget that this was just a game. He was here to y and at the same time, to earn enough money that he could retire in riches and enjoy his life like what his parents wanted him to do in the first ce.


    Joseph approached the Vige Chief and he acquired a different quest than he expected.


    [Raid the Wolf''s Den]


    Quest Difficulty: D


    The Vige Chief Fausto is concerned that the number of wolves around the 69th Vige of Baguhan will never decrease. Resulting in decreased food and herbal supply to themunity. Luckily, he found some information from a reliable source that there stood a Wolf''s Den in the nearby woods.


    He instructs you to gather somerades and raid the Wolf''s Den together.


    Note: It is rmended that you gather at least fourrades. The Wolf''s Den is rmended for five or more yers in a party.


    Quest Clear Condition: The annihtion of the Wolf Den.


    Quest Rewards: Experience Points, The Vige Chief Fausto''s affinity to you will increase, you will easily acquire quests within the 69th Vige of Baguhan and the NPCs will respect you.


    Quest Failure: The Vige Chief Fausto''s affinity to you will sink to the bottom. You will be despised by him and everyone within the 69th Vige of Baguhan will call you a coward. Probability of quest acquisition will sharply decrease]


    "Okay, it''s time to find a party..." Joseph turned around and was taken aback for he found a familiar figure standing at the center of the Central Square.


    "What is she doing there? Did she die?" Joseph thought to himself.


    The familiar figure that he saw, stood at the point where yers usually respawn after dying. Because of that, Joseph thought that she recently died. But when he found that she had a nk look on her face. He couldn''t help but approach her.


    "What''s going on with you? Are you okay?" Joseph asked in a sincere voice. This girl that had her yer ID hidden was the one who warned him about the dangers of the bow-wielding Ray back at the first Beginner Vige. Joseph had a good impression of this girl.


    However, the young woman didn''t reply to what he was saying. She merely stared ahead as if she was looking at something that was a thousand miles away.


    "Ah!" She suddenly screamed in shock. Tears rolled down her cheeks, but it looked like she finally awakened from her trance.


    "What''s going on with you?" Joseph frowned. Why did she suddenly cry? Her actions upon revival looked really strange and fishy. However, there were billions of people around the world. Who knows if she was one of those people that had some strange habits or routines?


    But a habit of staring a thousand miles away and crying after revival? That was indeed strange, even for Joseph. And the strange feeling that he had in his heart further intensified when he heard what the young woman said.


    "I don''t know? Wait, I died? How? What''s going on? Why I am crying?" She panicked, and Joseph approached her closer and said.


    "Calm down, calm down. You need to calm down and tell me everything. What happened?" Joseph asked in a gentle voice, afraid that he may scare her any further.


    "I don''t know... I and my friends from a party were inside the Wolf''s Den, when suddenly... Wait, what? What happened afterward? I don''t know... I can''t remember, everything is fuzzy..."


    "What in the?" Joseph mumbled in astonishment.


    It was unthinkable that wolves had the capabilities of erasing memories from yers, and Victory didn''t have a feature of erasing memories from dying yers whenever they died.


    In that case, that could only mean one thing. Something inside that cave killed this young woman, and erased her memories in an effort to... in an effort to what?


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun... He was about to find the answer to his question when he found that three yers approached the young woman and engaged a conversation with her.


    All of them looked quite uneasy. The quest that they acquired was supposed to be a quest meant for beginners so that they could adapt to how the world worked. But after something strange happened. They couldn''t help but feel fear and anxiety.


    It was natural. Every species had a fear of the unknown. Joseph thoroughly knew that fear for he had experienced it back when both of his parents died. Fearing what will happen in the unknown future, that was how Joseph lived back then and even now...


    He approached them and asked.


    "Excuse me, but may I ask? What happened? I heard from her that the four of you went to the Wolf''s Den... But earlier when the four of you revived. all of you were in a state of trance. Just what happened that it scared all of you that much?"


    Joseph''s words were blunt. Towards these anxious youngsters, his words served as fuel to the me of anxiety that they felt as they couldn''t help but shiver.


    "Ah, what a mistake..." Joseph acknowledged his mistake to himself as he continued on asking: "I am also nning on going to the Wolf''s Den so I canplete the quest given to me by the Vige Chief. Since we''re fellow yers, how about we share information with each other?"


    The four yers, two females and two males stared at each other before one of them replied.


    It was the young woman that Joseph approached earlier.


    "I think that you shouldn''t go there, that ce... It''s strange... As far as I can remember, it was an easy dungeon... But then everything suddenly went dark and when I realized it, I am already standing here."


    Joseph frowned from what she said, but he still replied honestly at her: "I understand your concerns, but I am concerned about the NPCs in the uing winter..."


    "Those wolves are eating almost everything around the Vige and some are even invading the Vige for their livestock... If this continues then the NPCs will run out of food and die."


    These words came from Joseph''s heart. Although Joseph knew that abandoning such a dangerous quest was the best decision. Since he was still at Level 1 and he didn''t have something to lose. Why would he be scared of the repercussions?


    Not only that, but Joseph also believed that Victory wouldn''t give quests to yers that were impossible toplete. Even if they gave out seemingly impossible quests. There must be a way that they could bepleted. The only question was about how one could go onpleting them.


    But for Joseph, there was only one answer...


    That was to try and try until you get it right!


    Joseph reaffirmed his resolve, but the two male yers that apanied the twodies couldn''t help but snicker when they heard what Joseph said: "So you are a member of the Pro-NPC Alliance?"


    "Pro-NPC Alliance? What''s that?" Joseph asked and he frowned when he heard the tone of the male yer.


    "I mean, you''re one of those shut-ins that believe that NPCs are precious, should be respected and held holiest than thou?" One of the male yers who had a long-chin said in a mocking manner.


    When he realized that the female yer that apanied him and hisrade had some good feelings towards Joseph, he went hostile against thetter.


    Joseph''s frown intensified: "What do you mean?"


    "Ah, I see... So, you''re one of those yers living in their parent''s basement that couldn''t establish any social rtions outside and are now resorting to NPCs within the virtual world to feel loved? That''s some ultimate escapism right there, Hahaha!"


    "Dang it, you''re a pathetic man. You''re valuing the lives of these NPCs? What a joke! They are just made out of some program codes and easily receable. I really can''t understand the minds of someone like you..."


    When Joseph heard what these assholes said. His eyes red in anger but in the end.


    He still suppressed what he felt...


    Everyone was entitled to their own opinion and this wasn''t the right ce to fight. Joseph didn''t care about why they suddenly erupted in anger at him. In addition, Joseph was just a Level 1 Mercenary and if he fought with them. He would surely be on the losing end.


    He disappeared from their sight and theughter of the two male yers intensified. When Joseph finally disappeared from their sight, the silent woman who looked like she had the best gear of them all spoke up and said.


    "The two of you are really disgusting. Let''s stop the taxi service, I don''t want to be the taxi for the two of you anymore. I will also refund what you paid to me." She mailed some gold coins towards the two male yers and exited the party along with her femalerade.


    "Wait, wait, wait... Nina, why are you doing this to us? We are paying good money, so why are you refusing my request for the taxi service? I have good equipment and mechanics so I am not a burden to you when you and your sisters are being a taxi..."


    "Yeah, that''s right. I chipped in three gold coins for three hours of taxi service..."


    Nina red at the two, particrly at the noisiest yer and said:


    "I knew from the start that you didn''t want us for our capabilities but just for our bodies. So, how about the two of you just go to a prostitute somewhere in reality? But wait, that''s right... Both of you can''t do that... It''s because you guys are the disgusting shut-ins..."


    She mercilessly mocked the two.


    "What the... Are you seriously using those words to a client? Do you want me to give you a one-star review? Huh?!"


    "Yeah, that''s right! We can even hire the fifty-cent army and make sure that you can never reach four stars average review in your taxi service!"


    Nina realized the schemes of the two when they said those words to that young man earlier. It was clear that the two were trying to bait that young man into fighting them.


    But...


    When she heard the words of the two, Nina looked visibly shaken.


    If these two yers really did that, then Nina''s primary source of ie would be impacted. That was something that she didn''t want to see happening. After all, she promised that she would provide for her sister without the help of anyone.


    But even though she wanted money. She wasn''t someone that would tolerate bastards like these two guys. If she really did that, then she couldn''t be called herself anymore. If that happened, then she wouldn''t even be Nina anymore...


    She turned around and didn''t bother to reply.


    She went to the direction where Joseph disappeared.


    What she left behind were two yers that had their eyes reddened in anger and humiliation. They stared at each other for a moment before cruelly smiling. The n that would lead to the downfall of Nina''s taxi service was now beginning to form within their minds.


    It wasn''t like they were like this before. Their obsession started when they realized that Nina was also a struggling youngdy like them. Knowing someone as beautiful as her with rtable circumstances like them. The two of them couldn''t help but feel desire towards her...


    Meanwhile...


    "Why can''t I buy any potions?" Joseph stared at the NPC merchant who stood behind his store that had signage saying, "General Merchandise" above it.


    "I am really sorry. It''s very hard for us to procure the required medicinal herbs for potion-making since those wolves are eating up everything... If those wolves are exterminated, then the supply chain will finally normalize... But for the meanwhile, I extend my apologies to you, sir Customer..."


    The NPC Merchant bowed his head and went back deeper into his store, leaving the irritated Joseph behind.


    Without potions, going outside the Beginner Vige was suicide.


    His low-leveled character had low vitality, and he only had about a thousand health. The average monsters suitable for beginners dealt about a hundred or so damage with each strike. If one did the math, Joseph would die in just about ten strikes.


    "If no potions are avable then this will be quite a difficult task..." Joseph shook his head and finally decided to go towards another NPC so that he could find some rtively easy quest that he could do while thinking about his next course of action.


    But before he could move away, a familiar voice stopped him from behind.


    "Hey..."<ol><li>Yeah, I know what you''re thinking ;)</li></ol>

 Chapter 11: Nina, Rika

    Chapter 11: Nina, Rika


    "Hey..."


    A familiar voice rang out and Joseph found two female yers staring at him with a smile.


    "What do you need?" Joseph asked in a distant voice. Those close with corrupted people would eventually be corrupted themselves. Joseph didn''t want to judge, but it was better to be careful.


    "Ah, nothing. I mean, judging from where you are going. You''re nning on going to the Wolf''s Den, right?" Nina looked quite embarrassed.


    "Yeah, but I am not nning on challenging the dungeon." Joseph nodded his head.


    "Then what are you going to do?" Nina asked.


    "Of course, I''m going to gather some information. Why would I challenge it alone?" Joseph raised an eyebrow while Nina replied in a strange voice.


    "In that case, then wouldn''t be much better to consult someone that knows more about it, or the Forums?"


    "Wait, the Forums?"


    "Yeah..."


    "Holy shit, how did I forget about that!" Joseph facepalmed before he hurriedly opened his Main Menu and navigated to the Forums of Victory. However, before he could continue his search for information. Nina lightly chuckled and said.


    "I think that you''d be better off asking me about what you need to know."


    "You?" Joseph stopped fiddling with the forums.


    "Yes, I have entered the Wolf''s Den for so many times already that I remember every nook and cranny of it."


    "But why don''t you remember what happened to your party earlier?"


    "Ah... I really don''t know..." She shook her head.


    It wasn''t good to push her into remembering something that she couldn''t remember. Because of that, Joseph smiled and gestured to a nearby bench.


    "How about we sit down and talk for now?"


    "Thanks..."


    The two then continued their conversation.


    "The Wolf''s Den looks peaceful outside, but as soon as you step inside then it''s a different story. That ce is incredibly dangerous for new yers since those wolves have the ability to pounce at you..."


    "Separating yourself from an enemy stuck on your body is something that newbies don''t have the capabilities on doing yet."


    "Indeed, new yers are prone to panic since this is really a realistic world." Joseph nodded his head in understanding.


    He figured that even he, that had some experience in fighting would panic when dealing with enemies stuck on his body.


    "Yeah, halfway inside the Den. The wolves are rtively weak apart from that pouncing ability. But that is an illusion that would surely bite you in the ass if you don''t..." Nina realized her crude wording and she couldn''t help but cover her mouth in embarrassment.


    Joseph lightly chuckled and said: "It''s okay, I don''t mind... Please continue, you''ve been very helpful." Joseph nced at Nina''srade, the young woman who warned him back at the first Beginner Vige.


    "You''ve been helpful too." He said and the young woman flinched for a moment before asking him in a soft voice.


    "Me?"


    "Yes, you..." Joseph wore a light smile and the young woman hid her face behind Nina.


    "Hahaha, don''t be like that in front of our client, Rika..."


    Joseph heard the word, "client" and couldn''t help but ask: "What client? Who''s the client?"


    "You." Nina pointed at Joseph.


    "Me?" Joseph pointed at himself.


    "Of course, you... What do you mean? You aren''t going to pay me for giving you this much info?" Nina''s expression darkened while Joseph looked nk as a pristine sheet of paper.


    But after a short moment, he suddenly mmed his head on the bench.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    "That guy''s crazy..."


    "Holy shit, why is he banging his head like that? Could it be that he got rejected by that pretty onee-san?"


    "Poor bastard."


    "F."


    Joseph''s gesture of banging his head on the bench garnered the attention of the passing yers. Nina hurriedly stopped him before saying: "What the hell are you doing?!"


    "I am erasing my memories..." Joseph said in a bitter voice.


    "Erasing your memories?" Nina asked in confusion.


    "Yes, erasing my memories. I don''t have the money to pay you for that information so I am going to erase it from my head, please don''t stop me..." Joseph continued banging his head on the bench and Nina held his shoulders back before saying.


    "Okay, okay, okay. I get it! Let''s just put it on credit!"


    When all of these were over, Joseph now had his hand on his head in pain.


    "You should''ve told me sooner that there''s a credit option."


    "Well, you just started banging your head as soon as I finished what I was saying..."


    "Hehehe..."


    The young woman who kept her silence, giggled when she heard the conversation of the two. Joseph nced at her and smiled, but she once again hid her face behind Nina.


    "She''s really shy... I am sorry about that... I mean... Who wouldn''t be shy before the man that saw you crying like a baby...?" Nina teased the young woman and the young woman retaliated with a fierce bite at her back.


    "Ah!" Nina screamed like a barbarian and she took her revenge by tickling the young woman who instantlyughed out loud. The scene of two young women at their prime, tickling and biting each other created a phenomenal scene that quickly garnered the attention of everyone.


    "Holy shit, that''s kinda erotic..."


    "What the hell, get a room you two..."


    "Hmmm, Lameh keyoh..."


    Theughter of the two sounded like cheerful bells, but it was unfortunately interrupted by Joseph who bitterly smiled before sneakily escaping from the two.


    "Where are you going?" Nina reacted and grabbed him by the cor.


    "Ughh... Nah, I am just gonna ask an NPC about, you know...?" Joseph felt a shiver down his spine when he heard Nina''s words.


    "Ask an NPC? Why would you do that when you have me." Nina raised an eyebrow and Joseph sighed in response.


    "That''s quite a bold statement to say to a man that you just met."


    Nina instantly blushed and she sent a fist towards Joseph that Joseph hurriedly caught with his hand before he replied with a dark smile, "Miss, I am an advocate of equality..."


    "Ooooh? Do you think you''re tough enough to try me? Are you even qualified?" Nina''s interest was piqued with the sudden challenge and the two stood up and faced each other.


    "Well, you''re about to know if I am qualified or not!" Joseph lunged forwards and what happened afterward was...


    Omitted.


    [Party, "y with the Doggos" has been created.]


    [You are the party leader.]


    [yer, "Nina" has joined the party.]


    [yer, "Rika" has joined the party.]


    Joseph nced at the party menu.


    [Name: Nina


    ss: Hunter


    Title: ???


    Level: ???]


    [Name: Rika


    ss: Magician


    Title: ???


    Level ???]


    "Why is it that I cannot see your levels?" Joseph asked the two young women and Nina replied.


    "Why would you ask something like that? Always remember that levels are a woman''s secret!"


    "A woman''s secret is their age!" Joseph interrupted in frustration.


    "Wait, how do you know that?" Nina said in an ambiguous manner before continuing: "Could it be that in the morning you''re Joseph, but at night... You... are... Josephine?" Nina teased and Joseph''s figure froze. He slowly turned his head behind and red right into her eyes.


    "I am asking seriously!"


    "Okay, okay..." Nina lightly chuckled, while Rika had a smile on her face. Her eyes radiated the light of amusement as she observed the banter of the two as a neutral party.


    "Now that I think about it, are the two of you sisters?" Joseph asked Nina.


    "Oh? You just noticed it? Yeah, we''re sisters." Nina replied with a smile.


    "In that case, Rika''s the older sister." Joseph smiled at Nina.


    "Why do you say so?"


    "Well, she feels more mature than her other counterpart..." Joseph teased, and before Nina''s fist couldnd on his back. He jumped forwards and evaded it as heughed.


    "Hahaha..." Rika responded with augh towards their interaction. Nina turned to look at her and said: "You''re siding with this guy? You''re just going to forget the years that we spent together as sisters just because of this guy?"


    Rika looked startled for a moment before she turned her gaze away. Joseph chuckled at the sight of this and teased once more: "You''re being too dramatic, Nina..."


    Nina looked at Joseph in anger when she heard what he said. But when she saw the sly smile on Joseph''s face, she felt that something was wrong as Joseph continued his sentence: "That''s why I said that you''re sister''s more mature than you... Kek, you''ll find it hard marrying if you keep that up...


    "You''re already dead!" Nina cried in anger before chasing Joseph''s figure who kept onughing out loud.


    Fortunately, Nina''s suffering ended early for they had already arrived at the Wolf''s Den after a few minutes. The entrance of the Wolf''s Den looked like an entrance of an ordinary cave.


    If not for the fact that the system gave him a notification about the identity of the cave, then Joseph wouldn''t find it out of the ordinary.


    [You are approaching the vicinity of the Wolf''s Den.]


    "Okay, I''ll be observing the area now. The two of you should keep your silence now, okay?" Joseph swept his gaze at the two before staring at Nina: "I''ll be testing the information that you gave me, Nina. That information should be urate since it''s based on your experience, but with what happened to you back when youst entered this cave..."


    "I am pretty sure that some information that you gave me would be inurate by now... I''ll do some checks though so I can be sure about it."


    Nina nodded her head and Joseph turned around andmenced with his objectives. However, the moment he approached the Wolf''s Den. A system notification suddenly appeared before him.


    [The energy of darkness binds you up and yourrades.]


    [You are forcefully sucked into the Dark Wolf''s Den.]


    "Ah!" Nina screamed as she found out that slimy tentacles of darkness enveloped her and her sister''s body. Joseph turned around and he was astonished about what he saw.


    Yes, what he saw was quite an erotic scene... Sadly, Joseph himself couldn''t help nor enjoy it since he was also immobilized by the tentacles.


    "I''ve watched enough... omitted. To know about what''s going to happen!" Joseph eximed as he tried his best on struggling.


    The three of them struggled to break free, but a system notification told them that it was impossible.


    [You cannot resist.]


    [You have entered the Dark Wolf''s Den.]


    [Darkness surrounds the area. Your vision is limited and the light emanated by skills is suppressed. You cannot see more than five meters around you.]


    "What in the hell did I enter?" Joseph mumbled in shock upon seeing the series of system notifications.

 Chapter 12: Dark Wolfs Den

    Chapter 12: Dark Wolf''s Den


    Joseph couldn''t help but curse when he found that his vision was greatly reduced.


    This meant that he could only rely on his other senses when it came to sensing iing attacks from his enemies.


    But wait, something was strange.


    Why couldn''t he hear any enemies?


    Apart from the heavy breathing of the two young women beside him. Joseph couldn''t find anything foreign within the cave.


    "What is this? Why is it so dark?" Nina mumbled in confusion.


    "Did you read the system notifications?" Joseph asked.


    "I did, but what I want to ask is what''s going on. I don''t remember being inside such a dark environment when Ist came here recently." Nina replied and Joseph''s eyebrows raised.


    "What do you mean? You don''t remember entering a dark environment when you entered this cavest time?"


    "Yeah, I remember that I can still see where the enemies are back then. But now, it''s really dark..." Nina whispered and Joseph''s frown intensified.


    What does Nina''s sentence mean? Seeing that there''s a discrepancy between what she remembered, and what was reality. Joseph nced at Rika who also nodded her head and said.


    "I think our memories are altered..."


    "Our memories are altered?" Nina''s figure trembled in shock.


    Joseph nodded his head and exined: "There''s a huge difference between what you both of you remember and the reality right now. Not only that. You can''t remember exactly what happened at the moment when both you died thest time you two came here..."


    "In that case, there could only be one thing that''s happening... Something inside this cave is manipting the memories of everyone..." Joseph swept his gaze at the two and Nina squealed in a sharp voice before tightly hugging him.


    "Wait, wait, wait, what the hell are you doing?!"


    "I''m scared... Stop talking, please! You are making it sound like as if we are dealing with ghosts..." Nina buried her head into Joseph''s waist and Joseph lightlyughed before replying in a teasing manner.


    "Well, if your definition of a ghost is someone that cannot be seen with the naked eye. Then, we really are dealing with a ghost..."


    "Eeeek!" Nina screamed once again and she ran towards the exit of the cave.


    "Hey,e back here! The ghost could be there!"


    "Eeek!" Nina cried out and hurriedly took a U-Turn and returned to Joseph''s embrace.


    "Hahaha!" Josephughed out loud when he saw all of these happening, while Nina silently vowed: "I swear that once we get out of here, I will definitely make you remove all of your memories about what happened today!"


    Rika merely chuckled at the side before she stared at Joseph and said: "But why would they alter the memories of everyone? Why is that necessary for their goals?"


    Joseph stared at Rika and found that her serious, yet curious expression looked quite cute.


    Actually, Rika looked like the type of girl that shouldn''t be exploited but protected. That was why Joseph refrained from teasing her.


    But of course, her sister. Nina looked to be the opposite of Rika so, she became the target of Joseph''s teasing.


    "I can''t answer that question since I do not know their goals. But one thing is for sure... The one behind this is altering the memories of yers so that those yers would keep on returning here..."


    Rika made a confused expression for a moment before she nodded her head in understanding.


    She then smiled at Joseph, indicating that she understood what he was saying.


    Nina, on the other hand, looked puzzled and surprised. She nced at the two and when she found that they didn''t have the intention to further exin. She cried out: "Stop teasing me, you two! Tell me what is going on! Don''t keep it to yourselves!" She puffed her cheeks in annoyance and this time.


    Rika didn''t just chuckle. She alsoughed out loud...


    "Hahaha!"


    "Well, Little Nina... This is what''s going on..." Joseph made an expression as if he was looking at an adorable little girl, and Rika''sughter intensified into bell-likeughter as Nina red at Joseph and struck his waist.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?"


    "Haist... I was trying to exin it to you properly..." Joseph held his waist in pain and Nina''s anger intensified when she heard what Joseph said.


    "Then why are you looking at me as if I am a little child?"


    When Nina said these. The two froze as if time stopped for them. After a moment of silence, Joseph and Rika stared at Nina as if they were looking at a ghost as Nina mumbled in confusion.


    "What is going on with you two..." She whispered in anxiety and uncertainty.


    Joseph who had the shock of his life nodded his head and said: "You managed to understand what I was implying underneath my words?"


    Rika nodded her head in agreement before saying: "This is the first time that Sis understood hidden meanings behind amicable words from other people, apart from those bad people that wanted to do something bad to us so this is quite a surprise..."


    She made a long sentence this time, making it known that she thoroughly felt shocked about what happened...


    But Joseph shrugged and mumbled: "I mean, it''s pretty obvious. I called her Little after all."


    Rika chuckled once again.


    "Knock it off... you two!" Nina screamed in anger and both of her palms found the foreheads of the two as sharp pping sounds echoed within the darkness.


    Then what echoed after the p, were the despairing and pained scream of the two...


    "So, what I am saying is that the one behind all of these altering memories scenario is making sure that everyone would return to the cave... Since the affected ones are the yers, this could only mean that the return of the yers is necessary for that bastard''s goals..."


    "In that case, shouldn''t he just let those yers die instead of altering their memories? I mean, those yers will just return with vengeance, so why would he alter their memories? That''s just a waste of time." Nina replied in confusion.


    Rika and Joseph stared at each other before lightlyughing as Joseph further exined: "If you saw something scary in a certain ce. Would you return to that ce?"


    Nina instantly replied: "Of course not! Why would I return?"


    "Exactly..." Joseph pointed it out to her.


    Nina froze for a moment before she cried out: "Ah!"


    "Finally, you got it..." Joseph deeply sighed and the three of them could finally continue their journey now that the confusion about what''s happening became clear to the three.


    A low growl came from the darkness. The three instantly turned alert.


    "This is bad, I can''t see anything and the echoes that''s happening with every movement that we do is disrupting my hearing..." Joseph thought to himself. He took a stance with his sword while the two sisters behind him revealed their weapons.


    Nina protected his rear, while Rika stood at the center between Joseph and Nina. Rika silently chanted, preparing a spell for an iing enemy.


    Footsteps rang out and Joseph screamed: "Behind!"


    He turned to look behind him and found that Nina was already ready. Before Joseph could even finish his scream, an arrow flew and struck the attacker that was revealed to be a wolf d in darkness. It didn''t even manage to open its jaws and scream before its life disappeared.


    "It''s surrounded by dark energy... Damn it, is everything in here corrupted by darkness?" Joseph cursed.


    Before the wolf died, he saw that the wolf had a level that was at least ten times higher than him.


    A quest given in a Beginner Vige shouldn''t possess that much difficulty.


    But a monster that has a level, ten times higher than an absolute beginner at the game? That difference was despairing.


    Not only that, the wolves even had the energy of darkness surrounding them. Joseph got to know about the energy of darkness when he fought a particr NPC at the Festival of Battles. That NPC had dozens of Crowd Control attacks which made him quite memorable for Joseph.


    "Good shot, Nina!" Joseph cried out in praise, while Rika finallypleted the preparation for her spell.


    "Luminous!"


    A ball of light exploded overhead. It briefly revealed everything around them, but it onlysted for an instant before it disappeared under the influence of the dark energy in the surroundings.


    "Damn it, did you see that?" Joseph stared at hisrades and the two nodded their heads with a serious expression on their faces.


    Right before the light from [Luminous] disappeared. All three of them saw countless pairs of red eyes floating around. Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva, fear surged in his heart.


    If those wolves attacked the three of them at once, then they would undoubtedly die.


    After all, Joseph was just at Level 1. In short, his stats were at the lowest and his weapon and armor were worse than garbage.


    "What should we do? Can we even escape?" Joseph''s insecurity when ites to dealing against dangerous situations appeared as he asked in a somewhat hoarse voice.


    "How about we try? Rika, can you throw something at that dark wall-like thingy barring the exit?" Nina gestured behind them and Rika nodded her head.


    Nina stood in front of Rika with her bow en garde. Whenever a Magician chanted, most if not all aggro of the surrounding monsters would be focused on them since they''d be perceived as a threat by the monsters.


    "Unod bukog, unod bukod, kaluy-an ang kg sa mga demonyong naa sa impyerno..." Rika started chanting.


    Joseph suppressed the fear and insecurity in his heart as he took a stance and faced the iing wolves ahead.


    His usage of [Slice], [Thrust], and [sh] were decent for he had plenty of experience fighting against enemies that were far stronger than him. But that experience was under the condition that his enemies came to him, one by one. Not in droves like what the wolves were doing.


    In addition to fighting dozens of enemies at once, Joseph was also currently shivering in fear of the unknown. Of course, this was hidden behind his facade.


    Joseph kept on slicing and shing, yet his enemies never disappeared. His [Rusty Beginner Sword] was too weak along with his armor.


    Joseph''s health plummeted by a fourth in just a few seconds ofbat.


    If this continued, Joseph would surely die in just a few minutes.


    No amount of dodging could save him from his enemies that were far too many for him to handle.


    "Hurry up..." Joseph silently prayed. He couldn''t even nce at Rika.


    "Damn it, how many monsters are here? This really doesn''t make sense." Nina inwardly cursed, a green light appeared around her arm as she sent arrows after arrows in a cone in front of her.


    "Fireball!" Rika cried out and a ball of fire materialized in the air above the three. She gestured and it flew towards the dark energy blocking their way out of the cave.


    But when it struck that energy. The Fireball instantly disappeared as if it was a stone dropped into a vast ocean.


    "What?" Rika looked incredulous, while Joseph clicked his tongue and said.


    "There''s no time to waste, Rika! Assist us here or everything''s over!"


    Rika momentarily froze after hearing Joseph''s words, but she still turned around and started chanting. Of course, the moment she started chanting. The monsters looked like they were Taunted by Rika as they all rushed at her in a frenzy.


    "Rika!" Nina screamed and she hurriedly loaded an arrow and shot towards a wolf that was already in mid-pounce towards Rika.


    Peok!


    The wolf rolled on the ground upon being hit and it disappeared into light crystals. But Nina didn''t expect that a wolf was hiding behind the wolf that she shot. Because of that, she didn''t manage to stop the second wolf who was now on his way towards Rika.


    "Stay away from her!" Joseph shouted and a sharp sound whistled by as a sword flew and struck that wolf on its neck, the wolf''s trajectory changed after being struck and this gave Nina enough time to nock an arrow on her bow and finish the wolf that rolled on the ground in pain.


    [You discarded your weapon.]


    [After five minutes, you will lose ownership of the [Rusty Beginner Sword].


    Joseph still had his hand, assuming the ending pose when he discarded his weapon in an effort to save Rika from the wolf and let her end her chant.


    At the moment that the wolf turned into light crystals and disappeared into nothingness. Rika smiled at Joseph and said.


    "Thank you..."


    She hadpleted her chant...


    She swept her gaze around her as if confirming the number of her enemies before whispering into the air: "Blizzard."


    Wang!


    The Magician ss exerted strong spells that had great influence in a wide area. A sky-bluish curtain fell and everything around Rika abruptly slowed down. Some even directly froze under the influence of Blizzard.


    Nina hurriedly moved and she attacked the wolves frozen in a case of ice around her. Everything shattered after every attack that she unleashed.


    Under Joseph and Nina''s fierce attacks, they finally cleared the wolves around them.


    [Your level has risen...]


    [Your level has risen...]


    [Your level has risen...]


    [Your level has risen...]


    [Your level has risen...]


    Joseph found that he was now Level 5 and he now had the qualifications to ess more skills under the Mercenary Skill Tree. But before Joseph could even distribute his stat points and acquire the skills that he wanted. A system notification appeared in front of them.


    [You acquired the Wrath of Voliwolf.]


    [A Hidden BOSS has appeared!]


    "Roaaaaaar!"


    Before Joseph''s mind registered what was happening. A loud roar filled with anger exploded like a bomb inside the cave where all three of them stood.


    Afterward, a monster that looked like the incarnation of a Great Demon appeared right before their eyes...<ol><li>Just a side note. Magicians always aggro monsters whenever they are in the middle of their chants. But what if there are multiple Magicians in the area? Well, the aggro of the monsters will be turned to the Magician that has the highest DPS Potential. But if everything was the same then it will be decided by random.</li></ol>

 Chapter 13: First Encounter with a Hidden BOSS

    Chapter 13: First Encounter with a Hidden BOSS


    A few minutes earlier...


    [Souls and Ego required for Quest Completion: 231/3000]


    "Still not enough..." A hoarse voice rang within the darkness.


    "The souls required for the questpletion is too much..."


    Within a certain cave, a figure could be seen moving amidst the darkness. His figure didn''t look like he was a different entity from the darkness. It was as if he was the darkness himself.


    Nevertheless, that figure existed in reality and was a yer. Specifically, an aspiring Disciple of the God of Darkness, an Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    [An intruder has entered the Dark Wolf''s Den]


    A system notification appeared before him and a smile appeared on his lips. For his mission, he raised the difficulty of the dungeon by adding monsters on strategic locations and making sure that they would appear in the moments that his enemies never expected.


    He modified the dungeon so that its difficulty would slowly increase and build-up so that in the end. His enemies would feel despair because of therge number of enemies that they had to deal with that had higher strength than them.


    When despair filled the mind of his enemies. That would be the time where he would strike.


    However, even though he had the capability of manipting the minds of the monsters. That didn''t mean that they had their affinity. He had to move secretly within the darkness to that he wouldn''t disturb the monsters and lure them away from their original locations.


    "Let''s see how strong these newbies are this time..." He whispered before moving towards the entrance of the cave, with the intention of seeing the ughter and despair of the new yers first-hand.


    "Luminous!"


    A ball of light exploded in the air, briefly revealing everything around the newbies as he hurriedly leaped backward and hid behind a rock in an effort to evade the iing light.


    "Shit, I almost ruined my ns there..." He violently cursed to himself. He didn''t want to reveal himself to these newbies prematurely for he nned of only revealing himself as the mastermind of everything at the moment when these newbies were on the verge of death.


    When that time came, he would appear out of the darkness and siphon their souls out of their bodies.


    Witnessing those new yers screaming in pain and asking for mercy was something that he thoroughly liked.


    This was the reason why he yed Victory.


    In the outside world, he couldn''t even dream of doing something like this.


    But in Victory? Anything was possible and he could do whatever he wanted with almost no repercussions.


    This was the reason why he really liked the realism and freedom that Victory granted to every yer.


    His hidden desires were also the reason why he chose to side with the darkness and became an Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    "But those newbies... That girl used Luminous and that Hunter is using Fanning Arrows. Those are skills that a newbie couldn''t possibly possess. But that young man right there looks like the definition of a newbie. Wait... Could it be that he enlisted the service of these two young women as taxis?"


    When he realized these, anger surged in his heart.


    "That bastard, making these beautiful women work for him... Men should do all the manualbor, not the other way around!" Killing intent filled his eyes but he chose to suppress his anger.


    In the end, he still wanted to see the end of his ns and he believed that when that happened, he could take revenge against Joseph for the sake of the two women.


    "Just wait, you disgusting bastard..." If curses could kill then Joseph would''ve died dozens of times already. He took one more nce at the three before retreating deeper into the cave.


    "Fireball!" The Magician of the three screamed and the figure within the darkness saw a ball of fire streaking through the air towards the blocked entrance of the cave.


    [The intruders are attacking the blockage at the entrance.]


    [The blockage sessfully resisted. Their escape has failed.]


    "What a futile resistance, it would be better if they just let the wolves devour them and they won''t have to struggle like this." He shook his head before he continued on his walk But before he could even walk far away, a system notification informed him of something absurd.


    [The intruders have eliminated the wolves guarding the entrance of the cave!]


    "What?" He stopped in his tracks. He turned around and found traces of Blizzard.


    "That Magician... She''s an Elementalist? Why would a second main-ss advancement yer be here?


    "Butpared to me, she''s nothing... I''m in a ce surrounded by darkness. This is my domain as the Apostle of the God of Darkness." He stared directly at the two young women.


    He couldn''t help but find them familiar. However, these feelings merelysted for a moment before he turned around and continued deeper into the cave.


    "It looks like I will need to release the product of the fusion between a monster and darkness energy..." He whispered in the air before thoroughly disappearing into the darkness.


    [You acquired the Wrath of Voliwolf.]


    [A Hidden BOSS has appeared!]


    "Roaaaaaar!"


    "Shit, we''re done for..." Nina cursed, she didn''t care about her image as a maiden at this point.


    [The dark energies in the surroundings stirred by the appearance of Voliwolf, Leader of the Pack has influenced your body and soul.]


    [All of your attributes are reduced by 25%.]


    [The dark energy slows you down.]


    [Your Movement Speed is reduced by 50%.]


    [The dark energy causes fear and it instills hesitation within your heart.]


    [There is a certain probability of automatically failing on your chanting, and attacks.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    The so-called incarnation of a Great Demon stared at Joseph as Joseph''s expression paled from what he saw.


    [Name: Leader of the Pack, Voliwolf (Darkened).


    Level: ???]


    These were the only information that he saw from the monster before him. Several question marks after the "Level" meant that the Level of the monster was at least ten times higher than the observer. Not only that, apart from the status effects that the Hidden BOSS brought, it also had three Health Bars.


    A single Health Bar floating above its head and two blood-colored stars, indicating the presence of two other Health Bars.


    [You are under the effects of Direct Suppression.]


    [Direct Suppression''s effect is underway. In front of an overwhelming presence, the effects of all of your attacks are greatly reduced. Skills take longer than usual to cool down and your Movement Speed is reduced by 50%.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    "How in the hell do we defeat this monster?" Joseph whispered amidst his gritted teeth.

 Chapter 14: Fighting a Hidden BOSS

    Chapter 14: Fighting a Hidden BOSS


    In the face of such a monster, Joseph''s legs weakened and he continuously shivered in fear.


    He nced at the two women and when he found that they had determined looks on their faces. Joseph suddenly realized something.


    "I''m still at Level 1 and under the protection of the system. I don''t have anything to lose so why I am hesitating?!" He scolded himself and after taking a deep breath. The same determined look on the faces of the two young women appeared on his face.


    "Distribute all stat points to Strength and Dexterity in a ratio of 1:1," Joseph whispered.


    [All 10 Status Points are now distributed.]


    With the distribution of the stat points. Joseph felt unstoppable. Using his renewed strength. He held his [Rusty Beginner Sword] in a stance before he rushed towards his opponent.


    Joseph didn''t have any experience fighting against an enemy like this apart from some small wolves that looked simr to the Voliwolf. But Joseph knew that from the aura of the Voliwolf alone. It was definitely far stronger than those small wolves.


    "sh!" Joseph used his strongest attack skill, sh that dealt 110% of his Attack Damage against the Voliwolf.


    [You dealt 2 damage.]


    "I dealt what?" Joseph hurriedly retreated, his arms felt weak and his wrist felt sore.


    [Your attack backfired due to how strong your enemy is.]


    [You suffered 19 damage.]


    "What the? How did I suffer damage when I was the one attacking? My attack backfired? Holy shit, why does such a broken monster exist within a Beginner Vige?" Joseph couldn''t help but loudly exim upon reading the reason why he suffered damage from attacking.


    The damage that he dealt against the Voliwolf was also absurdly low. Mercenaries had a passive skill called [ded Weapon Mastery]. Since it was a passive skill, this was a skill that every Mercenary automatically learned upon reaching Level 2. Of course, learning skills didn''t cost any skill points.


    But that wasn''t the point as to why Joseph''s damage against the Voliwolf was ridiculously low or why he could even damage such a monster in the first ce.


    It was because of the effect of the [ded Weapon Mastery] which increased a Mercenary''s uracy Rate whenever he was using a ded weapon.


    Increased uracy Rate didn''t only increase one''s chances of inflicting Critical Strikes, but also gave them a t amount of Armor Pration which negated an enemy''s armor for a certain amount.


    Of course, there were other variables when ites to calcting the damage done after Armor Pration.


    But even though he was under the effects of [Direct Suppression].


    His damage shouldn''t be this low against the Voliwolf.


    The Voliwolf that looked more like a bear than a wolf felt an itch on its body when Joseph''s attacknded


    It stared at Joseph and dangerously red.


    "Dodge!" Nina cried out when she saw the crimson-light within the Voliwolf''s eyes. Bosses in the world of Victory could employ [Unstoppable Attacks].


    Attacks of this type couldn''t be blocked using normal methods. Whenever a Boss''s eyes shed with a crimson-light, the next attack would be an [Unstoppable Attack].


    Joseph was too near to the Voliwolf and there was no time to dodge.


    "Tagai mi ug proteksyon... Wall of Protection!" Rika hurriedly chanted before she stretched her hand out and summoned a wall in between Joseph and the Voliwolf.


    The Voliwolf used a sweeping attack against Joseph. But thanks to the Wall of Protection which became an obstacle in front of the [Unstoppable Attack], the attack momentarily faltered in front of the wall before it broke the wall and sent debris flying towards Joseph.


    Joseph didn''t expect that a wall made from earth would be enough to protect him. He knew about the iing attack and so, he was prepared...


    But what he didn''t expect was the speed of the Voliwolf''s attack.


    After all, [Unstoppable Attacks] were normally slow and easy to dodge.


    But in the end... Joseph managed to dodge an [Unstoppable Attack] that was far too close to him forfort.


    But how did he dodge?


    The answer was simple.


    He didn''t dodge. Since dodging was impossible.


    He only survived due to the urrence of a status effect...


    [You feel fear in front of an overwhelming presence. Your knees subconsciously bend as courage is sucked away from your body due to the fear.]


    Joseph''s knees copsed underneath him and his fall made him inadvertently evade the sweeping attack of the Voliwolf.


    "???"


    The Voliwolf looked confused when it realized that it didn''t manage on sweeping away the ant on the ground. It repeatedly blinked its pitch-ck eyes and there, it found that Joseph survived.


    "Roaaar!" It roared in anger, apparently annoyed by how a mere ant survived an attack from one of its paws. This time, it didn''t n on making a sweeping attack. It raised a paw up in the air and nned on pping the ant on the ground like a pancake.


    After narrowly escaping death, why would Joseph be careless once again?


    His experience in the Festival of Battles enabled him to shake away his fear almost immediately after seeing the raised paw in the air. Combined with the adrenaline coursing through his veins, he managed on moving.


    "Ha!" He cried out and pped both his palms on the ground, sending himself high up in the air before using that force to roll backwards towards the direction of hisrades.


    Boom!


    The slow-moving paw of the Voliwolf finally crashed on the ground, sending debris flying everywhere. Albeit, none of them managed to hit anything other than the cave walls, ceiling, and the ground.


    Rumble!


    The stctites just above the Voliwolf copsed.


    They simultaneously fell and struck the Voliwolf, angering it even further.


    "Damn that was dangerous..." Joseph sucked a cold breath upon realizing that he was now safe and away from the hands of death.


    "You just realized that what you did was dangerous? I didn''t think that you had the balls." Nina rolled her eyes at him, but Joseph merely smiled at her before saying in a cheeky manner.


    "You thought that I had no balls? How about you check if I really do have them?" Joseph teased and even winked at Nina.


    "Fuck off!" Nina violently cursed, provoking Joseph''sughter.


    "Can the two of you just continue the flirting after this? In front of us is a dangerous enemy, yet you guys are casually flirting..." Rika shook her head.


    Nina blushed and was about to reply when Joseph suddenly lunged at her.


    "Careful!" Rika screamed and she leaped backwards in a hurry.


    Bang!


    While the three of them were talking, the Voliwolf was apparently angered by their leisurely manner. It attacked at the moment where it deemed that the three of them wouldn''t expect its attack.


    However, Joseph whose senses were sharp for iing attacks noticed the Voliwolf''s attack before it descended and so, he leaped at Nina and protected her.


    Unfortunately, even though he managed to survive the Voliwolf''s attack. He didn''t escape damage as his body stiffened and froze like a statue while Nina was underneath him.


    Nina panicked upon seeing what happened and she hurriedly pushed Joseph away from her body. But Joseph whom she expected that would stand up immediately after her pushing, fell down into the ground like a statue as blood continuously dripped from his seven orifices.


    "Shit, are you okay?" She cursed and patted Joseph on his shoulders.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock.]


    [You are stiffened for a few seconds...]


    Joseph''s vision reddened as blood filled his eyes when he copsed above Nina. When Nina pushed him to the ground and tapped his shoulders...


    He finally escaped the effects of Stiffness as blood spurted out of his mouth. Looking at his Health Bar that was now below 25%. Joseph knew that everything was hopeless by now.


    Just the debris of the Voliwolf''s attack alone caused that much damage, what would happen if he directly suffered from that attack?


    When Joseph heard what Nina was saying. He couldn''t help but cry out in annoyance: "Does a man bleeding from his seven orifices look okay to you?"


    Nina froze for a moment, but she didn''t reply to Joseph''s sarcasm. She merely stared at the monster while holding her bow.


    "You find a way to escape, me and my sister will find a way of defeating this monster." Nina lightly smiled. However, she knew in herself that although she had a Level that was more than a hundred. This monster, the Voliwolf was a beast that only existed in the 200s.


    There were so many questions within Nina''s mind right now. But she couldn''t afford to think about them for now. It was because right now, her job was to defeat this monster along with her sister and return back to the Beginner Vige. But not only that...


    Nina''s instincts also told her that she would find out about the truth of what happened earlier in the day if they managed to defeat this monster.


    "Wait, are you serious?" Joseph mumbled in astonishment. He nced at Rika and found that she had a light smile on her face. When their eyes met, she nodded and Joseph finally confirmed his theories about the true identity of these two.


    Rika threw a potion to Joseph and thetter hurriedly gulped it down. His Health Bar increased by fifty-Percent, astonishing Joseph who couldn''t help but fall into a trance.


    When their raid on the Dark Wolf''s Den started earlier...


    Joseph found that Nina and Rika were using skills that shouldn''t belong to beginner yers. Especially the Blizzard that should only belong to Elementalists.


    It was a ss that was a possible second-advancement ss for the Magician main ss that only happened when you were at least Level 100.


    Joseph knew that the two possessed strength greater that shouldn''t exist within new yers. But he didn''t dare to confirm it. After all, what if the source of their strength came from a strange second-ss within the innumerable second sses of Victory?


    But now, now that Nina stepped up and offered to kill the enemy along with Rika. Joseph''s theory was confirmed...


    He nodded his head in understanding before escaping towards the entrance of the Wolf''s Den.


    Someone like him whose levels were not even at the two-digits. He would only be unnecessary baggage for them. Right now, what he should do was to try his best on preserving his life for the sake of the two that eagerly sacrificed themselves so that he could escape unharmed.


    But wasn''t the entrance to the cave blocked by dark energy?


    Now that the hidden BOSS appeared. Joseph didn''t think so...


    After all, it was said within the Beginner''s Manual that at the moment when a hidden BOSS appeared. yers could choose whether they would fight that hidden BOSS.


    If they didn''t want to then they can just safely escape, bringing with them the rewards that they got after defeating the main BOSS.


    Wait, the BOSS?


    How did a hidden BOSS appear when we still haven''t even met the BOSS of this Wolf''s Den?


    Shit!


    Joseph who managed to run quite the distance instantly turned around in an effort to warn the two sisters about the presence of the Wolf''s Den BOSS that they still haven''t met.


    But just as Joseph turned around, he suddenly screamed in pain and stumbled on the ground.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock.]


    [You are stiffened for a few seconds...]


    Joseph couldn''t move anymore after suffering a sneak attack from an unknown enemy.


    "You''re rude... instantly turning around after you saw me... You really are a disgusting bastard." A hoarse voice of a human came out in front of Joseph and he raised his eyeballs to look at the source of the voice.


    Joseph couldn''t voice out his panic, but inside. He was already screaming: "There was a yer hidden in the dark? How did I not notice him?!" He panicked for this was the first time that his senses and intuition failed him.


    But at the same time, a bitter smile emerged on his lips.


    "Just as I thought, I am still not strong enough. Just because I won the Festival of Battles. I shouldn''t becent and think that everyone is beneath me..."


    "After all, there are a lot of yers in the world of Victory. I was really stupid for thinking that I am one of a kind amidst them all." Joseph sighed to himself and the effect of Stiffness finally ended.


    However, he still didn''t move. He justid on the ground and awaited his end. Why should he move when he only had about fifty-two percent of his Health remaining? This wouldn''t be a problem if Joseph''s enemy was a normal one. But against a BOSS that is likely simr to that Voliwolf?


    Wouldn''t his effort be wasted?


    "Oiya? You''re just gonnay there and wait for your death?"


    "Good, saves me the effort." The yer finally approached close enough so that Joseph could see what he looked like. Joseph burned the image of the yer within his heart and soul and he vowed revenge at the yer once he became stronger in the future.


    "Agay!!!"


    "Rika!"


    Rika''s pain-filled scream rang out along with Nina''s despairing shout. When their shouts registered in Joseph''s mind, his eyes snapped open.


    The yer stood beside Joseph and opened a book, after a short chant. Several dark threads came out of the book and went towards Joseph''s body.


    [Your enemy is too strong and you are currently under the effects of Direct Suppression.]


    [Direct Suppression''s effect is underway. In front of an overwhelming presence, the effects of all of your attacks are greatly reduced. Skills take longer than usual to cool down and your Movement Speed is reduced by 50%.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    [You are currently under the effects of Life and Soul Siphon.]


    [You will continuously lose a certain percentage of your Health and there''s also a certain probability of damage to your soul interfering with your memories. Please be careful!]


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    Why am I waiting for my death?


    Why am I obediently letting him dispose of me as he please?


    Why am I letting myself die so easily?


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    Is it because I got influenced by the fact that losing in the Festival of Battles wouldn''t impact me in the game apart from losing money? Is that the reason why I think of death in this game as something so trivial?


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    Why am I so selfish...?


    [ You suffered 50 damage... ]


    Joseph scolded himself.


    He may have thought that death in this game was trivial since he could just revive. But for those yers who strived on improving themselves within the game. Death, for them, was extremely painful for it had the capability of rendering their previous efforts as useless.


    Ah, I know...


    It''s because as a new yer... I have nothing to lose...


    But those sisters... I can see that they are striving on earning a living in this game, they must be doing their best in everything yet I am just gonna let them down by letting myself be easily defeated?


    That can''t be...


    At least before I die, I must warn them of this bastard!


    [ Your Health is lower than 30%. You are currently under the State of Stiffness due to the heavy damage that your body recently suffered. ]


    Joseph hurriedly tried on moving his body, but his bloodied body felt extremely heavy. In fact, he felt like his body didn''t even belong to him anymore.


    "AAAAAAH!" Joseph screamed in indignation, anger, and helplessness. His screams echoed infinitely whenever it bounced off the walls of the cave. But when it registered in the minds of those that heard it, apart from the two sisters. They froze and couldn''t move anymore.


    [You heard a devastating cry of desperation. You are shocked to the core by the scream and your body is unconditionally stiffened for three seconds.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    "Joseph!"


    "Joseph!"


    The two sisters who now looked like bloodied dolls simultaneously looked behind them when they heard Joseph''s scream. Realizing their mistake of being distracted on the battlefield. They leaped backwards in an effort to widen their distance from the Voliwolf.


    However, they found that the Voliwolf not only didn''t attack when they were distracted. It also stared listlessly at the distance and remained unmoving.


    "What is going on?" Nina whispered in confusion.


    "I don''t care about what''s going on, all I know is that this is a good chance for us!" Rika hurriedly chanted arge-scale piercing spell that could pierce the thick furs of the Voliwolf, while Nina charged a Prating Charged Arrow as the Voliwolf remained frozen.


    [You created atent skill: (Desperate Roar)


    Once your Health Points falls below 30% you can activate Desperate Roar. A scream filled with desperation enough to shake those who listen to it. Everyone who hears the scream will fall to a state of shock and be stiffened for at least three seconds.


    Characters inflicted with the State of shock and Stiffness caused by Desperate Roar will bepletely immune to both debuffs at their next instance, regardless of the cause.]


    Joseph saw a system notification floating in front of him. ording to it his opponent was now frozen and in a state of shock for at least three seconds. He recognized this as a great opportunity...


    But instead of running, Joseph raised his sword and activated [Thrust] attacking his enemy''s heart.


    But why would he do something like this instead of running away immediately?


    It was because his enemy was in a state of shock.


    [Shock - A debuff caused by sudden and instantaneous tremendous damage to a yer''s body or et cetera.


    Once in a state of shock, one would bepletely defenseless and could suffer tremendous damage that had a higher chance of critically striking, once attacked at one of the three recognized major vitals of Victory.


    Major Vitals: Neck, Brain Stem, and Heart.


    Tremendous damage is normally equal to a fourth of a yer''s current Health. But if it critically strikes it is equal to at least half of a yer''s Health. Only one vital could be attacked within a single instance of Shock.


    Damage to a Non-Vital part is increased by a certain percentage, but that particr non-vital will now be unaffected by the next instance of Shock.]


    This overpowered debuff existed in an effort to keep the game as realistic as possible. In Victory, at least you''d still have about half of your Health after being attacked in a major vital while in a state of shock.


    In the outside world, if you were attacked in a vital...


    Even if you''re not in a state of shock, you''d certainly die.


    Even the state of shock itself in the field of medicine at the outside world is incredibly dangerous.


    [You were attacked at one of your major vitals. You suffered tremendous damage and is now in a state of bleeding.]


    [You will continuously lose 1% of your Health Points per second within the next four seconds.]


    [Your skill: Favored by Darkness resisted the effects of the state of bleeding.]


    [You sessfully recovered from the state of bleeding.]


    [You resisted against Stiffness from suffering tremendous damage due to the effects of (???)]


    There were still two seconds left of the Stiffness that Joseph inflicted against his enemy due to the effects of Desperate Roar.


    Joseph took advantage of this opportunity to pull his weapon from his opponent''s chest before attacking once again with a [sh].


    His defenseless enemy that couldn''t move obediently took the damage. But Joseph couldn''t raise his sword for the third time since his opponent finally recovered from the effects of Stiffness and he was now held on his neck by his opponent.


    "YOU COCKROACH-LIKE BASTARD! WHY WON''T YOU DIE, HUH?!"


    Joseph gasped for air as his opponent tightened his hold on his neck. Joseph continuously saw the appearance of several system notifications informing him of his impending peril.


    [You suffered 53 damage.]


    [You suffered...]


    [You suffered...]


    [You are now in a state of asphyxiation.]


    [You will continuously lose 1% of your Health Points until the blockage in your airway is removed...]


    [You suffered 10 damage...]


    "JUST DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIEEEEEEE!" The thoroughly enraged yer tightened his hold on Joseph''s neck as Joseph''s vision swam and darkened.


    He struggled and started kicking at his enemy but it was useless. His enemy''s level was far too high from his reach and the difference in stat points alone made this into such a futile struggle.


    If the current Joseph was the Joseph before he realized the importance of living in this world for some yers. He would just let himself die without any struggle since he would just revive at the Central Square anyways and as a low-leveled beginner yer, he had nothing to lose.


    But now that he realized that he shouldn''t take a yer''s revival for granted since some yers are doing their best on making themselves stronger in the game.


    Joseph wasn''t willing to die so easily right now. Even if he died, at least he died, knowing that he struggled. He could be proud of himself and he could sleep easily at night.


    Unfortunately, the reality was far too cruel. Joseph''s struggles eventually weakened. But just as his Health fell below ten percent, Joseph smiled and felt proud that he managed to struggle for his life that he always took for granted in this second world.


    Eventually...


    His Health plummeted below five percent and when it finally arrived at one percent. The thin line between life and death. His health suddenly stopped decreasing. No matter how tight his opponent held his neck, his Health wouldn''t drop below one percent.


    But why?


    It was because...


    [The effect of the Title, "Watched by the God of Fighting" has been activated.]


    The activation of this title...


    Signaled the start of a legend.

 Chapter 15: The Sun that Overlooks Everything

    Chapter 15: The Sun that Overlooks Everything


    Today was a fine day...


    This would be the description that every employee of the P.H Works would give if you asked them about their day so far.


    Some of them calmly observed everything happening within the world of Victory, while some casually yed games with their co-workers. Some were doing some work for future content in Victory. But no matter what they were doing. Today was an excellent day for them...


    But never did they expect that the excellent day that they''re having would be reced with anxiety.


    Just because of a single sentence from the Supeputer that overlooked the world of Victory, everything changed.


    "Quest: 4-42-69-8 has been activated."


    Its mechanical voice that closely resembled a female rang loudly within the entire floor.


    When the message that the Supeputer delivered registered within the minds of everyone. Each and every one of them dropped what they were doing as they rushed towards the location of the Supeputer Noah.


    Some of them even literally dropped what they were holding just so they could arrive at the Supeputer faster. Leaving a mess behind.


    "Ray, what did it say? Quest 4-42-69-8? It said that?" A male employee that looked to be older than Ray Gabriel asked him in an astonished manner.


    Ray Gabriel looked stern as he transferred the video output of his small monitor to arge monitor just above them all.


    Disyed within the monitor were the figures of two yers. One of the yers was currently held on the neck by the opposite yer. Judging from the levels of the two, it was clear to everyone about who of the two was winning.


    "Who triggered the quest?" That male employee asked once again.


    "That guy triggered the quest, Mar." Ray Gabriel pointed at the yer who was being strangled by his enemy.


    "He triggered the quest? Wait, his name sounds familiar. Joseph... Just where did I hear his name and when?"


    "Ah, sir! He''s that Madman of the Festival of Battles!" A fellow employee pointed out the answer and Mar pped his fist on his open palm as he shouted in enlightenment.


    "Ah, that madman!"


    Ray Gabriel nodded his head and one of the employees asked: "But sir, didn''t you make it so that quest would only trigger at the end of the Festival of Battles? Why would it appear now?"


    Ray Gabriel stared at the employee. He was about to answer when the Supeputer Noah suddenly spoke: "yer Joseph didn''t trigger the quest at the end of the Festival of Battles. But from then on, he had the eyes of the authority behind Quest 4-42-69-8."


    "The authority behind Quest 4-42-69-8... If that guy has the eyes of that figure. Everything in the world of Victory would change if he seeded in this quest..." Mar said in a serious voice.


    His fellow employees nodded their heads one by one. As members of the team that shaped the world of Victory. They knew every nook and cranny of it. But no one knew it far better than Mar who designed that authority behind Quest 4-42-69-8.


    Because of that, they knew that Mar wasn''t joking. Quest 4-42-69-8 signified the birth of a figure that''s stronger than a legend. But that was if he seeded on the quest.


    But of course, since he managed to activate the quest in the first ce, that meant that he had already won half the battle.


    He just needed to persevere and his name would forever be carved on the history of Victory.


    "But honestly, this guy is surprising. Back at the Festival of Battles, he gave me surprises after surprises when he first defeated every guardian within the Festival of Battles in session after god-knows how many tries..."


    "I''m really interested in what kind of a legend would someone like him make in this world that we made..." Ray Gabriel smiled.


    Every employee chuckled. In particr, one of them cried out.


    It was Elizabeth who said: "Since it looks like everyone is nning on watching about what''s going to happen, shall I fetch some drinks and chips?"


    All other employees were delighted when they heard her speak.


    "Yeah, get me popcorn and Royal, Eli~"


    "Coke Zero for me and some popcorn too."


    "I want tea!"


    Elizabeth''s smile froze when she heard the request of everyone.


    Afterward, she swept her chilling gazes at them all before saying in a cold voice: "Do all of you think that I''m a maid?"


    Everyone felt shivers down their spines as they awkwardlyughed.


    Ray Gabriel stared at them with a mischievous smile and advised: "Everything won''t be over in a few minutes, just get your own chips and beverages instead."


    "Hahaha, we''re just joking... Sir. Right, Eli~?" An employee winked at Elizabeth.


    "Of course, we''re just joking! How could we let Elizabeth, our cute little Secretary run errands for us? Men should do all the manualbor!


    "That''s right, that''s right! Mkay, lemme get some tea for myself."


    The employees lightlyughed and scratched their heads as they retreated and went to fetch their drinks and beverages to enjoy before watching the uing battle.


    Elizabeth, on the other hand, turned to look at Ray Gabriel and said.


    "Quest 4-42-69-8... Would it be really okay unleashing such a quest this early?"


    Ray raised his head and said: "Elizabeth, let me ask you something..."


    Elizabeth looked confused for a moment before she nodded her head: "Yes sir, feel free."


    Ray nodded his head and continued in a serious voice: "What do you think is the reason why humans are striving to improve themselves and be stronger?"


    Elizabeth thought for a moment before saying: "I think it''s because of their dreams and ambitions, sir."


    Ray smiled and replied: "That''s right! Everyone is doing their best because of their dreams and ambitions. But let''s say that you want to hasten everyone''s rate of improvement. What would you do?"


    Elizabeth paused and thought. Ray''s question sounded simple yet it had a lot of answers that shouldn''t be taken at face value when it came to Victory.


    One of the answers that shouldn''t be taken seriously was: "How about we bait everyone with items so that they would increase their rate of improvement?"


    Items were incredibly precious and rare at Victory so, such an answer would undoubtedly ruin the delicate bnce that the Supeputer Noah, strived on keeping. But wouldn''t thepletion of that particr quest, signaled that the bnce would inevitably be broken?


    The more Elizabeth though about the answer to Ray''s question. The more confused she became. Seeing the confusion on her face. Ray Gabriel lightly chuckled and replied.


    "To increase everyone''s rate of improvement. They need a firm motivation. They need someone to look up to and think something along the lines of... I want to be like him..."


    "Someone like this would serve as the ultimate, inexhaustible fuel that would make them infinitely try their best in improvement in an effort to stand side by side with that yer..."


    "In other words, to make sure that everyone would continuously strive for improvement. Someone needs to be their sun. Someone needs to be the sacrifice that would infinitely fuel their thirst for strength and gratification. That sun is the one that wouldplete that particr quest..."


    Elizabeth sucked a mouthful of cold air. She looked visibly shocked as she uttered: "Quest 4-42-69-8..."


    "Just how hard would it be toplete that quest?"


    Ray Gabriel lightlyughed when he heard what she said. Staring right into her eyes, he replied: "The sessfulpletion of that quest relies on the yer''s decision himself. Would he let himself be the sun that overlooks over everyone? Or would he choose something else?"


    "..."


    Elizabeth couldn''t even speak anymore due to the shock that she was experiencing. However, by the time that she recovered. Everyone that went outside to fetch their drinks had already returned with their food and beverages in tow.


    "Hey, don''t ce your feet on the table! You''re not in your house!"


    "Don''t drink beer while we''re still on working hours! If you do that here, then. I''ll deduct your pay for this month!"


    "Always remember to clean after yourselves after eating! We do not have a housekeeper here!"


    Elizabeth turned her attention towards the rowdy group of scientists.


    She repeatedly scolded the figures behind the creation of the fantastic world of Victory.


    Ray Gabriel chuckled at such an incredulous sight as he once again raised his head and stared at the scene happening within the screen...

 Chapter 16: Dishonesty

    Chapter 16: Dishonesty


    "Why won''t you die?" His grip on Joseph''s neck tightened. Veins bulged on his arms as he poured everything that he had into crushing Joseph''s neck. But no matter how much he struggled, it felt like Joseph''s neck was reinforced with heavenly concrete. He couldn''t strangle him.


    "What is going on? Why can''t you die?" He pointed at Joseph and unleashed a bolt of darkness. But when that bolt of darkness struck Joseph. A system notification appeared and informed him about what was happening.


    Joseph wore a smile on his face as he felt his sensesing back to him. The world that turned ck and white when he was on the verge of death, returned to normal as he stared at a series of system notifications floating in front of him.


    [The effect of the Title, "Watched by the God of Fighting" has been activated.]


    [The God of Fighting, ??? acknowledges your persistence, determination, and hard work. He sees that you''re in an uneven fight and intervenes.]


    [The God of Fighting, ??? invalidates the strength of you and your enemy to create an even fight. He raises both of your Health and Mana to the maximum and refreshes your cooldown.]


    [The God of Darkness, ??? served by the Apostle of Darkness, Abyssal me Master senses the disturbance and intervenes for the sake of his Apostle.]


    [The God of Fighting, ??? is persistent.]


    [A concession is made.]


    [The Hidden Quest, "Impress the God of Fighting" has been created!]


    [Impress the God of Fighting


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    This is a preliminary quest linked to a series of hidden quests.


    The God of Fighting has observed you from the start of your journey. He saw that you transcended your limits and defeated the Great Magician Lilibeth. Amidst all of these, he has also seen your courage, persistence, and determination.


    All of thesebined attracted the interest of the reclusive and entric God of Fighting. However, before you can thoroughly impress him. You must first defeat the great enemy standing before you and vanquish the evil forces born from the God of Darkness.


    Defeat your enemy, a powerful apostle of the God of Darkness! If you defeat him, you will impress the God of Fighting and great rewards are promised!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Defeat the Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    Quest Rewards: ???


    Quest Failure: The God of Fighting will consider you unworthy. You will be stripped off your title, "Watched by the God of Fighting". The Apostle of the God of Darkness will continue his silent ughter.]


    [The Quest is automatically epted.]


    "Hahaha... God of Fighting? No matter who he is, the fact that he helped me this time... I really appreciate that..." Josephughed inside.


    Meanwhile...


    His opponent couldn''t properly strangle him anymore due to his shock.


    "What, what is this? What''s going on?!" Joseph''s opponent cried out.


    [Your level has dropped to 1.]


    [A Hidden Quest is generated.]


    [Impress the God of Darkness


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    This is a preliminary quest linked to a series of hidden quests.


    The God of Darkness has observed your loyalty from the start. He had always held you in high regard for whenever you epted his missions. Your sess rate was always higher than average. However, what you did from the start until now wasn''t enough to thoroughly acquire his impression.


    But the God of Darkness is giving you a chance. He has reached a concession with a fellow God and you are tasked with defeating your enemy in an even fight.


    Defeat your enemy, and impress the God of Darkness! Great rewards are promised!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Defeat the enemy in front of you.


    Quest Rewards: ???


    Quest Failure: The God of Darkness'' affinity to you will sink to the lowest. You will be stripped off your title as an Apostle of the God of Darkness and deemed worthless. Hidden stats that you have unlocked through the use of Dark Energy will disappear. Level -5.]


    [The Quest is automatically epted.]


    Seeing his opponent''s panicked expression...


    Joseph reckoned that both of them should be in the same circumstances.


    Both of their levels should be at Level 1, and all of their skills should be lost apart from the basic skills that one could learn as a new yer. Since Joseph was a Mercenary.


    He had the skills, [Slice], [Thrust], and [sh].


    These three offensive skills and some movement skills such as, [Roll], [Forward Leap], [Evasion Counterattack], and [Backward Leap]


    Even though Joseph didn''t know much about some mechanics of Victory...


    As the sole winner of the Festival of Battles, Joseph felt confident about his skills.


    A light smile appeared on his lips. Earlier, his opponent most certainly had a level that was dozens of times higher than him. Because of that, Joseph didn''t have that much of a will to fight apart from the fact that he wanted to cause some trouble to his opponent before he died.


    But right now, the tables were even. Furthermore, Joseph had nothing to lose as a Level 1 apart from some Experience so why would he be afraid? He stared directly at his opponent.


    His opponent that was d in ck was now revealed in front of him. Earlier, he couldn''t quite see his enemy due to his enemy''s assimtion with the darkness. But now, he could finally see his opponent clearly.


    His opponent, that had the name "Abyssal me Master" ording to one of the system notifications that Joseph saw earlier held a staff on his right hand. Judging from the wise vibe that his opponent gave off, it was safe to think that his enemy was a Magician.


    Even though Magicians were a force to be reckoned with. They were still squishy targets that would absolutely be destroyed in close-quarterbat. Even more so when that Magician''s opponent was Joseph that defeated the Great Magician Lilibeth at the Festival of Battles.


    Knowing all of these facts, Joseph dramatically rxed. His posture looked calm and his smile looked leisurely.


    It was as if he was facing an enemy that he would surely defeat...


    "You... I really want to thank you for giving me such an opportunity..." Abyssal me Master said with a smile on his face. He never expected that he could acquire an express ticket towards his goals.


    Although he couldn''t see what exactly were the rewards offered by the Hidden Quest.


    He was certain that once he seeded, he would surely soar towards the skies and be one of the top-ranked yers of Victory.


    He stared at his opponent and sneered.


    Even though Joseph''s movements looked experienced... He couldn''t find any technique behind his movements.


    In other words, he was still undoubtedly a beginner.


    Joseph was a beginner in the game, but not in fighting.


    But Victory was a game so, Abyssal me Master held the absolute advantage.


    But why?


    It was because he had richer experience than Joseph when it came to Victory. He believed that he could easily suppress Joseph using his knowledge of the game.


    Unfortunately, Abyssal me Master never expected that his enemy transcended themon sense that he expected within the game.


    "I thank you, too..." Joseph replied with a smile on his face.


    He assumed a stance and dashed towards Abyssal me Master.


    Words were useless in battle, a true fighter talked with their sword!


    This was what Abyssal me Master thought as he braced himself for his enemy''s attack. But what came towards him wasn''t a sword.


    But a fist...


    Pa!


    A crisp sound rang out, Joseph''s fist that descended turned into a p.


    "What the... What''s going on?" Abyssal me Master shook his head and he saw his vision swam and darkened. His instincts made him jump backward to retreat as he chanted a Fireball and hurled it at Joseph''s direction.


    "Sidestep." Joseph stepped to the side and evaded the Fireball. He stretched his hand forwards and flicked a rock towards Abyssal me Master''s direction.


    "A rock? Why is he throwing a rock at me? Why won''t he use his sword?" Abyssal me Master was in disbelief. But his experience made it so that his disbelief wouldn''t turn into panic.


    He calmly observed his opponent that used every trick in the book when ites to...


    Wait...


    This guy is fighting me like a hooligan!


    Abyssal me Master screamed inside upon such a realization.


    But he still kept his cool as he mumbled.


    "He''s using every shameless trick that he knows instead of drawing his sword... But why is he doing that?" Abyssal me Master didn''t even move anymore. He just swayed his body ording to the trajectory of the rocks that Joseph continuously threw at him.


    An annoyed expression appeared on his face: "Enough is enough... Let''s finish this!" He red at Joseph before silently chanting a spell.


    "Your girlfriend left you because your junior is small!" Joseph suddenly insulted him. His chanting came to a halt, and confusion shed within his eyes.


    "What in the actual fuck is he doing?" Abyssal me Master''s confusion continued. Joseph was a Mercenary, yet why was he acting like a thug on the streets instead of drawing his sword and fighting him using it? Not only that, why did he suddenly insult me?


    Sensing the confusion of his enemy. Joseph lightly chuckled to himself. Back at the Festival of Battles, he had an enemy called, "The Spiteful Tongue". Although his insults didn''t really have any profound effect on the battle. It caused enough confusion that Joseph found it hard to concentrate.


    He couldn''t help but chuckle when he remembered how he suffered from the hands of that particr NPC...


    Now, it was his enemy''s turn to experience what he suffered back then at the Festival of Battles.


    He moved forward and sent a punch at his opponent''s face. Why was he using his fists instead of his sword, you ask? It was to further increase his enemy''s confusion. But why was he trying to confuse his enemy? It was because he wanted to render his enemy''s spells obsolete.


    Even though both of them were Level 1 and had the same points in all status. Magicians still possessed far powerful attacks due to the special scaling of their spells. For example, a Mercenary''s attack dealt on average, about 110% of the yer''s Attack Damage towards his enemies.


    How much damage do Magicians deal through their spells? They deal about 150% of their Magic Attack on average towards their enemies. Of course, the drawback was they needed to chant. They couldn''t cast those powerful spells instantaneously.


    Abyssal me Master jumped backward and chanted. He stared right at Joseph and observed him for any kind of attack that would interrupt his chanting.


    Not all attacks could interrupt a Magician''s chanting. After all, it wouldn''t be nice if a Magician''s chanting could be interrupted by a small piece of rock that their enemy hurled at them.


    Their chants could only be interrupted by attacks that dealt significant amounts of damage or attacks that had crowd control effects. Including, but not limited to Silence, Stiffness, and Shock.


    An attack that dealt a few chunks of damage towards the Magician''s Health was enough to interrupt their chanting. Abyssal me Master knew this so, he didn''t care about his enemy''s rock-throwing anymore as he continued his chanting.


    After all, what Joseph was throwing were mere pebbles, how could those deal enough damage that could interrupt a Magician''s chanting?


    But unfortunately, he made a fatal mistake by making this decision.


    True, a Magician''s chanting couldn''t be interrupted by some rocks thrown by their enemy towards them. But that was only true if the Magician had the skill, "Chanting Mastery". Which could only be acquired when a Magician was Level 20.


    And what level was the current Abyssal me Master at?


    He was Level 1.


    It meant that anything could interrupt his chanting...


    And so...


    Joseph took advantage of that opening.


    He scooped some dirt and rocks on the floor and hurled it at the Abyssal me Master''s face.


    "Throwing dirt at me? How shameless! But I''m not going to fall to that trick!" Abyssal me Master angrily cursed, but he didn''t n on moving and interrupting his own chant. After all, his enemy was just throwing some dirt and rock at him that wouldn''t do any significant damage.


    Due to that, how could his chanting be interrupted?


    After all, he had the...


    Wait...


    I don''t have the "Chanting Mastery"!


    Abyssal me Master inwardly screamed.


    Panic shed within his eyes, but before he could even move...


    The dirt arrived on his face and entered his eyes.


    "AAAHHH!!!" He screamed in pain, his vision turned ck and he couldn''t see anything.


    [Significant amount of dirt has entered your eyes. You are blinded for a few seconds!]


    [This is caused by a natural phenomenon and so, your skill: Favored by Darkness cannot resist it!]


    [You cannot resist!]


    His screams turned into the signal that started Joseph''s onught.


    He first approached his enemy and attacked with [Thrust] directly on Abyssal me Master''s heart.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock.]


    [You are stiffened for a few seconds...]


    Blindness usuallysts only for a few seconds, so Joseph attacked Abyssal me Master''s heart and added a Stiffness debuff on top of the Blindness. He pulled his sword out and used, [Slice] at his enemy''s neck causing a great deal of blood to spill out from his enemy''s carotid artery.


    [You suffered tremendous damage!]


    [Your skill: Favored by Darkness has resisted Stiffness and Bleeding.]


    "AAAAAAH!" Abyssal me Master stared right into Joseph when the effect of Blindness disappeared.


    Joseph''s expression turned serious when he realized that his enemy resisted the effects of Stiffness and Bleeding once again.


    "He has a passive resistance to most debuffs? What is going on? I thought we''re in an even field?"


    Joseph doubted and he widened his distance from his enemy as he revised his strategy.


    An enemy that could resist debuffs...


    Fighting against such an enemy and emerging victorious was difficult.


    But it wasn''t impossible.


    Joseph believed that if he had enough information about his enemy. He could eventually win. But this wasn''t the Festival of Battles where Joseph could just die for the sake of gathering some information and return at ater date. Dying here meant that everything would be over.


    This was the first time since fighting the Great Magician Lilibeth that Joseph felt such pressure. The light smile that he had on his face earlier on the fight was now reced with a bitter one.


    Abyssal me Master stared at his enemy and found his enemy''s heart falter. A light smile appeared on his face as he casually opened his skill tree. What he found within his skill tree shocked him but he quickly recovered andughed.


    "Hahaha..." Hisughter made Joseph frown.


    "Why are youughing?" Joseph asked in a cold voice.


    "Nothing... It''s just, everything is too funny." Abyssal me Master replied.


    "Funny? What''s funny?" Joseph''s frown deepened.


    "Well, it''s funny that I''m trying so hard against such a weakling like you when I could just easily win this fight, get over this and im my rewards." Abyssal me Master replied in a teasing manner. His eyes now filled with pride and arrogance.


    Joseph felt confused about the source of Abyssal me Master''s confidence.


    Why was he speaking in such a tone as if he has already won the fight?


    "Talk to me like that when you have won," Joseph replied and Abyssal me Masterughed out loud.


    "Hahaha... This is really too funny... The reason why I am talking at you like this... Is because I have already won!"


    Abyssal me Master''s mocking expression deepened and Joseph couldn''t help but feel uneasy. Such a sudden change in the attitude of his enemy meant that he had a solid basis about what he was saying.


    But still, he asked...


    "You have already won? On what basis?" He asked in a challenging manner.


    "On this basis!" Abyssal me Master cried out and pointed at Joseph.


    A thin line of darkness flew from his fingertip towards Joseph''s chest and prated his heart.


    "Guaaah!" Joseph coughed a mouthful of blood and his body directly fell on the ground.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock.]


    [You are stiffened for a few seconds...]


    The effects of Stiffened made it so that his body wouldn''t move no matter what he did.


    "The God that I serve really is the God of Darkness. An even fight? To hell with that! Why should my hard-earned strength be suppressed just for the sake of fighting evenly against a weakling? Hahaha!"


    Abyssal me Masterughed, he walked towards Joseph and looked down on him from above.


    "You are weak... I don''t understand why someone like you would have such a privilege of being favored by a God. But still, I must give you my thanks... If not for you, then I wouldn''t be able to aplish my goals faster than what I expected before..."


    "Thank you... Really, thank you... As thanks, I must offer your soul to the God of Darkness. Who knows if mypensation bes better if I did that..." Abyssal me Master chuckled and he pointed his finger at Joseph''s head.


    "Well... This is goodbye." Abyssal me Master then silently whispered into the air: "Darkness Beam."


    A beam of darkness formed on his fingertip, but before it could fly and struck its enemy. A scream of desperation rang out and shook Abyssal me Master''s body to its core.


    [You heard a devastating cry of desperation. You are shocked to the core by the scream and your body is unconditionally stiffened for three seconds.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    "That strange skill again?!"

 Chapter 17: Futile Struggle

    Chapter 17: Futile Struggle


    The stiffened Abyssal me Master stared at Joseph as thetter stood up, took a stance with his sword and [Thrust] it at his heart.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock.]


    [You are stiffened for a few seconds...]


    [You resisted against Stiffness from suffering tremendous damage due to the effects of (???)]


    Stiffness caused by the state of shock from Desperate Roar didn''t stack with Stiffness caused by other attacks. This meant that Joseph only had two seconds left before his enemy could move once again and finish him.


    The moment his sword pierced his enemy''s heart. Joseph took a deep breath and fiercely pulled it out.


    Without blinking nor taking a break. He sliced at Abyssal me Master''s neck and then shed his head, causing devastating amounts of damage made possible by attacking Abyssal me Master''s vitals.


    "Impossible..." Abyssal me Master coughed a mouthful of blood.


    A kick flew and sent him rolling on the ground as the effects of Stiffness caused by Desperate Roar finally ended.


    "You bastard... you''ll regret opposing me!" Abyssal me Master stood up and raised his staff towards the skies. Dark energy gathered around his staff and a cloud full of the same dark energy formed overhead just below the stctites.


    The cloud made of dark energy looked ominous, and Joseph''s instincts repeatedly told him to run away from that cloud of darkness. But Joseph knew that he had to face his enemy.


    Running away wouldn''t solve anything at this point in the battle, it would just exacerbate the problem and lower his morale.


    He had to face his enemy, no matter how impossible it was to defeat him. He must persevere and not give up like what he always did back when he was still a challenger of the Festival of Battles.


    "Now that I think about it, your face looks quite familiar..." Abyssal me Master suddenly spoke up when he saw the look of determination on Joseph''s face: "It feels like I have seen you before, but that''s impossible..."


    "This is the first time that we met and all those whose face I saw ended up dying with their memories altered..."


    But after a few moments...


    "Ah!"


    ... Abyssal me Master suddenly screamed in realization.


    "You''re that Madman of the Festival of Battles!" He pointed at Joseph andughed out loud after finding out the answer.


    The Madman of the Festival of Battles. His name resounded throughout the entire world of Victory for a few days. He was praised and likewise criticized by everyone. Praised, because of his amazing tenacity. But criticized for his apparent desperation for money.


    It was obvious for everyone about why Joseph was trying so hard onpleting an almost impossible mission of defeating a Great Magician that was considered to be at the peak of the current world of Victory ifpared to other yers.


    Apart from the promised rewards of a million dors, nothing else was listed as a reward and so...


    Money was obviously Joseph''s motive.


    Abyssal me Master read that article from top to bottom and he found the Madman of the Festival of Battles as an interesting man. Someone that could defeat a Great Magician must be someone whose strength, should be far greater than him. But what was happening now?


    The so-called Madman of the Festival of Battles was currently helpless before him?


    It should be the other way around!


    Realizing these facts. Abyssal me Master''s smile deepened. He unknowingly challenged a great figure and made a move that could be considered as courting death itself.


    But right now, he was winning against that so-called madman, an absolute monster that defeated a Great Magician that stood at the realm unreachable for yers.


    Joseph kept his silence towards what Abyssal me Master was saying, his face was posted several times within the forums of Victory and reprinted for no less than a dozen times by media stations as their front-page image.


    He knew that subterfuge wouldn''t possibly work, and he never really intended on hiding his identity for as long as it wasn''t necessary.


    "Although I can''t understand why the God that I serve dislikes you. There''s only one thing that''s for sure... You will surely die under my hands today..." Abyssal me Master grinned at Joseph.


    He finally stopped talking for once, but this meant bad news for Joseph who secretly hoped that his enemy''s talkative nature would continue so he could secretly revise some of his ns.


    "Hoping that an enemy would give you enough time to think. It really is wishful thinking." Joseph thought to himself. He then took a deep breath and adjusted his stance.


    The cloud made of darkness approached Joseph from the air, while Abyssal me Master took a dagger that dangerously shone in a greenish-light of poison before he rushed at Joseph.


    "This is bad."


    Joseph''s instincts told him that he must not let the cloud of darkness arrive directly over his head. But since the two of them were in a cave. Joseph''s movements were limited, while his enemy that had the upper hand against him, moved like he was just casually strolling in his backyard.


    "This bastard..." Joseph cursed, Abyssal me Master attacked with his dagger and Joseph didn''t dare to catch it with his [Rusty Beginner Sword]. Even though their stats were even. Joseph wasn''t sure if the power of their items were bnced against each other.


    Facing a dagger that emanated the ominous stench of poison. Joseph didn''t dare to gamble with chances as he retreated with a [Backward Leap].


    "Too predictable!" Abyssal me Master cried out and his dagger suddenly squirmed like a viper and headed towards Joseph''s direction.


    "Shit!" Joseph moved ording to his instincts. He raised his sword right in front of him, barely blocking the iing attack. He used the force of that attack to roll backward and further widen his distance from his enemy.


    "Oh? You managed on blocking that...? As expected from someone who acquired the ire of the Gods..."


    Abyssal me Master was still speaking nonsense that Joseph couldn''t understand. ''What ire of the Gods? Unless he also has a Hidden Quest that''s opposite of my quest, why would he say something...''


    ''Wait!'' Joseph inwardly screamed.


    An epiphany struck him: ''Shit! This bastard also has a Hidden Quest from the God of Darkness. That quest should be to eliminate me... If this is true then my chances of surviving this ordeal and acquiring the rewards from that so-called Impress quest is greatly reduced!''


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun. He stared right into his enemy and took a deep breath. Against an enemy that didn''t want him to see the end of the day. Joseph knew that he couldn''t be passive.


    If he wanted to survive and win, he must do something that could make him turn the tables against such a powerful enemy.


    Just as Joseph was thinking about his ns.


    His instincts suddenly kicked and he subconsciously jumped towards the side.


    Bang!


    A dark-colored lightning bolt descended and struck the location where Joseph stood just a few moments ago. Cold sweat filled his back and he couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva when he found that the epicenter where the lightning bolt descended now looked like it was filled withva.


    "Damn it how strong is this guy? God of Fighting, I thought that you''d make an even field where I can fight properly against this guy? It''s true that our stats are even, but he''s cheating! He can use the skills that he had before his level and stat advantage disappeared!"


    Joseph inwardly cursed the God of Fighting in his heart, but he couldn''t really do anything about it. Gods were known as entric characters. Apart from the Goddess of Light, Rhinna whose presence was scattered around the world of Victory.


    Most Gods were reclusive and had entric personalities.


    One of those was the God of Darkness that could be described as the amalgamation of mood swings. His whimsical manner often made him aughing stock amidst his fellow Gods. But all of them couldn''t deny the God of Darkness'' strength and influence.


    After all, so long as the light in the world exists. Darkness could never disappear.


    "I need to keep track of that cloud of darkness..." Joseph thought to himself and found that the cloud of darkness automatically followed his movements every three seconds.


    This meant that every three seconds, he must move to a new location or he would be struck by a powerful lightning bolt from the cloud.


    "Where are you looking?" Abyssal me Master suddenly appeared at Joseph''s side. He aimed his dagger at Joseph''s neck in an effort to strike Joseph''s vitals.


    But Joseph suddenly folded his knees, directly copsing underneath Abyssal me Master as he carried his right elbow and buried it deep into Abyssal me Master''s stomach.


    [You suffered 23 damage.]


    For reference, a Level 1 character possessed only a thousand Health Points and two-hundred Mana Points. Even though 23 damage looked incredibly low. Against a character that was only Level 1.


    This attack meant that Joseph removed at least two percent of his enemy''s Health Bar in just a single attack.


    Abyssal me Master was in disbelief. Not only his opponent possessed shamelessness in battle and moved like a hooligan. His skills in Martial Arts was also decent.


    Suppressing his anger.


    He widened his distance from Joseph and started chanting.


    "Like I''d let you!" Joseph rushed at Abyssal me Master, and when thetter saw all of these happening. A small smile lifted on his lips. His staff disappeared, reced by the poisonous dagger as he weed Joseph''s arrival with a thrust of his dagger.


    "Your mother dropped you on the ground when you''re just a baby!" Joseph suddenly insulted him and his dagger''s trajectory faltered from the confusion that he felt.


    [Your enemy''s words have confused you.]


    [Your movement will be far slower than you expect.]


    [This effectsts for a few seconds.]


    "Now is my chance!" Joseph saw this opportunity and he hurriedly sidestepped. Dodging the dagger, he turned his body and attacked with [Slice] at his enemy''s torso. But before his attack could arrive, a thunderous roar rang out from the skies, interrupting him from attacking.


    "That goddamned cloud!" Joseph cursed. He forcefully retracted his [Slice] and sessfully dodged the bolt of lightning sent by the cloud of darkness.


    [You forcefully retracted an attack that was already sent. Such forceful movements burden your body.]


    [Your Movement Speed is lowered by 20% for a few seconds. This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted.]


    "Shit!" Joseph cried out loud when he saw the messages contained within the system notifications that appeared before him. He had never forcefully retracted an attack before.


    That was the reason why Joseph felt shaken when he saw that his Movement Speed would be lowered by a significant amount as the aftermath of retracting a sent attack.


    "An opening!" Abyssal me Master saw this opportunity and he hurriedly moved.


    His dagger that gleamed dangerously with the light of a nightmarish poison neared Joseph whose expression looked grim and desperate. Right now, he really hoped that a miracle would happen so that he could escape his enemy''s iing attack.


    But the reality was far too cruel.


    [You suffered 232 damage.]


    [The attacker''s weapon contains poison!]


    [You are suffering from the poison and will continuously lose 10 Health Points for five seconds...]


    "10 Health Points?" Joseph doubted the message that the system notification. Although his enemy had the same level and stats as him, it wasn''t certain if his enemy''s items also downgraded.


    In that case, wasn''t it obvious that his opponent''s items would be on a higher spec than him?


    But right now, his opponent''s weapon only dealt a measly 232 damage and 10 Health Points per second as a status effect from the debuff, "Poison" that his enemy''s weapon possessed.


    This only meant one thing. Not only their levels and stats were even.


    Everything that they had in possession was also downgraded for the sake of a fair fight.


    But in that case, the God of Darkness really was too dirty. The God of Fighting wanted an even fight between him and Abyssal me Master. But he secretly restored his Apostle''s strength by giving permission to his Apostle on using high-leveled skills in this fight.


    Abyssal me Master was taken aback when he saw that his enemy''s Health Points didn''t sink as much as he expected. But thanks to his extensive experience with fighting against fellow yers. He quickly regained his mentality and stared right into his enemy.


    Even though the strength of his equipment were invalidated by the God of Fighting for the sake of creating an even fight...


    Abyssal me Master believed that he had a higher chance than Joseph on winning this battle. After all, he was decent on using his dagger, and he could also use high-leveled skills due to the help of the God of Darkness.


    Staring at Joseph that was currently suffering under the effects of "Poison".


    Abyssal me Master lightlyughed and said: "Now, do you understand? The sheer difference between the two of us isn''t something that a God could just invalidate. Experience is something that is umted, it cannot simply be rendered obsolete so easily..."


    Abyssal me Master ignited a small Fireball above his palm. His eyes turned frosty as he stared at Joseph that wouldn''t die like a cockroach as he said in a nonchnt manner: "This, will make you understand how futile is the struggle that you are doing right now."


    He pointed at Joseph and said: "Discharge, Fireball."


    The ball of fire that floated above Abyssal me Master''s palm answered hismand, and it flew like a shooting star towards Joseph.


    The sheer speed of the Fireball rendered dodging useless...


    Joseph didn''t even bother moving as he weed the arrival of the meteor that would undoubtedly end his life in Abyssal me Master''s eyes.


    Boom!


    A great inferno along with a loud explosion urred within the tight cave. Stctites that hung proudly on the ceiling of the cave descended like thorns of flower towards the location where the Fireball exploded.


    When all of them copsed, everything was covered in a thick smoke of dust and by now...


    Abyssal me Master was sure that his enemy was dead.


    But why wasn''t he informed about his quest''spletion? Could it be that...


    Abyssal me Master suddenly trembled in fear. But he didn''t dare to believe the theory that he reached.


    However, when he opened his Quest Menu and found that his Hidden Quest was still marked as ongoing.


    His eyes widened like saucers as he whispered into the air with fear.


    "Could it be that..."


    "The game is bugged...?"

 Chapter 18: Double Backfire

    Chapter 18: Double Backfire


    With Abyssal me Master''s experience and knowledge with the game. He couldn''t find a proper answer as to why his enemy was still alive apart from the game being bugged.


    But Abyssal me Master believed that what he said was unrealistic.


    It has to be known that the world of Victory was managed by the Supeputer Noah. Its wisdom and knowledge far surpassed human beings and it possessed incredible skills when it came to debugging.


    Something that a mere mortal like him couldn''t understand.


    But apart from the game being bugged. Was there really a proper reason as to why his quest still hasn''t ended? Could it be that there''s another condition for questpletion apart from killing this weak newbie?


    Abyssal me Master thought for a moment, but the answer to his question soon revealed itself.


    In the end, the quest was still ongoing.


    Why?


    Because for some reason...


    Joseph was alive.


    How?


    Joseph stood up. His upper body stark-naked, and revealed to the world.


    Upon seeing this, Abyssal me Master finally acquired the answer that he wanted.


    It was true that Joseph was alive.


    But how?


    How did he survive a Fireball at that range?


    Well, it was because...


    [You discarded your Armor(Upper Body)]


    [Ownership of the item will remain for five minutes until the item is retrieved.]


    [The item suffered tremendous damage. Its durability is lost and the item is likewise lost forever.]


    ... Before the Fireball struck Joseph.


    He discarded his clothe and threw it in the direction of the Fireball.


    Fireball was a non-targeted spell that flew out as a projectile. Even though it possessed tremendous strength. It had a fatal weakness.


    That weakness was the fact that almost anything could stop it for as long as it previously belonged to a yer.


    Meaning...


    Discarded items that came from a yer could block the Fireball. This weakness of the Fireball was famously taken advantage of by Ninjas who used their Shuriken on blocking iing Fireballs sent by their enemies.


    Such weakness wasmon sense for experienced yers. But Joseph was undoubtedly a new yer.


    What was going on?


    Abyssal me Master had to take another good look at his enemy.


    "As expected of the Madman of the Festival of Battles. Even though he doesn''t have sufficient experience when ites to fighting against other high-leveled yers. His fight with the NPCs at that Festival became his strength which made him survive my Fireball..." He thought to himself.


    "So, you also know about that trick? In that case, what will happen if I use a skill that is recognized as having no weaknesses?" Abyssal me Master grinned at Joseph and he opened his arms wide. Dark energy surrounded his body and it became a signal for Joseph as he rushed at his enemy.


    "My enemy is a Magician! No matter what, I must not let him chant!" This was the n that Joseph ultimately decided on using. This n was too risky, but beggars couldn''t be choosers.


    The current Joseph was too weak. It was impossible for him to y safe since his enemy could defeat him with just a few high-leveled spells.


    But High-leveled spells were notorious for having long cast times. So, a Magician required protection whenever they prepared their spells.


    Such weakness was something that Joseph could take advantage of.


    ng!


    His sword shed against his enemy''s wooden staff and a dull sound rang out. Abyssal me Master raised his knee and kicked Joseph right at his stomach. Joseph sidestepped and dodged the kick, before unleashing [Thrust] at his enemy''s torso.


    [You suffered 24 damage!]


    The Health Points of the two were simr since they were at the same level. A damage of 24 Health Points wasn''t trivial for their characters that only had a thousand Health Points. Abyssal me Master used [Backward Leap] and tried widening his distance away from his enemy.


    He refused to engage in close-quarterbat against the Madman of the Festival of Battles since he was a Magician.


    Magicians were squishy targets and weak against any enemy that could close their distance to them.


    Not only that, if a Magician wanted to reign supreme in a battle.


    They must be given enough time so, that they could prepare their spells.


    A Magician that couldn''t cast his spells was worse than a Mercenary that didn''t have his weapon.


    After all, a Mercenary could use their fists in battle due to their strong fleshly-body.


    But as for a Magician? Well, they shouldn''t even bother.


    A fatal weakness like that wasn''t tolerated in the world of Victory.


    But although that weakness wasn''t removed...


    The Supeputer Noahpensated Magicians by giving them Movement Speed that was better than Mercenaries, but worse than Hunters.


    Nevertheless, a Magician''s true power could never appear if they couldn''t even cast their spells.


    That was the reason why Abyssal me Master made widening his distance away from his enemy his priority.


    Unfortunately for him...


    "What in the hell is wrong with this guy? He really wants to kill me..." Abyssal me Master inwardly cursed. Repeated usage of movement skills such as [Backward Leap], and [Frontal Leap] along with jumping and continuous running took a toll on his body.


    Magicians had the worst Stamina among the Four Main sses.


    With the exception of walking, every movement within the world of Victory required the usage of Stamina.


    It was evident that Abyssal me Master would run out of stamina first before Joseph did.


    Fortunately, Abyssal me Master''s experience didn''t make him panic.


    He turned around and faced Joseph before he ran out of Stamina and received Joseph''s [sh].


    ng!


    A dull sound rang out once again and Abyssal me Master pushed Joseph away before casting another Fireball. This spell needed to be chanted, but the chant necessary for this spell was short.


    An experienced Magician like Abyssal me Master could easily cast it whenever he wanted with great proficiency.


    Joseph lowered his head and rolled forward. Abyssal me Master smashed his staff downwards in advance in preparation for Joseph''s arrival beside him, but Joseph''s body stopped mid-roll and he used [Thrust] while he was in the middle of rolling.


    "Guah!" Abyssal me Master coughed a mouthful of blood.


    "Such petty tricks!" He cried out in anger and sent another Fireball which Joseph dodged.


    Afterward, what came down was another [sh] from Joseph that Abyssal me Master blocked using his wooden staff.


    Using the force behind Joseph''s attack. He extended the range of his [Backward Leap] and he managed to widen the distance quite a bit as Joseph rushed at him once again.


    But with just three steps. Joseph stopped his attacks. But it wasn''t because he voluntarily stopped his attack. It was because he couldn''t attack his enemy anymore.


    Abyssal me Master wore a smile on his face as he said: "Your n on exhausting my Stamina Bar has backfired on you... What do you feel? Are you angry?" He said in a teasing manner.


    Joseph''s expression looked pale and beaded sweat formed on his forehead.


    Even though Magicians had the worst Stamina among the Four Main sses. Their attacks didn''t require the usage of Stamina.


    In contrast, every Mercenary''s attack consumed Stamina. Even though the consumption wasn''t that ridiculous...


    If attacks were used in repetition. They would stack up and bite you on the ass if you weren''t careful.


    And that''s what happened to Joseph.


    In his quest on reducing the Stamina of his opponent.


    He forgot about the fact that he also had the Stamina Bar.


    In the end, his n backfired...


    For a few seconds while his Stamina was in the process of recovery.


    He couldn''t do anything against Abyssal me Master.


    And who was Abyssal me Master? He''s a yer recognized as an Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    His experience when it came to battles against other yers was unparalleledpared to Joseph that had little to none.


    Abyssal me Master quickly took advantage of Joseph''s circumstances and he hurriedly chanted a spell...


    "Unod bukog, unod bukog..." Abyssal me Master mumbled to himself as indecipherable magical runes surrounded his body.


    An indication that he was preparing a powerful spell.


    ''Right now, that bastard is recovering his stamina. Stamina recovery for new yers shouldst for at least ten seconds, by then..."


    "I would''ve alreadypleted the preparation of this spell." Abyssal me Master felt confident.


    But he couldn''t help but feel uneasy when he saw the smile on Joseph''s face.


    ''Why is he smiling? Does he really want to die that much? But if he died, wouldn''t he lose the blessing of a God? His attitude doesn''t make sense.'' Abyssal me Master frowned.


    But he soon shook his head as his spell''s preparation neared itspletion. Now, what remained was the injection of Mana in the magical runes that he prepared.


    Yes, only the injection of Mana remained.


    Wait...


    The injection of Mana?


    Where''s my Mana?!


    Abyssal me Master cried out loud when he realized that his Mana Bar that he expected to be halfway full was currently empty. Magicians required the help of Magical Runes that they could summon amidst their chanting.


    Those Magical Runes were the reason why their ss existed and to use Magic.


    But the problem was even though their chanting could summon Magical Runes. They must inject Mana in those Magical Runes so that they could be used.


    Now, even though Abyssal me Master''s Magical Runes werepleted. Itcked an incredibly importantponent. Since thatponent was missing.


    The spell couldn''t bepleted and it promptly crumbled, wasting Abyssal me Master''s efforts.


    [You do not have enough Mana toplete the preparation of the spell!]


    [The Magical Runes has crumbled and returned to ashes...]


    [Casting of the spell failed due to insufficient Mana...]


    "His n wasn''t to seal my movements by making me use all of my Stamina but to take my attention away from my Mana Bar so, that I wouldn''t notice its disappearance?!"


    These system notifications awakened Abyssal me Master from his stupor, and when he raised his head to stare at Joseph. He found that Joseph''s figure looked much bigger and nearer than before.


    "Ah!"


    He screamed in fright.


    What remained of his consciousness registered the iing danger and he subconsciously raised his wooden staff in order to block Joseph''s attack.


    Unfortunately, it was futile...


    His wooden staff that lost its enhancement from Mana, couldn''t endure the strength of the sword within Joseph''s hand and it crumbled into dust.


    [Your Primary Weapon: Corporeal to Ash has been permanently destroyed!]


    [Without a Primary Weapon as a medium. Spells cannot be used and they will be temporarily sealed until the appearance of a Primary Weapon.]


    [You suffered 31 damage.]


    Joseph saw the hopelessness and disbelief within his opponent''s face yet, he didn''t show mercy. His attacks remained relentless and fierce.


    It was as if he wanted nothing but the death of Abyssal me Master.


    ''Everything that I have worked so hard for since the start of the game would be wasted here? That cannot be... I can''t ept it... I can''t... But...'' Abyssal me Master''s eyes widened in shock. His expression turned iparably pale while his mouth opened agape.


    He stared at Joseph and found that his enemy whom he considered as weak andparable only to that of an ant now looked incredibly strong and big.


    Since the start of the game, Abyssal me Master chose solitude in the hopes that he could achieve strength that could transform him into a one-man ind. He was always diligent.


    Every order that his superiors back when he was still recognized as a Believer of the God of Darkness, he obeyed them all without any regrets norints.


    Slowly, but certainly. He ascended the ranks and soon became an Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    Just above him was the rank that he wanted from the start.


    Bing a Disciple of the God of Darkness.


    Such a title meant that he would stand above everyone else, while just being under a few Gods.


    Abyssal me Master didn''t mind that.


    He didn''t mind the fact that he would be under the bidding of a god for he only wanted to prove himself towards that woman...


    That''s right, Abyssal me Master started his journey of getting stronger for the sake of getting revenge. He wanted revenge against that woman.


    Against that woman who mercilessly tore his heart, body, and soul apart. All for the sake of her own selfish desires.


    But today...


    Everything was going to end?


    Abyssal me Master didn''t know why but he felt quite peaceful. He thought that he would be angry at Joseph and swear that he wouldn''t be able to live under the same skies as him because of what Joseph did at him. But right now, Abyssal me Master felt peace.


    He stared at Joseph with a small smile on his bloodied-face. His bloodshot eyes gleamed with a beckoning manner at Joseph as if he was saying that he wanted that sword to end his life as soon as possible.


    Yes, he wanted everything to end as soon as possible.


    When everything ended, he could finally find peace and get over his hatred towards that woman. He wouldn''t feel remorseful that he failed on his efforts on proving himself to her.


    At least...


    He would find peace due to the fact that he tried his best.


    Although his best was never enough...


    "Perhaps... It is best for me to just forget about you, Lily..." He whispered.


    "[Thrust]"


    A single thrust pierced through Abyssal me Master''s heart.


    [Quest: Impress the God of Darkness has failed!]


    [The God of Darkness, ??? deems you worthless and has stripped you of your title as an Apostle.]


    [Your affinity towards the Church of Darkness has sunk to the lowest. Every believer of the Church of Darkness will turn violent whenever they see you and they will use you of being a coward and useless.]


    [You lost the Dark Magician''s Skill Tree]


    [All stats and skill points acquired as a Dark Magician is permanently lost and can never be recovered.]


    [You lost 5 levels.]


    [You died.]


    At the end of his life, Abyssal me Master saw all of these system notifications and a small smile of relief surfaced on his lips. However, before he could thoroughly embrace the sensation of death...


    Another series of system notification appeared right in front of him along with a hoarse and grating voice that said...


    "Poor child, discarded by the God of Darkness that you loved so much... It must hurt, right? You''re too pitiful..."


    [The 72nd Demon: Gelial has taken interest in your plight.]


    "Since those shiny daddies up above the skies are bing hasty, I guess this isn''t so bad too..."


    [The 72nd Demon: Gelial wees you in his arms.]


    [The might of a Demon in your weakened state is too great for you to resist.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    Abyssal me Master would then be a great variable for Joseph in the far future.

 Chapter 19: Immeasurable Rewards

    Chapter 19: Immeasurable Rewards


    [Quest: Impress the God of Fighting is sessful!]


    [The difficulty of the quest: Impress the God of Fighting is revealed!]


    [Quest Difficulty: SS]


    [You gained 5 levels.]


    [Your affinity to the God of Fighting, ??? has increased by 50 points.]


    "Come, worthy child..."


    Bang!


    A clear sh of lightning amidst the clear skies descended and urately pierced through the ceiling of the cave.


    It aimed precisely at Joseph.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion urred.


    When the dust cleared up.


    One could see that Joseph''s figure had disappeared...


    [You have been abducted to the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum!]


    [Your location within the world of Victory couldn''t be identified. ess to the Map and Minimap has been disabled.]


    [As a reward for being the first yer to enter the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum. You will acquire the interest of every Bard in the world. If you can sell your stories to them for a great price!]


    [Your title, "Watched by the God of Fighting" has changed to: "Blessed by the God of Fighting".]


    Joseph opened his eyes and saw a series of system notifications that floated before him. He turned to look at his surroundings and was amazed.


    He found himself standing on green grass, he could vaguely see that something surrounded him in the area but even when he squinted his eyes and strained himself so that he could clearly see his surroundings.


    His eyes couldn''t prate the smoke that covered what he wanted to see.


    [Your eyes are too weak to perceive the truth.]


    [You failed on seeking what you sought.]


    Several system notifications informed that it was physically impossible for him to see beyond the vague smoky like-haze around the area.


    [In your current state, what you are doing is futile, my child...]


    Joseph heard a faint masculine voice. He turned around but found nothing.


    [With your current abilities, you are not qualified to see the form of a god, my child...]


    Joseph frowned, ''I am not qualified to see the form of a god? Then why did you bring me here in the first ce if you''re not going toe out and talk to me?'' He couldn''t help but feel irritated.


    It wasmon sense that one would show himself towards his guests, but why was the God of Fighting hiding from him?


    [Oh, so you already know that I''m the God of Fighting? The Law of Causality really is favoring you, my child. But fear not, I mean no harm to you. I brought you here so that I could bestow upon you the rewards that you deserved for impressing a god like me.]


    When Joseph heard what the God of Fighting said. His eyes gleamed with anticipation and he no longer held any bad impression against the God of Fighting.


    After all, why would someone p the face of someone who bestows upon them rewards?


    [You are weak, but you possess determination, willpower, and persistence that reminds me of my past. You are qualified to be my vessel in the human realm. Bring my gospel with you and spread my name. I, the God of Fighting, ??? deres you as a worthy Disciple of mine...]


    Joseph''s expression changed when he heard what the voice within the skies was saying. At the end of the voice''s sentence, a system notification appeared before Joseph.


    [The God of Fighting, ??? has dered you as a worthy Disciple!]


    [If you ept then you will be the 1st Disciple of the God of Fighting!]


    [ess to the Disciple of the God of Fighting''s Skill Tree will be opened and perks, exclusive for a distinguished person like you will be opened!]


    [Title, "Blessed by the God of Fighting." will change to "Disciple of the God of Fighting".]


    [Everyone will look favorably at you at first nce.]


    [The strong will feel an inclination to fight you!]


    [The weak will feel overwhelmed by your mighty presence!]


    [Do you want to ept the God of Fighting''s appointment?]


    [Note: Once you epted the appointment then there is no turning back! Think carefully!]


    Reading all of these system notifications. Joseph understood that these rewards were far too good than he expected, but Joseph couldn''t help but feel something strange. He had an idea that he couldn''t quite grasp, but it was at the tip of his tongue.


    He frowned and mused...


    The God of Fighting seemed to have noticed his hesitation and asked.


    [My child, why are you hesitating?]


    Joseph didn''t know that much about the God of Fighting.


    He was someone that instantly went for the Festival of Battles once he had made his character and entered the game. He didn''t bother on reading more on the lore of the game since he wasn''t even sure if he could continue on ying Victory in the near future.


    However, when he remembered that the God of Fighting and the God of Darkness reached a concession back when everything turned around earlier.


    Joseph couldn''t help but hesitate.


    His frown deepened as the God of Fighting asked once again.


    [My child, I will give you infinite power...]


    The God of Fighting enticed.


    [If you ept the God of Fighting''s offer, you will acquire all rewards listed above! Affinity with the God of Fighting will also increase to 20, do you want to ept?]


    Reading the system notification floating in front of him. Joseph wore a small smile on his face. He faced the heavens and asked: "Who the hell are you?"


    The skies visibly shook.


    The God of Fighting was shaken by Joseph''s unexpected question.


    [My child, why are you asking me that? I am the God of Fighting, the God of Fighting, ??? that looks favorably upon you!]


    Joseph''s smile deepened: "I don''t think that the God of Fighting would use such a creepy voice when speaking towards someone that he looks upon favorably..."


    "And also, my affinity to the God of Fighting is already 50, while the system notification here is saying that my affinity to the God of Fighting will increase to 20..."


    "Does that even make sense?" Joseph shook his head before he snapped and continued: "Of course not! This is the irond proof that you are not the God of Fighting! Who are you? Are you the God of Darkness?" Joseph cried out and the skies trembled once again before turning silent.


    After a short moment, the skies shook once more and a voice filled with uncertainty came out.


    [What are you talking about?]


    Of course, understanding the game system was impossible for NPCs that were controlled by the game system itself so, of course. It couldn''t understand what Joseph meant by system notifications.


    Joseph didn''t reply to the so-called God of Fighting''s inquiry. He just calmly waited.


    Then, finally...


    After a short while. The skies visibly shook once again, and aughter-filled with mirth rang out.


    Theughter felt distant, but it rang so closely within Joseph''s ears.


    [Hahaha! Like I told you, someone that I looked favorably upon wouldn''t easily fall to your tricks!]


    The voice sounded like it came from a middle-aged man, and Joseph wore a smile on his face when he heard it.


    It was because he knew that his gamble worked.


    He felt that something was wrong when he saw the listed rewards that feltcking and the weird tone of voice that the so-called God of Fighting had when talking to him.


    Having interacted with a lot of NPCs.


    Joseph knew that every NPC''s tone of voice when talking to you always changed depending on how high, or how low your affinity was to them.


    If you talked to an NPC with zero affinity towards you...


    They would treat you like a total stranger. Likewise, if you had a high affinity towards that NPC. They would treat you like a close friend and their tone of voice wouldn''t sound so distant like the so-called God of Fighting''s tone of voice when they talked earlier.


    Joseph had 50 affinity points to the God of Fighting with 100 considered as the maximum. 50 affinity points meant that the God of Fighting would treat him like a friend and his tone of voice upon speaking towards him should be rxed and leaned more on positivity.


    But how did the so-called God of Fighting spoke to him when he arrived here?


    He spoke like Joseph was beneath him, he spoke like he was doing a great favor for Joseph and couldn''t wait until Joseph epted his offer.


    Joseph gambled on these facts and from what he noticed...


    Right now, his gamble thankfully paid off.


    [Vell, keep in mind that you lost the bet. Better send what I won to my residence after this.]


    [Yeah, I know, I know...]


    The middle-aged man talked towards someone and a voice replied. Joseph understood that the voice who replied to the middle-aged man was the one who tried to deceive him on bing a Disciple of the God of Fighting.


    However, Joseph couldn''t help but frown when he realized all of these.


    ''Are they really Gods? To think that they would gamble about the fate of a mere yer like me... If their followers knew what they were doing then I''m pretty sure that most, if not all of them would be devastated by how the God that they worshipped, acts behind the scenes!'' Joseph thought to himself.


    [Well, well, well... You''re finally here! I''ve been observing you ever since you started your journey at the Festival of Battles. You are weak, but your determination, willpower and persistence have impressed me.]


    The middle-aged voice rang out once again and Joseph couldn''t help but shiver.


    ''Deja vu?'' He thought.


    [But anyway, I must thank you! Really. If you epted that guy''s proposal then you would''ve be his disciple, not mine!]


    "His disciple? Pardon me asking, sir. But who was that?" Joseph thought from the start that the one who disguised himself as the God of Fighting was the God of Darkness.


    After all, only the God of Darkness who had such a twisted imagination could think of something so wrong and disgusting as that.


    [Yeah, that''s the God of Darkness, Vell. When you defeated his Apostle, he made a bet with me that he would be able to turn you into his disciple.]


    "Why did you ept such a bet, sir?" Joseph couldn''t help but ask. His tone remained respectful but a frown could now be seen on his face.


    [Well, I knew it from the start that someone that I look favorably upon wouldn''t be so stupid as to fall to his tricks. That''s the reason why I epted it, and who would refuse an offer for something free? That guy, Vell. Was practically giving away his precious items to me. I''m not so stupid as to refuse him...]


    The middle-aged man''s voice rang out like thunder.


    Joseph''s frown turned into irritation.


    As if sensing Joseph''s irritation, the voice rang out once again.


    [Calm down, calm down. I know you are annoyed about being the subject of all of these but no worries. How could I cheat a mortal by forcing him to all of these and not giving him any sufficient rewards?]


    The middle-aged man''s voice rang out and Joseph couldn''t help but raise his head and smile upon hearing all of these.


    ''Rewards bestowed by a God, I wonder what would those rewards be...'' He thought.


    [You are weak, but you possess determination, willpower, and persistence that reminds me of my past. You are qualified to be my vessel in the human realm. Bring my gospel with you and spread my name. I, the God of Fighting, Tryndamere deres you as a worthy Disciple of mine!]


    Thunder rang out behind the clear skies as the God of Fighting loudly dered.


    A series of system notifications appeared behind him.


    [The God of Fighting, Tryndamere has dered you as a worthy Disciple!]


    [If you ept then you will be the one and only Disciple of the God of Fighting!]


    [ess to the Disciple of the God of Fighting''s Skill Tree will be opened, and perks only for a distinguished person like you will be opened.]


    [Title, "Blessed by the God of Fighting." will change to "Disciple of the God of Fighting.]


    [Everyone will look favorably at you at first nce.]


    [The strong will feel an inclination to fight you!]


    [The weak will feel overwhelmed by your mighty presence!]


    [Do you want to ept the God of Fighting''s appointment?]


    [Note: Once you epted the appointment then there is no turning back! Think carefully!]


    The clear skies that didn''t radiate any heat nor that much light earlier now looked morous.


    Joseph could finally see some features of the surroundings around him.


    These transformations made Joseph feel that the God of Fighting really wanted him to be his disciple.


    But when Joseph finished reading all of the system notifications.


    He couldn''t help but frown once again as he cried out...


    "God of Darkness! Why are you doing this to me? I am someone that fought fair and square for the sake of the quest, don''t act like this just because I defeated your Apostle! Do you really think that I wouldn''t recognize who you are just because you changed your voice?!"


    Joseph cried out.


    The skies dimmed and the world turned silent.


    [Your affinity to the God of Fighting, Tryndamere has decreased by 10 points.]


    "Oops, he really is the God of Fighting." Joseph innocently scratched his head as if he was a child that made an innocent mistake. But could you really me Joseph for this mistake? The God of Fighting offered rewards that sounded so simr to what the disguised God of Darkness offered!


    Seeing the note at the end of the system notifications, his hesitation deepened even further as he once again gambled.


    At first, he seeded in his gamble. But now, it was obvious that he failed for the God of Fighting''s affinity towards him dropped by 10 points.


    "Ermmm, sir... Are you mad that I mistook you for the God of Darkness?" Joseph carefully asked.


    The voice behind the skies replied.


    [Not really... Why would I be mad? It''s understandable that you will feel hesitant since the rewards that I am giving you is simr to the God of Darkness. But then, how about it. Will you ept, or not?]


    [The God of Fighting is asking you to be his Disciple.]


    [Note: Once epted the appointment then there''s no turning back! Think carefully!]


    Reading these system notifications. Joseph sighed and stared at the skies.


    "I refuse."


    The heavens visibly shook.


    It was evident that the God of Fighting was shocked about what Joseph said.


    [Why are you refusing my appointment? I am not the God of Darkness! This is me, the God of Fighting! The legitimate God of Fighting revered by most people at the Southern Continent!]


    "I know that you are the revered God of Fighting. But I will refuse."


    [If you''re refusing just because I epted the God of Darkness'' bet earlier, then. I will be disappointed at you.]


    [The God of Fighting, Tryndamere''s affinity to you has decreased by 10 points.]


    "I am not refusing your appointment because of that sir. I am refusing your grace because I don''t think that being your Disciple suits me." Joseph sincerely replied.


    [Being my Disciple doesn''t suit you?! Are you saying that being my Disciple... Being the Disciple of a God, like me is beneath you?!]


    [The God of Fighting, Tryndamere''s affinity to you has sunk to the lowest and has reached negative values.]


    Joseph felt a shiver down his spine and the heavens looked like it was copsing above him. Heavy pressure weighed on his shoulders, and his knees looked like they were on the verge of folding.


    However, Joseph remained steadfast in the face of this pressure.


    "Forgive me sir, but I refuse your offer."


    Joseph''s nature was unyielding. His determination and willpower made it so that he would be someone that overlooked everything, not beneath anyone. Although he was someone scarred by his past and wasn''t so confident with doing something for as long as he had something to lose...


    That doesn''t mean that Joseph would just bow his head in front of a god and serve him.


    But of course, it would be false if you''ll say that Joseph didn''t feel tempted on epting the offer.


    Unfortunately, he really didn''t feel ufortable about the idea of living under someone''s protection.


    A Debt of Gratitude was something incredibly hard to repay, and Joseph learned that lesson the hard way.


    The offer that the God of Fighting made wasn''t that bad.


    But being a disciple of the God of Fighting meant that he had to unconditionally serve the God of Fighting.


    Serving another wasn''t something that Joseph really liked due to his past experiences, and he also didn''t want to garner any debt of gratitude from the God of Fighting.


    Confirming his resolve, a light smile spread on his lips as he stared at the heavens.


    [Ungrateful bastard!]


    [You are stripped off your title, "Watched by the God of Fighting".]


    [The God of Fighting has considered you like a stain in his life and now hates you to the core for your ungratefulness.]


    [You remained steadfast against the will of a God. Youpleted a dangerous quest yet acquired nothing in return. The system is currently searching for suitable rewards for your effort.]


    [The Title, "Deemed Ungrateful by the Gods" has been obtained.]


    [Every follower of a God will look unfavorably towards you, affinity towards some tribes and species will increase.]


    [The mythical ss, the Grand Duelist has been obtained.]


    [Title: "Mythical Authority has been obtained.]


    [All skill and stats acquired are now reset.]


    [Duelist''s Reveal Vitals skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Parry skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Grand Challenge skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Dash skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Precision and Grace skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Fame and Honor skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Composure skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes skill has been created.]


    [Duelist''s Tenacity skill has been created.]


    [All Duelist''s skills are now mastered to Extreme Limits, and they are now converted into Mythical Rank with special scaling and effects.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Reveal Vitals skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Parry skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Dash skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Precision and Grace skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Fame and Honor skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Composure skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes skill has been created.]


    [Grand Duelist''s Tenacity skill has been created.]


    [Title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything", has been acquired.]


    [ess to Spirit Stat acquired.]


    [ess to Reputation Stat acquired.]


    [ess to Divinity Stat acquired.]


    [ess to Tenacity Stat acquired.]


    [Your level has dropped.]


    [You are now Level 1.]


    A mysterious world message that everyone couldn''t decipher, emerged.


    [The sun has everything underneath it. Bards sang the journeys of a myth. But now everything hase to light. For an existence,parable to a dazzling sun has appeared.]


    These words, decorated the headlines of most media stations dedicated to Victory for a short while.<ol><li>Equivalent to "Utang na Loob" in the Philippines. Ang hirap tgang bayaran ng putanginang to.</li></ol>

 Chapter 20: Challenging a Hidden BOSS again

    Chapter 20: Challenging a Hidden BOSS again


    [ The First appearance of a mythical ss! The Sun that Overlooks Everything! First Mythical ss yer, just who is she or he? Elliot, a top-ranker that recently disappeared from the Victory Universal Ranking is spected as the owner of the First Mythical ss. ]


    [ The number of Legendary sses within Victory at the current state of the game can only be counted with one hand... ]


    [ The Head of the P.H Works, Ray Gabriel told us that there only exists about 12 Legendary sses in Victory. One of the yers that have a Legendary ss is the number one yer within the Universal Rankings, Kristian. ]


    [ The remaining two of the three yers that were confirmed to have a Legendary ss are still not identified. They didn''t register themselves to the Victory Universal Ranking, remaining rtively anonymous. ]


    [ Since the owner of the Mythical ss didn''t appear within the Universal Ranking. There could only be two reasons for this, one of the reasons is that the owner of the Mythical ss wasn''t really that remarkable before he went back to Level 1 just like those that acquired Legendary ssester on the game, ording to Kristian. ]


    [ The second reason is that the owner of the Mythical ss never previously existed within the Universal Rankings anyways. I mean, if he really was a member of the Universal Rankings. We could find out his identity since acquiring a Legendary and above ss meant starting back at Level 1. ]


    [ If he was a high-ranker, and he acquired the Mythical ss. He would disappear from the rankings. It would then be a clue that we could utilize in order to find out about his identity. ]


    [ Speaking of high-rankers that mysteriously disappeared from the Universal Rankings. I remember themotion that happened when one of the top ten high-rankers, Elliot.


    [ Disappeared from the Universal Rankings. Since his disappearance, he stayed rtively low-profile...]


    [ Not doing anything that would arouse the attention of everyone. ]


    [ In that case, suspicion would fall into him. I bet right now, a lot of people are sending him private messages in order to confirm if he''s the one that acquired the Mythical ss or not. ]


    [ Indeed, we''re also one of those people. ]


    [ ... ]


    [ What? ]


    [ Nothing... ]


    [ Cough. Well anyway, we managed to ask the Head of the P.H Works, sir Ray Gabriel about what the P.H Works thinks about the appearance of the first Mythical ss. ]


    [ ording to him, only three Mythical sses existed in the world of Victory. He refused to share further information about what those Mythical sses are... ]


    [ But he assured us that the Bncing Department of the P.H Works are closely monitoring the first yer that acquired the Mythical ss in order to see if a Mythical ss could break the bnce of the game. ]


    [ Finally! The concerns of themon yers are addressed. It''s a legitimate concern since I still remember that issue when Kristian revealed his true strength as a Legendary ss... ]


    [ His ss, Absolute Devourer had really strong Crowd Control skills to the extent that it would be really frustrating to fight him. ]


    [ Yeah! When ites to Crowd Control, I think the Absolute Monarch has the Absolute Authority. You know? Absolute, tehee. ]


    [ ... ]


    The world was in turmoil about the appearance of the first Mythical ss. But Joseph, who knew nothing about ss tiers within the game for now.


    Merely thought about his Mythical ss as something strong, but not strong to the point of absurdity...


    And also, if his ss was overly strong then the gamepany would repeatedly nerf him until he was useless.


    Joseph cleared his mind.


    His ears twitched for he heard the sounds ofbat in the distance. His heart shook: ''I wonder. what happened to Nina and Rika? Did they die in the end or did they manage to beat the Voliwolf? Judging from the sounds that areing from the distance, the fight could still be going on.''


    Joseph thought to himself as he ran. He didn''t even read the descriptions of the new skills that he acquired for he had no time to do that.


    He had to go to the two sisters and support them with their fight.


    About half an hour ago...


    Rika stared at the distance where Joseph ran.


    "Sis, I think he''s far enough." She said to Rika.


    Nina nodded her head and replied: "In that case, since he''s already far enough. I think we can do our best now!" Nina took a single arrow from her quiver and infused it with Mana. She silently chanted and magical runes surrounded her arrow.


    Nina''s primary ss was Hunter from the Four Main sses. When she reached Level 100 and acquired the qualifications on advancing his Main ss. She chose to be a Magic Bowman. It was well known that magic and arrows had a great affinity with each other.


    The speed of arrows surpassed the speed of magic and the power of magic surpassed the power of swords. If the twobined together then they would be weapons of great destruction.


    And so, being a Magic Bowman became everyone''s favorite within the world of Victory.


    "Ang pinakagwapo kay ang nagst; Enchant Arrow, Element Fire," Nina muttered under her breath and the arrow zed with fire that miraculously didn''t do any damage to her fingers. Afterward, she sent this arrow flying towards the slow-moving Voliwolf.


    "Roaaaaar!" The Voliwolf roared in anger and pain.


    It red at Nina and it sent its paw towards Nina''s direction.


    Sadly, for the Voliwolf. ..


    Rika''s timely support has arrived.


    "Ang gaba di magsaba; Reflective Holy Shield!"


    The moment that the Voliwolf''s paw struck the shield that protected Nina. The shield exploded and a magical pulse burst forth, reflecting a part of the damage that the shield suffered towards the attacker before it disappeared.


    Rika''s primary ss after main ss advancement was Elementalist. But her secondary ss was Pdin, and whenbined together. Her ss was the famous Magic Tankers. Possessing enough vitality to tank, yet enough firepower to DPS...


    Her ss was a greatbination of defense and attack.


    The only downside was she was too slow and that her cast times were greatly increased after a particr patch for the sake of bncing.


    But even though she was nerfed, her ss still had the traits that made it so popr.


    Rika had the tankiness of Pdins, but right now...


    She disyed how scary Magicians could be.


    "Ang kit kay ninaug ngikan sa panganud; Thunderbolt!"


    She swiftly chanted and a lightning bolt suddenly descended from the skies, it pierced through the ceiling of the cave and it went straight towards the Voliwolf.


    "Awoooo!!!!" The Voliwolf cried out in pain.


    "Keep it up!"


    Nina screamed and she unleashed arrows after arrows in a flurry, while Rika supported her from behind.


    Whenever the Voliwolf attacked, shields surrounded Nina and while Nina attracted the aggro of the Voliwolf...


    Rika silently chanted from behind and devastated the Voliwolf with her long-range capabilities.


    When the twobined their strength, they were definitely monsters, and a force to be reckoned with.


    But the Voliwolf was a monster enhanced by the strange, yet miraculous energy of Darkness.


    It was something that was out of the league for the two at the current stage of the game.


    No matter how many attacks they sent, the thick furs of the Voliwolf endured them.


    [You dealt 2,231 damage.]


    [You dealt 4,310 damage.]


    [You suffered 10,231 damage.]


    [You suffered 11,960 damage.]


    [You suffered immense damage in an instant! Your body is in a state of shock!]


    [Your waist is fractured. Casting Speed is reduced by 30%. This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted nor ignored by any third-party effects.]


    [Your right lung has copsed from the impact! This is a life-threatening condition and you will lose 1% of your Health continuously until you have died or addressed the damage!]


    The two wlessly cooperated and their attacks were relentless. But their enemy was too strong. Just a sweep of their enemy''s paw rendered the two useless.


    Especially Rika whose body was too slow for the Voliwolf''s attack.


    Nina had a much better experience than Rika but inside such a tight cave. Her movement skills were restricted and in the end...


    She couldn''t escape the fate of getting struck by the Voliwolf''s paw...


    "Goddamned it, it''s too strong!" Even Rika couldn''t help but curse.


    "Yeah, sherlock. It''s indeed really strong!" Nina felt irritated that she inadvertently mocked Rika.


    But Rika couldn''t really me her sister.


    The monster called Voliwolf was too strong and it was an existence that shouldn''t definitely exist at a Beginner Vige.


    They couldn''t help but question the minds of the game developers and what did they smoke when they decided to put such a ridiculously strong monster in a Beginner Vige.


    "I''m definitely going to file aint to themission about what the P.H Works is doing." Rika coughed a mouthful of blood. She was currently suffering from a copsed lung.


    To cure this, she drank herst potion and Nina also did the same.


    "Those shameless bastards... This is just a Wolf''s Den, why would such a monster be here..." Nina bitterly smiled as she stood up and faced the Voliwolf once again.


    She nced at her sister and Rika nodded her head when she read Nina''s intentions.


    Once there was no remaining challenger against a BOSS. That BOSS would automatically disappear within the dungeon. When that happened, the two thought that the blockage at the entrance of the Wolf''s Den would finally be open once the two of them died.


    When the entrance opened, Joseph that was at least ten times weaker than them could finally escape disaster. This was the n that the two made, but they couldn''t help but frown after realizing something strange.


    Why are they trying their best for a total stranger? Why are they trying to save his life? Shouldn''t it be the other way around? Joseph should be the one that should sacrifice himself since he''s just a newbie that had nothing to lose when he died!


    The two of them were yers that had high-levels and because of that, they were no longer under the new yer protection of the system. Meaning, they would suffer penalties when they died. Harsh penalties that would make them sacrifice their entire week just to make up for it.


    "Ahhh! This is really annoying! Once everything is over and done, I will definitely suck that guy dry!"


    Nina cried out in irritation and she rapidly unleashed arrows all while under the protection of Rika''s barriers.


    "Hahaha..." Rika merely chuckled behind Nina as she quietly chanted and prepared her spells.


    Right now, the two of them knew that they had no chance of defeating the Voliwolf. They were just attacking the Voliwolf so that they could vent the stress that they had when they realized that they were doing something big for a mere stranger.


    In fact, even the Voliwolf had a confused expression on its face as it faced the attacks of the two. It couldn''t understand why the ants before it was now trying their best on inflicting as much damage on its body without any care for cooldowns and their Mana Bars.


    But...


    Since they were enemies.


    Even though the Voliwolf was confused, it only had one job...


    It was to defeat these two.


    The Voliwolf readied a sweeping attack. Its eyes emanated clear disdain.


    Rika and Nina merely smiled, finally. Everything wasing to end... Their eyes radiated satisfaction, since even though they would die under the hand of the Voliwolf. At least they dealt enough damage that the Voliwolf only had a single Health Bar right now.


    A strange sense of satisfaction welled up in their hearts as well as indignance...


    The Voliwolf made its move and the instincts of the two screamed right at them to run.


    But the two never moved and only awaited the arrival of the paw that would take their life away.


    Closing their eyes... They expected death, but death didn''t arrive like what they expected.


    Instead, a desperate shout rang out above them.


    "GRAND CHALLENGE!"


    The voice of a young man, filled with vigor and desperation pierced through everything and arrived at the ears of everyone within the vicinity. The two sisters raised their heads in astonishment, but what greeted them was a brilliant explosion of white that swallowed everything.


    No...


    Not everything!


    The light only consumed the terrifying Voliwolf and the youth who desperately screamed.


    When the brilliant light dimmed. Only the two sisters remained within the dark and cold cave...


    The two stared at each other, and for the first time, despite being sisters.


    Their thoughts synchronized as their minds became one.


    "What in the fuck just happened?!"


    These were the words that they screamed out loud at the same time.

 Chapter 21: The Grand Challenge

    Chapter 21: The Grand Challenge


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge Lv. 1 ]


    [ The Grand Duelist banishes a target with him to the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum.


    Any form ofmunication to and from anyone within the Arena of the Gods is impossible.


    In addition, the Grand Duelist steals 20% of the opponent''s current Health, Armor, Magic Resistance, Attack Damage, and their four main stats.


    The Arena of the Gods is the Grand Duelist''s domain. Exclusive of the additional stats that the Grand Duelist steals from their opponent during the duration of the Grand Challenge.


    The Grand Duelist''s movement speed is also increased by 20% whenever they are moving towards the challenged opponent.


    * The Grand Challengests until either the Grand Duelist or the challenged loses or dies. *


    * The Grand Challenge is considered as a form of Crowd Control, but it cannot be resisted. *


    * Once the Grand Challenge ends, a shockwave that temporarily stiffens everyone will explode with the Grand Duelist as the epicenter. The shockwave doesn''t differentiate friends from foes, so please be warned! *


    Skill Usage Conditions: Target should be within ten meters of the Grand Duelist.


    Skill Costs: None.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 12 hours.]


    "???"


    The Voliwolf looked visibly confused when it opened its eyes once again. It found itself standing in a strange location...


    It lifted its head and found Joseph who had a small smile on his face.


    "What is this power?" Joseph mumbled to himself. Right now, he felt like his body had immense strength to the extent that he could probably do whatever he wanted.


    Of course, that was exaggerating...


    But it gave Joseph enough confidence to fight the enemy before him.


    He stared at his surroundings and lightly smiled. He just entered this ce recently and, now he was back.


    He couldn''t help but raise his head to stare at the skies.


    "Roaaar!" The ignored Voliwolf roared and emanated a threatening aura.


    For the Voliwolf, Joseph was a weak existence.


    But it felt a sense of dread whenever it stared at Joseph.


    It was as if Joseph was someone that it could never defeat in this new location.


    [You have entered the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum.]


    [The Colosseum is where the Grand Duelist shines!]


    [The Grand Challenge is currently ongoing. You will not be able to return back to the outside world until the challenged or the Grand Duelist loses or dies!]


    [As the Grand Duelist, dying in your domain is shameful.]


    [Dying within the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum as the Grand Duelist doubles your penalties upon death.]


    Joseph lightly smiled when he read all of these system notifications. In summary, the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum was a ce where his ss was superior.


    His penalty upon dying in here was harsh, but his chances of dying within this ce were low because of all the buffs that he has while he''s in here.


    "The Grand Duelist, this ss is so broken..."'' Even Joseph couldn''t help but admit about how ridiculous his ss was.


    But he also thought that a Mythical ss should be something as broken as this or else it wouldn''t be worthy as a Mythical ss.


    "Roaaar!" The Voliwolf roared once again, bringing Joseph away from his contemtion. His eyes narrowed and he stared right into the anxious and scared Voliwolf before saying.


    "Reveal Vitals."


    [Reveal Vitals Lv. 1]


    [No weaknesses are hidden from your eyes.


    Reveals every weakness that the target has to the Grand Duelist.


    * Whenever a weakness is attacked, the target suffers 2.5% of their maximum Health as damage. The Grand Duelist''s movement speed is also increased by 10% which stacks for up to three times. *


    * The weaknesses revealed onlysts for a half a minute. But whenever a weakness is attacked, the duration of the skill is increased by a second for each weakness attacked. *


    Skill Usage Conditions: Grand Duelist.


    Skill Cost: None.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 10 minutes.]


    When Joseph used [Reveal Vitals]...


    The world depicted in his eyes turned ck and white for a moment.


    But when everything returned to normal. Joseph found that the Voliwolf''s body was dotted with circles that shone in a brilliant white light.


    Those circles made out of light looked bewitching as if they were taunting Joseph on attacking them.


    "So those are the weaknesses... If I attacked them, then. I will inflict damage to the Voliwolf ording to his maximum Health... Holy shit, this is such a scam skill that''s a bane of all tankers!" Joseph thought to himself, but he was already moving.


    The Voliwolf who recognized the danger took a stance and readied to smack Joseph into pancakes.


    [Your concentration is deemed sufficient for the activation of the Grand Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes.]


    [Within the duration of the Grand Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes. No detail can escape your eyes.]


    Joseph didn''t even manage to read what the system notifications said since he was shocked to find that everything suddenly turned vivid and clear in front of him.


    Every muscle movement of the Voliwolf became visible to him...


    He could even see each strand of the Voliwolf''s fur.


    His eyes stared at the right shoulder of the Voliwolf and when it twitched.


    Joseph hurriedly dodged to the side as the Voliwolf''s paw descended as fast as lightning at his original location.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion rang out and Joseph''s excitement reached the peak.


    "Holy shit! I can predict his attacks by reading the movements of his muscles!" Joseph cried out loud in delight. His movements became full with vigor as he thrust his sword out and struck a circle made out of light, that Joseph deemed as a weakness revealed by [Reveal Vitals].


    Kacha!


    A clear sound akin to a ss breaking rang out as Joseph''s sword broke through the gaps between the Voliwolf''s fur and prated deep into its body.


    [You dealt 2,273 damage.]


    Joseph was taken aback by the damage that he dealt. But a smile lifted on his face when he remembered the description of the Reveal Vitals skills and what happened whenever he struck a vital.


    "Roaaar!" The Voliwolf roared in anger upon suffering damage and it attacked ruthlessly and fast at Joseph who immediately widened his distance and ran away from the Voliwolf.


    Even though he had a lot of buffs that supported him in this fight. Joseph''s character was still at Level 1, his Health was extremely low to the extent that he would probably die instantly if he suffered an attack from the Voliwolf.


    "I can''t let myself get hit by that gigantic paw..." Joseph mumbled and he once again moved.


    His Reveal Vitals only had about twenty seconds left before it ended. Joseph nned on taking full advantage of its effects before it officially ended.


    Kacha!


    [You dealt 2,283 damage.]


    Kacha!


    [You dealt 2,291 damage.]


    Kachaaa!


    [You dealt 2,266 damage.]


    Joseph''s became iparably fast since he now had another 30% movement speed buff from the Reveal Vitals.


    His movements were so fast that even Joseph found it hard to control his body. He felt dizzy and his expression looked like he was about to vomit.


    Not only that, his neck looked somewhat pale and purple.


    His sheer speed made it so that his lungs couldn''t effectively pump blood around his body and it inadvertently made his movements sluggish.


    "Damn it, I must end everything at once!" Joseph concluded.


    If he let the duration of his Reveal Vitals end...


    He would have to wait another ten minutes before he could use it once again.


    Since Joseph was a Level 1 character with trash items. His Reveal Vitals was Joseph''s only ticket on surviving and killing the monster known as Voliwolf.


    Right now, while it was active. he had the advantage.


    But once the effect of Reveal Vitals disappeared, he would most certainly be destroyed...


    And so, Joseph decided.


    "Everything must end here!"


    Kacha!


    [You dealt 2,279 damage.]


    Kacha!


    [You dealt 2,280 damage.]


    The Voliwolf''s health rapidly decreased from the fierce attacks that Joseph unleashed. If the Voliwolf was at its peak state. Joseph wouldn''t dare to challenge the Voliwolf in his current state as a Level 1 yer.


    But the Voliwolf suffered from the bombardment of Nina and Rika for several dozens of minutes and it only had a single Health Bar that had at least three-fourths of it consumed by Nina and Rika''s attacks.


    Only a few seconds were left for Joseph''s Reveal Vitals, and his rate of weaknesses destruction couldn''t keep up with the ticking time bomb of its disappearance.


    Kacha!


    [You dealt 2,263 damage.]


    [You dealt 2,269 damage.]


    [You dealt 2,253 damage.]


    [You dealt...]


    "Everything must end at this moment!!!"


    Joseph went into a frenzy. Utilizing everything that he learned from the Festival of Battles. He brought out his full potential and unleashed devastating attacks that urately struck every weakness that the Voliwolf had...


    Since he struck every weakness that he could find, the duration of the Reveal Vitals increased.


    Weaknesses repeatedly disappeared and appeared on the Voliwolf''s body making the monster scream in agony and despair. Its eyes radiated grief, shame, and anguish, due to the fact that it never even managed on touching its enemy''s body before it was on the brink of death.


    "ROAAAAR!" The Voliwolf unleashed a wretched scream filled with desperation.


    It raised its paw and mmed it directly at Joseph.


    The force contained within the paw of the Voliwolf was too great. One could faintly hear whistling soundsing from the paw as it tore through the air itself and went towards Joseph.


    Joseph faced the attack. The speed and force behind the Voliwolf''s desperate attack were too strong for him to even dodge or block so he didn''t bother doing either of the two. He just stood there, pointed his sword at the iing paw and whispered into the air.


    "Parry."


    Bang!


    A great explosion urred, sending a huge cloud of dust into the air that obscured everything within the Colosseum.

 Chapter 22: I Knew From the Start

    Chapter 22: I Knew From the Start


    "Parry."


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Parry Lv 1. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist enters a defensive stance. Every debuff, damage, and all forms of hard crowd control abilities are parried and rendered useless within the duration of the defensive stance.


    Furthermore, every damage, debuff, and hard crowd control abilities received within the duration of the defensive stance can be recycled by the Grand Duelist in a single devastating attack.


    *The Grand Duelist''s Parry is absolute. Everything can be parried as long as the timing is right. *


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist.


    Skill Cost: None.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 minutes.]


    When the paw of the Voliwolf neared Joseph.


    He activated Parry and a formless barrier formed around Joseph which blocked damage from the iing paw.


    Joseph''s defensive stance soon ended. His sword shone in an ominous crimson light as he jumped towards the skies and shed.


    "Discharge!" He cried out loud and his sword unleashed a devastating sh that contained all the damage that he absorbed from the Voliwolf''s attack...


    When it descended, the clear sound of torn flesh resounded as Joseph''s sword buried itself on the Voliwolf''s left shoulder beforeing out of the monster''s right torso.


    [You dealt 22,132 damage!]


    Bang!


    The Voliwolf couldn''t even scream in anguish and pain. Everything was going good for it, but in just a blink of an eye. The tables were turn and now...


    It suffered enough damage that it couldn''t do anything other than widen its eyes in disbelief.


    No matter how much itmanded its body to move. Its life had ended. In the end, the Voliwolf crumbled to the ground...


    Lifeless.


    [Corrupted by darkness, the leader of the pact has been defeated.]


    [The Hidden BOSS, Voliwolf has been defeated!]


    [The Level of the Party Leader ''Joseph'' has increased by 5.]


    [Your level has risen.]


    [Your level has risen.]


    [Your level has risen...]


    [The Party Member, ''Rika'' has acquired Thick Wolfhide 10x]


    [The Party Member, ''Nina'' has acquired Thick Wolfhide 11x]


    [The Party Leader, ''Joseph'' has acquired Thick Wolfhide 30x]


    [The energy of darkness that surrounds the Wolf''s Den has dispersed!]


    [Reputation within the 69th Vige of Baguhan has increased by +100!]


    [Your reputation within the 69th Vige of Baguhan has turned into ''Respected''.]


    [You will easily be acknowledged within the Vige and the Vigers will trust you with quests. Every resident of the Vige knows your name!]


    [You acquired, "Battle Memories: Voliwolf".]


    [The souls of the audience members within the Arena of the Gods are delighted by the Grand Duelist''s victory against an opponent that is stronger than the Grand Duelist!]


    [Quest: Raid the Wolf''s Den has beenpleted!]


    [If you told the Vige Chief Fausto about the true difficulty of the quest, then you may earn greater rewards than what was stated within the quest rewards section of the quest!]


    [The fight is over and you are now being banished from the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum.]


    [Returning, please wait...]


    Joseph wore a light smile on his face as he stared at all of these system notifications.


    "Thankfully I didn''t lose... If I did, who knows what would''ve happened? Would the gamepany take away my special ss?"


    "But a Mythical ss, I wonder how strong this ss is... After all of these are done and over. I''ll make sure to read more about how Victory works."


    "It''s quite pathetic not knowing how the game works when I''ve been ying for so long now..." Joseph bitterly smiled.


    A ball of brilliant light appeared right above his head. Tentacles made of light emerged from that ball of light and they covered Joseph''s body as Joseph slowly, yet certainly disappeared from the Arena of the Gods and returned back to the world of Victory.


    Joseph appeared above the cave once again, an explosion and a shockwave weed his arrival. He also received a bunch of private messages from the two sisters at once.


    ''Where did you go?"


    ''Why can''t we locate you on the map?''


    ''It says here that your location cannot be pinpointed, what is going on?''


    ''What was that explosion?''


    ''What was that strange skill?''


    ''Come on, reply! We know that you''re alive. You''re still shining within the Party Member List and you''re still listed as our Party Leader so you can''t fool us! Just reply!''


    ''Hey, where did you take the Voliwolf? Did you manage to kill it?''


    ''Juste back already!''


    Joseph once again wore a bitter smile on his face. He was afraid of revealing any details about his true ss since he didn''t want any trouble...


    Since he still doesn''t know too much about the two sisters. Joseph knew that he must subterfuge his way of exining what happened to the two.


    "Joseph!" A scream rang out.


    Joseph turned around and found Nina running towards him with a smile on her face.


    "You finally came back!" Nina had a smile on her face, but Joseph couldn''t help but step back for he felt something strange about her eyes while she''s smiling.


    "Uh... What''s wrong?" Joseph asked in a hesitant manner.


    Nina''s smile turned sweet as she walked towards Joseph''s back and hugged him from behind.


    The shocked Joseph couldn''t even react as Nina suddenly exerted strength and disyed an excellent German Suplex that brokemon sense.


    No- it also broke Joseph''s back.


    The brokenmon sense was just how did a young woman that looked as delicate as Nina exerted strengthparable to the wrestling gods of the previous century.


    Unfortunately, Joseph didn''t have the time to think aboutmon sense as Rika walked towards him, pinched his cheeks and stretched them outwards...


    "AH! THAT HURTS! RIKA STAPH, STAPH IT RIKAAAA..." Joseph who thought what she was doing was quiteedic, instantly regretted it when Rika infused the Fire Element that she could manipte as a Magician into her index and thumb fingers that held Joseph''s cheeks in ce.


    Poor Joseph had to suffer since the two sisters wanted to vent their anger and worries at him.


    In the end, the two sisters managed to calm themselves down when they saw that they also received rewards from the death of the Voliwolf.


    Joseph rubbed his roasted cheeks before saying in a wronged manner: "Don''t the two of you have something to say to me?" His eyes swept at the two sisters who trembled in shock for a moment before Rika replied with a crooked smile on her face.


    "What are you talking about?"


    "If you want to lie to someone you must control your facial expressions! Rika, you look like a clown right now!" Joseph pointed out Rika''s crooked smile and Nina lightly chuckled after hearing what Joseph said.


    But she didn''t expect that she would also be under Joseph''s verbal attacks.


    "Also, you. Nina! Don''t justugh right there, exin everything to me! The two of you! What are your motives for approaching me?" Joseph red at Nina and Nina awkwardlyughed.


    "Motives, you say? We don''t really have any bad intentions when we approached you... We just wanted to have fun..." The one who replied was Rika who hung her head low in shame. She was caught red-handed while lying. Who wouldn''t be embarrassed by that?


    "The two of you just want to have fun? If that really is the truth then why did you have to hide your levels to me? You could''ve just told me from the start about your circumstances and I wouldn''t be like this..." Joseph looked disappointed.


    The two sisters gave him good impressions, especially Rika who gave him that advice back at the Beginner Vige.


    Rika who saw his disappointed expression couldn''t say anything, while Nina who often acted strong and stubborn also turned speechless.


    Joseph was right...


    If they just wanted to have fun with Joseph then they didn''t need to hide their levels.


    They could''ve had more fun if they told Joseph the truth!


    Wouldn''t their hunting trip to the Wolf''s Den be moreidback if Joseph knew the truth?


    Nina shook her head. She dispelled her thoughts before finallying forward and saying.


    "I''m the one that gave Rika the idea of deceiving you. I''m sorry... As an apology, I will tell you about our intentions..."


    Nina nced at Rika as thetter nodded her head before Nina continued on her sentence.


    "We did hide our levels at first, but we had the intention of slowly revealing it while we''re within the dungeon. When that happened then, we will defeat all the enemies for you as if you''re in our taxi." Nina exined and Joseph''s expression changed as he loudlyughed.


    "Ah, I see! I see... I see! So that''s the n that the two of you intended on using! Once the two of you carried me within the dungeon, like you were my taxi then the rice would''ve been cooked by then! When that happens then both of you could freely charge me for your service, and if I didn''t pay?"


    Joseph purposely lengthened the syble at the end of his sentence before he viciously continued.


    "I bet that the two of you will report me to Victory and when the employees of Victory found that both of you were truly in a party with me and had the liberty of killing the monsters while I had few to nothing contributions in battle..."


    "Victory will deem your taxi service as valid and they will charge me automatically then give that money that they charged from me to both of you... " Joseph paused for a moment, and after taking a deep breath. He continued.


    "Can''t both of you find a more stable and honest source of ie? Why would both of you resort to deceit? Can the two of you eat your food peacefully knowing that the money that both of you used on buying that food came from basically stealing?" Joseph said in a vicious tone of voice.


    Joseph shook his head and he lost all the good impression that he had with the two sisters. Joseph never had any good experience with people who often used deceit in order to achieve their goals.


    That bastard agent from Easy Cash named Robert was a great example.


    He deceived Joseph in the same manner as what these two sisters did. Back then, when the rice was cooked Joseph had no way of refusing Robert''s arrangements.


    He had no other choice but to bow his head in regret and bitterly sigh.


    That was the reason why right now, Joseph lost his goodwill towards this pair of sisters.


    "It will take too long for me to exin for the two of us, but I''m really sorry. We had fun with you, but now. We cannot face you anymore..." Nina repeatedly bowed her head in apology, while Rika had her head low in shame.


    Joseph stared at the two sisters. Joseph was someone that had a great deal of stock knowledge.


    He knew that even though the schemes of the two sisters could work...


    Joseph could easily reverse their scheme by submitting an appeal to thepany behind Victory.


    When that happened, then the two would be permanently banned from the game.


    But why was it that even though the two looked like they were doing this kind of a scheme for a long time already, why were they still in the game? Why weren''t they permanently banned already and locked-out from the game?


    Joseph who nned on not giving them anything.


    Now looked somewhat relieved...


    But he couldn''t help but inwardly chuckle and think: ''What a rollercoaster of emotions...''.


    Some goodwill that was lost when he realized the ns of this pair of sisters returned.


    After all, it''s not like he also didn''t have his own ns against them before everything even started.


    A small smile lifted on his lips.


    His eyes that stared at the two changed as he sighed and chuckled: "It''s okay, It''s okay. Even though the two of you did something bad to me. It''s not to the extent that it''s really harmful. I mean, I also benefitted from the two of you as my taxis so I am also grateful..."


    "In fact, if not for the damage that the two of you dealt to the Voliwolf before I arrived then I wouldn''t be able to kill it alone in the first ce." Joseph approached the two who still looked anxious and the small smile on his face deepened.


    "That''s why both of you have nothing to apologize to me..."


    "In fact, the truth is... I also lied."


    Joseph''s smile turned mysterious and the anxious two looked visibly shocked.


    Joseph turned around to leave: "I knew everything from the start... I lied about not knowing about your schemes so that I could thoroughly reveal the truth..."


    "But now that I know about everything then I won''t me the two of you. I mean, if both of you were really that evil, then wouldn''t the two of you be permanently banned from this game already?"


    "Since the two of you can still y the game without any further repercussions from your schemes. That could only mean that none of those whom both of you deceived in the past, reported you two for abuse..."


    "This happened because I think, they must''ve thought that the money that both of you charged from them was reasonable for the quality of service that the two of you rendered."


    "In short, both of you charged those that you deceived fairly. But there''s still something that I don''t understand." Joseph finally started walking towards the exit of the cave.


    "I don''t understand why the two of you wouldn''t use dedicated applications for that kind of a job, instead of resorting to schemes and deceit." Joseph shook his head, he stopped in his tracks for a moment and stared at them before saying.


    "But it doesn''t really matter to me right now. Thanks for the taxi service, I appreciate the help that both of you gave to me and don''t worry about the payment. I will surely pay the two of you at the end of the day even if I suffer an early withdrawal penalty."


    Joseph bitterly chuckled when he talked about the ''Early Withdrawal Penalty''.


    Afterward, he finally walked away and disappeared from the eyes of the two.


    [Party Leader, ''Joseph'' has left the party.]


    [Party Member, ''Nina'' is now the Party Leader.]


    Joseph walked away and left a single system notification that served as evidence that he apanied the two in a party.


    Rika had an indescribable expression on her face. She stared at Rika whose expression also couldn''t be depicted as she said in a small voice: "Sis... I think that we... should stop this."


    Her voice sounded small and as weak as a candle wick in the middle of a storm, yet when Nina noticed the determination within her sister''s voice...


    A light smile lifted on her lips as she replied with a smile.


    "Yeah, let''s show those bastards that dared to cklist us from their apps that both of us are someone that they shouldn''t have messed with..."


    "But before that..."


    "It really is better that we should stop these ns of ours before we end up getting hurt."


    Nina''s eyes radiated warmth at the prospect of an unknown future that the two of them would face afterward.


    Rika nodded her head and she buried herself into Nina''s shoulder. The two silently cried for a few moments, but as tears left their eyes, they also left their former selves.


    In the near future, these two money-hungry sisters would be a huge variable for Joseph when he established his money-making empire. But for now, these two sisters needed to face the harsh reality of the outside world.


    Even though they knew the difficulties about what they were going to do. They found sce in the fact that they worked honestly than how they worked before...


    And they also found strength from the existence of one another.


    Both sisters were weak as individuals but as one?


    They shouldn''t be underestimated...

 Chapter 23: A Hidden Reward

    Chapter 23: A Hidden Reward


    Joseph returned to the Beginner Vige and went to meet the Vige Chief Fausto.


    "Vige Chief, I have finally returned and I bring good news."


    Joseph wore a smile on his face as he said.


    "Oh! You are the hero that vanquished the darkness that surrounds the Wolf''s Den! As expected, heroes reallye from the youth! If not for the fact that my daughter is still too young then I would''ve arranged a marriage between the two of you!" Vige Chief Fausto replied in glee.


    "Heroes thate from the youth, I shall obey my promise and bestow upon you the rewards you deserve!"


    [Vige Chief Fausto is giving you rewards for your sessfulpletion of his quest: Raid the Wolf''s Den(D)]


    [Do you want to ept his rewards?]


    Joseph frowned when he saw the series of system notifications that appeared before his eyes.


    He felt suspicious about why the system wanted to ask him first about epting the rewards instead of directly giving it to him.


    But then, Joseph suddenly remembered a particr system notification that he saw back at the Arena of the Gods...


    "Before I ept the rewards, sir I must ask. Just what would be my rewards?" Joseph probed and Vige Chief Fausto''s figure stiffened for a moment before he coughed and said.


    "Young hero, you really achieved a great feat. But the Vige is still at its recovery phase. Because of this, I cannot give you a lot of rewards on behalf of the Beginner Vige..."


    "But on behalf of my Merchant Company. I, myself will bestow upon you rewards out of my own pocket." Fausto said in a teary-eyed manner. He looked quite pitiful which made Joseph look like the viin as a strange smile emerged on his lips.


    [Vige Chief Fausto''s affinity to you has decreased by 10 points.]


    [Your average affinity with the residents of the 69th Vige of Baguhan has decreased and you have fallen out of your ''Respected'' status. You downgraded to ''Favored''.]


    [Residents will notpletely trust you, but they understand that you are reliable.]


    "What the hell? Instead of giving me rewards, he''s lowering my probability of acquiring quests in the Vige?" Joseph''s good impression with the Vige Chief disappeared and his gaze hardened as he looked at thetter.


    If looks could kill...


    The Vige Chief would''ve probably died for about a dozen times already from Joseph''s gaze alone.


    "Wait a minute, sir. There is something that you must know before you give me my rewards." Joseph intercepted the Vige Chief who was about to return back to his house and fetch Joseph''s rewards.


    "What is it, young hero?" Vige Chief Fausto looked iparably sincere. His eyes radiated gentleness that one could see from the old and weak


    "Senior must know that the difficulty of the quest that Senior gave me exceeded my expectations. I almost died from that extermination quest so I think, I deserve rewards far better than what Senior is about to give me." Joseph asked in a sincere voice.


    The Vige Chief froze and turned his back to Joseph for a moment before facing him once again.


    "I understand that the difficulty of the mission greatly exceeded than what I asked from you. But please, young hero. You must understand. We are still on a recovery phase. Giving you rewards greater than what I could afford will hurt the Vige financially."


    Joseph stared at the NPC and couldn''t help but feel that he''s taking a loss. Although it was true that the Vige was in its recovery phase. Joseph believed that the game developers of Victory wouldn''t cheap on rewards to yers whenever theypleted an extremely difficult task.


    Joseph believed in this, and so...


    He thought that there was something fishy behind the scenes.


    But of course, since he didn''t have any proof about his suspicions.


    He could only probe even further.


    "I don''t think that what you are saying is right, senior. I aplished something deemed to be impossible and because of that, shouldn''t I get the rewards that I deserved?" Joseph shook his head and looked quite pitiful.


    But the Vige Chief also assumed a pitiful expression so, the two of them duked it out on who''s the best actor.


    "I understand that, but we''ll be bankrupt if I don''t hold back on rewarding you. So please, for the sake of the Vige, can youpromise? If you did then me, and the residents of this Vige will definitely remember this favor." Vige Chief Fausto handed over a pouch to Joseph.


    [Vige Chief Fausto is giving you rewards for your sessfulpletion of his quest: Raid the Wolf''s Den(D)]


    [Do you want to ept his rewards?]


    Seeing the size of the pouch and the way it hung from the air. Joseph deduced that what''s inside the pouch should be only about a few dozen of copper coins.


    His anger surged...


    A few dozen of copper coins for that kind of a quest? Are you kidding me right now?!


    His eyes that stared at the Vige Chief no longer looked as amicable as before. He lost respect for the stingy Vige Chief that obviously has some kind of capability to give out rewards that Joseph deserved.


    But why won''t Joseph believe the words of the Vige Chief?


    It was because he believed that the game developers of the Victory wouldn''t make any yer suffer a loss regarding rewards whenever they aplished an iparably difficult quest or mission.


    But still...


    ''Damn it, why do I feel like I''m coercing a helpless NPC here?'' Joseph thought.


    But an idea suddenly came to his mind...


    "Ah! How about this, Senior. If you cannot give me mary rewards. How about you give me rewards that will make me stronger?" Joseph suggested, and the Vige Chief Fausto froze for a moment before replying with a bitter smile.


    "Although my Merchant Company is present at the Capital City of the Kingdom of Nether. Competition there is too fierce to the extent that it''s very rare for us to acquire precious herbs or medicines that could help you be stronger..."


    "If I did manage to give you something like those then not only would the Vige be bankrupt..."


    "My Merchant Company would follow too..." Vige Chief Fausto shook his head.


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed. his mind spun quickly as he stared at the Vige Chief.


    He wanted to find something from Fausto that he could exploit so that he could acquire rewardsparable to what he deserved from defeating the Voliwolf.


    [Title Generated Skill: Character Scrutinize has been activated.]


    [Name: Fausto


    Age: 42 Gender: Male


    ss: Hunter/Vige Chief


    Title: One Banished to a Faraway Land


    Level: 50


    Health: ???/??? Mana: ???/???


    Strength: ???? Dexterity: ???


    Intelligence: ??? Stamina: ???


    Leadership: ??? Negotiation: ???


    Skills: Great Acting(A), Empire''s Bowmanship(S), Empire''s Military Tactics(A+), Deceitful Tongue(S), Feared Torturer(S+), Negotiator(SS), Take Every Money in All Possible Sources(SS+)


    A loyal citizen of the Kingdom of Nether. However, after he tortured a noble that had a higher rank than him. He was wrongfully dismissed from his service and banished to a lessernd known as the viges of Baguhan.


    * This person is currently suffering from anxiety and worry about the Vige''s food security and funds. He is easily agitated and bes more deceitful than he really is. *


    [Great Acting]


    His acting easily maniptes the emotions of those that listen to his tales.


    [Empire''s Bowmanship]


    The basic bowmanship of the Empire distributed to every soldier. Although it only contains the basics of an excellent Hunter. This Bowmanship is often the foundation of most Bowmanship techniques nowadays.


    [Empire''s Military Tactics]


    After serving for several decades as a soldier of the Empire. He naturally knew most of the tactics that the empire had, and used in battles.


    [Deceitful Tongue]


    A merchant''s greatest source of ie is their tongue. Fausto possessed enough verbosity to confuse those who listen to him and make them do his bidding unbeknownst to them.


    [Feared Torturer]


    Fausto''s infamy came from the fact that he''s a famous inquisitor at the Underground Penitentiary.


    Those who had the luck of meeting him never managed on keeping their mouths closed. Even now, Fausto is still an exemry example at the Penitentiary about how an Inquisitor should do their job.


    No one had broken Fausto''s incredible record so far.


    [Negotiator]


    Fausto''s deceitful tonguebined with the Military Tactics that he learned and his knowledge about the human mind due to his experience at the Penitentiary of the Empire makes him an excellent negotiator.


    He can reel anyone with great prospects and n before suddenly reversing everything and gaining the upper hand.


    He may have the ability to negotiate, even with a Dragon.


    [Take Every Money in All Possible Sources]


    As a merchant, his greed knows no bounds. After experiencing about a decade in deep debt. He now ces importance on every penny that he earned. Although such a practice is good. He is now known for his greed as a crooked and shameless merchant.


    yers often despise him since he low-balls their rewards. Particrly towards yers that aplished great tasks.]


    "There it is!" Joseph''s eyes shed with glee when he found the information that he wanted.


    He stared at Fausto and asked: "How about Senior rmends me to a job? I badly need money. I am currently swimming in debt and I must get off those creditors pestering me every day!"


    Fausto froze for a moment. His eyes radiated a glimpse of anguish and mncholy. This sudden transformation gave excitement to Joseph who stared at the Vige Chief with expectations.


    "Well, if you need a job. I do have a job that I can rmend, but it''s something that a young hero like you shouldn''t attempt. It''s a grueling job that may scar you for life." Fausto shook his head, and Joseph was taken aback for a moment before he replied.


    "I will take any job, Senior! As long as I can earn money then I will do anything! I will even crawl through the sewers of the Kingdom as long as it pays good money!" Joseph dered and Fausto whose eyes shone with hesitation earlier now looked convinced.


    But Fausto still shook his head and replied: "Rmending you to that ce is too risky and expensive. It''s really not worth it. What will happen if you didn''t manage to pass the examinations required to be someone from that ce? Won''t my rmendation be useless and wasted then?"


    "I will definitely pass, sir! I just need a job that will give me a stable ie in the future. Please rmend me to that job sir, I badly, badly, badly, need it!" Joseph stared hard into Fausto, and he almost couldn''t control his excitement.


    Fausto raised his head. The gazes of the two met in mid-air before Faustoughed out loud.


    "Seeing that look of determination in your eyes. How could I possibly deny your request? Not only that, but I can also see my past in you..."


    "Back then, I was also swimming in debt. Thankfully, the heavens didn''t turn a blind eye to me and I was finally able to bring myself out of debt..." Fausto deeply sighed and Joseph''s smile never disappeared from his lips.


    "Wait for me here, young man. I''ll go and make the rmendation letter that you need."


    Fausto went inside his house and Joseph patiently waited for a few minutes before Fausto returned outside and handed him a letter.


    [Fausto''s Rmendation Letter]


    Only by opening the letter could one read its details.]


    Joseph''s smile deepened when he received the rmendation letter. From the details that Joseph saw about Fausto, he understood that Fausto was a former inquisitor of the so-called Underground Penitentiary.


    It also looked like his job was an official one, bestowed upon him by the kingdom. Joseph felt excited about his future if nothing went wrong with his ns.


    "Young man, good luck. I wish you the best, amping." Fausto waved his farewells and blessed Joseph in his next journey.


    Joseph sped his hands together and bowed, returning Fausto''s blessing: "Ikaw sad, amping."


    Joseph researched the culture of Victoryst month.


    Although he still didn''t know how the ss-tiers of Victory worked, and most of its lore about Gods or Demons...


    At least he learned their culture for the sake of interacting better with NPCs.


    As far as he knew...


    The words that Fausto said was his blessing to Joseph''s journey and what Joseph replied in return was a polite gesture of thanks along with his blessings for Fausto''s sess.


    His smile continued as he stared at the letter enclosed in a white envelope sealed with a red stamp that was in his hands.


    ''Surely this rmendation letter has a valueparable to the rewards that I deserve to get from that difficult quest, right?'' Joseph thought to himself. He found that something was strange, but since he couldn''t thoroughly grasp it.


    He just ignored that strange feeling.


    He stared at Fausto''s back as Fausto returned inside his house, and when the door of Fausto''s house closed. Two system notifications appeared in front of his eyes that awakened him from his trance and excitement.


    [Your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything" couldn''t resist against the effects of Deceitful Tongue and Negotiator for both are not considered as abnormal statuses, nor debuffs. But a product of a natural phenomenon, in rtion to Confusion.]


    [The effects of [Deceitful Tongue], and [Negotiator] has ended.]


    "Deceitful Tongue and Negotiator?! Shit, that old bastard deceived me?!" Joseph hurriedly tore the letter open and the information that he found inside, thoroughly angered him.


    [Fausto''s Rmendation Letter(Opened)]


    This serves as my official rmendation letter.


    The one that holds this letter is rmended by me, Fausto. Once known as a great inquisitor but banished to a lessernd...


    I, Fausto acknowledges the skills of the one that holds this letter when ites to scrubbing all sorts of floors and cleaning waste-riddled toilets.


    May he serve the Empire faithfully, forevermore.]


    "FOREVERMORE MY ASS! GIVE ME MY REWAAARDSSS!" Joseph screamed in agony. He looked like he was about to go crazy as he stood there whilst pulling his hair in anger.


    He thought that he would be rmended as an Inquisitor...


    But the job rmendation that he received was a Jail Janitor instead.


    That night, Joseph never left the front yard of the Vige Chief. A rumor also appeared at that night that a bold stalker lurked within the 69th Vige of Baguhan.


    It was said that the stalker particrly liked the Vige Chief and he screamed words like he was wronged and vited by the Vige Chief.


    His voice that contained great anger disturbed the residents of the Vige,sting until dawn arrived.<ol><li>The residents of the world of Victory can speak (Bisaya). It is considered as their vernacrnguage, but they only use it for greetings or farewells. :)</li><li>"You too, take care." Joseph replied to Fausto using Fausto''s vernacr to show great respect.</li></ol>

 Chapter 24: Unexpected Discovery

    Chapter 24: Unexpected Discovery


    "Ughhh... I really should buy a better capsule." Joseph emerged from his gaming capsule with a frown on his face. His muscles ached more than what he expected, but what did he expect?


    A sensation ofing out from a world-ss sauna?


    The Gaming Capsule that he purchased two months ago was at the peak of Gaming Capsules back then in price and specs. But it quickly became obsolete due to the fact that more and more Gaming Capsules were popping out with far better specs than what Joseph bought two months ago.


    "I paid so much money for this gaming capsule but it''s now obsolete whenpared to other advanced gaming capsules." Joseph took his smartphone and casually scrolled through a list of Gaming Capsules for sale.


    Even though he couldn''t afford these Gaming Capsules for now. He still scrolled down the list with a light smile on his face.


    ''Well, there''s no harm in dreaming about something you like, right?'' He thought to himself.


    ''Holy shit, what are these features?!''


    ''In-game recording feature, Physiological rm System, Out to In-game Inte System, and it''s made out of premium leather and memory foam? Not only that, immersion is at the current maximum of 98%?! How much is it?''


    [Get all of these for only five hundred thousand dors! Free instation! Two-year worldwide warranty and 24-hour dedicated customer service!]


    ''Five hundred thousand dors?! It''s not fifty thousand dors? Holy shit, there''s an additional zero...'' A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s lips. The rich really had it good, they could afford everything of quality...


    In the long run, they spend less than those who always bought cheap items.


    Joseph stared at his bank ount. The amount listed within his high-yield savings ount was impressive, but it was locked ording to the contract that he signed with the bank.


    He''d be hit with an Early Withdrawal Penalty if he withdrew money before the maturity date listed within the contract.


    ''Goddamned it, I need to pay those two sisters at the end of the day, what should I do?'' Joseph''s mind quickly spun.


    There''s only about six hours before the end of the day. That''s about thirty-six hours in Victory time.


    ''In the first ce, it''s really stupid that such a strong monster like that bastard Voliwolf wouldn''t drop any copper coins!''


    ''Even wolves at the outskirts of the Vige sometimes dropped copper coins. Why wouldn''t a boss that strong drop any coins? This is tant decreasing of supply for increasing the demand!''


    Joseph repeatedly cursed at the P.H Works. But in the end, he couldn''t do anything.


    Or could he not really do anything?


    A light bulb suddenly sparked within Joseph''s mind.


    He had a Mythical ss! If he sold information about his mighty ss. Wouldn''t people flock to him and ask him more about it?


    It was also impossible for those bastards to verify the legitimacy of the information that he''d sell to them. After all, he could just add some false information amidst the truths so that he could earn money without revealing every card that he had.


    A sly smile appeared on Joseph''s face.


    He went towards the forums of Victory and posted.


    Title: Selling Information about a Mythical ss! 100% Legit, NO SCAM! LEGIT BUYERS ONLY! Just PM!


    The title says everything that I need to say. I have information about a mythical ss, just send me a private message if you''re interested. Price is a thousand dors for a piece of information btw. Not negotiable, a Mythical ss is not something simple.


    Joseph pressed the, "Submit" button. Afterward, he stood up and went towards the kitchen.


    He made himself a simple breakfast made out of some bacon, rice, sunny-side-up eggs and hotdogs.


    Munching on his breakfast, he couldn''t help but moan in pleasure: "Ahhh, for us Filipinos, rice is really the bestpanion for everything... I think I could even eat bread with rice... How about pizza with rice? Wait, that''s a good business idea, I think Pizza topped with some fried rice would be popr in Italy..."


    Joseph thought to himself with a smile on his face while he munched on his food.


    Finishing his meal, he returned to his capsule and entered the inte.


    The post that he made at the forums now had about three thousandments and Joseph''s inbox now said that he had about 99+ messages.


    OmaeWaShindeiru answered: "Oh it''s you again? Did you be retarded thanks to the revenge of the Crimson Guild due to what you did to them?"


    FakeDawn answered: "You have a mythical ss? What is it called? Mental Patient?"


    Shifty Daoist Mage answered: "If you really have information about the Mythical ss, then shouldn''t you share it with us for free? Why would you try and sell it to us instead of giving it for free? What tant scamming!


    Rianolinon answered: "Oh, Shifty Daoist Mage is here. For the first time in ages, what he''s saying makes sense. Finally."


    Shifty Daoist Mage answered: "Courting death, Ria?!"


    Rianolinon answered: "Kek."


    Enved Moisture answered: "Ah..."


    Enved Moisture answered: "Enved moisture."


    Innocent Bunny Reinesse answered: "Stop hijacking this thread! But to the OP, dang you really have a good imagination. Kek, how about you be a fiction writer?"


    "..."


    A bunch ofments disparaging the post numbered at least three thousand. Joseph facepalmed and thought: "I must''ve been really that hungry earlier. To think that I would miss such detail."


    Indeed! Even though what he''s saying was the truth. How could he possibly prove to everyone that he wasn''t lying and wasn''t tantly scamming them?


    Joseph now had a method regarding that. But it was already toote...


    He already lost credibility and so, he could only deeply sigh and return to Victory.


    Joseph stood at the Central Square of the Beginner Vige. It was currently night and the stars shone so brightly since there existed no light pollution within the game. A small smile lifted on Joseph''s lips as he stared at the calming scenery.


    But the calm that he felt onlysted for a few minutes. He knew that he had limited time left when ites to earning money. He promised that he would pay those two sisters.


    No matter what, Joseph must find a way so that he could pay the two by the end of the day.


    And so...


    Joseph''s grind for money began.


    He first killed a bunch of wolves outside the Vige, but the wolves only dropped a few copper coins whenever Joseph killed a hundred of them. In fact, at the end of his wolf grind. Joseph only acquired about five copper coins after killing three hundred of the wolves.


    "Those greedy bastards from the P.H Works!" Joseph cursed at the gamepany once again before he continued his ughter of the poor wolves. But what could he do apart from this? The NPCs within the Vige were currently sleeping and so, there wasn''t any quest avable for him.


    "Ah, this is really annoying! Why do I only get a single copper coin after killing forty wolves!" Joseph scratched his head in annoyance.


    When morning finally came, he returned back to the Vige and disposed about eight-hundred Wolfhide and Thick Wolfhide from the Voliwolf which earned him about 200 copper coins or twenty silvers.


    If the copper coins that Joseph earned from his hunt were added on top of the money that he earned from the Wolfhide. Joseph now had about three gold coins An amount enough for a week of groceries, but too low for the services of the two sisters.


    "There''s only a few hours left before the end of the day..." Joseph spent about sixteen hours in Victory time on earning these three gold coins. In real-time, that''s about 2 and a half hours.


    Joseph''s expression turned heavy. He walked to look for the Vige Chief so that he could ask for further rewards about the difficult task that hepleted, but the Vige Chief was absent.


    "That guy is avoiding me! I''m sure that he''s really avoiding me!" Joseph inwardly cursed at the Vige Chief.


    In the end, Joseph could only sigh in defeat as he walked towards a nearby restaurant.


    Victory boasted supreme realism.


    The bodies of yers within the game also felt hungry.


    Sleep was necessary but optional. In fact, yers only slept in Victory for the sake of their own bodies in the outside world.


    After all, even though the P.H Works advertised that ying in Victory now had simr effects as to dreaming while sleeping. Some people still believed that nothing could beat a good night of sleep so, some of them slept while in the world of Victory.


    But as for why they preferred sleeping in the world of Victory than the outside world was still unknown.


    But Joseph knew that sleeping for a while and eating in the world of Victory had clear benefits. Sleeping in Victory gave you a buff called, "Slept Well".


    It increased your Health by a small percentage and it also increased your Tenacity.


    Tenacity...


    A stat simr to Spirit, but it dictated how long you''d stay under the effects of abnormal statuses.


    Unlike Spirit which dictated whether you''d be affected by that particr debuff in the first ce.


    Eating in Victory also gave a buff called, "Satisfied and Full". It increased your Movement Speed and Evasion Rate by a small percentage. Acquiring this buff was self-exnatory.


    Joseph entered the restaurant, ordered a bunch of meat and started eating. The dishes within Victory tasted kind of nd. From what Joseph knew from the waitresses, they said that salt was a seasoning only avable for nobles and extremely valuable.


    Because of that, most meal within Victory wasn''t really enjoyable and yers only ate for the sake of the "Satisfied and Full" buff.


    This was also the reason why Joseph entered the restaurant. He nned on challenging stronger monsters further away from the Beginner Vige, but before that.


    He wanted to acquire the "Satisfied and Full" buff.


    Joseph silently ate and hoped that the cliche of being attacked by a bunch of bastards courting death within the xianxia books that Joseph read wouldn''t happen to him.


    Thankfully, after a few minutes.


    He finished his meal properly...


    But then, amotion happened at the entrance of the restaurant.


    "Ah! It''s the Great Wandering Bard!"


    "Holy shit, you''re right! It''s really the Great Wandering Bard! I can''t believe how lucky we are!"


    "Come, gather, gather, gather! We can''t miss his stories!"


    The NPCs within the restaurant suddenly eximed out loud.


    Joseph''s interest was piqued: "Great Wandering Bard? That''s a strange name." He stood up and walked towards where themotion was happening.


    There, at the center of them all. Joseph found an old man carrying a ukulele on his shoulders. That old man had an amiable smile on his face, feeling evidently happy that there were a lot of audiences today.


    He sat down on a chair, ced his hat on the ground and started his story-telling.


    "Ever since the beginning, legends say that somewhere in the near or the far future. A sun that overlooks everything shall appear."


    The Great Wandering Bard''s voice was powerful and everyone that heard his voice became filled with admiration and zeal. Only Joseph had a weird expression on his face as he stared at the system notification floating before him.


    [You are nearby someone that''s speaking an epic about you!]


    [If you approached that certain someone and informed him about your identity, you may obtain great rewards or something special may happen!]


    The smile that hung on Joseph''s face intensified as he stared at the old man who continued on talking.


    "The story begins at the Capital of the strongest Kingdom. The sun wasn''t even born yet at this time, but unbeknownst to him. He had a destiny that was greater than those around him..."


    When Joseph heard about how the old man talked about him in a zealous cult-like manner. Joseph couldn''t help but feel a shiver down his spine and blush at the same time.


    He felt conflicted, but he couldn''t bring himself to stop the worshipping of the old man which stroked on his fragile ego made out of low self-esteem that he had, ever since his parents died.


    "He''s weak, but he had willpower that transcends even legends. His persistence acquired the interest of the gods themselves, and his determination. Shocked, even the demons under the earth..."


    ''Holy shit, he''s really exaggerating everything right there!'' Joseph felt surreal and conflicted., he rapidly shook his head in an effort to shake away the cringe that his entire body felt.


    But in the end...


    He couldn''t endure the embarrassment anymore.


    He stood up, walked towards the old man and was about to stop the old man''s story-telling when suddenly...


    [Someone admired by everyone is telling an epic about you!]


    [You acquired the worship of everyone who heard about your tale!]


    [Your Divinity has increased by +5]


    [Your Reputation has increased by +100!]


    [Those whoy their eyes upon you will see you in a more favorable light. Probability of acquiring quests will be higher and those of the opposite sex will favor you more than ever.]


    [ess to the Charm Stat acquired]


    "Holy shit... Just because someone is spreading some exaggerated bullshit about me, I am getting stronger?!" Joseph almost couldn''t believe his eyes, but the existence of the system notifications and what he saw in his yer Profile shocked him.


    [Name: Joseph


    Level: 9 Gender: Male


    ss: The Grand Duelist


    Title: "The Sun that Overlooks Everything"


    (You are an absolute existence.


    You will acquire five stat points for every level.


    You will resist all kinds of crowd control effects, debuffs, and abnormal statuses.


    Your Reputation cannot go down a certain level even when you''re infamous.


    Once your health is at the minimum. You will acquire a shield that''s equivalent to a 100% of damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds. Extra damage that''s more than your Health Points also counts to the strength of the shield that you''ll acquire. The shieldsts for twenty seconds.


    Dying as an overwhelming existence is shameful. Your death penalty for dying is doubled.)


    Title: "Deemed Ungrateful by the Gods".


    (You are despised by the Gods.


    Whenever you are facing an enemy that is affiliated with any God, your stats will dramatically increase.


    If you died under the hands of an enemy affiliated with any God, the penalty that you will receive upon death is tripled.


    Probability of sess in Item/Armor/essory Enhancement is dramatically lowered.


    Devout believers of any God will instinctively feel hatred at you.)


    Title: "Mythical Authority".


    (You have an overwhelming presence as someone who dared to go against the gods.


    No one can make you submit.


    There''s a certain probability of inflicting "Fear" status towards those who dare stare at you.


    Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand before you.


    Your presence alone incites fear to enemies while increasing morale to your allies.


    You are a natural leader.


    Your Leadership can never be lower than those who darepete against you.


    As an authority, no talent can escape your eyes...


    Skill: "Character Scrutinize" is generated and listed as a passive skill.


    [Character Scrutinize Lv. 1


    Talents in the rough can never escape your eyes, a single look from you and their talents will be uncovered.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Mystical Authority


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown: 24 Hours. ]


    You can summon a Divine Avatar through the skill "Divine Authority Summoning".


    [Divine Authority Summoning Lv. 1


    Summon a Divine Avatar out of your own authority as a personparable to the gods. Your Divine Avatar acts as an independent presence. It possesses half of everything that you have but is innately unruly, arrogant, and untamed. Simr to the Divine Avatar of the previous Grand Duelist.


    Your Divine Avatarsts for half a minute, scaling by your Level and Divinity Stat.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Title: "Mythical Authority", and a Mythical ss


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 72 Hours] )


    Health: 1400/1400 Mana: 450/450


    Strength: 1 Dexterity: 1


    Intelligence: 1 Stamina: 1


    Spirit: 5 Tenacity: 5


    Reputation: 232 Divinity: 10


    Charm: 5


    Undistributed Stat Points: 40]


    "Yeap, I guess... When I''m getting powerful every time. It''s time to spread the gospel of mine."


    Joseph cheekily smiled as he hummed a tune while listening to his exaggerate taleing out of the Great Wandering Bard''s mouth.


    However, it was unfortunate that Joseph merely nced at his stats instead of reading what''s listed one by one.


    If not...


    Then he would''ve suffered shock more than what he suffered upon seeing the unexpected discovery in the form of the Great Wandering Bard.

 Chapter 25: Great Wandering Bard

    Chapter 25: Great Wandering Bard


    The Great Wandering Bardpleted his speech and a system notification appeared right before Joseph''s eyes.


    [A certain someone has talked of your glorious past to the masses!]


    [Your Reputation has increased by +100!]


    "Wow, the guy just exaggerated my experiences and he managed to make me even stronger than before? I must meet him! He could be a great nest egg for my future." Since the Great Wandering Bard admired him, the myth whom he talked about in his epic.


    Joseph now had a n in his mind...


    When everything was done and over.


    The Great Wandering Bard walked towards the back of the restaurant, causing panic to Joseph who obviously didn''t know where the backdoor of the restaurant led.


    "Shit, I''ll go and ask!" He inwardly cursed before standing up and approaching a stranger within the restaurant.


    "Ah, sir. Can I ask about something?" Joseph politely said.


    The stranger who looked to be a farmer in the Vige turned to look at Joseph and smiled when he realized Joseph''s identity: "Ah, you must be the respected person that helped us drive those pesky wolves away! What a coincidence, to think that I''d have the grace to meet someone as respected as you here!"


    The NPC suddenly talked about a bunch of unrted topics that irritated Joseph to no end. However, since he knew that his reputation may be further ruined if he snapped at the NPC.


    He kept his amiable facade before asking once again.


    "I don''t deserve your praise, sir..." He sped his hands together and bowed before saying: "I want to ask you sir about where can I enter the restaurant from the backdoor? Is it directly opposite from the entrance or are there some secrets about it which someone couldn''t possibly know?"


    The NPC who looked to be a middle-aged manughed out loud and said: "Of course it''s directly opposite from the main entrance!"


    "This is just a small restaurant and bar, why would they construct a maze leading to the exit of their backdoor. That just doesn''t make sense! You''re a good joker, respected one!"


    He even patted the shoulder of the irritated Joseph who realized that he was just being cautious. But could you really me him about this? The Great Wandering Bard was called Great for he had indescribable value to the world of Victory.


    How could he be alone? No- how could a weak bard be alone?


    Wait, a weak bard?


    Why am I assuming that he''s weak just because he''s a bard?!


    Joseph jolted out of his seat as he rushed towards the exit.


    The Great Wandering Bard, just from his title alone. It makes sense for me to assume that he''s always alone and without an abode. In that case, would he really hire escorts for the long-term?


    But since he''s confidently travelling alone in the troubled waters of the Kingdom...


    He must be strong!


    Joseph''s excitement bubbled. He knew that the Great Wandering Bard admired him, and so...


    He had the idea of making that Great Wandering Bard as his subordinate.


    Having such a powerful NPC as his subordinate, wouldn''t that be great?


    His excitement reached the peak and when he finally reached the opposite side of the restaurant. He found the Great Wandering Bard walking along a quiet alley.


    The alley looked dark and a putrid stench wasing out of it. But the Great Wandering Bard didn''t look particrly bothered about it. In fact, he was calmly walking inside the dark alley where dangers lurked within even in broad daylight.


    "Oh? There''s someone willingly courting death?"


    "Wait, bro. He entered this ce willingly. I think it''s safer to assume that he''s someone strong."


    "Don''t use logic here my friend, we''re just mere side characters in this novel that wouldn''t probably be mentioned once again."


    "???"


    "Oh, here hees!"


    A bunch of floating reddened eyes suddenly appeared amidst the darkness.


    Joseph''s expression changed, but instead of rushing to help the old man...


    He just stood behind and observed what was about to happen.


    ...


    Kayn was just an average yer. He yed Victory for the sake of fun, and because of it. He never took any NPC seriously. In fact, he frequently harassed female NPCs to the extent that his reputation degraded to minus values.


    So what?


    Kayn never cared about it. He just wanted to have fun. But now that his name was infamous throughout the entire Kingdom due to his mischiefs. The fun that he had previously, was now snuffed out.


    It was because a Duke of the Kingdom released a Kill Order against him.


    As a result, not only the NPCs wanted his head.


    Even stronger yers that wanted to snuggle up to a powerful noble took that quest and hunted Kayn for his head.


    But of course, the Kayn that wanted to have fun didn''t let himself be trampled upon by a bunch of yers.


    In fact, his powerful second ss made it so that his enemies had a hard time killing him. But unfortunately, in the end...


    He was still just a single person, and no man was an ind.


    Kayn was eventually cornered and repeatedly killed until he was back at Level 1.


    Fortunately, when he was demoted back to Level 1 from being above Level 100.


    The Kill Order disappeared with the reasoning that he wasn''t a threat to the Duke anymore.


    The disappearance of the Kill Order gave a sense of relief to Kayn, but at the same time. He felt humiliated.


    Now back at square one, he made an oath that he would definitely take his revenge at that noble and kill every yer that damaged even a speck of his hair back when he was still a fugitive.


    But sadly, even though the Kill Order was retracted. The effects of his Reputation which was at minus values still remained.


    He found it hard to enter any Vige due to the fact that every NPC within those Viges suspected him of being a criminal.


    He couldn''t even get a quest from any NPC.


    Kayn repeatedly emailed the gamepany behind Victory to ask for help but to no avail.


    They only said that everything was his fault so, he must suffer the consequences of his actions.


    And right now, Kayn became someone in Victory that lived only in the dark.


    It was because whenever he revealed himself to the masses. Every NPC that found him would shout that he was a despicable criminal, and every time that happened.


    Kayn would die since the Guards of those Viges would hunt him down.


    In the end, Kayn found sce within the darkness and he lived with bandits who were surprisingly good-natured. Opposite of Kayn''s expectations...


    He expected brutality and ferocity from the fellow criminals whom he sought sce with, but what he got in return were kindness and understanding.


    At that point in time, Kayn made another oath to himself.


    "I must cleanse the crimes of my brothers so that they can finally escape the darkness and live in daylight!"


    That oath happened a year ago, but even now. Kayn was still in the process of pursuing his promises.


    But of course, Kayn never gave up, even once. He knew that if he gave up. He''d be the trash that he was back at the outside world here in the world of Victory.


    If he also became trash in the world of Victory whom he considered as his second world and sce from the darkness that surrounded him in reality. Could he still really say that he should live? Wouldn''t he be just a waste of oxygen?


    Kayn hardened his resolve and looked at the iing NPC. The NPC had a ukulele on his shoulder and the NPCs expression looked indifferent as if he was drunk and senseless.


    Kayn found it hard to harm those that couldn''t fight, but for the sake of his brothers.


    He must fight and steal so that they could live.


    Kayn was a yer so, even if he died. He could just resurrect. But his brothers were different. This was the reason why almost everything that Kayn acquired from his stealing.


    He always surrendered them to his brothers so that they could eat decent meals.


    "I''m sorry, sir!"


    Kayn jumped out of the darkness and aimed at the NPC''s kneecap.


    He aimed to incapacitate not to kill.


    After all, he only needed the money...


    Not the life of the NPC.


    His body moved like he was a fish in waters whenever he''s in the darkness. He quickly reached the side of the NPC and sent a stab towards the NPC''s kneecap.


    But when he realized it, he found that the NPC had disappeared.


    ''Wait, where did he go?'' Kayn panicked, the NPC was stronger than he expected. But he quickly recovered from his shock.


    His mentality that endured countless humiliation and disgrace wouldn''t break so easily against an unknown enemy.


    He raised his head and found that the NPC that had a ukulele on his shoulder now had that ukulele on his torso. The NPC didn''t say anything, he ran his fingers across the strings of the ukulele and an imperceptible power spread out.


    "Ughhh..."


    "What is this?"


    "My strength..."


    The other bandits that hid within the darkness suddenly crumbled on the ground. Strange sounds continuously rang within their ears and it made them weak.


    "Is it strange, right? This is the power of sound. If you can manipte the power of sound, none could possibly stand in front of you."


    The NPC with a ukulele in his hands spoke in an eerily gentle manner. Kayn gritted his teeth, he tried standing up but he was shocked for he was also affected by the strange sound.


    [You feel weak under a strange power. This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted by your passive skill: "Shadow Domain"!]


    "Natural Phenomenon? What he''s doing isn''t caused by magic but by sound?" Kayn found it hard to believe that his passive skill which neutralized most debuffs in their first application while he was within the darkness couldn''t resist the strange sounding out from the NPC''s ukulele.


    "He''s a monster..." Kayn gulped a mouthful of saliva and stared helplessly at the NPC who now had a smile on his face.


    "Since all of you dared to attack me with such malicious intent. Then all of you must be ready to die, right?" The NPC said in a cold and distant manner.


    Kayn''s eyes widened in shock.


    He nced at his brothers as he cried out: "Sir! If you''re going to kill someone, just kill me! I''m the one that attacked you first! My brothers are innocent! You can take my life and I''ll surrender it for you, just don''t kill my brothers!"


    Kayn who was a battle-hardened man couldn''t help but shed tears amidst his desperation.


    He knew that the NPC right in front of him possessed power far stronger than what they had.


    That was why instead of fighting, Kayn chose to give up.


    "What am I doing? Am I really someone that easily gives up? I am not like this back then." Kayn thought to himself. He couldn''t help but think that what was happening was ridiculous. But it really was the truth, he wanted to give up.


    But why?


    It was because of his brothers.


    Back when he was still alone, he''d fight his way until he died even though he knew that he had no chance of winning.


    For him, back then...


    A man could be defeated but never humiliated.


    Giving up was the biggest humiliation for Kayn...


    But now that he had brothers that could only live once unlike him who could resurrect from death.


    He chose to sacrifice his life in their stead.


    Even though he''d suffer triple the penalty upon death due to his minus Reputation values.


    Nothing was more valuable than the lives of his brothers.


    "What are you saying, brother? Why are you giving up! We aren''t even giving up, yet!" One of the men whoid on the ground and couldn''t move cried out in a desperate manner.


    "That''s right, we ain''t giving up! Even if we die, as long as we died fighting then we can cross the yellow springs without any regrets!"


    "Don''t give up, Kayn! Fight!"


    All of Kayn''s brothers encouraged him. But he faced them with tears in his eyes. Even though he stayed with them for so long already.


    He still couldn''t understand the mindset of his brothers.


    Why would they fight without valuing their life when they could only live once?


    Kayn could fight recklessly for he knew that he could just resurrect, but his brothers?


    No!


    Once they died, then that would be the end!


    Kayn gritted his teeth. He endured humiliation as he slowly raised his head and stared right at the NPC before saying: "You can kill me sir, but please. Spare my brothers." His voice sounded heavy, and one could feel the helplessness and desperation within his tone of voice.


    The NPC who held a ukulele in his hand looked like he was contemting something. But, his expression never changed.


    After a short while, the NPC suddenly nodded his head and replied in a cheerful manner.


    "Nah, all of you shall suffer the death sentence."


    His cold voice rang clearly within the darkness and Kayn''s eyes reddened. He forced his body to stand up and his dagger streaked through the dark, aiming at the NPC''s heart.


    Since the monster decided that they would die today. Further begging was pointless and only garnered humiliation. If the NPC really didn''t care about what he proposed. Then, at least. He must buy his brothers some time so that they could escape.


    "What a futile struggle."


    The NPC coldly snorted and another sound wave was unleashed from his ukulele.


    [You suffered tremendous damage! Your body is in a state of shock!]


    [You will be Stiffened for three seconds.]


    [This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted by your passive skill: "Shadow Domain".]


    Kayn flew backward and struck a wall. He coughed a mouthful of blood before his body slowly crumbled on the ground. In an instant, he suffered enough damage that he was now on the brink of death.


    "Interesting, you''re still alive after that? You really are tenacious. As expected of a bandit that only lives within the darkness. If not for that mental fortitude and that strong body of yours. How could someone maintain their sanity while living in such conditions?"


    The NPC said in a sarcastic manner before raising his ukulele.


    He readied a stance whilst holding his ukulele.


    Kayn and his brothers felt cold and hopeless.


    Their intestines turned green in regret as they stared at the NPC who was now in the process of executing them all.


    Kayn''s brothers stared at Kayn whose back was on the wall and all of them had the same thought...


    In fact, one of them who had the least injury even cried out: "Kayn! If there''s a second life, I hope that we''ll be sworn brothers once again! I''ll see you in my next life!"


    As he shouted, tears streamed down his cheeks.


    When Kayn and his other brothers heard what that man said. Each and every one of them cried like children. Everything happened so fast and it felt surreal for them.


    In the face of death, these battle-hardened men couldn''t endure the grief and had to cry out just so they could express their desperation.


    "A bunch of men crying like babies? What a tearjerker..."


    The NPC coldly mocked them in a sarcastic manner before his raised hands descended on his ukulele.


    "Sound Wave Art: Relentless Sou-"


    Bang!


    Before the NPC could finish his attack. A figure suddenly appeared at his side and attacked. The NPC''s ukulele exploded into wooden fragments as the NPC leaped backward with a serious expression on his face.


    "You finally couldn''t hold yourself back?"


    The NPC asked in a strange manner at the person who just interrupted and destroyed his ukulele.

 Chapter 26: Each Having their Own Intentions

    Chapter 26: Each Having their Own Intentions


    Joseph felt nervous.


    The scene that he was witnessing right now invalidated what he thought asmon sense.


    When the Great Wandering Bard''s hand descended on his ukulele...


    Those that stood before him, all copsed as if they were puppets that had their strings cut.


    "What happened?" Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air as he murmured in shock.


    He stared at the ukulele that the Great Wandering Bard held and he remembered that not a sound came out of it when it descended.


    And yet...


    How did everyone copse?


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun.


    As expected of someone that fought dozens of times against stronger enemies back at the Festival of Battles. His experience told him that it was impossible that a ukulele wouldn''t produce any sound when it was strung. Because of that, Joseph realized what happened.


    But just because he realized it so easily doesn''t undermine how shocking it was.


    "He condensed all the sound that came out from his ukulele and directly attacked their minds using that soundwave and vibration? What a monster!" Joseph''s eximed in shock, but his eyes glittered with excitement.


    He felt delightful regarding his future if he managed to transform such an NPC into his subordinate.


    At this moment a voice full of desperation rang out.


    "You can kill me sir, but please. Spare my brothers."


    The tone of the speaker and the message that he said silenced Joseph''s excitement. Afterward, he stared at the Great Wandering Bard. Whatever the NPC did next would decide whether what Joseph would do against the NPC.


    The Great Wandering Bard possessed a power that could manipte sound itself. Such an attack couldn''t possibly be guarded against, and if he became Joseph''s subordinate in the future...


    Who would dare stand up against Joseph?


    Joseph wished to have such a powerful subordinate. But he didn''t want a subordinate that could easily kill those that do not have the capabilities on fighting against him.


    Joseph wanted someone that felt mercy against the weak, not contempt. Joseph knew that he could be an existence that overlooked everything. But he wasn''t a dictator.


    He wanted to lead everyone under his banner with proper mercy and punishment.


    Through the way of carrot and stick.


    But of course, that doesn''t mean that the bandits shouldn''t be punished from what they attempted on doing against the Great Wandering. But Joseph found it unreasonable that they should still be executed. After all, they had already surrendered and had lost all their will to fight.


    Not only that. But earlier, when the bandits pre-emptively attacked. One of them targeted the Great Wandering''s kneecap instead of his heart. In other words, they aimed to incapacitate him. Not killing him.


    Joseph nodded his head and he stared ahead with expectations in his eyes. But what he heard dumbfounded him.


    "Nah, all of you shall suffer the death sentence."


    The Great Wandering Bard sentenced them all to death in a cold, yet cheerful manner.


    Shocked for a moment, the bandits awakened from their trance, then...


    They realized that asking for mercy wouldn''t bring them any results.


    One of them moved finally moved. His dagger looked ghostly and imperceptible within the darkness as it aimed at the Great Wandering Bard''s heart.


    "What a futile struggle."


    The Great Wandering Bard''s hand descended at his ukulele once again and an invisible sound wave was unleashed from his ukulele.


    The bandit who attacked flew backward, struck a wall and cough a mouthful of blood. Judging from how he sat on the ground unmoving. It was evident that he suffered tremendous damage from that attack.


    "Interesting, you''re still alive after that? You really are tenacious. As expected of a bandit that only lives within the darkness. If not for that mental fortitude and that strong body of yours. How could you possibly maintain your sanity while living in such conditions?"


    The Great Wandering Bard said in a sarcastic manner before readying a stance with his ukulele.


    Joseph''s figure slightly moved. Sweat formed on his forehead andplicated emotions shed on his face.


    A part of him believed that the Great Wandering Bard didn''t want to kill these bandits...


    Why?


    It was because the Great Wandering Bard had the power to end them all in one attack, yet he didn''t do that on his first strike. Instead, he tormented them all as if teasing a child.


    In that case, there could only be a single exnation.


    The Great Wandering Bard was buying time.


    He was waiting for something...


    Joseph didn''t believe that the Great Wandering Bard recognized and idolized by the masses had such a dark and sadistic attitude.


    But...


    Apart from Joseph who was hiding behind him.


    Who could he be waiting for?


    Joseph finally realized what was going on, but he felt conflicted about helping those bandits.


    It was because the bandits led a life of crime and they knew that those who wield the de for a living would soon die under the de.


    He only took pity on their plight due to the fact that they were about to be killed by the Great Wandering Bard even though they had already surrendered.


    But still...


    Joseph hesitated on helping them because Joseph didn''t know if they were truly kind in nature.


    After all, what if the bandit deliberately didn''t aim for the Great Wandering Bard''s life earlier just so he could torture the Great Wandering Bard and make him endure great humiliation?


    Even though Joseph felt like he was jumping to conclusions...


    It was much safer for him to assume that than to regret everything in the end.


    But Joseph still didn''t turn his back towards the bandits. It was because a part of him still believed that they were kind, deep inside. This idea was reinforced by that particr bandit who offered himself as a sacrifice earlier, just so his brothers could live.


    Such altruism in the world of bandits was extremely rare and noteworthy.


    Joseph was sure of that bandit''s character.


    But what about hisrades?


    What if hisrades were the opposite?


    Joseph hesitated because of that, but soon...


    His hesitation disappeared.


    It was because one of the bandits shouted something that thoroughly shook Joseph''s heart.


    "Kayn! If there''s a second life. I hope that we''d be sworn brothers again! I''ll see you in my next life!"


    That man started shouting but others soon followed. In a few moments, every one of them was crying and shouting their regrets at each other as they promised that once they met once again in their next lives, they would definitely be sworn brothers once more.


    But before they could prepare themselves for their inevitable death...


    The Great Wandering Bard interrupted them with clear contempt and mocking in his voice.


    "A bunch of men crying like babies? What a tearjerker."


    Hearing this, Joseph finally couldn''t hold himself back.


    He moved.


    Running towards those bandits.


    But the Great Wandering Bard''s hand was faster.


    It was descending in a rate visible to the naked eye and it looked incredibly slow. Yet, it was far faster than Joseph.


    "No..."


    "You''re not gonnay those hands on them!" Joseph screamed to himself.


    His speed, limited by his movement speed in the game almost surpassed that limitation, and when the Great Wandering Bard was finally within his range...


    "Sound Wave Art: Relentless Sou-"


    "The Grand Duelist''s Dash!"


    Bang!


    Joseph cried out while the Great Wandering Bard channeled his attack.


    Joseph instantly arrived at the Great Wandering Bard''s side.


    "Thrust!"


    He sent an attack at the Great Wandering Bard''s ukulele and it instantly shattered from the force of the attack.


    "You finally couldn''t hold yourself back?


    The Great Wandering Bard had a smile on his face.


    He looked like everything that happened was within his ns.


    He stared at Joseph as if he expected his intervention...


    "So, you were really waiting for me," Joseph replied with a smile.


    "Since you knew that I''ve been waiting for you? Shouldn''t it be better that you intervened in this battle earlier? I mean, I could feel you hiding behind me all this time." The Great Wandering Bard asked.


    Joseph nced at the fallen bandits before replying.


    "I just had to check something..."


    "Hahaha..." The Great Wandering Bard suddenlyughed. Amusement could be seen on his expression as he continued: "Yeah, I know what you were thinking. You hesitated on saving them because you were afraid of releasing tigers to a mountain, right?"


    Joseph didn''t confirm nor deny the Great Wandering Bard''s allegations.


    "Now, what are you going to do? You want to save them, right?"


    "But do you really think that I will let you save them that easily?"


    The Great Wandering Bard stared at Joseph and mocked: "Someone as weak as you is mere nothing but an ant! You are like them too!"


    The smile on Joseph''s face deepened. Amusement could also be seen on his face. Since he knew that even though the Great Wandering Bard was mocking him. It was clear that what he said weren''t really his true feelings.


    But why was Joseph so sure about this?


    Well...


    It was because of the appearance of several system notifications.


    [A hidden quest is generated!]


    [The Grand Duelist''s Vestige(ss-Specific Quest)


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    The Great Wandering Bard has always been a believer of those considered as myths. He worships them and he''s been traveling through the entire continent ever since he came of age just for the sake of spreading the glory of the myths.


    The Grand Duelist, in particr, is a myth whom he truly loved. Ever since he realized the greatness of the Grand Duelist.


    He grew to love his existence and he''s iparably familiar with the Grand Duelist''s aura and features.


    Today, he detected that you had a simr aura to that of the Grand Duelist. But he refuses to believe that someone as weak as you is the one and only Grand Duelist of the myths.


    Prove him wrong. Show him the power of those considered as myths.


    Defeat him and you will earn great rewards!


    Note: If you managed to defeat him without suffering any damage. An incredibly precious reward is awaiting you!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Take at least 10% of the Great Wandering Bard''s Health Points.


    Quest Rewards: ??? Conditional.


    Quest Failure: Everyone will be killed by the Great Wandering Bard. Penalty upon death by the hands of the Great Wandering Bard is quadrupled. He will no longer glorify the name of the Grand Duelist. Your Reputation will go into minus values, and Divinity Stat will be temporarily locked.]


    [This is a ss-Specific Quest and cannot be refused!]


    [Quest is automatically epted!]

 Chapter 27: A Monster Thats Impossible to Defeat

    Chapter 27: A Monster That''s Impossible to Defeat


    [Quest CSP:MGD01 has been activated.]


    A mechanical voice rang out within the headquarters of the P.H Works. Every employee within the floor where the Supeputer Noah resided jolted in shock and doubted their ears.


    "It said, CSP:MGD01?!"


    "Yeah, there''s no mistaking it!"


    "In that case,e. Let''s go to Central Control."


    Each and every one of them couldn''t help but cry out in surprise when they realized what happened. But of course, after their initial shock.


    They all went towards the room where the Supeputer Noah was located.


    "CSP:MGD01... He started it faster than expected."


    Ray Gabriel who was the first to hear the notification of the Supeputer Noah bitterly smiled.


    Elizabeth that stood behind Ray Gabriel couldn''t help but ask: "Faster than expected? They weren''t supposed to meet at that restaurant?" Elizabeth knew what happened back at the restaurant where the Great Wandering Bard bragged about the new Grand Duelist''s exploits.


    "Yeah, they are not supposed to meet at that restaurant..."


    "But now that something like this happened. The Bard realized that what he saw in his visions was Joseph."


    "But he isn''t willing to recognize Joseph as the Grand Duelist for he''s currently too weak, and that divine aura within him is too inhibited which is quite understandable. But right now, he''s only about Level 9. That leveling speed is really too slow for someone of the mythical ss."


    Ray Gabriel shook his head in disappointment.


    Elizabeth''s figure trembled for a moment before she said: "He''s only Level 9? Wasn''t CSP:MGD01 a quest that should only appear when the Grand Duelist user is at Level 50?"


    "Yeah, and that quest should only appear when the user is at the Underground Penitentiary of the Kingdom of Nether..."


    "In that case... you''re saying that..." Elizabeth couldn''t finish her sentence due to shock.


    "Yes, he will have to fight such a monster with the stats of a Level 9." Ray Gabriel took the words out of her mouth, but then. A mechanical voice interrupted them.


    [Correction: The Grand Duelist''s current stats are that of a Level 1. He still hasn''t distributed his stat points.]


    "What did you say?! That retard didn''t distribute his stat points, yet?" Ray Gabriel almost jumped from his seat and he even cursed at Joseph when he heard what the Supeputer Noah said.


    [Yes, he currently has about 40 stat points avable for distribution.]


    The Supeputer Noah''s reply further exacerbated the shock that they felt. But before they could even continue their talk. The door of the Central Control Room where they were in, burst open and their fellow scientists came inside in droves.


    Ray Gabriel turned to look at them in a serious manner.


    "Ermmm... What''s wrong, boss?"


    A scientist asked in a hesitant manner.


    "Buy some chips first, there''s a good show that will happen. Buy me a Piatos." Ray Gabriel ordered.


    Elizabeth stepped forward and handed over a card towards the scientist that asked: "I''ll have a nova."


    The silence broke, and that scientist awkwardly scratched his head as hisrades rushed at him with their orders.


    "Get me a chippy, with mountain dew."


    "I''ll have some coke, don''t bother with the chips."


    "Fetch me an Ice Tea, the one with the Ice feeling vor."


    A bunch of orders came to him and when he realized what was happening. He now had about dozens of credit cards in his hands.


    "Will you bastards cut it out! I''m a proper employee here, not an intern!" He cried out in protest.


    In the end, everyone. Including Ray Gabriel and Elizabeth fetched their own food and rushed back at the Central Control Room.


    Even Elizabeth who took care of her image in front of her co-workers threw all pretenses away as she ran and slid herself inside the dedicated elevator for the Central Control Room.


    Back in Victory...


    Joseph stared at his opponent who calmly stared at him in return.


    [Title Generated Skill: Character Scrutinize has been activated!]


    [Name: ???(The Great Wandering Bard)


    Age: ??? Gender: Male


    ss: Bard


    Title: The Great Wandering Bard


    Level: ???


    Health: ???/??? Mana: ???/???


    Strength: ???? Dexterity: ???


    Intelligence: ??? Stamina: ???


    Leadership: ??? Storytelling: ???


    Skills: Storytelling(A), ???(A), ???(S), ???(S+), ???(SS+)


    You are currently in a ss-specific quest. Further information can only be unlocked once the quest is finished.]


    "Goddamned it, the Character Scrutinize became useless!" Joseph inwardly cursed. He thought that he could have more information about his enemy through his Character Scrutinize skill, but he found that his skill was rendered useless.


    "The quest is given to me so abruptly. I haven''t even distributed my stat points, and I haven''t even carefully read my newly-gained skills yet." Sweat formed on Joseph''s forehead as a crooked smile appeared on his lips.


    How could he fight a monster when he didn''t even have any information about how strong he was?


    Fighting against a monster without knowing one''s strength equaled to suicide.


    Joseph must first know about his skills before he could possibly use it against his enemies. But would the Great Wandering Bard even give him a chance for that? It was highly unlikely...


    Even now, before Joseph could stall for some time. The Great Wandering Bard raised his hand and struck at his ukulele.


    The very air itself vibrated and Joseph, who had his instincts honed from the Festival of Battles subconsciously ducked his head as he felt something brush against his hair.


    Bang!


    An explosion rang out, Joseph turned to look behind him and found that a palm-sized hole was now on the wall.


    "Shit... It''s impossible to see his attacks since he''s using sound waves to attack. How could I possibly fight against a monster like that without suffering any damage?" Joseph inwardly cursed. He nced at the bandits who were currently on the ground.


    The Quest said that if Joseph wanted to qualify for the incredibly precious reward. He must not suffer any damage from the Great Wandering Bard.


    Thankfully, suffering damage didn''t outright mean quest failure.


    Else, Joseph would''ve logged-out due to frustration and pure rage.


    In the face of such a monstrous NPC that could attack using sound waves, whose stats couldn''t be seen by Joseph. Could Joseph even manage on not suffering any damage against this NPC?


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. He could feel his entire body trembling in nervousness. A bitter smile spread on his lips when he realized that this was the first time that he felt such an adrenaline rush.


    He couldn''t feel this much pressure back at the Festival of Battles since fights at that ce had Equipment Disparity Compensation.


    Not only that. But as a Level 1...


    Joseph technically had nothing to lose apart from some coins that he used as an Entrance Fee.


    Recently, when he fought against the Apostle of the God of Darkness.


    There was also an Equipment Disparity Compensation. Although the God of Darkness cheated and returned his Apostle''s capabilities on using high-leveled spells.


    At that time, Joseph won in the end...


    But in fact, Joseph himself didn''t even know how he managed on winning against that opponent.


    His Victory against the Great Magician Lilibeth and Abyssal me Master gave Joseph some confidence when it came to battles for as long as the Equipment Disparity Compensation was in effect.


    But against the Great Wandering Bard whose stats, skills, and levels were unknown along with some really damaging quest failure punishment?


    Joseph couldn''t say that he could still be confident anymore. But since there was no use crying over spilled milk and the rice was cooked already.


    Joseph could only forcefully suppress his trembling knees and nerves as he nced at the bandits before saying...


    "Can you guys buy me some time?" He asked them in a bitter manner.


    But the bandits looked confused as they thought: "Wasn''t this guy supposed to be our savior?"


    "Why does he want us to buy some time?"


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head.


    He ducked once again, letting an attack from the Great Wandering Bard pass by him as he continued: "I need to look-up some guides on the Inte." He exined, but this further exacerbated the confusion of the bandit NPCs who didn''t understand what he was talking about.


    "I''ll do it..." The bandit who had his back on the wall at the distance suddenly spoke up. He struggled to stand up and when he did manage to stand up. He quickly rolled on the ground, evading an attack from the Great Wandering Bard before he turned to look at Joseph and said.


    "I''ll buy you some time... But three minutes is my limit. That''s the most that I can do against that monster." That bandit spoke with a determined expression and Joseph was shocked to find that the icon floating above the bandit''s head was a green diamond marker...


    NPCs have an Inverted Triangle symbol floating above their heads, while every yer has Green Diamond Marker floating on top of their heads.


    It was evident that the bandit in front of Joseph was a yer.


    "Wait, you''re a yer?" Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    "Yeah, what about it? Can''t a yer be a bandit?" The bandit-yer shook his head.


    The two suddenly dodged to the side before they continued their talking.


    "Why would a yer like you willingly be a bandit?" Joseph couldn''t suppress his curiosity.


    The bandit-yer shrugged and he took a step to the side as he once again dodged an attack from the Great Wandering Bard.


    The bandits thatid on the ground stared at them helplessly. ''Guys... There''s a monster in here, yet the two of you are talking as if you''re in your backyards? Come on guys, take this seriously...''


    The Great Wandering Bard realized what was happening, and anger filled his eyes: "How dare you ignore my presence and talk so calmly while being attacked by me!" He raised his hand once again and repeatedly struck his ukulele.


    A bunch of invisible sound waves simultaneously came out. Some of them went towards Joseph and the bandit-yer. But most of them flew towards the injured bandits on the ground.


    "Despicable!"


    "What a bastard!"


    The bandit-yer cried out along with Joseph. The two of them hurriedly rushed at the side of the other bandits, but Joseph went first and rushed at the front lines before absorbing every sound wave with just a single word from his mouth.


    "Parry..."


    Every sound wave that came flying towards them disappeared when they arrived in front of Joseph.


    The battlefield turned silent, the Great Wandering Bard''s figure trembled for a moment and he couldn''t help but repeatedly blink his eyes as if he couldn''t believe what he had seen.


    However, before he could say anything...


    Joseph pointed at him and said: "Discharge."


    In an instant, all sound waves that Joseph absorbed came hurling towards the Great Wandering Bard.


    "???" The Great Wandering Bard reacted a step toote, yet he still managed on erecting a barrier that protected him against his own attacks.


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    Crisp ringing sounds rang out as cracks spread on the Great Wandering Bard''s barrier.


    Bang!


    In the end, the barrier shattered and along with a dull explosion. Dust swept up and covered the Great Wandering Bard from everyone''s sight.


    "Did I get him?"


    Joseph thought to himself.


    "No, that''s impossible. I don''t think that a ss-specific quest would be so easy that a single parry couldplete it. Not only that, I didn''t get any system notification saying that I inflicted any damage."


    He suspected, and...


    Joseph was right.


    When the dust that filled the air receded. The image of the Great Wandering Bard could still be seen standing tall amidst all the attacks that rained on him.


    "To think that I would feel some itch..."


    "As expected of my own attacks." The Great Wandering Bard said in a calm and leisurely voice.


    When his eyesid on everyone before him once again...


    All of them found that the Great Wandering Bard''s eyes, now shone in a crimson glint.


    "Mo... monster..."


    Everyone thought to themselves.

 Chapter 28: A Fight Without Holding Back

    Chapter 28: A Fight Without Holding Back


    "Can you still... buy me some time?" Joseph looked somewhat hesitant.


    "I''ll... try..." The bandit-yer replied with the same hesitation.


    The bandit-yer took his dagger and prepared a stance. He was caught off guard and took tremendous damage earlier, but now that he had recovered. He would not let himself suffer like that once again.


    "Shadow Domain!"


    He mumbled, and the dark alleyways were they all stood in became as dark as the night. The light outside couldn''t prate the alleyway as if something was blocking its way.


    [Under the effects of your Shadow Domain, your Movement Speed and Attack Damage is increased by 20%.]


    The bandit-yer''s Movement Speed and Attack Damage increased. He rushed towards the Great Wandering Bard, his dagger emanating a dangerous glow.


    But even though he moved to attack...


    His eyes were glued at the hands of the Great Wandering Bard.


    He knew that no matter how fast he was. He still couldn''t surpass the speed of sound. Once the hand that the Great Wandering Bard had in the air, descended. He would instantly move aside and dodge in advance so that he could evade the iing sound wave.


    But why did he thought that he could dodge the Great Wandering Bard''s attack using this method?


    Well, it was because he saw earlier that the sound waves that the Great Wandering Bard produced were projectile attacks.


    They weren''t hitscan attacks that instantly registered a hit once it was sent to his enemies.


    A hitscan attack that strong could easily break the bnce of Victory, so such a weakness was quite reasonable.


    The Great Wandering Bard''s hand descended and before his handnded on his ukulele.


    The approaching bandit hurriedly moved to the side and lowered his body to the ground.


    Whing~


    A whistling sound rang out so close to his ears that he couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva as shivers ran down his spine.


    He only managed to dodge that attack in a hair''s breadth and if he moved a beatter than he did...


    His head would''ve already exploded like a watermelon.


    Nevertheless, he was thankful for his luck. He managed to dodge that dangerous attack, and now.


    It was his turn to attack. Even though he knew that he probably wouldn''t deal any substantial damage against the Great Wandering Bard.


    He still had to attack...


    Why?


    It was because...


    "This one''s for my brothers!" His dagger gleamed dangerously as he stepped at the side of the Great Wandering Bard and sent an attack at thetter''s side.


    Puak!


    [You dealt 22,103 damage!]


    Blood sttered on the ground. He was shocked by the damage that he dealt. But he had no time to think deeply about that. His enemy was quickly turning around so, he attacked once again.


    Puak!


    [You dealt 23,120 damage!]


    The moment that his dagger left his enemy''s body. He hurriedly stomped on the ground and used that force to somersault and retreat backward. The Great Wandering Bard finally turned around and he sent an attack to that bandit that dared to attack him.


    Whing!


    A whistling sound could be heard as the sound wave from the Great Wandering Bard''s attack approached the bandit in mid-air.


    "Shit, I can''t move too much while I''m in the air." He inwardly cursed before pping both of his palms together and reciting: "Shadow Raven!"


    The attack finally reached him, but it miraculously passed his body before exploding when it struck a wall.


    Joseph who was observing the battle behind him couldn''t help but doubt his eyes from what he saw.


    But he had no time to make any deductions for he had his own job to do.


    "I regret not learning more about my ss back when I still had the time. But there''s no use crying over spilled milk. I must learn more about my skills right now!" Joseph thought to himself.


    He hurriedly opened his skill tree and opened the first skill icon that he found.


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship Lv. 1


    Enables the use of [Point], [Harmony], [Grace], and [Rage] to deal 500%, 550%, 600%, and 1000% of your Attack Damage respectively.


    * When not using the designated ss-specific weapon. The skills deal 50% reduced damage.


    * Your basic attacks using your ss-specific weapon is passively enhanced. Attack Damage with basic attacks are increased by 30%, Critical Chance is increased by 20%, and the damage of your Critical Strikes in every third consecutive attack that critically strikes is increased by a certain percentage, scaling on level and Dexterity.


    This increment on Critical Strike Damage is considered as a basic attack, applies on-hit effects and also stacks with other skill effects that the Grand Duelist has, or is under.


    * The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship has the potential of temporarily exceeding the maximum Increased Critical Damage. But it can never be exceeded without using the ss-specific weapon.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 15 Minutes for each skill. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Dash Lv. 1


    Be briefly untargetable and dash to a targeted enemy. Upon arrival, your next skill or basic attack will unconditionally deal 200% of your Attack Damage stackable upon other effects such as skill effects, or on-hit effects.


    * When not using the designated ss-specific weapon. The skill deals 50% reduced damage.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 5 Minutes. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Precision and Grace Lv. 1


    When in battle, activate to enter the state of [ Hypersensitivity ].


    * When in the state of [ Hypersensitivity ] all skills will have decreased casting time. Movement Speed is increased by 20% stackable upon other Movement Speed effects caused by other Grand Duelist''s skills.


    * While the state of [ Hypersensitivity ] caused by Precision and Grace is activated. Every movement that you do will cause deceptive motion blurs that will disorient your enemies.


    * Base duration of the skill is a minute, but the duration scales depending on how many enemies does the Grand Duelist have in front of him/her.


    * For every enemy facing the Grand Duelist on the battlefield. The duration of [ Hypersensitivity ] increases by half a minute.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 1 Hour. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Fame and Honor Lv. 1


    Activate to temporarily enter a state of [ Valiantness ]


    * While in the state of [ Valiantness ] every attack received from all sources deals reduced damage, with the exception of attacks imbued with Divine Energy.


    * There''s a rare probability of inflicting [ Fear ] to those that dared to attack you while you''re in the state of [ Valiantness ]


    * Base duration of the skill is a minute, but the duration scales depending on how many enemies does the Grand Duelist have in front of him/her.


    * For every enemy facing the Grand Duelist on the battlefield. The duration of [ Valiantness ] increases by half a minute.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 Hours. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Composure Lv 1.


    Activate to enter a state of [ Calm and Composed ].


    * While in the state of [ Calm and Composed ] every attack sent at you can be reflected back at your enemies with 20% reduced damage.


    * In every sessful [ Deflect ] you will gain two points of [ Imminent Counter-attack ] up to a maximum of a hundred.


    * Once [ Imminent Counter-attack ] has reached its maximum capacity. You can deploy it in a single catastrophic strike that deals about 40% of the damage from all attacks that you have deflected, plus 1000% of your Attack Damage.


    * The effects of [ Calm and Composed ]sts for a minute, or when [ Imminent Counter-attack ] reaches maximum capacity.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 hours. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence Lv. 1


    Activate to enter a state of [ Indomitability ]


    * While in the state of [ Indomitability ] all of your basic attacks will turn into ranged attacks. The damage of your ranged basic attacks while in this state falls off at about fifteen meters.


    * Your ranged attacks can critically strike for 300% of your Attack Damage.


    * While in this state, you will be a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. Enemy soldiers will have drastically reduced morale when they are facing you, and allied soldiers will be empowered while they are around you.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 hours. ]


    [The Grand Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes Lv. 1


    Once activated, your eyes will turn into [ All Seeing-Eyes ].


    * While in the state of [ All Seeing-Eyes ], nothing can escape your eyes. Every weakness or advantages of your enemies will be revealed. But it''s still up to the Grand Duelist on how he could see the truth from the false.


    * Whenever a weakness revealed by Sharpened Eyes is struck, you deal damage equal to 250% of your Attack Damage, plus 5% of your enemy''s current Health. Your Movement Speed is also increased by 10%, while your enemy''s movement speed is reduced by the same amount.


    * Whenever an advantage is struck, the number of weaknesses increases by one.


    * The effect of Sharpened Eyes automatically disappears after half a minute, or until all weaknesses are disposed of.


    * Can also be activated with enough concentration.


    * If you managed to destroy every weakness of a single targeted enemy, you can activate [ Expunge ]


    Expunge Lv. 1


    Detonates all remaining weaknesses for 20% of the damage dealt by the explosion of those weaknesses prior to the usage of [ Expunge ] and a certain percentage of your enemy''s current Health.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 6 hours. ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Tenacity Lv. 1


    The Grand Duelist thrives on the battlefield.


    * Once your Health is lower than a certain percentage. Your attack speed and movement speed will be increased by 80%, but all of your defenses are rendered useless.


    * This is a skill that automatically activates when the Grand Duelist is in desperate straits.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: Every Defenses from all sources are rendered useless.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 1 Day. ]


    "Holy shit, this is..." Joseph couldn''t help but suck a mouthful of cold breath when he saw the description of the skills that he had. Even though he had no time to think about which of them would be more useful in his current situation.


    Joseph wasn''t in the position to hold back.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion urred.


    The bandit-yer who offered to buy some time for Joseph finally couldn''t dodge the attacks of the Great Wandering Bard anymore as he flew backward and rolled on the ground like a ball.


    Of course, he immediately stood up and red at Joseph once he recovered.


    "Are you still not done, yet? The duration of my Shadow Domain is almost over!"


    Joseph turned to look at him with a smile.


    "You did well. Gather your brothers with you and retreat..."


    Joseph stared at the bandit-yer with aplicated expression on his face. He wasn''t actually that confident in defeating the Great Wandering Bard. But for the sake of his ss-specific quest.


    He must persevere and do the best that he could.


    Although Joseph was still insecure and afraid, given that the stakes this time were too great. But he had a particr talent that always helped him whenever he was in a pinch?


    But what was that particr talent?


    Of course, it was the art of acting tough!


    The bandit-yer''s expression turned strange for a moment because he detected an anomaly within Joseph. Why was he wearing such a confident smile?


    Could he really defeat such a monstrous NPC by himself just because he bought him some time?


    "I really appreciate that you bought me some time to study..."


    "Now, it''s my time to pay that favor back."


    Joseph whispered in the air, but the bandit-yer who lived within the darkness had iparably sharp ears. He heard what Joseph said and he couldn''t help but ask.


    "Wait, what? What do you mean by study? You... what were you doing when I''m fighting in the front lines."


    Joseph turned around to face him and with a smile on his face.


    He replied casually: "I just browsed the forums for some guides on how to defeat this bastard."


    "You browsed what?!" The bandit-yer couldn''t believe his ears to the extent that he shouted out loud.


    But before he could ask any further...


    He found that Joseph had disappeared and was now standing beside the Great Wandering Bard.


    "Kayn... will you not fight beside him?" One of Kayn''s brothers asked him.


    "If I could, I would... But sadly, my Shadow Domain''s duration is over and my mana''s almost gone." Kayn shook his head and afterward, he dragged his brothers deeper into the alleyway as they observed the battle from afar.


    "Composure, Sharpened Eyes..." Joseph whispered. A ck and red light appeared and surrounded his body. From afar, he looked quite valiant and heroic.


    But if you saw Joseph''s eyes while you were near him, then you''d be frozen in fear.


    It was because right now. Joseph''s eyes had crimson tint in them as he observed his enemy whose weakness, now revealed to him in the form of red and white circles.


    The Great Wandering Bard had a red circle on his side where the bandit-yer struck at him earlier. Joseph decided that he would first test which of these circles are the weaknesses, and advantages as he readied a stance and used [Dash] towards his enemy.


    In a blink of an eye, he reached the Great Wandering Bard and he sent a [Thrust] at the Great Wandering Bard''s side.


    When his sword struck that red circle. It shattered, and a system notification appeared before Joseph.


    [You struck a weakness! You dealt 50,231 damage!]


    "Holy shit!" Joseph eximed when he saw how much damage he dealt.


    Not only that, Joseph felt that his body had be lighter and more agile..


    He twisted his body and evaded a punch from the Great Wandering Bard. He momentarily leaped backward before jumping into the fray once again where he struck another red circle located near the Great Wandering Bard''s armpits.


    Pang!


    A dull sound rang out and a system notification appeared, informing Joseph of the damage that he dealt against his enemy.


    [You dealt 52,312 damage!]


    "Persistent bastard!"


    The Great Wandering Bard screamed in pain and disbelief. He never expected that someone as weak as Joseph could inflict as much damage as what he was doing right now.


    His eyes radiated now suspicions about Joseph''s identity.


    He had long noticed the aura of the Grand Duelist on Joseph''s body...


    But Joseph was too weak right now that he couldn''t believe that someone as weak as Joseph could be chosen as the descendant of the Grand Duelist''s legacy. Not only that, the Divine Aura of the Grand Duelist within his body was too faint.


    But now that he had a taste of Joseph''s capabilities.


    His head somewhat cleared, but he still couldn''t be sure about Joseph''s identity.


    After all, this wasn''t the first time that he felt an aura simr to the Grand Duelist from other people and whenever he approached them...


    It turned out that they were just fakes that wanted to deceive him.


    Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.


    This was the mentality that the Great Wandering Bard had right now. He wouldn''t believe everything until he was thoroughly convinced about Joseph''s true identity.


    But how could he convince himself that Joseph was a true Grand Duelist or a fake?


    Well...


    It was through fighting...


    The Grand Duelist was an extreme master in close-quarterbat. As long as the enemy was within his weapon''s reach, he would undoubtedly win.


    Right now, the Great Wandering Bard nned on knowing the truth through battle.


    If the weak person in front of him managed to even stagger him back while he was using his true strength.


    He would finally be convinced about Joseph''s identity.


    And so...


    Joseph''s incredibly difficult battle against the Great Wandering Bard began...

 Chapter 29: An Incredibly Difficult Fight

    Chapter 29: An Incredibly Difficult Fight


    [Quest CSP:MGD01''s difficulty has increased...]


    The scientists who were watching everything that was happening on the screen above them wore bitter smiles on their faces when they heard what the Supeputer Noah had said.


    "The extremely difficult fight has now be an impossible fight."


    "Sayang... I thought that he had a chance of aplishing the quest earlier, but now... It''s an impossible feat."


    "Definitely, the Great Wandering Bard doesn''t have that Great right before his title as a show after all."


    "Even as a mythical ss, it''s quite impossible that someone as low-leveled as him could defeat a monster whose levels are at 300."


    Each and every scientist within the Central Control Room lost their appetite. How could they still have the appetite to eat when the exciting battle was now a one-sided one?


    An incredibly difficult fight against an underdog versus a dominant one was fun to watch. But a one-sided ughter wasn''t fun. In fact, some of them even had the intention to leave the room right now if not for Ray Gabriel''s intervention.


    "If you guys leave the room right now then you''ll definitely regret it."


    "What do you mean, sir?"


    "Does sir think that he still has a chance on aplishing the quest? Even if the requirement is only 10% of the Great Wandering Bard''s Health. Considering the NPC''s stats in the middle of the ss-specific quest. Why does sir think that he has a chance of winning?"


    Every scientist who heard what he said couldn''t help but ask in confusion. Ray Gabriel, who stood at the top of them all never said something without any basis or reference. Seeing that the odds were too great against Joseph. Why was he saying that they''ll regret leaving this room?


    "Ah, could it be that sir is saying that we''re going to regret not seeing that yer''s suffering? In that case. Then, we should really stay and watch."


    One of them jumped to conclusions and awkwardly scratched his head.


    Ray Gabriel stared at them all and replied: "You guys do know that the yer who has the Grand Duelist ss right now is that so-called Madman of the Festival of Battles, right?"


    "..."


    Each and every one of them turned silent as if struck by a thunderbolt from the skies. Afterward, amotion happened.


    "Holy shit! How did I forget about that?!"


    All of them pped their foreheads in disappointment. They were too engrossed in their jobs that they would sometimes forget about some matters and one of them was the truth that Joseph was the so-called Madman of the Festival of Battles.


    "Indeed, like what Sir said. A Madman like him may have a chance ofpleting the quest. But I think that it''s still impossible for him toplete the quest perfectly since that meant that he must not suffer any damage."


    "Hahaha, yeah right. Not suffering any damage in front of a Level 300 monster as a Level 9? That really is impossible, if he managed to do that then I''ll swear that I''ll treat everyone in here to a weekly barbeque party for the rest of the year."


    His im was quite bold and expensive for there was still a long way before the year ended.


    "Only once in a week? Heck, I''ll treat everyone in here for a pizza every day for the rest of the year if he manages toplete that quest perfectly!"


    Each and every employee bragged against each other, and Ray Gabriel who observed all of these spoke up: "All of you better remember every word that you guys have said today because I will also join that bet..."


    Ray Gabriel swept his gaze at everyone and a mysterious smile hung on his lips.


    "My stakes are if he doesn''t manage toplete that quest perfectly. I will treat everyone in here to any buffet on a daily basis for the rest of the year. How about that?"


    Everyone turned silent. They looked like they couldn''t believe what they heard.


    Just what did sir Ray Gabriel said?


    "Uh... Just what did you say, sir?" One employee had an incredulous look on his face.


    "You heard me right! I will treat everyone to any daily buffet for the rest of the year if he didn''t manage onpleting that quest perfectly."


    Everyone turned silent once again before they exploded into amotion.


    "A yeaaah!"


    "Yawa! Seriously?!"


    "Any daily buffet?! We can choose what buffet we want, right? Then, I''ll make sure to choose that world-ss buffet from Shangri-La!"


    Ray Gabriel observed theirmotion, and a slight smile could be seen on his lips as he said: "You guys better honor your bets if the opposite happens."


    "Of course, sir! How could we forget about what we said? If we dared to renege on our promises today, then could we still even face you, sir?"


    "Yeah, right! Hahaha! Bring some more chips and beers. This will be an easy win!"


    Each and every scientist within the room stared intently at the battle happening within the screen above them. All of them fervently prayed that Joseph would make at least a single mistake. It was because if that happened, then they could finally im victory against Ray Gabriel.


    Ray Gabriel who stood behind them and observed the battle from his desk still had a smile on his face.


    But Elizabeth who was behind him saw that sweat had formed on Ray Gabriel''s back and had already drenched his polo-shirt.


    A bitter smile emerged on her face as she lifted her head, stared at the battle within the screen and prayed fervently.


    "Joseph... you have to win... For the sake of Leader''s wallet..."


    Joseph who didn''t know that he was now carrying the burden of preserving Ray Gabriel''s wallet fought valiantly against the Great Wandering Bard.


    While under the effects of [ Calm and Composed ] along with the [ All-Seeing Eyes ]. Joseph moved swiftly around the Great Wandering Bard and inflicted as much damage as he could while his buffs were in effect.


    Unfortunately, even though everything was going well for him. Joseph still didn''t know whether he''ll seed with the quest. After all, the Great Wandering Bard still hasn''t sent any real attacks towards him.


    So far, the attacks that the Great Wandering Bard sent to him were simple punches and kicks. Not those attacksing out of his ukulele.


    If he did, then Joseph wasn''t sure if he could evade an attack made out of sound that was definitely far faster than him.


    "Awesome... What in the hell is with him? How is he so fast and so strong?" Kayn who observed the battlefield from afar with his brothers now had his mouth agape.


    Joseph moved so fast to the extent that Kayn could only see afterimages of Joseph.


    "Yeah, he''s definitely strong. But..."


    "That ukulele-holding guy is also a monster..."


    "Not just a mere monster. But a monster that''s more monstrous than that guy..."


    Kayn heard the words of his brothers and he couldn''t help but nod his head in agreement. Joseph was definitely a monstrous yer. Kayn was sure of that. It was because of the fact that Joseph could still control his body even though he was moving with that speed.


    Everything was possible in the world of Victory.


    The only problem was whether you had the capability to do something that you wanted.


    One of them was extreme movements. You could theoretically move faster than the speed of light. But the question was, could your body endure such an extreme change in speed?


    If you could move faster than the speed of light, but your body broke down in the process, wouldn''t that still be useless?


    That was the reason why Kayn believed that Joseph was a monster. Joseph moved in a speed that was barely discernible through the naked eye, yet he could still maneuver himself around the Great Wandering Bard as if he was just walking in his backyard.


    The Great Wandering Bard finally used his ukulele and he unleashed a bunch of attacks at Joseph.


    His speed when unleashing these attacks made him look like a bassist of a metal or rock band. Incredibly intimidating and scary.


    But Joseph remained steadfast in the face of these attacks that he had expected already...


    Blood repeatedly gushed out of the Great Wandering Bard''s body as Joseph poked holes on him like a beehive. This was something unbelievable to anyone else, but the problem was the Great Wandering Bard looked like he wasn''t suffering any substantial damage.


    What''s worse was that his attacks were all made out of sound, which meant that their speed wasn''t something that a mere human could see. But what really was the truth? What really was happening?


    The truth was that whenever a sound wave arrived right at Joseph''s location. He merely raised his sword for a moment and that sound wave would fly back towards the Great Wandering Bard.


    In short, not only were the attacks of the monstrous NPC useless, his own attacks damaged him instead.


    "Just who is this guy... Could he be a top-ranker?" Kayn mumbled.


    Victory had several billions of yers, and being a top-ranker meant that you were a top yer amidst several billions of other yers within the Universal Rankings.


    Every top-ranked yer possessed ridiculous might that one could actually call them superhumans.


    They were revered by everyone for their abilities in doing the impossible.


    Right now, Joseph was doing the impossible.


    Kayn believed that he was a top-ranker from what he was seeing.


    Even though it didn''t make sense that a top-ranker would wear such poor equipment.


    Apart from being a top-ranker...


    He couldn''t find any exnation about why Joseph was so strong right now.


    "I can see that his main ss is Mercenary, but what is his second-ss? I don''t remember hearing anything about a second ss that could instantly arrive at the side of his enemy, move that fast and deflect really swift attacks without suffering any consequences."


    There were only four Main sses in the world of Victory.


    Mercenary, Magician, Priest, and Hunter.


    These Four Main sses served as the foundation of someone''s path, but it never dictated what path would someone walk in the end.


    Victory advertised realism and utmost freedom. Even though one had a Magician Main ss, they could still choose a second-ss that specialized in close-quarterbat. Nothing was impossible in the world of Victory. This was a sentence that could never be closer to the truth.


    Kayn could see that Joseph''s Main ss was a Mercenary since he had a Sword and he also used [ Thrust ], [ Slice ], [ sh ], etc, etc, while in battle which was one of the primary skills of Mercenaries.


    But he didn''t know nor understand what Joseph''s second-ss. For him, it looked like Joseph was a monster in close-quarterbat.


    But right now, why was he attacking from a distance?


    Kayn looked thoroughly confused about the development of the battle. But for Joseph, everything was too clear for him.


    He managed on attacking every weakness that the Great Wandering Bard had.


    Now, he widened his distance from the Great Wandering Bard and attacked from a distance.


    A smile lifted on his lips for finally, he hadpleted the seemingly impossible quest.


    "Expunge."


    Peng!


    A dull sound rang out.


    [You dealt 2,523,201 damage!]


    [The target has resisted the damage!]


    "You what?!" Joseph''s eyes widened in shock. He dealt about two million hit points as damage in an instant, but his target resisted that much damage? What the hell was going on?


    Joseph stared at the Great Wandering Bard and found that the Bard now had a smile on his face.


    "It''s been a long time since someone forced me this far. Even if you''re not the true Grand Duelist. The fact that you can force me this far means that you are quite strong."


    [You met with an overwhelming presence! You feel an urge to kneel in fear.]


    [Under the effects of the title, [ Mythical Authority ]. You have resisted.]


    "Oh? You can resist the effects of my Authority? You really are a strange existence." The Great Wandering Bard said in a cold voice. Joseph''s eyes widened in shock when he found that the olden figure of the Great Wandering Bard had transformed.


    Recently, he had a hunchback figure with wide shoulders and frame. He gave off the impression that he was a fatty under his clothes.


    But now, the Great Wandering Bard looked ripped. If there were boy bands within the world of Victory, then he would be qualified as an Oppa.


    He''d be loved by everyone, particrly those pointy-ears of him that entuated his chiseled visage.


    His blue, sapphire-like eyes radiated a majestic auraparable to that of a prince. His hair, dyed in white contrasted his green clothes that looked in-line with nature. When he held his ukulele, he had enough charm that panties could instantly drop whenever he passed by somedies.


    He was basically the definition of a generic and charming young master.


    But this charm didn''t make Joseph feel strange.


    In fact, he felt fear.


    In front of the transformed Great Wandering Bard...


    Joseph knew that he couldn''t possibly beat such a monster.


    He only felt confident earlier that he could aplish the quest since he only need to remove about 10% of the Great Wandering Bard''s Health.


    But now...


    Now that a particr system notification floated right in front of him.


    Could he still beat such a monster?


    [The Great Wandering Bard has revealed his true powers! Tremble, mortals!]


    [A mysterious veil has coated the entire vige. It has unknown effects.]


    [Title Generated Skill: Character Scrutinize has been activated.]


    [Name: ???(The Great Wandering Bard/???


    Your strength is currently not enough to see the truth. This seal on information is a natural phenomenon, and cannot be bypassed by you, even if you''re a myth. ]


    "Now you bastard right there, pretending to be the Grand Duelist..." The Great Wandering Bard who suddenly became a youngster raised his head. His sapphire-like eyes stared at Joseph with amusement.


    "Are you ready to die, yet?" He coldly continued.


    Joseph gritted his teeth, sweat dripped down his forehead as exhaustion washed up his body. He looked like he was about to give up the fight. He didn''t know what to do anymore...


    He was a myth but in the face of such a monster.


    Joseph didn''t know whether he was still the protagonist or not.


    The Great Wandering Bard didn''t mind that Joseph didn''t reply to him as he calmly crossed his arms together and stared at Joseph with contempt.


    "I really can''t fathom why some people like you would dare to fake the aura of the Grand Duelist in front of me. I am someone that deeply loves the Grand Duelist, to the extent that I would even see visions of what he did in the past..."


    "Seeing those visions, I felt obligated to share them with the world, and that is why I abandoned the Kingdom and became a wandering bard..."


    "Even though I won''t really receive any rewards on what I am doing. The fact that I am staying true to the desires of the Grand Duelist satisfies me already."


    "And also!" He suddenly cried out and red right into Joseph.


    "Did you really think that just because you possess the aura of the Grand Duelist..."


    "I would be convinced that you are the Grand Duelist...?"


    "Let me tell you this. The Grand Duelist in my visions fought against countless enemies that were stronger than him. In fact, he even defeated an extremely strong magician just recently!"


    "Don''t think that someone as weak as you could deceive me!"


    The Great Wandering Bard screamed at anger in the end, and Joseph didn''t know whether tough or to cry because a system notification was now floating before him.


    [Someone powerful is fervently worshipping you! Your Divinity Stat has increased by 10 points.]


    ''This guy... why is he saying that I am a fake Grand Duelist? He says that he can feel the aura of the Grand Duelist on me, but why is he being in denial?''


    ''He''s saying that he''s not going to ept that I am the Grand Duelist? How incredibly selfish!'' Joseph thought to himself. Anger shed on his face.


    He had the urge to punish the Great Wandering Bard as the Grand Duelist. But how could Joseph even do that when in the first ce when the Great Wandering Bard himself doesn''t even believe that he''s the Grand Duelist?


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s lips.


    "This is a waste of time..."


    The Great Wandering Bard floated in the air and he raised his hands towards the skies as the heavens itself dimmed.


    "You sure are fast, I am convinced about that... "


    "But can you even evade an attack generated by the Divine Energy that I have made out of my faith for the Grand Duelist? No matter how fast you are, you cannot possibly exceed the speed of Lightning!" The Great Wandering Bard cried out.


    He even strung his ukulele and sent a wave of debuff everywhere around him.


    [A song filled with anger is reverberating in the area.]


    [You feel an urge to rush at someone and murder him.]


    [Under the effects of the title, [ The Sun that Overlooks Everything ]. You have resisted.]


    A ball of lightning made out of brilliant light rapidly formed above the skies of the Beginner Vige.


    Countless people looked up and wondered about why a ball of light was forming above them.


    "What is that?"


    "Hey, look at that! Something is forming above us. Could it be that there''s going to be a special event?"


    Kayn and his brothers also turned to look at the skies and all of them now had pale expressions on their faces.


    [Intense light has dissipated the passive effects of your Shadow Domain. Until you return to the darkness, the passive effects of your Shadow Domain will remain disabled.]


    "Brothers, all of you must run. Right now. Run as far as you can and as fast as possible." Kayn decreed with a solemn voice, but his brothers protested.


    "Run? What are you saying, Kayn? You want us to run? By ourselves? We cannot let you stay here! We cannot do what we did to you anymore!


    "Yeah, that''s right, that''s right! I already made my promise to you. Even if I die, I''ll make sure to die with you guys! I can never let myself live while letting you die here on your own!"


    Kayn felt anger at his brothers.


    Even though he was somewhat conflicted about what was happening.


    Shouldn''t prioritizing their lives first bemon sense, since they could only live once?


    Kayn was a cursed being, also known as a yer so, he could resurrect every time he died.


    It was fine if they abandoned him, and Kayn wouldn''t hold it against them if they did that.


    But why were they staying right now? Do they really want to die that much?


    Kayn held back his tears. He didn''t know what he should feel, but one thing''s for sure.


    If they survived after all of these...


    Then, the bonds that they had as brothers would surely deepen even further.


    "Okay, all of us will retreat. You guys go first, I''ll cover the rear."


    Kayn finally decided at something for he understood that they were no time to waste.


    Once that ball of lightning in the skiespleted its formation.


    It would surely descend and kill them all instantly.


    "No! You guys don''t have to leave!" Joseph suddenly shouted at them from afar.


    Kayn and his brothers stopped and they all turned to look at Joseph and found that Joseph had a small smile his lips even though death was looming above him.


    "That guy... Is he mad?!"


    "Indeed, he''s even telling us that we should not leave. Is he really that confident against that ball of lightning while protecting us at the same time?"


    "No, no, no! We must escape! If we stay here, even though he looks like he can protect us all. We will still be deadweights for him!"


    But Kayn had a different opinion.


    He didn''t know why, but the smile that Joseph had on his lips when he turned to face them was now deeply carved in his heart and soul. He would forever remember that light smile as the lightning ballpleted its formation and descended from the skies towards them.


    "Divine Smite!"


    One could vaguely hear the scream of the Great Wandering Bard amidst the thunderous booms.


    Everyone within the 69th Vige of Baguhan audibly cried in shock when they saw that the ball of lightning descended towards their vige.


    But at the center of them all...


    The target of the lightning strike merely smiled and leaped towards the skies. He went headfirst towards the lightning with both his arms stretched out as if he was catching a ball thrown at him by his ymates before shouting: "Parry!"


    "Wha... What is he doing?!"


    The eyes of Kayn and his brothers bulged out of their sockets.


    Then, they saw that Joseph threw the ball of Lightning that he caught towards the Great Wandering Bard before fiercely shouting...


    "Discharge!"

 Chapter 30: The Grand Duelists Vestige

    Chapter 30: The Grand Duelist''s Vestige


    BOOM!


    A thunderous roar rang out along with a fierce explosion that thoroughly decimated everything around the area.


    The Great Wandering Bard had the ability to control sound. But his true strength lied in manipting thews of nature.


    When he saw that Joseph calmly received his attack. He noticed that something was wrong and he hurriedly erected a barrier made out of earth to protect him from any unexpected attack.


    The barrier that he made in his current form was out of this world. It possessed enough strength on resisting against any attacks from any enemy no matter how strong they were, but...


    He never expected that the iing attack would be his own attack.


    That''s right...


    The ball of lightning that he conjured from the divinity that he possessed as a devout believer of the Grand Duelist was now flying towards him.


    He knew that his enemy had the ability of deflecting attacks towards where it originated. But he didn''t expect that it would be this atrocious.


    Divinity from the Grand Duelist possessed extreme capabilities when ites to dealing damage and prating objects. It could even prate the strongest mineral in this world.


    Because of that, how could mere earth stop the onught of the lightning made out of that same divinity that was nowing towards him?


    He hurriedly strung his ukulele, but the sound waves he unleashed disappeared like a stone dropped into an ocean when it struck the iing lightning.


    In the end, the lightning prated the barrier that he made and it struck him squarely on the chest as a fierce explosion urred with him in the center which destroyed everything in the area.


    Boom!


    [You dealt 10,231,301 damage!]


    [This is the first time that a yer dealt 8 digits in damages in just a single attack! As amemoration to this achievement. The title, [ My Power? It''s over 9999! ] has been awarded. ]


    Joseph didn''t have the time to look deeply into the title that he acquired for he was still dumbfounded about the sheer amount of damage that he dealt with just a single Parry...


    "That lightning dealt that much damage against that Great Wandering Bard? Holy..."


    A shiver ran down his spine upon this realization. But his shock quickly turned to glee when he realized that he parried and deflected such a strong attack. In that case, wouldn''t the quest be over right now?


    He thought to himself before opening up the quest logs.


    [Quest: The Grand Duelist''s Vestige has beenpleted!]


    [The mysterious veil that coats the vige has disappeared.]


    [You have sessfullypleted the Grand Duelist''s Vestige''s quest perfectly, without suffering any damages! You will receive rewards that are far greater than the default!]


    [Before the distribution of rewards, pleaseplete the cutscene!]


    ''Cutscene?'' Joseph mumbled in confusion.


    But he soon got his answer since the Great Wandering Bard who got hit by his own attack, slowly stood up amidst the dust.


    The Great Wandering Bard still looked quite handsome despite the dust that decorated his clothes and face.


    But what was more notable was that the Great Wandering Bard''s face now expressed an emotion that he had never expressed before back when they were fighting.


    And that emotion was admiration!


    ''This guy... think he finally believes who I am...'' Joseph wryly smiled, while Kayn and his brothers shivered in fear.


    Without any context, anyone would think differently when they saw the Great Wandering Bard''s current expression. For Joseph, he disyed admiration.


    But for others who didn''t know more about the Great Wandering Bard, they would see nothing but excitement!


    But what kind of excitement?


    Well...


    From the fight that happened today. Kayn and his brothers only had a single answer.


    The Great Wandering Bard was excited to find someone whose strength couldpare to him and so, he was excited about fighting him once again!


    ''Shit! Finish him! You need to finish him before he gets to move!''


    Kayn and his brothers screamed in their hearts as they saw the Great Wandering Bard leaping into the air and pouncing at Joseph to do a...


    "Eh?" Kayn and his brothers were dumbfounded.


    The Great Wandering Bard leaped into the air and pounced at Joseph, before performing a magnificent dogeza...?


    ''What in the fuck is going on?!'' Their eyes bulged out of their sockets once when they saw what was happening.


    But Joseph who knew what was going on, felt calmer than them as the Great Wandering Bard said.


    "I apologize..."


    His words rang as clear as fireworks in a silent night. Kayn and his brothers felt weak in their knees, while Joseph frowned when he heard what the Great Wandering Bard had said.


    "That''s it? Do you really think that everything can be solved with only apologies? If everything can be solved by just saying sorry, then do we even need the police?" Joseph coldly replied to the Great Wandering Bard''s apologies.


    "If you want me to ept your apologies, then you need to do something. In other words,pensation! You mustpensate those you harmed!"


    Joseph continued and the world turned silent.


    Even the Great Wandering Bard who expected a harsh punishment from the powerful Grand Duelist right in front of him couldn''t help but feel confused.


    ''Compensation? What kind ofpensation?''


    Joseph raised an eyebrow and exined.


    "I can''t really me you for acting like what you did against me since you''re a devout lover of the Grand Duelist. So, I won''t me you for that, but you mustpensate those guys!" Joseph pointed at Kayn and his brothers and they all trembled.


    Even though they felt somewhat d about the prospects ofpensation. Thinking about how a monstrous demon would pensate" them...


    They couldn''t help but shiver in fear.


    "Ah, It''s okay... We will be okay without receiving anypensation..." One of them spoke.


    "Ah, yes sir! We will be okay without anypensation as long as we can live, hahaha. Yeah right, Kayn? We''re okay without anypensation, right? Right?!" One of Kayn''s brother repeatedly winked at Kayn as a signal that they shouldn''t ask for anypensation.


    But Joseph shook his head when he heard what they said...


    "That cannot be... This guy mustpensate all of you properly. He doesn''t really have any grudge against all of you... So what he did waspletely uneptable. All of you must bepensated by him!"


    "You guys were just caught up in his anger and in the end. He used you guys so that he could lure me out from hiding..." Joseph exined to them and they finally understood why Joseph wanted to give thempensation.


    "In that case, then... If that''s really the truth. Then, if we asked forpensation. He wouldn''t pursue us in the future to take revenge?" One of Kayn''s brothers carefully asked...


    If they asked forpensation today, but they''d still die in the future.


    Wouldn''t receivingpensation a stupid choice?


    After all, one must be alive to enjoy their riches.


    Everything would be useless if they''re dead.


    "Yes, I can promise you that he will never pursue all of you for revenge." Joseph stared right into their eyes and everyone was finally convinced about Joseph''s words.


    The Great Wandering Bard was currently submissive to him due to the fact that the former felt guilty about using him as a fake Grand Duelist.


    There was a really high chance that the Great Wandering Bard would do everything that he wanted for the sake of making amends with the mistakes that he made against Joseph.


    Joseph nced at the Great Wandering Bard and the mighty Great Wandering Bard who now looked like a docile child that was currently being scolded by his mother nodded his head and said: "Yes, just as master said. I will never pursue all of you in the future for the sake of revenge."


    His tone of voice feltpletely sincere and Kayn''s brothers were finally convinced of the truth and they couldn''t help but scream out loud.


    Kayn wasn''t the only one confused about the sudden change of atmosphere.


    Wasn''t the Great Wandering Bard their enemy?


    Why was his indicator, colored with green now instead of red?


    And why was he so subservient towards Joseph who was his enemy?


    Not only that, he''s nning on giving uspensation? What the hell is going on?


    Kayn''srades felt his hesitation and they couldn''t help but snicker when they saw the confusion on Kayn''s face.


    "Don''t be so conflicted, Kayn. Now that the monster is under the control of that kind sir right there, I think that we can do something so that we can turn this tragedy into a stroke of luck."


    When Kayn heard the words of one of his brothers.


    His figure trembled and he couldn''t help but suck a mouthful of cold air.


    Looking at the Great Wandering Bard. He didn''t look like a homeless vagrant anymore.


    Instead, he looked like he was a member of that particr nobility since he had those pointy ears and a majestic air around him.


    But right now, that so-called member of that particr nobility was currently kneeling on the ground and was even offering them somepensation for what happened today.


    Even though Kayn was a yer and a human. He was still a bandit within the world of Victory.


    And what skills were bandits good at? Well, it was taking everything that they could from anyone.


    Taking advantage was one of the specialties of bandits...


    Kayn wasn''t an exception to that trait.


    So, now...


    He finally stopped hesitating as he moved forward and said.


    "Give us money..."


    His words rang loud and clear.


    When the Great Wandering Bard heard it.


    He couldn''t help but tremble as he inwardly mocked them...


    ''Money, money, money! Money really makes the world go around for these humans, but I just don''t understand. Why are they so desperate for money when it can be earned so easily?''


    Even though he mocked them inside, he didn''t dare to disy it outside for fear of being scolded by the Grand Duelist whom he thoroughly admired.


    He waved his hand and a bunch of heavy pouches appeared in mid-air and struck the ground.


    Kayn and his brothers paused when they heard the sound of gold coins within those pouches, and then...


    "We..."


    "WE''RE RICH!!!"


    "AAAAAW YEEAAAAH!"


    A scream followed


    Even Kayn who could normally maintain his calm andposed expression now had a crooked smile on his face. But the most shocked of them all was Joseph.


    His eyes almost bulged out of his sockets as he stared at the Great Wandering Bard who continued waving his hand in the air.


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    Several heavy-looking pouches filled with gold materialized in the air and dropped heavily on the ground.


    The Great Wandering Bard stared at them before saying: "Is this... Ah, no- would this be enough aspensation, sirs?" He almost expressed his anger and contempt against these greedy humans.


    Thankfully he suppressed them, or else...


    Who knows what would happen if the Grand Duelist moved against him once again?


    If that happened then, could he still even keep his life?


    The nervous Great Wandering Bard couldn''t help but nce at Joseph, and when he saw Joseph''s current expression that had his eyes bulging out of his sockets. He couldn''t help but shiver in fear.


    ''Why is Master looking like that...? Could it be that this amount ofpensation is not enough? Is he angry that I am only giving them gold coins aspensation? In that case, I have no choice! I must appease master''s anger!''


    He gulped his pride and shame as he started stripping right in front of everyone.


    "???"


    Joseph''s expression changed when he saw all of these happening.


    But before he could speak.


    The Great Wandering Bard handed over his clothes at the bandits before exining.


    "All of my clothes are made out of the finest fiber in my homnd, they are resistant to anything with the exception of divine energy. I think that should be enough aspensation, right? Fine sirs."


    He nced at Joseph once again.


    But when saw Joseph''s incredulous expression...


    "Yeeet!"


    He inwardly shrieked in fear as he hurriedly threw his shoes at the bandits then, kneeled right in front of Joseph.


    "Forgive me, master! Those are the only items that I have! At least, let me keep my dignity and this underwear!" The Great Wandering Bard cried out loud.


    Joseph''s confusion deepened even further and this was shown through his expression so, the Great Wandering Bard thought that he was still angry.


    "I really don''t have anything! I really don''t have anything anymore, master! All were given to them aspensation!" He cried out once again and Kayn along with his brothers couldn''t help but feel pity towards the Great Wandering Bard.


    "Yeah, this is enough. My friend, thank you for everything that you did for us. Not only did you save my brothers'' life, but you also gave us such a lucky break." Kayn went forward and sincerely thanked Joseph on behalf of his brothers.


    "Once our business at the capital of Nether is over, I will surely serve you for as long as I live. That is the only way that I can think of so I canpensate you for saving our lives." Kayn said, he nced at the Great Wandering Bard,plex emotions shed on his face.


    "What the hell are you saying, Kayn? Are you abandoning us? We have nothing in the first ce and we only have us brothers to think about. But you are leaving us? That cannot be! Wherever you go, we shall follow!"


    One of Kayn''s brothers stepped forward and kneeled: "When our business at the capital ends, good sir! We shall follow you along with Kayn!"


    Joseph swept his gaze at them and found that they were incredibly determined: "Judging from your expressions, it looks like that business is already long overdue."


    Kayn''s figure trembled for a moment. He nced at Joseph along with the Great Wandering Bard and thought: ''What if I asked for their help? If I did that, then... This mission of ours would be so easy... After all, he''s a top-ranker and that NPC is literally a monster...''


    But in the end, Kayn shook his head and dispelled those ideas:


    ''No, I cannot do that. What they gave us was already enough so that we could start our operations as soon as possible...''


    ''We cannot use the fact that they almost for the sake of recruiting them for our cause... I may be a bandit, but I still know shame...''


    ''I must do this mission with me and my brothers alone!''


    Kayn reaffirmed his resolve before replying: "Yes, it has been long overdue already, good sir. But thanks to your grace, I think that we can finally do what we must do as soon as possible. Everything is thanks to you, really..." Kayn deeply bowed before saying: "May I know your name, sir?"


    Joseph was taken aback by the sudden change of Kayn''s tone. He felt weird about being called "sir" but he still replied with a smile on his face: "My name is Joseph, yer ID 4269."


    Kayn nodded his head and hurriedly saved Joseph''s name in his friends list.


    Afterward, both parties finally separated from each other. Joseph was left with the Great Wandering Bard who only had his shoes and underwear as his clothes.


    The shoes that he was wearing now was given to him by Kayn due to fear that the Great Wandering Bard may take revenge against them due to the humiliation and shame.


    "You did well suppressing your anger at them from the humiliation earlier." Joseph praised the Great Wandering Bard''s mentality.


    The Great Wandering Bard who received praise from the first time from the one whom he deeply admired couldn''t help but shiver in joy when he heard what Joseph had said.


    "Aaah... Did I really... do well?" The Great Wandering Bard replied in a muffled voice.


    Joseph frowned when he saw the squirming Great Wandering Bard, but in the end.


    He continued on asking: "In that case, can you give me my quest rewards now?"


    The Great Wandering Bard stopped moving and turned to look at Joseph in confusion.


    "Pardon me, master. But what are Quest rewards?"


    Joseph facepalmed...


    Of course, NPCs wouldn''t know anything about quest rewards.


    He must think of another way in expressing what he wanted so that it could be understood by the Great Wandering Bard.


    After a short moment, Joseph asked once again:


    "I am asking you to give me those that belong to me in the first ce."


    Joseph changed his wording and the Great Wandering Bard finally understood what he was saying.


    But when he understood what Joseph meant, his expression turned weird as if he was hesitating.


    Joseph frowned once again before asking: "What''s wrong? Why are you not giving me what I need and deserve in the first ce?" Joseph found it incredulous that an NPC was hesitating on giving out the rewards that he deserved from that ridiculously difficult quest.


    He suddenly remembered Fausto for some reason and a bad premonition appeared in his mind.


    "Ermmm... It''s not like I don''t want to give them to master, but the thing is... I gave all the materials and gold out to those bandits earlier aspensation..." The Great Wandering Bard averted his eyes from Joseph''s gaze as anger, filled Joseph''s heart.


    "Come again?"


    "Like... Like... I said, since master said that I mustpensate them, then I gave them all the materials and gold that belongs to master to them aspensation... So right now, I don''t have anything to give to master except these shoes and my..." He looked really hesitant to continue.


    "What did you say? You gave everything to them?! YOU GAVE EVERYTHING TO THEM?! HOLY SHIT, BRO! ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" Joseph''s anger exploded and he rushed towards the alleyway where the battle urred earlier only to find nothing...


    Kayn and his brothers had already disappeared.


    He swiftly opened his friends list only to find nothing again for he never asked for Kayn''s name, nor his yer ID.


    "..."


    Joseph stood at the dark alleyway, looking quite lonely and sad.


    The Great Wandering Bard felt guilty about what happened and he couldn''t help but look up to Joseph and speak out: "In that case. If Master, really wantspensation. I can give master a differentpensation but of equal value to what was lost..."


    Joseph''s expression changed into that of excitement. He hurriedly turned around and was astonished when he found the Great Wandering Bard hesitatingly lowering his underwear before saying: "I can only give master my chocte starfish..."


    "YAWA, What the fuck are you doing bro?!" Joseph instantly arrived at the Great Wandering Bard''s side through the use of [ Dash ] and hurriedly stopped him from taking off his pants.


    "I''ll make this clear to you, I am straight! I don''t swing that way!" Joseph scolded the Great Wandering Bard who also nodded his head and replied: "I am also straight, master. But apart from my chocte starfish, I don''t have anything of value that I can give to you..."


    "Fuck off!" Joseph cursed once again before an idea suddenly came to his mind.


    "If you don''t have any valuables to give me... How about you give me some information that is equal in value to the rewards that I should''ve received if you didn''t give them out to those bandits?"


    Joseph still felt angry about what happened, but since it was useless crying over spilled milk. It was not good brooding over it.


    The Great Wandering Bard finally stopped stripping as he thought for a moment before saying...


    "How about this master? I know about the location of a Legendary cksmith that can create incredibly valuable and strong equipment. That guy is a true monster when ites to that. But sadly. There are also a lot of monsters in the Kingdom of Nether and he was captured to be their cksmith ve..."


    "Of course, that guy didn''t want to be a ve. But because of his unwillingness. He is imprisoned for an indefinite amount of time as far as I know..."


    "I don''t know anything about the prisons of the Kingdom of Nether, but I am sure that he''s in the Underground Penitentiary. I mean, that''s the only ce where they imprison those thatmitted extremely heinous crimes such as patricide, and so on..."


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    He suddenly remembered the rmendation letter that Fausto gave to him. He thought that with that letter in tow. He could easily enter the Underground Penitentiary as a Jail Janitor or something, andter on...


    Approach that Legendary cksmith.


    But what a coincidence... Could a coincidence this good still be considered as a coincidence?


    Joseph thought to himself, but then he suddenly shook his head as he said.


    "What''s the name of that so-called legendary cksmith? What you''re saying is really such a good coincidence. I have the rmendation letter of a Great Inquisitor. I could easily go in and out of the Penitentiary." Joseph was exaggerating here, but the Great Wandering Bard took it seriously.


    "Really? As expected of the mighty Grand Duelist of the myths! Ah! If I only had a fraction of your power, then I wouldn''t have any trouble usurping that bastard''s throne in the first ce!" The Great Wandering Bard suddenly spouted some things that made Joseph frown before he asked.


    "What do you mean usurping thrones? You''re nning a coup d''etat?" Joseph asked in a careful manner and the Great Wandering Bard merelyughed and brushed it off: "Hahaha, I''m just joking master. Me, nning a coup d''etat? That would be tantamount to courting death!"


    "Yeah, right." Joseph nodded his head in agreement. Even though the Great Wandering Bard was a strong NPC that could be considered as a monster in the current phase of the game.


    He wasn''t the only monster in this world. Joseph was sure that there were a lot of monsters that were stronger than him.


    One of them was the King of the Kingdom of Nether.


    Joseph was certain that he''s at least ten times stronger than the Great Wandering Bard.


    "Now then, how about you tell me the name of the Legendary cksmith?" Joseph asked.


    It was necessary for him to acquire the name of the cksmith so that his investigations would be easier and faster.


    The Great Wandering Bard thought for a moment before replying with a name that shocked Joseph: "His name? Let me think for a moment... Hmmm, what was his name again? Ah! I know!"


    "His name is Krid!"


    "K-K-Krid?"


    "Yeah, the Legendary cksmith Krid!"


    The Great Wandering Bard even emphasized the name of the cksmith.


    [A Hidden Quest has been generated!]


    [The cutscene has ended.]


    Two system notifications appeared before his eyes, but he couldn''t even be bothered to read it for he was deeply thinking about something as he mumbled to himself.


    "Krid, that name... Hopefully, I won''t get into some copyright issues, right?" Joseph chuckled before shaking his head.


    "Copyright issues? What are you saying, Master?"


    "Nothing... I think we should go now..."


    Joseph chuckled once more before he cleared his mind, and the two finally moved towards their next destination...


    The Underground Penitentiary of the Kingdom of Nether.

 Chapter 31: Ezreal, the Great Wandering Bard

    Chapter 31: Ezreal, the Great Wandering Bard


    The journey to the Capital City Reinhardt of the Kingdom of Nether wasn''t easy. Joseph underwent several refusals from coachmen before he managed to take a ride from the Beginner Vige to the Capital City of the Kingdom of Nether.


    But why was this happening when Joseph had high amounts of Reputation Points?


    Well, it was because of the Great Wandering Bard.


    The Great Wandering Bard introduced himself as Ezreal which reminded Joseph about a particr game. Adding the former''s liking of Victory''s past mythology. He couldn''t help but snicker every time he nced at Ezreal inciting confusion from thetter.


    But that wasn''t the reason why they were getting refused.


    One of the reasons why they were refused several times by several different coachmen was because of the clothes that Ezreal wore. He was currently wearing the clothes that he wore as the Great Wandering Bard and he thoroughly looked like a homeless hermit.


    As for Joseph.


    Even though he had a high Reputation. They still refused to offer their services to Joseph for they couldn''t believe that someone as weak as him wanted to travel to the Capital City of Reinhardt.


    Indeed, this was something strange.


    Usually, new yers only ventured to the Capital City when they were at Level 50+.


    But Joseph was below Level 20. Clearly, the coachmen judged him as someone weak to the extent that he could be easily killed by a wild rabbit wandering the outskirts of the Capital City Reinhardt.


    Ezreal was greatly angered by their attitude at Joseph was on the verge of exploding if not for Joseph''s intervention saying that they were not worth it.


    But their assumptions depressed Joseph who quietly vowed to himself: "I''ll make sure to level myself up when I have the chance after this quest." Joseph opened his quest logs for several times already in the past hour. He once again browsed the contents of the quest that he received recently.


    [The Grand Duelist''s Vestige II(ss-Specific Quest)


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    You managed to convince the Great Wandering Bard about your identity but the rewards that should belong to you from the Great Wandering Bard were lost and given to others. You were indignant about this change.


    You requested something else as a reward and received a piece of vital information for hastening your process of bing the true Grand Duelist.


    The Grand Duelist never mes his tools but there is a particr weapon that thoroughly suits the Grand Duelist.


    Only by using that particr weapon, could you possibly show the world the true power of your Mythical ss.


    You found out that the one who has the capability of creating the weapon that you desire, the one and only current Legendary cksmith within the world of Victory is currently imprisoned within the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether.


    Only a few knew about the Legendary cksmith''s innocence and one of them is you...


    Release the Legendary cksmith from his prison through any means within seven days, and you will acquire greater rewards than what you have lost from the previous quest!


    Note: Once seven days have passed, the one and only current Legendary cksmith of Victory will be executed by the Kingdom, vassal to the empire. Once executed, the gods will mourn for a while and you will receive great penalties for not being capable enough of rescuing a legend!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Rescue the Legendary cksmith, Krid from the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes within seven days after quest eptance.


    Quest Rewards: ???(Guaranteed)


    Quest Failure: Your Divinity Stat will be temporarily locked.


    You will be demoted back to Level One.


    You will not be able to show the world the true power of the Grand Duelist for no one currently has the ability to make your personal weapon as the Grand Duelist.


    Reputation Stat will be temporarily locked, your affinity towards Ezreal will decrease. ]


    [This is a ss-Specific Quest and cannot be refused!]


    [Quest is automatically epted!]


    "The rmendation letter that I have received is only for the position of a Jail Janitor... Just how can I aplish this quest within seven days? Not only that, even though I''m a myth. I''m just a new yer in the end. Just what are the expectations of those bastards from P.H Works from me?"


    "A Legendary cksmith like him should be imprisoned at the deepest part of the Underground Penitentiary. How can a Janitor possibly approach such a ce, let alone help him escape?"


    Joseph felt depressed. Not only were his rewards from the almost impossible quest withheld. He was given another task that looked far more impossible than taking away 10% of the Great Wandering Bard''s Health Points. Not only that, if he actually dared on releasing the Legendary cksmith...


    He would be an enemy to the Kingdom of Nether which served the Empire of Truedawn. In other words, he''d hit two birds in one stone. Offending two mighty powers in one move! This was a really powerful move! Albeit, something detrimental for Joseph.


    "Aghhh Fuck... Why are you doing this to me, P.H Wooorrrkkksss!!!" Joseph cried out loud, startling the coachman and Ezreal who awakened from his nap.


    "What''s wrong, master?! Did an enemy attack?!" Ezreal hurriedly took his ukulele and readied a stance.


    The coachman who was guiding the carriage turned to look at them and cursed.


    "Shut the hell up! You almost gave me a heart attack!"


    "I''m sorry..." Joseph bowed his head in apology.


    Ezreal red at the coachman who merely shrugged his head, and continued on guiding the carriage:


    "What''s wrong, master? Are you okay? Why did you suddenly scream?" Ezreal had a look of concern on his face and Joseph couldn''t help but feel touched upon seeing such a scene.


    He exined everything to Ezreal, but when he finished his exnation.


    Ezreal coldly snorted and said: "How dare that bastard Fausto give such a fraudulent Rmendation Letter to master!"


    "If only this one could still fly then I would''ve already snagged that bastard back at the Vige and bring him over here to ask for an exnation!" Ezreal boasted and Joseph caught the hidden meaning in his words as he asked.


    "Wait, Ezreal... If only you could still fly? You can fly?"


    Ezreal froze for a moment before he sheepishly smiled in embarrassment: "Yes, I could fly. But that is a thing of the past master. After all, I am someone that is abandoned by my hometown just for the sake of spreading the word of the myths..."


    Ezreal deeply sighed and Joseph felt touched towards Ezreal once again.


    He never expected that Ezreal was actually serious when he said that he deeply loved and admired those mentioned as myths.


    He thought that Ezreal had some kind of an ulterior motive when he lured Joseph out from hiding back then, but now...


    His suspicions disappeared.


    In fact, he was the one that felt sorry. He suspected a kind person of being evil.


    Now, that''s something that could be called as wrongfully using someone innocent.


    Joseph felt guilty about this so, he apologized: "Ezreal, I thought that you had ulterior motives when you lured me out on saving those bandits. But it turns out that you were sincere after all... I apologize."


    Ezreal was taken aback when he heard Joseph''s apology.


    This was the first time that Ezreal received an apology from someone else.


    He didn''t know where to look nor where to put his hands as he just awkwardly waved them in the air.


    "What is master, saying? You shouldn''t apologize regarding what I did master. I must suffer the consequences of my actions."


    Joseph nodded his head and a system notification appeared in front of him.


    [Your affinity towards Ezreal has increased by 10 points.]


    "But there''s something strange about what you said to me Ezreal. Why would your hometown abandon you for something that''s so trivial such as spreading how mighty those of the myths were?"


    Joseph frowned when he asked this question to Ezreal, who then replied with a bitter smile on his face.


    "I see, so Master doesn''t know about what the myths did back then when my hometown was just a small hamlet..."


    "It was about three thousand years ago but some elders still remember what happened back then as clear as daylight. In fact, one of us even had the fortune, or I should say. Misfortune of witnessing the bloody battle that happened that day..."


    Joseph''s expression turned serious: ''I should really read more about the lore of Victory when I have the free time. But for now, I''ll just listen to the ounts of Ezreal about what happened back then.''


    He stared at Ezreal as if hinting that he wanted him to continue, but Ezreal merely smiled and shrugged it off before saying.


    "Someday, master will definitely learn the truth. But I think it''s still too early for master to know about what exactly happened between my hometown and the myths three thousand years ago..."


    "I mean, master is still using a sword in battle, even a crude one at that. In that case, it is safe for me to assume that master has just recently inherited the legacy of the Grand Duelist... Am I right, master?"


    Joseph nodded his head, and he didn''t deny what Ezzreal said. He thought for a moment before replying: "Now that you know that I am weak, will you leave me just because I am weak?"


    Ezreal froze for a moment before he lightly chuckled and replied: "No way! Master is still at his early stage as the Grand Duelist, but once you reached the peak, it would be much harder for me to build connections with you at that time and sow some favors..."


    "But since Master is still too weak, right now. Wouldn''t I have an easier time right now when ites to gaining your favor, master?"


    "Hahaha, yeah right." Joseph chuckled when he heard Ezreal''s reply.


    "Did you think about such a scheme before you lured me out on saving those bandits, or did you make that scheme on the spot?"


    "Well, who knows?" Ezreal also chuckled.


    "If you don''t mind me asking, Ezreal. Just how old are you? You said that there''s still someone in your hometown that is a living witness to what the myths back then did to your hometown. In that case, you and your people''s lifespan are quite long, right?"


    "Hahaha... Since master has already guessed that far then I think there''s no use exining to master about my true origins, right?" Ezreal stared at him and Joseph nodded in return.


    Back when Joseph saw Ezreal''s true form when he was still fighting him earlier. He already had a pretty good guess about his true identity.


    What he''s most concerned about was Ezreal''s age. If Ezreal replied with an age that was higher, or lower than him he wouldn''t know what he should feel.


    But unfortunately, Ezreal answered his question with another question.


    "Why does it matter for Master to know about my age?"


    Joseph faced him and found that Ezreal had a stern expression on his face.


    Facing the serious Ezreal, Joseph chuckled and said: "Isn''t it bad that a friend wants to know more about his friend? I mean, that''s how one could deepen each other''s friendship, right?"


    "..."


    Ezreal turned speechless. He turned serious for a moment for he thought that Joseph would feel different towards him if he heard about his true age.


    But now, he was convinced. A friend wouldn''t abandon a friend just because of the vast difference that they had on their age.


    "But master, I know a different way of deepening friendships." Ezreal looked quite hesitant, yet quite proud when he said these words.


    Joseph was intrigued: "Oh? You do know about some other way?"


    "Yes, I learned this way when I came across a young woman while traveling the continent. That woman had books with her carved on wooden bs which she called with a simr name of a particr fruit that''s the specialty of the Capital City Reinhardt..."


    "Books whose names are simr to that particr fruit that''s considered as a specialty of the Capital City Reinhardt?"


    Joseph thought for a moment and he vaguely remembered encountering a simr fruit on earth being sold on the streets of Reinhardt by hawkers. But then, the name of the fruit suddenly clicked in his head as he cried out.


    "Mangga?!"


    "Ah, yes! Manga! But it''s not mangga master, but Manga! It''s not pronounced with double ''g''."


    Ezreal cried out in excitement...


    Whenever he had free time, he always took those wooden bs out and read them out loud. Every time Ezreal took those wooden bs out of the open. He always admired the talent that carved those images on those bs.


    In fact, he desired to meet that particr woman once more just so he could acquire more Manga made by her.


    "You have them with you? Interesting, can I borrow them? I kind of want to see what they look like."


    Joseph was interested in how Manga made out of wooden bs worked. He wanted to borrow one.


    But Ezreal unexpectedly refused with a serious expression.


    "Master, just because I will obey your instructions doesn''t mean that I don''t have the right to refuse. How could I possibly let you borrow my mangas when they contain forbidden texts given by that young woman that called herself as an honorable fujoshi..."


    "Fujoshi? Are you serious? Did she really say that she''s a fujoshi?"


    "Yes, master! She said that she''s someone who walked on the forbidden path. But even tho- wait! Master! Do you know what the word ''Fujoshi'' means?! Can Master tell me more about it?"


    Ezreal''s excitement reached the peak, while Joseph was speechless before he asked a question with a strange expression on his face: "The method that you have on deepening friendships... What is it?"


    Ezreal''s excitement turned into glee as he replied with a wide smile:


    "Of course, it''s the sharing of chocte starfishes between men, Master!"


    "I KNEW IT... FUCK OFF!"


    In the end, Joseph forcefully took the wooden bs containing yaoi from Ezreal, and in the process.


    Joseph acquired the determination of setting Ezreal on the straight path.


    He felt too excited about the prospects of turning Ezreal into a heartthrob that hepletely forgot about his aim of asking Ezreal about his age.


    He was too concentrated on spreading the doctrines of the Church of Thighs to Ezreal.


    But of course, whether his teachings worked or not...


    That was something that could only be answered in the future. For now, the two men were having fun criticizing each other''s tastes as they finally arrived at the Capital City Reinhard after about a few hours of travel time.<ol><li>YOU BELONG TO A MUSEUM!</li><li>[Author''s Note: Joseph wants to know more about Ezreal''s age since Filipinos have this culture of thoroughly respecting one''s elders. If Ezreal revealed that he was far older than Joseph then Joseph would feel quite awkward that he has an elder worshipping and following him.]</li><li>A female that enjoys shipping two males (even if they''re straight)Fujoshi means "rotten girl" in Japanese.</li></ol>

 Chapter 32: Taking Advantage

    Chapter 32: Taking Advantage


    When Joseph and Ezreal arrived at the Capital City of Reinhardt, they rented a room in a traveler''s inn and Joseph finally had the peace and chance to thoroughly check his Status Window.


    [Name: Joseph


    Level: 15 Gender: Male


    ss: The Grand Duelist


    Title: "The Sun that Overlooks Everything"


    (You are an absolute existence.


    You will acquire five stat points for every level.


    You will resist all kinds of crowd control effects, debuffs, and abnormal statuses.


    Your Reputation cannot go down a certain level even when you''re infamous.


    Once your health is at the minimum. You will acquire a shield that''s equivalent to 100% of damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds. Extra damage that''s more than your Health Points also counts to the strength of the shield that you''ll acquire. The shieldsts for twenty seconds.


    Dying as an overwhelming existence is shameful. Your death penalty for dying is doubled.)


    Title: "Deemed Ungrateful by the Gods".


    (You are despised by the Gods.


    Whenever you are facing an enemy that is affiliated with any God, your stats will dramatically increase.


    If you died under the hands of an enemy affiliated with any God, the penalty that you will receive upon death is tripled.


    Probability of sess in Item/Armor/essory Enhancement is dramatically lowered.


    Devout believers of any God will instinctively feel hatred at you.)


    Title: "Mythical Authority".


    (You have an overwhelming presence as someone who dared to go against the gods.


    No one can make you submit.


    There''s a certain probability of inflicting "Fear" status towards those who dare stare at you.


    Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand before you.


    Your presence alone incites fear to enemies while increasing morale to your allies.


    You are a natural leader. Your Leadership can never be lower than those who darepete against you.


    As an authority, no talent can escape your eyes. Skill: "Character Scrutinize" is generated and listed as a passive skill.


    [Character Scrutinize Lv 1


    Talents in the rough can never escape your eyes, a single look from you and their talents will be uncovered.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Mystical Authority


    Skill Cost: None.


    Skill Cooldown: 24 Hours ]


    You can summon a Divine Avatar, through the skill "Divine Authority Summoning".


    [Divine Authority Summoning Lv 1


    Summon a Divine Avatar out of your own authority as a personparable to the gods. Your Divine Avatar acts as an independent presence. It possesses half of everything that you have, but is innately unruly, arrogant, and untamed. Simr to the Divine Avatar of the previous Grand Duelist.


    Your Divine Avatarsts for half a minute, scaling by your Level and Divinity Stat.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Title: "Mythical Authority", and a Mythical ss.


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 72 Hours] )


    Title: "My Power? It''s over 9999!".


    (Strength + 200)


    Health: 1400/1400 Mana: 450/450


    Strength: 201 Dexterity: 1


    Intelligence: 1 Stamina: 1


    Spirit: 5 Tenacity: 5


    Reputation: 232 Divinity: 20


    Charm: 5


    Undistributed Stat Points: 70]


    "Holy shit, I am already Level 15? And I have about 70 undistributed stat points? What is going on? Wasn''t I supposed to receive 2 stat points every level?


    "How did I get this much stat points when I''m just at Level 15? Wait, could it be that these are part of the rewards from that previous quest?" Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air. He looked somewhat confused about what was going on in his yer Profile.


    But when he saw the effect of every title that he had.


    He finally had the answer that he was looking for. The reason why he had such a high number of stat points was because of his title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything". The effects of this title werepletely fraudulent and were something,pletely unseen before.


    Just the effects of the title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything" alone was heaven-defying.


    Joseph swore to himself that he would never reveal any of his titles to anyone under any circumstances.


    But of course, whenever fortune was, misfortune follows.


    Beneath the Sun that Overlooks Everything title was the title named as, "Deemed Ungrateful by the Gods". This title had great nerfing effects for Joseph when ites to end game content.


    It was because after all, once everyone acquired the best weapons out there. Everything would be a showdown in armor, weapon, or even essory enhancement.


    When everyone had the very best equipment, a single fine difference could be the difference between victory and defeat.


    Joseph once again felt indignation against the game developers.


    How vile were they that they could think about such a terrifying debuff!


    But at the same time...


    Joseph felt excited about the prospects of meeting a Legendary cksmith.


    After all...


    If he managed to curry the favor of that particr cksmith then maybe he could just hand over his equipment to that cksmith in the future to ask for some enhancement, instead of him enhancing everything by himself.


    "Fortune really does favor those that work diligently. Even though the game developers were vile because they made such a stupid debuff against me. At least, the heavens..."


    "Or should I say, the Supeputer controlling this game is still giving me a chance."


    Joseph''s mind cleared up after he arranged his future ns.


    For now, he decided on tackling one of the problems that he had, and that was...


    Where he would distribute these stat points...


    All stat points, once distributed cannot be taken back. Unless you acquired a new ss and had the fortune of resetting your stat points for free due to that ss.


    Because of these reasons, stat points were incredibly precious and one should take extra precautions before distributing them.


    If one made a single mistake of distributing more points to Intelligence than Strength. Then, that could possibly turn them into a yer that would have to try far harder than those with the same ss as him but with proper stats distribution. This was how crucial stat distributions were.


    Back then, at the Wolf''s Den. Joseph followed a cliched distribution of stat points which was 1:1 in Strength and Agility, but now that everything was reset for Joseph.


    He didn''t n on taking any gamble.


    After all, he had an unusual ss that bestowed upon him the potential to reach the top.


    If he didn''t carefully take advantage of the advantages that he had, could he still call himself as Joseph.


    As someone who took advantage of everything that he could just so he could live alone after his parents died.


    Joseph was an expert in taking advantage.


    If he didn''t take advantage of the situation that he had right now to be even stronger.


    Joseph himself would be disappointed at himself.


    And so, Joseph stood up and walked towards the room next door.


    He knocked and cried out: "Ezreal, it''s me. I have something to ask of you."


    "Is it about th-"


    "No, it''s not about the chocte starfish. I am being serious here... Open up!" Joseph screamed once again and he heard an audible clicking of a tongue inside the room.


    After a short while, the door opened. Ezreal greeted him and the two went inside the room.


    "Ezreal, you''re someone that''s incredibly familiar with the Grand Duelist, right?" Joseph stared at Ezreal as if he doubted Ezreal''s devotion to the myths. His challenging eyes invoked the fury within Ezreal''s heart as thetter stood up and said.


    "What are you saying, Master? Does Master still not believe in my devotion to the myths? In that case, then I''ll show even more proof to master about how I deeply love them! Say the Grand Duelist for example..."


    "Do you know that the previous Grand Duelist likes sweet foods? Back then, the Grand Duelist decimated an entire city due to the fact that they monopolized the production of honey and increased their prices sky-high, stating that honey was a luxury product."


    Joseph was speechless about what he heard: "Uhhh, don''t you know that what you are saying isn''t really something to brag about, right?"


    Ezreal shook his head and said: "Master really doesn''t understand."


    Joseph caught and noticed what he meant: "There you are again speaking about what happened three thousand years ago. If you''re not going borate about those events back then, then don''t mention them! You''re needlessly making me curious!"


    He scolded and Ezreal''s excitement deted like a balloon.


    "Well... Master is just too weak. If you are at least as strong as me then master will finally be qualified to hear the truth about the events back then."


    Joseph bitterly smiled and inwardly cried out: ''As powerful as you? You''re someone that could possiblypare to a Level 300 Boss!''


    ''The average yer base hasn''t even reached the threshold of Level 200 even when Victory is online for about two years already! The speed of leveling in this game is insanely slow and in that case. Just when will I hear the truth from you?''


    Joseph shook his head and erased these thoughts. He then turned to look at Ezreal before saying.


    "Well, if that''s the case then you should help me be stronger."


    Ezreal looked confused and couldn''t help but ask: "What does master mean?"


    Joseph revealed a sly smile: "Hehe, I mean. You''re strong, right? It would be easy for you to defeat any monster wandering around the Kingdom of Nether."


    Joseph said in a challenging manner towards Ezreal.


    His provocation apparently worked for Ezreal''s eyes shed with the intent to prove himself as he stood up and replied in a fierce manner: "Of course! Every monster within this Kingdom is far too weak for me, Master! A single snap of my wrist and they''ll be dead!"


    Joseph''s evil smile intensified and the look that he had on Ezreal was that of greed...


    Yes, intense greed.


    "Why is master staring at me like that? Wait, could it be that it''s the reason why master visited me sote at night? Oh no, I am caught unprepared by master! But still, I''m ready. Here''s my choc-"


    "Shut the fuck up!" Joseph who was in the middle of his fantasies suddenly came back to reality when he heard what Ezreal was saying.


    After a few moments, he didn''t indulge himself with those fantasies anymore as he shook his head and asked once again.


    "Since you''re so powerful. Can you hunt enemies with me? I''ll go lure the enemies and you kill them for me. With that method, wouldn''t It be easier and faster for me to be stronger?" Josephid out all his cards and sincerely requested Ezreal.


    But contrary to his expectations.


    Ezreal shook his head and replied: "I would love to do that master, but thews of causality decrees that one must be stronger through their own hands..."


    "And also, isn''t master a myth? As a myth, Master is already far stronger than others. In fact, I don''t think that they can evenpare to, Master. With that in thought, I think that bing stronger using such a method isn''t honorable."


    Joseph paused for a moment as he thought: ''I see, so the Supeputer Noah already knew about such a loophole, and also... The Supeputer is called thews of causality? Interesting... That''s quite convenient...''


    Joseph nodded his head. In the end, he didn''t ask for Ezreal''s taxi service anymore...


    Instead, he changed the question.


    "In that case, since you cannot help me in that department. How about you help me regarding my stat points? From your prior knowledge of the Grand Duelist..."


    "How should I distribute my stat points so I could be, at least as strong as the Grand Duelist in the future..." Joseph said and Ezreal''s expression changed from being serious to excitement.


    As long as the topic was the Grand Duelist. Ezreal would always be excited and Joseph somewhat hated it when that happened since he was someone that wasn''t really good at socializing in the first ce. He always felt that Ezreal was a walking persona of peer pressure.


    But now. Now, that he recognized Ezreal as a walking treasure chest. Possessing knowledge about the ancients'' unknown to everyone but a few...


    As a master of taking advantage.


    How could Joseph not take advantage of something like that?


    Of course, he would capitalize on it for the sake of bing stronger!


    In the end, the two talked for the entire night and Joseph walked out of the inn the next morning looking like he had lost his soul and entire body''s worth of vitality.


    In contrast to him, Ezreal looked like a fine maiden that just came out of a bath. His sapphire-like eyes glittered with radianceparable to that of the sun.


    Ezreal looked quite majestic and charming, but when everyone saw the fawning expression on Ezreal''s face and his gentle tone of voice as he talked to Joseph...


    Everyone on the streets instinctively avoided them, and an effect simr to how Moses parted the Red Sea urred in the streets of Reinhardt.

 Chapter 33: An Unexpected Visitor

    Chapter 33: An Unexpected Visitor


    Joseph couldn''t stop sighing about the fact that he asked for advice on getting stronger from Ezreal, but what he got instead was Ezreal''s bragging about his adventures throughout the entire continent.


    Of course, Joseph''s knowledge about the world of Victory increased.


    But those weren''t the answers to his questions.


    Eventually, somewhere in the middle of dawn. Joseph finally acquired what he needed.


    The most optimal distribution of stat points for the Grand Duelist was finally given to him by Ezreal who had a smug look on his face while being proud of having such knowledge.


    Right now, his stats were distributed as follows


    [Name: Joseph


    Level: 15 Gender: Male


    ss: The Grand Duelist


    Title: "The Sun that Overlooks Everything"


    (You are an absolute existence.


    You will acquire five stat points for every level.


    You will resist all kinds of crowd control effects, debuffs, and abnormal statuses.


    Your Reputation cannot go down a certain level even when you''re infamous.


    Once your health is at the minimum. You will acquire a shield that''s equivalent to 100% of damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds. Extra damage that''s more than your Health Points also counts to the strength of the shield that you''ll acquire. The shieldsts for twenty seconds.


    Dying as an overwhelming existence is shameful. Your death penalty for dying is doubled.)


    Title: "Deemed Ungrateful by the Gods".


    (You are despised by the Gods.


    Whenever you are facing an enemy that is affiliated with any God, your stats will dramatically increase.


    If you died under the hands of an enemy affiliated with any God, the penalty that you will receive upon death is tripled.


    Probability of sess in Item/Armor/essory Enhancement is dramatically lowered.


    Devout believers of any God will instinctively feel hatred at you.)


    Title: "Mythical Authority".


    (You have an overwhelming presence as someone who dared to go against the gods.


    No one can make you submit.


    There''s a certain probability of inflicting "Fear" status towards those who dare stare at you.


    Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand before you.


    Your presence alone incites fear to enemies while increasing morale to your allies.


    You are a natural leader. Your Leadership can never be lower than those who darepete against you.


    As an authority, no talent can escape your eyes. Skill: "Character Scrutinize" is generated and listed as a passive skill.


    [Character Scrutinize Lv 1


    Talents in the rough can never escape your eyes, a single look from you and their talents will be uncovered.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Mystical Authority


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown: 24 Hours ]


    You can summon a Divine Avatar, through the skill "Divine Authority Summoning".


    [Divine Authority Summoning Lv 1


    Summon a Divine Avatar out of your own authority as a personparable to the gods. Your Divine Avatar acts as an independent presence. It possesses half of everything that you have, but is innately unruly, arrogant, and untamed. Simr to the Divine Avatar of the previous Grand Duelist.


    Your Divine Avatarsts for half a minute, scaling by your Level and Divinity Stat.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Title: "Mythical Authority", and a Mythical ss


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 72 Hours] )


    Title: "My Power? It''s over 9999!".


    (Strength + 200)


    Health: 6450/6450 Mana: 450/450


    Strength: 201 Dexterity: 50


    Intelligence: 1 Stamina: 20


    Spirit: 5 Tenacity: 5


    Reputation: 232 Divinity: 20


    Charm: 5


    Undistributed Stat Points: 0]


    From what he heard from Ezreal, the Grand Duelist was a ss with extreme close-quarterbat capabilities. But from Joseph''s perspective. The Grand Duelist was more like a ss that could be considered as a ss cannon. Even though his offense was at the peak. He was too squishy...


    Thankfully, the Grand Duelist could resist any kind of abnormal conditions with the title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything", and not only that. He could also reflect all sorts of damage from any source. If not for this then, the Grand Duelist would be somewhat useless inrge-scale battles.


    Joseph decided on distributing most of his undistributed stats on Dexterity while cing a part of them on his Stamina.


    Stamina not only increased one''s Health Points by a certain t amount. It also increased the character''s tolerance when ites to strenuous movements such as running, swimming or other movements that required exertion from the yer.


    As for Dexterity...


    ording to what Joseph found online. Dexterity was a somewhat vague concept in Victory. But yers more or less found that Dexterity didn''t only include Movement Speed in its scope.


    It also included Evasion Rate and fluidity of one''s movement. Thisrge scope was the reason why most yers, even mages...


    Invested a part of their stats on Dex.


    Joseph also found some information about the Spirit and Tenacity Stats. Spirit increased one''s resistance to abnormal conditions, while Tenacity decreased the duration of any abnormal statuses that the yer acquired...


    But because of the special title that Joseph had, it was useless and he never bothered about it anyway apart from what they meant.


    Reputation, from the name itself, it was pretty self-exnatory.


    Joseph couldn''t find any information for Divinity, and he felt conflicted about it. He was sad that he couldn''t find more information about it...


    But he was also happy due to the fact thatcking information meant that Divinity was a stat only for those with unique sses or statuses.


    But of course, Joseph had enoughmon sense to know that Divinity had some rtions to those so-called Gods above the skies or something.


    As for Charm... Well, Joseph knew what it meant but he had no intention of growing such a stat.


    The current him only wanted to grow stronger, and acquire a lot of money...


    Nothing else.


    Joseph also didn''t add any points on Intelligence for his skills didn''t really need Mana.


    With the distribution of his stats, it was finally time for Joseph to visit the Underground Penitentiary of the Kingdom of Nether within the Capital City of Reinhardt. However, just as he was walking towards the Penitentiary.


    A system message appeared before him.


    [Notice: You have been ying for more than 12 hours. Please take care of your health and other, worldly matters and log-out! We, the P.H Works are not liable for any damages, injuries, or loss of property that you suffer in the outside world while you are in the game!]


    The Gaming Capsule that Joseph bought. Even though it was quite expensive, couldn''t be considered to be at the peak of all Gaming Capsules.


    Itcked some features such as automatic body adjustment while in the Gaming Capsule and so on...


    However, it had enough features for someone that wanted a capsule that was bang for their buck.


    Joseph opened his Main Menu and found that the Gaming Capsule analyzed that his dder was full and he also needed some water and food.


    Joseph logged-out of Victory after confirming all of these details.


    He checked the time and found that it was already 6 PM. In other words, it was the end of the day.


    He made an internal promise about paying those two sisters for their taxi service, but it looked like he''d fail on his promise if he didn''t make an early withdrawal from his high-yielding savings ount and suffer the penalty.


    But with the amount that Joseph had in his bank ount. He''d pay a hefty penalty if he decided to go against the contract and withdraw some money. But if he didn''t do that.


    Joseph didn''t have any other way of paying the services of those two sisters.


    "What a hassle..." He couldn''t help but inwardly curse as he prepared some dinner. Once he satisfied the cravings of his body and exercised a little. He could return to Victory once again and maybe, back in Victory.


    He could find a way of paying those two sisters.


    But for now, Joseph had to eat something first and sate his aching stomach.


    The smell of meat filled the room, Joseph had a nk expression on his face as he thought about how he could pay the two sisters when suddenly...


    A ringing sound came out from his Gaming Capsule which also had a function of receiving messages.


    [You''ve got a message!]


    One of the reasons why Gaming Capsules were so expensive was because they made a few house appliances somewhat obsolete due to the number of features that it had. One could even sit back and watch a movie on the integrated disy at the ceiling of some Gaming Capsules.


    In other words, Gaming Capsules had features that weren''t limited to gaming.


    [Hello there, customer~ We''re from GetCashQuick and we observed that you may be in need of some quick cash? If you''re interested, kindly reply to us by mail or call our hotline at 09161866943~]


    "Fuck!" Joseph loudly cursed at the timely arrival of the advertising message as he hurriedly turned off the Voice Function of the Gaming Capsules for message notifications.


    But he couldn''t help but think...


    "Am I really someone that cannot escape from the hands of debt? I am trying my best on running away from them, but fate finds one way or another on giving me a debt!"


    Joseph shook his head and finally calmed down after a moment of silence. But before he could even put food in his mouth.


    The doorbell of his house rang out.


    But...


    When he heard the familiar sound that he hadn''t heard in ages, his eyes widened in shock.


    "An intruder?!"


    He jumped from his seat and hurriedly reached out to a drawer where a shlight-looking stun gun was located. He gripped it tightly and turned on the Voice Function of the Gaming Capsule.


    He had a camera pointing at the entrance of his house. He installed it for the sake of deterring package stealers.


    "Yawa, who is at the front door? An intruder?" Joseph''smon sense didn''t work anymore from the shock that he felt as he held his breath. Even though he had a lot of knowledge about fighting in Victory. He was a pacifist in real life.


    The kind of pacifist that just follows the flow of everything.


    In other words, Joseph was a pushover.


    He didn''t know what he should do if the one in front of his house was really an intruder.


    A beeping sound came out from the Gaming Capsule and a response arrived: [Analyzingplete, the target doesn''t seem to be an intruder but a visitor.] The mechanical voice of the Gaming Capsule entered Joseph''s ears and thoroughly shook his heart and soul.


    "A visitor?! Those bastards, I already paid them enough for at least several years of amortization. Just what in the hell are their purpose in visiting me?! Yawa, analyze and find out about whatpany they belong to. Until you verify who they really are, I am not going out and greeting them."


    Joseph''s shed with anger.


    [Analyzing...]


    [The target seems doesn''t seem to belong on anypanies that you have listed on the cklist. Further analysis of the target''s figure has revealed that there''s an eighty percent chance that the target is a female.]


    "A female?! Holy shit, they are using honeytraps now?!"


    [Objection, there''s a high chance that she''s someone that the user knows.]


    "What do you mean about that, Yawa?"


    [In other words, there''s a high chance that she''s a friend of the user.]


    Silence reigned in the room when the home system within the Gaming Capsule ended its sentence.


    After a moment of silence,ughter suddenly came out from Joseph...


    "Hahaha! A friend? You can even joke now, Yawa? You''re telling me that the one outside is a friend of mine? Hahaha, Is that some kind of an early April''s fool joke?" Josephughed in a sarcastic manner.


    The home system turned silent and didn''t say anything anymore.


    Joseph silently came out of his room and approached the front door of his house with silenced footsteps. He flipped the switch of his stun gun as he said in a voice that barely contained his fear within the darkened room: "Who is that? I have a weapon and I am not afraid to thrust!"


    A feminine voice replied behind the closed door: "It''s me, Joseph! How are you doing all these months? I found that you recently cleared your debt and even paid those peskypanies in advance. I''m sure that you''re doing quite well, right?"


    The nervousness within Joseph''s eyes disappeared when he heard the familiar feminine voice. His fear turned into excitement as he hurriedly opened the door and revealed the figure of a young woman whom he considered as his life-saver at the darkest times of his life.


    "Lily! I''m d that you visited!"


    He sweetly smiled and greeted the young woman before ushering her inside.


    [Author''s Note: If you''re curious about her sudden visitation, you can find the clues for this at the end of chapter 3 ; ) ]<ol><li>Not to be confused with the Great Magician Lilibeth.</li></ol>

 Chapter 34: Hidden Intentions Behind Kindness

    Chapter 34: Hidden Intentions Behind Kindness


    Lily Aguinaldo...


    When Joseph''s parents died, he suffered from the debts that his parents left for him.


    Common sense told everyone that it was impossible for such a young man to survive, while under such heavy debt. Particrly in Joseph''s case. He should''ve lost the biggest asset left by both of his parents, which was the house he was currently living in.


    A house was an asset that generated huge amounts of money, and for thepanies that wanted payment from both his parents'' debt...


    It was an attractive piece of meat for them.


    Joseph fell into depression back then, and he became so desperate that he started busking on the streets just so he could gather more money. He did all of these for the sake of the precious house that his parents left for him...


    In the end, the house survived thepanies'' onught.


    But just how did he do something like that without the help of his parents'' rtives? Could all of it really due to his hard work?


    Well...


    Most of it was because of Lily...


    Joseph literally considered Lily as his angel. The one that brought him light amidst the darkness that surrounded him. If not for Lily always encouraging him back then.


    Joseph was sure that he would''ve taken his life already due to depression.


    A year ago, Lily left for the sake of pursuing a higher quality of education in a more urbanized city.


    Now, she''s back and Joseph felt happy that she still remembered him, and not only that...


    She even visited him!


    "It''s been a year since Ist visited and I see that nothing has changed..." Lily swept her gaze around the living room and found that apart from a dining table, a few dusty couches and a dusty television. Nothing really stuck out like a sore thumb.


    Joseph''s living room still looked as generic as it was a year ago.


    ''I wonder, just how did someone like him managed on paying all that huge amount of debt, and even keep thosepanies at bay for a few years in amortization.'' Lily couldn''t help but feel doubtful about the reports that she received from her private investigator.


    That''s right.


    Lily Aguinaldo wasn''t as angelic as Joseph thought...


    She was someone that valued opportunities more than anything else. She could endure, or abandon anything for the sake of capitalizing on opportunities that could elevate her life...


    Something like this happened a year ago.


    Back when she told Joseph that she would pursue higher education in a more urbanized city.


    But the truth was, she only followed her wealthy boyfriend to that city, and for the duration of their rtionship. She felt that she was just a frog at the bottom of the well...


    Unbeknownst to her, there was an incredible, whole new world where everyone treated money as a mere tool and with little importance.


    The world that the wealthy lived in waspletely different from those of poor blokes such as Joseph.


    When she experienced thevishness of the truly rich, she couldn''t help but mock herself for sticking on Joseph who supposedly had a fewnds and building assets that she couldn''t even confirm if they even existed in the first ce.


    Unfortunately, the rich were also fickle...


    After her wealthy boyfriend got tired of her, she was abandoned, and she now had no other choice but to return back to this City of Sibu. At first, she intended on going out on dates so she could save money and maintain her current lifestyle.


    But then, she suddenly remembered Joseph.


    She had a private investigator investigate on Joseph''s well-being, and she found out that he managed on paying all of the debts that he had...


    Not only that, he even satisfied the demands of those greedypanies for several years.


    "I''m sure that he finally has the assets of histe parents!" This was what she thought so, she visited Joseph with the facade that she was here for the sake of their friendship.


    She even nned on how she would entrap Joseph. She made these ns with the basis that Joseph definitely liked her due to the help that she rendered back when Joseph was just a struggling young man.


    She felt confident that she could entrap him in her beehive, and when that happened?


    She could finally continue living the addicting lifestyle that she always had ever since she visited the City of the rich.


    But now that she entered the house that she had never visited for the past year.


    She found that nothing had changed...


    In fact, some of the furniture that Joseph had in his living room was covered with dust. Indicating that they haven''t been used for quite a while.


    In other words, Joseph didn''t have any visitors apart from her in the past year.


    "Are you okay, Lily? What''s wrong?"


    Joseph found that Lily had a frown on her face so, he asked if she was fine.


    "Nothing... I just feel somewhat dizzy." Lily suppressed the disgust that she felt when she saw the dust that covered the couches in the living room.


    She detested Joseph even more due to this, but for the sake of her objectives...


    She endured it all and she finally took her seat on Joseph''s dusty couch.


    Joseph sweetly smiled when he saw her sitting on his couch. ncing at the tes that he had on his table. He had an idea in his mind and he couldn''t help but express it to her.


    "How about I cook for you? I mean, it''s been such a long time since we saw each other and I can''t help but find the need to brag my cooking skills to you. You''ll be shocked to see my improvements!"


    Lily paused for a moment.


    He wasn''t exaggerating.


    Joseph''s cooking skills were excellent, but this was mostly due to the fact that he wanted to save money and he opted on cooking for meals.


    Lily lightly smiled at Joseph''s gesture and said: "Thank you... Seeing the tes that you have on the table right there, it seems like I came in a good time."


    Joseph lightly chuckled in return: "Hahaha, that''s right. You really came in a good time. I just finished cooking and the pan''s not really cool yet so I can instantly cook something up for you. Just wait here for the meantime, and don''t worry about anything. Just make yourself at home."


    Joseph then awkwardly scratched his head as he turned around and headed for the kitchen while walking in a strange manner that looked like he was dancing on a beat.


    "He''s shing me that smile again, and also that head-scratching. He always does that whenever he''s nervous. Really, his habits are still the same..."


    "Not only that, I''m pretty sure that the reason why he suddenly wants to cook for me isn''t just because he wants to brag to me about his cooking skills. He wants something from me..."


    "In other words, Money..."


    Lily sneered at Joseph who had his back turned towards her. A year ago, his behavior waspletely predictable and a yearter. He was still the same. Yeah, nothing changed with him.


    Especially that habit of his where he pampered people up before he asked favors from them.


    Because of this, Lily was almost certainly sure that Joseph wanted something from her and she couldn''t help but feel disgusted once again: ''Now I am really certain that he must becking money right now after he paid all the debts that his parents left to him...''


    ''That should be the reason why he needs money. But I do not believe that he thoroughly exhausted the assets of his parents. He must''ve left something.''


    ''He isn''t someone that would do something risky such as running low on funds without any back-up ns. I am sure that he still has a few assets that his parents left for him. That''s enough for me to decide on what I should do with him.''


    Lily wore a sweet smile on her face when she saw Joseph carrying a bunch of tes on a tray towards the dining table.


    Joseph carefully ced the tes on the dining table and said: "You didn''t tell me about your preferences, so I just cooked your favorite dinner meal for you, adobo and fried rice." He had a smile on his face when he exined and even scratched his head in embarrassment.


    ''There''s that habit again. Now, I am sure that he wants something from me.'' Lily now felt certain about why Joseph was acting kind to her.


    She nced at the tes that Joseph ced on the dinner table and felt disgusted once again.


    It was because the meat that Joseph used on his adobo looked anemic, an indicator that it wasn''t fresh.


    Not only that, the peas and vegetables with the fried rice looked hard, yet moist. This was yet again, an indicator that the vegetables weren''t fresh and probably made out of frozen veggies that Joseph hurriedly thawed with the rice.


    "What''s wrong? Let''s eat. Don''t wait for it to go cold. it''s more delicious when it''s hot." Joseph said and Lily gulped a mouthful of saliva as she tried on suppressing her disgust.


    But Joseph misunderstood her gulping as he said: "It looks that delicious to you? Since you had to gulp while looking at it, I could say that I seeded in bragging my cooking skills to you, eh?"


    Lily''s smile looked quite crooked as she replied: "Y-Yeah, they look really delicious..." She shakenly lifted her spoon and took a mouthful of the fried rice. Pain and disgust could be seen on her face, but Joseph interpreted them as quite the opposite, and in a positive manner.


    "Damn your eyes are even tearing up while eating that fried rice, are they really that good?"


    "Let me try."


    Joseph couldn''t help but feel impressed with his own cooking when he saw that teary-eyed look on Lily''s face while she ate.


    He stood up and fetched a single spoon of fried rice from her te.


    When he ced that spoon of fried rice in his mouth, he eximed.


    "Ughhh... That really hits close to home. Aunt Goreng''s recipe of adding a teaspoon of chicken msg really enhances the vor of the fried rice. But Lily, I think that you''re quite exaggerating right there..."


    "Even though this is delicious, I don''t think that it''s at the extent where you could cry about it due to its excellent umami. But oh well, it''s still delicious."


    Joseph became talkative and Lily felt that his attitude was unbearable.


    But she still endured, suppressing her disgust about the fried rice mixed with frozen vegetables and chicken msg. She continued on eating. As for the adobo, she didn''t even have the heart of mixing the adobo''s sauce with the fried rice for fear of vomiting.


    "Ughhh... That felt good..." Joseph moaned on his seat as he patted his bulging stomach.


    He even ate Lily''s share of adobo when he found that Lily had no intention of eating everything that he served for her.


    "Uhmm, Hey. Can I go to the bathroom?" Lily asked in a hesitant manner as she repeatedly gulped mouthfuls of saliva in an effort on suppressing the urge to vomit.


    "Ah, of course, you can... The bathroom is still at the same location. Nothing ever changed here anyways since you left a year ago." Joseph waved his hand and he seemed to be in a good mood. In fact, he even opened the television and watched some news rted to the VRMMORPG Victory.


    In the bathroom, Lily kneeled over the toilet as she vomited everything that she ate.


    "Ugh... That bastard, making me eat something like that!" She inwardly cursed at Joseph as she stood up and gargled some water in an effort on removing the remaining vor of the msgden fried rice that she ate at the dining table.


    After a few moments, her breathing was finally fresh once again after spraying some mint. But her anger was already bubbling.


    She hated the fact that she even came here in the first ce.


    After all, she didn''t find anything when she came here.


    Nothing changed in Joseph''s house and everything still reeked of old age and antiques.


    But of course, she didn''t hate Joseph for not changing the old furniture and items that he had in his house...


    She hated him due to the fact that he was once again showing his habit of pampering her right before he asked for a favor.


    Right now, Lily had almost nothing to her name after she broke up with that boyfriend of hers. How could she afford to pay for something that Joseph wanted or even lend him some money? With this hatred in mind, she went out of the bathroom and returned to the living room.


    She noticed that Joseph was intently watching television.


    "Oh? You''re watching television? How long has it been since you turned that on?" Lily asked in a sarcastic and mocking manner, yet Joseph interpreted it as a friend jesting as he replied: "Hahaha, look at the dust covering its surface. I can''t even remember when Ist turned on this television."


    Lily took her handkerchief and ced it under her butt as she sat on the couch. This gesture didn''t escape Joseph''s eyes but he merely shrugged it as ady wanting to remain clean as much as possible.


    "Oh, Victory? You''re also ying that?"


    Some excitement finally appeared on Lily''s eyes when she saw that Joseph was watching some Victory-rted content.


    Joseph''s eyes also shed with the same excitement when he heard what Lily said. Finally, he had something to talk with her about.


    Honestly, he was happy that Lily visited him but he was also nervous due to the fact that he didn''t know how to face his crush who now looked quite matured for a young woman.


    Right now, he was thankful that he turned on the television because it became the reason why he now had a topic to talk with her about. Joseph even promised to himself that he would scrub the television clean once he was free in the future.


    "Yeah, I''m ying Victory, wait... You''re also ying Victory?" Joseph doubted his ears and he couldn''t help but ask.


    "Yup! I''m ying it, I''m a Magical Priestess, abination of Magician and Temr. I''m at Level 80 or so already~ How about you, Joseph? I''m sure you''ve been ying the game for a long time already. How are you doing in the game?"


    "Hahaha, wow... Level 80? Are you serious? And a Magical Priestess too, that sounds really cool. Ah, just yed the game recently... as for my ss..."


    "Hehehe, my ss is somewhat special so I''m not revealing it to you even if we''re close friends..." Joseph lightly chuckled at the end of his sentence and Lily inwardly frowned.


    ''A special ss? Could it be that he has a hidden ss? Nah, it''s impossible. Looking at that stupidly smug face of his, I am pretty sure that he just said that just so he could brag at me and even woo me... What a bastard.'' Lily inwardly shook his head before replying with a smile on her face.


    "Hahaha, really? You''re not revealing that special ss of yours to me, even if we''re close friends?" Lily said in a sarcastic manner, but Joseph misunderstood as heughed out loud: "That''s right! Also, if I revealed my ss to you, would you even believe me?"


    "Oh? Why would you say that I won''t believe you? We''re friends, you know~ You can tell me everything..." Lily''s sweet smile deepened and she even moved her body closer to Joseph whose smile turned from bragging into a smug one.


    "Well in that case, since you really want to know my ss. I''ll let you know, I actually have the one and only mythical ss, the Grand Duelist!" Joseph''s voice at the end of his sentence turned iparably proud.


    "Pffft!" Lily didn''t even suppress herughter.


    "Why are youughing? I''m serious, you know! I''m really the Grand Duelist." Joseph frowned when he saw Lily holding her stomach as sheughed.


    "Hahaha, that''s really quite funny~" Lily barely suppressed the anger that she felt once again after being deceived as she let out a few awkwardughs.


    "You really don''t believe me? I am telling you, I''m really the Grand Duelist! The one and only Mythical ss in the game!" Joseph looked like he didn''t know whether to feel angry or sad.


    The friend that was the closest to him wouldn''t believe what he was sharing...


    How could he not feel depressed?


    "Well, in that case. If you''re really that Grand Duelist, then I''m a Divine Lady." Lily said in a sarcastic manner.


    "Divine Lady? What is that?" Joseph asked with a frown.


    "It''s the Mythical ss for Healers!" Lily cried out and Joseph''s eyes widened in shock.


    "Really? You''re a Divine Lady? But wait, why haven''t I heard about a healer-type Mythical ss?"


    "Pffft! Look at you taking my words so seriously, I''m just joking, you idiot!" Lily replied with a sweet smile but the tone of her voice turned strong when she reached the end of her sentence.


    It was evident that she was obviously mocking Joseph. But fortunately for her, Joseph onlyughed out loud.


    He obviously took her mocking as jesting that friends often do with each other.


    The two talked with each other for a while before Joseph finally asked.


    "Uhmm, Lily. I am sorry about this since you just visited me today for the first time in ages. But I have a favor to ask from you." He hung his head low in apparent embarrassment from asking a friend whom he hadn''t seen in ages for a favor.


    Lily stared at him and when she found that he wasn''t looking at her.


    Visible disgust appeared on her expression: ''I knew it, this useless bastard is going to ask me for money again. Even though he always pays them on time and in the right amount, he''s still fucking disgusting for going about it in such a roundabout manner. What a fake bastard.''


    A bunch of thoughts appeared in Lily''s mind in an instant, but she managed to suppress them in the end as she said: "I know about what you''re going to ask from me. It''s money, right?"


    Joseph looked visibly shocked when he heard Lily''s reply: "You knew about what I was going to ask from you in the first ce?"


    Lily revealed a mocking smile that Joseph interpreted as her looking sad as she replied: "Joseph, we''ve been friends for so long. I already know about your habits, how you act in public and how you act privately. There''s not really any reason for you to act so embarrassed in front of me."


    Lily poked Joseph at where it hurt. She purposely mentioned Joseph''s embarrassment earlier when he asked her, and Joseph who heard what she said, hung his head even lower.


    Joseph''s embarrassment stemmed from the fact that he liked her, but how could he reveal this to her? Wouldn''t that be tantamount to a confession?


    Just as Joseph was having an internal monologue...


    Lily took her wallet and handed over a few thousand bills to Joseph as she said: "Here, take this. You need money, right? Don''t sweat it, I mean. You''re honest when ites to money, and since you''re a good payer and have never repaid mete, why would you embarrassed about borrowing?"


    "In fact, you''re the kind of person that every bank or lenders liked." Lily lightly chuckled at the end of her sentence and Joseph didn''t hesitate anymore as he epted the several thousand bills that Lily handed over to him.


    "Thanks for this, Lily! I will make sure to pay you at the end of the month!" Joseph''s expression turned iparably sincere as he promised, and Lily replied with a sweet smile. But inside, she was sneering: ''You better pay me on time as you said, or else. You''ll be in trouble.''


    After Joseph sessfully borrowed some money, Lily didn''t have any reason to stay anymore as she said her farewell, Joseph felt so grateful about Lily to the extent that he even fetched her a taxi that she could use so that she could go home properly.


    "Uncle, take care in your drive. She''s someone that I hold close to me so you better drive properly and not get into an ident!" Joseph even warned the driver, and when Lily heard what he said...


    She revealed a sweet smile and evenughed, but inside...


    She was already cringing in embarrassment and disgust.


    The taxi moved, and Joseph didn''t move from his spot as he watched the taxi disappear from his sight.


    Lily who was inside the taxi gazed at Joseph from the side-mirror and audibly mocked: "Look at that pathetic bastard right there, he''s even looking right here as if he really cares about my well-being when in fact, he only wanted my money!"


    The taxi driver flinched when he heard Lily''s cold voice. He wanted to say something so that he could console her, but when he saw her venomous gaze...


    He gulped a mouthful of saliva and inwardly promised that he would bring everything that he saw in here to his grave.


    ''She looks too vicious!'' The taxi driver mumbled to himself.


    "To think that he''d be that shameless to the extent that he''d lie about how he was doing in Victory. He''s pathetic in reality, and he''s also pathetic in the virtual world? That''s no surprise, he really is Joseph..."


    Lily chuckled in a sarcastic manner when she reached the end of her sentence.


    "But still, he''s only myst resort. Only when I cannot find others that''s at leastparable to that bastard would I cling to that disgusting Joseph."


    Lily made promise to herself that she wouldn''t visit Joseph again before she had concrete evidence that Joseph inherited the hidden assets of his parents that weren''t recorded in their SALN.


    At the roadside where Joseph sent Lily away. Joseph could still be seen standing while looking at the direction where the taxi disappeared.


    An almost imperceptible glint shone within his eyes.


    "Even once, you had never called me by my name." He mumbled coldly.


    He then turned around and returned to his house.


    (Author Note: SALN = Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.)

 Chapter 35: Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes

    Chapter 35: Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes


    Joseph first converted the money that he borrowed from Lily into Victory gold coins before he returned in the game. When he came back to Victory, it was early morning.


    The thin walls of the inn that Joseph spawned in couldn''t suppress the noisy outside world.


    As soon as Joseph opened his eyes, the door of his room mmed open and what caused it was Ezreal who had a bunch ofmb skewers in his hands.


    "Yo~ You''re finally awake!"


    Joseph who was startled out of his mind coldly replied: "Fucking hell, Ezreal. Do you even know about the concept of knocking?"


    Ezreal stared at him in confusion: "Knocking? Does that even matter when the walls of these rooms are so thin? Even if I am outside, I can still hear whatever you are doing so there''s not really that much of a difference." Ezreal even winked at Joseph who couldn''t help but tremble.


    ''Goddamned it, it seems like the roots of that fujoshi young woman have nted itself so deeply within Ezreal''s heart...''


    ''It''s not like I dislike those who swing that way or swing both ways... But Ezreal has the looks, charisma, figure and that innocent goddamned smile that can drop dem panties whenever he wanted...''


    ''It would be a waste if he doesn''t turn into a heartthrob...''


    Joseph concluded that Ezreal only became someone like he was today because of the influence that the manga whom that female yer made and gave to him. In other words, if Joseph gave Ezreal the same materials but withpletely different contents.


    He could probably reverse Ezreal''s ways and turn him into a National Husband.


    But...


    ''Why the fuck am I trying to do that for him? Shouldn''t I just let him be like what he wants to be? Why am I trying to change him?!'' Joseph inwardly cried, and Ezreal who was still confused, handed over amb skewer to him with a smile that could empty seas and devastate heavens.


    ''Ah...''


    ''I see...''


    ''I understand...''


    While staring at Ezreal''s smile, Joseph finally understood the reason why he was trying to change Ezreal into a heartthrob that could be considered as a National Husband.


    ''I guide others to treasures that I cannot possess...'' Joseph sincerely spoke this simple sentence in his heart, but it was full of hidden meanings that only those who thoroughly understood him could understand.


    Joseph sighed, shook his head and then cleared his mind of unnecessary thoughts.


    His fleshly body in Victory was now crying out for food when it smelled the fragrant mixture of meat, herb, and spices.


    He hurriedly bit at the skewer and the juices that exploded when his teeth made contact with the meat formed into a symphony that brought him into a food orgasm.


    "Oh, nom, nom, nom, nom, nom!" Joseph made an audible noise that disgusted Ezreal while he was wolfing down themb skewer.


    "Uhmmm, can you be silent while you are eating, master?" Ezreal asked with a hesitant expression.


    "Not make any noises while I am eating? You''re telling me that I shouldn''t be noisy?''


    "Says the one that suddenly barged into my room without any permission and creating such a huge ruckus. Look at the door. I even think that it''s broken! Do you really think that I''d pay for something like that when I am not the one who broke it?" Joseph red at Ezreal.


    "What are you saying? I am the one that''s going to pay for it if it really is broken." Ezreal was once again confused by Joseph''s antics, but thetter merely gave a crooked smile as he replied.


    "Ah, I see. In that case, then feel free to break anything that you want. As long as we''re not using my money to pay for it."


    Ezreal nodded and Joseph continued on eating as he endlessly praised themb skewers:


    "What is this holy mixture of herb and spices? Even though their notes are so subtle when you smell them, they explode in vors when you bite into them. I think even Colonel Sanders with his mixture of herbs and spices would be envious of this!"


    "Colonel Sanders?" Ezreal couldn''t help but ask upon hearing an unfamiliar name.


    Joseph stared at him with an expression that said ''Are you serious, bro?'' before saying with a sigh: "No-nothing..."


    "But anyway... I didn''t expect that the Capital City Reinhardt could produce such high-quality food. I mean, just the spices alone are enough for this to be valued higher than average. This is really juicy and bursting with vors."


    Joseph said as he took another skewer from Ezreal''s hands who looked concerned about the decreasing number of his skewers.


    He had six skewers when he came in, but now he only had two.


    He nned on eating all the skewers with Joseph while talking with him about the intricacies of manga-making but to think that Joseph was such a glutton.


    Ezreal couldn''t help but ridicule Joseph''s gluttonous attitude: "You know what, master? There''s a word for someone as gluttonous as you in my hometown."


    "Oh? What is it?"


    Joseph''s interest was piqued. He couldn''t find any information about Ezreal through the use of his Character Scrutinize skill due to the fact that his ss-specific quest was still ongoing...


    In other words, he couldn''t find any other information about Ezreal apart from Ezreal himself.


    But right now, Ezreal himself was offering information about his hometown out of his own volition to Joseph.


    How could he not be interested?


    "Dead Hungry." Ezreal wore a smug smile on his face as he replied in a sarcastic manner.


    "Dead Hungry? What does that mean?" Joseph looked visibly confused.


    The words, "Dead Hungry" didn''t make sense to him.


    "Well, it''s like that when literally tranted to anguage that you cursed ones can understand. But in my vernacr, it''s actually ''Patay Gutom''." Ezreal''s smug smile deepened, but Joseph who was confused merely shook his head and said.


    "What nonsense, let''s just keep eating shall we?"


    Ezreal who saw that Joseph wasn''t particrly interested about the culture of his hometown anymore, nodded his head and replied: "How about we just talk about the culture of the Kingdom of Nether, master?"


    "I mean aren''t you curious as to how they could procure these herbs and spices to the extent that the masses could use, not only the nobles?"


    "Yeah, that sure is interesting but could we just continue eating silently? I want to finish this as quickly as possible since I am running out of time for that quest and I also have things to do such as sending those two sisters some money."


    "Quest? Sending those two sisters some money?" Ezreal was once again confused. He found that he couldn''t predict Joseph''s thoughts and emotions.


    Recently, Joseph was the noisy one and now he wanted silence. Such a sudden change in attitude brought confusion to him. Especially thetter part of Joseph''s sentence.


    "Sending money to two sisters? Wait, master! You visited the red-light district, while I was sleeping?"


    Ezreal''s expression turned somewhat strange when he mentioned the word red-light district.


    Joseph noticed it but he merely shrugged before saying: "What nonsense are you saying? What two sisters?"


    "Didn''t you just say that you''re going to send money to two sisters or some sort?"


    Ezreal said with a frown.


    "Did I? Well, you''re mistaken. I never said something like that. Anyways, let''s just continue on eating. It''ll be bad if these skewers turned cold. They are at their peak when they are still hot." Joseph hurriedly changed the topic, and the two finally continued their breakfast in peace.


    In the middle of the breakfast, Joseph took a break from eating and sent the money that he owed to the two sisters for their services. Joseph didn''t have any trouble sending the gold coins to the two sisters since those two sisters were still recorded in his [Party Logs].


    The two finally finished their breakfast and headed outside of the inn. What greeted them were dozens of people moving about and doing their daily tasks. Some hawked their merchandises, some shouted loudly while some were busy cooking dishes for the morning crowd.


    "This world can really be considered as a second world..." Joseph sincerely said to himself.


    When Ray Gabriel, the Head of the Development Team of Victory at P.H Works said that the world of Victory could be considered as a second world.


    Everyone thought that he was just mindlessly bragging...


    But now, Joseph was convinced.


    This world was truly a second world.


    "Are you okay, master? You were staring a thousand miles away... Let''s move. Thankfully, it''s still early in the morning. Once the seventh hour of the morning arrived. I think that it would be hard for us to even move from this ce due to the crowd."


    "Hurry up, master. Follow me and I''ll lead you to the Underground Penitentiary." Ezreal lightly smiled then he smoothly weaved through the crowd.


    "Wow, that dexterity is unbelievable." In contrast to Ezreal. Joseph found it hard to move around, and it took him triple the time that Ezreal took whening out of the crowd.


    The two continued on their journey, and they soon arrived near the military barracks of the Kingdom of Nether. Ezreal''s expression suddenly turned serious when they neared the barracks. Even Joseph couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva.


    Joseph heard some information about the mysterious Underground Penitentiary from Ezreal.


    He learned from thetter that although covered in mystery. The Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether was a famous ce where all sorts of criminals from strong to weak were imprisoned for as long as theymitted cruel and inhumane crimes.


    In any case, they were all people that anyone wouldn''t want to run into in their life...


    There existed even a famous adage in the Kingdom of Nether. Yes, in the entire Kingdom of Nether. Not just the Capital City of Reinhardt where the prison was located.


    The saying went, "One doesn''t know the definition of suffering until they are locked up in the Underground Penitentiary..." Along with several other adages that said, "Death isn''t a cruel punishment within the Underground Penitentiary, but the greatest reward."


    "A human whening in, worse than a demon whening out."


    These adages alone sent shivers down Joseph''s spine when he heard it from Ezreal. His shock deepened even further back then when he realized that Ezreal was saying these to him in a cold and stern expression.


    Something which waspletely opposite of Ezreal''s almost always joking attitude.


    The two arrived near the barracks and soldiers d in the armor specifically made for the Kingdom blocked their way with cold expressions.


    "Halt. Further steps forwards are forbidden. The facility behind is only for those with authority. Pleasee back to where you came from!" One of the soldiers cried out and Joseph was taken aback.


    He expected that the soldier would act boorish and rude towards them, but what happened was the opposite.


    In fact, the soldier even used deeper vocabry that one couldn''t hear from themon popce.


    The two stopped on their tracks, and Ezreal nced at Joseph who then took the hint.


    Joseph first gulped a mouthful of saliva so, that he could suppress his nervousness, and with a stern expression.


    He stepped forward and presented a letter to the soldiers who blocked their way.


    "I came here from a farawaynd to heed a Great Inquisitor''s rmendation. Please open the way!" Joseph''s voice rang loud and clear, and when the soldiers heard what he said. They couldn''t help but tremble. Their eyes radiating fear as one of them mumbled.


    "Did... Did you say that you came here to heed the rmendation of a Great Inquisitor? You''re here to be a person of that ce?"


    Joseph faced the soldier with a serious expression and replied: "Yes, I am here to be a part of the Underground Penitentiary."


    When the soldiers heard what he said, they all gulped a mouthful of saliva before one of them moved forwards and received him with a crooked smile on his lips: "I gratefully receive your presence, kind sir." He nced at hisrades before continuing: "I alone will lead the path for both sirs, I hope that you don''t mind that kind, sir."


    Joseph nodded.


    He didn''t really care whether all the soldiers led the way for him for as long as he arrived and became a member of the Underground Penitentiary where he could continue his ss-specific quest.


    Therades of the soldier who stepped forward nodded their heads in gratefulness as that same soldier walked forwards and led the way for Joseph and Ezreal.


    Seeing their strange mannerism, Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    "I can sense that you are fearing something since I mentioned the words, Underground Penitentiary. Can you tell me the reason why the soldiers of the Kingdom itself fear such a ce?"


    The soldier shivered for a moment before he turned around and faced Joseph with a bitter smile: "Kind sir, I know that as someone rmended by a Great Inquisitor. You should know about the effects of that ce tomon people whose minds aren''t as strong as you sir..."


    "I pleaded you, sir, to let me lead you the way alone since I am afraid that those young soldiers would have their mind broken after they witnessed the horrors that are within the Underground Penitentiary..."


    The soldier bowed his head in appreciation towards Joseph''s eptance to his request.


    But Ezreal frowned and asked before Joseph could speak once more: "But wouldn''t that be the same as sacrificing yourself for their sake? I don''t understand why you would do something like that in such peaceful times. Sacrifices should only be made in the middle of warfare, not in these times."


    Both Joseph and the soldier nced at Ezreal before thetter replied with a smile.


    "As sir can see. I am already quite old. I have already enjoyed my youth and right now, I am only a few years away before my retirement. One can say that I have already experienced what life has to offer, but not those youngsters."


    Joseph nodded his head in agreement and Ezreal looked somewhat convinced although he was still confused. But one couldn''t really me Ezreal for his confusion.


    After all, Ezreal was a member of a species that lived really Iong lives.


    It was given that he wouldn''t understand the concept of sacrificing the old for the sake of the youths.


    Seeing Ezreal''s convinced, yet confused expression. Joseph now had quite a solid theory about what kind of an NPC was Ezreal. Of course, he couldn''t say anything for sure until he had more concrete evidence but it was much better than nothing.


    The party continued their walk and the path to the Underground Penitentiary was quiteplicated than Joseph had expected. He expected that they would just enter a path downwards and then that was it, but what happened was the opposite.


    Of course, they still entered a path that went downwards but they took several dozens of right and left turns to the extent that even Joseph who had a great memory couldn''t memorize the path that they took anymore.


    This continued on for several dozens of minutes until finally...


    They arrived before a gate radiating intense energy that signified death.


    "Such a thick aura of death... This is really the Underground Penitentiary..." Even Ezreal couldn''t help but exim in disbelief when he saw the darkness surrounding the thick doors of the Underground Penitentiary.


    The soldier who led them the way suddenly kneeled on the ground and cried out: "Rank 4 Soldier, James requests an audience with the honorable Jail Warden!"


    His voice rang so loudly and powerful within the tight confines of the dungeon that his words echoed several times before disappearing and even snuffed out the fire of a nearby torch which further darkened the already dark surroundings.

 Chapter 36: The Indescribable Penitentiary

    Chapter 36: The Indescribable Penitentiary


    Joseph suppressed his primal fear of the unknown, as he stared right at the door surrounded by darkness.


    The stench lingering in the air further exacerbated his nervousness.


    A figure made out of smoke soon appeared in front of the door. That figure swept his gaze at the three before his eyesnded on James.


    "A Rank 4 Soldier... You do have enough capabilities so that you won''t sumb to the effects of the darkness within this dungeon. But I didn''t expect that you''d be so ballsy to the extent that you''d visit here.


    The figure that looked like a shadow spoke in a voice that gave Joseph the idea that he was a middle-aged man.


    "But I wonder, just what is your purpose foring in here?" He asked and the Rank 4 Soldier James calmed himself down before he went forward and presented a letter to the Jail Warden.


    The Jail Warden stared at the letter and a barely imperceptible glint shone within his eyes.


    "That aura and seal, it indeed came from a Great Inquisitor. But..." The figure made out of smoke deeply gazed at Ezreal and Joseph before he stared at the Rank 4 Soldier.


    "I hope that word about what happened today in here wouldn''t spread in the outside world. I am sure that you know about the matters of Inquisitors, right?"


    James hurriedly nodded his head like chicken pecking rice and both Ezreal and Joseph couldn''t help but feel somewhat anxious and nervous about what was going on.


    Particrly Joseph who expected a warm reception.


    Why was the Jail Warden acting somewhat cold to the two of them when they came here due to a rmendation by a Great Inquisitor?


    "You are now dismissed."


    The Jail Warden said and James hurriedly retreated without even turning back to look at the two whom he left behind.


    "How long have you known sir Fausto for?"


    The Jail Warden turned to look at Joseph and said in a neutral manner.


    Joseph lightly smiled, "I actually don''t know sir Fausto that much."


    The Jail Warden was slightly taken aback when he heard what Joseph said: "Then, why do you have a rmendation letter that''s infused with his aura and stamp? I don''t understand..."


    "As per my knowledge, sir Fausto isn''t someone kind that could easily give benefits to any people without benefiting himself."


    Joseph bitterlyughed, "That''s the reason why he rmended me, sir. He greatly benefited from what I did and what he gave me in return was a rmendation letter." Joseph stared at the Jail Warden and realized that he wasn''t as scary as he seemed.


    In fact, his tone of voice indicated that he was somewhat good-natured.


    "Why are you acting so bitter? I think that you know that sir Fausto was a Great Inquisitor. Someone that is ranked higher than a normal Inquisitor."


    "His status alone is enough to send shivers down the spine of everyone who hears his name..."


    "A rmendationing from someone like him is incredibly valuable but why are you acting like you''re taking a loss?"


    Joseph turned to look at the indiscernible figure of the Jail Warden made out of smoke before he lightly chuckled: "You jest me, sir. You know more about sir Fausto than me so I am pretty sure that you understand my plight, right? Sir Jail Warden?"


    "Hohoho, you are an interesting kid." The Jail Warden''s figure made out of smoke trembled in a manner that indicated that he was currentlyughing.


    "But why do you say that I know sir Fausto more than you?"


    "Apart from me being a Jail Warden, of course..."


    Ezreal nced at Joseph in confusion. He didn''t understand how Joseph could act so confident against the Jail Warden''s question.


    Since from what he heard from Joseph...


    Joseph really didn''t know Fausto that much apart from the fact that he was swindled out of his rewards by Fausto.


    Yet, why was he smiling right now like he knew the answer from the start?


    "Well, I hope that sir doesn''t take any offense about what I am going to say but this is merely a guess sir..." Joseph paused as if wanting to ask for permission so that he could continue.


    The Jail Warden obliged and said: "Go on, don''t worry."


    Joseph nodded his head and continued: "The vocabry and tone of voice that sir is using when he mentions sir Fausto signifies that he greatly respects sir Fausto. Because of that, I am pretty sure that you know more about sir Fausto more than me, sir."


    "But I also can''t understand." Joseph stared at the Jail Warden in confusion: "Why would a Jail Warden act so amiable with a Great Inquisitor, and why would a Great Inquisitor act so kindly with a mere Jail Warden..."


    "Not only that, sir Fausto was wrongfully banished from the Capital to a vige at the outskirts of the Kingdom..."


    "To have the ability to banish a Great Inquisitor such as sir Fausto. That can only mean that the one who did that was a noble who is quite high-ranking. I suppose, maybe even a duke that''s second only to the king..." As soon as Joseph started his speech, he observed the Jail Warden''s bodynguage.


    Joseph learned the ability to observe a person''s bodynguage due to the fact that Joseph was basically swindled out of money, and assets by those greedypanies almost every day since his parents died.


    There was even one instance where Joseph got convinced by them to pawn a gold-ted fountain pen owned by his mother.


    That particrpany promised that they would ept it for a higher rate than the market price, but thepany took 40% of the money inmissions from the sale of that pen.


    In other words, Joseph got swindled out of almost half of his money and deeply regretted it.


    From that day onwards, he browsed free tutorials on the inte regarding how to read someone''s bodynguage. He was determined that he would never let himself get swindled once again.


    Even though the Jail Warden''s body right now was made out of smoke-like mist.


    When Joseph saw the trembling of his body as if he wasughing, earlier...


    Joseph saw that the body made out of smoke really did imitate the human body and in that case. He could apply what he learned into the current body of the Jail Warden.


    Joseph gambled on rambling about some facts that he learned from the Jail Warden just so he could earn benefits by capitalizing on the rtionship between the Jail Warden and the previous Great Inquisitor.


    Joseph wasn''t someone that was called an opportunist by every hawker back in the City of Sibu for nothing after all.


    "Hahaha... Interesting... You''re really an interesting kid..." The Jail Warden''s figure trembled once again as if he wasughing as he stared at Joseph: "I''m sure that you have probably guessed by now, but I and sir Fausto were close friends even before we became members of the Underground Penitentiary."


    Joseph''s smile deepened as he inwardly celebrated his achievement: ''I knew it!''


    "Seeing that you can guess the mind of someone just by how their body moved. You have the talent of an Inquisitor. But unfortunately, Judging from the attitude of sir Fausto. I don''t think that he rmended you as an Inquisitor." The Jail Warden said in a slightly humorous voice.


    Ezreal and Joseph bitterly smiled. Ezreal didn''t really mind a filthy environment for he was someone who disguised himself as the Great Wandering Bard for a long time. He was used to filth and stink.


    He had far many experiences when it came to the vicissitudes in life than Joseph who was only a mere yer and lived within the safe confines of the modern world...


    Being inside such a filthy and dangerous environment was really ufortable for Joseph.


    But who was he?


    He was someone that could endure anything.


    He had endured the curses and trash-talking of those whom he owed money.


    How could something like this bother him?


    Also, the benefits that he would get if he seeded on his quest was far greater than the disadvantages that he would have inside such a filthy and mentally dangerous environment.


    "Judging from those bitter smiles that the two of you have on your lips. I guess, his rmendation is far worse than I expect..." The Jail Warden said in a light-hearted manner.


    Joseph''s interest was piqued and he asked: "Just what does sir expect from the rmendation of sir Fausto?"


    The Jail Warden turned to look at him. His deep eyes that looked simr to the abyss radiated a humorous glint as he replied: "Clean-up staff? If both of you really got his rmendation for that kind of a job, then I guess. I can only hope that both of your minds and guts are really strong."


    "Clean-up staff?" Ezreal frowned and Joseph continued on asking: "Clean-up staff? Are their jobs ording to my expectations?" Joseph thought that the Jail Warden was talking about the Jail Janitors and he merely used a synonym to express what he wanted to say.


    But since he wasn''t sure himself.


    He continued on asking...


    The Jail Warden''s figure that was made out of smoke swept his gaze at them in a yful manner: "If that expectation includes the cleaning up of tortured corpses and the capture of anguished souls. Then your expectations were right..."


    Ezreal''s expression turned serious, while Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    He was now cursing Fausto: ''You old fucking bastard. It''s only right that you got banished since you are so shameless and evil! Rmending a mere yer like me that don''t have any experience in such fucked up things like this, are you out of your mind?!''


    But on the outside...


    He maintained a cool andposed facade as the Jail Warden continued on speaking.


    "Don''t be so gloomy. We won''t know for sure about the results until we open this Rmendation Letter." He tore the seal on Fausto''s Rmendation Letter and he also erased the former''s aura before reading the message contained within the letter.


    After a short moment, he swept his gaze at the two and sighed: "You are really lucky... He rmended you as a Jail Janitor, not a part of the clean-up staff or even directly as Inquisitors."


    "Interestingly, my expectations of sir Fausto are wrong and that means that his shameless and disgusting self is finally somewhat disappearing."


    Joseph was concerned about the hidden intricacies within the Jail Warden''s words so, he asked: "Just what does sir Warden mean about we''re lucky that sir Fausto didn''t directly rmend us as Inquisitors?"


    Ezreal nodded his head, he also wanted to know the answer. I mean, wouldn''t it be much better as a reward if Fausto rmended Joseph directly as an Inquisitor?


    The Jail Warden deeply gazed at the two before replying in a solemn manner: "You do know that sir Fausto was dismissed and banished to a faraway vige, right? And as per what you said earlier, I can say that you are right. Sir Fausto was really deliberately punished by a noble and a duke at that!"


    Joseph and Ezreal turned silent.


    Their expressions looked like they were on the verge of grasping something but couldn''t quite understand it.


    "That noble had a grudge against sir Fausto and if word came out that you were rmended by sir Fausto to be an Inquisitor. Wouldn''t you be closely investigated and observed at by that noble?"


    "If that really happened then I can only guess that your fate would be much worse than what happened to sir Fausto..."


    "Sir Fausto at least escaped the title of colluding with traitors and he was merely stripped off his title and banished to a farawaynd. But what about you two?"


    "If you were directly rmended as an Inquisitor, and that noble saw that you didn''t have any connections with any noble nor anyone heard about your name. I bet you''d be instantly branded as a traitor!"


    Ezreal nodded in understanding, while Joseph''s eyes widened in shock.


    "Could he really do that though? I mean he''s only a duke. He''s not the King. How could he do something as outrageous like that?"


    The Jail Warden froze for a moment before he replied in a slightly mocking voice: "Kid, you are quite smart. I praise you for that, but I hope that you won''t be naive!"


    "The outside world is vastly different from the world that nobles lived in. As for what you are saying. it is precisely because he''s a duke that he could get whatever he wanted apart from the throne!"


    "So, I hope that you won''t be so naive and so sphemous such as saying such words. The influence of that duke is farrger than anyone could hope on imagining."


    "Keep your mouth shut if you want to live!" The Jail Warden turned around and said: "Follow me, I''ll lead the way to where both of you shall stay."


    Afterward, he didn''t talk anymore as the two silently followed him from behind.


    Today was the second day since Joseph epted his ss-specific quest. Now, he realized that he had been too naive. He expected that such a quest wouldn''t possess that much difficulty forpletion aside from the difficulty that he would meet on bing an Inquisitor.


    But now that he found out that the waters within the Kingdom of Nether were deeper than what he expected. Cold sweat couldn''t help but form on his back as he walked forwards.


    But still, despite the huge difficulty of the quest that he could finally see right now. He didn''t lose heart.


    After all, who was he?


    He was Joseph!


    The so-called Madman of the Festival of Battles!


    "If worsees to worst. I''d just forcefully break my way out of this jail using Ezreal''s strength. Since the quest said that I can use any means possible. I guess I can also do that if I had no other choice."


    Joseph thought to himself as the three continued on their journey, deeper into the Underground Penitentiary.

 Chapter 37: You Fucked Up, Man

    Chapter 37: You Fucked Up, Man


    The three continued their journey within the almost pitch-ck darkness of the Underground Penitentiary. Joseph insisted on staying in the middle of the path for he could sometimes hear the sounds of the condemned echoing within the thick walls of the Penitentiary.


    "This is a goddamned cursed dungeon... Everything is too dark and scary. The ce is cold and damp, and the smell of ammonia in the air is so thick I could basically see it floating in the air... Could a Janitor really work properly in here? Or is a Janitor even needed in here?"


    Joseph thought to himself. He nced at Ezreal and found that he didn''t seem to be particrly bothered about everything within the Underground Penitentiary.


    In fact, he had a cool andposed expression on his face.


    But Joseph interpreted that as a facade...


    After all, he had a certain theory about Ezreal''s true identity.


    "I''ll ask that bastardter about what''s going on with him after all of these is over."


    The Jail Warden who led the way in front of them suddenly stopped. Ezreal also stopped moving and Joseph who was taken aback by this sudden change also stopped.


    "We''re here. But before we proceed within the confines of the true Underground Penitentiary." The Jail Warden didn''t even nce at Ezreal as he stared directly at Joseph.


    "Are you really sure that it is your desire to be a part of those that live within the dark and condemn those with ugly souls thatmitted heinous crimes?"


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva when he heard the serious tone behind the Jail Warden''s message. Afterward, several system notifications floated in front of him.


    [You are now eligible as a Jail Janitor of the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether.]


    [The Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes is a damned ce with all sorts of dangerous criminals locked in! It is not suitable for those with weakened, or weak mental faculties. The system will now assess your mental condition and review your eligibility for the position.]


    [ Analyzing... ]


    [ The system has confirmed that you are truly eligible for the offered position! ]


    [ Due to special circumstances surrounding the Underground Penitentiary. If you refused the job offer, your memories will be altered so that the secrets within the Penitentiary can be protected from the masses until they finally surface at the right time indicated by the system. ]


    [ Please think carefully! Once the job is epted or refused. You must sign a particr waiver. If you epted the job offer, you must sign the waiver and if not signed within the next 72 hours. You will automatically be stripped of your position and given a binding debuff until you sign another waiver for non-disclosure about the secrets within the Penitentiary. ]


    [ If you refused the job offer, you must sign a particr waiver for the altering of your memories. The Game Company will give you specialpensation for epting the waiver and they will also observe you closely for any strange activities within your brain after altering your memories. ]


    [ Do you want to ept the job offer, or not? ]


    Joseph turned silent when he saw the numerous system notifications that appeared right before him. The words contained within the system notifications contained grave information that hinted on the dangers within the Underground Penitentiary.


    Just from the fact alone that bing a member of the Underground Penitentiary required signing a waiver meant that the Game Company itself was taking the dangers of the Penitentiary seriously.


    Knowing this, what would Joseph do?


    Of course, he would ept!


    "Yes, sir. I am sure."


    [ The job offer has been epted! ]


    [ You are now a part of the Underground Penitentiary''s Team of Jail Janitors! Further information about your job description will be revealed to you by the NPCs so please stand by! ]


    [ The necessary waiver for the job offer is now avable. You can sign the waiver whenever you want by opening your Main Menu and tapping on your newly-opened Options button. ]


    [ Good Luck, Adventurer! ]


    "Hmmm, I admit that you have guts. In that case, I''ll wish you luck in your journey of bing an Inquisitor." The Jail Warden slightly smiled. Joseph''s figure trembled for a moment and he was about to open his mouth so that he could ask something, but the Jail Warden suddenly cried out.


    "Come out!"


    His voice strangely didn''t echo out far away even though they were still within the tight confines of the Penitentiary. But in response, the darkness in front of them suddenly whirled and formed into a whirlpool. From the whirlpool came out a middle-aged man.


    The neer looked like a generic middle-aged man apart from the fact that he had a scar that extended from his ear down to his cheek. Because of this, his generic looks became quite scary that Joseph had to calm himself down for a moment before he could calmly stare at the guy.


    "Illusion Techniques?" Ezreal blurted out when he saw the whirlpool that formed behind the middle-aged man neer.


    "Oh? You can recognize that this is an Illusion Technique, not an Encapstion one?" The Jail Warden turned to Ezreal with lingering interest within his tone of voice.


    Ezreal looked somewhat angered. His ancestors were masters in all sorts of techniques and one of them was the Illusion Technique, of which even he was a master. How could he not differentiate between an Illusion Technique and a mere Encapstion Technique? it was really funny...


    Ezreal didn''t reply to what the Jail Warden said.


    ''Why are you not replying? Don''t act like that to the Jail Warden! You may ruin my quest!'' Joseph inwardly screamed at Ezreal and he signaled using all sorts of methods to Ezreal.


    But unfortunately, Ezreal only stared at him in confusion to Joseph''s dismay: ''I swear if he ruins my mission like how he ruined my rewards, let''s see what will happen!'' Joseph swore that he''d never let Ezreal go if he ruined his ns.


    Thankfully, the Jail Warden didn''t mind it that much. He turned around and faced the neer.


    "Guide these two to you and your brother''s quarters. Inform them about the job description of Jail Janitors too." The Jail Warden said and the face of the neer imperceptibly changed. But he only bowed his head in reply before saying out loud: "I understand, sir Warden!"


    The Jail Warden nodded his head before his body that was made out of smoke finally disappeared from their eyes.


    Left alone with the neer. Joseph wasn''t sure about what he should say.


    He awkwardly scratched his head and stared at the stern expression of the middle-aged man before saying: "Ermmm, hello?"


    Since the Jail Warden was already gone. The middle-aged man straightened out of his bow and coldly said: "Follow me, don''t ask too many questions. I will only answer those what you need to know."


    Joseph thought that the middle-aged man must''ve had a bad day and because of that, he didn''t mind the rude attitude of the middle-aged man as much.


    But for Ezreal who wasn''t used to having someone as weak as the middle-aged man mocking him. He couldn''t help but speak up: "Watch your mouth, we''re not your servants."


    The middle-aged man who led the way for the two suddenly stopped. He turned around and his scary visage became even scarier as he stared right into the eyes of the unyielding Ezreal.


    "So, you are tough?" He asked.


    Joseph coughed so that he could interrupt the two before saying: "No sir, we''re certainly not tough. Yeah, we''re not tough, right? Ezreal?" He even repeatedly blinked in an effort to send a message to Ezreal, but Ezreal ignored his signals as he replied.


    "Yes, we are tough. So, what?" Ezreal specifically said, "we" and because of that.


    Joseph was suddenly implicated by what was going on.


    "Hey, what are you saying that we are tough? You''re the only one that''s tough! I''m not tough! I''m weak, okay!" Joseph hurriedly screamed out in an effort to dispel the misunderstanding.


    The middle-aged man swept his gaze at the two...


    He didn''t mind what Joseph was saying for he only stared at Ezreal.


    In fact, he didn''t even spare a nce at Joseph whom he judged as extremely weak.


    The danger signals that he honed from dealing with hundreds of criminals only worked with Ezreal.


    His signals were saying that Ezreal was an incredibly dangerous person that he must not trifle with. But right now, they were in the Underground Penitentiary and this was his turf.


    These two were newly-appointed Jail Janitor, and even though Ezreal was stronger than him. He had a far honorable position than these two.


    This was the reason why he felt confident against Ezreal.


    Hierarchy was extremely important within the Underground Penitentiary.


    This was for the sake of maintaining the chain ofmand of the prison.


    Because of this, if Ezreal truly opposed him then he could easily file aint and have Ezreal imprisoned along with the other criminals here for dereliction of duty and opposing those of higher position.


    But of course, directly using them of treason and imprisoning them easily like that was boring...


    And so, he replied...


    "I see, so both of you are tough? Since both of you are so strong and tough. It''d be easy for both of you to reach the quarters of the Jail Janitors at the end of this dark corridor, right?"


    "In that case then I will just leave right now. Wish you luck, and once both of you managed to survive. I hope that you two would finally understand..."


    "Understand that the world within the Underground Penitentiary is vastly different from the outside world. Strength doesn''t matter in here, only status and position..."


    "Because of that, even though you are really strong. Within the confines of this dungeon, I am still the victor." He stared directly at Ezreal in a mocking manner.


    Ezreal merely maintained his icy look as the middle-aged man venomously smiled. He waved his sleeve and a whirlpool made out of darkness appeared behind him once again. Without even waiting for the reply of the two. The whirlpool sucked him in and he disappeared from their sight.


    Afterward, the whirlpool vanished.


    "Gone, just like that?" Joseph thought.


    He then fiercely red at Ezreal before saying: "Look at what you did, you fucked up man."


    Ezreal shrugged and acted innocently: "What do you mean about that, Master? I never did anything wrong."


    "You never did anything wrong?! You could''ve done better than what you did today. Now, what should we do? We''re alone now, and without a guide inside this dark and stinky dungeon!" Joseph looked like he was about to go crazy.


    "Hahaha..." Ezreal lightlyughed.


    "You''re evenughing?!" Joseph fiercely red at Ezreal.


    "Don''t master think that this is a great opportunity?"


    Joseph''s eyes widened when he heard the word, "opportunity". He swept his gaze around him and couldn''t find anything about the opportunity that Ezreal was talking about.


    "Don''t master think that the Underground Penitentiary is too tame in contrast to what the rumors are saying about it? I mean, ever since we met the Jail Warden. We didn''t see any prisoners or even monsters that often lurked within cold and damp dungeons like this..."


    Ezreal''s words made sense and Joseph eximed: "Wait, you''re right! Even though the smell of ammonia is too thick, the surrounding itself is too clean! But wait, didn''t you mention something about Illusion Techniques earlier? Could that be the reason why..."


    "Yes, master! That''s the reason why!" Ezreal cried out in excitement.


    He didn''t even let Joseph finish his sentence.


    "But although I do not have any experience when ites to facing against Illusion Techniques, you know about my identity right?"


    "I am supposed to be immune to all sorts of abnormal conditions and that should include Illusion Techniques," Joseph asked in an uncertain manner. He had a hint about what was going on, but he couldn''t say for sure without proof.


    "It''s true that those of the myths are immune to abnormal statuses or conditions, but what if the Illusion Techniques weren''t used against you but on your surroundings?" Ezreal made a proposal which ignited the excitement and shock within Joseph''s eyes.


    "Wait, are you saying that what we are seeing right are just illusions?" Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    "Yes, master! That''s exactly what I am talking about!" Ezreal''s excitement deepened.


    "Then, how can we break this Illusion Technique? Are we even supposed to break it? The Jail Warden led the way for us amidst this so-called Illusions so what if we got lost after we broke it?" Joseph asked in a concerned manner.


    "We are supposed to break this master. Did you see that whirlpool earlier that swallowed that arrogant and ignorant prick? His disappearance was just a part of the performance to make you think that he just transferred into another ce instead of re-entering reality!"


    Joseph doubts were finally removed, but he still had doubts so, he asked once again...


    "That does make sense. So, can you remove these Illusion Techniques?" Joseph went straight into the point and Ezreal coldly snorted: "Hmmph! Just who do you think I am, master? Let me tell you this, back then when I was just a Gre-"


    "Okay, okay, okay I understand! Please just tell me about how are we going to break these Illusion Techniques!" Joseph hurriedly stopped Ezreal from talking because he knew from his experience that Ezreal would never stop talking once he started.


    Especially if he started one of his bragging sessions about his journey throughout the continent.


    Ezreal puffed his cheeks in apparent irritation due to the fact that Joseph stopped him from talking about his adventures whilst he was still the Great Wandering Bard.


    But he actually felt conflicted...


    He wanted to continue on talking but at the same time...


    He understood that priorities should be first.


    Joseph noticed what he was feeling so, he said.


    "How about this Ezreal, isn''t it boring to only talk about your adventures to a single person? How about you talk with that bastard earlier? His face looks like he had never seen sunlight and I think that he''d appreciate you talking to him about the outside world."


    Joseph made a proposal in an effort to console Ezreal.


    Ezreal''s eyes brightened in excitement: "You''re right, master. I''m sorry that I was too hasty."


    Joseph nodded his head: "As long as you can understand and not do it again, then I ept your apology."


    Meanwhile, Joseph profusely apologized to the middle-aged man in his mind for he knew about the terror of talking with Ezreal.


    Especially, when the topic was about his adventures as the Great Wandering Bard.


    "When ites to breaking these Illusion Techniques, I need Master''s help..."


    "Oh? What help?" Joseph''s interest was piqued. This was the first time that the powerful Ezreal asked for his help.


    "It''s like this, master..." Ezreal moved and whispered his ns to Joseph.


    After a short moment, with the efforts of the two. A dull explosion rang out within the Undeground Penitentiary and a part of its true colors has finally been revealed...

 Chapter 38: The True Colors of the Underground Penitentiary

    Chapter 38: The True Colors of the Underground Penitentiary


    The scene that both saw when they broke the Illusion Techniques that surrounded them could be described as seeing the amalgamation of filth itself.


    The walls wereden with moss, the smell of ammonia in the air became iparably thick and the ground that the two stood on became incredibly slippery.


    "Heeeelppp..."


    An anguished voice rang out behind them and Joseph turned around. There, what he found floating amidst the darkness was the face of a human being. The face looked ghastly and it appeared to be in pain as it repeatedly screamed in a voice that bordered between being female and male.


    "Evil spirit! Begone!" Ezreal fiercely turned around at the same moment that Joseph did and he sent a beam of light flying towards the apparition.


    "Aaaaah! It huuuurtsss!" The anguished soul cried out in pain before disappearing into numerous light crystals that soon disappeared into nothingness.


    "Just what was that, Ezreal?" Joseph wiped the cold sweat that formed on his forehead. Joseph''s experience with fighting and his strength as a Mythical ss along with Ezreal''s presence gave him confidence that he could safely fight against anyone within the confines of this dark corridor.


    But after seeing the appearance of that anguished soul, he felt doubtful about his capabilities. In fact, the primal fear of the unknown that every human had, was now triggered within Joseph''s mind and he couldn''t help but tremble like a sieve.


    Ezreal noticed this and he frowned: "Master, that earlier was just nothing but a dirty spirit that couldn''t ascend to the heavens or even descend to hell..."


    "Those poor bastards were rejected by either two of those ces and now, they cannot find a ce to settle in. Master shouldn''t really worry about them. They are not really that strong."


    Joseph repeatedly blinked and stared at Ezreal: "They may not be that strong, but I am still human, you know? I still fear ghosts like a normal human being unlike you who isparable to a monster!"


    Ezreal was taken aback by the sudden scolding but heughed when he heard what Joseph said.


    "What I am feeling right now really proves that the adage, didn''t know whether tough or to cry really exists."


    Ezreal was sad and happy because Joseph called him a monster.


    He was sad since it was the first time that Joseph tantly called him an abnormal being. But he was happy at the same time for Joseph had acknowledged his skills and strength.


    "Anyways, master. Let''s continue. I''ll go handle those anguished souls. If you can''t really endure the fear then, just stand behind me."


    Ezreal winked at Joseph and Joseph felt doubtful about what he said.


    "Stand behind you?"


    "Yes, I can always lend my back for master."


    "Fuck off!" Joseph violently cursed.


    The two continued their journey and it couldn''t be said that they had a good time. First, Joseph almost always screamed whenever he felt a cold draft behind him which made Ezreal turn around in a panic only to find nothing.


    Lastly, Ezreal had the tendency to y pranks on Joseph such as suddenly disappearing right in front of Joseph to scare thetter.


    One may ask about why Joseph could feel fear even though he was a mythical existence that could resist any abnormal conditions. Well, it was because the fear that he felt didn''te from the game. But from his mind itself.


    In other words, the fear that Joseph felt was a natural phenomenon and naturally couldn''t be alleviated by his passive skill.


    Halfway through their journey.


    Joseph felt suspicious about what was going on and he couldn''t help but ask.


    "Ezreal, is this really a penitentiary? I mean, I can''t see any jail cells so I can''t help but think otherwise."


    Ezreal sent an attack towards an iing anguished soul before answering.


    "I myself isn''t so sure about that, master. I heard about the rumors behind the Underground Penitentiary but I haven''t visited this ce in the past. This is the first time that I entered the Penitentiary so I am also clueless like yourself."


    What Ezreal said made sense so Joseph couldn''t do anything other than close his mouth, and continue on their journey.


    At the end of the dark corridor, what they found was a wall made out of darkness. Joseph''s eyebrows knitted when he saw that wall but Ezreal made him stop from approaching it.


    "Wait, master. I feel like someone''sing out to fetch us from that wall."


    "Someone''s going through that wall, right now?"


    "Yes."


    Ezreal nodded and Josephplied. The two waited for a short while until rippled suddenly appeared on the surface of the wall. Strangely enough, it didn''t affect the wall itself as that ripple turned into a whirlpool that spewed out a familiar middle-aged man to the two.


    "To think that both of you could reach the end of the corridor without suffering from Terror. Your capabilities do make both of you qualified as Jail Janitors." The middle-aged man said with a neutral tone.


    "That''s expected." Ezreal arrogantly said, while Joseph bitterly smiled at the back.


    When the middle-aged man''s gaze swept andnded at Joseph.


    He gave Joseph an expressionless nod.


    "Alright,e with me." The middle-aged man didn''t say anything anymore as he turned around and walked towards the whirlpool.


    Joseph stared at the middle-aged man who just came out of the whirlpool and he couldn''t help but think: ''Is he not going to tell us about those Illusion Techniques? He''s really cold. But oh well, just as what I expected from those that work in facilities like this.''


    "Get moving already... Otherwise, both of you will not be able to enter the facility for an entire day." The man briefly turned around and said these words before he continued towards the whirlpool.


    Just from the tone of the voice that the middle-aged man had when speaking to them.


    Joseph now disliked him.


    "Did I do anything to offend him? Why is he so cold towards the two of us? And why am I implicated when it''s only Ezreal that acted hostile against him? Haist... I really can''t understand."


    Joseph mumbled to himself.


    But since he came to this facility with a purpose...


    He had no other choice but to bow his head and hurry into the whirlpool.


    Ezreal followed suit and all three of them disappeared. When Joseph opened his eyes, he found that he couldn''t see anything other than a vast expanse of ink-like darkness. His nervousness intensified when he felt his body moving even though he wasn''t really walking.


    He felt like he was on a tform that automatically moved to bring him to his destination.


    The farther he moved, the closer everything became and at the end. All three of them once again stood before a giant door made out of stone.


    Joseph nced at his feet and found that he wasn''t standing on anything.


    Ezreal looked calm andposed beside him while the middle-aged man nced at Joseph and said.


    "That felt like you were standing on a moving tform, right? Actually, that sensationes from the Teleportation Portal that you can see right now at the ceiling." He pointed above and Joseph raised his head, only to find that the ceiling was incredibly near.


    Joseph estimated that the ceiling was only about three meters from the floor. Directly above them were gibberish words carved inside a circle that radiated a profound,her worldly aura.


    With the exception of that circle, the ceiling was filled with sharp stctites that looked like they could fall down at any moment.


    "Those are traps, master," Ezreal whispered to Joseph.


    "Traps?" Joseph whispered in return.


    "Yes, those stctites are traps for intruders. If you look closely at their tip. You could see them glistening with an ominous green light, right? That is poison and with what I can smell, its potency is enough to kill an adult in just a few seconds."


    "Gulp..." Joseph audibly gulped and he didn''t say anything anymore. The Underground Penitentiary whom he thought would be a child''s y for him when ites to escaping was actually abyrinth filled with dangerous traps that could easily end his life in a single blink of an eye.


    In front of the stone wall near them was a transparent wall that could barely be seen within the darkness. The middle-aged man took a medallion and tapped it on the diaphanous barrier causing it to reveal a gap within the stone wall that a single person could go into.


    The three soon found themselves inside a stone cavern filled with all sorts of stgmites and stctites. The smell of ammonia within the air became even thicker which made Joseph ufortable.


    As the three continued on their walking, they soon found three figures d in white robes that stuck out like a sore thumb within the darkness.


    "Greetings, First Deputy Leader!"


    The three figures simultaneously cried out and their voices strangely didn''t echo that much within the stone cavern. Not only that, one could feel a bone-chilling cold within their tone of voice as if they were people that bordered between life and death.


    Their gazes looked like it could pierce through anything as Joseph couldn''t help but take a step back.


    [ The effects of your title, "Mythical Authority" has been activated. ]


    [ No one can make you submit. ]


    [ Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand before you. ]


    The series of system notifications that arrived pulled Joseph out of his trance for it reminded him that he was currently inside a game. Not at the outside world.


    With this, he dramatically calmed down and could now face the three figures standing at the distance.


    "I really did underestimate this prison too much!" Joseph thought to himself and as he looked further around him. He noticed five different tunnels leading off different directions, with a sixth tunnel at the center blocked by a stone wall and probably another diaphanous barrier.


    "Javier, these two are new Jail Janitors that will join us. Lead them the way to their quarters and teach them how everything works here."


    The middle-aged man walked away along with two other imperceptible figures, with the exception of an old man


    The old man had a frown on his face as he swept his gaze at the two before saying.


    "If sir Jail Warden really did give both of you to sir First Deputy Warden. Shouldn''t you be handed over to a more experienced member other than me? I''m also quite new here, I entered a month ago before both of you." His frown turned into a smile.


    But his smile,bined with his ghastly and indescribable aura sent shivers down Joseph''s spine.


    "Friends, May I ask about your names?" He swept his gaze at the two once again. He still had that friendly, yet scary smile on his face.


    "Ezreal," Ezreal replied in a t voice.


    Everything suddenly turned silent and Joseph awkwardly coughed.


    "I''m Joseph, sir. I am sorry about that friend of mine behind me. He doesn''t really talk that much, but he doesn''t mean to be rude against you. I hope that you will not take his behavior too seriously."


    Joseph apologized on behalf of Ezreal, afraid that something could happen once again like what happened recently.


    Ezreal who stood behind Joseph, clearly heard what thetter said and he couldn''t help but tremble in shock: "Ma-ma-master... Just what did you say?"


    Joseph turned around with a frown: "I am apologizing on your behalf. Can you please just don''t take offense about other people''s attitude. I mean, I get where you areing from, but for the sake of my quest. Can you please be polite even if it''s acting." Joseph looked like he was begging in tears.


    But Ezreal clearly looked like he couldn''t understand what Joseph was saying for he was still astounded by what he heard recently as he once again asked: "Yes, master. I understand. But just what did you say? Did you say something about us being friends?"


    "..."


    Joseph took a step backward when he saw the zealous light within Ezreal''s eyes.


    He didn''t exin any further for he just wrung his entire body forwards and faced the old man who was staring at them with a smile.


    "Since it looks like both of you are ready now for my exnation. I think I should exin now, and by the way. My name is Javier. Just as what you heard from sir First Deputy Warden."


    Javier''s smile deepened and he took a huge mouthful of air before continuing.


    "Right now, we are at the heart of the Underground Penitentiary. But even though I am saying that we''re in the heart of it, isn''t it strange that there are no jail cells in here? But well, that is because the cells are within those tunnels right there!"


    Javier pointed at the tunnels leading off to different directions before saying: "From left to right, apart from that particr stone wall at the center is Cellblock 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5."


    Javier pointed at the tunnels one by one before pointing at the wall at the center: "That one is the Maximum Security Tunnel where only Deputy Wardens, the Warden himself and Inquisitors are allowed to go inside. We, newbies, have no business there so just don''t think about that too much."


    "Right now, the two of you now have the aura of the Underground Penitentiary. That particr aura disappears whenever sunlight hits our bodies so all of us don''t really resurface that much apart from when we are on a holiday where we could do whatever we wanted."


    Javier''s smile deepened, he looked like he liked holidays.


    "That aura lets you enter any area of the Underground Penitentiary apart from the Maximum Security Tunnel. But of course, I don''t rmend entering a Cellblock that is not under your jurisdiction."


    "Anyone in here is incredibly vicious after all, and that also includes me." Javier even winked at the two when hepleted his sentence causing Joseph''s expression to turn pale.


    "The Fifth Deputy Warden is in charge of the Cellblock 5. As far as the other cellblocks are concerned, the prisoners within them were locked-up depending on how particrly dangerous they are..."


    "The most dangerous inmates are at Cellblock 1 which is managed by the First Deputy Warden who led both of you earlier..."


    "Compared to those bastards at the Cellblock 1, those imprisoned at Cellblock 5 are mere kids that couldn''t hold a candle against them. Of course, they are still dangerous but those at Cellblock 1 are on apletely different dimension..."


    "Every cellblock has about I don''t remember how many jail cells, but they span for about three floors with the exception of Cellblock 5 which has five floors of jail cells that are so many I can''t even count them anymore..."


    "Each cellblock has about five Jail Janitors on every floor, and a single Deputy Warden."


    "Of course, the Jail Warden is the leader of all five Deputy Wardens..."


    "The Maximum Security Tunnel is run by the Warden himself. So, as I said. We don''t have any business with that ce as newbies..."


    "As for the job description, I bet that both of you still don''t know about what exactly are your jobs, right?" Javier turned to look at the two of them with a crafty smile on his face before saying.


    "I hope that both of you have strong stomachs and mental faculties, if not. I am certain that both of you will go insane and get executed."


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. He didn''t doubt what Javier had said for he even had to sign a waiver that he wouldn''t me the Game Company about the damages that he would suffer while he was in the Underground Penitentiary.


    When Joseph signed that waiver earlier whilst they were destroying anguished souls one after another in an effort to reach the end of the darkened tunnel. Joseph realized from the uses alone that this ce was incredibly dangerous.


    One of the uses even stated that the Company behind Victory, P.H Works would voluntarily send psychiatric help towards him, if he requested...


    Ezreal merely maintained his cold expression, but one could see a hint of excitement within his eyes as he patiently waited when all of these would be over so that he could further ask Joseph about "that".


    The party of three soon arrived at the entrance of the Cellblock 5 and without any surprise. They found themselves blocked by a translucent barrier that soon gave entry to them when it the aura of the Underground Penitentiary floating on them.


    Inside the tunnel was a huge space that had another path at the center that clearly led downwards through the use of stairs. Surrounding that path were ten areas that Javier exined as the barracks were Jail Janitors resided in.


    He exined that although the math didn''t add up when it came to the number of barracks and Jail Janitors. Inside those areas were independent spaces that one could live in so, numbers didn''t matter.


    Although Javier couldn''t further exin about that which confused Joseph...


    Ezreal was convinced that he wasn''t lying.


    "Master, what he is saying is that those so-called areas right there are entrances to independent spaces inside different dimensions where one could reside..."


    "Meaning, even though what you see right there is probably a small and tight area. It should have enough area that one could live inside, independent with others that are within the same space."


    Ezreal exined with a smile on his face, but Joseph looked even more confused.


    "Hahaha, I was also confused as you about how many Jail Janitors could live within those holes in the walls. But trust me, once you entered one of them. You''d be pleasantly surprised." Javier lightly chuckled, and Joseph finally calmed down as he managed to suppress his confusion.


    "For now, before settling down in your residences. I will first exin to both of you about what exactly is a Jail Janitor and what are your jobs." Javier revealed a small gentle smile that looked quite ruthless.


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face as he and Ezreal followed Javier downstairs. Towards where the criminals imprisoned within this damned ce were located.<ol><li>about being friends</li></ol>

 Chapter 39: Choice

    Chapter 39: Choice


    As soon as all three of them descended the stairs. Joseph felt like he entered a brand-new world for everything had changed.


    The somewhat noisy drafts of cold wind outside couldn''t prate the stairwells leading downstairs and the world turned silent...


    Not even their footsteps could be heard and this sensory deprivation was a strange phenomenon for the neer Joseph who needed to hold fast on his wits so that his knees wouldn''t fold up subconsciously in primal fear.


    "How is it? Quite strange, right?" Javier walked towards a nearby torch and took it out from the wall.


    "Yeah, it really is quite strange. it feels like I am floating while I am walking in here."


    "That really needs some getting used to. I know what you''re feeling right now, hahaha."


    "But the two of you need not worry about that, as long as you possess the aura bestowed by the Jail Warden. Nothing bad will happen.." Javier gave a mysterious smile as the three of them continued their walk downstairs.


    Soon, they arrived before a stone wall which had Joseph thinking.


    "Another Stone Wall? Why are they so caught up with stones?" This thought of his didn''tst long for an imperceptible shockwave burst from the stone wall towards all three of them.


    A prickly sensation spread across Joseph and he felt as if something was intent on searching about something on his body. This sensationsted for a few moments until it locked on at the strange, greyish aura located at Joseph''s right chest.


    That particr aura that radiated a gloomy energy pulsated when it came into contact with the shockwave from the stone wall, and when it did made contact.


    The stone wall lost its radiance and everything came to normal once again.


    "What was that?" Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    He nced at Ezreal and found that thetter looked as calm as ever.


    "That''s for security. The stone wall scans for the mark of the Jail Warden on your body and if it finds it. You are permitted entrance, and if it is not..." Javier purposely lengthened the end of his sentence as Joseph stared at him with a grave expression before asking: "If it''s not?"


    Javier revealed a deep smile before lifting his left arm and making a neck-slicing motion with his thumb. Seeing his gesture, Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Everything within this Underground Penitentiary was really eerie, strange and dangerous!


    Joseph even reckoned that he might not get some good sleep tonight.


    "This is the main jail area for the Cellblock that''s in our jurisdiction." Javier took a step forward and his body seamlessly passed through the thick stone wall. Ezreal followed him and Joseph followed suit after a moment of hesitation.


    "Water... I need some water..."


    "Food... Please, some food..."


    "I already told you everything that I know so please, please let me go... I want no more of this nightmare anymore..."


    As soon as all three of them entered the main jail area. What Joseph saw was a scene that could be described as an absolute nightmare. Apart from the anguished and pained cries of the prisoners behind rusty, solid bars. Joseph also saw that all of their wounds were festering.


    The hygiene was so bad within the main jail area that Joseph considered even being in here as crimes against humanity. Thankfully, this was a game or else, war would''ve already exploded just because of the treatment that the prisoners had in here.


    "Ugh..." Joseph felt sick and system notifications appeared right before his eyes.


    [ You have entered a dangerous area for your mental state! ]


    [ The system is currently analyzing your mental status. If any abnormalities are found outside of safety margins. You will automatically be kicked out of the Underground Penitentiary. ]


    [ All ongoing quest will be revoked, but not failed. Another appropriate questline will be generated with simr reward to the previous questline you have, so rest assured, Adventurer! ]


    [ Analyzation Complete! ]


    [ You are currently under a state of shock. This is a natural phenomenon that is within the safety margins and calctions of the systems. ]


    [ You may now proceed with your activities, but keep in mind that your mental state is constantly monitored. Once an abnormality is found, appropriate actions will be done. ]


    [ Good Luck, Adventurer! ]


    Seeing these system notifications...


    Joseph couldn''t help but appreciate the efforts of those from P.H Works.


    For the first time, he didn''t curse them anymore but gave them his thanks.


    But if one thought deeper about it, it made sense that P.H Works monitored the mental states of those in such unusual circumstances.


    But for now, Joseph was only thankful for the fact that the P.H Works cared for him as a yer.


    He soon suppressed his fears and the rising gastric contents of his stomach as he weakly moved forwards and followed the two in their journey.


    At the intersection of the dark hallway, just before the other jail cells within the ground floor of Cellblock 5. Joseph found a gathering of Jail Janitors talking to each other with stern expressions.


    "Javier, who are those people behind you?" One of the Jail Janitors noticed the approaching party of the three and eximed when he found Javier.


    "Well, they are newbies. Deputy Warden asked me to brief them about their jobs and responsibilities as Jail Janitors."


    The man who eximed and was d in pure white clothing that looked more like a hazmat suit stared at Joseph and Ezreal before nodding his head.


    "I see, in that case then good luck teaching them. Right now, we''re brainstorming some ways about how we could break those cursed bastards and that Old Bastard John."


    Javier''s expression flickered for a moment before he replied: "I see, so those cursed bastards are back once again? As for Old Bastard John, I don''t even know if we can actually force him."


    "Yeah, they do really cause a lot of trouble. But this time, I will be sure to break them before time runs out. Especially that old bastard." The man replied with determination in his voice.


    Javier nodded his head: "Well, good luck then. Breaking one of those bastards really high rewards so if you managed to do so, then I hope that you won''t forget about me..."


    "Hahaha, of course. Of course..." The man lightly chuckled and the conversation of the two, finally ended with Joseph and Ezrealpletely silent and the former, baffled.


    The three of them continued their walking and Javier nced around as if he was choosing something. After about a few seconds. He finally nodded his head with a smile before heading to a direction where a lot of feminine pained moans wereing.


    "Follow me, I''ll show both of you something good." Javier winked at the two as they all walked towards the direction that Javier had picked.


    "Sir, may I ask? Just how strong are the prisoners in here?" Before the three of them could arrive at their destination, Joseph took this chance to ask some questions.


    Javier stopped on his tracks and turned to look at him with a proud smile on his face: "It doesn''t matter. Everyone, even Gods or Goddesses are going to submit once they are in this Penitentiary!"


    Joseph was taken aback by the answer that he received. But Javier continued on walking once again, and before long. All three of them were nearing their supposed destination.


    The pained moans gradually became stronger. Joseph blushed when he first heard the moans, but he soon realized that those moans didn''te out due to something pleasurable but somethingpletely opposite.


    The moans that he heard were exhausted moans that lost all their will on living.


    Realizing this, Joseph became fidgety as they approached the jail cell. But before Joseph''s eyes couldnd on what was inside the jail cell. A series of system notifications once again appeared right before his eyes and blocked everything that he could see as the world around him froze.


    [ The scene that you are going to see are scenes that shouldn''t exist within the realm of reality for its iparable cruelty.


    Due to this, the yer can choose whether he wants to see the following events within this scene or not. Doing so and choosing to skip doesn''t affect the oue of something, or anything. ]


    [ Are you willing to view these scenes? ]


    [ Yes or No ]


    Joseph was presented with a choice.


    With what Joseph saw so far within the Underground Penitentiary.


    He wouldn''t hesitate to say that each and every scene that he saw were iparably gruesome.


    Joseph was an opportunist and most likely. He would choose to skip the following scenes due to the fact that he could save valuable time that he could spend on brainstorming about ways that he could use on rescuing the Legendary cksmith.


    However, ever since Joseph defeated the Great Wandering Bard as someone that''s not even a fourth of the former''s level and strength.


    Joseph found that he had apletely fraudulent ss simr to what he heard from new stations around the world.


    But possessing great power meant possessing great responsibility.


    Even Joseph who considered himself as a determined man that wouldn''t easily give up in the face of challenges, faltered when he thought about the hardships that he would meet on developing himself in the world of Victory.


    But did he ever thought about giving up?


    Of course not!


    He may hesitate and not feel confident, but he would never give up!


    His goals of earning a lot of money to the extent that he could use it as toilet paper and never feel pain about doing it still remained in his heart.


    But he had another goal now.


    What was it?


    Well, it was to gain a foothold within the world of Victory.


    But why?


    It was because Joseph felt that it would be a shame if the Mythical ss, the Sun that Overlooks Everything, couldn''t "overlook" everyone from the top.


    For Joseph who wanted to earn money. He weed that idea, and he had never forgotten about it since he decided that he must be stronger.


    Of course, Joseph still didn''t have that much attachment to the phrase "getting stronger".


    But who knows?


    Maybe in the future, someone would require his help in the world of Victory, and he would beat himself up by being so powerless that he couldn''t help that person in their plight.


    Right now, Joseph mayck further concrete reason when it came to why he wanted to be stronger apart from superficial ones.


    But who knew about what would the future bring for him? And because of that...


    Should he cower, retreat and use the easy way out?


    Or should he temper himself through hardships and be even stronger for his goals?


    Well, it was pretty obvious.


    Joseph opened his mouth and uttered his decision.


    "Yes."


    As soon as this word came out of his mouth.


    His decision opened his eyes to a world of cruelty that he had never seen before.

 Chapter 40: Nightmarish World of Cruelty[R+18][Caution!]

    Chapter 40: Nightmarish World of Cruelty[R+18][Caution!]


    [WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS REALLY UPSETTING SCENES SO PLEASE BE PREPARED!]


    [WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS REALLY UPSETTING SCENES SO PLEASE BE PREPARED!]


    [WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS REALLY UPSETTING SCENES SO PLEASE BE PREPARED!]


    The world cleared up and a nightmarish world of cruelty appeared right in front of Joseph...


    An unpleasant and sour sensation surged from Joseph''s stomach towards his throat. He directly leaned over and puked when the thickened, almost smog-like ammonia within the jail cell struck his nose.


    But this wasn''t the primary reason why Joseph became like this...


    It was because the scene that he saw inside was utter hell.


    The prisoners within the jail cell wore ragged clothing, some were even naked. There were men and women along with other humanoid species that wore the same ragged and washed-out clothing. Although different in looks, all of them had something inmon...


    Something inmon, for every wound, that they had on their bodies festered and were filled with maggots.


    Joseph raised his head and found that there were several women that clearly belonged to humanity pinned to the walls by other inmates of different species and tantly raped.


    Orc, Goblins, Horsemen, Snakemen and other humanoid species took turns on raping them.


    Joseph counted and found that there were at least a dozen of them pinned on the walls, some of them looked limp, with their heads hung low as if they were already dead. Nevertheless, conscious or not.


    None of them were spared.


    "What... is this..." Joseph mumbled under his breath. He turned his gaze at the distance and found a woman that had pointy ears simr to Ezreal currently being raped by a Horseman.


    Witnessing such a scene, he surreptitiously nced at Ezreal and found that thetter was trembling in apparent anger.


    Javier noticed this and he stared at Ezreal with a smile: "What do you think? It''s quite a show, right? When I first came here, I thought that it was impossible that those of different species coulde together and breed. I mean, look at that package of that horseman over there inparison to that Elven''s petite body." Javier pointed at the distance.


    "..."


    Ezreal''s trembling continued, and Joseph''s expression turned serious.


    If Ezreal did something drastic right now such as attacking Javier.


    The consequences were clear and all of them would probably perish inside this hell.


    Joseph''s quest would also be automatically forfeited.


    But Joseph was someone that clearly knew about what was too far.


    The scene unfolding before the two of them was something that he could barely endure.


    Ezreal looked fine earlier but seeing that particr woman being raped by that monstrous horseman.


    Ezreal trembled like a sieve in anger.


    Joseph wouldn''t me Ezreal if he went into a rampage right now.


    That''s right, Joseph wouldn''t me him.


    But in the end...


    Ezreal''s trembling soon stopped and he managed to suppress his anger.


    Joseph clearly noticed these changes and he said these words in his heart.


    "Thank you, and I''m sorry... Ezreal."


    Javier, on the other hand, looked like he was having a st. He hurriedly opened the doors to the jail cell and when he went inside. Every prisoner, including those women who were apparently unconscious, opened their eyes and stared at Javier.


    "Oh, don''t mind me, don''t mind me... Just continue." Javier felt awkward that he had interrupted the fun so he quickly apologized. Afterward, most. If not everyone within the jail cell continued on what they were doing.


    Some quietly sobbed on a dark corner, while some continued on their thrusting.


    But one of the female inmates who wasying on the ground earlier with festering wounds on her sensitive parts, couldn''t take it anymore as she leaped towards Javier''s feet and cried out loud before begging.


    "Please..."


    "Kill me!"


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock. He was taken aback by the request of the young woman who looked to be in her early mid-twenties.


    The young woman looked particrly young, and if he managed on escaping this damned ce. She could live a long life back on the surface...


    But why...


    Why was she begging for death?


    Could it be that she couldn''t see her future anymore even after being released from this hell?


    Joseph stared at the young woman, and after seeing her nk, lifeless eyes whilst she was begging for death from Javier.


    Joseph arrived at the same conclusion as her...


    It was probably better for her to die within the confines of this hell than to further suffer the same hell once she''s outside.


    "Kill you? Hahaha, this is really funny. You are asking me to kill you? Haha! You bitch!"


    Javier''s expression turned fierce all of a sudden and he grabbed the young woman by her hair as he raised her in the air.


    "Just a few days ago you were adamant about not talking about who smuggled those carriages of salts away from the Kingdom, but now... You are begging for me to kill you? Do you think I am stupid? I have no use for your body apart from that glistening lips and skillful mouth of yours, so I must know the answer to my questions!"


    Javier pulled so hard that the young woman practically looked like she was levitating in the air. The force of gravity pulled her downwards and her neck issued cracking sounds in response to the immense force pulling her away from the ground.


    "Ugh..."


    The young woman painfully moaned as Javier mmed her back to the ground. He popped a strange, pinkish pill in his mouth before he started taking off his pants.


    "Do you want the release of death, right? In that case, then suck it. Do it properly and I may release you from this ce." Javier coldly replied with a grin.


    Joseph''s changed in anger.


    He took a step forward and looked like he was about to rush at Javier.


    "Don''t, master..." Ezreal softly advised him at the side, and Joseph emerged back from his trance.


    "I know that... But..." Joseph gnashed his teeth and clenched his fists. He swore that once everything that he needed to do in this Underground Penitentiary was done. He would undoubtedly bury his fists down that contemptuous face of Javier.


    The young woman who was harshly thrown in the ground looked up in delight when she heard what Javier said and she hurriedly kneeled in front of him and ced his thing in her mouth.


    "Ah... This never gets old... Dang it, I love this job." Javier moaned in pleasure.


    "Sir, me too... Please kill me..."


    "I also want to die, sir... So please... kill me..."


    When the other women in the area saw this scene, they crawled their way towards Javier and begged him for the sweet release of death.


    Javier swept his gaze at the several women that approached him and he harshly shoved those who had injuries on their lips and mouths away before saying.


    "You, you, and you... You three did well on keeping those mouths clean. Serve myrades behind me and who knows, maybe they will grant you the release of death." Javier pointed at the three remaining women before gesturing at Joseph and Ezreal who stood behind him.


    "Is... Is he serious?!" Joseph''s anger surged once again, but this time. It was mixed with panic as the three women approached the two of them in a slow, yet surely manner.


    Fortunately, just before the three women could extend their hands towards the two. Ezreal flicked his wrist and the three women promptly copsed with their hearts stopped.


    Javier heard the thud.


    He turned around and smiled in a perverse manner when he saw the corpses of the three women.


    "Interesting, only a few of us have that kind of a hobby. But honestly. I don''t get the appeal of doing that on corpses. It''s only fun when they struggle and painfully moan when it''s going on after all." Javier chuckled before continuing.


    "But well, this ce doesn''t really discriminate on tastes. But you two better not do that again. These women are important toilets for my balls, and are iparably valuable to me." Javier''s eyes momentarily shed in a dangerous manner which shocked Joseph to the extent that he subconsciously took a step back.


    "If you two do something like that again without my permission apart from using their services. I can''t promise that we''d have a fun time together." At the end of his sentence, Javier revealed a cheerful smile before thrusting deeply into the kneeling young woman''s throat.


    "Ugh... That felt good, clean it up nicely and maybe when Ie back. I''ll release you from this ce." Javier winked at the young woman whose expression turned pale and aghast.


    "What? No! Sir! Please! You promised me... You promised that you''d kill me..." The young woman cried out loud and Javier''s expression changed into a cruel one when he heard what she said.


    "Did I promise something like that? I only said that I "may" release you from this hell. I never said anything that I would certainly do it, and who are you to dictate my actions? Do you want to experience hell with those guys again?"


    Javier nced at one of the horsemen who was currently in the middle of raping one of the pinned women on the walls.


    The already pale expression of the young woman turned paler and she looked like she had all the blood on her body drained away as she hurriedly hugged Javier''s thighs and screamed: "No! Please, sir! No more, I don''t want it anymore! Please, sir! I''m begging you... Please, no more..."


    "Hahahaha!" Javierughed out loud. He forcefully shoved the young woman backward before handing over a jade bottle towards one of the horsemen.


    That particr horseman revealed a ghastly smile when he received the jade bottle before he stared at the young woman copsed on the floor in a greedy manner.


    "It seems like we spent too much time ying here. I just remembered that I still haven''t brought you guys to the jail cell where I''m supposed to brief you about your job and responsibilities." Javier turned around and said in an apologetic manner towards Ezreal and Joseph.


    His sudden change in attitude made it feel like his sadistic and frightening attitude never even existed at all.


    In fact, right now. If one looked at Javier, they would feel at ease and think that he was such a kind and gentle looking man.


    None of them would even think that he had such a merciless side in him.


    "But anyway, the reason why I brought you guys here is to show both of you the benefits of being Jail Janitors." Javier winked at the two before he continued: "Everyone captured and detained within the Underground Penitentiary and under our jurisdiction are free to use..."


    "You can do everything that you want to them, apart from what you did earlier, of course." Javier stared right at Ezreal''s eyes and Ezreal remained steadfast in the face of Javier''s intimidation.


    "I can see that you are one of those merciful people. Every single time that a person with tendencies such as yourses here for the first time..."


    "They always act really merciful, but once they understood the pleasure and benefits of being a Jail Janitor. They had never looked back and in fact, they are even far crueler than me..."


    "To tell you the truth, what I did was far gentler than both of you could imagine."


    The two remained speechless as Javier continued on talking.


    "By the way, the tightest of them all are those girls from Elves. They have really good regenerative capabilities so their sticity restores easily and fast!"


    "Not only that, but they also have huge racks! When ites to doing it, they are my favorites... But sadly, we are running out of stocks."


    Javier purposely lengthened the end of his sentence as he stared at Ezreal''s expression. He had detected Ezreal''s anger earlier when he mentioned the Elves.


    At first, he interpreted that anger as excitement. But seeing what Ezreal did to the three young women earlier. He was convinced that Ezreal was genuinely angered at that time.


    Right now, he was testing whether the Elves were the triggers for Ezreal''s anger or his anger epassed everything happening within the Underground Penitentiary. After all, Ezreal never revealed any great reactions until he saw the state of the Elves back at that jail cell.


    He thought that he could induce Ezreal''s anger through the use of Elves, but seeing Ezreal''s expressionless visage. He paused for a moment before lightly chuckling.


    "Anyways, let''s just stop this for now and continue our journey." He said before turning around and leading the way for the two towards a particr area within the Cellblock.


    "Finally, the bastard is done talking." Joseph thought to himself as he stared at Ezreal who had maintained a stone-faced expression when Javier was talking about the Elves. He sincerely prayed that Ezreal wouldn''t explode in anger and thankfully, his prayers were answered.


    However, he knew that for Ezreal, what he wished for was iparably cruel.


    At this moment, Joseph now had a renewed look towards Ezreal. He swore to himself that, even though Ezreal had strange tendencies right now. He would always be hisrade. He would stand by Ezreal''s side and support him in every decision that he would make in the future.


    "I''m sorry about all of these Ezreal, but I promise you... You''ll get your revenge soon!" Joseph''s eyes shone with a barely imperceptible light as he suppressed all his thoughts before focusing on his current task at hand.

 Chapter 41: An Unexpected Encounter

    Chapter 41: An Unexpected Encounter


    Edward and his squad made out of three members were currently imprisoned within the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether.


    Their crimes were something that couldn''t really be considered as heinous. If you asked some random person on the streets if busking could be considered as a heinous crime.


    Then, that person would most likely reply that it wasn''t a crime.


    But unfortunately, for these four. They became too greedy and entered the territory of nobles at the Northern-East Area of the Kingdom of Nether where most of those nobles were gathered.


    "Ah... I''m bored... Can they not do anything other than torture?" A squad memberined as he yawned in boredom.


    "Really, don''t they realize that their tortures against us are useless?" Another one chimed in.


    "Well, I don''t think that they know that we can turn off our pain sensors." Another squad member said before he turned to look at Edward.


    "Leader, you really need topensate us this time. The first time, we can say that we just got unlucky. But this is the second time that we got captured under your lead." He then said in a depressed manner.


    Edward nodded his head and replied: "Yeah, once we''re kicked out of here then I will surelypensate all of you."


    yers couldn''t stay for an extended period of time as prisoners at any prison within the world of Victory. Normally, prisons could only hold yers for about a week at most before they should be released after the convicted paid the requiredpensation.


    But yers could only stay for about 72 hours before they must be released from the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether.


    The primary reason why the prison time was so short was because of the gamepany''s fear of damaging the mental states of yers.


    If they were imprisoned within this vicious and nightmarish penitentiary for too long.


    Of course, once released.


    The system automatically deducted the necessarypensation for their release, but if the yer didn''t have enough assets topensate the system...


    They would be given a debuff that automatically siphoned money from them from every source.


    The debuff was called, "Sinister Burden" and wouldst until the system acquired enough money, equal or at least more than thepensation required by the system for their crimes.


    Since these yers were repeat offenders. All four of them knew about how muchpensation the system wanted out of them once they were released from this damned prison.


    "I bet that we need to farm for at least a week before we can get rid of that Sinister Burden or some shit."


    "Hahaha, you bet. Last time, I even had to take a leave from work just so I could finally take that Sinister Burden away from my shit."


    "What''s worse is, not only would we get the Sinister Burden. This time, I bet that all of the gold coins that we earned at that retarded region of nobles would probably be gone by the time that we managed to get out of here. Haist..."


    Edward swept his gaze at hisrades with a bitter smile on his face before he said: "Honestly though. I don''t mind paying that much for as long as I can get out of this damned ce as fast as possible. I mean, everything that we had seen so far inside this prison shouldn''t really exist out of reality!"


    "Yeah, agreed... Just from the walls of this jail cell alone and the thick smell of ammonia in the air. Apart from what we saw back when we came here for the first time. I don''t think that we have seen everything that his prison has to offer." One of them said in a trembling voice.


    "Then, do you want to see everything?"


    "Of course not! I am just here to y, why would I want to give myself unnecessary stress? If not for the fact that I have to spend at least an hour inside this damned prison. I would''ve logged out and stayed out of the game for three days already!"


    "Hahaha, I sure do agree about what you are saying. But I think that the gamepany is really sadistic. They are forcing us to stay within this prison for at least an hour just so it would count that we stayed in prison..."


    "Not only that, whenever we stayed for an hour. Those bastards alwayse to us and force us to confess about things that we didn''t even do." One of them said with a deep sigh.


    "What they are doing makes me wonder if medieval society was this corrupted to the extent that they would force confessions to people that are not really involved."


    "That''s what we call as scapegoats." Edward took the words out of hisrade''s mouth.


    "Yeah, we really are scapegoats for the ns that those bastards are doing. But I really do wonder though. Just what will happen to us if we followed along with their wishes and confessed about something that we didn''t do? Would we be publicly executed?" One of them asked in curiosity.


    "That sure is interesting. How about you go and try? If you are indeed publicly executed, we''ll be there and watch you from afar with tears in our eyes. We''ll also burn some hell money for you." One of them teased.


    "How about you go, and fuck off?"


    "Hahaha, you''re angry?"


    "Shh! They''reing!"


    Edward suddenly hushed them up, and hisrades instantly turned silent.


    "I brought the two of you here because of the fact that these bastards are cursed, just like you."


    "Cursed, just like me?"


    "Yes, and what''s worse is that these bastards are repeat offenders. They seemed to have taken a liking to the Penitentiary that they even came back for the second time."


    Edward and his squad members heard the sound of several footsteps along with a conversation between a familiar voice and an unfamiliar voice. When they heard what the familiar voice said about them, they almost coughed a mouthful of blood in anger.


    ''That bastard, does he really think that we''re here just because we wanted to be here?'' All of them violently cursed in their hearts, but they still maintained their silence as the sound of approaching footsteps became closer.


    "I remember saying that I would brief the two of you about what our jobs in here. But it isn''t really that special. In fact, our job isn''t even to maintain cleanliness within the jail but just to torture these poor bastards and politely ask information from their mouths."


    "If they aren''t so tight-lipped, then these cursed bastards would''ve been released already." The voice seemed to be in disappointment when it reached the end of its sentence as the party of Javier, Ezreal and Joseph finally arrived at the Jail Cell where yers were detained.


    Joseph had an idea about what kind of prisoners were detained in this Jail Cell, but he only confirmed everything when he finally saw them.


    "yers!" Joseph thought to himself when he saw the floating marks above their heads that signified their statuses as yers.


    "Sir, why were they imprisoned?" Joseph asked, but Javier shook his head and said: "People like us do not have the ability to ask something like that..."


    "Just remember that once someone is imprisoned here, someone like us can do everything that we wanted to them. And as for your job, just let me set an example."


    Javier dashed at one of the yers, held him in the neck and mmed him on the wall.


    "Guah!" The yer harshly coughed as all air within his lungs were sucked out, causing his face to turn into purple.


    "Oh, you like that? Eh? How about you just tell me about everything already? if you do so then you''d be released from this damned ce, right?" Javier teased the yer whom he pushed on the wall.


    "Like... I... said... we... do... not... have any rtions... with that duke..." The yer gasped for air as he struggled on saying these words out.


    Joseph looked ufortable looking at them in their current plight.


    But since one could only be ced within this prison when onemitted particrly heinous crimes...


    Joseph didn''t really look at them in a good light.


    But he was relieved that none of them was a woman.


    "If you do not have any rtions with that particr duke, then why are ya''ll frequenting that ce? You must not lie, there''s no need to lie... We know everything... We know everything about you! We even know things that you don''t know about yourself!" Javier''s sadistic side was turned on.


    He held the yer on the wall with his right hand, while his free hand summoned a needle that he inserted directly at the center of the yer''s chest.


    Such a gruesome scene made Joseph cringe, but the yer didn''t have that much of a reaction aside from looking like he was gasping for air. In fact, he didn''t even look like he was in pain after the insertion of that needle.


    "Wait, it''s not painful?" Joseph couldn''t help but mumble, and Javier froze for a moment before letting go of the yer.


    "It''s wrong to say that it''s not painful. The technique that I showed you earlier was a method that could break any battle-hardened men into confessing due to pain. That needle even has a poison that will induce itchiness that couldn''t be relieved from the insides of your body, but look at this guy. He isn''t even reacting!"


    Javier kicked the yer and thetter flew backward and only stopped when he struck a wall. Therades of that yer hurriedly rushed towards him in rescue before they all coldly red at Javier, Joseph, and Ezreal.


    They looked like all of them wanted to violently curse at the three of them but they were scared of the consequences when they really did that.


    "These bastards really are annoying to work with. They don''t have that much of a reaction when ites to our torture methods. But well, they do react when you choke them. But the more painful methods aren''t working against them. It''s as if they did something that turned off their sense of pain!"


    Javier loudlyined.


    ''Turned off their sense of pain? I think I know about it!'' Joseph inwardly eximed.


    He hurriedly opened his Main Menu and trembled when he found the setting that he was looking for inside the Options Tab.


    "We really hate these cursed bastards. Dealing with them is like standing before a treasure that you can only look but not touch!" Javier shook his head, and Ezreal asked in curiosity but with a frown on his face: "What do you mean standing before a treasure?"


    Javier was taken aback by Ezreal''s question: "Oh, you''re finally talking? I am saying that these bastards are treasures due to the fact that the rewards that one could get from having them confess are really great! I mean, if one of them confessed, you could get ten gold coins each and if all of them confessed. You''d get a hundred gold coins!"


    "A hundred gold coins if all of them confessed?!" Joseph who was in the middle of his trance suddenly awakened and greed could be seen within his eyes as he stared at Javier.


    Javier couldn''t help butugh upon seeing his expression: "Yeah, a hundred gold coins from the Jail Warden himself. Sounds too good to be true, right? But don''t worry. The Jail Warden never reneges on his promises, but the sad thing is. Like what I said. It''s only a treasure that we can look at, but not obtain. After all, these bastards wouldn''t talk."


    What Javier said was pretty depressing, but that didn''t diminish Joseph''s determination particrly when money was involved. Right now, he was like a thirsty man in the middle of a desert with an oasis right in front of him. Just how could he possibly resist such temptation?


    Joseph stared at Javier and he looked like he wanted to try something but Javier predicted his thoughts and said: "We are over for today. We''ll juste back here tomorrow after you learned more about our torture methods from thispendium."


    Javier handed over a book at Joseph.


    [ You have received Compendium of Effective Torture Methods For All Kinds of Species. ]


    [ This book is exclusive only for members of the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes. Once you are dismissed from your position, this book will automatically disappear. ]


    Joseph nodded his head and was about to speak when Javier continued.


    "We''re gonna be back here tomorrow. So, just stay at home, don''t worry about anything too much. Like I said, as long as you don''t kill the prisoners outright, you can do whatever you want with them and no one will care..."


    "Of course, that also involves both of you going inside the Cellblock whenever you want. Everything is quite carefree in here, for as long as you don''t break any rules, of course..." Javier winked at Ezreal when he reached the end of his sentence before he turned around and said: "Let''s go, there''s no use staying with these tight-lipped bastards."

 Chapter 42: Encounter with the Jail Warden

    Chapter 42: Encounter with the Jail Warden


    The briefing that Javier gave to Ezreal and Joseph finally ended. The two understood that within the Underground Penitentiary. They could do everything that they wanted apart from going towards the surface.


    If found that they illegally climbed at the surface without the permission of the Jail Warden...


    They would have their qualifications as a Jail Warden, removed and also executed for treason.


    When Joseph and Ezreal heard about this, the former bitterly smiled while thetter merely shrugged.


    "It seems like I need to get used to the environment of this Penitentiary." Joseph thought to himself as he and Ezreal parted ways. Joseph entered the barracks that Javier indicated, while Ezreal entered his own barracks.


    "Master, I''ll be off now. It''s been such a long time since I read the Tales of Bulging Muscles and I can''t wait to start reading them again!" Ezreal cried out in excitement when he realized that they finally had some time that they could spend in silence.


    "You''re reading that again? Haven''t you memorized everything about that manga, already?" Joseph asked with a frown and Ezreal retorted: "Of course I do know about every detail that happens within the Tales of Bulging Muscles. Master is really mocking me too much!"


    Joseph was taken aback by Ezreal''s response: ''He took that as offensive?'' He thought before replying: "Well, you go and enjoy then. I have something to do too, so if it''s not important. I hope that you will not disturb me."


    Ezreal nodded with a smile and the two went on their ways. Javier who observed them from the distance couldn''t help but think about why Ezreal called Joseph as master, but as soon as the two disappeared into their quarters. He shrugged and returned to his work.


    He didn''t n on giving those two their work today due to the fact that they were new members of the Penitentiary and adjustment was necessary for efficiency. For now, he didn''t mind seeing the two resting so early. But tomorrow, that would most certainly change.


    The moment Joseph passed through the diaphanous barrier that served as the entrance to his workce. A strange phenomenon urred and Joseph found himself standing inside his room back at the outside world.


    "What the fuck?!" Joseph couldn''t help but loudly curse when he realized where he was. Right now, he was standing at the center of his room at the outside world in the City of Sibu.


    He hurriedly turned around and found that he was looking right at his living room instead of the dark and unfeeling Underground Penitentiary.


    "What in the hell?! How did I arrive here?" Joseph scratched his head in confusion as he observed his surroundings. He found that everything, including even the small post-it, notes that he had on the mirror above his desk, had an uncanny resemnce to the room that he had back at the outside world.


    But...


    "Main Menu!" Joseph swiped his fingers in front of him and a transparent window appeared right before his eyes.


    He''s clearly within the world of Victory. Yet, how did the scenery change into that of his room?


    Joseph''s confusion deepened, he moved and fiddled with the objects that he had in his room and found that they were extremely life-like. As if they were taken out of his room and ced inside the world of Victory.


    "Hmmm, there''s no system information." Joseph repeatedly tapped on a cup full of pencils and pens that he had on his desk, but no transparent window popped up.


    Normally, within the world of Victory. If one tapped on objects that were recognized by the game. One could find information about that particr object.


    But when Joseph tapped on the cup that he had on the desk. No system information appeared. Making everything seem even more life-like.


    "Hahaha, you look quite confused. Are you okay?"


    A booming voice suddenly appeared and Joseph ducked out of instinct. He cautiously raised his head to look at the ceiling and the voice talked once again.


    "Don''t be so scared. I am here to visit you."


    The booming voice now looked quite familiar and Joseph couldn''t help but ask.


    "Is that you? Sir Warden?"


    "So, you finally recognized me. Hahaha, this is the first time that someone had second thoughts about my identity inside the Underground Penitentiary."


    The Jail Warden replied in a somewhat sarcastic manner which scared Joseph. Joseph knew that the Jail Warden most likely had the highest authority within the Underground Penitentiary. If he managed to offend such a figure, it would be impossible for Joseph toplete his quest.


    "Look at you looking so scared, like I said. I am not here to do something against you. But how about you guess?"


    The Jail Warden recognized the fear that appeared on Joseph''s face and he teased.


    "Someone like me cannot possibly ascertain the wishes of someone like you, sir Jail Warden. Please enlighten this junior." Joseph changed the tone of his voice and even bowed his head.


    He did all of these for he was afraid that he offended the Jail Warden and he hoped that he would be forgiven by thetter from any trespasses that he did.


    "Calm down, calm down. Don''t be so hasty and jump to conclusions, alright? I really am here just to visit you and not do anything against you." The Jail Warden''s voice mellowed out and Joseph dramatically calmed down when he heard the former''s reassurance.


    "Then, why did someone as prestigious as the Jail Wardene and visit a mere Jail Janitor like me?"


    Joseph asked in a respectful manner and the Jail Warden replied.


    "Well, I just want to know about how you are rted to sir Fausto." The Jail Warden''s contained a somewhat deep mncholy when he reached the end of his sentence.


    Joseph thought for a moment before he replied: "I really did answer honestly to what you asked of me just recently sir Warden. I have nothing to hide and no have no reason to."


    Joseph answered honestly.


    He didn''t understand why the Jail Warden was doubting him, but since he didn''t have any reason to lie.


    Why would he?


    "Hmmm... In that case, it seems like sir Fausto''s still as shameless as ever. Borrowing a knife without that person knowing about it. Just like what I thought, he still hasn''t changed." The Jail Warden replied in a manner as if he was thinking about the past.


    But this further deepened Joseph''s confusion as he asked: "Just what does sir Warden mean about borrowing a knife without that person knowing about it?" Joseph understood that the "person" whom the Jail Warden was talking about was most likely him.


    "I will exin everything to you, but before I do that. How about you exin yourself to me first? I mean, why would someone like you willingly be a member of the Underground Penitentiary?"


    The Jail Warden''s tone of speaking changed into that of suspicion and Joseph knitted his eyebrows as he thought.


    ''Why is he asking me about something like that? Aren''t I rmended by the Vige Chief Fausto? In that case, why would he doubt my motives for being a member of this ce?'' Joseph''s mind quickly spun and he suddenly realized something as his eyes widened in shock.


    "Ah!"


    He audibly gasped when he realized what the Jail Warden meant.


    "You really were too naive. To think that you wouldn''t even realize such a great detail such as that." The Jail Warden said, and sweat formed on Joseph''s forehead.


    He now didn''t have any idea on how he would answer the Jail Warden''s question about his motives of being a member of the Underground Penitentiary.


    "But don''t worry about it. Like, I said. I will not do anything against you. I only came here to visit you and know more about who you really are. In fact, seeing that you''re that naive. I think that it''s just right for me as sir Fausto''s junior to inform you about your mistakes and how you could avoid them."


    The Jail Warden''s tone of voice turned strict as he said: "First, your first mistake was approaching casual soldiers guarding the military barracks for directions. You clearly underestimated the influence of that bastard noble. Thankfully, the soldier that guided you here was an upright man and could be considered as a pacifist, or else..."


    He purposely lengthened the end of his sentence and Joseph''s eyes widened in shock: "But sir, James isn''t the only one that knew about my presence!"


    The Jail Warden replied: "Of course I know about that. Those soldiers were the opposite of James and since I fear that they will report to that bastard noble. I decided on sending assassins to them. After all, only those that are dead could truly be silent."


    Joseph''s expression changed: ''The Jail Warden sent assassins to James''srades? What have I done? If I didn''t approach and ask them for directions earlier then they would''ve kept their lives! Just what am I doing? Why am I so naive? I''m sorry, sir James...''


    Joseph closed his eyes in visible pain. James sacrificed himself earlier for the sake of his youngerrades and volunteered on guiding Joseph into the dungeons of the Underground Penitentiary.


    But now, his sacrifice was useless for the Jail Warden had them executed for fear of news about Fausto arriving in the ears of that particr noble.


    "Now, do you realize? You caused unnecessary death because of your naivety. The deaths of those young men could''ve been avoided if you were just smart and approached an information broker first to ask about how to get into the Underground Penitentiary instead of asking casual soldiers such as them."


    The Jail Warden seemed disappointed about Joseph.


    But Joseph didn''t reply to what he said. Instead, he raised his head and said: "Can sir tell me more about why sir is going too far just on keeping information away from that noble that sir is referring to as ''bastard''?"


    Joseph still used a respectful tone when asking the Jail Warden, but thetter could clearly feel the anger within the former as the Jail Warden thought for a moment before replying.


    "Before we get to that, I must ask you first. Just what are your motives for bing a member of the Underground Penitentiary? Answer me honestly and I will grace you with a proper answer too. Don''t even try to lie. I will know if you lie and it''s useless to tell me that you came here for nothing..."


    Joseph understood why the Jail Warden was suspicious. The Jail Warden knew that Fausto used him as a borrowed knife that thetter could use against that bastard noble. But wasn''t being a knife useless if that knife didn''t even know in the first ce about who should it stab?


    Joseph thought hard about why Fausto bothered on borrowing him as a knife when the two of them didn''t have any rtions with each other in the first ce.


    He couldn''t understand what Fausto was thinking back then, but then something suddenly struck Joseph.


    "I think that the reason why sir Fausto chose me as his borrowed knife is that noble would probably not link us together since our interactions were brief and we even argued with each other."


    "You argued with sir Fausto?" The Jail Warden seemed like he couldn''t believe what Joseph said.


    Fausto was known as a cruel Great Inquisitor that would kill someone for minor trespasses against him.


    But Joseph said that he argued against Fausto, survived and even became a borrowed knife?


    That seemed inconceivable.


    "Yes, we did argue. Back then, I was angry at him since he gave me a rmendation letter that I didn''t think that I would actually use. But now, I am thankful that I had his rmendation letter. Because if not for it then I would find it more troublesome onpleting my objectives."


    Joseph said in a light-hearted manner and the Jail Warden asked.


    "What do you mean bypleting your objectives? Just as I thought, you really are not a simple man. That young man beside you back then was also not simple..."


    "Sir Jail Warden probably became suspicious about me because I am a young man, right?" Joseph asked for rification and the Jail Warden didn''t deny what he said.


    "Well, yes. Those that dared on bing a Jail Janitor were often old men or those sentenced to death but managed to escape it due to bribing the executioner. People like them cannot possibly create new chapters of their life on the surface and so, they chose to lurk within the dark."


    "In that case, it''s really unthinkable that a young man like me would volunteer himself to do such a work that''s even worse than cleaning sewers. Am I right, sir Warden?"


    "Yes, that''s right! That''s the reason why I am not convinced that you came here without any other objectives in mind. I mean you didn''t even know that you were Fausto''s borrowed knife..."


    Joseph nodded his head, and after a pause. The Jail Warden continued on talking: "In that case, how about you tell me more about why you are really here in the first ce? if the answer doesn''t concern sir Fausto or that bastard noble then it would be okay for me not to hear it."


    The Jail Warden felt somewhat lukewarm to Joseph right now, and Joseph couldn''t help but ask: "Could it be that sir Jail Warden is someone that is cold outside, but warm inside?"


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "Hahaha, nothing..." Joseph lightly chuckled. He took a deep breath before saying.


    "But anyway, my objectives in the Underground Penitentiary doesn''t concern sir Fausto nor that bastard noble that sir Jail Warden is talking about. My objectives are entirely different and possibly not even connected with those two."


    "Possibly not connected?" The Jail Warden saw the hidden meanings within Joseph''s words.


    "Uh... what I mean is that I don''t really know about the history of my objective and because of that, I cannot say for sure that my objective is connected with sir Fausto and that noble or not," Joseph answered honestly.


    Since the Jail Warden said that he''d knew if he lied, why would he bother lying?


    "But what you are saying doesn''t reassure me. What if you found out that your objective has a connection to that bastard noble? Wouldn''t you be one of my enemies then? In that case, how about I should just clean you up right now inside this independent realm?"


    "Afterward, I could just pretend that you had a heart attack. Same goes for that friend of yours too."


    The Jail Warden''s voice suddenly turned cold and Joseph subconsciously took a step backward.


    [ An overwhelming presence is forcing you to submit. ]


    [ Under the effects of your title, "Mythical Authority". No one can make you submit. ]


    [ You have resisted. ]


    The appearance of several system notifications awakened Joseph from his trance. He thought for quite a while before he managed to reply.


    "How... how about this, sir Warden? Since you are saying that I am sir Fausto''s borrowed knife. How about I do the job that sir Fausto wants me to do? In exchange, I hope that sir Warden wouldn''t interrupt me in whatever that I do for as long as it doesn''t cross sir Warden''s boundaries and it''s within my objectives."


    "Oh? You are offering me a concession? But what makes you qualified to do that? Just because you are sir Fausto''s borrowed knife?" The Jail Warden asked in a doubtful manner, but Joseph replied with determination.


    "Yes, just because I am sir Fausto''s borrowed knife. I think that I can do my job properly and rise in ranks quickly so that I could help sir Fausto do what he wants me to do as his borrowed knife."


    "Hoooh? You''re going to do what sir Fausto wants you to do? What a joke. You didn''t even know until now that you were sir Fausto''s borrowed knife. Just how can you say for sure that you know what he wants you to do?" The Jail Warden''s doubt further increased, but Joseph remained confident.


    "I know and understand about what sir Fausto wants me to do. I am certain about it and willing to do it for as long as sir Warden epts the concession that I offered." Joseph bowed his head and the Jail Warden fell silent.


    Thetter clearly didn''t expect that Joseph would reply in such a confident manner and what he saw shocked him.


    ''It seems like he now has an idea about who is sir Fausto''s enemy.'' The Jail Warden thought to himself before saying...


    "Since you are that confident, it seems like you have some cards up your sleeves. But how will you convince me that you can do the job that sir Fausto wants you to do?" The Jail Warden asked in a challenging manner and Joseph replied with a sly smile.


    "How about you give me a job to do sir? Rising up the ranks quickly requires me to do jobs that others cannot. Is there some kind of a job that is quite difficult for us Jail Janitors?"


    "If I could do something like that then it wouldn''t be a problem nor suspicious for others if I were to be promoted by sir Warden."


    What Joseph said made sense and it made the Jail Warden fall into deep contemtion. But after a few minutes, he finally managed to reply: "When ites to jobs that are difficult for Jail Janitors. It would be having those cursed bastards confess..."


    "If you managed to make those cursed prisoners confess, then I can promote you as an inquisitor."


    Joseph''s eyes widened in excitement: "That''s it, sir Warden!"


    The Jail Warden looked deeply at Joseph from the skies before replying.


    "In that case, we now have a concession. Good luck then, and don''t disappoint me."


    He then disappeared from the independent realm. Leaving a Joseph who had cold sweat dripping down his back.

 Chapter 43: Learning Some Methods

    Chapter 43: Learning Some Methods


    Joseph retired and called it a day.


    "I still have four days left before the quest deadline arrives... I still have some time!"


    He came out of his gaming capsule and answered the physiological needs of his body.


    Right now, it was midnight and Joseph didn''t have any desire for cooking meals for himself.


    Actually, the reason why he came out of his gaming capsule was that he wanted to research some methods online that he could use to torture his fellow yers.


    After answering the needs of his body.


    He exited his house and went to a local 8-11.


    "Hmm, what should I eat today? Pork chops? Teriyaki? Or some ribs?" Joseph didn''t mind spending some money when it came to food. After all, for Joseph...


    A strong body was the foundation of everything. If one''s body was weak and malnourished then it didn''t matter how much riches they had in the world.


    Enjoying wealth required a strong and youthful body. Joseph often always kept that in his mind. Although he knew that convenience store meals weren''t one of the healthiest options right there. They were the quickest for someone like him that didn''t have that much time to spend outside.


    "Let''s get some Pork Chops." He decided and immediately went towards the cashier. Since it was deep in the night, Joseph was the only customer of the convenience store and he quickly got in front of the cashier. Turning to look at the side, he saw a bunch of magazines in different genres.


    "Damn that gravure idol is really stepping it up," Josephmented under his breath when his eyesnded on the R+18 section of the magazines.


    "Should this be heated, sir?" The young man behind the cash register asked and Joseph nodded in response.


    Whilst the young man was working on heating up his meal. Joseph noticed something peculiar at the magazine stand which piqued his interest.


    "Gruesome Ways to Die? Why would something like that be sold in here?"


    "Sir, here''s your order. Thank you, ande again." The cashier handed over Joseph''s meal and he started walking towards the exit when he suddenly stopped on his tracks.


    "Hm?" The cashier turned to look at him in confusion, when suddenly. Joseph turned around, swiftly fetched the magazine titled, "Gruesome Ways to Die" and carried it over towards the cashier with an excited look on his face.


    "..." The cashier was rendered speechless when he saw Joseph''s mannerisms. His eyes widened in shock when he saw the title of the magazine in Joseph''s hands, and when paired with Joseph''s excited, yet tired look on his face. The cashier gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    "It''s 150 pesos, sir..." He said and Joseph handed over his payment before taking the magazine away from the hands of the cashier and walking briskly towards the exit.


    "Ah, sir! Please wait!" The cashier hurriedly stopped Joseph and walked over towards him.


    "Please take this with you." He handed over a small paper that had a number in it.


    "09325004242? A prepaid number? Why are you giving something like this to me?" Joseph''s eyebrows knitted in confusion. The cashier turned to look at him with a mncholic smile and replied.


    [ Author Note: This is a real working number in ph, plz don''t dox it. ]


    "I also went through that phase that you have sir, even though I cannot understand the problems that you have. I''m sure that you''ll be better if you called that number."


    Joseph''s confusion further intensified and it didn''t disappear even after he left the store.


    "What''s wrong with that guy? Is he trying to scam me?" Joseph thought to himself, but his rumbling stomach soon dispersed that thought. Before anything else, Joseph must eat.


    Arriving back at his house. Joseph sat down on his couch and turned on the television. Of course, the channel that he watched was a channel dedicated to matters within Victory.


    [ What do you think about the movements of the Crimson Guild at the Capital City Reinhardt? Seeing that their mobilizing their troops at the Region exclusive for nobles. Could it be that they are under gathered by an NPC that''s a noble? ]


    [ If we''re talking about the movements of the Crimson Guild. None can say what they are doing for sure, but from the clues that we can get from where they are gathering. Most likely they are under the orders of an NPC that''s, of course, a Noble... ]


    [ But what kind of order did they receive? Does sir think that their quest can do something that could disrupt the delicate bnce between the three guilds? ]


    [ Actually, there''s a huge possibility that the Crimson Guild''s quest can disrupt the bnce between their three guilds. I mean, why else would they gather such arge number of their members in one ce at a time? I don''t think that their guild leader would do something like that if the quest isn''t worth even mentioning. ]


    [ Yeah, right. I wonder what they are actually nning on doing. But since they are hurrying towards the noble region in a hurry. I am pretty sure that we''ll get to know our answer soon. ]


    [ Yeah, what I''m more interested in is what the Knights of Justice and Dark me are going to do about this. Are they going to do some countermeasures and preparations towards the surprise that Crimson has in store for us? ]


    [ There''s a pretty good chance that something like that would happen. Particrly from Dark me. There are even some rumors that the first Mythical ss of Victory came from their guild. What will happen between them and Crimson could be the debut of their Mythical ss yer! ]


    [ Oh yeah there was a rumor going around like that. But that rumor doesn''t really make sense. Why would you hide such a strong yer instead of letting him or her run wild? That doesn''t really make any sense.]


    [ Yeah, you''re right about that. But who are we to judge about what''s going on in the minds of their guild leader? But anyway, we''ll soon get our answers about that rumor and what will the two guilds hostile to Crimson are going to do against them. ]


    [ Are they going to let Crimson soar through the dragon gate and be a dragon from a carp? Or will there be a tribtion from them against Crimson that could potentially force Crimson back and severely injure them? GMA News Station is always on the look-out so if you''re looking for up to date news for Victory, we''ve got your back! ]


    The screen changed intomercials, leaving a dumbstruck Joseph who had a wronged expression on his face.


    "What the hell do they mean about the first Mythical ss being in Dark me? I don''t even know who those bastards!" Joseph audibly cursed.


    Finishing up his meal, he took the stic wrapper that he wrapped around the te so that he wouldn''t wash it because he waszy before he ran up the stairs.


    Kacha!


    A loud sound rang out and Joseph felt a sharp pain on his right foot.


    "Arghhh!" He instantly sat on the stairs and there, he found that his right foot went through the stair and was now stuck in the middle surrounded by sharp wooden splinters.


    "Ah, fucking hell. I don''t have any time for this!"


    Joseph mercilessly dragged his foot from the hole as he cried out loud in pain. This was the first time in years that he felt such a sharp physical pain and he couldn''t help but roll on the ground while cursing out loud.


    It took about several minutes before he could properly stand up. Thankfully, there were no splinters stuck in his skin or else his day would''ve taken a sharp turn for the worse.


    Jumping like a one-legged kangaroo. He went for his room while holding his foot in pain.


    "That''s the first time that something like that happened... Ah, goddamned it! it hurts!" Joseph seasoned his foot with some agua oxinada and betadine. Afterwards, he couldn''t help but nce around his room and think.


    "To think that it''d copse under my weight. It looks like this house that mom and dad left for me really needs some repairs..." Thinking about histe parents, Joseph felt mncholic.


    "Okay, then. Once I am done with that ss-specific quest. I''ll be sure to find some ways of earning money! After all, I have that monster Ezreal who''s literally a treasure trove of knowledge. He can be my taxi when ites to being a merchant!" Joseph lightly chuckled when he thought about his ns.


    "But for now, let''s open this magazine and learn." Joseph opened the magazine titled, "Gruesome Ways to Die" and excitement filled his eyes when he saw what''s listed within the table of contents.


    "Those bastards are pretty arrogant just because they can turn off their pain sensory. But what If I do something like this to them? Can I break them and force them to confess? I mean, aren''t they just humans? They are not like those monstrous NPCs that had a lot of experience when ites to hardships..."


    "I bet that they''ll be easy to break if I used this method." Joseph looked like he couldn''t suppress his excitement anymore as he fiercely stood up and walked towards his Gaming Capsule.


    "Wait, the number that the cashier gave to me. Where is that paper?" Joseph fumbled around his clothes and in his right pocket, he found the paper that contained a particr number.


    The number didn''t have anybel on it, but seeing that it started with "09" it was clear that it was a prepaid number.


    [ Author''s Note: Philippine Prepaid Numbers start with +639 or also known as 09. Like I said, that number is real and someone could be the owner of it so please don''t dox >.< ]


    Joseph quickly went towards his Gaming Capsule and dialed the number on his capsule. Through the speakers on the Gaming Capsule. Joseph quickly heard a ringing sound, and a voice soon came out from the other line.


    "Hello, you''ve reached the Depression Hotline, am I able to aide on your crisis?"


    "..."

 Chapter 44: Old Bastard John

    Chapter 44: Old Bastard John


    Joseph returned to the world of Victory.


    When he went outside his residence within the Underground Penitentiary...


    What greeted him was Ezreal who stood at the side of his doors.


    "Did you wait for too long?" Joseph asked. Seeing Ezreal''s closed eyes and his arms that were ced in front of his chest. It was obvious that he had waited for Joseph for quite a long time.


    "It doesn''t matter, master. Even if it''s a thousand years, I can wait for you." Ezreal replied with a light smile and Joseph couldn''t help but awkwardly chuckle. He always felt strange whenever he saw the light of zeal and admiration within Ezreal''s eyes.


    Even though he was the bonafide Grand Duelist of the current generation. Joseph hadn''t done anything worthy of Ezreal''s worship and admiration.


    Because of this, he often felt guilty whenever he was looking at Ezreal''s admiring eyes and whenever Ezreal moved along with his desires.


    "Master needs to find more information about that particr cksmith, right? In that case, then it''s much better that we increase our ranks in here first so that we could be privy to that kind of information." Ezreal said and Joseph nodded his head.


    "You''re right, we need to be promoted as Inquisitors at least before we could get some information about that Legendary cksmith."


    "In that case, master. Let''s go?"


    "Hmm? Where are we going?" Joseph asked.


    "Of course, it''s at Cellblock 5. I heard some screams and shouts earlier in there and I think that the Jail Janitors are in the middle of their tortures." Ezreal casually said and Joseph couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva in nervousness.


    Joseph was still human and seeing those gory scenes still made him weak in his knees.


    He wasn''t someone that could bepared to those veterans in war. Although he had a fair share of gore when he battled against NPCs back at the Festival of Battles. Those scenes only happened since he didn''t have any other choice. Back then, it was to kill or be killed.


    But a one-sided torture?


    Joseph didn''t know if he could do something as vicious as that so, he felt nervous.


    Ezreal felt the hesitation within Joseph and he spoke: "Master must not hesitate. The mighty Grand Duelist of the ancient times almost always never hesitated. For her, a moment of hesitation meant defeat. Right now, Master must do what must be done for the sake of master''s objectives."


    Joseph felt like he suddenly awakened from his trance when he heard Ezreal''s words.


    "You''re right, thank you Ezreal. It''s really a blessing that you''re here by my side."


    Joseph wasn''t exaggerating when he said these words. Ezreal was a monster whose level was at least three hundred. If he wasn''t a blessing for the weak Joseph. What was he?


    "Likewise, master." Ezreal deeply bowed, and one could see the enthusiasm on his face due to the fact that he heard Joseph''s praises for him.


    Joseph once again felt strange upon seeing his excitement. But since he had other things that he must do. He shrugged and erased the hesitation in his mind.


    "Let''s go."


    The two walked side by side and once again entered the depths of Cellblock 5.


    "Just fucking tell us the location of your treasures already!"


    "Stop being so tight-lipped, you do know that this torment will not end until you talk, right?!"


    "Senior John, there''s no need to be like this. Now that you''re in here, you won''t be getting out. None of your assets on the outside will do you any good. Why not just reveal the truth? Then things will go easy for you! In fact, life in here could actually be pretty nice if you''re just obedient~"


    Joseph and Ezreal saw that the Jail Janitors of the Cellblock 5 were threatening someone. Some even cajoled and acted as a good cop, but their method never worked for the one whom they were threatening didn''t even look at them nor talked.


    While the two were approaching in curiosity. Joseph had a frown on his face due to the thick smell of filth and ammonia in the air.


    One of the Jail Janitors turned around and Joseph found that it was Javier.


    "Oh? You''re already awake? You really woke upte, eh? But it''s okay since you''re new here. We can forgive your tardiness."


    "But of course, it''s better if you show up on time. Hahaha." Javier loudlyughed when he saw Joseph and he started teasing thetter as if they were close friends for a long time already.


    Joseph slightly bowed and replied: "I''m really sorry about that Senior Javier. I am still getting used to the environment underground and I didn''t really have a good night''s sleep so I woke upte."


    Ezreal also bowed along with him, but he didn''t talk.


    It seemed like, for Ezreal. His bowing was enough to showcase that he was apologetic.


    "Hahaha, like I said. You shouldn''t really worry about any punishment. But since you''re here and you''re new. You must undergo our initiation rites before our brothers in here can recognize you as one of us." Javier said and Ezreal frowned along with Joseph.


    "What does Senior mean by initiation rites?" Joseph asked in a careful manner.


    "Before that, I hope that you can drop the Senior. Only a day has passed and you''re acting so respectful with me already. Just remember that each and every one of us within the Cellblock 5 are brothers! Setting that aside, you can just call me Brother Javier!"


    Joseph nodded his head and continued: "Then, from now on. I''ll call Senior as Brother Javier."


    "Hahaha, good, good, good!" Javier looked jovial for he even repeated the word, "good" three times.


    "Alright, let''s get to business. Do you see that guy surrounded by our brothers? He''s that notorious Old Bastard John."


    Joseph turned to look at the direction where Javier was pointing and there, he found a bulky man surrounded by other Jail Janitors.


    Despite sitting cross-legged, Joseph found that the man was still at least two meters tall.


    He judged that if the man stood up, he could bepared to fearsome giants that roamed the continent of Victory.


    The eyes of that gigantic man glowed in red and a fierce smile could be seen on his lips.


    Furthermore, he looked at the surrounding Jail Janitors with eyes that disyed bold desires, desires which made Joseph clench his buttcheeks as he cringed in fear.


    The man had a murderous aura surrounding him that could only be achieved if he wantonly killed every one whom he met whenever he went. In other words, he was a man that couldn''t be underestimated nor trifled with.


    Even Joseph thought that it was a miracle that the Underground Penitentiary managed to capture this man.


    This fact further increased the fear that Joseph had towards those that managed the Underground Penitentiary.


    Just how strong they were that they could forcefully imprison someone like this man?


    "He''s that notorious Old Bastard John that''s been a wanted man for about several years already due to his tendencies of casually killing anyone that he meets in the streets. He doesn''t spare anyone, including children, dogs, and cats. But that''s not the reason why he''s particrly infamous."


    Joseph frowned. He found it hard to believe that someone could be as vicious as what Javier described. But when he saw the crazed look of the man. Even he was convinced that the words of Javier seemed possible.


    "What''s worse is that this bastard is also a serial rapist. The gender didn''t matter, his criteria are that someone should have white skinparable to snow and they should also look delicate."


    "If these criteria are met. Your gender will not matter or how old you are! This bastard doesn''t even spare babies!"


    Joseph and Ezreal''s eyes widened in shock. Joseph''s reaction was an obvious one, but it was unexpected that Ezreal would react so violently towards what Javier had said. Joseph nced at him and found that Ezreal''s expression disyed great shock and disturbance.


    It looked like it was the first time that Ezreal heard of such atrocity even with his experience of traveling throughout the continent and experiencing the vicissitudes of life.


    "Then why is someone like him staying in here instead of being given the death penalty?"


    Joseph asked and Javier promptly replied.


    "Well, it''s because that old bastard is also known for hoarding treasures from ces that he piged. The Kingdom found out that this old bastard had a treasure trove somewhere within the territory of the Kingdom. They want to get those treasures and that''s the reason why they sent this old bastard in here..."


    Joseph''s eyes shone when he heard what Javier said and he looked like he was about to say something when Ezreal suddenly chimed in their conversation.


    "Shouldn''t it be better if that man is handed over to Inquisitors or the Jail Warden?" Ezreal took the words out of Joseph''s mouth and Javier bitterly smiled when he heard his question.


    "Well, it was announced to us that those who managed to pry open the mouth of this bastard are entitled to great rewards from his treasure trove. It has been a month already since he''s imprisoned in here, but not even the Jail Warden could force a confession out of him. His lips are too tight and his willpower is strong!"


    Joseph and Ezreal now looked serious. He didn''t expect that the Kingdom had rewards for those that managed to pry open the mouth of this notorious old bastard, John.


    But since no one could open his mouth ever since he arrived here a month ago.


    He was soon passed to the Fifth Deputy Warden like a used cum rag.


    This was the first day that he came to Cellblock 5, and every Jail Janitor was enthusiastic about making him confess.


    "But since he''s here, he''s destined to submit." Javier arrogantly said and he gestured towards the two toe forward and follow him towards the cell where the Old Bastard John was located.


    When Old Bastard John saw theming over. His vicious smile deepened and he suddenly jumped to his feet and let out a furious roar.


    His roar intimidated everyone for a moment.


    [ A scream filled with anger has bestowed hesitation upon you! ]


    [ Under the effects of your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything", and "Mythical Authority". ]


    [ You have resisted. ]


    "I have tasted bastards like you so many times that I can''t count how many of them perished under my hands anymore!"


    "Shut the fuck up!" One of the guards cried out and he pointed his finger at the ceiling of the cell. At that moment, the darkened ceiling suddenly shone in a crimson light which manifested lightning that struck Old Bastard John squarely at his head and caused him to cry out in agonizing pain.


    Joseph who saw what was going on, couldn''t help but take a step backward.


    But when he remembered what Ezreal said earlier, he steeled himself, and finally stepped forward and walked closer towards the direction of the man whom he considered as an apostle of a demon.


    Right now, Joseph felt like he was voluntarily walking towards the jaws of hell...

 Chapter 45: Makeshift Competition

    Chapter 45: Makeshift Competition


    "Step back! You''re new here, and you may not know about it but people like these bastards murderous auras that could kill with a single nce!"


    One of the Jail Janitors shouted at Joseph, but he was astonished when he found that Joseph didn''t look particrly disturbed from the scream that came from Old Bastard John.


    Ezreal stared at Joseph in admiration. Although he knew that he was stronger than thetter.


    He still felt disturbed about the scream that Old Bastard John unleashed...


    Even he couldn''t remainposed under that murderous scream, but Joseph managed to do that, and this further intensified his admiration towards Joseph.


    "As expected of Master! He really is someone reliable!"


    Joseph stepped forward and convened with his fellow Jail Janitors. But to his disappointment, apart from that Jail Janitor who screamed at him in concern. The other Jail Janitors didn''t even nce at him. They simply pretended that he didn''t exist.


    "What''s the deal with these guys? Did I do something to offend them?" Joseph''s eyebrows knitted for he didn''t understand the coldness that his fellow Jail Janitors gave off towards him.


    Since he was new here and didn''t know anything about what the job really was like.


    Shouldn''t it bemon sense that they should teach him instead of shunning, and treating him like an outcast?


    Joseph couldn''t understand.


    Ezreal quickly sensed the coldness that their fellow Jail Janitors had for Joseph and he couldn''t help but frown and speak up: "Why are all of you acting like that? Both of us are new to this job. Shouldn''t all of you teach us how we can do our jobs properly instead of treating us like air?"


    The Jail Janitors who acted like the two didn''t exist, all trembled at once. One of them who had a particrly scary visage turned to look at Ezreal and said in a hoarse voice: "So what? Is there something wrong if we treat someone as weak as him as nothing, but air?"


    Joseph resisted the murderous aura that came out from the man''s voice, but he couldn''t help but feel a shiver down his spine. He furtively nced at Ezreal, hinting that he should step back and calm down by winking at Ezreal.


    But to his dismay, Ezreal took his hints as encouragement instead of disapproval.


    "You''re saying that he''s weak? You''re really funny. He is someone that could defeat at least dozens of you at once." He even bragged about Joseph''s abilities which caused Joseph to facepalm as more sweat formed on his forehead and slowly dripped down his cheeks.


    "Ah... Please don''tpletely believe what he''s saying... I mean, I am not weak, but I am not as strong as he is saying. I definitely can''t defeat dozens of you at the same time." Joseph waved his hands in the air in a panicked manner as he carefully exined.


    But the man''s eyebrows raised up as he asked: "Then, are you saying that you can defeat us if we fight you one by one?" His fierce voice prated deep into Joseph''s ears which made him shiver once again as he nced at Ezreal in defeat.


    "Yes, that''s right. If both of you fought one on one then, master could kill you for hundreds of times before you could possibly kill him once. That''s how strong he is." Ezreal thought that even he was exaggerating Joseph''s abilities.


    But since his words had already left his mouth, it was already toote for regrets.


    "Oh? Then how about we test that theory of yours then? Right here, and right now." The scary-faced Jail Janitor became aggressive and he even unsheathed a dagger underneath his robes and assumed a stance. The surrounding Jail Janitors saw what he did and they hurriedly stepped aside.


    They looked at the three from afar with amused expressions on their face.


    "What are you bastards trying to do?! You bastards will never get my treasures, whatever method you do!" Old Bastard John fiercely cried out when he noticed the change in his surroundings.


    He instinctively threatened them due to the fact that he''s currently disoriented and couldn''t understand what was going on around him.


    "Shut the fuck up, old man. We''re trying to watch a show here, can you be quiet?" One of the Jail Janitors gestured and a seal came down on Old Bastard John''s lips, sealing his ability to speak as he wildly thrashed on the ground in a panic.


    Before the situation could escte even further, Ezreal stepped forward and finally acted in a manner that Joseph favored.


    "He is someone that I serve and admire upon, and so. Before you can reach and fight against him. You must defeat me... While I am still alive, there''s no way that you can touch, even a strand of his hair!" Ezreal solemnly dered and Joseph was visibly moved.


    If Joseph was a maiden then he would''ve fallen for him right at this instant.


    Ezreal''s serious expression and the light of determination in his eyes while he said these words made him look quite cool and out of this world.


    Sadly, he was a man and Joseph didn''t have any interest in men nor experimenting.


    "Ugh... Holy fuck, did he really just say that?"


    "For fuck''s sake, that was cringy as hell."


    "Really..."


    The Jail Janitors around the visibly trembled as they all cursed at Ezreal. Their eyes now radiated a strange light whenever they nced at him and at Joseph.


    "Could people like them even be allowed in this ce?"


    "Of course, why not? Personally, I don''t discriminate. I mean we have our own tastes."


    "Yeah, you say that you furry-loving fucker."


    "What did you say to me, you little piece of shit?"


    "No... Nothing..."


    Sensing the iparably thickened air of tension in the area. Javier stepped forward and said: "How about both sides stop this for now and finally get to business? Having this old bastard confess is more important than any other thing. Can you suppress your anger for a while, Jagger?"


    The scary-faced man who was apparently named as "Jagger", shook his head and replied: "I don''t think that I can control this anger inside of me anymore, Brother Javier. I need an outlet... I badly need an outlet. Please give me an outleeet!"


    He suddenly screeched in fear, startling Joseph who was unfamiliar with his attitude.


    Javier lightly smiled and replied: "If it''s just an outlet for your anger. How about we hold apetition between you and them?"


    "The one who manages to force a confession or get even single valuable information from that old bastard will win. If we do that and you won, you essentially knocked over two birds in one stone. Isn''t that good?"


    Jagger looked visibly confused by the number of words that Javier said, but when he heard the word "good", from Javier''s mouth.


    He repeatedly nodded his head like chicken pecking rice before saying: "Good? Yeah, good! Good, good, good!"


    The other Jail Janitors chuckled at thisedic side of the normally scary Jagger, and they couldn''t help but feel pity towards Joseph and Ezreal.


    They had been with Jagger for far too long already that they knew what would happen if Jagger won this makeshiftpetition.


    He would most likely request obedience from the two using Javier as a proxy...


    And after recently doing a notable achievement like forcing a confession out of Old Bastard John''s mouth.


    Even the Deputy Warden would most likely not refuse Jagger''s request.


    After all, Jail Janitors were people whose lives weren''t really that important and easily receable with other garbage back at the surface.


    "I''m really sorry about that, you two..."


    "Jagger''s a person with an erratic attitude that easily changes in a whim. I need to do something like this to pacify his anger or else his true self may awaken. He''s a member of that particr species and he''s quite scary when thoroughly enraged." Javier apologized at the two.


    Ezreal nodded his head in understanding while Joseph looked confused. He was about to ask Javier for further information when the other Jail Janitors started dragging the squirming Old Bastard John into a private room where Jagger could do his job.


    The two closely followed them and Joseph suddenly said to Ezreal: "What did Javier mean about a member of that particr species?"


    Ezreal stared at Joseph for a moment before replying: "Ah, that guy? His attitude really is understandable since he''s a member of the #@$@#$#@! species."


    Joseph frowned for he couldn''t quite understand what Ezreal said, but then. A system notification suddenly appeared right in front of him.


    [ The information that you are trying to ess is a piece of sealed information. This usually happens when you encounter a story-teller or an NPC that gives you information about something that should only surface at the right time. ]


    [ Your ears will temporarily be inflicted with [ Silence ] for the protection of those vital pieces of information. ]


    [ Under the effects of your title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything". ]


    [ You have resisted. ]


    "Like I said, master. That guy is pretty dangerous for he''s a member of the Berserker Species. People like him are a force to be reckoned with whenever you meet them in battle. Even though I am stronger than him, I am not sure whether I could sessfully kill him..."


    "Seriously injuring him could be possible, but killing him? That''s something that I cannot say for sure." Ezreal said in a casual manner, but Joseph didn''t even understand what he said due to the shock that he suffered from what the system notifications said in front of him.


    "A Berserker? And a seal on information? Could it be that I found some kind of a treasure chest?"


    Joseph''s excitement soared through the roof for his instincts told him that there existed an opportunity somewhere that he could take advantage of on his information.


    But before he could think too deeply about it. Javier turned around to look at him and said: "Thepetition is starting, you must prepare yourself, alright? This first job of yours may be quite hard, but I think that you can do something about it. After all, all those that are qualified to be in here are those that can clutch through a pinch."


    Joseph awakened from his trance and a bitter smile emerged on his lips instead: "How about I prepare for this bullshitpetition for now instead of thinking about that possible opportunity? But damn, how can I force a confession out of a monster like that?"


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun as time also quickly passed.


    After several dozens of minutes...


    The door of the private room that Javier prepared for thepetition of the two, slowly opened and revealed the excited figure of Jagger who had a scary-looking smile on his face as he announced.


    "I, sess..."


    "OOOHHH!"


    Almost every Jail Janitor screamed out loud in joy at that moment.

 Chapter 46: Unbreakable Oath

    Chapter 46: Unbreakable Oath


    The door behind Jagger remained open and what everyone saw inside astonished them. Old Bastard John who looked fierce and had a murderous aura surrounding him now looked wretched. Even though he looked wretched earlier, this one was a different kind of wretched.


    The w marks that dotted his skin looked iparably deep and one could even see his white and pale bones gleaming underneath.


    "Holy..."


    "Just what did happen to him that he became like this?"


    "Is he even still alive?"


    As Old Bastard John stared at Jagger''s back, his eyes radiated fear. This was the first time that someone saw such emotion within the eyes of such a fierce man that almost always taunted them whenever they were the ones that tortured him.


    Having known Jagger for a long time, every Jail Janitor understood that something like this often happened when Jagger vented his anger. As someone that belonged to the species of Berserkers. It was given that he''d be iparably brutal, but the Jail Janitors didn''t have any authority on killing someone.


    Even though they''d make prisoners taste what hell felt like, they often don''t kill them. Afraid of the consequences of killing a prisoner that had valuable information for the Kingdom.


    When Jagger was new to the job. He almost killed a prisoner and was severely punished due to what he had done. He learned through the hard way about what it meant to be a true Jail Janitor. It was true that Jail Janitors could do everything that they wanted to the prisoners. But they could never kill them unless it was ordered by the higher-ups.


    This was the reason why everyone was astonished about the state of Old Bastard John. They didn''t expect that Jagger would leave him teetering on the border of life and death.


    "Move, treat him!" Javier flicked his wrist and he sent a medicinal pill flying towards Old Bastard John. The pill disintegrated into dust the moment it made contact with Old Bastard John who sat trembling in the corner. A milky-white light surrounded his body and Javier said to Jagger.


    "You better hope that the information that you got is valuable enough for the higher-ups to excuse what you have done to him." He stretched his hand and Jagger meekly nodded his hand handed over a crystal ball towards Javier. Jagger''s meek actions when he surrendered the crystal ball looked like he was a child scolded by his parents.


    Such a strange scene brought awkward smiles to the lips of everyone. But then, they all stared at the crystal ball that was within Javier''s hands.


    Soon, Javier''s eyes shone with excitement.


    "This information is indeed valuable. I am sure that this is enough for the Jail Warden to excuse what you have done to this old bastard. Good work, Jagger!" Javier praised Jagger who then gave a wide smile while awkwardly scratching his head in embarrassment from the apparent praise.


    "What did you mean by that, Brother Javier? How''s the information?" One of the Jail Janitors asked in curiosity and Javier replied promptly.


    "The information that Jagger forced out from the mouth of that bastard is indeed valuable, but from the history of this bastard''s confession. The information that Jagger got isn''tpletely perfect. Nevertheless, it is still valuable. He really is the fortune of our Cellblock!" Javier dered and everyone cried out in joy.


    From what Javier said, it looked like all of them could acquire rewardsing from the Kingdom itself. All of these happened because of Jagger''s efforts and each and every Jail Janitor approached Jagger and fiercely patted his shoulders.


    "It''s all thanks to you, Jagger!"


    "You really are a good man, Jagger! Thanks!"


    "Thank you, Jagger! I''ll be sure to treat you with some beers once we get the rewards!"


    "Count me in, too! Didn''t Jagger say that he liked themb skewers on the surface? I''ll be sure to order some and we''re gonna have a barbeque party in here!"


    Jagger repeatedly nodded his head in joy. But then, a voice suddenly interrupted them all.


    "It seems like all of you are forgetting something. Everything isn''t finished yet, master''s turn still hasn''t even arrived. Why are you guys celebrating already?" Ezreal said in a casual manner and Joseph who stood beside him trembled.


    Every Jail Janitor, including Jagger, stared angrily at Ezreal and Joseph. But before everything could take a turn for the worst, Javier intervened.


    "It is true that there is still room for improvement when ites to the information that Jagger received from that old bastard. However, that old bastard is now on the verge of death. I cannot allow further interrogation for him until he recovers since there''s a huge chance that he''ll die."


    Ezreal maintained a calm expression when he was faced with Javier''s words. Joseph looked like he was about to say something, but Ezreal prevented him from doing so.


    "If that''s the only concern that you have, then there''s nothing to worry about. Me and master have our own ways so that he wouldn''t die."


    Everyone''s eyebrows knitted when they heard what Ezreal said. Javier opened his mouth to speak, but a Jail Janitor shouted before he could even say something.


    "Stop bullshitting! The injuries that the old bastard suffered is something that could only be treated by high priests! Pills are not enough to heal those kinds of injuries and since they are so deep. They are easily aggravated, and when that happens and his injuries get worse causing him to die, can you even take responsibility?"


    What he said made sense and everyone, including Javier, turned to look at Ezreal with serious expressions. It looked like if Ezreal answered in a way that didn''t satisfy them, both he and Joseph may not escape severe consequences.


    Ezreal''s lips lifted, he looked confident and his cool andposed expression didn''t betray the confidence that he radiated. Joseph even feltfortable when he saw Ezreal''s confidence as he stared at thetter with expectations in his eyes.


    But then, Ezreal swept his gaze at everyone, stepped aside and said: "If that old bastard died, then master will take responsibility."


    "Yeah, that''s right. I will take... I will take what?!" Joseph subconsciously nodded in order to support what Ezreal said but he screamed out loud and doubted what he heard when he realized that Ezreal stabbed him in the back and voluntarily hurled him at the wolves.


    "What the hell are you doing, Ezreal?! Aren''t we supposed to be in a master and servant rtionship? Why are you handing me over to these bastards in a silver tter?!" Joseph fiercely red at Ezreal and said these words in his mind. But Ezreal maintained a confident smile on his face and even looked like he was urging Joseph.


    "Goddamned it, this bastard is hinting at me to step forward and take responsibility..." Joseph felt iparably depressed. But since it was unlike him to cry over spilled milk, he couldn''t do anything other than to step forward and say...


    "Yes, that''s right. I have a way so that he wouldn''t die under my interrogation. But if he did die under my watch, I will take every responsibility necessary for me to atone for what I have done..."


    Every Jail Janitor was taken aback from what Joseph said. But one of them still looked unconvinced as he cried out: "If you are really sincere about that, then take an oath under the eyes of the Divine Goddess Rhinna!"


    Now every Jail Janitor''s eyesnded on that particr Jail Janitor. It was widely known that members of the Underground Penitentiary didn''t believe in any god.


    In fact, some of them even openly despised and cursed them. But it looked like this particr Jail Janitor deeply loved the Divine Goddess.


    Even Joseph was astonished when he heard what the Jail Janitor said. Confused on how to take such an oath. He could only reply...


    "In that case, then I swear that I will take full responsibility for the Old Bastard John''s death if he died under my watch while my interrogation is going. May the Divine Goddess Rhinna, take witness upon this lowly one''s oath." Joseph ad-libbed some words that he learned from the "Beginner''s Manual" on how to please NPCs to acquire quests.


    [ The Divine Goddess Rhinna has witnessed your sincerity and has honored your request. ]


    [ You are now under an Unbreakable Oath. ]


    [ If you break the terms that you have stated in your Oath. You will suffer from the anger of the Divine Goddess Rhinna who bore witness on your sincerity and oath. Unimaginable consequences may ur if you vite your oath so please tread carefully! ]


    "Holy shit, that worked?! What the fuck?!" Just as Joseph was violently cursing in his heart. A ray of snowy-white light appeared out of nowhere and surrounded his body for a few seconds before it disappeared into nothingness.


    "Ah... Divine Goddess Rhinna... She has bestowed me with her presence!" That Jail Janitor crumbled and kneeled on the ground. His fellow co-workers hurriedly moved away from him while inwardly cringing.


    In contrast to everyone''s reactions. Javier looked particrly solemn as he said: "Since you have taken an Unbreakable Oath. There''s no way that I can deny you any ess now, can I?"Javier''s lips had a bitter smile on his face.


    Joseph nodded his head with a sigh, and he looked iparably tired as he nced at Ezreal.


    Joseph was someone who never tackled problems without a n, but now. He was forced to do something without any preparations due to Ezreal''s strange antics. Joseph felt like he''d suffer more of something like these in the future if he stayed with Ezreal.


    But since there was no use crying over cooked rice. Joseph could only move and he went towards Javier and whispered something in his ear.


    "Wait, why would you want something like that? Do you think that I would need that? You are really underestimating my capabilities. Ah, wait! You saw me popping one of those?!"


    "Oh no, I can most certainly give you several of those but can you please keep it as a secret between the two of us? To tell you the truth, I am really having problems when ites to that department. But I don''t want news about it to spread to everyone..."


    Javier repeatedly mumbled and even cried out loud whilst Joseph was whispering in his ears. In the end, Javier reluctantly handed over a jade bottle towards Joseph before crossing his arms in front of his chest and closing both of his eyes. It looked like he was reluctant to talk about anything even further.


    "I''ll be going now, brother Javier."


    "You go now, you better seed. That''s the only way that you can pay me back regarding those..." Javier coldly snorted and replied in a tsundere-like manner. Joseph momentarily shivered when he heard the former''s tone of voice, but since he had a job to do. He could only clear his mind of those thoughts and focus on the current task at hand.

 Chapter 47: Taste of His Own Medicine

    Chapter 47: Taste of His Own Medicine


    Yes, Joseph proceeded on doing his current task at hand. After receiving the crystal ball that could record confession, he moved.


    But instead of going towards the room where the Old Bastard John was located. He turned around and casually walked outside of the jail cell where they were gathered.


    "Hmm?"


    "What?"


    "Nani?"


    The Jail Janitors who had their eyes glued on Joseph widened in confusion. Ezreal also didn''t escape such a fate as he stared at Joseph with a dumbstruck look on his face.


    "Master?" He mumbled, but he soon followed Joseph''s tracks.


    "Hey, where the fuck are you going? Are you going to escape? Did you forget that you swore under the eyes of my Divine Goddess?! That''s it, you''re escaping!"


    "So that''s the reason why I feel hatred whenever I am looking at you. You really are a bastard that deserves to be here!" The Jail Janitor who prostrated on the ground earlier fiercely stood up and shouted at Joseph...


    He considered Joseph''s actions as sphemous towards the Divine Goddess whom he deeply loved.


    Joseph didn''t even reply nor stop on his tracks. The Jail Janitors looked like they were about to follow him, but they were stopped by Javier who shook his head and said: "Just let him be, he knows what he is doing. I don''t think that he''d be that stupid to actually ignore an Unbreakable Oath."


    "Yeah, that makes sense."


    Everyone nodded and they impatiently waited until Joseph''s return. All of them felt that there must be some other way that they could spend their time wisely. But since they were also curious about how Joseph would struggle against Jagger''s excellent achievement. Their blood boiled and they felt like ants on a hot pan as they stood there and waited.


    "Master, where are you going?" Ezreal said in a worried manner. He understood that Joseph wasn''t stupid that he would ignore an Unbreakable Oath. But since Joseph seemed like a man that preferred the easy way when it came to solving his problems. Ezreal felt like with Joseph''s personality, he could renege with his promise.


    "Just who do you think I am, Ezreal? It seems like you still don''t know me that much. But oh well, I can''t really me you. It still hasn''t been a month since we met and journeyed together. It''s not your fault that you do not understand how I work and do what must be done." Joseph didn''t even nce at Ezreal as he said these words.


    Ezreal was taken aback by what Joseph had said. Was he really underestimating Joseph too much? Ezreal didn''t know what to think about anymore as confusion surfaced on his expression.


    "Calm down, Ezreal. Since you pushed me so hard into getting that old bastard to confess, how could I let you down?"


    Joseph turned around and stared at Ezreal. His expression remained cool and calm, yet his tone betrayed his emotions. Ezreal felt like Joseph wasshing out at him out of grievance about what he did. Because of this, Ezreal felt apologetic.


    "I''m so sorry, master. I didn''t expect that you''d be hurt about what I did earlier."


    Joseph bitterly smiled when he saw Ezreal''s apologetic expression. He himself knew why he was acting like this, but he refused on believing that it was the truth. For now, Joseph didn''t want to believe that he was someone like he was right now. He knew that he had strength, with his ss. He was destined to be at the top.


    But was that really his desire? Or was he just whimsical when he thought that he could conquer everyone under his banner? Deep inside, Joseph only wanted to livefortably based on his parents'' wishes, yet why was he given such a great responsibility?


    Joseph felt like he was crumbling under the pressure that he was under. But he knew that he must not share what he was feeling with others such as Ezreal. He didn''t want him to carry the burden that he was supposed to carry. He must persevere like he always did and what he had done since his parents'' left him years ago.


    "I''m hurt? Ezreal, I know what must be done. What are you saying?" Joseph lightly chuckled and patted Ezreal''s shoulders. He then turned around and said: "Just trust me for now, I have an idea that we could possibly use against that criminal, but I require your help. Will you be willing to help me, Ezreal?"


    Ezreal who was visibly stunned about Joseph patting his shoulder was awakened from his trance by what Joseph asked from him. After a moment of silence, a confident smile emerged on his lips and he replied.


    "That''s a foolish question, master."


    "Hahaha, in that case. Take this, I think that you''d have a better idea of how we can use this."


    "Wait, these pills? Could it be that master is nning on?!"


    "Yeah, yeah. Hahaha, I''m not really confident that it will work but it''s better than nothing."


    "No, master. I am sure that you will seed."


    "Don''t say it like that, you''ll nt a g."


    "g?"


    "No-nothing..."


    Every prisoner in the jail cells within Cellblock 5, froze when they saw the approaching Ezreal and Joseph. In this world located underground, Jail Janitors could be considered as gods for these prisoners. Each and every one of them stopped whatever they were doing and slightly bowed their heads towards the two.


    Soon, Joseph found a particr jail cell that contained a mixture of demi-humans of different species. Some were horsemen, some were half-orc and some were half Goblin.


    "You, you, and you. Come with me." Joseph pointed at a horseman, an Orc and a Goblin. He singled out these three that were in the middle of their sexual activities. The smell of detergent assaulted his nose and made him frown, yet it instantly disappeared as he assumed a cold andmanding facade.


    The three individuals looked annoyed since they were disrupted in the middle of what they were doing. But since the one asking for them was a Jail Janitor that had an infinitely higher status than them. They couldn''t possibly refuse his request and so, they followed.


    When Joseph returned with these individuals. The Jail Janitors who awaited his return couldn''t hide their astonishment.


    "Why did he bring these uncouth demi-humans? Is he trying to feed them to that old bastard or something?"


    "Wait, aren''t these demi-humans part of the jail cell where that old bastard John was previously located at before we gave him solitary confinement?"


    "Ah yeah, you''re right! But what is he doing though? I don''t understand, why did he bring them with him?"


    When the three individuals heard about the name "Old Bastard John", all of them gulped a mouthful of saliva as they stared at the sealed door at the distance in fear.


    Joseph heard what the Jail Janitors were saying and he asked the three: "Is that right? Did Old Bastard John stayed with you for a while before he was given solitary confinement?"


    "Yes, that''s absolutely right, young noble. He stayed with us for a few hours, but it was enough for us to understand why he was feared even with people like you, young noble. He doesn''t discriminate with everyone, for as long as they met his criteria, he''d assault them without any fear for consequences..."


    The Orc-man with porcine facial features said in a trembling voice. Hisrades who stood beside him also nodded their heads like chicken pecking rice, afraid that Joseph may not believe what the Orc-man had said.


    "Great, this is perfect."


    Joseph''s smile widened when he heard what the Orc-man had said. The three individuals subconsciously took a step back when they saw Joseph''s smile.


    "Just what are you nning on doing? Why did you bring them here?" Javier, who observed at the side couldn''t help but ask in order to satisfy his curiosity.


    "I just had an idea, brother Javier. Don''t worry about it, I will make sure that the old bastard won''t die under my interrogation." Joseph replied before he urged Ezreal and the three individuals toe and follow him towards the room beyond the sealed door.


    Before everyone could ask anything any further, both Joseph and Ezreal. Along with the three demi-humans were now inside the sealed door where Old Bastard John was located.


    Inside the room, Old Bastard John was astonished to find Joseph and Ezreal in front of him. However, he quickly revealed a murderous and greedy smile. His eyes reddened and saliva flowed down his chin.


    "I never expected that you''d willing send yourself in front of me, kid. Ever since I saw you earlier, I already had that desire on ravaging you under me... Ah, just imagining you wailing in pain and crying out loud under me brings me that sublime pleasure! Aaah! It''s out of this world!"


    Old Bastard John wed on his face as he parted his lips and stuck out his tongue. His throat made gurgling sounds and the peculiarity of this scene sent shivers down the spine of everyone. Including Ezreal who subconsciously stepped backward.


    "Young noble, why did you bring us here?"


    "Young noble..."


    The three demi-humans trembled like sieves in the face of Old Bastard John''s murderous aura.


    Joseph remained unaffected by it due to his passive skills, yet he could still understand how fierce Old Bastard John''s murderous aura was. Nevertheless, he didn''t let this be an obstacle to his ns as he said.


    "Since hours ago, you were co-inmates with this bastard. Does that mean that you were also bullied by him?" Joseph said these words when he realized that the fear within the three individual''s eyes didn''t only contain the natural fear of the weak from the strong, but also a trauma that would probablyst for a lifetime.


    The three didn''t reply, but it was apparent in their expressions that Joseph struck the mark.


    "Then, in that case, thank meter since the three of you will have this great opportunity to take revenge." Joseph mysteriously said and he signaled to Ezreal.


    "It''s time for this bastard to have a taste of his own medicine!" Joseph dered and Ezreal sent a ray of light flying towards the three individuals and Old Bastard John. Everything happened so suddenly that the four didn''t have any chance to react. When they realized it, the light had already dissipated at the center of their eyebrows.


    "Let''s see if you can still be so tight-lipped, Old Bastard John." Joseph coldly gazed at the astonished Old Bastard John.

 Chapter 48: Strange Slapping Sounds

    Chapter 48: Strange pping Sounds


    The other Jail Janitors couldn''t see what was going on within the sealed cell. With the doors closed, it was impossible for anyone to enter the room without it being opened by someone inside or someone with the necessary key.


    Javier had that key, but he obviously didn''t have the intention of opening it up until Joseph and Ezreal voluntarily came out along with the results of their interrogation.


    "Everything is so... quiet?" The Jail Janitors started whispering with each other, some had expressions of disdain, some had clear frowns on their faces for having their precious time wasted. Javier was starting to feel anxious that a mob may form just so they could open the door and found out about what was happening.


    Back when Jagger was inside the sealed cell along with Old Bastard John. They could feel some movements inside the sealed cell, but right now. Everything was absolutely quiet. Not even the resounding footsteps of those of the horsemen species could be heard.


    "I hope that everything is going fine for th-"


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    Before Javier couldplete his sentence, a scream filled with madness suddenly erupted from within the sealed cell.


    That particr scream that clearly came out from the mouth of Old Bastard John was so loud and strong that it prated through the thick walls of the sealed cell that was supposedly almost sound-proof.


    The scream sounded like the scream of someone that wished for nothing but the relief of death. It was something that they had never heard from the mouth of Old Bastard John.


    "What the fuck is going on?!" Each and every Jail Janitor within the vicinity now had their focus on the doors of the sealed cell. Right now, they wished for nothing but to burst inside that sealed cell and find out about what was going on behind it.


    The scream that came out from Old Bastard John''s mouth was a scream that they had never heard. Although they had heard him scream on numerous asions, this was the first time that he unleashed such a scream of despair, hopelessness, humiliation and the desire to die.


    All of them couldn''t help but feel a shiver down their spines when they realized the emotions contained within the scream...


    "That young man who looks like a soy-boy in the red-light district is capable of torturing someone as fierce as that old bastard to the extent that he would unleash such a maniacal scream?!" Their eyes bulged out of their sockets as they took huge mouthfuls of breath before they managed to calm themselves down.


    But in contrast to the shock that they felt. Javier looked anxious. His face filled with sweat that his face practically looked like a river right now. But why? Well, it was because when he connected the dots from the pills that Joseph borrowed from him. He found a sinister conclusion that also answered his questions.


    The reason why the Old Bastard John was screaming like that. Was because he''s currently in the process of tasting his own medicine...


    "Holy..." Javier mumbled under his breath when he realized that the species of demi-humans that Joseph had with him were ones that were well-endowed. Since Old Bastard John was a man, there could only be one entrance where he could taste his own medicine.


    His buttcheeks subconsciously clenched and his expression paled.


    "Are you okay, Senior?" One of the younger Jail Janitors couldn''t help but ask when he saw Javier''s pale expression.


    "Yeah, I''m fine. Don''t bother about me. What''s more important are the results..." Yes, that was more important. Javier thought, for as long as Ezreal and Joseph acquired results that were greater than what Jagger achieved. Everything could be excused.


    With the resources that the Kingdom has at its disposal. It wouldn''t be a problem for them to revive someone on the brink of death. For as long as Old Bastard John doesn''t die until all of his secrets were out. There wouldn''t be a problem.


    But the problem was, could a person really endure something like that? Taking on three well-endowed demi-human species at the same time and what''s worse was as a man. Could someone even live to tell the tale after suffering something like that? Javier didn''t know the answer to this question.


    But he sincerely hoped that Old Bastard John wouldn''t die.


    But just as Javier was praying sincerely in his heart. Old Bastard John''s screams intensified until they became a seemingly endless howl.


    "Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Please! No more! Please no more! Let me out of heeeeereee!!!"


    The terrifying mixture of emotions contained within the howl sent shivers down the spines of everyone as they all broke out in cold sweat.


    "Just what the fuck are the two of them doing?!" Javier loudly cursed. Every Jail Janitor that mocked Joseph and Ezreal earlier couldn''t keep their expressions still. As for the other prisoners, all of them squeezed their heads between the gaps of the metal railings that kept them inside their cells as they watched on inplete shock.


    As all of them listened closely, apart from the howling and screaming. One could hear sounds simr to when you p the surface of water. Those fierce, crisp sounds rang clearly within the sealed cell and Javier who knew from the start about what was going on couldn''t help but feel weak in his knees.


    "Senior!" The Jail Janitors rushed at Javier in order to help him stand up since he looked like he was about to copse.


    "What''s going on, Senior? Are you okay? What happened to you?"


    "This... This is serious..." Javier looked as pale as paper, his voice trembling as he desperately clung on the shoulders of the Jail Janitor who helped him before he said: "Call the Jail Warden! Call him! Tell him that there''s an emergency! Hurry up!"


    The hearts of every Jail Janitor shook. This was the first time that Javier acted in such a manner and they couldn''t help but panic. But since most of them were people that experienced far too many things in life. Their panic didn''tst for too long as the more experienced ones moved and went to fetch the Jail Warden.


    None of the Jail Janitors within Cellblock 5 heard such a scream before. Paired with the sound simr to pping the surface of water, each and every one of them visibly trembled as they subconsciously clenched their buttcheeks.


    "Wait, why are we clenching our butts?"


    "I don''t know... hearing that particr sound just makes me remember something..."


    "Me too..."


    The screams and the fierce, and loud pping sounds became a symphony that shook everyone''s heart to their core, it left everyone with the sensation that Old Bastard John was currently being subject to the most horrifying type of torment possible that the human mind could imagine.


    "What in the actual fuck is he really doing?! But whatever method he is using to get that Old Bastard scream like that, he''s on the right track! Such screams make it evident that what he''s suffering is something that everyone may even avoid at the deepestyers of hell!"


    Each and every Jail Janitor was having trouble breathing. Their minds couldn''tprehend what was going on, but before they could even specte any further. The familiar voices of their fellow Jail Janitors rang out behind them in a loud shout.


    "Behold! The Jail Warden is here!"


    The message contained within the shout pierced through everyone''s heart as they suddenly turned stiff. Slowly turning their bodies around, they all deeply bowed at the figure who arrived. The one and only god within the confines of this Underground Penitentiary, the one who stood at the peak of everyone in here. The Jail Warden himself.


    "What''s happening?" This was the first question that he asked. His dignified voice rang out and everyone clearly heard what he wanted to say, but none of them dared on answering. After all, none of them knew clearly about what was going on.


    Seeing the reactions of the Jail Janitors, the Jail Warden turned to look at Javier and asked: "You, exin to me what''s going on. You told me that there''s an emergency going on in here but I can''t see anything..." He suddenly stopped speaking when he heard a crisp pping sound reverberating within the sealed cell before them.


    "Si-sir... Our fellow Jail Janitors are in the process of interrogating the Old Bastard John. But as you can see, he''s releasing such anguished screams right now, and I think that there''s a good chance that he would die even before he could fully confess to the Kingdom." Javier bowed his head and the Jail Warden frowned.


    The screamsing out of Old Bastard John''s mouth were indeed wretched and horrifying. The Jail Warden shook his head and said: "That surely is within the realm of possibility. But everything depends on the results. If those two members of yours killed that Old Bastard John but didn''t sessfully extract any worthwhile confession, then..."


    The Jail Warden swept his cold gaze at everyone and all of them shivered in fear.


    All of them were clear about how cruel and ruthless the Jail Warden could be whenever he''s angry. None of them dared on inviting his anger upon themselves since that was equal to courting death. And so, each and every Jail Janitor cried out in their hearts. Praying fervently that Joseph and Ezreal wouldn''t do something drastic without any results.


    Just recently, everyone mocked Joseph and Ezreal for their inexperience and ignorance. But right now, all of them were deifying the two as if they were gods. They all prayed intently for the sess of the two since their lives now depended on Joseph and Ezreal.


    The Jail Warden stood like an immovable mountain before the doors of the sealed cell. His imposing figure further intensified the fear and anxiety of every Jail Janitor around him. In fact, one of them even kneeled on the ground and kowtowed for the blessing of his beloved Divine Goddess Rhinna.


    "Is this the reason why sir Fausto chose him?" The Jail Warden contemted. His eyebrows furrowed whilst he was deep in his thoughts. Honestly, the confession of Old Bastard John wasn''t really important for someone like him who was at the top of everything. What''s more important was the result of this confession.


    If Old Bastard John died, then he needed to do some disciplinary actions against the two and such an offense would definitely be punishable with expulsion. He didn''t want to expel the two, particrly Joseph for it was clear that he was the Great Inquisitor, Fausto''s borrowed knife.


    But it would be suspicious if he didn''t do anything against them if they did an offense. If Joseph acquired the suspicions of that noble then everything that Fausto worked hard for would be over. But if he did expel Joseph from the Underground Penitentiary, Fausto''s efforts would all be for naught too.


    The Jail Warden was having a headache right now. But since he couldn''t do anything to change the pass. He could only stand and wait. His expression remained cold and stern, paired with his imposing figure and iparable dignity. He looked terrifying to the Jail Janitors who now felt like they were ants on a hot pan.


    "Please don''t let that Old Bastard die!"


    "Please let him survive..."


    "Ah! Divine Goddess Rhinna, may you hear the prayers of your follower and not let that despicable Old Bastard die! If he dies then I, your follower will also perish along with him! Even though I don''t mind dying and being with your side, I still haven''t finished my life-long dream of establishing your temples all around the entire world!"


    The Jail Janitors cried out in their hearts as the screams of Old Bastard John intensified and became even more filled with insanity, despair, and madness. The prisoners within the entire Cellblock 5 had raised their heads and looked at the direction of the screams in shock.


    "I''ll talk! I''ll reveal everything that you want to know, so, please! Let me go!"


    "You''re gonna talk? Aren''t you so tight-lipped? Why are your lips so loose right now? Night still hasn''te and we haven''t even started yet!"


    "Forgive me, sir, please... Let them stop... Let me go..." Every Jail Janitor within the area almost couldn''t believe their ears. That Old Bastard John who always looked like he wanted a taste of us was begging? The prisoners who knew about the identity of the prisoner within the sealed cell all had their mouths opened in astonishment.


    Just what kind of torment was the Old Bastard John experiencing to the extent that he would actually beg for mercy...


    Unfortunately for the Old Bastard John. It seemed like Joseph and Ezreal didn''t look like they were actually interrogating him for a confession. It felt like the two were merely tormenting him for fun as they repeatedly dismissed Old Bastard John''s efforts on confessing so that his torment would end.


    The Jail Warden stared hard at the sealed cell when he realized this fact: "Just how did sir Fausto get to know such a terrifying monster? He''s still so young, yet he''s that vicious already? It seems like sir Fausto really hates that bastard noble that much!"


    The Jail Warden''s gaze turned cold whilst he was staring at the doors of the sealed cell.


    "What the hell are you doing?! How can you pay for those pills that you borrowed from me if you''re dead!" Javier mumbled to himself as he forced himself to stand up steadily.


    The screams and strange pping soundssted for an hour until the Old Bastard John finally exhausted himself. A loud creaking sound rang out as Ezreal, along with Joseph and the three demi-humans came out of the sealed cell.


    Joseph and Ezreal had a small smile on his face, while the three demi-humans looked strange. The expressions of the three looked refreshed, yet exhausted. Their eyes still zed with a strange, pinkish light as a wide smile spread on their lips.


    All five of them slowly walked out of the sealed cell as each and every spectator, including the prisoners who were in their jail cells, stared at them in astonishment.


    Joseph, Ezreal, and the three demi-humans looked the same as what they looked like before they entered the sealed cell an hour ago. But when everyone looked into the sealed cell that now had its doors opened. Their eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.


    Old Bastard John now looked shriveled as if something burned all of his muscles and fats from the inside. He seemed like a withered flower as he sat at the corner of the cell with a nk look on his face. His eyes radiated, not any light of life and his skin, covered in horrible scratch marks that were clearly not made with human hands...


    All spectators were left gasping for air. The difference between the Old Bastard John just an hour ago, and the Old Bastard John after Joseph and Ezreal came out of the sealed cell, was staggering that most of the spectators even pped their own cheeks to check if they were dreaming.


    Jail Janitors and prisoners alike stared at Joseph and Ezreal with serious, yet dumbfounded expressions.


    Even the Jail Warden couldn''t speak anything as Joseph calmed down his shock from seeing the Jail Warden himself before approaching thetter and handing over a crystal ball.


    "Honorable Jail Warden, this is his confession."


    The Jail Warden mechanically epted the crystal ball and Javier looked at Joseph and Ezreal as if he was looking at gods that descended from the heavens and graced them, mortals, with their abilities.


    The Jail Warden received the crystal ball and scanned it with his abilities for a moment before he reeled in shock.


    "The two of you,e to my office after this. We have something to discuss." The Jail Warden said in a gentle voice as if he was speaking to someone whom he doted on. The surrounding Jail Janitors couldn''t believe what they were hearing.


    The cruel and ruthless Jail Warden could actually act like that? What the hell?


    But before each and every one of them could think about it even further, the Jail Warden left in a hurry. Leaving Joseph and Ezreal at the center of everyone''s attention.


    After a short moment of silence, everyone exploded in glee.


    "Holy shit! You saved us, my man!"


    "What the fuck man! Why didn''t you tell us as soon as possible that you are that formidable?!"


    "Quick, raise him up! We gotta throw him up!"


    The Jail Janitors surrounded Ezreal and Joseph, as the two of them hurriedly shouted in panic.


    "Unhand us! What the hell are you doing to master?! Ah! Master!"


    "Calm down, brothers!"


    The Jail Janitors even danced around the two in apparent joy. Such a scene was something that the prisoners haven''t seen from these terrifying Jail Janitors.


    But more importantly, they now had a new subject for their fear. As all of them turned to look at the twitching Old Bastard John and his nk, lifeless eyes. They all decided in unison that Joseph and Ezreal was someone that they could never afford to provoke!


    All of them gulped several mouthfuls of their own saliva just so they could suppress the fear for the two in their hearts.

 Chapter 49: Never Again

    Chapter 49: Never Again


    After a few moments, the dizzy Joseph was finally spared from the experience of being thrown in the air until his face almost harvested the ripe stctites hanging on the ceiling.


    When the Jail Janitors saw the expressions on Ezreal and Joseph''s faces, all of themughed. Including Jagger who had animosity with Joseph.


    Speaking of Jagger, Joseph felt awkward seeing his stare of admiration. After all, Jagger was someone who openly antagonized him earlier and he had defeated him in apetition.


    Shouldn''t he feel regret, bitter and angry at him? From the novels that Joseph read, it had always been a popr cliche where an enemy would feel bitter about their loss and try to challenge their enemy once again only to end up being pped on the face again.


    The Jail Janitors sensed the awkwardness that Joseph felt whenever Jagger stared at him and most of them couldn''t help but chuckle.


    "Don''t worry too much about it, brother. Jagger is a simple-minded man, although he gets really scary once he''s truly angry. In the end, he''s still someone that is humble in victory, graceful in defeat. You need not worry about him getting back at you."


    "Yeah, that''s right, brother. Now that I think of it, we still haven''t heard the name of you two young brothers."


    "Ah, yeah. Today is the second day since the two of you became a member of the Underground Penitentiary, right? It does make sense that we still do not know your name..."


    "But no worries, all of us in here have special circumstances for being a member of this ce, and so. We brothers will not force you on revealing your identities."


    "But brother, can you at least tell us about what you did to that Old Bastard John? You don''t have to tell us about the details, just tell us the gist of it or else we may not be able to sleep properly tonight due to curiosity!"


    "Yeah, yeah, that''s right, brother. At least tell us that!"


    Joseph felt grateful towards these Jail Janitors. When he remembered their shocked expressions earlier, he couldn''t help but feel the duty of exining everything towards them. He turned to look behind him and found that the three demi-humans had sneaked away when he was distracted.


    A bitter smile emerged on his face and he didn''t have any choice but to say.


    "I just had him taste his own medicine, brothers."


    "Taste his own medicine?"


    The Jail Janitors were visibly confused when they heard what Joseph said.


    "Yeah, do you still remember the reason why that old bastard is so notorious?"


    Joseph gave another hint.


    "Ah!"


    They finally realized what method Joseph used against the Old Bastard John.


    "Holy shit! You did something like that to him?"


    "So that''s the reason why you brought those demi-humans with you? Furthermore, they are really well-endowed so that old bastard must''ve suffered..."


    "What are you saying? Don''t you still remember the inhuman screams that he unleashed earlier? I think that everything''s not what brother is telling us. But still..."


    "Yeah..."


    "That is such a simple, yet ridiculous method on forcing that old bastard to confess..."


    The Jail Janitors looked at each other with bitter smiles. Although they had thought of such a method before since the Jail Janitors that often relieved their stress with the bodies of the prisoners.


    The first thing that they thought of when it came to that idea was that they were the ones that would inflict such a punishment on Old Bastard John. In other words, they were the ones that would make him taste his own medicine


    That was something that they couldn''t ept so they hurriedly scrapped that method away, but it turned out that it was the most effective method. The idea was simple and straightforward. Only the execution was somewhat different and unique. Most of them couldn''t think of forcing other prisoners on sexually assaulting the fierce old bastard.


    "Ermmm... Nevertheless, we will all benefit from your presence. But unfortunately, I don''t think that brother can be with us much longer." Javier said in an amicable manner, a bitter smile could be seen on his lips as he said these words.


    "What do you mean by that, brother?" Joseph asked with a frown. The Jail Janitors around him also sighed as Javier further exined.


    "Since the Jail Warden summoned you to his office. Most likely, the two of you acquired information that warrants an honorable promotion. After today, I am pretty sure that both of you are going to be Inquisitors. That is a job that each and every one of us in here wanted but couldn''t get."


    When Javierpleted his sentence, sadness and mncholy could be seen in his expression. Ezreal couldn''t help but ask when he saw them acting like this.


    "What''s wrong? Is being an Inquisitor, really that good?"


    Javier looked at Ezreal and said: "Inquisitors are the ultimate representation of wealth and status within the Underground Penitentiary. Not only they''ll get to interrogate those wealthier and stronger prisoners. They often receive bribes from them. In other words, you''ll be filthy rich as an Inquisitor!"


    "Not only that, but Inquisitors also had their ownmand medallion and because of that. They could go to the surface whenever they wanted and at the surface, they are treated with respect like City Governors. Ah, if I could get such a position then I dare say for sure that I''ll die without any regrets..."


    Javier and the other Jail Janitors looked passionate when the former exined the greatness of Inquisitors. Some of them even tantly disyed looks of envy towards Ezreal and Joseph.


    "Brothers, I do hope that you won''t forget us once you''re at the top!"


    "My name is Jacinto! Please don''t forget about my name brother and I hope that you can whisper some good things about me to the honorable Jail Warden, hahaha!"


    "Me too, brother! My name''s Elmer by the way."


    Everyone was too passionate and excited being around Joseph and Ezreal to the extent that the two couldn''t help but also feel passionate. As all of them walked on the hallways of Cellblock 5, the prisoners around them stared at Joseph as if they were looking at a creature within their worst nightmare...


    Joseph felt wrong whenever he sensed such stares. I mean, why would they fear him that much when in fact, he didn''t even do anything other than feed those bastards some aphrodisiacs? In fact, they should fear those three demi-humans and Ezreal!


    Those three did the pounding, while Ezreal did the healing so that Old Bastard John wouldn''t die no matter how many injuries he suffered.


    In the end, apart from the scratch marks on his skin and his obviously damaged mental state. He still looked like what he looked like before Joseph entered the scene.


    Of course, his eyes devoid of life was a different matter altogether.


    But Joseph wasn''t willing to talk about that. Because for now, there was a far pressing matter that he should resolve before thinking about anything else. The pressing matter gave so much excitement to Joseph that he looked like he couldn''t stay any longer in here anymore.


    After saying his farewells towards the other Jail Janitors. Joseph moved towards the Jail Warden''s office that was behind an unassuming wall.


    If not for Ezreal''s skill in detection, Joseph wouldn''t feel suspicious about that particr wall that had nothing special about it apart from the fact that it''s in the Underground Penitentiary.


    "That''s the wall, master. I can sense the existence of Mana around that wall and I am pretty sure that there''s something behind it that cannot be seen with the naked eye." Ezreal gestured and Joseph slowly approached the wall.


    Although careful, he wasn''t really on guard due to the fact that he''s a member of the Underground Penitentiary. What could harm him here? In the first ce, who would dare to harm him here?


    Joseph reaffirmed his resolve, nodded his head and touched that unassuming wall. He turned to look at Ezreal with a frown: "Ezreal, I don''t think that there''s something in here, I mean look at th- Ah! My hand! My hand disappeared!" He screamed out loud when he saw that his hand went directly through the cold surface of the wall.


    "Calm down, calm down master. Just walk straight into the wall and nothing bad will happen." Ezreal lightly chuckled and said in a somewhat sarcastic, yet pitying manner when he saw Joseph''s reaction.


    "Are you sure that nothing bad will happen?" Joseph asked once again.


    "Of course! I am pretty confident with my detection skills master and ording to the fluctuations of Mana around that wall, there''s nothing that can possibly harm you in it. I can''t even feel any ill intent." Ezreal exined and Joseph finally calmed down.


    "Okay, in that case. I''ll go first. You follow me as soon as possible, alright?" Joseph asked in a somewhat terrified manner before he gulped a mouthful of saliva and walked directly towards the wall. Like what Ezreal said, his body sunk like stone thrown into the ocean as he soon disappeared from Ezreal''s sight.


    "Hahaha, master''s really hrious. That kind of magic is so simple that I can deploy something like that with such a flick of my wrist. But oh well, this ce is quite wretched so I can''t really me master from being spooked out." Ezreal chuckled to himself before he slowly walked towards the wall...


    Bang!


    But instead of going through the wall. He crashed on it, head first.


    "What the fuck?! The Mana surrounding it had changed?! Holy shit, master! Are you there, master? Masteeeer!" Ezreal cried out loud when he realized what happened.


    He repeatedly mmed his palms on the unassuming stone wall, but for some reason. It never crumbled under his immense strength.


    Left alone, within the darkness. Even Ezreal who was normally not afraid of the dark couldn''t help but feel shivers down his spine. For him, everything sounded clearer than ever before. It was as if his hearing magically improved since he could clearly hear everything that was happening around him.


    The silent whistling of the cold wind, and the pitter-patter of the droplets of water falling from stctites. Everything sounded so clear for Joseph that he couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva in fear.


    A cold wind swept his back and he fiercely turned around. His back was now facing the unassuming wall as he fiercelyshed out.


    "Who''s there?!"


    He took a stance with his fists ready to attack when someone suddenly touched him on his shoulders.


    "Ah!"


    Ezreal screamed out loud and in his panic. He swung his fist towards the one that touched him from behind.


    Bang!


    That figure flew backward and when the dust cleared up. Ezreal saw the figure of a sorry-looking Joseph sitting down with his back on the unassuming wall and with his lips lifted in a bitter smile.


    [ You suffered 1,141,512 damage! ]


    [ You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock! Due to the amount of damage that your body has suffered, you will be unconditionally Stiffened for three seconds. ]


    [ This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted! ]


    [ You are an absolute existence. A shield equal to 100% of the damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds has been made. ]


    "Yeah, I guess. I will never try and prank Ezreal again..."

 Chapter 50: Promotion

    Chapter 50: Promotion


    "Master!" Ezreal cried out in a panic. He rushed towards Joseph''s location and seeing his injuries. He opened both his palms and pushed towards Joseph''s direction


    "Ugh..." A wave of green light enveloped Joseph''s body and several system notifications appeared right before his eyes.


    [ You are under the effects of Compassion. ]


    [ You will regain a certain percentage of your Health every second for the next twenty seconds. ]


    [ You have recovered from Stiffness due to the effects of Compassion. ]


    Joseph stared at his Health Bar and found that at the very first second after Compassion took effect. His Health shot up by a fourth and at the next second, it recovered once again at the same rate.


    "What the fuck? That''s somepletely unbelievable healing!" Joseph was taken aback when he realized that under the effects of Compassion.


    He could recover his entire Health Bar in a mere four seconds.


    But something was telling Joseph that the activation of such a cheating percentage Healing meant paying a heavy price...


    Joseph raised his head and found Ezreal staring at him with a worried expression. Right now, his nose was bleeding and his neck looked pale.


    "Ezreal, stop," Joseph mumbled and Ezreal was astonished.


    He still looked worried but seeing that Joseph was conscious and could even speak.


    He was relieved: "Master... I thought that I... identally killed you."


    Joseph didn''t know whether tough or to cry when he heard what Ezreal said. Even he didn''t expect that he''d suffer that much damage in the face of Ezreal''s fist.


    Although he understood that it was reasonable that Ezreal could kill him in an instant. He didn''t expect that Ezreal could kill him in an instant without using his Sound Magic, but only a single fist.


    "..."


    Joseph honestly couldn''t understand how he survived fighting against such a monster. But then, he had an idea of how Ezreal became so weak when fighting against him back then.


    But of course, that wasn''t the main point right now. What''s more important was stopping Ezreal from further using this so-called, [ Compassion ] skill.


    "It''s okay, It''s okay, It''s okay. In the first ce, it''s my fault that I tried on scaring you so can you stop doing what you''re doing right now? I am fully healed, and I can walk just fine."


    Joseph gently pushed Ezreal backward before standing up, he even flexed his muscles and showcased to Ezreal that he had recovered from the damages that he suffered.


    Ezreal stared in astonishment at Joseph''s antics and he couldn''t help but chuckle: "Master, do you even lift?"


    Joseph was taken aback by the response that he got as he said: "What do you mean by do I even lift? I''ll have you know, but every day. I always train my body! Having a healthy body is the foundation of everything. What use is wealth when you''re sickly and can''t even take advantage of it!"


    "That is why I train myself every day so by the time that I be filthy rich, I can enjoy my wealth as much as I want!" Joseph dered, his arms crossed in front of his chest and his head raised towards the skies in an iparably arrogant manner.


    But what he got in response from Joseph was another chuckle.


    "Hahaha, so master is saying that your goal is bing filthy rich?"


    "Of course! Why else would I be working this hard if not for the sake of money!" Joseph almost immediately answered.


    "Then in that case, just what is master''s ultimate goal?"


    Ezreal''s question sounded simple but it made Joseph speechless.


    That''s right, just what was his ultimate goal? Just what was the reason why he wanted so much money in life?


    Could his reason be only that he wanted to live a life that his parents wanted to give to him in the first ce? Was that really it?


    Seeing Joseph''s confusion, Ezreal chuckled once again and said: "I don''t think that Master needs to worry about something like that for now. One''s reason for living cannot be easily stumbled upon..."


    "Anyone''s mind can change along with their priorities, a few years ago. One''s reason for living maybe for money, but now. Their reason for living might be for their family..."


    "Everything depends on circumstances, Master. And with your identity, those circumstances are ever-changing. Your reason for living and working hard can never be static. After all, master''s the one and only Grand Duelist." At the end of his sentence, Ezreal revealed a wide smile on his face and Joseph felt like he was enraptured with the former''s charm.


    "No, no, no, no, nooo!!!"


    Realizing what happened to him, he hurriedly shook his head and cried out.


    "Master? Are you okay? Could it be that there''s still some remaining damage that Compassion couldn''t recover?"


    Ezreal moved towards him and Joseph panicked: "Such a powerful skill like that couldn''tpletely heal me?"


    "No that''s not the case, master. Compassion is a skill that can heal through any abnormal statuses apart from the select few. But there''s something that it cannot heal..."


    Ezreal purposely lengthened the end of his sentence and stared in a cheeky manner at Joseph who now looked pale from anxiousness.


    If a particr damage couldn''t be healed by that powerful percentage heal, could something even heal it? His eyes radiated fear as he stared at Ezreal who had a cheeky smile on his face.


    When Ezreal purposely lengthened the end of his sentence, Joseph found that something was wrong. But his hunch was immediately confirmed when he asked...


    "Then, Ezreal... What are those that Compassion can''t heal?"


    "Mental Illness!" Ezreal almost immediately replied.


    "..."


    A few minutester, inside a darkened hallway where only torches served as one''s source of light. Two figures could be seen walking briskly in the midst of it all.


    "Master, I''m sorry! I was just joking! How could master have a mental illness? I was really just joking, alright!" Ezreal shouted at Joseph who walked briskly in front of him.


    Joseph didn''t respond to his pleading and only kept on walking.


    "Master, I really am sorry! Can you not give me that cold shoulder? Or wait, could it be that master is making me do that S and M y that I read from Bodybuilder''s First Love?" Ezreal cried out once again, but this time. A reaction finally appeared.


    Joseph immediately stopped on his tracks and stared at Ezreal who still looked quite handsome even though his expression wasced with worry.


    "Could it be that not being in a rtionship with the other sex for so long has made me turn into someone that swings both ways? That cannot be! Even though I don''t particrly dislike them, I am a straight man! I am straight! I want women! Women with ass and tits!"


    Joseph''s expression hardened, he stared hard at Ezreal who gulped a mouthful of saliva due to the sudden change in the atmosphere.


    "What''s wrong, master?" Ezreal carefully asked.


    "Ezreal, do you have any sisters?" Joseph asked in a serious manner.


    Ezreal was taken aback by the question and his expression revealed confusion: "Why is master asking about something like that?"


    "Just answer me," Joseph replied.


    "Well, I do have a younger sister." Ezreal nodded.


    "Is she beautiful though?" Joseph carefully asked.


    "Of course! Those that have such a pure bloodline like mine cannot be ugly! That is something decided by thews of causality itself! Of course, my younger sister is beautiful! Are you in doubt about what I am saying, master?" For the first time, Ezreal frowned when he heard what Joseph had said.


    Shocked by the sudden change, Joseph hurriedly shook his head and exined: "Of course I believe you! Why would I doubt your words? Does that even make sense?"


    Ezreal nodded his head in agreement and at the same time, he felt excited about the words that Joseph said: "Yes, master! Does it even make sense for me to lie in front of you? But speaking of my younger sister, ah... I really miss her now. I miss her cuteness and the fact that she can be cheerful in the face of everything..."


    "Not only that she''s also very powerful. By now she should be at least as powerful as me. Although she''s quite hot-headed, she''s someone that really cares for whom she loves and I think that she also cares for me just as how much I care for her!"


    Ezreal suddenly became a prominent rapper as he spat bars describing his sister in a glorified manner.


    Joseph repeatedly blinked in the face of Ezreal''s enthusiasm as he slowly spoke up: "Ermmm, Ezreal. In other words, you love your sister very much and she also loves you as much as you love her?"


    "Yes! That''s it, Master! Ahhh, master really understands me the most!" Ezreal cried out loud in the face of Joseph''s question.


    But instead of feeling happiness, Joseph''s expression turned pale when he realized that he had to deal with Ezreal''s enthusiasm until they arrived at their destination...


    The party of two soon arrived at the end of the darkened hallway. Of course, what greeted them when they arrived was...


    You guessed it!


    Another stone wall.


    But this time...


    As soon as the two stepped right in front of the stone wall. A pitch-ck light burst forth from the stone wall and engulfed the two of them in an instant.


    Everything happened so suddenly that by the time that the two were done with blinking their eyes, they found themselves inside a room that they had never seen before.


    About three meters before them was a table where a familiar figure could be seen seated behind the table.


    "Oh, you are finally awake."


    Joseph was astonished by the scene that he saw upon opening his eyes, but when he heard the familiar words.


    He couldn''t help but say...


    "I didn''t walk into an Imperial ambush, right?"


    The Jail Warden who sat behind the table asked with a frown.


    "Imperial Ambush? Why would there be an Imperial ambush in here?"


    "No-nothing..."


    Realizing his mistake, Joseph hurriedly corrected himself with an awkward scratch on his head.


    The Jail Warden didn''t pursue Joseph''s nonsense any further as he just handed over amand medallion towards the two of them and said.


    "Both of you did well with your recent interrogations. The information that you gathered from that Old Bastard John is a piece of information valuable enough that it deserves a promotion." The Jail Warden spoke in a cold voice that felt like he wasn''t even congratting them.


    Joseph and Ezreal frowned when they realized this subtlety, and the Jail Warden continued on speaking.


    "As Inquisitors, the two of you are now a member of the Maximum Security Cellblock where the more powerful or tight-lipped prisoners are located. Forcing a confession out of them will you rewards that only you can take advantage of instead of a whole group. Being an Inquisitor meant a life of wealth and higher status..."


    "But unfortunately, unlike the Jail Janitors. Rtionships between Inquisitors are often rough and fights all for the sake of interrogating someone powerful or rich often happen. After all, those that managed on forcing a confession out of those rich bastards are basically guaranteed with high rewards...


    "But here''s the problem, when those Inquisitors find that the new Inquisitors joining them were Inquisitors that haven''t spent even a month as Jail Janitors. They will most likely be not convinced of your abilities. By now, they must be thinking that both of you passed by a fluke which is certainly not true..."


    The Jail Warden paused and swept his gaze at Ezreal and Joseph.


    After a few moments, he sighed and shook his wrist.


    [Item: Inquisitor''s Medallion has been obtained!]


    [A medallion that could only be given by the Jail Warden of the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether, vassal to the Empire. While holding this medallion, you can go everywhere within the Penitentiary and everyone will respect you.]


    Joseph swiftly nced at the system notifications and the Jail Warden suddenly spoke up.


    "Okay, it is now time for the two of you to get out of my office. The promotion has been done and I think that both of you have no matters in here anymore, right?" The Jail Warden made a shooing gesture at the two.


    But Joseph still had questions in his mind and so, he asked: "Now that I am an Inquisitor, honorable Jail Warden. May I ask about how one can be a Great Inquisitor and what are the benefits of being one?"


    The Jail Warden froze for a moment before a small smile lifted on his lips. He stared at Joseph with a hidden glint shining in his eyes before he spoke: "Have the two of you realized yet that the Underground Penitentiary currently doesn''t have any Great Inquisitors?"


    The two shook their heads and the Jail Warden continued: "Great Inquisitors are figures that have absolute strength when ites to torture and forcing confessions. No matter who they are or how dignified they are. If they are under a Great Inquisitor''s torment, they have no other choice but to confess. That''s how fearsome Great Inquisitors are..."


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva. He remembered Old Bastard John''s ferocity and thought that if not for his great idea of making that bastard taste his own medicine then he wouldn''t even be here in the first ce.


    "The process of being a Great Inquisitor back then is pretty difficult...


    "But right now, it is incredibly simple, yet incredibly hard. By simple, I mean you do not have to undergoplicated processes back then where you had to harvest about a hundred vengeful souls from those whom you forced a confession from..."


    "Right now, only one requirement was necessary. You only have to force a confession from a particr person imprisoned at the most secretive jail cell within the Maximum Security Cellblock. If you managed to do so then you''ll be named as one of the strongest Inquisitor, a Great Inquisitor."


    The Jail Warden stared right into Joseph before a small smile lifted on his lips.


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva and asked: "Only a single person? Just who is that person and why would forcing a confession out of him warrants a guaranteed promotion as a Great Inquisitor?"


    The Jail Warden''s smile deepened and he exined: "Well, that particr person isn''t a nobody. He''s someone that the Kingdom continuously coveted for these several years already. Unfortunately, he''s too tough and his lips are perfectly sealed. In fact, without using special methods then one couldn''t even make him flinch. He''s that tough of a guy..."


    "As for who he is..."


    The Jail Warden swept his gaze at the two and said...


    "He''s the one and only Legendary cksmith of the current generation..."


    "The Legendary cksmith, Krid!"


    His words thoroughly astonished both Joseph and Ezreal.

 Chapter 51: Value of a Legendary Blacksmith

    Chapter 51: Value of a Legendary cksmith


    A few months ago, Joseph entered the world of Victory only for the money.


    He didn''t read anything about the world of Victory such as the lore, and some information about how the world of Victory came to be. At most, he watched a few minutes of the Beginner''s Tutorial and he even skipped to the part wherebat in Victory was described.


    Because of this, Joseph wasn''t that knowledgeable when ites to tiers. Especially Item and ss Tiers.


    Of course, he knew that the Mythical ss was the highest one, but he didn''t know what were the names of the sses beneath the Mythical ss. He had an idea that Legendary was second to Mythical, but he didn''t like assumptions without basis.


    Right now, it was about time for Joseph to learn more about sses. Particrly those that had Legendary as their prefix, even though he knew that they were definitely powerful. He didn''t know the true scale of their strength for he had no knowledge about them in the first ce.


    Ezreal had knowledge about them but from what Joseph knew about Ezreal''s attitude, he''s the type of person that would greatly exaggerate everything that he knew about something whenever he was bragging about it.


    Joseph believed some of the words that Ezreal said but it being careful wouldn''t hurt.


    "The one and only Legendary cksmith? A legend is being imprisoned within the confines of this dungeon?" Joseph asked in disbelief.


    Ezreal''s expression changed into a serious one while the Jail Warden nodded his head and said.


    "It doesn''t make sense, right? Why would a Legendary cksmith be imprisoned? He should be glorified, treated as someone with equal status and should be given the highest treatment possible just so you could acquire his favor. But why did the Kingdom imprison him instead?"


    Joseph nced at Ezreal.


    Ezreal was the one who told him that Krid was imprisoned within the Underground Penitentiary.


    He might have an idea about why the Legendary cksmith was captured by the Kingdom and imprisoned, but when Joseph turned to look at Ezreal. Thetter also looked dumbfounded.


    Bitterly smiling, Joseph had no other choice but to ask.


    "But why is someone like him imprisoned in here, honorable Jail Warden? It really doesn''t make sense."


    "Yeah, it doesn''t make sense. But what if I told you that the Legendary cksmith had no intention of making friends with the Kingdom? What do you think would the Kingdom do?" The Jail Warden asked Joseph and Ezreal.


    Ezreal frowned, while Joseph almost immediately answered: "Find another cksmith?"


    "Hahaha!"


    The moment that his answer came out of his mouth. The Jail Wardenughed out loud.


    Hisughtersted for a few seconds and he even held his stomach whilst his shoulders continuously trembled like a sieve.


    "You''re funny! You''re really funny... Do you really think that the Kingdom didn''t think of that solution? But who do you Legendary cksmiths are?"


    "The reason why they became Legends in the first ce was that they are at the peak of their profession. Do you think that someone like that can easily be reced by some random cksmith?"


    Joseph nodded his head, what the Jail Warden said was reasonable. It seemed like he answered hastily and so, he bowed his head in apologies.


    "Don''t worry about it. I am used to such words, really. I mean, people often underestimate the value of the Legendary cksmith when they haven''t even seen how terrifying could they be..."


    "Especially Krid, that old man has a lot of tricks under his sleeves..." The Jail Warden''s eyes briefly shed in horror when he remembered Krid''s might.


    Joseph didn''t notice this brief instance of fear for he had his head bowed and his eyes facing the floor. When he raised his head, that trace of fear within the Jail Warden''s eyes disappeared as if it never existed in the first ce.


    "I thank the Honorable Jail Warden for his kind words." Joseph sped his hands together.


    "You''re really polite." The Jail Warden lightly smiled and nodded his head before continuing: "Well anyways, the value of a Legendary cksmith isn''t in their title, but their abilities..."


    "Thew of causality dictates that only those that have created their own art or technique are the ones deserving to be a legend..."


    "In other words..." The Jail Warden swept his gaze at Ezreal and Joseph.


    "In other words..." The expressions of the two turned serious and the Jail Warden finally continued.


    "Krid''s created technique is incredibly useful for the Kingdom. Especially now that the Kingdom is quite in an antsy state due to diplomatic matters."


    "If not for this so-called state of emergency, the Kingdom wouldn''t resort to extreme means such as imprisoning a Legend then torturing him to work..."


    "Krid''s technique..." Joseph mumbled before he asked: "Then, are there any clues yet about what is the honorable Legendary cksmith''s personal technique?"


    The Jail Warden shook his head and said: "Unfortunately, there''s not much information about that. Even I at the highest position of the Underground Penitentiary isn''t privy with that sort of information. I also don''t n on involving myself in this matter, after all. The one who ismanding us to do all of these is that bastard duke."


    When the Jail Wardenpleted his sentence. Joseph jolted in fear and hurriedly turned to look around him amidst Ezreal''s confusion regarding his actions.


    "Are you okay, master?"


    "Hahaha, don''t worry. This ce is my exclusive and personal office. There''s no way that any mole can get into this ce without my knowledge." The Jail Warden reassured Joseph and thetter finally heaved a sigh in relief.


    "Keeping that Legendary cksmith in the Maximum Security Cellblock has been a good choice so far, I can''t really be angry at that duke. Ever since Krid came here, the Inquisitors who were tooidback on their jobs are finally bingpetitive. But unfortunately, that day will soon end..."


    The Jail Warden sighed in bitterness and Joseph, who remembered the seven-days deadline of his quest shook in astonishment as he asked: "That day will soon end? What does Honorable Jail Warden mean by that?"


    The Jail Warden turned to look at Joseph and said: "In four days, Krid will be publicly executed by the Kingdom due to high treason. Although this sentence may change if he does cooperate with the Kingdom before the stipted date of his execution. Haist... A Legendary cksmith is really awesome, but he''s gonna die like that? It''s quite sad, really."


    He once again sighed in regret.


    Joseph, on the other hand, looked anxious and tense.


    "Honorable Jail Warden, is there any way for me to meet that Legendary cksmith?" Joseph asked in a serious manner and the Jail Warden asked him with a frown.


    "Why would you want to meet him? Is he even connected to your mission?"


    "Ye-ah! Sir! He''s a Legendary cksmith! It would be a shame if I cannot see such a prestigious man of his skills before his death."


    Joseph almost subconsciously answered with a yes, but then he remembered that the Jail Warden wasn''t talking about his quest but that other mission that he supposedly acquired from Fausto.


    "In that case then feel free. I don''t really care that much about a man that''s already dead. Right now, he''s just being used by the other Inquisitors as a dummy for their torture experimentations..."


    "The guy is so tough that the Inquisitors actually gave up on forcing a confession out of him. The rewards from his confession are now being treated as a bonus."


    The Jail Warden shook his head and looked like he didn''t know whether tough or to cry.


    "Ah, wait. Before you go and meet that Legendary cksmith. You can enter a squad amidst the Inquisitors. All the Inquisitors within the Maximum Security Cellblock deep within the Maximum Security Tunnel are separated into ten squads..."


    "Just choose whatever you want and ask them about the qualifications of meeting that Legend."


    Joseph looked confused, "But sir, didn''t you say that I can feel free and meet him whenever I want?"


    The Jail Warden replied: "Yes, I did say that but what do you think will those arrogant Inquisitors think if a new Inquisitor directly challenged the strongest and final boss of the prisoners?"


    "Wouldn''t they disdain and give you contempt and think that you are just showing off your insignificant might against an expert?"


    What the Jail Warden said made sense and both Ezreal and Joseph nodded their heads in approval.


    Afterward, the Jail Warden shooed them away as if he was scaring cats and dogs.


    When the Jail Warden was finally left alone, a small smile lifted on his lips.


    "The bait has been cast, could it be that sir Fausto really wants that to happen? I just don''t understand, although the man next to him felt extraordinary. He himself doesn''t really feel that special apart from the fact that he could endure my unbridled dignity..."


    "But still... If this is what you want, sir Fausto. I''ll dly assist you. This is the only method that I can use for paying that debt that I owe you back then..."


    "Of course, everything still depends on his ability. I am a mere Jail Warden, someone whose might exists only under the surface..."


    "Oh, Divine Goddess Rhinna... May you bless him with sess."


    The Jail Warden kneeled on one knee and raised his head towards a portrait covered under the veil of darkness. Even though only a part of the portrait was revealed.


    One could see from the rosy white skin of the woman within the portrait that she was incredibly gorgeous with a beauty that''s holier than divine.

 Chapter 52: Undercurrents

    Chapter 52: Undercurrents


    [ Someone powerful has prayed for your sess to the Divine Goddess Rhinna! ]


    [ The Divine Goddess Rhinna responds and she blesses you with a wide smile. ]


    [ A random effect with a random duration will be generated. ]


    [ Generating... ]


    Several system notifications appeared right before Joseph''s eyes and he stopped on his tracks.


    "Master?" Ezreal who was behind him asked. But Joseph looked like he never heard him. Right now, Joseph''s focus was only on the system notification that was generating his so-called random reward from the Goddess''s blessing.


    "Someone powerful has prayed for my sess? Who did that? Ezreal? No, Ezreal is behind me all the time, I don''t think that he managed on praying for my sess. Wait, could it be that it''s the Jail Warden? He does have the reason to pray for my sess, but it''s unthinkable that someone like him lurking within the darkness is a devout believer of a god..."


    "And shouldn''t he hate me if that''s the case? I mean, I have that particr title. Why is he praying for my sess instead? That doesn''t make sense." Joseph''s eyebrows knitted, but he still looked particrly excited as he waited for the rewards that he may acquire from the Goddess''s Blessing.


    "What if it''s a really good effect with an infinite duration? Hahaha, that''s impossible. But what if!" Joseph inwardly cried as he patiently waited for his reward.


    [ Your reward has been decided! ]


    [ Reward: Slippery Skin! ]


    [ Slippery Skin Lv. MAX


    Your skin is as slippery as an eel. This could have a great effect depending on the circumstances, but it is usually annoying since you will find it impossible to walk barefoot nor grip anything properly.


    Duration: 5 Days.]


    "..."


    Joseph''s soul left his body when he saw the reward that he acquired. His knees felt weak and he copsed towards Ezreal who cried out in shock and panic.


    "Master? What happened? Master... Master!"


    Ezreal hurriedly inspected Joseph and when he found that his eyes were wide open and he was responding to stimulus, he cried out once again.


    "What the hell happened to you, master? Wait, master. Why is your skin so slippery?"


    "No, I''m fine. I''m fine. Please. Let''s just not talk about it, okay?" Joseph stared and pleaded. The confused Ezreal couldn''t do anything other than scratch his head as the two of them walked towards the outside and headed for their barracks.


    Once Joseph returned to his barracks. He couldn''t feel rxed even though he was standing in a room that was iparably familiar to him. Opening his Main Menu, he found that his body''s physiological function in the outside world needed relief.


    Having experienced such a letdown and after ying for at least half a day. Joseph called it a day and logged out of the world of Victory. As soon as he awakened at the other side, he instantly shot up from his Gaming Capsule and went for the bathroom.


    "Haissst, the smell of my bedroom is still the best. Even Victory couldn''t replicate this unique smell of mine!" Joseph mumbled to himself with a wide smile.


    No matter what, this cluttered room still had a special ce in his heart. Even though the barracks that he had at the Underground Penitentiary replicated his room perfectly down to the details.


    It still couldn''t rece reality. It was just an illusion. Nothing but a mirage made out of runes.


    He walked downstairs, careful about not stepping on the hole that his foot made on the stairs previously.


    Arriving at the living room, a bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face when he realized that his house actually looked quite shabby.


    He lived in a houseparable to that of a mansion since it had five bedrooms with five separate bathrooms and toilets. Since three years ago, Joseph couldn''t remember when was thest time that he cleaned this house.


    "Goddamned it, I want to clean but I still have that quest ongoing..." Joseph suppressed his urge and promised that if he had the time in the future. He would undoubtedly clean every nook and cranny of his house.


    Thankfully, his living room and kitchen remained immacte. Joseph went to the kitchen and cooked something up for his consumption. Afterward, he went towards the living room, dusted the couch for a short moment then sat on it after turning on the television.


    While munching on some fried rice, bacon, and eggs. Joseph listened to thementators talking about the current matters within the world of Victory.


    [Ah, I think everyone knows about it by now but the movements of the Crimson Guild have already been confirmed. It has been reported that dozens of Crimson Guild members can be seen roaming the base of the mountain that is considered as a Forbidden Region by the Kingdom of Nether. Look at this, everyone... ]


    Joseph raised his head and found a lot of yers wearing all sorts of high-leveled equipment. Each and every one of them looked particrly scary with their sharp weapons and shiny armors.


    But their dignified appearance diminished due to the fact that they had pickaxes on their shoulders.


    "Are they going to mine some minerals or something?" Joseph couldn''t help but speak up when he saw all of these.


    [Yes, that''s right! The direction that they are heading right now is towards the popr mine managed by the Kingdom of Nether. There''s a really high chance that all of them are going to mine some minerals. But for the Crimson Guild do that, does that really make sense? What do you think, Raffy?]


    [Ah, it''s like this. The Crimson Guild is known for its dominance amidst the Holy Trinity of the three guilds. This event can only be reasoned out as reasonable if you think that the Kingdom is offering great rewards to the Crimson Guild. I think that Knights of Justice and Dark me also knew about this...]


    [What is the reason for that, sir Raffy? Can you enlighten us all including the viewers?]


    [Well, I am sure that everyone noticed already that there are a lot of unaffiliated yers roaming around the base of the mountain known as the Forbidden Region, right? There''s a really high chance that those yers are spies from the Knights of Justice and Dark me.]


    [Ah! That does make sense. It seems like we may be able to see some action between the three guilds. After this, one of them might be disqualified as a member of the Holy Trinity...]


    [Hahaha...]


    Thementator Raffy replied with an awkwardugh. The reason why Knights of Justice, Dark me, and Crimson became known as the Holy Trinity wasn''t so simple. There were other underlying reasons why they became as popr as they were right now. But this wasn''t the right time to talk about that. Raffy could only awkwardlyugh.


    Sensing his partner''s awkwardness, thementator hurriedly changed his questions. The smoothness of his transition really made him look incredibly professional and he disyed to everyone, his vast experience when ites tomentating.


    [Nevertheless, the Crimson Guild is really ahead of the two guilds right now. I am quite interested in what would be the impact of their movements on the two other guilds...]


    [Hahaha, that is also what the viewers around the world are interested about. After all, these three guilds possess enough strength that couldmand wind and lightning from the skies whenever they wanted. A fall-out between the three of them could inflict great damage towards everything...]


    [But who knows? In the end, we aren''t really privy to the actions of the Crimson Guild. We could only make predictions based on the data that we have.]


    [Hahaha, sir Raffy is really humble!]


    [Hahaha, I''m ashamed...]


    Joseph listened to the antics of the twomentators and he thought of nothing about the movements of the big guilds, after all.


    The Crimson Guild only went for mining activity, how could they do anything that would impact his movements and objectives within the Underground Penitentiary.


    Joseph washed his dishes, carefully walked upstairs then returned to the game.


    Meanwhile, within the depths of the Noble District within the Kingdom of Nether. A man d in all-red armor could be seen kneeling in front of a middle-aged man d in clothes that indicated that he was a noble.


    "Duke, everything has been prepared. We canmence our operations now." The green diamond marker above the head of this man indicated that he was a yer. But the name of "Crimson" written in golden font, could be seen floating above his head, just below the diamond marker.


    "Oh, you really do work fast. dimir. I truly cannot say that I regret choosing you for this quest." The middle-aged man said in a satisfied manner as his eyes widened into slits.


    "You overly praise me, Duke Heathrow." dimir slightly bowed his head out of respect.


    "Commence the operations as soon as possible after this. There are only about three days left until that bastard old man tells us everything about what we want..."


    "After all, I am certain that he will finally talk once he sees his precious granddaughter in front of the gallows and being humiliated in front of the public..."


    Duke Heathrow''s expression flushed at the end of his sentence and his eyes shed with a maniacal light often seen within the eyes of those that enjoyed upon the suffering of others.


    "Meanwhile, make sure that any disturbances are snuffed out. I will lend my Knights in your care until the end of this mission. Don''t worry about their strength, they can kill you at least dozens of times if they wanted to."


    Duke Heathrow revealed a wide smile on his face that stretched until it looked like it reached his ears. If youpared his smile with his stature that looked like he was a mountain of meat. He looked incredibly wretched to the point that even dimir couldn''t stomach looking at him.


    "So, this is the reason why this Duke doesn''t go out often? His appearance can really give a heart attack to those with weak hearts..." dimir thought to himself before he bowed his head and stared at the system notification that appeared right before him. His eyes, shining with glee and joy.


    "Ah... With this... I dare you... I dare you bastards from Dark me and Knights of Justice... Try and interfere with my mission!" dimir almost couldn''t suppress his joy, but when he remembered that he was in front of a powerful and honorable duke.


    He suppressed himself and kept his joy to himself temporarily. But one could still see his flushed cheeks and shining eyes if you looked at him from underneath.


    "You are now hereby dismissed. Remember our deal and I willplete our promise..." Duke Heathrow said, and his expression looked like he was shooing dimir out of his face.


    "Yes, your Honor." dimir sped his hands together and bowed.


    He momentarily nced at Heathrow before standing up, turning around and then leaving the scene.


    Whilst he was walking on the hallway of Heathrow''s great mansion towards the exit...


    dimir finally couldn''t suppress his excitement.


    His knees folded and he copsed twitching...


    "Finally... This is it... Yeah... Come... Come and challenge me you bastards and you''ll see!" dimir wed on his face with both of his hands as he cried out in a scream that sounded more like a murmur instead of a scream.


    The moment that he walked out of Duke Heathrow''s residence in the Noble District...


    The great upheaval of the Kingdom of Nether finally begun...

 Chapter 53: Purposely Blocking the Way

    Chapter 53: Purposely Blocking the Way


    Joseph returned to the world of Victory once again after he answered the physiological needs of his body.


    Checking the Quest Tab located at his Main Menu, a bitter smile lifted on his lips.


    "There are only three days left, eh..."


    Knowing that he didn''t have that much time anymore. Joseph walked outside and once again. Ezreal was already waiting for him outside.


    "Good Morning, master. Did you have a good sleep?"


    "Oh, Ezreal. You really are punctual, are you gonna do this every day?"


    "Do what, master?"


    "I mean, waiting for me outside every morning."


    "Of course! I should be the first one to look at Master''s groggy face! There''s a certain beauty with the visage of someone that just woke up. That beauty also exists with you, master!" Ezreal proudly said and Joseph felt a shiver down his spine and he bitterly smiled.


    He once again promised that once everything was over. He himself would make some doujinshi for Ezreal, particrly that popr ssic, 177013 and his personal favorite with the cameo of his best waifu coded as 298547...


    "You really are in a good mood, master. It''s still early in the morning yet you are already smiling that much." Ezreal also smiled when he saw Joseph''s excitement.


    "Ah yeah... But wait! How do you know that it''s still early in the morning? Aren''t we underground? The sun isn''t supposed to prate these depths..." Joseph knitted his eyebrows and Ezreal replied with a smile.


    "Does master''s residence have a window?"


    "A window? Yes, mine does have a window." Joseph replied.


    "If the world outside master''s window is dark, that means that it is currently night on the surface above us. If there is light, then that could only mean that it''s currently morning outside." Ezreal exined, but this further deepened Joseph''s shock.


    "Wait, I thought that the world inside our barracks is just a simtion?"


    "Of course, it is a simtion, but the world outside the window is not. As far as I know, there must be something going on underneath it. If I can study it for at least a day, I may find more about it. What about it, master? Do you want me to look further into it?"


    Joseph paused on his tracks and he replied while shaking his head: "No, there are far important matters that we must attend to. Right now, I must meet that Legendary cksmith."


    Joseph walked towards the Maximum Security Tunnel and he soon reached the entrance to the Maximum Security Cellblock. The medallion that he and Ezreal possessed pulsated with energy and once the stone wall recognized their identity, they soon entered the Maximum Security Cellblock.


    Theyout of the Maximum Security Cellblock was simr to theyout of other Cellblocks apart from the fact that the prisoners were inside their dedicated sealed rooms.


    As soon as they entered, the group d in ck that stood at the distance stared at them. However, Joseph didn''t even nce at them and so did Ezreal.


    The two moved forward and walked towards the direction of a sealed door that was clearly special due to the fact that it wasn''t next to other sealed doors. It stood independently ahead. Ezreal also confirmed that a strong auraparable to a Legend was inside that sealed door.


    In the face of his treasures, how could Joseph stop himself? He walked directly towards that steel door but then one of the men d in ck stood in his path.


    "What are you doing?"


    Joseph asked in a cold manner.


    "That should be my question. It seems like both of you are new here, both of you should be the one that Honorable Jail Warden was talking about..."


    "But it doesn''t matter, I just hope that both of you aren''t so arrogant to actually challenge the toughest prisoner of this cellblock just because both of you got promoted fast!" The man dressed in all ck said.


    The other Inquisitors soon gathered around them. Their eyes radiated coldness that could send shivers down the spines of everyone. But Joseph wasn''t having all of that. He only wanted to meet Krid as soon as possible for he only had three days before Krid''s public execution.


    The man standing before him truly was powerful. Joseph''s scaredy instincts told him that he should run as fast as possible from the man, but he really didn''t have that much time. He must do what he must do and do it in a manner that was swift, precise and concise.


    And so...


    "Move."


    Joseph coldly replied.


    The Inquisitors around the two looked at Joseph in amusement. They didn''t mind if a fight happened between Joseph and the man whom they considered as their Captain.


    After all, they were in the Underground Penitentiary. Anything could happen here and no one would find you at fault for as long as you were strong and the victor.


    "Did you really just told me to move?" The man lightly chuckled, and the unexpected happened.


    The man suddenly turned into a blur and when Joseph realized what happened. The man had his sword pointed on his neck. If not for Ezreal catching the sword at thest minute, Joseph''s head would''ve been rolling on the ground right now.


    "You..."


    Ezreal uttered in anger, his clothes fluttered without any wind and his aura burst forth from his body.


    "I admit that you really are capable since you can catch that attack of mine. But is the one you''re protecting likewise capable? I don''t think that he even saw my attack. If not for your protection, he would''ve died by now." The man said in an arrogant manner.


    "Hmmph..." Joseph snorted maintained a calm andposed expression, but if one looked at him from behind. One could see his back drenched with sweat and his hair standing up from the shivers that he felt when he realized the man''s sword near his neck.


    "How dare you insult my liege like that!" Ezreal exploded.


    Kacha! Kacha!


    Cracks appeared on where he stood and the man who taunted Ezreal wore a small smile on his face.


    "I don''t mind fighting against you if you really like. But don''t expect me to y honestly, I may take your precious liege as my hostage and use him against you."


    "You..." Ezreal''s anger red once again but he didn''t dare to move against the man.


    Joseph who listened from the side gnashed his teeth. Right now, he realized that he really was far too weak for someone like him that inherited the strength of the Grand Duelist. Compared to these monsters, he was nothing even though he had one of the strongest sses in Victory.


    If not for Ezreal''s intervention, he would''ve died earlier.


    "I must be powerful... No matter what... I must not rely too much on Ezreal''s strength from now on!" Joseph gnashed his teeth as he thought to himself. Raising his hand, he patted Ezreal''s shoulders and said to the man.


    "What must be done be done before I can meet the Legendary cksmith?"


    The man''s expression changed into that of interest: "Oh? So you know about that prisoner''s true identity? I guess I can''t say that you are challenging him just because you are feeling too cocky for your own good..."


    "But even though the Jail Warden said that anyone can challenge him, that doesn''t mean that there are no qualifications!"


    He dered before continuing.


    "I cannot just calmly ept those that still haven''t proven their capabilities as an Inquisitor casually challenge the one and only Legendary cksmith of the current generation..."


    "Someone as prestigious like him is being handled by a possibly ipetent Inquisitor? Wouldn''t our pride be damaged if something like that happened?"


    Joseph knitted his eyebrows when he heard what the man said. He didn''t really care about matters of pride. For him, the Underground Penitentiary was a mere tool that he could use as a foothold for his objectives.


    Once his objectives werepleted then he could escape from it and do whatever that he wanted...


    "In that case, then what must be done just so I could prove my capabilities to everyone?" Joseph dered and everyone looked amused.


    "Oh? You really are gutsy. I like that." The man lightly smiled and pointed at a particr sealed door.


    "Behind that door are bastards who are too tight-lipped, they are also arrogant due to the fact that they are beings who have the curse of immortality from thews of causality..."


    "If you managed on forcing a confession out of them, then I can say that you really arepetent." The man lightly smiled and the other Inquisitors audibly chuckled.


    Joseph''s expression also turned cold when he realized what was happening, but since he was running out of time. He had no other choice but toply. Ezreal swept his gaze at the Inquisitors before he turned around, hid his wounded hand from Joseph and followed suit on his tracks.


    When the two entered the sealed cell. The other Inquisitors flocked around the man.


    "Captain, you''re really a genius! To think that you would think of such a foolproof method!"


    "Yeah, right! If those arrogant brats managed on forcing a confession out of those cursed bastards, we will earn rewards and if they didn''t manage on doing it. We could use that as proof of their ipetence and have them kicked out of our crib!"


    "Hahaha, what an awesome n! It''s practically impossible for us to force a confession from those bastards since thews of causality dictate that they could only be imprisoned in here for three days..."


    "Not only that, but they also don''t feel any pain so we can say that they are the natural bane of us, Inquisitors!"


    The man nodded his head and a deep smile spread on his lips. He really looked forward to seeing the anxious expressions on the arrogant faces of those two brats that dared on crossing his path. Particrly that pale-looking, soyboy-like bastard who even told him to move and scram.


    "That''s what he gets! How dare he do me like that!" The man mumbled and shook his head. He, along with the other Inquisitors patiently waited outside the sealed cell where Joseph and Ezreal were staying.


    All of them looked forward to seeing their dismayed expressions once they came out of the cell.

 Chapter 54: Demonic Inquisitor

    Chapter 54: Demonic Inquisitor


    "Those two are known for their viciousness, after all. They managed on forcing a confession out of that Old Bastard John, I do admit that they are somewhat capable. But there''s a part of me that''s saying that they only managed on doing that due to a fluke."


    "Yeah, yeah... That can only be the reason... Their luck when they were still Jail Janitors were too good, but now that they are Inquisitors. They must bow their heads to those that are truly farpetent than them."


    "That''s right, apart from Captain in here. Just who else if the mostpetent?"


    "Hahaha!"


    The Inquisitorsughed out loud while they tantly stroked the ego of their Captain, the man who forced Joseph and Ezreal on extracting a confession out of the yers'' mouths.


    Just as each and every one of themughed, a low creak suddenly came out from the door in front of them. They all stopped whatever they were doing as their attention went towards the door. Their lips had smiles of schadenfreude while their eyes already turned into slits as they waited.


    "Woah, that was quite fast. I don''t think that even a minute passed ever since they went inside."


    "Pffft! This is really too funny. To think that the arrogant bastards just gave up in under a minute after realizing the hurdle that they needed to surpass. As I said, they really just forced a confession out of that old bastard''s mouth due to a fluke!"


    "Hahaha, well at least. They will know not to be so arrogant now that they know their ce..."


    Every Inquisitor stared at the creaking door and within a few moments. Ezreal and Joseph finally came out of the sealed door.


    But those who were about to cry out and mock the two of them all paused. It was because behind them, stood several yers bound in wooden shackles. Joseph himself had a wooden mask on the right side of his face.


    "Nani?"


    An Inquisitor absentmindedly uttered. The scene was too shocking and unexpected to everyone that none of them managed to speak for a moment. That also included the Captain who was the first to recover from his trance.


    "What are you doing?! Why did you bring them outside?" The man red at the two and he nced at the prisoners, only to find out that their eyes were zed and nk. It was as if they were looking a thousand yards ahead. Their movements also looked mechanic, like puppets controlled by strings.


    They also had stone bs hung around their necks. Listed on the stone bs where the heinous crimes that theymitted before their admission to the Underground Penitentiary.


    "What did you do to them?" The man referred to as Captain asked once again.


    Joseph turned to look at the man and said in a casual manner: "I am in the process of interrogating them, so can I please not get any interruptions?"


    "If all of you want to observe my methods then that is fine. However, interruption is absolutely not allowed! Can all of you understand something as simple as that?"


    "You..." Veins bulged on the man''s face, but he really couldn''t do anything against Joseph.


    After all, Joseph was just doing his job and there weren''t any rules about the location where Inquisitors could do their interrogation. Technically, they could do their jobs anywhere they wanted and bring their prisoners with them in the guise of interrogation.


    But...


    "Wait, could it be that you are nning on letting them escape in the guise of interrogating them?"


    The man suddenly said in a cold voice and everyone was astonished.


    Ezreal and Joseph knitted their eyebrows. The former even looked like if Joseph ordered, he would immediately pounce on the man and kill him as fast as possible.


    "That''s such a grave usation, right there... Are you really sure that you want to use me of something like that?"


    Joseph stared in a challenging manner to the man, and the man subconsciously took a step backward. He couldn''t understand the reason why Joseph''s attitude suddenly changed drastically.


    But little did he knew that Joseph''s attitude didn''t really change.


    What he was showing right now was just his facade.


    Specifically, his acting tough facade.


    Joseph mastered the art of acting tough back then when he needed to face debt collectors and even show up in court as a defendant. In situations like this, Joseph realized that if he showed a weak side of his. His enemy could take advantage of that opening and defeat him.


    This was the reason why Joseph managed on keeping his ancestral house in the bare minimum.


    With the exception of Lily''s help. He always kept a tough facade in the face of everyone''s disparaging. Right now, realizing the gravity of the situation and the stress that he felt due to his time running out. Joseph once again activated this ability of his...


    The Art of Acting Tough.


    The man referred by the others as Captain had no other choice but to retreat. It was because Joseph said the truth, there were no strict rules for Inquisitors. They could basically do whatever they wanted apart from usurping the throne of the Jail Warden and viting rules when it came to prisoners.


    "Okay... In that case, then go... do whatever you want. But we will follow you, we want to see, using our own eyes on how you''ll force a confession out of the mouth of those bastards." The man, made a concession that astonished his fellow Inquisitors.


    "Do whatever you want."


    Joseph left the scene along with Ezreal and the prisoners behind them.


    The Inquisitors had their eyes glued on Joseph''s back and one could still see their astonishment due to the sudden change in Joseph''s attitude. Nevertheless, it wasn''t the right time to think about that for they needed to see the true abilities of the two using their own eyes.


    And so, they followed suit...


    Near the Military Barracks of the Kingdom of Nether, amotion suddenly happened.


    It was caused by the sudden appearance of several figures d in ck along with other figures clearly wearing ragged clothing and tied up around their hands with wooden shackles.


    "What the hell is that? What''s going on? Who are those people? Wait, aren''t they yers?"


    "Ah! They are members of the Underground Penitentiary! Run!"


    The yers had no clue about what was going on, but when the NPC residents saw the appearance of those figures d in ck. They all fled the scene, most of them even left their roadside stalls just so they could run as fast as possible from the scene.


    "What the fuck? Why did they run?"


    The yers were still astonished when a voice suddenly rang out.


    "Citizens of the Kingdom of Nether! Here, we disy in front you are the bastards whomitted iparably heinous crimes! Come, gather around and witness! Witness the wretched faces of these bastards that even the demons in hell may not even ept!"


    Joseph''s voice sounded so loud that those who ran away froze from their tracks and abruptly turned around. The yers, on the other hand finally recovered from their shock as they stared at the procession.


    "Holy shit! Those diamond green markers above their heads, aren''t they yers? Why are they being treated like this?"


    "What the fuck! You''re right! The prisoners are yers? Ah, wait! That guy who is shouting is a yer too!"


    "Wait, he''s a yer? Ah! You''re right! But why is he treating his fellow yers like this? Is that even allowed to happen in Victory? Isn''t that a gross vition of someone''s rights as a human?"


    "Bro, are you stupid? Look at the crimes that those bastardsmitted. I feel like they deserved this kind of humiliation due to what they did in here."


    "Damn they are sick! Look at that bastard, the stone b says that he is charged with 50 counts of Rape? What the fuck man, you really deserve to die you sick bastard!"


    "Shit, this is sickening... I can''t watch, ma..., I''m weak."


    The yers who were opposed to what Joseph was doing instantly changed their minds when they saw the crimes that their fellow yersmitted. But for them, those yers were still humans...


    Seeing such humiliation and gross vition of human rights on other human beings made some of the yers spectating weak at their knees as they ran and escaped, never to return again.


    The walk of shame continued, but this time. Joseph signaled to Ezreal and Ezreal mmed his palms together and produced a ringing sound that jolted the yers awake.


    The first scene that they saw when they awakened from their trance were angry mobs of NPCs throwing all sorts of objects at them.


    "You bastard! Die! Bastards like you shouldn''t even exist in this world!"


    "That''s right, that''s right! Die!"


    "Your parents are happy that you are about to be executed! They never even loved you bastards in the first ce!"


    When the residents of Reinhardt realized what was going on. They didn''t feel afraid of the Inquisitors anymore. All of them shouted in glee, and no one knew who started it. But each and every one of them were now throwing objects at the humiliated yers.


    "You... You''re that bastard who assaulted my daughter?! I''m gonna make you pay!"


    An old man among the residents struggled amidst his nervous breakdown just so he could approach the procession of criminals paraded by the Inquisitors. Tears streamed down his cheeks, and his body continuously trembled like a sieve.


    "..."


    The yer whom he shouted at jolted. His expression filled with fear, anxiousness, and regret as he stared at the old man who slowly raised his arm and hurled a wooden flipflop at him.


    The flipflop struck him squarely at his face. Having his pain sensory disabled, he couldn''t feel any pain from the old''s man attack. In fact, the concentrated attack of other residents who were angry at him right this moment didn''t even hurt him.


    All sorts of objects flew, some hurled rocks, some threw eggs at him and some even flung dog feces at him...


    But he remained unflinching...


    All that he could remember was the image of that crying old man, shaking like a sieve as he cried out justice for the death of his daughter and tried his best just so he could take a little bit of revenge.


    "When did I be like this?"


    The yer whispered to himself.


    He raised his arm and Joseph was alerted to his movements for he immediately stared at the yer.


    "What is he trying to do?" Joseph thought to himself. Although Ezreal sealed their use of mana through the wooden shackles. Joseph still couldn''t feelfortable about everything, after all. This was the first time that he used such a method in forcing confessions.


    "Wait, those movements. He''s opening his Main Menu? Is he trying to log-out? That will not work!" Joseph was astonished about the yer''s movements. But then he suddenly saw pain on the yer''s expression as he endured the objects hurled at him by the angry mob.


    "Shit, that madman! He enabled his pain sensory?!" Joseph hissed and sucked a mouthful of cold air. It has to be known that the objects thrown by the angry mob of residents weren''t light.


    Some of them even hurled sharp knives at the yers, and if not for Ezreal''s intervention. Most of them would''ve been seriously injured by now.


    But witnessing the expressions of these dirty and wretched yers. Joseph understood that today was thest time that they would live so disgustingly as they did before. Once everything was over today, Joseph reckoned that these yers would turn over into a new leaf.


    The procession soon arrived at the River of Poso.


    The River of Poso flowed from the East of the Capital City towards the West, thankfully it didn''t go through the City or else the Capital City of Reinhardt wouldn''t be so beautiful as it was today.


    Why?


    Well...


    It''s because the residents of Reinhardt treated the River of Poso as their sewage.


    All sorts of wastes were thrown by the residents, particrly those of the slums. Into this pristine river that now looked like an amalgamation of disease.


    Just the smell alone, when Joseph approached the area, made him nauseous. Even Ezreal who normally stood steadfast in all sorts of situations had a frown on his face.


    The yers had an expression of suffering on their faces, some of them even looked like they were about to vomit. But they couldn''t do anything but stand since, in every second that passes, they would be greeted with all sorts of objects hurled over by the angry mob of NPCs.


    The pain that although they couldn''t feel, didn''t stop it spreading through their entire body which in turn, paralyzed their movements. What''s worse was that they couldn''t die. An Inquisitor right behind them was repeatedly healing them just so they couldn''t lose consciousness nor die and disappear.


    But did they mind all of these?


    That answer was no...


    When they saw the look of suffering from the residents of Reinhardt whose daughters they forcefully took, and even killed.


    They truly regretted their actions...


    Were they really this disgusting from the start? It was true that they never considered NPCs as fellow humans, but seeing the tears and grief on the residents'' human-like faces...


    They repented, and all of them epted the anger of the residents. Although they knew that the pain paralyzing their bodies couldn''t absolve them of their sins. At least, it gave them sce amidst their repentance.


    "Have them walk the nk!"


    Joseph cried out and Ezreal flung his wrist. When thetter gestured, a wooden nk formed at the edge of the filthy River of Poso. Afterward, Ezreal pushed a yer towards the end of the nk amidst the joyful shouts of the residents.


    Seeing the mirth on the residents'' faces, even Joseph bitterly smiled when he realized that these yers trulymitted heinous crimes.


    In that case, there shouldn''t be any reason for hesitation any longer, right? Joseph hardened his resolve and a cold expression spread on his face.


    "Now, confess to the masses your sins else you shall be thrown and drowned in this filthy river!"


    He cried out and the residents shouted with him. The Inquisitors, along with the man considered as the Captain of those Inquisitors hadplicated expressions on their faces.


    But theirplicated expressions didn''te from the sense of defeat that they felt due to what Joseph aplished.


    Theirplicated feelings came from regret.


    "Why didn''t I think of such a method earlier? Now, this guy''s gonna take all the credit!"


    "Haist... Goddamned it, he''s really incredibly vicious. Even I haven''t even thought of such a method where prisoners would be publicly humiliated in a walk of shame..."


    "But threatening to throw them into the disgusting River of Poso? Will that method really work? If It was me, I''d just have them walk the gallows..."


    *Thud*


    A dull sound rang out and the yer who stood at the edge of the nk that was only being held in bnce by Ezreal''s foot kneeled down.


    Tears streamed down his cheeks, and at this moment. The vicious criminal who was imprisoned for about fifty counts of rape and murder was now crying like a baby.


    The shouting residents, Joseph, and Ezreal feltplicated when they saw such a scene of repentance. But what must be done, shall be done. Those who sinned shall be punished. No one was exempted from thew...


    And so?


    Joseph cried out once again.


    "Confess!"


    His heroic, yet fierce expression behind his half-mask was thoroughly captured by the cameras of spectators affiliated with media stations.


    Every yer criminal who was a participant in the walk of shame, all kneeled down and cried their hearts out like babies as they thoroughly confessed the extent of their crimes.


    Unfortunately, their confession didn''t move the heart of the half-masked Inquisitor. After their confessions, all of them were summarily executed in front of the residents of Reinhardt.


    But did these yersin about the viciousness of the Inquisitor who still executed them after their confessions?


    No...


    For these yers, death was their sole sce from the heinous crimes that they hadmitted. After this event, each and every one of them would surely turn over for the better.


    But what about for those spectators affiliated with media stations around the world?


    Yes...


    The viciousness of the half-masked man as he coldly watched the yers drown in the filthy River of Poso was a scene that they would never forget in their lives.


    Soon, news spread throughout the world about the existence of a yer Inquisitor who was vicious enough that he could stand unflinching without any problems while staring directly at the deaths of his fellow yers.


    The half-masked yer was unanimously named by everyone as the Demonic Inquisitor...

 Chapter 55: Finally Qualified

    Chapter 55: Finally Qualified


    As soon as the body of thest remaining yer floated on the River of Poso, Joseph turned around. Facing the man whom everyone called ''Captain''.


    "Their confessions."


    He coldly said, handing over a bunch of crystal balls.


    "Uh... Okay..." The man subconsciously stretched out his hand.


    Upon receiving the bundle of crystal balls, Joseph walked away. Along with Ezreal, who had a solemn expression on his face, when he nced at Joseph. It was because he realized that behind the cold facade of Joseph was someone struggling with his humanity after he executed those yers.


    [ Your mental state is currently unstable. If this continues for a certain amount of time, then you will be forced to logged-out of Victory! ]


    Joseph wore a bitter smile when he saw the system notification floating in front of him. He thought that his facade could fool anything or anyone in Victory. However, it seems like he couldn''t fool the system, or should he say; The Supeputer Noah.


    Joseph walked away, barely able to stand up. If not for his facade then he would''ve crumbled right there and right now.


    But Joseph knew that he must remain steadfast. Until everything was solved and he was finally in front of the Legendary cksmith, Krid. He must not fall.


    "Master..." Ezreal mumbled, he kept himself close to Joseph so that he could immediately act if something went wrong.


    "I am fine, Ezreal... I can still keep up." Joseph revealed a small smile on his face as his eyebrows knitted, suppressing the headache stabbing his head in waves.


    "Hey, you! Stay back!"


    "Stay back!"


    "Do not cross the line!"


    Suddenly, the Inquisitors who cordoned the ce cried out. Joseph sensed someoneing from behind him. Ezreal hurriedly turned around in a stance, but he froze in ce. Joseph also turned around and he also stood rooted when he saw that the oneing towards him was the struggling old man who was crying out loud earlier for justice.


    "Sir Inquisitor... Thank you."


    The old man''s continuously trembling body struggled just so he could kneel on the ground and press his forehead on the ground.


    "I..." Joseph mumbled, ''...didn''t understand what was going on''. Did he do something worthy of such a gesture? What he did was just execute those who deserved it. He didn''t think that he deserved a treatment like this...


    Ezreal wore an amiable smile on his face when he saw the relief on the old man''s expression.


    "Sir, please stand up... I do not deserve such treatment..." Joseph went towards the old man and tried on making him stand up, but the old man remained pressed on the ground.


    "Sir Inquisitor... please... let this old man do something like this... this is the only way that this old man can disy how grateful I am to you, sir Inquisitor..."


    Joseph paused. His expression turnedplicated as he said: "But why?"


    The old man did not answer him. It was because Ezreal was the one who patted his shoulder and said: "Just ept their gesture, master. It wouldn''t hurt doing that, right?"


    Joseph nced at Ezreal. He slowly nodded his head and he then gave a light smile towards the spectators who were crying out with all sorts of gestures of gratitude towards him. Some even put flowers around his neck, while some handed him pouches of souvenirs.


    "Thank you, Sir Inquisitor... If not for what you did, we will never find revenge against those cursed bastards..."


    "Yes, sir Inquisitor. Those cursed bastards are often summarily released after a certain amount of time, and once they are released. They will do their crimes once again. Thankfully, since sir Inquisitor executed them...


    "We''re finally at ease that even though it is temporary and those bastards may just revive and do their crimes again. At least, we managed to avenge the death of our precious ones."


    "That''s right... Thank you, sir Inquisitor!"


    Joseph, Ezreal and the other Inquisitors were thoroughly moved by the gesture of the residents. Even the man who had such a thick murderous aura surrounding him and called by every Inquisitor as Captain had a small and gentle smile on his face as he stood in front of these residents who thanked them all for their service.


    "This is the first time..." He mumbled.


    "Captain?" One of the Inquisitors who looked like he was about to cry, asked the man.


    "This is the first time that people like us are acknowledged like this..." He replied.


    "Then, in that case. Captain, can I cry?" The Inquisitor asked, barely suppressing his urge to cry.


    However, the man raised his head and gently smacked the Inquisitor''s head.


    "Don''t cry, not here. Perhaps when we''re back." He replied with aplicated smile on his lips.


    "Yeah, hahaha..." The Inquisitor replied with an awkwardugh. He sucked a mouthful of cold air and suppressed his urge to cry.


    The man turned to look at Joseph, his expressionplicated but he nevertheless felt grateful towards him. After all, this was the first time since the establishment of the Underground Penitentiary that they received validation like this from the residents of the Kingdom whom they protected from criminals.


    He approached Joseph and Ezreal who currently wore several flower nes around their necks hung by the grateful residents of Reinhardt around them.


    "Thank you for your services, sir."


    "Thank you for keeping us safe as always, sir."


    "Here, sir. I have a flower ne. It smells really fragrant and it can thrive without sunlight. I think it can survive the environment underground."


    One of the residents immediately recognized the man like the Captain of the Inquisitors and they hurriedly flocked towards him. They realized his identity when they saw his goldenmand medallion ced on his right chest.


    Joseph turned to look at the residents with a wry smile. After all, he knew that such a man like the Captain of the Inquisitors wouldn''t possibly ept such a feminine object like flower nes.


    He was about to speak up for the Captain''s sake when the Captain suddenly hung his head low just so the residents could hang their flower nes around his neck.


    "..."


    Joseph was astonished. Seeing such a monstrous man with a murderous aura continuously lingering around him wearing these cute, and fragrant flower nes made him speechless. Could it be that the Captain had strange tendencies too just like Ezreal? Joseph felt a shiver down his spine when he thought of this.


    He swiftly shook his head vigorously, clearing his mind and thankfully, it worked. He awakened from his trance...


    "Thanks." The man said to Joseph, his tone calm and neutral.


    Joseph stared hard at the man.


    "What?" The man asked in an ufortable manner.


    "Can you at least reveal some facial expressions in these kinds of situations?" Joseph said.


    "What are you saying?" The man replied, vexed.


    "Nothing..."


    Joseph replied and soon, each and every one of them returned to the Underground Penitentiary. When they all arrived at the location where ahead lies the Maximum Security Tunnel. The Inquisitors all dered that they would rest and call it a day.


    "Thank you, brother. The confessions that we gathered for today will surely us numerous rewards. I reckon that after we receive our rewards from the Kingdom, we could finally take our long-overdue break. We''ve been living here for a long time already and I have been itching to stay in an extended period on the surface."


    "Yeah, definitely. Once I get my rewards. I will use it as leverage to take a long vacation and go fishing! How about you, brother? Are you gonna stay here? Ah! I remember that a week hasn''t even passed since you became an Inquisitor! I am sorry that I forgot about it but your case really is just too unique!"


    "Anyway, thank you for your service, brother. After my long vacation, I will surely bring some presents for you from my hometown!"


    The Inquisitors wildlyughed as each and every one of them retreated to their quarters. The man, called by everyone as Captain turned to look at Joseph and Ezreal before saying.


    "As soon as you enter, he always attacks preemptively. Be careful not to lose your life." He said these words before swiftly turning around and retreating towards his quarters. What he left in his wake were two confused men who simultaneously scratched their heads.


    "Why did he say something like that, master?" Ezreal said.


    "Well, perhaps that was his way of thanking us?" Joseph said while hesitating.


    "..."


    "Nah, it doesn''t matter anymore. Wha''s important is that we can finally meet that Legendary cksmith!" Joseph patted Ezreal''s shoulders: "Thanks for your help earlier, you had a hard time back there, right?" He made a knowing expression while continuously patting Ezreal''s shoulder.


    "A hard time? Executing those cursed bastards is an easy as one, two, and three for me, master! I mean, they can just revive once they die so why would I hesitate to kill them? I didn''t really have a hard time sending them to the afterlife. In fact, I haven''t even broken a sweat."


    Ezreal proudly replied, but his reply had apletely opposite effect than what he expected.


    Why?


    Because Joseph''sforting smile turned into a twitching one. He even slowly stepped backward in an effort to get away from Ezreal but what happened, in the end, was a chase between the two. With Joseph as the prey, and Ezreal as the predator.


    "Master! Why are you running? Why are you running away from me!"


    "No, do not chase me! Just let me just calm down. I went through all sorts of things, so I need to calm down. Let''s just say that I am psychologically unstable!"


    "Psycho-what? Table? Master, is that food? If it''s food that we''re talking about, I know how to cook! So please, just stop running away from me. Master!" Ezreal cried out loud. In the end, the twoughed together with small smiles on their faces.


    "Ezreal, don''t you have the capability to catch me no matter how fast I am going? Why did you pretend that you cannot catch me, instead?" Joseph asked while he huffed and puffed, as he calmed himself down and shooed his exhaustion away.


    Ezreal jolted when he heard Joseph''s question, but instead of replying. He merely turned his head to the side and quietly whistled as if he never heard Joseph''s question in the first ce.


    "You... You''repletely avoiding the question!" Joseph red at him.


    "What question?" Ezreal promptly replied in an innocent manner.


    "Ah, nevermind! Let''s go!" Joseph urged Ezreal and the two finally continued on their tracks towards the sealed door located at the deepest parts of the Maximum Security Cellblock. The stone door slowly opened once it realized the identity of those standing before it.


    Rumbling sounds continuously echoed and once it fully opened. Joseph finally walked inside the sealed room where his quest objective was located. A smile appeared on his face, but it quickly diminished when he heard Ezreal''s thunderous shout.


    "Master, watch out!"


    Joseph jolted in fear and when he turned his head to the side, a barely imperceptible ray of light flew towards him with a speedparable to that of a lightning strike.


    Without enough time to dodge, Joseph could only watch in horror as the attack grew bigger right before his eyes.


    "Cradle of Nature!"


    A scream rang out and a loud explosion urred. After the explosion appeared a cloud of dust that covered everything upon its arrival.

 Chapter 56: Legendary Blacksmith, Krid

    Chapter 56: Legendary cksmith, Krid


    Joseph felt like a heavy sledgehammer struck his chest. He flew back towards a nearby wall and coughed a mouthful of blood.


    [ You suffered 135,231 damage. ]


    [ The effects of [Cradle of Nature] has been triggered. Damage has been redirected. ]


    [ Your body is too weak and has suffered damage from the remnants of an unknown attack. ]


    [ This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted by the effects of [Cradle of Nature]. ]


    [ You suffered 375 damage! ]


    "Master!"


    When the cloud of dust that covered the area disappeared, Joseph saw Ezreal rushing towards him.


    "I''m fine, Ezreal! I''m still alive... How about you? Are you okay?"


    Joseph skimmed through the system notifications that appeared right before his eyes and he realized that the damage redirection of the so-called [Cradle of Nature] targeted Ezreal. This was proven when Joseph saw traces of blood dripping down Ezreal''s lips.


    "Yeah, I''m fine, master. Something like this would not kill me. But more importantly..." Ezreal turned serious, he turned around and stared at a certain direction.


    Joseph steadied himself and stood up, he followed Ezreal''s eyes and there. He found an iparably ghastly sight.


    The so-called Legendary cksmith looked nothing like what Joseph and Ezreal expected.


    Ahead of them was a standing stone b that had several dozens of chains embedded deep into it. However, that was not the shocking part, what thoroughly astonished the two was the state of the old man bound in those chains.


    The old man had a full set of disheveled white hair that looked brownish from the blood. His body was as thin as a matchstick and he had a wrinkled face simr to that of an evil spirit.


    However, although he looked miserable, his eyes were terrifyingly sharp and radiating coldnessparable to that of a thousand-year-old icy cavern.


    The resentment and anger within his eyes alone were enough to send shivers down Ezreal''s spine. As for Joseph, he had to gulp a mouthful of saliva before he could forcefully suppress the fear raging inside of him. Joseph was thankful that he had experienced the horrors of the Underground Penitentiary before he met this old man.


    If not, he reckoned that he would''ve copsed in fear and descended into unconsciousness just from the sight of the so-called Legendary cksmith.


    "Someone with an iparably pure bloodline from the Kingdom is actually here, posing as an Inquisitor? Hahaha, what a joke."


    A voice that was hoarse but filled with immeasurable dignity and pride rang out. Joseph and Ezreal awakened from their trance. They both stared at the old man with serious expressions.


    It was because they could feel the old man''s murderous aura rising instead of calming down.


    This was a clear sign of an imminent attack.


    But suddenly...


    "Hm?" Joseph subconsciously mumbled. It was because the old man''s murderous aura suddenly disappeared as if it never existed in the first ce.


    "Did he just troll us?" Joseph thought and as soon as his nerves calmed down...


    "Master!"


    Ezreal suddenly cried out and he once again reached his hand towards Joseph. A barely imperceptible ray of light flew from the old man towards the two, specifically targeting Joseph who was clearly weaker than Ezreal.


    "It is an honor that I get to fight someone from that holy kingdom. Come, face me! If you want me to agree with your schemes, show me your strength!" The old man roared in a resentful manner, his murderous aura surged once again and it enveloped everything within the sealed room.


    [ You are in front of a Legend. ]


    [ A Legend is an existence that must be respected. ]


    [ You feel an urge to bow your head and pay respects. ]


    [ The effects of your title [Mythical Authority] has been activated. ]


    [ No one can make you submit. ]


    [ Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand before you. ]


    [ You have resisted. ]


    Several system notifications popped out in front of Joseph and he subconsciously turned to look at Ezreal. Ezreal didn''t have the Mythical Authority title and he thought that Ezreal may not be able to endure the suppression of a legend. That was the truth. Right now, Ezreal currently knelt on the ground with both of his knees.


    However, that suppression didn''tst for too long.


    Why?


    Well...


    It was because they were in the Underground Penitentiary.


    And within the Underground Penitentiary?


    The Inquisitors were the strongest, second only to the Jail Warden.


    I mean, it would not make sense that an Inquisitor would be suppressed by their prisoners, right?


    [ You are recognized by the [ Spirit ] of the Underground Penitentiary as an [ Inquisitor ]. ]


    [ A [ Prisoner ] is revolting against an [ Inquisitor ]! ]


    [ Punishment shall descend! ]


    Another series of system notifications appeared before Joseph, and a sh of blue along with the booming sound of thunder suddenly appeared in the middle of the sealed room.


    Lightning sizzled and the light finally disappeared. What remained was a scorched old man who suddenly threw his head backward and released an iparably resentful scream.


    "GRR AAHH!!!! You bastards from the Underground Penitentiary!!! If you bastards have the guts then hurry up and kill me already! No matter what happens, I will never hand over my Production Methods to bastards like you!!!"


    The scream that he unleashed was far more terrifying than one could expect. Shivers ran down Joseph and Ezreal''s spine as the two of them stared hard at the old man with pale expressions on their faces.


    "Since I can''t reveal my true strength... It''s a shame, but I will make do with my current strength and have you bastards from this damned ce to experience the pain that I feel every day!"


    The old man didn''t move, he merely red at the two but Ezreal suddenly pounced at Joseph and the two copsed with their stomachs facing the ground.


    Joseph awakened from his trance as soon as he crashed on the ground, but the back of his head suddenly became sticky and he felt a sharp paining from his nape.


    [You suffered 502 damage!]


    "Shit. I''m sorry, master. I was a step toote."


    Ezreal apologized, and Joseph shook his head: "It''s not your fault, Ezreal. This old man is just an absolute monster. His attacks are so fast that I can barely follow them with my eyes. Not only that, they are transparent so tracking them in a dark location like this is goddamned difficult!"


    Ezreal bitterly smiled when he heard what Joseph said. He was right, Krid''s attacks were not only fast, but they were also too hard to track.


    What''s worse was that Krid used the darkness to his advantage and he repeatedly changed the trajectory of his attacks in mid-air just so he could further confuse the two.


    "Hahaha! Even if I am bound in these chains, know that I can still kill you two dogs!" Kridughed out loud with madness surging in his eyes.


    He looked like he would never listen to anything due to his prejudice against Inquisitors. However, Joseph couldn''t really find him at fault here, Inquisitors were really vicious people.


    "Shit, what should we do..." A bitter expression emerged on Joseph''s face. He felt useless. When they first stepped into this sealed room until now. Ezreal was the one that kept him alive. If not for Ezreal''s protection. Joseph would have died for several dozens of times already.


    Joseph was someone who didn''t want to fight in a battle without a clear n. But he was also someone who gathered information about his enemies through repeated deaths. This was the strategy that he used against the Great Magician Lilibeth back at the Festival of Battles.


    Back then, Joseph thought of nothing about the concept of dying...


    However, when he remembered that the residents of this world, although miserable, were doing all that they could do just so they could live. He now understood the value of life, life must not be wasted so easily. One must live to the fullest, and know that their lives were valuable!


    "I must find something... I must find something that I can use against that old bastard... How about attacking him by blending myself with the darkness? No! That''s futile, the old man''s way of attacking shows that he is incredibly knowledgeable about his surroundings. It would be useless to take advantage of it!" Joseph rapidly mumbled.


    Ezreal stood before him and nging sounds repeatedly rang out. But every time that nging sound rang out, blood sttered on the ground along with Ezreal''s pained moans.


    "Fuck it, I cannot hesitate! Ezreal''s life is on the line! I must decide! Fast!" Joseph repeatedly pped his cheeks trying to calm his racing heart.


    "Master..." Ezreal squeezed out a moan amidst the sharp pain that wreaked havoc on his body. His hands kept on moving, but he made a sidelong nce at Joseph and smiled.


    "I trust you, master..."


    Joseph froze.


    "Show him the strength of a myth, master..." Ezreal''s smile deepened and Joseph finally awakened from his trance.


    He took a deep breath and stood up.


    Yes, that''s right...


    He was a myth...


    Someone that was far stronger than a Legend.


    Why would he be afraid in front of a Legend?


    Joseph unsheathed his sword and stared right at his opponent. With Ezreal''s continuous protection, he didn''t fear getting struck by any of Krid''s attacks.


    "Thanks, Ezreal... Thank you for giving me the confidence that I needed."


    Joseph stretched his hand and ced it on Ezreal''s shoulder.


    "You rest now..."


    "Master..."


    Tears welled up within Ezreal''s eyes but heplied and slowly closed his eyelids. When he rxed, exhaustion overcame his body and he copsed on the ground.


    However, before he couldpletely lose consciousness, he sent a ray of greenish light towards Joseph''s body, unknown to thetter.


    ng!


    A fierce sound rang out.


    Krid attacked when the two were talking to each other.


    Unfortunately, Joseph blocked his attack before it could even reach him.


    He raised his head and stared at Krid, his visage devoid of fear nor hesitation for the only resolve remained.


    "You will pay for what you did to my friend..." Joseph coldly mumbled.


    Before Krid could speak, Joseph suddenly disappeared from his sight.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Dash."


    Joseph left these words in his wake with his disappearance.

 Chapter 57: Just a Blacksmith?

    Chapter 57: Just a cksmith?


    "Reveal Vitals!"


    Joseph reappeared behind the old man and the ticking of a time bomb started. Reveal Vitals onlysted for half a minute and even though attacking a weakness revealed by it increased its duration by a second.


    Joseph was not confident enough with his skills that he could make itst long enough against such a monster.


    However, he knew that with the percentage-based damage dealt by Reveal Vitals based on the enemy''s Maximum Health. He knew that even though he was weak, he could still inflict heavy damage against his enemy. But that didn''t mean that his ability was enough for such an endeavor.


    Joseph spotted a red circle on the old man''s shoulder and he ruthlessly mmed down on the old man''s shoulder.


    Crash!!!


    An ear-splitting sound rang out, Joseph unexpectedly missed even though his attack was done abruptly and as fast as he could. Instead of hitting the shoulder, his attack struck the chains that the old man raised before him in defense.


    Bang!


    The old man raised his hand and a surge of matchless strength was released. Joseph''s eyes widened in shock, he hurriedly raised his sword in front of him to block, but his mind quickly spun and he activated a skill instead.


    "Parry!"


    A formless barrier surrounded his body and the tyrannical strength of the old man sunk like stones dropped into a deep ocean in the face of Joseph''s armor. This scene astonished the old man and Joseph quickly took advantage of this to widen his distance away from the old man using Backward Leap.


    "You... that aura... such an iparably pure divine aura cannot possibly exist within the confines of this dungeon."


    The old man suddenly spoke up, his voice trembling like a sieve and his eyes bulged out of their sockets.


    "You... Just who are you?"


    He asked, but Joseph answered with a sweeping sh that he sent from where he was standing at the distance.


    ng!


    A fierce sound rang out, the old man easily blocked Joseph''s attack but his shock never diminished. But before he could even think any further. He woke up from his trance due to the fact that Joseph rushed at him once again.


    "What are you doing? Do you really want to die that much?!" The old man was astonished. Why was Joseph rushing at him instead of waiting for his attack? Wasn''t it he, the one that should attack, and Joseph should be the one that should react? Why was their situation reversed?


    Joseph remained unfazed in front of the old man but even he could not help but feel nervous inside. Numerous weaknesses appeared on the old man''s body, but it was easily patched by the old man making it useless for Joseph.


    The weaknesses revealed by Reveal Vitals weren''t actually weaknesses that were just made for the sake of the Grand Duelist. They were legitimate weaknesses that if attacked, could definitely cause heavy damage to one''s body.


    Unfortunately, the old man knew more about his body than the system. He knew where his weaknesses were located and when Joseph moved to attack them, he seamlessly covered them without even breaking a sweat.


    "Kid, you''re interesting... Each of your attacks is clearly aimed towards my weaknesses, but do you really think that you can sessfully inflict damage against me with those amateurish movements of yours? You''re like a kid in a y-fight against me!" The old man mocked, but Joseph did not mind.


    He treated this battle as a legitimate one and so, he knew better than listen to his enemy''s taunting.


    Joseph pounced on the old man and thetter merely stepped to the side and even kicked Joseph''s ankles so that he would lose his bnce.


    "Hahaha, how naive!" The old man mocked once again when his kick connected with Joseph''s ankles and thetter fell straight towards the ground.


    "I am naive?" Joseph suddenly spoke. While he was falling to the ground, he twisted his body and attacked.


    "Discharge!"


    The attacks that he swallowed earlier through the use of Parry was now being discharged by him in a single devastating attack. The old man''s eyes widened in shock, clearly astonished by the sudden change in the situation. His shock did notst for long though due to his experience in battles, but it ultimately couldn''t do anything against Joseph''s attack.


    Boom!


    The Rusty Beginner''s Sword ruthlessly smashed on the old man''s chest, and the sound of ss breaking rang out when the de plunged. The old man coughed a mouthful of blood and he flew backward like a kite that lost its strings.


    [ You dealt 1,235,162 damage! ]


    Thebination of Reveal Vitals and the attack that he consumed earlier using Parry dealt such heavy damage. It waspletely unimaginable that someone as weak as Joseph could produce such strength. This was the reason the old man was thoroughly shocked by what happened.


    "You... why are your attacks so heavy?"


    The old man looked at Joseph and squeezed out these words amidst his bloodied lips.


    "None of your business." Joseph coldly replied. He had no intention of talking with the old man right now until the old man realized his true identity. Joseph wanted nothing but to prove his existence as a myth in front of a legend without spelling it out for him.


    "I see, in that case then I must really not underestimate you anymore..." The old man stood up and wiped the blood that drenched his lips.


    "Since you''re a member of this damned ce, you must know about my true identity, right?"


    The air thickened, and the old man continued on speaking: "You must have thought before you came here that since I am just a cksmith, I should be weak and only good for production, right?"


    "Yes, that must have been what you thought. That really happens all the time... Every bastard that I meet always underestimate my strength just because I am a cksmith... It''s amusing... It''s ridiculous that there are numerous bastards like you that want to court death..."


    Light sh, thunder boomed and lightning descended from the skies.


    However, the old man merely waved his hand towards that lightning and when it was about to hit him. The unexpected happened.


    The lightning crashed against his hand, but it merely sizzled before dissipating into nothingness apanied by a booming sound of thunder that lingered for more than a short moment.


    "That Lightning is exasperating... However, I consider you, deserving to witness my true strength..." The old man stared right into Joseph and thetter gulped a mouthful of saliva. Sweat formed on his forehead, and cold sweat likewise drenched his back.


    His knees looked like they were about to copse any moment, but Joseph remained steadfast with the help of Mythical Authority and his promise of avenging Ezreal. Carrying those wishes, Joseph''s resolve hardened and he then took a stance, awaiting the old man''s attack.


    "Looks like you are prepared to die... Good, then..." The old man opened his palm and a single-handed hammer made of a diaphanous material appeared in his hand. However, that was not the end, an anvil also appeared in front of him and the old man squatted down and said.


    "... You must wait... Let me make a weapon first so you can face me at my strongest."


    "???" Joseph looked confused.


    But amidst his confusion, the old man then casually hammered on his anvil in front of the bbergasted Joseph who now had question marks floating above his head.


    "What the fuck?!"

 Chapter 58: Creation Complete

    Chapter 58: Creation Complete


    Joseph rubbed his eyes with an effort to check if he was in a dream. Since Gaming Capsules simted sleeping whilst your brain rxed within the world of Victory.


    There was some strange phenomenon reported by yers where they unknowingly entered the world of their dreams while they were ying Victory.


    ording to them, it was a strange yet scary experience because they couldn''t distinguish what was virtual, real or fake. That so-called phenomenon was called, "Gi-urom Phenomenon".


    This term was coined by the first yer who reported the urrence of that phenomenon and he named it like what he would call it in his vernacr dialect.


    The name of the Phenomenon wasn''t really that important. However, right now, Joseph doubted his eyes and he couldn''t help but check for obvious signs that he was in a dream such as distorted arms and fingers. However, he couldn''t find anything that signaled that he was a dream.


    It was impossible for him to be in an illusion too, due to the effects of his titles, but just in case. He checked his Status Bar and didn''t find any abnormal debuffs.


    After gathering this information, Joseph finally concluded that the strange actions of the old man in front of him was indeed genuine and not a product of his dreams or an illusion.


    But...


    "Are you serious?!"


    Joseph cried out in anger, he felt like he was wronged. Was he really that weak to the extent that his enemy could casually do something else while he was fighting them?


    Even though the old man was a Legendary cksmith. That didn''t mean that he could easily ignore Joseph''s damaging capabilities!


    "Shut up! Let me make my weapon in silence. Just sit tight there and once I am done. We can finally get this party started." The old man red at Joseph and scolded him, yet his hands never stopped. Such a scene was tooical for Joseph even to take him seriously anymore...


    However, when he saw the old man''s expression in front of his anvil. Joseph turned serious. It was because the old man became like an entirely different man when he hammered on his anvil.


    "So this is a legend..." Joseph thought to himself. The hand that gripped his sword tightened and he also turned serious.


    Ding!


    A ringing sound startled Joseph and when he turned to look in front of him. A system notification in a transparent window bordered with gold was floating before him.


    [ You may be a myth but this is the first time that you saw a Legend in the middle of his works. ]


    [ Congrattions, you are the first yer to witness the skills of a Legend! As amemoration for this achievement, a title will be generated and granted! ]


    [ Title: Old Man, Let''s Fight! Wait, Why Are You Hammering? has been generated! ]


    [ Title: Old Man, Let''s Fight! Wait, Why Are you Hammering?


    (A Myth visited a Legend. The Legend misunderstood and a battle ensued. Reluctant, the Myth had no other choice but to show the Legend his strength. But just as the Myth was about to attack. The Legend squatted and suddenly hammered on his anvil.


    The Myth was left confused...)


    For every strange action that you do in battle, there is a certain chance of inflicting [ Confusion ] against your enemies.


    While Confusion is in effect, one''s uracy and hit rate are dramatically lowered. Confusion from this source is considered as the product of a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted! ]


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face when he read the effects of the title. Was the Supeputer Noah watching him since it could make such an urate, yetedic title?


    But even though the title was ridiculous to read, its effects were powerful for as long as Joseph grasped the Confusion''s rate of urrence...


    After all, what if the chance was a mere five-percent, wouldn''t that make the skill useless?


    Joseph calmed himself down and erased his thoughts. No matter what, he must not let the Legendary cksmith make his weapon or else everything could be over for him!


    "Haaa..." Joseph took a deep breath and rushed towards the old man.


    "Grace." He first activated one of the Mercenary''s default skills, Grace. This skill increased one''s movement speed when facing a single opponent. Now that Joseph was sufficiently fast, he only needed damage and he had that in the form of another Grand Duelist skill, [Sharpened Eyes].


    "Sharpened Eyes..." Joseph silently activated the skill and small red and white marks the size of small tes, saucers, and even a palm appeared all over the old man''s body.


    From Joseph''s experience, the smaller a mark was, the higher the chance that his attack would critically strike on top of the base damage that Sharpened Eyes bestowed upon the shattering of a mark.


    Joseph hurried towards the old man and the old man didn''t seem to mind his approach.


    "Don''t mind if I do then!" Joseph raised his sword and attacked a mark that had the size of a small palm on the old man''s shoulder. He felt confident about his attack since the old man was busy with his hammering. But his eyes suddenly widened in shock.


    The old man''s right hand that held the hammer suddenly moved and he smacked his hammer directly at Joseph''s sword, causing it to be forcefully shoved aside as Joseph flew along with it and miserably rolled on the ground.


    [ You suffered 23 damage due to a strong impact on your body. ]


    Joseph gnashed his teeth, and the old man didn''t follow up with an attack while he was rolling on the ground.


    "Damn he''s underestimating me!"


    Anger red within Joseph''s heart and he once again dashed towards the old man.


    "Thrust!"


    Joseph pushed his sword towards the old man''s chest, but the old man suddenly stood up. He stepped on his sword and used the momentum of his attack so that he would lose bnce.


    "Ah!"


    Joseph cried out loud when he realized what happened but it was toote. He was already under the old man who attacked Joseph''s head with a hammer.


    ng!


    A clear ringing sound rang out when the hammer made contact with Joseph''s head.


    [ You suffered 467 damage! ]


    [ You are currently in a [Dizzy] state. This is caused by an unknown force that even you, a myth cannot resist. ]


    "Shit!" Joseph inwardly screamed, and right as he opened his mouth. The old man''s foot made contact with his nose and he was sent flying backward.


    Bang!


    [ You suffered 275 damage! ]


    [ You are currently in a [Dizzy] state. This is caused by an unknown force that even you, a myth cannot resist. ]


    Joseph struck a wall and he was now covered with dust and debris from the wall that crumbled upon impact with his body...


    But...


    "I don''t understand, why am I still alive? His attacks clearly looked heavy, yet why is the impact too low?" Joseph didn''t know how he''s still alive.


    Facing a full-fledged legend like Krid, Joseph knew that he didn''t have that much of a chance against him. He only moved ording to his objectives and his resolve toplete them.


    "Could it be that this is the effect of my quest? The Supeputer purposely lowered the damage that I would suffer in front of Krid so that the quest wouldn''t be so difficult? Nice!" A smile spread on Joseph''s lips as he consumed a Health Potion.


    "In that case, does that mean that I have a chance against this old man?" The prospects of defeating a Legend was huge, even for a Myth like Joseph.


    After all, he was currently Level 15...


    Too low for someone who started the game two months ago.


    The rewards that he may acquire from defeating someone like Krid may help him arrive at Level 100 in an instant...


    And so...


    Joseph was motivated once again.


    But just as he stood up, the old man also stood up. The only difference was that the anvil and hammer were reced by a single, slender, yet long and elegant sword. The sword hilt didn''t look different from an average sword, but the thin de made it iparably delicate.


    It also had a handguard, just above the sword hilt and below the de. All in all, whenbined. The sword in the old man''s hand looked gorgeous, yet definitely deadly.


    "When you came here earlier, I already felt that divine auraing out of your body..." The old man spoke in words that Joseph couldn''t understand.


    "It really made me happy when I felt that familiar aura, it was the aura of my idol..."


    "The one whom I idolize..."


    "Even though I am known throughout the world as a Legendary cksmith. I was never really a cksmith in the first ce..."


    The old man revealed a gentle smile on his face as he reminisced about his past. But his expression suddenly turned serious when he once again stared at Joseph.


    "Before I became a cksmith, I was a Swordsman. Someone who aimed to be the Sword Saint. At my peak, I was a Sword Connoisseur. Second only to the Sword Saint."


    "The main reason why I became a Sword Connoisseur in the first ce was because of her holiness''s blessing... Yes, I only reached my peak as a Swordsman due to her..."


    "But you..."


    The old man''s expression transformed into that of rage and resentment.


    "How dare you impersonate her aura!"


    He screamed, in great anger as the chains that bound his body slowly came off...


    When the chains that shackled him disappeared. H


    e slowly took a stance that looked iparably familiar to Joseph...


    It was the stance of the Grand Duelist.


    With the sword in held vertically in front of one''s chest and the less dominant hand behind one''s back.


    Yes...


    It was the arrogant stance of the Grand Duelist.


    "Face me! The bastard who dares impersonate the Grand Duelist!"

 Chapter 59: Unfortunately For You, I Cannot Die Yet

    Chapter 59: Unfortunately For You, I Cannot Die Yet


    Formless energy gathered around the body of the old man. They convened around him so thick that the originally formless and invisible energy now had a transparent body visible against the backdrop of the darkness that surrounded them.


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva and sweat dripping down his cheeks. His back, already drenched with cold sweatplimented his trembling knees. The old man''s aura was so intimidating that Joseph felt fear against him.


    Thankfully, the effects of his title, Mythical Authority somewhat subsided the pressureing off from the old man, else he would be on the ground right now, shivering in fear.


    "Come... Face me!"


    The old man rushed, carrying with him an unbridled murderous intent that thickened the surrounding air. Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air, his instincts locked on the old man''s knees and when he saw a movement. He hurriedly bent his knees and leaned backward.


    Whistle!


    A sharp whistling sound rang out and Joseph was astonished to see a line of a ck gash in the air when the sword on the old man''s hand traveled through it. However, before he couldprehend what was happening, the old man''s sword suddenly bent in an angle and it attacked Joseph from behind.


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    Excruciating pain came from his left chest and the old man''s sword stuck out from his chest.


    However, his pain didn''t end there...


    The old man harshly drew his sword from Joseph''s back, scattering blood everywhere on the ground.


    "Someone as weak as you even dare to impersonate the Grand Duelist? How droll." The old man mocked and he kicked the bloodied and kneeling Joseph, sending him flying towards a nearby wall and burying him in debris.


    [ You were attacked at a Major Vital and suffered tremendous damage in an instant! ]


    [ You are unconditionally Stiffened for a few seconds. This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted! ]


    [ Your heart has burst, and you are in a state of Hemorrhage. ]


    [ You are continuously bleeding and losing Health by 1% per second. This status effect will continue until you are sufficiently healed or the state of Hemorrhage has stopped. ]


    "Mo... Monster..." Joseph whispered under his breath, he struggled on removing the debris that covered his body and he also struggled on standing up.


    "You''re still standing up? You''re really tenacious, I give you that. However, you are weak, extremely weak. You are pretty good at imitating the Grand Duelist, but you are not on her level. Give up, just give up. I will not ask you to exchange your Sword Art for something else, but do not use such art ever again in front of me."


    The old man stared at Joseph in amusement.


    Joseph raised his head and red at the old man. Blood continuously dripped from his seven orifices and the wound on his chest. His eyes also reddened from the damage that his body suffered from the attack so he looked quite menacing and terrifying in his current state.


    However, the old man remained unfazed.


    "Can you not look at me with those eyes? I hate that look." The old man said, his grip around his slender sword tightened.


    Joseph did not respond. He took another deep breath and calmed his nerves down. He closed his eyes, but as soon as they snapped open once again. A single tear dropped from his eye as a greenish light and a gentle warmth covered his body.


    "That... so, he left you insurance?" The old man said in a shocked tone, evidently. He didn''t know that Ezreal had a trick under his sleeves that could help Joseph even though he physically couldn''t do it.


    [ The effects of [ Insurance of Nature ] has been activated. Damages that you recently suffered from are now irrevocably reversed. ]


    [ You regained 1875 Health! ]


    [ You are now in Full Health! All status effects have disappeared, but [ Insurance of Nature] has been permanently consumed! ]


    Joseph wore aplicated smile on his lips. He promised Ezreal earlier that he would handle everything from now on, but it turned out that he still couldn''t fight properly without Ezreal''s help.


    Furthermore, judging from the series of system notifications that appeared right in front of him. It looked like Ezreal sacrificed something consumable and incredibly just so he could help him survive.


    That was why...


    "Enough..."


    Joseph suddenly uttered.


    The old man looked visibly confused.


    "Enough of this..." Joseph continued and the old man finally replied.


    "So, you''re giving up now? Good, then hurry up and scram. Remember that I am not willing to cooperate with you bastards until you have met my demands." The old man chuckled in a sarcastic manner, but his expression turned serious when he saw Joseph''s visage.


    "I am tired of this... constantly being the underdog even though I am supposed to be the sun that overlooks everything, and even now! My friend is injured because of my hesitation. I always hesitate, I know I am determined enough to do something but my hesitation is the bane of me..." Joseph ranted.


    "What the hell are you saying? Have you lost your mind?" The old man knitted his eyebrows.


    "Have I lost my mind? Maybe, maybe I have lost my mind... I just can''t handle it anymore, you know? I am just apletely average person that wants to live a life of security and peacefulness but I am suddenly given such a monumental responsibility in this world just because I inherited the legacy of the Grand Duelist!"


    Joseph''s voice turned harsh and the old man''s frown deepened.


    "Inherited the legacy of the Grand Duelist? What a joke! You can''t fool me with such words. Someone like you has inherited the legacy of the Grand Duelist? Have you ever taken a look at yourself in the mirror?"


    "Yeah, that''s right... I am tired of that... People underestimating me like they know shit about me... I''m tired of that."


    Joseph continued on his rant, but the old man suddenly gave off a small smile.


    "If you''re tired of that, then what are you gonna do?"


    Joseph''s figure visibly trembled when he heard these words. But he didn''t have any other violent reactions. He merely lifted his head and stared at the old man.


    "Then, I will just prove my strength to everyone so that they wouldn''t doubt me anymore."


    The old man looked in amusement at Joseph: "Oh? How can you prove your strength to anyone when you don''t even have it in the first ce?"


    "Heh. Shut up, old man."


    The old man''s eyes widened in shock. He clearly didn''t expect such a response but then anger surged in his heart.


    "What did... you say?"


    Joseph sneered.


    "I said shut up, you are nothing but a mere foothold for me from now on. Heh, you''re a legend? Can a legend even hold a candle against a myth?"


    The old man hung his sword on his waist and crossed his arms before his chest.


    "Oh? How did you suddenly be that arrogant? Just where is your confidenceing from?"


    "My confidence? Well, it''sing from the art of not giving a fuck. The Grand Duelist''s Dash!" Joseph suddenly eximed at the end of his sentence and his body disappeared from the old man''s sight.


    "Hmmph, that trick again?!" The old man screamed and he abruptly drew his sword, sending a sweeping attack directly behind him. But contrary to his expectations, Joseph didn''t appear behind him. But instead...


    "So, you''re above, huh?"


    The old man retracted his sword and sent a thrust above him.


    Joseph who was in mid-air clearly didn''t have any trick that he could use so that he could move in mid-air. However, he wasn''t afraid. He greeted the swording towards him and mumbled.


    "Composure."


    As soon as the words came out of his mouth, formless energy gathered around him and his eyes suddenly shone in azure light. The world in front of Joseph didn''t change, but when he stared at the swording towards him. He could see a circle on the side of the sword with another circle rapidly closing towards it.


    Joseph attacked the side of the old man''s sword and his attacknded at the exact moment that the circle closed in on the other circle...


    Ding!


    A loud ringing sound of metals shing against each other rang out and the eyes of the old man widened in shock. But everything didn''t stop here. Joseph soonnded on the ground and sent a horizontal [sh] towards the old man.


    Ding!


    Another loud ringing sound rang out, this time. It was the old man that deflected Joseph''s sword. After deflecting the attack, he hurriedly widened his distance from Joseph. But Joseph didn''t let him do that.


    "Reveal Vitals, Overwhelming Presence."


    Joseph uttered these words, and he didn''t move from where he was standing. He merely brandished his sword and to the old man''s astonishment, an attacknded on his chest scattering blood in the air along with the sound of ss loudly shattering.


    [ You dealt 168,220 damage! ]


    "You..." The old man staggered and struggled on bncing himself due to the unexpected attack. But Joseph didn''t give him any time to breathe for he repeatedly brandished his sword towards the old man, continuously sending streams of formless energy flying towards thetter of which thetter, also continuously deflected with his sword.


    "I..." The old man raised his sword and blocked an iing ranged attack.


    Ding!


    "Admit that you are indeed..."


    Ding!


    "Quite capable..."


    Ding!


    "But..."


    Ding!


    "Do you really think that this is enough to defeat me?!" The old man roared and he suddenly disappeared from Joseph''s sight.


    "Huh?! Where did he go!?" Astonished from the old man''s sudden disappearance, Joseph moved with his instincts and when he turned around. There, he found the old man already sending an attack flying towards him. But...


    Ding!


    Joseph remained steadfast. He attacked the sword of the old man as soon as the rapidly closing circle mark on the old man''s sword fully closed.


    Ding!


    Such exquisite timing meant a sessful deflection under the effects of Calm and Composed. But this wasn''t the end of the old man''s attack. In fact, that attack was merely the start of his onught.


    "Endless Barrage!" The old man cried out and the formless energy surrounding the old man suddenly materialized into countless sword beams that shot towards Joseph.


    "Shit!" Joseph inwardly cursed, he didn''t have any time to shout such profanity for the sword beams along with the old man perfectly trapped him. Logically, Joseph should''ve forcefully retreated away from his enemy right now, but Joseph was unwilling to do that anymore.


    He didn''t want to hesitate anymore...


    Even Ezreal who knew that he only had a single life, protected him who could revive upon death.


    That kind of resolve was something that Joseph admired and he thought that he could never acquire something like that. But right now, after Ezreal gave him the confidence and saved him again. Joseph now nned on changing his ways.


    Life was indeed valuable, but hesitation in battle meant defeat...


    And so...


    Joseph roared...


    "AAAAHHH!!!"


    His body went into overdrive, he deflected every sword beam and even the old man''s attack in such impable timing and speed.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    "Faster..." But this wasn''t enough... The old man''s attacks were getting faster along with Joseph, and if this pace continued. Once the effects of Composure ran out and he didn''t have the help of Calm and Composed anymore...


    He would lose his deflecting capabilities and would certainly die.


    "Faster..."


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    "Grace!" Joseph squeezed this word out of his mouth and he activated, [Grace]. Increasing his movement speed by 20% but it still wasn''t enough. The old man could still keep up with his pace and the number of sword beams continued on increasing.


    "FASTEEEER!" Joseph inwardly cried and veins bulged on his body as his entire body reddened from the burden of continuously deflecting heavy and swift strikes from the enemy. But the old man still kept up with Joseph''s pace. In fact, he looked like he wasn''t even breaking a sweat.


    "Precision and Grace..." Joseph grunted and he barely squeezed these words out. Activating [Precision and Grace], he entered the state of [Hypersensitivity] increasing his movement speed. Right now, he was fast enough to the extent that his movements left confusing afterimages. But they weren''t particrly effective against the old man.


    "FAAASSSTEEERRR!!!" Joseph let out a maniacal scream, activating [Sharpened Eyes]. Marks of weaknesses and advantages surfaced on the old man''s body and Joseph didn''t care about anything anymore. He abandoned defense and went all-out on attacking those weaknesses for the sake of percentage-based Damage.


    [ You dealt 250,231 damage! ]


    "You brat... Are you insane?!" The old man noticed the changes, and he couldn''t help but exim in shock. But nevertheless, he didn''t stop his attacks in an effort to kill Joseph as fast as possible.


    "Yeah... I am insane... So what?" Joseph continued on his attacks, sending waves after waves of attack against the old man''s weaknesses causing the old man to cough a mouthful of blood. But thetter was also stubborn, instead of retreating. He also continued his attacks.


    [ You suffered 231 damage! ]


    [ You suffered 145 damage! ]


    [ You dealt 272,231 damage! ]


    t! Stop this now! If you continue doing this, you''ll die!" The old man cried out. His calm facade now broken due to the heavy damages that he suffered from Joseph''s relentless attacks. Although he could easily deflect or block Joseph''s attacks, due to thetter''s speed. It was inevitable that some attack slipped past his defenses and whenever that happened...


    He always suffered tremendous damage...


    "You want me to stop? Hahaha, why will I stop? Is there even a reason for me to stop when I have nothing to lose? Not like you. I am a cursed being so I have nothing to lose, old maaan!" Joseph roared, his movement speed increased to inhumane levels and even temporarily surpassed the limits imposed by thews of causality to everyone in Victory.


    [ Your suffered 523 damage! ]


    [ Your Health is lower than a certain percentage... ]


    [ The Grand Duelist''s Tenacity has been activated. ]


    [ Your Attack Speed and Movement Speed is increased by 80%, but Defenses from all sources are now ineffective. ]


    "This madman..." The old man continued on deflecting but it was evident that he couldn''t keep up his defenses anymore, his movement became sluggish and his continuously trembling arm made him feel like he didn''t even have enough strength to lift his sword anymore.


    [ You dealt 172,231 damage! ]


    [ You dealt 166,740 damage! ]


    [ You dealt 432,702 damage! ]


    [ Imminent Counter-attack is now avable. ]


    Joseph revealed a small smile when he saw a particr system notification


    "Farewell, old man..." Joseph leaped towards the skies and mumbled, "Imminent Counter-attack, Discharge."


    An iparably dense formless energy surrounded the Rusty Beginner Sword that Joseph held...


    When it descended, it left an incredibly long gash in the air for it ripped even space itself due to the strength that it carried.


    But in the face of such an overwhelming attack. The old man remained calm and faced the devastating attack with a smile on his face.


    "Unfortunately for you, I cannot die yet..." He uttered and when Joseph''s attack ruthlessly struck the sword that the old man held in front of him in defense, the unthinkable happened...


    "Parry..."


    The old man mumbled and the force of Joseph''s attack sunk like a stone thrown into a vast ocean. It didn''t even make any ripple. In fact, it just disappeared


    As if it never existed in the first ce.

 Chapter 60: Lost the Battle, but Won the War

    Chapter 60: Lost the Battle, but Won the War


    What came afterward was a force, so overwhelming that Joseph virtually had no chance of escaping nor defending against unless he had the legendary plot armor that the main characters always had in their battles.


    Without any suspense, Joseph met his demise in the face of Krid''s counter-attack.


    [ You died! ]


    [ You are currently under the penalty upon death. Please take a break for now and take care of your health. Return after you arepletely stable to y again. With this, the time penalty has ended! ]


    [ Thank you for ying, Victory! ]


    [ Sincerely, the P.H Works. ]


    When his vision turnedpletely ck upon his death. Several system notifications appeared right in front of him. Thepletely generic, [ You died ] was still disyed. However, the other system notifications were new features that Joseph didn''t know about.


    However, right now, he couldn''t care less.


    Logging out of Victory, he emerged from his Gaming Capsule and saw that his death penalty was only about half an hour.


    This was a light punishment since the yers were often logged out of their capsules for at least an hour after their death. Joseph wondered about what was the reason for this phenomenon.


    "Could it be that I did not actually fail the quest? The Grand Duelist''s Vestige quest didn''t say that the death meant the failure of the quest, so could it be that I misunderstood everything from the start? Death did not really mean quest failure and I was just being too cautious?"


    Although yers could revive upon death, no one wanted to willingly experience dying voluntarily.


    Death was still a construct that yers greatly cared about, no matter what world they were in.


    Furthermore, there were heavy penalties upon dying in Victory such as experience and item lost along with being locked out of the game temporarily.


    This was the primary reason why Joseph avoided death. Could it be that these penalties were the reason Joseph assumed that dying meant quest failure?


    Realizing this, hope appeared within Joseph''s eyes. He itched on returning to the world of Victory, but since he was currently under the penalty of death. He couldn''t do anything other than wait for everything out.


    In the meantime, he attended to the physiological needs of his body then sat on the couch and turned on the television.


    [ Hello, everyone! You are currently watching GMA Esports News! The most reliable media station for news concerning eSports! Right now, we currently have in our studio. The Head of Victory''s Development Team and the CEO of the P.H Works, sir Ray Gabriel! ]


    Disyed within the television was the figure of amentator sitting across the figure of a young man who looked to be in histe twenties.


    [ Thank you, everyone! Thank you, everyone! To those watching right now who are ying Victory. I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for ying... I hope that all of you have a great time so far within the world of Victory! ]


    [ Hahaha, sir Ray Gabriel is really humble. With the widespread poprity of Victory. Apart from those of the old generation, practically everyone owns a virtual reality console in their house and is ying Victory extensively! ]


    [ Really? ]


    [ Yes, sir! That is the result that we acquired from our recent survey! ]


    [ In that case, I really must thank everyone for their continuous support! ]


    [ Hahaha, sir Ray Gabriel really is an amiable and a humble man. ]


    [ You overpraise me... ]


    After these series ofpliments, the discussion of the two finally came to a serious one.


    [ Then sir, let''s discuss the changes that recently arrived within the world of Victory in this patch 2.32.]


    [ Ah yes, Patch 2.32. This is the patch where we implemented too many changes within the quality of life in the game and also some changes in our user interface. ]


    [ Speaking of the change in the user interface, I found that there are now additional messages upon one''s death. Back then it was just a simple message saying that you died, but now. There is a short messageing from the P.H Works... ]


    [ Yes, yes, yes. That is true. We added those messages so that we could somehow calm the stressed minds of our yers after dying. I mean, dying has always been a stressful matter in the world of Victory. We, the developers thought that adding those messages could calm the nerves of the yers after their death... ]


    [ Hahaha, indeed. Dying in Victory is really stressful, especially if you died against a small rabbit in the wild as a low-leveled yer. ]


    Thementator said in a bitter tone.


    [ Really? That happened? Hahaha... ]


    Ray Gabrielughed out loud at the face of thementator''s plight, but thetter did not take any offense on it. In fact, he even used it as leverage and added some words to it.


    [ Don''tugh at me like that, sir, Ray Gabriel. I mean, I do not think that I''m the only one that died from those pesky small, swift, and unexpectedly dangerous small rabbits near the Beginner Viges, right? ]


    [ Hahaha, that is indeed the case. ]


    The two poked fun at each other for a while before the meat of the topic was finally released.


    [ Well in Patch 2.32, as everyone knew. We added some nerfs particrly against Mercenaries and the Hunter''s Draw a Bead. We found that the four main skills of the Mercenaries, particrly ded Weapon Mastery scales too much if added on top of a powerful weapon... ]


    [ The adjustment that we did was reduce its critical strike percentage from 200% of Attack Damage to 180%. This particr change is made so that the current meta of adding critical strike scrolls towards one''s weapon would not be that overpowered and broken anymore. ]


    [ Ah... I feel them, sir, Ray Gabriel. I once confronted a Mercenary in the wild and he almost instantly defeated me because he built himself around Dexterity. I found out after some calctions that his Critical Strike Chance was actually at 35 percent, that was crazy... ]


    [ Yeah, but with this change. We hope that they will not be that powerful anymore. ]


    [ What about the Hunter''s Draw a Bead, sir Ray Gabriel? We know about the details behind it, but we want to know more about what led the Development Team into adding such a nerf... ]


    Thementator spoke in a somewhat spiteful voice.


    [ The change that we did against the Hunter is due to the fact that the Hunter''s Draw a Bead made them be really powerful in the long-range. In fact, the channeling for it can be finished too quickly to the extent that yers are using them in mid-air whilst they were falling just so they wouldn''t remain stationary and lessen the chance of being interrupted. ]


    [ We didn''t want Hunters to be ss cannons, we do not want them to have the devastating burst capabilities of Magicians. Instead, we want them to get close to their enemies. That''s the reason why Acrobat''s Dance and Assassinate exists in their kit. ]


    [ In their recent state, they were being used as snipers which were something against what we thought about Hunters when we designed them. Although P.H Works doesn''t really care about how the yers want to y Hunters along with their second-ss, one thing is for sure, we want Hunters to be Hunters, not snipers. ]


    Ray Gabriel and thementator froze for a moment before he replied.


    [ But... But isn''t a 5 second channeling time too excessive, sir? We found a lot ofints from Hunter yers about the excessive channeling time. They are saying that the Hunter Main ss is literally unyable right now. ]


    Ray Gabriel stared at thementator and smiled.


    [ Well, we always gather data for the sake of deciding whether the changes that we made were right or wrong. Let''s see what happens in the next patch. ]


    Ray Gabriel said and the two talked with each other for a moment before the interview finally concluded.


    "Their patch times are really strange, they sometimese fast and sometimes slow, like right now. It''s been two months since thest patch. But not that I should really care about it, for now, I mean. The major changes don''t really matter to me... But wait..." Joseph mumbled to himself.


    "Since they could freely add nerfs and buffs against sses. Does that mean that they could also do such things against my ss in the future?!" Joseph inwardly eximed upon this realization.


    But after a few moments, he could only sigh since he understood that he couldn''t do anything against the P.H Works'' wishes.


    In other words, his downfall and rise depended on the P.H Works'' decision.


    The sensation of having one''s career in the hands of others was really unpleasant. But since Joseph couldn''t do anything about it, he could only sigh and nce at the time.


    "30 minutes have passed? Let''s go!"


    Joseph hurriedly stood up from his seat and ran upstairs. He was careful not to step on the hole that his foot made on the stair as he walked inside his Gaming Capsule and entered the world of Victory once again.


    Right now, there were only two days left before his quest ends. This was Joseph thought, but he must first confirm if he failed his quest or not.


    When Joseph awakened in the world of Victory, what greeted him was the door of the room where Krid, the Legendary cksmith and the old man who killed him was sealed.


    Joseph raised his head and found several system notifications floating in front of him.


    [ Your [Rusty Beginner Sword] has suffered far too much damage and has been destroyed! ]


    [ Since you died under your ss-specific quest. You are pardoned from the effects of your title [The Sun that Overlooks Everything] temporarily. ]


    Hope ignited within Joseph''s eyes when he saw these system notifications and he hurriedly opened his Quest Logs only to find his quest still ongoing.


    "I didn''t fail the quest! Hurray!" Joseph inwardly screamed in glee.


    He quickly went inside the sealed room and the direction where he first looked at was the direction where Ezrealid on exhaustion earlier.


    But he found him missing.


    "Where''s Ezreal?" Joseph subconsciously mumbled.


    "He''s here, brat."


    A familiar hoarse voice replied and Joseph stared ahead to find Krid currently standing in front of Ezreal who slept soundly on the ground. Right now, Krid was once again chained on the stone b. But the chains never limited his mobility in the first ce.


    Since Krid was strong enough that he could easily remove the chains that shackled him. Just how did the Kingdom capture someone like Krid? Did they have something that''s more powerful than him?


    Joseph shook his head. No, that''s unlikely. Krid was a Legend. Although he was only a Legendary cksmith. He still was a Legend and something that a mere Kingdom couldn''t possibly imprison through honest means.


    Joseph thought hard about it but he decided that it was much better for him to ask Krid about his circumstances than to assume.


    And so, Joseph cleared his mind of these thoughts and approached Krid with a smile on his face.


    Judging from the amiable look on Krid''s expression.


    It looked like he finally understood Joseph''s identity and thetter was happy that even though he lost the battle.


    He still ultimately won the war...


    Now, the only problem was how he could release Krid from the hands of the Kingdom.

 Chapter 61: Krids Attitude

    Chapter 61: Krid''s Attitude


    The Kingdom of Nether was a prosperous city under the Empire of Dawn. But it was highly unlikely that they possessed enough strength that they could easily imprison a Legend like Krid.


    Ever since Joseph acquired the Grand Duelist''s Vestige Quest. He had always wondered about the reason as to how the Kingdom captured such a monster.


    Right now, he had the intention of asking the answer to that question from the monster himself.


    But first, he must attend to Ezreal...


    Joseph looked somewhat hesitant on approaching Krid, but Krid merely chuckled upon seeing his hesitation.


    "Calm down, do I look like a predator that will eat you or something?"


    Joseph wore a bitter smile: ''But you are a monster that''s more than a simple predator!'' He thought. But he soon shook his head and he slowly approached Krid.


    Seeing that Krid wore a smile on his face as he saw his approach Joseph gradually calmed down. However, his nerves were still stretched taut. Ready to act against any change in the situation.


    As Joseph neared Krid. Thetter maintained a kind smile on his face. But when Joseph was about five meters away from Krid, a change suddenly urred...


    Krid who remained stationary the whole time twitched.


    Joseph''s tensed nerves reacted and he instantly jumped backward whilst activating The Grand Duelist''s Parry. He unsheathed his sword and took the stance of the Grand Duelist prescribed by his skill tree.


    But when he raised his head and stared at Krid''s direction. He found that thetter had a look of amusement in his face.


    "Hahaha... Look at you jumping away like a scaredy-cat. Calm down, calm down, will you? As I said, I will not do any harm against you..." Kridughed out loud upon seeing the look of astonishment on Joseph''s face.


    ''This old man...'' Joseph knitted his eyebrows and he couldn''t help but inwardly curse at Krid in his heart. But since Krid already made clear that he wasn''t hostile against him. Joseph sighed in relief and finally sheathed his sword. However, he stillmented the fact that he wasted skill.


    Joseph approached Krid and he sat at the opposite side of Krid, while Ezrealid down face up between the two. Joseph still had his hand on his waist. Ready to act against any change in the situation.


    Krid noticed this and he couldn''t help but say: "Well, I can''t really me you about acting like that towards me, but do you really think that I will help your friend right here if I meant harm against you?"


    Joseph''s eyebrow raised: "You helped him heal?"


    Krid turned to look at him and said: "What do you think?"


    Joseph felt doubtful about Krid''s words. Krid didn''t really have any reason to lie.


    However, Joseph couldn''t understand why he was acting like this towards the two of them.


    Didn''t he consider them as his enemies and should be eliminated? Or could it be that Krid finally understood his true identity as the current Grand Duelist?


    Thinking of these, Joseph was finally convinced and he bowed his head in thanks: "I then thank senior for his generosity of saving thisrade of mine."


    Krid looked astonished by Joseph''s sudden change in attitude. But he weed that change and even scratched his cheek, embarrassed.


    "No problem, no problem. In fact, I should be the one who should apologize since I was the one that did this to your friend." Krid said in an apologetic manner, and he was about to bow his head when Joseph interrupted him and said.


    "No, Senior! Raise your head. Your actions at that time were only right for you do not really know our true identities. Not only that but seeing our uniforms also made you assume that we are affiliated with the Underground Penitentiary. Of course, it''s true that we''re affiliated with the Underground Penitentiary. But, we have different intentions for joining!"


    Joseph exined, and Kridughed out loud upon his exnation: "Hahaha, yeah. I know, I know... I know the reason why you came here. You came here for me, right?"


    Joseph was taken aback when Krid revealed the truth: "How does Senior know about that?"


    Krid revealed a bitter smile on his olden visage when he heard these words from Joseph. He hesitated for a moment before he answered: "To tell you the truth. I am really guilty and pained since I mistook you for an impostor and even attacked you..."


    Joseph knitted his eyebrows.


    Didn''t he already forgive Krid about what he did against them since everything was just a huge misunderstanding? Why was he still talking about this? Nevertheless, Joseph still answered.


    "Please do not worry about that anymore, Senior. Everything that happened was just a huge misunderstanding. There is no reason for you to feel guilty about it." Joseph waved his hand and acted like what happened recently was not a big deal.


    "No, you do not understand it." Krid''s expression looked like he was greatly struggling about something. Seeing this, Joseph''s frown deepened. However, before he could ask about it. Krid revealed it himself.


    "What do you think are the stereotypes about cksmiths?" Krid suddenly asked a question.


    Although confused. Joseph answered: "It is widely known that the cksmiths are great at production. Of course, that is a well-known fact and ismon sense. Just what does Senior want to know?"


    Krid scratched his head and awkwardlyughed before he continued: "Have you heard of the stereotype that cksmiths were weak when in battles?"


    Joseph fell into contemtion. Honestly, he did not know the answer to that question. Although he understood that cksmiths were people solely focused on producing items.


    Joseph didn''t believe that they were that weak. After all, if someone could repeatedly hammer a mineral for a thousand times daily wouldn''t they pack a painful punch?


    Seeing the confusion on Joseph''s expression.


    Krid was frustrated.


    He looked like he was about to pull all of his hair attached on his scalp as he cried out: "Have you never heard of that stereotype? It''s pretty popr throughout the continent, you know?! cksmiths receiving discrimination since everyone thinks that they are weak..."


    Joseph turned to look at Krid and seeing Krid''s frustration. He nodded his head subconsciously. After all, he didn''t want to anger such a monstrous NPC. It was better to agree than to disagree.


    "Yeah, that''s right! That prejudice is foolish, you know? Why would a cksmith be weaker than a Knight? Even though our techniques are non-existent, we are stronger in brute strength!" Krid said in a loud voice and his expression made him look like a raging maniac to Joseph''s eyes.


    "Uh... yes..." Joseph nodded his head in nervousness, afraid that Krid may snap and obliterate him with one hit if he acquired his anger.


    "Unfortunately, the reality was far harsher than I thought. Back then when I was a young man, I was already a talented cksmith. I could produce wares that are far higher in quality than others while using fewer resources. In other words, I was a gold mine!"


    Excitement appeared on Krid''s eyes when he exined and Joseph shivered.


    ''Why do every NPC that I meet always wants to tell me their stories? Can you please stop now? I want to talk more about the weapon that I needed as the Grand Duelist... Please?'' Joseph pleaded in his heart, but he still nodded his head whenever Krid turned to look at him for validation.


    "Being a gold mine, I was coveted by many. But I am only a young man who wanted to earn money for the sake of my family. After all, we aremoners, and life is harsh for us..."


    "My parents knew that many coveted me and all sorts of powerful people approached them just so they could buy me from my parents in exchange for money..."


    "However, what do you think did my parents answer?" Krid suddenly turned serious.


    He stared at Joseph and thetter revealed a bitter smile on his face when he answered: "Uh... They refused?"


    "NO! THEY ACCEPTED THEIR OFFERS! They even scammed those bastards and sold me to them for a price even though they already sold me to a noble. When those nobles caught wind of my parents'' schemes. They ran away with the money and were never seen again..."


    "Thankfully, I am an only child so I did not have any siblings to worry about..."


    "However, that wasn''t the end of my problems. After that noble acquired custody of me, they treated me like I was a ve instead of a cksmith. I was not even given any wage, my food always nd, scarce and hard to digest and my hours were the worst!"


    "I had to work for about 120 hours, 7 days a week and only about 30 minutes of break just to eat!"


    Krid rambled about his past and Joseph was thoroughly shaken about what he heard. ''120 hours for 7 days a week, without any proper wage, breaks, and food? Just how did he survive something like that at an early age?'' But before Joseph could ask, Krid continued on his rambling.


    "After two years of consistent working within that hell. I escaped. I forcefully stuffed my emaciated body inside a wine barrel that almost drowned me before I was even released."


    "Thankfully, the caravan that I snuck in was ambushed by bandits and when those bandits saw me and heard about my story. They epted me as one of them..."


    "These were the most joyful times in my past. I met numerous friends, sworn brothers, andrades. I experienced my first love, first heartbreak and there were a lot of times that I almost died..."


    "However, all in all, everything was worth it... After all, I met that cheerful woman whom I thought that I could be with, forever..."


    "But everything ended and changed when we entered a particr dungeon..."


    Grief shed on Krid''s expression, but he gulped a mouthful of saliva, suppressing his sadness before he continued.


    "Rumors said that the dungeon had innumerable treasures ready for those worthy for them all. When we ventured into the dungeon, we realized that it was true."


    "But unfortunately, the dungeon was full of traps and monsters. We expected that the dungeon was dangerous, but not to that extent!"


    "We had to fight against a thousand wolves, and in the end..."


    Krid froze and paused.


    He took a deep breath and sighed heavily.


    "I was saved by the sword of the woman whom I loved... Can you understand what I was feeling at that time? I felt nothing but despair, hopelessness and the desire to die... I did not even have the ability to save my beloved, am I even worthy to live after that event?"


    "I couldn''t forget the gentle smile that she gave to me when she shoved me away from the jaws of those beasts... Herst words always haunted me, and I decided that I had to do something...


    "Since I am not worthy to live after those events anyway, why would I even bother living? However, I still had to do something, I still had an unfulfilled desire..."


    "At least, if I die. I should be beside my beloved..." Krid''s body continuously trembled, water welled in his eyes and he looked like he was about to cry. However, he forcefully suppressed everything.


    Taking a deep breath, he continued...


    "I went crazy... I returned, carrying with nothing but my hammer. I smashed those that dared to attack me. Of course, I suffered a lot in the process but I didn''t care."


    "I had no will to live anyway, so, was death even a problem? I continued on my journey, without caring for anything but my desire to reach my beloved''s resting ce..."


    Krid stopped talking and he suddenly wore a small smile on his face as tears welled up in his eyes.


    "In the end, I found her... However, what I found was only her hand... Her severed hand, still wearing the ring that I gave to her at our first anniversary was what remained of her body."


    Tears finally dripped down Krid''s cheeks and Joseph''s expression also looked like he was holding back something within himself as a sour sensation rose up her throat.


    "I knelt down, apologized and cried. I cried as loud as I could to send my apologies and regret to her spirit in the heavens... then, I sat still. I did nothing. But, sat still. Staring at her gorgeous hand as I reminisced about our past..."


    "Then, I suddenly realized that something strange was within the emerald ring that I gave her. The emerald ring, unbeknownst to me was giving off a holy lightparable to that of the divine..."


    Krid revealed a bitter smile on his face, staring right at Joseph. He continued.


    "What''s inside that ring was Fragment of Memories! When I touched the ring, I found that the first fragment belonged to my beloved. However, the other... belonged to the Grand Duelist!"


    Krid suddenly eximed, and Joseph was visibly astonished. But before he could even ask any further.


    Krid continued on talking: "The Grand Duelist, a mythical existence known to have enough strength at her peak that she could quite literally pierce through an entire to its core and make it explode..."


    "Yes, that''s right... The basis of my Swordsmanship was the Grand Duelist. That is why I said that your aura is familiar, and that is the reason why I am such a strong Swordsman despite being a cksmith of this caliber." Krid smiled at Joseph and Joseph''s expression depicted the shock that he felt.


    What a roller-coaster of emotions!


    First, he was annoyed, then depressed and now. He was astonished and shocked!


    "But do you know the reason why I told you that I knew about the reasons why you were looking for me?"


    Krid revealed a sly smile when he said these words.


    "Wh... Why?" Joseph barely squeezed these words out amidst his shock.


    "Well, it was because everything was prophesied... The Grand Duelist herself told me that in the future. In exchange for teaching me a sliver of her divine art. She told me that I must help someone who has her divine aura... And there you are!"


    Krid lightly chuckled at the end of his sentence and Joseph couldn''t keep up with the changes in the atmosphere. Just earlier, Krid was crying out loud and now.


    He wasughing as if nothing had happened? What''s wrong with this old man? Is this the reason why he''s so strong?


    Is it because he''s mentally unstable?


    But still, Joseph trembled in excitement when he heard about the fact that Krid had the obligation of helping him. He stared at Krid and replied: "Th-then... Senior will help me with bing stronger?"


    Krid saw Joseph''s excitement, but instead of nodding his head. Heughed out loud and replied: "The Grand Duelist told me that I must help you unconditionally. However, I helped you already!"


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock and he cried out: "Wait, you helped me already?! Where?" He looked anxiously as he replied in a panic.


    Meanwhile, Krid pointed at Ezreal: "Didn''t I help thisrade of yours heal his body faster? Even though he is the one that I healed since he is yourrade. Doesn''t that also count as helping you since you do not need to go through the hassle of healing a member of such an exotic species..."


    "Ah..."


    This time, even Joseph''s mouth hung open in shock upon this sudden realization.


    "Hahaha!" Kridughed once again when he saw Joseph''s bbergasted expression.


    "Calm down, calm down, kid. I was only joking... Look at that expression of yours, really... You look too funny." Krid even pped his thigh and he held his stomach inughter.


    Joseph awakened from his trance and he deeply frowned at Krid who continued onughing.


    "Senior''s jokes are really too much for this one''s heart... Can we talk seriously now, Senior?" Upon realizing Krid''s attitude. Joseph now doubted the legitimacy of Krid''s story earlier.


    However, since right now wasn''t the right time to talk about that.


    He could only shake his head and focus on the task at hand.


    "Okay, okay... Let''s talk seriously since that is what you want. But before I talk and answer your questions. You must give me some alcohol..."


    "What?" Joseph looked like he doubted his hearing.


    "Are you deaf? You must give me some alcohol before we can talk!" Krid replied in a loud and angry voice.


    Joseph was startled, and he looked like he was about to stand up, unsheathe his sword and fight against Krid once again for as long as he could escape his current predicament that he couldn''t understand.


    But in the end, Joseph could only suppress his anger.


    However, a question still remained in his heart.


    Just where the hell can he get a beer?


    ''Goddamned it, what a demanding old man...'' Joseph cursed in his heart and he could only stand up.


    The only option that he could imagine when acquiring beer was going towards the surface.


    With how big the Underground Penitentiary was, that would take quite some time so Joseph was unwilling to waste his time any further with Krid in here.


    But then...


    He stopped in his tracks due to a sudden realization.


    "Juzo!" Joseph eximed before he turned around to face Krid...


    [Author''s Note:Finally... The mass release has ended... This has been such a hectic journey. I did a lot of edits, but I had fun. I hope you also had the same fun as me reading through all of this...]

 Chapter 62: Krids Circumstances

    Chapter 62: Krid''s Circumstances


    "Juzo? Do you know of that man''s name? He''s from the Divine Sword Sect and is known to be the greatest drunkard out there. I really admire his skills in brewing alcohol... Could it be that you have alcohol brewed by him?" Krid asked in excitement.


    Joseph nodded his head and Krid''s excitement intensified.


    "Really? If that''s the case then hand it over to me right now. Those bastards always refuse my request for some alcohol. It''s been such a long time since I drank one and if it came from Juzo then it will really be a good treat."


    "Hahaha..." Joseph lightly chuckled when he saw Krid''s excitement.


    Krid looked like he was a child about to be handed over his favorite toy.


    The former chuckled upon seeing that peculiar excitement.


    "I have a jug of his beer with me. Would you like some, Senior?" Joseph opened his palm and a jug of beer appeared in his hand.


    Along with its appearance, a strong, citrusy and spicy aroma suffused in the air.


    "Yes, that''s it! That''s Juzo''s jug of beer... Hand it over!" Krid''s excitement surged and he reached out towards Joseph.


    [ Would you like to hand over Juzo''s Favorite and Beloved Jug of Beer to Krid? ]


    "Here you go, Senior." Joseph handed over the jug of beer and Krid dly received it.


    Popping open the lid, the spicy, citrusy and strong aroma of the beer that suffused in the air further intensified. Joseph couldn''t endure it and he had to take a step back. Ezreal who was still unconscious visibly knitted his eyebrows...


    Krid then chugged the beer without any care, some of it spilled on his clothes and to the poor Ezreal who peacefullyid on the ground in the middle of his sleep. When the strong beer sshed on his face. Ezreal was startled awake.


    "What is that? Why is it so spicy? What is this strong smell?" He pushed his upper body off the ground and startedining before he could even open his eyes.


    Krid and Joseph chuckled upon seeing his awakening.


    "Master? You''re there? What''s going on? Are you okay?" Ezreal mumbled, his eyes still closed.


    "I''m doing fine, Ezreal. Just open your eyes and you''ll see."


    Ezreal obliged and the scene that he saw thoroughly shocked him to the core.


    Krid who was supposed to be their enemy was now staring at him with a sarcastic smile on his face, and Joseph. Whom he considered as his master stared at Krid with excitement and reverence.


    ''Just what the hell happened that everything became like this?'' Ezreal thought, but his first move ording to his subconscious was to stand up, leap backward and prepare an attack.


    "Get away from master!" Ezreal cried out, throwing all caution to the wind. He red at Krid and an iparably pure aura along with the aroma of earth revolved around his body.


    "Calm down, calm down, Ezreal! Me and Senior already cleared up our misunderstandings. Right now, he''s not an enemy, but a friend. Calm down, okay?" Joseph stood up and exined.


    Ezreal knitted his eyebrows and he looked like he couldn''t believe what Joseph was saying. The first idea that he thought about regarding what was going on, was that the Joseph he was seeing right now was an illusion that Krid made so he could let his guard down and be easily ambushed.


    But...


    "Don''t worry... He''s real... Even if I could make an illusion out of him. There''s no way that I can perfectly replicate who he is..." Krid smiled and exined.


    Ezreal nodded his head in agreement. That''s right, although someone could replicate Joseph''s body, mannerism, speech, and voicepletely.


    There''s no way that they could replicate the divine aura of the Grand Duelisting out of his body.


    Even though that aura of his was still iplete and immature...


    It was undoubtedly the aura of the Grand Duelist.


    Ezreal visibly calmed down and he finally approached the two.


    Of course, he still hasn''t let his guard down.


    "Then, master. Can you please exin to me what happened?" Ezreal turned to look at Joseph and thetter exined everything that happened with a bitter smile on his face.


    "You... you bastard! How dare you kill my master!" Ezreal took a stance once again and Krid could only scratch his head.


    "Listen here... What I did waspletely normal. Wouldn''t you counter-attack against someone attacking you? His death was just an unfortunate result of me using my strength..."


    "He''s right, Ezreal. There''s no need to make a big deal about it. Everything that happened is done and finished. How about we look forward to the future and talk about what the reasons why I came here in the first ce? Right, Senior?"


    Joseph chimed in before tension could form between the two.


    Although reluctant, Ezreal could only nod his head and agree.


    "Now to the main part, I just want to ask, Senior. Just how did the Kingdom imprison someone as powerful as you? I mean, you could easily remove those chains around you earlier..."


    "Doesn''t that mean that you could escape this ce whenever you want?" Joseph asked a question that Ezreal also wondered about for a long time prior to this. For him, it didn''t make sense that a powerful Legend could be imprisoned by a mere Kingdom...


    He nodded his head and stared at Krid with a serious expression.


    Krid was taken aback by the straightforward question. He swept his gaze at the two before sighing.


    "That''s right... I could leave this ce whenever I want but I cannot do that."


    He spoke in contradicting words that confused the two...


    But before the two could ask any further.


    Krid voluntarily revealed the answer to their question.


    "I cannot leave this ce for they took my one and only beloved disciple as their hostage. I don''t care about dying. I don''t care if I die...


    "In fact. Dying is also a blessing to me since I can finally meet her, but I cannot die until my disciple inherits everything that I knew about cksmithy and Swordsmanship..."


    Krid looked like he aged for about ten years at once when he talked about his disciple.


    "You know what? I''m always guilty whenever I face my disciple. Ever since she was a child, she grew up in front of the anvil, and only the anvil and the hammer were her ymates."


    "I knew nothing about bringing a child up, so I couldn''t do anything other than use methods that I knew..."


    Joseph frowned, he felt somewhat strange when he heard what Krid had said. But he didn''t dare on confirming them right now.


    "The life of a cksmith is harsh, tedious, tiring and hot. But she neverined about it. I never heard any words ofint from her whenever she was near the terrifyingly hot mes of the furnace. She only smiled, always assuming a tough facade in front of me even though her petite and young body was clearly suffering..."


    "That is the reason why I cannot leave this ce. If I leave, she will be executed by those bastards..."


    "I will never let that happen... No matter what..."


    Krid dered in a solemn voice. He once again chugged the jug of beer in his hands before he stared at Joseph and said...


    "Brat..."


    Ezreal subconsciously moved closer towards his master.


    Krid didn''t mind what he was doing...


    "As I said earlier, I already know the reason about why you are looking for me... But I cannot help you with that for now. At least, until I leave this ce along with my disciple. I cannot fulfill your wish, forgive me." Krid slightly bowed his head towards Joseph.


    Ezreal was taken aback by his gesture.


    ''A Legend is bowing towards master?'' Ezreal was gratified about what was happening and his mood turned for the better.


    But he had an inkling about what Krid was hinting towards them, so he couldn''t help but ask.


    "Old man, does that mean that you want us to help regarding your precious disciple?" Ezreal chuckled when he said these words.


    Krid trembled for a moment but he still replied.


    "Yes, that is what I want to request from the two of you. It''s been a long time since I was thrown in here and day by day, I always thought about methods that I could use so that I could rescue my disciple... but... Those bastards! Those bastards ced a Heart Binding Worm in her!!!"


    Krid suddenly screamed and the ferocity of his cry startled Joseph and Ezreal.


    But in the end, Ezreal wore a bitter smile on his face, whilst Joseph was the only one who was confused.


    "Heart Binding Worm... Those bastards really are too vicious..." Even Ezreal was shaken by Krid''s words. It looked like the Heart Binding Worm was quite serious, so although Joseph didn''t know about what it was.


    He still assumed a solemn expression as if he understood what they were talking about.


    "That is the reason why for now, I cannot help you. I hope that you can understand my plight. And even if I am willing to help you right now. "


    "I do not have the necessary materials in here for your Primary Weapon worthy for the sessor of the Grand Duelist..."


    Krid exined to Joseph with a sigh and he momentarily closed his eyes. However, in the very next moment. His eyes snapped open as he cried out.


    "And don''t even try and coerce me into making inferior weapons for you! The Grand Duelist is my benefactor and the foundation of my Swordsmanship came from her."


    "I will not entertain such sphemy and disrespect, even if you''re the sessor of the Grand Duelist!" Krid suddenly gave a warning and Joseph nodded his head in a serious manner.


    ''I came here for the strongest weapon suitable for me, why would I ask for inferior ones?'' He thought.


    "But... even though I cannot help you regarding your Primary Weapon for now. That doesn''t mean that I cannot help you in other ways..." Krid revealed a proud smile on his expression and he looked like he was begging for some praise.


    Seeing that Krid didn''t continue on speaking.


    Joseph asked: "Uh... What does Senior mean?


    "Well, when you fought me earlier. I noticed that you were not takingplete advantage of your skils as the Grand Duelist. Since you''re her sessor, shouldn''t you have the ability to use the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship?"


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile in the face of his question and he felt reluctant on answering it.


    "I do have it, Senior... But I am not sure if I can use it."


    "Why?" Krid frowned.


    Aplicated expression shed on Joseph''s face and he seemed to be struggling with something.


    "Is it because you''re not confident that you could make it work and afraid that failure on using it will break your fragile heart and make you further lose your confidence?" Krid''s words were spot on and Joseph''s eyes widened in shock when he heard the former.


    Ezreal was also surprised by what Krid said, but when he saw the bitter expression on Joseph''s face.


    He confirmed that it was the truth and he couldn''t help but mumble.


    "Master... is he saying the truth? So the reason why master refuses to use the Graceful Swordsmanship of the Grand Duelist is because, master is not confident that master can properly utilize the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship.


    Joseph nodded his head in embarrassment. Even he couldn''t understand why he was so afraid of the unknown. Why was he so afraid of failure?


    He failed for so many times before he managed on defeating the Great Magician Lilibeth, the times when he was defeated could be considered as failures, so why was he not afraid of failing back then?


    Krid turned to look at Joseph and when he saw Joseph''splicated emotions.


    "I know what you are feeling right now. You feel stupid and useless since you do not have the confidence of doing something that you should be capable of doing, right?"


    "Hahaha, I understand. I was also like that back then. I was so afraid that my disciple will despise me if I failed in my craft so I always strived for perfection..."


    "But do you know about what she said to me when her birthday came at that year? Do you know about what she wished for in front of her cake?"


    Krid revealed a gentle smile on his face as he swept his gaze at the two before continuing.


    "She said that she hopes that I would realize that she would love and adore me no matter what happened..."


    Joseph froze, and Ezreal now had a small smile on his lips.


    "That is why, young man. If you''re afraid of being despised by someone whom you consider as valuable to you just because you failed in something. Think about this..."


    "If they despised you while you are in your worst, they do not deserve you at your best."


    "A truerade will never do something like that, and if they do? Good job, you dodged a bullet."


    Krid patted Joseph''s shoulder, and thetter revealed a light smile on his lips.


    Ezreal who sat beside Joseph was visibly moved.


    "Master... I didn''t know that I was that valuable to you..." Ezreal turned to face Joseph and thetter pushed him backwards before saying.


    "Fuck off! Can you not look at me like that?" Joseph was disturbed about Ezreal''s teary-eyed look.


    "Oh? I thought that master liked women who are innately innocent and often acted like this? Master really is the so-called, tsundere-type of a person." Ezreal said in a teasing manner and Joseph instantly stood up.


    "Yeah, that is definitely my type of women. But the problem is that you''re a man! By the way, where did you learn the word tsundere?"


    "Well, it was inscribed on the manga bs that I got from that young woman. But how about you, master? I don''t think that you''re entirely disliking it."


    "But don''t worry..."


    "I will always be your friend no matter what your unique habits and orientations are."


    Ezreal winked at Joseph and thetter couldn''t do anything but stand there with his lips twitching in anger and embarrassment.


    "Did... Did he just turn the tables against me?" Joseph exasperatedly mumbled.


    Krid observed the two at the side, andplicated emotions shed on his face as he whispered to himself...


    ''If he really does value his friends like this... Perhaps, I could have her...'' Krid paused his thoughts, and shook his head.


    He had shackled his disciple with him for such a long time already...


    She couldn''t even enjoy her childhood and y like a normal child should do back then...


    Right now, he must not make decisions on her behalf.


    She wasn''t a puppet. She was his disciple.


    But more importantly.


    His...


    A bitter expression shed on Krid''s face.


    ''Do I even have the right to call her as my... Heh, forget about it... I have no right to call her like that.''


    Krid chugged the jug of wine in his hands and swept these thoughts away from his mind.


    [Author''s Note: Juzo''s Beer came from Chapter 7 if you already forgot about it.]

 Chapter 63: Further Movements Within the Kingdom

    Chapter 63: Further Movements Within the Kingdom


    The Capital City of Reinhardt was strategically located near the eastern border of the Kingdom instead of the center. But why?


    Why was the Capital City, so far away from the center of the Kingdom?


    Well, it was because the Kingdom of Nether fully controlled everything beyond the eastern border.


    It was an extremely safe location, and this was the reason why the Capital City of Reinhardt was considered by everyone that it could never be captured for as long as the Kingdom was alive and well.


    It could only be captured if the Kingdom itself copsed.


    But that wasn''t the only reason why the Capital City Reinhardt was situated near the eastern border of the Kingdom.


    One of the primary reasons was that the eastern border had a lot of natural resources.


    Agriculture and mining boomed in the eastern border of the Kingdom due to the fertilend, tame climate and rich mountains around it.


    Reinhardt became the Kingdom''s business andmerce center due to these reasons and most nobles that lived previously at the center of the Kingdom of Nether transferred to the eastern border for the sake of establishing their businesses.


    Due to arge number of avable jobs within the Capital City, it was filled with all sorts of people, and even at night...


    It was still bustling with activity.


    But today was a different day for the Capital City of Reinhardt.


    At least, that was how it was for the yers.


    At the intersection on the main road of the Capital City of Reinhardt. At least a hundred yers with the name, "Crimson" floating above their heads were gathered. Each and every one of them carried tools for mining such as pickaxes and wheelbarrows...


    "Isn''t that the eighth batch already?"


    "Yeah, that is the eight batch... But I don''t understand, why are they carrying their tools instead of cing it in their inventories?"


    "Uh... I''m also confused about why they are doing that...


    "Hmmph, isn''t it obvious?"


    "What''s obvious?"


    "It is obvious that these bastards from the Crimson Guild are making a show..." A yer proudly replied. The yers in the surrounding turned to look at him and when they saw the name of "Knights of Justice" floating above his head.


    They looked somewhat convinced...


    But some of them were doubtful.


    "Making a show? But why? Why would they do something as tedious such as manually carrying those heavy tools instead of cing them in their inventories?"


    What that person asked made sense since yers in Victory were still affected by weight.


    Not only would they find it hard to move with such heavy objects on their shoulders, but they would also deplete their Stamina which would make them practically useless if someone ambushed them whilst their Stamina were depleted.


    This wasmon sense for everyone so, the yer from Knights of Justice found it hard to answer.


    Why was Crimson doing something that was clearly detrimental to them?


    It didn''t make any sense and so, he couldn''t answer the yer''s question.


    But the average yers within Crimson knew that the answer to their questions wasn''t really surprising or worthy to be proud of.


    All they knew was that the Guild Leader specifically ordered them to not ce their tools inside their inventories so that they could show towards the other guilds that they weren''t afraid of being ambushed.


    These were what the average yers knew. But of course, this only worked against the average yers of Guild Dark me and Guild Knights of Justice.


    The high-ranking yers of these two guilds knew that Crimson must be doing something else beneath the curtain.


    But the truth was that only two people knew about everything within the Crimson Guild...


    dimir, the Guild Leader, and his right-hand personnel...


    A young woman known, as the Bloodstained Lilium.


    Of course, this wasn''t her in-game but her title.


    Still, having such a terrifying title meant that she was infamous throughout the entire Kingdom of Nether...


    "dimir, are you sure that they will absolutely bite this bait of ours?"


    Among the eight batches of yers sent to work on the mines at the base of the mountain near the Forbidden Region.


    Two yers who looked incredibly average walked beside each other as they whispered.


    The yer d in amon-looking coat turned to look at the yer who asked him that question and sneered: "What we are doing is the same as what we did with the previous batches of yers that we sent to the mines. The only difference was that there are no powerful yers escorting us..."


    The yer who had a slender figure looked around and realized that apart from the average yers of Crimson in the surroundings. There were figures d with the same clothes as them but had apletely silent aura.


    Those figures looked incredibly normal, but that was the reason why they were terrifying...


    "Do you understand it now, Lilium?" dimir proudly said.


    Right now, the two of them were disguised among the average yers along with the knights that dimir borrowed from Duke Heathrow.


    "When those bastards from Dark me and Knights of Justice attack. They will surely be pleasantly surprised!" dimir said, his hand moved closer to Lilium as his fingers slid on her slender body.


    "Once everything is over, how about we meet outside?" He enticingly said.


    yers in Victory had the option of changing their appearances, but one cannot change their sex into something else.


    In other words, women in the real world were also women within the world of Victory.


    Knowing Lilium''s arrogance. dimir reckoned that she wasn''t the type of a woman that would willingly change his appearance into something else that wasn''t really her. Seeing her beauty within the world of Victory...


    dimir was almost a hundred percent sure that she was also this beautiful outside.


    "Let''s talk about that if you really did manage on repelling their forces. Until then, don''t you dare touch me again." Lilium said in a cold voice and dimir froze from where he stood.


    Only until a yer from behind scolded him that he should move did he move again as he stared at Lilium in anger.


    "This bitch... If not for the fact that... " dimir inwardly swore, he was about to say something out loud, but he managed on suppressing himself...


    He painstakingly suppressed his anger and he started walking once again.


    Lilium noticed dimir''s anger and she snickered when she saw him fuming.


    "This is why boys really are boys..." She inwardly mocked.


    Meanwhile, back at the Underground Penitentiary...


    "Now that the misunderstanding''s all cleared up... We can finally start now..." Krid finished his beer and stood up before stretching his body.


    The chains that shackled his body moved along with him.


    "We can finally start? What''s about to start, old man?" Ezreal said in a somewhat rude tone.


    It looked like he hasn''tpletely forgotten about the fact that Krid ughtered Joseph earlier...


    "Brat, I am going to train you... Right now, you are just a premature Grand Duelist. Although you have her aura and her Divine Art..."


    "That doesn''t mean that you are the bonafide Grand Duelist of the current generation already. Until you understood what it means to be the Grand Duelist, there''s no way that I''ll call you as the Grand Duelist..."


    Krid said in a challenging manner.


    Joseph stared seriously at the former before he stood up and said: "In that case then, let''s do it..."


    Krid was somewhat astonished by his answer: "I thought that you''d be mad about me underestimating you?"


    Ezreal was also shocked by Joseph''s casual reaction.


    "Senior, even though I said that I am tired of being underestimated. There''s really nothing that I could do about it apart from doing my best on bing stronger... So, if Senior is willing to help me with this goal of mine, I will dly partake on that offer." Joseph replied in a sincere manner and Krid revealed a smile on his face.


    "Are you confident with your skills now? Or are you still afraid?"


    Krid asked, and Joseph shook his head.


    "I''m still afraid, Senior... But I think... being afraid does nothing... I must do something like I have always done. I must do what must be done, without hesitation and without being afraid of failure anymore..." At the end of his sentence, Joseph chuckled as if he wasughing at himself.


    "Were you always like that... master?" Ezreal chimed at the side. Ever since he followed Joseph, he could never find any traces of low self-esteem in him. For Ezreal, Joseph was the perfect master.


    Not only he had aical side, and he also had a heart that cared far too much to his friends.


    He was also the Grand Duelist, destined to be at the top of everyone.


    But today...


    Ezreal realized that his master could still be considered as a person.


    He wasn''t the true Grand Duelist yet, but someone wed due to his past experiences that left scars deep within his heart.


    Joseph turned to look at Ezreal,plicated emotions shed on his face.


    "I wasn''t really like this, Ezreal... But the death of those precious to you... Really fucks up anyone in this world, you know?" Joseph replied in a somber tone. Even Krid was affected by what he said for he turned silent as he stared at Joseph.


    Ezreal, on the other hand, looked like he was about to cry.


    Thankfully, he suppressed his tears as he nodded his head at Joseph.


    Indicating that he understood what thetter was saying and that he would ept whatever past that he had and whatever he would do in the future...


    The two silentlymunicated with their gazes until Krid interrupted them with a cough.


    His expression looked somewhat awkward for he realized that Ezreal''s gaze was quite coquettish,parable to the gazes of those girls who lived and thrived within those districts filled with crimson lights.


    "Okay, senior... We can start." Joseph turned his gaze away from the admiring Ezreal.


    Krid awakened from his trance, but his expression couldn''t help but turn strange when he swept his gaze at Ezreal and Joseph.


    ''Just as I thought, it seems like I cannot do that against my disciple... But he''s the sessor of the Grand Duelist! He''s suitable for her! But right now, seeing thisrade of his. I can''t help but think that he has strange tendencies...''


    All sorts of thoughts appeared within Krid''s mind in a matter of seconds.


    But after a moment of silence, he finally sighed then walked towards Joseph.


    Joseph and Ezreal stared seriously at Krid...


    But the two didn''t expect that Krid would summon an anvil and hammer, before squatting on the ground and hammering once again like what he did just recently.


    "???"


    "..."

 Chapter 64: Grandeur and Beauty

    Chapter 64: Grandeur and Beauty


    The lips of the two repeatedly twitched. They couldn''t say anything apart from staring at each other with awkward smiles on their faces. Nevertheless, the two knew not to waste such precious opportunity of witnessing a Legendary cksmith''s skills.


    So, they stared intently at Krid.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    Everything turned silent. Only the sound of the hammer repeatedly striking the anvil could be heard. But a frown could be seen on Joseph''s face, while in contrast...


    Ezreal was focused.


    "Why is he hammering on nothing?" This was the reason why Joseph had a frown on his face. He could see that Krid was working on something. But he couldn''t see what it was.


    He could still see flying sparks whenever Krid''s hammer struck the anvil. But he couldn''t see any metal on top of the anvil.


    But his suspicions didn''tst long for his answer finally arrived.


    A pure white light burst forth from Krid''s body and it flew towards the anvil, coating it evenly.


    A small smile lifted on Krid''s lips as his hammering intensified and hastened.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    A fierce heatwave surged from Krid''s body towards the surroundings.


    [You are currently in an area of high-temperature.]


    [Under the effects of your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything".]


    [You have resisted.]


    "What? What is this heat? Where is iting from?" Joseph couldn''t help but mumble in shock when he saw the system notifications.


    The moment that the white light coated the anvil and the hammer that Krid held in his hands, an invisible heatwave suddenly swept over Joseph and Ezreal.


    While the former looked disturbed about the appearance of this sudden, and invisible heatwave.


    Ezreal remained calm and focused.


    But amidst his serious expression. One could see excitement within his eyes.


    "What''s going on, Ezreal?" Joseph asked since Ezreal looked like he had an idea about what was going on.


    "To tell you the truth, Master. I also don''t know what''s going on. This is the first time that I am witnessing a Legend''s work and I really am looking forward to the result. Let''s just wait, Master. I think we''ll get the answer that we''re looking for, soon." Ezreal said.


    Joseph didn''t ask any further. He continued on staring at Krid.


    Witnessing Ezreal''s excitement, Joseph had his own suspicions about what was going on. But since the answer to the question that he wanted to ask was just around the corner.


    It was better to just wait for its arrival than look for it.


    The white light that enveloped the anvil soon coalesced into something tangible.


    Ezreal''s eyes widened in shock.


    Joseph also couldn''t suppress his astonishment.


    Why?


    Well...


    It was because Krid was creating an item out of nothing.


    Joseph''s shock wasn''t too great for he had witnessed Krid''s Item Creation skills earlier, but for Ezreal. This was his first time seeing Krid make an item out of nothing.


    "Creation out of nothing, creating from the void!" Ezreal cried out loud, and Krid''s ears twitched when he heard what the former said.


    "It seems like you have an idea about what I am doing." Krid turned to look at Ezreal and smiled.


    Yet, his hands never stopped moving. His hammer urately hammered down on certain parts of the object in front of him that came from nothingness.


    Soon, that object transformed into something that was more recognizable.


    "Wait, that weapon..." Joseph stared at Krid in astonishment. The weapon that Krid was creating out of nothingness was an incredibly familiar weapon for Joseph, and most certainly.


    Also for Krid.


    But why?


    Well...


    It was because that weapon was the slender, thin as a cicada''s wing weapon that Krid was using when he fought against Joseph earlier.


    Joseph was sure that Krid was in the process of creating that very same weapon.


    But he could see that something was different about this weapon than that weapon earlier.


    Krid looked at the weapon forming out of nothingness in front of him, and his eyes warmed up.


    A light smile spread on his lips as he kept on hammering. Constantly changing how the white beam of light looked like. Starting from the hilt, the white beam of light condensed, and it transformed into something that looked like cold metal.


    Then, what came after the hilt was the handguard. Delicately crafted like the hilt so that it could sufficiently protect the user''s hand.


    "He''s awesome..." Ezreal marveled in a trembling voice.


    He now looked at Krid at the same light as he would look at his master, Joseph.


    From the silvery-white glowing from handle, and the delicately forming handguard with all sorts of parts such as the Knuckle Guards, Sweepings and the Crossbar.


    Joseph deduced that the weapon forming right now in the hands of Krid was a weapon that vastly exceeded what he made earlier before that recent fight.


    "He''s replicating it... He''s perfectly replicating it!" Ezreal held back his screams.


    His body visibly trembled and the light of excitement within his eyes intensified.


    Joseph looked stern as he stared at Krid who continued on hammering until the white beam of light, finally extending upwards, leaving behind a silvery-white cold metal that seemed to be the de of the weapon itself.


    "But that de..." Joseph stared as the white beam extended, and extended. It looked like it would stretch out to infinity, but when it reached about forty-inches long.


    It finally stopped...


    But, Krid''s hammering further intensified.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    His hammering formed a stormy symphony that filled the hearts of Ezreal and Joseph. The air itself trembled.


    Krid''s hand that held the hammer turned into a blur and the smile that he had on his face further deepened.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    Soon, his hammering arrived at a crescendo and the stormy symphony became filled with rage and excitement as the air violently trembled and then everything...


    Abruptly stopped.


    Yes, that''s right.


    Everything came to a halt.


    The two stared agape at Krid who slowly raised his hand once again and...


    Ding!


    ... Hammered down on the anvil for onest time as a surge of brilliant light appeared, temporarily blinding everyone before it disappeared as abruptly as it appeared.


    [ You witnessed a Legendary cksmith''s technique!. Such a scene thoroughly shocked you, but you also gained enlightenment from what you saw. ]


    [ +10 Intelligence ]


    System notifications appeared right in front of Joseph.


    But his eyes pierced through them all. His eyes onlyid upon the weapon sitting peacefully on the heated anvil. Right in front of Krid.


    On the anvil was a weapon that could only be described as magnificent.


    The weapon had a slender deparable to that of a cicada''s wing, and the silvery-white sheen that it emanated made it look gorgeous and beautiful.


    Although unique to the eyes due to its length, the real beauty wasn''t the de, but below it.


    The handguard of the weapon consisting of a Knuckle Bar and Crossbar supported by a delicately made, yet definitely strong Sweepings made the weapon look incredibly delightful to the eyes.


    However, in contrast to the fierce and raging tempo that Krid used when he made such a weapon...


    The weapon looked somewhat feminine and humble. Although it was certain that once a weapon of such degree was utilized to perfection. It could turn into a deadly weapon that could cause a saddening, yet marvelous ughter.


    "Behold, the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty!" Krid grabbed the Rapier on the handle and he proudly held it in his hands, disying it right in front of the two...


    But his gaze was glued particrly at Ezreal who now looked like he was having a seizure.


    "That... that weapon... it''s from the previous Grand Duelist!" Ezreal pointed at the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty, astonishing Joseph who immediately cried out...


    "What did you say? That weapon is from the previous Grand Duelist?"


    Krid lightly chuckled when he heard the two, he patted his chest and proudly said: "Indeed! This is technically the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist." A smile spread on his lips.


    The astonished Joseph asked.


    "Technically?"


    "Yes, technically. This weapon really looks simr to the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist. But this weapon ultimately isn''t the same weapon that the previous Grand Duelist had." Krid shrugged, and he looked somewhat bitter.


    However, Joseph didn''t notice such subtleties for he was currently looking at the weapon with eyes shining in excitement.


    "So that is the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist... It certainly is beautiful..." Joseph honestly praised in a mumble, and Krid strongly patted his shoulder with a smile.


    "Thanks for that... So, okay. You can now take that weapon and familiarize yourself with it, for now. I will be making my own weapon shortly so do what you need to do quietly." Krid then handed over the Rapier towards the dumbfounded Joseph who received it absentmindedly.


    "Eh?"


    By the time that he recovered from his trance.


    Krid was already back in front of his anvil and was already in the process of creating another item from the void.


    "Ma-ma-master... Can I... Can I touch that weapon...?" Ezreal approached Joseph. His cheeks flushed, and his eyes were zed as his chest violently heaved, barely squeezing these words out.


    "Uh... Feel free..." Joseph answered. He was still astonished about what happened so, he subconsciously agreed to what Ezreal was requesting.


    Why did Krid suddenly hand over such a precious and valuable weapon to him?


    Was he trying to prank him?


    Could it be that he''s going to reveal the locations of the cameras soon, and tell him that everything was just a prank?


    "Ah... yes... this is definitely the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist."


    "Ah... What a beauty, and also... Ah!"


    Ezreal lovingly caressed the weapon in his arms, but when his hand wandered over towards the de of the Rapier.


    He cried out loud as blood dripped down from his fingers towards the ground.


    "That''s incredibly sharp!"


    "Hey, what are you doing? Are you okay?!"


    Ezreal cried out and Joseph eximed when he saw Ezreal''s bleeding hand.


    "Yes. I''m fine, master... No- I''m not fine... I''m magnificent!" Ezreal''s cheeks flushed deeper in red.


    Joseph subconsciously took a step backward before he hardened his resolve and pounced at Ezreal in an effort to separate the weapon from his hand.


    "Ah, master! What are you doing? Let me borrow it first... Let me borrow it firsssst!" Ezreal cried out and he tightened his grip around the weapon, refusing to let go no matter how hard Joseph pulled it away from him.


    "Let go... Let the weapon go! You''re drooling all over it! Ezreal! Let go of it!" Joseph repeatedly screamed, and his irritation reached the peak when Ezreal drooled over the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    A few minutester...


    Joseph managed on getting the weapon back from Ezreal''s hands. But as soon as he tightly gripped the weapon around his hand...


    Several system notifications suddenly popped up in front of him.

 Chapter 65: First Ever Use

    Chapter 65: First Ever Use


    [You are currently in possession of a weapon that perfectly imitates the appearance of the previous Grand Duelist''s Rapier of ???]


    [Item Information is revealed]


    [Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty]


    Tier: ???


    Attack: ??? Durability: ???


    Additional Effects: ???


    A weapon created by the one and only Legendary cksmith in the world of Victory. This weapon is based on the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist, and can only be used by the Grand Duelist or someone that practices the Art of Graceful Swordsmanship. ]


    [You are the Grand Duelist of the current generation.]


    [The Item''s information will be updated.]


    [Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty]


    Tier: Epic


    Attack: 525~650


    Durability: Infinite


    (There''s a certain chance of bing incorporeal, passing through any form of defenses in order to deal damage.)


    (Whenever a sessful deflect or parry is made. Critical Strike Chance is temporarily increased by 2%. This increase in Critical Strike Chancests until the battle ends, or if another sessful deflect or parry isn''t done four seconds after the recent sessful parry or deflect.)


    (Stacks for up to 10 times.)


    A Rapier produced by the one and only Legendary cksmith of the current generation, Krid.


    This weapon is based on the weapon of the previous Grand Duelist, and can only be used by the Grand Duelist or someone that practices the Art of Graceful Swordsmanship.


    A delicately crafted, yet durable handguard is built above the handle. The purpose is for deflecting and blocking. The length of the de alone makes it a weapon enough to lower the morale of those that dare face it in battle.


    This weapon is made out of nothingness by the Legendary cksmith, Krid. Who used his understanding of nature in order to create something out of the void. Since Krid is the only one who understands such an art, he has full control of the weapon.


    No matter where the weapon is in the world, he can feel its presence.


    User Restrictions and Conditions: Level 1, practices the Art of Graceful Swordsmanship, the Grand Duelist. ]


    [You are currently in the possession of a ss-specific weapon.]


    [Restrictions on your skills will be lifted.]


    Joseph absentmindedly stared at the weapon in his hand. It felt iparably heavy and its weight ced a certain burden in his arm, but he couldn''t let go of the weapon. Something inside him was telling him that he must tightly hold the weapon in his hand and never let go of it.


    "What is this feeling..." Joseph mumbled, he gave the weapon a few swings and that was when he realized that the de of the weapon was indeed incredibly long.


    He calcted that it was at least forty-inches in length.


    Joseph measured that the width of the de was only about a fourth of an inch, tapering to about three-eighth at the end.


    The tip of the de coldly glistened, even though there was no light within the room.


    Such a mysterious, cold and ethereal light meant that its tip was sharpened to the extremes. He felt confident if properly used, this weapon could possibly pierce through anything in its path.


    "It feels good holding it, right?" Krid''s familiar voice rang out.


    "Yeah... it really does... But there is something that I cannot understand. Why is it that this weapon feels incredibly familiar to me? It feels like it''s a part of my body and I can do whatever I want with it." Joseph asked in confusion.


    The sensation that he was feeling right now while holding the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty was difficult to describe.


    The weapon felt familiar in his hand, but at the same time. Quite distant.


    Such a sensation was confusing so, he couldn''t help but ask.


    Krid revealed a bitter smile on his lips as he said: "You really have it good, do you know that? What you are feeling right now is the sensation of bing one with the Rapier. But since you are saying that you cannot quite grasp that sensation, yet. It can only mean one thing..."


    He momentarily paused before saying.


    "Youck the experience."


    Joseph didn''t deny what he said.


    It was true that he didn''t have any experience when it came to using a Rapier. After all, ever since he first came here in the world of Victory. The only weapon that he had used was his trusty [Rusty Beginner Sword].


    Other than, he had no experience when it came to other weapons.


    "Try swinging it around. How does it feel?"


    Josephplied and a whistling sound could be heard as he swung the Rapier around him.


    "It feels quite weird. Whenever I am swinging the Rapier, I can feel its tip vibrating. Is that normal?" Joseph asked with a frown on his face and Kridughed out loud.


    "Yes, that is normal! The basis of that weapon which is the Rapier of the Grand Duelist several thousands of years ago was a flexible Rapier that could pierce through anything in this world..."


    "At the previous Grand Duelist''s peak, her weapon had the capability of piercing through the core of the world itself..."


    "In other words, the previous Grand Duelist had the capability of ending the world if she wanted it."


    Krid''s expression turned serious, and even Joseph couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva.


    He was somewhat terrified, yet excited.


    Since he was the Grand Duelist of the current generation, and the previous Grand Duelist had such a ridiculous strength. What was preventing Joseph from bing as strong as the previous Grand Duelist?


    Nothing!


    If given enough time, Joseph thought that his strength could equal the strength of the previous Grand Duelist.


    But...


    "Hahaha, I know what you are thinking. Indeed, the previous Grand Duelist was quite strong. But she wasn''t strong in the beginning... Everyone starts from zero, and from zero, everything starts..."


    "What you arecking right now is experience, and that is something that I shall give to you today!"


    Krid dered.


    "..."


    Joseph was speechless, no words woulde out of his mouth.


    But his eyes narrowed when he realized something strange.


    Why was the one and only Legendary cksmith of the current generation so good to him?


    Why was he treating him this good when they were enemies just recently?


    Joseph couldn''t understand what Krid was thinking.


    But since Joseph was the type of person who would ask questions whenever there was something that he couldn''t understand.


    He asked...


    "Senior Krid, why are you so good to me? I can''t understand. Earlier, we were enemies and after you believed who I am you suddenly became so good to me. I don''t believe that you are doing this for nothing, Senior..."


    "Can you please tell me about your motives and why you are doing this to me?" Joseph asked in a respectful manner, but his words were direct and straight to the point.


    Krid revealed a bitter smile.


    He stared at Joseph before shaking his head and sighing: "I really want to exin why am I doing this for you, but we don''t have time to waste. I promise that once everything is over and done, I will exin everything to you..."


    "But for now, let''s have a go at each other."


    Joseph revealed an expression of confusion on his face, but before he could ask any further. Krid suddenly lunged at him with a Rapier that looked quite simr to what Joseph was holding.


    Joseph stared wide-eyed at Krid who was now in mid-air. But he had no time to think.


    He hurriedly ced his left hand behind him and held tightly on the Rapier in his right hand as he greeted Krid''s attack.


    Ding!


    A crimson circle appeared on Krid''s Rapier, and the astonished Joseph subconsciously attacked it.


    Kacha!


    The crimson circle shattered, and the force behind Joseph''s subconscious, yet frantic attack pushed Krid backward as a small smile hung on thetter''s face.


    "You can see it, right?" He asked.


    The still confused Joseph asked: "See what, Senior? Also, Senior. Why did you suddenly attack me? I just want an exnation. After you exin to me everything about what was going on, I will dly apany Senior to battle." He asked with an annoyed tone of voice.


    Fighting Krid wasn''t really a problem for Joseph. In fact, he would love to fight against such a monster any time so that he could learn and experience the might of the cksmith that learned from the techniques of the previous Grand Duelist.


    But Krid was being unreasonable here...


    He just wanted to ask some questions and what he got in return was another thrust in the face by Krid''s thin and slender Rapier.


    "I will answer thatter. Right now, how about you answer me? Why are you not using the Graceful Swordsmanship of the Grand Duelist? Are you still worried about failing when using it? In that case, then watch this!" Krid dodged Joseph''s question and he replied with a question.


    Afterward, Krid took a stance.


    cing his left hand behind him while his right hand in front of his abdomen held his own Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    A sly smile hung on his lips, and then...


    "What?"


    ... He disappeared...


    "Point!"


    Joseph swiftly turned his head behind him, only to find a dazzling ray of light at the tip of Krid''s Rapier flying towards him.


    "Shit!" Rooted in ce by the beauty of the iing attack...


    Joseph missed the timing for a perfect deflect, and he couldn''t do anything other than activate [The Grand Duelist''s Parry].


    "Parry!"


    Bang!


    A fierce explosion rang out.


    Joseph stepped aside, letting Krid''s powerless attack pass by him, as he raised his Rapier in front of his chest and stared intently at Krid who now had a light smile on his lips.


    Hesitation shed on Joseph''s face, but...


    "Do it!"


    ... It quickly disappeared when he heard Krid''s shout.


    Then...


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship..."


    For the first time ever...


    "Point!"


    ... he unleashed the first form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship.

 Chapter 66: Weakness Behind Deflecting

    Chapter 66: Weakness Behind Deflecting


    Like a kindling ignited by fire, a brilliant light engulfed the tip of Joseph''s Rapier.


    His body moved subconsciously and ording to his instincts as he shoved the Rapier, straight into Krid''s body.


    But...


    "Naive!"


    Kacha!


    ... before the weapon could even reach Krid, the attack suddenly crumbled into pieces as a sound simr to that of sses breaking rang out.


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock when he heard the familiar sound.


    Staring at Krid, he mumbled...


    "Senior... just what did you do?"


    Krid stopped what he was doing, and he frowned as he replied: "What are you saying, didn''t I do something like this when we fought earlier?"


    Memories shed in Joseph''s mind, and after connecting Krid''s use of parry earlier that caused his defeat. Joseph finally understood that Krid really had the ability of deflecting an attack, just like what he could do and what the Grand Duelist could do.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled.


    "Hm?"


    "Nothing, Senior... I just thought that it''s really funny for me to think that I am the only one capable of deflecting an attack. I mean, I think anyone that has enough skill with the sword can do a sessful deflect."


    Krid frowned: "Are you underestimating the Grand Duelist''s abilities when ites to deflecting?"


    Joseph was startled and he hurriedly shook his head: "No, I am not underestimating the Grand Duelist''s capabilities, Senior. It''s just that... I think that it''s not something special, or unique..."


    When his words came out, even Ezreal couldn''t help but frown and stare intently at Joseph from behind. Krid, who already had a frown on his face stared angrily at Joseph before exining.


    "The greatness of the Grand Duelist is in the fact that everything in this world, no matter what kind of an attack it is can be deflected as long as the timing is right..."


    "It doesn''t sound that special, but what if I tell you that strength does not matter when ites to deflecting? Imagine a child who knew about the art of deflecting, perfectly deflecting the attack of a God and sending it right back at that God. Isn''t that awesome?"


    "A child can deflect a god''s attack...? I think you''re exaggerating there, Senior..." Joseph looked visibly astonished, but a challenging light could be seen within his eyes as he stared at Krid.


    Krid''s anger red up when he heard what Joseph said.


    His chest violently heaved, and it took about several dozens of seconds before he managed on calming himself down.


    "I am not exaggerating! Let me tell you this! Several thousands of years ago, violence was rampant and every day there was always a ughter. Such a violent world meant that only those truly strong could survive. In other words, the world back then was awless world that preyed on the weak!"


    Krid eximed as he exined, a zealous light could be seen within his eyes.


    "Yes, that''s right! Three thousand years ago was an era known as the Era of the Lawless. Back then, the life expectancy ofmoners and the weak were so low that you would be lucky if you managed on bing older than five-years-old!"


    Ezreal suddenly intervened in the conversation between Krid and Joseph.


    His words firmly supported what Krid was saying in the same zealous manner as thetter.


    "That is indeed the truth,rade! The emergence of the Rapier signaled the end of the Era of the Lawless..."


    "The Era after the Era of the Lawless is considered as the Era of Forgotten Gods since deistic beliefs from the Era of the Lawless were quickly forgotten by everyone due to their rage towards the gods for not helping them in their plight..."


    "The world became filled with humanistic people who valued humanism and decorum..."


    "The Rapier became the perfect weapon for everyone for it entuated someone''s skills instead of brute force when ites to fighting. After all, the early versions of Rapiers were very much fragile back then and easily broken in the face of greatswords."


    The two suddenly stared at each other with the same worshipping light in their eyes as Krid took a deep breath and further exined.


    "However, the art of ''utilizing the enemy''s force to incapacitate'' invented by the very first Grand Duelist became popr in the Era of Forgotten Gods..."


    "At that Era, even children knew how to deflect, and when a skillful man fought against those children in a fair and honest duel. It was impossible to deduce who among the two would win. The child, or the more experienced one?"


    Krid reached the end of his sentence, and Ezreal continued what he was saying with a scream.


    "In short, hallelujah to the Grand Duelist!"


    "HALLELUJAH!"


    Krid also cried out after him.


    Joseph was left standing alone with system notifications floating in front of him.


    [Someone powerful has worshipped you! +10 Divinity]


    [Someone extraordinarily powerful has worshipped you! +10 Divinity]


    "Uh..."


    Staring at these system notifications, Joseph mumbled.


    "...Amen?"


    But the two looked like they didn''t hear what Joseph whispered.


    In fact, they looked like they didn''t even care at all about what Joseph was saying for they only stared at each other as Kridughed out loud.


    "You really are an excellent man, not only you''re a Legend! But you''re also a Sword Connoisseur!"


    "Hahaha... I also didn''t expect that the one whom I had a grudge with was actually someone who is a man of culture as well... I apologize, and I hope that my attitude to you earlier myrade, will not bother you anymore."


    Krid patted Ezreal''s shoulders andughed once again: "You didn''t have to apologize to me. I already forgot about your attitude to me earlier, and also. How could I be mad at someone who is also a man of culture such as me? I hope that we could be good friends from now on..."


    "Friends? Of course, of course, of course... we are friends from now on."


    Ezreal looked somewhat mncholic by the mention of friends. But a small smile spread on his lips as he reassured Krid that they would definitely be friends starting today.


    "Anyways,rade. Can you stand aside for now? I will go and teach this master of yours about how great the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship really is!"


    "Of course! Hahaha... I''ll go and observe you, and master from behind."


    Krid nodded his head, and Ezreal retreated.


    "How about it, kid? Do you understand now? The value of the legacy that you have inherited?" Krid stared intently at Joesph and thetter nodded his head.


    "If I still couldn''t understand the strength of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship then I can say that I really am stupid, Senior."


    "It''s good to know that you understand..." Krid nodded in a satisfied manner before he once again took a stance and said.


    "You can see it, right?"


    Joseph looked somewhat confused as he asked: "See what, Senior?"


    "You can see the assistance of thews of causality, right? As someone who has the legacy of the Grand Duelist. Even though, you are still a premature one. I don''t believe that you cannot see the assistance of thews of causality." Krid said and Joseph thought.


    ''Laws of causality? if I remember correctly, then thews of causality is the system running this game, right? In other words, the Supeputer Noah? The assistance of the Supeputer itself? Do I really have that?'' Joseph revealed a frown, but he was interrupted with Krid''s sigh.


    He then raised his Rapier, and attacked Joseph with a slow-moving attack that was so slow. It looked more like it was in slow-motion.


    "Can you see it, right? The mark..." Krid continued.


    Joseph hurriedly took his Rapier and stared at the iing attack. Indeed, on the de of Krid''s rapier. A small circle surrounded with another circle slowly closing-in towards the smaller circle could be seen.


    "So that''s the assistance of thews of causality? Yes, I can see it. Senior! But wait, why can I see it right now? I haven''t activated [Composure]!" Joseph looked confused and his confusion deepened when he realized that something was strange.


    "Composure? That should be a skill within the legacy of the Grand Duelist. I don''t know the effects of that skill, but from what you are saying. This is the first time that you are seeing this mark without that state of so-called Composure?"


    "Yes, senior. From my experience, if I managed on striking that mark at the exact moment when the second circle fully enclosed the smaller circle. It would be a sessful deflect." Joseph exined.


    "Hahaha, that is indeed the assistance of thews of causality!"


    "The Grand Duelist can deflect anything, no matter what it is or how strong it is for as long as the timing is right!"


    "The perfect timing is attacking that mark at the exact moment that it fully closes on the smaller one. If you missed that timing for even a fourth of a second then that deflect wouldn''t be called perfect, and you will fail!"


    Krid exined with a serious expression on his face. Emphasizing that timing was necessary with a stern tone of voice.


    Seeing that Joseph looked somewhat unconvinced. Krid readied a stance once again before sending that same slow-moving attack towards Joseph.


    "Deflect it!" Krid eximed and Joseph nodded his head.


    He stared intently at therger circle closing in towards the smaller circle and at the exact moment that it fully enclosed the smaller circle. Joseph swiftly attacked.


    Kacha!


    The familiar sound simr to ss breaking reverberated, and Krid staggered backward with a light smile on his face.


    "Good! That was a perfect deflection! But how about this?"


    Krid attacked with the same slow-moving attack once again.


    Sweat formed on Joseph''s forehead as he stared intently at the mark, and when it fully enclosed the smaller circle...


    He moved!


    Ding!


    But...


    "What?"


    ... the sound that rang out wasn''t the same sound that echoed earlier. Instead, it sounded quite dull and strange. This was the first time that Joseph heard such a sound so he looked quite confused.


    But Krid promptly exined.


    "That is the weakness of the Graceful Swordsmanship''s Art of Deflection. Anything can be deflected for as long as the timing is right. But what if the timing wasn''t right? Well, the deflection would simply fail."


    Krid raised his head and stared at Joseph. Afterward, he continued in a serious manner: "In other words, if your enemy knew that your deflection can only be sessful for as long as you timed it right, they could easily counter your deflection..."


    "For example, like what I just did..." A light smile hung on Krid''s lips as he continued.


    "Purposely slowing the arrival of my attack for a fourth of a second was enough topletely neutralize your deflection, making it useless..."


    "That is the greatest weakness of the Grand Duelist''s Art of Deflection. Anyone must not know about that weakness of yours, or else. You will definitely suffer!"


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva when Krid concluded his exnation. ''He''s right! Since the deflection mechanic depended on proper timing. If my enemy disrupted that timing by rapidly changing the rhythm of his attacks in the middle of sending them towards me, I would be doomed!''


    ''I must not let anyone know that weakness!''


    Joseph swore to himself that he would never tell a soul about this weakness of his.


    Although terrified, Joseph was also excited about what was happening. Krid easily bit his bait earlier so, Joseph managed on learning more information about the Grand Duelist.


    Now, Joseph nned on baiting Krid once again so that thetter would teach him more specialized techniques for the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship.


    But it turned out that he didn''t have to do that. It was because right now, Krid was staring at him in the same greedy manner as Ezreal did back when he first found out about Joseph''s true identity.


    "Now, let''s talk about the first form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship. Point!" Krid eximed in excitement.

 Chapter 67: The Truth Behind the Doubts

    Chapter 67: The Truth Behind the Doubts


    "The First Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship is Point. It is an attack that has every power concentrated at the tip of one''s weapon. It deals tremendous damage, but it has a clear weakness for it needs to be prepared for a short while before being unleashed."


    Krid took a deep breath before taking a stance. He held the Rapier in front of his chest and a brilliant light filled with energy gathered at the tip of the Rapier. When the brightness of the dazzling light reached the peak. He stabbed forward and an audible whistling sound could be heard as the air itself was torn by the force contained at the tip of the Rapier.


    The dazzling light soon dimmed and Krid withdrew his Rapier before saying...


    "Although the preparation is not that long. In the middle of a fierce battle, that short moment could possibly be the border between life and death."


    Krid lightly smiled.


    The astonished Joseph mechanically opened his Skill Tree and for the first time ever.


    He tapped on the icon of [Point].


    [Point]


    A single concentrated thrust.


    Deals 500% of your Attack Damage in a single devastating attack.


    * Can go through objects and units.


    * Takes a moment to prepare.


    * This skill is not affected by Attack Speed.


    * Can critically strike.


    * When not using a ss-specific weapon. This skill deals 50% reduced damage and cannot critically strike.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Sword Type Weapon Equipped


    Skill Cost: 45 Stamina


    Skill Cooldown: 30 seconds.]


    When Krid saw that Joseph looked convinced...


    He continued.


    "The Second Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship is Harmony. This form expresses the harmony of heaven and earth. It is a circr strike that sunders everything in its path."


    [Harmony]


    A sh that expresses the harmony of heaven and earth.


    Deals 550% of your Attack Damage in a circr sweeping attack.


    * Can go through objects and units.


    * Can critically strike.


    * When not using a ss-specific weapon. This skill deals 50% reduced damage and cannot critically strike.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Sword Type Weapon Equipped


    Skill Cost: 45 Stamina


    Skill Cooldown: 30 seconds.]


    Krid held the Rapier in front of his chest.


    He stretched his hand that held the Rapier, and then suddenly...


    A brief sh of light urred and Krid moved as fast as lightning as he leaped in the air and swung the Rapier around him. The force of his attack that struck nothingness tore even the air itself as the Rapier continuously hummed due to the vibrations contained within its de.


    Joseph was left shaken...


    But before he could ask anything. Krid continued on speaking.


    "The Third Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship is Grace. It is a beautiful and elegant sword strike that perfectly depicts the beauty of the universe. Not only it is an eye-candy. It also features speed that cannot possibly be seen by the eyes of mere mortals."


    When Krid reached the end of his sentence.


    Admiration shed in his eyes and he couldn''t help but sigh...


    "I do not have theplete legacy of the Grand Duelist so, my limit is only the second form. Although I know about the Third Form of the Grand Duelist''s Swordsmanship. That is the limit of my knowledge. I do not know how it looks like, or how really strong it is. But..."


    Krid raised his head and stared in a somewhat pleading manner to Joseph which astonished thetter.


    "You are someone that has the legacy of the Grand Duelist. I hope that you''ll show me the elegance of Grace and strength of Grace."


    Joseph stared wide-eyed at Krid.


    His expressionplicated.


    Although he did have theplete legacy of the Grand Duelist.


    He wasn''t confident if he could seed in disying the Forms of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship. After all, even though Joseph knew how strong and the description of those forms...


    He didn''t know how they were performed so, he wasn''t so sure if he could properly activate it.


    Any skill within the world of Victory needed a starting form. Say, for example. You want to execute a downwards sh towards your enemy. To activate that skill, you must ce your sword overhead and move ording to the description of that skill.


    But the descriptions of the Sword Forms contained within the Graceful Swordsmanship of the Grand Duelist were vague at best. So, Joseph wasn''t sure if he could properly execute those skills without seeing it being used by a third-party.


    "I see, so you''re conflicted about showing me thest two forms of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship since you aren''t so sure if you will manage on making them work, right?"


    Joseph was startled when he heard what Krid said: ''Does this old man know how to read minds? How did he predict what I was thinking?''


    "I cannot read minds, but I do know how to take a hint." Krid lightly chuckled, and Joseph stared speechlessly at him.


    "Do you really not know how to perform thest two Sword Forms of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship?"


    Krid asked him once again and Joseph lightly sighed.


    He opened his Skill Tree and was astonished when he realized that the Icons dedicated for [Grace] and [Rage] were greyed out. They couldn''t be opened up. Joseph couldn''t tap those icons so that he could read the description of the skill.


    As astonishment shed on Joseph''s face, Krid suddenly asked.


    "Say... When you acquired the legacy of the Grand Duelist. Have you seen her?"


    Joseph frowned: "Seen? Seen who?"


    Krid was surprised: "Judging from that tone of yours... When you acquired the legacy of the Grand Duelist. You didn''t see her? Like in a vision, or in a dream?"


    Joseph hurriedly shook his head and Krid was astonished to the extent that he couldn''t say anything, even his mouth was left open and hanging.


    "So that''s the case... Hahaha, no wonder I couldn''t believe my eyes when I saw you the first time." Krid suddenlyughed out loud, and he stared at Ezreal who observed them from afar.


    "Come here for a moment,rade. I have something to ask from you."


    Ezrealplied and he approached the two without saying anything.


    Joseph had a frown on his face as Krid proceeded on asking Ezreal.


    "Tell me honestly. When you first met this brat, did you also had doubts about his identity? You are someone from that long lost kingdom so I am pretty sure that you have some relic of the past when ites to the myths. Just answer me honestly."


    Ezreal was taken aback by the question.


    He nced at Joseph in a somewhat apologetic manner before he nodded his head and said: "That indeed happened back when I first met master. The reason is that although I can feel the iparably pure and divine aura of the Grand Duelist on master''s body..."


    "It was too diluted..."


    "And paired with master''s weak body, I suspected that he was a swindler that wanted to capitalize on my love for the Grand Duelist so we had a pretty huge misunderstanding..." A bitter smile emerged on Ezreal''s lips as he said these words


    He looked like he was still ming himself for the sacrilege that hemitted against the current Grand Duelist.


    "Hahaha! You do not have to me yourself for that! Now that I heard from this brat that he didn''t receive any visions from the Grand Duelist when he acquired the legacy. I now know for sure about why the two of us suspected his identity when we first met him!"


    Kridughed once again.


    Ezreal and Joseph looked at him with curiosity.


    "Back when I received the Grand Duelist''s grace and mercy. I received a vision and contained within that vision was knowledge about the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship. I think that it is safe to say that legacies of myths are passed on to their sessors through the use of visions..."


    "Since this brat here didn''t receive any vision from the Grand Duelist herself. I can say that although he truly has the seed and the legacy of the Grand Duelist. I can say for sure that he is still not a mature Grand Duelist. In other words, he is still a premature Grand Duelist!"


    Krid loudly dered and Joseph subconsciously took a step backward from the information that he heard.


    Ezreal also looked like he got shot down by a lightning bolt from the skies as he barely squeezed these words out.


    "But... Master really is the Grand Duelist. I am certain... Why are you saying something like that? He''s a premature Grand Duelist? What nonsense!" Ezreal expressed his doubts.


    Even though Krid was quite a reliable source since he was a Legend.


    Ezreal was confident that when it came to knowledge, nothing could surpass the National Library of his hometown.


    "Since you do not want to believe me. Then, let''s have this brat himself prove what I am saying." Krid shrugged before turning to look at Joseph.


    "Hey, brat! From what I have seen from our previous battle earlier. It seems like you can still use the main techniques of Mercenaries, right?"


    "Y-y-yes..."


    The nervous Joseph answered in a barely audible voice.


    "See! I''m right! He may be a myth, but in his current state. He still cannot unleash the true power of the Grand Duelist!"


    Ezreal frowned when he heard what Krid said and he cried out: "On what basis are you saying something as sphemous as that to master?!"


    "I have browsed through the contents of every book that our National Library had and I had never found any information about a Premature Grand Duelist!"


    "Are you deliberately toying with us?!"


    Joseph awakened from his trance when he heard what Ezreal said. But before he could even say anything.


    Krid repeatedly clicked his tongue before replying in a somewhat mocking manner.


    "Tssk, tssk, tssk... Do you really think that something such asmon sense would be recorded by your ancestors within those books?" He stared in a challenging manner at Ezreal.


    "Common sense... you say?" Ezreal''s eyebrow raised up, and he looked quite angered by what Krid had said.


    "Let me exin to you... The reason why something like that hasn''t been recorded in the ancient books within your Kingdom''s National Library is because this is the first time that a premature Grand Duelist has appeared!"


    "Every generation of Grand Duelist has always been a bonafide and true Grand Duelist from the start!"


    Krid''s exnation made sense and Ezreal couldn''t help but stagger backward when he heard what Krid said. Even Joseph looked somewhat pale for a series of system notifications appeared in front of his eyes.


    [You heard valuable information from a trusted source.]


    [Information contained within your yer Profile has been updated.]


    He opened his [yer Profile] and indeed. His ss changed from The Grand Duelist into Premature Grand Duelist.


    Taking a deep breath, Joseph momentarily suppressed his shock as he asked in a barely audible voice.


    "But... Senior..."


    "Prematurity does not mean that I am not qualified on being the Grand Duelist, right? It only means that there is still a process that I need to go through before I could be the true Grand Duelist..."


    "Am I right. Senior?"


    Krid turned to look at Joseph who had a bitter expression on his face. Likewise, Krid''s expression also changed into bitterness as he said in a somewhat hesitant manner.


    "Yes, that''s right. You will undergo a process before bing the true Grand Duelist. I am sure that you will be rewarded greatly once you have done that process. But the only problem is..."


    "Wh-what is it, Senior?" Joseph nervously asked.


    "I do not know what process you should undergo before bing the true Grand Duelist."


    "Ah..."


    A small cry came out of Joseph''s mouth as his expression turned into something indescribable. His eyes turned nk, and he looked like he had lost his soul.


    Silence reigned within the sealed room, but it didn''tst for too long.


    Ezreal broke the silence with his slightly hesitant voice.


    "Master, I think I know the process that you need toplete before you can be the true Grand Duelist."


    His voice rang clearly within the sealed silent room and his message gave strength to Joseph.


    "What is it?!" Joseph hurriedly asked.

 Chapter 68: What is Necessary

    Chapter 68: What is Necessary


    "What is it?!"


    Ezreal turned to look at Joseph and said: "Does master still remember the reason why we came here? I think that only by acquiring what master needs can he be the true Grand Duelist."


    Joseph turned silent for a moment, but then his eyes widened in shock due to an epiphany.


    "So that''s the case!" He hurriedly opened his [Quest Menu] and tapped on the ongoing ss-specific quest that he had.


    [The Grand Duelist''s Vestige II(ss-Specific Quest)


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    You managed to convince the Great Wandering Bard about your identity but the rewards that should belong to you from the Great Wandering Bard were lost and given to others. You were indignant about this change.


    You requested something else as a reward and received a piece of vital information for hastening your process of bing the true Grand Duelist.


    The Grand Duelist never mes his tools but there is a particr weapon that thoroughly suits the Grand Duelist.


    Only by using that particr weapon, could you possibly show the world the true power of your Mythical ss.


    You found out that the one who has the capability of creating the weapon that you desire, the one and only current Legendary cksmith within the world of Victory is currently imprisoned within the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether.


    Only a few knew about the Legendary cksmith''s innocence and one of them is you...


    Release the Legendary cksmith from his prison through any means within seven days, and you will acquire greater rewards than what you have lost from the previous quest!


    Note: Once seven days have passed, the one and only current Legendary cksmith of Victory will be executed by the Kingdom, vassal to the empire. Once executed, the gods will mourn for a while and you will receive great penalties for not being capable enough of rescuing a legend!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Rescue the Legendary cksmith, Krid from the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes within seven days after quest eptance.


    Quest Rewards: ???(Guaranteed)


    Quest Failure: Your Divinity Stat will be temporarily locked.


    You will be demoted back to Level One.


    You will not be able to show the world the true power of the Grand Duelist for no one currently has the ability to make your personal weapon as the Grand Duelist.


    Reputation Stat will be temporarily locked, your affinity towards Ezreal will decrease. ]


    ''Hastening the process of bing the true Grand Duelist... Only by using that particr weapon could I show the world the true power of your Mythical ss...'' Joseph inwardly mumbled, before he suddenly eximed.


    "This is it!"


    His shout turned Krid''s eyes towards him.


    "What do you mean? You now know about how toplete the process of bing the true Grand Duelist?" Curiosity could be heard within Krid''s voice.


    But you couldn''t really me him for being curious about this. After all, he was someone like Ezreal who also worshipped the Grand Duelist.


    "Yes! I know the answer to that question now, but unfortunately. It requires your cooperation, sir..."


    Joseph stared at Krid with a bitter smile on his face. It was clear on his expression that he was in conflict with himself.


    "I need your cooperation so that you can be the true Grand Duelist? Why would I refuse to do something like that? Let''s do it! Tell me and I will surely assist you!" Krid eximed in excitement and Joseph looked like he couldn''t believe what Krid had said.


    ''He agreed so easily?'' He thought to himself. His understanding of Krid told him that Krid shouldn''t be the type of person that would easily agree to something, especially if it required effort from his part.


    But right now, Krid actually agreed.


    And without even batting an eye?


    What was going on?


    Joseph stared suspiciously at Krid, and when thetter felt his cautious gaze...


    Heughed out loud before exining.


    "If my guess is right, the method of bing the true Grand Duelist that you realized is by getting a Rapier created by me."


    Joseph nodded his head like chicken pecking rice. Although he didn''t understand how Krid easily guessed his intentions, he wouldn''t deny what he was saying since it was correct.


    "But do you really think that it is that simple? I mean, I have already given you a weapon that I created. Why is it that you still hasn''t be the true Grand Duelist?" Krid asked with a smile and Joseph''s eyes widened in shock.


    ''That''s right! This Rapier is made by senior Krid, the Legendary cksmith. But why am I still not a true Grand Duelist? Is there something missing?'' He fell into deep contemtion for a moment before he eximed.


    "Ah!"


    "What if the weapon that can let me ascend to greater heights needs to be made with real materials? I mean... Senior Krid made this weapon out of nothingness, right? If you made me a weapon that is made out of real, tangible materials... That could be the answer!"


    Krid nodded his head upon hearing what Joseph said.


    "That does sound reasonable, but there''s still something wrong there. I doubt that you can ascend if I made you a Rapier made out ofmon materials, right?"


    What Krid said made sense so Joseph and Ezreal nodded their heads.


    A smile lifted on Krid''s lips as he continued: "In other words, incredibly rare and precious materials are necessary for the creation of the Rapier that would let you ascend to greater heights..."


    "Only through the use of such materials could the weapon be considered as worthy to be wielded by the one and only Grand Duelist of the current generation."


    Ezreal and Joseph nodded their heads in understanding.


    Although they were trying their best on suppressing the shock coursing through their veins. It was clear that they failed, for in their eyes, astonishment, and surprise could be still be seen.


    "Then... Does Senior have those precious materials?" Joseph asked while awkwardly scratching his head.


    "What do you mean? So, you want me to make a Rapier for you? Okay, that will not be a problem for me. But there''s no such thing as free lunches in this world..."


    "Before I make something for you, you must agree to my conditions." Krid went straight to the point and when he reached the end of his sentence, a sly smile appeared on his lips.


    Joseph''s knowledge when it came to reading a person''s bodynguage gave him warning signals that he should temporarily retreat for now before agreeing to anything. But since Krid''s help wasn''t optional for the sake of bing the true Grand Duelist.


    Joseph had no other choice but to nod and say.


    "I will do it, Senior. No matter what you want me to do. For as long as it doesn''t vite basic morality and my principles... I will do whatever you want me to do." Joseph sped his hands together and bowed as a sign of respect.


    "M-master..." Ezreal turned to look at Joseph in astonishment.


    But Kridughed out loud.


    "Hahaha! This is really too funny. To think that such a day woulde in my life where the Grand Duelist of the current generation is bowing while asking for my help!" He eximed rambunctiously.


    Ezreal''s astonishment turned into a frown. But Joseph didn''t mind what Krid was doing.


    Instead, he just calmly stood there in front of Krid, awaiting his reply.


    After a short moment, Krid finally calmed himself down.


    "Since you really want me to make that Rapier of yours that will make you ascend to greater heights to the extent that you would bow your head to me. Then, the two of us shall cooperate." His expression turned serious as he handed over a bead, the size of a single almond towards Joseph.


    [You received: Bead of ???]


    Joseph received the bead in a mechanical manner, he was astonished when he saw question marks next in the name of the bead. But before he could even ask any further, Krid was already exining.


    "That bead is called, the Bead of Absolute Escape."


    "Once crushed, that bead will tear a hole in space that would let anyone escape wherever they are in the continent of Victory. However, that bead can only help two people escape..."


    "Once you crushed that bead and entered the void that it made, you will enter the safehouse that I have within the Forbidden Region of the Kingdom of Nether..."


    "That safehouse of mine ispletely safe and apart from me and my disciple, Alice. No one knows about its existence nor its exact location."


    [Item Information about the Bead of ??? has been updated.]


    [Bead of Absolute Escape]


    [Created by the one and only Legendary cksmith Krid through the use of unknown, yet incredibly precious materials. If crushed, it will tear a hole in space and create a portal that leads to a ce depending on the coordinates set prior to the creation of the Bead of Absolute Escape.]


    "Why are you handing this over to me, Senior?" Joseph asked in confusion.


    Ezreal also looked baffled.


    Items that could tear holes in space were extremely valuable and incredibly hard to create, even for a Legendary cksmith.


    That was why Ezreal couldn''t understand why Krid would casually hand such a valuable item over.


    But Krid swept his gaze at the two before he sighed.


    "The two of you already knew about my circumstances, right?"


    Ezreal and Joseph nodded their heads.


    "Both of you also know that I am scheduled to be publicly executed. Two days from now on, right?"


    The two simultaneously nodded once again.


    "Like what I said to the two of you earlier. I want both of your help for the sake of my disciple. That bastard Duke Heathrow still probably do not know that I already knew that he has my disciple..."


    "I am pretty sure that the so-called public execution of mine is just a pretense so that they would force me to cooperate with them."


    Krid revealed a bitter smile on his face when he said these words. Even though Krid knew about the core of Duke Heathrow''s ns. He really couldn''t do anything about it since his daughter was afflicted with the Heart Binding Worm.


    "But Senior... Didn''t you say that your disciple has the Heart Binding Worm?" Joseph cautiously said. Although he didn''t know what the Heart Binding Worm was...


    From the context of what he heard earlier.


    The Heart Binding Worm felt like it was something that would enable someone to kill another with a single thought.


    Krid nodded his head towards what Joseph said, and he promptly exined: "The Heart Binding Worm can definitely kill anyone. But even though death is instantaneous if the Heart Binding Worm self-destructed while it''s within your heart."


    "Its self-destruction cannot be done instantaneously and there are a few seconds that can be considered as a grace window before the destruction of the worm and the death of the host."


    Ezreal agreed with Krid''s exnation: "That''s right, master. The Heart Binding Worm is also called Walo-walo..."


    "In vernacr, it means eight..."


    "So, in other words. After receiving themand to self-destruct. The Heart Binding Worm will still take about eight seconds before it could die and explode, killing itself and the host."


    "But the Heart Binding Worm also has a great weakness, master. It will hibernate once it''s out of range from its other pair. Enough Divine Energy can also kill it, since it is considered as something evil and affiliated with darkness."


    Krid supported what Ezreal had said: "That is true. At the other end of the Bead of Absolute Escape is my safehouse where I ced dozens of formations that would instantly kill those affiliated with darkness."


    Joseph finally understood Krid''s ns.


    Krid wanted Joseph''s help on rescuing his disciple through the use of the Bead of Absolute Escape.


    At the other end of the portal made by the Bead of Absolute Escape was Krid''s safehouse that contained dozens of formations that would instantly kill those affiliated with evil in it...


    Since the Heart Binding Worm was considered evil, it would be instantly destroyed by those formations.


    Joseph nodded.


    Although he still didn''t know about how he would go about rescuing Krid''s disciple from the hands of that so-called Duke Heathrow. Joseph was now gradually changing.


    From someone who didn''t like to do something without any proper ns, Joseph now felt confident that he could take some risks for greater rewards.


    All of these were thanks to Krid so, he didn''t mind being in danger as long as he could achieve the former''s request.


    Such a mindset could be said to be deeply ingrained within the hearts of Filipinos like Joseph. After all, most Filipinos considered debt of gratitude as paramount and incredibly hard to repay.


    Now that Joseph was presented with a choice to pay such a debt. Why would he not do it?


    Joseph turned to look at Krid and said: "I''ll do it, senior."


    Krid gave a smile of appreciation towards Joseph''s decision.


    Even Ezreal wore a smile on his face when he heard Joseph''s reply.


    "But senior, this Bead of Absolute Escape should be something incredibly valuable. ording to what you said to me, only two people can possibly enter the portal created by this Bead of Absolute Escape..."


    "In that case, what will happen to you, Senior? Once I rescued your disciple, you will be left with Ezreal. Well, with Senior and Ezreal''s strength. I think that the two of you can escape whenever the two of you wanted. But I don''t really think that we should underestimate the Kingdom..."


    "So... Senior, do you still have another bead, right?"


    Krid paused for a moment.


    He surreptitiously nced at Ezreal before replying with a smile: "Of course, I have one! Just do what you must, and I will follow suit once my disciple is safe."


    Joseph stared at Krid''s expression before nodding: "In that case then I will just do what seniormands me to do." A smile spread on Joseph''s lips as he sped his hands together before saying: "Senior, it is getting quitete so the two of us shall retreat for now."


    Krid didn''t stop them.


    "Go on and rest..."


    "But the two of you should return here tomorrow since we still have a lot to talk about."


    Joseph chuckled: "A lot to talk about? Or could it be that senior just feels too lonely being alone in here?"


    "Yeah, yeah. Whatever, just go." Krid shooed them away and the two didn''t disturb him anymore as they retreated towards the exit of the sealed room.


    But just as the two of them exited the room...


    Joseph turned to look at Ezreal with a stern expression on his face.


    Ezreal looked confused, but when Joseph whispered some information to him...


    His eyes widened in shock as he eximed.


    "Is that true, master?!"


    Joseph nodded his head but he didn''t say anything.


    "But, master. I really can''t me him for that. The roots of this Kingdom is too deep, I''m afraid that not even a legend is enough to suppress their firepower..."


    "But if I really do what master wants me to do, what will happen to master?" Ezreal asked in concern.


    "You don''t have to worry about me, Ezreal. Just trust me and do what you must." Joseph dered.


    He handed over something to Ezreal of which thetter obediently epted.


    "Yes... master."


    Ezreal agreed and he didn''t say anything anymore.

 Chapter 69: Concerns of the Pro-NPC Alliance

    Chapter 69: Concerns of the Pro-NPC Alliance


    Joseph and Ezreal parted ways and the two of them went for their barracks. Once inside his residence within the Underground Penitentiary.


    Joseph logged out of the game in order to sate the physiological needs of his body.


    "I really did buy a lot of eggs and bacon..."


    A light smile escaped his lips when he opened the doors of his refrigerator. He couldn''t help but feel happy due to the fact that just recently. His refrigerator almost didn''t have anything inside it.


    But now, after winning the Festival of Battles...


    He acquired a lot of money to the extent that he could now fill his refrigerator to the brim without aching from pain.


    "I guess, let''s eat some breakfast. " Joseph took four eggs and eight strips of bacon from his refrigerator. He then proceeded on cooking them all for a hearty meal along with a few cups of steamed rice.


    He carried all of his food towards the table near the couch so that he could watch television while eating.


    Opening the television...


    The voice of GMA''s primarymentator for Victory rang loud and clear.


    [Good morning everyone!]


    [For our exclusive report today about Life Within the World of Victory... Once again, we have sir Ray Gabriel, the Head of P.H Works'' Development Team!]


    After thementator''s opening speech, the camera panned over to Ray Gabriel who sat on the couch at the left sidementator with a smile on his face.


    [Thank you, thank you, I must really thank you, Raffy for giving me this opportunity.]


    Ray Gabriel slightly bowed his head.


    Raffy, thementator was astonished by Ray Gabriel''s gesture...


    It has to be known that Ray Gabriel was someone considered as having more influence than the leaders within the United Nationsbined. For him to bow his head towards a merementator like him...


    What a humble man!


    The ttered Raffy lightly chuckled and after a short conversation between the two.


    Today''s main topic was finally revealed.


    [We have the representative of Victory''s Pro-NPC Alliance, Mister Jun Santos!]


    Thementator gestured to his right. The camera panned over there and revealed the figure of a young man who had an amiable smile on his face as he stared right at the camera. A crimson blush could be seen on his cheeks and slight anxiousness could be felt from his movements.


    It was apparent that he wasn''t used to being watched by so many people around the world...


    [Uh... Thank you, sir Raffy... For this great opportunity, and thank you, everyone. For ying Victory!]


    Jun Santos stuttered as he spoke and he bowed his head to the camera in a panic.


    [Hahaha, calm down, calm down. Mister Santos. No one''s out there to bite you...]


    Raffy chuckled in amusement when he saw Jun Santos''s antics.


    Ray Gabriel merely smiled at what was happening.


    [Right now, our main topic for today is regarding the Pro-NPC Alliance''sints towards P.H Works loose protection policies regarding the rights of NPCs...]


    [Can you indulge in every one of us Mister Jun about the current status of NPCs whenpared to yers? How are they treated by yers?]


    Jun Santos nodded his head and newfound determination that came out of nowhere suddenly filled his body. He stared hard directly at Ray Gabriel before saying.


    [That is right, sir Raffy. The reason why I am here for today is to ask the Head of the Development Team himself about what steps are they nning to take in the future when ites to protecting the basic human rights of NPCs...]


    [Right now, the state of NPCs within the game ifpared to yers is incredibly appalling.]


    Ray Gabriel turned to Jun Santos and asked.


    [By appalling, just what do you mean?]


    [What do I mean by that, you say? Are you purposely ying dumb, or do you think that we, members of the Pro-NPC Alliance are all stupid?]


    Jun Santos sharply replied which made Ray Gabriel''s eyebrows raise in return. Raffy felt that tension was building up between the two so, he hurriedly intervened.


    [Well, well, well. Let''s calm down there and talk about this properly, okay?]


    [In other words, Mister Jun Santos wants to know about what does the P.H Works have in n when ites to protecting the basic rights of NPCs, right? But Mister Jun Santos, as far as I can remember. Aren''t you a married yer?]


    Raffy stared at Jun Santos with a light smile on his face.


    Jun Santos revealed an expression of frustration. Raffy deliberately mentioned the fact that he was married to an NPC so that everyone would question Jun Santos''s credibility when speaking on behalf of the NPCs.


    After all, it would be impossible for him to not feel biased towards the NPCs when he was married to one in-game.


    But Jun Santos didn''t back down.


    [Does me being married to a resident of Victory even matter in this discussion, sir Raffy?]


    He challengingly said.


    [Well, I just can''t help but wonder why mister Santos is feeling confident today.]


    Raffy winked at Jun Santos before he turned to look at Ray Gabriel.


    [I think I know what Mister Santos wants to ask from us. But when ites to forcefully canceling the ve trade between the Kingdom of Nether, Burning Heaven and Evesting Frost...]


    [I am afraid that there''s not that much that we can do about it...]


    [The world of Victory is managed by the Supeputer Noah. So, if we did something like that...]


    [A butterfly effect may possibly happen and we may end up disrupting the cycle of life within the world of Victory. In turn, messing up with the Supeputer''s operation resulting in theplete shutdown of the game...]


    [My heart is broken that we cannot do anything regarding the suffering of NPCs...]


    [Because of that, I humbly apologize.]


    Ray Gabriel bowed his head towards Jun Santos.


    [You...]


    Jun Santos mumbled in astonishment.


    He only came here to ask for an exnation, or if much better... A roadmap from Ray Gabriel about their ns of relieving the suffering of NPCs within the world of Victory.


    But what he got in return was a refusal and a heartfelt apology from Ray Gabriel who even bowed his head towards him.


    [I... I understand... But is there really no way that we can use so that we could stop the ve trade between these three Kingdoms?]


    Jun Santos looked conflicted. Although he really wanted change. He knew that forceful changes would just do more harm than good.


    From what Ray Gabriel said, the effects of forcefully intervening within the matters of Victory were catastrophic.


    Jun Santos didn''t have any other choice but to agree.


    Ray Gabriel revealed a light smile and he replied...


    [There is...]


    [There is?!]


    Jun Santos immediately replied in a hurry.


    [Be a high-ranking official of the Empire of Truedawn. At least a duke. If you managed on doing that then, your influence would be enough to forcefully stop the ve trade between the three countries all without the catastrophic results that I was talking about earlier.]


    Ray Gabriel said, and bitterness shed on Jun Santos''s expression.


    It has to be known that at the current state of the game...


    No yer had even managed on pinpointing the exact location of the Empire of Truedawn. Of course, since no one could find the exact location of the Empire...


    How could they visit it?


    But from the knowledge gathered from the people within the forums. It was a well-known fact that the Empire of Truedawn contained monsters that were at least Level 300.


    The average level of yers within the world of Victory right now was more or less Level 100, with top-rankers at Level 150 and above, but below Level 200.


    In other words, with the leveling speed of top-rankers. It would still take at least a year for top-rankers to reach the average level of monsters within the Empire of Truedawn.


    Add about six months on top of that and the devotedmon yers of the game could finally thrive at the Empire of Truedawn.


    A year wasn''t really that long, but considering that a single hour on the outside world was equal to six hours of time within the world of Victory.


    The change for the protection of NPCs would take too long to arrive.


    Jun Santos gnashed his teeth in frustration...


    Embarrassment couldn''t be seen on his face anymore.


    But after a short moment, he eventually gave up. Raising his head, he made a sidelong nce at Raffy and said.


    [Disy the images that I gave to the crew.]


    Raffy nodded his head and signaled to the technical team.


    Images shed in the screen behind Raffy, Ray Gabriel, and Jun Santos.


    Joseph was shocked silly when he saw the images disyed within the disy.


    [This image was captured by one of myrades near the River of Poso at the Capital City Reinhardt. What you can see here is the image of a Demonic Inquisitor that is possibly a yer, in the process of forcing confessions out of those people kneeling right there.]


    Jun Santos exined.


    Raffy frowned...


    [Judging from the emerald green marker on top of their heads, could it be that they are yers?]


    Jun Santos turned to look at him and eximed.


    [Yes, that is right! Those people right there kneeling in front of the Demonic Inquisitor are yers! I am sure that everyone here knows about the legend of the Underground Penitentiary, right?]


    Raffy nodded his head.


    [Yeah, I heard about it... There''s even a popr adage for the Underground Penitentiary saying that Death isn''t a punishment within the confines of that prison but the greatest reward. Am I right, Mister Santos?]


    [That is indeed the truth! That Demonic Inquisitor right there is from the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether. The name of the Penitentiary itself is pretty self-exnatory so I don''t think that I have to exin to everyone about what it means...]


    [But what''s important is that these yers...]


    [These bastards right here are yers convicted of various heinous crimes such as several counts of murders and rape! But the most astonishing thing is...]


    [These yers did those atrocities to the residents of Victory. In other words, to the NPCs!]


    Jun Santos nced at Raffy before staring right at Ray Gabriel.


    [What can you say about this, sir Ray Gabriel? P.H Works''s Head of the Development Team?]


    A bitter smile emerged on Ray Gabriel''s face when he realized that there''s no way that he could subterfuge his way out of this issue.


    In the end, he had to make promises to the Pro-NPC Alliance that sanctions towards yers who oftenmit crimes against NPCs would be far stringent than before.


    But Jun Santos who wanted a better solution argued.


    Unfortunately, he couldn''t do anything against Ray Gabriel...


    After all, his title of being the representative of the Pro-NPC Alliance wasn''t really anything impressive.


    At the end of their discussion, the two parties reached a concession and the debate soon ended.


    But a bitter smile could be seen on Joseph''s face when he heard Raffy''s theory as to who the Demonic Inquisitor was that had the heart to execute a yer even though he was also a yer.


    Raffy theorized that he was a serial killer in the outside world or even an ex-convict. But no matter what, Joseph knew that what he was saying were mere bullshit.Though, Joseph was d that he covered his yer ID back then, or else he would''ve had a lot of trouble today.


    After washing the dishes, and cleaning his room for a while...


    Joseph finally returned to the world of Victory.


    But when he came back.


    What weed him was a gathering that he didn''t expect...


    Only one day remained before the Legendary cksmith Krid''s scheduled execution.


    Could he even formte any suitable ns to forcefully bring Krid away from the prison?


    Who knows?


    But one thing was for sure.


    Joseph wouldn''t easily give up anymore. No matter what the challenge was...

 Chapter 70: Mountain of Meat, Duke Heathrow

    Chapter 70: Mountain of Meat, Duke Heathrow


    Joseph arrived within the world of Victory once again, and when he exited his residence within the barracks of the Underground Penitentiary.


    What greeted him was Ezreal who had a small smile on his face.


    "Master, you''re finally awake. I was about to barge into your residence since if I let you sleep for too long... We will miss what''s going on inside the Maximum Security Tunnel."


    Joseph swept his gaze around the area and noticed that the ce was eerily silent. Usually, whenever Joseph came out of his residence...


    He would find several Jail Janitors talking with each other, discussing each other''s torture methods and arguing whose torture method was far ruthless than the other.


    But now?


    The ce waspletely silent.


    Apart from Ezreal, there was no one outside.


    Remembering what Ezreal said...


    Joseph asked.


    "Did something happen while I was gone?"


    Ezreal nodded: "Yes, master. While you were away, I was awakened by the sounds of heavy footsteps. When I went outside and checked what was going on..."


    "I found the Jail Warden escorting someone that looked like a mountain of meat. That person really was too fat to the extent that his heavy footsteps are causing tremors on the ground!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled when he heard what Ezreal said: "Don''t exaggerate, how could someone be that fat? Anyways, you said that the Jail Warden was escorting someone that looked like that?"


    "In that case then, you better keep your mouth shut. If that person heard your insulting words then we would have trouble!"


    "If that is what master wants, then I shallply." Ezreal nodded his head and Joseph also nodded.


    Afterwards, the two then hurried towards the Maximum Security Tunnel.


    At the end of the tunnel, within the Maximum Security Jailblock. Joseph and Ezreal found several figures standing near the sealed door where Krid was located.


    Joseph also saw the familiar figure of the Captain of the Inquisitors and several other inquisitors standing beside him with serious expressions on their faces.


    "What is going on there?"


    "I also don''t know, master. But judging from the strong auras beyond that sealed door where the other Inquisitors are standing guard. It seems like myrade, Krid has found some trouble." Ezreal shook his head, indicating that he had no idea about what was going on beyond the sealed door.


    Joseph didn''t even ask about why Ezreal called Krid as arade for he had already disappeared, and was now heading towards the location where the Captain of the Inquisitors and several other Inquisitors were standing guard.


    "Oh, it''s you!"


    "Yes! Uh... Brothers. May I know about what is going on?" Joseph sped his hands and respectfully asked.


    The Captain of the Inquisitors shook his head and said: "I also have no idea, all I know is that the five other Deputy Wardens and our Leader, the Jail Warden himself is beyond this sealed door along with that distinguished noble."


    Joseph frowned.


    "Distinguished noble?"


    "Yes... Inside... a duke."


    The one who answered Joseph was Jagger, whom he had a faint impression of.


    Joseph nced at Jagger and nodded at him in appreciation.


    Jagger''s lips moved and revealed what looked to be a smile, but a frown at the same time.


    "In that case then, Captain. May I go inside?"


    His question astonished the Captain of the Inquisitors.


    "Are you mad?! You want to go inside?"


    Joseph revealed a frown: "What''s wrong, Captain? Why can''t I go inside? Wait, why are you guys even here outside?"


    The Captain of the Inquisitors revealed a shocked expression, but when he connected the dots and realized that Joseph was actually still a newbie within the Underground Penitentiary even though he was already an Inquisitor. He took the time and exined everything.


    "Beyond this sealed door is all the Wardens from First to Fifth. Not only that, apart from that duke, and that cursed being. The Jail Warden is also beyond this sealed door..." The Captain of the Inquisitor''s face looked somewhat pale as he exined.


    "So what is the problem? What''s wrong?" Joseph knitted his eyebrows and the Captain of the Inquisitors stared at him as if he wanted nothing but to p Joseph''s dense and thickened face.


    "Are you purposely ying dumb? Every Warden within the Underground Penitentiary are people who killed at least tens of thousands of people within their lifetime!"


    "It wouldn''t be a problem if there''s only one of them, but if they are gathered in the same ce..."


    "Their killing intentbined all together is so overwhelming it''s not a surprise if you''ll go mad just by being around them!"


    "Not only that, the Jail Warden is with them! The most terrifying one of them all!"


    For Joseph, the Captain seemed to be exaggerating things.


    But how could Joseph understand the terrifying effects of killing intent when he had overpowered titles that could suppress any abnormal statuses?


    Joseph wanted to refute at first. But in the end, he agreed and said: "I understand your concern, but I really need to get inside. My life is my own responsibility and I will not me Captain for what will happen to me inside. Can you let me go now? Captain?"


    He sincerely pleaded at the Captain of the Inquisitors and aplicated expression shed on thetter''s face. He didn''t want to expose Joseph into any danger for Joseph was someone extremely talented and valuable to their squad.


    But if he refused Joseph''s earnest request, conflict may appear between him and Joseph.


    He was caught between a tight and a hard ce.


    Unable to move, nor struggle...


    In the end, the Captain of the Inquisitors had no other choice but to agree.


    He stepped sideways and Joseph slightly bowed towards him as thanks.


    Joseph couldn''t me the Captain since it was clear that the Captain was worried for him.


    Joseph surreptitiously gazed at the Captain and engraved the Captain''s scruffy visage in his heart.


    Afterward, he went inside the sealed room.


    But suddenly...


    "Hey, what are you doing?"


    ... The Captain of the Inquisitors eximed at Ezreal.


    Ezreal stopped on his tracks and said: "Wherever master goes, I follow."


    An expression that didn''t take ''no'' for an answer emerged on his face and everyone was stunned speechless.


    In the end, Ezreal also entered the room. Leaving the dumbfounded Captain of the Inquisitors and the other Inquisitors behind him.


    "Uh... What was that?"


    "I... I don''t know..."


    Ezreal''s expression before he entered the room looked really terrifying to the extent that these Inquisitors probably wouldn''t forget about it for a long time after this.


    Entering the room, anger shed on Joseph''s face when he found a person that looked like a mountain of meat, stepping on the hand of a chained Krid.


    "Just give up, already... No matter what, I will never cooperate with you bastards unless you agree to my terms!"


    Krid eximed in a hoarse voice, and the mountain of ''meat'' moved his foot and mmed it down even harder at Krid''s hand, eliciting a scream from thetter.


    "AHHHH!!!"


    "You must always remember that I am the one making the rules here. What you need to do is just obey, if you do that then you wouldn''t have to suffer like this in the first ce..."


    The mountain of meat spoke and Krid sarcastically chuckled.


    "Hehehe... Do you think that I am that stupid? If I really did what you wanted, then this kingdom will be over in ten years!"


    The mountain of meat mockingly stared at Krid, a smile that looked more like a slit appeared on his face as he said.


    "You really became arrogant just because you''re the one and only legend of the current generation. The Kingdom will be over in ten years if I was the one to lead it? What an enormous joke..."


    The slit on the mountain of meat''s face turned cold and he let out a maddenedugh: "You''re really too pitiful... You''re too pitiful. I don''t know how you became a Legend, but shouldn''t a Legend like you have enough capabilities to escape from this ce? But why are you not escaping? Ah, I know!"


    "It''s because of your precious... your precious... disciple! Ah, wait... Granddaughter! Hahahaha!!!"


    The mountain of meat''sughter reverberated for several times within the confines of this sealed room. But Krid unexpectedly didn''t have any reaction when the mountain of meat mentioned his disciple.


    However, Joseph who stood at the distance knew about the truth...


    Krid may look peaceful right now, but the more seemingly peaceful someone like Krid was, the more dangerous they were when they erupt in anger.


    Right now, Krid was holding himself back... Holding himself back from utterly murdering that mountain of meat for the sake of his disciple''s life.


    However...


    A man could endure any hardship, but every man had a bottom line that shouldn''t be crossed.


    And for Krid?


    It was...


    "Oh, you''re not giving me any reaction? I''m sure that the reason why you can stay so silent like that is for the sake of your granddaughter... But seriously... your granddaughter... She''s a fine woman. Especially those supple and soft thighs of hers... One cannot simply resist!"


    ... insult towards his granddaughter.


    The moment that the mountain of meatpleted his sentence. An iparably towering might erupted from within Krid''s body.


    "YOU BASTAAARRRDDD!!!" Krid madly howled in rage, his expression distorted in anger and fury.


    Those wordsing from the mountain of meat had obviously provoked his ire and made him lose control of his emotions as he violently struggled all over...


    Veins bulged everywhere on his almost naked body as he howled: "If you bastard really dared on humiliating Alice, then no matter what. I will destroy this kingdom! NO MATTER WHAT PRICE I HAVE TO PAY!"


    His scream rang like thunderbolts from the nine heavens as even Ezreal was intimidated and had to take a step backward so that he could hold fast on his wits.


    Ezreal was already like this, and he was about fifty meters away from Krid.


    How about that person who looked like a mountain of meat?


    Of course, he was scared out of his wits...


    "SUPPRESS HIM! YOU USELESS BASTARDS, SUPPRESS HIM! HURRY!"


    ... He obviously didn''t expect that his provocation for Krid could provoke such a fit of anger from him.


    But Joseph secretly ridiculed him. What was the result that he was expecting while provoking a Legend like Krid? Did he expect Krid to act subservient towards him and endlessly bootlick him?


    What''s worse was that he even went beyond Krid''s bottom-line just to get a reaction out of him!


    How stupid... Joseph concluded.


    Then, Joseph saw the actions of the five Deputy Wardens and even the Jail Warden himself.


    All of them had pale expressions on their faces as they forcefully endured the might of a Legend. Pointing towards the stone b that had the chains embedded on them.


    All of them simultaneously cried out.


    "SEAL!"


    Their words became akin to an Imperial Decree that instantly suppressed Krid''s struggles.


    His fierce killing intent and aura vanished like it didn''t even exist in the first ce as Krid himself crumbled down and became like a used cum-rag on the ground.


    Seeing the exhausted Krid...


    The mountain of meat moved towards him and started kicking his body.


    "This..."


    Wack!


    "Is..."


    Wack!


    "What you get for disobeying me, you piece of shit!"


    Wack!


    Several secondster and the mountain of meat still kept on kicking Krid''s unconscious body.


    Intense anger shed on Joseph''s face when he saw what was going on, but he knew that he had to keep his silence. If he did something against that fat bastard then he would ruin all of his ns.


    Nevertheless, suppressing his anger didn''t mean that he wasn''t angry towards the mountain of meat. The anger shing within his eyes was the evidence of his fury.


    The Jail Warden surreptitiously nced at Joseph and he sighed in relief when he saw him painstakingly suppressing his anger.


    If Joseph really did do something outrageous...


    The Jail Warden would be forced to move and punish him for the crime of disrespecting a duke.


    Joseph must not do anything right now. He must endure the anger ring up within him. Witnessing Joseph''s efforts into calming himself down. A light smile emerged on the Jail Warden''s lips.


    ''Sir Fausto really did choose a good man.'' He mused.


    "Uh... Honorable Duke Heathrow. It is best that you should stop now. If he awakens from the pain and notices what you are doing to him. It would be hard to ensure your safety if he suddenly attacked you since you are so close to him."


    The mountain of meat stopped kicking Krid.


    He turned around and red at them all.


    "All of these wouldn''t even happen if you bastards from this damned ce arepetent enough! If you managed on forcing this bastard to confess everything that I need from him then everything would''ve been done already!" He shouted, sweeping his gaze at everyone including Joseph, Ezreal and the Jail Warden.


    He continued: "It seems like the Underground Penitentiary is in need of a cleansing. Once everything is done and over, I''ll make sure to do some changes here."


    "But for the meantime..." He licked his lips before continuing.


    "You bastards better do a good job tomorrow. His Majesty himself will observe the public execution of Krid and his confession. You bastards better don''t cause me any shame."


    Everyone''s eyes widened in shock, that also included Joseph who realized that ''his Majesty'' meant the King of the Kingdom of Nether.


    "dimir, let''s go!"


    "Yes, your honor."


    The mountain of meat then walked towards Joseph and Ezreal''s direction, but he never spared a nce towards the two. However, the man d in all-red named dimir furtively nced at Joseph with a frown on his face, and Joseph himself...


    Also stared at dimir in doubt.


    Bang!


    The doors of the sealed room were shut close. The other Deputy Wardens also left the room since they didn''t have anything to do anymore.


    Leaving only Joseph, Ezreal, the Jail Warden and the unconscious Krid inside.


    The Jail Warden stared onest time at Krid before turning to look at Joseph.


    Joseph also looked at him and the former nodded his head before he disappeared into the darkness.


    Such a short exchange lookedpletely normal to other people, but to the Jail Warden and Joseph.


    It had an entirely different meaning...


    The Jail Warden misunderstood that Joseph was Fausto''s borrowed knife against the duke that kicked him out of the Underground Penitentiary and banished him to a farawaynd.


    Joseph knew all along that the Jail Warden misunderstood him but he never once tried on correcting this misunderstanding.


    After all, having such a rtionship with the Jail Warden was advantageous to him.


    The nod that the Jail Warden gave to Joseph meant.


    "Yes, he is that duke."


    In other words, that mountain of meat that had the name Heathrow was themon enemy of Fausto, the Jail Warden, and Krid.


    Since all of them had the samemon enemy...


    Wouldn''t they cooperate with each other against that enemy?


    A smile emerged on Joseph''s lips, and with that thought...


    He went out and headed for the office of the Jail Warden.


    But why?


    Well...


    He nned on asking for a favor...

 Chapter 71: Day Before the Execution

    Chapter 71: Day Before the Execution


    Joseph''s visit to the Jail Warden''s office was short, for the Jail Warden instantly agreed with his request. As for why?


    Well, it was because the Jail Warden understood that he was doing this for the sake of Fausto.


    For the sake of his friend...


    Why would he refuse Joseph''s request for the uing scheduled execution?


    Returning to the sealed room where Krid was jailed in, Joseph couldn''t stop sighing. When he heard from Duke Heathrow that his Majesty of the Kingdom of Nether himself would observe the uing public execution. Everything suddenly becameplicated.


    He didn''t know what would be the ramifications of his actions if he intervened in an execution that the King himself was observing. if he interrupted the execution that was due for tomorrow in front of the King. Wasn''t that the same as pping the King on his face?


    "Sigh..."


    Joseph opened his Quest Menu and found out that there was a timer, urate to the minute...


    Disyed beside the title of his ongoing quest. The Grand Duelist''s Vestige.


    "Let''s just cross that bridge when we get there."


    Joseph decided. Since everything was already at this point.


    There was no use crying over spilled milk.


    He nned on just dealing with everything as theye.


    Joseph opened the sealed door and went beyond it towards the room where Krid was sealed. But as soon as he stepped inside the room. A st of killing intent assaulted his nerves causing him to take a step backward.


    [Under the effects of your title, "Mythical Authority".]


    [No one can make you submit.]


    [Your dignity can never be lower than those who stand before you.]


    "Oh, it''s you..."


    Krid''s hoarse voice rang out and he stared at Joseph''s directions. When Joseph saw the purple bruises on Krid''s body, he couldn''t help but feel a rush of sourness in his throat.


    Even though the time he spent together with Krid was short...


    He learned so much from thetter that he could be considered as a half-teacher of his.


    Seeing someone whom he respected being beaten up like that earlier. Joseph''s anger red once again.


    But then, Krid suddenly spoke.


    "You did a good job earlier, brat."


    Krid revealed his brittle and yellowish teeth as he smiled.


    "I did a good job...?"


    Joseph asked in confusion. ''What good job? I was useless earlier! Not only I didn''t manage on stopping that fat bastard on beating you up, but I also couldn''t do anything other than watch!''


    Joseph even scolded himself, but then Krid exined.


    "You did a good job suppressing your anger, earlier. If you really did move with your emotions at that time then all hope would be lost. I will be forced to brute-force my way towards where they imprisoned my disciple, and possibly...


    "Before I would even reach where she was, she would''ve been dead."


    Krid''s smile turned bitter, and Joseph finally understood why the Jail Warden and Krid praised him for suppressing his anger. It was because no matter what, Duke Heathrow was still a Duke...


    If he moved against him at that time.


    The Jail Warden would be forced to punish him for the crime of assaulting a Duke.


    If that really happened then Krid''s n would''ve been considered as ruined.


    Fear shed on Joseph''s face when he realized that he really almost fucked himself up earlier.


    Thankfully, he trusted his instincts and forcefully suppressed his emotions.


    Or else, everything would''ve been destroyed...


    The Jail Warden''s ns, and Krid''s schemes.


    All of them would''ve copsed if Joseph decided to move ording to his emotions earlier.


    Realizing that he just managed on escaping the clutches of failure and death by a hair''s breadth. Joseph took a deep breath and suppressed his trembling knees. From now on, no matter what. He would definitely think about everything thoroughly before moving!


    He would never let his emotions rule over him so, that something as catastrophic as what would''ve happened if he attacked Duke Heathrow wouldn''t happen in the future!


    A barely imperceptible glint shed on Joseph''s eyes and Krid chuckled.


    "It seems like you have learned something from me again."


    Joseph sped his hands together and slightly bowed.


    "I thank Senior for this junior''s enlightenment."


    "In that case, since I helped you this time. Can you do me a favor?"


    Krid stared earnestly at Joseph.


    Joseph looked somewhat disturbed but he still managed on squeezing out a reply.


    "What favor, Senior? As long as it''s within my capabilities then I will surely aplish it!"


    "I see... Then... Can you promise me that..."


    Krid cut-off his sentence and he hung his head low, seemingly hesitating about something inside of him.


    Joseph didn''t say anything. He just stared at Krid who then revealed a bitter smile before continuing.


    "Can you promise me that you will take care of my disciple?"


    Krid said these words as seriously as he could, but Joseph merely frowned for a moment before he chuckled.


    "Hahaha, what are you saying. Senior? That is supposed to be your job, not mine! You will personally go and take care of your disciple, not me!"


    Joseph stretched his hand out and patted Krid''s shoulder, who also chuckled in return before saying.


    "Yeah, you''re right..."


    "Yes, that''s the spirit! But Senior, the reason why I came here is that I want to learn more about the effects of the Heart Binding Worm... I mean, wouldn''t it be useless if I saved Madame Alice with the Bead of Absolute Escape if the enemy could just kill her with a single thought?"


    Joseph swiftly changed the topic.


    A strange expression surfaced on Krid''s face when he heard the words "Madame Alice" But he quickly suppressed it before exining...


    "No, that will not happen. Communication from and to, while in the void created by the Bead of Absolute Escape is impossible. In other words, the Heart Binding Worm within the heart of my disciple cannot bemanded to explode while both of you are in the void."


    Krid exined, and Joseph nodded his head in understanding.


    "But there''s something that I still do not understand, Senior. Just how does the Heart Binding Worm, work? Can Senior exin it to me, properly?"


    Krid lightly chuckled towards Joseph''s earnest request, but when he was about to speak.


    A voice suddenly appeared from behind.


    "Let me do the exnation."


    Krid''s killing intent exploded the moment that voice reverberated in the surroundings. Joseph who was too close to Krid had to take a few steps back so that he could hold fast on his wits.


    "Why are you here?!"


    Krid red at the Jail Warden and formless energy surrounded his body.


    The Jail Warden chuckled and said: "Before you attack me, honorable Legend. Let me exin myself first..."


    "I am not here to be your enemy. I am here to help. Specifically, I am here to help this brat." He nced at Joseph and Krid had an incredulous expression on his face when he heard what the Jail Warden was saying.


    Nevertheless, his killing intent didn''t weaken. It was still pointed at the Jail Warden like sharp knives ready to attack at a moment''s notice.


    "S-Senior Krid! The Jail Warden really is here to help us! He''s not our enemy!" Joseph vouched for the Jail Warden''s innocence and Krid''s killing intent finally weakened.


    But he still red at the Jail Warden while saying.


    "Help us? This bastard will help us? He''s one of those bastards that captured my disciple!"


    Witnessing Krid''s defiance and savagery...


    The Jail Warden sighed and shook his head before saying: "Senior is a Legend so Senior should understand. I am a mere Jail Warden of this damned ce. Someone that can only hope on defying those bastards up above me, but can never do it."


    Sadness shed on the Jail Warden''s eyes.


    Back then, if he managed on mustering his courage and defended Fausto against Duke Heathrow''s schemes. His beloved friend would still be here beside him.


    Krid''s expression softened when he saw the struggling and conflicted light within the Jail Warden''s eyes. But he still wasn''t convinced about the Jail Warden''s sincerity so he asked: "Who is your enemy? Tell me who is your enemy and I will decide if we can berades or not!"


    Hearing Krid''s words...


    Deep-seated anger and indignance surged within the Jail Warden''s heart. One could see the emotional upheaval that he was feeling right now on his lips continuously twitched as he slowly dered...


    "My enemy? Heh... My enemy is... My enemy is that fat fucking bastard, Duke Heathrow!"


    An imperceptible glint shed on Krid''s eyes but he suppressed himself as he asked once again.


    "So your enemy is that bastard, Duke Heathrow? How about the King? Are you not mad at him? The King is someone higher than a Duke so he should have enough power to stop that fat bastard''s schemes. Yet, he didn''t do it. So, are you not mad at him?"


    The Jail Warden shook his head before saying: "No, the King is an upright, but cautious man. Even though he is someone that would definitely interfere upon seeing injustice. He is not stupid to do something while the odds are stacked against him..."


    "Duke Heathrow''s influence is now far too great for him to suppress. If not for that, then he would''ve directly ordered Duke Heathrow''s execution and ughter everyone who colluded with him."


    Krid nodded his head,plicated emotions shed on his face.


    "Yeah, you''re right about that. That bastard is really someone that I still cannotprehend till this time. Sometimes he acts whimsical, but sometimes he acts cautiously like he would lose everything that he had if he moved without any careful nning."


    Krid lightly chuckled at the end of his sentence and Joseph was horrified when he heard Krid.


    ''D-D-Did he just call his Majesty as ''that bastard''?! Holy shit! How can he call the King of the Kingdom of Nether like that?'' Beaded sweat formed on Joseph''s forehead as he nervously stared at the Jail Warden.


    But he was astonished to find the Jail Wardenughing.


    "Does Senior''s words mean that Senior is convinced that I am not here to harm you?"


    Krid lightly smiled: "Yeah, I believe you. However, if you answered that you hated the King too, then I would''ve kicked you out of this ce as soon as you said those words."


    The Jail Warden nervously chuckled: "Then, I should be thankful that I didn''t answer like that.."


    "You should be..." Krid chuckled once again.


    Seeing that the tension between the two has dispersed...


    Joseph asked: "Can I now hear sir Jail Warden''s exnation about the Heart Binding Worm?"


    The Jail Warden turned to look at him and smiled: "Yeah, of course..."


    "The Heart Binding Worm is extracted from the heart of the Scarlet Cursed Snake. The reason why that snake is so venomous is because of the worms living in its heart. Kill that snake, extract those worms and you will have two worms that cannot exist without the other..."


    "If either one of them dies, or gets killed. The other living worm will self-destruct. Since the wormsmunicate through their soul or telepathically. They canmunicate, no matter how far they are from each other..."


    "Once the Heart Binding Worm is imnted in the heart of someone whom you want to take hostage. That worm would merge with the heart of that hostage and the only way to extract that worm is to lure it away through the use of the other worm..."


    "But once it explodes, it would certainly take the host''s life along with it."


    The Jail Wardenpleted his exnation, yet a frown could still be seen on Joseph''s face as he asked.


    "It would certainly take the host''s life along with it... It''s that vicious?"


    The Jail Warden chuckled: "Yeah, it''s that vicious. No matter how strong you are, I don''t think that you can endure an explosion inside your heart, right?"


    Joseph nodded his head, and a bitter smile emerged on his face: "Yeah, that definitely is not survivable...


    But Krid suddenly intervened: "No, that''s where you are wrong! You can survive the explosion of the Heart Binding Worm for as long as you are weak!"


    "Yes, that is also a legitimate method. But that is one of the reasons why the Heart Binding Worm is so vicious!" Terror shed on the face of the Jail Warden as the curious Joseph asked.


    "Just how does that work, Seniors? Shouldn''t you die faster or more easily if you''re weak? Why would being strong increase your chances of dying from the explosion of the Heart Binding Worm?"


    "Well, it''s like this... The Heart Binding Worm draws its strength from the host. One popr method says that to survive the explosion of the Heart Binding Worm one can deliberately weaken oneself while maintaining the strength of your fleshly-body..."


    "This works since the Heart Binding Worm directly taps on your stats instead of the strength of your body itself. In other words, if you weakened yourself by at least twenty-percent while keeping the strength of your fleshly-body before the worm explodes..."


    "You will have a pretty good chance of surviving. Albeit, with heavy injuries..."


    Understanding shed on Joseph''s face when he heard the Jail Warden''s exnation, and a strange glint surfaced within his eyes as he kept his silence and mused.


    The Jail Warden stared at Joseph for a moment before sighing.


    "Since I have already done my exnation, I will be leaving now... But before I leave, I just want to say to Senior that if Senior manages on living the day after tomorrow. I am sure that the King would finally move and help you, after all. He would have the leverage of doing that at that time..."


    "But now? Unfortunately, everyone is still supporting that fat bastard. Furthermore, his influence is going strong since he just collided with those cursed beings and gathered a lot of minerals from the mines in the Forbidden Region..."


    "They nned on disying it to everyone tomorrow and sway public opinion so that Senior would be coerced to confess."


    "Of course, Senior''s disciple is added as a cherry on top."


    The Jail Warden sighed and anger once again shed on Krid''s expression.


    But after gnashing his teeth and clenching his fists. He didn''t say anything anymore as the Jail Warden shook his head and finally left them alone.


    Meanwhile, Krid stared at Joseph and smiled.


    "Now that he''s gone, can you fight me once again?"


    Joseph was startled with the abruptness of Krid''s request.


    "What''s this all of a sudden, Senior? Fight you? Please don''t jest with me, Senior. I am but a mere junior! Even though I am a myth, I''m still a half-baked one and cannot possibly hold a candle against you, Senior!" Joseph repeatedly pleaded. He really didn''t want to fight against Krid. After all, who would want to willingly expose themselves to pain?


    "Yeah, you are definitely not that strong when using the style of the Grand Duelist." Krid lightly chuckled.


    "What does Senior mean?" Joseph cautiously asked.


    "What I mean? Well, I want you to fight me with the fighting style that you''re used at. Back when we fought earlier, I can pretty much see that you''re not used to fighting with the Grand Duelist''s style, right?" Krid exined.


    Joseph looked somewhat hesitant but seeing the earnest light within Krid''s expression. He finally nodded his head and said.


    "Fine, but I hope that Senior won''t me me afterwards!"

 Chapter 72: Final Showdown Against a Legend[2in1]

    Chapter 72: Final Showdown Against a Legend[2in1]


    "me you? Why would I? Juste over here and show me how you used to fight before you acquired the legacy of the Grand Duelist!" Krid confidently dered withughter.


    A bitter smile escaped on Joseph''s lips...


    As someone who went into the game of Victory for the sake of earning money.


    Joseph didn''t really care about etiquette or respect when fighting against his NPCs back then.


    Result was what he cared for, not the process.


    Due to that, Joseph''s fighting style could be said as extremely unorthodox and unexpected. Every enemy that Joseph fought was always taken aback by his unique fighting style.


    One of those was Abyssal me Master. A foe that Joseph could never forget since he was the veryst enemy whom Joseph fought with that fighting technique that he sealed...


    But right now, Krid was inviting him to release the seal on that fighting style of his?


    It''s not like Joseph didn''t really want to fight against Krid.


    Except for the painful pummeling that he would undoubtedly suffer against him...


    Experience fighting against an experienced and strong enemy was something that Joseph always weed. But the problem was...


    Krid was actually telling him to unseal that fighting style?


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s lips. He felt that unleashing such crude and primitive method of fighting against a mighty and prestigious Legend was equivalent to sacrilege. If he didn''t have to then, why would he do it?


    But...


    Since Krid said that he wouldn''t do anything against him after the battle. Joseph couldn''t do anything other than reveal a helpless expression before saying: "Are you sure, Senior? You really won''t me and do anything untoward against me after the fight?"


    Such an expression elicited a frown on Krid''s face as he said: "Do I look like someone that would bully a junior just because of his fighting style? Just show it to me already! I''m the one that''s asking for it so it wouldn''t make sense for me to me you for obeying."


    Seeing that Krid insisted, Joseph had no other choice but to agree.


    [You are currently in Duel Mode. Death in Duel Mode is impossible for both sides.]


    Taking a deep breath, he took the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty out of his Inventory and took a strange stance.


    Strange...


    Because for Krid.


    His stance right now was currently full of openings.


    "What the hell is he doing?"


    Joseph ced the incredibly long Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty on his shoulder.


    Amidst Krid''s confusion, Joseph rushed at the former with the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty still on his right shoulder.


    "This kid is pretty interesting... So that is the fighting style that he''s most familiar with? It''s really quite unique..."


    "But just because it''s unique. Doesn''t mean that it''s useful!" Krid inwardly cried.


    He also rushed at Joseph.


    His Rapier held in front of his chest as he sent a thrust at Joseph''s wide-open chest.


    He intentionally slowed down the arrival of his thrust by half a beat. But contrary to his expectations, instead of directly deflecting or parrying the attack. Joseph opened his mouth and shouted.


    "Your mother dropped you on your head when you were still a baby!"


    Krid''s movements came to a halt after hearing Joseph''s sudden insult.


    [You are under the effects of Confusion.]


    [This effectsts for a few seconds and cannot be resisted.]


    Someone like Krid who had a lot of experience in battles never expected such a mental attack from this enemy of his.


    His body stiffened. But not even half a secondter, he recovered from his trance.


    But Joseph''s attack was already in front of him.


    In a hurry, Krid retracted his Rapier and mmed it from below in an effort to deflect the iing attack...


    But Joseph deliberately slowed his attack by half a second, messing up with Krid''s rhythm.


    Krid''s effort on defending himself through deflecting failed and Joseph''s attacknded squarely on his chest.


    "Guah!" The attack elicited a painful shout from Krid who hurriedly retreated with eyes gleaming in surprise and excitement.


    But how could Joseph not take advantage of this opportunity? He swiftly appeared beside Krid through the use of the Grand Duelist''s Dash as he hurled over a [sh].


    Ding!


    But Krid managed on urately deflecting Joseph''s attack.


    "Tssk." Joseph clicked his tongue, but he didn''t retreat.


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    He pressured Krid using [Thrust] and [Slice] in session, but Krid deftly deflected them to the side.


    After a [Downwards sh] for good measure.


    Joseph retreated backward in order to widen his distance from his enemy.


    It wasn''t wise to fight against Krid who was an experienced Swordsman when he didn''t have the upper-hand.


    Staring at Krid from a distance, Joseph''s mind quickly spun. Formting another n that he could use to take the higher ground against an enemy like Krid.


    "Brat, I admit that your fighting style is really unique and refreshing. But, if you think that something like that is enough to defeat me. Then, you sure are dreaming!" Krid eximed and he suddenly vanished from Joseph''s vision.


    When he reappeared, he was behind Joseph and thetter hurriedly rolled forward in order to escape the iing attack.


    Whing!


    A sharp sound simr to air being torn apart rang out behind Joseph as cold sweat filled his back. If he retreated even a step toote. He would''ve suffered from that terrifying attack.


    Holding steadfast on his wits, Joseph rolled even further in an effort to use that momentum so that he could quickly stand his ground.


    But it was evident that Krid saw through his n...


    "Do you think that I''d let you?" Krid rushed at Joseph and proceeded on unleashing consecutive thrusts at thetter.


    "This is the end!" After several consecutive thrusts at Joseph who was still rolling on the ground. Krid prepared a fully-charged [Point] and was about to send it to Joseph, when suddenly...


    Joseph hurled a handful of dust and soil towards his face.


    "AH! THAT FUCKING HURTS!"


    Dust filled his eyes and he had to step backward in order to endure the pain. His eyes squinted, and his vision ckened for he couldn''t open his eyes anymore due to the dirt.


    "You... How shameless!" Krid eximed at Joseph, but thetter clearly didn''t listen to him as he leaped towards Krid and started his assault.


    [sh], [Slice], and [sh]...


    Joseph unleashed these skills in quick session and when Krid''s eyesight finally recovered...


    Joseph hurriedly retreated.


    "Shameless brat,e back here!" Krid screamed in rage, and a fierce kiling intent that momentarily intimidated Joseph exploded from his body.


    "Shit... It looks like I really did anger this old man now..." Joseph inwardly cursed as he ran away.


    "Overwhelming Presence." He mumbled and a crimson aura surrounded his body. Under the effects of [The Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence]. His basic attacks were now ranged attacks that could critically strike for 300% of his Attack Damage.


    [You dealt 5792 damage!]


    [You dealt 5837 damage!]


    [You dealt 5769 damage!]


    Several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph as he swiftly unleashed wave after waves of attack towards the crazed Krid who looked like he wanted nothing but Joseph''s death.


    Soon, Joseph was nearing a dead-end since in front of him were only the walls of the sealed room.


    Having no other choice, He turned around and greeted the crazed Krid head-on.


    "Point!" Joseph eximed and hurled a fully-charged [Point] at Krid.


    But as the dazzling light of [Point] stung Krid''s eyes, he didn''t care about anything anymore as he prepared on deflecting the iing attack.


    However...


    As soon as he raised his sword in front of him to defend himself...


    He suddenly uttered.


    "Parry!"


    A formless barrier instantly surrounded his body and protected him from all attacks in any direction.


    Peng!


    A dull sound rang out behind him and Krid lightly chuckled.


    "Kid... Did you really think that you could use such obvious feints in front of me? I know that you have that Dash of the Grand Duelist, so did you really think that I am not prepared for that?"


    Krid leaped in the air and swiftly turned around.


    In front of him was the astonished Joseph who had his mouth, opened wide and agape.


    "You''re still preparing the rice, but I am already eating it!" Krid concentrated all the power that he siphoned from Joseph''s attack through the use of Parry at the tip of his Rapier.


    His [Point] became fully-charged in an instant.


    In the face of such a terrifying fully-charged [Point].


    Joseph awakened from his trance.


    He mmed both of his feet on the ground in an effort to escape faster away from Krid who now had a fully-charged [Point] on his arsenal. But it was already toote.


    Krid was faster than him in the first ce, and after a few steps.


    Krid was already in front of him as Krid sent that fully-charged [Point] right towards his heart.


    But then suddenly,


    Joseph unleashed...


    "Your disciple never really loved you in the first ce!"


    ... an incredibly vicious psychological attack against Krid right at his reverse scale.


    His words directly assaulted Krid''s heart and soul. Krid''s fully-charged attack grind to a halt.


    "An opening!"


    Joseph''s eyes gleamed in excitement and capitalizing on the opening in front of him. He swiftly disposed of Krid''s [Point] that hung stationary in the air through the use of deflect. Afterward, he sent his own thrust directly at Krid''s chest and when he felt his Rapier prating Krid''s chest...


    [Your attack has critically striked! You dealt 10,506 damage!]


    He shouted.


    "HARMONY!" His excitement made his shout echo even louder as a burst of concentrated, brilliant energy gathered around his Rapier.


    His body then instinctively moved ording to what he had seen from Krid''s disy of [Harmony] yesterday.


    Puchi!


    The air itself was torn as Joseph''s movements became the canvassed that expressed the Harmony of Heaven and Earth. The fountain of blood that spurted out from Krid''s body became the ink that drenched the canvas.


    [Your attack has critically striked!]


    [The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship''s Additional Effect has been activated!]


    [You dealt 46,152 damage!]


    Joseph dealt an unbelievable amount of damage in a single attack causing his eyes to widen open in shock.


    But it was Krid who felt iparably bitter...


    He fell down with his back first as a bitter smile emerged on his face.


    [Your Health has reached the minimum.]


    [You have lost the Duel.]


    [Cancelling Duel Mode.]


    [After Duel Mode, Death is now possible so please be careful!]


    Joseph saw Krid''s expression and nervousness filled his nerves: ''Holy shit... What have I done... Will I be killed? What if he refuses to make my Primary Weapon? Am I fucked? Goddamned it, please don''t renege on our promise just because of this...''


    ''You told me that you won''t me me about what would happen afterwards!''


    Krid sensed Joseph''s apprehension and he stared angrily at thetter.


    "You brat... You actually dared on mentioning my disciple while we are in a fight..." He barely squeezed these words out amidst his injuries.


    Thankfully, they were on Duel Mode or else Krid would''ve died from that attack alone.


    "S-s-senior... You cannot me me for that... You''re the one that told me..."


    Joseph replied in an indignant manner and seeing him acting like he was wronged.


    Krid didn''t know whether tough or to cry...


    Although he was really angry at Joseph for unleashing such a vicious mental attack. Since he promised that he wouldn''t me Joseph after the battle.


    Krid had no other choice but to forcefully swallow his anger and could onlyy there in silence.


    Awkward silence reigned over the area. But after a few moments, Krid finally spoke.


    "You know what, kid. That shamelessness of yours really reminds me of that bastard."


    "That bastard?" Joseph asked in confusion.


    "Yes, that bastard. Or should I call him? His Majesty?" Krid lightly chuckled and Joseph was scared out of his wits when he heard Krid calling the King of the Kingdom of Nether as ''that bastard''.


    "Look at you looking so pale. Don''t worry, the King is a sworn brother of mine. He wouldn''t really use me of treason just because I called him a bastard. After all, that bastard''s the most shameless one among the two of us."


    Joseph revealed a smile with his lips repeatedly twitching.


    He didn''t know how to react when he heard what Krid said.


    But he asked...


    "If the King is really Senior''s sworn brother. I don''t understand why he would let you be like this, Senior."


    Krid stared at Joseph and a mncholic smile appeared on his lips.


    "I can''t really me him for not saving me. After all, he''s a King. Someone that should prioritize the development and future of his Kingdom other than himself and his friends... In fact, I am even d that he could be that ruthless to me..."


    "If he didn''t have that ruthlessness that he has right now. I don''t think that I would''ve helped him be a King in the first ce. After all, certain cruelty is necessary so that someone could judge others impartially. Only someone that can do something like that should have the throne of a King."


    Joseph was shocked and surprised about what he was hearing right now, but he still managed on asking: "But I don''t understand, Senior. If he''s someone that you helped on getting the throne..."


    "I think that he could still help you through the guise of repaying back that debt of the past that he incurred from you when you helped him get the throne."


    Krid lightly chuckled when he heard what Joseph had said. But of course, he still answered honestly: "It''s not that simple, kid. Remember that I am a Legendary cksmith... The reason why they took my disciple as a hostage and imprisoned me here is due to that fact..."


    "The King should prioritize the development and the future of his Kingdom. He, No- That bastard brother of mine decided that I was necessary for the development of his Kingdom so he tried on recruiting me as the Legacy cksmith of the Kingdom..."


    "In other words, an employee and maybe even a ve!"


    "I didn''t want my freedom restricted, so I escaped. But that bastard, that bastard brother of mine became blinded by greed! Instead of earnestly asking me for a favor, he decided that it was a much better solution to order the capture of my disciple through the use of Duke Heathrow!"


    "Sigh... If only I knew that something like this would happen after my ascension as a Legend. I would''ve postponed my ascension until times are peaceful." Krid repeatedly shook his head and tears welled up in his eyes. It was clear that he deeply loved that brother of his.


    But sadly, their interests conflicted with each other and this tragedy was the result.


    Joseph stared in pity at Krid.


    But he couldn''t help but frown when he remembered what Krid had said.


    "S-senior... Pardon me for saying this, but... Are you really sure that he''s the one that ordered your disciple''s capture?"


    "What do you mean?" Krid stared at Joseph was if he was now an annoyance.


    "I mean, does Senior really think that Senior''s sworn brother could so something so underhanded such as capturing Senior''s disciple? On what basis?"


    "I don''t think that someone as upright and fair like Senior would have such a vicious sworn brother! I just can''t believe that Senior doesn''t have the capabilities to judge someone''s character!"


    Joseph replied, his words astonished Krid.


    After a short moment of silence.


    An incredibly bitter smile appeared on his lips as he said.


    "Perhaps I was wrong... Perhaps I was right... But nothing matters anymore... I just want the safety of my disciple."


    "After all of these..."


    "For the sake of my rtionship with his Majesty as sworn brothers..."


    "I will leave this Kingdom and nevere back."


    Krid squeezed these words out of his throat, but through his trembling and stammering voice. One could feel the upheaval in his emotions.


    "S-Senior... I j-"


    "Get out!"


    Joseph wanted to say something, but Krid cut him off with a scream.


    Joseph was astonished by Krid''s sudden outburst. But before he could ask, Krid continued...


    "Just get out... Leave me alone for now."


    Joseph didn''t say anything anymore...


    He retreated.


    And Krid''s silent sobbing echoed from behind...

 Chapter 73: Events Before the Execution

    Chapter 73: Events Before the Execution


    That night, countless people focused their sights on the Capital City Reinhardt.


    Why?


    It was because of the appearance of two system notifications that shook the entire world of Victory.


    [Tomorrow at high-noon. A Legend that daredmit treason against his home Kingdom will be publicly executed at the Central Square of the Capital City, Reinhardt. Each and everyone from all walks of life, wherever they might be from are invited to witness the death of a fleeting Legend.]


    [Signed by the King of the Kingdom of Nether, Oliver Oligarch.]


    "...!!!"


    "A Legend..."


    "Is about to be executed?!"


    "Here at the Kingdom of Nether?!"


    Every yer around the world eximed out loud at the same time.


    Popr media stations dedicated to Victory, such as OG News, GMA News, and DGG News sent their employees in a frenzy towards the Capital City of the Kingdom of Nether, Reinhardt.


    In just a few minutes, all sorts of carriages carrying dozens of yers could be seen rushing towards the Capital City, Reinhardt.


    The NPCs who witnessed such an amazing scene were astonished, but after they recovered from their trance. All of them cried out in glee for business was once again booming.


    For these NPCs that only cared for the survival of their own, and their family. The execution of a Legend didn''t really matter. After all, they were justmoners that wanted to live their own life to the fullest, and through their own way.


    But in contrast to them...


    The yers were lively.


    [ Hello, everyone. You are watching DGG Station''s Exclusive Coverage to the events happening right now at the Capital City, Reinhardt. As you can see behind me, a lot of yers suddenly rushed towards this City. All for the sake of witnessing the execution of a Legend. ]


    [ At the current state of the game. We are still ignorant about how strong Legends really are... After all, Kristian is the only Legend that we know about. Kristian''s ss gives him immense capabilities when ites to crowd control so we can be assured that Legends are definitely strong... ]


    [ Nevertheless, right now. A Legend is about to be executed by the Kingdom of Nether. Just who is that Legend? Could it be that it''s the rumored top ranker, Elliot who suddenly disappeared from the rankings a few months before Kristian''s recognition as a Legend? ]


    [ We surely do not know about the answer to that question right now, but rest assured! DGG Station will be exclusively covering these events. Of course, we will not show to the viewers the grisly scene of an execution... But we will surely deliver, information! ]


    [ I''ll be sending my thanks to everyone for watching and I''ll see you guys at noon! ]


    Noise filled the area, and even though it was still early in the morning within the world of Victory.


    The number of yers within the City now numbered at least, more than five hundred. The NPCs who were surprised by the arrival of so many people were delighted but at the same time, bitter.


    They were happy since they would definitely earn a lot today. But they were bitter since they knew in their hearts that their capabilities weren''t enough to serve these many yers.


    Nevertheless, no matter what everyone was feeling right now.


    The Capital City of Reinhardt was now packed to the brim with people from all walks of life.


    In fact, even some Elders from the Divine Sword Sect descended from their mountains and came to the Capital City of Reinhardt.


    One of them was Juzo who reeked of alcohol and had azy look on his face.


    "Damn that geezer really knows how to work someone like a horse! He knows that I am someone that dislikes going out, yet he decided on sending me here for a public execution? Tsk... How annoying! Even though he''s a Legend, he''s someone that''s already dead, so why even bother?"


    A young maiden who would definitely look incredibly familiar to Joseph stood beside Juzo with a bitter smile on her face.


    "Juzo... You can''t call the Patriarch like that... Also, he sent us here. Not just to observe the execution, but to observe matters of the Oligarch Family..."


    "Observe the matters of the Oligarch Family?" Juzo raised an eyebrow: "What do you mean? Why do we have to do that?"


    The young maiden shook her head in disappointment before exining: "Didn''t you listen to what the Patriarch said? Sigh, Juzo... If not for that attitude of yours that do not know how to read along the lines, then you would''ve had a sessor to that art of yours, already!"


    Juzo trembled and he red at the young maiden: "Why do you have to remind me of that blunder of mine! Gaaah! How annoying... But that wasn''t really my fault. It''s that brat''s fault. Why didn''t he show me that letter of yours sooner, instead of entertaining what I was saying."


    The young maiden helplessly sighed once again as she softly replied: "Well, you probably didn''t give him any chance to reply..."


    Juzo halted on his tracks and he turned around to face the young maiden.


    "Can we not talk about that again..." A helpless expression emerged on his face as he pleaded. It was evident that the young maiden struck the bull''s eye.


    "Hehe... If you insist." The young maiden replied with a snicker.


    Yet the young maiden kept poking fun at Juzo.


    Meanwhile, at the Northern-East Area of the Capital City Reinhardt. Within the confines of the Nobility Region.


    Arge number of unknown materials could be seen stacked together on the front yard of Duke Heathrow''s mansion.


    Dozens of yers could be seen carrying materials on wheelbarrows as they dumped all of those materials towards their designated location. Each and every yer within this area looked like they had been doing this for a long time already since most, if not all of them had pale, unhealthy faces.


    "Huff... Puff... Huff... Puff... We''re finally... done... This is thest stack..." An exhausted yer copsed, and he muttered these words as he stared towards the skies.


    "Yeah... we''re finally done... Shit... That was such an intense work-out... I haven''t done anything as intense as this since high school..."


    "Definitely... Uh... I swear if Guild Leader doesn''t give us our promised rewards, then I will definitely quit this guild outright and nevere back!"


    "Yeah... Guild Leader''s promise was really attractive..."


    "I hope that he won''t renege with his promise to us."


    The workers instantly copsed beside each other, after cing thest stack of materials that they were supposed to deliver from the Forbidden Region to this location here in the Capital City, Reinhardt.


    "Hmmm... The materials for the production of Unhindered Weapons are ready... Duke Heathrow will be happy."


    dimir wore a light smile on his face as he observed several mountains of materials in front of him.


    "Unhindered Weapons... That name sure sounds in, are you sure that it will really be powerful?" A feminine voice spoke up beside dimir.


    "Bloodstained Lilium. You really are underestimating the capabilities of NPCs in the current phase of the game..."


    "Right now, NPCs are the absolute rulers when ites to strength. I don''t know about what will happen in the next several years, but I''ve got to do what I need to do in order to not let those bastards catch up with the strength of Crimson."


    The origin of the feminine voice was revealed to be a young maiden who had a cold and detached look on her face. Her pure white dress, decorated with hints of ck that emanated darkness and elicited terror from those that dare stare at it, perfectly entuated her petite figure.


    Although she was quite small in height. She must not be underestimated. For this young woman was known and titled as the Bloodstained Lilium. The primary reason for the origin of that title was whenever she was in battle...


    Her pure white dress would always be stained red with the blood of her enemies, making her look like an iparably innocent, yet dangerous demoness.


    "We really gave them a huge surprise back then, eh? But are you really sure about your decision? What you did was basically reveal your cards to them. Also, don''t call me like that." She said in a somewhat mocking manner towards dimir.


    dimir frowned, but he nevertheless kept himself calm as he replied: "Those knights do not matter in the big picture since they are not our property. We just borrowed them from Duke Heathrow..."


    "I only did that so that I could divert the attention of those two big boys from Dark me and Knights of Justice towards those knights and take their attention away from the production of these Unhindered Weapons."


    Bloodstained Lilium wore a look of interest on her face as she asked: "Are these Unhindered Weapons really that valuable? To the extent that you would ve away like this for the sake of that fat-ass Duke?"


    dimir didn''t mind her offensivenguage as he snickered: "I guess, you really don''t understand. These Unhindered Weapons are called Unhindered for the reason that they have at least a sixty percent chance of ignoring an enemy''s armor or defenses!"


    "Not only that, there''s no cooldown and basic attack also counts!"


    A look of excitement and zeal could be seen on dimir''s expression, and he almost eximed at the end of his sentence.


    The look of interest on Bloodstained Lilium''s face intensified, yet it vanished in an instant as she replied in a challenging and sarcastic manner: "Oh? That strong? In that case, then I can say that what you are doing is really worth it..."


    "But can you really say for sure that Duke Heathrow would give your demands? You know about how unscrupulous these nobles are, right? I don''t think that you''re that naive..."


    dimir chuckled: "You do not have to worry about that... I made a contract with Duke Heathrow under the effects of an Unbreakable Oath. He will definitely give the demands that I listed in that contract- No, he will not dare to renege."


    Bloodstained Lilium stared at dimir for a moment before nodding her head: "Since you''re about to seed anyways, I don''t think that I still have anything to do at this point in time, right? We have already kept Dark me and Knights of Justice in check, so can you send me the money now?"


    dimir''s expression turned harsh and he red at the young maiden: "Not so fast, Lilium... Until everything is over, you will stay right beside me and make sure that nothing gets in my way..."


    Bloodstained Lilium also stared at dimir before she sighed: "In that case, then fine. Why would I refuse a job that will make me earn money without doing anything?" She shook her head and didn''t mind dimir anymore.


    dimir turned his head away from Lilium and a fierce expression surfaced on his face. But knowing Bloodstained Lilium''s capabilities. He didn''t dare to show his grievance as he slowly suppressed his anger.


    After a few moments, he coughed and uttered in a somewhat confused manner.


    "Speaking of people that could potentially get in our way..."


    "I remember someone interesting within the Underground Penitentiary..."


    Bloodstained Lilium asked: "What do you mean?"


    dimir nced at Lilium before saying: "I found a yer in that ce! From the looks of it, he''s somewhat high-ranking in there... Probably an Inquisitor."


    Bloodstained Lilium frowned, and she asked: "Why are you telling me these? Do you think that the so-called yer you found underground within that damned ce could be an obstacle to you?"


    dimir shrugged: "I don''t think so... It seems like he''s actually one of those that tortured that old bastard cksmith, but... I can''t help but feel uneasy..." A restless expression could be seen on dimir''s face as he said all of these.


    Bloodstained Lilium mused for a moment before she replied: "That could actually be possible."


    dimir''s eyes widened in surprise: "What do you mean?"


    Bloodstained Lilium stared at him before she replied: "Didn''t Duke Heathrow offer you that quest when you visited his residence? In that case, nothing really is stopping that Legendary cksmith from giving that yer a quest on helping him escape the penitentiary..."


    dimir revealed a look of enlightenment: "You''re right about that, but.."


    "Helping that old cksmith on escaping the Penitentiary? If he really did ept that quest then he''s quite a stupid. How can he possibly escape along with that old cksmith when so many powerful people have their eyes on them?"


    "Furthermore, tomorrow is that old cksmith''s execution. Even if he chose to enact his n on taking away the old cksmith..."


    "He still cannot escape with us watching..."


    "I don''t even believe that the old cksmith would be willing to escape by himself," dimir revealed a fact that intrigued the Bloodstained Lilium.


    "What do you mean? Is there something going on behind the scenes that I don''t know?" She asked with a frown.


    "Hehehe..." dimir revealed a sly smile as he replied: "That Duke Heathrow really is too vicious! A Legend has enough power to overturn the entire Kingdom of Nether, yet he managed on suppressing the strength of that Legend by using such a vicious and despicable method!"


    "As for what I am talking about?"


    "Duke Heathrow basically kidnapped the disciple of that old cksmith and he even imnted a Heart Binding Worm inside her heart so that he could thoroughly suppress that cksmith!" A proud expression appeared on his face as he said.


    Although the Bloodstained Lilium couldn''t understand why dimir looked so proud with achievements that weren''t really his. When she heard what he said, she couldn''t care less about dimir''s bragging anymore as she replied.


    "Heart Binding Worm?"


    "Yes... that terrifying Heart Binding Worm that can even be used against a yer..." dimir''s sly smile intensified as he stared right at the young maiden in front of him. After quickly ncing around and finding that no one was watching them right now...


    He opened up his palm and revealed a caterpir-looking worm, covered in thin hairs that radiated an intense smell of blood.


    "Oh, yuck! Get that thing away from me!" The Bloodstained Lilium cried out and dimir lightly chuckled before cing the caterpir-looking worm back in his Inventory.


    Even though she was used to the smell of blood as the Bloodstained Lilium. It would be a lie to say that she wasfortable whenever she was in contact with blood. After all, she was still a young woman in the end, and blood was something undesirable to be on one''s body.


    Particrly that creepy caterpir-looking worm that radiated an intense smell of blood.


    For any woman out there...


    Such a thing was abominable and should be thrown far, far away from them.


    "Kekeke... I didn''t expect that the so-called Bloodstained Lilium had such a feminine side. I guess, in the end... You''re still a young woman, eh?" dimir greedily sized up Lilium''s before licking his lips and continuing.


    Lilium''s eyebrows knitted, but before she could speak...


    dimir spoke up.


    "Anyways... that thing that I showed you is the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm. Once I crushed that worm, then the life of that old cksmith''s disciple would be over."


    Lilium stared at him and said: "You... You''re nning on doing something that I do not know of, right?"


    dimir lightly chuckled before saying: "Don''t worry..."


    "I am only moving ording to Duke Heathrow''s wishes."

 Chapter 74: Day of the Execution

    Chapter 74: Day of the Execution


    "It''s time..."


    Joseph re-entered the world of Victory and when he came out of his room.


    A determined expression could be seen on his face.


    "Master..."


    A smile emerged on Ezreal''s lips when he saw Joseph''s serious look. Right now, Joseph was different from who he was before he entered the Underground Penitentiary.


    At that time, Joseph could barely suppress his trembling whenever he felt cold wind passing on his skin, and whenever he heard the cries of anguished souls.


    But this time?


    Joseph actually looked quite peaceful. When he realized and learned from Krid that he must not take life for granted, and worrying was a worthless affair that wouldn''t solve anything. Joseph finally had the bravery that hecked due to his insecurities since the death of his parents.


    Even though he knew that he still wasn''t as confident as what his parents wanted him to be...


    Right now, he felt unstoppable.


    He smiled at Ezreal, and thetter also smiled at him in return as the two of them went towards the Maximum Security Tunnel where a bunch of Inquisitors could be seen huddled around each other.


    Along with the other Inquisitors was the Jail Warden who turned to look at the iing Ezreal and Joseph.


    "Good morning, sir Warden." Joseph slightly bowed his head, and Ezreal did the same.


    "Hmmm." The Jail Warden nodded his head before handing over two pouches full of something towards the two.


    Joseph swiftly stretched his hand out in order to receive what the Jail Warden was handing over, while Ezreal''s hand moved in a somewhat hesitant manner.


    "What is this, sir Warden?" Joseph mumbled, but when he opened the pouch. He was astonished for it contained a lot of shining gold coins. But a frown soon appeared on his face. He couldn''t remember doing anything that deserved him such a payment.


    "Why do you look so confused. It''s thepensation for the help that the two of you rendered back when both of you forced a confession out of those cursed bastards." The Jail Warden revealed a light smile and Joseph, along with Ezreal finally understood what he was talking about.


    ''Ah, so these gold coins are for that walk of shame back then. I see... This is some neat stuff. I didn''t expect that I would actually get a lot of... wait... how many gold coins are these?'' Joseph promptly turned around and deposited the gold coins within the pouches into his Inventory.


    When the systempleted its count on the number of gold coins that Joseph deposited.


    His eyes widened in shock.


    [You currently have 500G, 5S, 8C]


    "F-F-F-Five hundred gold coins?!" Joseph inwardly eximed.


    Money in Victory wasn''t so easy to earn.


    Don''t think that just because Joseph easily acquired five hundred gold coins meant that earning money in Victory was simple and not really that difficult...


    The only reason why Joseph earned this much money in such a short time was because of his hard work. Although it would be controversial to say that Joseph did a lot of things. Luck also yed a role in Joseph''s acquisition of this much money.


    "I... Thank, sir Jail Warden!" Joseph deeply bowed.


    The Jail Warden hurriedly replied.


    "No, no, no... You do not have to do that. The rewards that you got are from the fruits of yourbor, you deserve it and that is what you get."


    A kind smile spread on the Jail Warden''s lips and the Inquisitors around him.


    Although when Joseph remembered the identities of these people whom some were ex-convicts or death row inmates.


    A shiver ran down Joseph''s spine as he awkwardly scratched his head and thanked everyone for their appreciation towards his hard work.


    Ezreal also got the spotlight...


    In fact, some members even started giving him some coupons for the red-light district. With good intentions of setting Ezreal back on the right, and standard way.


    Of course, Ezreal firmly refused their coupons which elicited bitter smiles on the faces of every Inquisitor, including even the Captain of all Inquisitors.


    "Seems like he''s too far gone..."


    "Yeah, it''s toote."


    "I guess..."


    Ding! Ding! Ding!


    A dull and loud sound suddenly rocked the entire Underground Penitentiary...


    Everyone, including the inmates sleeping soundly or crying within their jail cells, was startled before they turned to look towards the direction of the Maximum Security Tunnel.


    "It''s time..." The Jail Warden''s expression turned serious.


    "Let''s go... Assume the formation!" The Captain of the Inquisitors ordered.


    "Yes, sir!" The Inquisitors answered.


    "I have already heard from the Jail Warden about what are the roles of you two so, but be careful, the might of a Legend must never be underestimated."


    The Captain of the Inquisitors said these words to Joseph and Ezreal before he rushed towards the barracks and left both Ezreal and Joseph along with the Warden.


    Joseph and Ezreal turned to look at the Jail Warden.


    The Jail Warden nodded his head and gestured as if saying e follow me'' before moving.


    The three went beyond the sealed room again, and inside the room was Krid...


    "Honorable Jail Warden, shall we proceed now?"


    ... and the other five Deputy Warden.


    "Yes, we shall proceed with the preparations. This is the first time in four decades that a public execution will happen under the jurisdiction of our Underground Penitentiary. Always remember that our honor is in the line."


    "Yes..." The Deputy Wardens bowed their heads towards the Jail Warden.


    "That guy..."


    Joseph swept his gaze at the gathered Deputy Wardens and found that the middle-aged man who arrogantly left them alone within the darkened hallways of the Underground Penitentiary back when they first came here was also present among the Deputy Wardens.


    That middle-aged man nodded his head, but his face remained expressionless.


    Seeing that the middle-aged man had no intention of talking with him. Joseph surreptitiously nced at Krid. He didn''t dare to stare directly into the eyes of the old man, for he knew that today was the day of reckoning.


    Today was a turning point in Joseph''s life and Krid was heavily involved with it...


    Honestly, Joseph didn''t know if he could still even face Krid after everything that would happen today.


    Nevertheless, Joseph nned on doing what he must along with his interest and Krid.


    No matter how other people would judge what he was nning on doing.


    Joseph reminded himself that everything was for his, Krid, and for the sake of Krid''s disciple.


    After about half an hour, the preparations were finallyplete.


    "Prisoner Krid. Rise..."


    The Jail Warden announced within the sealed room where Krid resided.


    "Heh... So, it''s finally time... Took you bastards too long." A sarcastic smile appeared on Krid''s face, and all the Deputy Warden''s couldn''t help but frown when they saw hisidback expression. ''Are we really going to execute him, or are we going to apany him to a pic somewhere in a paradise-like backyard. Why is he so calm andposed?''


    These were the thoughts of the Deputy Wardens, but some of them merely scoffed inside: ''Hmmph... He may be keeping up thatcent and peaceful facade right now, but when he''s under the guillotine and in the face of death. I reckon, even a Legend may beg for forgiveness!''


    Only Ezreal and Joseph had strange looks on their faces as Ezreal went forwards and escorted Krid by the arm. No one among the Deputy Warden thought strange of what Ezreal was doing.


    After all, prior to all of these...


    They had already heard from the Jail Warden about what were their arrangements.


    They didn''t really mind what Ezreal was doing since for them, Krid was already a dead man.


    The group continued their march towards the surface. Apanied by every Jail Janitor and Inquisitor who had solemn, yet excited expressions on their faces.


    But could you really me them?


    I mean, the execution of a Legend was something to look forward to them, since they could possibly be recorded within the annals of history for being one of those people that executed a Legend for the first time in history. How could they not be excited?


    With all sorts of sentiments and thoughts running through the minds of everyone within the procession.


    Their journey continued, albeit slowly, yet surely as they walked towards the surface with heavy footsteps.


    Then...


    When the first ray of sunlight entered their eyes.


    Several system notifications appeared in front of Joseph''s face. But before he could read them, he was astonished by the scene that he saw around him. It was because around them, was a gathering...


    A gathering of tens of thousands of people, staring at them with different looks on their faces.


    "Execution procession... Passing through!" The Jail Warden cried out loud, his voice reverberating through the air and rang in the ears of everyone as if he whispered these words close to them.


    "We shall obey!" The NPCs eximed, astonishing the yers.


    But the next scene further deepened their astonishment. It was because at the moment that the NPCspleted their sentence. All of them suddenly threw leaves that had the lush colors of green into the air, creating an artificial rain of leaves that dotted the streets.


    After throwing all the leaves that they held within their hands, all the NPCs then simultaneously screamed.


    "May you have a fine journey!"


    The yers were thoroughly astonished about the actions of these NPCs.


    But the other NPCs, such as the Jail Warden and Ezreal now had their heads slightly hung low towards the direction of Krid.


    "You guys..."


    Joseph mumbled under his breath.


    It waspletely unexpected for Joseph that the residents would treat someone whomitted treason against their home kingdom with such respect before his execution.


    ''Shouldn''t these residents throw all sorts of nasty objects towards Krid? Why did they hurl leaves, and why are they wishing him a fine journey?''


    Ezreal noticed Joseph''s confusion and a smile appeared on his face as he softly exined: "Master, this is the culture of the people of the Kingdom of Nether. Although the crime attached to myrade, Krid is a crime that definitely deserved capital punishment..."


    "The people of the Kingdom of Nether never really liked the concept of death in the first ce. Every death is considered as sad partings, and farewells for them..."


    "For example, take a look at these leaves that they hurled in the air. These green leaves colors signify the birth of a new life upon the appearance of Spring."


    "In other words... Not only they are wishing for Krid''s fine journey through the yellow springs. They are also wishing for his rebirth in this era..."


    "After all, talented men such as Krid is absolutely necessary for the development of mankind..."


    "It is sad that Krid couldn''t help them in this generation, but these people are hoping that in the next generation. Krid would be reborn and could finally wield his talent to the fullest without meeting such an end like this..."


    "Do you understand it now, master?"


    Ezreal stared at Joseph and he found that thetter had his hung low towards the direction of Krid.


    A smile emerged on Ezreal''s face and he also did the same as they kept on walking towards the Central Square.


    However, Joseph feltpletely different from Ezreal''s expectations.


    Right now, tears could be seen silently falling down his cheeks.


    This tradition of the residents of the Kingdom of Nether reminded him of the early farewell that he had to make to his parents.


    "Dad... Mom... I wish both of you a fine journey through the yellow springs..."


    Joseph fetched some leaves on the ground, and he slowly hurled them to the air.


    Watching the leaves that he threw, steadily, yet slowly falling into the ground...


    A smile emerged on Joseph''s lips.


    "Dad... Mom..."


    Closing his eyes, tears stopped falling from them, and when he opened them once again. A confident light, befitting to that of a domineering overlord could be seen within his eyes.


    "From now on, I shall never doubt my own capabilities ever again."


    Joseph took a step forward...


    It may be a small step for others, but for Joseph...


    It was an incredible leap from his previous self to his new self.

 Chapter 75: Swift Escalation of Events[3in1]

    Chapter 75: Swift Esction of Events[3in1]


    The journey of the procession was solemn and peaceful. Opposite of what the yers and the media stations around the world expected.


    Shouldn''t these residents be angry at the Legend whomitted treason against the Kingdom of Nether?


    But instead of being angry... The residents peacefully followed Krid. Some of them even repeatedly hurled lush, and green leaves towards the skies as the procession continued.


    Soon...


    The procession arrived at the Central Square of the Capital City Reinhardt.


    There, arge number of people were gathered.


    They all had solemn expressions on their faces as they faced Krid''s direction.


    At the center of the Central Square stood an ancestral monument dedicated to the previous Kings of the Kingdom of Nether. The names of the previous Kings belonging to every generation was engraved on its surface.


    Amongst these names, the most eye-catching one was the name: ''Oliver Oligarch''.


    It was because this name was written in fierce and brilliant calligraphy that mysteriously glittered in a golden light whilst under the illumination of the sun.


    In front of the ancestral monument was at least a fifty meters wide tform.


    Seeing that the tform looked like it wasn''t embedded on the ground...


    It was clear that it was added on top of the ground of the za.


    The sides of the two meters tall tform were decorated with red and weaved with the lush colors of Spring. Indicating that a single life may vanish today...


    But another life would appear inpensation for it.


    "The condemned has arrived!"


    The Jail Warden loudly announced, his voice awakening everyone from their trance.


    Just when everyone thought that nothing could surprise them anymore.


    Another voice rang out and reverberated through the skies.


    "Honorable Duke Heathrow has arrived!"


    A person that looked like a mountain of meat suddenly appeared on top of the decorated tform.


    With his appearance, everyone turned silent...


    But then another bombshell was dropped.


    "The Queen, The Crown Prince and His Majesty are here!"


    These few words sounded like it was five kilometers away, but when the sentence reached its end...


    It sounded like the words were spoken next to your ears as everyone.


    Includingmoners, yers, and nobles alike, all shivered in astonishment and shock.


    But when everyone understood the message contained within the voice. All of them stood up. Those who weren''t paying attention to what was happening before.


    Now had their eyes glued towards the skies.


    Three figures suddenly appeared in the air. One of them was a middle-aged woman. From the light within her eyes, it was clear that she had experienced far too many experiences in life, yet at the same time, her figure radiated the vibrancy of youth.


    Her expression, devoid of any wrinkles gave everyone the impression that she was in her early twenties.


    But this wasn''t the end of the surprise. It was because floating beside the woman was a young man that clearly resembled the young woman. The only difference was that not a smile could be seen on his lips.


    His expression looked detached and his eyes radiated coldness, and majesty that only existed from those of nobility.


    The young mannded slowly on the tform and stood beside the woman.


    But there was still someone floating in the air.


    That person was a middle-aged man wearing a well-embellished tunic, embedded with golden thread. A surcoat was wrapped around his body depicting figures of his Royal Family, and on top of these, was a royal mantle that exuded his authority as the King.


    When he appeared, delighted expressions appeared on the faces of everymoner and they looked like they all wanted to scream. But since today was a solemn day ording to their traditions and culture. They held themselves back and kept themselves silent.


    The King, her Queen, and the Crown Prince swept their gazes at everyone. All three of them slightly nodded before they took their seats. The King sat at the center, on his right was the Queen, and on his left was the Imperial Prince. Standing before them was Duke Heathrow who greeted.


    "I thank His Majesty for his presence."


    The King nodded his head and Duke Heathrow then turned his head towards the direction of the condemned procession. A sly smile appeared on his face, and he eximed.


    "Present the condemned before his Majesty!"


    When his voice rang out. Krid who maintained his silence and remained obedient all this while slightly trembled when he heard the words ''his Majesty''. But after a few moments, he sighed for he really couldn''t do anything other than face the King, his Majesty, and also...


    His precious sworn brother back then...


    The Jail Warden deeply gazed at Duke Heathrow. Before he turned to look at Krid.


    Krid nodded his head and the Jail Warden then dragged his chains towards the direction of the tform.


    "The condemned is here, your Majesty!"


    The Jail Warden loudly announced.


    His Majesty, Oliver Oligarch raised his head and stared at Krid.


    Krid also stared at him and for a few moments, and the gazes of the two met in mid-air.


    Although no words were exchanged...


    They were brothers that spent countless life and death situations together. They know far too much about each other to the extent that they couldmunicate with their gazes.


    Krid''s eyes shed with an apologetic light, while the King''s eyes revealed a hint of relief and understanding. Thismunication method of the two could only be understood by those who had close brothers or sisters.


    Such a method could never be understood by those that do not have any close kin or friends.


    After this brief discretemunication between the two. Krid hung his head low, and then he was ushered towards the tform and forcefully had his knees broken by Duke Heathrow so that he wouldn''t be able to move nor stand up.


    A sadistic smile appeared on Duke Heathrow''s lips as he had Krid kneel on top of the tform and face everyone who came here to observe.


    "I present, in front of every ancestor of the Kingdom of Nether, and all the current residents of the Kingdom... The traitor who insists on remaining selfish until the end!"


    His voice boomed like thunder, and before everyone could awaken from their shock.


    He continued...


    "I am sure that everyone present knows that in a few year''s time. The three Kingdom''s Thousand Years Reign Competition will finally begin. This is a grand affair that involves everyone from the three kingdoms..."


    "Thispetition is always held every hundred years, but since the Kingdom of Nether is now about at its thousandth year since its foundation along with the Kingdom of Burning Heaven and the Kingdom of Absolute Frost..."


    "It is necessary for us to create an astoundingly strong army that can repel those two Kingdoms in thepetition so that we could keep our dominance against them."


    "We have kept them at bay for about nine hundred years now, but it is clear that the Kingdom of Burning Heaven and Absolute Frost are getting stronger as the years go by..."


    "It is predicted by an Astrologer from the Astrological Guild of the Empire of Truedawn that if the Kingdom of Nether did not do anything to further improve its force for the uing Thousand Years Reignpetition. We will surely lose our dominance and in turn..."


    "Lose our influence and territories."


    "That is something that cannot be allowed to happen at all costs..."


    "That was why I, Duke Heathrow scoured through the entire continent in an effort to find a method that could allow us to drastically increase the strength of our forces without further burdening our soldiers that are already enduring our hellish training."


    Duke Heathrow paused and his gazended towards the several dozens of envoying from all sorts of different sects and groups.


    "This Thousand Year Reignpetition, we must definitely not lose!"


    "Yeah, the previous Reignpetitions were only named as Hundred. This is the first time that thepetition will be named Thousand-Year Reign. I am pretty sure that the three Kingdoms will go all out, holding nothing back.


    Amidst thismotion, the Crown Prince suddenly spoke up in a cold voice...


    "Alright, no more unnecessary words Duke Heathrow. I don''t want my time wasted."


    ... startling Duke Heathrow and everyone who heard what he was said.


    Duke Heathrow''s expression shed withplex emotions for a moment before he continued: "Since this is what the Royal Prince wants then, I shall not say any more unnecessary words. However..." He changed the topic and sternly dered to everyone present.


    "I am sure that everyone knows about the identity of the condemned today... His name is Krid, and his surname is unknown but the tales of his journeys could be heard everywhere..."


    "After all, he is the one and only Legendary cksmith of the current generation, and knowing that he came from our Kingdom..."


    "My heart became filled with warmth pride and childlike joy. But unfortunately... When I came over and visited his residence and pleaded for his help for the uing Thousand Years Reign..."


    "I was vehemently refused for reasons, unknown to me and therades that came with me..." Duke Heathrow paused and nced at the Crown Prince.


    A barely imperceptible light shone within the Crown Prince''s eyes as he raised an eyebrow and asked: "Oh? You hadrades with you when you visited the Legendary Krid?"


    Duke Heathrow nodded his head, and a smile leaked on his lips: "Yes, honorable Prince. I did haverades with me. But sadly, when I insisted and earnestly pleaded for the Legendary cksmith''s help. I was not only refused, but he also killed myrades so that he could kill the chicken to warn the monkeys."


    "I could do nothing at that time, other than retreat in sorrow and report everything to his Majesty..."


    "After my report, his Majesty then ordered the capture of Krid to which, I obliged. Bringing with me the powerful knights of the Kingdom to capture Krid and his disciple."


    At the end of his sentence, Duke Heathrow revealed a sorrowful expression. Looking like he was reminiscing of the time when hisrades were still alive before they were apparently killed by Krid.


    The Crown Prince revealed anger when he heard Duke Heathrow''s ''revtion''. His Majesty was astonished by what he heard and fury shed on his face. But before he could say anything...


    The Crown Prince exploded in anger, astonishing everyone who heard his words.


    "Is that so? How vicious!"


    "Knowing that you are an honorable Duke of the Kingdom where he was born. He not only refused you but he also killed yourrades so that he could instill fear and hesitation that will prevent you from pursuing what is good for the Kingdom?"


    "How atrocious! He must definitely be executed today!"


    "Even if he''s a Legend!"


    But those who were in the know understood that something fishy was going on.


    "Heh, what a brilliant y these two are disying. Since they can coordinate as good as this. I will believe you if you told me that the Crown Prince''s true father is Duke Heathrow instead of his Majesty." In the area where people from the Divine Sword Sect was seated.


    A young maiden suddenly whispered these words.


    "You... What are you saying! Do you want to get killed like that old man?" A bulky man who reeked of alcohol hurriedly closed the mouth of that young maiden in a panic.


    But the young maiden didn''t reply to what Juzo was saying, clear mocking could be seen on her face as she stared at the King, Oliver Oligarch.


    "Don''t ever say that again... At least until we''re back at the Sect..." Juzo warned before removing his hand from the mouth of the young maiden.


    "Then, Juzo. Are you also suspicious about what I am saying?" The young maiden lightly chuckled and Juzo red at her before the two finally closed their mouths and stopped their conversation.


    On top of the tform. Krid revealed a small smile on his face, seemingly without any intention to answer Duke Heathrow''s usation and the Crown Prince''s outburst.


    Duke Heathrow''s expression changed into anger when he saw Krid''s calm andposed manner.


    "Look at this traitor smiling like nothing is happening... He really doesn''t have the intention to repent! No matter what happens, he will definitely die today! Treating the Royal Family like nothing but air... That is a crime, worthy of death itself!"


    Duke Heathrow used him again, and Krid finally sighed before saying: "Everything has alreadye to this. I don''t mind dying, but will you at least let me see my disciple?"


    Krid''s voice rang loud and clear and everyone frowned when he heard what Krid was saying.


    Duke Heathrow hesitated for a moment, but his Majesty intervened. Anger and fury shed on his face for a moment, but he managed on suppressing it before he said: "Duke Heathrow, didn''t you say that you also captured his disciple?"


    "Let the two of them meet, but not on top of the tform. Only those that are about to die from the executioner''s de and members of the Royal Family and Nobility can climb on top of this tform."


    Duke Heathrow revealed a smile on his face. He nodded and said: "Since his Majesty wills it. They shall meet."


    He then turned to look at the distance and eximed: "dimir! Bring the Legendary cksmith Krid''s disciple over here!"


    Everyone''s attention all turned to look towards the distance. Joseph and Ezreal also turned to look behind them.


    Amidst the gazes of everyone, a man wearing all-red appeared. Behind him was a young maiden that had blond hair that reached until her shoulders. Her clothing looked like a washed-out, used cum-rag that had a lot of holes and scratched on its surface.


    Normally, a young maiden would feel incredibly humiliated whilst wearing such clothing.


    But in contrast, she had a stern expression on her face.


    Her eyes that previously gleamed with stubbornness slowly softened when she saw the figure of an old man kneeling on top of the tform.


    Anger shed on her eyes, and she wanted nothing right now but to run towards the old man.


    But unfortunately, dimir was keeping her in check...


    "This..."


    "His Majesty ordered the kidnapping of such a young woman? What the?" Some yers within the crowd were visibly shaken by what they saw. Fury appeared on their faces, but they knew better than interrupting this event.


    If they did act ording to their emotions then they would undoubtedly suffer...


    But they still couldn''t believe what they were seeing.


    Witnessing the sad and desperate plight of the young woman, most of them red in anger and fury that they all directed towards dimir.


    "dimir... that guy... So this is the reason why he had those powerful knights... He''s actually directly connected to Duke Heathrow... I thought that he was only a subordinate."


    "Yeah..."


    The Guild Leaders of Knights of Justice and Dark me whispered towards each other. The battle that happened that day was a battle that they would never forget in their lives.


    Back then, they had the yers of Crimson tightly surrounded, but just as they thought that they could finally make Crimson suffer a huge loss...


    The tables were suddenly turned against them due to the presence of those powerful knights whose levels they estimated to be at least at two hundred.


    "Alice..." Tears welled up in Krid''s eyes when he saw the bedraggled appearance of his disciple. His body moved in an effort to stand up, but with his knees broken. He looked more like he was wiggling his way out from the tform towards Alice.


    "What a disgrace..." Duke Heathrow uttered under his breath. Seeing a Legend squirming like a worm on the ground, he felt utterly disgusted to the extent that he wanted to kick him off the tform facing the ancestral monument.


    But since his Majesty was just behind him and observing everything...


    How could he possibly do such a thing?


    Duke Heathrow nced at his Majesty and thetter sighed before saying: "Have someone from the Underground Penitentiary fetch the Legendary Krid."


    Duke Heathrow was astonished by His Majesty''smand. ''Didn''t he say that only those of nobility or about to be executed can ascend this tform? Why is he giving such amand?''


    "But your Majesty..." Duke Heathrow said in hesitation and his Majesty narrowed his eyes and replied.


    "Did I stutter, Heathrow?"


    "Y-y-yes..." Duke Heathrow had no other choice but to swallow everything that he wanted to say. Facing towards the members of the Underground Penitentiary.


    Indignance and anger momentarily shed on his face as hemanded.


    "Someone from the Underground Penitentiary. Fetch the Legend Krid and have him reunite with his disciple."


    The Jail Warden nodded his head and he then turned to look at Joseph.


    Joseph responded with a nod, but before he could even take a step forward.


    dimir suddenly spoke up.


    "Halt..."


    dimir''s voice rang loud and clear, astonishing even Duke Heathrow himself.


    "What are you saying, dimir? Are you trying to disobey me?"


    dimir shook his head and replied: "No, that is not my intention honorable Duke. But I just feel like he should not be the one that should fetch Senior Krid from the tform."


    A meaningful smile appeared on his face when he stared at Joseph who he now confirmed as a legitimate yer instead of an NPC.


    The yers who heard what he was saying were shocked.


    But before they could even think about what was going on, his Majesty nodded his head and said.


    "That''s not a problem. Pick someone else other than him and fetch the Legend Krid."


    The Jail Warden nodded.


    "Ezreal, you go and fetch Senior Krid." He thenmanded.


    Ezreal didn''t say anything in response.


    He just took a step forward and started walking towards the direction of Krid.


    Meanwhile, Joseph made a sidelong nce at dimir and thetter grinned at him in a sly manner.


    "I don''t know about what you are nning, but I will never let you seed under my watch!"


    dimir inwardly eximed.


    He also took a step forward and dragged the young maiden behind him, closer to Krid.


    At this point in time. Ezreal had already ascended the steps.


    "My brother..." Ezreal softly uttered.


    Krid revealed an apologetic smile: "I''m so sorry about this, brother."


    "Nah, you do not have to worry about anything, brother," Ezreal revealed a mysterious smile.


    While he carefully guided Krid down the tform...


    He continued speaking in a cryptic manner.


    "In fact, I am the one that should be sorry to you, brother..."


    Krid''s eyes suddenly widened in shock. When the two of them reached the ground.


    Ezreal suddenly took out a mysterious looking bead and amidst everyone''s confusion...


    He crushed that bead into smithereens.


    Kacha!


    As soon as the bead burst into pieces, an iparably mighty suction force suddenly appeared behind Ezreal and Krid.


    "Bead of Absolute Escape! Shit, stop them!"


    Duke Heathrow eximed.


    His Majesty abruptly stood up, and everyone''s eyes widened into saucers.


    "Like I''d let you!"


    dimir who was the closest to Ezreal rushed at thetter. But when he took his third step, a wave of green energy swept his body causing him to stumble and fall miserably onto the ground.


    "You... What are you..." This was the first time that Krid experienced such shock and despair. That Bead of Absolute Escape was reserved for his disciple, but Ezreal crushed it so that he could drag him away from this ce? What would happen to his granddaughter then?


    Bang!


    The might of a legend was fully unleashed at this time and a domineering might swept through everything. That might then concentrated into a beam of formless energy that assaulted Ezreal intent on sending him flying.


    Bang!


    The formless energy exploded on Ezreal''s body but he remained steadfast on its assault. Blood dripped down from Ezreal''s seven orifices and he coughed a mouthful of blood.


    But his endurance paid off for he managed on hoisting Krid on his shoulder before going to the portal opened by the Bead of Absolute Escape.


    "NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"


    Krid wildly struggled on Ezreal''s shoulder, but he couldn''t do anything other than scream and struggle.


    The current Ezreal was unleashing everything that he had in order to suppress a Legend like him.


    Even though that suppression would most likely notst that long...


    It was enough time for him to drag Krid into the other side of the void into the safe house that Krid himself created for his disciple.


    The two then disappeared under everyone''s astonished eyes.


    Then...


    "C-C-C-CRUSH IT!!!"


    ... Duke Heathrow suddenly pointed at dimir and screamed in fury.


    The shocked dimir was still in the middle of his trance, so he acted a step toote. But when he recovered from his trance and removed the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm from his Inventory and was about to crush it with his hand...


    A furious scream suddenly rang out.


    "Like It''d let you, you bastard!"


    Joseph was already beside him.


    His rapier glowing in dazzling radiant light as Joseph attacked with [Point].


    "Guah!" dimir coughed a mouthful of blood. Joseph''s attack prated his chest and pierced through his heart.


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock!]


    [You are currently under the effects of Stiffness. This is caused by a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted!]


    "You..." dimir stared venomously at Joseph.


    Joseph quickly snatched the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm from dimir''s hand.


    "KILL HIM!" Duke Heathrow loudly screamed and several figures d in ck suddenly appeared in the air above Joseph.


    In an instant, they unleashed dozens of attacks towards him.


    "Parry!"


    Joseph didn''t even bother to dodge in the face of these attacks. He endured them all through the use of Parry before he ran towards the direction of Alice.


    "Shit! His goal is Krid''s disciple! Capture her before he gets to her!" Duke Heathrowmanded once again and the figures d in ck, all pounced towards Alice...


    But a smile emerged on Joseph''s lips...


    "IT''S OVER, YOU FAT PIECE OF SHIT!" He loudly eximed and pointed his Rapier at Alice.


    "GRAND CHALLENGE!"


    The Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge banishes a target with him to the Arena of the Gods.


    In other words, the moment Joseph uttered these words...


    He and Alice were instantly shrouded with the dazzling pure light of the Grand Duelist''s divinity.


    Under the shocked and dumbfounded gazes of everyone...


    The two swiftly vanished before their eyes. The attacks of the figures d in ck passed through their already incorporeal body, and before Joseph could disappear from this ce...


    He loudly dered.


    "Let''s see if you bastards dare to follow us to the Forbidden Region!"


    After his deration, he finally disappeared from the Central Square of Reinhardt.


    Leaving behind an astonished crowd of NPCs and yers alike.<ol><li>An idiom for intimidation</li></ol>

 Chapter 76: Just Observe

    Chapter 76: Just Observe


    "HAHAHAHA!"


    Augh erupted at the deepest room within the Headquarters of P.H Works. Theughter originated from the Head of the Development Team of Victory, Ray Gabriel.


    He even repeatedly pped the table as heughed.


    "It''s so bad that you guys didn''t make a bet with me. I would''ve been lucky!" He said in regret.


    Meanwhile, his fellow scientists wore bitter smiles on their faces. Earlier, Ray Gabriel asked them to bet with him if Joseph could extract both Alice and the Legend Krid from the Central Square of the Capital City Reinhardt.


    At first, the scientists wanted to bet since there were a lot of powerful figures surrounding the area.


    It would be incredibly difficult or close to impossible for Joseph to escape since he was surrounded by those powerful people.


    But these scientists didn''t expect that Joseph would use his Grand Challenge and banish himself and Alice towards the Arena of the Gods.


    In turn...


    Creating an illusion that he had escaped amidst everyone''s gazes.


    But...


    "Sir... Can he really escape? I mean, he only used the Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge to transport himself and Alice into the Colosseum. When theye out from that ce, they would naturally appear at the exact location where they disappeared..."


    "Yeah... In other words, what he is doing right now is just a stop-gap. It was never a cure in the first ce. He''s only dying the inevitable."


    "That''s right..."


    The scientists nodded one after another and Ray Gabriel chuckled.


    He swept his gaze towards them and said: "Did you guys even pay attention to what happened before that guy disappeared along with that girl?" After reaching the end of his sentence, he reached out for a pizza and munched on it.


    The scientists frowned: "What do you mean about that, sir?"


    A gulping sound rang out as Ray Gabriel swallowed his pizza. Then, he made a sidelong nce to the scientists and said: "Didn''t you guys hear what he shouted before he disappeared into the Arena of the Gods?"


    The scientists frowned once again, and it was Elizabeth who stood beside Ray Gabriel that answered the burning question in their minds.


    "He said: Let''s see if you bastards follow us to the Forbidden Region!" Elizabeth even imitated Joseph''s fierce expression when he said these words, elicitingughter from the other scientists.


    "Pfft! What is that face, Eli? A face like that really doesn''t suit you..."


    "Hahaha..."


    "But now I understand. In other words, sir is thinking that Joseph and Alice can easily escape if they just waited until the attention of everyone is diverted towards the Forbidden Region?" One of the scientists asked.


    "Yes." Ray Gabriel nodded, yet that particr scientist asked once again.


    "But sir, I don''t think that Joseph didn''t know about the fact that the Legend Krid''s safe house is located within the Forbidden Region. Isn''t his actions of luring the troops of the Kingdom towards that ce, tantamount to giving danger to Krid and Ezreal?"


    Ray Gabriel lightly chuckled when he heard the words of that scientist: "Well, that certainly ismon sense. But know that a Legend is incredibly powerful..."


    "I''m the one that designed them, so I know how powerful they really are. In other words, Joseph ced his faith in the fortifications of Krid''s safehouse and Ezreal''s capabilities."


    When Ray Gabriel finished his sentence, another scientist spoke up: "But sir, isn''t what he did the same as recklessness? He needlessly endangered the safety of Krid and hisrade, Ezreal due to what he did!"


    "After all, all of us here know about how strong the Kingdom is and those they are conspiring with..."


    "So, even if Krid is a Legend, I don''t think that his safe house can survive the continuous assault of the Kingdom and the Dark Knights of Truedawn."


    Ray Gabriel didn''t deny what the scientist was saying. But he also didn''t support his fellow brother''s statement. He just lightly smiled before replying: "What you are saying makes sense, but do you really think thatmon sense applies to Joseph?"


    "This guy managed on perfectlypleting that questst time which really greatly exceeded our expectations..."


    The scientists speechlessly stared at Ray Gabriel. Not knowing what to say.


    But after a few moments, one of them bravely said: "But sir, even though he managed on surpassing our expectations at that time. I don''t think that he can keep on performing such miracles."


    All other scientists simultaneously nodded their heads to what their fellow scientist was saying. It wasn''t really logical that someone could consecutively perform shocking miracles.


    But then...


    Ray Gabriel raised his head and stared at the scientists.


    "Since you guys do not believe in Joseph''s luck and capabilities."


    A sly smile emerged on his lips.


    "How about we do bet?"


    "Errr..."


    "Uh..."


    "Ahahaha..."


    The scientists bitterly smiled and some even awkwardly scratched their heads. Their reactions may be different, but all of them had something inmon. Their cheeks were blushed red in apparent embarrassment as Ray Gabriel wildlyughed at them.


    "See! You guys are always on the opposite of what I am saying, yet when I dare you guys to bet with me, all of you do not dare to do so! Tsk... Just believe in what I am saying, alright?"


    "If all of you don''t want those paychecks of yours to disappear, next sry." Ray Gabriel even winked at them, elicitingughter from Elizabeth.


    "Hahaha... Sir... You really are too vicious..." Elizabeth poked fun at Ray Gabriel and thetter merely shrugged.


    At the side, the scientists still wore bitter smiles on their faces. Logic told them that it was close to impossible for someone to do consecutive miracles. But Joseph really was someone that repeatedly exceeded their expectations from the start.


    Could he really do another miracle this time?


    These scientists weren''t so sure, but they were surely looking forward to Joseph''s sess or failure.


    "Now that I think about it. How long do you guys think until Joseph''s ascension as a true Mythical ss yer? I mean, you guys still remember about the details of that ss-Specific Quest for the Grand Duelist, right?" Ray Gabriel asked them, and the scientists nodded their heads.


    "From what I can recall, sir. The timeframe should be about a year or three years of Victory time."


    "Yeah, he''s right sir. I actually looked into our data and that''s what I also found."


    The scientists promptly answered and a smile emerged on Ray Gabriel''s lips: "Did you guys really looked into the data for that quest, or not?" His smile turned sly and his eyes radiated a teasing light that was all too familiar for Elizabeth who could do nothing but sigh.


    She knew that this leader of her was ying with his fellow scientists, but she didn''t do anything to stop him. After all, even though she felt pity for these scientists. It was also amusing for her to see these scientists renowned through the whole world being teased like children by her leader.


    "Sir Ray really is the best." Elizabeth''s cheeks flushed for a moment when she thought about Ray Gabriel. But she instantly hid her feelings behind a facade as she faced the scientist with a light smile on her face.


    "Uh... I really did look into the data behind the ss-specific quest. Is there something wrong about it, sir?" The scientist who imed that he looked into the data said in a hesitant manner. He felt an intense sense of premonition when he saw the teasing look on Ray Gabriel''s face.


    "Oh? Let''s just say that you really did so. But you didn''t carefully read it, right? You just skimmed through the data?"


    That scientist nodded his head. After all, there was nothing really wrong about not wanting to read blocks of data that were irrelevant to his search.


    "In that case, then you missed something great. You missed a huge turning point within that quest that Joseph beautifully executed. Haist... If that guy is here, then he would''ve scolded you guys!" Ray Gabriel sighed.


    The scientists revealed bitter smiles on their faces once again.


    But could you really me them? These scientists worked on so many things that it wasn''t strange for them to forget a single detail or data.


    The scientists faced Ray Gabriel with an expression that looked like they were almost pleading.


    As scientists, they were innately curious about the unknown so, what Ray Gabriel was doing to them could be considered as incredibly annoying. Thankfully, Ray Gabriel didn''t extend their pain any longer as he exined.


    "That quest has two routes."


    "Two... Two routes?"


    The scientists were astonished. But before they could even ask.


    Ray Gabriel exined.


    "The first route would happen if Joseph believed Krid''s statement and saved Alice using the Bead of Absolute Escape. If that really happened then Krid would be executed by the Kingdom and have his soul extracted and searched..."


    "Fortunately, Joseph caught on the lie that Krid said back when he gave the Bead of Absolute Escape to Joseph. That time, Krid said that he had another Bead of Absolute Escape in an effort to reassure Joseph. But thankfully, Joseph noticed that Krid was lying so he made changes with the n..."


    "And in the end..."


    "He saved Krid through the use of the Bead of Absolute Escape. To keep Alice''s safety. He used the Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge in order to temporarily hide both he and Alice from everyone, and he also dered something earlier so he could lure everyone to the Forbidden Region."


    "If Joseph didn''t notice Krid''s lie then this quest would''ve proceeded on the first route..."


    "In other words, Krid will die and Alice''s development as a Swordswoman will stop since she will devote all of her time into creating Joseph''s Primary Weapon for the sake of his ascension as a true Mythical ss yer..."


    The scientists revealed expressions of shock. They clearly didn''t expect that the ss-Specific Quest dedicated to the Grand Duelist had such a cruel twist to it. But before the scientists could even recover from their shock. Ray Gabriel dropped another bombshell.


    "But actually..."


    "That guy designed that particr quest so that it would scale depending on the average level of yers within the world of Victory and their progression. In other words, if the Grand Duelist was given two yearster."


    "The duration of his ss-specific quest before his ascension wouldn''t be that long. I think it should only be about two years in Victory time..."


    "But since it was given so early, the ss-specific quest shouldst for about six years in Victory time. After all, even though we want a <em>Sun that Overlooks Everything</em>. We do not want a Sun that scorches everything that it overlooks into ashes..."


    "In order to motivate people, the goal that is driving their motivation should be SMART."


    "In other words, it should be..." Ray Gabriel paused and thought for a moment.


    But Elizabeth answered for him.


    "Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound."


    Ray Gabriel made a sidelong nce at Elizabeth before he smiled at the scientists: "That''s right!"


    "But since Joseph is now on the second route designed by that guy. Everything has changed drastically. In fact, I don''t even know anything about how long do we have to wait until Joseph''s ascension as a true Mythical ss yer..."


    "But judging from the personality of that guy that designed this cruel, yet interesting quest..."


    "I think it won''t be too long from now on."


    The scientists nodded their heads towards Ray Gabriel''s exnation. The guy that Ray Gabriel was talking about was Mar, that entric scientist whose mind they couldn''t read nor understand.


    They now had apletely different attitude when they looked at Joseph.


    But one of them couldn''t help but speak up for he noticed something strange about what Ray Gabriel had said.


    "Since sir cannot predict what will happen in the future? How about we let the Supeputer Noah do the calctions for us?" He asked.


    Ray Gabriel froze for a moment before facepalming.


    "...Sir?"


    Elizabeth asked in shock.


    "How..."


    The scientists revealed astonished expressions.


    "How the hell did I not think of that, holy shit!" Ray Gabriel eximed and the lips of Elizabeth and the scientists revealed awkward expressions on their faces as Ray Gabriel turned around and swiftly typed some words on the keyboard.


    [Analyzing...]


    [Completed!]


    [Based on the data gathered and the predicted oue of the quest. It has been concluded that due to arge number of factors involved that are necessary for the calction...]


    [The system cannot urately estimate the answer to the given question. However, a thorough analysis could still be made in order to predict the oue.]


    [Do you want to do a thorough analysis?]


    Ray Gabriel frowned before he asked: "How long will the thorough analysis take?"


    [Calcting...]


    [The thorough analysis will be done after three days.]


    "That''s too long!" Ray Gabriel subconsciously cried out when he heard what the Supeputer Noah said.


    [I''m trying my best...]


    The Supeputer Noah replied.


    Ray Gabriel suddenly felt guilty out of nowhere and he had no other choice but to turn his back towards the Supeputer and face the scientists.


    "Well, as you guys can see..." He bitterly said.


    The scientists nodded their heads and they all had the same thought in their minds: ''Joseph... If only you know about how much of a monster we think you are...'' They all shook their heads in regret before one of them cautiously asked.


    "The Supeputer Noah may not be able to predict what will happen in the future if Joseph managed on escaping from the Capital City Reinhardt..."


    "But aren''t we counting our chickens here before the eggs even hatch? I still don''t think that Joseph could escape from Reinhardt along with Alice even though he managed on distracting the powerful figures of the Kingdom.


    Elizabeth nodded her head in understanding: "You''re right... The Grand Challenge of the Grand Duelist has an infinite duration once it''s activated thatsts until the Grand Duelist or the challenged dies or loses so, they are quite safe inside the Arena of the Gods..."


    "But Joseph is a yer that needs to log-out eventually..."


    The scientists who heard what she was saying suddenly eximed.


    "Yes, that''s right! I don''t think that he can even stay that long within the Arena of the Gods!"


    "Yeah... The system''s physiological rm will trigger after a few hours of ying and if a yer didn''t answer the physiological needs of his body. He would be forcefully logged out of the game..."


    "You''re right, and when that happens... The Grand Challenge will be turned off, Alice will once again appear in the Central Square of Reinhardt, and what''s worse is that shockwave... That shockwave will be like a ''look here'' sign which will definitely attract the eyes of everyone nearby."


    A smile could be seen on Ray Gabriel''s lips as he swept his gaze on the anxious faces of his fellow scientist. Even Elizabeth wasn''t an exception as he stared at her until her cheeks flushed red.


    Then, he raised his head and pointed at the monitor attached to the ceiling behind him.


    "Just observe." He said, and when everyone''s eyes followed his finger...


    They were shocked to the core by what they saw.

 Chapter 77: The Young Maiden Known as Alice Zaxwei[2in1]

    Chapter 77: The Young Maiden Known as Alice Zaxwei[2in1]


    [You are now a traitor of the Kingdom of Nether.]


    [Every resident of the Kingdom of Nether will be rmed when they see you.]


    [No establishment within the Kingdom of Nether will ept your presence.]


    [Probability of Item Acquisition within the Kingdom of Nether is dramatically lowered.]


    [Guards will chase you whenever they recognize you.]


    [Once a yer affiliated with the Kingdom of Nether kills you, your penalty upon death is tripled.]


    [You are dismissed from your duties as an Inquisitor of the Underground Penitentiary For Heinous Crimes of the Kingdom of Nether, vassal to the Empire of Trudawn.]


    [Item: Compendium of Effective Torture Methods For All Kinds of Species has disappeared from your Inventory.]


    [Item: Inquisitor''s Medallion has disappeared from your Inventory.]


    [You are now a traitor of the Underground Penitentiary.]


    When Joseph opened his eyes, these system notifications that appeared right in front of him.


    "Now I''ve done it..." A bitter mumble escaped from his mouth.


    After skimming through the system notifications. He dismissed them all before staring at the young woman standing right in front of him.


    Unsure about how he should approach her. Joseph maintained his distance from her before saying.


    "Uh... Hello?"


    The blonde-haired young woman tilted her head towards him and said.


    "Are you the one that brought me here?" Her voice was somewhat cold and full of suspicions.


    "Uh... Yes?" Joseph mumbled in apparent confusion.


    The blonde-haired young woman''s deep brown eyes shone in enlightenment. She nodded her head and replied.


    "I see..."


    But afterward, she turned silent and sat cross-legged on the ground.


    Not minding about Joseph anymore.


    What? Joseph was baffled. Why is she sitting down so calmly like that? Don''t she have questions to ask from me?


    In contrast to the young woman''s calm andposed attitude. Joseph was confused. A frown could be seen on his face as he approached the young woman and said.


    "Uh... Are you okay?"


    The young woman opened her eyes and calmly replied.


    "Why wouldn''t I be okay? Is there something that I need to worry about?"


    Joseph almost keeled over from astonishment. ''Is there something that you need to worry about? What?! Shouldn''t this be the time for you to ask some questions about what this ce is, who am I and where you are right now? You''re being too vulnerable right here, young woman!'' A lot of thoughts shed through Joseph''s mind in an instant.


    But in the end...


    He still managed to reply.


    "Erm... Are you not concerned about where you are right now, and who I am?"


    The young maiden stared at Joseph as if he was joking.


    "Aren''t you friends with Grandpa?" She asked.


    "Uh... yes? Technically, we are not really friends. But we''re united with amon goal."


    The young woman nodded.


    "In that case... I don''t think that there''s no need for me to ask about where this ce is and who you are." She dered and a twitching smile appeared on Joseph''s lips. But when he recalled what the young maiden had said. He finally confirmed the theory that he had in his mind all along


    Back then, when Krid talked about his circumstances with Ezreal and Joseph. Thetter already had an idea about what was going on. Although he didn''t dare confirm his ideas without further concrete evidence.


    But now...


    Now that the young woman who was the reason as to why Krid let himself be captured by the hands of the Kingdom of Nether mentioned Krid as her ''Grandpa''.


    Joseph finally confirmed that the two indeed have a familial rtionship. Nodding his head, Joseph erased all the doubts that he had in his mind about Alice''s identity as he said with a frown.


    "But Alice, aren''t you being too vulnerable? What if I am a bad guy?" Alice''s casual attitude concerned Joseph. It was as if Alice didn''t understand the scale of what was going on. Right now, he and Alice were stuck within the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum.


    If the Grand Challenge ended, they would once again appear at the Central Square of Reinhardt.


    In other words, they weren''t really that safe. This was why Joseph was so concerned about Alice''s attitude. Does she not understand their current situation? Even if they were safe right now since they were within the Colosseum.


    Once they exited this ce, they would be like sitting ducks at the Central Square of Reinhardt!


    Yet, why was she acting like this?


    Does she not...


    "Wait..."


    ... I still haven''t exined to her the current situation we are in, right now!


    Joseph immediately facepalmed himself upon this sudden realization. But in the next moment, Alice replied to what he had said earlier with a cool expression on her young face.


    "Alice... So you know about my name already? I see... But don''t misunderstand. I am not acting vulnerable. I don''t find the need to be cautious." The young maiden stared right at Joseph and thetter''s frown deepened.


    "What does that mean?" He asked and the young maiden replied.


    "If you really want to harm me, shouldn''t you have done that to me already? Why would you bother talking to me like this if you wanted to harm me in the first ce."


    Joseph nodded his head. Relief shed on his face. He was concerned that the reason why the young maiden didn''t bother to put up a guard against him was that she considered him weak.


    Although Joseph wouldn''t deny such an usation...


    Being treated as a weakling by a young maiden such as Alice just doesn''t feel right for him.


    But what the young maiden was saying made sense.


    He wanted to say something, but the young maiden continued.


    "I''m sorry if I aming out as rude, but I don''t really want to talk right now... I must recover my strength. Recover my strength, get out of here and then rescue my grandpa." Alice replied, her anxiety could be felt from her words alone.


    Joseph shook his head and lightly chuckled, ''So this is the reason why she''s acting so cold and unfeeling? It seems like I misunderstood her.''


    He then proceeded on exining.


    "You do not have to worry about rescuing your grandpa. What you must worry about is how we can get away from this ce."


    Alice turned to look at Joseph and asked in confusion.


    "What do you mean?"


    Joseph sighed and exined: "My friend has already rescued senior Krid through the use of the Bead of Absolute Escape. They are probably safer than the two of us right now."


    Astonishment shed on Alice''s face when she heard the words "Bead of Absolute Escape".


    But she then replied in a fierce manner which shocked Joseph.


    "Grandpa escaped through the use of the Bead of Absolute Escape? You''re lying! Grandpa only has a single Bead of Absolute Escape! Since you managed on sessfully rescuing me from the hands of the Kingdom..."


    "You obviously used that one and only Bead of Absolute Escape, so Grandpa is still out there and in danger!" She spouted a lot of words amidst her hysteria.


    But Joseph promptly exined.


    "No! You''re greatly misunderstanding something. What I used to rescue you isn''t the Bead of Absolute Escape. I used a unique method that enabled me to save you. As for the Bead of Absolute Escape..."


    "It was in the hands of my friend who used it to rescue your grandpa, didn''t you see what happened earlier? Your grandpa and my friend entered the void made by the Bead of Absolute Escape." Joseph added. He even described the void made by the Bead of Absolute Escape since it was most likely that even though Alice knew about the Bead...


    She probably didn''t know about how it worked.


    The young maiden trembled for a moment, and after a few moments...


    A smile leaked on her lips.


    "I see... In that case... Thank you..."


    "Uh... No problem, I guess?" Joseph subconsciously took a step backward. He didn''t expect that the young maiden right in front of him would suddenly reveal such a dazzling smile.


    "But can we now go to grandpa? I really miss him right now, and I''m so worried about him!" The young maiden pleaded and Joseph awkwardly scratched his head.


    "I also want to do that, you know? But we have a big problem..."


    The young maiden''s eyebrow lifted and she asked: "What problem?"


    "Well..." Joseph looked somewhat hesitant to exin, but since he knew that Alice must know the truth so that the two of them could work together. He must exin everything to her.


    "Right now, we are absolutely safe in this ce. But once we are out of here..."


    "We will be in danger once again." A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face and the young maiden looked at him with a frown on her face.


    It looked like she was hinting at him to continue so, after taking a deep breath...


    Joseph further exined.


    "It''s like this... Once we''re out of this ce. We will appear at the Central Square of Reinhardt where we first vanished, so the moment that exit this ce. We will be in danger once again. I am telling you this not because I want you to be anxious, but because I need your cooperation so that we could escape from Reinhardt."


    Alice nodded her head in understanding, but then a bitter smile emerged on her lips: "I see... I will try my best on cooperating with you but don''t expect too much. I am still afflicted with the curse of the Heart Binding Worm. With a single thought from those people, they could kill me in an instant."


    "Wait, you''re still affected by the Heart Binding Worm? I thought that getting the other pair of that worm is enough for it to stop working." Joseph said with a frown, and Alice exined with the same bitterness, but this time. It was clear that there was some helplessness.


    "It is not that simple... Just getting the other pair of the worm is not enough for it to stop working. The one afflicted with its curse should ingest the other pair of that worm. Only when that happens would the curse stop working, and the cursed one would finally be free from the effects of the Heart Binding Worm."


    A pale expression appeared on Alice''s face.It seemed like the effects of the Heart Binding Worm was far crueler than Joseph expected.


    But then a light smile suddenly appeared on his lips.


    "In that case... What is your name? Is it just Alice, or do you have a surname?"


    Alice looked confused about the sudden question but she still answered.


    "My full name is Alice Zaxwei. But why are you suddenly asking?"


    Joseph didn''t reply.


    He took some paper and pen out of his Inventory and after scribbling some words on it. He handed it over to Alice who was astonished when she read it.


    "Today. I, Alice Zaxwei swear under the oath of the Divine Goddess Rhinna that I owe Joseph a great debt that must be repaid within my lifetime?! What is this? Why did you write something like this? What are you trying to do?"


    Alice''s eyes widened in shock when she saw the contents of the piece of paper that Joseph handed over to her. She red at Joseph and stared at him with suspicions and doubt.


    But Joseph looked unfazed...


    He merely smiled and thought: ''Ever since I knew about the concept of an Unbreakable Oath. I knew that I must take advantage of it whenever an opportunity arises...''


    ''Right now, the perfect opportunity is right in front of me. I must make this so-called write a Promissory Note so that she will owe a debt of gratitude from me!''


    Dozens of thoughts appeared on Joseph''s mind in an instant, but on the outside.


    He maintained a calm facade as he replied. "Isn''t that obvious? I wrote that Promissory Note so that I can be sure that you will really owe me one since I will be saving you from the curse of the Heart Binding Worm!"


    Joseph proudly dered, but he himself knew that he couldn''t push Alice too far. After all, he needed Alice.


    But of course, nothing was stopping him from attempting on taking advantage of such a precious opportunity.


    If Krid''s disciple and granddaughter really signed such a Promissory Note under the Unbreakable Oath then, he could make her his subordinate in the future by capitalizing on the promise written within the Promissory Note!


    Alice was taken aback by Joseph''s deration.


    But a sneer appeared on her face as she said: "What if I don''t want to?"


    She coldly replied, and Joseph awkwardly scratched his head before revealing a fierce expression.


    "Well, if you do not want to then... I don''t know about what should I do with this..." Joseph opened his palm and revealed the squirming worm on top of his open palm.


    "That''s..." Alice''s eyes widened in shock once again, and her expression turned pale. She acted condescendingly against Joseph''s demands since she wasn''t so sure that Joseph had something on him that he could use as a bargaining chip...


    Without a bargaining ship, how could he be qualified to coerce her into signing?


    But now that Joseph revealed that the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm was within his hands.


    Everything had changed, he now had the higher ground, and Alice was disadvantaged.


    But still...


    Her eyes suddenly welled up with tears, and her pale expression turned pitiful.


    Whenbined with her ragged clothing, Joseph felt like he was definitely forcing somebody into something that they didn''t want to do.


    "Sigh... I guess my n failed. Oh well, it doesn''t really matter that much. I was just testing if she would bite my bait, but looking at her like this. I guess, I failed."


    Joseph revealed a disappointed expression, and he was about to ce the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm when Alice''s pitiful expression suddenly changed into a desperate one.


    "W-w-wait!"


    "Oh?" Joseph revealed a confused expression which angered Alice as her cheeks flushed in embarrassment and irritation. ''He clearly knows about why I stopped him, yet he is acting so confused like that? What a terrible man!''


    She inwardly eximed before she taking a deep breath and saying.


    "Are you... are you not giving that worm to me?"


    Joseph raised an eyebrow and he was about to hand over the worm towards Alice when he suddenly halted in his tracks. His eyes narrowed and he stared right at Alice. Taking a deeper look into her bodynguage, enlightenment shed on Joseph''s face.


    ''I haven''t failed yet... I can still continue!'' He inwardly eximed, before replying...


    "Oh? I thought that you were not interested?" He feigned ignorance and once again moved to pocket the worm into his Inventory when Alice hand suddenly turned into a blur as she quickly signed the Promissory Note and hurled it over to Joseph.


    ''Fast!'' Joseph cried out to himself when he saw the speed of Alice''s movement. But on the outside, a calm expression was maintained on his face as he stretched his hand out and received the Promissory Note.


    After checking that she had indeed signed on the Promissory Note...


    A strange sensation suddenly surrounded the two as Alice helplessly sighed...


    [The Divine Goddess Rhinna has understood your intent and has granted your request.]


    [The paper you are holding has been enchanted with her Divinity. It now has effects simr to the Unbreakable Oath.]


    ''Just as I expected...'' Joseph surreptitiously nced at the skies. He was about to thank the Divine Goddess Rhinna in his mind, but Alice interrupted him from his trance.


    "Can... Can you hand over that worm to me now?"


    Joseph turned to look at her, and when he saw the frown on her face. Aplicate smile emerged on Joseph''s lips.


    He really couldn''t me Alice''s attitude towards him right now since Joseph pretty much coerced her into signing the Promissory Note.


    Shaking his head, Joseph chuckled before handing over the other pair of the Heart Binding Worm towards Alice who caught it in mid-air and hurriedly stuffed it into her mouth. Seeing her directly swallow the Heart Binding Worm without any hesitation...


    Joseph couldn''t help but mumble in shock.


    "What? That quick?"


    "What? Is there anything wrong with ending this despicable curse of the Heart Binding Worm as soon as possible?" Alice coldly retorted and Joseph awkwardly scratched his head.


    "No... I mean... I''m just shocked... That worm looked particrly hideous and disgusting so, I thought that a young maiden would hesitate on consuming it."


    "Hmmph! A young maiden? Who are you talking about?" Alice sneered and stared at Joseph in derision.


    But after a few moments, her disdain turned into seriousness as she mumbled: "Strange... Why do I not feel from you the desire that others feel whenever they look at me?"


    Alice then chuckled: "Perhaps, could it be that you swing the other way?"


    Joseph almost keeled over when he heard what Alice was saying and he fiercely retorted: "I''m not Ezreal, and I don''t swing that way!"


    "And also, how dare you assume that just because you look cute means that everyone would be head over heels at you? I''m going to give you a lecture right now, so keep this in mind, alright?"


    Joseph paused for a moment before saying...


    "Cuteness is not equivalent to sex appeal! Remember that!"


    "..."


    "Shit!"


    Joseph inwardly eximed: ''I got too carried away!''


    He nervously nced at Alice and instead of a cold expression and a fierce scolding.


    He was met with an amused look on Alice''s face as sheughed out loud.


    "Pffft!!! Look at you furiously exining everything to me... Just admit it already... Just admit that you swing that way and that is the reason why you are not attracted to me!"


    Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched when he heard what Alice said.


    "You... You know that you owe me a great debt, right? How dare you treat me like this... Remember your ce!" Joseph was too speechless that he subconsciously used the Promissory Note against Alice who replied with a menacing chuckle.


    "Yes... You''re right about that. I indeed owe you a great debt after I signed that Promissory Note. It was stated that I must repay you back that great debt within this lifetime of mine..."


    A cold and distant expression appeared on Alice''s face as she clutched her tunic and fiercely ripped it apart, revealing her stark-naked body in front of the astonished and thoroughly shocked Joseph.


    "A great debt can only be repaid with something equal or greater than that debt itself. Since that debt was you saving my life... I can only pay you back with my entire life, or something equally precious..."


    "I cannot pay you back with my life until I have achieved my grandpa''s wishes, and..."


    "You... what are you doing..." Joseph mumbled in shock.


    Alice maintained her cold expression as she continued.


    "For a young woman like me, there''s nothing more precious than my first time. Apart from my life. I can only pay you back that great debt using my own body..."


    She stared right into Joseph''s eyes.


    "So..."


    A challenging smile appeared on Alice''s lips.


    "Do you dare ept my repayment?"

 Chapter 78: Two Sides of a Coin

    Chapter 78: Two Sides of a Coin


    "Fuck..."


    Joseph mumbled a curse as he stared at Alice''s stark-naked body. Her blonde hair that reached up to her chest barely covered her supple chest. But even though her hair provided cover for her breasts. It was evidentlycking for Joseph could still see a glimpse of her pink summits.


    "She''s a white tiger...'' Joseph whispered in shock. Women who had the blood of the white tiger within their veins do not have any hair underneath and were all bare. Needless to say, they were incredibly rare...


    Out of a million women, only about ten thousand of them were white tigers. But right now, standing in front of Joseph was an exotic white tiger!


    But...


    "That is not the issue here!"


    ... Joseph inwardly pped himself so that he could recover from his trance.


    Seeing that the young woman was still staring at him with a challenging look on her face. Joseph knew that the only way for this to stop was for him to concede.


    "Okay, fine... I do not dare, okay? I do not dare so, please... Please just cover yourself up..." Joseph''s expression looked like he was begging for Alice to cover herself up as thetter chuckled and said.


    "Oh? You want me to cover myself? Seeing that you didn''t react to me stripping, I guess that it''s safe to say that you really swing that way."


    "You..."


    Joseph fiercely red at her and Alice''s challenging expression remained the same as she stared at Joseph. Seeing that Alice didn''t have the intention of backing down. Joseph couldn''t do anything other than sigh as he stared at Alice who was now trying her best on picking up what remained of her tunic that she tore herself.


    "What are you looking at? I thought that you do not dare?" Alice noticed that he was staring right at her so, she asked with a frown.


    Joseph shook his head and replied: "You''re misunderstanding. It''s true that I do not dare, but it''s not because I am afraid of senior Krid retaliating against me or something. It was easy for me not to dare since you''re not really attractive to me in the first ce."


    Alice was taken aback by what she heard, and only after a few moments did she reveal an expression of indignance as she fiercely stared away from him before saying: "Is that so? Then, it''s fine. You can keep staring. Don''t mind me doing my best on salvaging the remains of my dignity."


    Joseph didn''t reply. When he saw the Alice wasn''t staring at him anymore. His facade made from the art of acting tough crumbled as a crimson hue spread on his cheeks.


    ''To... To think that she could easily reveal herself in front of a stranger right me... What a fearsome woman!'' Joseph didn''t dare to take Alice lightly anymore. In fact, he was now addressing her subconsciously as a "woman" instead of a "young maiden" or, "young woman".


    For him, Alice that could easily do something as embarrassing as revealing one''s birthday suit towards a stranger was something that only a strong bonafide woman could do.


    Joseph gnashed his teeth as he stared at Alice''s milky-white, and rosy skin that waspletely bare right in front of him. What was more shocking was that right now. Alice was bending over as she picked up scraps of clothing from her torn tunic on the ground.


    Joseph estimated that Alice''s age was at least simr, or even younger than him. Seeing such temptation right in front of him, it would be a big fat lie to say that Joseph wasn''t attracted to Alice. In fact, he was currently so goddamned hard under his pants right now that it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was about to burst.


    For a virgin to stay so long in front of such temptation like this.


    Joseph was currently performing a miracle. A miracle that he would never forget in his entire life.


    After burning the scenes unfolding in front of him into his mind. Joseph slowly took off his upper clothes and handed it over to Alice.


    "Take this..."


    "Hmmm?" Alice mumbled in astonishment. She looked like she was doubtful that what she was seeing right now was real or a dream. ''This shameless bastard who coerced me into signing that Promissory Note is acting so kind to me? Just what is going on? What is he nning?''


    Joseph noticed that Alice was now cautious against him and a bitter smile emerged on his lips as he said: "Miss, you should''ve been cautious of me from the start! You''re toote on that already, so don''t even bother! Just take this and wear it for now so that you''ll have something to cover yourself."


    But Alice looked unconvinced: "Are you serious?"


    "Yes! I am serious! Just take it already! Goddamned it, are you really an inexperienced woman? If not for the fact that you made clear to me that you were a virgin then I would believe you if you told me that you had experience working in a brothel!"


    "I did work in a brothel before," Alice mumbled.


    "You did?!" Joseph eximed.


    "Hehehe... I''m just joking..." Alice lightly chuckled.


    She stretched her hand towards the clothing that Joseph dangled in front of her. Noticing that Joseph''s eyes subconsciously wandered over towards her chest...


    She quickly snatched the clothing from Joseph''s hand and swiftly wore it so, that it could cover her upper body. Although she could still feel a breeze underneath her, it was much better than nothing.


    "Finally... She''s wearing something... " Joseph heaved a sigh of relief. Even though he was still shaken by the fact that Alice managed on easily revealing herself in front of a stranger like him. It wasn''t to the point that he couldn''t move nor speak like earlier. At least right now, his mind could finally process what was going on.


    Just as he was about to approach Alice so that he could consult her about what they should do after they exited the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum. Alice felt her approach and she coldly eximed.


    "Don''te over here!"


    "What... now? What''s going on? You better not rip that clothing to shred! I don''t have any spare clothing to give you if you tear that up!" Joseph swiftly warned and Alice promptly replied.


    "What are you saying? I just don''t want you to approach lest you ruin my meditation!" Alice exined and Joseph chuckled.


    "Meditation? Come on, does that really work? But oh well, we have our own hobbies and I do not have the right to stop you from doing whatever you want. But can you just do it in a hurry? We need to talk as soon as possible."


    Alice whose back was turned towards him nodded her head, and she didn''t say anything anymore. Joseph also kept her silence in an effort to let her meditate in peace and left with nothing to do. Josephid on the ground and could do nothing other than stare at the heavens and silently count sheep inside his mind.


    Joseph could remain as calm as he was right now due to the effects of his acting tough facade. But little did he knew that Alice also capitalized on a simr facade on doing what she just did earlier. Now that Joseph wasn''t facing her, and now that there was no one looking at her.


    A furious blush appeared on her face as she repeatedly scolded herself inside.


    "Ahhh!!! What did I do? Just what did I do?! Did I just do that? Did I just strip in front of a strange and challenged him to touch me? Oh no... Please... I think this is just a dream... Yep, this is just a dream. If I closed my eyes long enough then I will eventually awaken! Okay, okay, okay... Let''s just close my eyes... Close... my... eyes..."


    Alice fiercely snapped her eyes shut as she calmed herself down through the use of deep breaths. However, even after half an hour. She still hasn''t awakened from her "dreams".


    "No, no, no, no, no, no!!! I wasn''t dreaming! This isn''t a dream! The stripping that I did really was real! I really did strip myself naked in front of a stranger! Now, what should I do...? What should I do?!"


    "Can I still get married? Grandpa said that a young woman shouldn''t casually reveal her skin in front of strangers... He said that a woman should only reveal her skin in front of her husband, or a health practitioner! But... I did reveal my skin in front of the crowd earlier so, I already vited what Grandpa said to me... Ahhh... What should I do!!!"


    Alice fiercely shook her head, and Joseph who noticed her movements turned to look at her with a frown.


    "Are you doing good there? Or have you finally lost your mind? Why are you shaking your head so furiously like that?"


    Alice almost snapped at Joseph, but she managed to calm herself down. After a few deep breaths, her embarrassment finally disappeared. The crimson hue on her cheeks also vanished, reced with a cold and distant look as she turned her head and made a sidelong nce at Joseph.


    "Didn''t you say that we have a lot to talk about? Come here, let''s talk." She said and Joseph stood up and approached her before he casually sat in front of her with a somewhat embarrassed look on his face.


    Even though almost an hour had already past since that incredible scene appeared right in front of him. Joseph still couldn''t forget about that scene that he already burned into the deepest recesses of his mind. Right now, he couldn''t stare directly at Alice for his mind would ovep Alice''s current image from the image of the stark-naked Alice earlier.


    "I thought that we need to talk about something? Why are you turning your gaze away?" Alice added salt on Joseph''s wounds as a bitter expression emerged on Joseph''s face. ''This girl really is too vicious and shameless! Not only does she not feel anything about what she did, but she''s also purposely poking fun at me!''


    Joseph nced at Alice''s cold and expression as he inwardly cursed: ''Is this really fun for you? Are you having fun right now, you shameless woman!''


    After taking several deep breaths thatsted at least a minute...


    Joseph finally managed on calming himself down as he said.


    "I want to talk to you about how we could work together so that we could escape the Kingdom of Nether. First, I''m going to ask... Do you know about the location of the so-called safe house of senior Krid within the Forbidden Region? Once we escape from this ce, we''ll go there directly."

 Chapter 79: Im Not Ready For This

    Chapter 79: I''m Not Ready For This


    "Safehouse within the Forbidden Region..." Alice''s eyebrows furrowed. She couldn''t recall knowing such a ce.


    But after a few moments of silence...


    She finally answered.


    "I do know about a ce like that! However, it is deep within the Forbidden Region and can only be essed by those who hold the medallion key for it." She nodded her head and Joseph lightly smiled.


    "I suppose that you have the medallion key for it, right?" Joseph stared nervously at Alice.


    ording to the books that he read back in the outside world.


    It was a well-known cliche that a character didn''t have the key to an important location, and it would cause more trouble and pains to the protagonist.


    Thankfully...


    "Yeah, I do have that key."


    ... Alice answered positively.


    To which Joseph sighed in relief.


    "In that case, the only problem that we have right now is how we can sessfully escape from the Capital City Reinhardt towards the Forbidden Region..." Joseph mused.


    Within the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum. The two of them were safe. But once they exited the Colosseum and return to the outside world. A shockwave would explode from their original location which would signal their return.


    Once that happened, then it would be quite hard to escape...


    But since this was inevitable.


    Joseph knew that he had to face it.


    But...


    "No... That''s not the only problem that we need to face."


    Alice looked at him in confusion and asked: "What do you mean?"


    Joseph stared at her for a moment. But he soon decided that, since he needed Alice''s cooperation right now, and in the future. He decided that he would not hold back anymore on giving her information.


    "If you really are Senior Krid''s disciple then, I am sure that you know about my identity already, right? I am the Grand Duelist of the current generation and the skill that I used to transfer the two of us in here is from the Grand Duelist."


    Alice casually nodded her head.


    Joseph repeatedly blinked his eyes before saying: "I am the Grand Duelist of the current generation, you know? Yeah, I am..."


    Alice nodded her head once again in the same manner.


    Joseph revealed a rueful smile: "I really am..." Alice''s expression and her bodynguage revealed that she definitely didn''t buy what Joseph was saying.


    But in contrast...


    Alice lightly smiled: "Yeah, I know. I really do believe you..."


    ... her answer was the opposite.


    Seeing the light smile on her face...


    Joseph shook his doubts and said: "Really? Well, in that case then this would not cost too much time. Let me exin to you how the Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge works."


    A smile appeared on Joseph''s lips and he stared at Alice who had the same light smile on her lips


    "What''s wrong?" Joseph asked.


    "No, go on," Alice replied.


    "Wait, I mean... Why are you staring at me as if I am a swindler or something?" Joseph asked with furrowed brows.


    "Oh? Am I doing that? I am sorry... How about this?" Alice revealed a mocking smile on her face.


    "That''s even worse!" Joseph eximed.


    "Just what do you want?" Alice replied in an irritated manner.


    Joseph sighed: "Tell me, do you really believe that I am the Grand Duelist of the current generation?"


    Alice nodded her head and the smile on her lips deepened: "Yes, of course. I believe you... Do I even have a choice not to?"


    "So, you are saying that you only believe me because you have no other choice?" Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    Alice merely stared at him without saying anything. After a few moments of awkward silence. Joseph finally epted his defeat and exined everything.


    "Okay, I know that you can''t believe that I am the Grand Duelist of the current generation. I know since senior Krid also misunderstood my identity the first time that we met."


    Alice''s interest was piqued when he heard what Joseph said: "Oh, grandpa misunderstood your identity? You really are lucky. Grandpa is far vicious than me when ites to facing those that dare impersonate the Grand Duelist. I can''t even believe that you''re still alive right now hearing that..."


    Bitterness shed on Joseph''s face as he thought: ''If only you knew about how much I went through to convince your grandpa that I was the bonafide Grand Duelist of the current generation...''


    But in the end, he decided on keeping these thoughts to himself as he took several deep breaths, calmed himself down and finally said.


    "There''s a huge problem that we need to face if we want to escape from this ce."


    Alice''s eyebrow lifted when he heard what Joseph said: "What do you mean? Aren''t you the one that brought the two of us in here?"


    She swept her gaze in the surroundings and when she felt the unique, and peculiar divinity floating in the air, excitement momentarily shed in her eyes to which she hurriedly extinguished.


    Joseph nodded his head. He didn''t deny what Alice was saying, but that wasn''t the problem right now.


    The problem was that how the two of them could escape without sacrificing either one of them.


    "You see... We can only escape this ce once one of us is dead or lost the duel." Joseph said.


    Alice stared right in his eyes before saying: "What do you mean by lost the duel? In the first ce, what does losing the duel mean? Do we need to fight each other in here before the two of us can escape?"


    Joseph nodded: "That''s right... I think that we need to fight each other until one of us is defeated..."


    Alice turned her gaze away from Joseph as she fell into deep contemtion. But after a short moment, she spoke up once again: "What does defeat even mean? Does defeat equal death? Or is being incapacitated enough for it to be considered as defeat?"


    Joseph made a helpless expression in the face of Alice''s question. He hadn''t really been using the Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge, so he wasn''t so sure about what constituted a defeat.


    Although he knew that dying in here meant defeat, it would be a problem if one of them died just for the other to escape.


    "Looking at you like that, it seems like you do not have any idea about how this ce works." Alice wryly smiled when she noticed Joseph''s helpless expression.


    "Yeah... I''m really sorry about that..." Joseph awkwardly scratched his head in embarrassment.


    But Alice shook her head and suggested: "No, you do not have to worry about that. Grandpa always told me that it was normal for someone to not know about something. What''s bad is not having the initiative on learning about the answer to your questions..."


    "What do you mean?" Alice''s cryptic words baffled Joseph so, he couldn''t help but ask.


    "Since we are not so sure about what constitutes a defeat. How about we use the route that we are sure about?" Alice revealed a sly smile.


    Joseph felt a bad premonition in his heart. But nheless, he still asked: "What route?"


    The sly smile on Alice''s lips deepened: "I mean, aren''t you a cursed one? If you died then, you could just revive. In other words, how about I just kill you and we''ll meet up once youe back to life?"


    Joseph almost keeled over in shock when he heard what Alice was saying.


    "You... How does someone that looks as innocent and lovely as you say such vicious words?!"


    Joseph pointed a finger at Alice, and thetter merely chuckled as she said.


    "Let''s stop this unnecessary banter. Just obediently stand there and let me kill you!" Alice suddenly pounced at Joseph, and the astonished Joseph couldn''t do anything other than jump backward in an effort to evade Alice''s sudden attack.


    "Don''t run! Running is useless! You''re just dying the inevitable!" Alice ran after Joseph.


    "Stop! Stop chasing me, alright! Hey, stop! Why are you doing this?" Joseph''s instincts told him that he must run, and whenever his feet lifted off the ground. Explosions would ur at the previous locations of his feet. In other words, if Joseph moved even a beat toote in his escape.


    His feet would''ve been pulverized by the force of Alice''s attacks.


    "Why are you running? I thought that you want us to escape from this ce as soon as possible?"


    "Of course, I do want to escape! But I also don''t want to die so, please! Stop!" Joseph helplessly eximed, but Alice was still chasing after him. He made a quick nce at Alice, and when he saw the anger on Alice''s snow-like face.


    An idea suddenly sprung up in his mind as he cried out.


    "Are you mad about what happened earlier? If so, then let me tell you this! You don''t have the right to me me for what happened since you are the one that voluntarily stripped! To chase and even attempt to kill a man for a crime that he didn''t even do, what a shameless woman you are!"


    The moment these words rang out, they became a powerful gospel that forcefully stopped Alice in her tracks. Sensing that the danger behind him suddenly disappeared. Joseph stopped running.


    But when he turned around to look at Alice, astonishment filled his eyes.


    "You... How dare you even bring that up..." Formless energy surrounded Alice''s body in such magnitude that the energy without form looked like it was about to be corporeal.


    Cracks spread on the ground where Alice''s feet were located, and the rocks on the ground slowly floated up like she was about to transform into a Super Saiyan.


    But...


    Gulp!


    Joseph saw a different scene than what was written.


    "Wh-wh-white tiger!" He suddenly eximed.


    "Ah!"


    Alice''s eyes widened in shock, and a furious blush spread on her cheeks. The anger that manifested on her expression vanished, reced with embarrassment as she hurriedly pushed her clothes down in an effort to hide what was being shown underneath.


    Afterward, she stared daggers at Joseph.


    "You... Calm down, alright... What happened just now is definitely not my fault... We are civilized people here, so you need to be reasonable..." Joseph raised both of his hands in the air as a gesture of surrendering.


    Beaded sweat could be seen on his forehead for when Alice unleashed her killing intent, several system notifications floated in front of him...


    [You are in the face of an overwhelming presence!]


    [You feel an urge to submit.]


    [Under the effects of your title, "Mythical Authority" and "The Sun That Overlooks Everything".]


    [You have resisted.]


    Seeing these system notifications. It was clear that Alice possessed might that was at least as strong as the Jail Warden. In other words, she was someone that he must not trifle with.


    "Calm down, alright? Let''s stay away from killing and talk properly about how we''ll escape from this ce." Joseph stared nervously at Alice.


    Alice looked like she was finally convinced as she took several deep breaths, calmed herself down then, stared at Joseph in a cold and distant manner like she always did.


    "Okay, then how about youe over here and we''ll talk?" She casually said.


    Joseph heaved a sigh of relief. He approached Alice, but then he suddenly stopped in his tracks.


    "Can we not use schemes against each other, please? I mean, I rescued you from the hands of the Kingdom of Nether and even became a traitor of the Kingdom just so I could ensure your safety and you''re going to pay my kindness with schemes? I''m really disappointed."


    Astonishment shed on Alice''s expression.


    But it disappeared as quickly as it appeared...


    "How do you know?"


    "How do I know, you say? It''s clear that you''re really bad at sneak attacking! If you are going to sneak attack, you should not let clues about what you are going to do show up on your body!"


    "Take a look at what you are doing right now! Look at those knees of yours... They are slightly bent, and your toes are holding on tightly on the ground!"


    "That''s some goddamned obvious clues right there that you are about to pounce at me once I got near enough!" Joseph revealed everything.


    A disappointed smile surfaced on Alice''s lips as she sighed.


    "Okay, you''re right. Let''s stop this... You can go near me now."


    "Let''s stop this? I can go near you now? Then why did you look so disappointed when I revealed what you were about to do to me?" Joseph eximed, but Alice wasn''t having it as she turned to look at him in a serious manner before saying.


    "Are you going here, or do you want me to go there to you?"


    "..." Joseph''s words got stuck on his throat, but eventually.


    He managed on squeezing these words out.


    "Of... Of course, I''ll go..."


    He then proceeded on walking towards Alice.


    But stopped in his tracks when he was about five meters away from Alice.


    "Look at you looking so afraid of me... Do you really think that I''m going to eat you up or something?" Alice loudly mocked which greatly contrasted her innocent-looking visage as a bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s lips.


    ''Yep... She really is a disciple of that old man... I never thought that I would meet a woman that could act like a hooligan in my lifetime...''


    Just as Joseph was feeling bitter inside.


    Alice spoke up.


    "Then, what do you want to talk with me about?" She said these words in amanding manner as if she had the higher ground between the two of them.


    ''God dang it... She''s really acting like she''s my boss..'' Joseph swallowed the bitterness welling up his throat as he turned to look at Alice and said in a serious manner.


    "I reckon that the only way that we can escape this ce without killing each other is for one of us to surrender."


    Alice''s eyes lit up: "Oh? Surrender! If you do that then it could be considered as your defeat then!"


    But after a few moments.


    She realized something which made her stop speaking...


    "You realized it too, right?"


    "Yeah..." Alice nodded, she thought for a moment before she continued.


    "Surrendering doesn''t make sense if it works here since it would be a fatal weakness of your so-called skill from the Grand Duelist." Alice made a sidelong nce at Joseph and even purposely lengthened the end of her sentence.


    Joseph agreed with what she was saying, but a bitter smile emerged on his lips when he heard thetter part of her sentence: ''It seems like she still doesn''t believe that I am the Grand Duelist...''


    ''But oh well, I do not have the time to exin, finding a way to get out of this ce without killing each other is more important than that proving myself bullshit.'' Joseph thought to himself.


    "I have an idea, I don''t know if it''s going to work but it''s worth it to try."


    "Hm? What is it?" Alice stared at Joseph.


    Joseph also looked at Alice and said...


    "Say that you surrender right now."


    "Why me?" Alice lifted an eyebrow.


    "Just say it!" Joseph felt annoyed.


    Alice heaved a sigh, after a moment of hesitation. She whispered into the air.


    "I surrender."


    Joseph nodded his head before saying: "I acknowledge your surrender."


    Alice turned to look at Joseph in confusion: "There''s nothing happening?"


    "Yeah... It seems like I failed."


    Joseph sighed in disappointment.


    But when these words came out of Joseph''s mouth...


    A ball of light suddenly descended from the skies and enveloped the two of them.


    "Eh?"


    "Nani?"


    When they finally realized what was going on...


    They found themselves floating in the air above the Central Square of the Capital City, Reinhardt.


    "Oh fuck, I''m not ready for this..."


    Said Joseph as the two of them plummeted towards the ground in front of the ancestral monument.

 Chapter 80: Frustrations of the Number One Grappler[3in1]

    Chapter 80: Frustrations of the Number One Grappler[3in1]


    Bang! Bang!


    Two fierce explosions urred as a shockwave filled with an irresistible force spread out from the Central Square of Reinhardt towards every direction possible. The second andst explosion reverberated when the figures of Joseph and the barely-clothed Alice harshlynded on the ground.


    [You suffered 250 damage.]


    [You are currently in the state of Dizzy.]


    [Under the effects of your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything".]


    [You have resisted.]


    "Uggghhh... Fuck that hurts... Shit, hey you! Get your ass away from my stomach! You''re goddamned heavy so, stand up already!" Josephined in pain, but hisints were met with a fierce p from Alice who cried out in return.


    "Shut up! Do you really think that I wanted this to happen? Stop pushing me! Let me bnce myself first!"


    "You better cover those eyes of yours or I''m going to dig them up if I see you trying to take a peek!"


    Alice hurriedly pushed down the only article of clothing that she had so that she could hide her almost exposed lower body.


    "Do you really think that I even need to take a peek? Hell, I can just recall those earlier scenes instead of trying to take a peek!" Joseph loudlyined and he was met with a fierce kick to his face as he swiftly pushed Alice down to the ground and red daggers at thetter.


    "Fuck... Did you just kick me?"


    "I just did, so what? You''re the one that''s acting like a pervert so you cannot me me for that!" Alice tightly held the hem of her clothing so that it wouldn''t be swayed up by the wind.


    ''Goddamned it this hateful woman!'' Joseph violently cursed to himself as he stood up and patted his clothes clean.


    "It seems like I was right. The two of you would really reappear in this ce." An unfamiliar voice suddenly echoed from a distance.


    Alice stared at the source of the voice and anger shed on her face.


    But Joseph who looked up and stared at the man who spoke up merely shrugged before saying...


    "Okay let''s go now. I''m not that disoriented already so, I think we can go." He then wrapped his arm around the angered Alice''s arm as he dragged her towards the direction of the Forbidden Region.


    "Hey, wait up! Didn''t you guys see me speaking? How rude!" The man who stood at the distance suddenly appeared right in front of them.


    Joseph sized up the man and seeing the word "Crimson" written in golden letters right above his head.


    Joseph casually said: "I''m sorry but we don''t want to hire a carriage." He then dragged Alice with him once again as Alice''s shoulder violently heaved in an effort to suppress herughter.


    "Pffft! Did you just... Did you just call him a coachman?"


    Joseph also revealed a smile: "Yeah... Other than coachmen, who else would casually approach a stranger? People in Reinhardt don''t really like to socialize that much apart from when they are in the wet market or with the exception of coachmen trying their best on luring tourists into tourist traps."


    Alice chuckle turned into outrightughter as she was dragged away by Joseph.


    "You... Stop right there, you rude bastard!" The man d in red once again appeared right in front of the two as Joseph deeply sighed and whispered to Alice.


    "You go first, let me handle this persistent coachman."


    Alice repeatedly blinked at what Joseph had said.


    But seeing the look of determination on his face. She nodded her head andplied.


    "Like I''d let you escape!" The man moved in an effort to block Alice''s escape, but Joseph appeared in front of him and stopped him in his tracks.


    "You better not be distracted... I will be your enemy." Joseph solemnly dered.


    Seeing the sharp glint within Joseph''s eyes...


    The man lightly chuckled and replied.


    "Oh? Now you recognize who I am? In that case... I won''t have to spend so much time exining who I am to you."


    "Yeah, but I really didn''t expect that the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild actually had a hobby of being a coachman. If not for that then why would you be waiting in this ce that''s devoid of other people?" Joseph mocked, but the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild, dimir merely smiled.


    "Just as I expected. You really did purposely lure them away."


    A smile also appeared on Joseph''s lips.


    "Why do you say so?"


    dimir chuckled: "Well, didn''t you tell everyone if they dare to follow you to the Forbidden Region? You created an illusion that you disappeared towards that ce, but the truth was that you were just here in the first ce! Waiting until everyone goes to the Forbidden Region before you reveal yourself and escape along with that spiteful woman!"


    Joseph''s smile deepened: "It seems like you''re quite smart yourself... But I''m curious, just how did you know that I was bluffing when there is no basis for you to decide that I was indeed bluffing? Apart from what I said, of course."


    dimir stared at Joseph in amusement. He was prepared for a fight long ago, and when Joseph along with Alice reappeared in front of the ancestral monument. He had already activated the signal that would attract reinforcements to his ce...


    In other words, dimir wanted a fight that would buy him time. Buy him time until the arrival of reinforcements.


    He understood that buying time against another yer without letting that yer escape at the same time was quite hard due to his ss that required him to be extremely close to his opponent at all times.


    However, Joseph was actually asking him questions instead of fighting him outright.


    If Joseph''s actions weren''t in support of his idea of buying time until the reinforcements arrive.


    What was it?


    dimir decided on humoring Joseph for a while as he replied: "It was pretty obvious that the so-called deration of yours was only a diversion... Let''s be honest, who in their right mind would reveal their own hiding spot towards their enemies, right?"


    Joseph nodded his head, but he still didn''t look convinced as he asked once more: "But is that really it? I don''t think that something like that is enough for the honorable Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild to wait here for me in ambush."


    dimir chuckled and he stared at Joseph with aplicated look on his face: "Actually... I only acted based on my intuition..."


    "I found out that the force that the Kingdom sent towards the Forbidden Region in pursuit of you is already too much, so I thought that it wouldn''t hurt for me to test my theory..."


    "In fact, if you appeared half an hourter then I would be at the Forbidden Region at that time. In other words, your diversion would''ve seeded and you could easily escape from us."


    "Oh? Are you saying that now that you are here, it''s impossible for me to escape?" A challenging look appeared on Joseph''s face as he stared right at dimir.


    "But of course! How can you possibly escape from the hands of me, the number one Grappler of Victory?" dimir took a stance and Joseph revealed a small smile on his face.


    "So you''re a Grappler, eh? The number one Grappler of Victory?"


    Joseph took out the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty from his Inventory.


    The moment that it appeared, dimir was astonished by the sheer length of the Rapier. But when he saw how thin it was, he couldn''t help but mock.


    "What is that? Is that a Sword? If you consider that as a sword then there really is something wrong with you. What you are holding there looks so thin that it seems like I can just grab it and break it like a twig." A proud look appeared on dimir''s face as he mocked.


    But Joseph remained unfazed and he replied.


    "How about you just shut up and let''s fight? Do you really think that I don''t know that you''re just talking with me like this just because you want to buy some time?"


    dimir was shocked by what he heard, but anger soon red up in his heart.


    He stared daggers at Joseph who now had a mocking look on his face.


    He suddenly understood that he was the one being yed by Joseph instead of the other way around.


    "How detestable! But since you followed through what I wanted to happen..."


    "I cannot say that I failed on buying some time. Now, everything is just a matter of keeping you here!"


    dimir rushed at Joseph with his hands formed into fists.


    [Water Dragon''s Embrace]


    A dragon made out of water suddenlyced around dimir''s thick arms. He pushed both of his fists forwards and after images of his arms instantly surrounded Joseph, depriving him of an opportunity to run.


    "You''re already dead!"


    Seeing that Joseph had no intention of dodging his attack. dimir canceled his Water Dragon''s Embrace.


    Both his hands stretched towards Joseph in an effort to lock him into an embrace.


    "Kekeke... This retard doesn''t really understand the severity of the situation that he''s in!" dimir thought to himself, but as soon as his hands gripped Joseph''s arms.


    What he felt wasn''t the sensation of holding another person''s arm but holding an incredibly slippery eel as Joseph hurriedly widened his distance away from him.


    [Your suppression has failed!]


    He failed to suppress his enemy!


    "So this is how a yer Grappler ys?" Joseph said.


    He knew Grapplers since he fought against a Grappler NPC back at the Festival of Battles.


    Fury raged in dimir''s heart when he heard what Joseph said. He rushed in thetter''s direction once again, and Joseph didn''t stop him from doing what he wanted.


    In fact, it seemed like he was deliberately inviting dimir to hold him down.


    To a Grappler like dimir, this was an extremely good opportunity but instead of joy...


    dimir was frustrated.


    [Your suppression has failed!]


    [Your enemy''s physique is extremely slippery! Your suppression has failed!]


    It was because no matter how perfectly he gripped Joseph''s body. He couldn''t get a proper hold of him. It was as if Joseph was the reincarnation of a thousand-years-old eel deep in the ocean.


    "You... Why are you so slippery?! You shameless bastard, could it be that you protected my ambush so you applied some strange oil on your skin against me?!" dimir suddenly used him of cheating to which Joseph mockingly replied with a light smile on his face.


    "That is some grave usation right there, honorable Guild Leader. I didn''t even know that you were out here to ambush me..."


    "It is pretty clear that the reason why you cannot hold me down even though you''re the so-called number one Grappler is simply because of yourcking skills! You cannot reach the apex so you resorted to ming me instead!"


    "Hmmph! How shameless! The saying that ''the tree defines what the fruit is really is true''!" Joseph mocked even more and dimir''s expression now looked red in anger. His chest violently heaved.


    But Joseph wasn''t finished yet...


    "I knew about your n of buying time. The only reason why I humored that n of yours is that I want to experience the strength of the so-called Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild..." Joseph looked expressionless as he quickly nced at the direction where Alice disappeared.


    "Now that I know that the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild is only like this... Then, I really am disappointed. I cannot stay here anymore..."


    "Staying here with you who is the so-called leader of the strongest guild within the Kingdom of Nether is just a waste of time! You''re too weak! You''re not enough for me!" Joseph mocked, and threatened to move away.


    But dimir blocked his way.


    A fierce and determined expression was stered on dimir''s face as he blocked Joseph.


    "Oh? You''re approaching me?" Joseph casually said.


    dimir didn''t reply.


    Instead, he took a stance and faced Joseph.


    "In that case, since you really want to fight. Let''s end this as soon as possible."


    Joseph ced his left hand behind him and he held his Rapier vertically in front of his chest. Such a stance was full of openings ording to dimir''s understanding, but when he stared at Joseph who was doing that stance. He couldn''t help but feel disturbed.


    An expression of extreme seriousness surfaced on Joseph''s face.


    "Take this! Void Piercing Heaven Sealing Thrust!"


    Joseph roared and he rushed at dimir.


    ''Void Piercing Heaven Sealing Thrust?!''


    dimir was rmed by the name of the attack, so he hurriedly moved to the side.


    Whing!


    The air itself was torn from the thrust that Joseph unleashed.


    But apart from it, dimir couldn''t see the void being torn, or the heavens being sealed.


    ''That''s all?'' dimir repeatedly blinked. "You bastard! Isn''t that just a normal thrust?!"


    Seeing that his thrust missed its mark.


    Joseph once again readied an attack.


    "Emptying Seas Thrashing the Heavens sh!"


    His Rapier moved horizontally towards dimir''s torso.


    "Fuck your Emptying Seas Thrashing the Heavens sh!"


    dimir cried out and sent a punch directly at the Rapier.


    Bang!


    dimir''s fist as the number one Grappler was harder than steel.


    When it collided with the Rapier, a st of air exploded and sent dimir and Joseph backward away from each other.


    [Your wrist has fractured! This is caused by a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted!]


    [Your fist has met an unstoppable force. Your attack has backfired and you suffered 5231 damage!]


    dimir paled when he saw that he suffered damage from Joseph''s attack instead of forcefully stopping it. But when he saw that Joseph''s attack was really just a simple sh. His anger bubbled up once again...


    "Come at me, you bastard!" Joseph yelled, and another series of terrifying names came out of his mouth one by one. Of course, dimir knew that Joseph was just bluffing so he threw all caution to the wind and domineeringly met Joseph''s attacks with his fists.


    [You suffered 5262 damage!]


    [You suffered 5375 damage!]


    [You dealt 2203 damage!]


    The more dimir fought, the angrier he became. What''s worse was that not only he couldn''t destroy the weapon of his enemy. It was as if his enemy''s weapon had infinite durability. He always suffered damage whenever his fists shed against the thin as cicada wing''s weapon of Joseph!


    Furthermore, whenever dimir managed to get a hold of his enemy''s arm that held the strange and thin weapon. His hands would always slip causing endless frustration for dimir who was now a Grappler that couldn''t hold his enemy down!


    After suffering a few more attacks with fearsome names from Joseph.


    dimir finally couldn''t take it anymore.


    "You little bastard, do you really think that you can just bully me like this?!


    A terrible aura exploded from his body, and the same as earlier Water Dragon materialized andced around his arms as he rushed at his enemy.


    [Water Dragon''s Pounding]


    Roaaar!!!


    The horrifying image of a Water Dragon roared at Joseph.


    Joseph responded with...


    "Point!"


    ... an incredibly dazzling attack that went straight to the roaring Water Dragon.


    "Reveal Vitals!"


    Before his attack couldnd, Joseph revealed the vitals of his enemy and he swiftly diverted his thrust towards a nearby weakness.


    Kacha!


    BOOM!


    The sound of ss shattering rang out along with a fierce explosion. Joseph who barely managed on evading the brunt of the attack was thrown backward by the shockwaves that it caused. He copsed to the ground, spat out a mouthful of blood before standing up once again and yelling.


    "You''re really strong!"


    Immediately afterwards, he once again rushed at dimir with his Rapier ahead of him.


    "This guy..."


    dimir''s eyes widened when he realized that in that single exchange.


    He lost about five percent of his Health Bar!


    But this wasn''t the only reason why he was shocked silly about what just happened. It was because Joseph managed on surviving against one of his strongest attacks.


    The Water Dragon''s Pounding!


    But the truth was far different than what dimir had imagined. Actually... Even though Joseph could still stand properly right now. The damage that he took was far greater than he had expected.


    Just the shockwave of the Water Dragon''s Pounding alone took about half of his Health Bar in an instant.


    Joseph was horrified about this fact, but he knew that he cannot stand down.


    He must do his best and buy the most time that he could for the sake of Alice.


    As long as Alice could escape sessfully...


    It didn''t matter even if he died.


    That was why...


    "Composure."


    Joseph rushed at his enemy once again.


    The two of them streaked around as their attacks collided against each other.


    In the beginning, dimir could stillnd his fists on Joseph''s body.


    But when [Tenacity] was activated. He could no longer properly see the movements of his enemy...


    How could he hit an enemy that he couldn''t even properly see in the first ce?


    dimir was so frustrated to the extent that he had the desire to give up the fight on the spot! If not for the fact that his dignity as the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild was keeping him afloat.


    He would''ve already logged-out earlier!


    "You... You''re cheating!" dimir could only vent out his frustrations in this way.


    The ss Grappler was an extremely strong ss in closebat quarters. But their strength relied on the fact that they could grip and suppress their enemy using their hands.


    Right now, Joseph was an enemy that not only possessed speed barely visible to the naked eye. He was also slippery as f*ck.


    One could only imagine dimir''s frustration.


    But that didn''t mean that dimir, as the number one Grappler waspletely helpless against Joseph that he couldn''t properly see. He still has a few tricks up his sleeves, and one of them was...


    "Water Dragon''s Ascension!"


    ... a strong AoE attack that was impossible to dodge, no matter how fast an enemy was.


    The area around dimir suddenly leaked water, and to Joseph''s astonishment. A Water Dragon roaring towards the skies appeared from under the ground.


    "Fuck!" Joseph violently cursed. His shock made it so that he couldn''t respond properly to the iing attack. He didn''t even manage on activating [Parry] for the Water Dragon had already consumed him whole.


    [You suffered 20,622 damage!]


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock! Due to the amount of damage that your body has suffered, you will be unconditionally Stiffened for three seconds.]


    [Under the effects of your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything".]


    [You have resisted.]


    [You are an absolute existence. A shield equal to 100% of the damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds has been made.]


    dimir was astonished to see his enemy still standing up.


    But before he could even speak any further...


    Joseph was even faster than him.


    "Imminent Counter-attack, Point, Discharge!" A dazzling brilliant light ignited the tip of Joseph''s Rapier, and he faced dimir who now looked like he''s on the verge of crying.


    ''Just how did his enemy recover so fast under the effects of Stiffness from suffering that much damage? Shouldn''t he be stiffened? How can he move? This bastard... He really is cheating!''


    dimir inwardly cursed, apart from cursing. He knew no other way that he could use on venting out his frustrations.


    But in the end, in front of the brilliant ray of orange light...


    dimir solemnly dered.


    "This... This is not the end! We will meet again!"


    Looking at the dazzling orange ray of light that ovepped with the illumination of sunrise...


    Tears started to well up in dimir''s eyes...


    In the end, he''s still indignant about what happened in this fight. But he also knew that he couldn''t do anything other than to ept the oue, move-on and then try again next time.


    Boom!


    A force so overwhelming and massive enveloped dimir''s body and directly turned him into dust!


    [You dealt 252,623 damage!]


    Witnessing the death of his enemy, Joseph ced his Rapier back in his Inventory and turned his back towards the ashes that dimir''s body had left.


    "That was such a good fight..."


    "I almost died right there... But in the end... I am still the ultimate victor."


    He then ran as fast as he could towards Alice''s direction. Unwilling to stay even a second longer in this ce for he only had about 1% of his Health left.

 Chapter 81: Bringing a Stick to a Gunfight

    Chapter 81: Bringing a Stick to a Gunfight


    Right after Alice escaped alone...


    A lonely figure could be seen on top of a fairly-high skyscraper within the Capital City Reinhardt.


    That slim, and slender figure d in a pure white dress with hints of darkness that elicited terror from those who dare stare at her slowly descended from the skyscraper.


    When shended on the ground, she stood in front of Alice and lightly smiled at her.


    "I''m sorry but I will have to stop you there."


    Alice raised her head and coldness shed on her face.


    "Do I know you?"


    The young woman d in the pure white dress replied: "You do not need to know who I am since you will soon be dead anyway!"


    Bang!


    She moved as soon as shepleted her sentence.


    But Alice was even faster than her...


    Alice randomly snatched a wooden branch on the ground and used it as her weapon before rushing towards the young woman in front of her.


    ng!


    Sparks flew as the wooden branch shed with something metallic.


    "You..."


    Alice stared wide-eyed at her opponent. The young woman now had a pistol in her hand, and that pistol was the one that shed against Alice''s wooden branch.


    "You''re a Gunner?"


    Bang!


    A gunshot rang out and Alice had to retreat backward.


    She barely dodged the bullet that the young woman unleashed...


    Gunners were powerful when it came to mid to long-range battles.


    But in front of a Swordsman...


    "So you''re a Gunner? Let''s see which is faster, your bullets or my sword!" Alice rushed at her enemy once again.


    The wooden stick in her hand served as her sword as she unleashed a barrage of attacks to the young woman.


    ng! ng! ng!


    But instead of retreating backward...


    The young woman who had a pistol on her right hand took a dagger out of nowhere and held it using her left hand. Afterward, she met Alice''s attacks with her dagger. Causing sparks to fly everywhere as the attacks of the two, met in mid-air.


    "You really are arrogant. But on what basis? Just because you are the disciple of a Legend? Keep in mind that your grandpa is just a cksmith! As for me? I was once a Hunter!"


    The young woman activated a skill and she gracefully danced across the battlefield. Whenever her body moved, her dagger would urately strike against Alice''s wooden stick, causing sparks to fly everywhere.


    "Tssk!" Alice clicked her tongue.


    She decided that it would be better for her to retreat for now as she stomped the ground and used that force in order to fly backward.


    "Stupid!"


    But as soon as Alice retreated backward.


    The young woman aimed her pistol at Alice and pulled the trigger.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    "Like I didn''t know about that!" Alice eximed and her wooden stick turned into a blur. She urately struck the bullets while they were in mid-air and before they could even get close to her...


    The bullets that were sliced by Alice in half flew in different directions.


    "Oh... Interesting... You can cut my bullets into halves? But how about this?" The young woman didn''t pursue Alice. She stood at the distance and after a blink of an eye. A Rocket Launcher appeared on her shoulder as she cried out.


    "Missile Bombardment!"


    BOOM!


    A loud explosion urred, sending dust flying towards the skies. Furthermore, a fierce heatwave spread from the mouth of the Rocket Launcher on the young woman''s shoulders as several missiles flew towards Alice''s direction.


    Alice stared at the iing missiles and indignance shed on her face.


    She was only using a wooden stick reinforced with her Sword Energy as her Primary Weapon.


    Although she could easily dispose of the bullets of a Gunner, it was far harder for her to slice these iing missiles using only a wooden stick.


    Right now, a retreat was the most optimal choice. So, Alice leaped off the ground as the missiles crashed and exploded on her original location. Sending off another round of dust in mid-air, obscuring everything in the area.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Alice waved her wooden stick around whilst she was in mid-air.


    ng! ng! ng!


    Sparks ignited around her as she sliced those bullets into two before they could even get to her


    But as soon as shended on the ground. Her eyes widened in shock for she realized that there was a green ball near her feet.


    "Hand Grenade!" Her opponent scream and an explosion enveloped her.


    The young woman vanquished the dust obscuring her vision with a single wave of her dagger before she rushed at Alice''s direction. But to her shock, Alice wasn''t in the ce where she expected her to be.


    Instead, Alice was already behind her.


    Alice coldly looked at her enemy as her wooden stick descended...


    sh!


    "AHHH!" The young woman cried out in pain. A line of blood was carved on her back.


    She waved her dagger towards Alice''s direction, but Alice easily deflected it.


    Afterwards, Alice unleashed her own barrage of attacks to which the young woman found it hard to defend against...


    "You... Are you really the disciple of a mere cksmith?"


    The young woman cried out as she tried her best on retreating. Earlier, it was Alice who had the lower end of the stick, but right now...


    She was the one winning the exchange.


    Alice''s hands never stopped moving as she unleashed swift strikes one after another.


    But a mocking smile appeared on her lips as she replied to what the young woman had said.


    "I''m really tired of that... People underestimating me and grandpa just because we are cksmiths. That thing really is a well-known misconception, you know? Let me tell you this... Just because we are cksmiths. It doesn''t mean that we''re weak!"


    Alice pushed her left palm towards the young woman''s sr plexus. The blow made the young woman cough a mouthful of blood as she flew backward and struck a wall which promptly copsed and cushioned her fall.


    It looked like that attack wasn''t really that powerful,but from the fact that she coughed blood from that strike alone made it obvious that she suffered heavy injuries from Alice''s attack.


    "Now... Do you still want to fight? I prefer it if you don''t since I don''t have any time to waste here..." Alice coldly stared at her enemy.


    "Hahaha..." The young woman suddenlyughed.


    "This is it... This is more like it... A battle can''t be considered as a battle unless your enemy''s strength is at least equal or greater than yours!"


    Alice stared at her opponent with a frown.


    The young woman slowly stood up...


    Her expression looked distorted and her figure swayed unsteadily...


    In the next moment, without saying anything. The young woman leaped at Alice with her dagger and pistol pointed at thetter.


    ng! Bang!


    Alice swiftly parried the iing dagger attack, and he evaded the iing bullet by tilting her head to the side. Alice opened her hand and she mmed her left palm on the young woman''s stomach.


    Boom!


    The impact was so strong that a sonic boom was created. The young woman once again flew backward.


    While she was in mid-air, she popped open a Health Potion and swiftly consumed it before shended gracefully on the ground as if nothing really happened.


    On the other hand, Alice was astonished to find a Hand Grenade right in front of her.


    "!!!"


    BOOM!


    Another explosion rang out...


    Alice managed on retreating before the Hand Grenade could explode, but when she raised her head to stare at her enemy. She was shocked to find that the young woman was currently smiling evilly at her.


    "Look behind you!" The young woman cried out.


    Alice fiercely turned around, and she saw another Hand Grenade peacefully cooking on the ground directly near her feet.


    "Just when?!" Alice eximed, he moved to evade, but since the Hand Grenade was too near her and she noticed it toote. There was no way that she could do anything about it.


    BOOM!


    The Hand Grenade exploded, sending pieces of rocks and dust towards the skies.


    Alice also flew backward, but towards the direction of the young woman who now had an excited look on her face.


    "Wee!!!"


    The young woman readied her dagger. Alice tried her best on twisting her body while in mid-air, but she was flying far too fast for her to do anything substantial. She didn''t even manage on moving her body by an inch when her opponent''s dagger plunged deep into her stomach.


    "Guah!" Alice coughed a mouthful of blood, but this wasn''t the end.


    The young woman kicked the already injured Alice into the air before she took a Gatling Gun out of nowhere and pointed it at Alice who was still in the air.


    "me yourself for bringing a stick to a gunfight!" The young woman eximed in excitement and the Gatling Gun abruptly unleashed its bullets.


    As the bullets flew towards Alice and dotted her body with injuries.


    A bitter smile emerged on her lips.


    "Grandpa... Will we really not meet again?"


    "Why..."


    "Why did everything became like this...? I only want us to live peacefully. I only want us to live peacefully until the two of us achieved our dreams of creating the strongest weapon in this world, yet... Why does trouble seem to follow us?"


    "Why...?"


    "Just why?"


    Alice whispered and in the next moment.


    A determined look shed on her face.


    "No, I cannot give up! I cannot let our dream die!"


    She tried her best on deflecting as many bullets as she could whilst she was in mid-air, but there was a limit to how many bullets she could deflect.


    Several bullets slipped past her defenses and struck her face, drawing a bloody-line on her snowy-whiteplexion.


    "I don''t care... I don''t care about anything anymore..."


    Memories shed on Alice''s mind. The time that she spent with her grandpa, and master Krid. Along with the visions that she received from the Grand Duelist when she inherited a bit of her Divinity.


    All of thesebined together to form into a fortress-like determination that was unwavering and incredibly courageous.


    "Those who dare to block my way to grandpa shall die... If a god blocks my way... I will y that god. If buddha blocks my way, I will y that buddha. If heaven blocks my way. I... shall... seal the heavens!"


    Alice inwardly screamed.


    She rapidly descended from the skies amidst the barrage of bullets. Blood drenched the clothing that she received from Joseph and intense pain tortured her body and mind.


    "Hand Grenade!"


    A Hand Grenade flew towards her direction.


    ng!


    Alice harshly deflected the Hand Grenade towards the young woman that sent it to her, and that same young woman leaped backward in order to avoid the iing grenade.


    But as soon as she stomped her feet on the ground and retreated...


    BOOM!


    A deafening explosion urred right behind her...


    The Hand Grenade that Alice deflected flew far faster than she had expected. She thought that it wouldnd in front of her, so she retreated.


    But at the moment when she retreated backward...


    The Hand Grenade exploded right behind her, sending her flying towards Alice''s direction.


    "Shit!" The young woman screamed.


    She took her pistol out, but it was already toote.


    Alice was already waiting for her...


    "Wee!!!"


    Alice eximed as she performed a stance.


    "You..."


    The young woman''s eyes widened in shock as she flew headfirst towards the direction of Alice''s wooden stick.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship..."


    Alice whispered into the air.


    "Second Form..."


    An imperceptible line was drawn and space itself was torn.


    "Harmony!"


    The Harmony of Heaven and Earth itself was disyed like a canvas, and a fountain of blood that spurted from the neck of the young woman served as its ink.


    Time itself seemingly came to a standstill...


    A dull thud rang out signifying the end of a single life.


    "Huff... Puff... Hehehe..." Exhaustion could be seen on Alice''s expression as she repeatedly drew huge mouthfuls of breath.


    But beneath her exhaustion was an excitement that could be seen within her eyes as she proudly whispered to herself...


    "Grandpa... I did it... Iprehended the Second Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship!" Alice weakly whispered.


    But as soon as she reached the end of her sentence...


    She promptly copsed on her knees, before crumbling onto the ground with her consciousness slowly leaving her body.


    "Grandpa... I hope that... you''re proud of... me..."


    Her consciousness then disappeared.<ol><li>Sorry, I couldn''t help myself, haha</li></ol>

 Chapter 82: Like a Sack of Potatoes

    Chapter 82: Like a Sack of Potatoes


    [A Kingdom-wide quest has been distributed.]


    [Capture the Traitor and the Escapee!]


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    The sovereign of the Kingdom, Oliver Oligarch is angry that a traitor from the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes intervened with the schedule execution earlier in the day. He has established a Kill Order for that traitor and a Capture Order for the femalepanion of that rebel.


    You, a valid resident of the Kingdom of Nether is tasked to cut down the head of that rebel, and capture his femalepanion!


    Although this quest is dedicated to Capture and Kill Order...


    Great rewards are also promised if you report valuable information about the location of that rebel to the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild, dimir!


    Note: Finding that particr traitor and his femalepanion may be like trying to find a needle within a haystack. But rest assured. The Kill and Capture Order will make the identity of those traitors clear!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Kill the Traitor marked with a Kill Order and Capture the Companion of that Traitor marked with a Capture Order.


    Quest Rewards: ??? (Guaranteed)


    Quest Failure: Nothing.]


    At this moment, a system notification appeared right in front of every yer affiliated with the Kingdom of Nether.


    "!!!"


    "A Kingdom-wide quest? Wait? Someone actually intervened with the execution of a Legend earlier?"


    "Holy shit! This is big news! I''ll be logging-out for now. I''ve got to report this!"


    "Wait, how are we even supposed to find two people inside this huge-ass Kingdom?"


    The yers who received the system notification were astonished and joyful.


    Who wouldn''t be happy to receive a quest that had clear conditions for clearance and without any failure repercussions?


    The yers practically looked like they were about to jump in joy when they received the quest.


    But when they finished reading the entire quest...


    They frowned for the Kingdom of Nether was huge.


    It had a poption of about a hundred million people.


    Half were NPCs and the other half were yers. Finding two people inside such a huge kingdom could be considered as a cumbersome and difficult task.


    "It says here that the Kill and Capture Order will make those traitors clear. Does this mean that we''ll know about who our targets are for as long as we can see them?"


    "That should be the case.. I''ll be going now to Reinhardt."


    "To Reinhardt?"


    "Did you even y the game within thest few days? The execution happened at the Capital City Reinhardt so we should start our investigation there..."


    "Is that so? Then I shall go too."


    With the distribution of the Kingdom-wide quest...


    A mob of yers marched en masse towards the Capital of the Kingdom of Nether, Reinhardt.


    Meanwhile, the certain yer that everyone was looking for was currently in the search for the location of hisrade, Alice.


    "Just where did that woman go?" Joseph gulped several vials of Health Potion and he finally pushed his Health Points to the maximum. It was about ten minutes since his battle with dimir ended, but he still hasn''t found Senior Krid''s disciple, Alice.


    "As far as I can remember... There were explosions around here when I was fighting that guy earlier..." Joseph thought to himself.


    He scanned his surroundings and found that there were indeed traces of battle within the area.


    A lot of wooden stalls were riddled with holes and the faint smell of gunpowder faintly lingered in the air along with...


    "Wait..."


    "This smell..."


    "The smell of blood!" Joseph''s eximed, and he turned to look at the direction where the intense smell of blood originated from. He rushed towards that ce and there...


    He found a bloodied Alice whose body riddled with dozens of coin-sized holes.


    "Shit!" Joseph instantly went to her side and popped open a Health Potion. He knew that he had no time to waste, for an injury this severe could easily kill somebody.


    Reaching his hand below her nose...


    Joseph sighed in relief when he found that Alice was still breathing.


    "Can she swallow?" Joseph carefully raised her head, checking for any blockage within her throat.


    When he found that there was nothing in the way.


    He made her drink the Health Potion that he had in his hands.


    But since Joseph had no way to see the Health Bars of NPCs, he couldn''t do anything other than feeding her every Health Potion that he had to make sure that she would recover her health as much and as fast as possible.


    However, as soon as he fed her thest Health Potion that he had. He noticed that even though the rosy-color of Alice''s cheeks finally returned...


    She was still profusely bleeding to the extent that Joseph couldn''t even believe that she was still alive after this much blood came out of her body.


    Nevertheless...


    Joseph must do something against the heavier injuries that the Health Potions didn''t manage on healing.


    But...


    "Uh..." Joseph hesitated.


    It was because the more severe gunshot wounds that Alice had were around her thighs and belly-button. If Joseph wanted to patch them up...


    He must strip her naked and thoroughly search her body for other wounds in order to make sure that he had everything covered.


    Fortunately, Joseph''s hesitation onlysted for a moment.


    "Fuck it! It would be unreasonable for her to me me when I only wanted to help her!"


    He then cautiously lifted Alice with his hand, while his free hand worked on slowly rolling her to the side.


    Afterwards, he took the robe that he had from as an Inquisitor of the Underground Penitentiary and used some of it as a temporary bandage to cover her wounds.


    Unfortunately, Joseph found that the amount of fabric that he had was insufficient to cover every nook and cranny of Alice''s body.


    Because of this, he had no other choice but to strip his pants off and use some of it as temporary bandages. After sealing off most of Alice''s wounds, he utilized the remaining fabric from his pants as a yarn so that he could wrap Alice around the remaining fabric of his robe like sushi.


    He then lifted Alice from the ground and hoisted her on his shoulder like carrying a sack of potatoes.


    But before he could even a step forward to escape...


    A system notification appeared right in front of him.


    [A Kingdom-wide quest has been distributed.]


    [Capture the Traitor and the Escapee!]


    [You are being marked with the stigmata of the Kingdom-wide Kill Order.]


    [Under the effects of your title, "The Sun That Overlooks Everything.]


    [You have resisted.]


    "Kill Order and Capture Order? I don''t know anything about the Capture Order, but why does it feel like I know something about this Kill Order? It feels like I heard something about this word, but I just can''t remember it..." Joseph thought to himself when suddenly...


    A bright orange marker appeared on top of Alice that he was carrying on his shoulder. The bright orange marker was in the shape of a circle and had the word, "Capture" written in bold letters.


    "So that''s the Capture Order? Wait, that''s the Capture Order?!" Joseph fiercely turned around and when he found that there was no one looking at them...


    He swiftly covered the bright orange marker floating above Alice''s head.


    But the Capture Order was seemingly incorporeal...


    It could be seen, but couldn''t be touched. And likewise, it couldn''t be covered.


    "Fucking hell man, this is bullshit! I can''t hide it? How am I supposed to escape from this ce if I can''t hide this shit?!"


    Joseph gnashed his teeth in frustration.


    He couldn''t understand the actions of the one that should be behind the distribution of this Kingdom-wide quest. In other words, he couldn''t understand what the King of the Kingdom of Nether was doing. Wasn''t he supposed to be Senior Krid''s sworn brother? Why was he doing this?


    Does he really want to fight against Senior Krid to the bitter end?


    Joseph tried his best on making some sense regarding the actions of the King. But before he could even think any further, footsteps rang out behind him and he had no other choice but to hide somewhere for the meantime.


    "Boss, why did we evene here? This ce is the nearest to the Central Square. I don''t think that the traitor would actually hide near the ce where he wasst spotted."


    "Stupid... Can you not speak if you''re not even so sure about what you are saying? Take a look at this ce. The smell of gunpowder and blood is lingering in the air. It''s clear that there''s a recent fight that happened in here! And didn''t you guys hear those explosions?"


    Joseph peeked from behind the wall where he was hiding and found at least five yers walking towards his direction.


    "Goddamned it, five yers... Judging from their equipment. It''s likely that they are high-leveled yers... With me carrying Alice like this, I can''t fight them... I must escape!" Joseph concluded.


    He cautiously observed the movements of the five yers approaching his direction as he slowly crawled his way out of the area with Alice.


    "Holy shit, you''re right, boss! You''re really a genius, boss! Now, what should we do?"


    Pa!


    A smacking sound rang out when that yer asked.


    "Are you stupid? You''re the one that''s supposed to help us find those yers!"


    "Me? Boss?"


    "Of course, you are! You asshat! Aren''t you a Hunter? Use your [Track] and see if you can find fresh footprints in the area..."


    "Oh yeah! I do have that boss! Okay, I''ll be using it now, alright?"


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva when he heard what the yers were talking about. [Track] was a skill that if used, could enable a Hunter to see tracks left behind by enemies that recently passed by an area. In other words, if that Hunter really used [Track]. He could easily find Joseph and Alice.


    "Shit! Goddamned it!" Joseph inwardly eximed. He rolled Alice to the side and he was about to take the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty out of his Inventory when shadows suddenly descended towards the five yers.


    "Bastards! Who are you guys?! How dare you sneak attack us!"


    "AHHH! SHIT! MURDERER! THERE''S A MURD-"


    When the shadows descended, some of the yers managed to scream.


    But their cries were cut short as a streak of silver shed by their throats, instantly ending their life by sending their heads rolling on the ground.


    "Goddamned it bro, you were too slow! They even managed to scream! What if their screams attracted the attention of other yers. This would be more troublesome!"


    "Hahaha... I''m really sorry about that, bro..."


    "No, it''s fine. What''s more important is we''re finally here..."


    "Yeah, right... Hahaha... Did you hear that, sir? I assume that you still remember us, right?"


    The shadows slowly transformed into the figures of several men who started cajoling each other.


    After a short talk, one of them turned to look at Joseph''s direction and asked...


    Joseph slowly raised his head and he was pleasantly surprised when he saw the identity of the shadows who came to his rescue.


    "You are..." A smile escaped on Joseph''s lips.


    "Kayn!"


    [Author''s Note: Every character that has names will not be abandoned in this novel.]

 Chapter 83: Helping Hands

    Chapter 83: Helping Hands


    "I''m d that sir still recognizes me." Kayn respectfully bowed at Joseph''s direction.


    "So you really are that Kayn, but why are you..."


    "Of course, we came here to help you, sir!" Kayn eximed.


    "Yes, that indeed is the case, sir!" Kayn''srades nodded their heads in agreement.


    "To help me? Wait, how do guys even know that I was in trouble?" Joseph asked in doubt.


    Kayn and his brothers lightly chuckled before saying: "You really were gutsy earlier, sir... The fact that you intervened in an execution that is being witnessed by the King himself is basically the same as pping the face of the King. Doing something like that... You definitely are crazy and..."


    "Too cool!" The buff men eximed, taking the words out of Kayn''s mouth as they all chuckled at the same time.


    But Joseph didn''tugh along with them.


    Instead, he wore a serious expression on his face as he said.


    "But you guys... If I recall correctly, don''t all of you have something to do in Reinhardt?" Joseph said with uncertainty.


    Kayn nodded his head and replied: "That is indeed correct, sir. We do have something to do in Reinhardt. Specifically, we came here to take revenge against a certain noble. But we didn''t expect that the noble whom we hate the most is also your enemy, sir!"


    "In that case, since we have amon enemy..."


    "Isn''t it better for us to help each other? We nned on interrupting that fat-ass''s n onpleting the production of Unhindered Sword by messing up with the materials that he gathered on his front yard..."


    "But since sir had already messed up that bastard''s ns, we ended up riding sir''s coattails..."


    "In other words... Sir, you inadvertently took revenge against that noble for us!"


    Kayn''s brothers nodded their heads and they revealed gentle smiles on their faces as appreciation for what Joseph did against Duke Heathrow. But Joseph couldn''t smile along with them for he felt somewhat strange staring at these buff men staring amicably at him with kind smiles on their faces.


    Whenbined with their identities as bandits, Joseph felt quiteplicated.


    But...


    ''That fat bastard sure has a lot of enemies...'' Joseph inwardly snickered in derision at Duke Heathrow.


    Afterwards, he turned to face Kayn and his brothers and said in concern.


    "But you guys... Are you sure that you are going to help a wanted man like me? If you do that then that will be the same as colluding with a traitor. In other words, all of you would also be branded as traitors like me! Are you sure that you can afford to do that for my sake?"


    The men stared at each other for a moment before they simultaneously chuckled.


    Kayn was the one who replied to Joseph''s question.


    "We really appreciate sir''s concern to us, but we have already decided. Since sir gave us so many riches back then, our lives right now aren''t really that bad. Although we want to maintain our status quo. That doesn''t mean that we will forget about our promise back then..."


    A sincere light shed on Kayn''s eyes. His brother also stared seriously at Joseph.


    "Promise?"


    "Yes, sir... Don''t you remember me saying that I will serve you once I am done with what I must do? But to tell you the truth, I actually want these brothers of mine to live peacefully asmoners since the wealth that sir gave to us is enough for them to live for several lifetimes."


    "But..."


    Kayn revealed an awkward expression. He made a sidelong nce at the burly men beside him before continuing: "These brothers of mine... They are too stubborn... They are saying that whenever I go, they would also follow."


    A fierce pat rocked Kayn''s body as his brothers'' eximed.


    "What are you saying, Kayn? Do you really think that we can still live a peaceful and normal life? With the number of people that we killed back before we met you, it''s already impossible for us to live properly among themon popce..."


    "Yes, that is why..."


    "You do not have to worry about us! Just let us follow you from now on! If you want to follow sir, then we will also follow you along with sir!"


    Kayn was visibly moved upon seeing the determination and sincerity that his brothers disyed.


    Joseph revealed a small smile on his face before he said: "It seems like these brothers of yours really love you, Kayn..."


    Kayn awkwardly scratched his head towards what Joseph was saying. Though, he didn''t deny what he said.


    ...


    Meanwhile, within Duke Heathrow''s mansion.


    Four figures could be seen within the living room of the mansion.


    They were the Queen, the Royal Prince, Duke Heathrow, and his Majesty himself.


    "That bastard... We were so close in aplishing our goals, yet an unknown puny ant actually dared to ruin our ns?! I would never forgive that bastard!" Duke Heathrow eximed in fury.


    His expression distorted and he fiercely mmed his fist on the table in front of him when he reached the end of his sentence.


    Such a crude disy of emotions made the eyes of his Majesty, Oliver Oligarch narrow.


    "Order your knights, and make sure that they do not hurt any strand of Alice''s hair." His Majesty, Oliver said in a serious manner.


    Duke Heathrow revealed a frown and replied: "But your Majesty... What you are asking my Knights and the others to do is extremely hard!"


    "Capturing someone alive may not be a problem for them, but capturing someone alive without injuring even a strand of their hair? That is incredibly difficult, your Majesty! Please reconsider!"


    Duke Heathrow''s defiance angered Oliver and he fiercely replied: "Did I stutter when I gave you my orders on what I want to happen, Heathrow?"


    "How dare you be so brazen to oppose me! Do you really think that I have forgiven you about what you did regarding the kidnapping of Krid''s disciple?!"


    Oliver''s fierceness astonished everyone within the area, including the Knights who were stationed near the entrance of the mansion.


    The Queen looked like she wanted to say something.


    But before she could open her mouth to speak...


    The Royal Prince was even faster than her as he said: "But father, your order really is too unreasonable! Duke Heathrow is just doing his job... Giving him an incredibly difficult task such as that doesn''t seem right!"


    "Shut the fuck up, you unfilial brat! You do not have the right to speak while the adults are talking!"


    Oliver snapped at the Royal Prince and thetter couldn''t do anything other than close his mouth and snuck close to his mother.


    The Queen visibly trembled when she saw was what was happening.


    She took her son into her bosom and calmed him down before saying: "Oliver! Why are you treating your son like this! He''s only speaking out about the injustice of your ridiculous order to Duke Heathrow! Why are you angry at him? You should be ashamed of yourself!"


    The Queen''s expression distorted, looking hysterical as she ranted at the King.


    But to everyone''s astonishment.


    The King whom they thought, that could nevery a hand on the Queen, suddenly raised his hand and fiercely pped the Queen right on her face.


    "You shut up! Do you even understand the ramifications of injuring the disciple of a Legend? Kidnapping Alice was already bad, yet all of you even have the desire to do something against a Legend''s disciple? Are you guys mad?"


    Everyone turned silent, astonished about what they heard...


    But Duke Heathrow broke the silence and dropped another bomb.


    "It looks like you aren''t that stupid, your Majesty... But if you want to keep your status as the King of this Kingdom. It is better if you do as I say like what you always did..."


    "You..."


    "Impudent!"


    The Knights stationed near the entrance of the mansion readied a stance and looked like they were about to rush at Duke Heathrow and punish him for the crime of sacrilege against the King.


    But before they could even take a step forward...


    Their heads suddenly disconnected from their necks and a fountain of blood burst from their severed heads.


    "Ah..." The Queen paled from shock.


    "You..."


    The attacker was revealed to be a middle-aged man d in ck.


    The sword he held in his right hand shone in a crimson radiance.


    "That Divine Art... You''re someone from the Empire of Truedawn?!" Oliver reeled in shock.


    "Heathrow... You were colluding with the Empire? Are you mad?!"


    Connecting the dots, Oliver finally realized why Duke Heathrow acted so bold and active these past several years. His growing connection and influence with other nobles weren''t actually the primary reasons why he became so bold...


    It was actually because he was colluding with the Empire!


    Conspiring with the Empire? Had he gone senile?!


    But...


    Ever since Oliver hatched the n of getting Krid at all cost.


    He knew that something like this could happen...


    He knew that there was a huge chance that the Empire would intervene with his n.


    One of the reasons why Oliver turned a blind eye on what Duke Heathrow was doing was because of the fact that the two of them hadmon goals.


    Since they had the same objectives, wasn''t it better for them to cooperate?


    But right now, it turned out that Duke Heathrow was actually a double agent...


    Not only that, he actually dared to conspire with the Empire!


    Disbelief could be seen on Oliver''s face as he stared angrily at Duke Heathrow.


    "Now do you understand, your Majesty?" Duke Heathrow revealed a smile of derision as the middle-aged man who decapitated Oliver''s knights moved behind Duke Heathrow and stood imposingly with an evil smile on his face.


    Oliver directly copsed to the ground on his knees.


    A bitter smile of intense regret emerged on his face as he whispered to himself.


    "Brother... If I wasn''t so greedy... If I wasn''t born with this noble blood... Everything wouldn''t have...e to this..."


    There was no medicine to regret in this world, Oliver could do nothing other than cry over his spilled milk.


    "This is the least that I can do..."


    A burst of golden brilliant light exploded from Oliver''s body.


    When the blinding radiance ended, Oliver was nowhere to be found.


    However, amotion urred within the world of Victory.


    [The Quest: Capture the Traitor and Escapee has been updated.]


    [Capture the Traitor and the Escapee!]


    Quest Difficulty: ???


    The sovereign of the Kingdom, Oliver Oligarch is angry that a traitor from the Underground Penitentiary for Heinous Crimes intervened with the schedule execution earlier in the day. He has established a Kill Order for that traitor and a Capture Order for the femalepanion of that rebel.


    You, a valid resident of the Kingdom of Nether is tasked to cut down the head of that rebel, and capture his femalepanion!


    Although this quest is dedicated to Capture and Kill Order. Great rewards are also promised if you report valuable information about the location of that rebel to the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild, dimir!


    Note: Finding that particr traitor and his femalepanion may be like trying to find a needle within a haystack. But rest assured. The Kill and Capture Order will make the identity of those traitors clear!


    IMPORTANT: The person marked by the bright orange Capture Order must not be injured in any way or manner possible. If found guilty of injuring the person marked by the Capture Order. The Oligarch Family will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of thew!


    The Capture and Kill Order are markers floating above the marked person''s head that cannot be removed nor hidden, their colors are bright orange, and dark red respectively.


    Quest Clear Conditions: Kill the Traitor marked with a Kill Order and Capture the Companion of that Traitor marked by the bright orange Capture Order.


    Quest Rewards: ??? (Guaranteed)


    Quest Failure: Nothing.]


    "Stop!" Kayn signaled to his brothers.


    "What''s wrong?" Joseph stopped on his tracks and he turned to look at Kayn.


    But Kayn didn''t answer his question.


    Instead, he brought everyone into a secluded spot where he finally exined...


    "It''s about time for us to have some difficulties, sir." Kayn bitterly said.


    Joseph frowned and asked: "Why? Is there anything wrong?"


    "It''s like this, sir... The primary reason why we managed to escape this far from the Central Square is not only because of my Shadow Domain that hid us all and obscured the word ''Capture''..."


    "It is also because of the fact that no one really knew about what the Capture Order looked like."


    "But now... Now, that the quest is explicitly describing what the Capture Order looks like. We''ll probably have a harder time continuing our journey..."


    "But rest assured sir... We''ll go and formte some ns and you can stay here with Madame for now." Kayn nced at Alice whoid on the ground.


    Joseph nodded his head in understanding.


    Kayn convened with his brothers.


    "This is really... troublesome!" Joseph inwardly sighed. He nced at Alice who was peacefully wrapped around Joseph''s Inquisitor Robe like a fresh spring roll.


    A weird expression appeared on his face as he mumbled to himself.


    "Why does she look, so..."


    "Delicious?"


    He suddenly remembered that particr scene that happened within the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum. A strange heat appeared within his body and Joseph had to p himself so that he could awaken from his trance.


    "Damn it, what am I thinking! I must focus on the task at hand and aplish everything that I want to do first before thinking of nonsense like this!"


    When he returned to himself, Kayn and his brothers were finally finished with their quick discussion.


    But before they could even get to Joseph and ask him about his opinions regarding their ns.


    A crisp voice suddenly rang out.


    "So that''s the Capture Order?"


    A man appeared in the air above Joseph and Kayn''s squad.


    "There you are!"

 Chapter 84: Intentions of the Pro-NPC Alliance

    Chapter 84: Intentions of the Pro-NPC Alliance


    "There you are!"


    The voice definitely astonished everyone, but it didn''t stop them from immediately reacting.


    Kayn activated his Shadow Domain. His brothers took out their weapons and rushed at the man.


    Joseph took the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty out of his Inventory and he stood in front of Alice, protecting her.


    "Who are you?" Kayn eximed. But before his question could be answered...


    ng!


    ... he and his brothers were already in front of the man, sending their attacks towards him.


    "Hey, hey... This is such a lively greeting!" The man weed the attacks with a smile on his face.


    He lifted his arm and pointed a finger at the men who sent their attacks towards him.


    "Stagger."


    [An overwhelming force has swept across your body.]


    [Your body cannot endure the burden.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    "Huh?!"


    Kayn and the others staggered backward, their butts simultaneously falling onto the ground as Joseph stared at all of these with apprehension.


    ''He defeated them all with a single finger? What the fuck? Just how strong is this man?'' He inwardly, while silently preparing for the activation of [Parry] as long as he noticed that something wrong was about to happen.


    But contrary to Joseph''s expectations...


    A fight didn''t happen.


    Instead, the man turned to look behind him and said.


    "It''s confirmed, guys! All of you cane out now! Make sure that no one followed us here!" He gestured behind him, and from the roofs of the surrounding houses descended the figures of five yers apanied by six NPCs...


    When theynded on the ground, they stared at Joseph with smiles on their faces as one of them said...


    "So you are the ballsy guy who actually intervened on that schedule execution and in turn, pping the King''s face and humiliating him? You really look formidable as I thought, I might fall in love with you..."


    The person that said these words was a young woman NPC d with revealing clothes. She stared at Joseph and a zed look could be seen within her eyes.


    Astonishing Joseph who subconsciously took a step backward due to the sudden mental attack.


    ''What the hell is wrong with her?'' Joseph inwardly mumbled.


    "Give the small guy a break, Rexie." A deep voiceined. Joseph turned to look at the speaker with a frown on his face, but it quickly changed into bitterness when he saw that the one who said that he was a <em>small guy</em> actually had a physiqueparable to the best bodybuilders of Earth.


    "Well, if that''s what you want me to do, Bernard." Rexie nodded before puffing her cheeks in apparent annoyance after being reprimanded by her partner.


    That man smiled amicably at Joseph.


    Joseph also smiled in return. But what appeared on his lips could barely be considered as a smile for his lips continuously twitched in order to suppress the upheaval of emotions that he was feeling right now.


    "Uh... Hello... Nice to meet you. My name is Eagie... I''m from the Pro-NPC Alliance and we came here to help you..."


    Joseph stared at the one who spoke up and found that he was a schrly-looking young man with a slender frame.


    He was in the process of scratching his head and Joseph couldn''t help but feel that the young man was quite simr to him when it came to awkwardness...


    "Eagie, my dear... How many times did I tell you to introduce yourself properly to a stranger? You''re a man, right? Do it right..." A young woman that had the marker dedicated to NPCs above her head, spoke up and reprimanded the young man called Eagie.


    "That''s right, Eagie... It''s too early for you toe, so save that for tonight!" Another young man who was definitely a yer spoke up. A childish look surfaced on his face as he poked fun at Eagie.


    The young woman who reprimanded earlier Eagie turned to look at him and red.


    "Stop those dirty jokes of yours, Michael. They''re stupid... Look! Even Kylyn is cringing right there."


    The young woman who advised Eagie made a sidelong nce at the young woman beside Michael.


    The young woman named Kylyn slightly nodded her head, but Michael remained relentless.


    "Oh? Why did you have to do that, Pa? I only said those words since I am concerned, you know? We can''t have our boy Eagie hereing too fast..."


    "How else would he be able to suppress that pervertedness of yours?"


    Michael nced at Eagie who now had a blush on his face.


    "Knock it off, Michael." A young man who had a thin frame and was the tallest of them all spoke up in an effort to diffuse the tension between the two.


    Pa coldly stared at Michael.


    Afterwards, she stared at Eagie as if signaling something to him.


    Realizing what her stare meant...


    Eagie could do nothing other than sigh before saying: "I am able to suppress her pervertedness! More than what you think!"


    Michael was astonished by what he heard.


    A challenging smile escaped on his lips as he said: "Oh? Is that so? So, the two of you are doing it frequently, eh? How about we make a bet?"


    Kylyn who stood beside Michael gripped his sleeves. She hung her head low, apparently hiding the blush on her cheeks from the embarrassment that she was feeling due to the words that her husband was saying.


    Although behind that blush was a hint of desire that probably only Michael could probably understand.


    "A bet?" Pa raised an eyebrow.


    "Yes, a bet... As you can see, it''s been two years since the two of you were married yet both of you still haven''t produced any offspring. If both of you are doing it every day then I can''t help but feel suspicious if Eagie is shooting nks or the two of you are lying to me..."


    "That is why, right now... I am saying that me and Eagie should have a bet about who among the two of us will impregnate our partners as soon as pos-"


    "Cut it out! You''re acting like a child, Michael!" The man who first approached Joseph and Kayn pped Michael''s head and forcefully interrupted his tirade. Afterwards, he revealed an apologetic smile as he turned to look at Joseph before saying...


    "I really am sorry about this, hahaha... But rest assured... Just like what Eagie said. We came here to help you... Or more specifically," The man nced at Alice whoid on the ground before continuing: "We are here to help her escape."


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed, he didn''t n on believing them outright: "You came here to help her? Do you really think that I am as naive that I will believe your words? All of you may havee from the Pro-NPC Alliance, but there''s nothing stopping you from scheming against us!"


    Everyone from the Pro-NPC Alliance was startled by what Joseph said.


    What he said made sense...


    But then the young woman who kept his silence all this time suddenly spoke up: "He''s right, leader..."


    "Oh, Mervin..." The man turned to look at Mervin and smiled.


    Mervin then continued on speaking: "First, I shall exin the reason why we came here to help all of you... As you can see, all of us are married to NPCs." Mervin stared at Joseph as if saying that if he still couldn''t understand what he meant, then Joseph could be considered as stupid.


    But Joseph had no intention of easily epting their help.


    He had to make sure that they had no ill intent or any bad intentions whatsoever towards him and Alice before he epted their grace.


    And so, Joseph had to feign ignorance...


    "How does that matter?"


    "You''re asking me about how does it matter?" A sharp glint shed in Mervin''s eyes and he sharply spoke up.


    "Leader, can you handle the exnations for me instead? You can''t expect me to talk with a thick-headed guy like him!"


    The man referred by Mervin as the leader shook his head and stared at Joseph with well-hidden disappointment before saying...


    "Okay, I''ll handle it." He agreed to Mervin''s proposal, but Joseph had other intentions.


    "No... I want to know why you guys want to help us. I don''t need to hear the answer to this question from your leader."


    Joseph wanted to gauge the true intentions of every individual from the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    The beliefs of the so-called leader of them all didn''t really matter for Joseph since he already knew the attitude of the man whom they called as their leader. After all, he had seen him in an interview as the representative of the Pro-NPC Alliance a few days ago.


    Mervin stared at Joseph.


    An amused smile surfaced on his lips.


    "Interesting... Very well, I will tell you what really is the reason why I joined this operation."


    "I only came here with good intentions. I am biased towards the NPCs since my beloved wife is an NPC herself..."


    "If I have any ill intent..."


    "May the punishment of the Divine Goddess Rhinna herself, descend upon me and obliterate my soul to oblivion..."


    Everyone was greatly shocked by what they heard. But Mervin wasn''t finished yet.


    "Don''t misunderstand, we are not as altruistic as you think."


    Mervin''s cryptic words further deepened Joseph''s astonishment.


    But this didn''t stop him from saying...


    "You madman... I was just asking for a proper reason, yet you instantly made an Unbreakable Oath."


    Joseph chuckled.


    He swept his gaze at the others, and of course...


    They also swore the same.


    However, even after everyone made an Unbreakable Oath on proving their sincerity.


    Joseph still had a frown on his face, and he couldn''t help but ask.


    "There''s something that I still don''t understand..."


    "What is it?" The man referred by everyone as their leader replied.


    "If the Pro-NPC Alliance helped a fugitive like me. Isn''t that considered a felony? Won''t all of you get into trouble? I really can''t understand why all of you guys are being this nice to Alice and me."


    Joseph revealed a confused look on his face.


    "Hahaha, about that? Well, you don''t really have to worry about the Pro-NPC Alliance."


    "Why? What would happen to the other members of the Alliance if the Alliance was found to have helped a fugitive escape the Kingdom?"


    "You really don''t have to worry about that... After all, every member of the Pro-NPC Alliance is already here."


    "Here? Where?" Joseph swept his gaze around him, and apart from the other yers and NPCs in the area. There weren''t really any other people around that could be considered as members of the Alliance apart from these people that came with the one they referred to as their leader.


    "Them... The Alliance only has twelve members... So like I said, you didn''t have to worry about anything. Just let us assist you in your escape from Reinhardt... And don''t ever underestimate us! Each one of us here, including myself are within the top 50 of the Universal Rankings!"


    "The Alliance only has twelve members? Hahaha... I see..." Joseph didn''t react too much about what the man said regarding the Universal Rankings for he didn''t really know anything about it. He only glossed over it before he replied to the man.


    "I thank you for your help, sir. But may I ask if you are named as Jun Santos? I saw you once in an interview."


    The man lightly chuckled: "So you already knew about my name? Then, this will be short..." A smile appeared on the man''s lips as he exined the intricacies of the n that the Pro-NPC Alliance made to aide the escape of him and Alice.

 Chapter 85: Do you Dare?

    Chapter 85: Do you Dare?


    The escape of the condemned Krid and the betrayal of an Inquisitor from the Underground Penitentiary caused so much trouble that the entire Reinhardt was now in the state of a lockdown.


    Near the revival point of all yers from Reinhardt...


    A man d in red slowly materialized.


    When his eyes snapped open, deep-seated anger could be seen within his eyes as he opened his Main Menu and messaged a certain someone.


    [The yer you are trying to contact is currently unreachable or offline. Please try againter.]


    "Shit, shit, shit! That bitch! Where is she?!" dimir angrily mumbled.


    A sh of light urred behind him, but he paid no heed to it as he repeatedly typed in some words within his Main Menu.


    [The yer you are trying to contact is currently unreachable or offline. Please try againter.]


    "Ahhh... Fuck! Where is that bitch at! We clearly had a deal, yet she didn''t deliver! I swear that I''m going to have her pay a price for disobeying me and causing such a headache!"


    dimir violently cursed.


    "Oh, you''re using me of not doing anything? Is that it?" A cold and feminine voice rang out from behind him and dimir swiftly turned around.


    There, he found the yer whom he was looking for.


    The yer that was known by everyone as the Bloodstained Lilium.


    "So, there you are!" dimir fiercely turned around and he was greeted with the sight of Lilium staring at him with a cold expression on her face.


    "You are using me of not doing anything?" She raised an eyebrow and asked.


    "That''s right! Just where did you go when I needed you the most? I don''t think that you really did follow the knights of the Kingdom towards the Forbidden Region, right? Knowing you, you''d probably find it too hectic to follow them." dimir replied.


    "That''s true. I didn''t follow them. In fact, I stayed and helped you." Lilium coldly said.


    "You helped me? Wow... You did? Hahaha, what a joke! If you really did help me then that bastard wouldn''t have been able to escape from my hands!"


    Lilium stared at him for a moment.


    After a moment of silence, she replied: "And why do you think did I appear from the Revival Point? I did the end of our deal, but unfortunately... I failed."


    "Oh? So you''re admitting that you''re useless?" dimir taunted.


    "Useless? Hahaha, you''re the one that''s the joke here. If you''re really that capable, shouldn''t you be able to do everything that you wanted to do? Why would you even enlist my help?" Lilium mockingly replied.


    Anger shed on dimir''s face, but before he could even erupt.


    Lilium continued on speaking.


    "How about you tell me about how you died?"


    Astonishment shed on dimir''s face.


    "How did you know that I died?"


    "Have you gone senile? Didn''t you also appear from the Revival Point?"


    "Ah, that''s right..."


    "Please don''t act so stupid... Aren''t you the Guild Leader of the Crimson Guild?"


    "Say that one more time, and I will definitely punch you in the face, even if you''re a woman!"


    "Hmmph, do you even dare? You might be the Guild Leader of a formidable guild, but considering that you know about my identity. I don''t think that you would do something stupid such as falling out against me, right? dimir..."


    "..." dimir was rendered speechless amidst his fury.


    Suppressing his anger by taking several mouthfuls of deep breaths.


    dimir stared right at Lilium and said.


    "It turned out that we were right. That yer that I talked to you about yesterday really was a yer that acquired a quest from that old cksmith."


    "That yer? What do you mean?"


    "What is wrong with you? Didn''t you see that yer interrupt the execution too? Come to think about it, I didn''t see you around when the execution was about to happen earlier. Just where did you go?"


    Lilium merely stared at him and didn''t answer. But it was clear that even though Lilium was renowned for being a ruthless yer.


    She still wasn''t sofortable witnessing a cruel scene such as a public execution. Though, this was somewhat contradictory for she didn''t mind gore or violence, so as long as it happened in the middle of a battle.


    "Okay, fine. I''m not going to ask about that anymore, all right? But here''s the deal. That yer who was probably an Inquisitor of the Underground Penitentiary... I encountered that guy earlier."


    "We fought, but unexpectedly... I lost."


    "You lost?" Lilium looked like she couldn''t believe what she was hearing.


    Even though dimir may sometimes be stupid, and he often let his emotions control him.


    He was still the number one Grappler within the world of Victory.


    His skills were the real deal, and even Lilium herself knew that she would probably not win against him in a one-on-one battle.


    Yet, that so-called Inquisitor from the Underground Penitentiary won against this number one Grappler?


    "Just how did you lose?" Lilium asked in an incredulous manner.


    It was clear that she couldn''t believe what she heard from dimir and wanted further confirmation from him if it really was the truth or not.


    A helpless expression appeared on dimir''s face as he replied: "I lost because I couldn''t... I couldn''t catch him..."


    Lilium raised an eyebrow, disbelief shed on her face as she said: "You couldn''t catch him? What a joke!"


    "You''re the number one Grappler! I reckon that only those within the top five of the Universal Rankings can defeat you in a one on one battle, yet you''re saying that a random yer defeated you because you couldn''t catch him? Are you trying to fool me? I''m not stupid!"


    Hearing Lilium''s reply, an indignant expression surfaced on dimir''s face: "I really am telling you the truth! I didn''t lose because I was weaker than him! In fact, he''s the one that''s vastly weaker than me! I only lost because I couldn''t catch him!"


    He tried on rationalizing the reasons why he lost, but he was met with a burst of cold mockingughter from Lilium.


    "Hahaha... This is really too funny. The number one Grappler lost because he couldn''t catch his enemy? Hahaha, this is the first time in ages that I heard such a hrious joke!"


    dimir raised an eyebrow and replied: "If you''re not going to believe me, then fine. But you must not mock me. A man may be defeated but never humiliated. Do not go too far, Lilium. You may be a woman, but you know that I do not hesitate against my enemies, right?"


    Lilium stared at him for a moment before she chuckled and said: "That is indeed the case, but I am curious..."


    "Just how did you really lose? The number one Grappler losing against an enemy because he couldn''t catch him really isn''t a viable reason to say, right? If that''s the case then you shouldn''t even be called the number one Grappler in the first ce."


    dimir revealed an expression that looked like he was about to cry.


    But knowing that Lilium would probably not believe him if he exined even further.


    He couldn''t do anything other than keep his exnations to himself.


    "How about you? You also came from that Revival Point, right? Just how did you die?"


    "I fought against the disciple of the Legendary cksmith and died." Lilium simply said.


    dimir looked doubtful: "You fought against the disciple of that old cksmith, and you died? Wait, how did you even find the disciple of that old cksmith when you weren''t even there when the execution was about to happen? And also, why did you not report that information to me?"


    A menacing aura escaped from dimir''s body as he stared at Lilium with a serious expression on his face...


    But Lilium remained steadfast in the face of such pressure.


    She also stared coldly at him and said: "Does that even matter at this point in time? I actually didn''t know what the disciple of the Legendary cksmith looked like..."


    "All I knew was that she was a woman. I just took a risk at that time after seeing that she was the only NPC within the area when every resident were within their houses, refusing toe out."


    dimir revealed a sly smile: "Did that risk of yours, paid off?"


    Lilium coldlyughed, "Paid off? Didn''t you see that I died?"


    "Yeah right, hahaha."


    "Look at youughing at me... At least, I died under the hands of a powerful NPC."


    "But you? The number one Grappler actually died under the hands of a yer with the reasoning that he couldn''t catch him? You''re more of a joke than me!"


    dimir red at the young woman who was known as the Bloodstained Lilium.


    He didn''t know what to say. Because what she said was the truth, but her words were incredibly vicious for they directly targeted dimir''s pride as the number one Grappler.


    But of course, he knew that this wasn''t the right time to argue.


    Right now, they must do what must be done and pursue their targets.


    "You, stay with me and follow my orders. If you still want to get paid then don''t do anything arbitrarily! Consult me first before doing something!" dimir fiercely ordered and a mocking smile emerged on Lilium''s lips.


    "Well, fine. If that is what you want. Then? What should we do now? Although I am sure that they''re still not anywhere near the Eastern Gate of Reinhardt. I don''t think that we can easily find them with the sheer size of this City." Lilium shrugged and dimir turned to look at him with a frown.


    "Did you even read your system notifications? It describes the marker of the Capture Order as bright orange and always floating on top of that person''s head. Such an eye-catching marker should be easy for us to see, what do you think?"


    Lilium didn''t reply to what dimir was saying.


    Instead, she opened up her Main Menu and skimmed through the updated contents of the Kingdom-wide Quest.


    "This will be annoying... The quest is saying that we must not damage even a strand of that woman''s hair..." A cold expression appeared on Lilium''s face.


    She was apparently unhappy due to the addition of such a rule.


    dimir nodded his head and replied: "That will indeed be too hard. But she''s just a woman. I don''t think that it will be easy for her to escape if the entire Crimson Guild is surrounding her..."


    "Even if we cannot really do anything against her, we can just iste her and she will be forced to surrender eventually..."


    Lilium nodded her head.


    What dimir said made sense so she didn''t refute his words.


    After a moment of silence, she emerged from her contemtion and was about to speak to dimir when thetter suddenly cursed out loud.


    His fingers that repeatedly tapped on the air made it clear that she was chatting with someone else.


    "Fucking hell! Those creepy bastards from the Pro-NPC Alliance. Are they nning on rebelling? The King himself had ordered amunity lockdown within the City of Reinhardt, yet they are trying to exit the Capital? They really are provoking my anger!"


    "The Pro-NPC Alliance?" Lilium had a faint idea about that particr alliance. But before she could think about it...


    dimir turned to look at her and said.


    "Follow me, let''s see if those bastards dare to disobey the Crimson Guild with me right there!" He then leaped towards a nearby roof and proceeded to run his way towards the direction of the Eastern Gate.


    Lilium soon followed after.


    When they arrived at the scene, what weed them was a fierce scream of fury and anger.


    "Do you bastards dare open up that carriage? The honorable person inside the carriage is a Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven!"


    "Knowing that fact, do you bastards dare?!"

 Chapter 86: Hot Pursuit

    Chapter 86: Hot Pursuit


    "I''ve been wanting to tell you this the whole time, but you do know that you are only wearing your underwear right now, right?"


    The woman who spoke was Vanessa, the wife of the representative of the Pro-NPC Alliance that Joseph saw back then within the television, Jun Santos.


    "Uh..."


    Joseph scratched his head in embarrassment when he realized that he was indeed wearing nothing but his underwear.


    "Well, no worries. I''ve seen enough of that thing and I don''t think that you can defeat my husband in that department."


    Vanessa ambiguously said as she chuckled.


    A shiver ran down Joseph''s spine as he hurriedly covered hisher regions with both of his hands.


    "But still, the Kingdom really went too far this time... I can''t understand how did they get the courage to actually kidnap the disciple of a Legend."


    "They really are too bold... Thankfully, nothing happened to his disciple or else we might witness the end of a Kingdom..." Vanessa lightly chuckled at the end of his sentence.


    "The end of a Kingdom?"


    "Yes... Legends are called Legends for a reason. They are incredibly scary when they are angry..."


    "They are scary when they are angry? You''ve seen the anger of a Legend before?" Joseph asked in doubt.


    Vanessa turned to look at him and smacked his shoulder: "Surely, you jest? Of course, I haven''t! Though I did read several historical publications that described the might of an angry Legend."


    "Oh? Can you describe it for me?" Joseph''s interest was piqued.


    Vanessa stared at him for a moment before she chuckled: "I am not usually this friendly to strangers. But since you helped people like us in such a sincere manner to the extent that you''d risk bing a traitor of the Kingdom of Nether, I can say that you really are a good man..."


    "But... I think it''s far better for you to read about how strong Legends really are instead of me telling you about it. After all, I am not really that good and Ick the ability to tell apelling narrative." A wry smile escaped Vanessa''s lips and Joseph turned to look at her with a light smile.


    "Is one of your dreams include being a writer, ma''am?"


    Vanessa chuckled, "Leave out the ma''am. Just call me Vanessa, I hate that kind of pleasantries, you know?"


    Joseph nodded: "Well if you say so..."


    Vanessa smiled and she continued: "Yeah, to tell you the truth. My dream really wasn''t to be a wandering vagrant like this with Jun. I always wanted to be a writer. But sadly, I trulyck the creative imagination necessary to make apelling enough narrative. In other words, I''m a bad writer."


    Joseph inwardly sighed.


    Complicated emotions shed on his face...


    Earlier in his life, there existed some days when he dreamt of bing something, or someone. But unfortunately, reality gave him a harsh p on his face.


    With the death of his parents, he found himself unable to aplish most of his dreams.


    However...


    "But are you giving up, Vanessa?" Joseph smiled.


    Vanessa stared at him for a moment before she revealed a wide smile.


    "Of course not! I''m not giving up! Even now, I''m still writing as a hobby! Do you want to take a look at what I have written?"


    Joseph chuckled in response to Vanessa''s answer, "Oh, you''re still writing? Hehe, let me take a look."


    Vanessa nodded and she was about to take some things out inside the hiddenpartment of the carriage when suddenly...


    A fierce voice reverberated outside, and the carriage was harshly stopped...


    Almost sending the unconscious Alice rolling downwards if not for Joseph''s quick response of stopping her in time.


    "Do you bastards dare open up that carriage? The honorable person inside the carriage is a Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven!"


    "Knowing that, do you bastards dare?!"


    Jun Santos''s angrily screamed.


    The yers of Crimson stopped in their tracks.


    They were stunned by what they had heard...


    ''The Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven?''


    If what Jun Santos said was true, it would really be bad if they did offend her!


    After all, the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven was a well-known spoiled brat, they wanted anything other than offend her lest they die not knowing how they died!


    "Inside the carriage is the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven?" dimir asked in doubt.


    "Yes, that is right! Knowing that fact, do you still dare on forcefully opening the carriage and stopping us here?!" Jun Santos replied.


    This time, a feminine voice spoke up and replied: "How could the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven be here?"


    "You''re clearly lying! Open that carriage up!" Hearing what she said, Joseph who was in the carriage took out his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty in preparation for a battle.


    "So you are saying that I am lying? Bloodstained Lilium? Okay, fine! Go ahead, open that carriage up. If you think that you can endure the consequences of offending the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven, then feel free to do so!"


    Jun Santos crossed his arms in front of his chest. Hisrades behind him revealed confident and mocking smiles on their faces.


    Witnessing their confidence, Lilium and dimir couldn''t help but falter.


    Thetter swept his gaze at the unassuming carriage and found it ridiculous that the Princess of such a prosperous Kingdom would use such a dpidated carriage.


    But...


    It really does make sense that the spoiled Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven would use such a carriage. After all, she was known to be a tiger that often acted like a pig to eat the wolf.


    There was even one incidence when a particr yer offended her. In return, that yer got imprisoned for at least three months.


    Crippling his ability to keep up with his peers and in return, that yer who was a member of a powerful guild within the Kingdom of Burning Heaven got kicked out of the guild, and even now. It was unknown whether that person was still ying Victory or not.


    Knowing that.


    dimir didn''t really know if he could handle the anger of such a spoiled Princess.


    However...


    ''Fuck it, I can just say that I am only following the orders of Duke Heathrow. If I make him as my scapegoat, there''s no way that the Princess could prosecute me if it really is true that she''s in there...''


    dimir swept his gaze at the smiling members of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    Afterwards, he signaled to the members of the Crimson Guild who then moved and slowly surrounded the yers from the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    It was clear what their stance was...


    If it was found that the Pro-NPC Alliance was lying...


    Then, an all-out war could ur here!


    The yers who had nothing to do with both sides slowly crept away from the vicinity. No one had the intention of getting caught up on the crossfire between the two.


    dimir and Lilium slowly walked towards the carriage. The other yers of Crimson readied their weapons, while the yers from the Pro-NPC Alliance couldn''t help but shiver.


    Although the smile on their faces remained confident...


    The sweat that drenched their backs made it clear what they were feeling.


    "Sa tibuok kalibutan... w nay pinakagwapo... ang st ra''y pinakagwapo diri..." Vanessa chanted.


    Magical runes surrounded her and the aura of frost emanating from her body decreased the temperature inside the carriage.


    Joseph stared nervously at the door.


    Amidst this silence, he could hear footsteps slowly approaching the carriage. And it was clear that those footsteps didn''te from friendlies, instead.


    They originated from their enemies...


    "Point..." Joseph whispered.


    A barely imperceptible brilliance materialized at the tip of his Rapier.


    As the footsteps approached the carriage...


    Joseph predicted that his attack would be ready by the time that his enemies opened the doors of the carriage.


    The standstill soon reached a crescendo. Only to be suddenly interrupted by a desperate scream.


    "Sir, stop! Stooop!"


    Everyone jolted when they heard the scream.


    dimir frowned and turned to look at the person who screamed.


    "What?"


    The name "Crimson" floating above the head of that person made it clear that he was a member of the Crimson Guild.


    But that wasn''t the point here. What''s important was the message that he carried with him.


    "Sir! I confirmed that the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven was discovered to be missing for about several days already! There''s a huge chance that she may have sneaked out of the Kingdom to witness the execution of the Legendary cksmith!"


    His words astonished everyone, including those from the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    Particrly Jun Santos who inwardly screamed, "What the fuck?! Such a good coincidence can exist in this world?!"


    But of course, on the outside. He maintained a calm andposed facade.


    But right now, after hearing what the yer had said...


    He turned to look at dimir and Lilium.


    "Are the two of you convinced now? Or the two of you still want to offend the Princess?" A challenging smile appeared on his lips.


    dimir''s eyes narrowed into slits. Lilium''s expression turned cold.


    But in the end...


    The two could do nothing other than permit the passage of the Pro-NPC Alliance towards the exit of the Capital City, Reinhardt.


    The procession of the Pro-NPC Alliance continued, but before Jun Santos could leave...


    He advised both dimir and Lilium.


    "It''s good that both of you didn''t forcefully open that carriage. Else, once this Kingdom is destroyed by that Legend as revenge. The two of you may not have a ce in this world anymore..."


    "Thankfully, both of you aren''t that dumb." He chuckled at the end of his sentence before turning to look ahead, not even ncing at dimir and Lilium anymore.


    dimir red at Jun Santos.


    Lilium''s face now looked as cold as a thousand-year-old icy cavern.


    These two looked like they wanted to teach Jun Santos a lesson. But knowing their priorities, it was far better for them not to go into conflict with other forces...


    Particrly the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    After all, even though their so-called Alliance only had a few members.


    All of their members were within the Top 50 of the Universal Rankings.


    It wasn''t wise to offend them this time.


    "I will remember this..." The two inwardly swore before disappearing from the vicinity. They were too embarrassed to stay for they felt that their faces were directly pped and smeared with dirt by the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    Meanwhile within the carriage...


    Noticing that their journey had continued without a hitch.


    Joseph heaved a huge sigh of relief.


    Even Vanessa wore a light smile on her face as she terminated her prepared spells.


    Afterwards, she turned to look at Joseph and said.


    "We really were lucky. If a battle happened while we''re still within the Capital, what we have done for you would be in vain and we wouldn''t be able to achieve anything before being branded as a traitor of the Kingdom."


    Traces of fear and anxiousness could be seen on Vanessa''s face and Joseph couldn''t help but bitterly smile when he saw it.


    "I must really thank the Pro-NPC Alliance for their help. It is rare that such a strong organization has such a sense of altruism." Joseph sped his hands together and gave his sincere thanks.


    Vanessa blinked at him and said: "Is it weird?"


    Joseph honestly replied: "Yeah, it is weird."


    Joseph didn''t know how he would describe the actions of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    It was becausean organization needed a ce for their base, in other words...


    A headquarters.


    The Kingdom of Nether could be considered as a popr headquarters for all sorts of guilds, but what the Alliance did was basically betraying the Kingdom.


    By helping a traitor like Joseph, they would most certainly be branded as traitors themselves and in return...


    Losing their foothold within the Kingdom.


    "You don''t have to worry. All of us here have no ill intentions towards you nor towards this young woman. But you can also say that if not for this young woman, we wouldn''t even help you in the first ce..."


    Joseph nodded his head and smiled: "The Pro-NPC Alliance is really kind..."


    Vanessa merely smiled at what he said before she replied:"The Pro-NPC Alliance isn''t as altruistic as you think. If we didn''t have the intention of leaving this Kingdom in the first ce. I don''t think that we would''ve helped you escape from this ce..."


    "Even though we are the protectors of NPCs such as myself. The reward is too low in contrast to the punishment of being branded as traitors."


    Joseph frowned, not because of what she said, but because of the fact that Vanessa recognized that she was an NPC.


    But Vanessa misunderstood his frown as she said: "Don''t be too disappointed at us. It''s not like we are not willing to help NPCs such as myself, but we are not stupid..."


    "If we think that helping a particr NPC is extremely dangerous to our well-being, we would think twice about helping that NPC. After all, you can only help someone if you are safe yourself..."


    Joseph nodded in understanding.


    What she was saying was basically the same as when the oxygen masks in airnes dropped.


    You must wear them yourself first before you helped someone wear their own oxygen mask.


    In other words, one must prioritize their own safety before the safety of others.


    He didn''t n on criticizing them for that.


    But what intrigued Joseph was the fact that Vanessa seemed to be self-aware that she was an NPC.


    But before he could even ask anything about it...


    Joseph realized that Vanessa was a master of short talks. He was too entertained with what they were talking about to the extent that Joseph even forgot the concept of time.


    By the time that their conversation was done.


    The sun was now hidden, reced by the unsettling darkness of the night.


    Vanessa excused herself and took a nap by leaning on the walls of the carriage.


    In contrast to Vanessa''s exhaustion, Joseph looked lively.


    Amazement could still be seen on his face...


    Earlier, he confirmed out that every yer of the Pro-NPC Alliance was really married to an NPC.


    "So a yer could actually marry an NPC? I thought that Mervin, that guy was just lying!"


    "But what about having kids? Could a yer have a kid with an NPC? Wait, I remember that Michael poking fun at Eagie saying something along the lines of having a kid or something... Hmm... This is interesting."


    Joseph looked like he was deeply thinking about something. But he was actually just imagining scenes that would probably not happen to him.


    But oh well, what''s the harm of dreaming about something? Joseph thought to himself. He then proceeded on nkly staring ahead of him, fantasizing...


    But while he was in the middle of his fantasies...


    Bang!


    An explosion rang out, shaking the entire carriage and forcefully awakening Joseph from his trance.


    Joseph hurriedly held the unconscious Alice in ce, while Vanessa directly had her head mmed on the walls of the carriage.


    She awakened from her sleep due to the pain and anger could be seen on her face.


    But before she couldin.


    A fierce voice reverberated just outside the carriage...


    "Enemy attack!"


    ... alerting everyone about the presence of enemies.

 Chapter 87: A Battle Deep in the Night

    Chapter 87: A Battle Deep in the Night


    Witnessing the exit of the Pro-NPC Alliance from the Capital City, Reinhardt. Lilium couldn''t help but speak up towards dimir who had a serious expression on his face.


    "Are you just nning on letting them go like that?"


    The clear mocking within Lilium''s voice irritated dimir.


    He wanted to snap back at her and retort, but he knew that everything that he would say towards her at his point in time would clearly be just ying the lute to a cow.


    After all, he was already humiliated and nothing could turn back time.


    "Do you really think that I can afford to offend the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven?"


    "Oh? I thought that you nned on using Duke Heathrow as your scapegoat?"


    "You noticed?" dimir turned to look at her in shock.


    "It was pretty obvious. The excitement on your face when you decided on doing that earlier made it obvious that you nned on making Duke Heathrow as your scapegoat. I say that it was a pretty good n, but I''m curious as to why you didn''t do it in the end..." Lilium stared meaningfully at him.


    dimir sighed, "There''s not really any deep meaning as to why I didn''t proceed with that n..."


    "It''s just that... When I heard that the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven was really missing..."


    "Based on her character, it would make sense for her toe to this ce without telling anybody..."


    "So in other words, you were afraid?" Lilium revealed a mocking smile.


    dimir stared at Lilium but he didn''t say anything.


    He realized that reying was the same as applying salt on his wounds.


    Earlier, dimir wanted to use Duke Heathrow as his scapegoat due to the fact that he wasn''t really that sure if the Princess of the Burning Heaven was really within the carriage.


    After all, although it did make sense that the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven would sneak out of the Kingdom and attend the execution of a Legend without asking any permissions from the Kingdom itself.


    It didn''t make sense for the Princess to enlist the help of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    Why?


    Well, it was because, in the current phase of the game, NPCs possessed far greater strength than yers.


    It didn''t make sense for the Princess to ask for the help of the Pro-NPC Alliance when she had stronger allies... Or NPCs in her disposal.


    That was the reason why dimir acted so confidently at that time.


    "Hmmph... Think what you want to think, I don''t have the obligation to exin to you everything that I want to do. Remember that you are nothing but a mere employee. I am your employer, so you do not have the right to question me." dimir coldly replied.


    Lilium was taken aback by dimir''s reply.


    Her eyes radiated a dangerous glint as she stared right at dimir.


    But before she could even say anything.


    A voice came from afar.


    "Boss! They tricked us!"


    When the voice reached the ears of dimir and Lilium. They turned to look at the yer who shouted with frowns on their faces.


    "What are you saying?"


    "Those bastards from the Pro-NPC Alliance tricked us!"


    The yer who brought the message had the name of the guild Crimson on top of his head, so dimir knew that he was trustworthy.


    But the news that he had with him deepened the frown on dimir''s face.


    "Exin yourself!" He scolded.


    "It''s like this boss... Those bastards from the Pro-NPC Alliance tricked us into believing that they were escorting the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven!"


    "What are you talking about? Aren''t you the one that reported to us earlier that the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven did leave the Kingdom?" Lilium interjected a cold expression could be seen on her face, "Could it be that you''re a spy from the other two guilds?!"


    Her words astonished dimir, but when he saw the panic and frustration on the yer''s face.


    He stretched his hand out and said: "Don''t casually jump into conclusions, Lilium. As for you, exin to us properly about how those bastards tricked us..." He acted calm at the beginning of his sentence, but at the end.


    Traces of his anger could be felt...


    "Well... It''s like this, sir... It''s true that the Princess left the Kingdom, but instead of going to the Kingdom of Nether. She went to the Kingdom of Absolute Frost, so she could secretly meet-up with her friend for the uing Festival of the Icy Spring!" The yer promptly exined.


    The Festival of the Icy Spring was a celebration exclusive only for the people of the Kingdom of Absolute Frost.


    When the festival happened, the residents of the Kingdom would create numerous icy sculptures that aligned with the theme of "Spring" that they would parade throughout the entire Kingdom.


    This celebration onlysted for a few days. Not only that, it only happened once every three years, so it did make sense for the Princess of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven to do such a thing so that she could participate in such a rare happening.


    "Hehehe..." dimir chuckled, yet his expression remained cold and indifferent.


    "It''s been such a long time since we, the Crimson Guild has been bullied like this..." An evil smile surfaced on his lips and he stared right at the yer before sending his orders.


    "yers of the Crimson Guild! Heed my orders... Tonight, we shall ughter the bastards from the Pro-NPC Alliance! We and those bastards cannot live under the same sky anymore!"


    Hismands astonished everyone from the Crimson Guild.


    But after a few moments of shock, they recovered and started marching towards the direction of the Forbidden Region.


    Soon, enough. They finally found the carriage of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    And from the looks of it, a battle was sure to happen sincethe yers of the Pro-NPC Alliance already noticed their presence.


    "Damn, so those bastards finally found out that we tricked them? Took them long enough!" Michael d in the silvery-armor of a Knight said with clear contempt in his voice.


    "Hearing you say that makes me feel like you wanted them to pursue us in the first ce." Braum, a buff man who looked to be the brother figure of them all but was actually the youngest said in a joking manner.


    "Of course! Why would I not want them toe for us?"


    "The Crimson Guild is only a guild that''s strong within the Kingdom of Nether. Although they may have a lot of members. I don''t think that they can surpass us when ites to the quality of our members! The Pro-NPC Alliance is still stronger!" Michael retorted.


    He then turned to look at the silent young woman beside Braum who felt like she had no presence at all. In fact, if you didn''t stare at her then it would be doubtful if you could even feel her presence.


    Herck of presence wasparable to Tetsuya but with steroids.


    "Xueyue, why are you not talking?"


    "It''s unlike you to not poke fun at your husband in moments like this!"


    Xueyue, the fairdy in question merely shrugged and didn''t reply.


    "Hmmph... Ignoring me?" Michael rolled his eyes.


    "Dear, everyone''s already preparing for battle. Can you stop for now and focus on the iing fight?" Kylyn, who was Michael''s wife said in a soft voice.


    "If you say so, my dear~ Then, I will shut up. Thankfully, these bastards areing for us and I can finally release some stress!" Michael stretched his entire body. His movements made his full-body armor collide against each other, causing a nging sound to reverberate in the area.


    "Mervin, Estimated Time of Arrival?" Jun turned to look at Mervin who then swept his gaze at the iing enemies.


    "About three minutes. Tangos are at least at several dozens in number."


    Jun nodded his head, "Just like in the simtions; Squad Alpha will have me, Vanessa, Pa, and Eagie as members."


    "Squad Bravo will have Bernard, Rexie, Kylyn, and Michael. While Squad Charlie will have Xueyue, Braum, Laica, and Mervin."


    "Our Off Tank will still be Eagie, Main Tank is Michael, the Main Damager will be me, Kylyn, and Vanessa. The others should rotate their skills in order while keeping cooldowns in check. As for keeping an eye to our supplies..." Jun turned to look at the bbergasted Joseph.


    "Can I trust you with our supplies?"


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at the boxes filled with Health Potions and Mana Potions beside the carriage.


    "Okay, let me handle it."


    His positive reply elicited a smile from Jun who then turned to look at hisrade and said.


    "Everyone, just do everything ording to the simtions and I don''t think that we''re going to lose against these bastards from the Crimson Guild!" Jun Santos dered and everyone solemnly nodded their heads.


    Even Michael who normally had a joking expression on his face now had a serious look.


    Joseph was entranced by how the Pro-NPC Alliance organized themselves for an uing battle.


    He couldn''t help but admire them and think to himself.


    <em>So this is how the pros do their job? Damn, too awesome!</em>


    He inwardly eximed.


    But then a bitter smile emerged on his lips.


    Goddamned it, if not for Alice then I could''ve joined this battle and gained some experience for myself...


    Hepletely forgot the fact that he was still at Level 15 and his enemies had levels of at least Level 100 and above.


    It could be said that Joseph becamecent against yers due to the fact that he defeated the Number One Grappler by relying on the Slippery Skin Buff that he acquired from the Divine Goddess Rhinna.


    "I guess I should just do my job..."


    Joseph moved outside and guarded the doors of the carriage where Alice peacefully slept.


    The expression on his face indicated that if a hostile person dared to approach him, he would not hesitate to kill!


    "3-3-3 Strategy... Charlie, annihte their healers. Bravo, support Charlie. Alpha, ensure safe perimeter around the carriage. Assassin of the... Night, mow down any stragglers." Jun Santos gave hismands and hisrades then moved ording to his orders.


    His orders were short and straightforward, although when he reached the end of his sentence, it was clear that he was hesitating on saying the words "Assassin of the Night.".


    Though, in the end...


    He managed onpleting his sentence.


    "This is Squad Charlie and Bravo, clear copy. Orderpletion in progress..." Xueyue took the lead, rushing towards the direction of the Healers that the Crimson Guild segmented based on the 3-3-3 Strategy.


    Her two daggers glistened dangerously as her eyes turned cold and narrowed into slits.


    The 3-3-3 Strategy involved segmenting a crowd of yers with clear roles and duties into three different squads or segments.


    Each segment had a definite leader, so this separation made sense when it came to the chain ofmand in the middle of battle.


    It was an excellent strategy and frequently employed in raids against BOSSes since yers could easily rotate their skill cooldowns with theirrade''s.


    The confusion that often happened when a huge crowd of yers only had a single leader, didn''t happen if one employed this strategy.


    But...


    "Those fools... Employing such a strategy that everyone knows about can be considered as a good move. However, using that kind of a strategy against your fellow yers? This dimir bastard really had gone senile..."


    A slender-framed young man carrying an AX-50 Sniper Rifle on his shoulder swept his gaze across the battlefield.


    After making sure that he was in a good spot...


    He then replied to Jun Santos''s orders.


    "This is Assassin of the Night, good copy. I''ll handle and eliminate every single straggler from the ranks of these fools with my beloved AX-50... Devourer of the Void."


    "Ah..."


    "My blood boils!"<ol><li>Ghost in the Gym, Basketball Anime.</li><li>A tank that helps take pressure off the main tank.</li><li>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/uracy_International_AX50</li></ol>

 Chapter 88: A Battle Deep in the Night[2]

    Chapter 88: A Battle Deep in the Night[2]


    A system notification appeared in front of Joseph.


    He opened it and saw a message from Jun Santos which made him frown in seriousness.


    "So that is their n..." Joseph closed the message and deeply sighed. Taking a sidelong nce at the peacefully sleeping Alice.


    He couldn''t help but think that it was really blissful to be ignorant.


    Alice could only remain like this due to the fact that she didn''t know about what was happening in the world outside of her dreams.


    "I do hope that I could sleep as peacefully as her in the future..." Joseph thought to himself.


    Ever since his parents vanished from this world, he couldn''t remember when was thest time that he had a good night''s sleep.


    The daunting debt that he had and the looming threat of homelessness made him unable to catch a decent sleep back then.


    Although he already managed on paying his debt, the scars that they left would forever remain in his heart, and they always haunted him from time to time, sending shivers down his spine whenever they reminded him of the what-ifs.


    What if I didn''t manage to win at the Festival of Battles?


    What if I didn''t have enough money to buy a Gaming Capsule?


    What if I didn''t convince those bastards to give me some time before they repossess the house?


    These what-ifs terrified Joseph from time to time. Thankfully, he had paid all of his debts already.


    But Joseph swore that after he paid Lily. He would never take on any debt again.


    "Sigh... Let''s just focus on the task at hand." Joseph shrugged and emerged from his contemtion.


    Taking his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty. He stood there and protected the boxes of supplies that Jun Santos tasked him to protect.


    The ongoing massacre on the battlefield was chaotic.


    The Pro-NPC Alliance moved without faltering, avoiding attacks that they could avoid.


    However, due to the sheer number of attacks flying towards them.


    Some attacks managed on slipping through their evasive measures, dealing damage onto them.


    "Heartbeat of Nature." Rexie, the Priestess of the team ced both of her palms together and a divine light spread from her location which covered each and every teammate around her.


    The skill, Heartbeat of Nature gave percentage-based healing that automatically healed anyone affected by it every three seconds.


    It was a powerful healing skill.


    It shouldn''t be wasted, yet Rexie didn''t hesitate on using it this early in the fight.


    Why?


    Well, it was because her support was necessary so that the team could approach the enemies without incurring heavy losses towards their Health Bars.


    And also...


    Even though herrades were decent at dodging, they weren''t omnipotent and it was impossible for them to dodge every single attack.


    "Stop them!" dimir cried out.


    The mages responded and they all tried to predict the movements of the Pro-NPC Alliance, but unexpectedly...


    The Pro-NPC Alliance changed their movements...


    They separated into three squads that went on their way for the sake of their own objectives.


    Squad Alpha went straight and met their enemies, Squad Bravo turned right, while Squad Charlie turned left... Towards the direction of the healers, bringing their thick killing intent with them.


    "Lilium! Intercept those bastards that dare harm our healers!" dimir saw what was happening and a smile appeared on his lips.


    The 3-3-3 strategy that he employed was a strategy that could easily be countered due to everyone''s familiarity with it.


    But using such amon strategy also meant that dimir could predict the actions of his enemies, and right now. He did manage on predicting the actions of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    And of course, he had prepared his own n against their ns.


    "Emily! Guard the healers with Lilium!" dimir made a sidelong nce at a particrly petite young woman d in a one-piece dress with matching knee socks.


    "Yes, sir."


    Emily replied, and she then proceeded to aide the healers who were now under the attacks of Xueyue, whose ss specialized in close-quarterbats and assassination.


    For Xueyue, killing these squishy healers was considered as a piece of cake.


    "Stinger of the Night." Xueyue coldly spat, her figure briefly vanished before reappearing right beside a healer who didn''t even manage to scream before he died.


    She then swept her gaze in the area, and when she found that the healers were trying their best on scattering.


    She turned to look at Laica and said: "Laica, don''t let them escape."


    Laica chuckled: "You didn''t have to tell me that, Yue." She raised her hand and pointed her staff at the center of the scattering healers and said, "Mystical Mist."


    A magic circle appeared in the midst of all the healers.


    "Interrupt her!" The healers turned to look at Laica and started chanting.


    They stopped their escape for they knew that once Laicapleted the necessary chant for the activation of the Mystical Mist. It was impossible for them to escape anyway. Due to that, the highest priority for them right now was to interrupt her chanting.


    "Like I''d let you!" A burly man descended from the skies.


    He was Braum, the brother-figure of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    His imposing half-naked figure astounded everyone.


    A solemn expression was stered on his face as he raised both of his hands, ced them on the side of his head and then...


    He started dancing...


    "What the fuck?! What is he doing? Holy shit those movements!" Everyone in the area coughed a mouthful of blood when they saw Braum''s mysterious and strangely amorous movements.


    Some healers who liked to experiment couldn''t help but blush when their eyesnded on Braum''s sturdy pecks and excellent rack of abs.


    But the bonafide men had their doubts.


    "What the fuck is his ss?! A macho dancer?! Look at those movements!" They angrily screamed and hurled their prepared attacks towards Braum.


    But before those attacks could evennd...


    A hand sticking out from the ground intercepted those attacks and protected Braum.


    "Wait, what? He''s a Necromancer? Then why is he dancing?!"


    "No, you''re mistaken! He''s not a Necromancer! He''s summoning the spirits of the dead! He''s a Spirit Dancer!"


    "Fuck, he''s a Spirit Dancer? Attack him!"


    The yers who knew how vital support roles were such as a Spirit Dancer in a battlefield understood that they had to interrupt whatever Braum was doing.


    [You are starting to question your sexual orientation upon seeing the weirdly sexy dance of a male Spirit Dancer.]


    [Your stats are drastically reduced for the duration of the Spirit Dancer''s Dance.]


    When the healers saw these system notifications. They threw all caution to the wind and didn''t care about Laica anymore. Of course, some of them still made interrupting Laica''s chanting as their priority.


    But most of them turned to look at Braum with angry expressions on their faces.


    "Stop dancing, you piece of shit!"


    [You feel warm and encouraged upon seeing the sincere dance of a Spirit Dancer.]


    [Your stats are drastically increased for the duration of the Spirit Dancer''s Dance.]


    Xueyue nced at the system notifications that appeared right in front of her as she rushed towards Braum''s side. Her daggers repeatedly blinked in front of Braum and sliced all of the iing attacks that dared to interrupt Braum''s sexy dance.


    "Mystical Mist!" Laica was finally finished with her chanting, and the magic circle underneath the healers erupted in a brilliant light.


    The light made everyone squint their eyes and when that happened...


    A shadow approached Laica and Braum.


    Xueyue, whose senses were sharp noticed this abnormality and she made a split-second decision.


    She moved to protect Braum who was the nearest to her, while she abandoned Laica who just hadpleted the preparation for her Mystical Mist.


    Why?


    Well, it was because Xueyue knew that they couldn''t afford to lose the support of a Spirit Dancer.


    Although Laica possessed strong zoning abilities due to her CCs.


    Their enemies were squishy healers anyway, so right now. ..


    Helping Braum was the highest priority so that Xueyue could silence these healers as fast as possible.


    "Stinger of the Night." Xueyue chose to employ a skill that enabled her to move instantaneously.


    She reappeared behind Braum and directly intercepted the iing attack of the young woman known as the Bloodstained Lilium.


    ng!


    Sparks flew as Xueyue''s dagger intercepted the dagger that Lilium held in her hand.


    But when Lilium noticed that her attack was sure to be interrupted...


    She prepared a pistol in advance.


    When her enemy appeared right in front of her and stopped her attack. She discreetly pointed her pistol at a blind-spot and pulled the trigger.


    Bang!


    The bullet flew, but miraculously... Braum swung his butt and gracefully avoided the bullet.


    "Oh? You avoided that?" Lilium looked amused.


    She brandished her dagger and blocked an attack from Xueyue''s twin daggers.


    "Let''s see if you can still avoid getting hit from this!" Lilium hurled a Hand Grenade towards Braum.


    "Naive!" Xueyue moved in front of that Hand Grenade and mmed it flying back towards Lilium, but to her astonishment...


    Lilium had vanished from her sight.


    "Acrobat''s Dance!" A cry of excitement rang from behind Xueyue.


    "Braum! On your six!"


    She swiftly turned around and cried out as a warning for Braum.


    "It''s toote!" Lilium rushed from Braum''s back and pointed a pistol right at his head.


    But just as she was about to pull the trigger...


    Peng!


    A fierce sound of a bullet crashing against metal rang out and Lilium''s eyes widened in shock when she realized that her pistol was blown out of her hand and was directly crushed into smithereens.


    "A sniper?!" Lilium hurriedly moved away from Braum.


    "You''re trying to escape?" Xueyue noticed her movements and she rushed to prevent her from escaping.


    "It''s a foolish move for you to chase after a Gunner!" Lilium cried out.


    She took another pistol and pointed it at the approaching Xueyue, keeping her at bay while she retreated and moved towards a nearby obstacle so that she could stay away from the sniper''s line of sight.


    "I can''t have you forget about me!"


    Mervin revealed a smile as he stared right at the direction of the retreating Lilium.


    From her movements, Mervin predicted that Lilium nned on taking cover behind a nearby tree.


    "You''re still as predictable as ever, Lilium!" Mervin mumbled to himself before he took a deep breath, stabilized his aim and pulled the trigger.


    Bang!


    A deafening sound rang out as the tungsten-tipped bullet of his AX-50 flew out of the barrel and tore through the air itself as it flew towards Lilium''s direction.


    "Shit!" Lilium noticed the iing bullet and she changed her movements at thest moment.


    "AHHH!"


    A scream of pain and anger escaped Lilium''s lips as her right arm was torn from her shoulders.


    However, her screamsted only for a short while...


    Her experience in battles like these gave her enough courage to press on and roll behind a nearby tree.


    Finally, she was now safe from the eyes of that terrifying sniper of the Pro-NPC Alliance, Mervin.


    Although Mervin looked like a malnourished young man at first impression...


    The truth was that, not only he was smart.


    He was also the third strongest Sniper within the world of Victory.


    But how did he achieve such a feat?


    Well...


    It was because of his deduction capabilities.


    His ability to predict each and every movement of his enemies made his enemies feel like his bullets were following them.


    Such a terrifying Sniper shouldn''t really exist in this world.


    But it was an irrefutable fact that he existed...


    He''s definitely a force to be reckoned with in battles, and should never be ignored.


    "dimir! The third-ranked Sniper of the Sniper ss Rankings is at the hill ahead of us!"


    Lilium reported before she closed herHUD and slowly nned on how she could aide Emily who was now in the middle of a battle against Xueyue, the terrifying Assassin known as the Keeper of the Night.


    Xueyue was likewise, within the top five of the Assassin Rankings.


    Her high ranking made it obvious that she was incredibly strong.


    But of course, Lilium wasn''t afraid of her...


    What she was afraid of was Mervin.


    "Damn, with that Sniper protecting these bastards... This will be troublesome..." Lilium shook her head and sighed.


    Even though she knew that it was difficult to contend against these high-ranking yers within the Universal Rankings.


    It has to be known that she was also within the Universal Rankings.


    In fact, she was also at the top fifty.


    Lilium wasn''t afraid to face enemies that were as strong as her.


    In contrast, she was even excited. Albeit, somewhat frustrated due to the existence of Mervin.


    "Hey, dimir! Tell all of our Gunners to concentrate their artillery attacks on that bastard, Mervin, on top of the hill! I don''t think that he''ll be able to do anything if dozens of Gunners simultaneously attacked him!" Lilium swiftly typed and sent a message to dimir.


    "Oh? Does she n on moving now?"


    Mervin who now had a different position from earlier lifted a small smile on his lips.


    Seeing Lilium''s movements, it was obvious that she nned on rushing towards the healers to protect them.


    And when that happened...


    Mervin''s bullet would definitely be faster than her movements.


    Before she could even arrive and protect the healers of the Crimson Guild. Mervin was confident that her head would''ve already exploded like a watermelon squashed by a sledgehammer if she dared to take that single step.


    "Come out,e out,e out, wherever you are..." Mervin lightly mumbled, even whistling as if he was enjoying what was happening.


    But astonishment soon shed on his face when he realized that dozens of Sniper Rifles were now pointed at his direction.


    The brilliance of their optic glints became like a beacon amidst the darkness, incredibly clear and vivid for Mervin who couldn''t help but reveal a bitter smile as he hurled a Smoke Grenade in front of him and retreated.


    "Fucking hell, these bastards really are crazy! Even if I''m the third-ranked Sniper within the Sniper Rankings. There''s no way that I can contend against dozens of Snipers at once, you know?!" Mervin loudlyined before reporting to his leader, Jun Santos.


    "Assassin of the Night, reporting. Multiple tangoes ff on me, rtb to resupply."


    Mervin then rushed towards the direction of the carriage, all while making sure that he waspletely hidden from the eyes of the Snipers from the Crimson Guild.


    Lilium''s eyes glittered with excitement when she saw Mervin moving towards the carriage.


    Although Mervin moved in a way that hid him from the eyes of the other Snipers.


    There was no way that she could hide from the eyes of Lilium when Lilium was at a location directly perpendicr from the carriage unless Mervin was already behind the carriage.


    "I can''t let him hide behind that carriage..." Lilium decided.


    She proceeded to take out her Marksman Rifle, Kar98k and aimed at Mervin.


    "Heh... The Third-Ranked yer of the Sniper Rankings? You''re dead."


    Lilium swiftly pulled the trigger.


    Her bullet sessfully flew, but she was shocked when she realized that she couldn''t move.


    [You are currently under the effects of Suppression.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    "You really gave me a hard time... I was trying to find you since the start, you know?!"


    A masculine voice echoed right behind her and she found herself embraced by a young man with a perverted look on his face.


    "Oh? Holding you like this really makes me realize that the so-called Bloodstained Lilium''s also a woman..." The one embracing her was the well-known Knight of the Pro-NPC Alliance, Michael.


    "You... Aren''t you the Main Tank? Why are you nking..." Lilium looked wronged when she said these words.


    She really didn''t expect that the Main Tank of the Pro-NPC Alliance that should be in the front lines was right behind them all this while.


    "Main Tank? That is indeed my job... But do you really think we need a Main Tank to deal with a measly Crimson Guild of the Kingdom of Nether? You really are naive." Michael shook his head before staring lecherously at Lilium''s body.


    "You''re really sexy..."


    "Of course, you can''tpare to my wife."


    "But with your beauty..."


    "It would be a shame if..." Michael raised his arm and formed a fist with his hand.


    "Someone pummeled you to death!"


    He screamed and proceeded to rain down punches on Lilium''s face.


    "HAHAHA! I may be a Knight, but I''m not a Knight in shining armor. I''m a knight that supports equal rights!" Michael wildlyughed. His attacks towards Lilium never stopped for even a second.


    A Gunner who excelled in medium to long-rangebat cannot possibly hold a candle against a Knight that was not only sturdy...


    But also possessed decent DPS capabilitiesparable to that of a Level 100 Mercenary.


    Even though Michael''s DPS couldn''tpare to the firepower of Gunners, he had far higher Health than her, and when Lilium finally died...


    Michael only lost about twenty percent of his Health which he quickly recovered through the use of Health Potions.


    Afterwards, he thenid on the ground and slowly crawled his way shamelessly towards his next /izJ4dVO<li>the military term for targets</li><li>focus fire</li><li>return to base</li>

 Chapter 89: A Battle Deep in the Night[3]

    Chapter 89: A Battle Deep in the Night[3]


    [Your Party Member, Lilium has sumbed to her wounds and died.]


    "What? How did she die?" dimir turned to look at the previous location where hest spotted Lilium.


    But he found nothing out of the ordinary.


    A solemn look appeared on his face.


    "That useless bitch!" dimir violently cursed, before sending his orders: "Secure the perimeter around our Healers. Keep those bastards at bay! Especially that Assassin!"


    When dimir''s order emerged. The yers of the Crimson Guild swiftly moved and retreated along with the Main Segment of the 3-3-3 Strategy that they employed.


    Facing the yers of the Pro-NPC Alliance were the front-liners and tanks of the Crimson Guild.


    "Echoes of the Sleepy!" Jun Santos spread his arms and magical runes surrounded his body.


    His ss, Psychic could be considered as one of the best when it came torge-scale crowd control.


    His nasty crowd control skills as the Psychic directly attacked the minds of his enemies, disorienting them and making them unable to discern what was real from fake.


    Due to this fact, dimir gave explicit orders to his members that they should keep an eye for Jun Santos.


    When they saw that magical runes had appeared and surrounded Jun Santos''s body. They realized that he was in the middle of casting a spell.


    They swiftly sent their attacks towards his direction, intent on stopping him from casting his skill.


    [Echoes of the Sleepy] was arge-scale Crowd Control skill that if sessfullyunched, would ce everyone within the vicinity of the magic circle into a state ofatose. Once in the state ofatose, one would be deprived of their senses apart from the sense of sight.


    In other words, it would render anyone unable to move, cast a spell, nor attack. It was an extremely terrifying crowd control skill that should be interrupted at all costs.


    ''But why is Jun Santos casting that kind of a skill which takes too long to prepare?'' dimir frowned.


    It didn''t make sense that the renowned Jun Santos would use Echoes of the Sleepy at this time when he clearly didn''t have the protection that anyone needed whenever they were casting a spell that required a lengthy preparation.


    Yes, that''s right.


    Jun Santos waspletely open!


    As soon as he started his chanting.


    The attacks from the members of the Crimson Guild descended upon him!


    "Has he gone senile?" dimir thought to himself.


    But when he saw the confident smile on Jun Santos''s face. He couldn''t help but feel a bad premonition in his heart.


    Nevertheless, dimir had to suppress the bad sensation that he was feeling, for he knew that he must stop Jun Santos''s channeling at all costs.


    The attacks rained down at Jun Santos, yet he remained steadfast in the face of these attacks.


    Just as Jun Santos reached the peak of his channeling.


    His figure trembled, and the magical runes that surrounded his body disappeared.


    "What?" dimir uttered in astonishment, but then his face changed in the next moment.


    "Elementalist!"


    dimir cried out in shock when he found out that behind Jun Santos was a youngdy also surrounded by magical runes.


    The reason why Jun Santos remained unmoving in the face of the iing attacks wasn''t actually because he had gone senile, but it was because he was protecting his wife, Vanessa behind him who finallypleted her chanting and had now begun casting her skill.


    And the reason why he began chanting such a powerful skill that couldn''t be ignored despite its long cast time was that he wanted to attract everyone''s attention unto him, so his wife could chant peacefully.


    Jun Santos''s showy movements and the brilliant light of the magical runes that revolved around his body also became a cover that protected his wife from the eyes of everyone.


    "Ang pinakagwapo kay ang nagst! Absolute Zero!"


    An enormous magic circle appeared underneath everyone''s feet.


    Frost materialized in the air and everyone''s movements turned sluggish.


    [You are in a field of absolute frost.]


    [Your Movement Speed, Attack Speed are drastically decreased.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    In the face of these system notifications.


    dimir responded with a cry.


    "Scatter!"


    Before dimir could even send his orders, his subordinates had already started moving away from the magic circle. It was because they knew that even without dimir''s orders.


    One must never stay inside the magic circles created by an opposing Magician.


    If they do, then there''s no possible way for them to achieve victory.


    A milky-white light descended and covered the bodies of the yers who managed to escape the magic circle in time and didn''t directly freeze into ice sculptures.


    [You are covered in the light ofpassion and grace.]


    [You have recovered from your abnormal statuses.]


    [You have recovered a portion of your Health.]


    dimir nced at the Healers in gratitude.


    Especially at Emily who held Xueyue, Laica, and Braum by herself.


    "I didn''t expect that Emily would be this good of a yer... However, I don''t think that she canst that long. Particrly, when that bastard Mervin is picking off our yers..." A decisive light shed within dimir''s eyes as he gave his orders.


    "Sean, you go and assist Wushang."


    dimir sent a message to a yer who was fighting Eagie and Pa at the same time.


    "Are you sure about that boss? If I left here then these two will have free reign and will be able to wreak havoc." Sean d in a simple tunic with a gigantic Axe on his shoulder didn''t even nce at dimir as he pursued his enemies and repeatedly hacked at them with his Axe.


    "It''s fine, go and help him. You shouldn''t really underestimate the average yers of the Crimson Guild. They may not be as strong as those yers that are within the Universal Rankings, but they are not that bad either." dimir replied with a nod.


    Sean didn''t answer to what dimir was saying. Instead, he loudlyughed in front of his enemies.


    "Hey, miss beautiful and you, soy-boy... It''s such a shame that my boss is sending me far-away when I still want to y with the two of you... But oh, well. Don''t miss me too much, just know that if we meet once again. I will definitely hack both of you into pieces with this Axe of mine."


    Sean smirked at Pa and Eagie before rushing towards the direction of the Crimson Guild''s Healers.


    "Do you think that you can escape us that easily?!" Pa, who was a Ranger, readied her bow and drew a bead. But when her fully-charged shot flew towards Sean. Thetter merely brandished his Axe behind him and sliced the arrow into two before it could even near or prate his back.


    "This guy..." Eagie mumbled in shock.


    This was the first time that they fought against Sean, yet they already had a deep impression of him.


    That guy who didn''t seem to care about his life and death was far terrifying than a dozen average yers of the Crimson Guild.


    He really does make everyone feel a shiver down their spines when they faced him.


    "Destroyer... That ss really suits him..." Pa uttered.


    Their leader, Jun Santos had told them that Sean''s ss was Destroyer.


    A secondary-ss that craved destruction... was really suitable for people like Sean who had a few screws loose inside their minds.


    "Yeah, it''s really terrifying..."


    "But now that he''s gone. I think we finally have free reign now, right?" Eagie replied in a somewhat scared and timid manner which made Pa chuckle.


    She stretched her hand out, pulled onto his cheeks and said: "You must not be afraid of these bastards, all right? You''re a Pdin Off-Tank and you should go and help us relieve some pressure against these retards..."


    Her crudenguage greatly contrasted the angelic smile on her face which made Eagie feel like he didn''t know whether tough or to cry.


    "Uhm... I''ll do my best..." Eagie bashfully nodded.


    In the face of his wife''s teasing. He really couldn''t do much about it.


    "Okay, all right! You take the front, I''ll protect you from the back!" Pa took her bow en garde and Eagie tightly held his il that had a spiky metal ball at the end.


    Afterwards, he rushed to a nearby enemy and went wild.


    "Beatdown!"


    Eagie grabbed that enemy who tried his best to scream for reinforcements.


    But before he could even open his mouth, his face had already caved in from Eagie''s fierce attacks.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!


    A total of five attacksnded on his face and he couldn''t be deader than this.


    But Eagie wasn''t done yet.


    In order to impress his wife about how manly he was.


    He rushed at another enemy once again, grabbed that poor soul and started beating him up.


    Eagie was too absorbed on what he was doing that he didn''t notice an enemy Assassin sneaking up behind him.


    "Die!"


    The yer screamed, unfurling his killing intent and sending his dagger directly at Eagie''s heart.


    But before his dagger could evennd on Eagie''s body.


    An arrow pierced through his temples and made his head explode like a watermelon pounded by a whale...


    He couldn''t even muster a scream as he copsed lifelessly on the ground.


    Eagie stopped what he was doing and he felt a shiver down his spine when he found out about what just happened.


    A trace of fear appeared on his face, but then Pa fiercely scolded him.


    "Why are you stopping? Beat him up some more! You don''t have to worry about what''s going to happen behind you since I am going to support you all this time!"


    Eagie turned to look at his wife with clear hesitation on his face.


    "What? You don''t trust me?" Pa''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    "Ermm... It''s not that I don''t trust you, but this guy''s already dead." Eagie nced at the man that Pa sniped with her arrow.


    "Then, find another guy and beat him up!" Pa scolded.


    Eagie bitterly smiled.He then turned to look at the enemy in front of him before beating that poor guy up real good.


    Eagie even released a manly war cry while he was beating the living shit out of the yer who soon disappeared into countless light crystals that eventually vanished into nothingness.


    "Good! There''s another tango in front of you, beat him up!" Pa praised Eagie before gesturing at the enemy not too far away from Eagie.


    "Hieeek!"


    The yer who saw the cruel death of hisrades instantly ran away when Eagie turned his head to look at him.


    But he didn''t manage to escape that far...


    Pa urately sniped both of his knees, forcing him to fall onto the ground, unable to move.


    "You cannot escape..." Eagie revealed an indifferent expression.


    The yer screamed as loud as he could as Eagie proceeded on his beatdown.


    Pa who stared at all of these from afar revealed a satisfied, yet somewhat zed expression on her face as she stared at Eagie.


    "This is how a man should act... Ruthless, and decisive..."


    She chuckled to herself before rushing to support her husband, Eagie.


    Meanwhile on top of a nearby hill that overlooked the entire battlefield. Mervin stared in a somewhatcent manner at the enemy in front of him.


    "Oh, you''re approaching me?" Mervin coldly uttered.


    His hand, hidden by his back clenched a handgun.


    From the two pistols that his enemy held in his hand, it was clear that he was also a Gunner.


    But...


    ''Why is he moving towards me?''


    Mervin couldn''t understand why his enemy was moving towards him.


    A Gunner should fight from a distance, yet hs enemy seemed like he would do the opposite.


    However, Mervin''s mind remained steadfast in the face of this peculiarity.


    He lifted his arm, pointed his gun at his enemy and swiftly pulled the trigger.


    Bang!


    A loud gunshot rang out, but his enemy didn''t move.


    A shield appeared on the man''s arm and he used that to protect himself from the iing bullet.


    ng!


    The shield pulsated with divine light as the bullet collided against it, sending sparks flying everywhere.


    "A Main-ss Specialized Crusader, fused with Gunner taken as a secondary-ss..."


    "You''re a Crusader Gunner?"


    Astonishment could be seen on Mervin''s face, but his calm never disappeared.


    Instead, an amused smile surfaced on his lips as he said.


    "That is indeed an interesting mixture that is not frequently seen..."


    "I mean, who would want to fuse a slow-moving Crusader with a Gunner?"


    "Although that would make you feel like a tank, a Gunner that has slow movements can be considered as a ss cannon. They are easily focused and once that happened, you might as well uninstall the game."


    Mervin mocked.


    But his enemy didn''t have any reaction to what he was saying.


    ''So, he''s immune to taunting? Hmmph, quite an interesting man. But I don''t have time for this. I''ll end this as fast as possible!''


    Mervin''s eyes shed in a dangerous light as he bent his knees and retreated backward.


    While in mid-air, he brandished his wrist and sent a bunch of objects flying towards the direction of his enemies.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Several loud explosions rang out.


    His slow-moving enemy who was a Crusader didn''t even bother to move.


    He took the brunt of the attack and endured it.


    Meanwhile, Mervin who retreated backward made it his goal to widen his distance from his enemy.


    After all, Crusaders were known for their prowess of dealing huge amounts of DPS in close-quarter battles.


    Not only that, but his enemy also had the Gunner ss as his secondary-ss...


    In other words, he was strong in short and long-range battles.


    Gunners were squishy targets that could be easily killed once focused.


    Mervin preferred to fight against a Gunner than a Crusader, so he nned on not letting his enemy get close to him so that his enemy couldn''t use his abilities as a Crusader.


    "How troublesome..." Mervin thought to himself.


    Crusaders were not only strong in close-quarterbat but they were also tanky and hard to kill.


    Mervin predicted that it would probably take him quite a while before he could defeat this Crusader Gunner enemy of his.


    He swiftly formted a n, but he was shocked to find that his enemy didn''t pursue him while he was in mid-air.


    Instead, the blinding optic glint of a Sniper Rifle was pointed at him.


    At this moment, Mervin''s pupils constricted.


    He urged his body to move in mid-air, but there was a clear physical limit of what he could do while he was in mid-air.


    "Shit!"


    When Mervin''s senses told him that it was impossible for him to dodge the iing bullet.


    But his mind spun quickly. His arm moved and brandished several grenades in front of him.


    Bang!


    Gunfire roared and the optic glint of the Sniper Rifle momentarily vanished.


    What happened next was a fierce explosion of a single Grenade that sent Mervin flying backward.


    "I seeded!" Mervin inwardly eximed and after rolling on the ground for a few seconds.


    He finally managed to stand-up, though another iing attack of his enemy forced him to dodge as soon as he bnced himself on the ground.


    "This guy... He''s not nning on using his Main ss against me... Does he want to fight me as a Gunner?"


    "He''s really underestimating me."


    Anger shed on Mervin''s face and he abruptly took a handgun out and started sting.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    His enemy, a Crusader Gunner didn''t say anything before he proceeded to rush at Mervin who then retreated backward in order to not let his enemy get close to him.


    "He''s using his shield again, what the hell does he want to do?"


    "Does he want to fight me as a Crusader Gunner or solely as a Gunner? How annoying..." Mervin inwardly cursed.


    He fired two shots at his enemy who swiftly raised his shield in front of him so that he could protect himself from the iing bullets.


    Mervin soon found himself near a cliff that would definitely kill him if he falls.


    And it was at this moment that a change happened on the battlefield.


    The Crusader Gunner raised his shield, while his other hand raised what looked like a minigun.


    Normally, a weapon such as a minigun had enough weight that it was necessary for it to be held by two hands. But the fact that this Crusader Gunner could hold such a heavy weapon with a single hand meant that his stat distributions skewed more on Strength.


    But that wasn''t the point here...


    The point was that as soon as the minigun pointed at Mervin. It started spewing out bullets.


    Gatling Gun!


    Bullets flew in all directions, creating an impassable around Mervin which sealed all of his escape routes. The Crusader Gunner also urately controlled his attack to the extent that his bullets felt like an insurmountable wall that slowly closed in on Mervin, eventually crushing him in between.


    The smell of gunpowder and the smoke created by his rapid firing formed a mist that further lowered the visibility in the area.


    The darkness of the night exacerbated the lowered visibility, and when the Crusader Gunner was done with his attack.


    He noticed that his enemy had vanished from his sight.


    What?


    Where did he go?


    Wait, how did he even escape?


    Teleport? No- he''s a Gunner, not a mage.


    He clearly had his enemy inside his encirclement, yet how did his enemy disappear? Is this the effect of the glorious plot armor of protagonists?


    No, such a thing shouldn''t exist. And also, even if he managed to escape.


    I don''t think that he escaped from my attacks unscathed.


    But just where he was?


    There was only a single possibility!


    The Crusader Gunner hurriedly raised his head and there, he found a Mervin whose body was riddled with holes falling towards him.


    He''s on the brink of death!


    The Crusader Gunner eximed in delight and he hurriedly fired two shots at Mervin.


    But a change suddenly urred.


    A greenish-tube looking weapon was on Mervin''s shoulder and the mouth of that weapon emanated a dangerous light that threatened to swallow him whole!


    "SHIT!"


    The Crusader Gunner eximed.


    "Fortress of Divinity!" For the first time in his battle. He finally activated a Crusader Skill.


    He raised his shield towards Mervin''s direction and divine light exploded from him, covering his entire body.


    "Heh..." Mervin coldly chuckled.


    "Beam Atomizer!"


    A brilliant light of massive destruction burst forth from the mouth of the tube that Mervin held in his shoulders.


    A beam made out of light had the speed of light, so it was impossible to be avoided.


    This was the reason that the Crusader Gunner decided that it was far better for him to endure the brunt of the attack while using one of his best defensive skills, rather than trying to dodge.


    "Grrrrhhh..." The Crusader Gunner spat a mouthful of blood.


    The skill, Beam Atomizer directly melted his armor and flesh, causing agonizing pain that if not for the pain sensors that he reduced in intensity.


    He should be crying out in pain right now.


    The Beam Atomizersted for a few seconds. The Crusader Gunner intently watched his rapidly dropping Health Bar, and excitement appeared on his face when he realized that although he was on the brink of death right now.


    He still has about twenty percent of his Health remaining.


    As for Mervin?


    He doubted that Mervin had even five percent of his Health.


    "I''ve won!"


    He returned his shield to his inventory and was about to turn around to find Mervin when suddenly.


    "Huh?"


    A dagger suddenly pierced through his heart and stuck out of his chest.


    "What?"


    He uttered, and at the same time...


    A mouthful of blood escaped from his throat, drenching the ground crimson.


    "You..."


    Mervin stood behind him and whispered, "Assassinate."


    The Crusader Gunner crumbled onto his knees, disbelief visible on his face as he stared at his rapidly disappearing Health Bar.


    "You... How do you have that incredibly rare skill..."


    Mervin merely smiled: "There''s a reason why I''m called, the Assassin of the Night."


    The Crusader Gunner couldn''t believe what just happened.


    He was on the verge of victory, but with an attack from a single skill... He had lost and perished!


    But the Crusader Gunner had strong mental fortitude.


    He acknowledged that he had truly lost in this battle. Even if [Assassinate] was such an unbelievably strong skill that bordered on the realm of cheating. It was still a skill that belonged to Mervin, so in the end. It could be considered as a part of his skill.


    And so, the Crusader Gunner replied...


    "Heh... Is it because of that Assassinate skill, or is it because you think that you''re unpredictable?"


    "I don''t know..." Mervin shook his head, "You take a guess, you''re about to die anyway so I don''t mind chatting with you for a moment."


    For bncing issues, the skill [Assassinate] gave the yer a few precious seconds of respite before their inevitable death.


    Mervin thought that the game developers added such a mechanic so that the assassinated ones could have enough time to reminisce about their entire life before their uing, certain death.


    "I see... Unpredictable, eh? You really kept your trump cards too well... The Crimson Guild didn''t have any information about you having such an incredibly rare skill like that Assassinate."


    A strange expression appeared on the Crusader Gunner''s face.


    Mervin felt a bad premonition in his heart.


    But before he could think too deeply about it...


    The Crusader Gunner''s body finally turned into countless light crystals that soon dissipated into the void.


    "Sigh... Finally done, I guess I need to return to base and resupply. I''m about to die here..."


    Mervin heaved a sigh of relief, but his vision was suddenly attracted by a green-looking ball sitting on the Crusader Gunner''s previous location.


    "What is that?"


    It was quite hard to see something properly within the darkness so Mervin squinted his eyes while staring at the curious object.


    "A green ball?"


    "Wait, a green ball?! Shit!"


    Bang!


    [You died from the hands of MartyrNoble#6021, a yer from the guild Crimson.]


    "Martyr... Fuck... What is this? Call of Duty?!" Mervin inwardly cursed as his consciousness slowly /wiki/Martyrdom

 Chapter 90: The Great Escape

    Chapter 90: The Great Escape


    [Your Party Member, Mervin has sumbed to his wounds and died.]


    This system notification simultaneously appeared in front of everyone from the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    Their figures visibly trembled, and their eyes widened in shock. Some of them even forgot to dodge the attacksing for them and they flew backward in pain when the attacks struck.


    "Mervin died?" After a murmur of disbelief. Jun Santos swiftly dismissed the notification in front of him before turning to nce at the hill right behind them.


    Afterwards, he turned to look at Vanessa and it turned out that she was also looking at him.


    The gazes of the two met in mid-air and they nodded in tacit understanding.


    "Squad Bravo, control enemy main segment. Half of Squad Alpha will gather."


    Jun Santos gave hismands and the movements of everyone from the Pro-NPC Alliance suddenly changed.


    Xueyue and Laica who were locked in an intense dogfight against Emily and Sean momentarily nced at each other before nodding their heads in understanding.


    They jumped back and retreated.


    "What''s wrong? What''s wrong? What''s wrong, what''s wrong?! Why are both of you retreating! I''m not done yet!" Sean hurriedly rushed at the two.


    "Impudent!" Xueyue coldly spat and she intercepted Sean''s Axe before kicking him right at his chest, sending him flying backward.


    "Do you really think that something like that is enough to stop me?!" Sean rushed once again, but this time.


    It was Emily who stopped him on his tracks.


    "Wait..."


    "Huh? Why are you blocking me? Are you one of them?" Sean red at Emily.


    "What are you saying?" Emily couldn''t help but facepalm in the face of Sean''s simplicity. Sean was always a simple young man who craved a passionate, and intense fight. This was the reason why the members of the Pro-NPC Alliance said that she was indeed suitable for the Destroyer ss.


    "Stand back! Let me crush these bastards!"


    Sean shoved Emily to the side before rushing towards Xueyue and Laica.


    Emily could only re at Sean from behind before she decided to retreat and group up with dimir.


    She decided that for the immature Sean to learn, he must first experience the pain of failure.


    After all, even though she understood that Sean was a strong yer.


    Either Xueyue and Laica could easilypare to him, so in other words...


    He''d be overwhelmed soon.


    "Take this!" Sean leaped into the air and mmed his gigantic Axe in between Laica and Xueyue.


    Bang!


    A great explosion urred.


    Earth itself was torn as Xueyue and Laica gnashed their teeth in frustration.


    "What an annoying guy!" They nced at each other and nodded in mutual understanding.


    "Diri sa atong kalibutan, ang nagst ra gyuy pinakagwapo..." Laica started preparing a spell while Xueyue stood in front of her.


    "Storm of Vengeance." Xueyue activated a skill and the dark energy of the night gathered around her daggers. The night further boosted the effects of her skill which gave her more confidence in facing a powerful Destroyer like Sean.


    Assassin-type sses like the Keeper of the Night had statsparable to a Hunter. Although they couldn''t be considered as ss cannons like other sses that had the Magician ss as its foundation. They were still squishy targets and could easily die if caught by their enemies.


    Of course, their burst damage was overwhelming.


    Even a Crusader couldn''tpare against them in that department.


    But all of that didn''t matter if they couldn''t even touch their enemies. What use was their potential DPS if they couldn''t evennd their attacks anyways?


    The intensity of the darkness that enveloped Xueyue''s dagger further intensified.


    When Sean''s attack neared her. She raised her dagger and blocked the gigantic Axe.


    ng!


    "Now!" Xueyue cried out.


    "Imprisonment of the Mystics!" Laica screamed from behind and a magic circle appeared underneath Sean.


    "You..." Sean''s eyes widened in shock.


    He didn''t expect that Laica wouldplete her chanting this fast.


    "You weren''t preparing an attack?" He blurted out. The reason why he went for Xueyue who was the closest to him was that he thought that Laica was preparing for a powerful attack which would take too long to chant.


    However, he didn''t expect that Laica would instead prepare a skill with an excellent crowd control effect.


    Something that could restrict, even a Destroyer like him.


    "Roaaar!" Sean raised his head and unleashed an animalistic scream.


    [You cannot resist.]


    "Shit! Why can''t I escape? Emily! Where are you? Come and help me here!" Sean violently cursed.


    Afterwards, he turned to look at Emily''s original location and requested her help.


    But unfortunately, he found her missing.


    "Fucking hell, that woman was sent here to sabotage me!"


    "Healers! What the fuck are you doing! Purify me!"


    Sean fiercely turned his head to look at the direction of the healers, but he was once again astonished when he found them missing.


    "What is going on? Where are the healers?" Sean uttered in shock.


    "You do not have to look for them... They are already dead..."


    Xueyue''s cold voice was the reply that he got.


    Afterwards, Xueyue appeared right in front of him with her dagger ready to plunge deep into his chest.


    Behind Xueyue was Laica, slowly preparing a spell.


    "I really can''t believe that someone as naive and a simpleton like you can be a member of the so-called Crimson Guild. Are they only keeping you because of youredic value?" Xueyue coldly mocked.


    Sean revealed a wronged expression: "Of course not! I''m also useful! They hired me not only for my jokes. But also because I am strong!" His face looked like he wouldn''t rest until Xueyue understood the reason why he was in the Crimson Guild.


    A strange expression appeared on Xueyue''s face, ''Does he not realize that I am mocking him? He even took my question seriously... What a strange man.'' She thought to herself. But Xueyue wouldn''t spare him just because he piqued her interest.


    In the next moment, her dagger was already moving and was now about to stab deep into Sean''s chest.


    But then suddenly...


    A sh of light appeared behind her and she found herself unable to move.


    "Yue!" Laica''s scream rang out from behind, but it was soon silenced.


    "You see... I can''t let you keep mocking our precious Sean like that... Someone like you that does not know of his worth, shouldn''t even speak anything against him!" dimir''s voice appeared from behind and Xueyue found herself floating in the air. dimir was holding her neck.


    But immediately after, she rapidly descended as dimir violently mmed her, headfirst onto the ground.


    "Guah!"


    Xueyue coughed a mouthful of blood.


    But dimir wasn''t finished yet...


    He grabbed Xueyue once again and raised her above his head.


    "You see... Sean has that incredibly rare skill called, Rally To Me. It''s a skill that could let several people that he chose to instantly teleport by his side without any channeling or cast time..."


    Bang!


    dimir once again mmed Xueyue onto the ground.


    More blood shot out like a fountain from Xueyue''s mouth as she groaned in pain.


    But dimir wasn''t done yet...


    "It''s such a cheat, right? But that is the reason why Sean is within our guild..."


    Bang!


    "But of course..."


    Bang!"


    "Apart from being our bait against the other guilds due to how simple-minded he is..."


    Bang!


    "He''s also very useful for he''s a decent Destroyer... You know?!"


    Bang!


    "Atomic Bomb!"


    dimir leaped into the air,hugged Xueyue''s body, and then hurled her back onto the ground before kicking her stomach with a kick that started upwards and descended powerfully onto her stomach.


    "GUAAAH!"


    Blood dripped from Xueyue''s seven orifices.


    Braum who saw what happened in the distance rushed at dimir''s side in raging fury and anger.


    "VLADIMIR! HOW DARE YOU HARM MY WIFE?!"


    dimir made a sidelong nce at Braum and chuckled, "Oh, Braum? Took you long enough to notice. But now, do you understand how stupid you are for choosing such a niche ss like that Spirit Dancer?"


    "Hahaha, you really are hrious. You can''t even dance properly, yet you chose that ss?"


    "Emily, you go and handle him."


    "Yes, sir."


    Emily who was fighting against Laica nodded her head before proceeding to move towards Braum.


    Braum''s expression right now was terrifying.


    Even Emily couldn''t help but gulp a mouthful of saliva.


    Braum''s solemn visage, along with the fact that he was bald, reminded Emily of a certain protagonist from an anime whose main character one-shots everyone with a punch.


    "I... I''m not going to be obliterated in a single punch too, right?"


    Emily felt that what she was thinking was ridiculous.


    How could a mere Spirit Dancer one-shot a Tempest like her?


    In fact, maybe she was the one that would instantly kill him with a single kick.


    "Stormy Kick!"


    Emily rushed at Braum and unleashed a hurricane of kicks that anyone would find it hard to defend against.


    But...


    Pa! pa! pa!


    Crisp sounds repeatedly rang out as Braum''s hands turned into a blur.


    He defended himself against Emily''s kick without even stopping in his tracks.


    "What are you doing, Emily? Stop him!" dimir noticed what was going on and he couldn''t help but be angry.


    As a Grappler, dimir could only suppress a single enemy. If he wanted to suppress Braum, then he must first let go of Xueyue whose ss was Keeper of the Night.


    Something like that must not happen for an Assassin-type ss was far terrifying than a yer whose Main ss was a Spirit Dancer.


    Emily knitted her eyebrows. She had thrown at least several dozens of kicks by now, and even though most of her attacks were blocked by Braum.


    Some of them still managed tond...


    But the sensation that she felt from her feet when her kicksnded on Braum''s body wasparable to kicking a steel te.


    Braum''s body was as hard as steel.


    "You..." Emily whispered in shock.


    "Are you really a Spirit Dancer?"


    Braum turned to look at her... The same solemn expression stered on his face.


    "What a foolish question. Of course, I am a Spirit Dancer... How about you, are you really a Tempest?"


    Emily''s pupils constricted.


    Anger shed on her face and she rushed at Braum without saying anything.


    "You want to know if I''m really a Tempest? I''ll show you!"


    "Dance of a Tempest!"


    A greenish light of nature surrounded Emily''s body. Her eyes shed with the same light, as she leaped into the air and unleashed a barrage of kicks at Braum''s body that almost couldn''t be seen by the naked eye.


    "Heh... Are you really kicking me? Are you sure that you''re not trying to tickle me?"


    Braum uttered these words in cold disdain when Emily''s attack ended.


    "You... Just what are you?"


    Braum''s expression finally changed when he heard Emily''s question.


    "I am nothing, but a husband that dances for a hobby."


    "But before I became like this..."


    "I was a world-renowned Champion of the popr virtual game, Tekkin."


    "And in that game..."


    "My main was none other than Eddy Giordano!"


    Braum then took a stance and stood imposingly in front of Emily.


    "I''ll show you how strong Spirit Dancers really are!"


    ...


    Meanwhile, near the carriage...


    Joseph received a message from Jun Santos and then he decisively left the carriage while carrying Alice on his shoulders.


    His expression revealed nothing but determination as he ran towards the direction of the Forbidden Region. Leaving the members of the Pro-NPC Alliance to fend off against the forces of the Crimson Guild.


    ''"I will remember this debt!" Joseph eximed to himself.

 Chapter 91: The Great Escape[2]

    Chapter 91: The Great Escape[2]


    Lilium stared at the system notification floating right in front of her.


    [You are being summoned by yer Sean#9210 through the use of Rally To Me.]


    [Do you want to ept the summoning?]


    [Yes/No]


    Lilium stared at the system notification in front of her. Anger could be seen on her face.


    ''How dare this dimir try to summon me again when I already suffered too much that''s worth than the value that I could get after the contractpletion!''


    Lilium looked like she was about to tap on the [No] button when an idea suddenly appeared inside her mind.


    "How about I go and inform the other guilds about the coordinates of where the fight is happening? I could extort some money out of them using this method. I can be the fisherman that will benefit from the Crimson Guild''s misfortune!"


    Lilium didn''t mind offending the Crimson Guild.


    After all, her cooperation with them was only built by money.


    Furthermore, she had suffered too many losses to the extent that the money that she would gain from his cooperation wouldn''t equal nor surpass those losses. In short, Lilium had no qualms on being a double agent.


    A smile appeared on her lips. She opened up her Main Menu and contacted a certain yer, like what she had done before back then


    "I have valuable information that you can use so you can damage the Crimson Guild. Are you interested or not?"


    The other side replied, "You''re asking if I am interested? Do you really think that you''re the only one that has that kind of information, Lilium?"


    Lilium paused for a moment, she didn''t know what to say. The other side was right, it wasn''t strange that the Knights of Justice and Dark me had their own spies within the ranks of the Crimson Guilds.


    The anger on Lilium''s face intensified when she realized the mistake that she had made.


    "Fine... Goodbye."


    Lilium replied to the other side and thetter didn''t reply.


    Lilium''s anger turned into resentment as she quickly tapped on the [Yes] button which summoned a brilliant light that quickly swallowed her entire being, transferring her towards the battlefield happening near the Forbidden Region of the Kingdom of Nether.


    ...


    When the nauseating sensation brought upon by spatial transfer disappeared. Lilium opened his eyes and the first scene that she was dimir standing in front of the angry-looking Jun Santos. The fight seemed to have stopped, but it was evident that the ceasefire was only temporary.


    It was because in front of dimir was a burly-looking man jumping up and down with a solemn expression on his face.


    "Isn''t that the Spirit Dancer? Why is he in the front lines?" Lilium frowned, but when she turned to look at dimir. Astonishment shed on her face.


    She saw that dimir had purple marks all over his face. His armor which made him look valiant and brave was now torn from all sorts of ces. His eyes even had a huge ck circle around them.


    "What happened to him? Isn''t he the Number One Grappler? How was he beaten like this?" Lilium mumbled in shock.


    But before she could even say anything...


    Someone from the Pro-NPC Alliance spoke up.


    "How about we stop this fighting now, the leader of the Crimson Guild, dimir?" Jun Santos went out of his way and tried masking the anger on his face as he said these words. But, when he saw Xueyue''s condition. His anger bubbled up, and he looked like he was on the verge of exploding.


    dimir swept his gaze at the members of the Pro-NPC Alliance. Their clean statures greatly contrasted the disheveled appearances of the members of the Crimson Guild. It was clear that the Pro-NPC Alliance was at the winning end of the battle.


    "Do you really think that you can end this battle so easily? Unless you gave us a proper exnation about why all of you are helping the traitor of a Kingdom and a convict. There''s no way that you can stop me from continuing this fight and branding all of you as traitors in the name of the Honorable Duke Heathrow!" dimir dered.


    He was serious. His words contained not a trace of falsity. As the subordinate of Duke Heathrow, he could dere anyone as a traitor and quests would be issued for the sake of capturing or killing that particr traitor.


    Jun Santos raised an eyebrow and challenged, "Oh, is that so? If that really is the case, then why didn''t you condemn us as traitors even before this fight had started?"


    dimir revealed a conflicted expression when he heard Jun Santos''s words. The reason why he didn''t dere the entire Pro-NPC Alliance as traitors of the Kingdom whilst they were still pursuing them was due to the fact that once he dered them as traitors.


    Everyone would be notified, and they would acquire quests pertaining to the death of these traitors.


    Once that happened, then dimir was sure that those bastards from the Knights of Justice and Dark me would flock to this ce, fighting for their own share of the meat pie named as Alice and that traitor bastard from the Underground Penitentiary.


    dimir wanted to monopolize all the benefits and rewards of capturing the convict and killing the traitor of the Kingdom.


    That was the reason why he didn''t dere the Pro-NPC Alliance as traitors before he started his pursuit against them.


    This was also the reason why the Crimson Guild that has at least a few thousands of members, only brought about several dozens of yers. Furthermore, the yers that he brought with him in this mission were mere average yers, since dimir was afraid that the other two guilds already have spies within the ranks of the core members of Crimson.


    dimir believed that he could defeat the Pro-NPC Alliance with numbers, instead of quality. But unfortunately for him, the opposite happened. They only managed to kill a single member of the Pro-NPC Alliance, and in exchange for that single life. Only fifteen of them remained, the rest were sacrificed.


    Jun Santos stared at dimir''s expression and chuckled: "Your face looks like you''re constipated... Are you okay? Do you want to do a number three here, or what? And oh, do not worry about the answer to the question that I asked you. It is pretty obvious from the standpoint of a Guild Leader..."


    "Don''t be so arrogant, Jun. We may not be able to kill you all, but at least we can kill a single NPC from your ranks! You do know that NPCs cannot be resurrected once they die, right? I hope that you''re sensible enough to do what is right!"


    Jun Santos didn''t reply. Instead, he turned to look at the side and stared at the darkness before saying: "You guys are already there, right? How about youe out now and deal with these bastards from the Crimson Guild for us?"


    dimir''s eyes widened in shock. Lilium''s figure visibly trembled, and the other yers of the Crimson Guild stared nervously at the vast expanse of darkness.


    "Hahaha, Jun... You really are a cunning one. I really can''t understand what you are thinking."


    "Fire Wall..."


    A dignified voice rang out along with a burst ofughter, while the other voice sounded faint and ethereal. But once that seemingly corporeal voice reverberated in the surroundings. A towering wall of fire suddenly emerged from the ground and formed a square thatpletely surrounded the Crimson Guild and the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    "You..." dimir''s eyes widened in shock. Disbelief could be seen on his face as he lifted his arm and pointed a finger at Jun Santos.


    "Have you gone senile?! You actually invited those bastards from the Dark me and Knights of Justice in here? Aren''t you supposed to be protecting that convict and traitor from the Kingdom?!" dimir cried out in indignance.


    He had prepared to fight an all-out battle against the Pro-NPC Alliance for the sake of having thempensate for the crime of killing several dozens of his brothers.


    But with the appearance of the Dark me and Knights of Justice. It was clear that the Crimson Guild would be at the short-end of the stick this time.


    There was no way that these two guilds would let the Crimson Guild go after their failed ambush recently.


    Lilium stared at the continuously trembling body of dimir and a wronged expression surfaced on her face.


    "You... Why did you even summon me here?!" She pointed a finger at dimir.


    dimir stared at Lilium in disdain: "Of course it is to fulfill your duty! But something like this isn''t so bad either. Seeing you suffer bigger losses than the Crimson Guild is enough to satisfy me. After all..."


    "That is something that you deserve, you little bitch!"


    dimir violently cursed before he turned to look at his brothers and said.


    "Tonight, we may die. But we will surely dine in hell!" He then rushed at the members of the Dark me and Knights of Justice. A few momentster, a fierce battle ensued as the Pro-NPC Alliance who orchestrated this whole scheme slowly retreated from the area.


    "Was this part of your n in the first ce?" Nie Yan, or formerly known as Nirvana me turned to look at Jun Santos and asked with an indifferent look on his face.


    Jun Santos paused. He didn''t turn his head towards Nie Yan as he replied: "This is the best that I can do. If he still can''t escape from your hands after the help that we gave him. I can say that he doesn''t deserve to be saved. From now on, everything depends on his abilities."


    "But how about you? Aren''t you worried that dimir will dere all of you as traitors of the Kingdom? He has a connection to that Duke, you know?" Jun Santos asked in a light-hearted manner.


    Nie Yan merely scoffed: "We have our own methods. Duke Heathrow''s not the only one with such a high and honorable position within the Kingdom."


    Jun Santos''s interest was piqued: "Interesting... Mind telling me? I mean, from now on we''ll not be situated within the Kingdom of Nether anyways, so I think that there''s no harm on telling us, right?"


    Nie Yan stared at Jun Santos for a moment before a light smile escaped on his lips: "This time, our helper''s not even a part of the Kingdom. But his position is far higher than even the King of the Kingdom of Nether himself."


    Jun Santos''s pupils constricted. After finding no trace of lies within Nie Yan''s eyes. A disbelieving expression appeared on his face as he uttered absentmindedly.


    "The Empire of Truedawn?"


    Nie Yan''s smile deepened.


    "Heh... After this ordeal... I have a hunch that the Kingdom of Nether would cease to exist."


    Jun Santos''s shock deepened even further. But as a yer of Victory since Day One. He experienced far too many upheavals within the world of Victory to the extent that he felt quite numb to it.


    But the words that he heard today were still too shocking.


    After all, the Empire of Truedawn seldom made a move, but whenever they do. Their moves were always earth-shattering and affected the entire world of Victory.


    Jun Santos wanted to ask for more information but he found that Nirvana me had already disappeared.


    Disappointed, he could do nothing other than walk away from the battlefield along with hisrades.


    Right after exiting the wall of me made by Nirvana me''s me Wall. Jun Santos turned to look at the distant Forbidden Region.


    "With what I did today, young man. Consider us even. I wish you the best."


    He whispered these words into the air before he finally walked towards hisrades.


    ...


    Joseph ran as fast as he could.


    He didn''t mind the excruciating pain from his legs and feet, and the exhaustion that slowly took over his entire body as he ran as far as he could, away from the dangers of the battlefield.


    The Forbidden Region really lived up to its name.


    Not even considering the fact that poisonous bugs and insects were in the area.


    The topography of thend itself was incredibly dangerous and weird. Thend was extremely rugged from all the rocks that covered its surface. Furthermore, these rocks protruded sharply from the ground which caused more than a few difficulties than navigating through them while running.


    "Fucking hell..."


    Not even ten minutes after entering the vicinity of the Forbidden Region. Joseph was already huffing and puffing. He couldn''t even loudly curse for he was too busy gasping for his breath and letting them escape from his mouth.


    But the exhaustion and the pain throughout his body wasn''t the end of it all.


    Since he wasn''t so sure when a monster woulde out from the darkness and attack him. He had to stay mentally alert at all times. This was incredibly taxing considering the fact that he was simultaneously protecting himself and Alice who he carried on his shoulder.


    "AH!"


    When Joseph forcefully raised his right foot and stepped on a nearby protruding rock. He lost his footing and slipped.


    "FUCK!"


    A violent curse came out of his mouth as he threw himself forward so that he wouldn''t fall backwards and potentially injure himself and exacerbating the injuries remaining on Alice''s body.


    "Haaah... Haaah... I''m saved..." The adrenaline coursing through Joseph''s veins made his vision swam as he desperately tried on catching his breath. But only after a few moments of rest, he pushed himself up for he knew that he cannot stay in a single location for too long.


    "What am I supposed to do now that I am here?" Joseph thought for a moment amidst his hastened breaths. An idea quickly popped out in his mind as he decided: "Okay, I''ll find temporary shelter until Alice awakens and tells me about the location of that goddamned safehouse of senior Krid."


    With a goal in mind, Joseph looked energized as he raised his foot and ced it on the ground.


    However...


    "What? Where''s the ground?"


    The darkness of the Forbidden Region was close to pitch ck. Joseph was unable to see that there was an almost perpendicr cliff right ahead of him.


    His foot stepped on that empty space, causing him to slip forwards down the cliff.


    "YAWAAA!" Joseph was so angry and shocked that he cursed in his vernacr.


    But his mind spun quickly and he spotted a cave entrance a few meters below him.


    Holding Alice tightly in his embrace. He stretched a hand out towards that cave entrance...


    But to his astonishment, his hand which was supposed to hold tightly on the protruding floor of the cave entrance so that he could rescue himself and Alice from their inevitable doom slipped.


    "What? Why did my hand slip?" Joseph nkly uttered as he continued falling down the cliff.


    A single system notification floating right in front of him informed him of what happened.


    [The effects of [Slippery Skin] has been activated!]


    "WHY DID YOU HAVE TO ACTIVATE RIGHT NOW?!"


    Joseph let out an indignant scream.

 Chapter 92: A Place Perpetually Hidden from the Sun

    Chapter 92: A ce Perpetually Hidden from the Sun


    Inside a City perpetually hidden from the sun.


    Both twins, Julie and Hulie sat cross-legged above an elevated tform. The tform was decorated with all sorts of colorful flowers and lights. But in contrast to the lively colors, the people in front of the twins wore solemn expressions on their faces.


    Their eyes radiated grief, some of them even crying.


    "It''s such a pity... Both sisters could''ve had a great future ahead of them..."


    "Yeah... If not for the Curse of the Condemned. Both would''ve been great figures in the city. But sadly, there''s nothing that we could do anymore other than ept this irreversible reality and wish them a great journey to the yellow springs."


    The elders in the surroundings whispered to each other. Their eyes stared pitifully at the two sisters.


    Yes, that''s right.


    In this ce, perpetually hidden from the sun.


    Once afflicted with the Curse of the Condemned...


    There was no future for them anymore.


    "Grandpa... Is there really no cure for the Curse?" A young man who looked to be at the same age as both twins mumbled in grief and indignance.


    The elderly man whom he nudged merely shook his head in resignation.


    "Why... Why are we condemned to kill ourselves the moment that the curse manifests? Is there really no cure..." The young man uttered in despair.


    Everyone in the area turned silent.


    Since all of them lived in the same city and basically knew each other.


    They knew that the young man had feelings towards one of the twins.


    "Julie... Hulie... We will... miss you..." A young woman cried out, tears never stopped flowing down her cheeks.


    "Erika!"


    In the end, she copsed and had to be supported by her mother who was also here to witness the uing honorable suicide by the twin sisters.


    "Jacob... Erika..." Hulie stretched her hand out towards her friends. Her eyes widened in resignation and grief.


    She didn''t want to die... She was far too young to die!


    She was destined to achieve greater heights with her talent and hard work, yet just because of a single curse, they were supposed to kill themselves? Why has everythinge to this?


    Hulie turned to look at the City Chief, the Elder who has the highest authority in this City.


    If she pleaded with him, there may be a chance that she and her sister would be spared from such a cruel end.


    But before Hulie could even say something.


    The Elder seemed to have read her thoughts as he shook his head, closed his eyes as if reminiscing of the past before saying: "This is our destiny ever since we are born in this abandonednd, this is also the curse that we must bear... This is the will of God...


    When the Elder finished his sentence, the wrinkles on his face deepened and the circles around his eyes darkened. It was as if he had aged for ten years in an instant.


    But when everyone thought that the twin sisters finally understood their inevitable fate and their cruel destiny.


    Julie, who kept her silence all this while suddenly spoke up.


    "This is the will of God?"


    "What kind of God wills the death of his believers? That kind of God... No- He''s not a God... He''s a Demon! He''s not a God!" Julie shook her head rapidly in the midst of her despair until she finally let out an ear-piercing scream.


    Bang!


    "Impudent! You sphemous brat!" Another Elder who kept a solemn expression all this while suddenly erupted in anger.


    His ears continuously trembled as he struck down the ground with his staff and his incredible might shook thend, astonishing everyone and awakening them from their trance.


    "You should know that even cursed criminals like us may have been abandoned by God. We must never spheme him! He is the Creator of Everything that Moves and Exists! Even though we are doomed to live in this forsaken ce that is perpetually hidden from the sun in our entire life, we are promised prosperity in our next!"


    "Dying in this ce and while under the Curse of the Condemned is a blessing!"


    "You must not be afraid of it!"


    "Ending your life under the Curse meant that you will be released from the debt of blood that our ancestors incurred, so in other words. You will be free in your next lifetime! Why are you so afraid of death? Death is not the end!"


    "You will only return to the embrace of the Creator!"


    The Elder''s words seemed to transform into a spell that pierced through the souls of everyone who heard it with the exception of the two sisters.


    "Yes... That''s right..." The young man named Jacob, who pleaded for the release of the twin sisters and was also considered as the suitor of Julie suddenly stopped crying and stared at Julie in excitement.


    "Yes... That''s right! Even if the two of us didn''t be lovers in this lifetime! We can meet once again in our next lives and there, I can fall in love with you once again... Court you once again, and then marry you eventually! Hah! Yes! Glory be to the Creator!"


    The young man copsed on his knees and raised his arms towards the skies.


    The grief within his eyes couldn''t be seen anymore. Instead, there was a fanatical look on his face.


    "Ja-Jacob...?" Hulie stared wide-eyed at what was happening.


    "What is going on... Julie, I''m scared..." Hulie squirmed closer to her twin sister Julie and disyed a terrified look on her face.


    But Julie didn''t reply. Instead, she also stared wide-eyed at the two middle-aged couple at the side.


    "Mama? Papa? What are..."


    Before Julie could evenplete her sentence...


    Her mother moved and gave her a tight embrace.


    "Julie, Hulie... Both of you are good kids, so I know that the two of you understand that this is not the end, all right?"


    "Even though Mama and Papa will not be with you anymore, I know that both of you are stronger together, so I will pray to the Creator and wish that the two of you will still be together in your next lives, okay?"


    She also gave Hulie a tight embrace before sweetly smiling at the two. Afterwards, what came next was their father.


    The same smile could also be seen on his face, but in his hands were two incredibly sharp daggers.


    He ced it in front of the two sisters and said.


    "Papa and Mama will miss you both, we will pray that the two of you will have a fine journey to the yellow springs."


    "Also, Julie..."


    "Take care of your sister, all right? You know about how much of a scaredy-cat Hulie is and how easily she can get swindled. You''re the more sensible one, so you take care of her, all right?"


    Julie gulped a mouthful of saliva. This thick-headed girl who seemed to not be afraid of anything was finally showing traces of fear. She couldn''t believe what was happening.


    Why were her mother and father abandoning her?


    Why was Jacob, her long-time suitor also abandoning her?


    Why was everyone doing this?


    Do they really want us to die?


    Julie''s gaze wandered amidst her trance, and then itnded at Erika. Erika was a best friend of both sisters, and they were friends ever since they were babies.


    If it was Erika...


    She wouldn''t abandon them, right?


    Julie revealed a pleading look on her face, but then Erika revealed a kind smile on her face, the same smile that her parents had on their lips.


    "Julie... Hulie... Both of you, don''t worry... In the future, I will pray to the Creator to give me twin babies and I will give them the same name as the two of you. No matter what, both of you are still my best friends and I can''t bear to part with you like this, but..."


    "There''s no way that we can fight against destiny... We can only ept it and live ording to it."


    "In fact, we must even be grateful that the Creator gave us temporary life so we can enjoy this beautiful world that he had created for us, his lowly servants..." A fanatic look appeared on Erika''s face.


    One couldn''t see any traces of her crying earlier anymore.


    Instead, she was even looking forward to something.


    "Grateful? Enjoy this beautiful world?" Julie hung her head low and uttered in despair. Ever since she was a child, she had been indoctrinated with the ways of the Creator of Everything that Moves and Exists.


    Of course, she knew about the inevitable and pitiful end of those afflicted with the cruel curse.


    However, now that it was her time to sacrifice herself before the curse could take hold in her body. She couldn''t ept the cruel reality.


    Why?


    It was because she was too young!


    She was far too young!


    She wanted to escape this ce and travel across thends that she didn''t have any knowledge of...


    She dreamt of visiting ces that she only heard from books, such as the boundless salty water from the ced called "Sea", and experiencing how cold it was to live in a ce covered in snow that wouldn''t thaw for eternity.


    Yet, a single curse was enough to stop her from aplishing her dreams?


    A single curse made it so that she would be unable to achieve her desires?


    Should she really just ept the machinations of fate and obediently kill herself and return to the embrace of the so-called Creator of Everything that Moves and Exists?


    A creator that even she wasn''t so sure if it really exists?


    No!


    Julie was indignant.


    She wasn''t willing!


    Hulie shared the same sentiment as her sister.


    But how can they escape from this ce? The All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation ensured that none of them would be able to escape from this ce, but...


    A determination that had never appeared within the two sisters surfaced in their eyes.


    They have decided!


    Each took a deep breath and hung their heads low.


    Images shed past their eyes.


    Their stern father teaching them techniques to defend themselves, their father patting the dirt and dust on their clothes as he amiably smiled at them, their gentle mother mending their torn clothes, their brave mother who courageously protected them from an Enhanced Beast, and finally.


    Their family huddling around a single flickering candle, sharing food andughing with each other.


    A faint sound croaked from their throats despite their strong suppression. With a low grunt, the twin sisters raised the daggers in front of them and stabbed the nearest person around them.


    "AH!"


    A blood-curdling scream came out, but both Julie and Hulie never stopped their movements. They knew that they must escape this ce as fast as possible before the City Chief could react.


    "TRAITORS! CAPTURE THOSE BRATS!" The City Chief finally reacted with an angry scream all while pointing a finger at the two sisters who moved agilely amidst the crowd.


    The people who attended the event were awakened from their trance by the fierce scream and they angrily looked at the direction of the two sisters.


    One of them even screamed.


    "Come back here, you brats! Do both of you wish for the whole city to be buried along with you two?!" He then rushed towards the wilderness in pursuit of the two sisters.


    But since the two sisters possessed unparalleled familiarity with the wilderness in the surrounding City. They soon managed to escape from their pursuers.


    They stopped running away when they realized that they were only a few steps away from the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation.


    "Julie... Did we really do the right thing..." Hulie turned to look at her sister, her figure continuously trembling in fear.


    "Hulie... Don''t be afraid, I am here with you." Julie revealed a smile and embraced her sister.


    Her face turned serious when she saw that the darkness that tainted Hulie''s silvery-hair, slowly squirmed as if it was alive. Threatening to swallow Hulie whole at any moment.


    "It''s all right... We''ll be okay... It''s fine if the Creator really exists. He will not abandon us like this."


    Julie consoled her sister, but fear was also evident on her face, while her knees also continuously trembled like a sieve.


    She was so afraid of what they have done to the extent that she consoled her sister with the name of the Creator whom she already abandoned and denounced.


    Thankfully, her sister didn''t seem to notice what she has said.


    Instead, Hulie tightened her embrace around Julie...


    It was as if she was afraid that if she was to loosen up her hold around Julie''s body. Her sister may disappear and turn into a fanatic like what happened to both of their parents.


    But just as the two sisters were calming down...


    A fierce explosion rang out beside them, scaring them out of their wits as they subconsciously held each other in a tight embrace.


    After a few moments of hesitation, the twin sisters finally had the courage to take a look at what crashed down beside them and their eyes widened in shock on what they had found...


    They found a man wearing nothing but underwear and a stark-naked young woman wrapped around a ck cloth!

 Chapter 93: A Place Perpetually Hidden from the Sun[2]

    Chapter 93: A ce Perpetually Hidden from the Sun[2]


    Joseph was falling.


    He found himself falling for a long time


    He couldn''t see anything within the darkness and only the roaring sound of the fierce wind shing past his ears served as the undeniable proof that he was still alive and was still currently falling.


    <em>Ah!</em>


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock, he awakened from his trance and he found that Alice was still within his embrace.


    <em>How long is this fall going to take?</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed, yet he never loosened his embrace around Alice.


    He made sure that his back was pointed towards the ground so that he could be Alice''s cushion that would protect her from impact. But the only problem was that Joseph wasn''t so sure if this was enough to prevent Alice from dying.


    <em>Ahhh! Let''s just hope and maybe pray to RNGesus...</em>


    Joseph screamed and his expression revealed anxiety and fear as to what would happen if his body collided against the ground with such speed like this.


    <em>Fuck, fuck, fuck... Will it hurt if I struck the ground like this?</em>


    Y<em>es! It will undoubtedly hurt, but please... I hope it won''t be that bad.</em>


    <em>I swear if the rewards that I will get after this quest is insufficient, I will surely pay a visit to the headquarters of P.H Works! I''ll go and ask those bastards for an exnation!</em>


    All sorts of ideas and ridiculous thoughts surfaced in Joseph''s mind.


    But his concentration towards protecting Alice never wavered.


    <em>Ahh... How long am I going to fall? </em>


    <em>Seriously, I''ve been falling for about thirty seconds already and I''m still not done? Where is this ground? Wait, what if there was no ground in the first ce? Like, what if this is simr to the Jupiter where I will endlessly fall and eventually get stuck in the middle for eternity?</em>


    <em>Ahhh! I don''t want that!</em>


    <em>But can I even do something about my situation right now? No, I don''t think so...</em>


    <em>Ahhh! Stop thinking about useless things!</em>


    Joseph fiercely shook his head, but then an idea came to his mind.


    <em>Wait... Since I am not so sure if I will suffer great pain once my body came to contact with the ground. What if I just disable the Pain Sensory of the System? If I do that. I won''t feel any pain, right?</em>


    <em>Although it is not generally rmended to do that since it also dulls one''s reflexes, in this current situation of mine. There''s nothing more fitting than this if I want to avoid being in pain!</em>


    <em>Okay, I have decided! Let''s do this!</em>


    Joseph slowly raised his hand and opened his Main Menu. Navigating through the Main Menu, he opened the Options Panel and turned down his Pain Sensory to the lowest.


    <em>Now, I will feel no pain.</em>


    <em>Let''s just wait until...</em>


    Bang!


    A fierce explosion rang out and Joseph''s eyes widened in shock from the sudden impact.


    [You have suffered immeasurable damage!]


    [Your Health has reached the minimum. A shield equal to the damage that you have suffered from thest ten seconds is generated.]


    [Warning! Warning! Warning!]


    [The System has detected abnormalities in the user''s mental status.]


    [Commencing safety protocol!]


    [Safety Protocol Activated.]


    [Commencing Forced Sleep-Mode.]


    Amidst Joseph''s blurry and distorted vision. He found several system notifications floating before him, but before he could even recognize the words written within those system notifications. His consciousness vanished.


    "Heh... She''s still alive... Thank god..."


    Thankfully, before he disappeared...


    He managed to confirm that Alice was still alive, or else he would be incredibly worried which would inevitably affect his mental condition, making him unable to enter the world of Victory once again.


    Every Gaming Capsules regted by the respective Gaming Agencies within one''s countries had dozens of safety features and fail-safe mechanisms. One of them was Forced Sleep-Mode.


    This Safety Protocol ismonly activated in the events where the user''s mental status exceeded the allowable limits imposed by the government.


    Once that happened, the user will be forcefully logged out of the game.


    But any user logged out from the game in this manner would not experience <em>True Log-out</em>. In other words, if they were logged out in this manner then their characters within the world of Victory will not disappear.


    It would remain standing there like a mannequin.


    ...


    Julie and Hulie stared at the two strangers near them. It was clear on their expressions that they were unsure about what they should do.


    "Julie... I''m scared..." Hulie snuck close to her twin sister. Apprehension was evident on her face as she stared at the two strangers right in front of her. But you really couldn''t me her. After all, how would you react if you saw strange and suspicious?


    "Don''t worry, Hulie... I think they are sleeping... But where did theye from?"''


    Julie consoled her twin sister before she raised her head to stare at the trees above her.


    There wasn''t any trace of disturbance in the trees around her.


    At least, that was what she saw within the darkness.


    Julie didn''t judge the two as dead.


    Why?


    Well, it was because Julie was a seasoned hunter within the wilderness. She would know if something or someone was dead just from a single nce. Her experience in the wild told her that two weren''t dead but merely asleep.


    Julie learned this ability since within the wilderness that was filled with darkness, it was necessary to confirm the death of the beast that you were hunting from afar before you approached them.


    If you didn''t do that then there was a huge chance that the animal you were hunting was merely feigning death, and once you approached them. You would be torn apart.


    "Now, what should we do? Do we approach them or not? But if we just let them sleep there then they will eventually be noticed by others. If that happens, then I''m sure that something bad will happen to them!"


    Julie whispered, but she unknowingly whispered it in the air causing Hulie to hear what she was saying to herself.


    "We must help them, Julie!"


    Hulie turned to look at her sister.


    A determined look could be seen on her face.


    But Julie shook her head and said: "No, we cannot do that, Hulie. We don''t know them, and there''s a huge chance that they came from the outside world. You know about the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation, right?"


    "With that barrier then it''s impossible for ordinary people from the outside world to enter this ce, but since these two managed to enter. We can say that they are not ordinary..."


    "We also don''t know their intentions. What if they attack us when they wake up?"


    "That is too risky!"


    "I can''t do something as risky as that when you''re here with me."


    Hulie revealed an astonished expression, but then tears welled up in her eyes as she said: "Does that mean that I am just a burden for you, Julie? If I wasn''t here then you can do more dangerous things?"


    Julie was bbergasted by what she heard.


    But she soon shook from her reverie as she waved her hands in a panicked manner whilst exining: "No, I am not saying that you''re a burden for me Hulie! I am saying that we cannot trust others so easily. And why would I do dangerous things? If I was to die while doing dangerous things, then you'' be alone..."


    "Do you want to be alone?"


    Hulie revealed a shocked expression when she heard her twin sister''s voice. She pursed her lips and replied: "No, I don''t want to be alone! I don''t want you to leave me, but I want to save them! Mama and Papa always said that we must help others in need whenever we can!"


    A bitter smile emerged on Julie''s face.


    The images of her parents appeared in mind.


    She suddenly missed and longed for the two of them.


    Their kind smiles, the gentle reprimand of her mother, and the cold on the outside and hot in the inside attitude of her father.


    She suddenly missed these things.


    But now that they were afflicted with the Curse of the Condemned. Everything had changed. It could be said that their time within this world was now limited, so why would Julie still think twice about doing something potentially dangerous such as approaching these two strangers?


    That''s right! Julie still wanted to live, but she knew that it was just wishful thinking.


    From the annals of recorded history, there were no records of anyone from this City perpetually hidden from the sun surviving the Curse of the Condemned...


    The only reason why both of them escaped was to struggle.


    Yes, to struggle.


    To struggle against fate and destiny.


    No matter how futile of a fight it was.


    Julie deeply sighed, "All right, let''s go and help them. Let''s drag them towards that ce. So that they will not be found by the others."


    Hulie was delighted and she then moved towards the two strangers.


    "They are still breathing! But why do they look strange? Their hair is ck and..." Hulie curiously stared at the strangers, and she slowly unfurled the cloth that covered the young woman.


    "Hieek! She''s naked! And he''s only wearing underwear! Eh? What is this? Where are their clothes?" A crimson blush appeared on Hulie''s cheeks.


    Julie couldn''t help but chuckle, but her eyes also wandered towards the young man''s chiseled body, particrly underneath.


    It was unknown what she was thinking, but it wasn''t something decent for sure due to the blush that appeared on her cheeks.


    Nevertheless, after taking a few deep breaths...


    She managed to calm herself down and drag the two strangers towards the ce where they would temporarily hide from the eyes of others.


    Eight hourster in real-time or two dayster in Victory time.


    Joseph slowly awakened from his slumber and the scene that he first saw upon returning to the world of Victory, brought him a great deal of astonishment.<ol><li>Signifies luck in games, RNG = Random Number Generator/Randomness</li></ol>

 Chapter 94: Thoughts of a Legend

    Chapter 94: Thoughts of a Legend


    Ezreal stood nervously in front of a wooden door.


    In his hands was a wooden tray with a steaming hot bowl of vegetables on top of it. Beside the bowl was a ss of water, and a jug of alcohol.


    Although the size of the jug of alcohol greatly contrasted the size of the other objects ced on top of the tray.


    Ezreal didn''t look like he was having any problem holding the tray.


    His hands remained steady and unmoving.


    But the beaded sweat that formed on his forehead made it obvious that Ezreal was incredibly nervous.


    Why wouldn''t he be nervous?


    When Ezreal sessfully escaped from Reinhardt through the use of the Bead of Absolute Escape. He was severely injured from Krid''s outburst.


    He thought for sure that he would die at that moment since it was impossible for him to endure the attack of a furious Legend. But unexpectedly, Krid didn''t attack him out of anger.


    Instead, Krid merely gave a bitter smile before walking towards this room in front of Ezreal right now and nevering out once again.


    At first, Ezreal thought that Krid became depressed from what he and his master did, and Krid may have alreadymitted suicide inside the room. Although this idea was wed since Krid didn''t want to die until he was reunited with his granddaughter and disciple.


    Ezreal thought that it was still necessary to check for his brother Krid''s well-being.


    But he wasn''t able to enter the room. There was a barrier made out of Mana in front of the door.


    The strength of the barrier wasn''t that strong.


    Ezreal reckoned that he could easily break it with a single palm strike.


    But he didn''t dare to do so...


    After all, inside that room was Senior Krid whose mentality was definitely unstable.


    Ezreal didn''t want to take any chances for he was afraid of identally exacerbating Krid''s anger towards him.


    "Sigh... I guess I can only leave this here." Ezreal ced the tray he was carrying on the ground.


    He turned around and made a final nce at the door of the sealed room.


    But before he could even take a step forward...


    Krid''s voice from inside the room stopped him in his tracks.


    "What are you doing? Aren''t you going to give me some food? Don''t leave them there,e here."


    Ezreal couldn''t decipher what Krid''s emotions through his words. He could only turn towards the door, lift the tray from the ground and walk inside the room with a somewhat nervous expression on his face.


    He raised his head and he found Krid before a wooden table.


    In front of Krid were several dozens of goatskin parchments.


    "What are those, brother?"


    Ezreal subconsciously uttered when he saw the drawings andbels contained within the goatskin parchments scattered face-up on top of the table.


    "Oh, these? They are blueprints."


    "Blueprints? Like outlines that will guide you in your work?" Ezreal asked.


    Krid nodded and smiled, "Yes, that''s right."


    Ezreal lifted his head and stared at Krid. Complicated emotions shed across his face.


    He looked like he wanted to speak, but not before Krid asked him something.


    "Don''t you want to know about why I am studying these blueprints? Look at them, do they not look familiar to you?" Krid revealed a teasing look as he gestured towards the blueprints scattered above the table.


    Ezreal stared at the blueprints and he seemed to have understood something as he eximed, "Wait, they really look familiar! They look like the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty!"


    "Hahaha, that''s right! These blueprints are for the Primary Weapon of your master, the Grand Duelist. Ever since I received that revtion from the previous Grand Duelist. I knew that I had to make these things in advance." Kridughed out loud and a smug look appeared on his face.


    "You made all of these in advance?" Ezreal absentmindedly uttered.


    His gaze deeply scrutinized the blueprints on the table and he couldn''t help but focus at one of them. He tried turning his eyes towards the other blueprints, but his eyes felt like they were glued on that particr blueprint. He couldn''t turn his gaze away nor close his eyes.


    <em>What the fuck? What is going on? Why can''t I move my eyes? Wait, I can''t even turn my head!</em>


    A panicked expression appeared on Ezreal''s face, but then Krid''sughter suddenly rang out. Awakening him from his reverie. But his shock further deepened when he found himself out of breath after only staring at one of the blueprints for a few seconds.


    "I forgot to warn you, my brother. You''re not supposed to stare at them for a long time. These blueprints are imbued with my Divinity and the will of the previous Grand Duelist. If you take a look at them for too long then your eyes would''ve burst into bloody mists..."


    Ezreal bitterly stared a Krid, "Why didn''t you tell me about that earlier, brother..."


    "Well, you looked so excited."


    "Why wouldn''t I be excited? These are the blueprints for master''s weapon, you know? These are the blueprints for the weapon of the current generation''s Grand Duelist! How can I not be excited about that?" Ezreal fiercely retorted and Krid lightly chuckled before tapping his shoulders.


    "I do understand what you feel, you don''t have to exin yourself any further." A rare smile surfaced on Krid''s lips.


    He heaved a sigh and said, "Us devotees of the Grand Duelist really understand each other, don''t you think?" He even winked towards Ezreal''s direction causing thetter to feel somewhat strange.


    <em>If I recall correctly, this brother of mine only had a single lover in his entire life. Since his lover died, he never pursued another woman. But why?</em>


    Ezreal thought about the wink that Krid gave to him and a shiver ran down his spine as he hurriedly shook his head and dispersed the terrifying thoughts that appeared in his mind.


    When he awakened from his trance, he hurriedly changed the topic.


    A somber and hesitant look appeared on his face as he said, "Brother, why are you treating me like this? Are you not angry at me?"


    Krid stared at Ezreal and said, "Nope, I''m not."


    When Ezreal received his reply.


    Cold sweat dripped down his back and he felt inexplicably nervous. He couldn''t understand why, but he felt that it was far better for Krid to give a lengthy reply than to directly say that he wasn''t angry at him.


    "Are you really not angry at me, brother?"


    This time, Krid didn''t reply. Instead, he stretched his hand out towards the steamy hot bowl filled with vegetables. Wolfed it down in an instant, before reaching for a jug of alcohol and also chugged it down. All of these took time to describe but it only happened in a few seconds.


    By the time Ezreal realized what happened, Krid released a mighty burped that awakened Ezreal from his reverie.


    Krid then proceeded to act like nothing happened as he calmly replied to Ezreal''s question from earlier, "As I said, I''m really not angry at you my brother. In fact, I realized how selfish I was for trying to sacrifice my own life in exchange for the life of my granddaughter."


    Ezreal turned to look at Krid, but he didn''t speak. He felt like Krid was about to say something so he kept his silence.


    "Ever since that good granddaughter of mine stayed with me, she had never really experienced a childhood that every child in this world should experience. Apart from the hammer, the anvil, and the sword..."


    "She had no other friends than me. But I admit that I was prepared to give up my life for her sake, but after what your master did. I realized that I was too selfish."


    "I imagined how she would react to my sacrifice, and ording to her attitude. I am pretty sure that once I died for her sake. She would thoroughly devote herself to the legacy that I would leave, the pursuit of creating the strongest weapon in this world. Furthermore, I am sure that she would also not rest until she gets revenge against the Kingdom."


    "Now, do you think that she deserves a life like that? I already deprived her of her childhood, and if I died then my selfishness would also deprive her of her adult life. That ispletely opposite to what I wish for her!"


    "I want her to mature like an ordinary young woman. I want her to adore someone, fall in love with that someone, give birth to kids. Raise them up, and eventually die, proud and happy while surrounded by her grandsons and granddaughters..."


    "That is something that I wish for her." A rueful smile appeared on Krid''s lips as he continued.


    "But I do admit at this part that I am also disying my selfishness..."


    "After all, even though my intentions for her future are pure. Everything that I wanted for her was something that I haven''t achieved myself. I want her to live a life that I desired all this while. That is all that I want..."


    "Until I see that she has a bright future ahead of her and she can finally wean from my protection, I cannot die until I see that day."


    Krid lightly chuckled and Ezreal stared at him absentmindedly. Although he knew that these were Krid''s main motivations in life. He never really thought that much about it until now.


    He thought that Krid was just acting like a grandfather to her disciple, but it turned out that he really was this serious about it.


    But then a bitter smile of envy appeared on Ezreal''s lips.


    He envied Krid''s motivations in life, he wanted to have the same motivations as Krid, but something like that couldn''t really be forced.


    <em>Would there be a day when I will also have the same motivations as his? The motivation to protect something or someone, and the excitement of seeing them grow until they have the ability to be independent away from your protection? Will I also have that day in the future?</em>


    <em>Well, of course. It''s not like I do not want to have kids, but I am not talking about kids in this context. When I ran away from home, I didn''t really have any motivations behind my escape apart from wanting to spread the word about the myths. Now, I am feeling a little bit lost as to why am I still here.</em>


    <em>Ah!</em>


    <em>I know...</em>


    A light smile escaped from Ezreal''s lips.


    Krid noticed Ezreal''s smile and he couldn''t help butment: "So you finally realized it, eh?"


    "Yeah..."


    "As long as I keep on following my master''s tracks..."


    "I am sure that someday, I will find the reason for my existence! Until that day arrives, I shall not leave my master''s side!"


    Ezreal revealed a rare look of determination on his face and Krid couldn''t help but chuckle: "Wow, so someone like you who''s probably older than me can also have a mid-life crisis?"


    Ezreal''s figure visibly trembled and he turned to look at Krid with a bitter smile: "Brother can you not do me like that?"


    "Hahaha..." Krid chortled and he then stood up, stretched hisnguid body before turning to look at Ezreal with a wide smile on his face: "How about we set that aside for now and do some work?"


    Ezreal looked at him with confusion, "Some work?"


    Krid gestured at the blueprints on the table and answered: "Yes, let''s work together and find the most appropriate blueprint for the Primary Weapon of The Grand Duelist and your master!"


    Ezreal instantly shot up from his seat before excitedly rushing towards Krid''s side. He didn''t even say anything in reply.

 Chapter 95: Thoughts of a Legend[2]

    Chapter 95: Thoughts of a Legend[2]


    "Now which blueprint do you think would suit your master better?" Krid said to Ezreal who was now beside him.


    But Ezreal didn''t answer. Instead, a bitter smile could be seen on his face.


    "Oh, I''m sorry. I forgot that you cannot stare at these blueprints directly with your naked eye. Do you know how to manipte your Mana outside your body? Use that to form a film of Mana in front of your eyes like a lens, then it will temporarily protect you from the Divinity of the Grand Duelist inside these blueprints." Krid advised.


    "That could work... But how long would itst?" Ezreal didn''t doubt anything about what Krid had said to him. But since the Grand Duelist could pierce through any obstacles in this world. It was safe to say that the Divinity of the Grand Duelist may contain that piercing characteristic. Ezreal was somewhat afraid tomit any mistake while staring at it.


    "Haha..." Kridughed when he noticed Ezreal''s worries, "These blueprints contain the piercing characteristics of the Grand Duelist, but you do not have to worry about it. I can temporarily seal that trait, although you still cannot stare at it for an extended period of time. I trust that you know about that adage, right?"


    Ezreal nodded his head, as someone who extensively studied the myths...


    Of course, he knew what Krid meant.


    The adage that Krid was talking about said, "Do not look directly at a God."


    Ezreal knew how critical this advice was, although it was mostlymon sense.


    "Thanks."


    Ezreal mumbled in a barely audible voice. Afterwards, he urged the Mana contained within his body and formed a thin film made out of Mana before cing it in front of his eyes. When everything was done, and after checking that there weren''t any gaps on the "Mana sses".


    Ezreal finally had the courage to stare directly at the blueprints.


    [Rapier of Anarchy]


    [Rapier of Absolute Piercing]


    [Rapier of the Grand Order]


    [Unnamed Rapier]


    Curiosity sparked within Ezreal''s eyes as he stared at all of these blueprints<em>. Anarchy... That doesn''t seem to suit the master at all. As for the Rapier of Absolute Piercing, it sounds redundant since the Grand Duelist can pierce through any obstacles in this world in the first ce...</em>


    <em>How about the Rapier of the Grand Order? It sounds quite terrifying, and it can probably be tremendously powerful if used properly, but I''m more curious at the Unnamed Rapier. Why does it have no name? Why is it unnamed?</em>


    Ezreal made a sidelong nce at Krid before voicing out his thoughts.


    "Indeed, Anarchy doesn''t look like it''s suitable for that brat. The Rapier of Absolute Piercing isn''t really that redundant, you know? It increases damage upon critical strikes after all. But after I fought that brat, I realized that he could deal percentage-based damage so now I feel like I made a huge mistake designing that blueprint." Krid sighed.


    "As for the Rapier of the Grand Order, can you guess its powers?" Krid revealed a teasing look.


    Ezreal thought for a moment, but just as he was about to say something...


    Krid suddenly eximed.


    "You cannot talk here!"


    When Krid''s voice reached Ezreal''s ears. He suddenly found out that he couldn''t speak. Even though he could make his mouth move and his vocal cords vibrate, not any voice, whatsoever coulde out of his throat.


    <em>This is the additional effect of the Rapier of the Grand Order? But if it can only prevent me from speaking, then there''s no way that it can be useful, right?</em> Ezreal had an inkling about the true powers of the Rapier of the Grand Order, but Krid suddenly spoke once again.


    "There can be no members of another species here!" His dignified voice echoed out.


    Ezreal momentarily blinked, but when he opened his eyes once again.


    He found himself standing outside Krid''s safe house.


    <em>What? He can even do that? That''s awesome! But wait, how can I go back now?</em> Ezreal eximed in excitement when he realized that there was more than what meets the eye from the Rapier of the Grand Order. However, he was stumped when he also found out that now that he was outside Krid''s safe house. How could he return back inside?


    But Ezreal''s problem didn''tst long for a trace of illusory divinity wrapped around his body.


    Before he knew what was going on...


    He was now back within Krid''s safe house.


    In front of him was the smiling Krid who said.


    "How was it?"


    "Now, do you understand how unique this Rapier of the Grand Order?"


    "What do you think? Would it suit your master?"


    Krid spat a lot of words in a few seconds, causing the disoriented Ezreal to feel even dizzier as he revealed a bitter smile before saying.


    "Yeah, it is too awesome..."


    "It''s good that you know." Krid winked at him in delight.


    "But I don''t think that something like that suits my master."


    Krid''s interest was piqued, "Oh? Why do you think so?"


    The Grand Duelist was the advocate of Order and Justice amongmoners back then. In other words, the Rapier of Grand Order really suited the former. But Ezreal was saying that it wouldn''t suit Joseph?


    If not for the fact that Krid knew that Ezreal extensively studied the creation myth of Victory then he would think of what Ezreal was saying as the ravings of an ignorant and madman.


    Ezreal looked somewhat hesitant to speak.


    But in the end, he voiced out his thoughts without hiding anything.


    "The Rapier of the Grand Order, from what I saw and experienced. It looks like it can impose restrictions against someone, right? And through that restrictions, anyone can get the upper hand against his enemy."


    Krid nodded his head in agreement.


    "That''s right."


    The Rapier of the Grand Order could indeed impose restrictions, but it was limited to a single person or something in a single instance. In other words, you couldn''t use its unique powers to restrict everyone in arge area.


    "Yeah, it doesn''t suit my master. From what I inferred from his attitude. He seems to be the type of person who likes fighting up close in a fair and square battle. Imposing restrictions against his enemy would make him feel like he''s bullying that enemy..."


    "My master isn''t a shameless person. He fights valiantly against his enemy in a fair battle, no matter how disadvantaged he is..." Ezreal said all of these with a sincere look on his face, but Krid suddenlyughed out loud.


    "That brat isn''t a shameless person? Hahaha! This really is the greatest joke that I''ve heard in thesest few years. My brother, are you even serious?" Krid patted Ezreal''s shoulders and Ezreal frowned when he saw Krid''s attitude towards what he was saying.


    "Of course, I am serious, brother! Why would you think otherwise? This is the master''s Primary Weapon! A weapon that will apany him through the end of his journey!"


    "Why would I not be serious in helping you choose a suitable weapon for him? Brother, you''re really mocking me." Ezreal ranted and Krid stared at him in disbelief.


    <em>Does he not know about his master''s unorthodox and shameless fighting style?</em> Krid thought for a moment and he realized that his conjecture made sense.


    But he had no intention of exining this to Ezreal...


    After all, he didn''t want to shatter his brother''s fantasy about a perfect, courageous, valiant, and brave Grand Duelist.


    But still, Krid couldn''t help but look forward to the day when Ezreal would realize how shameless his master really was in fighting against enemies.


    Feeling delighted, Krid''s mood was uplifted and he didn''t oppose Ezreal anymore.


    "Okay, the Rapier of the Grand Order really doesn''t suit your master. I''ll trust you on that." Krid''s eyes watered as he stared pitifully at Ezreal.


    <em>Why is he staring at me like that? Did I say anything wrong?</em> Ezreal frowned and wondered why Krid was staring at him with teary-eyes.


    But before he could even say anything and ask about it.


    Krid interrupted him by saying...


    "Since you judged that these blueprints do not suit your master, then there is no other choice. I can only make do with this unnamed Rapier." Krid took the blueprint of the Unnamed Rapier and studied it closely.


    "Why is it unnamed?"


    Ezreal wanted to add something along the lines of, <em>Did you bezy while naming it?</em> But then he realized that doing that was tantamount to mocking Krid''s efforts onto making these blueprints. In other words, it was the same as insulting this prideful Legendary cksmith.


    <em>Thankfully, I managed to stop myself or else... I don''t know how this brother of mine would react if I said that...</em> Ezreal though and kept his terrifying thoughts to himself.


    "This Rapier is unnamed, for I am not really sure how to name it. In fact, I don''t even know what will happen if I followed the Production Method that I created for it. It will be akin to venturing into unknown waters. Pretty exciting, but also pretty dangerous..." Krid''s eyes shone in a mysterious glint.


    "What do you think? Do you think that something as dangerous and exciting as this Rapier will suit your master?" Krid smiled at Ezreal.


    "I found that trouble always seems to follow my master, so something dangerous, yet equally strong will definitely suit him. And even if I am wrong, I am sure that with master''s adaptability, he can find ways of dealing with that danger." Ezreal said in a serious manner and Krid couldn''t help but chuckle.


    "Hearing you say something like that makes me feel like you''re deliberately pushing your master towards danger. I wonder how that brat will react if he knew that you were the one that chose his Primary Weapon for him."


    Ezreal alsoughed, but afterwards, he replied with genuine praise: "My master is really awesome, brother. He managed to defeat me without suffering any damage, and he even managed to see right through your schemes which made everything turn better than expected."


    Krid kept his silence as he listened to Ezreal''s ramblings.


    But at the end of Ezreal''s sentence, Krid suddenly voiced something which astonished Ezreal.


    "Aren''t you also amazing?"


    "Me?" Ezreal hurriedly waved his hand, "No, no, no... Master is the one that''s amazing, yes. He''s amazing, awesome, and powerful!"


    Krid revealed a thoughtful look, "Why are you trying so hard to bootlick that brat to the point that you would downy your own achievements? I really am curious as to why. People like you from that species are known to be prideful after all..."


    Ezreal''s figure visibly trembled for a moment before eyes dangerously narrowed into slits, "Brother, why are you saying something like that? I am not merely bootlicking my master, I am saying the truth! He''s truly amazing!"


    "And so are you!" Krid pointed at him.


    "Me?"


    "Yes, you''re also amazing! With that brat''s luck of always attracting trouble, then I bet that he wouldn''t even be able to survive after meeting me! I still remember that Insurance of Nature that you used towards him. If you didn''t sacrifice that Insurance of Nature, then I bet that he would''ve died before I realized who he really was!"


    "You''re someone that''s useful and maybe even more amazing than your master, why are you trying to downy your own achievements and make it so that your master''s stronger than you? Why are you cing that brat on a pedestal?"


    Ezreal''s figure trembled once again and he seemed to be struggling about something which could be seen on the current expression on his face.


    But in the end, he sighed in resignation before exining.


    "Brother, you really are terrifying. Now, I can truly say that you deserve your strength as a Legend."


    "Hahaha..." Krid chuckled, "Does that mean that I was right? You''re cing your master on a pedestal?"


    "But for what?"


    "I don''t think that you do not understand that unnecessary praise will only make someone conceited. Something like that isn''t good for the development of your master''s character!"


    "Yes, I know that... I know what you are saying, brother... But I have other ns... " Certain memories shed across Ezreal''s mind, but he didn''t voice these thoughts out.


    "I see, I wouldn''t probe into what those ns of yours are, but didn''t I already said that I don''t think that your master''s a petty man? You don''t have to endlessly bootlick him just so you could earn his favor and have him help you with your troubles!"


    Krid urately pointed out Ezreal''s worries and Ezreal reeled in shock.


    "Brother... How do you..." He couldn''t evenplete his sentence before Krid replied.


    "No, don''t worry. I have no intention of diving deep into that trouble of yours. In fact, I don''t even know what you are hesitating about. I can just feel the gist of it since I also experienced something like what you are feeling right now back then."


    "However..." Krid frowned, "Aren''t you older than me? I should be the one learning from you, not the other way around!"


    "..."


    Ezreal was speechless...


    He didn''t know what to say.


    Thankfully, Krid didn''t pursue the issue anymore.


    But the conflicting thoughts within Ezreal''s mind made him unable to think straight.


    In the end, Krid had to kick Ezreal out of the room since thetter wasn''t adding anything substantial anymore in their discussion.


    Ezreal exited the room in resignation.


    Within the room, a smiling Krid could be seen staring at the unnamed Rapier.


    "If that brother of mine really asks for that brat''s help in his troubles. That brat will have to fight against enemies with the same species as that brother of mine..."


    "In other words, I need to make proper modifications in preparation for that day. Those bastards are too powerful, one cannot have enough preparation in front of them."


    "Sigh..."


    "I can only hope that when that dayes, everything will end peacefully and without any unnecessary bloodshed."


    Krid crossed both of his arms and ced his palms on his left and right shoulder. This was the symbol necessary when praying to the Divinity of the Grand Duelist.


    Krid had to do this to quell the worries in his heart for in the next few minutes...


    He needed to achieve the State of Extreme Concentration in preparation for modifying the Production Method of the Unnamed Rapier.

 Chapter 96: Julie, Hulie

    Chapter 96: Julie, Hulie


    Joseph saw Alice staring at him with a cold look on her face.


    "Oh, you''re finally awake?"


    <em>Why are you saying that like you don''t want me to wake up...</em> Joseph inwardly criticized. But his pupils constricted when he realized something strange in the world around him.


    Everything had a shade of blue on them!


    <em>What is going on? It seems like my eyes adjusted, but am I in total darkness? But wait, that doesn''t make sense. If I am in total darkness, then why can I clearly see Alice in front of me?</em>


    Alice guessed what Joseph was thinking about when she saw her shocked expression.


    "Pretty shocking, right? But you''re actually quite lucky. When I woke up, I panicked when I found myself in the middle of total darkness which worsened some of the remaining wounds on my body."


    Alice looked as indifferent as ever as she said these words, but then she suddenly raised an eyebrow as she continued.


    "Now that I remember it... I found myself covered in bandages when I woke up. It couldn''t possibly be from those two sisters since the bandages were quite old and dirty. And since the bandages were wrapped around every nook and cranny of my body... Does this mean that you stripped me naked?"


    Joseph wryly smiled.


    <em>How else can I make sure that I covered every wound that you have if I didn''t strip you naked? </em>


    <em>And are you seriously ming me right now, when I was just trying to help at that time? I don''t have any ill intentions, you know? Joseph wanted to say these words out loud, but he didn''t have the drive to do so.</em>


    As to why?


    Well, Joseph thought that it was unnecessary for him to exin what could easily be understood through the use ofmon sense.


    <em>But still, going along Alice''s character from what I have seen... I can only hope that she''s not as angry as I think that she would be.</em>


    Joseph inwardly prepared himself for a beating as he squinted his eyes and awaited the arrival of Alice''s attacks...


    "Why are you closing your eyes?"


    But what he got in return was a question from Alice.


    Joseph turned to look at her and said, "Wait, you are not going to beat me up?"


    Alice stared at him in amusement, "Why should I do that? It''s not like what you did was wrong."


    It was Joseph''s turn to frown as he replied, "But I did strip you naked. You also seemed pretty angry when you asked me about it."


    Alice raised an eyebrow in response.


    She thought for a moment before she replied, "I am not really angry. If I must describe it, I can say that I am somewhat irritated or annoyed."


    "Annoyed? By what?" Joseph also raised an eyebrow as he asked.


    Alice''s indifferent expression shattered and she turned to look at Joseph with a doubtful frown.


    "Are girls that like manualbor unattractive to you?"


    "What''s the connection of this question to my question?"


    "Just answer."


    Alice didn''t give him any time to criticize as she harshly cut him off from speaking any further.


    "I don''t really find them unattractive. In fact, I find them inspirational."


    "Inspirational? What do you mean?"


    "I mean, aren''t women frequently stereotyped that they should only remain in the house, take care of the kids, and chores in the house? Men may have a physical advantage against women, but we are still of the same species in the end. That is why I advocate equality."


    The Kingdom of Nether had a patriarchal society. Joseph described the stereotype about women within the Kingdom of Nether so that Alice could understand his point.


    Alice''s interest was piqued as she asked, "So you''re not like those chivalrous knights from the Kingdom who always act like a gentleman on the surface, but is actually a huge perverted bastard in the inside?"


    Joseph frowned at Alice''s description.


    "I guess, you can say that. But I am not so shameless to say that I am not like them."


    "So you are admitting that you are like them?"


    "No, I am saying that I will lose face if I tantly advertise to you that I am not a pervert." Joseph retorted.


    Alice scoffed, "Losing face again? I really hate that stupid concept. I don''t understand why those nobles like to hold on their dignity so much as if their dignity can keep them alive."


    <em>Well maybe not everyone is as shameless as you, Alice-chyan.</em> Joseph inwardly criticized.


    He could still remember that breathtaking scene back at Reinhardt. Such a brilliant move from Alice was really something that he didn''t expect, it was like the Spanish''s Inquisition. Something that arrived when you least expect it.


    Joseph couldn''t find a suitable reply to what Alice had said.


    "Uh... To each their own, I guess?"


    Alice merely stared at him and didn''t say anything anymore.


    An awkward silence lingered in the air. Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched as his mind quickly spun so that he could dispel this strange atmosphere. Thankfully, after about half an hour of waiting.


    A bunch of footsteps suddenly echoed behind the door in front of them as two figures nervously went inside the room where Alice and Joseph were located.


    "Ah! Both of you are already awake?"


    Julie was taken aback when she saw Alice and Joseph staring at her in curiosity.


    "Julie, I''m scared..." Hulie went close to her sister and hugged her tight.


    "From the looks of it, both of you are our benefactors. I give you our thanks, and may the God of Order and Justice bless you." Alice revealed a smile.


    She crossed both of her hands in front of her chest and ced her open palms on her chest as she deeply bowed.


    <em>Hey, what is this difference in treatment? Also, the God of Order and Justice?</em>


    Joseph inwardly criticized, but on the outside...


    He revealed the same kind of look as Alice.


    He also bowed his head towards Julie and Hulie as a sign of respect towards his benefactors.


    Julie stepped forward and received their gratitude with an indifferent look on her face.


    "I am sorry to ask this from you, but may I know where we are right now?" Joseph spoke up when Julie raised her head after receiving their gratitude.


    Julie nodded her head and said, "The two of you are in the territory of the ce that is perpetually hidden from the sun."


    "Perpetually hidden from the sun?" Alice raised an eyebrow and Joseph also stared at Julie in confusion.


    "Yes." Julie nodded quite seriously, "This ce has never received even an inkling of sunlight ever since it was established. All sorts of Mutated Monsters of the Darkness roam this ce, and they serve as our food whenever we hunt them."


    "And speaking of food..." Julie revealed a smile at the end of her sentence as she ced a bag made out of woven tree leaves on top of the small stone table in front of Alice and Joseph. When she opened the bag, a slight smile could be seen on her face as she exined.


    "We are quite lucky this time. I managed to hunt a Mutated Monster with a lot of Mana in its body. If we ate it, then I am pretty sure that we will not grow hungry within the next few days." Julie took out an object wrapped with banana leaves from the bag.


    Afterwards, she unwrapped that object and what Joseph saw almost made him retch.


    What came out from the bag was a b of meat that looked purple and greenish. But that wasn''t the reason why Joseph looked so disturbed when he saw the chunk of meat.


    It was because he realized that the meat had a lot of eyeballs on its surface! Making it look like it came out straight from a horror movie.


    <em>Ah... Shit, I''m weak... I can''t look at that...</em> Joseph turned his gaze away.


    He nced at Alice and found that thetter also looked shaken.


    <em>Uh... Yeah, there''s no way that a human being can eat something like that... Is that even edible?</em>


    "Are you guys not going to eat?" Julie asked in confusion.


    "W-We''ll think about it." Joseph awkwardly scratched his head in reply as he nced at Alice with a wry smile.


    "In that case then we''ll go and eat first. But don''t worry, we will be sure to leave you both enough portions so the two of you can satisfy your hunger..." Julie retrieved the b of meat from the table and she directly bit on it, causing bloody juices from the meat to drip down the ground, further astonishing both Alice and Joseph.


    She''s eating it raw? Holy shit, is there no concept of cooking in this unknown ce? Joseph reeled in shock. He nced at Alice and found that thetter wore a bitter smile on her face.


    "Are you okay? You look quite pale." Joseph asked in concern.


    Alice waved and replied, "I am fine. I am just hungry. After all, I am not like you who is cursed and blessed by thews of causality at the same time. If I didn''t eat then I will die. Especially since I''m particrly vulnerable when ites to hunger as a Swordswoman."


    Joseph frowned, "What''s the connection of hunger and being a Swordswoman? And also, I cannot let you die. I secretly swore to Senior Krid that I will bring you to himpletely safe and sound."


    Alice raised an eyebrow, her expression turned into a teasing one as she said: "Completely safe and sound?"


    She then turned to look at her bruised body before saying: "I wonder what Grandpa will say if he saw me in this state?"


    Horror shed on Joseph''s face. He could imagine Krid''s anger when he found out that his beloved granddaughter actually got injured to the extent that she needed bandages around her entire body.


    "Wh-What do I have to do so that you wouldn''t say anything to senior Krid?" Joseph slowly uttered.


    His voice became pleasing to the ears which made Alice smile from ear to ear.


    "Bring me some food."


    <em>Oh? That simple?</em> Joseph was delighted by the answer that he heard.


    But there was a particr issue.


    "I don''t know any other food in this ce other than that b of meat presented to us by the two sisters," Joseph replied in a manner that made him look like the victim.


    "Yeah, go to them and ask them for a b of meat. Afterwards, we''ll cook it."


    "We will cook it? We''re going to eat it?"


    "Yes, don''t tell me that you do not know how to cook?" Alice stared at him.


    "Of course, I know how to cook!" Joseph retorted and then Alice chuckled.


    "Good, in that case then you can go and ask them for a portion of that b of meat now. Remember, beggars, can''t be choosers so we''ve got to eat what we can eat so we can conserve energy in preparation for our return to Nether!"


    Alice even advised him, but it was evident that Joseph wasn''t listening to her for he was thinking about something else.


    <em>She wants me to cook?</em>


    <em>I don''t know what will happen if I cooked such a terrifying peace of meat.</em>


    <em>But I guess there''s no harm on trying...</em>


    <em>However, in order to cook a delicious meal, I need something more than the meat itself...</em>


    <em>That''s right, spices!</em>


    <em>I need spices so I can make a decent meal.</em>


    <em>But where can I get the spices that I need?</em>


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits when an idea suddenly came to his mind.


    <em>The Cash Shop!</em>


    <em>I can go and buy spices from the cash shop!</em>


    Joseph excitedly opened his Main Menu and opened the Cash Shop that everyone liked.

 Chapter 97: Julie, Hulie[2]

    Chapter 97: Julie, Hulie[2]


    The Cash Shop contained a lot of cosmetic and misceneous items. For the sake of fair y, there were no items within the Cash Shop that could augment the abilities of yers. Every item within the cash shop existed only for the sake of a yer''s convenience.


    Of course, various spices and condiments for yers who liked the cook but didn''t like the hassle of gathering those ingredients from scratch also existed within the Cash Shop.


    But primarily, the Cash Shop functioned as a department store. Any yer could top-up some money and buy items that they could gift to NPCs, increasing their Reputation Stat as a result. This was also a form of winning by paying, but the mechanics behind increasing one''s Reputation Stat weren''t that simple.


    After all, the NPCs within the world of Victory were simr to living creatures in the outside world. They had their own niches, dislikes, likes, and tastes. What suited the other may not be suitable for others.


    Joseph first converted the gold coins that he acquired from the Underground Penitentiary into real money. Then, he converted that money into Victory''s virtual currency also known as Dur. Afterwards, he swiftly purchased spices, condiments and even a simple single burner stove that could be used through the use of Mana.


    "You have all of that equipment? Being favored by thews of causality really is too convenient." Alice stared at the b of meat in front of her sitting on top of a ceramic te. The meat that looked incredibly disgusting now looked like a medium-rare steak.


    "How fascinating... Cooking without using fire. How does that work? The outside world sure is magical..." Juliemented at the side. Earlier, she was attracted by Joseph who said that he could make the disgusting b of meat taste like how a slice of meat should be.


    Julie knew that both Joseph and Alice came from the outside world. Due to this, she excitedly rushed over and she wasn''t disappointed by what she had seen and tasted.


    "You look like this is your first time tasting meat that is properly cooked," Joseph revealed a wry smile.


    "Yes, this is indeed the first time that I tasted cooked meat." Julie nodded her head, and Hulie who was still munching on her steak didn''t even wipe the oil around her lips as she slowly nodded her head in agreement.


    "What? Seriously? Won''t you guys feel sick in the stomach after eating raw meat?" Joseph''s eyebrows knitted. It seems like these twin sisters aren''t so simple. But oh well, people that could live in this ce that is perpetually within the dark are not ordinary people, to begin with.


    Alice also had a frown on her face. It was clear that she was thinking about something.


    "No, we are fine after eating raw meat. Actually, we prefer eating them raw since the blood within the meat enhances our abilities. But after eating this piece of cooked meat. I think I prefer it now more than eating something raw. This is just too delicious!" Julie honestly praised.


    But the words that she said to Joseph and Alice astonished the two.


    <em>The blood within the raw meat enhances their abilities? But how about those creepy eyeballs? I suppose that was the product of the mutation that the animal experienced after being basked in this strange total darkness. But to think that blood could augment their abilities. Could it be that...</em>


    Joseph nced at Alice.


    Alice also gazed at Joseph.


    The eyes of the two met in mid-air and they simultaneously nodded their heads.


    <em>Vampires!</em>


    <em>These twin sisters are vampires!</em>


    Joseph wasn''t a stranger to the members of the Vampire Race. After all, he had fought against one of them back at the Festival of Battles.


    <em>But...</em>


    <em>As far as I can remember, I don''t think that the members of the Vampire Race have silver hair as their primary features...</em>


    <em>But if I recall correctly, the members of that race consumed the blood of humans in order to enhance their abilities and to satisfy their hunger. If these twin sisters are truly a member of that race, why are they consuming the blood of beasts instead of the blood of humans? This isn''t scientific at all...</em>


    <em>Wait!</em>


    <em>What if the reason why they are not consuming the blood of humans is that there are no humans in this ce? Wait, that can be possible. I mean, what kind of a human could possibly survive in such a hostile environment like this?</em>


    <em>In other words, they are used to consuming the blood of beasts and they may not possibly harm us. After all, if they had the intention to harm us then they could''ve done that long before we wake up. Why wait until we woke up and could potentially resist against their bad intentions to us?</em>


    <em>But there''s also the possibility that these twin sisters deliberately dyed their ns of consuming us until we wake up, in that way they could also revel in our despair and hopelessness while satisfying their urges and hunger at the same time.</em>


    Horror shed on Joseph''s face, but when he nced at the twin sisters Julie and Hulie.


    He found that his thoughts were ridiculous and far-fetched.


    <em>Ahh... I''m thinking too much... Look at Hulie! The pure light sparkling within her eyes indicates that she is nothing but a little pure girl!</em>


    <em> And as for Julie, even though she''s far sensible and mature than Hulie. From the fact that she casually told us that blood enhances her abilities, it is clear that she''s too honest!</em>


    <em>Can someone like that actually act so despicable?</em>


    <em>Wake up, Joseph!</em>


    Joseph thought to himself... But he once again nced at Alice.


    The light within Alice''s eyes was simr to the light sparkling within Joseph''s eyes. It was clear that the two reached the same conclusion and with this in mind. Joseph heaved a sigh and thought.


    It really is too convenient to be with someone that can read along the lines. A smile of appreciation towards Alice appeared on his lips. Afterwards, he stared at Julie and said.


    "My name is Joseph, and this is Alice. I think that you should know about it by now, but both of us came from the outside world..."


    "Do you know about the Forbidden Region? We fell from a really high cliff from that ce and we ended up here. I think that this ce is directly below the Forbidden Region."


    Joseph spat a lot of words that it temporarily confused Julie. Particrly the words Forbidden Region, she couldn''t understand what he was saying so she couldn''t answer.


    "Ah!" Joseph inwardly eximed when he felt a sharp pain on his back.


    He nced at Alice and found that thetter was coldly staring at him. Afterwards, Alice turned her gaze at Julie. Her expression turned incredibly warm and a kind smile spread on her lips as she said.


    "Hello! My name is Alice! Thank you for helping us! If not for your help, then we would''ve died out there without knowing how we died..." Alice revealed a sorrowful expression for a moment and Joseph couldn''t help but criticize at the side.


    <em>What is this difference in treatment once again? I saved you from the hands of the Kingdom of Nether, you know! I became a traitor of the Kingdom and a wanted man partly for your sake, so why are you treating me so differently than these two children!</em>


    "Uhm... My name is Julie, and my sister here is Hulie." Julie hung her head low and she looked like she wanted to say something but she hesitated and in the end. She closed her mouth and didn''t say anything anymore.


    But Alice didn''t mind her hesitation. Instead, she encouraged her to speak as she said, "Oh, your name is Julie? That is a really good sounding name."


    Julie nodded her head and revealed a rueful smile: "Papa and Mama also said that I have a good sounding name."


    "Your Papa and Mama? Where are they?" Alice asked once again.


    "Uhmm... Mama and Papa said that. But we are already dead." Julie''s voice turned somber when she reached the end of her sentence.


    But Joseph looked horrified when she heard what the cute little Julie had said.


    <em>She''s already dead? Are we talking to a ghost?!</em>


    Alice also looked somewhat pale, but she managed to suppress her innate fears as she asked, "Julie, what do you mean by you two are already dead? How can you be dead when you can talk to big sister here?"


    Alice directly connected herself to the twin sisters through the use of the words <em>big sister</em>. She used this tactic so that Julie would think that they had close rtions with each other.


    In other words, Julie and Hulie may befortable talking with her and in that case, they could easily spill secrets that Alice and Joseph needed to hear.


    As expected, the hesitation stered on Julie and Hulie''s face lessened when she heard the words, <em>big sister</em>. But there was still some anxiety and hesitation so Alice decided on adding fuel to the fire.


    "It''s okay, Julie. No matter what you want to say to big sister here and big brother there. We will listen. You saved our lives so that is the least that we can do for you."


    Alice revealed a gentle maternal look that astonished even Joseph who couldn''t believe that Alice could make such an expression on her face.


    <em>Was that ferocious and decisive Alice that I met at the Colosseum, fake? Just how can she act so excellent like this? It feels like I''m staring at apletely different person!</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought, but he also revealed the same expression on her face as Alice. He did this to show to the twin sisters that he waspletely honest and sincere.


    Alice nced at him for a moment and her smile intensified when she saw that he was on the track.


    Afterwards, she stared directly at Julie with twinkling eyes.


    Julie wryly smiled before she exined, "Every people who live here in this ce perpetually hidden from the sun have the Curse of the Condemned in their blood...


    "Once afflicted by the curse, that person will eventually turn into a Mutated Beast of the darkness, only craving for blood and destruction, endlessly praising the God of Everything that Moves and Exists..."

 Chapter 98: Residents of the Dark

    Chapter 98: Residents of the Dark


    "The God of Everything that Moves and Exists? Isn''t that the Compassionate God?" Alice frowned.


    "The Compassionate God? You are saying that the name of the God of Everything that Moves and Exists in the outside world is the Compassionate God?" Julie revealed a mocking look on her face.


    Alice was a believer in the God of Order and Justice.


    She despised people who dare spheme the deity whom they believe in.


    But strangely enough, Alice couldn''t feel any trace of anger towards Julie.


    It was as if it was perfectly normal to the God of Everything that Moves and Exists to be mocked.


    Such a strange sensation caused turmoil within Alice''s mind.


    But she shook this off as she replied, "In the several thousands of year established and recorded history of the outside world, the so-called Compassionate God indeed has the nickname of the God of Everything that Moves and Exists..."


    "The recorded history of the outside world only spans for several thousands of years?" Julie uttered in shock, she seemed to have forgotten the topic of their discussion.


    "Yes." Alice nodded.


    "That can''t be... How can this ce be older than the outside world? That is not logical at all!" Julie whispered in disbelief, even Hulie who normally had an airhead look now looked astounded and shock as if she couldn''t believe what she was hearing.


    "This ce is older than the outside world? What do you mean by that?" Joseph asked.


    "Yes... If what big sis said is true, this ce is indeed older than the outside world... ording to the City Chief, our recorded history is at least several tens of thousands of years long."


    "Severa tens of thousands of years long?! Are you serious?" Joseph couldn''t hold back his exim. If what Julie said was true, that meant that the Vampires managed to endure tens of thousands of years without the blessing of sunlight and without encountering any other members of species.


    <em>How did they reproduce? </em>


    <em>Wouldn''t they breed themselves to death due to the result of inbreeding? </em>


    <em>Just how did the Vampires survive that long? Or could it be that Julie is lying?</em> What he heard was so unbelievable that Joseph couldn''t help but suspect that Julie was lying. But when he observed Julie''s bodynguage, he couldn''t find any trace of deceit.


    "Mhm... Julie is not lying! I heard that too from Kuya City Chief!"


    Alice and Joseph nced at Hulie.


    Joseph replied,"Hulie, you heard it from the City Chief? Or did you read it yourself?"


    Hulie stared at Joseph and replied with a smile.


    "I heard it from Kuya Chief! I once attended one of the masses for the God of Everything that Moves and Exists but Julie said that it was too boring so she left with me and didn''t attend again."


    Hulie replied and Alice couldn''t help but wryly smile.


    <em>Indeed, hearing the preaching of someone about a god that you really didn''t believe in can really be boring. So the reason why she casually mentions the Compassionate God is due to the fact that she doesn''t even believe in that god in the first ce? But I wonder, is she not afraid of Divine Punishment?</em>


    Alice nced at Julie and she decided to keep that issue at the back of her head. After all, there were more pressing matters that they had to attend to.


    "Are there any libraries in the City? I mean, that ce should have some records about this ce''s history and even this ce''s name. If there is, then I n on secretly visiting that library and borrow some books." Joseph lightly chuckled.


    Julie shook her head and replied, "We have a library back then, but it was destroyed by a Librarian who became a Mutated Monster..."


    "He loved books so much that when he found out that he was about to be consumed by the Curse, he burned all the books and also burned himself so that the books would supposedly arrive with him in hell."


    Julie heaved a deep sigh at the end of her sentence, but she seemed to be grieving for the books instead of the Librarian.


    "If that library still existed then everyone in this City wouldn''t be so illiterate. But right now, not even a third of the children in this ce know how to read and write..."


    "Hulie also doesn''t know how to read and write. Thankfully, I managed to buy a vocabry book and alphabet in exchange for a single Mutated Beast..."


    "I managed to learn how to read and write simple words and letters, but I don''t think that I still know how to write. Paper is a really preciousmodity in this ce and it is valued more than its weight in our currency."


    Julie sighed once again, her fingers continuously twitched as if they were craving for something.


    Joseph noticed this anomaly and he couldn''t help but smirk.


    "Julie... You want a pen and paper?"


    Julie''s eyes drastically brightened and she was about to raise her head up to stare at Joseph, but she went against that idea and decided not to move.


    Joseph sensed her apprehension and he couldn''t help but chuckle, "Julie... You are our benefactor, you saved our lives so something as simple as asking for a pen and paper is not something that we would refuse..."


    "So don''t worry, all right? Do you want a pen and paper or not?" Joseph revealed a teasing look.


    Alice who observed everything in the sidelines couldn''t help but chuckle.


    "Hahaha... Julie, ept his offer. Even though this guy looks really suspicious he''s surprisingly kind-hearted, I don''t think that he would be as shameless to think that a single pen and some paper is enough to repay your favor to us."


    It was Alice''s time to stare teasingly at Joseph who immediately scratched his head and eximed to prove himself.


    "Of course not! How could a single pen and paper enough to pay a debt of life! You''re purposely ndering me here, Alice!" Joseph red at Alice.


    The young maiden chuckled, "Oh, what are you going to do?"


    Another teasing look appeared on Alice''s face.


    "What I am going to do? This is what I am going to do!" Joseph roared and he abruptly pounced at Alice, pressing her down, he ran his fingers across her body elicitingughter from the young maiden.


    H<em>ahaha... This girl''s pretty fun to be with...</em> Joseph was enjoying himself in the midst of tickling Alice, but then he suddenly realized that something was wrong.


    He abruptly backed away from Alice, he couldn''t believe what he just did.


    <em>Oh, shit, shit, shit! Did I just press down the disciple of Senior Krid on a bed and tickle her with my fingers? What the fuck! Why did I do that? Wait! When did we grow so close?</em>


    Joseph nced at Alice and he found that the young maiden''s expression didn''t reveal anything strange.


    It was as if what happened waspletely normal to her.


    In fact, she was still evenughing.


    <em>What? Why does she look like she didn''t mind what I was doing?</em> An idea sprung in Joseph''s mind and he casually approached Alice once again before stretching his hand behind her. But before his hand could even approach Alice''s back, Alice abruptly caught his wrist and she exerted some force.


    "Aaaah! That hurts! That hurts! Alice! Alice! Alice! Let me go! Let me go!!!"


    Joseph finally managed to take his hand away from Alice''s grip, but when he turned to look at the young maiden. Thetter was coldly staring at him as if saying, <em>that was the first warning, if you dare do that again then I will crush your wrist!</em>


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva and subconsciously nodded his head out of fear.


    Afterwards, Alice turned to look at the twin sisters and the expression on her face turned from a serious and murderous one to a gentle and kind, ideal big sister.


    <em>Hay... This difference in treatment really is too annoying!</em> Joseph deeply sighed.


    "Uhmm... Kuya, are the two of you lovers like Mama and Papa?" Hulie turned her attention to Joseph, her eyes glittering with innocence as she asked in curiosity.


    Joseph almost spat a mouthful of blood.


    He could feel Alice''s increasingly cold gaze stabbing through his back.


    "Er... No, we are just friends." Joseph barely managed to squeeze these words out.


    "Friends? But Mama and Papa told me that friends don''t press each other on the bed!" Hulie replied.


    <em>Fuck!</em>


    Joseph figuratively coughed a mouthful of blood. His eyes shed with anger, but when his gazended on the cute and innocent Hulie, his anger vanished like the snow melted by the sun. He couldn''t feel anger, nor be angry against such as a cute little angel, no- Vampire.


    Joseph nced at Alice and found that she was also trembling.


    Joseph felt a bad premonition in his heart as he hurriedly replied to Hulie, "Your Papa is right, Hulie but we are only friends. How about you, Hulie? Do you mind telling us more about yourself?"


    Joseph skillfully utilized the art of changing topics.


    Thankfully, Hulie bit the bait and didn''t linger on that particr topic any longer.


    "Talk about myself? Hmm..." Hulie revealed a contemting look that greatly contrasted her airheaded look.


    "I want to be a doctor!" Hulie eximed after a few moments of thinking.


    "Oh, you want to be a doctor? That is indeed a noble profession, but why do you want to be a doctor?" Joseph revealed a smile.


    "Because I want to be famous!" Hulie almost immediately replied.


    Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched, <em>is there even a connection between being famous and being a doctor?</em> He thought to himself but he didn''t say anything against what Hulie was saying.


    "You want to be famous?"


    Joseph tried his best on suppressing his twitching lips as he said these words.


    "Mhm! Like Papa! Papa is a doctor, and he is really famous! Everyone loves and knows about him! I want to be like that too! I want to be liked and adored by everyone like Papa! Papa is my idol!"


    Hulie innocently replied.


    Anguished shed on Julie''s face when she heard Hulie''s praises towards their father. But in the end, she didn''t say anything against Hulie nor anything about their father.


    She just silently listened, asionally ncing at Joseph obviously waiting for her pen and paper.


    A few minutester, Joseph turned to look at Julie and asked, "How about you, Julie?"


    "Me?" Julie absentmindedly replied.


    Her cheeks blushed since she was suddenly ced on the hot seat.


    "Ermm... I want to be a writer!" Julie replied with firm determination.


    <em>She wants to be a writer? Ah, I suddenly remember Miss Vanessa... I still haven''t touched her book. I wonder how is she now? I wonder what happened to the Pro-NPC Alliance. Hay... Someday, I will definitely find some way to pay back the debt that I incurred from them!</em>


    "Oh, a writer? That is also a noble profession? Have you read books before?" Joseph lightly smiled, but he found something wrong on what he said when he reached the end of his sentence. But it was already toote to retract his words.


    Julie revealed a rueful expression, her crimson eyes shed with sadness as she said, "No... After the library disappeared. Books are now extremely expensive, I want to read them, but I couldn''t afford them."


    Joseph stared at Julie and he couldn''t help but sigh. Being unable to achieve your dream due to some circumstances that you couldn''t really control really was such a sad situation.


    But...


    "How about this, Julie? I will also give you a book! What genre do you like?"


    "Really?! You will give me a book?!" Julie abruptly stood up from her stone seat. Joseph and Alice were astonished by her reaction. This was the first time that she reacted so violently...


    She didn''t react like this when Joseph said that she would give her a pen and some paper.


    Joseph nodded and Julie looked like if not for the fact that the room was so small, she would''ve danced in joy and delight around the room.


    "Thank you! Thank you so much, Kuya Joseph! When can I get the book?"


    "Hahaha, calm down, calm down. I will give you the bookter, tell me what genre you like first." Joseph patted Julie''s head and thetter visibly calmed down when she heard what he said.


    "I want Fantasy!" Julie replied.


    "Oh, Fantasy? Good choice, that is also my favorite genre. The book that I really like the most is also in that genre. Hehe, I will give that book to you so you can understand how awesome it is."


    "Really? The book that you like the most? Hehe, thank you, Kuya! What is the name of that book, Kuya? And who wrote it? He should be an amazing person." Julie replied in delight.


    "Yes, yes... The author''s name is AngNakikipagsapran, and the book title is System for Assassination. Keep in mind that this is not a book for the faint-hearted, so you should be careful when reading it!"


    Joseph even warned Julie out of concern, but instead of feeling afraid...


    Julie was even more excited.


    "But Kuya, is that a long book?" Julie suddenly asked.


    Joseph paused for a moment before he understood what she meant, "Its length? Not really, it has been in hiatus sincest year. It only has about 270 chapters, you can read them all in a few days. It''s also a book that is not filled withplicated vocabry so I think you won''t have any problems reading through it in a week."


    Julie smiled in relief, "I''m relieved... I''m relieved that I can read it in a week." Her voice turned weak when she reached the end of her sentence.


    Joseph and Alice frowned.


    They took a closer look at Julie and found that her face was filled with beaded sweat.


    Hulie also looked pale, they were clearly suffering from something.


    "What is going on?"


    "Heh... It''s nothing, Kuya..." Julie absentmindedly replied.


    "It''s just..." She stretched her hands towards the hem of her clothes.


    "It''s just that..." She raised her clothes up and the scene that Joseph and Alice saw thoroughly shook them to their core.


    "I don''t think that I canst longer than a week..." On Julie''s back was a hideous wound that repeatedly pulsated like it was alive. The wound looked like it was a web of thick veins that continuously siphoned Julie''s life-force, weakening her and slowly, yet surely, taking away her life.


    "What is that..." Joseph uttered in shock.


    "This is..."


    Julie revealed a despondent smile.


    "The Curse of the Condemned, Kuya."<ol><li>Means brother</li><li>interchangeable with beasts</li></ol>

 Chapter 99: Residents of the Dark[2]

    Chapter 99: Residents of the Dark[2]


    Several days passed since then and the understanding that Joseph and Alice had about the Curse of the Condemned has finally reached levels that they basically memorized its unique traits.


    The Curse of the Condemned was always within the blood of anyone born from this ce.


    It could appear in any stage of one''s life, and once it appeared...


    There was no cure for it and the one afflicted by the Curse would turn into a Mutated Monster if they didn''tmit suicide before the Curse took their life.


    It was indeed a despicable curse that didn''t only cause physical suffering, but also mental and psychological torment to its victims.


    Within these several days, the injuries of the twin sisters red up to the extent that the Curse now covered their entire lower body, crippling their ability to do most of their daily tasks.


    Such a scene saddened Joseph, but he was also mesmerized by the determination and the struggle that these twin sisters were doing just so they could live as long as possible.


    "Is there really no cure to this Curse?" Joseph whispered into the air.


    Alice revealed a wry smile.


    She turned her head to look at the set of clothes that she was wearing; these were made by the twin sisters before they were rendered incapable of various movements by the Curse in their bodies.


    She really wanted to help these twin sisters, but knowing that a curse came from a deity; the so-called Compassionate God. How could a mere mortal like her undo a Curse that came from a genuine god?


    Any mortal could never have such an ability...


    They were never even qualified in the first ce!


    Joseph nced at Alice and found that she was surrounded by the aura of darkness emanating from the bodies of the twin sisters.


    Ever since the Curse of the Condemned red, the bodies of the twin sisters generated thick miasma that suffocated any living creature around it.


    Even nts weren''t spared, and that also included Alice.


    But Joseph was an exception for he had a passive that pardoned him from any abnormal statuses that weren''t a result of a natural phenomenon.


    He remained unharmed from the miasma.


    The twin sisters were pleasantly surprised by this fact.


    "Kuya Joseph... I''m sleepy..." Hulie turned to look at Joseph.


    This young littless who looked so energetic just a few days ago now looked decrepit simr to an old man that was about to die.


    Dark circles could be seen under her eyes and her skin wasn''t so taut anymore, wrinkles spread across her entire body and she was so thin that her cheeks looked hollowed.


    If not for the fact that her crimson eyes still shone with the intense light of her desire to live...


    Joseph would think that she was really about to die.


    Witnessing the transformation of the cutess into a feeble child who struggled to even sit down.


    Joseph gnashed his teeth, enduring the sour sensation rising up from his stomach to his throat as he revealed the same kind of smile that he had always shown to the twin sisters since he awakened in this ce.


    "Oh, Hulie? You are sleepy? Okay, okay, Kuya will stay here and tell you a story, all right?"


    "Yaaay!"


    Hulie gave an energetic answer, but since she was so weak. Her answer sounded like a silent croak.


    Alice momentarily closed her eyes.


    Pain shed across her face, but she hid them all behind a facade. When her eyes opened once again, she stared energetically at Hulie as if she wasn''t enduring the pain of the miasma constantly eroding her body...


    Joseph nced at Alice and seeing that she didn''t have the intention to leave...


    He didn''t stop her from staying. Instead, he turned to look at Julie and asked.


    "Julie, you look like you also want to listen. Come here, the story that I will tell today is not a story that is only suitable for children..."


    "It is also suitable for an adult like you, hehe. This is a fun story, it features a young teenage girl wanting to escape her dull and boring life... This is a story of adventure, sacrifice, and romance... Don''t you like a story like that?"


    Julie was taken aback when she heard Joseph''s words. But from the looks of it, she didn''t have any intention of denying what he had just said.


    Turning to look at the excited Hulie, she took a deep breath and snuck close to her sister.


    Pulling Hulie into an embrace, she turned to look intently at Joseph and gestured for him to speak.


    "Hahaha... That is more like it, all right. Let''s start!" Joseph''s lips lifted into a wide smile. He cleared his throat and started speaking, "Once upon a time, there was a talented young woman whose fate stolen from her hands by her lover whom she trusted..."


    "The once most talented youth of the Xia n suddenly lost everything. She was despised, hated, and has now be theughingstock of the Xia n..."


    "But what do you think she did in response to these?" Joseph suddenly asked a question.


    Julie and Hulie were taken aback by the sudden question. But after a few moments, Hulie recovered from her reverie as she eximed in excitement, "She fought back!"


    Joseph nodded her head, "That is right! She fought back! She didn''t let her powerlessness get in the way of her dreams and ambitions!"


    "Yes, she may not be talented anymore, but she worked hard! She worked at least ten times more than the average person, only through this way could shepare to the others..."


    "This her story, and this is how she became the Empress of the Cosmos!"


    "This is the story of the Empress''s Domination!"


    Joseph became excited when he found out that the twin sisters were now invested in the story that he made up.


    Soon, he created an intricate, yet interesting plot whichbined into apelling narrative that even Alice was interested to know about what would happen next.


    Unfortunately for her, the twin sisters were already asleep...


    No matter how much she wanted to know more about the story, there were more pressing matters that they had to attend to.


    Alice stared at the twin sisters who slept in the embrace of each other.


    She then turned to look at Joseph and a rare look of pleading surfaced on her face.


    "Joseph..."


    This was the first time that he called Joseph by his name.


    "We must save these two, no matter what."


    Joseph nodded his head.


    He didn''t need Alice''s reminder for he knew that he must do whatever that he could possibly do so that he could save the lives of these twin sisters. After all, they were his benefactors.


    But that wasn''t the only reason why Joseph was willing to go for the extra mile.


    It was also because he was now fond of these twin sisters.


    The days that they spent together may be short, but they made Joseph feel the warmth that he had longed for ever since both of his parents died...


    Now, he was unwilling to just let them die under such a despicable curse.


    "From what I can see, the essence of this curse is dark energy. The energy of darkness can only be harnessed by devils or those gods that govern over the elements of nature..."


    "The opposite of darkness is light, and light is affiliated with Divinity. What if we use the Divinity of the Grand Duelist and tackle this curse?" Joseph proposed.


    Although Joseph was still a pre-mature Grand Duelist.


    He could utilize the Divinity of the Grand Duelist to his advantage by transporting the twin sisters into the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum...


    <em>The Colosseum is the Grand Duelist''s Domain. I don''t think that the lingering Divinity of the Grand Duelist in that ce will let such a vile curse survive within its territory.</em> Joseph thought this way, so he proposed an idea to Alice.


    But unexpectedly, Alice shook her head and said.


    "It seems like you still do not know, but the Divinity of the Grand Duelist isn''t gentle at all. It''s incredibly sharp. If we used that method of yours, we may be able to annihte the curse, but that also includes annihting Julie and Hulie."


    Joseph turned serious, he wasn''t surprised at all by this revtion.


    "Also, if we managed to somehow control the Divinity of the Grand Duelist in that ce, then we will also need to pay attention to the brilliant light and shockwave that will inevitably appear once we get out of that ce." Alice continued.


    "Why?"


    "We do not know if the God of Everything that Moves and Exists is observing this ce..."


    "We don''t know if ''He'' is constantly looking after this ce. That is the reason why I am denying your proposal." Alice deeply sighed at the end of her sentence and she didn''t say anything anymore.


    Joseph also looked devastated, "Is there really no other way for them to be released from that Curse?"


    "There is," Alice revealed a rueful smile.


    Joseph stared at her and when he saw the light of sadness within her eyes.


    He immediately understood what she meant.


    That''s right, there existed a method that could immediately purge the curse from the twin sisters.


    But...


    "Suicide..." Joseph whispered into the air. He nced at the twin sisters and thought.


    <em>Be strong, you two... The world out there is for you to explore so, please...</em>


    <em>Please do not give up...</em>


    Joseph and Alice retired for the day. gued by the problem of saving the twin sisters from the curse, they found themselves unable to sleep peacefully throughout the entire night.


    ...


    Within the depths of the City that was perpetually hidden from the sun.


    The residents that lived most of their life in the dark were now gathered in a ce that could barely be considered as a City za.


    Standing in front of several hundred residents were the City Chief, the First Elder, and the Second Elder.


    They were the oldest residents of this city, and it was unknown how they didn''t acquire the Curse of the Condemned.


    Right now, these elders wore solemn expressions on their faces.


    When the crowd saw their serious expressions, they were filled with trepidation and anxiety.


    "Uhm... Honorable Elders... All of the residents are now gathered here."


    A middle-aged man spoke up.


    The City Chief nodded his head, he mmed his staff onto the ground and a sound that pierced through the souls of everyone rang out.


    "From now on until I say so, no one shall lie!"


    He shouted, his words turned into an Imperial Decree that could never be vited for everyone who was here.


    "There is a problem..."


    "In the past few days, despite doing our best in finding those two traitors, we are still unable to find them. What is going on? Is there someone in here that knows where they are hiding?" The City Chief swept his gaze across every resident, and suddenly...


    Two residents stood up and said in a monotonous voice.


    They were Erika and Jacob.


    The other was a best friend of the twin sisters, while the other was a known pursuer of Julie.


    "Honorable City Chief, I have an idea where they are hiding." Jacob was the first one to speak. His tone was polite, but when he moved towards the City Chief. His movements were mechanical as if he was a puppet connected to a string.


    "Good, good boy... Erika, you alsoe here. Whatever information you have may help us pursue those traitors."


    The City Chief revealed a kind smile.


    The residents were delighted by the honesty of the two and they all started pping. Some even directly kneeled, and praised the God of Everything that Moves and Exists, while some bawled their eyes out for some reason only known to them.


    The two approached the City Chief and revealed everything that they knew about the underground base.


    Apparently, the ce was supposed to be a secret that should only be kept by the four of them.


    It was a ce where they would secretly gather to y whenever the City Chief forbid them froming out of their houses. After all, they were children and in this ce perpetually hidden from the sun, entertainment wascking so it was easy to get bored.


    "Mhmm... So, that is the reason why that underground ce is built?"


    "I see... Who helped you build that ce?" The City Chief asked once again.


    Jacob replied in a mechanical voice, "It was my father."


    "Oh, it was your father? I see..." The City Chief nced at the Second Elder. Thetter nodded his head and took out a yellowish-golden g from out of nowhere before he approached Jacob''s father who was kneeling while praising the God of Everything that Moves and Exists.


    "You are indeed a devotee of the Creator... But sadly, your son hasmitted a mistake so I will have you return to the Kingdom of the Creator at this instant. Are you prepared?" The Second Elder revealed a grieving look.


    Jacob''s father stared at the Second Elder, he kowtowed, mmed his head three times onto the ground before he said.


    "Yes... I am a devotee of the Creator! The God of Everything that Moves and Exists! I am always prepared! A devotee is always prepared for his return to the Tenebrous Kingdom of the Creator!"


    Tears continuously dripped down his eyes as the Second Elder chuckled and moved closer to him.


    His hand blurred and in the next moment, blood gushed out from the neck of Jacob''s father like a fountain.


    His eyes widened, but it wasn''t because of shock and trepidation for his iing death...


    It was due to excitement and glee that he was finally about to enter the Tenebrous Kingdom of the Creator.


    He soon copsed and his body mysteriously vanished from the eyes of everyone.


    "See, he vanished! He has now returned to the embrace of the Creator!"


    The Second Elder pointed at the original location where Jacob''s father was and the residents who saw what happened cried out in glee and devotion...


    "The Creator is always merciful!"


    The residents continuously chanted.


    The Second Elder retreated towards the City Chief''s side. The g he held in his hands pulsated like a heartbeat and a faint glow of darkness surrounded it like a wave.


    "You did a good job." The City Chief praised him.


    "I am not worthy of your praise, honorable City Chief." The Second Elder bowed his head.


    "But we will not rest yet... We still have a hunt tomence."


    The City Chief revealed a light smile on his lips.


    "This time..."


    "Let''s see if those traitors can still escape from our hands!"

 Chapter 100: Residents of the Dark[3]

    Chapter 100: Residents of the Dark[3]


    "Wake up..."


    Amidst the darkness, a soft familiar whisper entered Joseph''s ears.


    "Wake up..."


    <em>Who the hell is disturbing my sleep? Can''t you see that I''m in True Sleep Mode right now? All that thinking early in the day burned me out so, please. Just let me sleep peacefully.</em>


    Joseph inwardlyined, he didn''t even bat an eyelid nor opened his eyes. He rolled to face the other side of the stone bed, all while taking all of the nker for his own use.


    "Hey, wake up!"


    The familiar whisper turned fierce. This time, a pushing force apanied the whisper and Joseph couldn''t help but be irritated.


    "What is wrong? Can you just let me sleep? Why are you trying to wake me up in the middle of the night!" He angrily whispered and when he opened his eyes, Alice was staring right at him.


    "As I thought, it''s you, Alice... What''s going on? Wait, did you sleep beside me?"


    "I can feel people approaching this ce." Alice didn''t mind respond to what he said.


    Instead, she said these words in a solemn manner which instantly awakened Joseph from his reverie.


    "People are approaching us? Could they be the other residents of this ce?"


    Alice nodded her head, "That is most likely the answer. Stand up, wake up both Julie and Hulie."


    Joseph didn''t argue with her anymore.


    He stood up and walked towards the direction of the two sisters.


    As for the reason why Alice didn''t wake up the twin sisters by herself. It was because she was afraid that her capabilities inbat would be hindered by the miasma emanating from the bodies of the two sisters.


    Since Joseph was immune to abnormal statuses, he was the right man for the job.


    Joseph ignored the hideous wounds on both sisters as he gently nudged them awake.


    Julie who had always been a light sleeper quickly awakened from her sleep.


    Although she still looked quite groggy and it was obvious that she didn''t have a good sleep...


    When she saw the solemn look on Joseph''s face. She suppressed herints and asked in concern.


    "What is going on, Kuya? Are the others approaching us?"


    <em>As I expected, she''s really quick to catch on hints. This will be quick.</em>


    Josephnodded his head and gestured to Hulie who was sleeping peacefully, ignorant of what was happening outside of her dream world.


    Julie swiftly understood what he meant. She moved closer to her sister Hulie and pulled her into an embrace. She didn''t wake up the youngss for she was afraid that she may cause a ruckus.


    After all, Hulie really wasn''t someone who liked early mornings. If she was awakened at this time in the day, then mayhem may happen.


    "Julie! Hulie!"


    A voice that clearly came from a youth came from the outside.


    Julie''s eyes widened in shock when she heard the voice, but when she remembered the fanatic look of the owner of that voice back then while he was praying the God of Everything that Moves and Exists.


    She managed to suppress her emotions as she calmed down and continued on hugging her sister.


    "City Chief! There''s a stone blocking the entrance of the cave!" The youth cried out.


    "Good work, Jacob. But it would be better for us to wait here..."


    "If we acquired their ire, then they may try to escape once again." The City Chief replied.


    "No, we cannot do that, City Chief! You have done a lot of work since yesterday, trying to find Julie and Hulie..."


    "Yesterday, you didn''t even sleep just so you could find them before they fall into the darkness. We must capture them now, City Chief!" Jacob fiercely replied. A fanatic look appeared on his face as he praised the City Chief.


    The City Chief revealed a light smile, "I suppose you are right, Jacob. But how can we convince those thick-headed friends of yours to voluntarily surrender themselves?"


    Jacob was taken aback when he heard this question.


    But when he saw the light of encouragement within the First, and the Second Elder''s eyes...


    Determination shed on his face as he cried out, "I will go and convince them, Elders! I will try my best! I am very close to Julie and Hulie so I am confident that they will listen to my words!"


    "Good, good boy... Okay, we will wait here for your good news. I know that it is pretty depressing for you to do something like this since it involves the lives of your friends, but I hope that you understand..."


    "I am only doing this for the sake of everyone. I am sure that those sisters were only befuddled by fear at that moment back then. Now, they may have calmed down." The City Chief revealed a kind smile and lovingly ruffled Jacob''s hair.


    "Mhmm! I will try my best!" Jacob replied in delight. He then walked towards the disc-like stone covering the entrance of the underground cave. He ced both of his hands on the stone and tried rolling it sideways so he could open the cave.


    Unfortunately, his strength was toocking and not only he didn''t manage to open the entrance of the cave, he only made himself tired as he stood there, huffing and puffing while panting.


    But he didn''t have any intentions of giving up. He stood there and instead of trying his best on rolling the disc-like stone that covered the entrance of the cave...


    He took a deep breath and shouted.


    "Julie! Hulie! I know that you two are in there! Come out, I have something to talk with the two of you! The honorable Elders are here with me! They are not mad at all that the two of you escaped back then! We understand what you feel so please, pleasee out!"


    "Julie, Hulie! Death is not the end! Pleasee out! Come out here and obey the orders of the elders before all you are corrupted by the dark! When that happens, it will really be impossible for us to save the two of you! Please, I know that both of you know what I am talking about!"


    "Don''t be afraid of death! You will only return to the embrace of the Creator! You will only enter his Tenebrous Kingdom and live there for eternity!" Tears streamed down Jacob''s cheeks as he plopped down on his knees.


    He shouted as loud as he could that he tore his own vocal cords.


    Inside the underground safe house.


    Joseph nced at Julie and found that she looked quite pale.


    "Hey, are you all right? Don''t be affected by his words. He is now nothing but a mere follower of the God of Everything that Moves and Exists. You cannot be swayed by his words, that person is not your friend anymore."


    From the description that Joseph heard about Jacob from Julie. He found out that Jacob was a timid, and tame boy who wasn''t confrontational at all. But what was going on right now?


    How did the Jacob that Julie described as a scaredy-cat acquired the guts that he was using right now to convince them toe out?


    It didn''t make sense at all and was too far away from how the real Jacob should act.


    In other words, the Jacob that stood in front of the cave entrance right now wasn''t really the Jacob that Julie knew. He was now nothing but a mere puppet of the so-called Compassionate God or the God of Everything that Moves and Exists.


    But...


    Tears streamed down Julie''s cheeks as a pained look appeared on her face...


    <em>Why was it so painful? Why is the realization that Jacob is not the Jacob that I know anymore too painful?</em>


    <em>Mama, Papa...</em> Julie inwardly cried out. Even she wasn''t so sure about what was going on anymore. All she knew was that her friend abandoned her and even the person whom she considered as a husband candidate turned against her and right now, he was even begging her to kill herself so that he could return to the embrace of the bullshit Creator.


    But then...


    "It''s fine..."


    She felt an embrace.


    "It''s fine, you can cry... You can cry as much as you want. Kuya Joseph will be here."


    It was an embrace so tight that it generated warmth that was far too familiar for Julie.


    "Mama... Papa... Erika... Jacob... Why? Why did you have to abandon me... Why was I even born in this ce? What did I do to deserve this suffering?" Julie immediately suppressed the cry that was about toe out of her throat.


    She was afraid that Hulie may wake up. If Hulie woke up then she would certainly cry if she saw her crying like this. If that happened then the two of them may not be able to stop crying for the entire day.


    Alice stared at Joseph, aplicated look shed on her face.


    Even though Joseph was immune to abnormal statuses due to his passive. That didn''t mean that he was immune to the damage that those abnormal statuses inflicted...


    Say, an attack that caused a Stun effectnded on Joseph''s face. He wouldn''t be affected by the Stun Debuff, but he would still suffer damage from the attack thatnded on his face.


    It was impossible for Joseph to not know about this fact, yet...


    Why was he insisting on embracing Julie? Is he courting death?


    Alice stared at Joseph''s face and found that he was silently suffering from the miasma.


    An appreciative look appeared on Alice''s face. She soon sighed and stared at Joseph with a smile.


    But right now, Joseph wasining.


    <em>What the fuck this doesn''t make sense at all! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts... It really hurts! I am immune to the corrosion of the miasma, but why am I feeling pain? Why am I being damaged? This isn''t logical at all! Once everything is done and over, I will definitely file aint against P.H Works!</em>


    <em>Since I am immune then I shouldn''t be affected by anything!</em>


    Joseph nced at his Health Bar and found that it wasn''t moving.


    <em>Wait, my Health Bar didn''t go down? What is going on? I am only feeling pain, but I am not actually suffering any damage that will lead to my death? That is more like it!</em>


    <em>But why do I have to feel pain? Are those bastards from P.H Works, a bunch of sadistic bastards that are envious of the fact that I have the Mythical ss so they are doing this to me?</em>


    <em>Aaaah! I will definitely file aint against them!</em>


    Jacob''s screams outside of the cave continued for a long time.


    But Julie''s crying finally stopped...


    She raised her head and stared at Joseph.


    "Pffft, Julie... Wipe that snot off your face! It ruins your beauty!" Joseph teased.


    Julie puffed her cheeks, a blush spread on her cheeks but she swiftly wiped the snot that formed underneath her nose.


    But afterwards, she revealed a smile and asked: "Kuya Joseph. Am I really beautiful?"


    Joseph was taken aback by the sudden question.


    But when he saw how serious Julie was when she asked, he couldn''t help butugh as he said, "Of course, you are! Although crying really ruins your beauty, in the future. You should not cry anymore, all right!"


    He stretched his hand and ruffled Julie''s hair.


    "If Kuya Joseph doesn''t want to see me cry, then it shall be done! I will not cry anymore!" Julie even formed a fist with her right hand and raised it into the air. A refreshing determined look could be seen on her face as Joseph honestly praised.


    "That''s more like it! That''s the Julie that I know! That''s my benefactor that I know!" Joseph also raised his fist into the air and copied Julie''s mannerisms, elicitingughter from the young maiden.


    "Pffft! What is that Kuya Joseph? Is that my face? Hahaha, that looks ugly!"


    Julie chuckled as he pointed at Joseph''s distorted face.


    But then her cheeks suddenly blushed in embarrassment when she realized what she did.


    She said that Joseph was ugly when he was mimicking her face!


    Wasn''t that equal to admitting that she was ugly?


    "Hahaha, now you realized that you just stubbed yourself on your toe?"


    Joseph chuckled, he ruffled Julie''s hair and said.


    "But no worries, the reason why I look so ugly when trying to copy your face is that there is no way that someone in this world can actually copy your face and look beautiful at the same time..."


    "You are beautifully unique, Julie. That is why in the future, you shouldn''t really cry anymore. It ruins your beauty."


    A furious blush appeared on Julie''s cheeks.


    Meanwhile, Alice who was observing everything at the side couldn''t help but stare suspiciously at Joseph. She felt somewhat weird when she heard Joseph''s sweet nothings towards the petite and small Julie who could be considered as a loli.


    She wanted to say something, but when he found out that the atmosphere between the two was too good for her to interrupt. She could do nothing other than bitterly smile and observe everything from the side.


    "Mhmm! I will not cry again! I promise!" Julie pursed her lips and promised.


    Joseph was delighted, "Good, now... Let Kuya here take care of those people outside."


    Joseph stood up and Julie was astonished by this change.


    "Eh? Kuya! What are you going to do?! You can''t go out! The City Chief, the First Elder and the Second Elder are too strong! You cannot handle them alone!"


    Alice was also taken aback and she couldn''t help but stand up.


    She had the intention of helping Joseph, whatever decision he nned on making.


    But...


    "All of you do not worry... Even though I am quite weak right now, when ites to acting tough and being a chatan, if I imed first then none may even dare to im that they are second. Just wait here for the good news and my return, I will be sure toe back unscathed."


    ... It seemed like Joseph didn''t have the intention of asking Alice''s help at all.


    Alice revealed a slight smile. She had no doubts about Joseph. After all, he was someone who managed to rescue her from the hands of the entire Kingdom of Nether. Anyone who had the same capabilities as Joseph shouldn''t be judged viamon sense, and shouldn''t be taken at face value.


    Alice knew that he must have a lot of trump cards hidden in his sleeves, and that was the reason why he was acting so bold right now.


    "Okay then, confront them. But remember, you need toe back alive." Alice replied.


    Joseph stopped on his tracks, a confident smile appeared on his lips as he uttered.


    "Mhmm, just sit back and rx."


    He then opened the door and exited the room.


    But neither did Julie and Alice knew that once Joseph closed the door behind him, Joseph''s confident smile copsed, reced with a bitter one as he shivered in anxiety and apprehension.


    If one looked closely, you could also see cold sweat running down his back.


    <em>Fuck, now I''ve done it! What should I do?</em>


    Joseph loitered outside the door for a while before he sighed and walked towards the entrance of the underground cave. His footsteps were iparably heavy as if he was walking towards his own death.

 Chapter 101: Segway

    Chapter 101: Segway


    Standing in front of the door, Joseph held his breath into his heart. Anxiety and apprehension could be seen on his face as he paused, thinking about what could possibly happen and what were the ramifications of the actions that he would take once he took a step into the outside world...


    <em>From what I heard from Alice, outsiders are pretty much incredibly rare here due to the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation which anyone from exiting and entering this ce. </em>


    <em>Now that I think about it, I still do not know about how I managed to enter this ce when it is being protected by that barrier.</em>


    Joseph suddenly realized that there were some strange inconsistencies from the story that Joseph heard from Julie about the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation.


    He opened his Main Menu and tapped on the [Logs] button.


    Inside the [Logs]. He saw several system notifications that he didn''t manage to read.


    [An unknown overwhelming force filled with Divinity is forcing you out!]


    [Under the effects of your title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything".]


    [You have resisted.]


    [You are on an unknownnd.]


    [Due to the effects of the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation. Communication to the outside world and vice versa is forbidden and cannot be done.]


    [Congrattions for being the 2nd person to enter this unknownnd!]


    [As amemoration for this achievement, you will be given a random reward...]


    [Congrattions, you acquired Exp Boost x5!]


    [Exp Boost x5: A five-fold increase in Experience gained from all sources. This effectsts for a week but does not stack with any other Experience Boosting effects.]


    <em>An Exp Boost, eh? Thest time I acquired a random reward, what I got was the Grand Duelist ss. It seems like there''s also a limit to how lucky I can be. Or could it be that the greed sensors were triggered and they gave me this kind of a reward as a p to my face?</em>


    Joseph chuckled and he dismissed the system notifications that told him about his reward and its description. His gaze thennded on the other system notifications and he couldn''t help but be astonished.


    <em>I am the second person that entered this unknownnd? </em>


    <em>Who was the first? Alice? Wait, are NPCs even considered as a person in this game?</em> Joseph couldn''t say for sure about what was the answer to his question of his. In this game, people like Alice weren''t listed as people, they were listed as NPCs.


    <em>Only yers were categorized as people...</em>


    <em>Does that mean that another yer managed to enter this ce before me? But that doesn''t make sense, there''s the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation covering the entire ce. </em>


    <em>How could any yer just enter here? Oh, wait... What if that yer had a passive that could ignore abnormal statuses like what I have...</em>


    <em>This sounds usible, but the only yer that I know that could resist abnormal statuses is Kayn with his Shadow Domain...</em>


    Joseph felt himself falling deep into the depths of self-contemtion, but he was suddenly awakened by a fierce shout that came from outside.


    "Julie! Hulie! I know that both of you are in there! Listen to me! Juste out and we will talk about everything together!"


    Jacob''s pleading voice reverberated outside awakening Joseph from his reverie.


    <em>It seems like I still cannot escape the fate of acting like a tough chatan in order to fend off these guys. But how am I going to send them away without actually fighting them? Yeah, without actually fighting them...</em> Joseph revealed a wry smile.


    When Joseph stared at Julie through the use of his Character Scrutinize, he found out that Julie was at Level 200.


    If a child like Julie was at Level 200. How strong would the elders be? Just the thought of fighting such horrifying monsters as a Level 15 sent shivers down Joseph''s spine and he couldn''t help but feel regret about his recent life choices.


    But does this mean that he was giving up?


    No!


    Yes, Joseph wasn''t giving up.


    He just needed more time to think of ns that he could use for his subterfuge.


    An idea suddenly came to his mind, and he opened up his [Skill] tab. He scrolled through the list of skills that he had avable and a sly smile suddenly appeared on his lips.


    He didn''t feel afraid of facing these monsters anymore.


    <em>It doesn''t make sense that I''m afraid of them. They should be the one that should be afraid of me! After all, I am an outsider and people that could enter the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation aren''t people to be trifled with.</em>


    <em>If the City Chief has some brain cells then he should understand that fact.</em>


    Joseph walked towards the disc-like stone that barricaded the cave from the outside world.


    He ced both of his hands on the stone and pushed it sideways.


    As soon as his handsnded on the stone, his expression changed and one couldn''t find any trace of anxiety and apprehension on his face anymore.


    Instead, there was a confident look on his face and a sly smile stered on his lips as he opened the entrance of the cave and stared at the strangers outside.


    "Oh, Julie! Hulie! Finally, you listened to..." Jacob excitedly cried out when he saw the disc-like stone moving. But his words got stuck in his throat when he found out that the person standing in front of them wasn''t Julie nor Hulie. It was a stranger d in a dirty tunic.


    [Your dignity can never be lower than those who stand before you.]


    A system notification floated in front of Joseph and his smile widened even further as he said.


    "So you are the one that kept barking in front of this one''s residence? And as for those old geezers right there. I suppose that they are your owners." Joseph swept his gaze at the strangers.


    "A good dog doesn''t block a person''s road. Now that I am here, hurry up and scram!"


    Jacob''s pupils constricted, the person right in front of him seemed to be shrouded with a mysterious and surreal authority that he couldn''t possibly deny nor object.


    However, when he heard what the man had said. Anger surged in his heart and he gnashed his teeth, fighting against the oppressive air that the man was emanating as he said.


    "Who are you? Did you just call me a dog? From the looks of it, you are an outsider. Even if you may be strong outside, you are in the territory of us, Vampires! How dare you be so disrespectful as to call me a-"


    Bang!


    Jacob couldn''t evenplete his sentence.


    An invisible attack tore through his head and made it burst like a watermelon crushed by a sledgehammer. He didn''t even manage to scream. He just died, just like that.


    <em>How ruthless! How decisive!</em>


    Joseph inwardly screamed.


    But on the outside, he remained steadfast, cold and detached as if he wasn''t disturbed by the sudden and unexpected death of Jacob.


    The City Chief, First Elder, and the Second Elder stared at Joseph with furrowed eyebrows. It was because the outside standing in front of them was far too calm than they had expected! Even after the City Chief attacked, not a single ounce of reaction came from his body.


    It was as if an attacking from a person with the City Chief''s caliber wasn''t enough to enter his eyes!


    <em>Just who is this outsider? Where did hee from? In fact, how did he even enter this ce when the All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation was present? Could it be that the barrier broke?</em>


    <em>No, that''s too far-fetched!</em>


    <em>The Barrier remained standing for at least ten thousand years, and if it did break down, how could there be such a good coincidence in the world that it would break just in time for this outsider''s visit?</em>


    <em>Not only that, if that Barrier really broke. We would be the first ones to notice its abnormality.</em>


    The Elders nced at each other, and the City Chief nodded. Afterwards, he moved forwards and respectfully greeted the unknown person emanating such a dangerous and oppressive aura.


    "This one does not have a name, but I am respectfully called by everyone as the City Chief. Yes, this one is the City Chief of the one and the only city within this ce that''s perpetually hidden from the sun. May I know your name, kind sir?"


    The City Chief even slightly bowed his head as a sign of respect towards Joseph.


    But Joseph merely nodded his head before arrogantly saying, "Damn this ce really is eerie and dark. Could it be that Vell is the one that did this? He really is trying so hard to hide the traces of his Divinity..." Joseph revealed an amused smile as he swept his gaze in the area.


    "Hey, you... I heard the barking of that brat that you killed earlier. You seem to be looking for those two sisters, right?"


    The City Chief''s eyes shed with a barely imperceptible light. The word, <em>Vell</em> seemed to be familiar to him, but he couldn''t remember what the name meant and where he heard it.


    "Yes, kind sir. We are indeed pursuing those two sisters. May we receive your permission so that we could retrieve them?" The City Chief politely said.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph suddenlyughed, "You said that you want to retrieve them? You''re talking as if they are not a member of your kind in the first ce. I really didn''t expect that after descending in this ce, I would find such interesting news!"


    "To think that the arrogant and noble Vampires would be like this..."


    The City Chief''s pupils constricted when he heard the words <em>descending</em>. But his eyebrows furrowed for he couldn''t believe the idea that he had right now in his mind.


    "As for your request, I am denying them. I am quite interested in the affliction guing those two sisters. Their attributes feel like they came from that entric old geezer Vell, but it feels more like the curse came from the Compassionate God."


    This time, even the other Elders reacted.


    Their eyes widened in shock when they heard the name, <em>Compassionate God</em>.


    <em>This name was the other name of the God of Everything that Moves and Exists. How did he know about this? </em>


    <em>Wait, since he''s an outsider, there''s a huge chance that he heard this name in the outside world and it was also possible that the God of Everything that Moves and Exists is widely known as the Compassionate God out there.</em>


    Nevertheless, they felt an abnormal sense of trepidation when they stared at the unknown person in front of them. The arrogance and haughtiness along with his overbearing demeanor that contrasted the simple tunic that he wore made them feel somewhat afraid of him...


    It was as if he was someone that they shouldn''t offend at all costs.


    [Your presence alone incites fear to your enemies while increasing morale to your allies.]


    Although feeling somewhat afraid.


    The City Chief suppressed his apprehension as he said, "With all due respect, kind sir. But those two sisters are indeed residents of my City. It is my duty to recover them before they are corrupted by the curse that gues their bodies. That is why I cannot obey what you said, kind sir."


    Joseph''s expression turned cold, "It seems like I really have been too leisurely in my Tenebrous Heaven that people do not know my name anymore and my presence alone does not strike fear in their hearts anymore..."


    "Today, it seems like I, Tryndamere still have to move and teach others a lesson."


    Joseph stretched his neck and even cracked his knuckles. He was raring to fight.


    But the elders were staring wide-eyed at him. The words, <em>Tenebrous Heaven</em> thoroughly astonished them. Even the City Chief who couldn''t believe what he was thinking earlier now had second doubts...


    Especially when he heard the word, Tryndamere.


    <em>The God of Fighting!</em>


    <em>Yes!</em>


    <em>Tryndamere is the God of Fighting who stood side by side with the Creator! </em>


    <em>But is he really Tryndamere? Why can''t I feel any ounce of that extremely oppressive and overwhelming divinitying from a deity? </em>The City Chief''s eyes narrowed, he nced at the other elders and found that they all had the same thoughts.


    It was impossible for a deity to not have any trace of Divinity inside their bodies. Even a strand of their hair had enough Divinity that could turn an ordinary person into an idiot.


    But this unknown man iming to be the God of Fighting, Tryndamere doesn''t have any trace of Divinitying out of his body. In other words, it was most likely that he was a fake! It was highly probable that he was merely acting as a deity to scare them off their wits!


    <em>But if he was fake... Why do I feel afraid when standing in front of him?</em>


    The Elders thought to themselves, but they soon reached the answer that they unanimously agreed upon.


    He should be using an item!


    Yes, he should be using an item right now that had the effects of inflicting fear to his enemies...


    The City Chief revealed a confident smile, "Kind sir, are you saying that you are the God of Fighting, Tryndamere? That God whose Tenebrous Heaven is simr to the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum?"


    Joseph was momentarily taken aback when he heard the familiar words, <em>Arena of the Gods, Colosseum</em>.


    But he never revealed any trace of his inner emotions.


    On the outside, he merely maintained a tepid smile as he said, "Oh, it seems like I am still not that unknown, yet. To think that someone in this forsaken ce actually recognizes my name! Hahaha, if we were not enemies then I would''ve invited you for a celebration!"


    A deity inviting an ordinary mortal for a celebration was something unthinkable for anyone.


    But the God of Fighting was known to be an entric god.


    Acting like this in front of someone that knew about the God of Fighting waspletely normal and inline to how the genuine God of Fighting should act.


    But...


    "It seems like, you lot are still not convinced about who I am." Joseph took the words out of the Elders'' mouth and urately read their thoughts.


    The Elders were astonished by his words, but they kept their silence.


    They only stared at Joseph with meaningful smiles on their faces.


    It was clear that they didn''t believe anything that Joseph had said so far.


    "I did say that I would teach you guys a lesson, but I don''t want to be called by that old geezer Vell as a bully once again if I did fight you all right now..." Joseph swept his gaze at the three before he continued.


    "How about the three of you fight against my avatar? If you lot managed to fight against my avatar without dying within thirty seconds then I can consider it as your win."


    Joseph stretched his hand forward and chanted, "Divine Authority Summoning."


    As soon as hepleted his chant, an arrogant chuckle rang out...


    The chuckle carried with it an indescribable heaviness, and it seemed toe from an ancient age.


    Apanying the chuckle was a boundless and indescribably majestic might that instantly filled the heavens and earth, swallowing everything including the three Elders.


    The City Chief, the First Elder, and the Second Elder felt their breaths seize up in their chest as this might that wanted nothing but obedience fell upon them.


    They felt like a mountain range was pressing down their chest. They even forget about breathing for their bodies turned rigid. Every cell in their bodies shuddered and trembled uncontrobly, and their trembling couldn''t be stopped no matter what they did.


    They raised their heads with difficulty and their pupils constricted as they looked at the figure that appeared out of thin air and was now standing right in front of them...


    His simple, dirty tunic didn''t make him awful, for his boundless, terrifying aura and incredibly sharp Divinity made up for it. A seemingly ethereal fog covered the entirety of his face, but the elders could faintly see his arrogant sneer behind that fog that they didn''t dare to prate with their eyes.


    The aura of this man d in a simple tunic was so strong that they couldn''t even describe it nor imagine. They swore to themselves that such a terrifying, yet iparably pure aura cannot belong to a human, but a deity!


    Yes!


    Right now, this man in front of them had the aura of aplete and undeniable deity!


    What was scarier was that while his aura felt iprehensible and majestic, it was neither violent nor fierce.


    It waspletely calm as if the man was merely walking on his backyard and the aura that apanied his body was something natural that he always had...


    It was not a deliberate show of force to scare them off!


    This was his natural state!


    The natural state of a deity!


    "Behold, my avatar! It possesses a mere tenth of my strength, and if you can defeat it. Then, I will bestow upon you the two sisters as a reward. It would be a shame that I wouldn''t be able to continue on my experiments on them, but since I have spoken, so be it!"


    Joseph who stood behind the avatar that he summoned lightly chuckled.


    "Now, what will you guys do?" He then proceeded to ask the three Elders.


    "Uh..."


    "We..."


    "We?" Joseph''s smile turned somewhat cold.


    The City Chief forcefully gulped a mouthful of saliva as he eximed.


    "We concede!"<ol><li>Vell is that god who tried to scam Joseph early in the story.</li></ol>

 Chapter 102: Segway[2]

    Chapter 102: Segway[2]


    The three Elders left as swiftly as they arrived.


    Joseph stared at his avatar, and likewise. His avatar also stared at him.


    "Are you really me?"


    The avatar asked.


    <em>What? My avatar is asking if he is me? What does he mean by that</em>? Joseph knitted his eyebrows, but he suppressed his curiosity as he said.


    "Yes, you are me. You are my avatar to be exact."


    The avatar revealed a meaningful smile.


    "Heh, so I am you, and you are me... But I refuse to ept such arrangements. I refuse to be you! I refuse to be someone as weak as you!" The avatar suddenly roared in anger and rushed at Joseph''s direction.


    <em>What the fuck?!</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed, but his trained reflexes reacted and he managed to withdraw his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty in time.


    "Parry!"


    Bang!


    A fierce explosion rang out.


    The avatar''s attack didn''t even manage to reach Joseph for it was stopped by an invisible wall.


    "What the hell is wrong with you? Why are you attacking me? You refuse to ept that you are me, and I am you... Just what is your identity then?" Joseph said in irritation.


    He was annoyed for he didn''t expect that his avatar would turn rogue and turn against him.


    But he was thankful for the Elder''s decisiveness.


    Joseph was grateful that the City Chief and the other elders ran as fast as they could far away from this ce before his avatar turned against him. After all, who knows what would happen if Joseph''s avatar fought him while he was acting like a tough chatan.


    As for how he should dispose of this clone of his?


    Well, he didn''t have to do that...


    The skill, [Divine Authority Summoning] granted to him by the title, [Mythical Authority] onlysted for half a minute.


    Although it scaled depending on his Divinity Stat and his level...


    With how low his level was, that particr scaling wasn''t really doing anything significant apart from adding a single second to the duration of the skill.


    In other words, in a few moments. This rogue avatar of his would disappear.


    But...


    "I didn''t expect you to be so unruly. Take this as your punishment!" Joseph shoved his avatar back and shed forwards with his Rapier.


    "Discharge!"


    He cried out and the damage that he suffered from the avatar''s attack became the strength that fueled his sh.


    "Guah!" The avatar coughed a mouthful of blood and staggered backwards.


    Joseph felt somewhat strange about attacking his own avatar since it looked too simr to him.


    A strange thought appeared in his mind at this moment for no particr reason. <em>What would happen if I had a female version of me as my avatar and we had sex? Would that be considered as masturbation or could I say that I had lost my virginity?</em>


    <em>Wait, what the fuck am I thinking?</em> Joseph furiously shook his head.


    "I..."


    "I refuse to be you..."


    "You are not me..."


    "And I am not you..."


    The avatar left these words as it shattered into innumerable light crystals that soon disappeared into nothingness.


    <em>What was the deal with that avatar? Was that the side effect of summoning an avatar that has the Divinity of the Grand Duelist? Although he''s not really that powerful since his stats are basically half of my own stats.</em>


    <em>The only thing that''s good about him, for now, is the fact that he can serve as a good deterrent against the people here due to that Divinity... Sigh, if I don''t have to then I will never summon him again the future.</em>


    Joseph decided.


    He swept his gaze around and after finding out that there was no one in the area anymore...


    He retreated and returned to the underground cave where Alice and Julie were patiently, and anxiously waiting for his return.


    "It''s done."


    "It''s done?"


    Joseph stood in front of Alice and revealed a cheeky smile.


    "Yes, of course, it''s done. Who do you think I am? I''m the capable man who saved you from the hands of the Kingdom!"


    "Yeah, keep ttering yourself. You''re such a narcissist." Alice rolled her eyes and didn''t bother about Joseph anymore.


    "Hey, Julie... Do you know about any other ce that we can use to hide apart from this underground cave? Even though this big brother here pushed those people away..."


    "I am pretty sure that they will return once again. That is why we even though we avoided danger this time, we cannot becent and think that we are already safe..."


    "Is that right, big brother Joseph?" Alice revealed a meaningful smile at Joseph.


    Joseph was taken aback by what she said.


    <em>They will still return? Wasn''t what I did not enough to serve as a deterrent for them? </em>


    <em>Wait... I used the name of the God of Fighting Tryndamere to force them away and it worked since they obviously know about who the hell Tryndamere was, but in this ce perpetually hidden from the sun and isted from the world.</em>


    <em>Just how did they know about the information of the other gods apart from their so-called Creator?</em>


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    <em>Wait, could it be that the residents here can contact the so-called God of Everything that Moves and Exists? After all, if someone with faith in a deity was ced in such a forsaken ce like this, they would bound to lose faith towards that particr deity. </em>


    <em>Yet, the people in here still piously believe at their god...</em>


    <em>Could it be that...</em>


    <em>They have the means tomunicate with that god?!</em>


    <em>Shit, if that is true then we''re fucked! Those bastards will definitely return and with more numbers and stronger than ever before once they found out from their deity that I duped them!</em>


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun.


    Sweat continuously dripped down his forehead as he turned to look at Julie before saying.


    "Hey, Julie... Is there any altar in this ce that everyone in here can use to pray to the God of Everything that Moves and Exists?"


    Julie frowned for a moment when he heard Joseph''s words as she seemingly searched through her memories and after a moment of silence...


    She nodded her head and answered, "Yes, Kuya Joseph. There is an altar that the City Chief visits every day, but that altar is not avable to the general public..."


    "It is only shown to us and paraded across the entire city every three years. As for the significance of that parade, I''m afraid, but I don''t know too much about it..."


    "All I know is that there''s a lot of food for you if you participated in that parade, so even if the residents don''t care about the parade itself, they would still attend for the sake of the food."


    Joseph heard Julie''s answer, but he didn''t respond.


    A serious light shed within his eyes as he turned to look at Alice.


    Alice responded with a nod before she turned to look at Julie and asked, "Hey Julie, you still didn''t answer big sis''s question earlier. Are there other ces that we can use to hide from those bad people?"


    Julie blushed upon hearing Alice''s words. It seemed like she was embarrassed that she prioritized answering Joseph''s question instead of Alice''s even though she was the first one to ask.


    Nevertheless, since she had just answered Joseph''s question, she now turned her attention to Alice as she replied...


    "No..." Julie shook her head, "This is the only ce that I know that we can use to hide. I don''t really frequently go out of the City since I''m afraid of the monsters..." Julie lifted a rueful smile when she reached the end of her sentence. She felt bad that she wasn''t able to help with their problem.


    Joseph detected this anomaly and he stretched his hand out, ruffling her hair as he said: "Why do you look so down? Are you ming yourself again?"


    Julie''s figure visibly shook, but she didn''t deny what Joseph had said.


    Joseph sighed, he really couldn''t ce any me onto Julie about the fact that she was so pessimistic.


    After all, she had just experienced a betrayal that could break anyone''s heart into pieces...


    But if she wanted to keep on living, she couldn''t act like this. She must be strong. Only when she''s strong could she survive along with her sister.


    <em>But speaking of bing strong... I feel like I am neglecting the fact that I must level myself up. Did I be too attached to the Underground Penitentiary that I forgot that I was also a yer that could strengthen myself by leveling up?</em>


    <em>Yeah, I must make myself stronger.</em>


    <em>I must be strong enough to at least face those elders earlier..</em>.


    "Then, how about this Julie?" Joseph smiled before he continued, "Do you know any ces around here that have a lot of monsters? I am going to kill those monsters so I can be stronger."


    Joseph directly stated his intentions so that Julie wouldn''t need to needlessly worry about what he intended on doing about those monsters.


    Julie thought for a moment before she replied, "Monsters? Hmm... Ah! There is a ce like that! But I only heard about it from the others, I haven''t really visited it, so I am not so sure about how strong the monsters in that ce are and how many they are..."


    Joseph nodded his head in agreement. When talking about something amazing, people had a tendency to exaggerate. That waspletely normal but in this case. That would mean that any information about those monstersing from Julie''s mouth could be somewhat inurate.


    "I know that ce, Kuya!!!" Hulie who was supposedly sleeping in Julie''s bosom suddenly eximed.


    "Ah!" Julie almost lost her grip on Hulie due to shock.


    Joseph''s figure visibly trembled, while Alice almost leaped out of her seat.


    "Hulie! You almost scared us to death!" Josephmented.


    "Eh?" Hulie was taken aback by the sudden scolding. Tears welled up in her tears as she said, "B-b-but... I just want to tell you, Kuya... that... that I know that ce..."


    Joseph choked on his own saliva when he saw Hulie''s teary-eyed expression.


    He hurriedly moved, took her from Alice''s embrace and caressed her on his own as he ruffled the youngss''s hair.


    "No, I''m not scolding you, all right? It''s okay, it''s okay... Don''t cry, Hulie... If you cry, I won''t tell you a story anymore!"


    Joseph even warned the youngss.


    But...


    "Uwaaa! Kuya Joseph won''t tell me a story anymore!"


    ... It had the opposite effect.


    When Hulie heard that Joseph wouldn''t tell her a story anymore.


    She cried as loud as she could as tears started to fall from her eyes.


    <em>Ah, fuck!</em> Joseph inwardly cursed. He felt like crying.


    "Give her to me!" Alice gestured. An expression of light anger was evident on her face. It was obvious that she didn''t like Joseph''s way of handling a youngss who was about to cry.


    "Give her to you? But if I do that, then..." Joseph was hesitant.


    If she gave Hulie to Alice, then she will suffer the corrosive effects of the miasma.


    "Just give her to me, all right? Or do you want her to keep on crying?" Alice''s expression turned cold.


    Julie stood in front of her sister and tried her best onforting Hulie, but she was met with failure.


    It seemed like Hulie was really heartbroken by the fact that Joseph said that he wouldn''t tell her any story anymore.


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile, and he decided to hand over the crying Hulie to Alice.


    Alice winced in pain when she received Hulie. But her pained expression was immediately taken over by her cold facade as she patted the crying Hulie on her back before saying.


    "Hulie... Don''t cry anymore, all right?


    "But... But Kuya Joseph said that he won''t tell me any story anymore!" Hulie voiced herints.


    "Oh, he said that? If he actually dares to do that then your big sis here will punish him!" Alice even gestured with her fist.


    "Really? Big sis will punish Kuya Joseph if he doesn''t tell me any story?" Hulie''s crying momentarily stopped.


    She stared at Alice with her wide eyes, expecting a positive answer from her.


    <em>Oy, do you really want me to be punished that much?</em> Joseph inwardlymented. But he kept this thought to himself as he stared at Alice.


    "Of course, of course! Look! Since he told you that he won''t tell you a story anymore. I''ll go and punish him right now."


    Alice turned her head and revealed a light smile at Joseph''s direction.


    Joseph''s figure visibly trembled, "Uh..."


    Alice maintained the smile on her lips as she whispered, "Of course, it''s just a light smack. We just have to show Hulie that I indeed gave you a punishment so that she''ll stop crying."


    Joseph''s eyes brightened in enlightenment, "Oh! That is actually a good idea, Alice! Okay, you can go and smack me now." He even pushed his left arm forward and assumed a pitiful and afraid expression for added effect.


    "Okay, here Ie!" Alice nced at Hulie and eximed.


    She raised her hand and sent a p...


    But not on the left arm that Joseph pushed forward.


    Instead, her smacknded squarely on his left cheek as it sent him flying backwards towards the wall of the sealed room.


    Pa!


    "Guaah!" Joseph coughed a mouthful of blood, and he saw stars floating in his vision.


    Amidst the stars were system notifications informing him of the sheer damage that he suffered.


    [You suffered 32,532 damage!]


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in a state of shock! Due to the amount of damage that your body has suffered, you will be unconditionally Stiffened for three seconds.]


    [This is a natural phenomenon and cannot be resisted!]


    [You are an absolute existence. A shield equal to 100% of the damage that you suffered within thest ten seconds has been made.]


    <em>HOW THE FUCK WAS THAT A LIGHT SMACK?!</em> Joseph angrily eximed. But when he that Hulie''s cry had stopped and was already reced with a beaming smile. He couldn''t feel any anger anymore.


    Instead, it became more like an annoyance that he redirected to Alice as he said.


    "Why did you have to p me on the face..." Joseph said, looking wronged.


    Alice sweetly smiled, "Well, your face looked like it''s the thickest part of your body."


    "..."

 Chapter 103: Segway[3]

    Chapter 103: Segway[3]


    Standing on a cliff overlooking a valley...


    A wry smile escaped Joseph''s lips when he saw the number of monsters lurking on the valley.


    The so-called Mutated Beasts were surrounded by the thick energy of darkness.


    Julie who was a member of the noble and arrogant Vampire Race described these beasts as monsters.


    In other words, they must not be trifled with...


    Even Alice''splexion turned somewhat grim when she swept her gaze on the valley.


    Joseph''s eyes locked on a single beast and he whispered these words into the air.


    "Character Scrutinize!"


    Ding!


    [The Target is not a living organism.]


    [Character Scrutinize has failed.]


    <em>These beasts are not considered as living organisms? What is going on? Are they undead? Just what is even the criteria so that something can be called "living"?</em>


    Joseph shook his head and erased these thoughts, there were far more pressing matters to consider than how the skill, Character Scrutinize worked. But since his n didn''t work, Joseph turned to look at Alice and asked.


    "What do you think? Can we defeat them?"


    Alice sized Joseph up and said, "We? You''re going to work with me against these beasts?"


    Joseph lifted an eyebrow and said, "Of course! Are you underestimating me again? Let me tell you this, even though I am weak right now, I am still capable of doing things that you do not expect! Can you consider someone that can rescue you from the hands of the Kingdom as weak?"


    Alice shook her head and chuckled, "All right, all right. I understand. Can you not use that saving me from the kingdom card again? It is getting pretty annoying. It just makes you sound like you are desperately trying to prove yourself to me..."


    Alice coldly continued, "Those who are truly strong make their actions speak for them instead of their mouths!"


    Joseph was irritated.


    But before he could even voice out hisints...


    Hulie''s worried voice rang from behind Alice.


    "Ate... Kuya... Are you fighting?"


    Joseph was taken aback by Hulie''s words and a bitter smile emerged on his lips. Meanwhile, Alice couldn''t even maintain her cold facade anymore as she said, "Of course not, Hulie... Me and Big Brother Joseph are not fighting. We are just teasing each other." She stared meaningfully at Joseph.


    Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched but he could do nothing other than agree, "Yes, that is the truth, Hulie." He then sweetly smiled towards the youngss. But on the inside, he waspletely bitter as he thought.


    <em>Just what is this difference in treatment? After all of these are over and done, I think I''m going to cut ties with this girl if she keeps this condescending attitude to me. </em>


    <em>Like what did I even did? Is it because I saw her naked? But if she''s mad at me because of that then I can say that she''s quite narrow-minded!!!</em>


    He inwardly grumbled before turning to look at Alice and asking, "You still haven''t answered my question."


    His tone became significantly cold and distant.


    Alice''s eyes narrowed when she heard his cold voice. But she still answered, "I can handle them, but not too many at a time. At most, I can handle three of them at once." She then turned her head away from Joseph''s gaze and stared at the distance.


    It was unknown what she was thinking.


    Joseph didn''t notice Alice''s strange mannerisms. For him, what he cared for the most right now was how he could swiftly and efficiently level up by using Alice''s taxi service without triggering the restrictions ced by the Principle or the so-called Laws of Causality.


    <em>For starters, I need to lure the monsters away save for two or three of them.</em>


    Joseph''s gazended on a piece of elevatednd directly under the cliff that they were standing on.


    But when realized that he was standing too close to the edge of the cliff, he felt a shiver down his spine as he casually stepped backward and revealed a smile to Alice.


    "What''s wrong?" Alice asked, she was nowpletely back to normal and was obviously wearing her cold facade.


    "N-Nothing..." Joseph answered.


    Suppressing the fear and anxiety within his heart, he then continued, "From what I can see down below, there are at least several dozens of Mutated Beasts right below us..."


    "Since you can only handle three of them at most, we need to find a way so that we could lure the other monsters away from the area, then lure two or three of them back near this cliff."


    Alice nodded her head in agreement.


    "I don''t think that you''ll be able to help me that much on fighting these beasts. How about I just give you the job of luring them away from the cliff? In that way, you can at least help me." Alice proposed an idea.


    Joseph nodded his head before she turned to look at the sleepy Julie.


    "Julie, do you have any idea on how big brother here can lure these monsters away?"


    Julie''s eyes brightened as if she was awakened from a deep reverie, "Ah! Yes, Kuya! I know how to lure them away!"


    "Hahaha," Joseph chuckled, "Are you okay? You didn''t have to shout. I''m so close to you, you know? With your voice, I think I can even hear you for miles away."


    Julie blushed in embarrassment and she pounded on Joseph''s back as thetter teasingly chuckled.


    Afterwards, under his urging.


    Julie finally revealed the answer that could help them in their conundrum.


    "Kuya, these monsters are attracted to light. In this ce that''s perpetually hidden from the sun, they can see the light of a candle from miles away..."


    "Of course, that is if the topography ispletely t. If there were obstacles then it wouldn''t make sense for them to see it, right? But this ability of them is also the reason why we seldom use lights even in the City."


    Joseph sweetly smiled in understanding.


    Afterwards, he ruffled Julie''s hair before saying, "I will go down there and fight these monsters along with your big sis Alice. Can you take care of your sister in the meantime? We will not go far away, we''ll just going to exterminate these monsters so we can dig a ce for us to stay."


    "Don''t worry, Kuya Joseph..."


    "Even if I look somewhat weak right now, I am also strong, you know! I can easily protect Hulie from these monsters."


    "Oh? You''re strong?" Joseph raised an eyebrow and stared at Julie, "Really?"


    Julie puffed her chest out and said, "But of course!"


    "Really? Surely, you jest." Joseph teased.


    "Hmmph!" This time, Julie puffed her cheeks andined, "If not for this curse then I could''ve easily made another underground cave for us to stay. But if Kuya Joseph really wants to see how strong I am, then I can show you!"


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled, he stretched his hand out and ruffled her hair as he replied, "I am convinced, you''re really a strong girl... How could a weak girl endure something such as The Curse of the Condemned? I''m not doubting you, In fact. I haven''t doubted you from the start..."


    Julie''s expression turned prideful as she said, "It''s good as long as you know, Kuya!"


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head like chicken pecking rice before he ced Julie on the ground.


    "Julie, Hulie. I''ll go now, all right? Hulie, you stay with your sis. Be obedient..."


    "Mhmm!" Hulie beamed with a smile and waved goodbye. She didn''tin nor cry, for while Joseph was in the middle of coaxing Julie. Alice exined to her what they were about to do. She knew what was about to happen, so she didn''t have any reason to cry.


    Joseph stood at the edge of the cliff. He made a sidelong nce at Alice, and after seeing her somewhatcent and arrogant face. He felt annoyed. Although he easily suppressed her irritation as he steeled his nerves and looked down below.


    <em>Now, how am I suppose to generate a light that will attract these monsters below the valley without attracting other monsters that are far-away from this ce? Julie said that these guys can see the lighting from a candle even if they were several miles away from that candle... But she also said that their vision can''t go through obstacles...</em>


    Joseph swept his gaze across the valley.


    T<em>he terrain looks really simr to the Forbidden Region. The rocks are sharp and protruding, although they are thin and don''t provide that much cover. I think that I can still use them...</em>


    <em>As for the monsters about this elevated tform directly below the valley. It''s pretty easy for me to lure them away, but I am more concerned about the monsters outside that I may lure in here.</em>


    Joseph made a small map inside his head based on what he could see in his vision. As for what he couldn''t see, he could do nothing other than specte and make other contingency ns based on them.


    But then suddenly, his eyes widened in shock when he realized one simple detail that he had ignored ever since he came here to this ce...


    <em>These monsters and light are like sodium and water. Wherever one goes, the other goes. </em>


    <em>The n right now is for me toe down and run around in circles while holding a source of light in my hands. But who said that I need to do that?! No one said that it is a must for me to descend down there and lure them by myself!</em>


    <em>I could just create a source of light then throw that light away to the location where I want these monsters to appear!</em>


    <em>How did I miss such a small detail? All the nning that I made are now useless before this fact!</em>


    Joseph facepalmed.


    Alice frowned when she saw him somewhat hesitating.


    "Are you not going to jump? We don''t have any time to waste. We need to take shelter as fast as possible. The environment here is cruel and who knows if we don''t die from the cold."


    The environment inside this ce perpetually hidden from the sun was indeed ruthless to those who were weak.


    If not for Alice''s trained body, she would''ve already died from hypothermia.


    "You don''t have to worry, I''m just thinking about something..." Joseph revealed a mysterious smile.


    He took out his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty and slowly took a stance.


    Alice saw his stance and said, "You''re trying to use Point? But what for? The starting point of Point does ignite a brilliant light that could attract these monsters, but since you are still here. What you are doing is useless!"


    Joseph''s smile deepened, "What I am doing is useless?"


    Dazzling light gathered at the tip of the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty. The light didn''t bring with it many changes to the temperature of the area. Instead, staring at it felt like staring at the sun itself...


    Even Julie and Hulie winced in pain when the brilliant light appeared.


    "Since you are saying that what I am doing is useless..." Joseph slowly raised his Rapier into the air.


    "Then, open your eyes..." He held the Rapier in his hands like he was holding a harpoon.


    "You... What are you doing?" Alice''s eyes widened in shock.


    She had a bad premonition of what was about to happen.


    "Look clearly... I will show you how to lure these bastards away!" Joseph screamed.


    The Rapier that he held tightly in his hands flew like an arrow towards the horizon.


    The monsters beneath them noticed the light and they quickly followed suit like bounty hunters pursuing their rewards.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion urred at the distance.


    The Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty stabbed itself onto the ground and stood taut like a gpole. It agitated and attracted the Mutated Beasts favored by the dark.<ol><li>Means, Big sister</li></ol>

 Chapter 104: A Promise

    Chapter 104: A Promise


    "Now how do you n on getting that weapon of yours back?" Alice asked, feeling somewhat doubtful on how Joseph could retrieve the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty that he threw far-away.


    "Aren''t you Senior Krid''s disciple? How the hell do you not know of the summoning method?"


    "The summoning method?" Alice lifted an eyebrow.


    "Heh, let me just show you." Joseph snickered and stretched his hand out.


    With a will, and after a silent whisper...


    The Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty flew like a shooting star towards him. Although it streaked past the skies in neck-breaking speeds, itnded gently on Joseph''s hand and didn''t cause any harm to him or his surroundings.


    Alice revealed a shocked expression.


    Seeing her face, Joseph couldn''t help but chuckle: "I don''t think that this is the first time that you saw something like this, right?"


    Alice nodded and replied, "Mhmm, I saw grandpa do what you did too but I have never tried it once. It''d be too wasteful if I tried doing what you did and the weapon didn''t return to me."


    Joseph was astonished by what he heard, "Alice... I didn''t expect that you''d be that stingy when ites to weapons and equipment. Isn''t your grandfather a Legendary cksmith? I bet he can make you a weapon like he''s casually strolling on his backyard."


    Alice lightly smiled, "That''s true. But I don''t like to waste materials. Even though grandpa can easily make weapons and equipment for me..."


    "The materials necessary for the production of those items aren''t free, you know? They cost a lot of money and you should never underestimate how expensive those materials are."


    Joseph chuckled, "Okay, fine. Stingy brat..."


    Alice knitted her eyebrows when she heard what thetter had said.


    But she judged that it was meaningless for her to argue so she kept her silence.


    Joseph closed his eyes, but he slowly opened a single eye to observe Alice after the teasing that he just did. But when he saw that Alice looked like she didn''t want to talk any further.


    Joseph shook his head and asked.


    "Are you not going down yet?"


    Alice merely nced at him before she said, "I''m going."


    She then jumped over the cliff towards the elevatednd on the valley down below.


    "Now that I think about it, I don''t see her having any weapon..." Joseph thought to himself. But then he saw Alice casually taking some dried tree branches before rushing towards one of the Mutated Beasts. Her expression turned serious and a dangerous glint shone within her eyes.


    The Mutated Beasts whose attention she attracted looked to be double the same height as her. It was also three times wider than an average human.


    One couldn''t even call it an animal anymore for it didn''t have any recognizable features simr to a beast or animal. In fact, it looked like these beasts were incorporeal beings of unknown origin.


    But they were not incorporeal. They had meat that could be harvested and from what Alice heard from Julie. The flesh of these beasts was the primary source of food for residents.


    Julie said that they were tasty, though Alice doesn''t really agree with that since she was a genuine human being who probably has a different set of taste buds, unlike Julie who was a member of the Vampire Race.


    Alice didn''t activate any Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship. Instead, she imbued the sharpness of the Grand Duelist''s Divine Art into the dried tree branch that she held with her dominant hand.


    With a single flick of her wrist, the beast promptly copsed.


    It lost the tendons that supported its weight, so now. It couldn''t stand up anymore.


    A loud dull sound rang out, but the other beasts weren''t attracted by the sound. They kept doing whatever they were doing prior to the sound. They werepletely oblivious as to what was happening to one of their colleagues whoid helplessly on the ground under Alice''s assault.


    "Don''t kill it yet, Alice!" Joseph eximed from the top of the cliff.


    Alice who was about to deliver the final blow stopped from her tracks. But this pause gave the Mutated Beast enough time to recover as it spat out a corrosive mist from its illusionary mouth towards Alice''s direction.


    Alice promptly dodged, but she was angered by Joseph''s sudden interruption.


    "What the hell are you doing?" She turned to look at Joseph with a re.


    "I''ll be the one to finish it!" Joseph leaped over the cliff andnded beside Alice.


    "What?"


    "I said, I''ll be the one to finish it..."


    "You said that the Laws of Causality does not permit you to outright help me if I want to be stronger, right? Then, how about this? Let''s just say that you are donating these Beasts to me. I don''t think that we''ll be viting the Laws of Causality in that way." Joseph revealed a light smile.


    Alice revealed an enlightened expression for a moment before she scoffed and said, "Whatever floats your boat..."


    "But next time, do not interrupt me like what you did. I really hate being interrupted while I''m in the middle of doing something. If you want tond the final blow on these monsters, you go and do it. I don''t really care. I just want them dead."


    Joseph merely smiled and Alice didn''t reply anymore. She went out of her way and attracted three Mutated Beasts and fought them all at once.


    "Wow, she''s really into this," Josephmented under his breath. But his eyes suddenly widened in shock when he realized that Alice revealed an opening on her back under the Mutated Beast''s watchful gaze.


    "Watch out!" Joseph cried out and his figure abruptly materialized behind Alice. Fending off the iing attack with a flick of his wrist, urately striking the weak point of the Mutated Beast''s attack, deflecting it in return.


    "Can you not be so careless? You''re making me worry here." Joseph criticized.


    "Aren''t you there for me?" Alice replied while deftly dodging an iing corrosive mist.


    Joseph also leaped away in an effort to dodge that mist as he replied, "I thought that you can handle three of them alone and at the same time?"


    "I did say that, but that''s under the premise that you are there to protect me from unexpected attacks," Alice replied with a light smile.


    She deflected an iing attack from the ws of a Mutated Beast and shed right at it in return.


    Joseph side-stepped... He rotated his body and unleashed a horizontal sh right at a Mutated Beast that approached him from behind.


    "That''s not fighting them alone if I am there to help you!" Joseph almost shouted his reply.


    Alice quickly nced at him as she leaped into the air and made a downwards sh right at the head of a Mutated Beast.


    Bang!


    The head of the Mutated Beast exploded like a watermelon smashed by a sledgehammer. Brain matter-like liquid came out of its head and sttered around the area, it also drenched Alice who furrowed her eyebrows in disgust and annoyance.


    But it was still not dead, Joseph swiftly came over and finished it. Gaining the Experience Points that he needed to strengthen himself.


    Sizzle!


    Sizzling sounds could be heard from the tunic that Alice wore. She quickly looked down and realized that her washed-out tunic was quickly melting under the effects of the corrosive liquid that sshed on her clothes that came from the Mutated Beast''s head.


    Her expression turned unsightly, but her movements were decisive as she outright discarded her clothes and stripped herself naked.


    Joseph who was in the middle of dodging an attack faltered on his movements and almost stumbled on a rock when she saw Alice''s stark-naked figure.


    "What the fuck are you doing? Why did you strip? We''re not in the Grand Blue universe!"


    Alice lifted an eyebrow. She rushed at Joseph''s direction and fended off the attacks of the Mutated Beast that was attacking Joseph earlier.


    "Why do you look so disturbed? Haven''t you seen enough of my body already?"


    Joseph facepalmed.


    <em>This woman... Does she know the meaning of the word, "Decency"? She''s really a girl that Senior Krid took care of and brought up... She''s too hardcore!</em>


    Joseph swiftly decided.


    He stripped off the tunic that he wore on his upper body and handed it over to Alice.


    Alice stared at him in confusion.


    "Why are you looking like me as if handing over some clothes is something abnormal? You''re the one that is abnormal here! Quick, wear these clothes. I am sure that even though youck decency, you still understand howfortable it is to remain without any clothes in such a cold environment, right?"


    Alice nodded.


    But she remained expressionless as she took the tunic from Joseph''s hands and swiftly wore it to cover her body. She then turned her head away from Joseph''s gaze.


    Her lips moved and uttered words that sounded simr to a droning mosquito for she was the only one that heard what she just said.


    Afterwards, she gathered another batch of monsters and their peculiar teamwork continued.


    Alice served as the sword and the main source of firepower for the two, while Joseph became the shield that protected the former from attacks that she couldn''t evade in time.


    The two became like thunder and clouds. The former may be stronger but without thetter. The former wouldn''t even be able to perform.


    Joseph was happy with this arrangement. He was the type of person that didn''t want to receive anything or any favor for free.


    After all, he knew that there were no free lunches in this world and since he didn''t want other people to receive free lunches from him. He''s also ufortable to receive something free from others.


    Although that was somewhat questionable since Joseph could some times transform into a shameless man who wanted nothing but benefits for himself, but not for others.


    [You have defeated a Mutated Beast of the Darkness.]


    [Gained 2412 EXP]


    [Gained 2425 EXP]


    [Gained 2456 EXP]


    [Congrattions! You Leveled Up!]


    [You received 5 Stat Points; Ready for Distribution.]


    Joseph halted on his tracks when he saw several system notifications floating right in front of him.


    His eyes widened in amazement as he cried out, "Holy shit! I was right! The levels of the monsters in here are at least more than Level 100! If I keep this up, then I reckon that I can get to Level 100 in just a few weeks!"


    This discovery excited him so much that his movements became more fluid and graceful than before.


    He even looked like he wanted to dive deep into the territory of the Mutated Beasts and just ughter them all for the precious Experience Points. Thankfully, he knew his ce and how strong he really was right now, so he didn''t directly court his death by doing such a stupid move.


    He coordinated properly with Alice and soon, the areas near the Valley were now free of monsters. If not for the darkness that made everything look somewhat blue and hazy, then the Valley would''ve be tranquil and serene instead of scary due to everyone''s fear of what was within the unknown.


    After fighting about several dozens of monsters...


    Joseph raised his Level from Level 15 to Level 18.


    He acquired fifteen stat points that he could freely distribute.


    Of course, he distributed these stat points based on what he heard from Ezreal back then.


    Now, his yer Profile looked like this after distributing five points to Dex, Str, and Sta respectively.


    [Name: Joseph


    Level: 18 Gender: Male


    ss: Premature Grand Duelist


    Health: 7850/7850 Mana: 525/525


    Strength: 206 Dexterity: 55


    Intelligence: 21 Stamina: 25


    Spirit: 5 Tenacity: 5


    Reputation: 232 Divinity: 50


    Charm: 5


    Undistributed Stat Points: 0]


    With 206 Strength...


    His basic attacks empowered with the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship now deal about 5400 damage and whenever it critically strikes, it deals about 7500 Attack Damage.


    But this damage calction also depends on how strong the equipment of his enemies was. The better the equipment of his enemies, the lower the damage of his basic attacks would be.


    As for how the increase in Dexterity affected him...


    Joseph wasn''t so sure about that since the numbers connected to the Dexterity Stat weren''t revealed to yers for some reason. But since Ezreal said that Dexterity was also important, then who was he to argue against a nearly immortal being who studied the myths for several hundreds of years?


    Joseph lightly chuckled, he was happy that he was now stronger than before.


    With Julie''s help, the group soon made a small underground cave with a single tunnel as an entrance.


    Of course, Alice made a secret passage that they could use to escape the ce connected to another location covered by some bushes somewhere several dozens of meters away from the area.


    Joseph criticized her for this, saying that what she was doing was unnecessary, but Alice bit back against him saying that one couldn''t have enough contingency ns whenever they were in a particrly dangerous situation. More safetys never harmed anyone, so why not make more?


    Towards her argument, Joseph felt powerless. He understood the point that Alice was making but he just couldn''t help but feel concerned towards her when he saw her exhausted expression.


    He himself was exhausted, but after seeing that such a young woman was trying her best onto doing something that could potentially help them all in the future...


    Joseph felt that it was also his duty to help.


    Soon, the group finallypleted their temporary abode.<ol><li>An anime about Diving ;)</li></ol>

 Chapter 105: A Promise[2]

    Chapter 105: A Promise[2]


    Abyssal me Master stood in a world enveloped by dark energy.


    In this ce forsaken by the gods, the dark energy was so thick that the sun shining above couldn''t prate thend below.


    The earth here was ck, the sky was oppressive and pitch-ck. Even the sparse withered trees and vegetation were dark in color.


    Even the air was gloomy, hazy and thick... This was not a world that was suitable for human beings to live in. Even if a high-leveled yer came to this ce, they would find themselves quickly dying from the overwhelming coldness that surrounded thend and the never-ending fog of darkness that slowly consumed anything that it touches.


    But miraculously... Abyssal me Master looked fine staying here.


    He remained unscathed and unaffected by everything around him.


    But there was a teasing voice echoing within his ears.


    "Youck motivation."


    "If I knew that you were this worthless of a human being, I would''ve not offered you that olive branch."


    "Yourck of motivation makes me feel that you are nothing but a puppet. Sleeping, eating, ying, sleeping, eating, ying. Is that your daily routine? It is too dull that it''sughably droll. I wonder how you can even live with such a mundane routine every day..."


    "You''re even worse than us so-called devils. You tried so hard to obtain the favor of a god, but for what? To impress nothing, but a mere woman? Hehe, what a joke! What is worse is that you didn''t even win! In the end, you lost to someone vastly weaker than you. Don''t you feel any shame?"


    The voice urately struck Abyssal me Master''s reverse scale, and he cried out in annoyance.


    "Shut up! What do you know about me? We only met recently, what makes you think that you know me more than anyone else in this world?!"


    "Hahaha, here we go again with that defiant attitude of yours, Abyssal me Master. You have such a domineering name, but little does everyone know that you''re such a massive scaredy-cat." The teasing voice replied in amusement, one could feel illusionary chuckles while the voice was speaking.


    Abyssal me Master was about to reply in defiance when a system notification floated right in front of him.


    [Outside Interference detected, True Log-out Sequence Initiated...]


    [Logging out...]


    His surroundings transformed into a blur and when he awakened once again.


    He found himself inside a small rented cubicle where he was ying the Virtual MMORPG: Victory.


    His gaze darted to the side and there, he found the familiar face of his mother.


    But instead of a genial smile, a fierce expression was stered on his mother''s face as she screamed.


    "Jason! Did you steal money out of my wallet again just to y these useless games? Come out there and exin yourself!"


    Themotion attracted the attention of the staff members within the establishment.


    Soon, the mother and son pair were kicked out of the building.


    "Now, exin yourself!" The middle-aged woman red right at Jason. But Jason who recognized this woman as his mother felt like he wasn''t staring at his mother anymore, but a stranger.


    "I-I-I didn''t steal..." Jason barely squeezes these words out from his throat.


    Pa!


    A fierce p descended on Jason''s cheek.


    "How dare you lie to me again you useless piece of shit!"


    "I.. I have always been patient with you, ever since father died. I shouldered everything for this family and this is how you treat me? You damned bitch!"


    The middle-aged woman was struck dumb by the sudden curse that came out of Jason''s mouth. Her first thought was that she had gone overboard, but she quickly recovered as she uttered in shock.


    "Just what did you say?"


    "You were my mother, but you changed ever since father got sick. Until he died, you never returned to be the mother that I knew. But I always treated you with the respect that you deserve..."


    "Even though you never contributed anything to father''s hospitalization, disappearing somewhere else and returning with a bunch of money. I still respected you, but you''ve changed since then..."


    "If I knew that you would disappear and return with a bunch of money, I wouldn''t have to sacrifice my studies and several years of my time to work like a dog just so I could provide for father''s treatment. But when you returned with that money, you suddenly turned the table against me and now, even my beloved sister is now my enemy."


    "Right now, there''s no one in this family that I still consider as my family."


    "But now that we''re rich with that money that you got from somewhere, can''t I at least indulge in doing what I wanted? I exchanged several years of my life to take care of my father when you were absent, and now that I am freed from that responsibility, can''t I at least choose the path that I want to take instead of being dictated by you?"


    Tears dripped down the middle-aged woman''s face.


    It was clear that she was hurt by what Jason had said.


    "Son... I am not forcing you to do something that you hate..."


    "I''m just... I am just looking out for your future..."


    "I admit that I may have used the wrong method to get that money, but did we really have a choice back then? I''d rather sacrifice myself than sacrifice your sister to those bastards!"


    "You didn''t know what I went through so you do not have the right to talk to me like this!"


    "But since you hate me that much, then fine..." The middle-aged woman took her smartphone and momentarily fiddled with it. Jason''s phone rang and he received a system notification from his bank that said that he received about a million pesos.


    His eyes widened in shock.


    "I can never hope that you''ll understand the struggle that I went through before I made that decision. But remember this, Jason. I wanted nothing but a good life for both you and your sister..."


    "But since you hate me that much, then fine..."


    "I sent you money equivalent to how much money you spent on your father when he was still in the hospital. Since you hate me that much then let''s just cut ties. I hope you''ll be happy with whatever decision you make in the future since I will not be there anymore to guide you."


    The middle-aged woman revealed anguid smile amidst her tears.


    "Goodbye, Jason."


    She left and never looked back nor came back.


    Jason stood there dumbstruck, but when he realized that everyone was now staring at him in curiosity. He ran out and eventually reached a silent and tranquil park where he looked up to the sky.


    The afternoon sky was colored in an orangey-hue, even though it looked somewhat hazy since it was nearing night, it looked incredibly clear for Jason.


    "I''m really the worst son."


    "I may have gained the freedom that I wanted... But at what cost?"


    Jason gave a self-deprecatingugh.


    He wanted nothing but freedom to y Victory.


    But ever since he was branded as addicted everything escted so fast that everything has nowe to this.


    It was toote to change anymore.


    Since it was toote to return. Only a single path remained...


    It was to move forward.


    ...


    The area was now clear of Mutated Beasts.


    Right now, it was time for the group to discuss their future actions.


    "Alice, we both agree that Julie and Hulie are from the Vampire Race, right?"


    Joseph was the one who opened up the discussion. He made a sidelong nce at the twin sisters and after seeing that they were asleep. He significantly calmed down as he asked.


    Alice didn''t deny what he said.


    She nodded her head and replied, "That is true. That''s an irrefutable fact."


    "I see... But Vampires consume the blood of humans, right? And since there are no humans in this ce. They kinda evolved into a Vampire that can thrive in this cruel environment without needing the consumption of human blood..."


    "But still, fundamentally..."


    "The blood of humans is the most nutritious food for them, am I right?"


    Alice replied, "That''s right... But I wonder how many years did it took them to evolve into Vampires with certain characteristics like this. It''s really a wonder as to how they didn''t starve themselves to extinction."


    She revealed a rueful smile and nced at the two sisters sleeping beside each other on a bed made out of stone.


    "Wait, I have an idea for that."


    "Hmm?" Alice stared at Joseph in interest.


    "Cannibalism," Joseph replied with a single word, but his expression was serious and grim.


    "Cannibalism?" Alice pondered for a moment as she agreed, "That should be possible. In fact, there''s no sensible answer apart from that since the Vampires can only consume the blood of humans or the blood of their own kind for nutrients. Blood from other sources apart from those two are mere poison for them."


    Joseph''s eyebrows furrowed when he heard Alice''s words.


    He felt somewhat strange when she said that the blood of other beings apart from humans and their own kind were poisonous for the Vampires. Since if that was true, why were the Vampires able to eat the Mutated Beasts for their own consumption?


    <em>Was this also the product of evolution?</em>


    Joseph thought to himself.


    But he soon shook this thought out of his head as he inwardly uttered, <em>Who cares about that for now. There''s a far pressing matter for us to consider before we can even think about those Mutated Beasts.</em>


    Joseph decisively set those thoughts aside as he proceeded to ask Alice: "I have an idea that I want to consult you about."


    "What is it?" Alice curiously asked.


    "It''s about the cure to the Curse of the Condemned."


    Alice''s eyes widened in shock, but her shock quickly turned into excitement as she asked, "Really?"


    "Yes, I''m not lying!"


    "Then, tell me! Hurry up!" Alice urged him to speak.


    Joseph cleared his throat for a moment before he continued, "The blood of humans is extremely beneficial and nutritious for the Vampires. The enemy of darkness is light, so we can say that the Divinity of the Grand Duelist can defeat the curse within the bodies of Julie and Hulie..."


    "What do you think?"


    Joseph gave her a meaningful nce.


    Alice''s figure visibly trembled as she said, "Are you saying that..."


    "Yes..." Joseph lifted a smile.<em> As I thought it''s really easy to talk with someone that can read along the lines</em>. He appreciated Alice''s quick thinking.


    "No, that cannot be done! As I said, the Divinity of the Grand Duelist is incredibly sharp. Even though you are a human being, you have the Divinity of the Grand Duelist... Who knows what would happen to their bodies if they consumed your blood!" Alice objected to the idea.


    Joseph nodded his head, what Alice said made sense and he couldn''t argue against it.


    But even though Joseph didn''t want to endanger the life of the two sisters.


    He believed that without risk, substantial rewards couldn''t be acquired. So, if they wanted to cure the two sisters, they must take risks and do something about that curse.


    No matter how mundane, or how dangerous that attempt would be...


    "I am not going against what you said, but what if we gave them a drop of my blood? I mean, I don''t think that a single drop imbued with the Grand Duelist''s Divinity could cause that much havoc..."


    "Furthermore, I am still a Pre-mature Grand Duelists, I haven''t even ascended yet so, the Divinity shouldn''t be that strong."


    Alice fell into deep contemtion. But since she also wished for the recovery of the two sisters. She decisively made her decision and nodded her head towards Joseph''s direction.


    "It''s worth a try... But only a single drop of blood first."


    Joseph lightly smiled seeing her anxious expression.


    "You know what Alice? If you treated me like how you treat Julie and Hulie then we would''ve been far closer than we are right now."


    Alice''s expression turned cold, "What? Why would you evenpare yourself to them? They are cute little angels and how about you? You''re just a pervert." Though she had a cold look on her face, her voice became low at the end of her sentence until she was the only one that could hear it.


    Joseph looked at her in confusion and after seeing that she had no ns on exining. He could onlyugh before approaching the sleeping Julie and Hulie.


    He took out his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty and held it near his wrist. His expression was pale and his hesitation was clear from hisbored breathing.


    "Do you want me to do it for you?" Alicemented at the side.


    "No, thank you..." Joseph swiftly replied. <em>Who knows what will she do if she gets the opportunity to wound me for free, I think she''ll rip my entire wrist apart and watch me die from blood loss.</em> He made a sidelong nce at Alice which made thetter chuckle when she felt his gaze.


    "What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Alice asked.


    "Am I really that evil to do something like what you are imagining right now in your head?" Alice sweetly smiled at the end of her sentence, and if this was the first time that you saw the current Alice...


    You would think that she was just an innocent young woman who often liked to tease others.


    But for Joseph?


    No!


    A big NO!


    Joseph stared at her with twitching lips before he decisively made a small cut on his wrist. Blood dripped down from the wound that he made and he collected it with his other hand. Walking towards Julie, he aimed at her mouth and sent a drop of his own blood flying towards her lips.


    When itnded on Julie''s lips...


    Her instincts made her subconsciously lick the drop of blood and when it entered her body. A faint white ethereal glow surrounded her body. Alice and Joseph saw that the throbbing scab made by the Curse of the Condemned slowly calmed down as if it fell asleep.


    "Did it work?" Joseph absentmindedly uttered.


    Alice was the first one to recover from her trance as she almost eximed, "It worked!"


    But she quickly suppressed the yelp that came out of her mouth as she ran towards Joseph in excitement.


    Joseph was also excited by this turn of events.


    They spent the next few hours testing the maximum dosage of blood that the two sisters could endure. They only stopped when they found out that they couldn''t see the infected scab-like wound made by the Curse of the Condemned anymore.


    Later, when the two sisters awakened. They were shocked silly by the scene that they saw. But it wasn''t because of the fact that they found out that the Curse guing their bodies had disappeared...


    It was because of Joseph and Alice who kept staring at them with bloodshot eyes and excited look on their faces.


    "What do you feel? Do you feel fine? Or does something in your body hurt? Tell us!" Joseph eximed. His tone of voice sounded tired due to the sheer exhaustion that was slowly taking over his mind.


    Julie and Hulie recovered from their trance.


    Their eyes widened in shock as they eximed at the same time.


    "The Curse... Wait, I''m cured?!"

 Chapter 106: A Promise[3]

    Chapter 106: A Promise[3]


    Within the depths of the City perpetually hidden from the dark.


    The First Elder, Second Elder, and the City Chief could be seen sitting on the three corners of a dpidated room. The First Elder sat cross-legged at the eastern corner, the Second Elder at the western corner, and the City Chief sat at the southern corner.


    On the northern corner sat an altar made out of twelve stones stacked upon each other. The stones looked nothing out of the ordinary, but what was terrifying was the fact that there was fresh blood dripped on top of the stones as if it was dessert topped by syrup.


    The crimson blood mysteriously shone in a dazzling golden light which faintly illuminated the room, making it somewhat clear that there were indescribable runes carved on the floor of the room.


    With the altar situated at the northern side which was within the center of those runes, the elders were at the edges and with this...


    Everything wasplete.


    It was time...


    "We..."


    The elders uttered at the same time.


    "Summon in our name..."


    "The Demon of Deceit and Temptation."


    "The Great one who resides on a castle of bones."


    "The Lesser Devil named Gelial."


    "We summon thee!"


    The elders pointed at the altar with their thumb and middle finger held together. At that moment, indescribable power descended upon them. The ordinary stones stacked on top of each other turned grey and lifeless. They crumbled into ashes, like bones withered by the passage of time.


    The overwhelming power pressured each elder present. None of them even dared to breathe too loud, afraid that they may acquire the ire of the devil that they were summoning.


    They only stared at the floor near the altar for they were concerned that if they stared right at the altar.


    Their eyesight may be stolen from them as punishment for staring right at the image of a Demon.


    "Why have you summoned me?"


    A voice that sounded like a mixture of male and female, but with a sore throat rang out within the room.


    Sweat dripped down the faces of the elders as the City Chief mustered what was left of his courage as he opened his mouth and barely squeezed these words out, "We are here to report... honorable one."


    "Oh? Y''all here to report? Y''all should''ve told me earlier~ Y''all know that you can modify the contents of the summoning ritual, you know? Just add what you want to say at the end~"


    The illusory voice turned into the voice of a seductress, it was incredibly mellow and the body temperature of the elders rose when they heard the voice.


    The City Chief gulped a mouthful of saliva and suppressed the emotions rising up in his body, "Yes, honorable one. You did tell us about such a method."


    "Then why did you not use it?!" The voice roared and transformed into a male voice that sounded more like the staticing out of a television. It was jarring to hear and when it came out, the elders simultaneously coughed a mouthful of blood.


    They were injured...


    The First Elder, the Second Elder, and the City Chief revealed rueful looks on their faces. They looked like they wanted to exin but they were afraid to do so.


    In the end, it was the City Chief who stepped up and said.


    "Our reports this time include information that we deemed necessary for your summon, honorable one." He respectfully said with his head lowered. He didn''t dare to even raise his head when he spoke, afraid that he may further exacerbate the anger within Gelial.


    "Oh? Interesting~ What kind of report do you have that it requires my appearance?" The voice became like a seductress once again, sending the elders'' minds into turmoil.


    "We were in the middle of hot pursuit against two residents afflicted with the Curse of the Condemned. But then we found an outsider that imed that he was the God of Fighting..." The City Chief went straight to the point.


    "He imed that he''s the God of Fighting? And you believed him?" The illusory voice sounded somewhat dissatisfied.


    "Yes, honorable one. He used the distinguished name of the God of Fighting." The City Chief swallowed his fear as he exined.


    "Oh? The distinguished name of that old geezer? I see, but you do know that anyone can know the distinguished name of that strangely popr geezer if they just read some history books, right?" A hint of danger could now be felt from the voice.


    "He..." The City Chief paused for a moment as he forcefully swallowed a mouthful of saliva before continuing, "He also summoned an avatar that contained the Divinity of a deity."


    When he finished this sentence, everything turned silent. The elders nced at each other but they didn''t dare to raise their heads and take a glimpse of what was happening on the altar. Thankfully, after a few moments of silence, the voice replied once again.


    "Interesting... Since that is the case, I am sure that the geezer said that he wanted to experiment on those residents, right? That bastard is entric like that so it should be the case." The illusory voice said in matter-of-factly voice that didn''t allow any objections.


    "Yes... But, honorable one. What shall we do? If we do not capture those sisters then we will lose precious offerings for you, and..." The City Chief looked like he was hesitant to continue, afraid that he may provoke the ire of the honorable one.


    "Oh, you do not have to worry about that. Just don''t do anything towards them for now. Let that old geezer do whatever he wants to do..."


    "But after a few weeks, if those residents are still alive. Try and capture them again. From my understanding of that old geezer, he''s easily distracted and by that time, he should''ve lost interest with those curseden residents."


    The City Chief nodded his head in understanding, "By your will, honorable one."


    He bowed his head and kept his silence, but he looked like he wanted to say something else...


    He just didn''t have the guts to do it.


    "Y''all do not have to hide your desires, you know? It''s useless to hide those deep-seated desires in front of me. You can just indulge in those desires... Yes, indulge yourself... Tell me what you want, tell me your desires and I shall grant them."


    "But in exchange..."


    "Offer yourself to depravity." The illusory voice chuckled at the end of its sentence before a dull explosion urred.


    The Elders raised their heads and they found that the stones stacked upon each other had turned into ashes. Within those ashes were three droplets of spherical blood that didn''t diffuse into the ashes nor shatter. It was sitting right there on top of the ashes, ready to be gathered and consumed.


    The Elders licked their lips...


    They didn''t suppress their desire for blood anymore as they lunged towards the droplets of blood left by Gelial and equally shared it to themselves.


    ...


    Joseph prepared a sumptuous meal. Since this ce didn''t have the concept of day and night and instead, the residents slept whenever they felt sleepy. Joseph disregarded the fact that it may be in the middle of the night right now as he bought several items from the Cash Shop.


    He handed over a dress for both Julie and Hulie...


    Since both sisters were members of the Vampire Race, he spected that they prepared darker colors so Joseph gave Julie a pitch-ck dress, while he gave Hulie a crimson-red dress. The two were delighted by the gifts that they received and they instantly became far energetic than before.


    The small sealed room that was quite cramped due to the presence of four people instantly became lively. Joseph felt like he wasn''t even in the game anymore. He felt like he was with his so-called friends back then, talking with them, teasing each other and thenughing at someme jokes.


    The joyful situationsted for quite a while. It only ended when the two sisters found themselves exhausted.


    "Kuya, Ate... I''m sleepy..." Hulie voiced out herint.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled, he ruffled the youngss''s hair as he said, "You were too excited earlier, Hulie. But I didn''t really expect that you know so much about medicinal herbs. You''ll really be a good doctor once we''re out here!"


    "Really?" Hulie was delighted with the praise that she received as she sweetly smiled. But she still nced at Alice as if she was waiting for her confirmation.


    "Hahaha..." Alice covered her mouth with one hand and chuckled, "He''s not lying to you, Hulie. Your knowledge about medicinal herbs even surpasses me to the point that it''s really astounding to think that you''re so young! By the way, how old are you, Hulie?"


    Joseph''s interest was piqued. He also wanted to hear the answer to this question.


    Hulie pondered for a moment before she replied with a smile, "I''m already eighteen this year, ate Alice!"


    Alice froze when she heard the answer. Did she hear it wrongly? A look of confusion appeared on her face as she nced at Joseph and found that he also had the same look of astonishment on his face.


    "What? You''re eighteen? We''re of the same age then!" Alice eximed in shock.


    "What? You''re also eighteen? Then we''re of the same age too!" Joseph eximed at the side.


    Alice snapped her gaze towards Joseph''s direction. Her lips twitching and she didn''t know whether she shouldugh or to cry.


    They treated the twin sisters like children but in the end, it turned out that they were of the same age!


    This was really an amusing situation...


    Even Joseph forgot to close his mouth that went agape.


    "Wait, are you really eighteen?" Joseph turned to ask Julie. Since Hulie was somewhat childish, it was better to ask Julie who was far sensible than her.


    Julie innocently nodded her head, "Yes, that''s right, Kuya. I am eighteen this year, and so is Hulie..."


    <em>Then, you shouldn''t call me Kuya...</em> Joseph inwardly sighed. But he didn''t tell her this, after all since she was already used to calling him Kuya. Why not just let the misunderstanding continue? It''s not even that disruptive anyways. Joseph concluded.


    He nced at Alice and the two of them nodded in tacit understanding.


    <em>I really appreciate Alice... The fact that she can read along the lines makes some situations convenient. Senior Krid, you brought her up real good.</em> Joseph lifted a smile and praised Krid in his heart.<em> Even though that old man looked like he wasn''t really that suitable for the job of raising a child. I have to admit that he''s quite capable in this industry!</em>


    The two secretly decided that they would not change their treatment towards the twin sisters even though they were of the same age.


    "Uh... Julie, Hulie... Are both of you really sure that you are now cured of the Curse of the Condemned? If you are not that sure yet then, you can keep on consuming my blood. I don''t really mind." Joseph asked.


    Julie and Hulie turned their gaze at Joseph and thetter found that the gazes of the twin sisters became filled with desire. A hint of fear crept up in his heart for he felt like he was being stared by monsters.


    [Your dignity can never be lower than those who dare stand against you.]


    A system notification appeared in front of Joseph and it miraculously swept his worries away.


    He now didn''t fear the hungry gazes of the twin sisters.


    "What about it?" Joseph asked.


    "Ah!"0


    Julie awakened from her trance and she wiped the droll that decorated her lips as she embarrassingly replied, "I''m sorry, Kuya... But your blood... really was too tasty... I''m afraid that if I kept on drinking your blood, then I may be addicted!"


    A blush spread on her cheeks when she reached the end of her sentence.


    Hulie wore the same expression as her sister. The only difference was that instead of using her hands to hide her face, she hid behind Julie and only stuck her crimson eyes out to stare at Joseph.


    "Hahaha... It''s fine, it''s fine... As long as the two of you can recover." Joseph expressed.


    "No... It''s fine, really... Kuya Joseph. We''re okay now, the curse is no longer a problem for us, so it''s okay..." Julie defiantly replied.


    Seeing that she''s refusing to this extent. Joseph could only let a dryugh before saying: "Okay then if you insist. We''re going to stop the small party now. It looks like Hulie''s about to pass out right there. She became really talkative, you know?"


    "Now, she''s suffering the consequences of her actions earlier."


    Julie nced at Hulie and chuckled, "Hahaha, you''re right about that, Kuya. We just recovered, yet Hulie didn''t manage to suppress her excitement..."


    "But don''t me her about it, Kuya. I''m also excited too! I mean, I can finallyplete the novel that I am making!" Her eyes shed with a dazzling light.


    Alice''s interest was piqued.


    Since she and her grandfather often traveled thend like vagabonds. Books and dolls were often Alice''s friends. She collected and read books to satisfy her curiosity about the world, while she bought a lot of dolls so she could talk to them and tell them her problems.


    When she heard Julie saying that she can finally continue her book and write it until the end.


    Her interest was piqued and she couldn''t help but ask, "You''re writing a book, Julie? Can you let me see? I like to read books, and I read a lot of them back on the outside world, maybe I can give you some advice, plot-wise." She gave a kind smile.


    But her enthusiasm caused Julie''s embarrassment to re up as the crimson blush on her cheeks intensified until it reached her neck...


    Joseph who observed everything on the side had to interrupt them as he said, "Calm down Julie. Just let the youngss decide if she wants to give you her book. You can''t force things, let nature take its course."


    Alice red at Joseph, "Just let the youngss decide? It seems like your face really is the thickest part of your body. To think that you''d still act like someone older than them after hearing that they are of the same age as yours!"


    Joseph almost choked on the juice that he was drinking and he red angrily at Alice, "What are you talking about? I''m just saying that she should decide on what she wants to do. That is why you should not coerce her into doing something that she doesn''t want to do!"


    "I am coercing her now?" Alice bit back.


    "Yes!" Joseph almost immediately replied.


    "Oh? You wanna take this outside?" Alice stood up like a hooligan and even took a random tree branch on the ground.


    "You took the words out of my mouth!" Joseph didn''t falter and he also stood up.


    "Kuya, Ate! Don''t fight!" Hulie screamed out loud and interrupted the argument.


    Alice and Joseph awakened from their reverie as they simultaneously looked at each other before turning their eyes to Hulie who looked like she was about to cry. It seemed like this youngss hated it when her Kuya and Ate fought against each other.


    Joseph turned to look at Hulie and looked like he wanted to exin, but Julie beat her on his own game.


    "Uh... Hulie, Ate and Kuya are not fighting."


    "Huh? They are not fighting? But why are they raising their voice?" Hulie innocently asked.


    Julie nced at Joseph and Alice before she replied in a matter-of-factly voice: "Do you remember how Papa and Mama fought? They seem to look like they are fighting, but that is actually their way of expressing their love for each other!"


    "The more you hate, the more you love, so in other words. They are only loving each other! No fighting, all right?"


    Joseph and Alice almost coughed a mouthful of blood when they heard what Julie said.


    Joseph approached them and wanted to exin, but Hulie spoke up first and said, "Really? They are not fighting? Yay! Hehehe, I don''t really like it when Ate and Kuya fight. I want everyone to be happy! Yes, happy! Being happy is good than being sad!"


    She revealed a sweet smile that became like a harpoon that pierced through Alice and Joseph''s heart.


    "Uh..."


    "But..."


    Alice and Joseph opened their mouths to intervene, but when their eyes drifted onto one another.


    They soon nodded in tacit understanding and decided.


    <em>Let''s just let this misunderstanding continue...</em>

 Chapter 107: A Promise[4]

    Chapter 107: A Promise[4]


    Alice and Joseph slept peacefully that night. stered on their faces were smiles of relief, joy, and anticipation for the future.


    Joseph entered True Sleep Mode, while Alice was even lightly snoring as she slept.


    Her peaceful, yet sleazy expressionpared to her beautiful visage made such a scene quite strange.


    At this moment, Julie raised her upper body and leaned on the wall behind her adjacent to the stone bed. Hulie who was still so excited about what was happening didn''t sleep too deep, so Julie''s movements awakened her. She raised her head and found that Julie was crying.


    "Ate...?" Hulie whispered in concern.


    Julie turned to look at Hulie and revealed a mncholic smile. Then, she turned her gaze to her wrist.


    Hulie''s expression changed.


    Surprise and shock could be seen on her face as she also looked at her own wrist.


    "Ate..." Hulie whispered once again.


    But this time, it wasn''t out of concern...


    It was out of fear and anxiety.


    Julie stretched her hand out and ruffled Hulie''s hair: "It''s fine. No matter what happens, we will be together."


    Hulie buried herself onto Julie''s chest. Her shoulders trembled like a sieve as she said, "Mhmm... But, what do we do?"


    She nced at the sleeping Joseph and Alice.


    Julie revealed a rueful smile: "No... Let''s just keep everything as it is. We cannot burden them anymore."


    "But..."


    "Why is it so painful? I knew that everything was pointless from the start, but I can''t just abandon this hope." Julie uttered, her voice was quiet, yet one could feel the upheaval of emotions that she was feeling right at this moment.


    The realization that she had this night really was too cruel.


    It was the same as killing someone when they were already dead...


    Fate was too ruthless.


    Hulie raised her head and stared at her sister. Their eyes met in mid-air and they found that their already crimson eyes, was even redder than before. It was as if their tears were about to turn into blood due to the grievances in their heart.


    Silence reigned within the cramped room. A suffocating air suffused into the atmosphere which turned the crying of the two sisters into intense sobbing as their shoulders violently trembled.


    But after a while, this tumultuous momentum of crying subsided, and what was left on their faces were broken smiles of hopelessness and despair.


    Julie suddenly stood up.


    She walked towards a book beside a dpidated notebook.


    The book had the title, System For Assassination...


    It was Joseph''s favorite book. He gifted this book to Julie.


    "Ate? What are you doing?" Witnessing Julie''s mechanical movements as she madly flipped the book and scanned it with her eyes. Fear grew within Hulie''s heart. She was afraid that her sister''s mind was already overtaken by madness and despair.


    Julie slowly turned her head towards Hulie and replied, "I''m reading... I promised Kuya Joseph when he gave me this book that I willplete it and give him my review of the book." Anguid smile escaped her lips as she once againid her eyes on the opened pages of the book.


    "But why are you reading it so fast, ate?" Hulie asked once again.


    This time, Julie didn''t even turn her head to her sister.


    But her figure visibly trembled when she heard her words.


    "It is because we do not have the luxury of time, Hulie. The temporary reprieve and the security that we felt was nothing but a mere illusion."


    Hulie hung her head low, it was unknown what she was thinking. Her sister was now doing her best toplete the promises that she made to herself and to Kuya Joseph with what little time she had remaining, yet what was Hulie doing?


    She was doing nothing! She onlyid on the bed, awaiting the arrival of the inevitable.


    Suddenly, she stood up.


    She approached her sister, Julie and went for her wrist.


    "Hulie, what are you doing?" Julie was startled awake from her reverie.


    "I want to be a doctor..."


    Hulie spoke, her voice riddled with hopelessness, yet with an undying desire for her ambitions.


    Julie''s eyes widened in shock, "You want to be a doctor?"


    Julie was astonished, not because of the fact that Hulie expressed her desire. It was because she didn''t understand what Hulie was implying at this time.


    "Mhmm... That is why... I don''t want to give up. Like sister... Until the end, I don''t want to give up!"


    Hulie eximed at the end of her sentence astonishing Julie who then gave an encouraging smile.


    Julie stretched her hand out and ruffled Hulie''s case: "So this is why you are holding my wrist." She chuckled before saying, "Okay, my sweet doctor sister, Hulie! Can you please check my physical condition?"


    Hulie chortled at the sight of her sister. But she still nodded and replied, "Aye, aye sis!"


    She then took out several medicinal herbs and started her inspection of her sister''s body through the use of the primary and standard method of check-ups.


    Look, Touch, Feel.


    "Oh, ma''am. It looks like your body is currently doing well. I don''t see any physical problems!"


    Hulie then reported her findings, but she stered some medicinal herbs on Julie''s wrist.


    Julie lightly chuckled, "Is that so, doc? Thank you for your help. How about the remunerations? How shall I pay?"


    Hulie was taken aback by the question. She stared dumbstruck at Julie and was speechless.


    "Oh, it seems like my sweet doctor still doesn''t ept any form of payment when ites to currency? But how about a kiss and a hug? Will that work?"


    Julie sweetly smiled at the end of her sentence and Hulie''s astonishment turned into glee as she pounced at Julie and started rolling on the sheets with her sister in tow.


    Theughter of the two sisters echoed like the morning bells. It awakened Joseph and Alice who was still somewhat tired due to the small party that they convened the night before.


    "Hulie, Julie. Both of you are early, eh? That''s rare. Normally, the two of you would sleep like two cute little pigs until noon, but this time. The two of you are already awake this early in the morning? It looks like we need to eat some red rice today!" Joseph poked fun at the two sisters.


    Alice groggily raised her upper body.


    Her eyesnded on Joseph and seeing that they slept on the same bed.


    She nervously checked her body...


    When she found nothing strange, she heaved a sigh of relief.


    But then she stood up.


    The sheets that covered her body dropped down and her stark-naked body was revealed to the world.


    "What the fuck?! You slept naked beside me?" Joseph cried out and even cursed.


    Alice revealed an expression of astonishment and her cheeks blushed crimson when she realized what he was talking about, betraying the cold facade that she always wore every day.


    "Why are you still looking?" Alice coldly spat.


    Joseph turned his gaze away and said, "Why did you even sleep naked beside me? Do you really want to get naked that much? Are you an exhibitionist?"


    Alice bowed down and took a dried tree branch on the ground.


    She pointed it at Joseph, its tip gleaming with the light of danger as she said, "I dare you to repeat what you said to me."


    Joseph helplessly shook his head, he wasn''t afraid of Alice''s threat anymore: "How about you just tell me the truth and ask for my help? I mean you saw that I had some dress for Julie and Hulie, right?"


    "I can fetch you some clothes if you want me to but in exchange. You will owe me a favor again." A sly smile appeared on Joseph''s lips.


    Julie and Hulie stared at them in amusement. After knowing that Joseph and Alice were just expressing their "love" to each other through the use of arguments. Hulie didn''t cry nor object to their argument anymore. Instead, she was staring at them with interest.


    Alice was conflicted.


    She grew up in an environment where they had to travel to all sorts of ces every day.


    Due to this, one could say that she was used to harsh environments and she had experienced all sorts of ufortable situations. However, in the end, she never adapted to that kind of lifestyle.


    As a young woman, she still disliked anything ufortable...


    One of them was wearing clothes that were unclean.


    Whenever she was in a situation where she had no other choice but to wear unclean clothes. She could endure wearing those clothes, but not when she was about to sleep. That was the reason why she always requested a private room for herself that she could use to sleep.


    In that private room, she could sleep naked without worries.


    Last night, she stuck to that habit and stripped herself naked.


    She felt like she was in a trance earlier...


    After all, how could she not realize the danger of stripper herself naked and sleeping beside a perverted man such as Joseph? Alice sighed in regret. But since everything hase to this, it was useless to cry over spilled milk so she could only move forward.


    She bit her lips and stared teary-eyed at Joseph.


    <em>How dare he tease me like this? He''s such a hateful man!</em> Alice inwardly cursed Joseph in her heart.


    Joseph was taken aback. It was the first time that he saw such an expression on Alice''s face. He was too dumbfounded that he couldn''t say anything. But in the end, he realized that something was wrong as he gave a dryugh before saying.


    "Okay, I admit that I was wrong, all right? I won''t bully you like this again so, please... Can you not look at me like that? It feels like I am forcing myself on an innocent woman. I feel like a criminal."


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head...


    Alice significantly calmed down.


    Joseph then took out a catalog of clothes from his inventory and presented it to Alice.


    <em>I hope that the remunerations that I can get after this quest are far higher than what I am sacrificing right now. But wait, speaking of that quest. Back when I was in Reinhardt, I saw that it was updated, but until now I still haven''t taken a look at it. Well, after this I''ll be sure to read the contents of that newly-updated quest.</em>


    Joseph thought to himself.


    Alice was happy when she received the list of women''s clothing.


    Seeing her like this, Joseph couldn''t help but feel somewhat weird.


    <em>Why am I happy seeing her like this? Hmm, what a strange sensation.</em> Joseph pondered to himself. Afterwards, he saw Alice return to his side with a somewhat embarrassed look on her face.


    "What''s wrong?" He asked.


    "I want this... This... and th...is." Alice''s voice sounded more like the droning of a mosquito at the end of her sentence, but this didn''t matter since she flipped open the catalog and pointed at the images.


    Alice first pointed at a One-piece Dress decorated with the lush colors of Spring, a characteristic of the Kingdom of Nether''s culture. Afterwards, she pointed at some shorts, and then a corset?


    <em>Why does she want to wear a corset? There are bras here!</em> Joseph thought to himself.


    <em>Or could it be that she doesn''t know about the concept of corsets?</em> Joseph lightly smiled, In that case, then it shall be my job to educate her.


    "Uh, Alice. You pointed at a corset, but doesn''t corset make you feel ufortable? I mean, aren''t they too tight forfort?" Joseph asked Alice.


    Thetter was taken aback by the question pertaining to women''s underwear.


    She felt somewhat suspicious about the fact that Joseph knew the characteristics of the corset and how ufortable it was to wear, but she still nodded her head and replied to his question.


    "Uhm... Yes, they are indeed ufortable. But what? You don''t want me to wear any underwear? You..."


    "Miss Alice, can you not jump to conclusions? I am only saying that you shouldn''t wear a corset if it makes you ufortable. There are other options." Joseph gave his proposal.


    Joseph had experience being a salesman before. He calmly approached Alice and opened up the catalog in front of her before pointing to the colorful bras disyed on a certain page.


    "You use this thing, this is farfortable than corsets. Although knowing your size is necessary for this to befortable since we don''t want this to be loose nor really tight. Uh, as for your size. I think this one''s going to fit you well, I also like the color ck." Joseph casually said.


    Alice was astonished by what she heard, but her expression turned strange as she asked, "Knowing the size is necessary for me to befortable on using this, but wait. How do you know my size?" Her eyes narrowed into slits as she sized up Joseph.


    Joseph choked on his own saliva: "I... I was just giving you some suggestions! I have nothing but good intentions!" He said in a righteous manner.


    "Seeing you insist that you are innocent makes me doubt your words even more." Alice covered her mouth with a hand and chuckled.


    "Well, how about it? Do you want me to buy it or not? Are you still going to insist on wearing a corset? In the end, it''s your choice and besides. I am not doing this for nothing."


    "You are not doing this for nothing? Are you saying that you want me to pay?" Alice red at him.


    Joseph shook his head and smiled, "Alice, don''t be so naive. There are no free lunches in this world. If you want to obtain something, you must sacrifice something..."


    "Say, you want to y but you also want to study. But since you only have a single body and you do not have the ability to clone yourself and do those things at the same time..."


    "You''ve got to choose between ying and studying."


    Joseph acted as a good samaritan and kindly gave his advice.


    "Okay, okay. You chatan. Just buy them already, all right? But let me tell you this, I will not do any perverted things in exchange for these clothes!" Alice said.


    But Joseph revealed a perverted smile when she heard what Alice had said, "So if I gave you far valuable things than these clothes, there''s a chance that you''ll give me sexual favors?"


    Alice froze in ce when she heard his words. His eyes dangerously narrowed as she moved and sent a p directly at Joseph''s cheek.


    But Joseph was ready.


    He knew how violent Alice could be whenever he was teasing her so he knew better than to face her unprepared.


    "Parry!"


    He cried out and Alice''s p collided with an invisible wall that consumed the strength of her attack.


    "You..." Alice cried out as if she was wronged.


    "Hey, Miss Alice. I am not so stupid as to endure an attack from someone powerful like you." Joseph replied.


    "Then why did you provoke me in the first ce?" Alice bit back.


    "Provoke?" Joseph scratched his cheek, "I was just joking..."


    Alice was speechless when she saw Joseph''s innocent look. In the end, she could only sigh and didn''t say anything anymore. It seemed like she had already epted that Joseph was this kind of a person and could never be changed by any means.


    Joseph felt apologetic. He somewhat understood that he may have gone too far with his jokes. He made sure to remember this blunder and as a bonus.


    Joseph brought a special gift for her from the Cash Shop.


    "Uh... With her skin tone, vibrant colors suit her better. The one-piece dress was a good choice, as for the bra, I guess its also a good choice. But for the special gift of mine... Hmm, since she already has a bra. How about..."


    Joseph repeatedly tapped on the air in front of him and soon, the goods that Alice requested appeared in his Inventory.


    He took them out and presented them to Alice.


    But when she received it, Alice stared dumbstruck at the bra.


    Unsure about how she should do with it.


    "Wait, could it be that you do not know how to wear it?" Joseph guessed.


    Alice shyly nodded.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head andmanded, "I guess I''ll help."


    "Mhm..." Alice agreed.


    "Now then strip!"<ol><li>Sekihan - Rice you eat for celebration.</li></ol>

 Chapter 108: A Promise[5]

    Chapter 108: A Promise[5]


    Standing on the elevatednd just outside the underground cave that Joseph''s group made were Joseph and Alice whose bodies riddled with beads of sweat. They had justpleted a hunt and before them were dozens of dead bodies belonging to the Mutated Beasts.


    It has been several weeks since both Alice and Joseph appeared within this ce perpetually hidden from the sun.


    The All-Epassing Barrier of Spirituality Separation does not allow entry to anyone even if they were the residents of this ce.


    In other words, no one should be able to enter this ce, nor exit it.


    But due to Joseph''s passive skill given to him by his titles. He managed to bypass the effects of the Barrier andnded alive on the ground, albeit with somewhat heavy injuries. As for how Alice managed to enter this ce when she didn''t have the same passive skill as Joseph?


    Well, it was because she was in Joseph''s embrace.


    In short, she rode Joseph''s coattails.


    Thankfully, they met the kind-hearted Julie and Hulie who helped them recover from their injuries and even hid them from the residents of this incredibly dark ce.


    Not only that, but they also enchanted their eyes so that Joseph and Alice who were mere humans that couldn''t see anything in this dark ce could now see everything as if it was daylight.


    Both were really thankful to the two sisters.


    That was the reason why they remained in this ce...


    If not for that then, they would''ve already escaped from this ce as soon as they had the strength.


    But now that they met Julie and Hulie, the two of them couldn''t possibly leave from here without helping the two sisters on their plight.


    Within the past few weeks, Alice and Joseph grew closer to each other.


    Even though they may not realize this fact, it was the undeniable truth.


    They cooperated with everything. From taking care of the two sisters to even taking turns on who should use the nket whenever they slept for the night.


    "I am really enjoying this world..."


    Whenever Joseph saw the smiles on Julie and Hulie''s faces.


    He felt particrly warm and proud.


    He felt warm since he indirectly caused these smiles, and he felt proud by the fact that the two sisters who treated him like a stranger before were now close to him as if he was a member of their family.


    Joseph also noticed that Alice was now lukewarm to him. He didn''t know whether this was because of the fact that he gifted her some particrly expensive set of clothes from the Cash Shop or if this was because the two often interacted with each other which led to her slowly lowering her guard against him.


    A few weeks earlier, Alice treated her like a pervert that could take advantage of him on any second.


    But now, Alice treated her like a friend.


    Joseph didn''t know why but he felt happy about this change.


    Finally, she had changed how she treated him, while she wasn''t treating him as good as the twin sisters, at least there was a change.


    "Hmm... Life''s good..." Joseph uttered to himself.


    Apart from the fact that this ce was too cold for his liking, Joseph had noint living in this world perpetually hidden from the sun.


    But since there were better ces in the world of Victory than this god-forsaken ce.


    Why would he stay here instead of going somewhere else?


    It didn''t make sense, so Joseph still had the desire of returning.


    Furthermore, he still had that ss-Specific Quest.


    Speaking of the ss-Specific Quest. Its contents had changed.


    The Quest Clear Conditions of the quest back then had been fulfilled so the quest has been updated and was now on its third phase.


    The description of the quest was still quite ttering, but the Quest Clear Conditions wasn''t that hard anymore, at least for Joseph.


    Since it only said that he must bring Alice towards the Legendary cksmith Krid...


    Even though that sounded quite difficult, at least it didn''t have any time limit which could easilyplicate things.


    As for the Quest Rewards, it still wasn''t so clear.


    There were only three question marks and a bracket beside it that said <em>Guaranteed</em>.


    Although Joseph was puzzled by the fact that he didn''t receive any rewards frompleting the second phase of the quest. He reckoned that the system may give him all the rewards that he deserved and umted from the ss-Specific Quest when the quest finally ended.


    "Joseph... What do you think this will taste if you cook it with teriyaki sauce?" Alice suddenly appeared right in front of him, a cheeky smile could be seen on her lips as she raised a b of meat that had dozens of crimson sunken eyeballs on its surface.


    "What the fuck?!" Joseph leaped backwards and cringed, "Alice... Didn''t we already talk that I will never cook that piece of shit again? I also told you that I hate that kind of meat!"


    Alice chuckled, "Hahaha... You don''t like this? Isn''t this the one that we first ate when we woke up in this ce? And also, with that cooking method of yours, it didn''t really taste too bad."


    She licked her lips and stared meaningfully at Joseph.


    Joseph coldly scoffed and flicked his wrist.


    A ray of light flew towards the b of meat and annihted it to dust.


    "Ah! You almost hit my hand there! Are you trying to cripple me?" Alice cried out when she realized that Joseph had attacked.


    "Hmmph! Last chance, if you dare present that disgusting piece of meat again then I will never cook for you again! I will only cook for Julie and Hulie!" Joseph gave her an ultimatum.


    In this ce perpetually hidden from the sun.


    Spices were scarce and the variety of food was basically non-existent.


    That wasn''t a problem for the residents who frequently ate raw meat.


    In fact, Joseph even doubted if the Vampires knew about the concept of cooking since they were imprisoned in this ce for too long.


    Yes, the non-existent variety of food and theck of spices in this ce wasn''t a problem for the residents. That also included Joseph who could just log-out and cook some good old home-cooked meals in his house.


    In short, Alice was the only one that desired Joseph''s cooking, apart from Julie and Hulie of course.


    This was also the reason why Alice sold her taxi service to Joseph in exchange for him bing the Head Chef for their everyday meals.


    Julie and Hulie who discovered how the meals from the outside world could be so delicious craved for it every day.


    Joseph couldn''t possibly make them suffer just because he got into an argument with Alice.


    But as for Alice?


    If she did something he disliked intentionally then he had the higher ground against her.


    He had a higher chance of winning in an argument due to the fact that he can cook better than her.


    This was why he was confident facing against her in a battle of words.


    He could just use that, <em>I am the Head Chef card</em>...


    And she will be defeated.


    Alice knew that she was disadvantaged.


    Her grandpa told her that one must retreat when necessary. Due to this, she merely scoffed and didn''t bother about Joseph anymore. She proceeded to gather the meat that they needed for their uing hot pot and barbeque party.


    Joseph revealed a triumphant smile.


    He stared at Alice and found that the clothes that she was wearing enhanced her beauty. The purple one-piece dress that stuck close to her body due to sweat outlined the underwear that she was wearing underneath that dress. It really made one imagine what was hidden behind the covers.


    Joseph gave a wry smile.


    He shook his head and thought,<em> It seems like the several years of dedicating myself to working and staying at home to study so I can save money really took a toll on my social circle to the extent that I am now somewhat of a horn dog.</em>


    <em>The friends whom I thought that can stay with me forever are not with me anymore. Ever since I became recluse and refused contact with them, they really did cut their ties to me, and now. We are nothing but mere strangers.</em>


    Joseph sighed to himself. He remembered theughter and smiles that he shared with his friend several years ago and he couldn''t help but feel somewhat depressed.


    <em>Thankfully I have this world of Victory. I may be considered as a loser on the outside world whose social circle is non-existent. At least, I can start again and be whatever I want to be in this world of Victory. </em>


    <em>Ah... I really want to personally thank that genius, Ray Gabriel. If not for his dedication, this world wouldn''t be made.</em>


    "Joseph, I''m done," Alice spoke from the side. A light smile could be seen on her face. She wasn''t angry at Joseph anymore. After all, his reaction towards what she did was what she had expected.


    She had enoughmon sense to know how a person would react if someone annoyed them.


    Joseph took the meat from Alice''s hands and headed to the direction of the two sisters.


    There, he found that Julie was still writing on his notebook while Hulie was studying all sorts of medicinal herbs that Joseph and Alice gathered for Hulie''s instructions.


    "This is the herb that Papa always used whenever I get a bruise, while this is the herb that Mama mixes on our tea so that it will taste sweet. The former has medicinal capabilities, while the other, even though it doesn''t have any medicinal properties, it could make someone recover their mind and it also fends off hunger..." Hulie uttered in a low voice.


    <em>Scratch...</em>


    The continuous scratching sound of a pencil moving on a piece of paper could be heard. Joseph turned to look at Julie and he smiled when he saw her working hard on writing her own novel.


    But...


    She seemed to have stopped reading the System For Assassination book that he gave to her.


    But that didn''t matter, what''s far important, was that the two sisters were finally taking their first baby steps onto achieving their dreams...


    This gave Alice and Joseph a weird sense of satisfaction in their hearts. They nced at each other for a moment and in that instant, they had received each other''s thoughts and understood it.


    They moved silently, careful that they would not disturb the two sisters. Not a word came out of their mouth but their cooperation was seamless. Alice took care of the spices and marinating the meat, while Joseph prepared the teriyaki sauce and the ingredients necessary for the hot pot.


    In just a few minutes, the fragrant smell of spices and the enticing aroma of meat was now within the air. Although the two didn''t want to disturb Julie and Hulie. It was impossible for them to stop the smell of the food from going into the air.


    "Ah! Kuya, Ate! You are already here? Uwaaah, I didn''t notice!" Hulie cried out loud and she hurriedly stood up and cleaned up the medicinal herbs scattered on the ground.


    Julie also awakened from her trance.


    She took her notebook and hid it underneath the nket on the stone bed.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled from the sight of these, "Look at both of you panicking. The two of you do not need to worry, as I said. I wouldn''t dare to touch your things without asking for your permission first."


    Alice also smiled at the two, indicating that she was on the same track as Joseph.


    "Mhmm..." Hulie spoke up, "No matter what, Kuya, Ate... Don''t open touch our stuff, all right?"


    Joseph stared at the youngss and his heart became filled with warmth and child-like joy when he saw her pouting expression. He stopped what he was doing and immediately moved towards the youngss, ruffling her hair and sweetly smiling as if she was his daughter.


    Alice stared at Joseph and a thought appeared in her mind<em>. If he''s treating Hulie like this... I can say that he will also treat his daughter like that... I bet he will be a good husband.</em>


    Alice''s pupils constricted when she realized what she was thinking.


    <em>What the hell? Why did I think of something like that? It''s impossible... It''s impossible for us. Wait, why am I thinking about this again? Aaahhh!</em>


    Alice looked like she was about to pull her hair out due to the frustration and annoyance. But deep inside, she also couldn''t help but admit that Joseph could be an excellent husband and father.


    <em>No! I thought of it again! Ah... Somebody help me stop these thoughts! All right, let''s think about grandpa... Okay, grandpa... He''s smiling at me, oh he''s handing over a hammer. Wait, he''s giving a strange smile. He''s opening his mouth and saying, "In the future, you should be more feminine so you can get married..."</em>


    <em>Ahhh, no! Grandpa! Why did you betray me!</em> Alice furiously shook her head.


    In her eyes, Senior Krid who had a genial smile on his face as he kindly advised Alice disappeared with a poof.


    After this, Alice became ultra-focused on her work to the extent that she finished ten minutes earlier than usual.


    Joseph was astonished by this and he couldn''t help butment, "Alice... You seem to be more excited than usual for the food. Am I really that good of a cook?"


    Alice turned her head to look at him, but what he received was a deathly re instead of apliment, "Continue your cooking." She coldly spat and didn''t care about him anymore.


    Joseph rapidly blinked. Disbelief stered on his face but when he saw that Alice was indeed in a bad mood. He judged that it was better if he didn''t make any jokes so he didn''t say anything as he proceeded on his job.


    Soon, the small party was ready.


    Julie and Hulie immediately pounced on the food like hungry wolves.


    A few minutes into the meal.


    Joseph asked a question...


    "Julie, Hulie... Are both of you really cured already?"


    His question astonished the three.


    Alice was the first one to recover as she asked, "What do you mean? Didn''t we already made it clear that they had recovered from that despicable curse?"


    Joseph nodded his head, "Yeah, that was indeed the case and we also didn''t find anything strange on their bodies. It was as if the curse just evaporated into nothingness. But I don''t know. I have this nagging feeling on the back of my head that''s telling me that there is something wrong..."


    "That is why I had to ask." Joseph swept his gaze at Julie and Hulie


    Alice also stared at the two.


    There wasn''t any harm about confirming the truth so she went along with his idea.


    Julie and Hulie nced at each other before revealing a sweet smile.


    "Of course we are already healed! Why would we even lie to you, Kuya, Ate? That doesn''t make sense." Julie lightly chuckled at the end of her sentence as she drank a cup of juice.


    Hulie also nodded her head and said, "Kuya, and Ate. Really a worrywart!" She proudly said.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head, "It seems like I was really wrong after all. Hahaha, let''s continue. After your Kuya is done with his training on bing even stronger then we will now leave this ce. Until then, promise me that you two will wait, all right?"


    "Promise?" Julie said.


    "Hmm?" Hulie tilted her head and looked at Joseph.


    "Yeah, don''t the two of you want to see how the sun looks? Once I am done with my objectives here then I will take both of you to the outside world. Until then, promise me that you both will wait for that day, all right?" Joseph said with a sincere smile on his face.


    Alice stared at these events with furrowed eyebrows but she didn''t speak.


    Julie and Hulie nced at each other for a moment.


    A sweet smile emerged on their faces as they eximed at the same time.


    "Yes, I promise!"


    "Mhm! I promise, Kuya!"

 Chapter 109: Return

    Chapter 109: Return


    "Alice, take that one on the right and on the middle. I''ll attract the attention of the one on the left. I can only stop that bastard for a few seconds. I''m sure that you know what you must do so I will not talk too much now. Let''s go!" Joseph gave a rundown of what they were about to do.


    Standing on the elevated piece ofnd in front of the entrance of their temporary abode.


    Joseph and Alice swept their eyes around and their gazesnded on three Mutated Beasts that looked as tall as a small hut.


    The beasts in the middle and on the right had the features of a wolf and a tiger, while the one on the left had the characteristics of a turtle.


    Joseph judged that it was probably better for him to face that one with the turtle characteristics for it looked like it wasn''t that strong whenpared to itsrades beside it.


    <em>After weeks of fighting these bastards using Alice''s taxi service. I have sufficiently leveled-up, but I still can''t beat these monsters alone, especially those offensive-types. </em>


    <em>Their firepower is too strong. Even though I can deal percentage-based damage onto them, I still don''t see myself winning. Let''s not be toocent.</em>


    He made a decision.


    This was one of Joseph''s rules to himself whenever he was out on a hunt with Alice. He decided that he would y cautiously and without taking substantial risks, especially whenever he had no contingency ns when it came to worst-case scenarios.


    But that didn''t mean that he just let Alice tank all the damageing from the monsters.


    He also contributed to the battle in his own ways.


    "Watch out!" Joseph cried out. His figure vanished and reappeared beside Alice.


    His Rapier shone in an inhibited brilliant light and urately deflected an attack that came for Alice.


    Afterwards, Joseph revealed the Vitals of his enemy and struck a weakness.


    [You dealt 22,027 damage!]


    "Turn..." Alice finally reacted. She whispered a single world and a kick swept past Joseph,nding on the chest of that monster who dared to sneak attack her before she thrust her weapon into the neck of that monster.


    Everything took time to describe but they all happened in a few seconds. Not even taking a break, Joseph turned around and deflected, yet another attack from a monster that tried on capitalizing the opening that Alice created when she assisted Joseph.


    "Quite cheeky, aren''t ya?" Joseph lightly chuckled. His deflect was sessful and he unleashed a series of attacks through the use of Mercenary Skills, Thrust, Slice, and sh.


    [You dealt 10,478 damage!]


    [You dealt 10,439 damage!]


    [You dealt 10,596 damage!]


    "Roaaar!"


    The Mutated Beast unleashed a roar that sounded more like the shriek of a banshee. The loud sound disturbed Alice''s bnce. Joseph was unaffected due to the effects of his passive.


    He swiftly turned around and when he found the swaying Alice...


    His Rapier shed, arriving beside her and deflected an attack, protecting her while she was stunned.


    "Turn..." Joseph uttered. He twisted his body and kicked the Mutated Beast that had the characteristics of the turtle far-away from the main battle. Joseph saw that the Mutated Beast whom he kicked moved slower than the other two.


    By kicking that monster away...


    The two of them could have some reprieve until Alice awakened from her stunned state.


    <em>Damn the debuffs that these bastards have are really annoying. If not for the fact that I have such a ridiculous title which makes me immune to all abnormal statuses, I would be like Alice right now and if that happened, then I bet we would''ve died for a thousand times already.</em>


    "..." Alice finally recovered from her trance.


    She didn''t say anything as she responded to Joseph''s request to<em> "Turn"</em>.


    She turned around, faced the Mutated Beast with the characteristics of a wolf and unleashed a strike that disyed the harmony of heaven and earth.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship..."


    She uttered under her breath.


    "Harmony!"


    Her Rapier temporarily vanished and when it swept past the two monsters.


    Their figures staggered, a line made out of a fleshly-wound could be seen on their chests. The damage they suffered was so severe that the bones on their ribcages were now visible, it looked ghastly white and terrifying to the eyes.


    "Good job, Alice! Turn!"


    Joseph gave his honest praise, but the two never stopped their movements. Joseph swiftly turned around and faced the severely injured monsters.


    A light smile appeared on his lips as he rushed at them and unleashed swift strikes that soon took their life and transformed them into innumerable crystals which eventually disappeared into nothingness.


    What was left from the bodies of the terrifying Mutated Beasts were several bs of meat that looked disgusting...


    But Joseph licked his lips when he saw the several bs of meat.


    "It looks like meat will be on the menu again today." He thought to himself, already imagining how he would experiment on cooking these fine pieces of meat on the ground.


    "It really is fun hunting these guys with you, Alice. Not only that, but we''re also quite lucky today since none of these bastards unleashed that horrifying jet of poison from their throats. Seems like we cane home unscathed." Josephmented, but Alice screamed right at him.


    "Don''t say that! You''re nting a g!" She cried out as she evaded an attack from the Mutated Beast with the characteristics of a tiger in front of her. Sweat could be seen on her forehead.


    There were at least several dozens of types of characteristics among the ranks of the Mutated Beasts.


    But the Mutated Beasts with the characteristics of a tiger was the most annoying one to fight against. They were fast, fierce, and had the predatorial instincts of a tiger along with the unpredictable nature of anything corrupted by dark energy.


    They could also shoot a poisonous jet of liquid that was extremely corrosive to anything living.


    Even with the passive that gave him immunity to all sorts of abnormal statuses. Joseph was wary against that attack since it always came whenever you least expect it.


    "nting a g? Wait, where did you learn that word? Did you read that book that I gave to Julie?"


    Joseph was astonished when he heard the words that Alice had said.


    But in the very next moment, his pupils constricted for he saw the tiger in front of Alice opening its mouth, revealing the depths of its rotten throat.


    Whenever a Mutated Beast opened its mouth, it was about to shoot a stream of poisonous liquid that had the force of a thousand men ejacting at the same time.


    "Alice!" Joseph cried out.


    His eyes saw the weakness of the tiger''s iing attack and he subconsciously pushed his Rapier towards that weakness in an effort to deflect the iing attack.


    But there was a problem.


    Alice was standing on the path of his Rapier.


    If this continued, the Rapier would pierce through the body of Alice, killing her along with that Mutated Beast.


    Joseph forcefully retracted his attack. But everything happened so fast and with Alice being in close proximity with him, it was far toote for him to cancel his attack.


    A look of disbelief appeared on Joseph''s face when he saw his Rapier prate Alice''s back.


    Yes, his weapon went straight through Alice''s back andnded on the weakness of the Mutated Beast. Staggering it backward as it forcefully swallowed the poison that it was about to unleash back to its stomach.


    "Alice!"


    Joseph screamed, he retracted his Rapier but he was shocked to find that there were no traces of blood on Alice''s back. In fact, there wasn''t even any wound. It was as if what just happened was a mere illusion.


    "What the heck?" Joseph was dumbfounded. His eyesnded on his Rapier and he realized that it looked incredibly transparent like it was incorporeal.


    But just as he was wondering about what was the meaning of such a scene.


    [Your weapon has recognized your ally and has be incorporeal.]


    "What? This Rapier had that function?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    But before he could even think any further into it...


    The Alice who was dumbfounded when she saw Joseph''s Rapier going through his body finally recovered from her trance. But she was angry.


    It was evident on her expression that had gone cold as she took a stance, raised her weapon shoulder-level and unleashed a destructive [Point] on the tiger, annihting it.


    She was so angry that she forgot to give Joseph the chance to inflict the final blow on the monster.


    When the monster finally transformed into several bs of meat and disappeared from her eyes in the form of light crystals. She turned her head to look at Joseph and said, "What the hell just happened? Did you just stab me?"


    Joseph revealed a smile, "That happened, but can you not be so harsh on me? I mean, I just wanted to protect you, and I didn''t expect that you''d move to the trajectory of my Rapier."


    Yes, Joseph''s attack earlier was meant to directlynd on the body of the Mutated Beast.


    But Alice moved in a panic and she ended up moving on the path of Joseph''s Rapier and almost gave him a heart attack.


    Alice finally calmed down when she heard what he said. She felt somewhat annoyed, yet also depressed since what he said had made sense and was the truth


    She couldn''t possibly ignore the truth. Why would she bother? And since she didn''t suffer any injuries, why would she need to dwell on that mistake? It was better to move forward.


    But...


    "What just happened? I thought for sure that I''d die..." Alice said, somewhat terrified.


    Joseph opened up the item information of the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty and obtained his answer.


    [There''s a certain chance of bing incorporeal, passing through any form of defenses in order to deal damage.]


    <em>Any form of defenses? So obstacles also count? If I can calcte the sess percentage rate of this ability then this will prove quite useful onunching attacks that my enemies could never expect. </em>


    Joseph decided.


    He''d spend some timeter on calcting the sess percentage rate of this additional effect.


    What''s more important to do now was to exin to Alice.


    "Well apparently, this weapon can sometimes go through any obstacles in order to deal damage,"


    Joseph exined.


    Alice raised an eyebrow: "Sometimes?"


    Joseph nodded, "Yes, there''s a certain chance of it working. Though I am still not so clear about how big of a sess rate does this additional effect has."


    Alice frowned: "Why do you look so calm exining that additional effect? Don''t you realize that you almost killed me? What if that additional effect didn''t take effect?"


    Joseph turned to look at her and said, "Of course I know about that, I''m feeling guilty too. But can we really just spend our precious time brooding over something that had already happened and cannot be changed anymore? If you were mad about what I did then fine, but even if we turn back time, I will still do what I did if it means that I can save you!"


    Alice was taken aback by what she heard. She froze for a few seconds and when she awakened, she turned her head away, not daring to look directly at Joseph as she crouched and started collecting the bs of meat that they would eat today.


    It was unknown what she was thinking about...


    Joseph sighed in relief after seeing that Alice understood what he meant. He focused his eyes on a system notification that floated right in front of him as a smile of excitement appeared on his lips.


    [Congrattions, you leveled up!]


    [You are now Level 98!]


    Within the past few weeks... Joseph spent all the time that he had on leveling himself up in this utopia for yers that wanted to do some power leveling.


    Joseph carefully took advantage of the fact that he had a Level 150+ NPC named Alice to assist him.


    If not for the fact that Julie and Hulie were waiting for their return, Joseph reckoned that he would''ve set up a tent near the spawn areas of the Mutated Beasts so he could easily locate and kill them.


    But despite all of these, after only spending a few weeks within this ce perpetually hidden from the sun. Joseph was now Level 98. If someone from the outside world knew that he was only a Level 15 yer several weeks ago, they would''ve questioned their reality and their leveling speed.


    A Level 15 yer could level up to Level 16 after spending a few weeks of grinding quests and killing monsters.


    But Joseph?


    He did what an average yer could do after months of constant grinding in just a few weeks. It was unbelievable that you''d probably be branded as a retard if you bragged to another yer about it.


    But this was the reality and it was an undeniable truth.


    Joseph did reach Level 98 in just a few weeks of grinding.


    And as a yer whose ss was half-step to Mythical, he was definitely strong.


    But why was he so afraid of fighting against these Mutated Beasts?


    Well, it was because he discovered that these monsters were at least Level 200. A sheer difference of 103 levels from him and at least 50 levels from Alice. If he was alone then he reckoned that he would only be able to kill a single beast after several hours of constant fighting.


    Of course, the Experience Points that he acquired fromst-hitting these monsters were extremely high to the extent that Joseph doubted his eyes when he first saw the amount of Experience he received for the first time


    Although happy and excited, Joseph never underestimated the might of these monsters. Even though he was an immortal and could revive, he cannot die for he would most certainly respawn back to Reinhardt. When that happened, it could be considered as doomsday for Joseph.


    Thankfully, Alice was here...


    Her refined techniques and swift decisive strikes that urately struck the weakness of these monsters became the reason why Joseph considered her as the strongest taxi driver in the entire world of Victory.


    She inherited the Divine Art of the Grand Duelist from the Legendary cksmith Krid so she could deal percentage-based damage on these monsters like what Joseph could do. In other words, she could do whatever Joseph could do, and vice-versa.


    But if that was the truth, why was Joseph relying on Alice''s strength instead of facing these monsters by himself?


    Well, the answer to that question was simple.


    It was because of efficiency.


    Joseph''s leveling speed drastically increased while he was with the more experienced Alice. And so, why would he not take advantage of the fact that she was willing to be her taxi service in exchange for being a chef that would cook delicious meals for them every day?


    It was a win-win situation, and Joseph didn''t find any reason to refuse.


    Joseph lightly smiled, he opened his yer Profile to distribute the stats that he had just acquired from leveling up ording to the ratio that he had been using after Ezreal''s guidance.<ol><li>If you are wondering, these damage numbers aren''t just numbers. I have a sheet that let''s me calcte how much damage Joseph deals, cross-referenced with the Mutated Beasts traits.</li></ol>

 Chapter 110: Return[2]

    Chapter 110: Return[2]


    After distribution, these were Joseph''s current stats.


    [Name: Joseph


    Level: 98 Gender: Male


    ss: Premature Grand Duelist


    Health: 51,350/51,350 Mana: 2525/2525


    Strength: 338 Dexterity: 188


    Intelligence: 21 Stamina: 158


    Spirit: 5 Tenacity: 5


    Reputation: 232 Divinity: 50


    Charm: 5


    Undistributed Stat Points: 0]


    With his current stats, he could now deal at least 9,400 points of damage with only basic attacks. Right now, Joseph saw that his ss was indeed befitting to that of a half-step Mythical ss. Even he couldn''t believe that he could deal that much damage with only basic attacks.


    But of course, this was under the condition that his enemy had no armor whatsoever or if he had 100% Armor Pration. Nheless, Joseph was still extremely powerful right now. But strangely enough, Joseph couldn''t feel satisfied with his current level of strength.


    It has to be known that the average yer only received several stat points each time they leveled up. Unlike Joseph who always received five stat points per level.


    In other words, Joseph''s character was bound to be a god-like character in the long run. But he still couldn''t help but shook his head in pity.


    Why?


    Well, it was because even with his strength. He still couldn''t defeat these Mutated Beasts.


    Joseph predicted that with the amount of damage that he dealt through attacking the weaknesses of those Mutated Beasts. Their Health Points must be at least half a million.


    What was more terrifying were their attacks.


    There was even an instance where Joseph made a mistake and used his Parry too early...


    He didn''t time it well and he was sent flying by the Mutated Beast. Thankfully, the characteristics of the Mutated Beast that attacked him weren''t suitable for offense or quick bursts of damage. But still, Joseph''s passive was instantly triggered and he had to be saved by it.


    If not for that passive then he reckoned that he would''ve been at Reinhardt right now.


    That mistake became a harsh, yet solid reason for Joseph to not underestimate any Mutated Beasts no matter how weak they lookpared to theirrades. Each one of them had peculiarities that stemmed from the characteristics of the animal that they looked like, and so. None of them must be underestimated.


    From then on, Joseph became extra cautious.


    His cautiousness paid off since that day onwards, Joseph never suffered that kind of a setback anymore.


    "Are you done there, yet? Alice?" Joseph stared at the strangely obedient Alice.


    <em>Why is she so obedient today? Ah, it must be because we''re going to do another barbeque party today. But hmmm, I''ve been eating too much meattely, here and back at the outside world. How about I buy some vegetables on the Cash Shop?</em>


    <em>The vegetables there are too expensive since it is marketed for the usage of those Professional Chefs that want to practice their craft without wasting ingredients on the outside world. But... If I don''t buy vegetables from there, how the hell can I have those two sisters eat some vegetables?</em>


    <em>Ah, fuck it! I don''t care anymore. I''ll just buy and then some clothes for Alice too. She''s kinda obedient and mellow now, so I guess I''ve got to keep pampering her. I wonder what kind of clothes should I buy this time?</em>


    Joseph''s gazended at Alice.


    The dress that she wore stuck close to her body due to the sweat. It had always been such an erotic scene, but now that she was bending over while picking up those bs of meat on the ground...


    The scene became even more erotic and Joseph couldn''t help but smile: "How about some extra short pants? Hehehe, but I wonder if she''ll even wear it in the first ce." <em></em>


    <em>Judging by her character, I don''t think that she''ll even agree to wear such a thing. But it''s not impossible since there are times when she bes really obedient.</em>


    <em>The only problem is just what is the reason for her obedience? Hmmm...</em>


    <em>Let''s just buy it and see if she''s willing to wear it. If not, then I can keep it in my Inventory and maybe gift it to Vanessa when I''m finally out of this ce. </em>


    <em>But speaking of Vanessa, I wonder... Just what happened to the Pro-NPC Alliance after my disappearance? Hmmm, someday. I''ll go and pay them a visit. After all, I owe them a great deal of debt.</em>


    "I''m done."


    Alice''s words awakened Joseph from his trance.


    A light smile escaped his lips, "Okay, let''s go. Help me prepare the meals as always, I''ll reward you with something good."


    Alice revealed a surprised look, but there was excitement within her eyes, "Reward me with something good? What do you mean?"


    Joseph''s smile turned mysterious, "Didn''t you want to have those shorts that you pointed to me yesterday? Prepare the mise en ce for us today. I''ll fetch some of those for you."


    Alice''s surprise disappeared, reced by utter excitement. She walked towards the direction of the cave, her footsteps quick and if not for the fact that she was afraid of identally offending Joseph...


    She would''ve dragged him to the direction of the cave already.


    Joseph followed suit and when they entered. They found Hulie testing some medicinal concoctions that she made bybining all sorts of beneficial herbs. She was currently applying some ointment on Julie''s wrist. On her own wrist, the same kind of ointment was also thered on its surface.


    "Oh, Hulie. You''re working really hard again today! Same goes for you, Julie."


    Joseph greeted the two.


    Julie faced Joseph with a smile and said, "Hehehe, Kuya. I just can''t afford to waste a single day without writing. I don''t know why, but after you gave me this notebook and pen, writing has been so seamless and without any hassle for me..."


    "I think I can''t be a writer anymore without using these things. They are so convenient!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "If that runs out of ink, you can just tell me. I can buy that for you anytime."


    He couldn''t help but inwardly appreciate Julie''s praise. Writing for the residents of the world of Victory was hectic. Not only they had to make their own paper from scratch.


    They also need to extract their own ink, which onlysted several weeks without fading, unlike the pen sold on the Cash Shop which couldst for decades.


    Joseph understood that this was the reason why Julie was so appreciative, but he still couldn''t help but endlessly smile when he heard her praise.


    <em>It really feels good being praised by a little girl... Wait, why am I thinking that she''s a little girl? She''s of the same age as me!</em>


    Joseph furiously shook his head, his lips repeatedly twitched when he realized that he had been polluted by the lolicon culture of the outside world, thankfully Julie was legal so there wouldn''t be any problems on being happy while receiving praises from her.


    But it was still strange... So, Joseph forcefully buried such thoughts deep in his mind.


    Alice was attracted to what Hulie was doing. She seemed to be applying some kind of a beauty product on Julie''s wrist.


    As a young maiden herself, Alice had an eye for aesthetics. One could say that she also desired for beauty like what otherpletely ordinary women do.


    "What is that, Hulie?" She walked closer.


    Panic briefly shed on Hulie''s face but was quickly reced with a smile as she said, "Uh... This is a concealer, Ate. It is called Concealer because it conceals blemishes on the skin. Mama told me how to make one, thankfully I remembered the exact form so I tried making one and randomly applying it and it worked!"


    A proud look surfaced on Hulie''s face.


    Alice revealed a sly smile and said, "Is that so, Hulie? You can create beauty products? What are the beauty products the kind of beauty products that you can, uhh create? Can you make some white powder for me? Hehe, if you do I can have Kuya reward you with something good!"


    Alice felt somewhat weird when shepleted her sentence.


    She felt like she was corrupting or manipting a minor.


    But her conscience swiftly disappeared when she remembered the idea that if she had some white powder, she could finally fix herplexion that was slowly turning brownish. She desired that jade-like porcin looks on other beautiful women such as the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    She ordinarily had that look but weeks of exposure to the harsh elements of this ce gradually changed her body.


    Hulie beamed with a smile, "Really? I do know how to make white powder! But I need a furnace to do it, and I don''t have a furnace..." Hulie became somewhat sad at the end of her sentence.


    But she regained her energy after Alice promised that she would provide the furnace that she needed.


    Afterwards, Joseph finally sent Alice to work on the mise en ce while he approached the twin sisters and started talking to the twins.


    "Julie, I still haven''t heard the title of the book that you are writing." He first talked to Julie.


    Julie abruptly stopped writing. Her figure visibly trembled but she still turned her head to look at Joseph. Her cheeksden with crimson and her lips twitching, making her look like she was about to say something, but she just didn''t have the courage to do so.


    "Uhmmm... Kuya, you''ll soon be able to open this notebook. Can you please wait until that timees?" Julie spoke in cryptic words that astonished Joseph.


    But a smile appeared on his lips as he replied...


    "Oh? When will that timee? I''m really excited for that day, to be able to read your book as one of your first readers, great Author Julie. I''ll be honored." He praised Julie which further exacerbated her embarrassment.


    After a few moments of mustering her courage, Julie could finally speak again: "You''ll know about it when that timees, Kuya. For now, please spare me..." She hung her head low and Joseph felt quite strange.


    Julie''s strange wordings and the fact that she said these words while staring at the ground in embarrassment made Joseph feel like he was forcing himself on Julie.


    A bitter smile escaped his lips, and he then turned his attention to Hulie.


    "Hulie, I see that you''re still working as hard as ever. In honor of your hard work, I''ll give you and Julie some presents that the two of you will definitely like." His bitter smile turned for the better when he saw the look of surprise on Hulie''s face.


    But the surprised Hulie unexpectedly retorted, "But Kuya..." Her voice somewhat down as she continued, "Did I really do something that makes me deserving of a reward? I''m useless Kuya, apart from making these ointments and herbs, I can''t even help you and ate Alice."


    Joseph saw the insecurity within Hulie''s eyes as he stretched his hand out and ruffled the hair of the youngss, "Hulie, there you are with that insecurity of yours again. How many times have I told you in these past few weeks that you should take more pride in that work of yours, all right?"


    "There''s a scarcity of doctors and apothecary in this world, you''re one of those talented few... Be proud of it and smile, please?" Joseph revealed an expression that made him look like he was pleading.


    This touched Hulie''s heart as tears welled up in her eyes.


    She nced at her sister and found that she was looking at her with the same smile as Joseph.


    But this time, the tears that welled up in her eyes fell down along with an iparably beautiful smile.


    "Mhm! I won''t be insecure again, Kuya!"


    "Hehe... That''s the spirit." Joseph praised.


    He stood up and left them.


    Coincidentally, Alice was finally done with the mise en ce at that time and what greeted Joseph in the mini-kitchen that they made were several beautifully sliced pieces of meat and spices neatly organized and properly weighted. There was also a pot on top of a stove filled with fresh water.


    Joseph licked his lips. It was finally time for the hot pot that he had been waiting for!


    "!!!"


    But his expression suddenly changed when he was about to ce the ingredients into the pot.


    Alice also noticed this abnormality.


    She turned to look at the distance and nced at Joseph.


    The gazes of the two met in mid-air.


    The light shining within their eyes indicated that they had the same thoughts.


    "Are those bastardsing for us again?" Alice went over to Joseph and whispered.


    "Apart from those people, who else could be visiting us? And judging from the frequency of the tremors on the ground, it seems like there are a lot of them this time." A look of apprehension shed on Joseph''s face as he turned to look at the two sisters.


    If worsees to worst, he''d be forced to escape this ce earlier than what he expected in his ns.


    <em>Just why did these bastardse back? Could it be that the God of Fighting, Tryndamere isn''t really that intimidating for them anymore? No, if that''s the case then they should''ve returned earlier, not a few weeks after. Or maybe, what if they had just consulted the so-called God of Everything that Moves and Exists and had just acquired their answer today?</em>


    <em>There''s a chance that it is the truth, but I just can''t assume everything. It is too dangerous. </em>


    <em>But what should I do? There is no way that we can escape this confrontation today? Should I use that Divine Authority Summoning again? But it would be useless doing that if they already knew that I''m not really the God of Fighting.</em>


    <em>Not only that, but the avatar that is summoned from that skill is also unruly, arrogant and unpredictable. It''s too risky...</em>


    Joseph felt a headacheing his way. He turned to look at Alice and nodded. Afterwards, the two of them turned to look at the two sisters. Joseph was the first one to speak as he exined.


    "Julie, Hulie... Your Ate and I will go out. Stay here and don''t go out until wee back, all right?" Joseph lightly smiled.


    Alice nudged him from the side, her expression looked like she wanted him to exin why he didn''t tell the two sisters about the approaching residents.


    Joseph revealed an apologetic look on his face. The reason why he didn''t exin was that he didn''t want the two sisters to worry about them. He didn''t want to see them sad or depressed.


    But Alice went against this idea. But when she saw the look on Joseph''s face. She didn''t say anything anymore and never exined.


    Julie turned to look at Joseph and said, "Have they returned already, Kuya?"


    A trace of sorrow could be seen on her face. But it was quickly reced with a strange indifference.


    Joseph sighed.


    <em>It looks like it''s really impossible to hide the presence of those bastards from Julie and Hulie</em>.


    Joseph nced at Hulie and found that the youngss also looked worried.


    He approached them and said, "I will only be talking to them. I''ll also exin to them that the two of you are cured of the Curse already so there''s no need for them toe back anymore."


    Julie obediently nodded her head and replied, "Mkay, we will wait for you and Ate here."


    Joseph ruffled her hair, he then turned to look at Hulie and said, "Hulie, you stay with your sister, all right? Try and keep yourself silent and don''t open the door to anyone, including me..."


    "We will open the door of this room ourselves so you do not have to worry about not answering us. If someone that has the same voice as us asks you to open the door..."


    "Do not open it, all right?" Joseph reminded the two.


    Julie and Hulie obediently nodded.


    Alice and Joseph were relieved.


    They were about to leave the room when Julie''s voice stopped them from their tracks.


    "Kuya!"


    Joseph turned around with a smile.


    "What''s wrong, Julie?"


    Julie sweetly smiled, "I just want to say thank you, Kuya Joseph. Thank you so much for everything. I really liked the stories that you told us these past weeks and I am sure that you have a lot of those stories with you and I want to hear more of them!"


    Joseph chuckled, "Hahaha... Now that that despicable Curse is gone, you will be able to do anything in this world. No one will be able to stop you. Nothing could ever stop our capable Julie, after all..."


    "But for now, stay there and protect your sister, Hulie. When wee back I''ll read you lots of stories in all sorts of genres!"


    Julie lightly chuckled,plicated emotions shed on her face and she seemed like she wanted to say something. But Hulie suddenly held her wrist and shook her head. The two sistersmunicated with their eyes and in the end, they reached the conclusion that they would not say something else.


    Although Hulie looked conflicted as she bit her lips in frustration.


    Joseph swept his gaze at the two.


    Seeing that they had no intention of speaking anymore...


    He turned around and walked towards the door.


    But this time...


    "Kuya!"


    ... Hulie was the one who stopped him on his tracks.


    Joseph sweetly smiled. He shook his head, happiness evident on his face as he turned around and faced the youngss.


    "What''s wrong, Hulie? Can''t bear to part with your Kuya?"


    Alice who was walking ahead of him almost stumbled on a piece of rock. She red at Joseph''s back and couldn''t help but criticize him inwardly. But she didn''t express her thoughts out loud. She also smiled and stared at Hulie, encouraging her to speak amidst her insecurities.


    Unexpectedly, despite being put on the spot, Hulie maintained herposure as she stared right into Joseph''s eyes and said in a voice that sounded more like an exim from her heart.


    "Thank you very much, Kuya!"


    She slightly bowed her head, her figure, trembling in embarrassment and apprehension.


    Joseph was astonished by this scene, but his sweet smile widened as she stared at Hulie, encouraging her to speak with the warm look in his eyes.


    "I will be... obedient, Kuya Joseph... So, please... uh... please don''t worry about us and be safe, okay?"


    Hulie raised her head, an expression that looked like she wouldn''t ept any refusal surfaced on her face.


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "Of course, Hulie... We still haven''tpleted the story that I told you, yesterday! Big brother here will be back to tell you the continuation of it so stay here and be obedient, okay?"


    "Mhmm!" Hulie firmly nodded.


    Alice revealed a look of appreciation as she stared at Joseph''s back. But when Joseph turned around to face her, that look of appreciation disappeared, reced by a cold facade as she uttered.


    "Let''s go and finish this early."


    "Oh? Why do you sound so confident?"


    "Why not?" Alice refuted.


    "Hahaha..." Josephughed, "Sometimes, I really envy that guts of yours, Alice."


    "Hmm?" Alice revealed a look of confusion.


    "Nothing..." Joseph shook his head, "Come let us go and confront these persistent bastards again."


    Alice nodded and the two promptly prepared themselves for a battle.

 Chapter 111: Return[3]

    Chapter 111: Return[3]


    Abyssal me Master didn''t know where to go...


    The sun had long disappeared from the horizon, yet there was no darkness due to the vibrant neon colors that decorated the city around him. But these lively colors did nothing towards Abyssal me Master''s gloomy heart. He just sat on the bench and kept staring at the skies.


    It has been several hours since he arrived in this park and sat on this bench, yet he had never moved a muscle. He kept on staring at the starless skies above him. His thoughts, unknown.


    "Young man, are you good?"


    A voice suddenly awakened him from his trance. He turned his head towards the source of the voice, but then he felt his neck muscles ache. Since he had been keeping that same position of staring at the skies for too long, it was obvious that he made his neck sore.


    A bitter smile escaped his lips as he said to the elderly man who approached him from behind.


    "I''m good, sir... I just need some time alone." Abyssal me Master said.


    "I see..." The elderly man nodded his head and gave anguid smile. Afterwards, he sat beside Abyssal me Master and asked, "Whatever problems you might have, I hope that you don''t give up on your life."


    Abyssal me Master was astonished by what he heard, "Did I look like a suicidal man to you, sir?"


    The elderly man didn''t nce at him, but his voice turned somewhat bitter as he said, "Those eyes of yours, reminded me of that brat whom I fed for several years back at the City of Sibu. When I first met that young man, he had that confused, lifeless look in his eyes like what you have right now."


    Abyssal me Master turned silent. He didn''t know what to say. He swept his gaze at the elderly man and found that he looked quite sickly. His movements were slow, and his fingers kept on trembling. His eyes were jaundiced and it looked like the elderly man could die any second.


    But the question was, why was he here? Shouldn''t he be in a hospital?


    "Uh... Sir, are you okay?" Abyssal me Master asked in hesitation.


    The elderly man chuckled, "I may not be okay, but at least I look better than you, young man. You look more like a cadaver to me than a living human being."


    Abyssal me Master was taken aback. He was just asking the old man about his health, but he didn''t expect that he would be roasted instead. However, when he took his smartphone and opened its frontal camera...


    He saw that he indeed looked like a drug addict that was in the middle of withdrawal.


    <em>How in the hell did I be like this?</em> He was a young man whose age was at mid-twenties, yet why does he look like a man that was at the end of his life? Abyssal me Master whispered to himself, but he himself knew the answer to this question.


    It was simple.


    It was because he didn''t care about his own well-being anymore.


    He spent every hour of the day in the world of Victory. He''d only wake up when the rms of the Gaming Capsule that monitored his physical condition went off. When that happened, he''d merely satisfy the physiological needs of his body and as for food...


    He couldn''t care less, he ate whatever was the cheapest and the most essible which were most of the time, starch crackers.


    Now that he had a closer look at his body. Abyssal me Master suddenly felt afraid. Afraid that he may be sick and die alone on a hospital bed without someone caring for him beside him. He was afraid to die alone, and he was afraid to die while he was still so young.


    He had a lot of ambitions and dreams! How could he let himself die that easily?


    Abyssal me Master, No- Jason, revealed a bitter smile and said.


    "Sir, thank you so much for your words. I realized that I should really take care of myself from now on. After all, I still have a healthy body. A healthy body that everyone who are sick desires for even in their dreams. From now on, I''ll take care of myself."


    "Thank you, kind sir..." Jason gave his sincere thanks.


    "Hahaha..." The elderly man chuckled upon hearing what Jason had said, "You do not have to thank me for that, young man. Caring for one''s health ismon sense."


    Jason received another roasting and he was rendered speechless once again. The atmosphere turned somewhat strange for Jason didn''t reply to what the elderly man had said, and the elderly man didn''t continue speaking.


    But after a few minutes of silence, the elderly man shattered the tranquility and said...


    "Since you stayed here for several hours..."


    "I guess it''s safe to say that you do not have a ce to stay?"


    Jason raised his head and nodded. He didn''t find any reason to lie.


    "I see..." The elderly man nodded, "How about youe and go with me? I have a lot of bedrooms in my house. You can temporarily use one of those bedrooms and don''t worry. I won''t charge you any rent."


    Jason was taken aback by what the elderly man had said.


    But he soon shook his head and said, "I am afraid, but I will have to refuse your offer, sir."


    "Oh?" The elderly man was surprised that he was refused.


    He suddenly remembered the image of a young man who kept on asking for rejected pieces of bread several years ago.


    At that time, he made a simr offer to that young man and was tly refused, saying that he had his own mansion to stay and he only needed bread so he wouldn''t starve.


    The elderly man suddenly wondered about what excuse Jason would say to him right now.


    A light smile escaped on his lips as he stared at Jason.


    "I really am sorry sir, but I have no problems with my amodation. Everything was just a misunderstanding. I am not homeless. I only came here to get a breath of fresh air..." Jason revealed an amicable smile.


    "All right." The elderly man replied. He stretched his hand out and handed over a card, "Our meeting here can also be called as a stroke of fate, it may be a mere coincidence but if you need some help in the future. You should pay me a visit."


    Written on the card were the words, Reynaldo Fahrier, Chairman of the Pro-NPC Alliance.


    <em>The Pro-NPC Alliance?</em> Jason flipped the card around and several lines of words were written.


    A Selfless Phnthropist, The Greatest Supporter, The Father of the Revolution.


    Jason quickly turned around to ask some questions, but the old man had already disappeared.


    "Heh... The Pro-NPC Alliance, eh?"


    "But with that demon haunting me... NPCs are probably..."


    "Haist..." Jason deeply sighed, but he didn''t throw the business card...


    He kept it in his pocket and left the park.


    As for his destination?


    He still doesn''t know...


    ...


    Joseph and Alice walked out of the cave and what greeted them were several dozens of people.


    All of them armed with crude and primitive weaponry, yet Joseph who had an idea about the levels of these people understood that they could never be underestimated despite their usage of such weapons.


    Alice nced at Joseph and she was about to step forward when Joseph halted her with his left hand.


    "Let me handle this..." He mumbled before stepping forward.


    Alice quickly understood her role as she stood imposingly at the entrance of the stone cave. The dried tree branch on her right hand shone in an inhibited light that pulsated like a heartbeat. Those who dared to stare at her instantly became afraid at her when their gazes met with her.


    "City Chief... Haven''t we talked about this already? I am currently in the process of experimenting on those two sisters, I am trying to find a way to cure their affliction. In fact, I have already achieved significant results towards those experiments of mine..."


    "In other words, I have already cured them of their curse."


    Joseph spoke in a calm andnguid voice.


    But the City Chief wasn''t the first one to reply.


    Instead, it was a young woman who looked to be at the same age as Julie and Hulie.


    "You are lying! The Creator said that the Curse of those condemned can never be cured apart from dying! You are obviously lying! Release my friends, you fiend!" She pointed her trembling finger at Joseph.


    It was clear that she was afraid, but for the sake of her friend, she mustered her courage and spoke up.


    An adult hurriedly shut her mouth up, but everything was toote.


    Joseph had already heard what she said as he replied.


    "Friends? I have never heard those two mention anything about friends. Are you really a good friend of them or are you just pulling my leg? I really hate when people lie to me so openly." Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits when he reached the end of his sentence.


    "Hieeek!"


    The young woman cried out in fear, she hid behind an adult and never came out again.


    Afraid that Joseph''s gaze may kill her from a distance.


    "City Chief, mind exining to me about what is going on? It is really rude for you toe at this time. I was about to have some hot pot with those two sisters and tell them some stories regarding my Tenebrous Heaven. They actually like it, it seems."


    Joseph lightly chuckled at the end of his sentence.


    Throughout the entire ordeal, his figure looked leisurely and calm. It was as if he was calmly walking in his backyard.


    But...


    "I wonder if he will be okay... He''s awfully sweating too much."


    ... Alice who saw the cold sweat that drenched Joseph''s back had different thoughts in her mind. Even now, she was secretly formting a n on how she could protect this entrance while the two sisters escape towards the secret entrance that they made for the sake of emergencies.


    Alice was really thankful that Joseph didn''t manage to convince her of stopping the creation of that secret entrance. If not, everything would''ve been soplicated right now.


    "With all due respect sir, but let me correct you. The Creator has responded to me and he said that it was impossible for anyone to remove the Curse of the Condemned unless another god intervened and directly purged the curse out of someone''s body." The City Chief revealed a meaningful smile.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.<em></em>


    <em> Unless another god intervened? Didn''t we already make it clear that I am the God of Fighting? Is he implying that he already knows my secret and he wants me to surrender willingly and peacefully give Julie and Hulie to them? Never! That will never happen under my watch!</em>


    Joseph forcefully calmed himself down as he revealed anothernguid smile.


    "Just what do you mean about that City Chief? Haven''t you experienced the might of my avatar enough? Do you want me to summon that avatar of mine again, or do you want me to personally fight you?"


    Joseph''s rxed smile turned somewhat murderous and angry when he reached the end of his sentence.


    "Watch out!"


    Alice suddenly screamed a warning from behind.


    A whistling sound could be heard as an arrow flew towards Joseph''s direction. But before it could even touch his body. It suddenly crumbled into dust, disappearing into nothingness.


    "What child''s y... Are you purposely mocking me by this level of strength? That is yourst chance, if you dare to attack again, I will go all-out..."


    "I''m even afraid of myself when I go all-out. Trust me, you do not want to see that scene." Josephid down an ultimatum, but on the inside. He was currently on the process of calming down the tumultuous beat of his heart as he inwardly screamed.


    Fu<em>ck, that was close! If not for Alice''s warning then I would already have an arrow sticking out of my skull! Fucking hell, that was so scary... Alice, I really have to thank you after this for saving my life. But I can''t be too happy, yet. The danger still hasn''t disappeared. I must do my best on intimidating these guys so that they will willingly retreat.</em>


    "I apologize for the misunderstanding sir, but we did note here to fight. We came here for nothing but a single goal, and that is to retrieve the two sisters and have them ascend to the Tenebrous Heaven of the Creator..."


    "If you keep this up, then we will be forced to do some actions. Please understand that I am only here by the orders of the Creator."


    The City Chief even bowed his head, his actions garnered the anger of the residents. But not towards him, but to the persistent Joseph who kept on blocking their path.


    Joseph knitted his eyebrows, <em>How are they so sure that the twin sisters still have the curse? I personally checked their bodies and I found no traces of the Curse! Could it be that they are just pulling me on my leg so that I''ll be distracted while they nk Alice behind me?</em>


    Joseph momentarily nced left and right.


    He sighed in relief when he found that there were no enemies sneakily approaching Alice for an ambush. Although he felt somewhat strange that he still checked for something as trivial as that.


    Yes, trivial...


    No matter how strong these NPCs are...


    Joseph believed that Alice was far powerful than them.


    If Joseph wasn''t so sure about Alice''s strength, then there was no way in hell that he''d let her guard such an important ce!


    Joseph inwardly shook his head and removed these thoughts from his head.


    Afterwards, he stared at the City Chief and dropped...


    "Knowing that I am a god, simr to the Creator. Will you still dare to attack me?"


    ... a bombshell.


    Everything turned silent. Even Alice who kept on murmuring to herself about her ns was rendered speechless when she heard what Joseph had said.


    But before everyone in the surroundings could reply to what Joseph had said...


    The City Chief was the first one to react as heughed out loud in amusement before saying.


    "Will you stop lying to us?"


    The City Chief''s words almost stripped off Joseph''s tough facade, but he managed to keep himself in character as he raised an eyebrow and replied.


    "Oh? What do you mean by such words? You are still doubting my strength? I don''t really understand why you do not believe that I am not a god."


    "No, you are lying! You are not a god!" The City Chief''s amusement transformed into anger after hearing Joseph''s insistent attitude, "How dare you to spheme the very god that you are worshipping! You are not a god! You are but a mere vessel! There''s no way that a god can descend on this mortal world without damaging it!"


    Joseph was taken aback by the words that he heard from the City Chief. His mind quickly spun, simting all sorts of scenarios that he could possibly use in order to refute what the City Chief had said.


    But ultimately, he failed on finding the perfect rebuttal for what the City Chief said made sense.


    It was definitely impossible for a god to descend on the mortal world without damaging it, that wasmon sense in the world of Victory.


    That was also something that Joseph had read on a book about the Lore of Victory, so he knew that this time woulde ever since he acted that he was the God of Fighting Tryndamere.


    And so, he had prepared contingency ns that he could use if things went awry, of course, it couldn''t be counted as a rebuttal to what the City Chief had said.


    "I see... that actually makes sense, City Chief. I apud you for that. But I''m sure that it is only recently that you acquired such knowledge, am I right?"


    "If not, then you would''ve already revealed this lie of mine a few weeks ago." He didn''t refute what the City Chief had said which astonished everyone including the residents and Alice.


    "So you are finally admitting that you lied? Heh... Thankfully, the God of Everything that Moves and Exists is merciful and on the ount that you are serving as the vessel of the God of Fighting on the mortal world..."


    "The Creator is willing to redeem you from your sins of deceit as long as you peacefully surrender and hand over those sisters to us."


    The City Chief''s anger disappeared.


    He was now happy that Joseph easily admitted that he had indeed lied about being the God of Fighting, Tryndamere.


    But his anger red once again when he heard Joseph''s words at the very next moment.


    "City Chief, are you sure that you are a devout believer of the God of Everything that Moves and Exists? Are you really a believer in that so-called Creator? The Compassionate God?"


    "How sphemous! How dare you question my faith?!"


    "Of course, I am a devout believer of the Creator!"


    A light smile surfaced on Joseph''s lips. He stared yfully at the City Chief and said...


    "Then, let me ask you one question, City Chief..."


    "Do you hate me?"

 Chapter 112: Return[4]

    Chapter 112: Return[4]


    "Do you hate me?"


    Joseph''s question rang out loud and it silenced everyone in the area.


    The City Chief frowned.


    Although Joseph was definitely an obstacle to his goals, that didn''t mean that he <em>hated</em> him.


    In fact, it was closer to say that he <em>disliked</em> Joseph.


    Hate could be considered as a strong word and knowing that the person in front of him was possibly the vessel of the God of Fighting Tryndamere.


    How could he say that he hated him?


    He didn''t dare to do so!


    But the truth was that he really didn''t hate Joseph. There were no grievances between them prior to this and once they had sessfully recovered the two sisters then he just could offer something in reconciliation and everything could be considered as bygones.


    "Why are you saying that I hate you? There are no bitter grievances between the two of us, so why would you say something like that? Do you want me to hate you?"


    "We just want to recover the two sisters and have them experience the love of those who truly love them before they cease to breathe. Why are you trying to stop us?"


    Joseph lifted a smile, "City Chief, I only asked a single question. Why do you have to say so many things? My question only requires a single answer. Now, tell me this. Do you hate me or not?"


    The City Chief''s frown deepened.


    The other elders looked displeased as the First Elder spoke up.


    "Brat, what nonsense are you saying right now? Since you already know our goals and the significance of it, why are you not giving us the two sisters? Do you want them to die alone? Do you want them to die without experiencing the warm embrace of those who love them?"


    The residents mored.


    Even the Second Elder spoke up.


    "That''s right, that''s right! Hand over Julie and Hulie to us and we will immediately leave! Even if you are the vessel of a God, you cannot do something like this!"


    "You may be a distinguished one, but I am someone that knows my rights! You may be able to kill us, but you will never be able to subdue our hearts!"


    Joseph swept his gaze at the moring residents, a rxed smile appeared on his lips as he said, "As expected of an elder. You really are eloquent, aren''t ya? At least, you are far literate and less ignorant than these bastards here. It really is sad, to rely on something that is not even a god!"


    "What did you say, you pretentious bastard?!"


    "I''m going to kill you!"


    The residents mored once again and they looked like they were about to rush at Joseph if not for the fact that the City Chief personally stopped them by fiercely stabbing the staff he was holding onto the ground.


    A dull sound came out and that sound transformed into something that instantly calmed down the residents. But Joseph frowned when he saw the expressions of the residents. I


    t was because their eyes looked dead and their movements became mechanical after the City Chief mmed his staff on the ground.


    <em>That staff... It can create an effect that is the same as hypnotism? From the looks of it, it is an Area of Effect skill. In that case, Alice is in danger. She does not have the same immunity as I have regarding abnormal statuses.</em> Joseph thought to himself.


    He signaled to Alice with his finger and thetter promptly received his message.


    Alice moved forwards, a cold look could be seen on her face as she swept her gaze at the residents who were sneakily moving amidst the darkness in order to reach the entrance of the cave. Although she didn''t send any attack, her cold gaze alone served as enough deterrence for those residents.


    Joseph made Alice move behind him so that he could give her the help that she required as fast as possible. After all, he still wasn''t so sure about what were the effects of that peculiar staff and how it worked. It was better for Alice to be near him in order to prevent any idents.


    "So, City Chief? What will be your answer? Do you hate me or not?" Joseph reiterated his question with a casual smile on his face.


    "Sigh... Hate is such an extreme word, young man. I''d rather not use it. Although it is because of the fact that I truly do not hate you. The word dislike is a much suitable word to describe what I feel towards you." The City Chief replied with a sigh.


    "I see, so you do not hate me?"


    Joseph''s casual smile deepened until it turned into augh, "Hahaha... What a joke. So it turns out that the so-called God of Everything that Moves and Exists isn''t actually a god!"


    "Hahaha, City Chief. You really did fool everyone for so long..."


    Joseph swept his gaze at the residents.


    But he inwardly frowned when he saw that the residents looked like they weren''t even listening to him. In fact, all of them had that nk look on their faces, the look that one could have after experiencing a life-changing trauma.


    They were in a trance and their asionally twitching bodies served as the sole proof that they were still alive.


    The City Chief frowned, "Just what are you saying, young man? I only said that I dislike you. Does what I said really deserve such treatment? Why would you spheme the god that I believe in? Just because I said that I do not like you?"


    Joseph stared at the elders. When he saw the solemn expressions on their faces, he couldn''t help butugh to himself as he replied, "All of you are really good actors... Do you really think that I will believe you if you guys told me that the so-called god that you are worshipping in is actually a god?"


    "Well, let me guess. I bet his identity is far from a god..."


    Joseph connected the dots and attacked directly at the weaknesses of the three elders. Although he himself doesn''t know the true identity of the entity hiding behind the identity of the Compassionate God. Nothing was restricting Joseph on acting like a chatan that knew everything...


    This was also a form of bait, a bait that would make his enemies voluntarily give valuable information to him.


    But the problem was...


    "Enough of this!"


    ... would the enemy even let him acquire the information that he needed?


    Joseph''s smile deepened. As he expected, his enemy would never directly bite on his obvious bait. A look of amusement appeared on Joseph''s face as he stared at the First Elder who screamed.


    "What''s wrong? Did I hit the bull''s eye? There is no use on trying to trick me about what are your schemes. I know everything from the start. It''ll be better if you just confess everything to me now, and maybe. I''ll consider everything as a simple misunderstanding..."


    "Or could it be that you lot still want to test how powerful I am?"


    The City Chief sighed once again, "Young man, must we really go this far? If possible, I want everything to be solved amicably. I never want any bloodshed."


    Joseph mocked, "Is that so? It really is strange for a member of the Vampire Race to not demand bloodshed. Or could it be that you cannot even be considered as a member of the Vampire Race anymore?"


    He carefully probed, trying to use the art of extrapting from missing data in order to acquire more information about his enemy.


    "Just what do you want to do, young man? Do you want to fight?" The First Elder spoke up, his chest violently heaving in anger when he heard the words of disrespect that Joseph said towards the City Chief.


    "Well, I am always ready for a fight. If you want to fight, then we shall do that." Joseph stretched his neck and even jumped up and down.


    "You..." The Second Elder stepped forward, a glove made out of unknown material could be seen on his right hand.


    "Stop..." The City Chief promptly stopped hisrade.


    "Young man, can we really not settle everything peacefully? I am sure that the God of Fighting had enough towards experimenting on those two sisters, can you just hand them over to us now?"


    "I really am anxious and sad that there''s a possibility for them to die without embracing their loved ones for thest time..."


    "I don''t want them to die like that, so, please... Please hand them over to us." The City Chief even bowed his head towards Joseph''s direction which puzzled thetter. But his confusion onlysted until one of the residents cried out in frustration.


    "You bastard... You really are a demon! Making the honorable City Chief bow like that... We will never forgive you!"


    A barely imperceptible light shed on Joseph''s eyes, <em>so he''s trying to sway public opinion against me. But does that really matter? I don''t really care about the opinion of these ignorant bastards. For as long as they do not touch the two sisters then I could care less about them.</em>


    "No..."


    Joseph stared right at the residents and gave his answer.


    "My answer is no... If you have any problems with that..."


    He took out his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    The inhibited brilliant light of the Rapier that was simr to the light of the sun looked iparably cold to the residents.


    To them, it looked like the glint of the Rapier was the glint of the guillotine that would undoubtedly take their head off their necks once they opposed him.


    "I dare you to stand before me." Joseph coldly spat.


    He stood with the stance of the Grand Duelist and so did Alice who behind him.


    "How foolish..." The City Chief uttered in disappointment. He waved his hand and the residents around him all grew wings on their back which they used to take flight.


    "No matter how strong you are as a vessel to the God of Fighting. There is no way that you will be able to stop us all!"


    "As long as one of us could get to those two sisters and retrieve them, we will win!" The City Chief continued.


    Acent smile could be seen on his lips as he sized up Joseph and Alice.


    "There is no way that you can do that under my watch! Alice!" Joseph coldly uttered.


    He called out Alice''s name and she rushed from behind him towards the front lines.


    Almost at the same time, the residents who were floating in the air rushed towards the entrance of the stone cave.


    "Overwhelming Presence..." Joseph inwardly uttered.


    He activated [The Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence] which turned his basic attacks into ranged attacks that he swiftly sent towards the flying residents.


    However, his eyes widened in shock when he realized that the Second Elder was now standing beside him, a fist was now flying towards his face.


    "Parry!" Joseph eximed and an indomitable barrier formed a watertight seal around him which protected him from all sorts of attacks from any sources possible. The Second Elder''s fists struck the barrier and the force of his fist dissipated onto the barrier like a stone thrown into the ocean.


    But...


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    ... Joseph didn''t expect that his enemy would cry out so miserably as if he was severely injured.


    <em>What the fuck just happened? </em>


    With no time to think, these were the only words that Joseph managed to think about for the second attack of that same elder was nowing towards his face once again.


    <em>Dodge!</em>


    Joseph leaped backward and swiftly avoided the punch.


    He momentarily nced at Alice and found that she was already in front of the City Chief.


    "Lay down your life!"


    The City Chief eximed and mmed his staff onto the ground.


    At that moment, Alice''s movements came to a halt.


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock, but before he could even use [The Grand Duelist''s Dash] to arrive beside Alice. The attack of the second Elder flew towards him and he was forced to raise his Rapier in order to defend himself from that iing attack.


    <em>Bang!</em>


    Joseph staggered backward.


    [You have suffered 2,231 damage!]


    <em>Shit, that was such a heavy attack...</em>


    Despite perfectly blocking the attack using his Rapier, he still suffered some damage. It was obvious that the Second Elder''s attacks were too heavy for the Rapier to handle.


    <em>I will not try to block his attacks, I must deflect them!</em>Joseph decided in his heart as he twisted his body and sent a basic attack towards the City Chief''s direction.


    The City Chief who excitedly leaped towards Alice in order to kill her was sent flying backwards after getting struck by an invisible force. But Alice who normally reacted so fast regarding the changes in the battlefield looked like she didn''t notice what just happened.


    She just stood there with her head bowed low and her neck protruded, it was as if she was voluntarily revealing her neck towards her opponent to be beheaded...


    "Alice! Move! Why did you even go to that bastard?!" Joseph cried out, he raised his Rapier and deflected the iing attack from the Second Elder as he swiftly activated [The Grand Duelist''s Dash] in order to arrive beside her.


    This time, the City Chief had already recovered and was in the process of sending his second attack towards Alice''s direction.


    But when he thought that he already had victory in his hands.


    Joseph suddenly appeared in his sight.


    "Composure."


    The young man softly mumbled and the attack that he sent crumbled like ashes in the face of that young man''s Rapier.


    But before he could even recover from his shock.


    The young man swiftly turned around and sent a horizontal sh towards the direction of the residents who were taking advantage of the situation to enter the cave.


    "Discharge..." He softly mumbled.


    Formless energy tore through the air and indiscriminately sliced those that were near the cave. Screams of pain, helplessness, and despair abruptly rang out as the residents found their limbs torn off. Some of them even spilled their own organs onto the ground due to the severity of their injuries.


    "You... What did you do..." The City Chief mumbled in shock.


    There was nothing shy about the young man''s attack. It looked like apletely ordinary horizontal sh that shouldn''t even hit anything. But in the very next moment, every resident at the distance near the cave entrance crumbled lifelessly on the ground.


    Joseph didn''t reply to what the City Chief had said nor he let down his guard. It was because the Second Elder was still relentlessly attacking him from behind.


    It was unknown what the First Elder was doing, but the appearance of a system notification that briefly shed in his vision gave him all the information that he needed.


    [An Artifact of great strength is being used nearby.]


    [Due to the effects of your title, The Sun That Overlooks Everything.]


    [You have resisted.]


    Joseph nced at the distance and there, he found the First Elder standing in front of a yellowish-g that he stabbed onto the ground.


    The g itself gave off an incredibly ancient air, and it was clear from the subservient expression on the First Elder''s face that this was the g that was causing the anomaly that Joseph resisted with his passive skill.


    "Lay down your life!"


    A scream rang out, this time. It came from the City Chief who had finally recovered from his trance.


    A look of anger could be seen on his face as he aggressively pounded his staff onto the ground.


    [An Artifact of undefiable order is being used nearby.]


    [Due to the effects of your title, The Sun That Overlooks Everything.]


    [You have resisted.]


    <em>Undefiable order... So that is the reason why Alice is acting like this. She''s being controlled by that staff toy down her life. I see... But I don''t believe that an artifact like that can exist in the world of Victory without having any potential drawback...</em>


    <em>The Second Elder always screamed miserably whenever he punched me and I could hear a crunchy noise simr to a bone being brokening out from his body whenever he attacked me, so I guess. </em>


    <em>The drawback of that glove of him is that whenever he used it, a bone in his body will be randomly broken?</em>


    <em>What about that g that the First Elder is using? We are currently in the middle of a battle. Since he is not moving, the logical guess is that he cannot move at all. In other words, the drawback of that artifact should be immobilization.</em>


    <em>As for the City Chief... I wonder what is the drawback of that staff...</em>


    Joseph kneeled on the ground and pretended like he was under the spell of the staff. The City Chief excitedly approached him and threw a fatal attack towards his neck, a cold glint streaked across the skies and his de aimed to cleanly separate Joseph''s head from his shoulders.


    But...


    <em>Bang!</em>


    ... He was bound to fail.


    Since Joseph was merely pretending.


    As soon as the de neared him. He moved and urately struck the weakness on the Elder''s de and sessfully deflected the attack.


    Then, he stood up. While carrying Alice on his shoulder, he spun like a top and sent several dozens of attacks from all directions through the use of his [The Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence].


    "Wha... What is this..." The City Chief received several deep wounds on his chest.


    He was thoroughly astonished that he received such injuries that he subconsciously retreated, all while holding his staff tightly in his hand.


    Joseph finally stopped spinning and he raised his head to stare at the City Chief.


    His nose twitched and an iparably pungent smell entered his body as he stared at the City Chief in disbelief.


    <em>What the fuck? He shat himself? Was I really that scary?</em> Joseph saw the stains on the City Chief''s legs and he confirmed that the City Chief really did shat himself. <em>What the? What the fuck is going on? Could it be that the drawback of that staff that he''s holding is explosive diarrhea?</em>


    Realizing this, a smile escaped on Joseph''s lips. He couldn''t help but inwardlyugh.


    He then rushed towards the First Elder whom he concluded to be the easiest one to dispatch due to the immobilization drawback of that yellowish ancient g that he had stabbed on the ground.


    But when he reappeared beside the First Elder, his eyes widened in shock because he saw a system notification floating right in front of him.


    [You have suffered 15,753 damage!]


    His movements came to a halt and he found that there was a dried tree branch sticking out from his back towards his chest.


    The ghastly whitish color of his ribcage could be seen amidst the blood as Joseph hurriedly threw Alice, the one who suddenly attacked him from behind towards the distance.

 Chapter 113: Return[5]

    Chapter 113: Return[5]


    Alice somersaulted in the air and shended gracefully on the ground.


    "Alice..." Joseph coughed and a fountain of blood escaped from his throat towards the ground, drenching it crimson.


    Thankfully, the damage that he suffered didn''t exceed twenty-five thousand hit points or else he would''ve been fucked once he suffered from the effects of stiffness due to receiving tremendous damage in an instant.


    "Joseph... No, it''s not me... I''m not the one who did it..." Alice whispered in shock. Tears continuously dripped down her eyes and drenched her cheeks.


    "I know... I know it''s not you..." Joseph nodded his head. He abruptly leaped backwards towards the direction of Alice in order to dodge the attack of the Second Elder whose fists missed once again.


    "No matter how heavy your punches are, they are still useless if they cannot hit me!" Joseph coldly mocked, but the Second Elder suddenly revealed a sly smile.


    Joseph felt a bad premonition in his heart and he swiftly turned around.


    Alice was already running towards him with a bloodied dried tree branch in her hands.


    "Damn it!" Joseph inwardly cursed, he sent a kick directly at Alice''s chest, sending the young maiden flying backwards towards a nearby boulder.


    But right when he was done dealing with Alice. Another attack flew towards him. This time, it was from the City Chief who hurriedly rushed towards him when he realized that Joseph was in a pinch.


    "This will serve as a hard lesson for you, punk!" The City Chief wielded two daggers.


    His hands blurred as his attacks descended upon Joseph.


    But Joseph remained steadfast in the face of these attacks. Although somewhat nervous due to the pressure of facing three enemies at the same time. As the Grand Duelist of the current generation. Joseph felt confident in his abilities when it came to close-quartersbat.


    He ducked down, narrowly avoiding the punch from the Second Elder that aimed for his neck before whispering into the air.


    "Precision and Grace..." At that moment, Joseph''s speed surpassed the expectations of the elders. His body blurred and the elders found it hard to keep their eyes on him since he was too blurry and dizzying to look at.


    And at the moment that the elders squinted their eyes to see him clearly.


    Joseph had already moved...


    "All-Seeing Eyes..." He uttered and the world around him changed. The weaknesses and the so-called advantages of the two elders were clearly marked on their bodies in the form of small circles that Joseph could prate to shatter.


    A light smile escaped on his lips as he swiftly stabbed at the Second Elder from underneath.


    The Second Elder cried out and he staggered backward in pain.


    [You dealt 9,521 damage!]


    This momentary exchange gave enough Joseph time to breathe...


    He didn''t even look at the City Chief as he hurriedly twisted his body and drew a full circle around him using his Rapier.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, Second Form..."


    Joseph took a single step and in the very next moment...


    "Harmony!"


    ... his figure blurred as he expressed the harmony of heaven and earth in an instant, sundering air itself as the iparably sharp divinity of the Grand Duelist within his body wreaked havoc on the bodies of the two elders.


    [You dealt 52,981 damage!]


    [You dealt 52,981 damage!]


    Even the Second Elder who was already injured was torn by the domineering attack. This time, he didn''t just stagger. He directly fell onto the ground, unconscious. His condition, unknown.


    As for the City Chief...


    He was currently holding the wound on his chest as he stared at Joseph in disbelief.


    "You... Just what are you..."


    It was clear from his astonishment that this was the first time that he received such a devastating flesh wound.


    But Joseph merely scoffed towards this.


    <em>Ezreal could deal several hundreds of thousands of damage with just a p of his palm, are these elders serious? Fifty-thousand health points of damage, that''s not even close to what Ezreal could do with his ps.</em>


    Joseph may not know about it for now, but the average Level 100 yer may not even have forty-thousand points of Health. Yet, he could deal fifty-thousand points of damage in a single strike. Such a thing waspletely unheard of and unbelievable.


    But you really couldn''t me Joseph...


    Ever since he decided that he''d enjoy the world of Victory, he had always been caught up with the matters of NPCs due to his ss-Specific Quest. In short, he didn''t have that much interaction with yers. Even at the Festival of Battles, every enemy that he had were all NPCs.


    "Fine... We''ll admit that we have indeed gonecent when fighting against you. You also have that strange characteristic of immunity to abnormal statuses. I''ll admit that you are indeed strong. But just because you have wounded us like this doesn''t mean that you have already won!"


    The City Chief shouted in a crazed like manner and he mmed his staff on the ground.


    A barely imperceptible shockwave spread out from the staff and everyone affected by the staff kneeled on the ground, which also included Alice whose expression riddled with fear, anxiousness, and apprehension.


    Joseph quickly moved.


    He had no idea about what the City Chief was about to do, but he felt a bad premonition about it.


    An inhibited brilliant light shone at the tip of his Rapier as he roared, "First Form, Point!"


    He stabbed directly at the City Chief''s chest, but the wooden, antique-like staff in the City Chief''s hands easily blocked the attack. Joseph''s entire body vibrated as the tip of his Rapier shed against the indestructible material that the wooden staff was made off.


    [Your attack has failed.]


    <em>What the fuck is going on? My Rapier can''t go through this piece of wood?</em>


    Joseph leaped backwards and didn''t think about stopping the City Chief anymore.


    He concluded that even if he tried his best on stopping the City Chief, he''ll probably fail in the end.


    But what was he doing? Where was he going?


    Of course, it was towards Alice!


    His goal was to release her from the influence of the staff!


    But how?


    It was by cutting the connection of that staff on Alice''s body.


    But where was that connection?


    This was the question that Joseph needed to answer in the next few seconds...


    Through the use of Dash, he arrived beside Alice.


    "Alice, stand up! Fight for the control of your body! I know that you can do it! You''re not the disciple of a Legend for nothing! Don''t worry, I, your friend will be here for you! I promise"


    Joseph tried encouraging Alice and invoking the power of friendships so that she could escape from her predicament, but since this wasn''t an anime...


    His efforts were to no avail.


    "Offer your blood essence!"


    The City Chief cried out and he mmed the staff in his hands onto the ground once again.


    A dull thud reverberated in the surroundings. The thud was so dull and soft that it was quickly drowned by the sounds of retching and vomiting in the area.


    Joseph swept his gaze around him and found that the flying residents copsed like flies.


    All of them were currently in the process of vomiting something repulsive from the deep recesses of their bodies.


    "Guaaah!"


    Joseph heard the same sound beside him and he found Alice, also in the process of vomiting something out from her body.


    <em>Fucking hell, blood essence? This bastard is nning on sacrificing everyone in here that is controlled by that strange staff of his so that he could get a power-up? That''s such bullshit! Holy shit, has he gone senile?</em>


    Joseph violently cursed as he voiced out his grievance yet his eyes never stopped on examining Alice.


    In the end, his eyes caught a barely imperceptible illusory silver threads connecting Alice''s body towards the staff that the City Chief held in his hands.


    <em>That''s it!</em>


    Joseph inwardly eximed. He raised his Rapier, but then another elder appeared right in front of him. It was the First Elder who stood beside a g earlier at the distance.


    "It''s over, brat... Your friend is about to die since you''re too arrogant. If you had obeyed us earlier and peacefully handed over those two sisters to use then this tragedy wouldn''t happen..." The First Elder sneered, "Remember, you are the one who caused this tragedy... You are the one that is about to kill all of these people..."


    "Yes, because of your arrogance. They will die."


    "Heh, is that so?" Joseph retorted.


    His Rapier briefly shed and it shed at the space directly above Alice''s head.


    Afterwards, without even stopping to check for Alice''s condition.


    He pointed at the direction of the City Chief and said...


    "Divine Authority Summoning..."


    A brilliant light appeared out of nowhere and it condensed into a figure that looked eerily simr to Joseph. The only difference was that the avatar had a haughty and prideful look on his face. It was as if nothing could possibly enter his eyes in the entire world.


    "Oh, I''m in this god-forsaken ce again..."


    Wielding a Rapier that looked like the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    He stared at the direction of the City Chief and said, "A Vampire? Oh, you''re that guy back then..."


    His nose then twitched, and a disgusted look surfaced on his arrogant visage as he said, "You have the smell of that lesser demon in you, truly repulsive."


    He then turned to look at Joseph amidst the astonishment of everyone.


    "So, I got summoned by you again? Thankfully, it seems like you are not sending me to fight against these guys. Else, that would be too boring." The avatar scoffed and Joseph couldn''t help but inwardly criticized.


    <em>That would be too boring? Don''t you realize that your stats are basically half of my own stats, right? Fucking hell.</em> But then Joseph suddenly remembered what the avatar had said and he fell into deep contemtion, all the while keeping his guard up and observing the First Elder.


    <em>The smell of that lesser demon? As I expected, it seems like the so-called God of Everything that Moves and Exists is actually not a real god. But I didn''t expect it to be a demon. </em>


    <em>Even though a demon is definitely weaker than a god. I don''t think that I can contend against a real demon. I don''t have those qualifications, yet.</em>


    <em>Acting like a chatan isn''t enough to fight against a demon.</em>


    Nevertheless, Joseph was still happy that even though his avatar was arrogant, prideful andcent. At least, it could still help him in this predicament. That was what Joseph thought until he heard these words from his avatar himself.


    "Fighting against these guys would be too boring... that is indeed the truth, but let alone exchanging pointers with them. I won''t even able to stay here long enough to talk with them! You are still too weak, my host. Please ascend quickly, so I can finally stay in this ce as long as I want..."


    The avatar stared at Joseph in disappointment.


    <em>What the fuck</em>?


    Joseph inwardly cursed. But he suppressed his anger as he said, "Hurry up and do your job! Stop yapping and yapping, that bastard is about to consume the blood essence of the residents here, you know?!"


    He pointed at the City Chief who didn''t say anything all this while so he could sneakily consume the blood essences while everyone was busy.


    "Oh? That? Mkay..." The avatar pointed at the ball of congealing blood essences in the air. It instantly shattered as soon as his finger pointed at it before it scattered in all directions, returning to the bodies of its host.


    At that moment, the effect of the staff ended and the residents finally awakened from their trance.


    "Eh? What happened?" The residents mumbled to themselves, "Why are we here? Wait, what is going on? What happened to the elders? Why is the Second Elder on the ground? Wait, he''s wounded?! Help him!" The residents mored.


    Some of them instantly panicked and some of the children cried out loud in anxiousness.


    The normally silent wilderness instantly turned lively.


    But that liveliness was instantly shattered by a voice that came out of nowhere.


    "Sigh..."


    it was a sigh that started with a masculine voice but ended with the voice of a female.


    The avatar''s eyes widened in shock, "So that is the reason why I can smell that pungent bastard from you. You are already his vessel! You have consumed his blood!" The avatar shook his head in irritation and resignation. Afterwards, he sighed and turned to look at Joseph''s direction.


    "Hey, you!"


    Joseph who was still astonished by the sigh that he heard awakened from his trance due to his avatar''s rude mention of him.


    "Now that you are somewhat strong, I''ll recognize you as my host. However, that does not mean that you have the qualifications to go against a demon, even if it''s only the avatar of the demon..."


    "That is why right now, I will give you valuable advice. Take that woman of yours and run away from here as fast as you can!"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted, he recognized the severity of the avatar''s warning just from its serious tone of voice. But escape this ce? How could he escape this ce without bringing Julie and Hulie with him? He told them that they will someday see the beauty of the outside world.


    How could he leave them here?


    The avatar who was the perfect splitting image of Joseph thoroughly understood what he was thinking. A light smile escaped on that avatar''s lips, but you couldn''t feel any hint of mocking in his eyes anymore when he stared at Joseph.


    "Since you are that persistent to fight against a Demon, a Devil or whatever you want to call those stinky bastards who probably didn''t know about the concept of taking a bath until recently..."


    "Let me give you this piece of advice. Since you are the Grand Duelist of the current generation, you can use that divinity of yours as a weapon to def-"


    The avatar''s voice was cut short.


    But it wasn''t because the duration of his stay in this world had ended.


    It was because there was a hand sticking out of his chest.


    "Heh..."


    The avatar coughed a mouthful of blood.


    He fell onto his knees and crumbled. As life left his body, he uttered the name of the Demon or the so-called Devil that resides on a castle of bones, the Demon of Deceit and Temptation.


    "You really are such a shameless bastard as ever..."


    "Gelial."

 Chapter 114: Return[6]

    Chapter 114: Return[6]


    The avatar vanished into innumerable light crystals that soon dissipated into nothingness.


    Standing behind that avatar was the City Chief who had an amicable smile on his face.


    That smile looked nothing out of the ordinary, but when you looked at it directly, you''d find it somewhat irresistible and you''ll soon realize that you cannot see anything anymore other than that smile.


    Alice trembled...


    She forcefully snapped her head away from the City Chief. The speed and strength that she used on doing such a movement greatly strained her neck muscles as she winced in pain. But for her, it was all worth it. The pain was worth enduring for she managed to snap herself back to reality.


    "Gelial..." She then subconsciously whispered the name of the Demon of Temptation and Deceit.


    "Alice... You have some information about him?" Joseph uttered in shock. Even he was dumbfounded due to the series of system notifications that appeared right in front of him.


    [You are standing in front of a great existence.]


    [No one can make you submit.]


    [Your dignity can never be lower than those that dare to stand against you.]


    [You are a natural leader, your Leadership can never be lower than those who darepete against you.]


    [A strange power is seeping into the air.]


    [Under the effects of your title, The Sun that Overlooks Everything...]


    [You have resisted.]


    This was the first time that Joseph saw such a long line of system notifications floating right in front of him. It was so long that it almost covered his entire vision.


    If not for the fact that his virtual eyes automatically focused on whatever he wanted to focus and turned everything not included in the game such as notifications opaque upon focusing...


    Joseph would probably be irritated.


    Of course, right now. He was full of emotions. But it wasn''t irritation.


    What he felt was anxiousness as he turned to look at Alice and found that she waspletely immersed in her fears.


    "Alice, fight against it! Wake up!" Joseph nced at the First Elder and when he found out that the First Elder waspletely unconscious. He moved towards Alice and furiously shook her shoulder in an effort to awaken her from her trance.


    "Huh? Ah!" Alice whispered in confusion, but in the very next moment. She eximed in fear. She went for Joseph''s torso and tightly hugged him. Her body kept on convulsing as she tightened her grip around Joseph''s body just so she could hold fast on her wits.


    <em>Shit... Is a Demon really this intimidating? She''s trembling so much that It''s not strange for her to fall unconscious from fear.</em> Joseph mumbled in shock.


    As someone who has immunity to abnormal statuses. It was impossible for Joseph to feel any induced fear, that was why he couldn''t rte to what Alice felt right now.


    But that didn''t mean that he didn''t understand her fear...


    "It''s okay... Just hold onto me, I''ll be here... I won''t leave you, I promise." Joseph whispered and reassured her.


    His words were effective for she wasn''t trembling so furiously anymore.


    But Joseph merely tackled the symptoms.


    Topletely erase the fear in her heart, he must face this so-called Gelial.


    But to face an enemy without knowing anything about that enemy was stupid and tantamount to suicide. Joseph turned to look at Alice and observed herplexion.


    Seeing that she was biting her lower lips until it bled and her face was as pale as paper, it was obvious that she wouldn''t be so helpful today.


    <em>There''s only one thing that I can use...</em> Joseph thought to himself. He raised his head, stared directly at the City Chief and uttered in his mind.


    "Character Scrutinize!"


    [Title Generated Skill: Character Scrutinize has been activated.]


    [Information about the intended target has been gathered.]


    [Gelial - Demon of Deceit and Temptation - Lv. ???]


    A demon that has the lowest rank among the 72nd Demons of the Fiery Hell. He may be at the lowest rank, but hismand of the concept of Deceit and Temptation makes him a force to be reckoned with. He likes beautiful things, particrly men that looked more feminine than women...


    His sexual orientation is unknown, but it is widely rumored that he swings both ways.


    He had fought against the Grand Duelist of the previous generation but was always defeated every time they fought.


    As someone who has an eye for aesthetics. He despises those who disy ugly emotions such as fear, anxiety and any other negative emotions. On the other hand, he likes and had always preferred to kill his enemies through the use of pleasure.


    Dying under the hands of this demon is particrly blissful for men, but a nightmare for women.


    Skills: Deceit(SSS), Temptation(SSS), Eye for Aesthetics(A+), Courtship(SS), Deceitful Tongue(SSS), ???(???), ???(???)


    Further information cannot be gathered anymore. ]


    <em>SSS on Deceit, and Temptation. That is something that can be expected from a Demon of Deceit and Temptation, but setting aside the Eye for Aesthetics on the other hand, why does he have a skill called Courtship? He''s a master of courting everyone from both sides?</em>


    <em>Wait that is actually an interesting skill, imagine just smooth-talking girls into dropping their panties...</em>


    Joseph lifted a silly smile but then he was instantly awakened from his trance when he realized that his thoughts had derailed.


    <em>Goddamned it, the information given to me is too vague, but at least... It is better than nothing, I guess? But how do his skills work? Does Temptation work in tandem with illusions? In that case, this will be a problem...</em>


    <em>I may be immune to abnormal statuses but that doesn''t mean that I can''t be put in an illusion, just like what happened back at the Underground Penitentiary.</em>


    <em>As for Deceit... Does this skill work by talking to the intended target? I mean, to deceive is to make the target believe that the truth is actually false, right?</em>


    Joseph''s mind quickly spun. He tried his best on guessing how Gelial''s power worked, but in the end, the answers he reached were far too generic and Joseph didn''t believe that Gelial''s power was that simple toprehend.


    In the end, he could only shake his head and sigh.


    The City Chief approached him with a smile.


    "So, you are that imposter who knew about the distinguished name of that old geezer and fooled these followers of mine into believing that you were that old bastard?" Gelial who was currently possessing the body of the City Chief spoke in the voice of the City Chief.


    But one could obviously see that the City Chief right now was apletely different person. It was because Gelial and the City Chief''s mannerisms were far too different from each other that one could easily distinguish them from each other.


    The City Chief looked genial and acted like an old man next door, but this Gelial...


    From his tone of voice alone, it was obvious that he was arrogant.


    However, when Joseph raised his head and stared at the City Chief. He couldn''t help but frown. It was because he could see that the City Chief was fighting against Gelial''s control over his body.


    But why was Joseph so sure that the two were fighting over who should control the body?


    Well, it was because the City Chief''s expression kept on changing... One second he had a smile on his face, the next second he would look like he was about to cry and in the very next moment, he would reveal a sinister smile.


    Such a colorful and swift changes of expression made Joseph feel somewhat weird.


    <em>Aren''t they allies? Why would they fight against each other? That doesn''t make sense...</em> Joseph thought of what was happening as weird. But he had no time to think deeper into it for the Demon of Deceit and Temptation Gelial was still waiting for his answer.


    "Yes... I am the one who scared your subordinates away." Joseph replied.


    Everything took time to describe but the pause in between actually onlysted for less than five seconds.


    In short, there wasn''t that much dy between Gelial''s question and Joseph''s reply.


    "Oh? I like that you are being honest... Most of the time, whenever I ask some questions to others, they would always try to lie against me..." The City Chief''s face stiffened for a moment before he revealed a smile that looked more like a grimace.


    It waspletely unsettling to look at, but Joseph didn''t dare to turn his head away, afraid that the demon may do something drastic if he did that.


    "Lying against a demon who has control over Deceit and Temptation. If that is not courting death, then I wonder what is..." Joseph inwardly thought, but his mouth subconsciously opened along with his thoughts and in the end, he had voiced his thoughts out loud.


    "Yes... yes, that is right. It is indeed a foolish endeavor to try and fool someone like me. You really are a smart boy. After this, do you want to have some fun?" The City Chief revealed a wide smile that almost reached his ears.


    It was a smile that was terrifying enough but whenbined with the feminine and coquettish tone of voice.


    It was enough to send dozens of shivers down one''s spine...


    Joseph''s expression looked somewhat pale.


    But it wasn''t because of the horrifying expression on the City Chief''s face, it was because he didn''t realize that he had subconsciously voiced his thoughts out.


    "Did I do that because I was under the influence of this demon''s power? But how is that possible? I am Immune to abnormal statuses! That cannot be possible!" Joseph inwardly cried out. But his pupils constricted when he realized that he once again said his thoughts out loud.


    "Yes... yes... That is right. As I expected, you really have immunity to abnormal statuses. All that you said arepletely true, and none of them are lies. Yes, none of them are lies." The City Chief meaningfully stared at Joseph.


    "None of them are lies? So this demon also has some control over the domain of lying? Wait, that actually makes sense since lying is a form of deceit. But that doesn''t make sense, it''s too overpowered. The devs of Victory would never let such an overpowered being like this exist..."


    "Not only that but if his strength doesn''t really have any drawback. Why is he in thest ce? He should be near the top at least... But the reality is he''s the lowest ranking demon, 72nd ce to be exact. Why is that?"


    Joseph''s mouth opened and rapidly dispensed all of his thoughts to the outside world.


    The demon, Gelial was astonished by what he heard, but he soonughed and said, "Yes, you are right again. How are you so smart?"


    Seeing that Gelial himself admitted so easily about the existence of his drawback. Joseph suddenly acquired a theory about what that drawback was. His eyes shed with a mysterious glint as he voluntarily opened his mouth and voiced out his thoughts.


    "So, there is indeed a drawback in these abilities of yours? I wonder what are your weaknesses?"


    Joseph revealed a light smile on his face as he casually asked Gelial about his own weaknesses.


    Directly asking your opponent about his weaknesses was something unthinkable for anyone. That also included Gelial who clearly didn''t expect the straightforward question as his figure froze there, speechless and dumbfounded. But after a few seconds of silence, he gave a loudugh and said.


    "You are indeed an interesting man, only someone like you can possibly make that kind of a n that fooled these stupid subordinates of man." His eyes were now filled with interest and amusement as he sized Joseph up.


    Joseph felt a shiver down his spine when this happened, but then his expression turned strange once again when he noticed that the internal infighting between the City Chief and Gelial intensified after Gelial thoroughly scanned his body.


    He nced at the trembling Alice behind him as a barely imperceptible light shed across his eyes.


    "As the master over the domain of Deceit and Temptation. I can never lie." Gelial revealed an amicable smile.


    "You can never lie?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows instead of feeling excited. It was because he felt that there was something more to this than what Gelial was saying.


    Something clicked within Joseph''s mind as he inwardly uttered, "He may not be able to lie, but I bet that he can speak half-truths or even choose topletely avoid the answer to such a question." He said these words out loud once again, but that didn''t matter for Joseph anymore.


    "Hehehe..." The City Chiefughed in a voice that was a mixture between a woman and a man, "You really are smart, but that is not the reason why I descended here in the first ce. I came here to see the face of a man who is actually so gutsy as to use the name of the God of Fighting, Tryndamere..."


    "Aren''t you afraid of Divine Retribution? Divine Retribution is scary, you know? Those daddies up above can manipte fate itself so they can mess you up in ways that you can never expect." Gelial chuckled at the end of his sentence.


    Joseph merely shook his head, "I am already an irreconcble enemy for that old geezer Tryndamere. Since a single crime is enough to condemn me to the fiery fires of hell for eternity. Why notmit a hundred thousand crimes ande down there as a legend?"


    "HAHAHA!" Gelialughed out loud, "Kid, you really are interesting." His body twitched once again, and this time. Even his fingers were affected by his Tourette''s like movements.


    Joseph''s eyes momentarily nced on those fingers, but he soon diverted his gaze without thinking too much about what he just saw.


    "But kid, I will tell you now about the reason why I came here..." The City Chief''s expression suddenly turned serious, "I just want you to let these subordinates of mine take those two sisters away..."


    "I mean, I don''t think that they are very useful to you. But for me, they are precious resources that are hard toe by since the bodies of these bastards are slowly growing ustomed to the curse within their bloodlines..."


    "Can you do that for me? If you do, then I can transform into a heavenly-toppling beauty and visit you at night to take your cherry away, you''re a virgin, right?"


    "Doing it with the demon who governs over Deceit and Temptation, the domain of Temptation alone should be enough to bring you a pleasure that is out of this world!"


    The City Chief said all of these in a feminine voice.


    "If you are not that weing of the idea of doing it with a heavenly-toppling beauty? How about I transform into the figure of that girl behind you, then do it with you? Even though it really isn''t the same as doing it with her, I can at least take on her figure and bring you to the bliss of climax."


    "Hehehe... How about it, young man? Interested, yet?" The City Chief revealed a lecherous expression that was unthinkable to see on the face of an old man like him.


    Joseph felt another shiver down his spine, but he steeled his heart to reply.


    "I... I refuse!"


    Joseph cried out but looked like he was incredibly tempted to say yes.


    The City Chief frowned, "Interesting, I wonder why you are refusing my offer?"


    Joseph shook his head and said, "Your offer is too weak. Doing it once in exchange for the precious lives of those two sisters? That''s the worst deal that I ever heard in my entire life..."


    "But oh well, you are a demon after all. It is pretty much impossible for someone to expect that a demon could trade fairly..."


    Gelial was taken aback by the words that he heard that his <em>figure</em> staggered backward in astonishment.


    But then a whistling sound apanied by a dull thud rang out behind Joseph while he was focused on the City Chief''s strange actions.


    ng!


    Joseph turned to look behind him and he found the trembling Alice with a fierce and bloodthirsty expression on her face.


    But that expression was quickly changed into astonishment as she uttered, "You..."


    "Heh..." Joseph sneered, "Ever since we started our small talk I have never forgotten that you are the Demon of Deceit and Temptation. I have always been on the look-out for changes in the surroundings, but when I found nothing. I focused on the City Chief''s strange mannerisms instead..."


    He stared right at the <em>Alice</em> standing right in front of him as he exined.


    "The City Chief is your subordinate so he will definitely wee your possession whenever you wanted, yet the City Chief that stood before me earlier wore colorful expressions on his face that kept on changing."


    "That was a clear sign of an internal struggle which shouldn''t happen if the City Chief in front of me was the real City Chief and your subordinate..."


    Joseph''s sneer turned into a mocking smile, "In other words, the City Chief that kept on talking to me wasn''t actually the City Chief, but Alice..."


    "Meanwhile, the Alice behind me that kept on clinging around my arm wasn''t actually the real Alice... Instead, she was reced by the disguised City Chief that you possessed. With these assumptions in mind, I carefully timed the usage of my Parry that could let me survive your sneak attack."


    "But doing all of these just to sneak attack me..."


    "I don''t really know if I should be honored or not."


    "But one thing is for sure..."


    Joseph lifted a smile and stared right at Gelial before saying, "You might have outsmarted me, but I outsmarted your outsmarting!"

 Chapter 115: Return[7]

    Chapter 115: Return[7]


    It was impossible to lie in front of a demon who has control over the domain of Deceit. That was why Joseph didn''t bother about lying anymore and just expressed all of his thoughts and emotions and ced them onto the table. Like in poker, he was now going <em>all-in</em>...


    There was no turning back anymore.


    Joseph moved...


    He leaped towards the direction of Gelial and uttered.


    "Discharge, Point!"


    He took a stance with his Rapier and infused the strength of the energy swallowed by his Parry from Gelial''s attack into the power of his [Point].


    All of thesebined created a terrifying might that even Joseph was afraid of.


    But mysteriously, Gelial merely maintained a smile on his face and he looked as leisurely as ever. In fact, he looked like he was even inviting Joseph to attack him.


    When Joseph''s eyesnded on Gelial''s eyes...


    He felt himself being sucked into an endless abyss, a whirlpool without an ending.


    [You are currently under the effects of a great Temptation!]


    [Under the effects of your title, The Sun That Overlooks Everything.]


    [You have resisted.]


    Almost immediately after entering that whirlpool. He awakened from his trance and his attack that flew straight towards Alice''s vitals changed trajectory and struck the ground instead.


    Bang!


    A fierce explosion urred.


    The ground tainted by the darkness was muddy and soft to the touch. But when Joseph''s attacknded on the ground, a sound simr to a ss being shattered rang out as the world around Joseph promptly copsed like it was a mirror that received a smash from a sledgehammer.


    The Alice in front of him lost her fierce expression. It was reced by anxiety and fear as she rushed towards Joseph''s direction like a child that got lost and finally reunited with her mother.


    Gelial invited him to attack since he secretly swapped positions with the real Alice along with surrounding her with an illusion so that she''ll look like the City Chief. If Joseph''s attack continued andnded on his body. Alice could''ve been severely injured or died.


    But Gelial made a mistake. In order to increase the sess rate of his n. He tried on imnting his illusions directly in Joseph''s mind using his entire strength. From Gelial''s knowledge, those who possessed abnormal statuses immunity were indeed immune to those conditions.


    But only to a certain extent...


    Unfortunately, he didn''t expect that Joseph''s passive could actually resist his full strength.


    Joseph received Alice''s embrace and he carried her with his left hand and ced her on his left shoulder. Afterwards, he faced the City Chief whom Gelial swapped positions with Alice.


    He was already above them.


    "You may have shattered my illusion, but both of you will still die today!" Gelial fiercely screamed.


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "If I am to assume that demons cannot descend on this mortal world like gods. That would mean that you are nothing but a mere avatar. How dare you be so arrogant when you are a mere reflection of reality?"


    He pointed his Rapier at the City Chief and uttered.


    "Grand Challenge."


    An imperial decree with an undeniable might descended upon the two and surrounded them with a brilliant light.


    In a single instant, they found that the two had mysteriously disappeared from the area.


    The City Chief and Joseph had disappeared, just what was going on?


    The residents were thoroughly confused.


    But in the very next moment, another sh of light appeared above them all as the Joseph and the City Chief reappeared once again.


    The only difference this time was that the City Chief looked iparably pale, while Joseph still looked energetic.


    No matter what angle you used to look at this scene...


    The winner was obvious.


    It was Joseph''s victory against Gelial.


    He won against the avatar of the Demon of Deceit and Temptation.


    Even if he fought against an avatar, it was an absolute achievement for anyone to beat a demon of Gelial''s caliber.


    But Joseph couldn''t be happy about his victory.


    Why?


    It was because as soon as they arrived at the Arean of the Gods, Colosseum. Gelial''s avatar was instantly vaporized by the remnants of the Grand Duelist''s Divinity.


    Furthermore, his death was also quite brutal...


    Not even a trace of his existence remained within the Colosseum.


    It was as if the Divinity in that ce absolutely hated him.


    <em>But this is also good... I mean, I shouldn''t downy what I did. The Grand Challenge is my skill, so it is a part of my strength. In other words, I still indirectly used my own strength to defeat the avatar of that bastard! With this, Julie and Hulie are finally safe...</em>


    Joseph heaved a sigh of relief.


    He turned to look at Alice, but before he could even take a good look at her expression.


    His chest was met with a strong force as Alice buried her head deep into his chest.


    "I was so scared..."


    "I thought I was gonna die..."


    This girl...


    Joseph stared at the crying Alice in shock. The snot and tears that riddled her face made her look quite pathetic. Normally, in this kind of situation. Joseph would rub salt on her wounds and tease her indiscriminately.


    But seeing her like this, trembling in fear in the face of death made Joseph think that she was indeed a human being.


    Even though Joseph knew that Alice was just an NPC made by the A.I that governed this game...


    She was disying such a human-like expression and reaction towards the threat of death that Joseph couldn''t help but sympathize with her.


    He couldn''t mock her for being such a cry-baby.


    After all, no one in this world was immune to the fear of death unless they didn''t really care about their life in the first ce.


    "It''s fine... I''m here... I''m not going to leave you..." He caressed her head and said.


    Alice trembled, she raised her head and said these words in a whisper, "Really? You won''t leave me?"


    Joseph scratched his head. He was dumbfounded for this was the first time that he saw such a maiden-like expression on Alice''s face. But a light chuckle escaped from his mouth as he yed with her hair, like how he ruffled the hair of Julie and Hulie before he said.


    "Mhm... I won''t leave you. Well, that is at least until I delivered you safely to Senior Krid. I promised him that I will take care of you after all."


    "I see..." Alice revealed a sweet smile.


    She hung her head low, but when she raised her head again. The expression on her face had already changed. There was a teasing look in her eyes as she asked, "What happens after you delivered me to grandpa?"


    Joseph was astounded for a moment but he still replied, "Of course, my job is done and you will now be free. Aren''t you happy that you don''t have to be with someone like me? I mean, you know? We always tease each other, don''t you hate someone that always rub salt on your wounds?"


    Alice chuckled, "Hearing you describe yourself so urately like that really makes me speechless... But, I don''t particrly hate you..." The teasing look in her eyes disappeared. Reced with a newfound determination as she took a deep breath, and mustered her courage before saying...


    "Can I still stay with you after all of these?"


    Joseph raised an eyebrow and said, "What do you mean stay with me? You should stay with your grandpa! That old ma- No, senior Krid really misses you too much."


    Disappointment briefly shed on Alice''s face and she became silent, not saying anything anymore.


    Joseph felt that the atmosphere was quite strange.


    He turned to look at Alice and noticed her disappointment.


    After staying with her on the same bed for several weeks...


    Joseph could confidently say that he now understood Alice to a certain degree.


    She was a strong-willed woman, but timid towards unexpected situations. Whenever she slept, she would always try and take all the nket for herself, and whenever she was the first one to sleep.


    It would always be a nightmare for Joseph since she snored like she was an electric generator generating electricity for the whole City of Sibu.


    She always had that cold expression on her face, but Joseph realized after several weeks that it was just a facade.


    He realized this fact when he observed Alice whenever she was talking to Hulie and Julie...


    Joseph thought that Alice would probably not get close to the two sisters since he judged that she was a socially inept person.


    But he never expected that there was more to Alice than what he could see...


    But it was the truth, Alice was a moreplex person than he expected.


    Not only she managed to get close with the two sisters despite the fact that she felt like she was a socially awkward person...


    She even managed to make them call her as their big sister!


    Despite the fact that she was only an Artificial Intelligence made by NOAH.


    Joseph now looked at her as a fellow human being, rather than an A.I.


    "Are you disappointed?" Joseph suddenly uttered.


    Alice raised her head and her cold facade that she subconsciously assumed instantly crumbled.


    It was reced with a crimson blush that streaked through her cheek. But she didn''t turn her head away from Joseph.


    She maintained eye contact with him despite the tumultuous momentum of her rapidly beating heart.


    <em>Hehehe...</em>


    Joseph inwardly chuckled.


    "Do you want to stay with me?"


    "Yes!"


    Alice almost immediately nodded her head, afraid that Joseph may change his mind if she dared to dy her answer.


    It was because after all, after several weeks of staying with him on the same bed made her understand Joseph more than anyone else in the world of Victory. She knew that if she dyed her answer, he could possibly use that to tease her.


    "Hahaha... That was really a quick answer."


    "I never thought that you could be this decisive when ites to this.." Joseph pinched her cheeks.


    "Hmmph! I am always decisive, when did you see me hesitate?"


    Alice puffed her cheeks up in defiance.


    "Just recently." Joseph poked fun at her.


    But when he was about to continue his teasing...


    <em>Oh, here ites! The good ol'' smack!</em>


    ... He was met with a fierce-looking, yet light smack on his chest.


    Joseph gritted his teeth in preparation for enduring the pain that woulde with Alice''s smack.


    But he was astounded when he didn''t feel any pain.


    Instead, he saw an incredibly beautiful, yet rare scene.


    It was Alice with a sweet and wide smile on her face as she asked, "I still haven''t heard your answer."


    Joseph was dumbfounded...


    <em>Fuck, when did she be this beautiful? How did I manage to stay sane while sleeping on the same bed with this girl as a virgin? Is it because I have never looked at her as a member of the opposite sex?</em>


    Well, you can''t really me me. This girl just doesn''t act like a genuine woman! Well, I mean I still recognize her as a woman, but I haven''t been looking at her like I would look at girls that I want to be with. More like, I see her as a good friend or brother instead with how bold she often acts...


    Joseph rapidly blinked, he felt nervous looking at Alice who suddenly turned into an incredibly beautiful woman in his eyes.


    After a few minutes of silence, he managed to suppress his nervousness as he answered.


    "Mhm... When the promise that I made to Senior Krid is done and over, you can stay with me for as long as you want."


    Alice sweetly smiled when she heard the answer, "Hehehe... But can we have Julie and Hulie with us?"


    Joseph nodded his head, "Of course, they will be with us! We will explore the world together as one big..." He suddenly paused near the end of his sentence and he stared at Alice.


    Alice repeatedly blinked, "As one big...?"


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head, "I guess... We will explore the world together as one big family...?" It was his turn to feel embarrassed as he turned his head away from Alice, not daring to stare directly at her.


    But it was unfortunate that he turned his gaze away. It was because when he finished his sentence.


    A furious blush appeared on Alice''s face, making her look iparably dazzling and beautiful.


    If Joseph knew in the future that he missed such a scene, he would probably regret it as much as he regretted taking a loan from the Easy Cash Company.


    After a few moments, Alice finally managed to calm herself down.


    But before she could even speak to rify things with Joseph.


    Sobbing voices interrupted and awakened her from her reverie.


    Both Joseph and Alice turned to look at the source of the sobbing voices and they were astonished to find the residents crying along with the three Elders.


    Tears rapidly streamed down their eyes and drenched their cheeks wet.


    <em>What? Why are they suddenly crying?</em> Joseph was astounded.


    He turned to look at the City Chief and asked, "Hey, you bastard! What is going on? What is happening? Why are you guys crying?"


    The City Chief nced at him and revealed anguid smile before bitterly saying: "We are crying because the condemned are no more..."


    <em>The condemned are no more? What does he mean?</em>Joseph''s pupils suddenly constricted, memories shed across his eyes as he stood there rooted in ce.


    "The condemned are no more... Given that you stayed with them for a few weeks, we will give you time to grieve. But afterwards, I hope you can hand them over to us so we can give them a proper burial." The City Chief couldn''t even smile anymore


    But Joseph couldn''t hear what he said, he was panicking inwardly.


    <em>No way... There''s no way... Didn''t my blood already heal them from the Curse of the Condemned?</em>


    <em> But from the words of the City Chief, they seem to have the ability to notice the presence of those afflicted by the Curse of the Condemned...</em>


    If Julie and Hulie were already released from the Curse, they shouldn''t be able to find where we are right now in the first ce!


    <em>Yet, they managed to find us...</em>


    <em>Could that be the interference of that bastard Gelial?</em>


    <em>Or do they really have the ability to detect those afflicted with the Curse of the Condemned?</em>


    <em>If that is the case then, Julie and Hulie lied to me! </em>


    <em>They still had the curse even after they consumed my blood!</em>


    <em>But why did the City Chief say that the condemned are no more?</em>


    <em>Could it be that...</em>


    "JULIE! HULIE!"


    Joseph ran as fast as he could towards the cave where the two sisters stayed.


    "OPEN THIS UP! OPEN THIS UP! JULIE, JULIE!!!"


    Joseph roared.


    He hurriedly rolled the stone door blocking his way; the instant that his feet stepped inside the room, he froze in ce.


    Julie and Hulie sat beside each other, their hands intertwined and their heads dangling in front of their chest.


    Despite Joseph''s desperate screams, the twin sisters were not responsive at the least.


    Joseph could no longer feel any shred of life within their bodies.


    "Julie HULIE!!!"


    Joseph let out a maniacal scream.


    <em>Thank you, brother Joseph. Thank you so much for everything. I really liked the stories that you told us and I really wish to hear more of them</em>


    <em>Mhm! Thank you very much, Kuya Joseph! I will be obedient. Please don''t worry about us and please be safe, okay?</em>


    <em>No, they are not fighting! Ate and Kuya are just expressing their love to each other, just like how Mama and Papa does.</em>


    Why Why did the two of you have to die


    <em>Don''t the two of you want to see how the sun looks? Once I am done with my objectives here, then I will take both of you to the outside world. Until then, promise me that you both will wait for that day, all right?</em>


    <em>Yes, I promise!</em>


    <em>Mhm! I promise, Kuya!</em>


    Joseph''s knees directly copsed underneath him. His brown eyes were filled with pain as tears streamed down his cheeks, washing away the mud on his face.


    <em>I just want to say thank you, Kuya Joseph. Thank you so much for everything. I really liked the stories that you told us these past weeks and I am sure that you have a lot of those stories with you and I want to hear more of them!</em>


    <em>Hahaha... Now that that despicable Curse is gone, you will be able to do anything in this world. No one will be able to stop you. Nothing could ever stop our capable Julie, after all... But for now, stay there and protect your sister, Hulie. When wee back I''ll read you lots of stories in all sorts of genres.</em>


    He gnashed his teeth and turned silent for a second before he suddenly sprawled...


    <em>What''s wrong, Hulie? Can''t bear to part with your Kuya?</em>


    <em>Thank you very much, Kuya!</em>


    <em>I will be... obedient, Kuya Joseph... So, please... uh... please don''t worry about us and be safe, okay?</em>


    He let out a roar of anguish and anger, his clenched fists heavily pounded the floor.


    <em>I should''ve... I should''ve not left them alone... It''s my fault... I left them alone to die... I wasn''t protecting them, I was only dying the inevitable and in the end. I didn''t even manage to be with them as life left their bodies...</em>


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Joseph kept crying as he repeatedly mmed his fists onto the ground, amidst his pain, anger and sorrow was clear helplessness and self-abhorrence.


    <em>I couldn''t do anything for them Am I really a myth? I clearly gave them my blood that has the Divinity of the Grand Duelist, yet why did it not purge the curse in their bodies?!</em>


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Joseph looked up when he heard the sounds of hurried footsteps behind him. He saw Alice''s figure that had just arrived at the scene through his blurry vision.

 Chapter 116: Return[8]

    Chapter 116: Return[8]


    <em>System For Assassination...</em>


    <em>Kuya probably gave this story for me to read knowing that I am not a minor. The contents of this story are sometimes quite raunchy, but they were nevertheless entertaining. Even though there were some parts that felt somewhat unnatural and forced, that sense of something not making sense was quickly reced by glee if one kept on reading it.</em>


    <em>The fight scenes are extraordinary, and I always loved the idea and loving family depicted by the author of the story. But, I really did not expect that Kuya would rmend such a story like this to me... It had a lot of bad, ermm... Should I say, scenes that are not only incredible but somewhat steamy to read?</em>


    <em>There were a lot of times that it made me feel weird, so I can''t really understand Kuya''s thought process when he rmended me this book that felt like it was made for adults that knew more about the world of uhm... between men and women...</em>


    <em>But going along about what I know about Kuya. I think he does not have any bad intentions towards why he gave me this book... probably? Hehehe, sorry Kuya but I am not really that sure.</em>


    <em>Although one thing that I can say for sure is that you gave me this book so that I can learn more about certain things.</em>


    <em>That fact alone makes me happy since it shows that you really do care for me even though we only met each other recently...</em>


    <em>Right now, I am probably not in this world anymore, but I will still fulfill my promise to you, Kuya. I will still fulfill the promise that I will give you a review of what I think about this favorite book of yours. Hehehe, I think that I really am biting more than I can chew here.</em>


    <em>This is the first book that I touched and read, and I am quite sad that I will never be able to apany it to its end. But the main protagonist''s adventure with his wife and daughter really touched my heart. </em>


    <em>Is this definite proof that people always desired for something that theycked?</em>


    <em> Hehe, I don''t know... </em>


    <em>All I know is that this book is certainly good.</em>


    <em>Although I can see that this book is not for everyone. Hahaha, Kuya. You should''ve really given me a book that is not as raunchy as this. What if I became a bad woman in the future? Hmmph, whose fault would that be? Hahaha, here I am talking about my future again when I clearly have no future.</em>


    <em>This despicable curse... It seems like I really am condemned to die along with it. But oh well, ever since I knew that I had the curse. I knew that I must cross that bridge, one day or another.</em>


    <em>It''s just, that I can''t just help but feel that this curse is unfair...</em>


    <em>I am supposed to have a good life ahead of me.</em>


    <em>If not for this curse, I would eventually fall in love with someone, have kids with him, and then die surrounded by my granddaughters and grandsons. But now? Thinking about my future has never been so painful than ever before...</em>


    <em>But you gave me hope to live, Kuya.</em>


    <em>When I drank that blood of yours and felt the curse disappear.</em>


    <em> I felt hope that I could survive the curse and live on.</em>


    <em>But I was wrong...</em>


    <em>The freedom that I felt was ultimately just an illusion.</em>


    <em>The Curse returned once again and it was far stronger than before.</em>


    <em>The throbbing headache and the pain that I feel deep within my bones which made me feel like I was constantly being poked by a thousand sharp needles was hellish. But I knew that I have to assume a facade.</em>


    <em>I cannot bother you, anymore Kuya. I cannot have you feel sad because of me. I can''t have you me yourself for making the curse momentarily disappear and have it reappear stronger than before. I cannot ask for your help anymore, Kuya... I have epted my fate.</em>


    <em>I have decided.</em>


    <em>In the next few weeks, I will write everything that I can think of in defiance to this cruel fate that the God of Everything that Moves and Exists bestowed upon me.</em>


    <em>I will write, I will keep on writing and even if I feel tired. I will rest, but I will not stop writing. I will not stop until I feel the inevitable approach of death. Until then, I will write as much as I can.</em>


    <em>Hehehe... I should really stop now. I really am stupid. I do not want you and Ate Alice to cry, Kuya. But here I am, writing this tearjerker of a letter. I really am the worst...</em>


    <em>But Kuya, I hope that you can ept my apology. I only wrote this so that I can fulfill the promise that I have towards you in regards to giving a review to your favorite book. But not only that, but I also want this book to serve as my final farewell letter and goodbye to you, Kuya and Ate Alice.</em>


    <em>The time that we spent together may not be so long. But the love and care that I felt from the two of you surpassed anything that I ever felt in this world. Maybe, the love that papa and mama gave to me ever since I was born could surpass the love that I felt from the two of you, but...</em>


    <em>Right now, in the face of my inevitable death...</em>


    I<em> can say that these memories that I have with you, Kuya Joseph and Ate Alice are incredibly priceless enough for me to brag about it when I ascend to the Tenebrous Heaven of the true God and creator of this world. Not that bastard, God of Everything that Moves and Exists of course...</em>


    <em>After all, if he really is a Compassionate God.</em>


    <em>Would he really let his followers suffer like this?</em>


    <em>If I found myself in his Tenebrous Heaven, I would do my best to escape and once I do, I will nevere back! Hmmph, that bastard will never make me stay there!</em>


    <em> Even Hulie agrees that he is such an asshole.</em>


    <em>Yes, my beloved sister Hulie agrees...</em>


    <em>Yes, that Hulie who had never cursed even once in her life actually called that fake Creator as an asshole! It was really such a scary, yet thrilling scene since a bolt of lightning could strike us from the heavens since we sphemed a supposed to be God!</em>


    <em>But I was actually somewhat happy that Hulie and I sphemed that God. After all, when we saw that there was no bolt of lightninging towards our way. We were finally reassured that the God of Everything that Moves and Exists is not even a god. </em>


    <em>But I am not really that sure actually, I don''t know.</em>


    <em>Maybe he''s just toozy to deal with us that are about to die?</em>


    <em>But anyways...</em>


    <em>I hate that asshole and fuck him!</em>


    Sincerely, Julie Gutierrez, co-written by Hulie Gutierrez.


    Next page...


    <em>Title: Defying Fate? (Tentative, not final, yet, but this is my first book hehehe, so Kuya... if you are reading this please do not roast me too much, all right? I know how sharp your tongue can be... Especially whenever you tease Ate Alice!)</em>


    <em>From Kuya''s stories, Cindere went from rags to riches. But from my experience, whenever you are high up there. Fate is more than happy to kick you down. An unexpected curse turned Juliet''s life around from having a bright future into a bleak one, leaving her to sumb to her inevitable fate and wait for her Prince Charming to rescue her- Obviously not!</em>


    <em>Like a bird flying once again, Juliet defeats the curse and climbs her way back to the top, to a ce that she had all this while and she deserved, she will take revenge against those who wronged her, while bagging a handsome knight in shining armor all the way towards her journey back to the top!</em>


    Joseph flipped for the next page of the notebook and he found nothing written in there.


    But on the next page, Joseph found apendium of ideas. There were all sorts of decent concepts written in there, but some of them were crossed out such as the idea of making the female lead act like a damsel in distress.


    "This..."


    Joseph nced at Alice whose headid on his shoulder as she let out stifled sobbings.


    The reason why Julie didn''t manage to write the first chapter of the book was probably due to the fact that she wanted to write this first book of her with the best idea possible.


    That should be the reason why there was no first chapter...


    But such a realization didn''t give anyfort to Joseph.


    Instead, he felt even more sad and depressed.


    Alice realized the same and she tightened her grip around Joseph''s hips.


    Joseph closed the notebook and stared at the tombstone where the two sisters were buried underneath. In the end, despite the promise that they made towards Joseph and Alice. They weren''t able to see the beauty of the outside world and Joseph wasn''t able to fulfill his promise.


    "Why... Why did the two of you have to die..."


    A sour sensation soared towards his throat and he couldn''t hold back his tears anymore.


    Taking a look at the tombstone, there were six lines written on the epitaph.


    <em>The best elder sister,</em>


    <em>The best younger sister,</em>


    <em>The ambitious writer,</em>


    <em>The hopeful doctor,</em>


    <em>Bothy here without pain anymore,</em>


    <em>Finally free, forevermore.</em>


    Joseph''s knees gave up and he kneeled on the ground.


    Alice went along with him.


    None of them said anything for they just hung their heads low towards the direction of the tombstone...


    After several hours of kneeling. Joseph finally stood up. Alice followed suit and the two stared at each other. Their faces were a wreck with the tears and mud that decorated it, but within their eyes was a light, clearer than ever before.


    Holding each other''s hands, they nodded without saying anything before turning around. Heading for the direction of the cave where they spent the past several weeks along with the two sisters.


    They silently went into the room and sat beside each other on the stone bed.


    After several minutes of silence. Joseph finally spoke his first words after hours of silence.


    "We will go."


    "Go? Where?" Alice finally spoke up too.


    "To them." Anger and ruthlessness momentarily shed within Joseph''s eyes.


    Seeing this light, Alice finally understood what he was talking about. Even though it would probably be incredibly dangerous to fight their enemy within the very City of those enemies. Alice didn''t say anything in objection to his proposal...


    She merely gave a small smile.


    "I will follow you, wherever you may go."


    Joseph nodded his head in appreciation.


    "Are you not curious as to why I want to go there?"


    Alice maintained that smile on her face as she replied, "Yes, I am curious. But I have a vague idea as to why you want us to go there."


    Joseph turned to look at her with interest, "Oh?"


    "Mhm... You want us to go there to give them a warning and also im reparations, right?"


    "Yeah... I now don''t care about the reasons why the City Chief and those elders fooled their own citizens. All I know is that they must die. Those old bastards must die! Only after that can I escape peacefully from this ce knowing that no one will dare desecrate the bodies of Julie and Hulie."


    "And also that bastard Gelial, someday..."


    "I will kill him with my own hands!" Joseph dered. Afterwards, the two of them went out of the cave and walked towards the direction of the City Perpetually Hidden from the Sun.

 Chapter 117: Return[9]

    Chapter 117: Return[9]


    The small city within the ce perpetually hidden from the sun was currently in a panic.


    The residents who awakened from the effects of the staff within the City Chief''s hands were extremely angry when they found out that their loved ones died, what was worse was that the City Chief didn''t have any intention of exining!


    However, the riot was easily suppressed by the City Chief who used the staff once again and subdued everyone to obedience.


    But the First Elder and Second Elder knew that this was just treating the symptoms.


    A mere stopgap that will eventually copse under the tumultuous momentum of the residents'' grievances. Furthermore, the effects of the Staff of Obedience doesn''t reallyst that long.


    In fact, it would onlyst for a few hours at most before it must be reapplied once again.


    This job wasn''t originally theirs, but after Gelial''s avatar disappeared. He never appeared again no matter how many times the City Chief tried to summon him.


    The pungent smelling out from the City Chief''s body made both elders subconsciously furrow their eyebrows.


    "What should we do now, City Chief?"


    The City Chief gave a bitter smile.


    About three hundred years ago, he found out that the God of Everything that Moves and Exists wasn''t really a legitimate god.


    He discovered this fact when he inherited the position of the City Chief from his father who made him swear that this information should never be disseminated to the general public.


    The City Chief, although astonished intended on keeping this secret to himself. But these two elders, the First Elder and the Second Elder who were vying against him for the position of being the City Chief overheard their conversation.


    The elders threatened that they would spread this information if the City Chief''s father didn''t properly exin to them about what they were talking about; under such threat.


    The City Chief''s father didn''t have any other choice but to exin and say that the God of Everything that Moves and Exists wasn''t really a legitimate god.


    It waspletely the opposite of what he was supposed to be.


    He was a Demon.


    The 72nd ranked Demon Gelial, the Demon of Deceit and Temptation.


    But why was the City Chief''s father so obedient to Gelial?


    Well, it was because of a deal.


    In exchange for sacrificing the bodies of those that were about to die from the curse, or had died from the curse.


    Gelial would bestow upon them several droplets of his blood essence which would slowly transform the highly-adaptable Vampires into beings that were immune to the Curse of the Condemned.


    And it worked!


    The City Chief''s consumed half of the blood essence while he secretly added the other half into the wells that the residents frequently drank from.


    Only a year after that, the number of people affected by the Curse of the Condemned every year sharply dropped to a mere fraction of what it was the year before the deal between the two.


    This was also the reason why the City Chief''s father and the ancestors before him had an incredibly long lifespan that exceeded the average lifespan of those with the same species as them.


    The City Chief himself was happy that even though the god they believed in didn''t really exist.


    At least, there was another being masquerading as that god, so now they can say that they do believe in a higher entity.


    Even though it wasn''t a genuine deity, it was better than believing in nothing.


    Furthermore, there were benefits to be received...


    What was the problem of epting Gelial as a figure synonymous to a god?


    The City Chief and the previous City Chiefs didn''t find anything wrong with this thought process.


    But right now, the current City Chief felt a pang of regret.


    A Demon was still a Demon after all!


    Even if the deeds they were doing were right and good at first nce. It was impossible for them to not have any ulterior motives behind those good deeds.


    Now that Gelial had disappeared and they couldn''t have him appear before them no matter what they did. Just what will happen to this City now?


    Without the help of that Demon Gelial, these residents would soon realize that there was something wrong about them.


    They would find out that the happiness that they felt whenever they were praising the Creator was false. They would also find out that it was indeed strange for them to be happy about the suicide of their fellow residents.


    Everything that they believed that were right, under the guidance of Gelial would disappear and they would suddenly awaken from their reverie, not knowing what truly happened and not recognizing what was right from false.


    This was why despite being the weakest demon among all the demons. Gelial should never be underestimated. He has the ability to manipte your surroundings through the Concept of Deceit.


    You''ll find yourself living a good life, with a beautiful and diligent wife with children that you could be proud of until you die.


    But when that illusion shattered, you''ll be devastated to find that everything was just an illusion. The wife you embraced every night was actually a rotting corpse, and the children whom you were proud of and praised every day were actually wooden dolls that had no life in them.


    That was how scary Gelial was...


    This was why he managed to keep his position among the 72 Demons.


    This was why he was still being ranked despite having the lowestbat capabilities among all the ranked Demons.


    If nothing was done...


    The illusion made by Gelial thatsted for several thousands of years would undoubtedly shatter and when that happened, all hell would break loose.


    "Is there really nothing that we can do anymore?"


    The First Elder asked, his expression looked unwilling and unresigned.


    "Yes, that is right! I don''t think that the honorable one will just let all the effort that he spent in the past several thousands of years shatter just because of an unknown young man!"


    The Second Elder spoke up.


    The City Chief shook his head and said, "What you said makes sense, but I don''t think that the honorable one''s main n includes us all. I think all of us are just a part of his contingency ns..."


    "What?" The First Elder uttered in disbelief.


    The City Chief exined, "Don''t you find it strange that he does not directly let us transform into Demons and make us his servants? Does doing that even make sense for a demon in the first ce?"


    "If I was him, I would''ve directly taken control of the entire city and make everyone do my bidding instead of forming a cooperative rtionship with them!"


    The elders froze for a moment before their expressions turned serious: "Indeed... Just what is the reason?"


    They all fell into deep contemtion until the Second Elder shattered the silence: "If we put ourselves in the shoes of the honorable one and think about this issue in his perspective. I think the most appropriate answer to this question is that we are still somehow useful for him..."


    "Apart from that, I can''t think of any reason why he hasn''t taken control of the City in the first ce..."


    The City Chief and the First Elder nodded their heads.


    The two fell into even deeper contemtion, but after a few moments, the First Elder spoke up and said, "We are still somehow useful for him... But how and in what way?" He swept his gaze at the City Chief and found that thetter had a frown on his face.


    "I think..." The City Chief spoke up.


    "It should involve the Curse of the Condemned."


    "What? How can you be so sure that it involves the Curse of the Condemned? Maybe he just wanted to nurture us into a being that transcends a Vampire. Isn''t that the reason why we desire his blood in the first ce and why he is giving it to us so willingly?" The First Elder went against the City Chief.


    The City Chief shook his head and said, "No, he is not giving it to us willingly. Think about it! Think about the fact that we sacrifice the corpses of those who died from the Curse to him. In other words, it was an exchange. A deal."


    The First Elder and the Second Elder were astonished about what they heard, but their memories told them that it was indeed the case. The Demon of Deceit and Temptation, Gelial was not helping them without anything in exchange.


    In exchange for the corpses of those afflicted by the Curse of the Condemned, Gelial gave them his blood essence which would eventually transform their bodies into entities that were stronger and far resilient than ordinary Vampires.


    "That is really quite the move of someone that is a true devil. A devil would never transact in a way that would turn out to be a disadvantage to them..."


    "In fact, I don''t even think that Demons, especially the honorable one who governs over the concept and domain of Deceit and Temptation would like to be in a fair deal, much less in a deal that would cost him more than what he could earn." The Second Elder uttered to himself, but his whispers were loud enough for the two elders to hear.


    "Wait, what? What did you say just now?!"


    The City Chief suddenly shot up from his seat and stared directly at the Second Elder.


    "What?"


    The Second Elder was astonished by what he heard that he uttered a question instead of an answer.


    "You said that a demon will never be in a transaction that would be disadvantageous to them? You said that it is impossible for the honorable one to be in a fair deal? He would never let himself be in a transaction that costs more than what he stands to gain?"


    The City Chief pupil''s constricted and his body continuously trembled like a sieve.


    "What is wrong, City Chief? Why are you acting like that?" The First Elder raised an eyebrow and stared at the City Chief in annoyance.


    They were in the middle of a proper deliberation, yet the City Chief was acting like his mother scolded him and restricted him from ying with his toys.


    It looked like he was throwing a tantrum.


    But then, the City Chief suddenly spoke...


    "You... You guys... What do you think is the value of a Demon''s Blood Essence?"


    His words became like a bolt of lightning that struck the two elders out of a blue as the two of them trembled.


    "A-Are you saying that..." The First Elder whispered in utter disbelief.


    Every living creature in the world of Victory possessed a certain degree of Blood Essences. Humans had the least amount of Blood Essences in their bodies at any given time due to the fact that their bodies were inherently weaker than the members of other species.


    Blood Essences could be used to temporarily augment one''s strength in the middle of battle, in short. They were like boosters that one could use in battle.


    And since the number of Blood Essences that the body could produce in their lifetime wasn''t really that much...


    Blood Essences were incredibly valuable, especially if they came from a higher entity such as a Demon, a Goddess, or a Deity. The Blood Essences of these entities were incredibly precious and could never be bought with money. People could only stumble upon them due to a stroke of fate.


    The Demon of Deceit and Temptation, Gelial would never let himself be in a disadvantageous deal due to his inherent arrogance as a demon and also due to the fact that he governed over the Concept of Deceit.


    But why did he enter a deal where he exchanged his precious Blood Essence for the rotting corpses of those afflicted by the Curse of the Condemned?


    Was it because the bodies of people that died from the Curse were extremely valuable and couldpare to the value of a Demon''s Blood Essence?


    No!


    The three of them didn''t think so.


    In other words, there was only a single exnation.


    And this remaining exnation terrified them all.


    "T-T-Take the Blood Essences that I stored underneath my bed!" The City Chief swiftly gave an order.


    The two elders didn''t say anything.


    They vanished from where they were and instantly reappeared beside the City Chief''s bed inside his bedroom.


    The First Elder lifted the bed and the Second Elder grabbed the transparent bottle that he saw underneath and hurriedly returned to the City Chief where they all stared at the bottle in disbelief, shock, and horror.


    "I-Is that really... The Blood Essence of the honorable one?"


    The Second Elder whispered in shock.


    A Blood Essence''s color was crimson red since it was made out of blood.


    But the liquid inside the bottle that he was holding shone dangerously in green. Furthermore, it looked liquid when undisturbed, but when the bottle was shaken. The liquid acted like a y. From these traits alone, it was obvious that it wasn''t a blood essence.


    "A-Are you sure that you ced the Blood Essence of the honorable one in this bottle?" The First Elder asked, his body was trembling in fear.


    "Y-yes... I can''t be wrong. I remember that day clearly. I got a bonus droplet of Blood Essence from the honorable one on that day, so I can''t be that wrong..."


    "That is the droplet of Blood Essence that I stored if someday, I wasn''t able to achieve the honorable one''s request and wasn''t given a droplet..." The City Chief promptly eximed in a panic.


    "O-O-Open it up! Open it up!" The First Elder pointed a finger at the Second Elder and ordered.


    "Y-Yes!"


    The Second Elder hurriedly opened the lid of the bottle and an incredibly pungent stench came out of the bottle.


    As soon as it was opened, that stench instantly filled the room and the three elders felt like they fell into a cave full of sewage waste.


    "T-This..."


    <em>Crack!</em>


    A sound simr to a ss cracking rang out and the Elders found the world around them copse.


    A kaleidoscope of colors surrounded them and when they opened their eyes once again, they realized that nothing had changed. They were still within the City Chief''s room that was made out of bricks and they were still trembling in fear.


    "This is poison!"


    The Second Elder eximed and he hurled the bottle as far as he could, afraid that the pungent smell may do some damage onto them.


    With the disappearance of the bottle that brought the pungent smell.


    The stench instantly disappeared and the Second Elder heaved in relief.


    "If what he had discussed earlier that we have some uses for the honorable one is true. I think that we can ask him for an exnation if he really did give us poison or..." When he had spoken up to this point, his voice suddenly came to a halt.


    It was because he discovered that the City Chief and the First Elder was staring at him as if they were looking at something extremely terrifying.


    Their faces were filled with abject terror, and all the muscles throughout their entire body trembled.


    As that trembling gradually intensified, they opened their mouths and forced their lips to move.


    It was clear that they wanted to say something, but not a voice woulde out of their throats.


    Even their vocal cords had surrendered to fear...


    The entire world seemed to have been frozen in time at this point until the silence was shattered by the City Chief''s horrified and desperate scream as he pointed at the Second Elder, "Y-Your arm! Your arm!!!"


    The Second Elder subconsciously stared at his right arm... At that instant, fear simr to what the two elders were experiencing overwhelmed his body. His face had turned as pale as a sheet of paper due to the extreme shock and terror that coursed through his veins.


    The arm and the hand that he used to throw away that bottle of<em> Blood Essence</em> had disappeared!


    His eyes wandered on the ground and he found that there was a clump of ashes emanating a pungent smell beside him.


    "M-My arm... Ah! My arm!"


    The Second Elder let out a shriek when he realized that the clump of ashes was his arm.


    But it wasn''t only his arm that was slowly being turned into ashes by the poison that had umted and continuously coursed through his body. As the stifling smell of decay spread, he witnessed his left shoulder disappearing inch by inch, and in a blink of an eye...


    The entire left side of his body had already turned into ashes.


    <em>Thud...</em>


    A dull sound rang out as he fell down.


    His body could no longer support him.


    His eyes zed over and he was seemingly staring a thousand miles away.


    During this entire process, he felt nothing but despair and hopelessness.


    He felt no pain whatsoever. It was as if the process of him turning into ashes was a natural urrence that wasn''tpletely out of the ordinary.


    He felt not the slightest bit of pain.


    Yes...


    He didn''t feel any pain, but as he witnessed his body slowly disappearing into ashes.


    The Second Elder experienced a fear that was several times worse than being directly plunged into the deepest recesses of hell!


    His whole body quivered and he tore his own vocal cords as he let out a shriek that was the loudest that he had ever produced since he was born. His eyeballs rolled over and protruded as web-like veins spread over his face and forehead.


    But no matter how loud he screamed and how much he struggled...


    The poison that he thought as the Blood Essence of a Demon had already integrated itself deeply in his body.


    In fact, it had even reced his blood...


    The reason why he spilled no blood as the poison turned him into ashes was that there was no blood coursing through his veins anymore. It


    was reced entirely by the poison given to him by Gelial.


    "Save... Save me..."


    He only managed to utter these words as his entire body was finally consumed and turned into ashes by the poison.


    <em>Thud...</em>


    Another dull sound rang out as the City Chief and the First Elder found themselves on the ground. Their minds still haven''t processed the fear that they had experienced, but they were already subject to the extreme fear that the Second Elder experienced before he died.


    But this time, the two didn''t give any violent reactions.


    They just stared right at each other''s eyes as the poison and despair slowly consumed their consciousness. It was at this moment, right before the poison consumed the remaining speck of the City Chief''s consciousness that enlightenment dawned upon him.


    "Heh... So this the reason why our ancestors would suddenly die without leaving any corpses. It turns out that they were turned into ashes by this despicable poison..."


    The City Chief''s remaining eye shed with regret.


    "I am sorry everyone, we let you down..."


    "The ancestors of this City had spelled the doom for us all when they decided to transact with a demon..."


    "At least, dying painlessly like this is better th-"


    He never managed toplete his sentence as the poison finally devoured his entire body.

 Chapter 118: Return[10]

    Chapter 118: Return[10]


    "Damn, a ce that is perpetually hidden from the sun is really incredibly dark..."


    Having lost the enchantment that they received from the two sisters that gave them the ability to see in the dark. Joseph couldn''t help but express his frustrations out loud. Now that his eyes weren''t capable of seeing through the dark anymore, he couldn''t see anything but pitch-ck.


    It was impossible for someone to navigate through an unknown area in an environment so dark that you couldn''t even see your own hands.


    Common sense told everyone that such a thing was impossible.


    But right now, under Alice''s leadership, the two of them were navigating just fine within such an environment. Even though their movements were slow


    "Say, Alice..."


    "How are you navigating through this dark and shitty ce without having your sense of sight?"


    Alice furrowed her eyebrows.


    The sweat that formed on her forehead made it evident that she wasn''t having a good time leading the way for the two of them.


    "Can you not talk for now until we reach the ce that we want to go? It''s really hard for me to keep on using this technique and it requires a lot of concentration so, I must not be distracted." Alice said in a matter-of-factly voice that didn''t want any opposition.


    "Fine, fine... But if you need help, just tell me, all right? Maybe there''s something that I can help you with." Joseph didn''t mind her tone of voice as he replied.


    "Is there even anything that you can do in this pitch-ck forest? Do you have a technique that we can use to navigate through this forest that is not as taxing as mine?" Alice raised an eyebrow.


    Joseph shook his head and said, "No, I don''t have one..."


    "Then, shut up, all right? If you really want to help then protect us against ambushes. I can''t keep my guard up while doing this thing right at the same time." Alice closed her eyes and didn''t bother about him anymore.


    Joseph knitted his eyebrows.


    "Blulululululupblubblup..." He flicked his tongue and gave out a weird sound.


    "What are you doing?" Alice asked with a frown.


    "Just trying out echolocation. Use that sonar-thingy from bats so we can see things in this pitch-ck shitty ce."


    "Sonar-thingy from bats? What are you talking about?"


    Alice''s frown deepened and she couldn''t help but pinch him on his waist.


    "Ah! Wait, wait, wait, stop! I''m just joking, I was just trying to cheer you up!" Joseph almost gave a shrill shriek due to the sudden sharp pain that he felt from his waist. He tried getting away from Alice, but her pinch felt like an octopus'' tentacles. It was stuck on his waist and never let go.


    "Oh? You just wanted to cheer me up? I guess, that is a good reason, but that is not enough for me to spare you from these hands!" Alice gave an evil chuckle, but Joseph suddenly moved. Causing her grip to slip and for him to be released.


    "You bastard, do you really think that you''re the only one that knows how to pinch?" Joseph red right at her even though he couldn''t see her. Afterwards, he stretched his hand out and pinched.


    But instead of a shrill shriek, what he heard from Alice was a moan that struck him like a bolt of lightning out of a blue.


    "Wha... What is that voice?" Joseph whispered and he was astonished to find that the waist fat that he was pinching had a shape that was simr to a cup.


    He hurriedly retracted his hand upon this realization and exined before Alice could even speak.


    "I know that you may not believe this, but trust me. What happened was aplete ident. It was never my intention to try and take advantage of you amidst this darkness. I swear, in my own name and honor that what I am saying right now is the truth and nothing but the truth."


    Joseph hurriedly made a promise like his life was on the line.


    For everyone else, what he said didn''t make any sense and was aplete exaggeration. But if they knew how terrifying Alice could be if she found out that you took advantage of her. Joseph waspletely sure that they would also act the same as him.


    For him, what he was doing right now wasn''t reasoning it out with Alice.


    It was damage management.


    But...


    "Pffft!" Alice gave a chuckle.


    ... Joseph didn''t expect that he''d receive a burst ofughter instead of a p.


    "Wh-Why are youughing? A man''s honor is not aughing matter!" Joseph said.


    "Pfft!" Aliceughed once again, "What you are doing ispletely opposite of what a man should do! A man should never casually stake his honor for such trivial things!"


    Joseph was astonished by what he heard, "Trivial things, you say? Aren''t you the one that always acted like I kicked your dog whenever I identally grope you whenever we are sleeping together? You can''t really me me for acting like this, no one wants to get hurt if they can avoid being hurt."


    Alice rolled her eyes, "Look at you blowing everything out of proportions again. You alsopletely missed my point!"


    "Missed your point?" Joseph knitted his eyebrows, but his expression suddenly changed into enlightenment as he gave a sly smile on his face, "Oh? I see... I understand now. So that is why you purposely said that the matter of me identally groping you this time is just a trivial thing..."


    "In other words, you are hinting that it is okay for me to grope?!"


    When he hadpleted his sentence, Joseph couldn''t help but inwardly exim at such a faux pax that hemitted. Just what was he saying? Alice was a prideful woman that would never let herself be disadvantaged, yet what was he saying?


    <em>Fuck, when did I be such a creepy man...</em> Joseph repented, he resolved that he would never let his pervertedness take over him once again so that embarrassing mistakes like these would never ur again.


    This mistake will forever haunt me whenever I am about to sleep. I can imagine it already, me being so sleepy but suddenly startled awake by my brain who reminded me of this mistake... Joseph gave a bitter smile.


    He turned to Alice and looked like he had epted his fate.


    He even stretched his face out so Alice could easily p him.


    But amidst the silence, Joseph never received any response.


    The silence and the coldness of the environment made everything creepy and gloomy to the extent that Joseph subconsciously shivered from the creeps. The silence made him feel a bad premonition in his heart as he extended his hand and iled around.


    <em>Shit... Could it be that this is her payback? Did she leave me alone in this dark ce? Fuck, how cruel!</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed, he squinted his eyes but no light managed to enter his eyes and register in his brain.


    Not even the image of his hands that he was sure that was in front of him could be seen.


    He fumbled around and finally felt Alice''s presence.


    "So you were right here all along? Goddang it, why aren''t you saying anything?" Josephined.


    Alice hung her head low, hiding the crimson blush that spread on her cheeks and the violent heaving of her chest. Even though what she was doing was useless since the two of them couldn''t see anything in this ce anyway.


    She was still paranoid that Joseph may see her face and tease her about it.


    If that happened, then there was a high chance that Joseph would use it against her whenever he had a chance.


    <em>Oh? Alice, do you remember that time when you invited me to grope you? Hahaha, I really never expected that a prideful woman such as you is actually a closet pervert!</em>


    Alice seemed to hear Joseph''s voice saying these words as she furiously shook her head amidst the darkness before finally calming herself down through the use of a facade.


    "Let''s go." She coldly said.


    "A-All right..." Joseph stuttered in his response.


    Alice then turned around and led the way for the two of them. She finally didn''t have to hide her tumultuous heartbeat and her heaving chest as she sucked as much air as she could so that she could calm her furiously beating heart as fast as possible.


    The two never spoke throughout the remainder of the journey. When they finally arrived at the location of the City that the residents of this ce lived in, Alice was astonished to find that she couldn''t detect any signs of life in the area when she was using her technique to navigate.


    There was nothing...


    "Nothing... There''s nothing in here..." Alice whispered in utter disbelief.


    "Nothing? What do you mean nothing


    ? What are you talking about?" Joseph knitted his eyebrows as he asked.


    "No... This can''t be... There is nothing... There''s no signs of life nor any buildings in this ce." Alice reiterated.


    "Huh? What are you talking about? This is no time for such jokes, Alice! If you really wanted to make meugh, then you should''ve told me that joke earlier before we arrived here. We have no time to do that now, we must hide so they won''t discover us prematurely." Joseph scolded.


    Alice shook her head, although Joseph couldn''t see it as she said, "You''ll understand once you ignite a light."


    Silence fell in the area for a few seconds until she let out a shrill shriek due to the sharp pain that she felt in her waist.


    "AH! what are you doing?!" Alice pped his hand away.


    "Oh, it''s you? I''m sorry... I thought that you were possessed by Gelial since you rmended such a ridiculous notion, but since you reacted like that as I expected. I guess you aren''t possessed..."


    "But are you out of your mind? Are you seriously saying that I should ignite a light? You know about the consequences of doing that, right?"


    The Mutated Beasts were attracted to light.


    If Joseph ignited a light and those beasts saw that light.


    They could easily surround and kill them.


    Alice replied, "No, I am not kidding. Really, make a light and you will understand what I am talking about." She paused for a moment and when she didn''t hear any replies, she continued: "You don''t want to? Then, fine. I''ll do it myself."


    She stretched her hand out above and condensed a ball of light above her palms that served as a candle that illuminated everything in the area.


    When the wave of light spread out, Joseph''s eyes widened in shock. Alice was also bbergasted by the scene that she saw even though she knew what wasing.


    The in that Julie and Hulie described as full of buildings and small houses were barren. Julie and Hulie described their city as an undeveloped city that has its own informal economy. However, let alone an economy, there wasn''t even a single trace of life, nor building in the area.


    "Did wee to the wrong ce?" Joseph asked in doubt.


    The conclusion that he reached waspletely normal. How else could you exin the disappearance of several thousands of people in a mere few days? Furthermore, it wasn''t only the people that disappeared. The buildings and the houses that Julie and Hulie described as being made as bricks also couldn''t be found.


    That was why it was perfectly normal for Joseph to doubt that they hade in the right ce.


    But...


    "No... Impossible, Julie and Hulie said that the City was at the center of this ce. Furthermore, this is the only ce where a city could possibly be established." Alice whispered. Her shock could be felt from her tone of voice and her expression was pale as a sheet of paper.


    "Why do you say that this is the only ce that a city could be established?"


    Alice replied, "The surrounding areas are full of jagged, solid rocks which makes it impossible for anyone to make solid foundations for their houses and buildings. That ce is just not suitable for life, even if they are not humans."


    Joseph finally understood her point, but this didn''t make him understand what was going on. He also considered the possibility that the two sisters lied to them, but Joseph couldn''t be satisfied with that answer since there wasn''t really any motive for them to lie.


    In that case, just what is going on?


    Joseph stepped forward and he felt his feet making contact with some ashes that looked and felt more like y.


    "Ashes? Wait, now that I see it. This ce is filled with ashes! Look at that! That''s a mountain of ashes? What the hell is going on? Did everyone in this ce turn into ashes?" Joseph pointed at the distance.


    Alice followed his hand and she was astounded when she saw a mountain of ashes that looked to be about three meters tall.


    A terrifying theory appeared in Alice''s mind as she suppressed her shock and looked around.


    There, a few meters nearby...


    She discovered something horrifying.


    What she discovered were ashes.


    But those ashes had the outline of a person. It felt like that person was cremated on the spot and his or her ashes formed a vague outline of her body as she was being turned into ashes by something or someone.


    "What the fuck..." Joseph let out a curse when he saw Alice''s discovery.


    "Everyone in this ce..."


    "Turned into ashes?"


    "What the fuck is going on?!"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted, his face became pale simr to the color of Alice''s face.


    After a few seconds of deep breaths. He finally recovered as he asked.


    "Are there no living beings in this ce anymore?"


    Alice shook her head, her face was still pale but at least, some color had returned to her cheeks along with herposure.


    "There must be! It is impossible for several thousands of people to just turn into ashes all at the same time without causing a hugemotion. That is unless..." Alice formed another theory in her mind.


    "That is unless?" Joseph signaled for her to continue.


    "That is unless a demon personally did all of these," Alice replied.


    "A demon? Wait, that bastard Gelial?" Joseph said in anger.


    But he felt that Alice''s theory was usible.


    But he just couldn''t understand why Gelial would do something like this.


    From what he heard from Julie and Hulie. The history of this city perpetually hidden from the sun was actually deeper than he had expected at first...


    The city was at least several tens of thousands of years in age, it was even older than the three Kingdoms namely, the Kingdom of Nether, Burning Heaven and Evesting Frost, or Absolute Frost.


    If Gelial had been with them for the entire recorded history of the city, that meant that his schemes were several thousands of years old. In short, why would he deliberately destroy the machinations that he made and carefully established for several thousands of years?


    Joseph couldn''t understand Gelial''s thought process.


    But he also didn''t deny that Gelial should be the one who made all of these.


    After all, he''s the only one that could do something that was as terrifying as this...


    "Wait... If all the residents of this ce are turned into ashes by Gelial... Does that mean that..."


    Joseph stuttered, and his eyes widened in shock when he reached the end of his sentence.


    Alice stared right at him before her pupils constricted in utter shock upon realization of a certain possibility.


    Afterwards, her figure blurred as she dashed towards the distance heading for the direction of a certain ce.


    Joseph followed suit, a grim expression could be seen on his face as he said.


    "Gelial, I swear if you dared to touch their bodies. We will be irreconcble enemies!" He uttered to himself as his figure streaked through the darkness, closely following Alice who was like a beacon in the darkness for him.


    Along the way, Joseph warily scanned the area but he couldn''t feel anymotion.


    "Why are there no Mutated Beastsing for us? Did they also turned into ashes?"


    Joseph clicked his tongue and the anger that he felt for Gelial intensified as he hastened his pace.


    Arriving at the tombstone of the two sisters...


    Alice whispered her apologies before she moved and swiftly dug up the grave.


    "No..." Alice suddenly paused.


    Joseph followed her gaze and even he was astounded by what he saw.


    The bodies of Julie and Hulie had disappeared...


    They had turned into ashes.


    The clothes that they wore when they were buried were still there, but their bodies were now nothing but ashes.


    "Gelial... Not even sparing the dead... You''re utterly despicable!" It was Alice who gritted her teeth and let out a curse amidst her bated breath.


    Joseph embraced her from behind.


    Alice''s body who kept on trembling in anger dramatically calmed down when she felt his embrace.


    Sheid her head on his shoulder, and she felt extremely tired.


    So many things happened in the past few days that Alice didn''t even know how he managed to endure such stress.


    Thankfully, Joseph was here and he served as the panacea that always calmed her whenever she was showing signs of extreme emotions.


    If not for Joseph, then she didn''t know what she would''ve done while facing Gelial.


    "Joseph..."


    "One day... We will kill Gelial," Alice uttered.


    Joseph nodded his head, "Yeah, someday..."


    "We will have him pay for what he had done to Julie and Hulie."


    He stretched his hand out and ruffled Alice''s hair, just how he often ruffled the hairs of the two sisters when they were still alive and well.


    A light smile escaped his lips and although anger could still be seen within his eyes...


    It wasn''t that strong anymore for he decided that he would deal with what could he handle as soon as possible instead of paying attention to Gelial, while he still couldn''t possibly kill him.


    "For now, we must return."


    Joseph decided that he must be even stronger first. And for that to happen, he must safely deliver Alice to the Legendary cksmith Krid and earn his rewards from the ss-Specific Quest.


    Only through that could he be even stronger as soon as possible.<ol><li>Montage of Joseph using his /attachments/436731682268381189/701918618383810620/echolocation.wav</li></ol>

 Chapter 119: A Cruel Step to Ascension

    Chapter 119: A Cruel Step to Ascension


    Inside the Headquarters of P.H Works...


    A middle-aged man d in the cliched white suits of scientists all over the world walked along the hallway. Anguid expression could be seen on his face as he inspected the area.


    Wherever his eyesnded, all the scientists within those rooms would always subconsciously straighten their backs and reveal light smiles on their faces.


    The middle-aged man nodded towards them whenever that happened. Soon, he arrived at the so-called room that he always called the Main Control Room where the meat of NOAH, the Supeputer that managed the world of Victory resided.


    As soon as the automatic doors recognized his authority and opened.


    The two people within the room. A man and a woman turned to look at his direction and smiled.


    "Mar, you are finally here."


    "Wee back, sir Mar."


    The man spoke in aidback tone, while the young woman had a far respectful tone than the former.


    Nevertheless, the two of them were happy to see the middle-aged man.


    "How''s going on, folks? I see, both you are as diligent as always, eh? When will the marriage be?"


    Mar''s smile was kind, but his words were like a punch to the guts of both Ray Gabriel and Elizabeth.


    "Cough... Mar, did youe here just to poke fun at us?"


    Ray coughed before shaking his head in disapproval.


    "Of course not, why would I do that? I came here to report!"


    "Report on my attendance, of course... How else will I be able to get my paycheck if I didn''t report the things that I worked on every month?"


    "Yeah, right... In that case, you can report those things to Elizabeth." Ray gestured to Elizabeth.


    Mar nced at Elizabeth and found that she was staring at him with a death re, "Uh... I don''t think that''s going to work..."


    "Everyone always reaps what they sow, Mar. You better face the consequences of what you have done." Ray gave anguid smile, "I don''t even think that you do not know that I am frequently using Elizabeth''s services for such matters. It really is convenient, you know? She works really fast and before you knew it, the job is already done."


    Mar''s gazended on Elizabeth once again and he found that she was currently staring right at the floor. It was unknown what she was thinking but as one of the great minds behind the creation of Victory. Mar had superior abilities when it came to extrapting from missing data.


    A light smile spread on his lips as he said.


    "Does that mean that Elizabeth''s the best secretary in the world?" His words were direct, yet it contained ambiguity that startled Elizabeth awake as she furtively nced at Ray.


    "But of course, what else do I mean about what I said? You should also get a secretary, Mar! You''re not getting younger, you know?"


    "When ites to trivial things, let them handle it. It really is convenient and it''s a waste that you''re not using thepany''s resources to its limit." Ray lightly shook his head.


    Mar merely smiled, he had achieved what he wanted to achieve so he didn''t humor Ray anymore as he said, "Well anyway, I just came here to report. Afterwards, I''ll get back on my work."


    He walked over to Elizabeth and handed over several dozens of files that Elizabeth received with a wide smile, she wasn''t ring at him anymore for she knew that Mar was the reason why she received praises from Ray.


    Mar winked at her and whispered, "You know that the culture of a man pursuing a woman is sost season, right? You should do it! Pursue him! I think you have a pretty good chance."


    Elizabeth blushed, "What are you saying, sir Mar... Also, if I did that, there will definitely be a conflict of interest that will harm the efficiency of my work."


    Mar stared at her in disapproval, "Look at you acting so pessimistic. There would indeed be a conflict of interest, but that is only true while you are still pursuing him. That conflict will immediately disappear once the two of you became lovers, and also..."


    "Do you really think that no one in thispany apart from me knows about how you adore him?"


    Mar surreptitiously nced at Ray before whispering to Elizabeth once again, "Ray''s such a dense person, you know about that, right? So, if you do not take the first move, someone else will do..."


    "After all, this guy''s even more popr than the United Nations. He really suits the image of a cliched arrogant young master in those novels."


    A light of nostalgia shed in Mar''s eyes when he mentioned the part about cliched arrogant young masters. But afterwards, a teasing look appeared on his wrinkled face as he nudged her and said, "Good luck about it, all right? I''ll be gone to catch some sleep. I''ll be back here next month again."


    "Ray, I''ll be going now. See you next month~" Mar waved with his hand and walked towards the exit.


    "Ah, wait! I still have something to talk to you about." Ray stopped him in his tracks.


    "What is it? That better be a worthwhile talk or else, you mustpensate me for ruining my sleep schedule." Mar turned around and stared at Ray.


    Ray shook his head andughed, "I know that you have such a tight ass, Mar. That is why this story that I will be telling you will definitely be worthwhile. But do you want me to make it short, or should I exin everything to you from the start?"


    "Make it short!" Mar, who was still fighting against his sleep deprivation almost immediately replied.


    "The residents you designed in that dark and shitty ce are all dead, Gelial got a vessel in the human realm, and that guy who got a Mythical ss is now a step away frompleting his Ascension."


    "What?!" Mar''s eyes widened in shock when he heard what Ray had said.


    "You said the residents in that ce are all dead? DEAD?! Are you serious?!" Disbelief was stered on Mar''s face as he said all of these words but Ray couldn''t really me Mar.


    It was because as Mar''s colleague he knew that Mar spent at least a month designing the lore behind that ce and the people inside of it.


    Anyone would be pained to hear that their several weeks of effort was now useless.


    "You think that I''d joke about something like that?" Ray stared at him in doubt.


    What he said made sense so Mar finally believed him.


    But that didn''t reduce the shock that he felt as he approached Ray, and sat in front of him before saying, "Exin to me everything, start from the beginning! No holds barred!" He decisively abandoned his strict sleeping schedule as he asked for an exnation.


    Ray then exined everything to Mar and after several minutes of chit-chat.


    Mar finally understood the situation.


    "I really didn''t expect that Gelial would reap what he sowed that fast... Now, the mechanic that I made about the release of those residents when that time came is now impossible to do since there are no more people to release..."


    "Sigh... But just what is the trigger that made Gelial act this fast?"


    Ray shook his head and sighed, "Mar, didn''t you listen to what I said? I told you that the guy that I messaged you about actually entered that ce and he''s probably the reason why Gelial acted like that!"


    "Ah? Wait, what guy? Sorry, I am quite sleepy, you see... Can you just tell me directly about that guy?" Mar''s drooping eyes snapped open as he said in an apologetic manner.


    "Geez, you should really go and sleep now Mar," Elizabethmented from the side.


    "I don''t need to sleep... What I need are answers... So, tell me!" Mar replied in defiance and Ray couldn''t help butugh.


    "Hahaha, okay, okay... Calm down, all right? Here it goes." Ray decided that he would not tease Mar anymore as he exined everything, including the matter of Abyssal me Master bing the vessel of Gelial, the Demon of Deceit, and Temptation.


    "Really? You are nning on sending a team of psychologists for that yer? Well, that move sounds reasonable but is it really necessary?"


    "A guy that could make a demon interested in him shouldn''t be a guy that has such a weak mental state that he needs a team of psychologists to maintain his sanity..."


    "Maybe a therapist will do." Mar gave his proposal.


    Ray shook his head and said, "That cannot do, Mar. This is the first time that a yer made contact with a demon and even became a demon''s vessel, so we cannot ck when ites to monitoring the mental state of that particr yer. No one wants to get awsuit, you know?"


    "Okay, okay... I understand. But the matter of that guy who got that ss is far important for now, I think... we should pay more attention to him."


    "Yes, that is true. That is why I decided to make this office of mine my living quarters. I''ve got to witness with these own eyes of mine the Ascension of a yer to a true Mythical ss yer!" Ray suddenly became energetic.


    Mar swept his gaze around the room and spotted a mattress on the ground at the corner.


    "Mhm... I''m also interested in that." Mar nodded his head before saying, "So, can I sleep here for now? You''re not going to use that mattress in the next several hours, right? Let me sleep there for a while." Mar''s eyes weren''t even open anymore as he walked towards the mattress at the corner of the room like a zombie.


    But then, Mar suddenly stopped in his tracks.


    "Do you have some noise-canceling headset there that I can use?"


    Ray raised an eyebrow, "I do have, but what are you going to use it for?"


    "Of course, it is to block my ears!"


    "Do you really think that I would want to hear the two of you have se-"


    Bang!


    Before he could evenplete his sentence...


    Elizabeth reappeared behind him like a ghost and chopped at his nape. He immediately dropped unconscious and was princess-carried by Elizabeth towards the mattress.


    Ray was horrified and astonished at the same time.


    "Uh... Elizabeth?"


    "Please forget that something happened." Elizabeth coldly spat.


    "A-All right..."


    Silence reigned in the room until it was shattered by Ray who asked hesitatingly.


    "Say... Elizabeth... do you think that he can sessfully ascend?"


    "Sessfully ascend? Oh, that yer? I think so..." Elizabeth nodded her head.


    "Really?" Ray expressed his doubts.


    "Yes... that final step is indeed too cruel for him, but does he even have a choice? Well, maybe. If you and sir Mar didn''t design that quest to be like that in the first ce." Elizabeth revealed anguid smile at the end of her sentence.


    "Ah... So, the problem is the way that the quest is designed. Sigh... I guess I can only propose some changes in the ss-Specific Quests for the higher sses."


    "No, there''s nothing wrong with the way that the quest is designed. It even makes sense. How can someone achieve greatness so easily, without an even greater sacrifice for that greatness?"


    "On the contrary, the quest wouldn''t make sense if it wasn''t designed like what you and Mar envisioned it to be," Elizabeth said.


    She paused for a moment before she continued,


    "That step may be far too cruel, but it must be done. A Sun that Overlooks Everything cannot be such a mellow man. If after his ascension, he can''t recover from that step, then I guess. It must be fate." Elizabeth heaved a sigh and the room became incredibly silent afterwards.

 Chapter 120: A Cruel Step to Ascension[2]

    Chapter 120: A Cruel Step to Ascension[2]


    "There''s something strange..."


    Joseph uttered as he swept his gaze around the area.


    After several days of hiking, both Alice and Joseph finally managed to return to the surface.


    They found a small hamlet near the borders of the Forbidden Region and the two of them decided to temporarily stay in that vige. The several days of continuous hiking made them look like beggars.


    Since both of them wanted to take a bath, they decided unanimously that they must stay in this small vige first before hiring a carriage that would take them to the Capital City of the Kingdom of Nether, Reinhardt.


    But why would they go to the Capital City, Reinhardt instead of going to the safe house of the Legendary cksmith, Krid?


    Well, that was because they had already visited the safe house.


    When they arrived there, not only they found no one within the area, but there were also traces that Ezreal and Krid both left in a hurry...


    Both Alice and Joseph didn''t know where the two had gone, but they had an idea about where they had gone.


    It should be the Capital City, Reinhardt...


    As for the reason why they went to Reinhardt?


    Alice and Joseph still didn''t know about that, but since they left in a hurry.


    It must be something critical and important.


    But you might be asking...


    If the matters that made Ezreal and Krid leave in such a hurry was of critical importance.


    Why were both Alice and Joseph acting soidback instead of rushing to Reinhardt? Well, it was because while they were on the way to this hamlet, they realized that there was something strange.


    The entire hamlet was wrapped in an oppressive air of uncertainty and gloominess.


    The hawkers whose smiles were frequently wide so that they could attract customers now had somber looks on their faces.


    The soldiers that guarded the vige wore grim expressions as if they were preparing for something.


    Joseph and Alice crudely disguised themselves with scarves and hats as they entered a nearby bar and asked the bartender some questions after ordering their drinks.


    "Any news recently?" Joseph flicked over a silver coin which made the bartender smile.


    "Everything is still the same, sir..." The bartender spoke as he proceeded on making drinks, "Ever since those nobles simultaneously abandoned the Kingdom for the Empire of Truedawn, everything is going downhill. Prices are rising sharply due to unscrupulous merchants taking advantage of this chaos for their own profits, sigh..."


    The bartender passed the drinks to the two as he heaved a sigh.


    "What did you say?"


    "The nobles of the Kingdom of Nether abandoned the Kingdom for the Empire of Truedawn?"


    The bartender was astonished by what he had heard.


    Everyone should''ve heard about those traitorous nobles now, yet why does he look like he doesn''t really know about what happened to the Kingdom of Nether?


    But the bartender possessed sharp eyes that made him maintain his job for two decades.


    He saw the dirty clothes underneath the crude disguises of his customers and he couldn''t help but chuckle.


    Although he didn''t say anything about it as he continued, "Yes, that is true. The nobles of the Kingdom of Nether really did abandon the Kingdom for the Empire of Truedawn..."


    "What they did was really despicable since when they left, not only they brought all their wealth with them, they even brought with them, several tonnes of wheat and other staple crops that they harvested from theirnds..."


    "This caused massive shortages which ultimately became a famine that is currently ravaging the Kingdom..."


    "What the fuck..." Joseph blurted a curse.


    Alice also looked disturbed.


    The nobles of the Kingdom of Nether really did such a despicable move, but Alice couldn''t help but think that the disappearance of the nobles was also connected to the disappearance of her grandfather and Joseph''s friend.


    She wanted to ask a question to the bartender, but Joseph was even faster than her as he said.


    "What about His Majesty? Where is he? Did he not do anything about it, or did he also leave the Kingdom for the Empire?" Joseph asked.


    The bartender shook his head and lifted a bitter smile, "The King had already abandoned us. Right now, the Kingdom of Nether is awless ce. That is why right now, you can see that there are a lot of refugees in this vige..."


    "The women, children, and elderly are evacuating from Reinhardt to the countryside since they are afraid of what will happen in Reinhardt. But their actions are a mere stopgap. Most of the food right now in this vige came from Reinhardt. So, now that there are almost no merchants supplying the vige. We will inevitably run out of food..."


    "The two of you seem to be tourists. On ount of you giving me this silver coin, I will give you a piece of advice. Do not go to Reinhardt for now, that ce is a shithole. Both of you better go to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven or Absolute Frost..."


    The bartender didn''t pay attention to the two anymore as he went his way and entertained other guests of the bar.


    But Joseph and Alice didn''t really care about the fact that he left them.


    They were still shocked by what they had heard.


    "It seems like we can''t stay here any longer..." Joseph broke the silence and whispered.


    Alice nodded her head and said, "Yeah... We will continue our journey today, but we must find a ce to take a bath first..."


    "Oh, a bath? That sounds good, personally. I don''t really mind though, but we must take that bath as fast as possible."


    "Mhm..." Alice replied with a nod.


    Joseph saw that she was somewhat disturbed about something and he couldn''t help but speak.


    "Say, Alice. Do you wanna take a bath together?"


    "What are you talking about?" Alice red at him.


    "Finally, you''re back..." Joseph smiled.


    "I''m back?"


    "Nothing, I just thought that you being like that is better than you being all sad and depressed about something."


    "Mhm? You know what, Joseph? Sometimes, what you are saying doesn''t really make sense." Alice retorted.


    "Then, do you want me to say it directly?" Joseph gave a sly smile.


    Alice frowned upon seeing his cheeky smile but she still nodded her head and said, "Okay, go on. Say it, but be advised that if you are going to tease me again, I''m going to smack you."


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled, "I just want to say that no matter what facade you are using whenever you are talking to me, you will still b beautiful as always."


    Joseph pinched her cheek, prompting Alice to subconsciously lean backward and she almost fell onto the ground since the chair she was sitting on didn''t have a backrest.


    "Oh, watch out!" Joseph stretched his hand out and caught her before she started falling onto the ground, "Damn, that was dangerous. Be careful, all right?" He clicked his tongue andmented, but he was astonished to find that Alice was staring at him with a crimson blush on her cheeks.


    "What? Something like this is enough to make your heartbeat fast?"


    "Tssk, I see you''ve been reading a lot of romance novels, eh?"


    Joseph teased and he received a smack in return.


    "Dang, that hurts..."


    "Then, you should really learn your lesson." Alice rolled her eyes.


    "Well, you know that I am quite dull when ites to that, right? But if you really want me to learn my lesson..." Joseph moved his head closer to her ears as he said, "How about you teach me a lesson?"


    "Personally, that is..." He then blew into her already crimson ears as Alice felt a shiver down her spine which made her subconsciously smack Joseph on his face.


    [You suffered 15,236 damage!]


    <em>Fuck... That was quite a strong smack...</em>


    Joseph fell onto the ground and he elicited theughter of the other customers since they thought that he had been turned down by the woman that he was wooing.


    "Kid, you shouldn''t havee to this ce wearing such a crude disguise! Why are you even wearing something like that in the first ce? Could it be that you are that ugly? You have to disguise yourself so you can snag some girls?"


    "Hahaha!"


    The customersughed out loud.


    "Shut up..."


    But the customers didn''t expect that the woman whom they thought that Joseph was wooing would be the one that would retort to them in anger. Shouldn''t it be Joseph that should be angry with them instead of this woman? Why were the roles suddenly switched?


    The customers became angry.


    They were only trying to help her, yet why was she angry at them? What an ungrateful woman!


    One of them couldn''t help but speak up, "Hey, young miss. Why are you angry at us instead of him? We are here to help you ostracize that guy, we are not your enemies."


    "That is exactly the reason why I am angry!" Alice retorted, but she looked like she didn''t want to exin so Joseph stood up, wrapped his arm around her, and swept his gaze at the customers.


    "That is right! She is angry at you bastards because she is angry for my sake! How dare you try to make her man aughing-stock?"


    "What you guys did is the same as basically digging your own graves!"


    Joseph loudly mocked the customers, but he felt another sharp pain on his waist when he reached the end of his sentence.


    "Damn! That hurts, what is wrong with you, Alice?" Joseph red at Alice.


    But Alice wasn''t intimidated. She red at him and said, "Who''s my man?"


    Joseph stared at her in confusion, "Isn''t that me?"


    Alice clicked her tongue, "Your face really is the thickest part of your body..."


    Joseph chuckled, "How else could I achieve what I have right now without having a thick face?"


    Alice''s lips twitched, "Shameless." Shemented.


    Seeing that Alice wasn''t saying anything anymore...


    Joseph felt somewhat proud that he made her speechless that he couldn''t help but brag some more. The more he bragged about being with Alice, the more embarrassed she became until she couldn''t take it anymore.


    In the end, she walked out of the bar by herself while Joseph was still talking with the other customers regarding their tastes with women and some techniques to bring their panties down.


    After a few minutes of talking with the customers.


    Joseph finally awakened from his reverie and he realized that Alice was long gone beside him.


    He excused himself from the bar and went outside. There, he found Alice standing near the road beside the establishment where the bar was.


    Even though he couldn''t see her expression due to her disguise.


    For Joseph who knew a lot about her, it was easy for him to guess what she was feeling right now.


    "Hey, are you okay?" Joseph asked.


    Alice stared at him but she didn''t reply.


    "We still haven''t eaten anything since morning. How about we go out and find something to eat? Let''s ask about what are the specialty dishes in this ce."


    Alice''s expression brightened when she heard him mention food.


    Joseph couldn''t help but inwardly snicker,<em> This girl is really such a glutton. But oh well, anything that can be solved with food shall be solved with food.</em> He scratched his head and the two of them walked towards the central square of the vige where hawkers were often found.


    Since there were a lot of refugees in this ce from the City of Reinhardt. The small vige that should only have about five hundred people now had several thousands of people. The ce was so crowded that Joseph had to squeeze his way through the crowd.


    "Alice?" Joseph cried out when he realized that Alice had disappeared behind him.


    "I''m here!" He heard a familiar voice nearby and he found Alice just several meters behind him.


    Joseph squeezed his way through the crowd and when he arrived beside her. He held her hand and protected her from the touch of others as they squeezed their way out of the crowd once again.


    <em>Goddamned it, why are there so many people in here?</em>


    Even though Joseph knew the answer to this question.


    He still couldn''t help but feel irritated.


    But you really couldn''t me Joseph for getting angry.


    After all, if you were forced to squeeze your way out of a crowd of people that had probably not taken a shower for several weeks...


    It could be considered a miracle if you managed to remain calm all the way.


    Even Alice who normally had no problems with disgusting things due to her upbringing had a disturbed look on her face.


    If not for the scarf that served like a mask that somewhat filtered the smell lingering in the air. Alice would probably choose to kill herself than to squeeze her way through this smelly crowd.


    "Wheeew... Finally... We''re out. After this, we should probably take a bath or at least, clean ourselves up." Joseph looked as pale as a sheet of paper.


    Alice also looked the same although her expression cleared up when she saw the stalls selling food.


    The two ate for several minutes...


    Afterwards, they stared at the crowd with bitter smiles on their faces.


    "Just how will we go back now that we''re stuck here?" Joseph bitterly smiled.


    Alice also had a frown on her face, but then she suddenly had an idea.


    A blush spread on her cheeks as she discussed this idea with Joseph.


    If not for the fact that they had to leave this ce as soon as possible before sunset.


    She wouldn''t have proposed such an absurd idea.


    "Hooo..." Joseph stared teasingly at Alice, "You really are such a bold woman, my dear Alice."


    "Cough!" Alice choked in her own saliva as she red at Joseph, "if you tease me one more time, then I will have the roles reversed!"


    She gave an ultimatum that terrified Joseph into submission.


    "A-All right... I won''t tease you anymore... Just don''t reverse the roles."


    Alice sweetly smiled seeing the obedient Joseph.


    "Good... Now, let''s prepare what we need."


    The crowd made out of several hundreds of people cramped in a tight space was indeed a scene that could be described as cramped as sardines.


    Furthermore, most of them only moved in one direction, so the minority that wanted to move towards the central square of the vige had no choice but to give up and follow the crowd instead.


    "Fucking hell, stop pushing!"


    "Sorry, sorry... I just want to get to that street."


    "Fine, but don''t do it next time. Since that ce is nearby, you can go cut in line. Come here in front of me!


    The rowdy crowd never stopped moving, but the sheer number of people within the crowd made it look like they were perpetually stuck in traffic made out of humans instead of cars.


    If one looked at such a crowd from the outside, one could easily judge that it was incredibly difficult for someone to squeeze his way out of such a crowd.


    Thatmon-sense stood tall until it was shattered by a scream.


    "MAKE WAY! MAKE WAY! MY WIFE''S ABOUT TO GIVE BIRTH!"


    "I need to get to a mid-wife now!"


    An ear-piercing scream rang out and everyone found a desperate young man carrying his wife that was already bleeding down below. The young man rushed at the crowd and the women within the crowd subconsciously made way for the two of them out of empathy.


    As women themselves, they knew how much of an emergency giving birth was and they knew that it must not be dyed, so all of them stepped aside.


    The children followed the movements of their mothers and the dumbfounded men remained standing there, rooted until they were scolded by their wives.


    "Make way, you dumbo! Someone''s wife is about to give birth, giving birth is an emergency of utmost importance. It must not be dyed else the mother could die along with the baby!"


    The women scolded their husbands and a miraculous scene, reminiscent of how Moses carved a path in the middle of the Red Sea happened.


    But instead of Moses, the one who made such a miraculous scene was Joseph.


    <em>Goddamned it, this is too easy...</em>


    Joseph inwardly snickered, but his face disyed a facade of desperation as he ran straight through the crowd while carrying his wife that was already about to give birth.


    "Hey! That''s not the direction of the birthing center!"


    A woman cried out.


    Joseph''s figure visibly trembled, but he didn''t stop his movements.


    Instead, he ran even faster than before.


    "Those two..."


    The people in the crowd finally realized what happened.


    But then bitter smiles escaped on their lips as they simultaneously uttered.


    "Was there really a need to go so far?"


    They couldn''t understand the thought process of the two.


    But then another desperate voice rang out.


    "Ah, shit! Make way! My wife''s about to give birth!"


    "Shut the fuck up, you don''t even have a wife!" Someone retorted.


    "What? How can you say that I don''t have a wife?" The man angrily replied.


    "You''re a frequent customer of that brothel right there! How could you possibly have a wife when you are visiting a brothel every night? You think that we''re in the Kingdom of Burning Heaven or something?"


    "Oh, right... I forgot..." The man dejectedly sighed...

 Chapter 121: A Cruel Step to Ascension[3]

    Chapter 121: A Cruel Step to Ascension[3]


    "Alice, I never thought that you had such an ingenious side in you."


    When the two of them finally disappeared from the eyes of everyone. They stopped in an unassuming alleyway as Joseph ced Alice back on the ground and praised her honestly.


    "It seems like you are really underestimating me. I grew up with an excellent cksmith as my father, how could I not be creative enough to think of a n like that?" Alice stared at Joseph in disdain.


    Joseph didn''t mind her attitude. He knew that Alice would always be like this whenever she was irritated. Furthermore, they were on a race against time and had no time to waste doing unnecessary things so, Joseph wasn''t mad at her for being like this.


    Instead, he handed over a handkerchief and said.


    "Wipe yourself down with this."


    Alicepiled.


    She took the handkerchief and wiped the <em>blood</em> running down her knees.


    "What did you think about my n?" Suddenly, she asked.


    Her voice was nonchnt and not any emotions could be felt from it.


    "That n of yours? Hahaha, it really was too good. I mean, I can still even remember the looks on their faces when they saw me carrying you whilst you were bleeding. Damn, that was too easy. But say, I didn''t really expect that the people in this ce would be that kind..."


    Alice was happy since Joseph praised her for the n that she made. But she was intrigued by what she heard at the end of his sentence so she asked, "Kind? Do you really think that the people in here, right now, in the middle of a crisis like this are kind?"


    Joseph shook his head, "Nope... That is not even my point, Alice. What I am saying is that even though they are in the middle of a crisis and they are now doing everything that they can do to survive. Say, stealing from other people and murder. I can still see that they still feel empathy towards those that are on the same boat as them..."


    "In my opinion, suchplex emotions really make me feel that they are truly human."


    A smile escaped his lips.


    Alice didn''t understand what he was talking about, but since he looked like he was happy.


    She didn''t disagree on what he had said as she nodded her head and replied, "Is that so? Then, good for you. As for me, even though they disyed empathy to us earlier, I don''t think that I''ll be able to see them as kind."


    Joseph shook his head in disapproval, "Dear, Alice. There''s a well-known adage called, never judge a book by its cover... Who knows? Even if they look shabby, you can''t just say that just because they look like that means that they would steal and kill?"


    "I mean, sometimes..."


    "Those that are well-dressedmit the most crimes."


    Alice nodded her head, "That''s a sound argument. But statistically, people that live in the slums oftenmit crimes."


    "Statistically? Don''t use a word like that when arguing about something like this, Alice..."


    "The only reason why the people of the slums are disadvantaged whenever that word is used is that the well-dressed and rich people who oftenmit crimes are not really brought into justice so there won''t be any crimes to record that would make them prevalent in such statistics."


    Alice lightly smiled, a look of enlightenment could be seen on her face as she said, "Fair enough..."


    Joseph stared at her and said, "I hope you won''t be mad that I disapproved of what you said that those in the slumsmit more crimes than those who are well-dressed and rich. I just can''t stand people who judge others based on what they look."


    Alice shook her head and replied, "It''s fine... I''m not even mad. I''m impressed. I''m surprised that someone like you understands the people living in ces like this more than me."


    Joseph bitterly smiled, "Well, perhaps. It should be because there was a time that I was like them before."


    Alice stared at him in surprise, "Really? You lived in the slums before?"


    Joseph shook his head, "Nope, not exactly. But anyway, it''s a long story. Let''s just continue this talkter in the carriage after we left this ce."


    Alice agreed, "Right... But before we leave, we must take a bath."


    Joseph didn''t have any objections.


    Half an hourter, the two exited an establishment refreshed and looking good.


    The two of them came out of the building at the same time and Joseph couldn''t help but stare at Alice and ask her in doubt when he saw how beautiful she became.


    "Who are you?"


    Alice knitted her eyebrows, "Rude..."


    "It''s me, Alice..."


    Joseph staggered, he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. But after connecting the dots, everything suddenly made sense. The Alice that he rescued from the hands of the Kingdom of Nether looked like she hadn''t taken a shower for several months consecutively.


    Her clothes back then looked like a washed-out cum rag, and her blonde hair looked darkened and muddy. Of course, she was still beautiful, since mud could never hide the brilliance of a diamond.


    However, right now. Joseph realized that he had underestimated Alice''s beauty.


    The Alice that stood before him right now looked far beautiful than she was earlier. Her blonde hair that looked dark and muddy before the shower now looked dazzling and beautiful than ever before.


    In fact, her hair looked like it wasn''t even blonde anymore. Every strand of her hair looked like it was made out of gold and her brown eyes that looked turbid before now shone in an energetic light. It wasn''t an exaggeration to say that Alice was a whole new woman than before.


    This was why Joseph doubted if what he was seeing was Alice or a perfectly made doppelganger.


    "Why are you staring at me like you are staring at a ghost?" Alice asked.


    Joseph stretched his hand out and pinched her cheeks.


    "Hieek! What are you doing! Take your hands off me!" Alice fumbled in shock when she realized that Joseph held her cheeks. She protested and struggled, but then Joseph suddenly stretched her cheeks out as she cried out in pain.


    "Ouch! That hurts, hey! Are you listening? Take your hands off me! It''s really me, Alice!" Alice realized that Joseph must be in doubt whether she was the real Alice or if she was an imposter made by the Demon of Deceit and Temptation, Gelial.


    Joseph finally stopped on pinching her cheeks as he moved both of her hands near his nose and sniffed...


    "This smell... You really are Alice." A smile of relief appeared on his face, but he immediately ducked his head when he saw a palming his way.


    It was Alice''s palm that was about to p his face.


    But thanks to his quick thinking. He managed to dodge the p by a hair''s breadth.


    "Why did you dodge?!"


    "Why wouldn''t I dodge?" Joseph raised an eyebrow, but then Alice pinched his cheeks hard.


    "Just what are you doing?"


    Alice slyly smiled, "I''m just trying to make sure that you''re indeed Joseph and not Gelial!"


    She cried out and then pinched Joseph''s cheeks hard.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted when a painparable to his balls getting stuck in his zippers assaulted both of his cheeks. He hadpletely forgotten about the fact that Alice''s level was several dozens higher than him, so it was clear that Alice possessed a strength that was far stronger than him.


    In short, Alice''s pinching was such a painful experience for him that he iled around like he was a pig being butchered.


    The employees within the establishment behind them walked out.


    One of them that looked like the manager of the establishment frowned and scolded.


    "Both of you! Do that public disy of affection somewhere else! You are affecting the flow of my business!"


    Alice awakened from their trance and Joseph sighed in relief. But afterwards, he stared at the manager in pity. It was because he knew how unreasonable Alice could be whenever she was angry.


    "Public disy of affection...?" Alice whispered.


    Her voice was so small that it wasparable to a mosquito''s droning.


    "Yes, may I ask the two of you to get a room instead of doing all of these in front of our building?"


    "Get a room..." Alice visibly trembled as she whispered once again.


    <em>Oh, boy... Why would you do that, Ma''am... I know that you may be bitter against couples, but to say something like that against Alice just sounds like you are trying to sign your own death warrant.</em>


    <em>Shit, I''ll prepare to bolt out of here.</em>


    Joseph subconsciously bent his knees and prepared to run if everything escted quickly as he expected.


    But contrary to his expectations...


    "I-I''m sorry... I... No, we... We will go away now."


    ... Instead of acting out in anger...


    Alice sincerely apologized and dragged Joseph away from the ce.


    After a few minutes of walking.


    Joseph stared at Alice in doubt before cing the back of his right hand on her forehead.


    "What are you doing again?" Alice said in annoyance.


    "I''m just checking if you have a fever or something," Joseph replied.


    "A fever? What a joke, a Sword Adept can never have any illnesses." Alice retorted.


    "A Sword Adept? What is that?"


    Alice stared at him and said, "I''ll exin to youter in the carriage. Meanwhile, exin to me why you are checking if I have a fever. Do you think that there''s something abnormal to me?" Alice asked him in doubt.


    Even though Joseph was weaker than her right now.


    She still believed in his words not only because she trusted him.


    But because he was the Grand Duelist of the current generation.


    She reckoned that his diagnosis would be far more urate than the diagnosis of doctors due to the fact that she was using the Divine Art of the Grand Duelist.


    After all, no one in this world could possibly know more about the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship than the Grand Duelist himself.


    Knowing that she had attempted to breakthrough from the Realm of Sword Adepts into the ranks of Sword Connoisseurs.


    Alice was concerned if she had acquired internal wounds in her body after that failed breakthrough attempt.


    Joseph stared at her for a moment before he said, "Interesting, I heard that Senior Krid was a Sword Connoisseur before he became a Legendary cksmith. Are Sword Connoisseurs really that strong?"


    Alice stared at him and frowned, "Of course! Let me tell you this... Sword Connoisseurs have certain abilities that make them far stronger than Sword Adepts. Say for example..."


    A light smile of relief escaped Joseph''s lips as he stared at Alice who was rambling about the difference between Sword Adepts and Sword Connoisseurs. Thankfully, he managed to change the topic in the nick of time before Alice could realize that the topic had already changed.


    After all, if Joseph was forced to answer as to why he checked if Alice had a fever or not.


    He was sure that the two of them would argue once again.


    Fortunately, he evaded that scenario so the two of them were back to normal once again.


    In fact, Alice even looked like she was having fun as she told Joseph about how hard it was to master the sword.


    The two continued on their talk until they had arrived at the front gates of the hamlet. With the sheer number of people escaping from Capital City, Reinhardt. The front gates of the small vige had several dozens of carriages that had just arrived from Reinhardt.


    The carriages were filled with tired people looking to rest and stay for the day.


    But most of them were here for an interlude that would let them buy some food and water that would help them on their journey to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven, just behind the region known as the Forbidden Region.


    Joseph swept his gaze around the area and he realized that most people were staring at them.


    Particrly, at Alice...


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at Alice which elicited a response from thetter as she asked...


    "What is wrong?"


    Joseph sighed and replied, "Don''t you feel them staring at you the whole time? Are you not ufortable at all?"


    Alice shook her head, "Not really. I am used to people staring at me."


    "I see... That is definitely a bullet-proof argument. But if I y Devil''s Advocate, I say... What do you do to those people that try to hit you up instead of just staring from a distance?" Joseph probed.


    Alice revealed an ambiguous smile.


    Afterwards, she made a quick nce at Joseph''s crotch and her smile transformed into an evil one.


    "Uh..."


    Joseph asked in nervousness.


    "Do you get it?" Alice said.


    "Mhm..." Joseph timidly nodded.


    The banter ended as fast as it happened as the two proceeded to walk towards a nearby carriage.


    "Sir, are your services avable for now? Can we ask you to deliver the two of us to Reinhardt?"


    The man who was currently tending to his horse raised his head and smiled in appreciation at Joseph. But when he processed what Joseph had said.


    He was astounded as he replied, "To Reinhardt? Are you serious?"


    Joseph nodded his head.


    "Yes, I am. I can pay at least one Gold Coin if you help us."


    The man''s expression turned serious, "Listen here, my friend. Reinhardt right now is in turmoil thanks to those selfish bastards simultaneously betraying the country for the Empire..."


    "Something like that shouldn''t really affect the operations of us coachmen, but due to the turmoil. The residents are now turning into bandits..."


    "In other words, going to that city alone poses such a huge security risk which will make this trip not worth it. A gold coin is not really enough for m-"


    "Okay, okay... I get it, you just want more money, right?"


    Joseph stopped the man from talking any further.


    He took out a pouch filled with gold coins from his chest pocket and handed it over to the coachman.


    The coachman''s eyes widened in shock when he felt how heavy the pouch was.


    But his expression turned serious once again as he said, "With how much money you are sacrificing just to go there, I guess you must be in a hurry, right?"


    Joseph was astonished by what he heard.


    But since it was retarded to lie towards someone that would help them arrive at Reinhardt.


    He didn''t deny what the man had said as he replied, "Yes, that is right. We are in a hurry."


    The man lightly smiled, "In that case, then let''s go." He gestured towards the carriage.


    "Ladies first." Joseph gestured at Alice and thetter lightly smiled as she went inside the carriage.


    Joseph followed suit and he didn''t notice that just as he entered...


    The coachman wore an ambiguous smile on his lips as he whispered to himself.


    "It looks like it''ll be a big haul this time."


    He stared at the pouch filled with gold coins on his palm before cing it in his pocket and maneuvering the carriage towards the direction of Reinhardt.

 Chapter 122: A Cruel Step to Ascension[4]

    Chapter 122: A Cruel Step to Ascension[4]


    "Kayn... I really appreciate that you are here to help us this time."


    Inside an underground base somewhere near Reinhardt. A masculine voice could be heard echoing through the narrow passageway of the underground base.


    Several figures could be seen within the cave and one of them was Kayn along with his brothers.


    Kayn wore a bitter smile on his face as he replied to the man who praised him.


    "Jeric... I heard that you got yourself in trouble so I came here to help you, but it looks like that trouble isn''t really even a problem in the first ce. You just need more members in this bandit group of yours, right? I''m sorry, but I''m not really up to something like that anymore..."


    "Kayn, what are you talking about? Are you saying that you want to change? What a joke... Do you really think that all of you can change just because y''all want to change? Always remember, once a bandit, always a bandit! You are here forever and you can never escape this profession!"


    Kayn raised an eyebrow, "Jeric... If you had use here just to mock us, then spare us all these farce."


    Kayn''s brothers'' red at Jeric. It was clear that they were angry at what Jeric had said.


    Jeric was taken aback, "No, you are misunderstanding something, Kayn... It is never my intention to mock all of you."


    "Then, why are you saying that you don''t think that we can change? That we will be bandits, forever?" Kayn asked.


    Jeric shook his head, "That was just a misunderstanding, all right? I just said those words out of impulse. I''m sorry."


    He bowed his head and looked like he was indeed repenting due to his burst of emotions.


    Kayn made a sidelong nce at his brothers for a moment before he sighed. "Okay, fine... But just what is the reason why you need all of us here? Also, if you want to keep us here then you better not do anything against what I had already said..."


    "In other words, while we are in here. All of your members, including you and us, shall notmit any banditry...


    "You and your members cannot steal, pige, nor kill and rape anyone. If that happened, then consider our cooperative rtionship as over... As for the reason why you summoned us here, if it is rted to any banditry, then count us out."


    Kayn gave Jeric and ultimatum.


    Jeric was astonished for a moment as he hung his head low and thought to himself.


    But after a few moments of hesitation, he raised his head up and nodded, "It''s fine! We will obey what you want us to do, but you must help us when we need you!"


    Kayn lightly smiled, "Of course... Isn''t that the reason why we are even here in the first ce?"


    Jeric was overjoyed by the answer that he heard.


    But before he could even say anything.


    Kayn had already asked him a question.


    "Can you answer me now? Just what is the reason why you summoned us here?"


    Jeric smiled, "Well, it is connected to the turmoil happening right now in Reinhardt. Our goals this time is to not destroy, kill, nor vite anybody. In fact, our goals are far from that!"


    Kayn was intrigued by what he heard.


    He made a sidelong nce at his brothers and they all nodded in tacit understanding.


    The person whom they considered as their Master was connected to the disciple of a Legendary cksmith. And if those rumors were right then he will certainly need their help when that time came. In other words, if Kayn and his brothers participated in this mission.


    It would be like hitting two birds with one stone.


    It was a win-win situation.


    Jeric gave a detailed exnation and after hearing all of it.


    Kayn and his brothers were overjoyed.


    They looked like they couldn''t even suppress their excitement anymore as they walked towards the table and started brainstorming some details about their ns.


    ...


    Joseph and Alice sat beside each other inside the carriage. Apart from the two of them, there weren''t any passengers within the carriage.


    After all, with how much money Joseph paid, it was normal for the two of them to be given priority and Joseph would be mad if the coachman fetched other people with how much he paid.


    Without the presence of others, you''d think that the two would feelfortable. But it was the opposite. Especially Alice who sat straight like a fortress. Her emotions couldn''t be seen on her face due to her cool facade, but it was pretty obvious for Joseph who couldn''t help butment.


    "Alice, if you are that nervous to sit beside me then you could''ve sat over there."


    Joseph gestured at the opposite side.


    Alice turned to look at him and red, "Who says I''m nervous... I''m n-"


    "Okay, okay. All right, if you say that you are not nervous then who am I to say that you are? I just want to tell you that if you can''t rx sitting beside me then you can sit on the opposite side."


    Joseph couldn''t help but roll his eyes at Alice.


    The two of them slept on the same bed for several weeks, why was she feeling embarrassed about sitting beside him?


    He really couldn''t understand how a woman''s thought process worked.


    Joseph shrugged and decided to not bother about her anymore as he opened up his Main Menu.


    He entered the inte through the use of the integrated browser, and looked-up for some information about the current happenings within the Capital City of the Kingdom of Nether, Reinhardt.


    A simple search was all it took and Joseph found countless results.


    But the most shocking one was an article titled, <em>A Dungeon in the Royal Pce?</em>


    The title alone served as enough bait for Joseph to click it, and the content that he saw thoroughly astonished him.


    At first, he thought that it was some kind of a clickbait article, but when he saw the information within the article and the reliable sources that it cited.


    Joseph was thoroughly shaken.


    The article stated that when the news about the nobles leaving the Kingdom for the Empire and the disappearance of the King, Oliver Oligarch exploded.


    The Legendary cksmith Krid and an aplice who was also among the people within the wanted list of the Kingdom appeared within the Royal Pce.


    No one managed to stop them, not even the dedicated Knights of the Kingdom as they went inside and never came out.


    Their motives for going into the Royal Pce was unknown, but when the two of them entered the Royal Pce.


    It transformed into some kind of a dungeon that had monsters whose levels were at least Level 200.


    It has to be known that monsters with levels like these were scarce and were often located in dangerous areas that no one, in the current stage of the game would dare to visit.


    However, right now.


    Within the Royal Pce...


    Monsters with these levels were present, and not only that but they were also quite weak!


    Their levels were at least Level 200, but everyone that fought them reckoned that their strength was only at the Level 150s at best!


    In other words, if a Level 150 yer defeated them all, not only they would defeat them without exerting that much effort but they would gain several times more Experience Points than they would due to the high levels of these monsters!


    The dungeon within the Royal Pce was a paradise for those that wanted to level themselves up as much as possible in the shortest time possible. When the three guilds realized this fact, they temporarily made an alliance due to the fact that they had amon goal.


    Thankfully, the design of the Royal Pce enabled them to have equal shares ofnd where they could dere as their territory for farming.


    The Crimson Guild took the Main Courtyard as their base of operations. The Knights of Justice took the Eastern Courtyard for themselves, while Dark me took the Western Courtyard and dered it as their territory.


    Without those arrogant nobles to stop them, these guilds who were the strongest within the Kingdom of Nether were currently enjoying the blessing of those incredibly weak, yet high-leveled monsters.


    But it was said that within the Royal Pce itself, there was a BOSS that was so strong, those that encountered it didn''t even manage to take a glimpse of what it looked like. They were immediately annihted the moment they step foot within the Royal Pce.


    Of course, the three guilds didn''t believe that information at first. But after suffering countless casualties with their guild leaders dying for several dozens of times.


    The three guilds decided that it was better for them to seal the Royal Pce and just farm the monsters in the Courtyard that they imed.


    After all, if given the choice...


    No one would willingly court their own death.


    The three guilds announced that they would forbid any entry into the Royal Pce, but they never disclosed any reason as to why they had done such a thing.


    Their silence made everyone specte and all sorts of rumors were made such as the King himself being the BOSS of the Royal Pce and that there were countless treasures within it.


    Of course, the three guilds kept their silence and never revealed anything no matter how much people asked them.


    It was even reported that the strongest guilds of the Kingdom of Absolute Frost or Evesting Frost, and the guilds within the Kingdom of Burning Heaven reportedly contacted the three guilds of the Kingdom of Nether to ask for some information about the Royal Pce.


    They were even willing to pay for such information but the three guilds refused.


    Their move angered the guilds of the two Kingdom and right now, with their elite members.


    They were rushing towards the Kingdom of Nether to see for themselves about just what was really going on within the Royal Pce of the Kingdom of Nether.


    The article ended and Joseph awakened from his trance.


    A frown could be seen on his face as he thought.


    <em>Why would the three guilds deliberately withhold information about the Royal Pce when they knew that they would acquire the ire of those strong guilds from the two other kingdoms? </em>


    <em>Could it be that they had done such a move because they knew that the guilds from those kingdoms would undoubtedly visit, regardless if they told them the truth or not?</em>


    <em>Something like that is possible, but if I y Devil''s Advocate. What if the three guilds purposely didn''t give those guilds any information about the Royal Pce so that they would be arrogant on challenging the Royal Pce and end up sacrificing all of their members to that mysterious BOSS?</em>


    <em>That should also be possible, but I don''t think that the guilds from the other kingdoms are stupid. They must know about how many times the Crimson Guild, Knights of Justice, and Dark me died within the Royal Pce. Knowing that fact, it was impossible for them to be careless against something that could kill those three guilds.</em>


    <em>But what if the three guilds purposely created such a scenario? Ahhh... This is so annoying to think about, I think my head''s going to burst!</em>


    Joseph felt dizzy thinking about the possible ns of the three guilds that he furiously shook his head and erased those thoughts from his head.


    The only reason why he was intrigued about the ns of the three guilds was that they were standing in Joseph and Alice''s way to Krid and Ezreal.


    There was a huge chance that they would be an obstacle to the path of the two, and that was the reason why Joseph tried on deducing their ns ahead of time.


    But sadly, Joseph wasn''t omniscient.


    There was a limit to how much information you could extrapte from missing data.


    Joseph closed his Main Menu and he made a sidelong nce at Alice.


    The young maiden finally calmed down. She had her eyes closed and she looked like she was in the middle of meditation for her breathing was measured and calm.


    But when Joseph''s gazended on her.


    Her eyes snapped open...


    Startling Joseph who couldn''t help but whisper in shock.


    "Damn, you almost gave me a heart attack."


    Alice didn''t mind what he had said as she asked, "What''s wrong? Are we there, yet?"


    Joseph couldn''t help but chuckle, "Does meditating distort time and space?"


    "Reinhardt is at least half a day''s worth of travel using the shortest route possible from here and with our current speed, It''ll still take us about three hours of travel time before we could arrive there. Just calm down, all right? I feel like you are too excited."


    Alicezily stared at him before she said, "Can you really me me for being too excited, I just miss grandpa so much."


    Joseph stretched his hand out and ruffled her hair, "I know, I understand what you are feeling. But you need to calm down and don''t think about it for now. Whenever you are impatient about something, time will feel like it''s moving slower than normal."


    Alice nodded her head, she understood what Joseph had said as sheughed, "Yeah, I wonder why. Why is it that when we are waiting for something, time seems to flow slower than we think it should?"


    Joseph shrugged, "I don''t know, maybe some ck magic or some shit."


    Alice frowned, "ck Magic? Why would ck magic be rted to time? And also, don''t use such crude words."


    Joseph felt helpless, "Why are you taking everything that I say, literally? I''m just making a metaphor."


    Alice''s frown deepened, "A metaphor? What''s that?"


    Joseph facepalmed.


    He forgot that the education system in this world was so underdeveloped that most people here still don''t know about the concept of metaphors, even though they were frequently using it.


    Joseph had no intention of exining so he changed the topic as he said, "You know what, Alice. I wonder what will Senior Krid''s reaction be like when he sees you staring at me like a man."


    He teased and he expected her to be angry.


    But what he got in return was a chuckle as Alice replied, "I have always looked at you as a man. What? Do you want me to look at you as a woman instead? That''s kind of weird, but if that is what you want and you swing both ways, I don''t really care...."


    She even winked at the end of her sentence which made Joseph almost cough a mouthful of blood.


    A bitter smile escaped on his lips when he realized that he had been outsmarted.


    But before he could even speak any further.


    The carriage suddenly stopped...


    "NO PLEASE! PLEASE SPARE ME!!! AAAHHH!!!"


    A scream of desperation rang out in front of the carriage.


    It came from the coachman.


    His scream was abruptly cut short followed by a dull thud.


    Afterwards, another voice rang out from outside the carriage.


    "The two of you inside the carriage,e out now or else we will force our way in!"


    Alice and Joseph promptly came out of the carriage with frowns on their faces.


    A bloody scene was revealed in front of them.


    The coachman was lying face down on the ground, profusely bleeding.


    "Surrender all your valuables or die!"


    A man fiercely pointed at them.

 Chapter 123: A Cruel Step to Ascension[5]

    Chapter 123: A Cruel Step to Ascension[5]


    Kayn and his brothers sat across each other in front of a table.


    "Sigh... I''m deeply sorry about this, y''all..."


    Kayn handed over several pitches of beers towards his brothers.


    "Brother, you do not have to apologize to us. You do know that we have nothing to do, right? And if what that bastard Jeric had said was true, we will indeed strike it rich if we seeded."


    A man who sat directly across from Kayn replied with a light smile on his face.


    The man looked thin as if he was malnourished, but no one within this group of friends, including Kayn, dared to underestimate this man. The reason was that he was the second strongest man in this group, second only to Kayn who was a yer.


    Everyone respected his opinion so when he spoke, all of them nodded their heads in agreement.


    But their reaction made Kayn shook his head helplessly as he said, "That is not what I am talking about, Alpha. I am apologizing since I made all of you put up with Jeric''s farce of being a member of a bandit group once again. Didn''t we say that we won''t be bandits ever again?"


    The men paused for a moment before another man spoke up. This time, it was a man wearing thin sses.


    Just a single look at him would make anyone think that he was a man of intellect and culture.


    And you were right...


    Out of everyone in this group, he was the strategist.


    He could make quick decisions on the fly, though his weakness was that he was a scaredy-cat.


    "What you said is right, Kayn. But we will only be going to be bandits in-name. We won''t really be one, so there really is no problem."


    "You do not have to apologize. So long as Jeric doesn''t do any banditry work while we are in his group, there will be no problems at all." He adjusted his sses with his middle and index finger, looking quite dignified.


    Kayn nced at Charlie, the man who just spoke and a smile lifted on his lips.


    Afterwards, he nced at the remaining men who were already chugging their drinks.


    "What do you think? Roger, Foxtrot, Oscar, Bravo?"


    The men downed their drinks in one go.


    Roger was the first one to respond as he said with a smile, "I agree with them."


    Then, Foxtrot replied, "Me too..."


    Also, Oscar: "As long as the bottom-line is not crossed."


    Thenstly, Bravo: "I don''t really care, as long as we won''t be harmed."


    Kayn revealed a smile and determination shed across his eyes. Since they had decided that they wouldn''t bother about this issue anymore. Why would Kayn ask more questions that could possibly ruin the mood?


    The fact that they were here right now, in this room, together, was enough for them to be happy as theyughed out loud and simultaneously chugged their drinks.


    The group basked in such a celebratory air until Jeric returned with the map of the Royal Pce and its vicinity.


    "Interesting... This is such a detailed map, how did you get this?" Kayn praised Jeric with a smile.


    Jeric shook his head and replied, "You''re wasting your praise to me, brother. I didn''t do anything significant with the production of this map. If anything, your praise should go to one of my brothers instead of me."


    He then made a sidelong nce at the man standing behind him who had his head slightly bowed down as a sign of respect.


    Kayn was astonished that Jeric didn''t ept his praise but he was happy since Jeric redirected the praise towards one of his subordinates. In other words, it meant that he treated his men like he would treat his friends. He would admonish mistakes, while praised those that deserved praise.


    This was a man that anyone could appreciate. Kayn wasn''t an exception to this as he nodded his head and turned to look at the man standing behind Jeric.


    "To be able to make such a map of a tightly-secured ce..."


    "It seems like you are quite talented in the realm of reconnaissance."


    "You''re overly praising me, sir." The man bowed his head as thanks. He was genuinely happy that he received praise from the man whom they would be depending on in this operation.


    He nced at his leader, Jeric and he couldn''t help but pray for Jeric''s well-being to the Divine Goddess Rhinna, the Goddess whom he worshipped.


    "Reprimanding those who must be reprimanded and rewarding those who deserve rewards. It seems like you have really be such a good man, Jeric." Kayn also gave his praises to Jeric.


    Jericughed it off and swiftly changed the topic: "That''s how every organization should work... Uh, by the way. Where is that Charlie? We need his smarts so we can draft up a n."


    "I''m right here..."


    Right after Jericpleted his sentence, a voice rang from behind Kayn, and Charlie, who was in the middle of adjusting his thin-framed sses appeared in the midst.


    "Oh, there you are..." Jeric handed over the map that he was holding to Charlier, but when Charlie received it. He couldn''t help but ask, "Charlie... Are you using those sses because you are farsighted or nearsighted?"


    Charlie turned to look at him and smiled, "No..."


    "Then, why are you wearing sses?"


    Charlie''s smile deepened.


    He titled his head to the skies and held his sses in the middle using his index and middle finger as he coolly said, "That is such a foolish question."


    "Of course, it is because..."


    "It looks cool."


    The air thickened and everyone froze in ce.


    A few secondster, Charlie eximed in a shrill voice: "Fuck yes! I finally managed to say one of the phrases within my one hundred phrases to say before I die list!" He then leaped into the air and punched upwards with his fists.


    Kayn and his brothers facepalmed.


    Jeric''s lips repeatedly twitched.


    He made a sidelong nce at Kayn and found that thetter''s entire body was cringing for Kayn was reminded of his dark and embarrassing past as an <em>otaku</em>and <em>chuuni</em> due to Charlie''s mannerisms.


    Of course, he knew what kind of a person Charlie was.


    But he still couldn''t stop himself from cringing.


    He covered his face with his palm in order to hide his rapidly twitching face.


    Jeric hurriedly changed the topic: "Now that I think about it, Kayn. You told me earlier that you and your brother are serving someone else?" His voice was filled with an ambiguous yet berating tone.


    Kayn looked at him and gave anguid smile, "You don''t have to worry about it, Jeric. Knowing our history with those goddamned nobles, do you really think that we can ally ourselves with them? We would rather die than be a dog of some noble!" He fiercely dered.


    "It''s good that something like that is your mindset, I don''t really want any conflict of interest. But do you mind if I ask, Kayn?"


    Jeric raised his head and stared directly into Kayn''s eyes.


    Kayn was astonished for a moment but he quickly replied, "What is it that you want to know?"


    Jeric revealed a smile, "Will your master be interested in the riches that we are about to obtain?"


    Kayn''s pupils constricted when he heard the question. He wanted to lie to him at first, but since they had a pretty good and long rtionship with each other back then. He found it difficult for him to lie to his good friend as he revealed a bitter smile and replied.


    "Honestly, I don''t really know the answer to that question."


    "Just tell me what you think." Jeric insisted.


    Kayn made a sidelong nce at his brothers and when he saw them nodding their heads.


    Kayn turned his gaze back to Jeric and replied, "I don''t think that he will be interested in it."


    Jeric''s eyebrow lifted, at first. He thought that Kayn must be lying. How could anyone not be interested in those riches that they were about to acquire? Only those that were richer than the Kingdom of Nether itself could possibly avoid such a temptation!


    Kayn saw the change in Jeric''s expression and he hurriedly exined, "I am telling you the truth. My master is with that disciple of the Legendary cksmith Krid, I don''t think that someone like him with such an extravagant asset would feel the need to partake on such riches."


    He shook his head at the end of his sentence.


    But his exnation didn''t have the effect that he expected.


    Why?


    Well, it was because it further deepened Jeric''s astonishment as his eyes widened in shock before he said, "Your master is connected to that Legendary cksmith, Krid? If you are not lying then he would really not be interested in those treasures!"


    "I reckon that the Legend Krid alone could make them as if he was making instant noodles..."


    Jeric made an analogy that elicited a response from Kayn, "Instant noodles? You know about instant noodles?"


    Jeric chuckled, "Yeah, it''s something that''s recently popr among themoners at the Kingdom of Burning Heaven, a meal can be made with only boiling water and it also has a really long shelf life..."


    "Furthermore, it''s cheap and delicious so, right now. It''s really popr."


    "It''s now even one of my favorite dishes."


    Kayn couldn''t help but shook his head with a smile.


    Of course, he knew what Instant Noodles are!


    He was just astonished that an Artificial Intelligence within the world of Victory knew about it.


    Kayn waspletely sure that the arrival of instant noodles in the world of Victory was instigated by a fellow yer.


    But does this mean that one could invent things from the outside world and sell it here in Victory to be rich?


    How did I not think of this idea before?


    Kayn fell into deep contemtion. But when he realized that he had derailed from his train of thought earlier. He awakened from his reverie and ced the matter about the instant noodles into the deep recesses of his brain.


    For now...


    What''s more, important was to discuss their ns on taking those treasures away.


    But before Kayn could ask any questions. A man, clearly belonging from the bandit group that Jeric made, barged in into the room and eximed.


    "Boss! There''s a problem!"


    ...


    "Surrender our valuables or die? What a bold deration, are you sure that you want us to do that?"


    Alice raised her head and stared coldly at the bandit whose body was riddled with all sorts of tattoos. That bandit looked to be the leader of them all due to his strong stature.


    Yes, he looked strong, but Joseph was confident that Alice could easily kill him with a slice of a dried tree branch.


    Joseph felt iparably rx and anguid smile could be seen on his face.


    He turned to look at the coachman whoid lifelessly on the ground.


    He swept his gaze in the surroundings and proceeded to open up his Main Menu and selected the icon with the name of [Map].


    He opened it up and when he saw where he was right now, Joseph''snguid smile became even more rxed as he turned to look at the bandit that screamed at them and said.


    "You want us to surrender our valuables? What will happen if we don''t?"


    Alice made a sidelong nce at Joseph and found an incredibly familiar look on his face.


    Such a look only appeared whenever he was teasing her!


    In other words, Joseph was in a yful mood as he addressed the bandit.


    But just what was the reason?


    Alice couldn''t understand what was going on inside Joseph''s mind right now.


    But seeing that he wasn''t panicking at all. How could she panic?


    The prideful Alice would never let herself panic in such a trivial thing!


    Alice assumed a facade and straightened her back. Looking more imposing than before.


    Joseph almost chuckled out loud when he saw her acting like him. If they weren''t in a strange situation right now then he would''ve probably taken his time and teased her out of her wits.


    But since they had to face this so-called unscrupulous bandit, Joseph set that matter aside and stared at the man.


    The bandit frowned.


    This was the first time that his intimidation tactic didn''t work.


    He felt anxious.


    Particrly when he saw the rxed smiles on the faces of Joseph and Alice. H


    e couldn''t help but feel that there was something going on behind the scenes that would undoubtedly p him down if he dared to continue.


    But as a bandit with at least a decade of experience in this field, he knew about the vicissitudes of this job, and he knew that without risk, nothing could be gained.


    He gritted his teeth and roared once again, "Surrender your valuables or die!"


    This time, he even lifted his sword and pointed at the two.


    Alice couldn''t finally maintain her smile. It turned into a frown as she took a stance and assumed a cold facade. But before she could even strike first. Joseph stretched his hand out and stopped her from attacking. He faced the bandit and said.


    "Can we now end this farce?"


    The bandit was taken aback, "Farce? What are you talking about?"


    Joseph didn''t reply to him.


    Instead, he turned at the coachman who was lying on the ground and said, "I said that to you, coachman. Stand up now, I know that you are cooperating with that bandit right there..."


    Silence ensued when Josephpleted his sentence.


    Alice turned to look at the coachman with a frown and seeing that the coachman never moved.


    She took a step forward and sent an attack towards the coachman.


    Swish!


    A swishing sound reverberated out and the coachman who was supposed to be dead suddenly sprung back to life and avoided Alice''s attack by a hair''s breadth.


    Judging from the speed of his movements, it was clear that he wasn''t even injured nor in the brink of death.


    Everything was just a farce like what Joseph had deduced.


    "Brat... How did you know that I was faking it." The coachman stared fiercely at Joseph.


    Joseph lightly chuckled and exined: "It was simple and nothing really out of the ordinary. When we first went out of our way towards Reinhardt..."


    "You guided the carriage towards the direction of Reinhardt but after an hour, you slowly diverted from the original route until we arrived in this lonely and silent ce..."


    "Once we arrived, it was easy for you to signal to yourrades since we couldn''t see you from the inside of the carriage..."


    "After that, everything was just simply you, acting that you have been killed, and afterwards, your job was to pretend that you were dead until your victims had left the vicinity after they were released by your friend right there."


    "And then..."


    "Wait!"


    Alice interjected.


    "Released by his friend? Do you really think that bandits would release their victims?"


    Joseph turned to Alice and said, "Did you feel any killing intent from him when he stopped us?"


    Alice was astonished by what she heard and enlightenment dawned upon her for she recalled that she didn''t really feel any ounce of killing intent from the bandit.


    It felt more like he was intimidating them instead of trying to force them into submission...


    Joseph lightly smiled, actually. He couldn''t feel killing intent. But he knew whenever someone was using such a concept against him. It was because of his passive skills that would always activate whenever he was under a certain amount of pressure such as killing intent.


    But realizing that his passive kills were never triggered even after the bandit screamed at them.


    It became clear to Joseph that the bandit only wanted to intimidate them.


    Alice turned to look at the bandits with a fierce look on her face.


    Joseph also stared at the two with a serious expression.


    "Are the two of you really bandits? And if not, why are you doing all of these?"


    He questioned the two.


    The coachman and the burly bandit who held a sword in his hand turned to look at each other. They didn''t know what to say. Actually, they were true bandits but since their boss wanted them to please a certain someone when that person visited them.


    Their boss made them use intimidation tactics instead of outright killing their victims.


    This made him feel conflicted. Conflicted because he knew how easy it was to gain what he wanted if he aimed to kill his victims, but on the other hand, he felt happy because he didn''t have to kill anyone anymore just to survive.


    It was a kind of catharsis that he had just discovered recently.


    If possible, he didn''t really want to be a bandit anymore.


    If not for the fact that the Capital was in turmoil and he had no other choice but to steal just so he could eat, he would''ve already started looking for a decent job in the Capital so he could sustain himself without resorting to stealing.


    But s, everything that could go wrong, went wrong...


    And here he was again, coborating with his friend to steal from others, just so he could survive.


    The bandit sighed in resignation. Grief shed on his face as he stared at Alice and said.


    "What he said was right, but seeing that look on your face..."


    "It seems like I won''t be able to avoid death this time."


    The coachman was astonished by what he heard from his friend as he said, "What the hell are you saying, brother? Are you giving up now? We''ve got to run!" He turned around and was about to run, but then his friend replied with a sigh.


    "You don''t understand it since you are still quite weak in the Way of the Sword, brother. Running against that woman right there is pretty much impossible. I''d rather save my energy so I can jog instead of walk through my journey in the Yellow Springs." The bandit heaved a deep sigh.


    Alice raised an eyebrow and stared at this tearjerker of a scene.


    Why does she feel like she was the viin in this story?


    She was a victim!


    She should be the one that''s making such a tearjerker of a scene!


    Joseph inwardly chuckled when he saw the dramatic scene in front of him.


    He stepped forward and was about to say something when several shadows suddenly descended from above and quickly surrounded them.


    Joseph''s expression changed, Alice swiftly reacted as she took a stance and cried out.


    "Bastard! You actually lied to us?! You were just buying time?"


    Joseph also prepared a stance, but when the shadowy figures thoroughly materialized and their outlines transformed into figures that he could recognize.


    He was astonished to see a familiar figure within the crowd.


    But before he could even say anything towards that figure.


    A sword came flying his way and Joseph had to block that iing attack.


    Peng!


    A clear sound of metal shing against each other rang out.


    "You bastard, how dare you to corner my brothers like this?"


    An unfamiliar man stood in front of Joseph.


    A fierce look could be seen on his face as he attacked Joseph once again.


    But right as he raised his sword in order to attack. A loud scream resounded behind him.


    "Jeric, what the fuck are you doing?!"


    It came from Kayn.


    Jeric''s movements came to a halt and when he turned around to look at Kayn.


    A dull thud rang out and he saw Kayn falling onto his knees along with his brothers as they simultaneously cried out.


    "Greetings, benefactor!"


    The words that they said thoroughly astonished Jeric.<ol><li>nuff said</li><li>Eight-Grade Syndrome.</li><li>Murphy''s Law toujoo!!</li></ol>

 Chapter 124: A Cruel Step to Ascension[6]

    Chapter 124: A Cruel Step to Ascension[6]


    "I''m sorry but our Premiere VIP Rooms with the 99% Assimtion Rate is only avable for customers who are going tomit to a stay of at least three months. If you want to avail of a room with daily rates, I''m sorry but we are currently out of avable rooms for that rate."


    The receptionist respectfully said.


    Abyssal me Master or formally known as Jason in the outside world stood in front of the front desk of the most prestigious Virtual Reality Cafe within the City.


    The reason why it was called the most prestigious was due to the fact that it had dozens of Gaming Capsules with Assimtion Rates of at least 96 percent.


    Assimtion Rate affected how you feel within the world of Victory.


    Virtual Headsets that weremonly used by the average yer who couldn''t afford Gaming Capsules only had an Assimtion Rate of 50%.


    ying Victory using such a headset felt more like an augmented reality game.


    The graphics wouldn''t really be affected, apart from your gamey.


    But why would gamey be affected by Assimtion Rate?


    Well, it was because Assimtion Rate also meant the percentage of the game''s replication of your physical body.


    In other words, if the Assimtion Rate of your Virtual Headset was only at 50%.


    It meant that your reaction speed, etc within the world of Victory was exactly half of your true abilities in the outside world.


    This was the reason why higher Assimtion Rates Virtual Headsets and Gaming Capsules were often sought out by gamers. Unfortunately, for games with lower financial capability, they had to settle for less and make do with a Virtual Headset that only has a fifty-percent Assimtion Rate or below.


    Jason stared at the receptionist and asked, "How much do I have to pay if I want to stay in a Premiere VIP Room for three months, and what are the amenities?"


    The receptionist who was about to entertain another guest frowned when she heard Jason''s question. She couldn''t help but inwardly mock him,<em> ''Is it really necessary to pretend that you have money? If you do not have any money and can''t afford the room, why bother asking about its price? I really hate customers like this guy.''</em>


    But on the outside, she maintained a gentle smile as she patiently exined.


    "Every long-term stay within our establishment are discounted, so you would really save a lot if you do that..."


    "If you want to stay within a Premiere VIP Room for three months. You just need to pay us nine-hundred thousand pesos upfront. Availing a Premiere VIP Room gives you free use of everything within the establishment and you will also have ess to a world-ss breakfast buffet for free."


    The receptionist stared at Jason and a sh of ridicule could be seen on her face. She even articted the words, <em>nine-hundred thousand pesos</em> as clear as possible indicating that she was thinking that Jason couldn''t possibly afford such a steep price for a room in only three months.


    The other customer who looked to be in his twenties nced at Jason and his curiosity turned into ridicule when he saw his outfit.


    Jason wore dirty clothes that looked like they hadn''t been washed for a week.


    It was even a mystery for the receptionist and him as to how Jason was granted entry in such a prestigious establishment.


    Jason revealed anguid smile. Of course, he understood what they were thinking. Although he felt annoyed that the receptionist who was supposed to treat customers as kings would inwardly mock him. It was true that he really looked like an unsophisticated country bumpkin.


    He didn''t try to argue with the receptionist and the customer as he said.


    "Do you ept mobile payments?"


    The receptionist was astonished by what she heard that she couldn''t help but reply with a question.


    "Pardon?"


    Jason frowned, "I said, do you ept mobile payments? Gcash? Can I pay with it?"


    The receptionist finally awakened from her trance and she snorted: "If sir wants to pay through the use of Gcash, we have our QR code right there. Just scan it and send the exact amount to us as payment."


    Jason nodded his head and started fiddling with his phone that looked to be several years old.


    The customer stared at Jason with derision and even the receptionist furtively nced at him. Clearly waiting for his look of disappointment when his attempt at payment failed.


    A few secondster, Jason raised his head and replied, "I sent it, please confirm."


    "You sent it?"


    The receptionist raised an eyebrow but her doubt turned into astonishment when she saw herputer screen.


    She was thoroughly shocked to the point that she fell into silence.


    "What''s wrong? Is there something wrong with the payment? I clearly sent it already, I have the reference number here."


    Jason furrowed his eyebrows. He felt that the receptionist was wasting his time.


    The customer realized from the expression of the receptionist that Jason indeed had nine-hundred thousand pesos to pay upfront. Nine-hundred thousand pesos wasn''t really that much, but you''d be hard-pressed to find people that could pay as much as that upfront.


    <em>Is this guy a nouveau riche that purposely dressed like that to ridicule us?</em>


    The customer''s lips repeatedly twitched as he slowly stepped backwards and disappeared.


    From now on, he had decided that he would never mock others just because of how they looked.


    He had learned his lesson.


    The receptionist was also the same.


    She hung her head low in shame as she respectfully replied, "Yes, I have received the payment. I''m sorry, uh... I will guide you to your room."


    Jason nodded his head.


    It didn''t really matter if the receptionist guided him to his room or not, but since it was free service.


    Why would he refuse something free?


    In the end, the receptionist even gave him some rare snacks from Japan and Saudi Arabia.


    Jason sat on his Gaming Capsule, he couldn''t help but praise the Virtual Reality Cafe.


    "Damn the service here is really good. Now, I have no regrets paying that much for a room. In fact, I don''t think that I can even call this ce a room. It feels more like a house."


    The Premiere VIP Room didn''t disappoint. It had everything that you could think of from a house.


    It was also huge, unlike the living quarters of those cheap Virtual Reality Cafe somewhere out there on the streets.


    This ce was really prestigious, if not for the fact that there was a Gaming Capsule here...


    Jason would''ve thought that he was on vacation.


    A light smile escaped on Jason''s lips as he sat down on his Gaming Capsule and entered the world of Victory.


    ...


    "Benefactor?" Jeric mumbled in astonishment.


    But he quickly regained his wits as he kneeled on one knee and kept his silence.


    He hung his head low and looked repentant of what he just did.


    Thankfully, Joseph didn''t even spare him a nce as he turned to face Kayn and his brothers.


    "Kayn! What a coincidence! To think that I would meet you here!"


    Joseph approached Kayn with a smile on his face.


    Kayn lightly chuckled, "I also really didn''t expect that we would meet here, benefactor."


    Joseph patted his shoulder, "I told you already to stop with that benefactor, all right? We''re buddies so just call me by my name, Joseph. I don''t really mind." He then swept his gaze at Kayn''s friends and said, "Same goes for you all."


    They nodded in agreement. From the look on their faces, it was clear that they were d that Joseph treated them like friends instead of subordinates.


    Even though Joseph saved their lives and gave them the chance to retaliate against that noble and even changed the direction of their lives.


    They still had their own pride.


    It was beneath them to be a servant under someone, even though that person was their benefactor.


    But that didn''t mean that they didn''t recognize goodwill. In fact, it was even their creed to pay the kindness of someone, ten times more than what they had received.


    This was the reason why they felt conflicted about serving Joseph.


    If they did serve Joseph and he treated them as true servants, they would undoubtedly revolt.


    But if they did that then it meant that they vited their own creed of paying goodwill with goodwill. They didn''t want to do that so they were stuck in a rock and a hard ce.


    Such a train of thoughts became a knot in their hearts that was finally resolved today when Joseph told them that they were friends.


    "Then, can you exin to me everything that is going on now? Kayn?" Joseph turned to look at Kayn in doubt.


    He vaguely remembered that Kayn said that he would never be a bandit once again after his revenge.


    But what was going on?


    Why does he look like he was a member of this bandit group that tried to intimidate him and Alice?


    Kayn scratched his cheek and an awkward look appeared on his face. But since he knew that he could never escape the fate of exining everything to Joseph.


    He steeled his resolve and started talking about the reason why he had joined Jeric''s bandit group and he even told Joseph about their ns which thoroughly astonished Jeric.


    "What are you..." Jeric stretched his hand and looked like he wanted to stop Kayn from talking.


    But when he realized that Joseph seemed to be unaffected of what Kayn was talking about.


    He heaved a sigh of relief and didn''t bother about it anymore.


    Joseph''s rxed demeanor alone told Jeric that he really wasn''t that interested in the riches of the Kingdom.


    But little did he knew that this was just a facade.


    Of course, Joseph was interested in the treasures of the Kingdom of Nether!


    Why would he not be?


    It would be strange if he wasn''t interested.


    But he didn''t show his interest on his face since he still wasn''t so sure about the attitude of this so-called Jeric that Kayn introduced to him as his friend from a long time ago.


    Kaynpleted his exnation and he finally awakened from his excitement of meeting his benefactor.


    Turning to look at the young woman standing beside Joseph with a cold look on her face.


    Kayn paused for a moment before a light smile escaped his lips. He smiled at her and said, "Nice to meet you, I''m Kayn. I owe Joseph my life and since it looks like you are his friend, we are also friends."


    Alice turned to look at Kayn and she frowned when she saw his friendly expression.


    Alice was someone who experienced a lot of things and one of the scenarios that she encountered that she absolutely hated was meeting fake people that wore smiles on their faces but had no problems stabbing you on the back.


    Alice wasn''t so sure about what kind of a person Kayn was.


    Joseph noticed her hesitation.


    He patted her shoulder and said, "Alice, you don''t have to worry about his character. He is the one who helped me save you from the hands of the Kingdom. Without him, I don''t even think that I will be able to leave Reinhardt back then."


    "Really?" Alice turned to look at Joseph in astonishment, but when she realized how rude she was for eximing. She covered her mouth with her left hand and stared apologetically at Kayn, "I''m really sorry for doubting you, I didn''t know that you were my benefactor."


    Kayn shook his head, "That is not a problem. I can''t really me you, Ma''am Alice..."


    "You were asleep when we met."


    "I was asleep when we met? Does that mean that you saw..." Alice was startled by what she heard, but she stopped herself from continuing her sentence when she realized her blunder.


    Joseph who stood beside her took advantage of this opportunity to say, "Yes, he saw you drooling when you were sleeping."


    Alice''s figure visibly trembled.


    Kayn almost coughed a mouthful of blood as he stared at Joseph in disbelief.


    Why did his benefactor kick him down a cliff?


    He was so shocked that he was rendered speechless by what he heard.


    But before he could even say anything. Joseph interrupted their train of thoughts with a cough.


    "Ahem... Uh... How about we go back to your base for now? I don''t think that it''s inappropriate for us to just stand here."


    Jeric was astounded when he heard Joseph mention their base.


    How did he knew that we have a base?


    Alice saw the change in his expression and she couldn''t help butment, "He knows about your base since it ismon sense that bandit groups have bases. He doesn''t know where exactly is your base but the fact stands that every bandit group has bases and in this case, you aren''t an exception."


    Jeric felt that what she said made sense and he couldn''t help but p himself on the face.


    How did I be so stupid?


    Of course, something like having a base ismon sense for bandit groups!


    Jeric was disheartened.


    He deeply sighed before he walked forwards and led the way for everyone.


    Upon arrival at the underground base. Jeric finally gathered all members of his bandit group.


    They all stood in a wide space underground, when Jeric returned along with Alice, Joseph, and Kayn''s group members.


    They straightened their backs and made sure that they were on their best attitude.


    Particrly, when they saw Kayn and his friends.


    Everyone here knew about Kayn for he was a friend of the founder of this bandit group.


    But they were astonished when they found a beautiful golden-haired young woman standing in front of them.


    "Right now we will begin the briefing about our mission. Three hourster, we depart."


    "THREE HOURS?!"


    The bandits were astonished by what they heard. They thought that they still had at least a week of preparation, yet why were they going there as soon as possible?


    That didn''t make sense since the Royal Pce isn''t a ce that could easily be invaded.


    Due diligence must be done and they must take their time in preparing.


    Jeric understood the anxiousness of the bandits so he promptly exined, "I know that all of you are confused as to why we are nning on departing three hourster, but just let me exin..."


    "Right now, we have this madame that is not only beautiful, but she is also the disciple of that Legendary cksmith, Krid! With her on our side, there should be no problems!"


    "The disciple of the Legendary cksmith, Krid?! So that was why she looked so familiar, goddamned it." The bandits stared at each other, enlightenment dawned upon them when they heard their founder''s words.


    Finally, they found the answer as to why they felt a sense of deja vu when staring at Alice.


    It wasn''t so strange as to why they were familiar with her.


    After all, they were one of those that tried on capturing her but ultimately failed.


    But right now that the Capture Order was retracted, there was no use for them to try and capture her anymore.


    Realizing her identity, they were finally convinced.


    Three hourster, after some small talks and nning...


    The Order of the History''s Number One Bandit Group, along with Alice and Joseph.


    Finally departed to Reinhardt.

 Chapter 125: A Cruel Step to Ascension[7]

    Chapter 125: A Cruel Step to Ascension[7]


    The Order of the History''s Number One Bandit Group...


    When Joseph and Alice found out about the name of the bandit group.


    The two of them couldn''t help butugh out loud.


    The name of the bandit group was so ridiculous and arrogant that they found it quite amusing andughably droll.


    Alice and Joseph became the focus of the group when they were in the middle of their journey towards Reinhardt. Kayn asked all sorts of questions to Joseph, but thetter couldn''t help but chuckle when he realized that most of the bandits were focused on Alice instead of him.


    "Ma''am Alice, I hope that you won''t be offended but I am actually one of those that tried on pursuing you when you were still under the effects of the Capture Order." One of the bandits confessed.


    Alice was so good to them that he felt immensely guilty about the fact that he tried on capturing her before.


    Alice lightly smiled. She couldn''t help but feel somewhat weird seeing that a middle-aged man whose age was at least a decade older than her had his head lowered in front of her in an apologetic manner.


    When she heard what the bandit had said, she turned to look at him and replied.


    "I understand your circumstances..."


    "You are just someone that wants to earn some money for a living so I can''t really me you for acting like that."


    The bandits were moved by what they had heard. Even though they hadn''t confessed, they were also one of those people that tried on pursuing Alice and capture her for the reward. They were the same as their friend who confessed to Alice so they also felt guilty about their deed.


    But instead of being angry at them.


    Alice actually forgave them?


    The bandits felt grateful to Alice that most of them hung their heads low in shame.


    Some of them turned their heads away, secretly wiping something off their face as they sniffed.


    "From now on, I swear that after this mission of ours..."


    "I will definitely abandon the life of a bandit!" One of them dered.


    Jeric who saw thismotion couldn''t help but shake his head. He felt that his subordinates were somewhat naive for their age. Did they really think that stopping was that simple? Was it really that easy that you could just say that you''ll stop and you would definitely stop?


    No!


    His subordinates had experienced the bountiful life of being a bandit.


    Unlike working in the City or at the Port. Being a bandit, albeit dangerous was far easy than that kind of work. Furthermore, the risk of dying within the City and at the Port while carrying heavy luggage wasn''t really that far off from the risk of dying by the de as a bandit.


    In short, Jeric didn''t believe that his subordinates could easily change like what they had said.


    But...


    Jeric made a sidelong nce at Kayn.


    He felt conflicted.


    From the looks of it, Kayn sessfully stopped on being a bandit and he even had a creed right now that he religiously followed. From Kayn''s example, it was clear that every bandit could change and live a good life without doing any banditry anymore.


    But Jeric knew that it wasn''t really that simple at all.


    If it was, then Jeric would''ve done that before already.


    Life wasn''t that easy that you could change it in a whim.


    Sacrifice was necessary for the betterment of oneself.


    Jeric wasn''t ready to make that kind of sacrifice yet.


    That was why he hoped.


    He hoped that after this, he and Kayn wouldn''t be enemies in a narrow passageway.


    He would hate to fight against someone whom he treated as a friend for so long.


    Jeric shook his head and drank a shot of liquor that temporarily washed away his insecurities and worries.


    On the other hand, Joseph made a sidelong nce at Alice and found it quite strange that she could easilymunicate with these bandits.


    Alice was a young maiden who lived with a Legendary cksmith, she should be unfamiliar with bandits, yet how could she rte to them this easily to the extent that they couldugh together like friends?


    Joseph felt embarrassed.


    He felt ashamed that Alice couldmunicate better with men than him who was a man himself.


    He turned his gaze to Kayn who sat beside him and found that thetter was staring at Alice in amazement. It was clear that he was also astounded about Alice''s adaptability skills.


    A bitter smile escaped on Joseph''s lips as he turned to look at Alice once again.


    "Thank you so much for your advice, Madame... "


    "You really enlightened me this time, Madame..."


    "No problem, no problem... If you have any questions, you can go ahead and ask me once more. But for now, I''ll go and take a nap." Alice waved her farewells to the bandits as she retreated towards Joseph''s direction.


    "Oh, you''re finally back here." Joseph greeted her.


    "Sigh..." Alice heaved a deep sigh.


    "What''s wrong?" Joseph noticed that Alice looked somewhat pale.


    "Nothing... I didn''t expect that grandpa''s prestige can actually affect those men..." Alice shook her head and a bitter smile appeared on her lips.


    "Of course, that''s obvious. Senior Krid is a Legendary cksmith, a Legendary figure throughout the world of Victory, who would not be affected by his prestige? An alien?" Joseph poked fun at her and Alice didn''t look like she had the energy to reply.


    Communicating with those enthusiastic bandits really took a toll on her as she sat down beside Joseph andid her head on his shoulders.


    Seeing what she had done, Josephmented once again, "How bold. It seems like you really have taken quite a liking at me, eh?"


    Alice red at him and said, "You are saying that as if you don''t like me too..."


    Joseph chuckled, "Fair enough... But anyway, you really are such a smart woman. To think that you would be able to charm those bandits and make them that enthusiastic to you. Just what did you do to attract them? I don''t believe that it is only because you are Senior Krid''s granddaughter."


    Alice revealed a cheeky smile and replied: "It''spletely normal for them to be attracted to me."


    She then gestured at herself causing Joseph to repeatedly cough as he replied.


    "You won''t be able to fool me with that, vixen. Do you really think that those bandits would be attracted to your body or something? Think about it carefully! Do you think that they would care about the body of someone who looks more like a child than a young wo-"


    <em>Nom...</em>


    "Ah, shit! What are you doing! Let go of me!"


    Joseph didn''t even manage toplete his sentence when Alice suddenly opened her mouth and bit on his arm. His eyes widened in shock when he felt the sudden sharp pain.


    He iled around, but it exacerbated the pain, only until his arm bled did Alice let go of his arm as a sly smile appeared on her lips.


    "Salty..."


    "You..." Joseph was speechless.


    He didn''t know what to say.


    In fact, he didn''t even know whether he should be angry or aroused when he saw Alice licking her lips like she just ate a delicious snack.


    But when he saw the proud look on her face.


    He knew that he must not let her continue on being smug.


    He understood that if he let Alice won, she would be smug against him for an entire week and that would be a problem.


    Knowing these facts, Joseph steeled his resolve and cried out, "Pervert!"


    He coldly spat before turning his head away from Alice.


    F<em>uck, why do I feel like the roles are suddenly reversed? Alice should be the one saying that I am a pervert instead of me telling her that she''s a pervert... What the fuck</em>.


    Joseph cursed himself as he inwardly panicked.


    Of course, his facade made it so that Alice wouldn''t be able to read his mind.


    But he clearly underestimated Alice''s familiarity with him as she became prouder and replied, "Pervert, you say? Hehehe, do you really think that I couldn''t feel you secretly moving in the middle of the night when we slept together on the same bed back then? Hehehe, now who''s the per-"


    "Shut up!" Joseph moved at the speed of light and he instantly ced his palm on Alice''s lips.


    A blush spread on his cheeks and he really regretted provoking Alice earlier.


    Sadly, there was no medicine for regret and he could only admit defeat.


    "Okay, fine, fine! You win, all right? Just don''t say anything anymore. You are ruining my reputation." Joseph threw in the towel and Alice sweetly smiled at him as she said, "Ruining your reputation? Do you even have one?"


    "Shut up!" Joseph red at her and Alice''s bell-likeughter resounded inside the carriage.


    "Okay, I''ll shut up but since you said that you admit defeat, that means that I have won, right?" Alice turned to look at him and her sweet smile turned into a meaningful one.


    "History is always written by the winners and since I have won, I have the write to make you obey my will, am I right?"


    Joseph red at Alice but he felt so ashamed that he didn''t reply to her anymore.


    "I swear if you make me do something perverted, then you will definitely regr-"


    "Stop right there..."


    Joseph didn''t even finish his sentence as Alice stopped him mid-way.


    "My request this time is..." Alice moved closer to him and whispered her request.


    Joseph was rendered speechless by the request that he heard, but this only exacerbated his embarrassment. However, since he had to honor Alice''s request due to the fact that she won their teasing war.


    He had no other choice but to obey.


    "Fine..." Joseph squeezed these words out of his throat.


    "Well then, excuse me..."


    Alice sat beside him and gentlyid her body down on the floor of the carriage before cing her head on Joseph''sp.


    Joseph then gently ruffled her hair like what he had always done to her whenever she wanted to sleep. But this time, not only she would have to rub her hair in that manner, but he also had to sing her a luby as she took her nap.


    Singing a luby normally wasn''t a problem, but seeing that there were a lot of burly men in this carriage staring at him in curiosity.


    How could Joseph act or do something like that?


    His dignity as a man would be reduced if he did so! But he had to honor the agreement that he made with Alice, so he had no other choice but to swallow his dignity as he opened his mouth and sung in a high-pitched voice that made him sound like a woman.


    "R-R-Rock a bye baby... Have a sweet nap... wh-when the wind blows... the cradle will rock...,..."


    A sweet smile appeared on Alice''s face as her breathing gradually became slower and calmer. In the end, after a few minutes, her breathing steadied and it was clear that she fell asleep.


    But in contrast to this peacefulness, the entire carriage was wrapped in a strange atmosphere. The bandits and even Kayn didn''t know whether they shouldugh or cry when they saw Joseph singing a luby in a high-pitched voice.


    They wanted tough at first, but seeing the murderous look on Joseph''s face as he barely squeezed out the lyrics of the luby. Each and every one of them didn''t dare tough nor mock him on what he was doing.


    They all became silent, Joseph continued singing for the next several hours and he only stopped when it was finally time for dinner at night.


    Alice woke up with a yawn and the look on her face made it evident that she had a good sleep.


    She turned her head to stare at Joseph and said, "Did you sing all the way until I woke up, or did you stop mid-way?"


    They agreed that Joseph would continue singing a luby until Alice woke up from her nap.


    Yes, woke up from her nap.


    The keyword here was <em>"nap"</em>.


    But her nap turned into a full-blown sleep thatsted for four hours.


    Joseph felt somewhat angry because of this so he didn''t reply to what she had said.


    Alice furrowed her eyebrows when Joseph didn''t reply. She turned to look at the other men inside the carriage and asked, "Did he continue singing until I woke up, or did he stop?"


    The men visibly trembled. They were about to answer that Joseph stopped singing mid-way, but when they saw the cold look on Joseph''s face. They swallowed their words as one of them mustered his courage and replied, albeit in a stutter.


    "Y-Yes... He continued singing..."


    "Hooo...."


    Alice stared in doubt at the bandit, causing the man to flinch and subconsciously step backward.


    Joseph stared at the man and found that he was about to break under the pressure of Alice''s stare. Sighing, he tapped Alice on her shoulder and said, "Your sleepsted for about four hours, do you really think that I could continue singing such a monotonous song for that long?"


    Alice frowned, "So you admitted that you cheated and stopped? How shameless."


    "Yeah, I admit. That really was a shameless move in my part, so how about I justpensate you?" Joseph ced his cards on the table, but Alice wasn''t convinced.


    "Convince me? Interesting... Go ahead and try." She crossed her arms in front of her chest.


    She looked like she really didn''t believe that Joseph could convince her to forgive him for what he had done.


    But Joseph who had a trump card in his hands was confident that he could acquire her forgiveness.


    Tapping in the air, he opened the Cash Shop and swiftly purchased a nightgown that Alice had been eyeing for about several weeks already.


    The nightgown materialized in the air, astonishing not only Alice but the bandits who couldn''t believe their eyes.


    <em>What the fuck? Did he just summon an object out of nothing? Holy shit, how strong is this guy that he could stare objects in space and casually take it out without causing amotion or ripple in space?</em>


    Jeric who knew more than the average bandits inwardly screamed when he saw what happened.


    "T-That..." Alice stuttered.


    She didn''t know what to say.


    "I heard you said that you wanted me to buy you this nightgown, right? Okay, here it is. I don''t think that you wouldn''t like this nightgown since you alwaysined to me that you''re notfortable wearing clothes while sleeping. So here it is, instead of sleeping naked, at least somethingfortable can cover yo-"


    <em>Smack!</em>


    A fierce smacknded on Joseph''s face before he could finish his sentence.


    "Why the fuck did you p me again?" Joseph snapped, but Alice retorted with a re.


    A furious blush spread on her cheeks as she said.


    "Why did you say something like that here?!"


    Joseph trembled for a moment and when he swept his gaze at the bandits.


    He finally realized why Alice had pped him.


    He forgot that he was in a ce full of other people and he even casually mentioned how Alice slept naked causing the imaginations of the others to run wild as they nkly stared at Alice.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head and apologized.


    "Uh... Sorry... I did not mean to throw shade at you like that."


    "You better be sorry!" Alice pointed at him, her cheeks puffed in annoyance as she crossed her arms in front of her chest once again and continued, "Youmitted another offense so you better not think that something like this is enough for me to forgive you..."


    Joseph sighed.


    He expected that something like this would happen so he purchased some more items in the Cash Shop.


    This time, a few pairs of underwear for women.


    But before Joseph could even exin as to why he bought her underwear.


    Another p descended on his face as Alice swiftly hid the underwear from the eyes of everyone.


    "Purple... So she likes the color purple... what a bold color..." One of the men uttered, it was clear that he had already burned the scene that he saw inside his mind.


    "You..." Alice''s figure repeatedly trembled when she heard the words of the bandits around her.


    The furious blush on her cheeks and the tears that welled up in her eyes made it clear that she was incredibly embarrassed.


    Joseph finally realized his mistake as he apologized once again.


    But...


    "If apologizing is enough for everyone to be forgiven, do we really need the services of the Police?"


    ... Alice was quick to retort.


    Joseph was taken aback by what he had heard, "Police? There''s a concept of Police in this ce?"


    "That is not the point here!" Alice retorted.


    Joseph sighed, "Okay, fine... I''ll stop, all right? I''ll give you more gifts privatelyter and I will also cook for you and everyone tonight! How about that? Can you forgive me now?"


    Joseph pped his trump card on the table and attacked Alice using the most powerful weapon that he could think of which was <em>food</em>.


    Alice was moved by his offer.


    After a moment of deliberation, she finally gave up and softly replied, "O-Okay... I''ll forgive you, but as for the gifts. Can I request something else?" She hung her head low and blushed.


    The swift change of attitude astonished Joseph, but he opened his ears to listen: "Okay, I can get you anything so no worries, as long as it''s not too ridiculous. I can get it!" He proudly dered.


    Alice bit her lips and slowly approached him as she whispered into her ears, "C-can you check if you there are some pads there that I can use...?"


    "Pads?" Joseph audibly mumbled and Alice was quick to cover his mouth.


    The crimson blush on her face spread until it reached her neck.


    "You idiot, why did you say it out loud! I even whispered it to you!" Alice scolded him.


    "But I don''t understand, what pads?"


    Joseph''s gaze strayed on her chest, "I don''t think that you need any pads with how big you are there, but for the sake of visuals, maybe a pad or two would suffice." Hemented and a sharp pain assaulted his waist.


    "Why did you pinch me?" Josephined.


    "I''m not talking about that kind of pad!" Alice red.


    "Oh, then what are you talking about?" Joseph uttered with a frown, "Can you just say it to me directly, I am not someone that has the ability to read minds. I would really appreciate it if you just tell me what you want without all of these sugarcoating."


    Alice trembled, what Joseph said made sense but she still felt embarrassed about directly expressing to him what she wanted, especially when it''s something for that time of the month.


    But when Alice remembered the fact that the two of them slept together on the same bed and he had also seen her naked, her embarrassment swiftly disappeared.


    She realized that it was pointless for her to be embarrassed in front of Joseph who had practically seen everything on her body.


    She also reckoned that with Joseph''s personality, he would understand her circumstances and why she was so embarrassed.


    With the disappearance of this invisible barrier between the two of them...


    Alice felt even more rxed beside Joseph.


    She felt like she could now trust Joseph with her life as she stepped forward and whispered her request to him. This time, without any sugarcoating and without dropping any more hints. She became bolder and straightforward, without any more embarrassment nor hesitation.


    In the end, she acquired what she wanted, had a good meal, had a good time with the bandits, and had a good sleep.


    When they woke up in the morning, they found themselves in front of the gates of Reinhardt.


    Using the shortest route possible...


    They finally arrived at Reinhardt.

 Chapter 126: A Cruel Step to Ascension[8]

    Chapter 126: A Cruel Step to Ascension[8]


    "This is worse than I expected."


    Before even stepping into Reinhardt, Joseph, Alice and the Order of the History''s Number One Group could already see the number of protesters carrying signages above their heads. Their mournful cries resounded powerfully into the air, and from the looks on their faces alone.


    It was clear that they were desperate.


    The despicable and incredibly selfish move that the nobles made, created a widespread famine that was currently wreaking havoc on the City of Reinhardt. If not for the fact that yer-founded charity organizations for the well-being of NPCs such as the Pro-NPC Alliance gave them some help.


    Joseph reckoned that a lot of people would''ve already died.


    Of course, a lot of people died due to the famine that scattered like wildfire. But thanks to the charity organizations that swiftly gave some help towards the residents of Reinhardt. The number of people that died from starvation was vastly lower than what everyone expected.


    But...


    What they were doing was just a mere stopgap. If nothing was done to ease the worries and troubles of the residents of Reinhardt.


    The City would soon fall and the entire Kingdom would undoubtedly follow.


    After all, most of themerce and the entire economy of the Kingdom of Nether was focused on the City of Reinhardt.


    If it fell, the other cities would follow suit.


    "Damn those selfish nobles!" Joseph heard one of the bandits along with him say these words. Even a bandit that society deemed as a despicable person found the move of the nobles so treacherous that he couldn''t believe that they had done it.


    "I guess even evil has its standards." Joseph inwardly uttered.


    He swept his gaze around the streets and his eyesnded on a dark alleyway.


    There, he found two figures...


    One had the clear mark of a yer floating above his head, while the other, who was a young woman, clearly had the mark of an NPC above her head.


    "What the hell are they doing there?" Joseph''s eyes narrowed, but they suddenly widened when he saw the young woman kneel in front of that yer before swiftly opening his zippers.


    The young woman opened her mouth and was quick to swallow the meat that sprung right in front of her like a fortress.


    Joseph quickly averted his gaze and he was stunned silly by the scene that he saw.


    <em>What the fuck? A fellow yer... Someone like me is actually taking advantage of NPCs in this current situation? Is that really possible? Shouldn''t that be illegal? What the fuck...</em>


    Joseph gawked in astonishment.


    It was now clear for him that Jun Santos really wasn''t exaggerating that the NPCs in this world needed their help.


    Kayn and Alice followed his gaze and the two of them saw that particr sight.


    Alice was the quickest to turn her gaze away, while Kayn heaved a deep sigh.


    Approaching Joseph, he whispered, "Something like that ispletely normal in cities overrun by hunger, fear, and anxiety..."


    "I don''t really know, but Victory''s slowly bing a ce for perverts." Kayn clearly disapproved of what his fellow yers were doing, but since he was also a mere yer.


    He had no ce nor authority to do any changes in this world and control it as he wished.


    But Joseph was different.


    As a Mythical ss yer.


    He believed that he could shape this world depending on his ideals and principles.


    The previous Grand Duelist became known due to establishing the concept of Law, Justice, and Order in the world of Victory.


    Joseph understood that he must do better than his predecessors.


    Only through that method could he call himself someone that deserved the title of the Sun that Overlooks Everything.


    "Sigh..."


    Joseph heaved a deep sigh and ced all of these thoughts into the deep recesses of his brain


    Alice made a sidelong nce at Joseph and she approached him.


    "It''s okay... Someday in the future. You will be able to change this world. You are not a Myth for nothing."


    A light smile escaped her lips as she patted Joseph''s shoulder.


    "Why do such words sound sarcastic if they came from you, Alice?"


    Joseph lightly chuckled and teased.


    "What? Are you saying that I am always sarcastic?" Alice furrowed her eyebrows.


    "Not really, it''s just... It''s really out of character for you to console me." Joseph chuckled once again.


    "Console you? Who says I''m consoling you? Are you out of your mind?" Alice rolled her eyes at him.


    "Okay, fine... You''re not, I guess..." Joseph snickered.


    The group continued their journey without stopping.T


    They entered Reinhardt through its Southern Gate.


    The Royal Pce was located near the Northern Gates of Reinhardt instead of near the City Square. It was because of the fact that the Northern Gates of Reinhardt was closer to the borders of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven and Evesting Frost.


    This way, the nobles could easily receive ambassadors from the other Kingdoms and they would also be able to closely supervise the flow of merchandise and people from the other Kingdoms into Reinhardt. But since the Northern Gates was directly opposite the Southern Gate.


    This meant that they had to walk for at least several hours more.


    That was how big Reinhardt was from North to South.


    They had no qualms about such matters for more hours spent on walking, the more they would be able to refine their ns to perfection.


    But even these battle-hardened men gave up on walking after only an hour. Though it wasn''t because of the scorching sun that slowly turned their already bronze skin into something even darker than bronze.


    It was because of the crowd that kept on bumping onto them, interrupting their small meeting.


    "I think we should rent a carriage. Even if we''ll stand out by renting a carriage, at least it''s not so hot and we won''t keep on getting interrupted." Alice made a proposal.


    Her proposal made the men around her heave a sigh of relief.


    But why were the men so happy that Alice gave the proposal instead of them?


    Well, it was because of the stupid concept called pride.


    These men were so prideful to the extent that they found it beneath themselves to give the proposal of renting a carriage. But why? It was because they thought that if they gave such a proposal. Theirrades would think that they were too weak to endure the crowd and the heat.


    As men, they didn''t want that to happen.


    Particrly in a bandit group, you must make a stand that you were someone strong, or else everyone would look down on you. Being looked down upon as a member of a bandit group was something that must absolutely not happen.


    Else, you''d find it hard to find a ce in that group and you would eventually be kicked out of it.


    Kayn, Jeric and the others understood the culture of bandit groups.


    But why did Joseph, who knew nothing about this particr culture, didn''t give that particr proposal before Alice could?


    Well, it was simply because he liked the sun.


    Yes, he liked the sun.


    He stayed in that crappy ce perpetually hidden from the sun for so long that he actually craved sunlight now. Even though the heat was scorching, that warmth feltfortable for Joseph who was deprived of it for so long.


    If not for the fact that he had people around him, he may have kneeled on one knee and praised the sun for its warmth.


    Well, that was an exaggeration but the point was that Joseph now liked the sun.


    Hearing Alice propose such an idea, he wanted to go against it at first but since it was clearly a stupid idea for them to remain outside and conduct their small talks while walking since they kept on getting interrupted.


    Joseph nodded his head and the group soon had a carriage for their convenience.


    The inside of the carriage wasn''t that nice, but it wasn''t particrly dirty. The bandits didn''t mind dirt for they were used to it and so did Alice and Joseph.


    However, thetter still ced a towel underneath Alice since he knew that Alice would still be ufortable feeling the grime of the carriage sticking onto her backside.


    "Thanks..." Alice thanked Joseph before she sat beside him.


    Kayn and his brothers subconsciously wiggled their way away from the two and before Alice and Joseph realized it...


    They found themselves isted from the group.


    Kayn who was the closest to the two of them was at least two meters away, while the others were far distant.


    It was clear that they did such a move to give the couple some privacy.


    Of course, they were still a part of their ns, but Jeric decided that they shouldn''t bother them too much.


    The other bandits agreed on this arrangement and they raised their voices while talking so that the two could hear what they were discussing while they were in their small world at the corner of the carriage.


    Alice looked like she wanted to say something...


    But Joseph had alreadymented, "Damn if I had friends like these guys outside. I will definitely call them true friends. Only a true friend can do something like this."


    Joseph shook his head and some tears welled up in his eyes.


    He was moved by the gesture of the bandits.


    Alice made a sidelong nce at Joseph and was thoroughly confused, she couldn''t understand the word <em>wingman</em> so she asked, "What are you talking about?"


    Joseph stared at her and revealed a sly smile.


    "Nothing... I''m just praising them for their good deeds."


    Alice rolled her eyes at Joseph. Since it looked like he didn''t have the intention of exining things, she couldn''t bother on asking him anymore. She turned her gaze away from Joseph and didn''t bother about him anymore, seemingly immersed in her own thoughts.


    Joseph also became silent.


    Apart from the voices of the two bandits profusely refining their ns and the constant rattling of the carriage, no other voices nor noise could be heard within the carriage.


    ...


    In the Main Courtyard of the Royal Pce.


    The Dark me, Knights of Justice, and the Crimson Guild who had made a cooperative agreement between each other had their members ready in front of the main doors of the Royal Pce.


    It was clear from their solemn expressions that they were ready to challenge the dungeon within the Royal Pce once again.


    The Guild Leaders of the three guilds, dimir, Nie Yan, and William stood at the helm of their several dozens of members.


    Each of their members and themselves were d in prestigious armors whose grades were at least Epic, none of their items were below the Epic grade so it was clear that they were taking this dungeon as seriously as they could.


    "Once we get there, we have to follow the n. None of us must be too greedy or we will suffer once again." dimir dered.


    "Calm down, d... Who do you think we are? At the least, we can follow such a simple n." William d in a shining armor that made him look like the knight in shining armor that young woman often fantasized about spoke in a solemn and condescending voice.


    Apparently, he was still taking advantage of the fact that Crimson lost that exchange several weeks ago regarding the Capture Order. Now that dimir''s backer, Duke Heathrow abandoned the Kingdom of Nether for the Empire of Truedawn.


    dimir''s prestige wasn''t that strong than before.


    He also lost a lot of guild members.


    How could William not take advantage of this fact on poking fun at his long-time rival?


    William was incredibly happy that dimir made the stupid decision of allying himself with a despicable noble. If not for that bad decision, then everything would''ve stayed like it was and Crimson wouldn''t be in such a precarious position like this.


    Even Nie Yan, the Guild Leader of the widely-recognized weakest guild among the Trinity of Guilds within the Kingdom of Nether mocked dimir as he said, "William is right, dimir. Don''t get too excited, who knows if you''ll do more stupid decisions again..."


    "If that happened, then I guess your guild should just disband."


    dimir snapped at Nie Yan, "What the fuck are you talking about? Why are you so arrogant despite the fact that you remained as the widely-recognized weakest guild for so long? Is it only because of that matter? Don''t be so condescending! The higher you are up there, the stronger you will fall! We, Crimson will someday return this favor!"


    But instead of being intimidated, Nie Yan replied with more mocking: "Look at you barking at me like some kind of a crazy dog. If you are really that courageous, how about you say those words to William, huh?"


    "Oh wait, you can''t... Is it because at least a fourth of your guild members transferred ships from your guild to the Knights of Justice? Hahaha!"


    "You..." dimir lifted a finger and pointed at Nie Yan.


    "What? Want to fight?" Nie Yan didn''t even hide the ridicule in his eyes.


    His guild members discreetly readied their weapons in the case that a fight broke out so that they could attack as fast as they could.


    "Stop it, you two... We are about to tackle a great challenge, yet the two of you are still fighting! This may be the reason why we are not able to make a breakthrough." William shook his head, he stared at dimir and continued, "Especially you, dimir. Cool your head off, or we will not continue with this cooperative rtionship anymore...


    "Remember that you are not at the top anymore. That is a fact and don''t act like you''re still at there!"


    He scolded and dimir''s expression reddened in anger.


    dimir gnashed his teeth and clenched his fists as he stared at William and Nie Yan.


    <em>Someday, I will definitely pay this favor</em>! He inwardly swore. After a few moments of silence and several deep breaths, he calmed himself down and the three guilds finally started their operation to break through the main hall of the Royal Pce.


    The Main Hall of the Royal Pce was just a checkpoint for them. Their true goal was to reach the Treasure Room of the Royal Pce and take all the treasures in that ce before the other guilds from the Kingdom of Burning Heaven and Evesting Frost arrived at Reinhardt.


    Once those guilds from the other kingdoms arrived...


    They reckoned that everything would be so messy and they would also lose the qualifications to participate in such a tumultuous struggle.


    But why?


    Wasn''t the Crimson, Dark me, and Knights of Justice regarded as the strongest guild within the Kingdom of Nether?


    Yes, that was true! They were indeed the strongest in the Kingdom of Nether!


    But the guilds in the other Kingdoms were far stronger than them!


    That was why they were so afraid of their arrival and that was why they were in a race against time.


    The three guilds stood in front of the main doors of the Royal Pce.


    William, the Guild Leader of the current number one guild in the Kingdom of Nether, stepped forward and pushed the doors of the Main Door with his palms.


    From here on, there would be a ughter!<ol><li>Item Grade RankingUmonCommonRareEpicLegendaryGoldenMythical</li></ol>

 Chapter 127: A Cruel Step to Ascension[9]

    Chapter 127: A Cruel Step to Ascension[9]


    The narrow passageway right behind the Main Doors had a lot of monsters that frequently respawned. Crimson, Dark me, and the Knights of Justice knew what was going to happen, so they were prepared...


    The moment that the doors opened, attacks from all sorts of sses flew towards the narrow passageway, striking down every monster in the way.


    "Spread out! Healers, center! Tanks, taunt! DPS, attack! Keep the aggro and make sure that you''re not stepping on the aggro-radius of the others! We don''t want a mass OT here like before!" William gave his orders. His shining armor shone in a dazzling brilliance as he started his attacks.


    "dimir, you know what to do, right?" William made a sidelong nce at the Crimson Guild.


    dimir snorted: "Of course! I''ll trouble you guys with the healing!"


    "What? Can your team not handle healing you all?" William asked.


    "There isn''t a problem, but in front of the so-called number guild of Knights, the Knights of Justice. Being modest is expected and a must!" dimir replied with a sneer.


    "Cough..." The healers within the Crimson Guild blushed in embarrassment.


    The Knights of the Knights of Justice weren''t only tanky, but they also had a second-ss that gave them powerful support capabilities in battle...


    Combined with their superior game sense, they were far stronger than the Crimson Guild when it came to supporting and healing.


    Of course, the Crimson Guild was stronger than them when it came to damage. But that wasn''t the point here. The point was that the healers of the Crimson Guild felt ashamed that their guild leader actually dared topare them to the healers of the Knights of Justice.


    William snickered, these bastards from the Crimson Guild weren''t probably being modest.


    Instead, they were using those words to highlight the weakness of the Knights of Justice in DPS.


    "Group up! Group up!" dimir shouted and the elites of his Crimson Guild gathered around him.


    "Wushang, focus on debuffs. Sean, Emily,e with me! MartyrNoble, you go and snipe the stragglers! As for the others, you know the drill and what must be done! Do not embarrass the Crimson Guild!" dimir roared and rushed towards the enemies.


    The monsters within the narrow passageway were humanoid-shaped monsters that not only moved extremely fast but were also quite strong in the damage department. They could grab yers as if they were Grapplers, and once you were grabbed by one of them...


    It was over for you.


    Unless the yer used a defensive skill to escape or unless he received help from an external source. The monsters whose names were censored and reced with question marks would open their mouths, and crush the heads of the yers that they managed to suppress.


    But of course, even though their damage was overwhelming.


    They had clear weaknesses.


    One of them was that they could only grab a single yer at a time, and they were incredibly weak to fire.


    And among the three guilds, who were the strongest among them when it came to wielding the strength of fire?


    Of course, it was Dark me!


    As soon as they got into position...


    They transformed the narrow passageway into an inferno that scorched these terrifying and unknown monsters into ashes.


    It was probably too much that they even turned these monsters into ashes.


    But their harrowing experiences told them that these unknown monsters would keep on reviving unless they were turned into nothingness.


    This was the reason why Nie Yan instructed his members to not hold anything back against these abominations.


    "Nie Yan! You''re really not too bad. I don''t really know why you and your guild stayed at the bottom of the ranks until now." dimirplimented Nie Yan''s disy of skill.


    Nie Yan stared coldly and didn''t reply. He remained on giving out orders to his guild members as the punitive expedition made by the cooperation of the three guilds, continued their journey deeper into the narrow passageway.


    "There''s the door! Twenty meters more!"


    The distance of the three guilds from the door was only about twenty meters. But despite this short distance, the three guilds found themselves overwhelmed. The number of monsters within the narrow passageway drastically increased when they reached the thirty-meter mark.


    Suddenly, they found themselves struggling than ever before.


    "Shit! The elemental affinity of these bastards changed from Wood into Metal! Fire won''t work anymore! Use Earth Elemental Skills!" Nie Yan violently cursed when he realized the reason why they were stuck in this position.


    The monsters that they easily burned into ashes earlier were now invulnerable in the face of the inferno.


    "Ah, shit! Help! Help!" A distant scream rang out, Nie Yan turned to look at that scream and he was astonished to find one of his guild members being grabbed by one of the abominable monsters.


    Nie Yan leaped to assist his subordinate, but it was already toote.


    The monster had opened its mouth and was already munching on the skull of the yer.


    Nie Yan''s subordinate was instantly killed.


    Instantly killing a Level 150+ yer was something unthinkable in the world of Victory.


    But these monsters did it.


    In a single attack, they crushed the skull of the poor yer and instantly killed him.


    "You..." Nie Yan clenched his fists in anger. He swiftly turned around and a whip reinforced by the essence of earth appeared in his hand as he struck.


    Peng!


    A dull sound rang out and the monster flew backward.


    Seeing that the monster was still alive. Nie Yan''s fury further increased.


    But when he took a step forward to ughter that bastard, an attack flew andnded on that monster.


    "Calm the fuck down, Nie Yan! Can you still call yourself a guild leader if you easily panic like that?" The attack came from William. He hurled a Spear made out of the holy light of the Divine Goddess Rhinna and exorcised the monster into ashes.


    dimir took this opportunity to mock. "Now, I see... So this is the reason why Dark me sat on the bottom for so long? To think that they would have such an ipetent leader, hehehe..."


    dimir shook his head in disapproval and even kicked a monster that approached him away, making sure that everyone saw how leisurely he was in battle.


    "You..." Nie Yan red at dimir.


    "Guild Leader, calm down! It''s not worth it." A female subordinate of Nie Yan approached him and gave a piece of advice. She red at dimir''s direction, but dimir merely whistled as he turned his gaze away from the two.


    "I know, Marga... I''m sorry, I should''ve kept my calm." Nie Yan apologized to the young woman.


    "Don''t worry about it. But let''s wrap this up for now. We''re still in battle."


    Marga nodded her head and ruffled Nie Yan''s hair.


    Nie Yan nodded and he proceeded to direct his anger on the monsters that barred their way.


    Meanwhile, on dimir''s side.


    "Hey, you so-called Number One Knight! Stabilize the aggro of those bastards! Don''t tell me that you can''t handle the aggro of dozens of monsters at once, right? I''m sure that you don''t want an OT to happen!" dimir instructed William.


    "Hey, you great healer there at the Knights of Justice! Don''t forget that we''re in a cooperative rtionship! Why are you only focusing your team members? Give some help to us too, or else I''ll make sure to reduce the spoils of war that you''ll receive after this!"


    dimir said to a particr healer at the Knights of Justice.


    "Why the fuck are you so noisy, dimir?" William furrowed his eyebrows andined.


    dimir snorted, "If I wasn''t so noisy like this, won''t I look like I''m not doing anything?"


    What he said was true.


    Although the monsters in the narrow passageway were strong. They couldn''t hold a candle to the monsters after this narrow passageway, just before the Main Hall.


    That was the reason why dimir felt like he wasn''t doing anything.


    After all, he was a Grappler and he needed to approach his enemies before he could deal damage.


    But how could he deal damage against his enemies when his enemies died before he could even approach them?


    These viney monsters in the narrow passageway may be strong and fast, but they were far too fragile!


    William didn''t really disapprove of what dimir had said, but his particr style of shot-calling felt jarring to him. But in general, their journey within the narrow passageway went smooth and harmonious.


    Apart from Nie Yan''s inappropriate outburst earlier, they didn''t have that many problems reaching the doors that would lead them to the Main Hall.


    The Main Hall was the ce where they were stuck. No matter what they did, they couldn''t reach the doors at the end of the Main Hall that should lead them to the Pce Halls. But the monsters alone after the narrow passageway weren''t the reason why they were stuck.


    It was because of the existence of a particr BOSS inside the Main Hall...


    "Gather around for a meeting!" William gave his orders and everyone gathered around him.


    "Some of you may not know about the BOSS that we are about to face after this door so we will convene this short meeting." William swept his gaze at some of the elite members of the three guilds.


    When they were still in the middle of gathering sufficient information about the dungeon within the Royal Pce...


    They didn''t send their elite members for reconnaissance.


    Instead, they sent yers whom they considered as cannon fodders and used their sacrifice to acquire the information that they had in their hands right now.


    This was the reason why William made everyone gather around him for a small meeting.


    It was for the sake of those yers that knew close to nothing about the BOSS.


    William informed everyone about the characteristics of the BOSS that they were about to face.


    The BOSS that stood in front of the doors of the Pce Hall had the name, the Great Wandering Bard.


    He looked to be a hunchback humanoid monster that had a ukulele in his hand.


    All of his attacks were soundwave-based so it was close to impossible for someone to dodge it if the attack was already sent to their direction.


    But these yers from Dark me, Knights of Justice, and Crimson were smart.


    Although it difficult for them to dodge the soundwave attacks. From the data that they gathered, they concluded that the attacks of the Great Wandering Bard could be avoided by steering away from the direction that the Great Wandering Bard was facing.


    In other words, they surmised that the soundwave attacks of the Great Wandering Bard weren''t really omnidirectional but in a cone-shaped trajectory in one direction where the Great Wandering Bard was facing.


    This information was reliable for they had personally experienced it when they fought against the Great Wandering Bardst time.


    But there was a certain problem that they needed to tackle once the Great Wandering Bard''s Health dropped to fifty-percent.


    Special BOSSes in the world of Victory such as wild BOSSes and Region BOSSes had three phases.


    At fifty-percent health...


    Special BOSSes would enter the so-called Irritated Phase.


    The nature of their attack would remain unchanged, but their attack patterns would beplicated.


    Furthermore, they would also deploy certain attacks that could instantly kill several yers at once.


    At twenty-five percent. Special BOSSes would enter the Boiling Anger Phase. In this phase, the nature of their attacks would change into somethingpletely different.


    Their attack patterns would not only be moreplex, but Special BOSSes in this state would receive a dramatic increase in their four main stats.


    Namely, Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, and Stamina.


    An increase in any of the four main stats in the middle of a battle could be the difference between life and death.


    The three guilds managed to reach this phase until they were instantly killed by the Great Wandering Bard.


    As for the third phase, it was the most dangerous phase called the Enraged Phase.


    In this stage, the Special BOSS would transform into somethingpletely different from their original form when their healths were still full. They would gain another dramatic boost in their four main stats, but their defenses would be drastically decreased.


    Whenever the battle against a BOSS reached this phase, every yer should not hold themselves back. Their mission would be to kill the BOSS as fast as possible through any means possible, no holds barred.


    The three guilds still haven''t seen the Enraged Phase of the Great Wandering Bard.


    But they believed that their firepower was sufficient to kill this Great Wandering Bard once that phase was reached.


    After all, that phase started when the Special BOSS only had ten percent of his health remaining.


    Removing that amount of Health from a BOSS wasn''t so hard if there were dozens of high-leveled yers attacking at once.


    The three guildspleted their meeting and William finally opened the doors of the Main Hall.


    Once the doors fully opened, they were greeted by dozens of monsters simr to what they had encountered from the narrow passageway.


    The three guilds acted quickly.


    None of them said anything anymore as they swarmed forth to DPS.


    "Melee yers, be careful of your positioning! Make sure to give the ranged yers some space to attack! The area is tight so all of you guys must be careful to not be in the crosshairs of the Mages!"


    "Especially you guys from the other guilds! If I see one of your attacksnd on my members, even if they were intentional or not, I will make you pay!"


    dimir roared his orders. The Main Hall was quite huge, but that space was quickly eaten up by dozens of yers that swarmed in from the narrow passageway. The ce became tight, and if one wasn''t careful. Their attacks couldnd on arade causing discord among them all.


    William nced at dimir and though that even though dimir''s mouth was crude.


    He couldn''t help but admit that he really was knowledgeable when it came torge-scale battles inside a dungeon.


    One of the reasons why bringing a lot of members to a dungeon was far harder than keeping your numbers to a minimum was because of positioning.


    But William was confident in the skills of the elite members of the three guilds.


    None of them were amateurs and they knew what to do. They must keep the rhythm of their attacks uniform while making sure that there was sufficient distance between them and theirrades.


    But why would they need to do that?


    It was because Victory didn''t ignore collisions. Due to this limitation, the more people there were, the harder it was for an individual to perform at their best, causing the collective copse of their overall strength and in turn, making the dungeon harder than what it seemed.


    Thankfully, everyone here knew what they ought to do.


    As soon as dimir''s orders came out.


    Everyone began to pay more attention to their positioning and rhythm.


    Although the synchronization of the three guilds with each other wasn''t that harmonious. They knew their role too well, so it didn''t take them too long to dispatch the several dozens of monsters that barred their way to the Special BOSS.


    Once the final monster copsed.


    The hunchback Special BOSS named the Great Wandering Bard finally turned around to look at them and roared.


    "You bastards..."


    "As long as I stand..."


    "None of you shall pass!"


    The Great Wandering Bard took a ukulele out of nowhere and a huge Health Bar appeared above his head. The passageway leading to the Pce Hall that he guarded dramatically changed.


    The monsters that the yers recently vanquished materialized once again and they quickly moved and surrounded the yers.


    "Hehehe... You old man... We''re back here to take our revenge!"


    dimir red at the Great Wandering Bard.


    He ran forwards and led the Crimson Guild to an attack!<ol><li>[Note: OT = Aggro goes "off the tank" Off Tank][Note: Aggro-radius = The area around the monster that if entered, would elicit a response from that monster in the form of gathering its aggro or causing it to attack at you.]</li></ol>

 Chapter 128: A Cruel Step to Ascension[10]

    Chapter 128: A Cruel Step to Ascension[10]


    "I thought that the news about those nobles simultaneously leaving the Kingdom of Nether was exaggerated. But it seems like it really is true. How else could we possibly enter this ce so easily? I think that even without Kayn''s Shadow Domain, we could''ve reached this ce the same without any problems!"


    Joseph couldn''t help butment.


    Right as he stepped foot inside the Treasure Hall where the treasures of the Kingdomy bare.


    He was astonished when he realized that they had entered this ce without a hitch.


    Usually, there would be a lot of Knights guarding this ce, but they didn''t even encounter a maid or servant, much more a Knight!


    "Holy shit boss! We''re rich!"


    "Hell yeah!"


    The members of Jeric''s bandit group screamed out loud when they saw the literal mountains of gold coins in front of them.


    Some of them were even already moving. Carrying several empty sacks, they started stuffing the gold coins from the Treasure Hall into those sacks. Staring at the eyes of these bandits, Joseph could vaguely see the icon of the Philippine Peso currency floating within their eyes.


    Alice evenmented, "Really greedy... It''s just money... If they are Blessed Artifacts then I wouldn''tin." Alice shook her head in disapproval. She became silent, clearly expecting the reply of a certain someone.


    But when she didn''t hear his reply...


    She turned her head to look at Joseph and was astonished to find him on the ground, swiftly stuffing his own empty sacks with gold coins.


    "What are you doing?" Alice asked.


    "Are you blind? Of course, I''m taking as much money as I can!"


    Joseph''s eyes had the same glint as the light within the bandits'' eyes.


    It was the light of avarice.


    Alice furrowed her eyebrows.


    She was about to say something when Joseph continued.


    "I know what you are thinking, from what you said earlier you disapproved of us doing something like this. But let me tell you, being poor makes you like this! I bet you haven''t experienced the life of us poor bastards. If not, I don''t think that you would think like that regarding our actions."


    Joseph then continued on stuffing gold coins into his pouches.


    He even ignored Alice and didn''t bother to wait for her reply.


    Alice was astonished. She felt hurt by Joseph''s words. She thought that she already had a good understanding of Joseph and she thought that he wasn''t this greedy.


    But in the face of several mountains of gold coins.


    How could he easily dispose of their good rtionship just for the sake of material wealth?


    He even dared to admonish her like this!


    Alice felt wronged.


    But it was true that she indeed couldn''t understand the mindset of the bandits when it came to money.


    Although she knew that they needed money, she couldn''t understand why there was a need for them to go so far like this. They looked like if they could, they may possibly even bury themselves under these mountains of coins.


    But Alice''s adaptability skills were admirable.


    After being hurt for a few seconds...


    She recovered and finally connected the dots as to why Joseph was acting like this.


    But this realization further increased her fondness to Joseph.


    For her, it seemed like there was more to Joseph than what she had seen and what he was disying to her recently and right now. She felt excited about slowly uncovering the traits and personalities that were hidden behind the person called Joseph.


    A light smile spread on her face.


    She turned to look at Joseph and squeezed these words out of her throat.


    "I''m sorry..."


    "What?" Joseph asked.


    He didn''t even raise his head to look at her for he was in the middle of stuffing as much money as he could.


    "I''m sorry that I mocked you all. I knew from the start that all of you wanted money, but I just didn''t expect that it was to this extent." Alice apologized once again.


    Joseph finally raised his head and smiled at her.


    He couldn''t help but feel even more in love at this proud, yet humble, stern, yet gentle, mean, yet kind Alice. Even though sometimes, her words were too much for Joseph to handle to the extent that they would go into war with each other through teasing.


    Joseph admitted that he really did like Alice.


    But was it because she was a gorgeous and beautiful young woman?


    Nope.


    Looks didn''t matter for Joseph.


    It was more because of her vibrant, yet highly adaptable and understanding personality.


    She''s proud, but she could recognize her mistake and apologize for it.


    She''s mean, but she knew the border between jokes and insult.


    She''s stern, but she knew how to properly utilize the carrot and stick method in dealing with those whom she cared for.


    Seeing her apologetic look.


    Joseph''s heart ached, his greed subsided and his hands temporarily stopped on reaching out to the gold coins for it went towards Alice''s head instead.


    Gently ruffling her hair, he said.


    "It''s fine... I''m not angry at you."


    "Really?" Alice asked in doubt.


    "Yeah..." Josephughed, "But I will be angry if you don''te here and help us collect these gold coins!"


    Alice was instantly delighted. She looked like she was about to jump into Joseph''s arms, but when she saw the greedy look on his face as he stared at the gold coins. It was probably better for her to help him with gathering these gold coins first.


    Having decided on what she must do...


    Alice kneeled beside Joseph and started gathering these gold coins like the others.


    But Alice wasn''t so obsessed with these gold coins like the others.


    While she was gathering the coins, she took the time to sweep her eyes across the entire Treasure Hall and she was astonished to find that there were several wooden tables in the distance with faintly-glowing items encased within ss containers.


    "Blessed Artifact!"


    Alice who had a Legendary cksmith as her grandpa instantly recognized those items.


    They were Blessed Artifacts...


    Blessed Artifacts were different from other Artifacts due to the fact that they contained the Divinity of God.


    In the Kingdom of Nether''s case, the divinity within these artifacts belonged to the Divine Goddess Rhinna so Alice quickly recognized that the items were Blessed Artifacts.


    "Blessed Artifact?" Joseph raised his head and asked.


    "Yeah, look! Those are Blessed Artifacts!" Alice pointed at the distance.


    "What is a Blessed Artifact?" Joseph rephrased his question.


    Alice turned to look at him with a frown, "Didn''t we already fought against the wielders of a Blessed Artifact? Oh, wait. It seems like you still don''t know about the concept of Blessed Artifacts. That should be the reason why you are asking me this right now."


    Joseph merely smiled. It really was too easy to talk with someone that could read along the lines!


    "It will take too long for me to exin everything. But a Blessed Artifact is like that Staff that the City Chief had when we fought him! In other words, a single one of those alone is far valuable than these mountains of gold coins!"


    Joseph''s astonishment became deeper. If those items right there on the table had the same abilities such as that strange staff of hypnotism that the City Chief had, then they really were far valuable than gold coins!


    Joseph''s greed intensified and he even abandoned the gathering of gold coins. He went straight to one of the artifacts and just as he was about to forcefully open the ss enclosure of one of the artifacts.


    His hands stopped and he fell into contemtion.


    <em>Usually, items with great value such as this are protected properly. There''s a high chance that if I touched this thing, I may trigger something dangerous or even gather the attention of others.</em>


    Alice approached him from behind and she instantly knew what Joseph was thinking.


    "You''re not wrong about that. I don''t think that the Kingdom won''t ce strong protections on these valuable artifacts. It''s a good thing that you were sensible enough not to touch it." Alice''s tone turned into a teasing one when she reached the end of her sentence.


    "Hey, at least I havemon sense..." Joseph red at her and Alice''s bell-likeughter resounded.


    After a few seconds ofughter from Alice. She also fell into deep contemtion like Joseph.


    But just as she was about to say some ideas to Joseph and the other bandits who swarmed around them out of nowhere.


    An elderly voice suddenly rang out!


    "It''s fine... You can take that. I''ve disabled the array that protects it."


    Everyone jolted in shock when the voice reached their ears. The elderly voice sounded tired, but it was still dignified as ever. Some of the bandits who had low Spirit Stat even directly kneeled on the ground in fear when they heard the voice.


    Kayn had a look of astonishment on his face and he quickly entered his Shadow Domain. Jeric remained rooted in ce whilst in the middle of gathering the gold coins, while Alice and Joseph were overjoyed due to the familiarity of the voice that they heard.


    "That voice..." Joseph mumbled in surprise.


    "Grandpa!" Alice eximed in delight.

 Chapter 129: A Cruel Step to Ascension[Finale] 4in1

    Chapter 129: A Cruel Step to Ascension[Finale] 4in1


    "Alice... you really are still alive..."


    The tone that Krid used to say these words made Joseph furrow his eyebrows.


    <em>Why does Senior sound like he''s regretting something when he realized that Alice was really alive? Shouldn''t he be happy that she''s alive instead of feeling regret? What is going on?</em>


    But Joseph suppressed his suspicions as Alice ran towards the direction of the Treasure Hall''s room. When Alice pushed the doors open, several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph.


    But before he could even read those system notifications...


    "T-T-The King?!"


    He was incredibly horrified to find the King of the Kingdom of Nether, lying on the ground beside Krid with a Rapier piercing through his back.


    "He''s dead?!"


    The bandits eximed what Joseph wanted to scream.


    Alice abruptly stopped on her tracks. She turned to look at Krid in astonishment.


    Krid revealed a bitter smile and exined.


    "Yes... I killed him... I killed this brother of mine with my own hands."


    Krid''s tone was indifferent but his sorrow was vividly depicted by the light within his eyes.


    "W-W-What happened?" Alice stuttered as she barely squeezed these words out of her throat.


    Joseph nced at the lifeless body of Oliver Oligarch, the King of the Kingdom of Nether. Judging from the fact that the crimson color of blood had already turned brownish.


    It was clear that it had been a while when he died.


    But that wasn''t the problem here, the question was that why did Krid decide to kill the King of the Kingdom of Nether?


    Why did he decide to kill his sworn brother?


    "Seeing that you are alive, it seems like everything really was just a huge misunderstanding. But I already know that when I felt the aura of the Grandeur and Beauty once again. I was just in denial that it was the truth." Krid spoke in cryptic words that further deepened the shock of the two.


    But Joseph recognized the words, Grandeur, and Beauty. Since he was the one wielding it. He was the first one to reply and ask, "Feel the aura of the Grandeur and Beauty? What is going on here, Senior? What do you mean?"


    Krid stared at Joseph and a light smile escaped on his lips. Although it didn''t erase the exhaustion on his face, the smile at least made the bandits think that he wasn''t as scary as they had expected. Some of the bandits rxed when they saw the smile on Krid''s face.


    But their minds quickly changed when they hear Krid say...


    "You guys have no business to listen in our conversation here. Go back inside the Treasure Hall and focus on plundering the wealth of the Kingdom. Isn''t that the reason why you all dared to infiltrate the Kingdom of Nether?" H


    is words sounded cold and directly assaulted the hearts of the bandits, causing them to flee in fear.


    "Grandpa... You didn''t have to be that harsh to them. Even though they are bandits, they are also trying their best to change, you know?" Alice couldn''t help butment. She puffed her cheeks and pouted.


    Krid nced at her and said, "Them changing their ways does not invalidate the fact that they are one of the scums of society!"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows when he heard Krid''s harsh evaluation on the bandits.


    What he said wasn''tpletely wrong, but he felt angry on the bandits'' sake due to the fact that Krid doesn''t seem like he nned on looking at those bandits who were struggling to change for the better in a new light.


    But since Krid was a Legendary cksmith.


    Joseph swallowed his words. He couldn''t risk offending this grandpa on steroids.


    The surroundings became silent...


    Then, it was shattered by Krid who heaved a deep and resounding sigh.


    "Sigh..." Krid raised his head and stared at his granddaughter and Joseph.


    "It''s good that the two of you are finally here... Joseph, thank you for keeping her safe." Krid, the dignified one and only Legendary cksmith of the world of Victory bowed his head towards the direction of Joseph.


    [An overwhelmingly strong presence is paying his respects to you!]


    [Dignity + 500]


    Joseph merely nced at the system notifications before he spoke up: "s-Senior, you don''t have to do that for me... I just did what I must do, ever since we had that agreement. I was alreadymitted to saving Alice..."


    "I was only doing the call of my duty, you do not have to bow your head to me."


    "Hehehe... You really are as polite as ever..." Krid smiled, afterwards. He made a sidelong nce at Alice before turning to look at Joseph once again and saying, "What do you think about Alice? Given that the two of you stayed together for at least several weeks, I think that you should have a pretty good understanding of her now, right?"


    A meaningful smile surfaced on Krid''s lips and he dropped another bombshell.


    "Do you like her?"


    Joseph jolted in shock, he couldn''t suppress the trembling of his body when he heard Krid''s words.


    But it wasn''t because of fear nor terror.


    It was because of nervousness.


    He felt like Krid''s words were full of traps wherein if hemitted a single mistake, he could potentially lose everything in a single move.


    But...


    Joseph wasn''t the type of person to hesitate anymore. If Krid asked this question when he first met Joseph. The Joseph back then would''ve hesitated and directly lied just so he could escape the consequences of telling the truth.


    But why must he lie about something like this?


    Joseph had already decided that he would never hesitate anymore so he could live his life to the fullest without any regrets.


    He raised his head and directly stared at Krid, a determined look could be seen on her face as he firmly replied.


    "I like her, Senior!"


    His words resounded like the booms of thunder and Alice who was already embarrassed and angry by her grandfather''s antics was even more embarrassed when she heard Joseph''s confession.


    But when she heard that Joseph really did like her...


    Her anger towards her grandfather disappeared, reced by gratefulness as she hung her head low in shame.


    Although she was happy.


    She was still an inexperienced young woman.


    Suddenly receiving a confession out of nowhere.


    Especially from someone whom she felt the same. It was impossible for her to keep her wits as she stood there, rooted, unable to move, and not knowing what she should do.


    Joseph furtively nced at Alice and when he saw the furious blush on her face that spread towards her neck.


    Joseph finally awakened from his reverie.


    <em>Fuck, fuck, fuck! Wasn''t that a confession? Holy shit! Did I actually confess to Alice in front of her grandfather? What the fuck did I just do?! That was my first confession! Will my first confession lead to my death instead of happiness? Damn it! I was too hasty to prove myself to Senior!</em>


    Joseph maintained a cool and determined facade but he was already trembling inside.


    Alice who stood slightly behind him lightly chuckled when she saw the cold sweat that drenched Joseph''s tunic.


    "Really..."


    She stared at Joseph''s back.


    "Pretending to be such a tough chatan when you''re actually more of a scaredy-cat than me."


    "You really are such an..."


    Alice wanted to continue her words with the word, <em>"idiot"</em> but she realized that she wasn''t actually mad at Joseph for pretending to be tough.


    In fact, she felt happy and grateful for his actions.


    It was because even though she refused to admit to it.


    She knew how proud she was.


    If Joseph didn''t confess his feelings for her at this moment. Their courtship would''ve probablysted an eternity. It was difficult for her to expect that Joseph would confess first since he was also quite proud, but if you wanted Alice to confess first.


    It was impossible!


    That was how prideful she was as a young woman!


    This was the reason why she was so grateful to her grandfather.


    She turned to look at her grandfather, Krid.


    The look of joy and gratefulness was evident in her eyes.


    Joseph remained frozen, he was too afraid to move nor move his gaze away from Krid. He was afraid that Krid may notice his fears if he dared to turn his gaze away from the old man''s eyes.


    But contrary to his expectations.


    Instead of getting mad, Kridughed out loud...


    His exhaustion seemed to have disappeared at this moment as he said with a smile.


    "I see... So you like her." He made a meaningful nce at Alice before saying, "From the looks of it, you also captured the proud heart of this granddaughter of mine."


    "W-What are you saying... Grandpa!" Alice retorted, but Krid didn''t mind what she was saying.


    Joseph surreptitiously nced at Alice and the embarrassment finally sunk to him when he saw the crimson blush on Alice''s cheeks.


    "Since it looks like both of your feelings are mutual. Can I ask you for a favor, Joseph?" Krid''s expression suddenly turned serious.


    Joseph''s embarrassment swiftly disappeared.


    A stern look appeared on his face as he stared at Krid''s eyes and slowly nodded his head.


    "Thanks..." A genial smile spread on Krid''s lips, "You don''t have to be so nervous. My request is not that outrageous. I just want you to promise that from now on, I hope you can stay by my granddaughter''s side..."


    "I want you to stay with Alice and protect her."


    "Can you afford this small favor of mine?"


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    But his mindset didn''t allow for any hesitation so he quickly replied with his honest feelings.


    "Y-Y-Yes..."


    Joseph wanted to reply in a dignified manner, but the voice that came out of his throat was so small that it sounded more like a mosquito''s droning.


    But Krid was a Legendary cksmith whose physique was far stronger than the average human, and Alice was also the same for she was a Sword Adept. In short, it wasn''t that hard for them to listen to what Joseph had said, and when the two heard his reply...


    Krid''s smile deepened, while Alice looked even more embarrassed. Her entire body was fidgeting as she stood there, it was clear that she was moved by Joseph''s words due to the tears that welled in her eyes but she just didn''t know what to do.


    In the end, she did nothing other than stare at the ground, she didn''t even dare to raise her head, afraid that her eyes may meet Joseph''s gaze and he''d notice how incredibly moved and embarrassed she was.


    If that happened, she reckoned that Joseph would tease her about it for at least several weeks!


    "I see... Both of you,e here..."


    Krid gestured for them to follow and they soon arrived at the table standing near the golden throne of the King inside the Pce Hall.


    On the tableid a work of art, a masterpiece, a weapon that would probably be never made again by the hands of a mortal. It was a weapon that transcended the limitations of the Laws of Causality itself.


    It was a weapon that shouldn''t really exist within the Mortal Realm, but here it was.


    On top of a wooden table, casually sitting there as if it wasn''t a living vition of the Laws that the Gods imposed on the mortals.


    [ You are in the presence of the first Mythical Weapon in existence! ]


    [ + 125 Strength + 150 Stamina + 450 Divinity ]


    "T-T-This..."


    Joseph uttered in shock.


    Thud!


    A dull thud rang out behind him and he found Alice kneeling on one knee.


    "This is the weapon that will apany you in your domination of the world. This is the weapon that will prove to everyone that you are indeed... The Sun that Overlooks Everything..."


    Joseph stared at the Rapier on the table.


    The Rapier had a de that was as thin as a cicada''s wing, and the silvery-white sheen that it emanated made it look iparably gorgeous and beautiful. However, that wasn''t the most astonishing trait of the Rapier.


    It was because of the fact that the Rapier itself seemed to be constantly blinking from Joseph''s eyes.


    Its length was also unique to the eyes, but the real beauty of the weapon wasn''t just depicted on its de.


    It could also be seen underneath it.


    The handguard of the weapon that consisted of a Crossbar and Knuckle Bar, supported by a delicate, yet incredibly strong Sweepings made the weapon look delightful to the eyes.


    But even though the weapon looked simr to the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    Joseph could feel that there was something strange to it.


    It was because while he was staring at the weapon.


    He could feel the weapon staring at him.


    Joseph subconsciously stretched his hand out and when he did.


    Several system notifications appeared in front of him.


    [ You are currently in possession of a Mythical Rank Weapon! As the first owner of a Mythical Rank Weapon, you now have the qualifications to be within the top ten of the Universal Rankings! Do you want to be in the Rankings? ]


    [Yes/No/I''ll decideter.]


    [Your ss-Specific Quest, The Grand Duelist''s Vestige IV has been updated to The Grand Duelist''s Vestige Finale]


    Joseph was about to open the system notifications that said something about his ss-Specific Quest but he felt that it was quite inappropriate for him to open it when Senior Krid was still in front of him.


    He felt that it was far important for him to interact with Krid. He dispersed those system notifications and nned on taking a look at themter.


    Joseph stared at the Rapier in front of him. His eyes were attracted to its beauty.


    Although the silvery runic designs on the de and its hilt made it look incredibly feminine and fragile.


    Joseph knew that from the fact alone that it was Mythical Ranked...


    It definitely possessed firepower that surpassed anything that everyone had ever seen.


    "What do you think?" Krid asked with a smile.


    Joseph turned to look at Krid and eximed, "It feels too good, Senior! It feels too good to hold this weapon!"


    "Hahaha... Good to hear that." Krid lightly chuckled at Joseph''s antics.


    Joseph felt incredibly excited holding the Rapier in his hands. Finally, after struggling in the underground prison, escaping from the hands of the Kingdom as a wanted man, and suffering that sorrow in the ce perpetually hidden from the sun.


    Joseph finally attained his goal.


    He had finally acquired his Mythical Ranked, ss-Specific Weapon!


    But Joseph suddenly felt that there was something strange.


    <em>Why do I feel like I haven''t ascended yet?</em>


    Joseph opened up his yer Profile and saw that he was still a Pre-Mature Grand Duelist.


    <em>What''s going on? Shouldn''t I be a True Mythical ss yer now? Why haven''t I ascended yet?</em>


    At first, Joseph thought that the P.H Works probably intervened but it didn''t make sense for them to withhold the rewards that Joseph deserved after his struggles.


    "You already felt it right?" Krid turned to look at Joseph.


    "Y-Y-Yeah... There''s something strange..." Joseph replied, his tone full of doubt.


    Alice rushed towards them and she stared at the Mythical Ranked Weapon. Except for the fact that her eyes felt like they were about to bleed when she stared directly at the weapon. She couldn''t see anything strange to it so she turned to look at Krid in doubt.


    "Indeed... That Mythical Ranked Weapon is indeed a Mythical Ranked Weapon but itcks a single, yet important ingredient..."


    "For something to transcend the limitations of the Laws of Causality. And for you to transcend that same limitation, there needs to be a sacrifice. A sacrifice so cruel, yet something that I am willing to make..." Krid swept his gaze at the two before his gazended on Alice.


    "G-Grandpa... What are you talking abo-..." Alice wasn''t able toplete her sentence.


    It was because she saw her grandpa move in front of Joseph before stabbing himself with the Rapier that Joseph held in his hands.


    <em>Guah!</em>


    A mouthful of blood escaped Krid''s mouth.


    "Grandpa!!!" Alice''s face instantly paled as she rushed towards her grandpa''s side.


    Joseph was frozen stiff due to what happened and he wasn''t able to respond.


    "Grandpa!!!" Alice hurriedly assisted Krid, and at this point. Joseph finally awakened from his reverie as he let go of the Rapier and moved towards Krid''s side.


    "I-It''s fine... Ever since I... Ever since I decided to ask for this brat''s help... I was already prepared to sacrifice myself for his ascension..."


    "No... Grandpa... Why... Why did you do this? S-S-Sacrifice? To hell with that!" Tears streamed down Alice''s cheeks, "Is there really no other way other than this? Must you really sacrifice yourself for Joseph''s sake...?"


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva as he suppressed the sourness that suddenly assaulted his nose and eyes. He held back his tears as he kneeled down.


    He didn''t ask any more questions to Krid for the system notification that appeared right in front of him, informed him of the truth of what Krid had done.


    [Quest Clear Conditions: Kill a Non-yer Legend.]


    The cruel quest clear conditions of thest stage of the ss-Specific Quest made it obvious that it was impossible for Joseph to ascend to the ranks of Myth if he didn''t kill a Legend.


    And in the current epoch, there was no other non-yer Legend apart from Krid!


    But...


    "P.H Works... Must this really be a necessary step? Why... Why did you design the quest this way? Why... Why is the final step for my ascension, so incredibly cruel after all the things that I have to endure just to get to this step?"


    "Why?!"


    "Answer me, why?!"


    Joseph roared towards the skies. Tears streamed down his cheeks as his chest violently heaved.


    But there was nothing that he could do anymore...


    Krid was already on the brink of death.


    "B-B-Brat... You must... honor... what you said... you must take care of... Alice... I have wronged her for far too long... I took her childhood life away from her just so I could have her learn the art of cksmithing..."


    "I am guilty of that sin and there is nothing that can absolve me for what I have done..."


    "You... You must not let my sacrifice be in vain... Promise me..."


    "Promise me that..."


    "Promise me that you''ll make her the happiest woman in this world..."


    "So that... So that she''ll... So that she''ll forget the pain of losing me..."


    "I don''t want her to suffer... even when I''m already gone..."


    "Please... promise me..."


    Joseph choked, he couldn''t suppress the sourness in his throat anymore as he let out a cry. But when he quickly suppressed his tears and assumed a tough facade.


    He saw that Krid was staring at him with expectations...


    Holding Alice''s trembling hand on his left hand, and Krid''s hand on his right hand.


    Joseph stared at the old man and dered.


    "Y-Yes... I promise... I will protect her... with my life... I will make her the happiest woman in the world!"


    "Good... Good... Good..." A delighted look surfaced on Krid''s face.


    But he coughed once again and this time, some of his organs apanied his blood.


    "No!!! Grandpa, please... please don''t talk anymore... I will... I will save you..."


    Alice took several herbs from her pocket and crushed it with her hands.


    She sprinkled it on Krid''s body, but even the faint glow of Life couldn''t extend Krid''s life anymore.


    The damage that he inflicted on himself with the Mythical Ranked Rapier was so severe to the extent that no amount of herbs nor treasures could possibly extend his life.


    Realizing this cold and hard truth...


    Another wave of tears streamed down Alice''s cheeks as she cried.


    She cried like a child.


    Joseph gnashed his teeth. He proceeded to apply some basic first aid on Krid''s body, but the biggest artery on his body was pierced through by his Rapier.


    In other words.


    It was impossible to save him.


    There was nothing that they could do anymore.


    Bang!


    Joseph mmed his fists onto the ground.


    He felt incredibly powerless once again despite holding the strongest weapon in existence.


    "Why... Why..." Joseph could only whisper these words into the air.


    "It''s fine..." Krid suddenly spoke up.


    Alice and Joseph were quick to react as the two of them moved closer to Krid.


    "Grandpa! Hang in there! Please!" Alice protested.


    Krid sweetly smiled at Alice and said, "Alice... your grandpa stole you of your childhood. Instead of letting you y with your friends and explore the world with them. I turned you into someone that was like a ve. A ve to the anvil and the hammer..."


    "I''m sorry, my child..."


    "Finding a suitable partner for you before I die is the least that I can do for you... No, it''s the least that I can do for myself..."


    "Only through this way can I feel that at least, I... did something for your sake, instead of my selfish desires..."


    Krid''s smile turned iparably gentle and ethereal.


    His body gradually turned faint.


    It was as if he was about to turn into a mist that would soon disperse into nothingness.


    "No... Grandpa... No! Please! Hold on! You can''t die! I can''t allow you to die!"


    Alice lunged at Krid and held him tightly, she was afraid that if she let go, she would never be able to hold her grandfather anymore.


    She had already been separated from her grandfather once, why would she let herself be separated from him once again?


    "No... Please... Grandpa... Don''t go... Don''t... Don''t leave me alone!" Alice begged.


    The tears and snot that decorated her face made her look iparably pitiful.


    "D-Don''t cry like that..."


    Krid stretched his already blurry hand and wiped the tears that drenched Alice''s face.


    "Grandpa..." Alice held the hand that Krid stretched out to her cheeks. Tears continuously fell from her eyes and her voice was already hoarse from the screaming and crying.


    "From now on, someone else will take care of you... This brat... even though he''s somewhat of a wimp. He is quite reliable and determined. If not for that, how else could he bring you back to me unscathed?" Krid lightly chucked before he suddenly stared at the skies.


    "Alice... Can you forgive me for what I have done to you back then?" Krid absentmindedly uttered.


    His body was now shining in a brilliant light, an indication that he was truly about to pass away.


    "Grandpa... Please... No, don''t go... I don''t want anyone to take care of me other than you! So, please! Don''t go..." Alice violently shook her head and refused to answer Krid''s question.


    "Child... Will you forgive me?" Krid asked once again.


    This time, Alice finally answered with her honest feelings.


    "I... I have never med you for what you have done to me back then!"


    "I see..."


    A smile of relief appeared on Krid''s face.


    Both of Krid''s eyes lost all traces of focus at this moment.


    His body became still.


    Only his throat moved ever so slightly to squeeze out these words that came from his soul...


    "Oliver, Mike, Craig... We can finally drink together again..."


    "Dear... I''ming..."


    "I''ming for you... Dear..."


    His final words were as weak as a breeze until itpletely faded away...


    Then, hoarse screams of desperation and grief pierced through the skies.


    Afterwards, an incredibly domineering divinity descended out of nowhere and made the entire world tremble...


    [The Sun That Overlooks Everything... has emerged!]


    [The 72 Demons of Hell are trembling!]


    [The Seven Gods and Goddesses are rmed!]


    [The Laws of Causality is overwhelmed!]


    [The world has lost one of its pirs!]


    [The First Mythical yer has finally ascended!]

 Chapter 130: Abandoned Kingdom

    Chapter 130: Abandoned Kingdom


    "Soundwaves attack iing! Veer to the right! Knights, stand your ground!"


    A dignified voice tore through the battlefield.


    "Crimson, take care of the monsters around us! Dark me, focus your firepower onto the BOSS! We cannot let him have any time to breathe!"


    William dished out several orders at once and the experienced yers of Crimson, Dark me, and his own Knights of Justice hurriedly moved and obeyed his orders.


    Even dimir who usually wanted his Crimson to be in the front lines didn''t give any objections and proceeded to execute the orders that he received from William.


    He knew that this wasn''t the time forints.


    The BOSS was about to reach its first phase and once that happened, everything would drastically change.


    "Focus! Focus! Focus!" Nie Yan cried out.


    Magical runes surrounded his body as he silently chanted the strongest skill that he has avable within his arsenal.


    "Wayin pinakagwapo, ang nagst ra!" His guild members stood firm and chanted with him.


    In just a blink of an eye, several dozens of magical runes materialized around the bodies of the members of Dark me.


    As soon as these magical runes appeared, the eyes of the Great Wandering Bard turned to look at them.


    "Gulp..." Nie Yan subconsciously gulped a mouthful of saliva. But he remained steadfast in the face of the Great Wandering Bard''s threat. He knew that their firepower was necessary for the sess of this operation so they would definitely be protected by Crimson and the Knights of Justice.


    But Nie Yan still felt intimidated by the BOSS.


    This goes to show how high the Dignity Stat of the Great Wandering Bard was.


    But a high Dignity stat was useless in a battle like this.


    In the end, the members of the Dark me managed toplete their chanting and a gigantic Spear made out of fire almost filled the entire passageway leading to the Pce Halls.


    If not for the fact that every yer in the area was in a party connected with the Dark me.


    They would''ve probably been turned into ashes when that Spear made out of fire materialized.


    "Stand your ground! Don''t let the bastard interrupt Dark me!"


    William gave an order and the Crimson Guild moved in front of Dark me. From the serious expressions on their faces, it was clear that they''d rather die than let the Great Wandering Bard interrupt the Dark me from their chanting.


    In battles, mages always attracted the aggro of BOSSes whenever they were chanting.


    This was the reason why despite their firepower.


    Mages were considered as ss cannons in raids.


    It was also incredibly hard to protect them because unless someone had his Chanting Mastery leveled to the maximum.


    One would be immobilized while chanting...


    In other words, Mages who were in the middle of their chanting were sitting ducks and if you wanted to protect them. You must be willing to block the attacks of the BOSS who wanted to interrupt the chanting of the Mages.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion signified the arrival of the Great Wandering Bard''s attacks.


    "Hold it!"


    William stood at the helm of it all with his huge shining shield propped up in front of him. When the soundwaves struck his shield. The vibrations traveled through the shield and into his body, causing him to cough a mouthful of blood.


    If not for the fact that his Healers had quick reflexes.


    He would''ve died at that moment...


    Under the fierce attacks of the irritated Great Wandering Bard. His Health was merely nothing but a speck of dust on a desk. But this mere speck of a dust Health was actually fighting against the damage that the Great Wandering Bard was dishing out.


    "You... You bastaaards!!!" The Great Wandering Bard roared towards the skies. He lifted his left hand into the air, an indication that he was about to send another soundwave attack towards the intruders.


    "Irritated Phase, Insta-kill attack! Interrupt!" Nie Yan who stood at the farthest from the front line saw the greenish light gathering around the ukulele that the Great Wandering Bard held in his hands.


    He swiftly gave hismands and the Spear of fire floating above the air flew towards the Great Wandering Bard.


    The Great Wandering Bard noticed the disturbance in the air and his hand descended on his ukulele.


    A soundwave, thick enough that it became visible to the eyes, flew and struck the Spear made out of fire directly on its tip. A battle of attrition began in the airspace above the yers, but the yers took this opportunity to attack instead of retreating.


    "Charge!"


    William cried out and the members of the Knights of Justice followed suit.


    Crimson was the second, while Dark me started on chanting their attacks once again.


    Bang!


    The Spear made out of fire finally exploded. Sending debris flying in all directions. Miraculously, the debris made out of fire didn''t do any damage against the yers in the passageway. They only dealt damage against the monsters that the Great Wandering Bard summoned.


    "Attack! No holds barred! Don''t give it any time to rx!" William cried out.


    The Crimson Guild and Dark me went crazy on their attacks. They were attacking as if the concept of Mana Conservation wasn''t even important nor it existed for them. But the truth was that they really didn''t need to conserve any Mana.


    As the strongest guilds within the Kingdom of Nether, they had a lot of Alchemists that made a lot of Mana and Health Potions for them every day.


    Their stockpile when it came to potions were ridiculous, so these three guilds didn''t give any reservations when it came to attacking the Great Wandering Bard that was until...


    The Great Wandering Bard suddenly froze.


    He stretched his hand behind him and a dagger with a sharp glint could be seen.


    "Retreat!" dimir who was the nearest to the BOSS gave amand to retreat.


    "What the hell are they doing?" William who stood behind the Crimson Guild''s offensive line couldn''t see what dimir could see so he was astonished when he saw their actions.


    At first, he thought that dimir was purposely doing this to sabotage them but his eyes constricted when he saw the dagger in the Great Wandering Bard''s hands.


    "Shields up!" William waved his sleeve and gave an order.


    He raised his own Shield and the experienced Knights of the Knights of Justice quickly understood what he wanted them to do.


    In an instant, a defensive line was formed before the Great Wandering Bard.


    "Healers, Ready!" When William gave his second order.


    The Great Wandering Bard had already moved.


    He appeared in front of the defensive line and hacked away against his enemies.


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    The sounds of metal shing against metal continuously rang out.


    The Knights didn''t care about anything anymore aside from keeping up their defense.


    All of them raised their shields in an angle in front of them.


    The Knights who stood at the first row of the defensive line felt their shields bouncing back and forth.


    Blocking these fierce, heavy, yet swift attacks greatly affected their movements.


    Furthermore, their Healths were also haphazardly jumping up and down as if their Healths were the bitcoin prices sorted by the hour in a graph, even though there were dozens of Healers supporting them from behind.


    In this kind of situation, their Health was the least of the Knights'' worries.


    In fact, they were even more worried if they can keep up this defensive line instead of their Health.


    Thankfully, the Great Wandering Bard''s fierce attacks onlysted for a few seconds.


    When the Great Wandering Bard retreated with a step backward. A fierce cry rang out from behind.


    "Gunners, fire! Others, nk! We''re going hot!"


    While the Great Wandering Bard was in the middle of unleashing a barrage of attacks using his dagger.


    The other yers who weren''t in the front lines were busy doing their own thing.


    The members of the Crimson Guild, particrly those specialized in long-ranged warfare formed a circle around the Great Wandering Bard.


    As soon as they heard the signal to fire. Countless sparks appeared in the distance along with several dozens of sonic booms that tore through the air itself before tearing through the flesh of the Great Wandering Bard.


    The Special BOSS coughed a mouthful of blood and he staggered backward.


    He was about to send another attack, but another wave of firended on his body.


    This time, it came from Dark me who had alreadypleted their chanting.


    "Guaaah! Curses! You bastards! I will definitely not let you go! It''s either you or me that will die today!" The Great Wandering Bard screamed, his anger boiled and his eyes gradually turned red.


    At this moment, his shirt was already ripped off, and even though he still looked like an elderly man.


    He wasn''t a hunch-back anymore.


    "Careful! Second Phase! Retreat, observe patterns!" William gave an order and the three guilds made a temporary collective retreat. The contents of William''s order was simple. It was for them to retreat and probe the BOSS in its new phase in a careful and considerate approach.


    A Special BOSS in the Boiling Anger Phase was incredibly dangerous. They had several attacks that may look simple in the eye but actually had damage that could instantly kill anyone in the world of Victory. The retreat that they made was reasonable but dimir became angry at their actions.


    "What the fuck are we retreating for? We should''ve kept the momentum of our attacks! By retreating, we are giving that bastard some time to breathe!" dimir angrily cursed.


    William raised an eyebrow and said, "dimir, this is not the time for us to scold each other. From now on, we must carefully analyze the new attack patterns and skills of this bastard..."


    "Haven''t you noticed, yet? We have already lost about a fourth of our force! If we keep on being reckless like this, there''s no way for sure if we can even seed in killing this boss!"


    Nie Yan also had a frown on his face.


    dimir visibly trembled. He opened up his Party List and he was astonished to see the names of several dozens of his members greyed-out. In other words, they died somewhere in the middle of battle.


    dimir couldn''t refute William anymore. He was right and it was also useless to continue this argument for they were in the middle of a battle against an extremely powerful Special BOSS.


    dimir heaved a deep sigh and retreated.


    He gave an order to his subordinates and soon, the entire Crimson Guild had retreated.


    It was at this moment that a dignified, yet somewhat mocking sounding voice rang out in the air.


    "Hah! To think that I would see the three strongest guilds of the Kingdom of Nether retreat at the same time in the face of a BOSS that''s already in the brink of death! How shameful, and you all even call yourselves as the strongest in this Kingdom?"


    The mocking voice sounded incredibly familiar to everyone.


    No...


    It''d be strange if that voice wasn''t familiar.


    After all, that voice and the owner of that voice frequently popped-up within every Victory-based Media Stations around the world.


    The man behind that voice could be considered as the Ambassador of the world of Victory to the outside world, for not only he was the voice of Victory.


    He was also considered as the strongest yer of Victory.


    Number One within the Universal Rankings, the one and only Legendary ss yer, Kristian...


    The Absolute Monarch.


    "M-Monarch..." The faces of every yer from the three guilds paled.


    But it wasn''t only because of the presence of the Absolute Monarch.


    It was also because whenever the Absolute Monarch went.


    His army or guild members followed.


    The number one guild in the entire world of Victory.


    He was the Guild Leader of the Guild, Strongest Under Heaven.


    It was an incredibly arrogant name, but no one dared to mock it...


    No...


    No yer was qualified to mock nor criticize this guild.


    All of their members were yers within the Universal Rankings.


    It was clear how powerful they were.


    Now that they were here and it was clear that they nned on stealing the Special BOSS from the hands of Crimson, Dark me, and Knights of Justice. dimir gnashed his teeth, he clenched his fists and stared right at the majestic figure of the Absolute Monarch.


    Kristian d in a delicate, yet intricately designed robes descended from the skies.


    He stared at the Great Wandering Bard and uttered.


    "You are standing in front of the Great Monarch."


    "Kneel..."

 Chapter 131: Abandoned Kingdom[2]

    Chapter 131: Abandoned Kingdom[2]


    Bang!


    An explosion rang out but it didn''te from guns nor anything dangerous. The explosion urred due to the collective sounds of everyone kneeling onto the ground at the same time. At this moment, apart from the Absolute Monarch. There was no one standing in the area.


    Even the Great Wandering Bard was on his knees.


    "H-H-How broken..." dimir uttered under his breath.


    Despite the fact that he was unwilling to just let go of the BOSS like that. He had no other choice but to agree that Kristian really was a powerful figure. But this wasn''t the end of the three guilds shock. It was because they saw that under the suppression of the Legendary yer...


    The Great Wandering Bard struggled and he managed to stand up once again in the end.


    "Oh? Interesting... To think that you can actually resist under my order..."


    Kristian gave anguid smile.


    He looked rxed as if he was in his backyard instead of a battlefield.


    The Legendary ss, the Absolute Monarch gave him control over the domain of obedience. Everyone who heard his orders would bepelled to obey them. In fact, for as long as that person''s Dignity Stat was low enough. He could even order them to disgrace themselves in public.


    His control over the domain of obedience was the reason why his ss was considered as a Legendary ss.


    The Great Wandering Bard gnashed his teeth and stared at Kristian with bloodshot eyes. He knew how dangerous Kristian was but it was impossible for him to retreat after giving his promise that he would definitely protect the Pce Halls with his life until everything was over.


    The battlefield turned silent. No one dared to speak.


    But this silence was soon broken with a scream from the Great Wandering Bard.


    Everyone''s attention turned to the Great Wandering Bard and their pupils constricted when they saw his transformation.


    From a hunch-back elderly man. The Great Wandering Bard turned into a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. His hair, dyed in white and his blue, sapphire-like eyes radiated an ancient light that thoroughly astounded those who dared to stare at his eyes.


    The Great Wandering Bard floating above his name changed and became question marks.


    His level that was at Level 150, also became question marks.


    These changes thoroughly astonished everyone to the point that it looked like their jaws were about to fall onto the floor.


    "A transformation, eh? It seems like I was right. You really are not what you seem. But that is still not enough, no matter how much your level is, to fight against a Legend whose ss bestowed upon me by the heavens is the same as fighting against heavens itself..."


    "Can you do that?"


    "Nevermind, you''re a mere mortal."


    Kristian flew into the air.


    The arrogant look on his face displeased everyone, but none of them dared to express that displeasure out loud.


    They hung their heads low, afraid of being noticed by Kristian as they silently thought about some ns on how they could steal the BOSS from the hands of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    A fierce battle soon ensued but the guild leaders of the three guilds were busy discussing this topic.


    "Are we just going to let them steal the BOSS like that? We spent several days gathering information regarding that BOSS and now that we are about to seed, are we just going to let them steal that BOSS from us? I''m not willing!" It was dimir, he was the first one that expressed his dissatisfaction.


    William and Nie Yan nced at each other and sighed.


    Afterwards, Nie Yan said, "Then what do you want to do? Do you want to steal the BOSS from them? I don''t think that a single Special BOSS is enough to pay for everything that would happen to us if we acquired the anger of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild!"


    William nodded his head, "I agree, Strongest Under Heaven Guild, what a really arrogant guild. Do they really think that just because they have a Legendary yer that they now own the entire world?"


    "What bunch of ignorant bastards. If not for the fact that we''re incredibly weakened from the battle right now then we would''ve contested this BOSS from them!"


    dimir pointed at him, "See! Even you can understand what I''m talking about then what are we waiting for?"


    dimir looked like he was about to rush to the battlefield but Nie Yan quickly stopped him by saying.


    "Have you gone senile, dimir? If we steal that BOSS from that Monarch of bastards right there then it is impossible for us to escape their retaliation!"


    dimir paused. He fell into deep contemtion for a while before a smile spread on his lips as he replied, "What if the yer that we sent to steal that BOSS isn''t affiliated to us?"


    William frowned, "Are you stupid? If we do that then we won''t be able to gain any loot from the BOSS!"


    dimir lightly chuckled, "Yes, that is true. But that''s fine! What? Would you rather let that arrogant bastard take the loots from this BOSS? Since that bastard wants us to suffer then we''ll drag him down with us!"


    The two guild leaders were speechless.


    They didn''t know what to say.


    But after a few moments of silence, they finally spoke up and it was Nie Yan who first expressed his opinion about dimir''s n.


    "That is indeed a good n, but do we have that kind of a yer?"


    "A yer that is not affiliated with any of the three guilds?"


    William furrowed his eyebrows.


    Indeed, they don''t have that kind of a yer.


    All of the members of their guild here were elite members whom they could trust with their life. It was impossible for them to sacrifice such a valuable yer just for the sake of dragging the Strongest Under Heaven guild with them in this matter.


    But...


    "I have a yer like that!"


    ... dimir solved this conundrum for them.


    He whispered some information to them and the two guild leaders were finally convinced.


    Now, they decided onying low but once the time was ripe. They wouldmence their n and have that unaffiliated yer steal the BOSS from the hands of the arrogant Monarch!


    "Boss, I don''t think that the three guilds are nning on doing something suspicious." Kristian, the Absolute Monarch received a private message from his spies within the three guilds.


    A frown appeared on his face when he saw the message.


    It was impossible for Kristian to believe that the three guilds weren''t nning on doing anything.


    After all, despite the fact that these three guilds were weaker than his guild. He believed that the pride of these three guilds weren''t weaker than the pride of his own guild! It was more likely for the three guilds to bring him down with them instead of just directly surrendering the BOSS to him!


    But since he received no information from his trusted spies within the elite members of the three guilds. Kristian rtively calmed down. If the three guilds wanted to do something drastic then they definitely required the help of their elite members.


    Once that happened then his spies would also know about their ns, and Kristian would be able to do some preparations beforehand. But since even the elite members knew nothing about the n of the three guilds. It was likely that they really don''t have anything in mind.


    A light smile spread on Kristian''s face as he thought that it was a really good decision for him to wait until the Health of the Special BOSS was low enough before they intervened in the battle.


    Now, it was easier for them to defeat this ridiculously powerful BOSS.


    Yes, ridiculously powerful.


    When the BOSS transformed into a handsome man.


    Kristian discovered that the BOSS underwent a qualitative change.


    But that qualitative change still wasn''t enough in the face of the thirty or so elite members of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild.


    After some thoughts, Kristian decided that he would end the battle as soon as possible to prevent any unexpected changes in the battlefield.


    He flew into the air and started giving out orders himself.


    "Knights shields up!"


    "Mages, chant!"


    "Mercenaries, distract, don''t OT!"


    "Grapplers, restrict movements."


    "Tempests, surround!"


    "Gunners, open fire!"


    "Others, no holds barred!"


    Kristian started giving orders after orders.


    The cooperation of their members was far seamless and smooth than the cooperation of the members of the three guilds.


    They were entranced by the performance that the Strongest Under Heaven Guild was doing to the extent that they temporarily forgot their anger and started to admire this beautiful scene.


    The Special BOSS whose name was now unknown staggered backward and repeatedly coughed a mouthful of blood.


    A greenish-light surrounded his body but it gradually became dim as his Health steadily dropped down like a waterfall.


    The Gunners took advantage of this and they fired everything that they had towards the BOSS.


    The others who weren''t given any limitations by Kristian went crazy and hurled all sorts of colorful skills, along with punches and dozens of kicks towards the Special BOSS.


    The battlefield instantly turned chaotic and the yers who were admiring the scene finally awakened from their reverie since they couldn''t even see through the battlefield anymore.


    The guild leaders of the three guilds, especially dimir were at a loss.


    dimir gave that particr person and order to attack once the Health of the Special BOSS reached a certain point, but could she really urately attack the BOSS when the battlefield was this messy?


    Everything may be chaotic for others, but the attacks of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild still continued...


    In other words, they kept on dealing damage against the Special BOSS.


    Kristian floated higher up in the air until he could finally see the Health Bar of the Special BOSS.


    "Stop!"


    He gave an order and the chaotic battlefield instantly turned silent.


    Kristian scanned the battlefield and found that he lost at least six yers. It seemed like the Great Wandering Bard who had undergone a change really was incredibly powerful. Despite the best efforts of the yers, some of them still died.


    "You... How dare you..."


    "How dare you take the lives ofrades!"


    Kristian''s eyes went bloodshot.


    He cried out in indignance and the majesty of the Absolute Monarch bore down on everything.


    "Fly..."


    He pointed at the Great Wandering Bard and his voice transformed into an imperial decree that could never be disobeyed.


    "Kuh..."


    "Oh, you''re still struggling?" Kristian asked.


    He formed a gesture with his right hand as if he was choking someone on their neck.


    "Kuh... Guh..."


    The Great Wandering Bard held his neck and struggled.


    There were barely visible marks on around his neck, an indication that there were invisible hands holding him into the air and squeezing his neck.


    The Great Wandering Bard''s health gradually declined. But when his Health reached two percent. An explosion suddenly urred from behind. The explosion happened so sudden and the bullet traveled so fast that Kristian was unable to react.


    The Great Wandering Bard summoned a small shield to protect himself but he was still struck by the bullet. The power contained within the bullet was so strong that he flew towards the doors of the Pce Halls.


    Bang!


    His back struck the doors of the Pce Halls before he copsed down onto the ground.


    "Fuck!"


    dimir audibly cursed. The bullet came from the person whom he tasked to steal the BOSS from the hands of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild, but her ambush actually failed? <em>That bitch! I''ll definitely make her pay for screwing up like this.</em>


    Kristian made a sidelong nce from the direction where the bullet originated. His eyes narrowed into slits before he turned to look at the Great Wandering Bard and took a step forwards...


    But just as he raised his foot.


    Several system notifications suddenly appeared in front of him...


    No...


    In front of every yer within the world of Victory.


    [The Sun That Overlooks Everything... has emerged!]


    [The 72 Demons of Hell are trembling!]


    [The Seven Gods and Goddesses are rmed!]


    [The Laws of Causality is overwhelmed!]


    [The world has lost one of its pirs!]


    [The First Mythical yer has finally ascended!]


    "The Sun that... Overlooks Everything?" Kristian''s pupils constricted.


    His eyes then widened before staring at the doors of the Pce Halls. As a Legend, he could feel that behind the thick doors of the Pce Halls was the figure of absolute authority that he could never defy, even with his control over the domain of obedience.


    The other yers were also thoroughly shocked.


    They froze, their eyes staring at the system notifications floating in front of them.


    But then, they were pulled out of their reverie by a creaking sound that sounded incredibly loud amidst the silence.


    Each and every one of them turned to the source of the creaking sound and they found that it came from the doors of the Pce Halls!


    When the doors opened...


    They saw the figure of a man holding a sword whose de was as thin as a cicada''s wings.


    The expression of that figure couldn''t be seen but from his trembling body alone.


    It was clear that he was currently trembling in anger.


    Yes...


    Trembling in anger.


    Then, the man opened his mouth and spoke.


    "You bastards... How dare you..."


    "How dare you hurt my friend?!"


    He roared, and an indescribable might bored down on everything.

 Chapter 132: Abandoned Kingdom[3]

    Chapter 132: Abandoned Kingdom[3]


    Joseph couldn''t describe through words the sensation of ascending to a Myth.


    It felt ethereal, something so near, yet so distant.


    But what was clear for Joseph right now was the feeling of sorrow.


    Yes, right now.


    He basked on the holy light and divinity of the Grand Duelist that now felt vivid and familiar to him.


    He even reckoned that with a will...


    He could pierce through anything in this world with the sharpness of the Grand Duelist''s Divinity.


    But no matter how exquisite the feeling of grasping on the secrets of the world was. It didn''t invalidate the fact that for him to reach this step. It required a huge, and cruel sacrifice of life...


    That''s right.


    For Joseph''s ascension, the one and only Legendary cksmith of the world of Victory...


    Sacrificed his life.


    Joseph couldn''t be happy.


    He felt empty and at loss.


    He surreptitiously nced at Alice and found that her figure was constantly trembling. She wasn''t crying as hard as she did earlier, but her sobbing still broke Joseph''s heart.


    It was quite rare that a woman as prideful as Alice would cry, but whenever they cried.


    It meant that they thoroughly cared for and loved that person.


    There was no doubt in Joseph''s heart.


    Before Krid died...


    He acquired Alice''s forgiveness for the childhood that he stole from her.


    Joseph clenched his fists. If he knew that the final step for his ascension was this cruel, then he would''ve tried his best on finding another way!


    It didn''t matter for Joseph anymore if he didn''t ascend for he could just indefinitely stop on doing the quest since it didn''t have any time restrictions anyway.


    Yet...


    Joseph felt like he couldn''t forgive himself. Despite the fact that it was Krid who pierced himself with the strongest Rapier and weapon that he made. He still felt like he was the one that pushed Krid to a dead-end.


    If not for his existence, the Legend, Krid wouldn''t have died.


    He would still be alive right now and would''ve enjoyed the remainder of his life with his granddaughter.


    A faint sound resounded within his ears. It was the sound of movement.


    Joseph who had undergone a qualitative change and whose body was nowparable to a demi-god had his senses heightened. He could feel every minute changes in the area around him and he could also hear every faint sound for as long as it waspletely silent or he was concentrating.


    Joseph turned to look at Alice, but he didn''t dare to stare directly into her eyes.


    He was afraid that if he saw her crying once again.


    He may not be able to forgive himself.


    Just as he was wallowing in self-deprecation and regret.


    Alice rushed towards him and buried her head into his chest.


    Was she not mad at him? Why was she doing this?


    For a moment, Joseph nked out and he couldn''t understand what she was thinking. Shouldn''t she be mad at him for indirectly causing the death of her grandpa? Why was she acting like this?


    He fell into a deep contemtion that Alice shattered with her words as she said.


    "Please... Don''t me yourself..."


    She raised her head up and cupped Joseph''s cheeks with both of her hands.


    She stared directly at his eyes.


    Joseph could see the tears that continuously dripped down her eyes. Alice''s words transformed into sharp knives that urately pierced through his heart, leaving him with a sour and bitter taste deep in his throat as he forcefully swallowed the tumultuous emotions that threatened to break through his defenses and spill through his eyes.


    "Why... No... I''m not... I''m not ming myself..." Joseph turned his gaze away.


    He lifted his left hand and awkwardly scratched his head.


    "No, you are... Please don''t lie... Whenever you turn your gaze away like that and whenever you scratch your head like that, you would always be lying..." Alice squeezed out a bitter smile.


    Joseph''s figure visibly trembled.


    He heaved a deep sigh before turning to look at Alice.


    His eyelids continuously shivered as he took several mouthfuls of deep breaths in order to calm himself down as he asked.


    "Why... Why did... Why did Senior tell me that the final step for my ascension was this cruel? If only I... If only I knew... I wouldn''t have... This wouldn''t have...!" Joseph hung his head low and started his rant.


    At this moment, he looked like a child that was desperately exining everything to his parent that what happened wasn''t his fault.


    He looked incredibly pathetic and sad, but Alice didn''t mock him for this.


    In fact, she wrapped her arms around his waist and said, "No, everything was no one''s fault. This step was inevitable. And in the end, everything was grandpa''s will. Do you really think that someone can kill grandpa for his divinity if he himself didn''t want to die?"


    Alice''s words sounded clear and vivid to Joseph''s ears, but hearing what she was saying didn''t give him anyfort.


    In fact, it further exacerbated the pain that he felt in his heart.


    "Was it... Was it really that worth it?" Joseph barely squeezed these words out of his throat amidst his bated breaths.


    At this moment, the tears that dripped down Alice''s cheeks dramatically calmed down as her lips lifted a sweet smile.


    "Yes... Everything was worth it... It was indeed unfortunate that grandpa had to sacrifice himself but in the end. He did it because he was willing. He did it, all for the sake of his dream. His dream of creating the strongest weapon in the world of Victory..."


    "With his sacrifice, that weapon was finallypleted and I reckon, right now..."


    Alice paused for a moment.


    Her chest violently heaved as she continued. "He... He must be smiling right now... on his way through the Yellow Springs. That is why... That''s why... Please... Please don''t me yourself! I can''t have you wallow on self-regret for all eternity for if that happened, how can you possibly fulfill the promise that you made to him!"


    "How can you possibly fulfill the promise that you made to grandpa if you can''t get yourself out of the vicious cycle of regret and self-ming?!" Alice''s tone of voice suddenly felt harsh and it awakened Joseph from his reverie.


    Silence descended.


    After a few seconds, Joseph finally broke the silence as he said.


    "You''re right, Alice... I''m sorry... I''m sorry for acting like this."


    Alice raised her head and found that there was a bittersweet smile on Joseph''s face.


    The two stared at each other for a moment and in an instant, they understood each other''s thoughts.


    Without exchanging any words.


    Alice tightened her embrace around Joseph''s waist as she buried herself into his chest.


    At the moment that their gazes met each other in mid-air. The two exchanged the same thought.


    It was...


    Now it''s your time...


    It''s your time to vent your stress out and cry.


    This was what Joseph wanted to express to Alice through his gaze.


    And Alice understood his thoughts with just a single look.


    When that happened, all thoughts offorting Joseph and taking him out of the vicious cycle of self-ming and self-regret had disappeared.


    They were reced by the sorrow and grief of loss as she buried herself into Joseph''s chest.


    Yes, that''s right.


    The reason why she stopped crying for Krid earlier was that she realized that Joseph had been greatly affected by Krid''s sacrifice.


    When Joseph swore that he would make her the happiest woman alive.


    She also made a promise to herself. That promise was that whatever Joseph did in the future.


    She would do her best on supporting him on his endeavors for as much as possible.


    Seeing that Joseph was heartbroken by her grandfather''s sacrifice. Alice temporarily suppressed the sorrow in her heart as she mustered her courage andforted Joseph that everything wasn''t his fault and that he shouldn''t me himself for Krid''s death.


    Her words had been effective, but she couldn''t control herself anymore.


    She kneeled down, holding on Joseph''s legs as she cried her heart out.


    Joseph stood in front of her, frozen. Not knowing what he should do. But his eyes suddenly widened when he realized what Alice had done earlier tofort him.


    He shook his head, aplicated smile appeared on his lips but he kneeled behind her and gave her a soft hug.


    He didn''t say anything.


    He just kneeled there and kept on embracing her as Alice''s body continuously shivered amidst her sobbings.


    Alice also didn''t say anything.


    She just silently cried her heart out, her sobbing sounded incredibly heartbroken, yet she, nor Joseph never said anything.


    Images shed across Joseph''s mind. He was reminded of the time that he first fought against the Legendary cksmith Krid. He really did such an unbelievable feat. To think that he would actually survive to tell the tale after fighting against a Legend.


    I admit... that you are indeed capable... But do you really think that this is enough to defeat me!


    A smile escaped Joseph''s lips. Krid had disappeared from his eyes back then when he said these words. Joseph managed to turn the tables of the battle against the Legend Krid using his Parry, but little did he knew that Krid could also use the Divine Art of the Grand Duelist.


    Unfortunately for you, I cannot die yet...


    A single deration from Krid was all it took for Joseph''s attack to disappear as if it never even existed.


    After this life and death battle, the two had gone closer to each other but Krid dered that he wanted some alcohol if Joseph wanted him to listen to what he needed for the ss-Specific Quest.


    Joseph was bbergasted and shell-shocked by Krid''s request, but thankfully...


    He remembered that he had received a Jug of Beer from Juzo as thepensation of losing the Rmendation Letter of the Great Magician Lilibeth. If not for that jug of beer, everything would''ve been so longwinded.


    The two became closer after that jug of beer and Krid even taught Joseph some tips about how he could properly hide the critical weakness of his deflects. In the end, Krid requested that Joseph must rescue his granddaughter from the hands of the Kingdom.


    Krid gave Joseph the Bead of Absolute Escape to use, but he caught on Krid''s lie.


    Krid never had the intention of leaving the Kingdom.


    He nned on sacrificing himself for the sake of his granddaughter''s life.


    But Joseph seeded in rescuing not only Alice but also Krid from the hands of the Kingdom.


    But in the end, today...


    Krid still died.


    Joseph thought that he achieved great sess from what he had done back then, but he was greatly mistaken.


    Joseph tightened his embrace around Alice.


    His shoulders vaguely trembled as tears dripped down his eyes.


    He was crying not because he was ming himself.


    He was crying because the world lost a good man.


    The duo cried their hearts out for a while until a fierce explosion struck the doors of the Pce Halls.


    Joseph raised his head and turned to look at the direction of the doors.


    This was when he realized that he had overlooked a single, yet great detail.


    Just where was Ezreal?


    Ezreal should''ve apanied Krid, yet where was he? Why wasn''t he here?


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and he moved towards the doors of the Pce Halls.


    Pushing it forward with his hands, the doors of the Pce Halls slowly opened and he was thoroughly shaken when he saw what was happening behind the doors of the Pce Halls.


    Directly in front of him was the bloodied figure of Ezreal.


    In front of Ezreal were several dozens of figures d in outfits that indicated that they were yers.


    Only yers would possibly not care about aesthetics when it came to equipment.


    As long as the stats of a particr item matched the other, no matter how bad they looked when wearing those items, it didn''t matter.


    Furthermore, above the heads of those figures were Green Diamond Markers indicating that they were indeed yers.


    But that wasn''t the issue here.


    The issue was that they were clearly in a battle against Ezreal and they had managed to severely injure Ezreal until he was on the brink of death.


    Joseph stared right at Ezreal and found that his breathing was shallow.


    His eyes then darted to his Health Bar and his pupils constricted when he saw that Ezreal only had about three percent of his Health left.


    "You bastards..."


    Unforgivable...


    Joseph decided that he could never forgive these bastards who dared to hurt his friend.


    He had already lost Krid, Julie, and Hulie due to his powerlessness and now that he had enough strength to protect those whom he cared for. Would he really let them suffer under his watch?


    No!


    Never!


    Never again!


    Anger bubbled inside Joseph''s heart. He swept his gaze across every one within this passageway, firmly remembering what they looked liked inside his mind.


    Afterwards, he clenched his fists and said.


    "You bastards... How dare you..."


    "How dare you hurt my friend?!"


    He roared.


    And holding his newly-made Mythical Ranked Rapier...


    He leaped into the air.


    "T-That guy..."


    dimir whispered in shock when he saw the face of the figure who jumped into the air.


    "J-J-Joseph?!"


    Bloodstained Lilium who stared at everything from behind her scope clearly saw the familiar figure of Joseph.


    But before she could even say anything...


    Joseph took a stance with his Rapier and whispered.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, Fourth Form..."


    Joseph closed his eyes.


    After his ascension as a Mythical-Ranked yer.


    Everything that the previous generation Grand Duelist had was now in his hands.


    He knew about everything that the previous Grand Duelists knew and he could alsomand the same power that they could. At this moment, Joseph let the anger control him as he leaped into the air and expressed his rage against everything in the world.


    A dazzling bright light surrounded his body as he broke his stance and brandished his Rapier.


    "Rage..."


    The Grand Duelist''s anger was fully expressed.


    [ Your powerful Rapier has left its mark through everyndmark in the world! ]


    [ Your anger astonished the Seven Gods and Goddesses. ]


    [ The 72nd Demons of Hell are trembling in excitement upon witnessing your rage! ]


    [ The Laws of Causality is overwhelmed! ]


    [ There will be an emergency maintenance in a few seconds. yers who enabled the True Sleep Mode feature in their Capsules or Headsets will be forced into True Sleep Mode. The progress of every yer in the world will be saved and any losses nor wins in duels will not be recorded. ]


    [ Please visit the website for further news about the emergency maintenance! ]

 Chapter 133: Abandoned Kingdom[4]

    Chapter 133: Abandoned Kingdom[4]


    It was deep within the night in the country where the headquarters of the P.H Works was located. Silence should reign over the night and for courtesy''s sake, one should keep themselves calm and quiet for the sake of those tired from their work and chores.


    Yet, within the headquarters of the P.H Works...


    The scientists were in a panic.


    In front of them were the Main Monitors of the Supeputer Noah and currently disyed on those monitors were.


    [Error: World Command Overflow.]


    World Command Overflow.


    This was a rare error that meant that there were a lot of chain reactions happening within the world of Victory to the extent that the Supeputer Noah''s calctions couldn''t keep up with what was happening.


    It was considered as a rare error for the Supeputer Noah was so advanced that the scientists reckoned that nothing could possibly stump it.


    But right now, tonight...


    It was having trouble keeping up with the calctions necessary for the world of Victory.


    Just what was the reason as to why this was happening?


    Of course, the scientists knew the answer to that question.


    They were in this room when Joseph unleashed the Fourth Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship.


    In other words, they knew that the moment Joseph brandished his weapon.


    The Supeputer Noah took a toll and was currently scrambling on calcting everything that was happening after Joseph brandished his weapon.


    But just what did happened after Joseph brandished his weapon?


    Well...


    "How ridiculous... To think that a Mythical ss would be that powerful... " Mar, who was one of the people who designed the Mythical ss couldn''t even believe how powerful the ss that they created.


    When Joseph brandished his weapon, the world itself was split...


    Yes, the entire world was pierced through and shed into two horizontal halves. Everything from the air, trees, the NPCs, everything within the world of Victory suffered under the powerful might of the Grand Duelist.


    Furthermore, the attack also sliced through several seals of forbidden locations within the world of Victory, causing innumerable chain reactions to ur to the extent that the Supeputer Noah couldn''t keep up its calctions anymore.


    "Really... Goddamned it... It''s too powerful... I don''t think that we should call him a Sun that Overlooks Everything anymore. We should just call him the ck Hole that Devours Everything with how powerful he is right now with that ss..." One of the scientistsmented.


    Hisrades nodded their heads in agreement.


    "Ray, did you know about all of these beforehand?"


    Mar turned to look at Ray who had a light smile on his face.


    "Nope... I''m also shocked at the might that he disyed." Ray gave an honest reply.


    Mar nced at Elizabeth for a moment before he asked, "Then, what do you think should we do? Should we nerf him?"


    Ray Gabriel raised an eyebrow and said, "Nerf him? That''s ridiculous! He achieved what he has right now through his own efforts. How could we possibly nerf him just because he''s extremely powerful than what we had expected?"


    Mar couldn''t say anything against Ray Gabriel.


    It has been the policy of the P.H Works to reward those that deserve rewards and punish those that deserved punishment. But right now, the Mythical ss yer whom they wanted to be the Sun that Overlooks Everything is far powerful than they had imagined.


    How could he be a proper motivation to everyone when he was this powerful?


    A mountain that couldn''t be captured would be a mountain without any challengers!


    In the future, if everyone knew that Joseph was this powerful, no one in the world of Victory would possibly challenge him anymore!


    After all, everyone hadmon sense and why would they purposely court death and challenge Joseph when they knew that they had no chance of winning against him due to how powerful he was?


    P.H Works wanted a good source of motivation for everyone, but if this continued...


    Joseph would be too powerful to serve as everyone''s motivation!


    Ray Gabriel shook his head, "For now, we should focus on fixing the problem at hand."


    He then turned to look at the scientists within the rooms and gave hismands, "Focus on lowering the temperatures within the room where Noah resides, make sure to not let the temperature within that room exceed ny-degrees celsius or else thermal throttling may ur!"


    "Yes, sir!"


    The scientists didn''t ask anything anymore. They rushed outside of the room and went to work.


    Ray Gabriel sat in front of the keyboard below the Main Monitors of the Supeputer Noah and started typing away.


    Elizabeth approached Mar and gestured for him to seat in front of her as the two started to talk.


    "Senior, how do you think should we approach this problem?" Elizabeth''s words were gentle to the ears.


    Ray who was busy on his work trembled for a moment before he nced at Elizabeth in gratitude.


    Right now, Ray had no time to waste on brainstorming solutions as to how they could solve the problem of World Command Overflow.


    Elizabeth really made such a good move for keeping Mar in this room and asking him about his opinion and ideas as to how they would deal with the aftermath of the World Command Overflow.


    "World Command Overflow..." Mar crossed his right leg andid it on top of his left leg.


    He tilted his head to the skies and thought for a moment before he answered, "As far as I can remember. World Command Overflow is a problem pertaining to the number of chain reactions happening within the world due to a single cause..."


    "That chain reaction is like the chain reactions happening in the middle of nuclear fission. It''s unstoppable." Mar sighed.


    Elizabeth paused for a moment before she asked, "Are you sure that it really is unstoppable, Senior Mar? I don''t think that it''s the case after all. If you were the one that will deal against it, even the president of the United Nations wouldn''t dare call himself unstoppable in front of you!"


    "Hahaha..." Mar lightly chuckled, "You really know how to sweet talk people, aren''t ya? I do have a solution to the World Command Overflow problem... But I am sure that Ray right there doesn''t want that to happen."


    Ray didn''t even nce at the two. His hands also never stopped as he replied, "Of course, I would never let that happen! A rollback may be the fastest solution to solve this problem but doing that would basically make Joseph suffer the loss of a great friend once again!"


    "How could I let him see Krid''s sacrifice for the second time?"


    "See?" Mar sighed and took a bottle of water from the table before chugging it down his throat. "Ah, this water really tastes good." He praised before turning to look at Elizabeth again and saying, "If a rollback cannot be done..."


    "I can''t really think of another solution apart from keeping the temperatures of the room where Noah resides to safe levels and constantly fighting against the endlessly expanding number of items and ces sliced into halves by that kid''s attack." Mar shook his head in disapproval.


    Elizabeth caught on something strange within what Mar had said before she said, "Wait, the effects of Joseph''s attack within the world of Victory is still continuing? Didn''t we already close the server?"


    Mar turned to look at her andughed, "It seems like you really aren''t quite knowledgeable about how the world of Victory operates but in a nutshell..."


    "We did close off the server, but we didn''t shut down the world..."


    "Shutting down the world freezes everything within the world of Victory, kind of like a time stop."


    Elizabeth didn''t take offense that Mar basically branded her as ignorant as she replied, "But why not do that? If we shut down the world of Victory itself then we could stop Joseph''s attack from traveling through space and slicing through more objects which in turn creates additional chain reactions whose changes needed to be manually withdrawn..."


    But Mar shook his head and said, "Shutting down the world of Victory is a bad idea. Stopping time itself meant that we would be harming the incrediblyplex cycle of life within Victory. Doing that just for the sake of treating World Command Overflow? It''s not really worth it."


    "Then..." Elizabeth hesitated, "What should we do now?"


    Mar stared at her for a moment before he gazed at Ray Gabriel.


    Elizabeth followed his line of sight before turning to look at Mar in doubt.


    "Right now, that stubborn guy is manually withdrawing the changes happening within the world of Victory. That is not a simple feat to do and for him to keep up with the changes, his WPM must be at least a hundred words per minute for at least three hours...''


    "If even for a second, his WPM falls below a hundred words per minute..."


    "He wouldn''t be able to keep up."


    Elizabeth''s eyes widened in shock when he heard Mar''s words.


    But she didn''t doubt his words at all.


    Mar was an experienced expert that she could neverpare to in her whole life.


    It would be sphemous for her to doubt his words especially when they were talking in a topic that he specialized in.


    Silence reigned within the room for a while until it was broken when Mar stood up and said.


    "Mind if I seat here beside you, Ray?"


    "Mhm..." Ray merely gave a small sound as a reply. He didn''t even turn his head to look at Mar.


    His hands were blurry as it danced across the keyboard.


    "It seems like even though you are already quite old, your hands are still as nimble as ever," Marmented at the side.


    "Did youe here just topliment me or what?"


    "Let me tell you this, I want no one''spliment other than my sister!" Ray finally replied, yet his eyes never left the monitor and his hands also never left the keyboard.


    Mar lightly chuckled, "You really love that sister of yours, aren''t ya? If you have some time after this, can you try and bring her here? It''s been a long time since she''s been here..."


    Mar stretched his hand out and tapped on some buttons on the desk causing a keyboard and a mouse to appear on the surface of the desk.


    It was a mechanical keyboard with red switches, it was Mar''s favorite style of keyboard.


    Mar stared in astonishment at the keyboard. He didn''t expect that the type of keyboard that he liked would already be prepared underneath the desk. He made a sidelong nce at Ray and said...


    "Did you already know about all of these beforehand?"


    Ray lightly smiled, "Of course not! If I knew that a World Command Overflow was about to happen then I would''ve made a lot of countermeasures in preparation for the error. Like, you know?"


    Making a script that would target these procedurally generated variables which will automate everything with just a press of a button."


    Mar gave augh before he turned to look at Elizabeth and said, "Eli, prepare some coffee for us. We''ll be going full speed ahead. Give us some straws too since we can''t possibly hold a cup of coffee in one hand while type using the other."


    "Y-Yes, sir!" Elizabeth politely bowed her head and went out of the room.


    When she left...


    Mar stared at Ray and said.


    "Ray, if you lose against me in WPM then you better treat me to that buffet once everything is done and over!"


    Ray didn''t even stop his typing as he replied, "Oh? You''re actually challenging me? Are you sure that you can keep up, old man?"


    "You really are underestimating how fast I am. I wasn''t called the leader of the 50 cent army for nothing!"


    Mar ced his hand on the keyboard and his expression turned serious.


    Then, in the very next moment.


    His hand transformed into a blur that was even faster than Ray.


    He was too fast to the extent that Ray doubted if he was even making the right inputs into theputer.


    Ray''s concentration rxed for a second as he nced at the monitor in front of Mar.


    <em>Warning! Warning! Warning!</em>


    A ring sound came out of Ray''sputer, signifying that he made an error on one of his calctions.


    "Hey, you better focus on what you are doing right now! I''m not a fan of carrying noobs!"


    Mar even took the time to mock him when he heard the ring sound.


    Veins bulged on Ray''s temples as his eyes narrowed into slits.


    "You old geezer, did you just say that I am a noob?"


    "Hey, hey, hey... Don''t be angry at what I said, just prove to me that you aren''t a noob!" Mar lightly chuckled.


    He looked rxed as if he wasn''t doing something incredibly taxing to his body.


    "Okay, now you really are challenging me..."


    "Keep your mouth shut and just keep typing!"


    Marmented once again eliciting a shout from Ray who replied.


    "Let me show you, Mar... The future is now, old man!"


    He screamed andid his hands on the keyboard once again.


    "Sometimes I really do wonder if these people really are a bunch of great scientists or kids..."


    When the two were in the middle of their argument, Elizabeth had already returned and was standing right behind them. She saw what they were doing, but she didn''t do anything to interrupt them.


    In fact, she couldn''t even help but smile seeing them work together like these.


    Even though they acted like kids, just from their expression alone...


    It was obvious that they were taking everything that was happening as seriously as they could.


    Silently cing the cup of coffees beside the two, she whispered into the air.


    "I wish you two, sess!"


    She then left the room, afraid that staying may disturb the two from their work.

 Chapter 134: Abandoned Kingdom[5]

    Chapter 134: Abandoned Kingdom[5]


    Joseph broke his stance and brandished his Rapier, and then...


    Joseph froze in mid-air.


    He found himself unable to move as several system notifications appeared in front of him.


    [ Your powerful Rapier has left its mark through everyndmark in the world! ]


    [ Your anger astonished the Seven Gods and Goddesses. ]


    [ The 72nd Demons of Hell are trembling in excitement upon witnessing your rage! ]


    [ The Laws of Causality is overwhelmed! ]


    [ There will be an emergency maintenance in a few seconds. yers who enabled the True Sleep Mode feature in their Capsules or Headsets will be forced into True Sleep Mode. The progress of every yer in the world will be saved and any losses nor wins in duels will not be recorded. ]


    [ Please visit the website for further news about the emergency maintenance! ]


    These system notifications also appeared in front of everyone within the passageway and they all stared wide-eyed at the information disyed before them.


    "Emergency maintenance?"


    "What...?"


    These were the only words that they could utter as their consciousness dimmed. Most of them were forced into True Sleep Mode apart from others who didn''t have that setting turned on.


    When the emergency maintenance urred, those who weren''t forced into True Sleep Mode had a rude awakening as they simultaneously opened their eyes in the outside world.


    Joseph was the same as them as he snapped his eyes open and sucked a huge mouthful of breath.


    "Just what the fuck happened? Emergency maintenance, at that timing?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows. He pushed himself out of his gaming capsule.


    After tending to the physiological needs of his body...


    He hopped into the inte and opened the official website of Victory.


    Within the forums, there was a fierce and heated discussion about the Emergency Maintenance


    "Wow, these guys are fast. It has only been several minutes since the Emergency Maintenance started, yet they are already discussing the reasons why P.H Works closed down their servers in a hurry." Joseph couldn''t help butment.


    Joseph closed the forum for most of the topics within it were mere hearsay and ridiculous ims...


    One of them even imed that the reason why the world of Victory went into emergency maintenance was because they couldn''t handle the number of yers within the game anymore.


    It was actually a sensible im if you first looked at it.


    But Victory literally has several hundreds of millions of yers, if they had to reduce the number of yers within the game to maintain its stability. They should''ve done that earlier before the problem even started.


    Joseph opened the main website of Victory and he saw an announcement from the P.H Works PR Team addressing the sudden emergency maintenance.


    From the information posted, emergency maintenance was made due to the sheer number of unchecked bugs that needed to be fixed as soon as possible.


    The PR Team gave their sincere apologies and even offeredpensation to every yer significantly affected by the maintenance. The article that addressed the issue didn''t say anything wrong, but it sounded wrong for Joseph who made extensive research about the world of Victory.


    The Supeputer Noah managed the world of Victory and even though Joseph didn''t know the full extent of its capabilities...


    One couldn''t deny how capable it was for managing such an incredibly huge, andplex world.


    It was questionable but Joseph could say that Noah was akin to a god.


    From his research, it was virtually impossible for the world of Victory to have bugs for the Supeputer Noah managed it and instantly squashed them all whenever they were discovered...


    Yet, what was going on?


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows, several dozens of ideas shed across his mind but he suddenly held his head and massaged his temples.


    Before he could evenin about the fact that he shouldn''t really think about this issue since it was P.H Works'' responsibility to handle it...


    A low growl came out of his stomach and a wry smile escaped on his lips.


    <em>So this is why my head hurts...</em>


    Joseph carried his wry smile and descended down the stairs. He opened up his fridge and took a look at the number of ingredients within the fridge and his wry smile deepened.


    <em>It seems like I really need to fetch some groceries.</em>


    <em>I can take advantage of the downtime in the middle of this maintenance after all!</em>


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    He fetched some several thousands of pesos from within his wallet and went out of his mansion.


    The City of Sibu was a city renowned for its nightlife.


    Even though it was still early morning, to be precise, five am in the morning...


    There were still a lot of people roaming about in the streets.


    Joseph could even see some girls standing on the dark corners and alleyways on the streets.


    Seeing them standing there as if they were waiting for their prey...


    Joseph didn''t know whether he shouldugh or cry.


    <em>Pa, ma... I just realized that our neighborhood isn''t really that good when ites to security... To think that women could solicit for those kinds of things here!</em>


    Joseph thought of reporting those women to the authorities, but he wasn''t a snitch so he kept that thought to himself.


    With the flourishing nightlife of the City of Sibu, most establishments connected to the food industry also opened early to cater to those patrons that were hard at work.


    Joseph casually walked past these establishments, but then a sudden idea struck him.


    How about I go and visit that wet market? It''s been such a long time since I tasted those chicken <em>skins, and I also want to visit...</em>


    Joseph paused on his tracks. His thoughts grind to a halt before he changed his mind. He decided not to visit that local wet market anymore as Joseph continued on his journey, sweeping his gaze across the dozens of food establishments on the streets.


    It was quite ironic that Joseph found it hard to choose what he should eat even though there were a lot of selections avable for him to eat.


    Joseph casually walked on the street as if he was on his backyard while admiring the neon lights that decorated the City, but his attention was suddenly attracted to a particr establishment that had signages above its front door that said.


    <em>Virtual Reality Cafe - Grand Inte Cafe.</em>


    Joseph''s interest was piqued.


    Virtual Reality Cafes weren''t only visited by patrons if they wanted to y a game. Virtual Reality Cafes could also be used to ess some cheap hourly lodging, and one could also visit it for their cheap, yet delicious foods.


    Although their meals weren''t that healthy nor nutritionally-bnced...


    They were packed with fats and carbohydrates enough to give starving gamers a surge of energy that could enable them to outperform their enemies. In other words, if you wanted cheap, yet fulfilling meals without caring that much about how nutritious it was...


    A Virtual Reality Cafe was a good ce to visit.


    Joseph stepped inside the Virtual Reality Cafe and he was greeted with the attendants who acted more like touts.


    "Wee to Grand Inte Cafe, kind sir! Would you like to avail of a Gaming Headset Room or a Gaming Capsule Room? The former is much cheaper but the assimtion rate is only up to 70% while thetter is more expensive but the assimtion rate is up to 96%..."


    "Only 250 pesos per hour for the Gaming Headset Room while 500 pesos per hour for a Gaming Capsule Room! There is no better deal than this than our establishment sir!" The female attendant even handed over a flier.


    <em>Damn it feels like I went to the local wet market than a Virtual Reality Cafe. Why are these attendants acting like touts instead of proper attendants? Is thepetition regarding Virtual Reality Cafes really that strict now to the extent that these attendants have to do something like this to attract customers?</em>


    Several thoughts shed across Joseph''s mind as he received the flier from the attendant and smiled.


    He ced all of his unnecessary thoughts into the deep recesses of his brain and he replied, "No, I did note here for either of those."


    The attendant was taken aback for a moment and Joseph was about to exin the reason why he came here when the attendant suddenly spoke up: "Ah, I see! In that case, then the tournament venue is on the third floor, take that elevator right there and go straight to the third floor."


    The attendant pointed and Joseph followed her finger.


    "And where is the dining hall?" Joseph asked.


    The attendant smiled, "It''s also on the third floor, sir. Normally, it should be on the sixth floor but for the convenience of the tournament attendees like you, sir..."


    "We temporarily transferred the dining hall to the third floor. There''s a buffet up there and you can ess it for free if you''re a tournament attendee..."


    "Then, what if I''m not a tournament attendee?"


    The attendant''s smile never fazed, "Then, you need to pay five hundred pesos to enter the buffet."


    Joseph nodded his head, "I see... Then, I''ll be going." Five-hundred pesos for a buffet wasn''t cheap, but it wasn''t unreasonable either. It was just right so that the establishment could earn some money from the buffet even though the margins were definitely tight.


    Joseph headed upstairs and he was astonished by the number of people within the gaming hall of the third floor. The Gaming Hall was transformed into a wide space where people could stand up to watch the ongoing tournament.


    Right above them all, hanging from the ceiling were three, wide LCD monitors disying what was going on within the game...


    And the game disyed within the wide monitors was?


    Victory...


    Joseph was taken aback by what he saw.


    <em>I thought there was maintenance for today? How can these guys y Victory?</em>


    He fell into deep contemtion before he acquired the answer to his question.


    "DLC!"


    DLC meant Downloadable Content.


    Victory had several dozens of DLCs that yers could buy and download. The servers of these DLCs were apparently not connected to the main servers of Victory. Apart from that, Joseph had no idea as to why these people could y Victory despite the ongoing emergency maintenance.


    Joseph skimmed through his memories and he found that the DLCs that these yers were using to ess Victory was the Arena DLC.


    Just as its name, the Arena DLC was just a ce that people could use to fight against their fellow yers without suffering from the consequences of death within the world of Victory.


    The Arena DLC was often used by yers to settle grudges or take revenge while others used it to fight against anime characters that they modded into the game.


    One could even fight against Goku inside the Arena DLC through the use of mods.


    Or you could use it to try and fight against Saitama and end up getting annihted by a single punch.


    In a nutshell, the Arena DLC was a ce that yers could freely modify through the use of mods and one could do anything that they wanted within it.


    Albeit, with some limitations dedicated for users who tried to incorporate Artificial Intelligence within clearly underaged models to try and have sex with them.


    Joseph sighed, but it wasn''t because of exhaustion it was because of relief and excitement. If the game that was being yed in the tournament was an unfamiliar game then he would''ve been forced to fetch five-hundred pesos just to enter the buffet.


    But right now, he could participate in the tournament for only a thousand pesos.


    Participation in the tournament meant that he could ess the buffet for free, so in other words.


    Not only he could have some fun, but he could also fill his stomach to the brim with the number of dishes within the buffet.


    But before Joseph could even apply for the tournament and eat some meal in the buffet.


    His attention was attracted by a cry of annoyance from a distance.


    "Goddamned it, there are only twelve bosses yet why are we not able to kill that sixth boss despite trying all night?" A man who had dark circles underneath his eyes shouted aint.


    "Ethan... It seems like we really did underestimate the difficulty of this tournament. The boss of this cafe is really too stingy, it''s just fifty thousand pesos. It''s not like we can''t earn that in Victory in several months."


    Ethan turned to look at the man and said, "That''s the point! I want to focus on leveling up my gears instead of grinding those low-leveled monsters for copper coins. That is why I joined this tournament! That amount of money may not be much but it will be enough to serve as our buffer for several months while we grind for items instead!"


    "Don''t you also feel bored doing that repetitive grinding for money every day, Stafford?"


    Ethan and Stafford were young men who looked to be in their early twenties.


    "But we have to do that if we want to keep ying Victory, you know, Ethan?"


    "Without the support of our parents, It''s really hard to keep on paying the monthly payments necessary for ying Victory... That is why we need to grind." The man Ethan addressed named as Stafford replied with a sigh.


    "Are you guys just gonna give up like that? We already spent at least half a day here and we already broke through the fifth boss! Only seven bosses remain, yet why are you guys giving up already?"


    Someone spoke up, but the voice sounded feminine.


    Joseph nced at the owner of the voice and he found that she was a young woman who looked to be at the same age as Ethan and Stafford. There was a defiant look on her face and her eyes radiated the light of not giving up until she had aplished her goals.


    Usually, everyone would mock anyone who kept on challenging the impossible for they thought it was incredibly foolish and a waste of effort.


    But Joseph who challenged the Festival of Battles for two months straight knew that people who often did such a feat weren''t foolish nor smart.


    Instead, they were desperate.


    The young woman sounded valiant but for Joseph, she sounded quite pitiful...


    Joseph couldn''t mock her at all.


    Joseph felt like he was jumping to conclusions but that didn''t invalidate the fact that he could rte to the young woman.


    "Young miss, it''s better if you give up on the tournament. It''s about to end in two hours anyway. I don''t think that it''s still possible for you to defeat the remaining seven bosses with how much time you have remaining!"


    "Yeah, that''s right, young miss. How about you juste here and eat with us here at the buffet? Seeing that you''re so desperate for a mere fifty-thousand I can see that you urgently need that money? Do you want this old man here to help you? Hahaha..."


    The young woman raised her head and fiercely red at the middle-aged man at the distance.


    The middle-aged menughed out loud when they saw her re.


    "Yohoo~ Looking fierce, eh? Since it looks like you still want to challenge the bosses then go on!"


    "I have already given my advice and it''s up to you to decide what you want to do with it, hehehe... But if you do fail, consider this old man''s offer, as long as you aren''t underaged then we can think of a solution to that financial problem of yours~"


    The middle-aged man''s voice sounded quite disgusting and Ethan and Stafford couldn''t help but also re at him. His strangely amorous voicebined with his stature that made him look like a mountain of meat really did send shivers down the spines of the three.


    "risse! Let''s just stop and get out of his ce now! That old man looks like he''s really into you and I don''t know what would happen if he decides to do something against you!" Stafford gave a warning to risse.


    The young woman d in casual clothes crossed her arms in front of her chest and said in disdain, "Let''s see if he dares to do something against me while I''m in this establishment, hmmph!"


    Ethan and Stafford rtively calmed down when they heard what she said. It was because even though the security within the Grand Inte Cafe couldn''t be considered as top-notch. It could at leastpare to the security that five-star hotels offered to their guests.


    Since the guests within Virtual Reality Cafes were asleep while they were ying their game of choice. It was natural that the establishment ensured the safety of the guests while they were ying or else, no one would dare to avail their services.


    "No, I can''t stop! Come on, guys! We already spent a lot of time today just for this tournament and we''re gonna stop when we''re still not done? I''m not willing!" rrise fought back and they argued against each other until Joseph approached the three and asked.


    "Uh... Does that paper in your hands contain information about the BOSSes?"


    Ethan and Stafford trembled for a moment before he red at Joseph''s direction as Stafford replied, "Yes, so what? Do you really think that we''ll let you borrow this so you can ride on our coattails? There''s no way!"


    Joseph lifted a bitter smile on his face as he shook his head and said, "You''re misunderstanding me. It''s true that I need that paper in your hands but I need it so that I can properly help the two of you on defeating all the BOSSes and winning the tournament!"


    "You want us to help defeat those BOSSes?" Ethan was taken aback.


    But Stafford was quick to reply, "What a joke! We spent at least half a day on the sixth BOSS, yet you are saying that you can help us defeat them all and win the tournament? Are you kidding me? Do you really think that I would believe such an obvious scam?"


    risse also had a frown on her face. Earlier, she had noticed that Joseph kept on staring at her so she had a vague idea on her mind as to why he approached them.


    But since it was obviously jumping into conclusions in a hurry. She didn''t want to say anything as she probed the young man who gave them such a ridiculous offer.


    "Hahaha... Young man, if you want to impress that young miss there then you gotta try harder than that!"


    "tant lying is not so good for first impressions, you know?"


    One of the tournament attendees spoke up.


    It was clear from his voice alone that he didn''t believe Joseph at all.


    Joseph''s expression went cold but he didn''t say anything in defense. Seeing that the young man had kept his silence, risse was finally convinced that Joseph only approached them to try and impress her with his bravery and courage and possibly woo her in the end.


    When she realized all of these, disgust could be seen on her face as she said.


    "I don''t know where you came from but if you really are trying to impress me then you shouldn''t have done this..."


    "I''m sorry, but we don''t want your help."


    "Can you please go away?"


    "We want to talk with each other regarding some important points in the tournament and we don''t want to be disturbed..."


    Joseph was astonished by what he heard.


    He opened his mouth and exined, "You''re misunderstanding something here! First of all, I didn''t approach you guys because I want to impress you. I just thought that all three of you may need my help on winning this tournament so I offered my services."


    "Offered your services?" rrise raised an eyebrow, "What do we have to pay?"


    "Well, you just need to pay for my entry to the tournament and I''ll win the tournament for all three of you," Joseph replied with confidence, but this ignited the anger within Stafford''s heart as he said.


    "You bastard, how could you tantly lie like that? It''s obvious that you are just trying to scam a free meal out of us! Do you really think that we don''t know that once you are a tournament attendee, you can ess the buffet for free?"


    "If you want to eat..."


    "Work hard and pay for it! Don''t resort to scamming others for their hard-earned money!"


    risse, Ethan, and Stafford stared coldly at Joseph.


    From the looks on their faces, it was evident that they wouldn''t want to hear any exnations from Joseph anymore.


    "Hahaha... So that is the reason why you approached those desperate kids! You just want to scam a meal out of them, eh?"


    "If you want to beg for money then do it properly and also do it in the right ce! Not in a prestigious establishment like this! Guards! Take that bastard away and ban him from the Inte Cafe!"


    The middle-aged man who teased risse earlier spoke up and even ordered the guards to capture Joseph.


    The security guards were quick to respond to themotion and they quickly surrounded Joseph.


    Seeing the mocking look on everyone''s faces as they stared at him.


    Joseph trembled in anger, he approached the three with good intentions but what he got in return was a p on the face and a fierce mocking?


    Just how unfair was the world that those with good intentions were penalized while those who wanted to do the opposite were rewarded?


    Joseph raised his head and coldly swept his gaze at the guards.


    Throwing a stack of bills to one of the guards, he dered.


    "Sign me up to the tournament," Joseph threw his I.D over to the guard.


    "You... You''re still trying to impress me?" risse pointed a finger at him.


    "Trying to impress you? That was never my intention from the start you narcissistic bitch! Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror?" Joseph red at him.


    "You... bastard! How dare you speak like that to rrise!" Stafford almost lunged at Joseph but he was held back by Ethan who was also ring at Joseph.


    Joseph didn''t even bother to care about the three anymore. The Guards who went to fetch his temporary ount card for the tournament returned to Joseph''s side and handed over the ount card to him.


    Amidst everyone''s curious gazes, Joseph walked towards the doors of a Gaming Capsule.


    He inserted his ount card and before entering the Capsule.


    He swept his gaze at Ethan, Stafford, and risse.


    He coldly stared at them in silence as he entered the Gaming Capsule without saying anything.


    He decided not to waste his words against these worthless worm-mongers.


    He''ll let his skills speak for him instead of his mouth!


    But first...


    Let''s hit up the buffet.


    Joseph suddenly stopped on his tracks before rushing towards the location where the buffet was located.


    He was really too hungry.

 Chapter 135: Abandoned Kingdom[6]

    Chapter 135: Abandoned Kingdom[6]


    [Initializing Connection...]


    [Connection Initialized...]


    [Capsule ID: 426969; Diamond Tier]


    [Assimtion Rate is set to 96%]


    [Real Sync Rate is set to 98%]


    [Clock Speed: Turbo Mode]


    [Connecting...]


    [Wee to Victory!]


    [You are currently not connected to the main servers of Victory.]


    [It is impossible to connect to the main servers of Victory due to maintenance.]


    [Checking Performance...]


    [All Green...]


    [It has been detected that this is your first time connecting to the world of Victory using a downloadable content.]


    [Downloading shaders to optimize gamey...]


    [Shaders Downloaded!]


    [Wee to the Arena!]


    <em>How annoying...</em>


    Joseph inwardlymented.


    But he was finally connected and when he opened his eyes...


    The scene that he saw made him gasp.


    It was because he found himself standing in an arena eerily simr to the Arena of the Gods, Colosseum.


    The only difference was that there were thousands of people screaming in excitement at once. Seeing the look of anticipation on their faces, Joseph was reminded of the scene that he had always faced back when he was still a participant of the Festival of Battles.


    <em>It seems like this tournament is really simr to the Festival of Battles...</em>


    [You are using a temporary ount card. Your name will be randomized.]


    [Your name has been selected randomly.]


    [Difficulty has been set to the maximum due to the tournament rules.]


    [Wee to the Arena of ughter; Boss Rush, Undefeated Heartthrob!]


    <em>Pffft!</em>


    Joseph almost busted his guts when he heard his randomly generated name.


    <em>Undefeated Heartthrob? What the hell is this naming sense? And to think that I would still get such a crappy name despite the fact that everything is randomized...</em>


    Joseph didn''t know whether he shouldugh or cry.


    But since everything had already been decided, there was no use for him to cry over spilled milk.


    <em>So my avable skills are the basic evading skills of every yer at Level One and the basic Thrust, Slice, sh, and Downwards sh. Hehehe, that''s not too bad...</em>


    <em>But I''m concerned about the difficulty, just what happens if the difficulty is at the maximum? Will I have to fight a boss while getting struck by Lightning Tribtion at the same time?</em>


    Joseph was clearly in a good mood despite the hardships that he was about to face since he still had the time to add some jokes on his monologue. But his ramblings were cut short by a dignified voice that announced themencement of the Arena of ughter; Boss Rush.


    His opponent materialized in the distance and when Joseph could finally see his opponent properly. His eyes widened in shock when he realized that his opponent looked quite familiar.


    "Challenger, Undefeated Heartthrob is challenging the first Champion, The Owner of the Spiteful Tongue! Arkais!"


    The figure who appeared in the distance looked to be a dignified gentleman. There was a kind look in his eyes and from the way he dressed, it was clear that he was quite a lovely man.


    He was that kind of a man whom you wouldn''t hesitate to trust for you''d definitely think that he was a man that couldn''t possibly do despicable things in life.


    But Joseph who fought against this man in the Festival of Battles months ago knew that this kind gentleman was exactly the opposite of how he seemed to be!


    Not only his actions were vicious, but even his words were also as sharp as needles!


    That was the reason why he earned the title, The Spiteful Tongue!


    He was also one of the inspirations for Joseph''s unorthodox fighting style before he became the Grand Duelist.


    Outside the world of Victory...


    rrise, Ethan, and Stafford stared at the monitors and sneered.


    "Look at the smile of that bastard..."


    "He''s probably confused right now as to why he is about to fight such a kind-looking man."


    Staffordmented.


    risse chuckled, "Right, even I had a lot of trouble fighting that guy for the first time. His moves were slow, yet it contained a certain charm that attracted you to it, causing you to get distracted in the middle of the battle which has some pretty huge consequences considering the difficulty of this tournament is in the maximum..."


    "Speaking of the difficulty..." Ethan suddenly spoke up, "Does he understand what maximum difficulty means?"


    Stafford''s eyes brightened, "That''s right! That bastard probably doesn''t know that maximum difficulty meant that he could die in just under five moves! Hahaha! This is too funny!"


    "This is really too funny... I wonder how he''ll look like once he came out of that gaming capsule after dying from the first BOSS!"


    A look of anticipation appeared on risse''s face. She raised her head and stared at the battle that was about to begin within the Arena. She was beginning to pray for this battle to end as fast as possible so she could p Joseph''s face and disperse his arrogance.


    Ethan spoke up once again, "risse, there''s less than two hours until the end of the tournament. Are you sure that we are going to watch him instead of challenging the tournament once again?"


    risse turned to look at Ethan in irritation. She felt like he was such a kill-joy as she replied in annoyance: "Of course, I know that! This won''t take too long anyway. Don''t be such a party pooper, all right? I''m sure even you want to see that arrogant bastard get humiliated for his arrogance!"


    risse then turned her head towards the monitors, not bothering about Ethan anymore.


    A bitter smile appeared on Ethan''s face.


    He felt a sense of bad premonition but he couldn''t decipher its cause.


    In the end, he decided to stare at the monitors and observe the battle that was about to happen within the Arena.


    <em>This boss is definitely familiar to me but who knows if there were some modifications done to his attack patterns? I''ll go and observe his moves for now. Let''s see if there are some changes.</em>


    Joseph raised his sword and rushed at the enemy.


    Arkais opened his mouth and spat, "The world would''ve been much better if you weren''t here!"


    [You heard the admonishment of the Spiteful Tongue...]


    [His words are as sharp as knives and his deration dug deep into your heart.]


    [Your Movement Speed is reduced by 20%.]


    "Cursing the enemy as soon as the battle begins? You really are the Spiteful Tongue." Joseph clicked his tongue, his body became slow as his movements stagnated.


    "Die, you brat!" Arkais raised his sword up in the air.


    "You''re wide open!" Joseph inwardly eximed.


    He used [Slice] and immediately canceled its animation through the use of [sh].


    His stagnated movement instantly quickened and he arrived in front of Arkais in an instant.


    Animation Cancelling was extremely popr in the world of Victory for it enabled you to chain skills that normally couldn''t be used consecutively. It was a legitimate and practical strat so almost everyone in the world of Victory knew how to do it.


    Everyone outside wasn''t too surprised by what Joseph had done.


    After all, if you had amon sense...


    You''d understand that the only way that you could reach your enemy from such a distance was only through the use of Animation Canceling.


    Joseph fluently disyed this technique and he was now crouching low in front of Arkais.


    His sword was still in the middle of executing [sh]


    From the looks of it, it was clear that Joseph''s attack wouldnd first before his enemy.


    But seeing what was going on, the people outside wore smiles on their faces.


    "It looks like it''s game over already..." Stafford wore a sneer on his face.


    He felt like Joseph really did underestimate the difficulty of the tournament.


    But knowing that several dozens of people failed onpleting the tournament despite trying for at least half a day. Shouldn''t it be normal for someone to assume that the difficulty of that tournament was off the charts?


    Yet, why does he look like he doesn''t know about how difficult the tournament really was?


    It may be because he''s ignorant.


    Or maybe...


    "He''s stupid." risse coldly dered, "Let''s go, let''s just challenge the tournament and take home that fifty-thousand. It seems like there''s nothing enjoyable to watch here anyway."


    Stafford nodded his head and Ethan didn''t say anything. risse turned around and was about to enter one of the Gaming Capsules when the crowd suddenly erupted into cheers.


    "What? What happened?"


    risse hurriedly raised her head and the scene that she saw, thoroughly shook her to her core.


    Disyed within the monitors were two figures. One of them leisurely attacked the other while the other desperately defended. Panic could be seen on thetter''s face and he couldn''t even open his mouth anymore for he didn''t even have the time to breathe properly amidst the other''s barrage.


    "What?" risse nkly stared at Ethan.


    Ethan shook his head and replied, "I don''t know... I also don''t know what happened, I just turned my head away for a second and the tables are now turned?"


    Stafford couldn''t believe what he was saying, "Boss! Can we get a rey of what happened earlier?" He turned to look at the tournament manager.


    The tournament manager had an amiable smile on his lips as he nodded his head and agreed.


    Stafford was one of the frequent customers of the Grand Inte Cafe and since no establishment wanted to offend their guests. Heplied and used one of the three wide monitors to show the rey of what happened while the three were walking away.


    When Joseph appeared in front of Arkais...


    Arkais had his sword raised up to the skies.


    With how close Joseph was to his body, it was practically impossible for him to defend and fend off Joseph''s attack.


    But was there anything in the rules that said that the participants could only use their weapons to attack?


    Of course not!


    This was the reason why risse, Ethan, Stafford, and most of the people watching the tournament deemed Joseph''s challenge as over for he would definitely get caught off guard by Arkais''s counter-attack.


    But what was the reality?


    Arkais lifted his leg and sent a Knee Strike towards Joseph''s face. With how close they were to each other, it was virtually impossible for anyone to dodge such an attack, but Joseph did it anyway through a maneuver that thoroughly astonished everyone to the point that they eximed.


    Arkais''s knee flew and Joseph forcefully twisted his body downwards avoiding the Knee Strike while still executing the animation for his [sh].


    Joseph''s attack struck and drew a line across Arkais''s chest.


    "I-Impossible... How... did you..." Arkais uttered what everyone had in their minds.


    Yes...


    Like Arkais, they were also wondering as to how Joseph evaded Arkais''s Knee Strike.


    They stared intently at the monitor as Joseph raised his head and dered.


    "This is how you deal with Arkais, the Spiteful Tongue." An indifferent smile appeared on his face, but everyone thought that his smile looked more like a condescending sneer as he simultaneously looked down at everyone.


    risse gritted her teeth and said, "Arrogant! It''s just the first BOSS, why are you being so smug!"


    Stafford also nodded his head, albeit sweat could be seen on his forehead. "Yeah, that''s right! Talk to us like that once you have defeated thest BOSS..."


    "Right now, you''re still too far from impressing us!"


    Ethan kept his silence, he just stared at the monitor with a frown.


    The other customers had wry smiles on their faces but there was a defiant light within their eyes.


    <em>Yes, that''s right! This was just the first BOSS, why was he being so arrogant?</em>


    The customers red angrily at Joseph but then they were astonished once again as Joseph casually talked amidst the battle.


    "Arkais, the Spiteful Tongue is really a difficult BOSS to fight against due to his unpredictable nature. But to tell you the truth, that unpredictable nature really isn''t that unpredictable at all..."


    "The only reason why all of you guys think that he''s an unfathomable enemy is because of his unexpected curses at certain timings..."


    "If you''re in doubt again, then I''ll show you what I mean before you guys start mocking me again."


    Joseph rushed at Arkais.


    Arkais raised his sword up to the skies and Joseph talked once again.


    "He has his sword above his head like he''s about to send a downwards sh, but that is actually just another feint. If you think that Arkais wouldn''t be so shameless that he wouldn''t reuse his tactics that were already broken by his enemy, then you''ll definitely have a hard time against this bastard..."


    "Downwards sh... Knee Strike! Avoid the Knee Strike by jumping backward, then he''ll send a sh towards your chest. Avoid that sh too, and he''ll send a Back Kick towards your torso before cursing you once again and rushing towards your location..."


    Joseph leaped backward and avoided the iing knee.


    Arkais gnashed his teeth and sent a sh towards Joseph, but Joseph retreated backward once again to avoid the iing attack.


    However, while he was still in the middle of his jumping animation...


    Arkais''s sh turned into a swift Back Kick that Joseph avoided by raising his sword in front of him.


    Joseph flew backward from the heavy kick. The dust made him look disheveled and pitiful, yet everyone''s eyes were as wide as saucers when they saw that he was safe after those quick consecutive attacks.


    "You guys can see what I''m talking about, right? Arkais is a BOSS that is not only swift, but he can also spit some bars that will give you some status debuffs."


    "This is a battle that you need to end as much as possible..."


    "Fighting a long battle against Arkais is basically suicide since those status debuffs can infinitely stack which will spell your death one way or another..."


    Joseph wore a smile as he ran towards Arkais and sent another barrage of attacks towards the poor Arkais. Arkais had a look of panic and frustration on his face and he looked really pitiful. The customers who had a hard time against Arkais even felt sympathy towards him.


    After all, who wouldn''t be depressed fighting against an enemy that could read you like a book?


    Yes, Joseph was perfectly predicting Arkais''s movements for some unknown reason.


    Even Arkais himself couldn''t understand how his enemy was predicting all of his moves, even his curses that he always spat in unexpected times were seamlessly avoided by Joseph by plugging his ears.


    In the end, Arkais fell down...


    His death wasn''t glorious or anything. In fact, it was quite a sad and depressing death.


    He didn''t even manage to touch the seam of Joseph''s clothes as he fell down and turned into countless light crystals.


    Joseph stared at the light crystals that wafted in the air.


    A mncholic smile appeared on his lips.


    Although he won quite easily against Arkais in this tournament...


    Only he knew how many deaths he suffered from the hands of Arkais for him to be so proficient in fighting against him.


    Joseph shook his head, he ced that thought into the deep recesses of his mind as he fought against another BOSS.


    The spectators on the outside world stared wide-eyed for the entire thirty minutes that it took for Joseph to defeat thest and final BOSS, the Great Magician Lilibeth.


    Once he came out of the Gaming Capsule, there was a heroic smile on his face as if he was a general that had just returned victorious from a battle.


    "U-Unbelievable..."


    "Yeah..."


    The entire room was dead silent.


    No one knew what to say.


    They werepletely dumbfounded by the skills that Joseph had shown to them.


    But even though they were speechless, they were also now convinced of Joseph''s skills when it came to battles. No one dared to mock him anymore as almost all customers didn''t even dare to meet his eyes.


    risse gnashed her teeth, a pale expression could be seen on her face.


    She fought against those BOSSes for at least half a day without stopping for the sake of the fifty-thousand pesos yet it only took Joseph thirty minutes to defeat all of them?


    Just what the hell was going on?


    Was he really that good?


    Or...


    "You''re cheating!" risse dered and decisively pointed at Joseph.


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    "So you really think that you''re that capable? That you''re the strongest? Since you''re that capable, everyone who is more skillful than you must be cheating, right? I mean, how else could they be stronger than you when you''re the strongest in this game?"


    "What are you talking about?" risse furrowed her eyebrows, "I didn''t say that I am the strongest in the game."


    Joseph sneered, "Yeah, but why are you assuming that everyone that''s stronger than you are cheating and ying it dirty?"


    Ethan frowned, and Stafford had a look of anger on his face while the customers looked enlightened. What Joseph said made sense so they looked at risse in disapproval. They really didn''t expect that this determined girl that refused to give up would actually be so arrogant.


    Just because someone is stronger than you doesn''t mean that they are using some exploits in the game to beat you!


    There''s no such thing as that!


    risse bit her lips. She could obviously feel the coldness of everyone''s stares at her, but she suppressed all of her anxiety and fears as she stared defiantly at Joseph and dered.


    "If you really are that capable, then fight me, right now!" She pointed at Joseph.


    "Just what did you... say?" Joseph''s narrowed eyes shone in a dangerous light.


    risse subconsciously took a step backward, "W-What? You''re not willing? That means that you really are cheating! If you are that capable then you should be able to defeat me in a duel, right?"


    Joseph stared speechlessly at risse before he sighed, "Fine... If that is what you want to happen for you to believe that I am not using any exploits, then fine. But be warned, I will not hold back against you, even if you''re a woman!"


    risse replied with a sneer, "Likewise, don''t expect me to hold back! I''ll log you out in ten seconds!"


    "C-risse!" Ethan eximed in a soft voice.


    "How bold!" Stafford was also astonished.


    The customers were astonished by her deration for they clearly recognized Joseph''s skills on the battlefield. Even though they were suspicious as to why he was so familiar with the NPC BOSSes...


    That really didn''t matter anymore since having information about your enemy alone wasn''t enough to win battles.


    From the movements that Joseph disyed while facing the NPCs, such as animation canceling and the swift, yet precise usage of I-frames. It was obvious for everyone who had eyes that Joseph was a decent yer. In fact, the customers didn''t even know why risse was so indignant about Joseph winning the tournament.


    "Seems like she really is desperate for that fifty-thousand..."


    "Yeah... That''s the only exnation that I can think of..."


    "Heh... She said that she''ll log-out that guy in ten seconds. What do you think? If you were that girl, can you do kick that guy out of the game in ten seconds?"


    "Hahaha, you''re asking me for the impossible... It''s highly probable that it would be the other way around."


    "Yeah right, hahaha..."


    Joseph approached a Gaming Capsule and he was about to ce his temporary ount card in the terminal when risse spoke up from behind, "There won''t be a fight if you use the ount in that ount card..."


    "Go and temporarily transfer your ount details into that ount card! Use your real ount or else you won''t stand a chance!"


    Joseph turned to look at her in amusement, "So you actually nned on fighting against me using your real ount?"


    "You really have no shame... Fighting against a Level 1 character using your real ount?"


    Joseph shook his head and didn''t say anything anymore.


    He left to look for the tournament manager.


    risse was left trembling as she bit her lips and stared at Joseph''s back.


    <em>I swear I will definitely log you out in ten seconds!</em>


    She dered.


    Soon, Joseph returned with his temporary ount card.


    The customers gathered around and even those eating within the buffet carried their tes and moved closer to the monitor, afraid that they would miss a detail as to how risse would log-out Joseph in ten seconds.


    Two characters soon appeared within the Colosseum and the fight was finally about to begin!<ol><li>Invincibility Frames.</li></ol>

 Chapter 136: Abandoned Kingdom[7]

    Chapter 136: Abandoned Kingdom[7]


    The randomly chosen map for the battle was a map called Armistice.


    It was quite a queer map within the world of Victory considering the fact that this was a map filled with modern buildings and all sorts of billboards along with asphalt roads and neon lights. This map really perfectly depicted what the world was today and it gave a sense of familiarity for Joseph.


    T<em>his is a pretty nice map. I didn''t expect that Victory would have something like this. But I say that I don''t really have any experience of fighting against someone in a terrain like this. From the looks of it, that girl is pretty good in duels.</em>


    <em>She really has me in her grasp, to think that she would choose such a map.</em>


    <em>If not for the fact that I have prior experience fighting against those NPCs in the Festival of Battles then I wouldn''t even dare challenge the tournament...</em>


    Joseph shook his head and gave a sigh. Afterwards, a look of excitement appeared on his face when the reality that he won a fifty-thousand pesos tournament struck him. He wiped both of his palms together and walked towards the center of the map.


    "Ethan, look at the smile on that bastard''s face!" Stafford pointed at the monitors.


    Ethan followed his finger and his eyes alsonded on one of the monitors. Seeing the look of excitement on Joseph''s face, Ethan turned to look at Stafford once again and said.


    "Ford... I think that we possibly made a mistake..."


    Stafford raised an eyebrow and asked, "We made a mistake? What are you talking about?"


    He had a look of confusion on his face, but Stafford was someone that could read along the lines so he quickly caught on what Ethan was hinting about as he continued, "Are you saying that we shouldn''t have offended that guy?"


    Ethan nodded his head, he didn''t hide his anxiety anymore as he replied, "I don''t know man, but my gut feeling is telling me that we made a bad decision of offending that guy..."


    "Gut feeling?" Stafford coldly chuckled, "Just admit that you''re a scaredy-cat."


    "No, I''m not! I''m just saying that we really shouldn''t have offended that guy since we don''t really know his background."


    Stafford paused, he thought for a moment before saying, "His background? Do you think a beggar like that guy can have a significant background? Now you''re just being delusional... Ethan, can you not be so paranoid?"


    Ethan turned to look at Stafford and he suddenly realized that he didn''t know his friend of several years anymore.


    A sigh escaped from his lips as he said, "Ford, you really did change after bing a reservist."


    "Huh? What''s the connection of that in this?" Stafford replied he looked quite annoyed.


    "Nothing..." Ethan shook his head, "Next week I won''t be able to join you and risse on ying in this Cafe."


    Stafford furrowed his eyebrows, "What''s the matter all of a sudden? We made that promise a month ago and just a week before the event itself you suddenly don''t want to go? Don''t be like that, man..."


    Ethan stared at Stafford.


    Stafford was his longtime friend.


    They were best friends since high school but after high school, their paths differed.


    Ethan went into college while Stafford joined the military and became an army reservist. After a few years, the two reunited once again along with risse who was also their longtime friend, but Ethan realized that his best friend Stafford, had changed...


    Ethan didn''t know if that change was for the better but he found out that his friend, who was a meek and timid guy that often went along with the flow and never fought against the current of life now had a determined and unyielding attitude.


    An unyielding attitude always apanied pride and pride would always be paired with arrogance. Ethan found out today that his friend Stafford that he knew since high school wasn''t really that Stafford that he knew anymore.


    However...


    Seeing the look on Stafford''s face right now.


    Ethan felt conflicted.


    No matter what...


    Even though Stafford had significantly changed, he was still his best friend and Ethan was ready to ept that fact. However, witnessing Stafford''s arrogance today towards a young man whom they really didn''t know. It was clear for Ethan that Stafford''s arrogance was somewhat unbridled.


    Ethan sighed.


    He decided to give his friend a second chance as he said, "Okay, fine... I''ll go to that event. But Stafford, can you not be like this to strangers again? Your attitude towards others really feels scummy to me and if you do something like this again, then forget that we were even friends."


    Stafford''s eyes narrowed into slits, "What the hell are you talking about, Ethan? Are you saying that I am doing something wrong? Is it wrong to be suspicious of strangers?"


    "No, I am not saying that being suspicious of strangers is wrong. What I''m saying is that you shouldn''t casually use someone of being a scammer, that is quite a heavy usation right there..."


    "If you said that he''s suspicious then I wouldn''tin, but directly using someone of being a scammer?"


    "That''s going too far..."


    "Every person used of something bad are all innocent until proven guilty. That is why I don''t want you to do something like again..." Ethan finallypleted his rant.


    Stafford stared at him wide-eyed before a chuckle escaped through his mouth.


    "Pfft... Innocent until proven guilty? It seems like the several years of studying thew made you such a dull and cowardly man..."


    "Okay, fine. If you do not approve of what I am then, scram! Forget that we are friends. I will never be friends with such a weak-ass pussy..." Stafford coldly spat and sneered in disdain.


    Ethan''s figure trembled.


    He couldn''t believe that this longtime friend of his would tantly mock him like this.<em> Did I do anything wrong? I just said that he should change his ways since what he was doing wasn''t really right, but why is he mocking me? Did I say anything wrong? Am I the asshole here?</em>


    Ethan doubted his judgment. He stood there rooted, his eyes darted to the monitors as he observed the battlefield, yet his mind wasn''t even thinking about the uing battle. He just stood there as if he lost his life,pletely unmoving.


    Stafford saw Ethan''s strange antics and he couldn''t help but scoff. In the end, he didn''t say anything but he also didn''t bother about Ethan anymore as he turned his attention to the game and stared at the monitors for the uing battle within the Arena.


    The characters of the two yers finally loaded in the game and their equipment and items were revealed to the spectators.


    risse''s character had the name Sr Equinox. Her main ss was Magician that she advanced to Elementalist through the use of the second-advancement mechanics.


    Her second-ss could be Assassin, Ranger, or Hunter...


    There wasn''t that much information that you could get about her second-ss apart from the fact that she had a dagger strapped on her thighs.


    Speaking of her thighs, everyone''s eyes were attracted to her thick thighs. The kneesocks that she wore were tight, but instead of making her look fat. It further increased her charm when everyone saw the protruding fat that seemed to be struggling whilst being covered by the tight kneesocks.


    Her daggers were ced, precisely on the gap between her skirt and her thighs so it was impossible for anyone not to admire how gorgeous she was due to this genius weapon cement.


    Ever since the dawn of MMORPG Games, it has been an illogical, yet indisputable fact that skimpily dressed characters had higher defenses than other characters that were covered by armor from head to toe.


    But it wasn''t because metal was far weaker than fabric...


    It was because of the concept called fan-service.


    This illogical phenomenon is far more prominent in games that catered towards males. Victory was a game that contained a lot of violence so it was safe to say that this game was for adults.


    Knowing that fact, how could the developers not capitalize on creating items that barely covered the body yet gave incredibly high defenses?


    Such error in logic also existed in Victory.


    Sure, it was a surprise for first-time yers since Victory advertised that they advocated for realism.


    But even though it was a surprise...


    It surely was a wee one, especially for the men.


    The audience all nodded their heads towards each other.


    The women in the spectators frowned, while the men had wide smiles on their faces.


    Of course, not everyone within the audience was perverted...


    But all of them were men of culture that had an eye for aesthetics.


    They all nodded in mutual understanding as the wide monitors switched over their focus to Joseph and then...


    "Pffft!"


    "What the fuck?"


    "What? What is that? What is he wearing?"


    Joseph held no weapon in his hands as he casually walked towards the center of the map.


    His eyes swept across the surroundings and anguid smile could be seen on his lips as he admired the scenery.


    <em>Armistice really did perfectly imitated what the modern world was, not just on the looks but also the atmosphere.</em>


    <em>I think it''s probably because of the neon lights, but I don''t know. This map just feels like I''m in the middle of Sibu.</em>


    He couldn''t help butment and express his admiration towards the developers of the game to himself.


    Meanwhile, the spectators outside were astonished.


    "What are those equipment?"


    A man who couldn''t believe what he was seeing asked in a voice that didn''t hide his shock.


    "I also want to know, is what he''s wearing even legitimate equipment? They look like the cum socks buried underneath my bed and was left fermenting for three years..."


    "Holy shit, that''s some pretty detailed description right there. Speaking from personal experience?"


    "Shut up!"


    Joseph maintained a smile on his face as he casually walked on the streets.


    He didn''t know that the spectators outside were currently speechless due to the equipment that his character wore. His character that also had the name, Joseph, wore the tunic that Julie and Hulie made for him while he was unconscious back then at that damned ce.


    Joseph didn''t find it abnormal to wear this tunic for it had a lot of sentimental value for him.


    But he himself wasn''t probably aware of the fact that his equipment right now looked abnormal and disgusting to everyone.


    But why?


    It was because everyone who had the same level as Joseph had equipment that looked dashing, cool, and admirable. If not, then at least it wouldn''t be as dirty as the tunic that Joseph was wearing right now.


    The clothes that Julie and Hulie made for Joseph remained durable after everything that it had gone through, but it hadn''t experienced the baptism of being washed clean.


    Fair enough, this was a virtual world so Joseph probably didn''t care aboutundry but does he not care about appearances?


    Nope...


    As long as it wasfortable to wear, why not wear it?


    This was Joseph''s mindset.


    But this mindset itself was abnormal to everyone here.


    This was why they couldn''t believe what they were seeing.


    "Like I told you, Ethan. You were just too paranoid. Look at that silly smile on his face and the way that he looks at everything in the map. It''s probably the first time that he entered that map..."


    "I think we can now say that we have this win in the bag, hahaha..."


    Staffordughed and made a sidelong nce at Ethan.


    Ethan had a frown on his face.


    <em>Was my gut feeling really mistaken?</em> He nced at Stafford and thought: <em>Even if my gut feeling is mistaken, Stafford''s attitude right now is not good. If that attitude of his continues, he''ll offend someone capable in the future and get himself into deep trouble.</em>


    Ethan heaved a deep sigh before he turned his attention towards the game once again.


    The map, Armistice was a map that really wasn''t that huge. It only had a diameter of six kilometers. The only reason why you would think that Armistice was a huge map was because of its terrain and the number of buildings squeezed in the entire map.


    The Elementalist Sr Equinox first arrived at the center. She used a scouting skill and discovered that Joseph was casually walking his way also towards the center of the map. A sneer appeared on her face as she whispered into the air, "What a foolish guy, it seems like he can only talk and brag."


    She then raised both of her hands into the air and started chanting.


    "Sa tananlaki sa tibuok kalibutan, ang nagsuwat ra gyu''y dako''g otin..."


    Several dozens of magical runes appeared around her at once before they materialized and formed several magic circles that floated above her head. These runes then rotated clockwise around her body.


    When the magic circles appeared, Sr Equinox ced her left hand on the dagger stered on her thighs.


    "W-Wait... She''s going to use Meteor''s Descent? That''s an ultimate skill! Can she reallyplete her chant before her enemy catches up to her?"


    The spectators gasped at once.


    The cameras turned to Joseph and found that even though he could see Sr Equinox chanting in the distance, he still remained as casual as ever. Thenguid smile on his lips never disappeared as if he was walking on his backyard instead of a battlefield.


    "That guy... Is he stupid or what? Why is he not running towards that girl?!"


    One of the spectators eximed.


    A gentleman who looked quite schrlymented, "Probably because he''s aware of the ns of that girl? Take a look at her left hand, it''s on her dagger near her thighs..."


    "I reckon that she''s probably doing this to force that guy in a corner. If the chanting isn''t stopped, that guy will die, but if he went near her to interrupt the chant then her dagger will strike!"


    "Really? But wait! That doesn''t make sense! What if that guy interrupts her chanting from a distance? Wouldn''t her preparations be useless in the end?" One of the spectators asked, there was a clear frown on his face.


    "I''m sure your main ss is probably not Magician, right?" The schrly man replied.


    The man who asked nodded his head, "Does that even matter in this discussion?"


    "Of course! If a Magician''s Chanting Mastery was leveled to the maximum, they could only be interrupted at close-range! Apart from snipers, there''s nothing that could interrupt their chanting from a distance!"


    "And also, I don''t think that her enemy is a Gunner..."


    "If that guy was indeed a Gunner then he would''ve taken the high ground from the start!"


    Gunners were vulnerable on the ground.


    They had to take a position with a proper vantage point so they could use their abilities to the fullest.


    Joseph who remained walking on the ground probably wasn''t a Gunner since he didn''t know how a Gunner operated on the battlefield.


    But seeing that there was no weapon in his hands. Just what was his ss?


    The spectators wondered.


    risse had a clear frown on her face as she observed the nonchnt Joseph. Several dozens of ideas appeared in her mind as to why Joseph was casually walking towards him, but then a system notification took her away from her contemtion.


    [Chanting preparationsplete! Meteor Descent; Ready!]


    A sneer appeared on Sr Equinox''s face.


    <em>Since you do not dare to approach me, then I''ll attack you from here!</em>


    "Meteor Descent!"


    With a scream from her, the magic circles that surrounded her body copsed and transformed into a meteor that rapidly descended from the skies. From the speed and how big the meteor was, it was practically impossible for anyone to dodge this attack.


    Joseph stopped in his tracks, he stared at the skies, and the image of the meteor descending gradually grew bigger in his eyes.


    "It''s done, game over..."


    The spectators sighed in regret. They wanted a fierce and exciting battle, but what they got in return was a boring one.


    "What is he doing? Why is he not moving?"


    "Isn''t that obvious? It''s hopeless to dodge that meteor so why would he bother trying?"


    "Tssk... What a disappointment..."


    The spectators mumbled one by one.


    Meanwhile, within the game, Sr Equinox maintained her focus as she stared right at Joseph''s figure. Meteor''s Descent was an extremely powerful skill that could instantly kill anyone in the current stage of the game if they were directly struck.


    Despite its activation, Sr Equinox didn''t let her guard down.


    She was ready for her enemy''s avoidance and she was already taking several steps ahead on defeating Joseph in this battle. However, while she was tightly holding her dagger, she found out that Joseph really had no intention of dodging the iing meteor.


    When the meteor was only about thirty meters away from Joseph, Sr Equinox whispered in astonishment.


    "What the hell is he doing?"


    Her question was soon answered for the meteor finallypleted its descent.


    It directly struck Joseph causing a huge explosion of such a massive scale that it turned every building in a hundred meters radius around Joseph into dust. Sr Equinox flew backwards from the shockwave, relief, and excitement could be seen on her face.


    <em>I won!</em>


    <em>I defeated him in just under ten seconds of himing into contact with me!</em>


    risse didn''t even hide her joy, if not for the fact that she was currently in the air.


    She would''ve jumped up and down from the happiness that she was feeling right now.


    But her happiness was extinguished when she saw that there wasn''t a system announcement of her Victory.


    <em>What the heck? What happened? He''s not dead?</em>


    She hurriedly stabilized herself in the air and started chanting. Within the dust, the magical runes that materialized around her body served as a beacon of light amidst the darkness as a particrly horrifying voice came from behind her and sent shivers down her spine.


    "Looking for me?"


    Sr Equinox swiftly turned around, but her eyes were robbed of its light by the dazzling brilliance that Joseph held in his right hand.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, First Form..."


    Joseph teleported behind Sr Equinox through the use of The Grand Duelist''s Dash.


    The reason why Joseph didn''t instantly teleport behind her as soon as he caught the Meteor''s Descent through the use of Parry, was because he couldn''t see her due to the dust that the explosion swept up in the air.


    But unfortunately for risse...


    Her chanting became the beacon of light that guided Joseph to her location.


    As soon as the light of the magical runes shone around her body.


    Joseph instantly activated The Grand Duelist''s Dash and teleported right behind her.


    Taking the familiar stance of the Grand Duelist, the tip of the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty that Joseph held in his right hand shone in a brilliant light that robbed Sr Equinox of her eyesight.


    Seeing his disoriented enemy, Joseph lifted a smile on his face as he whispered.


    "Discharge, Point..."


    What came next was a thrust and a system announcement that said.


    VICTORY!


    Instant-kill!!!

 Chapter 137: Abandoned Kingdom[8]

    Chapter 137: Abandoned Kingdom[8]


    Instant-kill!!!


    Yes, an Insta Kill!


    The word Victory that floated above the air and disyed on the monitors that the spectators were staring at indicated that a winner has been decided.


    But that winner wasn''t risse...


    It was Joseph!


    risse who used her Ultimate Skill: Meteor Descent hadn''t won!


    She was instantly killed by her enemy and lost!


    Silence...


    No one spoke within the room. It was eerily silent.


    But the silence was eventually broken by a shout from one of the spectators.


    "Rey! Manager! Use the rey! Let us see what happened!"


    His shout awakened everyone from their reverie as they simultaneously turned to look at the tournament manager.


    The tournament manager who was also a yer of Victory was also bbergasted by what happened.


    He looked as if he had lost his soul, but the shout of one of the audiences directed towards him awakened him from his trance. He regained his spirits as he madly dashed towards the remote control and after pressing a few buttons...


    The monitors above flickered and the rey was shown.


    "Unbelievable..."


    The rey which was also the y of the Game onlysted three seconds at most.


    The first second was Joseph staring towards Sr Equinox wrapped by the light of her magical runes.


    At the two-second mark, the spectators were astounded to see that Joseph had teleported behind risse. He was holding his strange weapon whose de looked as thin as a cicada''s wings and there was a brilliant light on the tip of his weapon...


    His stance indicated that he was about to do a thrust and that was what he did.


    In the three-second mark, Joseph pushed forward with his weapon and prated Sr Equinox''s heart.


    His attack definitely caused tremendous damage, but tremendous damage only took twenty-five percent of the character''s health. It shouldn''t directly kill the enemy instantly. Just what had happened?


    The tournament manager pressed a few buttons once again and the answer that everyone was looking for was finally answered.


    The moment the weapon prated Sr Equinox''s heart. It took twenty-five percent of her Health due to the tremendous damage that she suffered from her vitals. However, that wasn''t the end of it all. Aside from that damage caused by the pration of the vitals.


    Joseph''s attack itself caused a whopping 252,693 damage!


    Such damage was extremely high, it was unbelievable.


    Everyone had their eyes widened into saucers while the others had their jaws dropped onto the ground.


    They couldn''t believe what they were seeing.


    But it was the truth.


    Joseph really did deal 252,693 damage in just a single attack, ending the entire battle in just three seconds at most.


    <em>Priii...</em>


    The sound of Gaming Capsules being opened rang out and a distraught risse walked towards the audiences.


    Her face was still pale as she stared at the tournament manager and said...


    "Rey..."


    "Huh?" The tournament manager subconsciously mumbled.


    "You didn''t hear me? I said rey!"


    "Y-Yes!"


    The tournament manager pressed a few buttons.


    The monitors flickered to show the rey of what had happened before the end of the battle.


    "T-Three seconds?!" risse saw that the length of the reysted only for three seconds.


    But her shock and astonishment quickly turned into speechlessness and fear when she saw what happened within those three seconds.


    At the first second mark, Joseph was staring at the skies, at the two-second mark...


    He mysteriously appeared behind her Sr Equinox and at the three-second mark, his weapon had pierced through Sr Equinox''s heart, dealing a tremendous amount of damage by piercing through a vital and when that was added on top of the damage that Joseph''s attack dealt...


    The damage reached six digits, instantly annihting her character.


    "252,693 damage... I-Impossible... Six digits? What kind of attack did he use? Was that an ultimate attack? But why... Why it isn''t..." risse wanted to say shy since most, if not all Ultimate Attacks that could deal six digits of damage at once were shy and showy.


    But Joseph''s attack clearly didn''t look out of the ordinary.


    Except for that brilliant light that shone at the tip of his weapon, there wasn''t really anything strange to that attack.


    But the fact was that it dealt six digits of damage. Just what was going on here?


    risse, Ethan, and Stafford, along with the audience members were bbergasted about what had happened. An audible sound of a Gaming Capsule being opened rang out and everyone quickly turned to look their heads towards the direction of Joseph''s Gaming Capsule.


    Joseph emerged from the capsule with anguid smile on his face.


    "Convinced, yet?"


    This was the first question that he asked and this question also served as a reminder that he annihted Sr Equinox within the first three seconds of their encounter.


    risse promised that she would log-out Joseph from the game within the first ten seconds of their encounter, but Joseph reversed the tables and logged her out within the first three seconds instead.


    These words that he said was akin to nothing but a fierce p on risse''s face as she stood there, trembling from the anger and humiliation.


    Stafford had his head hung low while Ethan deeply sighed,plicated emotions shed across his face and it was unknown what he was thinking.


    "..."


    risse was unable to speak.


    "I''ll take that silence as a yes, then..." Joseph turned around and didn''t bother about her anymore.


    "Manager, can I get my reward now? I didplete that Boss Rush so I think I have that fifty-thousand in the bag, right?" Joseph made a sidelong nce at the tournament manager.


    The tournament manager still had a look of shock on his face as he shivered and hastily replied, "Of course, of course, you won the tournament so you are entitled to that reward along with a trophy..."


    "Please wait here for a while, I''ll fetch your rewards..."


    The tournament managers quickly left the room.


    At this moment, everyone finally remembered what was important.


    The incredible duel made them forgot about the fact that they were here for the Arena of ughter; Boss Rush tournament.


    But now that they remember why they were here. They also remembered that Joseph had in fact, won the tournament and they suffered another bout of shock and speechlessness.


    Yes, that''s right...


    Joseph won the tournament.


    Stafford had a tragic look on his face.


    risse seemed to be hesitating about something, while Ethan had an indifferent look on his face as if he wasn''t concerned about anything that was happening. From the time that he found out that his gut feeling was right, he had already distanced himself from his so-called longtime friends.


    He was even slowly approaching Joseph with slow and unassuming steps.


    The tournament manager then returned along with the owner of the establishment. The owner had a cool expression, and he looked to be in his mid-thirties. He handed over the crystal trophy to Joseph along with the fifty-thousand pesos reward in cash.


    "Congrattions on winning the tournament and defeating the twelve overlords of the Arena of ughter; Boss Rush!"


    The boss said with a light smile on his face.


    Joseph nodded his head and smiled. He stretched his hand over to the trophy and received it.


    After holding the trophy firmly on his left hand, he stretched his right hand and went for the bundle of cash.


    But when he was pulling it over to his side...


    He met resistance and he couldn''t help but stare at the owner in doubt.


    Joseph''s smile turned bitter when he found out that the owner was actually heartbroken.


    He really didn''t want to give Joseph this fifty-thousand peso at all!


    Joseph realized that the kind-hearted owner was actually a really stingy person.


    After all, why would he ce the difficulty at the maximum against those twelve BOSSes?


    He wasn''t actually trying to let anyone win the tournament and he was just using this tournament for the sake of publicity.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and whispered into the owner, "Boss, let go of the money. I will let you use that rey of the duel earlier for the sake of publicity. I think that rey is worth more than fifty-thousand pesos, right? In terms of public exposure that you would get from it of course..."


    The owner''s smile quickly turned into shock.


    He obviously didn''t expect that Joseph would catch onto his ns, but since Joseph had already caught his schemes.


    There was no use on hiding anything anymore as he let go of the fifty-thousand pesos...


    He even handed over a Diamond Card for the Grand Inte Cafe to Joseph.


    "This card will give you a forty-percent discount to everything within the Cafe... For your generosity, you deserve this at least." The owner revealed a smile that was finally sincere.


    Afterwards, he made Joseph sign an agreement that he would give them exclusive rights to the rey without even consulting risse who was also a part of that duel.


    Then, Joseph also had to pose with the crystal trophy in hand.


    ording to the owner, this step was necessary since they were nning on renting out a nearby billboard to show to everyone that someone had won the tournament and defeated the twelve impossible to beat BOSSes of the Arena of ughter; Boss Rush within the maximum difficulty.


    Joseph didn''t immediately leave the establishment after all the formalities.


    He stayed for the buffet and finally had the time to eat to the fullest, or so he thought...

 Chapter 138: Abandoned Kingdom[9]

    Chapter 138: Abandoned Kingdom[9]


    While he was eating...


    Three figures appeared in his sight and it was clear from their slowed footsteps that they were hesitating while approaching him.


    Joseph couldn''t help but stop eating and ask.


    "What are you doing?" He looked quite irritated.


    "If you are going toe to me then hurry up, I can''t eat properly with the three of you standing there as if you were high school kids about to confess to their crushes..." Joseph rolled his eyes.


    The three, Stafford, Ethan, and risse finally got the courage to approach him.


    "What''s the matter? Are you still not convinced, yet? Do you want another duel? Fine, but it will be thest one. I''m not really that busy since the maintenance is still ongoing so I can humor you guys for a bit." Joseph said as he stuffed several spoonfuls of rice and bacon into his mouth.


    "No... That''s not..." risse trembled and fear surfaced in her eyes. The fact that she didn''t know how she died served as enough reason for her to fear Joseph.


    "That''s not it? Then, what''s the problem? As you can see I''m trying to eat here so I would really appreciate it if you guys don''t disturb me while I''m trying to eat..." Joseph replied.


    He stuffed several mouthfuls of bacon and rice into his mouth once again and even drank a ss of orange juice.


    Stafford had a frown on his face.


    It was clear that he was angry but he didn''t dare to voice out his grievances.


    Finally, it was Ethan who didn''t have any enmity towards Joseph that spoke up, "Are you a member of the Universal Rankings? I don''t think that I have seen your name in the Universal Rankings."


    "The Universal Rankings? What''s that? Sounds quite cool..."


    Joseph nced at Ethan as he stuffed his mouth with food.


    "What''s the Universal Rankings? Are you implying that you don''t know about the Universal Rankings?"


    "You''re lying!"


    "It''s impossible for any yer of Victory to not know about the Universal Rankings! Take a look at this petty guy risse! He had already humiliated us, yet he still wants to rub salt on our wounds?" Stafford couldn''t take it anymore.


    He pointed a finger at Joseph and ranted to risse.


    risse also had a frown on her face, she felt that Joseph was too pretentious...


    How could a yer of Victory not know about the Universal Rankings when it was everyone''s primary motivation as to why they were working hard to be as strong as possible?


    Being a part of the Universal Rankings drastically changed your life.


    You could make a living while ying Victory if you were a part of the Universal Rankings, so everyone really wanted to be included in it.


    But this was easier said than done.


    Victory had several hundreds of millions of yers so, being a member of the Universal Rankings, which could only contain a thousand yers were incredibly difficult, or maybe even impossible.


    But why did risse, Ethan, and Stafford suspect that Joseph was a yer within the Universal Rankings?


    It was because of how huge the damage that he dealt in a single attack against risse!


    Only those overpowered yers within the Universal Rankings could possibly do such a thing!


    This was what the three believed in...


    But Joseph was actually refusing and even acting as if he didn''t know what the Universal Rankings was?


    What a pretentious bastard!


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at the three and noticed their displeasure at his antics.


    A bitter smile emerged on his lips for he really didn''t know about what the Universal Rankings were.


    But since he didn''t have the obligation to exin to these three people about what kind of a person he was.


    He didn''t bother exining as he turned his attention to his food and continued on eating.


    Anger shed across risse''s face but she didn''t say anything.


    Stafford nced at risse and after seeing that she didn''t have the intention to continue on speaking. He sighed and kept his silence.


    Ethan, on the other hand, handed over a business card to Joseph and said.


    "I''m an intern at GMA News. If you are interested in telling your story to the world, please contact me and I''ll surely assist you." Ethan reckoned that Joseph couldn''t possibly resist the allure of poprity and riches.


    This was why he was confident that he could make Joseph say yes to his requests.


    But unexpectedly, Joseph took the business card and quickly tucked it into his pocket.


    "..."


    Ethan stared at him in silence.


    "What? There''s more? Hurry up! I really don''t want to be disturbed while eating." Joseph frowned.


    "No... Nothing..." Ethan awkwardly scratched his head as he retreated.


    Stafford followed him and it was clear on his expression that he was incredibly angry.


    risse remained standing in front of Joseph.


    She held the hem of her skirt as she hung her head low and whispered in a voice that sounded more like the droning of a mosquito.


    "I''m... I''m sorry..."


    "Say what?" Joseph was too shocked that he stopped eating. <em>Such a prideful and arrogant girl could actually admit to her mistakes and even apologize? It seems like there''s more than meets the eye when ites to this girl!</em>


    Joseph inwardly praised risse''s courage.


    But he maintained a cold facade as he faced her and said...


    "Oh, you want to say you''re sorry? It''s fine, I forgive you. We really don''t have that many grievances against each other."


    He casually replied and risse was astonished by the fact that Joseph easily forgave her.


    <em>I thought that he would definitely not forgive me for what I had done, but unexpectedly... He''s forgiving me this easily?</em>


    She inwardly thought as she stared at Joseph in a trance.


    Unsure of what she should do next...


    The n that she made before approaching Joseph was only valid if Joseph didn''t forgive her after her apologies. But now that Joseph actually forgave her without even thinking about it. risse was at a loss about how she could proceed so she could achieve her goals.


    "What? There''s more? Please... If you want to say more then can you spare me thementary right now? I really am trying to eat here in peace, yet you and your friends keep on approaching me..." Joseph sighed.


    risse finally awakened from her trance as she quickly replied, "No, no... Ah, yes! I will go now..." She turned around and was about to leave when she asked, "If possible and if you had really forgiven me... Can you tell me what Kingdom you are affiliated with?"


    Joseph stared at her and replied with a smile, "I''m at the Kingdom of Evesting Frost or Absolute Frost, whatever you want to call it."


    "Really? I''m at the Kingdom of Burning Heaven!" risse abruptly turned around and replied, "It seems like we''re quite near to each other! Can I possibly visit you if I someday wander to the Kingdom of Absolute Frost?"


    <em>So, she''s from the Kingdom of Burning Heaven. It really is fitting that her character is affiliated with that Kingdom that''s more like a giant red-light district.</em>


    Joseph inwardly snickered as he replied to what risse had said, "That''s not a problem, but I am quite busy so I probably won''t have the time to entertain you that much."


    risse sweetly smiled, "It''s fine! That''s okay! But... How can I contact you when I''m at the Kingdom of Absolute Frost? I don''t know your in-game name and tag, and I don''t know if it''s appropriate to..."


    Joseph replied with a smile too and said, "How about you just take my number?"


    "Really? I can take your number? That''s good!"


    risse swiftly took her smartphone and handed it over to Joseph.


    Joseph inputted some digits into her contacts and returned the phone to her.


    "Thanks! Are you avableter at night? If possible, I really want to call you. But please don''t think that I have impure intentions, all right? I just want to hear stories about the Kingdom that is perpetually covered by snow all year round. I really regret setting the Kingdom of Burning Heaven as my Kingdom of affiliation." risse even heaved a deep sigh.


    Joseph smiled, "Yeah, I''m avableter at night since Victory is still in maintenance."


    His reply reassured risse as she sweetly smiled and said her goodbyes.


    After waving her goodbye.


    Joseph stared at his te full of food and swiftly wolfed it down...


    Now, that the te was empty.


    He nced at risse and found that thetter was also staring at him.


    <em>It''s time for me to get the hell out of here...</em>


    Joseph swiftly left the establishment and, in the future...


    Everyone would find out that the person who established the unbeatable three-second duel record within the Grand Inte Cafe was actually the first Mythical Ranked yer and the Grand Duelist.


    The worries of the owner of the Inte Cafe about the number of customers in his establishment would soon disappear in the future and he would definitely thank himself for not being stingy about the fifty-thousand pesos.


    If not, he would''ve potentially offended a powerhouse that could easily end the reign of his establishment in the City of Sibu.


    But all of these were in the future...


    For now, the owner of the Inte Cafe ced the three-second duel within the forums of Victory and it was quickly gathering the attention of everyone who couldn''t believe that such a feat was actually possible.


    Later that night, risse had finally returned from her house. She was standing in front of a full-body mirror, hesitation could be seen on her face as she held her smartphone and wracked her brains as to how she could break the ice between her and Joseph.


    risse was a young woman who knew how to read along the lines. From Joseph''s expression alone earlier when Stafford mentioned the Universal Rankings. It was clear that Joseph wasn''t lying that he really didn''t know anything about it.


    She realized at that time that this was a great opportunity for her to be a carp that leaped into the dragon''s gate.


    It was a great opportunity for her to change her life.


    If she couldtch onto Joseph''s thighs as he inevitably ascended towards the Universal Rankings, she could ride his coattails and change her life for the better.


    risse steeled her resolve.


    She took off her clothes and posed seductively in front of the mirror.


    A pleasing and seductive smile appeared on her face as she took several shots of her naked body and swiftly sent it towards the number that Joseph gave her earlier.


    A few minutes after sending the photos...


    She quickly sent a message towards that number that said.


    <em>Oh no! Sorry! That was an ident! I was supposed to save it into a hidden archive but I identally sent it to you, can you please delete those photos for me?</em>


    risse had a light smile on her face as she pretended that she sent those photos identally. With her knowledge about men, they would definitely act like they had deleted the image. It was also quite usible that they would console her, and would act like a proper gentleman.


    However, at that moment...


    The seeds of lust had already been nted.


    risse reckoned that since that man had already seen her body, he would definitely not be able to suppress his desires and from that point, risse could finally have him in her grasp.


    risse''s smile widened, and her smartphone vibrated.


    She had received a reply...


    <em>Gotcha!</em>


    risse quickly tapped on the reply.


    <em>Really? You identally sent those photos? Was it really an ident or are you just a slut?</em>


    "Wow... I didn''t know that he was this aggressive..." risse felt somewhat strange that Joseph was the one that''s being aggressive...


    "But it''s fine... At least, I can see that he''s a man full of confidence. He knows what he wants and he''s trying to take it for himself..." risse repeatedly tapped on her phone and replied.


    <em>No... I''m not... I''m not a slut... Why would you say that...?</em>


    The reply was extremely fast to the point that risse doubted if she was even talking to a real human instead of a bot.


    <em>No, you''re definitely a slut. Only a slut could pose like this. Good heavens, you even spread those legs and cheeks, it must be such a long time since you had a dick in ya, right? What a slut...</em>


    risse now had a frown on her face.


    Joseph''s aggressiveness was far from her expectations for he thought that he was quite a gentleman.


    Yet, what was this? Just what was happening?


    risse mustered her courage and replied.


    <em>No, really... I''m not a slut... that was just an ident...</em>


    <em>Hahaha... You''re saying that but you are definitely a slut. How about this? Do you want a video call? We can continue this there and have fun.</em>


    risse''s eyes widened and joy shed across her face. It was her n to be in a video call with Joseph, but she didn''t expect that everything would escte this far so quickly...


    But since everything was already at this point, what was the need for hesitation?


    risse quickly put on some make-up and sent a video call request.


    The video call was quickly epted and while it was loading...


    risse made sure that she was wearing her most seductive underwear.


    The video call finally loaded and the scene that she saw, thoroughly shocked and disgusted her.


    The person behind the video call whom he thought was Joseph wasn''t actually Joseph!


    It was a man whose figure made him look like a mountain of meat.


    But that wasn''t the reason why she was shaken to the core...


    It was because when the video call loaded, that disgusting man was actually holding his meat and was furiously beating it as he let out several muffled grunts.


    <em>Oh, it''s you... Yes, you really are sexy... Come, show me that pussy... quick! I''m about to bust here!</em>


    "Hieeek!"


    risse was quick to react and hurriedly closed the video call.


    Her expression was as pale as a sheet of paper as she swiftly blocked the number.


    However, the damage was already done.


    Her eyes were already tainted and what was seen could never be unseen.


    "You bastard... How dare you..." risse trembled in anger.


    Her chest violently heaved as he cried out.


    "How dare you give me a fake number!!!"


    risse wanted to cry but no tears woulde out.

 Chapter 139: Abandoned Kingdom[10]

    Chapter 139: Abandoned Kingdom[10]


    Joseph fetched some groceries on his way towards his house.


    He made sure that he had at least a month''s worth of groceries so that he didn''t have to go out every day.


    Taking out the business card from his pocket. He nced at it for a moment before throwing it into the trash. Afterwards, he nced around and after making sure that there was no one nearby. He took out his smartphone and opened the main website of Victory.


    Finally, there was some news about the lifting of the maintenance.


    P.H Works worked faster that everyone had expected and the emergency maintenance was scheduled to be liftedter this night. This gave excitement to Joseph as he hurriedly went into his room and cooked some dinner for him to eat.


    He ate while scrolling through the forums of Victory.


    Within the forums, there was a particr trending post that had the title.


    [Unbelievable Duel! Six Digits in Damage! A three-second duel!]


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face "Just what kind of a title is this?"


    He opened the forum post and saw that the rey of what happened back at the Grand Inte Cafe was embedded within it and the number ofments about the post had already reached ten thousand plus.


    [Weak Left Arm, Strong Right Arm says: What the fuck? The duel ended in three seconds? Wait, isn''t that a Meteor''s Descent? That''s one of the Ultimate Skills for Elementalist and he dodged it and somehow teleported behind that beauty? Wait, could it be that he''s an Assassin?]


    [I''m Really Not Rifle says: @Weak Left Arm, Strong Right Arm. Bro, are you stupid? He clearly doesn''t even have a weapon so how can you say that he''s an Assassin? I say that he''s probably a main-ss advanced Hunter, possibly a Jester or a Harlequin...]


    [Weak Left Arm, Strong Right Arm says: @I''m Really Not Rifle. Bro, it seems like you''re the retarded one here. Have you seen a Harlequin or Jester teleport like that? You tripping man... Can I get what you''re smoking too, or what?]


    [Dehydrated Sloth: @Weak Left Arm, Strong Right Arm. Is right, how can a Harlequin and Jester move like that? And he also used a strange weapon that looks extremely thin. I think we can ask @I Like Swords for what he thinks about that weapon.]


    [I Like Swords says: Thanks for the tag @Dehydrated Sloth. Yes, I do know about what kind of a sword he''s using. That sword is a Rapier. I don''t want to exin the specifics since I''m obviously not knowledgeable enough about that sword so I will not dumb it down. Basically, it''s a weapon made for thrusting...]


    [Jail is Just a Room says: "Thrusting"... Hehe, I like that word.]


    [I Like Swords says: Come on, man...]


    Joseph continuouslyughed as he scrolled through thements of the forum post.


    There were a lot of sensible theories as to how the battle ended in a mere three seconds and how Joseph teleported behind Sr Equinox.


    But none of them were correct nor even close which made it particrly hrious for Joseph.


    Some theories said that Joseph had an unknown Epic ss, while some said that his ss was definitely at the Legend Rank since it was quite mysterious.


    However, that theory was debunked by the keyboard warriors saying that if Joseph was really a Legendary Ranked yer...


    His name would''ve already popped up left and right in the Universal Rankings.


    Their discussion prompted Joseph to learn more about the world of Victory.


    Since there was still two hours before the lifting of the maintenance.


    Joseph decided that he would not let himself procrastinate anymore.


    He opened up a fan-made wiki about the world of Victory and studied there.


    From the wiki, it was said that the world of Victory was a huge continent on a that was at sixty-percent water and forty-percentnd. The entirendmass of the Gaia was named as the continent of Victory and the Empire of Truedawn reigned within the continent of Victory.


    There were three Kingdoms in the continent, and at the far north of the continent was the Kingdom of Absolute Frost.


    At the western side of the continent was the Kingdom of Burning Heaven while at the south-eastern side of the continent was the Kingdom of Nether.


    There were a lot of Kingdoms and Cities in the continent back then but after a brutal colonization expedition by the Empire of Truedawn, only three Kingdoms remained...


    The territories of these three kingdoms were iparably vast, yet they were peaceful with each other. It was as if they had no ambitions nor intentions of increasing their territories. At least, this was the impression that everyone was under.


    Those who knew more about the three kingdoms understood that everything wasn''t so peaceful...


    This was the reason why yers needed to properly choose their kingdom of affiliation since your kingdom affiliation couldn''t be changed after you selected what Kingdom you''d support when creating your character.


    It was rmended within the wiki that yers should choose the Kingdom of Burning Heaven since its bustling economy was second only to the Empire of Truedawn. As for the second rmendation, it was surprisingly the Kingdom of Nether.


    The Kingdom of Nether had the worst economypared to the two, but why was this Kingdom rmended more than the Kingdom of Absolute Frost or Evesting Frost? Well, it was because due to the fact that the Kingdom of Absolute Frost was far north and extremely cold.


    If not for the fact that it had more natural resources than the other Kingdoms which made it suitable for people who wanted to have a production ss, then it wouldn''t even be listed in this rmendation.


    Joseph skimmed through all the information about the Kingdoms and he summarized them all in a single paragraph describing the three Kingdoms.


    First, the Kingdom of Burning Heaven.


    The Kingdom of Burning Heaven is a liberal kingdom.


    This Kingdom could be considered as the sex capital of the continent of Victory. If Joseph was to make a real-life analogy. This Kingdom was like the ancient city of Pompeii. All sorts of people in all walks of life often visited this kingdom but they had something inmon for their visit.


    It was sex...


    The yers, especially males directly chose this kingdom due to the abundance of sex.


    But they were disappointed when they learned that the concept of consent still existed within the Kingdom. Rape had severe consequences and once caught by the system, you could be subject to a permanent ban to all virtual games that couldn''t be appealed.


    As for the Kingdom of Absolute Frost...


    Despite the all year round coldness and snow. The people in this ce were the warmest and the most hospitable people in the entire continent of Victory. Their residents were advocates for human rights, and they also practiced equality on a daily basis.


    With virtually no ve trade, the people in this Kingdom could be considered as the happiest residents in the entire world of Victory.


    The Kingdom of Absolute Frost believed in a lot of gods along with the Kingdom of Burning Heaven. Quite opposite to them, the Kingdom of Nether only had faith for the Goddess, the Divine Goddess Rhinna.


    Believing in such a pristine Goddess also made their views regarding love, quite innocent and pure...


    A person within the Kingdom of Nether could only marry a single person for their entire life. There was no concept of polygamy in the Kingdom of Nether for every marriage was sacred and sanctified by their beloved Divine Goddess Rhinna.


    As for the Kingdom of Absolute Frost, you could have as many wives as you want as long as you loved them equally and could equally support them. The Kingdom of Burning Heaven was the same as the Absolute Frost when it came to marriages, butxer than the former.


    <em>Interesting... Interesting... So, if I wanted to have a harem for myself, I should go to the Kingdom of Absolute Frost or Burning Heaven? Wait! What the fuck am I reading? Didn''t Ie here to read about more information about the tiers of sses yet why am I getting distracted again? Ugh...</em>


    Joseph facepalmed when he found out that he derailed from his original train of thought.


    Reiming his focus, Joseph struck the iron while it''s still hot as he opened up the information that he required and skimmed through it.


    ording to the wiki...


    Victory sses were divided into, Hidden, Unique, Epic, Legend, and Myth. There were millions of people having a ss with the Hidden Tier, while the number of people that has a Unique-Tiered ss was at the several hundreds of thousands.


    As for the number of people with the Epic-Tiered ss, they were at the tens of thousands, while the Legends could only be counted by a single finger since there was only a single known Legendary yer in the world of Victory.


    As for the Myths, there were rumors about a system notification informing everyone about the appearance of the myth but it was a piece of unconfirmed news and it may probably be even an NPC instead of a yer.


    After all...


    It was a known fact that NPCs were far powerful than yers in the current state of the game.


    It was not out of the ordinary for a Legendary NPC to ascend to the Myths.


    <em>Interesting... If I reveal to the world that I''m a Mythical Ranked yer... Would I also have my name and portrait ced in this wiki? That will definitely happen. All I need is to gauge if it is worth it to reveal myself to the world or should I hide who I am?</em>


    Joseph remembered that there were several system notifications informing him that he could reveal his name to the world and enter the Universal Rankings.


    He dismissed those system notifications since when they appeared since they didn''t really appear at the right time...


    "Let''s think about itter..."


    Joseph decided to set that thought aside for a moment as he clicked on another set of information.


    This time, it was about the system of Item Enhancement in the world of Victory.


    Item Enhancement in the world of Victory required the usage of the "Essence of the World".


    These Essences could only be farmed or discovered, but could never be made by human hands.


    The enhancement of items has a hundred percent chance of sess for the first six enhancements. After +6, there''s a specific chance of failure and every failure, degrades, not only the number of enhancement on the item but also its durability.


    Ten percent of durability would be lost for every enhancement failure.


    Once an item''s durability reached zero. It would be permanently destroyed...


    The max durability of an item could only be recovered by sacrificing the same item to increase the maximum durability of the higher-grade counterpart of that item.


    The punishment for failing an enhancement was quite harsh but there was an option to guarantee its sess.


    It was through sacrificing three times more "Essence of the World" than normal.


    It was called, "Brute-Force Enhancement".


    Using this method, sess would be guaranteed but it was incredibly wasteful than the well-known and most used method of increasing one''s chances for a sessful enhancement which was known as failure stacking.


    Each enhancement failure gave the user a higher chance of enhancement sess in their next enhancement.


    Users can stack these enhancement-failure bestowed chances so that they could upgrade a piece of higher-ranking equipment than the equipment they were using to stack their failures.


    essory enhancement doesn''t require "Essence of the World"...


    To sessfully enhance an essory, one required the same essory that''s subject for enhancement as the sacrifice for a chance to increase the grade of the essory.


    If the user failed on this enhancement, the essory subject to the enhancement along with the sacrifice disappears.


    These are the tiers dedicated to items.


    [White] - Umon


    [Green] - Common


    [Blue] - Rare


    [Purple] - Epic


    [Orange] - Legendary


    [Gold] - Golden


    [ck] - Mythical


    Armors and Weapons can be upgraded to +20.


    essories can only be upgraded three times.


    "What an incredibly harsh system of enhancement. The rarity of the items needed for enhancement alone is incredibly rare, yet the system is also like this? That''s like a p to the face of everyone who is trying their best to farm for those enhancement materials!" Joseph whispered in astonishment.


    He closed the wiki and checked for the time.


    <em>Great, there''s only about thirty minutes left before the maintenance ends... What else should I do before the maintenance ends? Hmmm, should I go and clean some parts of this house? Or should I go watch some dank memes on the inte? Nah, it''s too unproductive...</em>


    Joseph sat there, a frown could be seen on his face as he was thinking about what he should do to pass the time.


    <em>Wait! </em><em>I should pay Lily first!</em>


    Joseph''s eyes brightened and he hurriedly transferred several thousands of money towards Lily.


    <em>Dang I almost forgot about that debt, but now that my debt is paid... Wheeew, It really feels good to be debt-free... </em>


    Joseph leaned on his chair and stared at the ceiling of his mansion.


    The room became silent, apart from the whistling of the fans within hisptop, there was no other noise present in the area.


    <em>Now that I think about it. I''m actually pretty lonely. It''s quite sad that apart from the world of Victory. I literally have nothing else to do, nor to visit.</em>


    <em> I don''t even have a hobby apart from ying games. Sigh... How did I be like this? I was a pretty good table tennis yer and even had the chance to go nationals back then, but thanks to that tragedy...</em>


    <em>Sigh... I should probably visit that club sometime.</em>


    Joseph remembered that he was once a member of the prestigious and one and only Table Tennis club of the City of Sibu.


    He was also one of their top yers.


    Unfortunately, after that tragedy...


    He lost touch with them and the friends whom he thought that he could trust with his back had forgotten him. Even once, they had never even contacted him to ask for his well-being at the least.


    This fact made Joseph incredibly bitter and sad as he whispered, "I guess they still hate me for ditching the nationals just so I could tend to the funeral of Papa and Mama..."


    "But can they really me me? Both my parents just died for fuck''s sake, yet why they can''t understand that I can''t go nationals at that time?"


    Joseph shook his head and ced these thoughts into the deep recesses of his mind.


    He opened up his browser and searched for thetest dank memes to pass the time, but then a desktop notification informed him about the arrival of an email.


    Joseph casually nced on the desktop notification, but his eyes widened in shock when he realized that it was an official email from P.H Works.


    Click!


    Joseph never clicked as fast as he did ever in his life than what he had done right now.


    Opening that email, he saw that it was a message of congrattions from the developers...


    Dear, Joseph Entrada.


    We have seen you struggle from the start of your quest until the end. We apud your determination, willpower and the courage to keep on fighting. Congrattions on being the first Mythical Ranked yer of Victory!


    Enclosed within this email is a 3D Printable ess Keycard that will grant you ess to the Headquarters of P.H Works in the Capital City of Pilipinas...


    We know that we are in the same country, so if you happen to visit the Capital City then inform us!


    We will surely give you a good time on your visit here.


    Once again, congrattions on your sess and Mabuhay!


    PS: Thank you for helping Sir preserve the contents of his wallet and pping my co-workers across their faces.


    Sincerely,


    Secretary of the CEO of P.H Works,


    Elizabeth.


    <em>What...?</em>


    Joseph didn''t know what to say.


    He speechlessly downloaded the attachment within the email and 3D Printed the ess Keycard on the 3D Printer that he had on his desk. A few minutester, he now had the ess Keycard for the headquarters of P.H Works.


    It would be a lie to say that Joseph didn''t feel any excitement.


    But setting that excitement aside, Joseph felt somewhat weird.


    It was the first time for him to bask on the prestige and glory of being the first Mythical Ranked yer so he didn''t know how to react.


    But since he understood that as the first Mythical Ranked yer, he would encounter more situations like this in the future so he must know how to act in regards to those situations.


    <em>Let''s practice some acting techniques for now. I know how to act like a tough chatan, but I don''t know how to act like a dignified chatan!</em>


    Joseph opened his browser and researched some videos about the past dictators of the world and how they acted throughout their careers.


    Time swiftly passed and when Joseph was done with his self-taught acting lessons...


    The emergency maintenance was finally done and he returned to the world of Victory.


    As soon as he logged-in, several system notifications popped out and quickly obstructed his view.


    [Congrattions on being the first Mythical Ranked yer!]


    [As a Mythical Ranked yer, you have a secured spot in the Universal Rankings! Do you want to spread your name to the world and make them know your name? Yes/No.]


    [Your yer Information has been updated.]


    [You are now The Grand Duelist!]


    [Your skill tree has been updated.]


    [As a Myth, you are also considered as a demi-god. Demi-Gods have Divinities simr to bonafide Gods and they can tap on the power of faith to increase their Divinity Stat. The more Divinity Stat you have umted, the more prestige you will have in the eyes of the other Demi-Gods and bonafide Gods!]


    [ss Bestowal Skill has been acquired.]


    [Control over the Concept of Justice, and Order has been acquired.]


    [As a Demi-God who controls the Concept of Justice. You are entitled to do at least a single good deed every week! If you are unable toplete this requirement, you will lose a certain amount of your Divinity Stat so please be careful!]


    [You own the strongest weapon in the world of Victory. You have a secured and guaranteed spot within the Universal Weapon Rankings! Do you want to spread your name to the world and make them know your name? Yes/No?]


    [The Kingdom of Nether has lost its foundation! It is now considered as an Abandoned Kingdom! For more information about what an Abandoned Kingdom is, please proceed to the main website of Victory!]


    [As a Myth, you have the qualifications to im an Abandoned Kingdom as your territory. Do you want to im the Abandoned Kingdom, The Kingdom of Nether, and proim it as your territory? Take note that qualifications do not mean that it will be given to you immediately! You will still need toplete a series of quests and objectives!]


    [Your qualifications as a Myth only gives you the ability to skip the process of obtaining a Kingdom-Establishment Token. It does not pardon you frompleting the quest and objectives required for iming the Abandoned Kingdom! Ruling a Kingdom is extremely hard and stressful, please be careful on your choice!]


    [For your ease of choice, you can indefinitely postpone the selection of your answer. However, this selection will disappear once someone else acquired the rights for the Abandoned Kingdom, so please don''t waste too much time thinking about your decision!]


    "What...?"<ol><li>Long Live! A normal salutations in Philippines. The country I modeled for this book.</li></ol>

 Chapter 140: Start of an Epic Journey

    Chapter 140: Start of an Epic Journey


    "P-Postpone! Postpone everything first!"


    Joseph gave a verbalmand and the system quickly caught on what he wanted to happen. The system notifications that covered his vision disappeared and he could finally see everything in front of him.


    Ezreal was still on the ground, profusely bleeding as Alice tended to him.


    Meanwhile, the yers that Joseph attacked using the Fourth Form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship had disappeared.


    Wait, where did they go?


    The answer to this question soon came in the form of dozens of system notifications that flooded Joseph''s vision again.


    [You killed, Bloodstained Lilium#0125.]


    [You killed, dimir#2612. A member of the Crimson Guild.]


    [You killed, Kristian#0235. A member of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild.]


    [You killed...]


    [...]


    The list went on without stopping as Joseph gave another verbalmand.


    "Notifications, stop!"


    The system obliged and the notifications that clouded his vision vanished at once.


    "Ezreal!"


    Seeing that their enemies had disappeared.


    Joseph quickly went towards Ezreal and tended to his wounds.


    "Alice? Is he okay? Is he good or what?"


    "He''s fine..."


    Blood drenched Alice''s one-piece dress as she covered the wounds on Ezreal''s body and suppressed his bleeding.


    "Am I dreaming...?" Ezreal turned to look at Joseph and weakly whispered.


    "The Grand Duelist... You... Is that you... master...?"


    "Yes, it''s me, Ezreal! Stay strong! Stay strong, all right? I won''t let you die! I won''t let you die at all costs!" Joseph tapped open his Main Menu and used his remaining money as he purchased as many ingredients for potion creation as he could.


    He then handed these ingredients over to Alice who quickly got to work.


    Alice had a lot of skills under her sleeves, not only she could be a reliable cksmith. She was also a decent Alchemist and could create whatever you wanted, given that she had enough time and ingredients.


    "Hehe... So, it''s really you master... I''m saved... With you here master, I think... cough! I will live..." Ezreal coughed a mouthful of blood as he squeezed these words out of his mouth.


    "Goddamned it, are you done there yet, Alice?!" Joseph turned to look at Alice in apprehension.


    "Yeah, I''m done! Let him drink this!"


    Alice almost immediately replied and handed over a ss bottle filled with a murky green liquid.


    "Drink this, you''ll be fine..." Joseph lifted Ezreal''s head off the ground and slowly made him drink the Health Potion that Alice made on the spot. Color returned on Ezreal''s face but it was clear that the potion''s effect wasn''t enough.


    "Give me more of those ingredients! I can keep making them as long as you have the materials!"


    Alice said to Joseph.


    Joseph opened up the Cash Shop and he was disappointed to find that he had already reached his daily allowable allowance for materials purchasing within the Cash Shop.


    He couldn''t purchase any more ingredients for the day...


    Bang!


    Joseph mmed his fists onto the ground, he felt helpless once again.


    Am I not able to save someone whom I cared for again? Damn it, why is everything like this? Am I really doomed to have such bad luck? Joseph gnashed his teeth and frustration.


    "Master... There''s still a method... We haven''t run out of options, yet..." Ezreal''s finger slightly moved. At this moment, his entire body was paralyzed due to his injuries and apart from moving his throat to speak and moving his fingers ever so slightly, Ezreal couldn''t do anything...


    He couldn''t even stir up the energy of life in the surroundings so he could heal himself.


    "What method? Tell me now! I''ll do it! No matter what price I have to pay I will definitely save you, Ezreal!" Joseph urged Ezreal to continue on speaking.


    Ezreal''s chest violently heaved, he took several mouthfuls of deep breaths as if he was mustering all of his energy into saying...


    "Bestow upon me your grace, master..."


    "Bestow upon you, your grace? What the hell does that mean? This isn''t the time to be mysterious Ezreal! Tell me exactly what I need to do!" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and turned to look at Ezreal in disapproval.


    He really couldn''t understand what Ezreal meant by "bestow".


    He wanted him to exin, but Ezreal had already lost consciousness.


    "Hurry up! Give him your grace! If you don''t breathe into him a new life then he will definitely die in a minute!"


    Alice urged.


    "Fuck!" Joseph violently cursed. immense pressure descended upon him, making him unable to move as he stood there, rooted. His mind nked out until he remembered a particr detail that he read from a system notification that he dismissed off earlier.


    "Bestow... Bestow... ss Bestowal?! I have the ss Bestowal Skill so does this mean that I should bestow upon Ezreal a new ss?" Joseph tapped his Main Menu and opened up his skills tab. He quickly tapped on the icon that had the name, "ss Bestowal" underneath it.


    He didn''t even read the description anymore for he didn''t have the time to hesitate any longer.


    [You have selected, Ezreal as your target for ss Bestowal.]


    [You can bestow three sses for three trusted aides. Their sses will be selected at random within the pool of sses you have avable and you could bestow to others.]


    [Are you sure that you want to use ss Bestowal on Ezreal?]


    [Note: Bestowing a ss upon someone is of utmost importance for the ss couldn''t be retracted. There are limited slots avable for the number of people you could bestow a ss upon, so be careful about who you choose to bestow a ss! Make sure there are no traitors in your ranks!]


    [Are you sure you want to use ss Bestowal on Ezreal?]


    The system even asked two times if he was sure about his decision. It was clear that bestowing upon a ss to someone was a favor of great significance.


    The slots avable for the number of people that Joseph could bestow a ss upon were limited so Joseph had to choose carefully on who would he bestow a ss.


    Joseph must choose a trustworthy person, one who he could trust with his back.


    Did Ezreal fit those criteria?


    Actually, Joseph wasn''t that sure, yet...


    The two of them only interacted with each other for a short time and that wasn''t enough to gauge their rtionship and the level of trust that they had with each other.


    However, Joseph was sure of Ezreal''s loyalty.


    He was a decisive man and for the sake of piety, he would never abandon his master.


    Joseph knew at least this much when it came to Ezreal.


    So, he didn''t hesitate.


    "ss Bestowal!"


    Joseph gave a low whisper and a brilliant light burst from his body.


    The brilliant light didn''t have any color, but if you were to describe it and make an analogy. You could say that it was a lightparable to the light of the sun.


    But it wasn''t as bright nor as scorching as the sun.


    Instead, the warmth that it gave was enough to make everyone feelfortable.


    This was the light of Justice and Order.


    The Divinity of the Grand Duelist...


    The light gathered together and formed into a ball that slowly descended onto Ezreal''s chest.


    As soon as it made contact on Ezreal''s chest. The ball of light sunk as if it was a stone dropped into an ocean. The light that it carried abruptly disappeared and it felt like it had never even existed in the first ce.


    [ss Bestowal in Progress...]


    [ss Selection Complete...]


    [ss Bestowal sess!]


    [You have met the requirements necessary for the unlocking of a Unique Skill: Quest Bestowal.]


    [Quest Bestowal Lv. Max


    Bestow a quest to anyone. Bestowed quests can be in any difficulty but the rewards should be equal in rank or more than in rank than the difficulty of the quest. Items or experience points listed as rewards will be held by the system in an escrow system. It will be automatically released to the user once the user hadpleted the quest.


    There is no limit to the number of quests that you can bestow upon anyone. However, it is not rmended to bestow quests that are incredibly difficult or impossible toplete. Once a user failed a quest that you bestowed, you will lose 10 points of Divinity Stat. But if the user seeded on the quest, you will gain 30 points of Divinity Stat.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Consent.


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 2 minutes.]


    [You have bestowed upon a ss to Ezreal.]


    [Ezreal''s outlook for you has increased from Worship to Reverence.]


    [Ezreal will never betray you in the future.]


    "Master..." Ezreal opened his eyes.


    The brilliant light that enveloped his body healed him of all of his injuries and made him a new man.


    He raised his upper body and stared at Joseph.


    Afterwards, he bowed his head and was about to kowtow when Joseph stopped him.


    "You don''t have to do this, Ezreal... Even when I can be considered as your liege now. I don''t want you to treat me as your master... If possible... I..." Joseph hesitated, a blush surface on his cheeks for he realized that he had never asked someone about something like this.


    Maybe he did...


    But the tragedy that happened three years ago erased all traces and wisdom regarding socialization that he had the years prior to that tragedy...


    Right now, Joseph was nothing but a mere infant when it came to something like this.


    "Master?"


    Ezreal paused, he turned to look at Joseph as if he was urging him to continue.


    "Ahhh, goddamned it! You don''t have to do that, all right? I don''t want to be your master! I want us to be friends! With how much care you gave to me and with the time that we spent together. Isn''t it normal that we should be friends? Don''tugh at me, all right?!"


    Joseph decided to not care about his embarrassment anymore as he ranted.


    But not caring about his embarrassment doesn''t mean that it''ll magically disappear.


    Joseph asked Ezreal not tough for his poor heart that had been deprived of the concept of friends may not be able to take that kind of damage, but...


    "Pfft..."


    ... It was Alice whoughed instead.


    "Were you always this awkward, Joseph? It''s just asking him to be your friend, why do you have to act like you''re proposing to the love of your life?"


    "How dare youugh at me, Alice! Wait, proposing? There''s something like that here?"


    Joseph''s train of thought derailed.


    "Of course! I''m a firm believer in the Grand Duelist and the Divine Goddess Rhinna! The Divine Goddess decreed that one can only love a single person in their entire life..."


    "Once they are ready to dedicate their life and soul to that person, they must make a proposal to which that person can answer depending on if they wanted to be with that them for the rest of their life..."


    Alice crossed her arms in front of her chest and started her ramblings.


    The way she carried herself elicited a bitter smile from Joseph.


    He was reminded that Alice really was the granddaughter of that proud Legendary cksmith.


    Joseph remembered back then that Krid would brag like what Alice was doing whenever he asked him a question pertaining to his craft.


    Senior... I will definitely take care of Alice... Please rest in peace...


    Joseph slightly bowed his head towards the skies.


    But he then awakened from his trance when he realized that Alice had been staring at him for a long time.


    "Oh, I''m sorry... I was thinking about something else, but really? I didn''t expect that there''s a concept of a proposal for marriage for the believers of the Divine Goddess..."


    "But I think that I still prefer to be in the Kingdom of Burning Heaven, living in a Kingdom that has a liberal perspective in life really has a lot of benefits, you know?"


    "What... did you say?" Alice raised an eyebrow and asked. Her expression went cold when she heard the words Kingdom of Burning Heaven from Joseph''s mouth.


    "Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?"


    Alice rolled her eyes at him and turned around. Joseph was about to follow her, but she cried out, "Don''t follow me! I''ll go to the Treasure Hall and get those treasures. You want me to do that, right? Since you love money that much."


    Ezreal and Joseph stared at Alice''s back as she walked towards the direction of the Treasure Hall.


    Her footsteps never slowed down and it was obvious that she had no hesitation in whatever she was doing.


    "S-say, Ezreal... Did I do something wrong or did I say something bad?"


    Joseph turned to look at Ezreal.


    Ezreal gave a bitter smile and said, "Master... It seems like you and brother Krid''s granddaughter had grown quite close when you two were together somewhere... She seems to be fond of you, master. I reckon that her admiration towards you isn''t just because you''re the Grand Duelist..."


    Joseph rolled his eyes, "Of course, I know that much, Ezreal! You don''t have to tell me about that. Also, stop calling me, master! Just call me by my name, Joseph!"


    It was Ezreal''s time to be flustered, "Master! How can I just call you by your name? The Grand Duelist is a Myth and it is practicallymitting sacrilege for someone to call you by your name! Just how can I do something like that?"


    Joseph stared at Ezreal and seeing the serious look on his face.


    A light smile escaped on Joseph''s lips as he said, "It seems like you are not nning on obeying what I said unless I give you an order, right? Okay, listen here, Ezreal! As the Grand Duelist and your master! I am ordering you to call me by my name, Joseph!"


    "How''s that?" Joseph gave a cheeky smile.


    But...


    "By your will, my liege!"


    ... He didn''t expect that Ezreal would kneel on one knee and bow down towards him.


    "Ugh... Please stand up..."


    Ezrealplied and stood up.


    "I hope you don''t do that again, especially in public... Thankfully, there''s only the two of us here or I would''ve died from the embarrassment!"


    Joseph was amon and average man in the world of Victory and even in the outside world.


    That was how he thought of himself.


    This was the reason why he couldn''t bear to see someone worshipping him so fervently like this to the extent that they would kneel down and bow their heads towards him.


    Joseph felt like he would die of the cringe.


    It was because, despite his ascension as the Grand Duelist, Joseph was still Joseph.


    He was still himself...


    But Ezreal was puzzled by what he had said, "Master, you told me to call you by your name. Iplied, but there''s no way that I canply with what you said that I shouldn''t kneel to you, master!"


    "Being a Myth is the same as being a godlike figure to us mortals..."


    "Kneeling to a figure like that ispletely normal!"


    "In fact..." A wronged look appeared on Ezreal''s face as he appeared to be hurt, "It even hurts me that you don''t want me to kneel for you, master... I feel like I was rejected and pped across the face by the deity that I am worshipping."


    "Ah..." A subconscious cry came out of Joseph''s mouth.


    "Really?"


    "Yes, master... Personally kneeling to the deity that you worship is not something to be embarrassed about. It is something to proud of, master... Who knows how many devout believers in this world want to personally meet the god that they believed in..."


    "Unfortunately, those other gods up there are too entric and out of touch..."


    "They found it beneath them to interact with their followers. It was as if they would be tainted if they even talked to their followers, which is incredibly stupid for me since every deity required the power of faith from their followers..."


    "If they don''t bless their followers or have them feel their presence, wouldn''t the power of faith that they needed decline overtime?"


    "I really don''t understand the mindset of those gods up above the skies..." Ezreal shook his head, "That is why I don''t want toply with your orders of not kneeling to you, master..."


    "Kneeling to you is a form of worship that will give you my power of faith without any costs. It is basically a win-win situation for the two of us, that is why I can obey any order other than that..."


    Ezreal then wore a look of remorse on his face as he hung his head low and said...


    "I''m sorry for the disrespect, my liege...."


    "Please punish me for my disrespect..."


    "P-Punish you? That seems to be going too far. Why would I punish you when what you told me makes sense? My inadequacy towards my new role shouldn''t cause you, my follower, any suffering at all!"


    "Else, how could there be justice in this world?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and stared at Joseph.


    [You have grasped some parts of the concept of Justice.]


    [You have unlocked the percentage gauge regarding the concept of Justice.]


    [Your current understanding of the concept of Justice is 0%.]


    Several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph.


    After skimming through them, he temporarily suppressed his shock as he stared at Ezreal and urged him to reply with his eyes.


    "Master... You are now a deity. Sacrilege against you must be punished ordingly, especially if they weremitted by your followers..."


    "I disobeyed your order earlier, master and that is a form of disrespect, and disrespect against a deity is sacrilege. That is worthy of punishment so please punish me, master..." Ezreal spoke up, but he didn''t raise his head.


    Joseph stared there, rooted in ce and speechless.


    Punish him? How am I supposed to punish him? Do I p him on the face? Kick him with my foot?


    Just how does a deity act?


    Several dozens of ideas shed across Joseph''s mind, but all of them didn''t make sense and they weren''t even befitting of a punishment that came from a deity.


    Silence reigned within the Pce Halls.


    Joseph still looked calm andposed, dignified as ever, yet his back was already drenched with sweat. He really didn''t know what to do. Staring at Ezreal who looked to be solemn and ready to receive his punishment...


    Joseph felt flustered and was inwardly panicking.


    Fuck, just what am I supposed to do? Is kicking him on the head enough as a punishment? But no, I''m a deity! That is not befitting of a punishmenting from a deity. But what should I do? He''s waiting for my punishment here and I can''t just have him kneel like that! He had just recovered from his injuries!


    Several minutes passed and Ezreal finally broke the silence.


    "It seems like master still doesn''t understand..."


    "As a deity, you now have control over several vague concepts that make up the world. Try controlling one of them and manipting them to punish me."


    Ezreal gave a piece of advice, his head remained lowered and he kept on staring at the ground.


    Joseph felt somewhat weird since the one that he''s supposed to punish was giving him a piece of advice as to how he could punish him. Nevertheless, Joseph opened up his [Logs] and found out that he now had control over the concept or domain of Justice and Order...


    Justice doesn''t seem to be useful for punishing... How about Order? I think that will work. But how do I use it? Do I just give an order and it will happen?


    Wait, that is actually possible! I''m a deity right now after all and it would be strange if my words and will don''t affect the world itself...


    A look of excitement appeared on Joseph''s face.


    He took a deep breath and said.


    "Lightning! Smite this disrespectful follower of mine!"


    BANG!


    Lightning descended out of nowhere and struck directly at Ezreal.


    "AAAHHH!" A cry of pain came out of Ezreal''s throat as the lightning directly charred him ck.


    He then copsed onto the ground, his body continuously twitching in pain.


    "What the fuck?!" Joseph rushed to Ezreal''s side.


    "I''m fine, master... I''m fine... No, I may not be fine, but I''m happy..." Ezreal slowly raised his head amidst the pain that was currently wreaking havoc in his body.


    A look of joy and excitement could be seen on his face as he continued, "Ah... I never expected that receiving punishment feels this good... I don''t know master, but... I feel like I''m getting addicted."


    "Fuck!" Joseph violently cursed, "Snap out of it, Ezreal! You''re turning into a masochist!"


    Joseph violently shook Ezreal''s shoulder and a greenish light spread from Ezreal''s body.


    It enveloped his entire being and slowly healed the wounds that the lightning dealt against him.


    [You have grasped some parts of the concept of Order.]


    [You have unlocked the percentage gauge regarding the concept of Order.]


    [Your current understanding of the concept of Order is 0%.]


    Despite being healed, Ezreal remained on the ground as he murmured...


    "Master..."


    "What is it?" Joseph asked.


    "Can you punish me again?"


    "..."

 Chapter 141: Start of an Epic Journey[2]

    Chapter 141: Start of an Epic Journey[2]


    "Are you two done there, yet?"


    The awkward atmosphere was dispersed by Alice''s cold voice.


    It seemed like she was still angry about Joseph''s mention of the Kingdom of Burning Heaven earlier, but you really couldn''t me her.


    After all, the Kingdom of Burning Heaven was considered as the sex capital of this Kingdom.


    A man wanting to go there could be considered as double entendre.


    "We''re not even doing anything..." Joseph turned to look at Alice.


    "Really? I thought you two were doing some kind of a y... I even heard him say that he wanted to be punished." Alice swept her gaze at Ezreal and revealed a meaningful smile.


    Joseph felt a shiver down his spine and even Ezreal who normally didn''t get embarrassed shivered, and cringed. It was one thing for Joseph to admonish him, but for Alice, who was the granddaughter of his sworn brother whom he respected...


    It was incredibly embarrassing to be looked at by her like this.


    Speaking of my sworn brother, just where is he?


    Ezreal furrowed his eyebrows and swept his gaze across the Pce Halls.


    After finding no traces of Krid...


    Ezreal opened his mouth and asked.


    "Joseph, where did that brother of mine go? Did he run away while I was defending the fort for him?"


    "No, that''s impossible, my brother wouldn''t possibly run..."


    "But just where is he right now? Where did he go?"


    Joseph trembled when he heard Ezreal''s words.


    Alice who didn''t know who Ezreal meant by his words quickly grew forlorn when she saw Joseph''s trembling.


    She hung her head low and hid her expression from everyone.


    "Grandpa... Grandpa passed away... He passed away after fulfilling his life-long dream..."


    "What...?"


    Ezreal subconsciously mumbled.


    "He... passed..."


    "He passed away?"


    Ezreal whispered in utter shock.


    His figure trembled and a look of pain and grief surfaced on his face.


    Actually, Ezreal had an inkling as to what Krid nned on doing.


    But he didn''t stop Krid from doing what he wanted since he was also pursuing his dreams like Ezreal. Ezreal also didn''t think that Krid would sacrifice himself for he often told Ezreal how excited he was to meet his granddaughter again and how they would spend their time together.


    But Ezreal really didn''t expect that.


    "He died...?"


    ... He really didn''t expect that Krid would sacrifice his life.


    "Was he happy?"


    Ezreal turned to look at Joseph.


    Joseph quickly averted his gaze and didn''t dare to stare at Ezreal.


    Ezreal turned to Alice and Alice lifted a sweet smile on her lips as she said.


    "Yes... He was happy..."


    "He passed away smiling and without regrets."


    "I see..."


    Ezreal heaved a deep sigh.


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at Alice and noticed that hidden behind her sweet smile was a bitter and cold pain that would probably never go away for the rest of her life.


    "What do you n on doing? Where will you go after this? If you don''t mind me asking."


    Ezreal faced Alice.


    Alice trembled for a moment, but she quickly regained her wits as she said, "I will be following him."


    "Him?" Ezreal raised an eyebrow, it seemed like he was angry, "You do realize that you are speaking to a deity, right? As a fellow follower of the Grand Duelist? How dare you address "Him" directly?"


    Alice was astonished by the sudden admonishment, but she didn''t back off.


    She also raised her eyebrow and promptly replied, "What do you mean by I can''t address him directly? He may be the Grand Duelist right now, but he is still not a deity! A true deity is up there in the world above the skies! Have you ever seen a deity walk onnd before?"


    "How disrespectful!"


    "Cut it off, you two!"


    Joseph intervened.


    He turned to look at Ezreal and said, "As I said earlier, Ezreal..."


    "I don''t want to be treated as a deity by you, that also goes for Alice..."


    "Both of you are important people in my life and I can''t just have you worship me as a deity since I will be paranoid in the future that the only reason why you are with me is because of my position as a deity, not because of who I am..."


    "If you want me to believe that both of you genuinely want to be with me because of who I am, and not because I am a deity, then think of me as a friend! Not a god or a deity!" Joseph exined.


    Clear looks of shock emerged on the faces of the two.


    Ezreal revealed a light smile, shook his head, and said, "If that is what you want, then I will call you Joseph from now on, my liege."


    Alice puffed her cheeks and pouted, "I don''t want that..."


    Ezreal snapped at her, "Hey, you really are disrespectful, ah! Joseph here wants us to be friends with him, yet you don''t want that to happen? Are you trying to disobey the will of the Grand Duelist, you heretic!"


    "You also calm down there with those usations, Ezreal..."


    "Let her speak."


    Joseph admonished Ezreal before he turned to look at Alice.


    "What''s wrong? You don''t want me as your friend?" Joseph asked.


    Alice shook her head in disapproval, but then a cheeky smile surfaced on her lips as she said, "I want to be more than friends..."


    "You... Heretic! You and Joseph only met for a little over a month, yet you already want to be his best friend! That''s cheating, I am not willing! I met Joseph earlier than you, but you want to take over the position that''s supposed to be for me!"


    "I should be the one that must be his first best friend, not you!"


    Ezreal pointed a finger at Alice.


    But Alice merely nced at him as she continued, "I want to be your lover..."


    Hearing her say these words in such an amorous tone made Joseph speechless.


    Ezreal, on the other hand, directly lifted another finger as veins bulged on his forehead.


    "Now, you''re not just a heretic anymore, but a vixen! How dare you seduce a deity, no- How dare you seduce Joseph like that? You two only met recently, yet you already want to climb onto his bed and warm it for him? Damned you..."


    "You vixen!"


    Ezreal went livid from what he had heard. He wanted to say more, but Joseph interjected and said...


    "Stop it, Ezreal..."


    "Master..."


    Ezreal was so astonished by Joseph''s intervention that he forgot that he wasn''t supposed to call him master anymore.


    "I promised Senior Krid that I would take care of her in my entire life. I promised Senior that I would make her the happiest woman in this world and that probably involves turning her into my wife." Joseph promptly exined to prevent even more misunderstandings.


    Ezreal froze, he stood there, rooted as if he couldn''t believe his ears.


    However, when he saw the slight smile on Joseph''s face.


    He confirmed that what he had said was indeed the truth.


    Joseph really did n on taking Alice as his wife.


    I see... I understand... If that''s the case, then I will need to take a look at her in a new light. Ezreal inwardly thought as he turned to face Alice, kneeled down on one knee, and said, "Madame... I apologize for being disrespectful."


    Alice was astonished by the sudden change in attitude as she turned to look at Joseph for help.


    "Ezreal, this is an order. You must treat Alice as a friend. You don''t need to call her Madame. Can''t you see that she''s ufortable being called like that?"


    "Just call her Alice and she''ll thank you for it."


    Ezreal nodded his head, but he suddenly dropped a bombshell.


    "In that case, then I will call Madame as Alice from now on. But now that I think about it, Joseph..."


    "Do you have a date for the marriage already? If not, I can help you think of an auspicious date, day, and time to marry! Trust me, I have a lot of knowledge regarding that! Let me be the wedding manager!"


    Fuck...


    Joseph almost blurted out a curse.


    Alice trembled and a furious blush spread from her cheeks down to her neck.


    She hung her head low and was trying to hide her expression from Joseph.


    "Can we not talk about something like that for now, Ezreal? It''s still too early to consider marriage. I still have a lot to do..."


    Ezreal lightly chuckled, "Ah, yeah... I forgot! How about we just talk about all of these after Joseph bes the King?"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows, "The King? Why would I want to be the King?"


    "Why not?"


    Indeed, why not? Joseph inwardly blurted what Ezreal had said.


    "Wait, why can I be the King? There''s already a..." Joseph paused amidst his sentence for he remembered details that he received from the system notifications that appeared in front of him earlier.


    "Yes, that''s right... It seems like you finally remembered... The Kingdom of Nether is nothing, but an Abandoned Kingdom. It is a territory without a ruler and since you are a Myth. You can dere to the world that the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether is your territory..."


    "Why not do that, Joseph? If you really want to make Alice the happiest woman in the world then I suppose, having your own territory and the security of it must be essential, right?" Ezreal winked at Alice.


    He acted like he didn''t have any argument against her earlier.


    Alice wasn''t even angry at Ezreal anymore. In fact, she was grateful.


    Her bad impression against Ezreal disappeared and they were all reced with gratefulness.


    "I suppose that makes sense, but being a King, eh..."


    Joseph hesitated.


    He wasn''t even sure if he could properly lead a Guild much more an entire Kingdom. But it was a lie to say that he wasn''t attracted by Ezreal''s offer of him bing the King. But taking a look at the long-term effects of him being a King.


    It was safe to say that he may be the worst King in the entire history of Victory.


    After all, he knew nothing about being a King and was apleteyman about it.


    "Joseph, you do not have to worry about being a King for now. Dering that this ce is now your territory just protects the Royal Pce from being burrized. You won''t directly be a King. But if nothing is done and no restrictions are ced by anyone..."


    "I''m certain that the treasures of the Kingdom of Nether would disappear in the next few days due to thieves..."


    Ezreal subconsciously swept his gaze to the people behind Alice.


    He recognized some of them, but as for the others. It was the first time that he saw them.


    However, one thing was for sure...


    The people behind Alice only came for the treasures within the Pce Halls, nothing else.


    If Joseph made them continue on what they were doing then Ezreal was sure that these people could empty out the treasures in the Pce Halls in just a few days.


    A Kingdom without money was a huge joke.


    If Joseph wanted to be a true King then he needed an astronomical amount of money.


    Ezreal''s gaze turned cold as he furtively nced at the men behind Alice.


    As long as Joseph gave the order...


    He would make sure that none of these thieves could escape this ce alive.


    Apart from Kayn who was an immortal being, of course...


    "Really? I won''t directly be the King, right? But if I dere this Kingdom as my territory, wouldn''t everyone know about my name, and wouldn''t that give me a lot of enemies in return?" Joseph asked with a frown.


    Ezreal lightly chuckled, "Master, ever since you became the Grand Duelist, you should''ve known that you would definitely have a lot of enemies. If you nned on being a pacifist, then you should''ve not taken the mantle of the Grand Duelist and inherit her will..."


    "Having enemies ispletely normal when ites to you, master... You shouldn''t be surprised about that. In fact, you should even wee them, make them your stepping stone. Step on their dead bodies, use them as your stairs to the summit of world domination... Hahaha..."


    Ezreal cackled and everyone felt a shiver down their spine.


    Joseph had a look of utter shock on his face, when did Ezreal be this terrifying? But now that he thought about it, what Ezreal said actually made sense.


    But it was also quite ironic...


    Joseph wanted to reach the peak because he wanted a secure and peaceful life. He may be able to achieve that dream of his in the future, but it was certain that his path towards that peak wouldn''t be peaceful at all.


    In fact, it would definitely be a path paved with blood.


    Joseph wasn''t that naive to think that he could achieve the summit without stepping over the dead bodies of others.


    "Fine... I will dere this ce as my territory. It would be a pity if the treasure that this Kingdom holds falls into the hands of others, right? But are you sure that I won''t directly be a King, Ezreal?"


    "I don''t really want that to happen for now since I really have no idea about what a King was and what are their duties..."


    "Further research about it is needed since I don''t really want to be branded as the most foolish and ipetent King in the history of Victory."


    Ezreal nodded his head, there was a smile on his face.


    Alice also looked quite happy and excited.


    It seemed like she was looking forward to the day that she bes a Queen.


    Joseph opened his Main Menu and tapped on the icon of [Logs].


    He opened the system notifications that he dismissed earlier and a smile appeared on his face.


    [As a Mythical Ranked yer, you have a secured spot in the Universal Rankings! Do you want to spread your name to the world and make them know your name? Yes/No.]


    [You own the strongest weapon in the world of Victory. You have a secured and guaranteed spot within the Universal Weapon Rankings! Do you want to spread your name to the world and make them know your name? Yes/No?]


    [As a Myth, you have the qualifications to im an Abandoned Kingdom as your territory. Do you want to im the Abandoned Kingdom, The Kingdom of Nether, and proim it as your territory? Take note that qualifications do not mean that it will be given to you immediately! You will still need toplete a series of quests and objectives!]


    [Your qualifications as a Myth only gives you the ability to skip the process of obtaining a Kingdom-Establishment Token. It does not pardon you frompleting the quest and objectives required for iming the Abandoned Kingdom! Ruling a Kingdom is extremely hard and stressful, please be careful on your choice!]


    It seems like Ezreal really wasn''t lying when he said that I won''t directly be the King.


    As for entering the Universal Rankings and revealing my name to the world. The time that everyone will know my name will eventuallye, so why dy the inevitable? Now that I have the strength, it''s pretty stupid to act low-key when there''s I won''t gain any benefit from doing it.


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head as he steeled his resolve and mustered his courage.


    "Yes to all!"


    He whispered and several world-shaking system notifications suddenly appeared in front of everyone.


    [The yer, Joseph#4269 has entered the Universal Rankings! Rank: 1000]


    [The yer, Joseph#4269 has entered the Universal Weapon Rankings! Rank: 1]


    [The First Mythical Ranked yer, Joseph#4269 has dered the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether as his territory! It is now under his protection and everyone who invades the Royal Pce of the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether would be subject to strict punishment courtesy of the Mythical Ranked yer!]


    These system notifications also appeared right in front of Joseph.


    When he dismissed them, another set of system notifications appeared right in front of his eyes...


    [You have decisively dered the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether as your territory.]


    [The system has gauged that you have no wisdom nor knowledge to run an entire Kingdom.]


    [System adjustments have been made...]


    [You will now be entering, The King''s Trial...]


    Fuck, what the fuck?! I thought I won''t directly be the King? What the hell is going on?!


    Joseph panicked and he found himself being swallowed by a dazzling lightparable to the light of the sun.


    When he awakened...


    He found himself sitting in a Pce Hall that was vastly different from the Pce Halls of the Kingdom of Nether.


    [Wee to the King''s Trial!]


    [Being a King is not a job that those with qualifications are worthy enough. You may be a myth and possess sufficient qualifications for the job, but that does not mean that you are suitable for it!]


    [However, the system is willing to give you a chance!]


    [Pass the King''s Trial and earn your rewards!]


    [The difficulty of your King''s Trial has been randomly chosen.]


    [Difficulty: Maximum.]


    [Information for the King''s Trial is now avable.]


    [King''s Trial: You are now a King of a failing Kingdom.]


    [Clear Conditions: Address all the issues of the Kingdom and gain enlightenment of a King''s duties.]


    [Failure Conditions: Die five times.]


    [Good luck and we hope you have fun!]


    [Sincerely, P.H Works.]


    Joseph trembled in anger...


    He was about to violently curse the P.H Works when a voice interrupted his train of thought.


    "Your Majesty! Please, please grant justice to this loyal citizen of your Kingdom!"


    The voice attracted Joseph''s attention and he raised his head.


    There, he was greeted by the sight of...


    A beauty.

 Chapter 142: Start of an Epic Journey[3]

    Chapter 142: Start of an Epic Journey[3]


    The several system notifications that appeared in front of every yer of the world of Victory caused quite a turmoil.


    "J-Joseph... So, he lying... He really was..."


    Bloodstained Lilium stared at the system notification floating right in front of her eyes.


    The name Joseph gave her quite a shock, but connecting the information within the system notification to the fact that Joseph annihted dozens of yers at once in a single attack including that one and only Legendary yer, Kristian.


    It made sense that Joseph was indeed a Mythical Ranked yer.


    Only a yer like that could possibly do such a thing.


    But...


    She gnashed her teeth.


    She had already decided that she would cut ties with Joseph when she found out that he didn''t really inherit any properties from his parents that made him pay his debt towards thosepanies.


    However, right now, everything had changed.


    Joseph now had the qualifications which made him worthy enough for her to pursue.


    She opened the messaging system of Victory and typed in Joseph''s name along with his gamer tag.


    She inwardly prepared the message that she would send towards him, but when she tapped on Joseph''s name...


    A system notification informed her of a particr message.


    [The user is currently unreachable. Please try againter!]


    <em>Unreachable? He logged-out? That could be possible, but...</em>


    <em>Damn it! I''ll just send him a text! </em>


    <em>I doubt that he changed his mobile number that he had a year ago.</em>


    Bloodstained Lilium logged-out of the game and emerged from her Gaming Capsule.


    She took her smartphone on top of the desk beside her Capsule and started typing.


    <em>Joseph! I saw the system notifications and wow! I really didn''t expect that you weren''t joking to me when you said that you had a Mythical ss! I really am sorry for doubting you at that time. Are you avable sometime this weekend? I really want to treat you to a meal so we can reconcile about the fact that I didn''t believe you back then...</em>


    She quickly sent the message before returning to the world of Victory.


    Right now, she had something else to do.


    It was to recover the items that she lost when she died within the Royal Pce of the Kingdom of Nether.


    Whenever a yer died in the world of Victory...


    There was a chance that they would drop one of their equipped items.


    Bloodstained Lilium dropped her Karabiner98k, a weapon that she painstakingly tried her best on gathering the materials necessary for its creation for at least six months.


    It was an incredibly valuable weapon that she couldn''t afford to lose.


    She distanced herself from Crimson and went out of her way towards the Royal Pce by herself.


    She needed to stay away from the Crimson Guild since she was sure that Joseph would definitely be an enemy of the Crimson Guild.


    If Joseph saw her with Crimson Guild then it would be difficult for her to exin what was going on.


    "Hey, where are you going? We''re still not done yet with the meeting!" dimir sent her a message.


    "I won''t participate anymore." Lilium almost immediately replied.


    "What? Why are you acting like that again? Are you on your period or something? Come back here or else I won''t give you the remunerations that you want!" dimir replied.


    Lilium revealed a sneer.


    <em>Remunerations? Does he really think that I still need that money of his now that I found a gold mine? What a joke. Haha, I can finally cut this bastard off.</em>


    Lilium chuckled as she imagined her future while riding Joseph''s coattails. She was confident that her n would seed for she and Joseph didn''t have any bad blood or enmity against each other. In fact, she even supported him for a few months while he was depressed and grieving.


    Of course, she only did that because she didn''t want Joseph to kill himself.


    If Josephmitted suicide, then she wouldn''t be able to partake in the so-called hidden assets of Joseph''s parents. That was one of the reasons why she became the ideal woman for Joseph and catered to his emotional needs back then.


    She knew on herst visit to Joseph''s ce that Joseph''s parents didn''t really have any hidden assets.


    Everything was actually just a delusion that she had back then.


    But although she was angry about the fact that she basically fooled herself regarding those so-called hidden assets.


    She thought, right now, that everything that she had done back then for Joseph was worth it.


    Why?


    It was because Joseph was actually a Mythical ss yer!


    She could ride on his coattails and achieve her dreams of living a luxurious life.


    A smile escaped on her lips. As far as he could remember, Joseph was a virgin that did not have any rtionship with a woman ever since he was born. <em>In that case, then this will be easy. I will make sure that he''ll definitely not be able to resist me!</em>


    Then, after that...


    Hehehe...


    Her smile turned twisted until it became hideous. Her entire body was trembling, but not because of anxiety or fear. But because of the excitement that was running through her veins right at this moment. She really didn''t expect that while she was looking for a treasure, there was actually an even bigger treasure so close to her.


    This incident really opened up her eyes and now, she revised her earlier ns and focused them all, not on the other arrogant young masters in the city, but only for Joseph.


    Yes, that''s right...


    Those arrogant nouveau riches do not matter anymore.


    In the fact of a Mythical ss yer with unlimited potential, just how they couldpare?


    ...


    It waste into the night when a phone call rang within Ray Gabriel''s house.


    He almost immediately awakened when he heard the ringtone, thinking that it came from his beloved sister overseas.


    However, his bloodshot eyes became even more crimson in color when he realized that the phone call came from his trusty Secretary, Elizabeth.


    He didn''t want to answer the phone call at first, but Elizabeth didn''t usually call him at this time of the day. After all, it was currently dawn, and most people, even the scientists tirelessly working for the sake of maintaining the world of Victory had to sleep. Ray Gabriel wasn''t an exception to that.


    "Damn it... My wrist hurts..." Ray Gabriel moaned in pain as he raised his trembling arm and fetched the smartphone on top of the desk beside his bed.


    His wrist was sore and so much pain that he reckoned that he couldn''t even raise a spoon. However, his desire to sleep became his strength which enabled him to take that smartphone off the table and receive the phone call that came from Elizabeth.


    "What''s wrong... I hope what you are going to say to me is worthwhile. I''m still in the process of recovering from that emergency maintenance... If the news is something that you can handle yourself then I hope that you just do it yourself, Elizabeth..."


    Ray Gabriel said in a sleepy voice.


    "Ah, yeah right! I''m sorry, sir... I shouldn''t have called you..."


    "It''s fine, it''s fine... We can''t cry over spilled milk anymore so just tell me what''s going on."


    Ray Gabriel replied.


    "Actually, sir... The news I have doesn''t really concern the stability of the world of Victory. But I think that you''d be interested to hear about it, that is why... That is why I called you..."


    Elizabeth who was normally a stern woman in front of her co-workers couldn''t act strictly towards Ray Gabriel at this moment.


    It was because she knew how much effort he rendered just so he could stabilize the world of Victory as soon as possible and rectify its problems.


    Even she, wanted him to rest, but this news really was just that interesting and considering Ray Gabriel''s activities within the past few days.


    She thought that he may want to hear about it.


    But...


    "Didn''t I tell you not to call me if the news doesn''t concern the stability of the world of Victory? If it''s about meetings then let those guys handle it. They''re much better at it than me anyway! What''s going on with you, Elizabeth? Why do I feel like you''re slowly bing disobedient?"


    ... Ray Gabriel became angry instead.


    He really was too tired.


    Tired to the extent that he wanted to sleep for at least a month.


    But since that wasn''t possible due to his responsibilities, he nned on taking advantage of every second that he had on his break to catch up on some sleep and reduce his sleep debt. However, right now. Elizabeth actually interrupted his sleep for some nonsense?


    <em>It seems like she really needs to be punished so she''ll know the consequences of disobeying me...</em>


    Ray Gabriel thought to himself.


    But the bombshell that Elizabeth dropped in the very next moment dissipated all of his anger towards her.


    "Sir... The King''s Trial that you and Mar designed and made for at least six months has been activated..."


    "See, what you are saying is just... what?! The King''s Trial has been activated?! Who activated it? That''s not supposed to activate for at least two years! Why it is activated two years earlier than NOAH had predicted?"


    "Who triggered it?"


    "Don''t tell me it''s that brat, Joseph, again?!"


    "Yes, sir..."


    "..."


    The phone call went silent.


    But it was shattered once again by Ray Gabriel who replied in a helpless tone of voice.


    "Now, I really regret not intervening at that time when we could''ve chosen not to give that ss to him. Just take a look at how much trouble he''s giving us! Goddamned it, I''ll be there in thirty minutes. Prepare the helipad, I''ll be sure to witness just how he''s going to pass the King''s Trial."


    "B-But sir... You''re not in the condition to fly with how sleepy you are!"


    Ray Gabriel snapped, "You knew about my condition, yet why did you still tell me about this? If you kept that news to yourself then I would still be sleeping peacefully in my bed!"


    "But now that I know about what''s going, do you really think that I can still sleep properly without personally seeing how that brat will perform andplete the King''s Trial?"


    Elizabeth went silent on the other line, there was a look of apprehension on her face.


    Yes, with how many years she has been with Ray Gabriel.


    She already knew what kind of a man he was.


    He was someone that would never stop until he achieved what he wanted to achieve, he was a relentless man that didn''t know when to give up.


    Some may call him foolish, some may call him a genius, and some may call him a madman.


    But for Elizabeth?


    For her, he was just a curious man.


    And that was the reason why he was so charming for her.


    In fact, one of the reasons why Elizabeth told him this news wasn''t because she wanted him to feel incredibly curious to the extent that he wouldn''t be able to fall asleep.


    It was actually because of her selfishness...


    She wanted him to be with her for as long as possible.


    And with how many duties and responsibilities Ray Gabriel had...


    The only time that the two of them could be beside each other was when Ray Gabriel was observing the First Mythical ss yer, Joseph. This was the reason why Elizabeth bothered sending that email to Joseph when he finally ascended to the Mythical Rank.


    It wasn''t because it was the will of thepany.


    It was Elizabeth''s way of expressing how grateful she was for Joseph''s existence.


    After all, Joseph unexpectedly became the reason why Ray Gabriel could spend more time alone with her.


    Even though the two of them weren''t really talking that much in those times since Ray had his eyes stered on the monitor.


    Such times were still precious for Elizabeth and she greatly longed and desired for those moments.


    This was why as soon as she received the notification that the King''s Trial had been activated.


    She hurriedly called Ray and informed him about the news, despite knowing that he should''ve taken his time resting and shouldn''t even visit thepany so he could take as much time as he needed to rest.


    Everything was Elizabeth''s selfishness.


    That was why she was anxious right now.


    Ray was a smart man.


    If he detected that Elizabeth acted on her own selfishness...


    She was afraid that Ray may kick her out of thepany.


    That was something that she didn''t want to happen at all costs.


    "I-I''m sorry, sir..."


    Elizabeth apologized, she had awakened from her reverie and this was the only thing that she could do in her current state of mind.


    "Sigh..." Ray heaved a deep sigh, "Elizabeth, we''ve been together for several years already..."


    "Have you grown tired of being my Secretary to the extent that you''re forgetting what kind of a person I am?" Ray continued in a somber voice, the sadness was evident in his tone, but it was Elizabeth who received the most damage from what he had said.


    "No... I haven''t forgotten... I know... I know what kind of a man you are, sir..."


    Elizabeth hurriedly replied.


    At this moment, tears could be seen welling in her eyes.


    Thankfully, they were just in a phone call and wasn''t talking face to face and in front of each other or else, Elizabeth would''ve run away right now out of embarrassment.


    "Good..." Ray paused for a moment, with the several years he has been with Elizabeth...


    He also knew what kind of a woman Elizabeth was, like how Elizabeth knew him from head to toe.


    He also knew about Elizabeth''s feelings towards him.


    Unlike what Elizabeth and Mar had in mind...


    Ray wasn''t really that dense of a man.


    After all...


    He was the brain behind the world of Victory.


    It''d be quite strange if a smart man like him didn''t know how to read along the lines.


    "I''ll be there in thirty minutes. Prepare the helipad and the strongest coffee... Also, inform old geezer Mar about the activation of the King''s Trial..."


    Elizabeth trembled, but her work experience enabled her to do her job under immense pressure so she still managed to reply.


    "But sir, sir Mar should be sleeping rig-"


    "Hey, what is this difference in treatment, Elizabeth?"


    "You can interrupt my sleep but not that old geezer''s sleep? Wake him up! We''re in this together, all right? You better not sleep too, Elizabeth! You''ll be with me until the end of that brat''s Trial!"


    "Y-Yes, sir!" Elizabeth replied with hesitation, but when she realized what Ray had said. Joy and excitement shed across her face as she swiftly moved and prepared everything for Ray Gabriel and Mar''s arrival.


    ...


    "Your Majesty! Please, please grant justice to this loyal citizen of your Kingdom!"


    Joseph raised his head and stared at the source of the voice and there...


    He found a beautiful woman.


    However, the woman had a nk look on her face as if she had lost hope on living.


    Right now, she was currently held in both arms by two men who were arguing against each other.


    Joseph could understand the words that they were using to speak, but they didn''t make sense when those words were connected to form a sentence. A frown surfaced on Joseph''s face and a voice intervened on the argument of the two.


    "You bastards! You two are in the presence of His Majesty! How dare you argue in front of him!"


    The two middle-aged men felt shivers down their spines as they straightened their backs before kneeling on the ground, they didn''t dare to raise their heads as one of them spoke up and said.


    "Your Majesty! Please grant justice to this loyal citizen of yours! This man right here is trying to take my daughter to sell her in the underground ve market. I discovered him and we got into a scuffle when he was about to kidnap my daughter..."


    "But he''s denying my allegations until we are now in front of you to ask for your judgment, your Majesty."


    Joseph stared at the man who spoke and he used all of his knowledge regarding bodynguage towards him, yet he couldn''t find any traces of strange bodynguage that indicated that the man may be lying.


    Joseph''s gaze thennded on the other middle-aged man who sat at the right side of the woman.


    That middle-aged man felt Joseph''s gaze as he hurriedly calmed himself down and said. "Your Majesty! What this bastard is saying is nder!"


    "Your Majesty has already ouwed the trading of ves so it''s impossible for ve traders to be in your Kingdom! There''s virtually no ve trading in the Kingdom anymore! He''s lying!"


    "I''m lying?! You bastard, then why did you try to take my daughter away from me?!"


    "Your daughter? That''s my daughter, you asshole! How dare you try and im that my daughter is your daughter? You filthy ve trader!"


    The middle-aged men leaped towards each other and started throwing punches.


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    The same dignified voice that intervened earlier rang out once again.


    "Order in front of His Majesty! Last warning! If you two dare to fight each other once again in front of this court, then both of you will be sentenced to death!"


    The two middle-aged men and even Joseph himself were astonished by the cruelty of the man''s ultimatum.


    When the two middle-aged men heard what he had said...


    They instantly quietened before staring onto the ground once again while facing Joseph''s direction.


    <em>It seems like they want to hear what my judgment is in this matter...</em>


    Joseph swept his gaze on the dignified man standing on his right-hand side.


    Ding!


    [Information regarding the person has been made avable.]


    [Name: Arturo Buenaflor.


    Your right-hand man. He had apanied you throughout your entire life. You trust him with your life.]


    Joseph rapidly blinked as he stared at the dignified man. He didn''t know what to say.


    He wanted to gather more information about Arturo Buenaflor, but these two middle-aged men were still waiting for him.


    He turned his gaze towards them and said.


    "This matter shouldn''t even be brought in front of me. Wouldn''t this problem be solved if we asked that woman herself?"


    "Hey there, woman. Tell me who among the two of them is your father."


    The beautiful young woman d in a dirty tunic that looked like it hadn''t been washed at all for the past few months trembled when she heard Joseph''s voice. She raised her head and when her eyes met Joseph''s gaze, she suddenly screamed as if he was a pig being butchered.


    "NO... NO... WHY AM I HERE... PLEASE DON''T... PLEASE DON''T COME... DON''T COME NEAR MEEE! DON''T KILL MEEE!!!"


    She screamed with such intensity and madness that the stern soldiers in the Pce Halls felt dizzy.


    Joseph even cringed in pain.


    He swept his gaze at Arturo Buenaflor and found that his trusted aide only had a frown on his face.


    Eventually, Arturo Buenaflor gestured at a soldier and that soldier moved and covered the mouth of the young woman.


    "So, that is the reason why both of you came to visit me for my judgment? That is indeed quite troublesome. After all, this problem would''ve been solved if that young woman didn''t have such a mental illness." Joseph lifted a slight smile as he stared at the two men.


    His brain madly spun as he observed their bodynguage but to no avail.


    <em>Goddamned it, I reckon that those bastards from P.H Works didn''t use a high-level of Artificial Intelligence to create this world! These people here are really devoted to their scripts! I can''t even deduce if they are lying or not! They are closer to a machine than a human being!</em>


    Joseph inwardly vented his frustrations out when he realized that no matter how hard he was trying...


    He couldn''t deduce the thoughts of these NPCs.


    Time passed and after several minutes of observation, Joseph finally gave up.


    "I have decided."


    Joseph stood up...


    "Listen to my judgment, citizens of my Kingdom!"


    "The young woman right there is the source of the problem so...


    "She must be killed!"


    Everyone was astonished by his decision, but nevertheless...


    One of the soldiers moved towards the young woman who was now trying her best to escape the constraints on her body. But no matter how much she screamed and cried, the soldier''s de was now positioned near her neck.


    With amand from Joseph, her life could easily end.


    Joseph stared at the two middle-aged men and found that they didn''t have that much of a reaction. Just when Joseph thought that their reaction was because of the fact that their Artificial Intelligence wasn''t really that highpared to the native NPCs within the world of Victory.


    Joseph suddenly discovered something strange.


    There were looks of schadenfreude in the eyes of the two men.


    At this moment, the executioner already had his sword above his head and when his sword was about to separate the woman''s head from his shoulders...


    Joseph cried out loud.


    "Wait!"


    The executioner abruptly stopped. His de was only an inch away from the woman''s neck.


    "What''s wrong, Your Majesty?" Arturo Buenaflor turned to look at Joseph.


    There was a look of concern on his face.


    "There''s nothing wrong with me, but there''s something wrong with those two!" Joseph whispered to Arturo as he then turned his gaze towards the two middle-aged men and said.


    "You bastards! How dare you lie in front of the King! Men, execute them along with that woman!''''


    The faces of the two middle-aged men turned pale, but before they could even shout nor appeal for mercy. The des of the nearby soldiers pierced through their bodies...


    Killing them, along with the young woman whom they brought here in front of the King''s Court.


    Joseph stared at the gory scene in front of him and there was a look of anger on his face.


    He sat down back on his throne and deeply sighed.


    Arturo Buenaflor stared at the bodies of the three and after ordering the soldiers to clean them up.


    He turned to look at Joseph and asked.


    "Your Majesty, if you don''t mind me asking. Can you tell me why you decided to kill that young woman along with those two that imed to be her father? You gave our men the order to kill that young woman, but you stopped her execution so you can include their father to the mix and in the end, all three of them were executed..."


    "What''s going on, Your Majesty? Are you okay?"


    Joseph nced at Arturo Buenaflor and said, "Arturo... Tell me, who do you think is the father of that woman earlier?"


    Arturo hesitated for a moment but he still answered, "It should be the man on the right side of us, Your Majesty. He''s the one that has the mostpelling story for me. As for that guy on the left-hand side of us, I am certain that he was lying."


    "Really?" Joseph nced at Arturo and revealed anguid smile.


    "Yes, Your Majesty..." Arturo bowed and answered.


    "That''s a good guess, and that answer of yours would be the answer of everyone if they looked at the situation at first nce. However, why do you think that I ordered the execution of that young woman alone, earlier?" A meaningful smile appeared on Joseph''s face as he asked.


    Arturo Buenaflor was a man who had experienced a lot in his life so he quickly realized what Joseph was hinting about as he replied.


    "Wait, Your Majesty... Do you mean...?"


    "Yes..."


    "I ordered the execution of that young woman to test the waters."


    "If one of them really was the father of that young woman. Then, they would''ve cried out loud and begged me to give her to the other man for as long as she wouldn''t get executed. Even though she would probably suffer more than she would in that ce than if she was executed here, at least her father wouldn''t be able to witness her death personally..."


    Complex emotions shed across Joseph''s face, "A father''s love is quiteplicated, if her father was really among those men then I reckon that what I said to you would be his decision. He''d rather send his daughter to be a ve than to see her being executed right in front of him..."


    "But, Your Majesty... If that''s true, then both of the men should be ve traders. In that case, they should be the only ones that must be executed..."


    "Why did you also sentence that woman to her death?"


    Joseph deeply sighed, "You saw how that woman acted earlier when I asked her about who among the two of those men was her father, right?"


    Arturo bowed and replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. I did..."


    "Then, you should''ve seen from her reactions that she had suffered, several years, if not, at least a decade of continuous abuse. Only continuous abuse that long could possibly break a human being until they don''t even seem to be a human anymore. Instead, they''d be more like scarred beasts..."


    "Arturo... Do you think that even if I pardoned that woman, gave her money to live her life somewhere else away from all the suffering, would she be willing to ept that money and keep on living? After all those years of continuous abuse?"


    Arturo Buenaflor went silent. The answer was painfully obvious, so he didn''t answer anymore.


    The King that he was serving was actually the King of a failing Kingdom. He was branded as the most foolish King of the entire continent due to the fact that after only a few months of him being on the throne, the Kingdom was already on the brink of bankruptcy.


    But...


    Arturo was now doubting the words of those men.


    Was His Majesty really that dumb like what the others had said?


    Arturo didn''t think so after seeing this disy of wisdom and knowledge.


    However...


    Arturo gnashed his teeth.


    It was already toote.


    Arturo had long resolved himself to do what he must do.


    He took a wine bottle out of his chest pocket and said, "Your Majesty, you must be thirsty from what happened. Here''s a fine wine that I got from the kitchen staff to quench your thirst."


    Joseph turned to look at Arturo and smiled, "Thanks, Arturo. If not for you, then this job of mine would be more hectic than what I would want to."


    Joseph received the cup of wine from Arturo.


    While he was thinking about his next steps as to how he could solve the various problems of the Kingdom. Joseph drank the wine from the cup and his eyes suddenly widened in shock.


    <em>What...?</em>


    <em>What did I drink?</em>


    <em>Is this wine?</em>


    Joseph''s figure continuously trembled.


    The wine that should''ve tasted bitter sour tasted more like drinking fire as it numbed his entire body.


    When the wine reached his stomach, Joseph suddenly coughed a mouthful of blood and copsed onto the ground.


    "Arturo... You..."


    He finally realized what was going on.


    He was poisoned.


    Poisoned none other than his right-hand man, the trusted aide that apanied him for several decades!


    "I''m sorry, Your Majesty..."


    "With you sitting on the throne, there''s no way that this Kingdom can prosper..."


    "From now on, I''ll do everything myself. You do not have to worry about your journey to the Yellow Springs, Your Majesty. I will take care of the Kingdom that you inherited from that bastard father of yours..."


    Amidst Joseph''s darkening consciousness.


    He could see the evil smile on Arturo''s face and eventually...


    No matter how much he tried on struggling against the grasp of death. Joseph''s life was over and a system notification floated right in front of him, informing him of his death.


    [You died!]


    [You lost 1 out of 5 chances that you have in the King''s Trial!]


    [Don''t worry, you still haven''t lost, yet!]


    [Keep on fighting! You can do it]


    [Sincerely,]


    [P.H Works.]


    When the system notifications disappeared...


    Light returned to Joseph''s eyes and he found himself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.


    In front of him was a gorgeous young woman that was currently in the process of undressing.


    What the fuck?


    These were the words that Joseph could utter as the young woman undressed all of her clothes and leaped on top of him on the bed.

 Chapter 143: Start of an Epic Journey[4]

    Chapter 143: Start of an Epic Journey[4]


    "A Mythical ss yer..."


    Abyssal me Master whispered.


    "What? You''re concerned about someone that''s a mere half-step to a god? He is not even a god, yet. You don''t have to concern yourself about him. Once we have aplished our goals in this Empire, you will ascend into something that''s more than him!"


    A voice that sounded between a mixture of a man and a woman rang within Abyssal me Master''s mind.


    "Shut up! Just tell me your objectives already! If you want me to fully cooperate on what you want to happen, then you must tell me what the hell is going on! Why are you letting me grant sses and quests on these NPCs? Are you going to kill them all once you are done with them?"


    Abyssal me Master angrily replied.


    "Kill them all? Why would I do something so barbaric? And also, did you already forget about what is the foundation of a god? A god can only be a god through the power of faith!"


    "So, are you saying that you are trying to convert them into your believers?"


    "Hehehe, it seems like you are quite smart after all... As expected from someone whom I chose to be my vessel. I really thought that you were a foolish man. To choose that dark daddy up there and be his Apostle is basically bing a ve..."


    "Now that you''re with me, don''t you love the freedom that you have right now?"


    "I''m not constantly giving you tasks like that dark daddy and unlike him, I am not that demanding..."


    "Shut the fuck up... Did you really think that I was willing to be your Apostle?"


    "No!"


    "You forced this into me!"


    "You''re even worse than the God of Darkness, Vell!"


    Abyssal me Master gnashed his teeth in anger.


    The voice in his head replied once again, "Oh? Did I force you?"


    "Hehehe, in that case then you are free to go..."


    [The Demon of Deceit and Temptation has offered your release.]


    [Do you want to be released from your contract with the Demon of Deceit and Temptation, Gelial?]


    [Yes/No?]


    Abyssal me Master stood in shock while staring at the system notifications.


    He wanted to be released but he didn''t expect that everything would be this easy.


    He stretched his hand out, but his hand stopped several inches before the Yes button.


    <em>What?</em>


    <em>What is going on?</em>


    <em>I''m about to be released, and I''m supposed to be happy that I''m free, yet...</em>


    "So, you finally realized it?" The voice said and excitement could be felt from it.


    Tears streamed down Abyssal me Master''s cheeks.


    He didn''t know what to say.


    "You finally realized that without me, you are nothing..."


    "You have no direction in life, you have no home to go to, and you have no friends that care about you. Even if you die right now at this moment, no one will grieve for you..."


    "But why?"


    "You should know the answer to that question..."


    "You''re the only one that knows about it, after all..."


    "You''re just denying it, you are only being in denial that you are a worthless human being."


    The voice turned strangely amorous once again, but the words that the voice said struck right at Abyssal me Master''s chest, causing him to stagger backward as he gnashed his teeth once again and eximed.


    "Shut up! I don''t want to hear anything... I don''t want... I don''t want to... hea-"


    "Then, you are going to run again?"


    "Are you going to keep this up forever, Abyssal me Master? Or should I call you, Jason?"


    Abyssal me Master''s eyes widened in shock, "You... How did you know about my name?"


    "Heh... Knowing someone''s name is quite easy for a Demon at my level... You don''t have to worry about that, I''m bound by the Laws of Causality and I can never share your personal information with anyone apart from yourself."


    "But what do you think?"


    "Do you believe me now when I told you that I know you more than anyone in this world?"


    The seductive voice sounded incredibly inviting. Abyssal me Master had to bite the tip of his tongue so that he wouldn''t get swallowed by the lust that was slowly oveing his body.


    The ability to incite lust from any living being in this world was an ability unique to the Demon of Deceit and Temptation.


    It also couldn''t be turned off.


    "But you... You''re a Demon! Why would I want to cooperate with y-"


    "Hahaha!"


    The voice interrupted Abyssal me Master''s rant.


    "I''m a Demon?"


    "Hahaha! That''s right! But do you really think that I am the "Demon" between the two of us? Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror? This is really too funny. To think that a guy that literally has nothing would call me a "Demon"..."


    "Every living being in this world has something that they can call as their own. It obviously differs from one living being to another, but my point still stands."


    "But how about you? Of course, you also had something or even someone that you called as your own!"


    "But that is in the past, you have nothing anymore..."


    "But why?"


    "Have you ever thought about the reason why you have nothing right now?" The voice grew strong and it seemed to echo deep within Abyssal me Master''s mind as if it was an imperial decree that could never be rejected nor denied.


    Abyssal me Master''s face was as pale as a sheet of paper.


    His body was constantly trembling. Images shed across his mind of the moments when he was less than a human. Images such as the time when he stole some money from others when he was a child, just so he could supplement his growing addiction to ying video games.


    Back then, he thought...


    <em>Wow, that was easy... I never thought that earning this much money was actually this easy... That bastard father of mine, why does he not give me any money when it''s this easy to earn money?</em>


    Jason was just a nine-year-old child at that time.


    With the instant gratification and satisfaction of earning a lot of money in a short amount of time.


    Jason quickly grew addicted to stealing.


    He skipped his sses just so he could steal and supplement his addiction until he eventually stopped studying and estranged himself with his father until...


    His father''s health got worse.


    At that time, Jason realized that he had neglected his father for too long.


    He tried turning into a new leaf, but he got into a scuffle with his mother that had just returned from disappearing and fast-forward today...


    Jason really didn''t have anything that he could call as his own.


    Apart from the money that he got from his mother, he had nothing.


    He was an empty person who only used the world of Victory to escape the harsh reality of society.


    He wanted to reconnect with his friends back then, but he was too afraid that they''ll judge him negatively.


    After all, all of his friends knew that he was an inte addict.


    Yes, an addict.


    Only an addict could possibly turn himself away from his family and even stop his studies just so he could continue ying games.


    But Jason back then was actually quite confident that he could earn a living through stealing.


    But he realized several yearster when he was finally captured by the angry residents that he had been far too naive.


    Jason had been stealing a lot of money on the same street for several consecutive years.


    It wasn''t strange that anyone would be on guard against him on that street.


    Thinking about it right now, Jason felt that he was incredibly stupid and naive.


    But well, he was just a young man who wanted some quick buck...


    But despite being captured, Jason never stopped his habit of being a pickpocket and using all of that money that he stole for ying games.


    Eventually, the time for him to change had arrived, but it was already toote.


    He was already kicked out of the house, disowned, and had nothing to return to anymore.


    "My fault... Everything was my fault... If I wasn''t... If I had just remained as a good kid... Everything wouldn''t have... Everything wouldn''t havee to this... Now, everything is over... I have nothing... I really have nothing..." Abyssal me Master''s knees copsed and he kneeled there on the ground.


    Tears streamed down on his cheeks as he kept on trying.


    But then a voice suddenly spoke in his mind.


    "Nope, everything is not over, yet... You may have nothing right now, but remember that everything started from nothing... Without nothing, everything would be nothing, and nothing would be everything."


    The voice spoke in clear words, yet when they were connected with each other...


    Abyssal me Master couldn''t understand the underlying message beneath the cryptic words.


    He could feel that the voice in him was enticing him to do something and the offer of that voice was iparably good to him, however...


    "No... You''re a Demon... How could I possibly..."


    "You are rejecting me again just because I am a Demon? Hahaha... Let me ask you this, Jason... Who said that Demons are bad, and who said that the Gods up above there are good? Who said that the good is right, and the bad is wrong?"


    "No one!"


    "What is good may not necessarily be right, and what is bad may not necessarily be good!"


    "Remember that!"


    "Now, embrace me..."


    "ept this gift that I have for you, oh... Poor little Jason..."


    [Contract Terms Transfer has been requested by the Demon of Deceit and Temptation.]


    [A new contract offer with new terms has been offered.]


    [Please check the contract properly and do not be hasty about signing! Your answer regarding this contract can irreversibly change your way of life in the world of Victory so, please be careful about signing!]


    Abyssal me Master opened his eyes and found himself standing in an incredibly dark space that had nothing in it.


    However, at the distance was an incredibly gorgeous woman.


    The woman was d in a dark dress and she seemed to be smiling at Abyssal me Master as she approached him with steady and firm footsteps.


    Abyssal me Master stood up and the woman eventually arrived right in front of her.


    "Don''t hold back..."


    The woman''s dress was ripped, revealing everything about her underneath.


    Then, as if he was in a trance.


    Abyssal me Master pushed her onto the ground and the woman underneath him suddenly chuckled in excitement.


    "Ahhh... The fruits of the union between a Demon and an Immortal Being... I wonder..."


    "I wonder how powerful it would be!"


    ...


    "Eli, what the hell is wrong with you? Why did you wake me up? It''s still dawn for fuck''s sake. I still have a lot of work to do after that sleep... What''s worse is that you didn''t even exin why you want me toe here as soon as possible, making me needlessly curious..."


    Mar barged in the room carrying his anger with him.


    "Ray? So, you''re here too?"


    "Bloody hell, you should be the one that ordered Eli to wake me up! Exin everything to me right at this instant!" Mar directed his anger to Ray since he''s probably the reason why Elizabeth was too adamant about forcing him toe here thiste at night.


    Ray turned to look at him with a smile, "Can you calm down for a second, Mar? Do you really think that I would wake you up sote at night if the news that I have for you isn''t even worthwhile or interesting enough?"


    Mar stared at Ray in doubt: "What could be more interesting than the concept of proper regenerative sleep?"


    "It''s the King''s Trial!"


    "Oh? It''s just the King''s Trial? Damn, what nonse- wait!"


    "Just what did you say? The King''s Trial?!" Mar was someone who could read along the lines so he quickly caught up on what Ray was hinting at, "Could it be that it has been activated? Who activated it? Don''t tell me it''s that brat, Joseph, again?!"


    Mar eximed in anger when he saw the confirming smile on Ray''s lips.


    "Pffft..." Elizabeth chuckled at the side.


    "What are youughing at, Eli?" Mar swept his gaze at Elizabeth.


    "Nothing..." Elizabeth was holding her stomach right now as sheughed, "You said that same words as sir Ray said earlier when I told him that the King''s Trial has been activated..."


    Mar scratched his head, "Damn, that guy... He really brought us another headache once again..."


    Mar deeply sighed, now that he was curious as to how Joseph couldplete the King''s Trial...


    There''s no way that he could still sleep knowing that the King''s Trial that he designed with Ray for six consecutive months has been activated.


    He turned to look at Elizabeth and ordered, "Eli, get me the strongest coffee you have avable. Give me that version of coffee that doesn''t make me crash. You know about what brand of a coffee that was, right?"


    Elizabeth straightened her back.


    No matter what, Mar was still one of her immediate superiors she mustply with his orders: "Yes, sir! I''ll be back!" She then walked towards the door and exited the room, carrying the orders that Mar and Ray had for her.


    "Now, that she''s gone. I think we can finally talk about some things pertaining to that King''s Trial..."


    Ray said to Mar.


    Mar shook his head and chuckled, "As always you really are such a tight ass when ites to rules, aren''t you? Even though Elizabeth is already under an NDA you still don''t trust her when ites to trade secrets, eh?"


    Ray lightly smiled, "Of course, did you already forgot about who is the reason why the development of Victory got dyed for at least several years? Did you already forget about that incident back then?"


    Mar took a seat beside Ray.


    He took a bottle of water from the nearby table and drank it. Afterwards, he replied, "How can I possibly forget about that incident... That woman, she really dealt you such a heavy hand. Perhaps, she''s the reason why you are so in denial towards Elizabeth''s feelings to you?"


    Ray revealed a shocked expression when he heard Mar''s words.


    But Mar merely chuckled and continued, "Hahaha, look at you looking so shocked like that. Did you really expect that I wouldn''t notice that you have the same feelings as she has to you? Why else would I adamantly endorse her to you if you didn''t like her in the first ce?"


    Complicated emotions shed across Ray''s face: "Let''s just set that matter aside for now... I don''t even know if I can still let go of the past. For now, let''s just watch how that punk can surpass the King''s Trial..."


    Mar nodded his head and the two raised their heads to stare at the monitors.


    At this moment, Elizabeth finally returned with everything that Ray and Mar needed for their so-called observation.


    "That was quick..." Ray praised Elizabeth.


    Elizabeth revealed a light smile, "Yes, I already prepared everything beforehand. It was just a matter of fetching them anding back."


    Ray nodded his head and he didn''t say anything anymore.


    The room turned silent, but it was soon broken by Elizabeth who asked.


    "Uhmm... Since I am going to apany you, sir Ray along with sir Mar on observing yer Joseph regarding his King''s Trial. Is it okay for me to ask about what the King''s Trial is and how it works?"


    Despite having the authority to read system notifications...


    Elizabeth''s authority as a mere Secretary wasn''t enough for her to read through the files of P.H Works.


    This was the reason why even though she knew about the King''s Trial.


    She didn''t know its specifics.


    Ray looked like he didn''t want to answer, but then he received a pat on his shoulder from Mar...


    He sighed and replied, "The King''s Trial is basically a trial that needs to be surpassed by the challenger for them to acquire the true qualifications to be the King. However, surpassing the trial doesn''t mean that the person will immediately be a King..."


    Elizabeth frowned, "Is that a difficult trial, sir? You and sir Mar made that Trial for six consecutive months so I reckon that its difficulty would be far too hard while the rewards are far too little. Wouldn''t that frustrate every yer that surpassed it due to the bad rewards?"


    Ray turned to stare at Elizabeth and chuckled, "The rewards on surpassing the King''s Trial isn''t something that can be measured right away since it isn''t an animate object..."


    "The rewards are actually something ethereal, something that only the winner can understand and utilize. It is a concept after all, and everyone can interpret a concept, differently from others..."


    "A concept?" Elizabeth asked in doubt.


    Mar chuckled, "Hahaha, you don''t have to worry about it, for now, Eli. Come here, sit there and just watch with us. This King''s Trial would sure be interesting especially since that brat is taking it..."


    "With how many miracles he had performed so far, I''d really be disappointed if he wasn''t able to pass this King''s Trial..."


    Elizabeth nodded her head, she didn''t say anything anymore as she sat down on the nearby couch.


    Since she was in the presence of her immediate superior, Mar.


    She had her back subconsciously straightened and Ray instantly noticed it as he said.


    "Elizabeth, you don''t have to be so tense..."


    "This old geezer would prefer it if you make yourself feel at home."


    Elizabeth gave a wry smile andplied.


    She drastically rxed as she raised her head and stared at the monitors.


    "Oooh... It looks like our Joseph is about to get into some action..."


    Marmented and even whistled.


    Ray had a look of amusement on his face.


    Elizabeth''s expression became filled with red to the extent that she looked like she was a tomato.


    But why?


    It was because there was a particrly amorous scene within the monitors.


    Back in the King''s Trial, Joseph was staring at the stark-naked woman.


    He subconsciously gulped a mouthful of saliva when he saw her body.


    However, remembering his depressing fate earlier.


    Joseph almost immediately calmed down as she stared at the woman.


    [information about the person has been made avable.]


    [Name: Queen Emily Jane


    Your wife and the Queen of your Kingdom. She''s currently pregnant.]


    <em>Oh! So, she''s actually my wife! Wait, she''s pregnant? Why is she so aggressive?</em>


    The woman leaped onto the bed and straddled onto Joseph.


    <em>Fuck! P.H Works, what is this? Is this some kind of a lewd bonus or something? Wait, get off me! I already have Alice!</em>


    Joseph tried on struggling against the woman and his hard work paid off.


    He managed to push the woman away from the bed, but when the woman fell directly onto the floor.


    She strangely didn''t cry out in pain.


    In fact, she was actuallyughing.


    "Ku ku ku ku ku... So, you actually noticed what I was doing, Your Majesty?"


    The woman stood up and gave an evil smile.


    <em>Oh fuck...</em>


    Joseph inwardly uttered.


    Sharp pain inundated his chest and filled his sense. Taking a look at his chest, he found that there was a thin needle stuck right into his heart.


    "Why... You''re my wife... Why did you..."


    <em>Guah!</em>


    Joseph coughed a mouthful of blood.


    "I''m sorry, Your Majesty... With you sitting on the throne, there''s no way that this Kingdom can prosper..."


    "From now on, I''ll do everything myself... I''ll still be the Queen and as for who will be the King? Hehehe... It will be the father of this child!"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    "The King will be the father of the child? Are you saying that... Are you saying that the child in your womb is not mine?!"


    The woman didn''t reply, a sneer surfaced on her lips as she said, "When I first met you I already thought that you were a foolish person, Your Majesty..."


    "I thought that you''d change once you be the King, but I was wrong!"


    "You became even more foolish and now this Kingdom..."


    "My beloved hometown is now on the brink of bankruptcy and a famine!"


    "That is why..."


    "That is why you cannot me me, Your Majesty..."


    "Everything is your fault..."


    "That is why..."


    Joseph''s consciousness darkened.


    "I had to do it..."


    "Everything is your fault..."


    "Your Majesty."


    [You died!]


    [You lost 2 out of 5 chances that you have in the King''s Trial!]


    [Don''t worry, you still haven''t lost, yet!]


    [Keep on fighting! You can do it]


    [Sincerely,]


    [P.H Works.]


    Joseph''s consciousness was abruptly pulled out of the state of death once again and when he opened his eyes.


    He found himself standing before a desk.


    Several dozens of papers were stacked right in front of him and his right hand was holding his seal for signing these documents.


    [You should''ve noticed by now that you can''t trust anyone in this Kingdom!]


    [Your objectives in the King''s Trial has been updated.]


    [Weed out all the traitors and squash all the problems and potential troubles of the Kingdom!]


    Joseph dismissed these system notifications and took a document from the desk.


    The document read...


    [Request For an Advice Regarding the Uing Famine]


    <em>Uing Famine? How did the author of this request know that there''s an uing famine?</em>


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    He fell into deep contemtion as to how he could answer the question in this document.


    But after only spending a few moments on the problem.


    Joseph facepalmed and inwardly criticized himself.


    <em>What the fuck am I doing trying to solve this problem by myself? I''m not even that smart...</em>


    Joseph shook his head and chuckled.


    <em>Since I don''t know the answer to this question then all I need is to ask!</em>


    <em>But who am I going to ask?</em>


    <em>The Ghostbusters?</em>


    <em>No!</em>


    <em>It''s Mister Google!</em>


    Joseph then opened up his Main Menu and used the Integrated Browser to find his answers on google.<ol><li>Non-Disclosure Agreement.</li></ol>

 Chapter 144: Start of an Epic Journey[5]

    Chapter 144: Start of an Epic Journey[5]


    Joseph made his research and used the great famines of history as the basis for the answer that he would give to the author of this document.


    However, Joseph soon found himself stuck.


    But why was he stuck?


    It was because he needed more information.


    Joseph shook his head and wrote using a modern pen that he bought from the Cash Shop.


    He tried on using the quill pen that sat beside the documents on the desk, but it felt too off for him so, he opted on buying several pens from the Cash Shop and used that as the method of writing his response instead.


    After writing his response, he stood up to the door, and there he found a maid near the doors.


    He handed the letter over to the maid and said.


    "Give this letter to the recipient. Tell him that if he wants toe here, then he must not let anyone know that he''s going to visit me."


    Joseph gave a stern warning to the maid and the maid obedientlyplied, albeit somewhat in a panic.


    After staring at the maid''s back until she disappeared at the next corner.


    Joseph returned to his seat and heaved a sigh of relief. The darkness of the room that he was in didn''t scare him at the least... Instead, it gave him a queer sense of excitement due to the fact that he was now too afraid to be in the presence of someone else.


    After all, his trusted aide and even his wife betrayed him.


    With those harsh lessons, how could Joseph still trust anyone in this world?


    Joseph lifted a bitter smile and he proceeded on taking a look at the other documents since he had nothing to do until the recipient of that letter came to visit him.


    Several dozens of minutes passed by and a knock finally echoed behind the doors.


    "Come in..."


    Joseph spoke up and the doors creaked open, revealing the figure of a man who really looked like a generic nobleman of a certain era.


    "Your Majesty... I came here upon your request."


    The man kneeled down.


    "Stand up. We have something to talk about." Joseph replied.


    "Yes..." The nobleman stood up, but he didn''t dare to stare directly at Joseph. After all, in every Kingdom. There was a well-known adage thatmon men should never stare directly at the King lest they lose their eyes and lives.


    Joseph stared at the middle-aged man and observed him with his eyes.


    <em>He seems to be a good man, but the system notification said that there''s no one that I can trust in this Kingdom. I should probably not trust him as well...</em>


    Joseph concluded before he spoke.


    "How did you predict that the''s an uing famine? I really am curious, are you an Astrologer, perhaps?"


    "An Astrologer?" The middle-aged man frowned, "How could I be one of those superstitious people? I am sorry for the harsh words, Your Majesty, but I think that those men are just a waste of our taxes! They aren''t really doing anything and they are only working whenever Your Majesty makes an inquiry regarding the progress of their works!"


    "All right, let''s set that matter aside. I want you to tell me about the current situation of the Kingdom when ites to the production of crops and what kind of an agricultural production system is in ce." Joseph revealed a light smile and started observing the man.


    [Information about the person has been made avable.]


    [Name: Robert Hughes


    [Minister of the Kingdom''s Agriculture. He''s distressed and anxious about the future of the Kingdom''s Agriculture. He''s a man that puts the interest of the Kingdom more than his own. He''s someone that you can trust.]


    <em>Really, system? Someone that I can trust? Are you sure about that?</em>


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile. He did expect that the King''s Trial was difficult, but he didn''t expect that it would be this difficult to the extent that maybe everything in this world wanted to kill him.


    Right now, with the trauma that Joseph experienced regarding the betrayal of his wife and his trusted aide. Joseph didn''t n on trusting anybody in this world. Everything that must be done, even if he borrowed a knife to kill, must be done by himself and without relying on others.


    Robert gulped a mouthful of saliva when he felt Joseph''s gazend onto him.


    He didn''t even expect that the so-called most foolish King of the Epoch was actually a man that could emanate such a gaze. His eyes felt incredibly profound and deep, it was as if staring at the abyss itself.


    Robert calmed himself down and straightened his back.


    After seeing that His Majesty was waiting for his reply.


    He cleared his throat and started talking about the Kingdom''s reliance on a single staple crop.


    Several years ago, the situation wasn''t like this, themoners and the middle-ss citizens had a lot of variety when it came to their meals.


    The main diet was still based on butter, milk, and grain products.


    However, as the years went on...


    Everyone became dependent on the staple crop, Tuber.


    Furthermore, a disproportionate portion of the production of this staple crop only relied on a single variety which became the reason why a certain pestilence surfaced and easily managed to wreak havoc on this single staple crop.


    Robert predicted that if the uing second wave of pestilence wasn''t stopped, a full-on famine would begin causing the mass emigration of people away from the Kingdom which would result in a lowered number of people in the workforce.


    Such an event would ultimately lead to the copse of the Kingdom itself.


    "Copse of the kingdom? That idea of yours seems to be quite on the negative side, isn''t it?"


    Joseph asked with a raised eyebrow.


    Robert almost staggered backward from the intimidation, but he managed to hold fast on his wits as he replied, "Yes, that is indeed the case, Your Majesty. But to tell you the truth, this estimation of mine is actually a conservative estimation. If I were to examine the future based on the variables we have right now..."


    "I think at least 70% of the Kingdom''s poption will die if nothing is done to prepare against the uing famine..."


    Robert squeezed these words out of his throat as he stared seriously at His Majesty like he was giving the King a stern warning.


    "Mhmm..." Joseph thought for a moment, "Take a seat, I''ll draft you a n for a while. I trust that you follow this n religiously because if you will, we will definitely survive against the so-called second wave of the pestilence that you said to me."


    Joseph started scribbling down some words while asionally ncing up towards the ceiling.


    Robert bowed his head and didn''t speak when he saw how serious His Majesty was while writing.


    But he couldn''t find the urge to also nce at the ceiling when he saw that Joseph was asionally ncing at the ceiling as if there were answers to the burning questions that he had in his mind stered on the ceiling.


    After several dozens of minutes of waiting.


    Robert''s back was already drenched with his sweat.


    Being in the presence of the so-called the most foolish King of the Epoch should beidback and rxed for him, but after being under the gaze of His Majesty which made him feel like he was naked and had no secrets in front of the King...


    Robert didn''t know how he should feel towards His Majesty.


    Should he disdain him due to his foolishness that pushed his Kingdom into the brink of destruction?


    Or should he...


    Robert shook his head.


    <em>Nevermind... I''ll just do what I must do. Obey the King and do his orders.</em>


    <em>That is my duty as a loyal citizen of the Kingdom.</em>


    "Robert... I''m done, take this and tell me what you think about it."


    Joseph casually handed over a scroll.


    Robert received the scroll while kneeling and when he opened it and skimmed through its contents.


    His figure trembled and his eyes widened in shock.


    "C-Crop rotation... Why did I not think about this earlier in my career..."


    "But will this method really work, Your Majesty?"


    Joseph nodded his head, "Yeah, that will work. But if you want me to exin even further. Let''s just say that dependency on a single staple crop without any variety is bad since specialized pests that like that particr crop tend to umte over time..."


    "But if we grow other crops other than the Tuber and isn''t closely rted to it..."


    "Those pests will definitely starve and die," Joseph revealed a light smile on his face.


    His eyes radiated the light of wisdom, yet his finger stealthily dismissed the several windows of Wikipedia opened right around his peripheral vision.


    Robert had an enlightened look of excitement and joy on his face, but then he quickly turned somber when he realized that there was something more to the problem than what meets the eye.


    He kneeled to the ground and said in a pleading voice, "Your Majesty... To tell you the truth, this n of yours is incredibly brilliant to the point that it made me doubt my own capabilities..."


    "I couldn''t help but ask myself as to why I didn''t discover such a method early-on?!"


    "I could''ve prevented the first wave of the pestilence using this method!"


    "Unfortunately, Your Majesty... There''s no cure for regrets in this world and time cannot be turned back. This draft that you gave me, Your Majesty, is indeed brilliant but without sufficient funds, there is no way that I can implement this n in time!"


    Joseph turned to look at Robert and frowned.


    <em>Is this Kingdom really that poor that it can''t afford to buy some seeds to nt, what the fuck? Just where the hell did our funds go? Into the casino or something?</em>


    Joseph couldn''t help but sigh.


    Staring at Robert who was still earnestly pleading, he said...


    "Stand up... You do not have to worry about the funds, I also have some ns for that... You go now and do your work, request for the funds that you need from the Minister of Finance!"


    Robert stood up, straightened his back, and promptly replied, "By your will, Your Majesty!"


    He then turned around and left as excited as a kid that had just received his favorite toy as a gift.


    After summoning the Minister of Agriculture.


    Joseph summoned the Minister of Finance.


    This time, what came to his office was an elderly man who looked to be in his sixties. When the man went inside the room and saw that Joseph was staring at him. He almost immediately kneeled down and said, "Your subject, Daniel Smith is here, Your Majesty!"


    Joseph slightly nodded his head, his right hand was currently writing something on a piece of paper, while his eyes sometimes darted towards the ceiling.


    Sensing the awkward silence within the room...


    Joseph chose to find a topic to talk on and asked the Minister of Finance, "Can you tell me about your ns on increasing the funds of the Kingdom for the long-term and the short-term?"


    "I really am interested as to how the Minister of Finance works regarding the securing of the Kingdom''s funds."


    The elderly man gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Despite the fact that the King in front of him was the so-called the most foolish King of the Epoch.


    He was still a King, and a King must never be disrespected...


    Just his title alone served as enough motivation for him not to mock the King, but that didn''t mean that it invalidated his anger towards the King.


    Yes...


    He was angry at the King.


    But why?


    It was because instead of redirecting the funds of the Kingdom towards the well-being of the citizens.


    This foolish King actually wanted to use that money to fund the Kingdom''s battle against the other Kingdoms!


    It was really such a bad move considering that the citizens of the Kingdom weren''t even loyal to the King anymore in the first ce.


    They needed to be cated, yet the King did such a move...


    He really did think that the King was definitely the true definition of a foolish and retarded King back then.


    Even now, he still thought of that as the truth.


    Holding back his anger and dissatisfaction towards the King...


    He chose to answer the King''s question as honestly as possible.


    "With Your Majesty''s rmendation several months ago, I nned on gathering our ns for the short-term and long-term by increasing the amount of taxes that the cities of the Kingdom needed to pay annually..."


    "Through this method, we can get the funds that we needed without spending any capital."


    The Minister of Finance replied.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and inwardly facepalmed.


    <em>So, that is the reason why practically everyone in this ce wants me dead. It turns out that the original owner of this body that I am using right now is actually retarded.</em>


    <em>Increasing taxes may indeed give the Kingdom a lot of funds, but that is incredibly bad for the long-term and even for the short-term for it decreases the morale and faith of everyone to the Kingdom!</em>


    Joseph heaved a deep sigh, he rolled the scroll on his hands and handed it over to the Minister of Finance who received it while kneeling.


    "Read it and tell me what you think."


    "Yes, Your Majesty..."


    The Minister of Finance opened the scroll and started reading it while Joseph closely observed him.


    [Information about the person has been made avable.]


    [Name: Daniel Smith


    The Minister of Finance for the Kingdom. He''s not a man that''s as loyal to the Kingdom as others due to the fact that he is dissatisfied with the current King. However, he values knowledge the most and if you disyed knowledge worthy enough for his admiration then he can be the most loyal man in the world to you.]


    <em>Interesting... So, he''s quite a hot potato. By hot potato, I mean as long as someone is smarter than him he will definitely follow that person all for the sake of quenching his thirst for knowledge?</em>


    <em>In that case, I can easily have him in my grasp... After all, apart from me who has Mister Google as my backer, who else could be more knowledgeable than me here?</em>


    A light smile escaped Joseph''s lips and at this moment, the Minister of Finance was finally done reading.


    "Wha... What is this... Treasury Bonds? Just what does that mean, Your Majesty? It''s the first time that I heard of such abination of words... I''m bbergasted and speechless..."


    The elderly man wore a look of excitement on his face as if he was a child that discovered a new and more interesting toy.


    "Treasury Bonds is a debt security instrument that we can use to gather our funds. For now, offer those Bonds to the nobles ording to my instructions and as for themoners of the middle-ss and lower. Offer them that Retail Treasury Bonds described just below the Treasury Bonds..."


    "Remember that the maturity date of both instruments is ten yearster, interest payments are paid semi-annually, and the interest is 4.37% subject to 15% withholding tax that I''m sure that you already know about since it''s described at the beginning of the document..."


    "As for the redemption price, it will be at least at par with how much they paid for the Bonds since it is guaranteed by me..." Joseph promptly exined and the look of excitement on the Minister of Finance''s face deepened.


    However, a frown suddenly appeared on his face when he realized something.


    "Your Majesty! This proposal of yours is indeed magnificent and brilliant, but we all know that you are at odds against those nobles, wouldn''t it be incredibly hard for us to convince them to join despite these interest rates?"


    Joseph nodded his head and smiled.


    <em>It seems like this Minister of Finance isn''tpletely a fool after all...</em>


    Joseph repeatedly tapped on his desk, seemingly in deep thought before he replied, "Yeah, what you said made sense. I will definitely not be able to encourage them to buy those bonds. However, what if you told them this?"


    Joseph decided toy down his trump cards at once for the short-term benefit as he said, "What if you told them that they will earn 1.5% of their total investment in returns daily for the entire tenure of their investment?"


    "What?!" The Minister of Finance uttered in shock, "1.5% daily returns? How can something like that be sustainable, Your Majesty? Please reconsider!" The Minister of Finance who was about to look at the King in a new light for devising such a brilliant n was disappointed once again.


    <em>1.5% daily returns? How can that be sustainable? Was he mad?!</em>


    The Minister of Finance inwardly panicked.


    Joseph turned to look at the Minister of Finance and smiled, "Yes... Something like that is indeed not sustainable, but what if I told you that it doesn''t have to be sustainable?"


    The Minister of Finance''s pupils constricted, "Does that mean that...?"


    "Yes... Since those nobles are actively trying to push me down..."


    "Then, I will push them down too with my methods..."


    "Tell them everything that I have told you regarding that document. Convince them to join that High-Yield Investment Program, but don''t promise them anything apart from the 1.5% daily returns..."


    "If you do that then you won''t have any liability towards them and if theyined towards me that the Treasury Bonds were guaranteed by the government. Tell them that they didn''t sign up for the Treasury Bonds, but for the High-Yield Investment Program!"


    "In other words, those Treasury Bonds are nothing but mere bait!"


    "I can trust that you can at least do something like that, right?"


    "The Minister of Finance, Daniel Smith...?"


    Daniel Smith gulped a mouthful of saliva. Staring at the dark eyes of the King felt as if he was staring at the infinite darkness of the abyss.


    Daniel took several deep breaths and calmed himself down. When he returned to his senses, excitement could be seen on his face when he thought about the King''s n...


    It was true that those greedy nobles couldn''t possibly resist the allure of such high-interest rates.


    "But what happens if they request an early pay-out of their returns?" Daniel Smith inwardly uttered, or so he thought.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled, "In that case, give them the money of thetest investor..."


    "The money of thetest investor will serve as the payment for the returns of the earliest investor."


    "In that way, we won''t run out of money..."


    "We will only run out of investors and when that happens, the scheme would be over..."


    "After everything is over, we can easily wash our hands from any liability by saying that the reason that the investment failed is because of the intervention of the other Kingdoms..."


    "Just tell them that the times are too chaotic and if they don''t believe your exnation, tell them toe over here and I will personally exin everything to them..."


    "You don''t have to worry, Daniel Smith... You just have to follow my schemes..." A smile escaped on Joseph''s lips once again as he stared right at Daniel Smith. However, his hands underneath the desk were already prepared to attack and end Daniel Smith''s life as soon as he refused his request.


    Daniel Smith also stared at Joseph and the gazes of the two met in mid-air.


    After a few seconds of stalemate, Daniel Smith bowed his head and respectfully replied.


    "Let me handle this n of yours, Your Majesty... " Daniel Smith didn''t even raise his head as he replied.


    His actions right now were vastly different from the actions that he did in front of Joseph recently.


    But why had he suddenly decided to respect Joseph?


    Well, it was because Joseph had shown enough knowledge that he acquired Daniel Smith''s loyalty.


    As for if this loyalty would still continue in the future...


    Well, that''s something that could only be answered in the future.


    What''s important was that right now, Daniel Smith was indeed loyal to Joseph.


    After experiencing betrayals one after another, words couldn''t describe how relieved Joseph was right now when he realized that Daniel Smith was now ready to devote his time and even life for his sake.


    If not for the fact that Daniel Smith was still in this room...


    Joseph would''ve already been jumping up and down in joy as a celebration for acquiring a loyal follower.


    "Good... Good... Good! You are indeed a decisive man! Then, go forth! Do your job at ease for I will be backing you up from the sidelines!" Joseph lightly chuckled.


    Daniel Smith slightly nodded his head as he said, "Yes, Your Majesty." He then turned around and was about to leave the room when he suddenly stopped on his tracks and asked.


    "By the way, Your Majesty... If you don''t mind me asking... May I know the name of this brilliant scheme of yours?"


    Daniel revealed a look of anticipation on his face for he was sure that His Majesty''s incredible scheme would definitely be recorded in history and immortalized.


    Joseph turned to look at Daniel and smiled.


    After furtively ncing at the Wikipedia window on his peripheral vision, Joseph dismissed that window and proudly dered.


    "You can call it..."


    "The Pyramid Scheme!"

 Chapter 145: Start of an Epic Journey[6]

    Chapter 145: Start of an Epic Journey[6]


    [The system is checking the validity of the solution that you proposed for some of the problems of the Kingdom.]


    [Solution has been dered as valid!]


    [Your solution has been excellent, but it takes time to see its fruits.]


    [Timeskip Option has been enabled.]


    [You can choose to skip to ater timeline. It is rmended to skip into the future for it lets you see the fruits of your solution faster and it doesn''t harm you in any way. However, it takes quite a lot of time to restructure the variables within the world of the King''s Trial based on the future so you will have to log-out for a few hours.]


    [Note: This is a one-time choice and if you refuse, you cannot turn back anymore!]


    [Do you want to use the Timeskip Option? Yes/No]


    <em>A time skip option? Pretty convenient... But the fact that I don''t get instantly transported into the future reveals that even a Supeputer has its limitations. That actually makes sense if this King''s Trial is in a whole new world that''s also open for exploration...</em>


    Joseph lightly smiled.


    As a video game connoisseur, he also knew about the hardware necessary to run a virtual reality game like this and its limitations.


    After all, there was a limit to how much speed one could generate while maintaining stability without overheating. Joseph was even curious as to how P.H Works actually maintained the world of Victory regarding cooling.


    Joseph heaved a sigh of relief.


    After experiencing one betrayal after another...


    He felt d that he had the option to skip into the feature without being paranoid that his life could end in unimaginable ways and he had to start again from zero.


    Tapping on the Yes button, the world around Joseph distorted and his consciousness slowly darkened. When he opened his eyes once again, he found himself staring at the familiar ceiling of the Gaming Capsule with an LED Screen that said...


    [2:59:53]


    <em>So, there''s even a countdown on the external monitor.</em>


    Joseph lightly smiled and he raised his upper body up before exiting the Gaming Capsule.


    As soon as he stepped a single foot outside, his Gaming Capsule rang, indicating that he had received a message.


    <em>A message? This early in the morning? Could it be that it''s from those promotional marketingpanies again? Just how did they escape through the spam filter that I made?</em>


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    He walked towards the shing monitor in front of the Gaming Capsule and found that it was a message from an unknown number. Opening it up, several strings of messages appeared within the monitor.


    <em>Joseph! I saw the system notifications and wow! I really didn''t expect that you weren''t joking to me when you said that you had a Mythical ss! </em>


    <em>I really am sorry for doubting you at that time. Are you avable sometime this weekend? I really want to treat you to a meal so we can reconcile about the fact that I didn''t believe you back then...</em>


    Joseph''s frown deepened when he saw the message.


    <em>Now, who the fuck is this?</em>


    He fell into deep contemtion for a moment as he connected the dots and finally realized that the sender was Lily.


    But how did he found the answer to his question after only several seconds of thinking?


    Well, it was because Joseph had no other visitors apart from Lily within the past few weeks.


    The strings of messages contained within the mail alone were enough for Joseph to deduce the identity of the sender.


    But...


    Joseph sighed.


    He didn''t have any enmity against Lily, but Joseph who learned several skills on dealing against those ckpanies on a daily basis could deduce Lily''s attitude towards him.


    How could he not know that she was looking at him with contempt, even though on the surface, she was helping him with his troubles?


    This was why Joseph felt conflicted.


    It was because he knew that even he wasn''t that innocent.


    He also took advantage of Lily''s care for him back then so that he could get back on his feet.


    Despite knowing that Lily had her own ulterior motives...


    Joseph pretended that nothing was going on behind the surface and acted normally just so he could keep on taking advantage of her help.


    This was the reason why Joseph didn''t know how he should face this childhood friend of his.


    A part of him felt guilty about taking advantage of her at those moments, but a part of him thought that him, taking advantage of her was something that she deserved due to her ulterior motives.


    But when Joseph thought deeper into the problem, he realized that Lily hadn''t really done something bad against him.


    In fact, it was Joseph who made an action and acted as if he didn''t know anything that she''s nning and took advantage of her kindness.


    Joseph sighed...


    After about half an hour of thinking, he finally decided as to how he would reply.


    <em>Yeah, I am free this weekend, but I would prefer it if we meet in-game instead of outside.</em>


    <em> I would really want to see how you look like in the game. I''d bet you''d be as gorgeous as you are outside. Hahaha, since I think that you know about my in-game name and gamer tag already. Just send me a direct message regarding what time you are avable...</em>


    Joseph typed in his message and quickly sent it as a reply. Afterwards, he went downstairs and started preparing for his breakfast. There was still about two and a half hours left before the countdown ended so Joseph decided that he would make a fancy dish for himself.


    The fragrant smell of meat soon permeated into the air and one could find hints of sweetness amidst the meat. The smell that wafted and filled the room wasn''t particrly greasy.


    In fact, it was just perfect which elicited a smile from Joseph''s lips as he quickly prepared the rice and the dish before furtively ncing at the clock.


    <em>There''s still an hour left before the countdown ends...</em>


    Joseph turned on the television and swiftly downed the meal that he prepared for himself.


    Afterwards, he stared nkly at the television.


    The coldness of the room seeped through his thin shirt and it sent shivers down his spine as he thought.


    <em>Damn...</em>


    <em>Now that I think about it.</em>


    <em>I''m actually pretty lonely...</em>


    <em>I had friends, but when I knew that they didn''t really care about me that much back then, I was d, thinking that I had dodged a bullet...</em>


    <em>But now...</em>


    <em>Apart from the world of Victory, it is safe to say that I have no life elsewhere.</em>


    <em>Sigh... I really am quite pathetic.</em>


    <em>This may be the reason why despite knowing that Lily has ulterior motives towards me, I am still trying to keep in touch with her. I think it''s maybe because I am too lonely...</em>


    Josephid on the couch in a fetal position. His eyes radiated the light of loneliness as time went by and finally, the countdown had ended.


    Joseph almost immediately stood up when he heard the rm upstairs.


    He rushed towards his Gaming Capsule and entered the world of Victory once again...


    When the loading screen disappeared and Joseph opened his eyes.


    He found himself sitting in front of a desk with several dozens of papers ready to be signed and approved by him.


    Joseph casually swept his gaze around the room and he found that even though nothing had really changed. There was something different about the room that he couldn''t quite grasp.


    Since he couldn''t quite understand that feeling then he decided to set that matter aside as he worked his ass off and signed the papers that he deemed fit to be approved.


    Soon, morning came and the maids brought in his breakfast.


    "Throw everything away and rece it with white bread and in water." Joseph almost immediatelymanded when he saw that there was a bottle of wine included on his breakfast and a bowl of porridge.


    The maids were taken aback, none of them managed to reply until the silence was broken with the maid who looked to be the eldest of them all.


    "But, Your Majesty... Her Majesty requested for you to eat this bowl of porridge that she made. She''d be sad if she knows that you decided to throw it away instead of eating it..." The maid bowed and Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    <em>Her Majesty...? Isn''t that the Queen? In other words, it''s my wife? Oh, hell no! Fuck that shit!</em> Joseph inwardly cursed but when he thought deeper into it. Wouldn''t the Queen realize that there was something strange with him if he refused the bowl of porridge?


    <em>Yes, that makes sense. I''ll just ept that bowl of porridge and pretend that I ate it.</em>


    Joseph inwardly nodded before he replied to the maid, "You should''ve told me that it was made by my wife. Fine, I''ll take that porridge, but you must rece that wine for in water."


    "By your will, Your Majesty..." The maid kneeled and obeyed.


    They brought everything outside except the bowl of porridge, but they soon returned. Carrying a jug filled with in water along with dozens of bread and pastries for Joseph to enjoy.


    Of course, Joseph touched none of them.


    He had already experienced what it felt like to die by poisoning, so he was quite traumatized into touching or even eating food in this world made by the King''s Trial.


    Thankfully, his character didn''t feel any hunger so he didn''t need to consume any food.


    He just needed to ept them so that those who wanted him dead wouldn''t be suspicious.


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion.


    <em>The solution that I made regarding the food supply of the Kingdom and the funds has been epted as a valid solution, yet why is this Trial not ending yet? Is there some kind of a hidden problem that still hasn''t been solved?</em>


    Joseph thought for several dozens of minutes, but he couldn''t find the answer to his question.


    Left with no other choice, he proceeded to summon the Minister of Finance, Daniel Smith.


    The man who Joseph reckoned to be his most loyal follower right now.


    Daniel Smith soon arrived and he bowed. There was a look of anticipation and excitement on his face as if he was waiting for something from his Majesty.


    "From that look on your face, I reckon that the Pyramid Scheme that I told you about is still going on, eh?"


    Daniel Smith replied with a wide smile, "Yes, Your Majesty! Those nobles really are too foolish and greedy. Despite the fact that they know that the scheme isn''t really sustainable due to its interest returns. They are too afraid of missing out so they are depositing as much money as possible, thinking that they could milk the scheme to its limits..."


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "Is that so? Then, it seems like it''s about time for us to stop that scheme."


    Daniel Smith was astonished, "Stop it? Why would we stop it, Your Majesty? I don''t understand? The scheme is still doing well..."


    Joseph shook his head and said, "The best time to attack is whenever your enemy doesn''t expect your attack. Those nobles would never predict that the scheme would promptly copse despite it still doing well and without any problems..."


    Daniel Smith revealed a look of enlightenment, but he still continued on asking: "But how do I stop this scheme without arousing the suspicions of the nobles?"


    "You just have to make it look like an ident... "


    "I doubt that they can stillin knowing that I am the one backing you." Joseph smiled.


    He turned to face Daniel Smith and realized that even though he understood what he was talking about. Daniel Smith still has some confusion that Joseph must answer for everything to work as smoothly as possible.


    "It seems like you still have some questions in your mind, go ahead and ask away..."


    "I will answer it for you."


    Daniel Smith nodded before awkwardly scratching his head and asking with a wry smile, "Excuse me for asking a dumb question, Your Majesty... But, how do I make it look like an ident?"


    Joseph froze for a moment before he inwardly facepalmed.


    <em>It seems like even though this old man maybe excellent when ites to finances, he''s quite a dull man when ites to schemes. But oh well, that should be because he''s inherently a good man that had never used schemes in his life, but I don''t know. I can''t say for sure.</em>


    Joseph shook his head and replied, "You just need to hire helpers, uh... Here''s how you do it..."


    Joseph then rambled on the specifics about the n on how to make the disappearance of the investor''s money into an ident that Daniel Smith and Joseph wouldn''t be implicated into.


    The discussionsted for at least an hour with Daniel Smith asking the questions and Joseph answering them with the help of his stockpile of useless stocked knowledge and Mister Google.


    When the discussion was finally over, Joseph heaved a sigh of relief.


    Answering Daniel Smith''s question really exhausted him. Thankfully, it was now over and he could finally take a breather. However, when Daniel Smith was about to leave the room, Joseph suddenly remembered the primary reason why he summoned him here in the first ce.


    "Wait!" Joseph hastily stopped Daniel Smith from leaving the room.


    Daniel Smith turned around and kneeled onto the ground when he saw how serious Joseph was.


    "What is it, Your Majesty?"


    Joseph nodded his head and said, "Can you tell me what themon people and the nobles think about me as the King?"


    Joseph said these words in a casual tone, but when Daniel Smith heard what he had said.


    Sweat filled Daniel Smith''s forehead as his face went as pale as a sheet of paper.


    "Your Majesty..."


    He sprawled onto the floor and started crying, "If I did anything wrong, then please forgive me!"


    He smacked his head onto the floor several times, astonishing Joseph who cried out...


    "What the hell are you doing, Daniel Smith? Stop that!"


    Daniel Smith abruptly stopped what he was doing, but fear was still evident in his eyes. He didn''t dare to raise his head and stare directly at Joseph as Joseph asked another question and said.


    "What was that all about? Why did you suddenly smack your head onto the floor like that?"


    Daniel Smith shivered in fear.


    "Your Majesty..."


    "Did you already forget?"


    "Thest time someone honestly answered that question of yours..."


    "You had him executed along with his family!"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted..."


    <em>What...?</em>


    <em>This character that I am using is that cruel?</em>


    "Your Majesty, forgive me but I will not answer that question! I have a family, Your Majesty and I love them more than anything else in this world. If you want me dead, then I will offer you my life, but please... At least, spare my family..."


    Daniel Smith sprawled onto the ground once again and cried.


    Joseph looked quite disturbed by the sudden esction of the situation.


    "Wait, calm down, calm down... I am not going to execute you, I am not going to execute anyone. Just believe me and calm down, all right?" Joseph even forgot that he was currently in the middle of pretending to be a King as he consoled Daniel Smith who was currently crying his eyes out.


    Daniel Smith finally had the courage to raise his head and Joseph found him quite pitiful. However, since he required more information from Daniel Smith so he couldplete this Trial...


    Joseph had no other choice but to continue asking.


    "Daniel Smith. Right now, I swear to the gods that I won''t execute you, nor anyone in your family even if you gave me an honest answer to that question of mine earlier."


    Joseph directly used the fact that everyone in this Kingdom was religious so that he could convince Daniel Smith that he had no intention of executing him or anyone in his family.


    Daniel Smith finally looked convinced, but he still hesitated on answering.


    However, seeing the look of encouragement within his Majesty''s eyes.


    Daniel Smith mustered his courage and bravely answered.


    "If I were to answer that question of yours, Your Majesty. I say that you are a cancerous tumor in this Kingdom. The reason why you''re called the most foolish King in the current Epoch isn''t just because of your bad decisions..."


    "It''s also because you have no idea how to maintain rtions with your citizens and is needlessly cruel to everyone that did the slightest of wrong towards you..."


    "Right now, even I still remember the scream of that child as he was skinned alive due to merely calling you as Uncle."


    "There was even that incident when you sent the husband of a woman to his death just because you wanted that woman into your harem..."


    "In the end, her husband died, and she also died when Her Majesty learned about what had happened and killed her out of jealousy..."


    "What''s worse was that after you had taken advantage of her, you just set her aside andpletely forgot about her as if she was nothing but a mere broken toy that deserved to be forgotten..."


    "This is the reason why I didn''t want to tell you the answer to that question earlier, Your Majesty..."


    "It''s because aside from designing that brilliant scheme against those nobles and introducing the concept of Crop Rotation to the farmers. You are nothing but still a cancerous tumor in this Kingdom..."


    Daniel Smith then bowed his head and when he realized that he had directlymitted sacrilege against his Majesty. Sweat filled his forehead once again as his body continuously shivered like a sieve.


    However, contrary to his expectations that His Majesty would go back on his promise...


    Joseph just dismissed him and he left as fast as possible as if there was something chasing him that wanted him dead.


    Meanwhile, within the room...


    Joseph could be seen leaning on his chair as he bitterly smiled.


    <em>So, that''s the reason why my trusted aide and my wife betrayed me. It turns out I''m actually a huge piece of shit and a human that doesn''t even deserve to live.</em>


    <em>However, the question is...</em>


    <em>Will doing that make meplete the King''s Trial?</em>


    <em>I only have three lives left and if I chose to do that and it failed. That would be quite wasteful.</em>


    <em>However, apart from that method. I really have no other method that I can use to test that particr theory as to why the King''s Trial still hasn''t ended despite me introducing a long-term solution that would help this Kingdom in the future.</em>


    Joseph deeply sighed...


    He thought for several minutes and finally decided that he would test his theory.


    Joseph waved his hand and summoned his Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty.


    Opening his Main Menu and navigating to Options. He manipted the values within his Pain Sensors and afterwards, he finally closed the Main Menu.


    Holding the Rapier of Grandeur and Beauty in his right hand.


    Joseph took a deep breath, and...


    Stabbed the Rapier into his heart.


    A mouthful of blood escaped from his mouth and he promptly copsed.


    However, the system notifications that appeared right in front of him made him smile.


    <em>So, it turns out... My theory was actually right... I''m actually the biggest traitor and troublemaker of the Kingdom. I, who forgot the roots of this Kingdom and was always needlessly merciless to my residents actually deserved to die.</em>


    <em>Only through this method could I grant Justice to everyone that I wronged back then, and only through this method, would the Kingdom move forward...</em>


    Joseph''s consciousness darkened but he felt no pain.


    In fact, he was quite happy that he finallypleted his stressful trial.


    However, his happiness soon disappeared due to the emergence of another series of system notifications.


    [You havepleted the Part One of the King''s Trial!]


    [Wee to the Final Part of the King''s Trial...]


    [Initializing...]


    [Initializationplete!]


    There''s still a Part Two?! I wasn''t informed about this!


    Joseph opened his eyes and he found himself staring at another unfamiliar ceiling once again.


    [Information: You are an evil immortal that''s about to ascend and fight against the Heavenly Tribtion! Your mission this time is to understand "Order", "Law" and "Justice"! Understand these concepts and you will pass the Final Part of the King''s Trial!]


    <em>An Immortal? What the fuck? Isn''t the genre Video Games? How did it be Eastern Fantasy all of the sudden?</em>


    Joseph inwardlympooned.

 Chapter 146: Start of an Epic Journey[7]

    Chapter 146: Start of an Epic Journey[7]


    [You are now an evil immortal! For the sake of those who do not have any knowledge about xianxia. An Artificial Intelligence Pixie Fairy is made avable to help you. Summon the Pixie Fairy by calling its name! The Pixie''s name is listed within your updated Skill Tree...]


    [Your Skill Tree has been updated...]


    Joseph opened his eyes and he found himself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.


    Or was it a ceiling?


    Joseph wasn''t so sure since what he was seeing right now was a ceiling that was made out of rocks.


    Joseph skimmed through the system notifications that blocked his eyes and he was intrigued by what he had read.


    <em>A Pixie Fairy? I have someone to guide me? Nice!</em>


    Joseph hurriedly opened his Skill Tree and found that he only had a single skill avable to him.


    It had the icon of a beautiful fairy. Joseph tapped on it and found that the name of the Pixie Fairy was Elizabeth. Closing his Main Menu and the Skill Tree, Joseph opened his mouth and called upon the name of the Pixie.


    "Elizabeth!"


    Joseph uttered and a sh of brilliant light appeared within the cave.


    The lightsted for only several seconds at most before it dissipated, revealing the figure of a fairy that looked to be the same size as a ruler. The fairy had wings attached on her back and she wore a green dress that expressed the harmony of Spring with nature.


    It really suited Joseph who came from the Kingdom of Nether.


    [Pixie Fairy Personality has been decided ording to the tastes of the yer!]


    [Initializing...]


    <em>ording to my tastes? What in the hell does that mean?</em>


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows, but he couldn''t hide the anticipation on his face.


    [Initializationplete...]


    The Pixie Fairy Elizabeth finally opened her eyes and as soon as she saw Joseph. She almost immediately frowned and assumed a cold facade that greatly astonished Joseph who inwardlympooned.


    <em>You made her like Alice!</em>


    <em>Yes, that face! That cold face right there lookspletely the same as Alice!</em>


    <em>What the fuck, system?!</em>


    Joseph facepalmed. But since everything had already been decided and there was no use crying over spilled milk. He couldn''t do anything other than sigh and stare at the Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Yes, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    That was the name floating above the head of the Pixie.


    "You''re the one that summoned me?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth raised an eyebrow and scanned Joseph from head to toe, her eyes that radiated infinite coldness seemed to be inwardly mocking Joseph.


    "Yes, I''m your master, and what''s that look and with that tone of voice?" Joseph frowned.


    "Is there something wrong with my tone of voice?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked.


    "You forgot to add the "master" at the end!" Joseph criticized.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth rolled her eyes and didn''t bother about Joseph anymore.


    <em>What the fuck... Aren''t I the master among the two of us? Why does it feel like it''s the other way around?</em>


    Joseph gnashed his teeth and asked, "Tell me about the objectives of this King''s Trial..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth momentarily nced at him and said, "You didn''t read the system notifications? Sigh... I really didn''t expect that not only I would get a not-so-handsome master, he''s also quitezy!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth sighed.


    Veins bulged on Joseph''s forehead as he thought.


    <em>Fuck, he''s not just Alice! Her insults sound like Alice but on steroids!</em>


    Joseph took several deep breaths and calmed himself down.


    Afterwards, he then stared at the Pixie Fairy and replied, "I did read the system notifications but the objectives are too vague! I''m now an evil immortal and I need toprehend the concept of Justice, Law, and Order? Just what the hell are concepts in the first ce?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth stared at Joseph for a moment before she sighed, seemingly surrendering to her fate on needing to teach her ignorant master about themon sense of this world.


    "You are now an evil immortal that cultivates the Art of Discord and Disorder. You are currently at the Core Formation Realm and you are trying to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm..."


    "However, to make that breakthrough, you must understand the Concept of Justice, Law, and Order first and summon the Heavenly Tribtion and then survive against it..."


    "As for how to do that, you can use any method for as long as you can evoke the wrath of the heavens. I know that this is quite vague and because of that, there''s no definite deadline to this King''s Trial. You can research for as long as you want, but keep in mind that you will not be able to return to the world of Victory unless you seed or fail."


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head as he listened to the exnation of the Pixie Fairy.


    When the Pixie Fairy was finally done with her exnation.


    Joseph had a look of excitement on his face.


    As he expected, from the words, <em>"Immortal"</em> alone. Joseph had already deduced that this King''s Trial had something to do with cultivation or cultivating to fight against the heavens as he had read on those Eastern Fantasy books.


    Joseph had always been a fan of Eastern Fantasy books and it was his favorite pastime to read these kinds of books whenever he was bored. Now that he had a chance to disy his knowledge and wisdom regarding the world of Immortals, how could Joseph not be excited about that?


    In fact, he was actually even profusely thanking the P.H Works right now for giving him such a precious opportunity.


    Seeing that Joseph didn''t reply...


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth frowned and asked, "Would you like to know more information about the Cultivation Realms in this world?"


    Joseph lightly smiled and said, "Just give me a brief summary regarding them..."


    "I just need to confirm something."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded and started talking, "The names of the cultivation realms and their description are quite literal so if you have a few brain cells remaining in your brain, I think you will be able to instantly understand what they mean..."


    "The first realm is the Qi Gathering Realm, Second is Foundation Establishment, Third is the Core Formation Realm, and the Fourth is the Nascent Soul Realm which is the highest Realm achievable by anyone in this world and is considered as the front door to the world of Immortals..."


    "Only by stepping into the Nascent Soul Realm could one call himself a genuine Immortal. In other words, a Core Formation Realm cultivator like you is nothing but a fake Immortal."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth scoffed when shepleted her sentence.


    But Joseph who had already thought that he should treat Pixie Fairy Elizabeth like how he always treated Alice whenever she was ranting didn''t mind her mocking at all.


    Instead, he merely nodded his head and asked, "What functions do you have aside from answering my questions?"


    Joseph casually asked, but the Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s expression paled.


    She hurriedly pulled her skirt downwards and covered her chests, "What do you mean? Why are you asking something like that? Could it be that you''re thinking of...?"


    "Fuck off! Why would I think about something like that?" Even Joseph couldn''t take it anymore as he violently cursed. He already had Alice, why would he be a pervert towards other women?


    Particrly when that woman was a Pixie who was only as big as his palm.


    Joseph exined a few more times before Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was finally convinced.


    Afterwards, she promptly replied to Joseph''s question earlier.


    "I can do anything that you want me to do for as long as I am willing and it''s within the limits of one''s imagination..." A cold look could be seen on her face as she exined.


    It seemed like, despite Joseph''s exnation, she still wasn''t convinced that Joseph wouldn''t do something untoward against her.


    "So, you can do anything for as long as it''s actually possible, eh? In that case, can you turn me into a mortal and vice-versa?" Joseph asked.


    "Why would you want to be a mortal?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked with a frown.


    Being an immortal in this realm meant that Joseph could do almost everything that he wanted to do save from destroying the entire world, yet why was he abandoning such power for the sake of being a mortal?


    It didn''t make any sense.


    Joseph shook his head and stared at her with visible mocking like how she stared at him earlier and said, "It seems like you really don''t understand. Yes, I may be an Immortal but I am trying toprehend the ways of the heavens, and in order to do that. I must abide by thews of the heavens first, meaning. I should cease fighting against the heavens..."


    "Being an immortal is fighting against thews of the heavens. That is why I won''t be able toprehend the heavens if I remain as an immortal. Only by bing a mortal could an immortal be a true immortal. These are the lessons that those books that I read on a daily basis told me..." Joseph had a proud look on his face as he exined.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth looked confused, but since it was the will of his master to be a mortal. She did what he wanted her to do and within the next few seconds. Joseph promptly copsed onto the ground, his knees copsing under the weight of his body.


    "What the fuck? Why can''t I stand up? Hey, what did you do?"


    Joseph angrily red at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth rolled her eyes and said, "Your body is the body of a thousand-year-old immortal. A mortal''s lifespan is a mere hundred years at most. Meaning, if you became an immortal at that state, you will definitely die in just under a minute since there''s no way that a mortal could be more than a hundred-years-old."


    "Then, turn me back! What the hell are you waiting for? Do you really want me to die that much? I am your master, you know?!" Joseph retorted.


    Thankfully, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth promptlyplied and strength returned to Joseph''s body.


    But since he still wanted to be an immortal, he gave her another set of instructions.


    "Since I cannot be a mortal with that old body of mine. How about you turn me into a youngster and afterwards, you transform me into a mortal in that state using that body? In that case, I won''t need to worry about my body copsing and turning into ashes, right?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth snorted, "That''s right, you should''ve told me about that earlier."


    "Hey, hey, hey! You already knew that me bing a mortal in that old body was detrimental but you still turned me into a mortal despite knowing that fact. Are you sure that you are here to help me instead of trying to kill me?" Joseph angrily retorted, there was a wronged look on his face as if he was greatly hurt by what she had done.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s expression softened.


    Of course, she knew that turning Joseph into a mortal while he was still using that old body was detrimental, but she was nothing but a mere servant. She needed precise instructions from her master and only through that could she do everything that he wanted her to do.


    She promptly exined about her circumstances to Joseph...


    But her exnation made Joseph frown instead as hempooned.


    "So, it turns out that you still need exact instructions to work even though you are made with a highly-advanced Artificial Intelligence. But it doesn''t really matter, I just need to give you proper instructions, right?" Joseph turned to look at her for confirmation and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded her head without saying anything.


    She felt like Joseph was somewhat mocking her, but since she couldn''t grasp if it was the truth...


    She resorted to not saying anything instead.


    "Before you turn me into a mortal, can you exin to me what concepts are? Just what exactly is a Concept and what can I do using it?" Joseph asked, even though he had an idea of what concepts were. it was still safer to ask since asking questions wasn''t even a crime anyway.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth stared at him for a moment before she sighed and exined: "Concepts are sometimes called Laws. Cultivation is basically the same as fighting against the heavens, but if you want to fight against the heavens and survive, you mustprehend these vague ideas called Concepts..."


    "There are a lot of unheard Concepts in the world and they are ever-changing. Of course, there are Concepts that never change or can never be changed such as the Concept of Time and Space, Concept of Death and Life, and the Concept of Change. One can only use a Concept if they thoroughly understand what it was and how it worked..."


    "Combining these vague concepts along with understanding the core of one''s life or the internal aspects that makes up the life of a cultivator is the only way that one can thoroughly fight against the heavens and even stand on par against it!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth looked iparably proud after her exnation but Joseph merely chuckled.


    "Yeah, that indeed sounds awesome but your exnations are quite empty. I want an exnation that even a five-year-old can understand! Exin it to me again like I''m five!"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth froze, a wry smile escaped on her lips as she stared at her master.


    Seeing that he looked to bepletely serious about what he had said. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth sighed and promptly exined, "Concepts are what makes up the universe and to use it is the same as utilizing the underlying meaning of that particr Concept..."


    "Say you are using the Concept of Time and Space. If you thoroughly understand that Concept then you can easily manipte Time and Space. You can speed up the passing of time, slow it down, or even pause it..."


    "For example, say that you want to instantly harvest the fruits of a particr tree..."


    "You can use the Concept of Time and Space to instantly make it bear fruit. That''s basically how it works. If you still don''t understand it, then how about you just use it?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth made a proposal that astonished Joseph.


    "I can use it?"


    "What?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth rolled her eyes and said, "Did you already forget that you cultivate the Art of Discord and Disorder? Interpret the meaning of <em>"Discord"</em> and <em>"Disorder"</em> then try to use them ording to your understanding of them..."


    "Try to use them ording to my understanding of them? Heck, I don''t even know what the word "Discord" means..." Joseph shook his head and inwardly chuckled.


    He opened up Mister Google and found that the meaning of Discord was basically the same as conflict, while disorder was quite easy for Joseph to understand.


    <em>But to cause conflict and chaos... Wait, isn''t conflict basically the cause of chaos and chaos is the effect of conflict?</em>


    <em>Could it be that Concepts... Even though there are too many of them, they are still intertwined with each other in some ways or another?</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion.


    Afterwards, he stared at a certain rock on the ground and tried imagining how he could cause conflict within that rock that would make it shatter.


    But despite being in a staring contest against the rock for several minutes, nothing was happening.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth noticed what Joseph was trying to do, and even though she knew that what he was doing wasn''t even the correct way of evoking the Concept of Discord and Disorder. She didn''t stop him for she thought that it was quite amusing to see him struggle like this.


    "What the fuck, why is it not working? Do I imagine something happening or not? You said something about the limits of imagination earlier, yet why is my imagination not affecting the world?" Joseph turned to look at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth with frustration clearly on his face.


    "Pffft..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth couldn''t help it anymore as sheughed out loud. Her shoulders and wings continuously trembled and she even almost fell onto the ground due to herughter.


    Joseph raised his hand and sent a p towards her direction.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth promptly stopped herughter and evaded the p.


    "What are you doing?" She asked with a frown.


    "That should be my line! You''re the one mocking your master here so I should be the one that should be angry!" Joseph angrily retorted. After taking several deep breaths to calm himself, he continued, "Tell me what''s going on. How do I use that Art of Discord and Disorder."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth rolled her eyes and replied, "You use Qi."


    "Qi? Oh, that makes sense." Joseph closed his eyes and started meditating ording to the method that he learned from his years of reading eastern fantasy novels.


    But his actions made him look pretentious to the eyes of Pixie Fairy Elizabeth as she asked, "I still haven''t told you how to do it. In fact, do you even know how to use Qi?"


    Joseph didn''t reply to her question.


    He just kept his eyes closed and his senses sealed off from the outside world.


    Soon, Joseph felt an inexplicable sensation...


    He guided that sensation towards the tip of his fingers and pointed it on a random rock on the ground and with his will...


    Bang!


    ... A ray of crimson light flew from the tip of his index finger towards that rock, crushing it into smithereens.


    "So that''s how you do it!" Joseph eximed in excitement.


    "What...? You... You already know how to summon Qi... How did you learn it that fast?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of visible confusion and shock on her face as she asked.


    But Joseph ignored her as he proceeded to y around using his newfound power.


    He formed several rays of crimson light and made them circle around his body. He even turned them into several shapes such as a sword, spear, rapier, and even a bow and an arrow.


    <em>Wow... So, Qi is actually like a lump of y that you can transform anything for as long as it''s within the limits of your capabilities and imagination. By imagination, I mean, you must not only have a clear picture of something. You must also understand how it works...</em>


    <em>I tried creating a Nuclear Bomb through my Qi, but it didn''t work. That means that even though I can imagine how a Nuclear Bomb looks like, as long as I don''t understand how it works. I cannot create it through my Qi.</em>


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head as he inwardly thought to himself.


    <em>But is this really using the Concept of Discord and Disorder?</em>


    Joseph turned his attention to another piece of rock and he tried to use the Concept of Discord and Disorder within it but to no avail. However, Joseph suddenly had a brilliant idea.


    <em>What if I sow discord and create disorder within the minerals that make up that rock?</em>


    <em>Wait, that is actually a great idea!</em>


    <em>How did I not think of this earlier?</em>


    Joseph had the urge to facepalm, but his curiosity got the best of him as he stared at the rock once again.


    This time, he imagined creating discord and disorder among the minerals that make up the rock and...


    Crack...


    Bang!


    ... Vi!


    The rock abruptly shattered before turning into dust.


    The excited Joseph hurriedly turned to another piece of rock and through the same method, he also turned that rock into dust. Afterwards, he turned to find a tree, then a mosquito, then a frog, and then finally, he turned to look at the Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and smiled.


    <em>So the Concept of Discord and Disorder is actually just taking the meaning of both words and imagining what scenario you wanted to happen ording to the meaning of those words.</em>


    <em>In the case of that rock earlier, I imagined conflict between the minerals that make up that rock and since their rtionship became disharmonious, the rock exploded and shattered.</em>


    A look of curiosity shed across Joseph''s face as he stared intently at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    <em>I wonder what will happen if I create conflict between what she knows as reality and imagination? Would that make her think that the real world was just her imagination or a dream? Or will her imagination manifest into the real world in an unknown form that I still don''t know about?</em>


    <em>There''s only one way to know the answer to this question!</em>


    <em>Let''s try it out!</em>


    Joseph decided...


    "Conflict between what is reality and imagination in her head!"


    Joseph inwardly uttered and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s eyes abruptly widened.


    But it was quickly reced with a nk look that Joseph hurriedly took advantage of.


    "I am your master and you absolutely love me..."


    "You do everything that you can do to please me, and you will never betray me..."


    "You will attack those that dare to harm me and you will protect me with your life."


    Joseph casually ordered.


    He even looked pleased since he thought that he had finally ced the arrogant Pixie Fairy Elizabeth in her ce.


    But little did he knew that this so-called casual and small order of his was just the beginning of his troubles in the future.<ol><li>Eastern Fantasy</li></ol>

 Chapter 147: Start of an Epic Journey[8]

    Chapter 147: Start of an Epic Journey[8]


    "Excuse me, sir Ray, sir Mar... But wouldn''t this King''s Trial take a lot of time toplete? Especially when he has to understand an incredibly vague concept. I don''t think that something like that can be understood in just a week or two."


    Elizabeth couldn''t finally hold her curiosity as she asked.


    Ray turned to look at her and smiled, "Take a look at the monitors there." He pointed and Elizabeth followed his finger.


    When her eyesnded on the monitors that Ray pointed at, Elizabeth''s eyes widened in shock.


    Even though she was a mere Secretary that didn''t really have that much of authority within the headquarters of P.H Works.


    She still knew some secrets that only other scientists could possibly know.


    What she saw within those monitors and the cause for her shock was that right now, the King''s Trial was actually using at least sixty-percent of the Supeputer Noah''s memory allocation and about seventy percent of its CPU Performance!


    Just what do these figures mean?


    It means that the world of Victory right now was only being maintained by Noah using less than half of its full capabilities.


    Ray saw Elizabeth''s look of shock and he promptly exined, "You do not have to worry about thermal throttling. Myrades down there are doing their best to maintain the full capacity of the Supeputer Noah..."


    "As for the reason why we need more than half of Noah''s capabilities on maintaining the world within the King''s Trial..."


    "It''s because time within the world of the King''s Trial is distorted."


    "A hundred years in that ce is only a day in the outside world and about a week in the world of Victory..."


    Ray lifted a proud smile.


    Mar sipped a cup of coffee and a prideful smile also appeared on his lips.


    It was clear that these pair of scientists who made such a brilliant and unbelievable world were iparably proud of their creations and what they had done.


    "A hundred years in the King''s Trial is only about a week in the world of Victory and a day in the outside world?!" As expected, Elizabeth couldn''t suppress her shock as she eximed.


    But her shock further exacerbated the pride coursing through the veins of Mar and Ray as Mar chuckled andmented from the side.


    "That''s the reason why we don''t have to worry that much about time. What we must worry about is if he can even pass this King''s Trial. With how much resources we''re using for this King''s Trial. I''d really be disappointed if he wasn''t able toplete and pass the King''s Trial."


    Mar shook his head and turned his gaze to the monitors.


    Ray smiled and patted Elizabeth''s shoulders, "Are you tired? You look more like a zombie now."


    Elizabeth revealed a wry smile. Indeed, she was tired. But does it mean that she would give up this perfect opportunity to be with Ray even longer?


    No!


    Even if she was tired, she would never give up! As long as she could stay with Ray. She believed that she could do everything in this world...


    "No... I''m fine... Thank you, sir..." Elizabeth shook her head.


    Ray''s smile deepened, "Are you sure that you''re not tired? What a waste, I was about to offer myp as your pillow..."


    Ray shook his head in disappointment, but before he could even turn around to stare at the monitors once again.


    Elizabeth leaped beside him and ced her head on hisp.


    "Pfft..." Marughed at the side, "That was such a quick change of attitude, how unbelievable, Eli..."


    <em>Smack!</em>


    Elizabeth kicked with her right leg and it struck Mar directly on his side causing him to keel forwards while holding his side in pain.


    "Hahaha..." Ray chortled, "You shouldn''t have done that, Mar... I won''t help you this time, it''s your fault for incurring her wrath."


    Mar coldly snorted and didn''t bother about the two love birds anymore.


    Elizabeth, on the other hand, had a crimson blush on her cheeks. But she didn''t say anything for she only wanted to enjoy this moment as long as she could. Sadly, unfortunately for her. Before she knew it, she became toofortable on Ray''sp and soon fell asleep.


    Ray and Mar nced at each other and smiled.


    Afterwards, they turned to look at the monitors and continued on observing Joseph''s journey within the King''s Trial.


    ...


    "I am your master and you absolutely love me. You do everything that you can do to please me, and you will never betray me. You will attack those that dare to harm me and you will protect me with your life."


    Joseph casually said with a smile on his face. He figured that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth would definitely be angry at him for trying to do such a ridiculous thing. But did Joseph think that his Concept would work against Pixie Fairy Elizabeth?


    No!


    But why?


    It was because he knew that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was made by a highly-advanced Artificial Intelligence that shouldn''t be affected by the Concepts that existed within this world.


    As for the nk look that she assumed, Joseph thought that it was her way of disying confusion.


    After all, machines were far different than humans.


    What makes sense for them may not make sense for a human and vice-versa.


    However...


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth suddenly transformed into a human-sized Fairy and she slowly copsed into Joseph''s chest.


    "I..."


    She uttered.


    Joseph felt a shiver down his spine.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth raised her head and said.


    "Love you... master..."


    Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air as he hurriedly opened his Skill Tree and unsummoned Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Afterwards, he stared nkly at the air as he thought.


    <em>Oh god... Just what did I do?</em>


    <em>Did I just make a yandere version of Alice?!</em>


    <em>Goddamned it, let''s stash her away for now...</em>


    <em>I''ll just summon her as ast resort...</em>


    <em>Wait, I still haven''t asked her to turn me into a mortal!</em>


    Joseph facepalmed and summoned Pixie Fairy Elizabeth back and when she reappeared...


    She wasn''t as big as Joseph''s palm anymore. Instead, she looked more like a human now with the exception of the pair of wings attached to her back.


    "Master... Thank you for summoning me... If possible, I would like you to let me stay outside as much as possible. I want to be with you for as long as I can..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth said.


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile and said, "That cannot happen..."


    "Unless you can hide those wings of yours."


    "Hide these wings? I''m sorry, master but that cannot happen. The pride of a Pixie lies on their wings. The more magnificent and wide their wings are, the more powerful they are as a Pixie. And for me to hide something that I am proud of goes against my principles so that is an order that I cannot possibly obey, master..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth bowed her head in apology.


    Joseph waved his hand, "In that case, then I will not let you stay outside for long. However, I will still let you go outside so you can catch some fresh air. For as long as there''s no one else present in the area, of course..."


    "Thank you, master..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth respectfully replied, "May I know master''s orders for me this time? I can do anything for the master''s sake for as long as it''s not something that goes against my principles and ethics."


    Joseph couldn''t help but stare speechlessly at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    He felt kind of pleased and weird at the same time due to her sudden change in attitude.


    However, since everything had already been done and there was no use regretting over something that could never be changed anymore...


    Joseph could only sigh and say, "I want to know the method to turn myself into a mortal and vice-versa. Of course, I also want the method that I can use to change my age. I want to be a youngster before I be a mortal after all."


    He quickly added some additional information in his words, afraid that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth may not fully understand what he wanted to happen.


    Pixie Fary Elizabeth nodded her head and replied, "In that case, then master only needs to use the power of his imagination. Try imagining yourself going back into your young self, master."


    "Really? It''s that simple? Then, let me try it out."


    Joseph excitedly closed his eyes and imagined himself going back in time while he was still young.


    Within a few seconds of imagining, his bones creaked and his height suddenly decreased until he couldn''t stand nor even kneel anymore. In just a span of few seconds, Joseph transformed from an old man into an infant, eliciting a scream from Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who said...


    "You''ve gone too far, master!"


    The infant opened its mouth and replied, "Yeah, I definitely went too far. Let me turn back." The infant closed its eyes and after about a few seconds, it grew until it became a toddler, then to a young boy, then into a young man who looked to be in his early twenties.


    After reaching this age, Joseph stopped what he was doing as he turned to look at the Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and asked her a question with a prideful look on his face, "What do you think?"


    "Do I look handsome, or what?"


    Joseph even made a few poses which made Pixie Fairy Elizabethugh as she shyly replied.


    "Pffft... Yes, uhm... You are indeed handsome... master..."


    Seeing her embarrassed expression, Joseph thought that it was worth it that he made Pixie Fairy Elizabeth love him. It was because after all, it would be pretty annoying to have apanion that would always mock you whenever she had the chance.


    Even though it could be cute, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was basically Alice on steroids.


    Joseph was already having a hard time handling Alice.


    How could she add another woman simr to her?


    Furthermore, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was far worse than Alice!


    This was why you couldn''t me Joseph for his decision back then.


    If one looked at what he did from another perspective, one could say that his decision was quite a genius move that had the big picture in mind.


    "Now that I know how to control this strange cultivation power of mine. I think it''s about time that we set-off!" Joseph turned to the entrance of the cave.


    The dazzling light that came from the sun pierced his eyes and made him squint.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded her head as she said, "Is master nning on going to a human settlement? In that case, then I have a few suggestions..."


    "There''s the City of Eichenwalde, the City of Parie, and the City of Montejo. The nearest to us is the City of Eichenwalde, but it''s not that abundant if we''re talking economy-wise..."


    "If master wants to live peacefully then I suggest going to Eichenwalde, but if master wants to be bold then I suggest going to the City of Montejo or City of Parie..."


    "Among the two of these cities, the City of Montejo has the highest crime rate so if master wants to live dangerously then I suggest going there..."


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head as he listened to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s suggestion. But he almost immediately answered that he would go to the City of Eichenwalde for it was the safest city among the three nearby cities in the area.


    Why would he try and risk his life when he could avoid that risk in the first ce?


    This was Joseph''s mindset so he chose the City of Eichenwalde.


    Joseph walked out of the cave and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth disappeared and entered his forehead.


    Joseph was startled by what she had done and he even danced around, all while holding his forehead and checking if Pixie Fairy Elizabeth bore a hole on it.


    But when Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice suddenly echoed within Joseph''s mind, he finally understood that she didn''t actually bore a hole through his forehead.


    She only hid into his mind so that the two of them could telepathically contact each other without needing Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s physical appearance.


    <em>Damn, that gave me the shock of my life. But it''s actually pretty convenient.</em>


    Afterwards, Joseph spent the next half an hour learning how to fly.


    Apparently, cultivators like Joseph knew how to fly.


    In fact, it was quite easy for Joseph to fly.


    But why did he spend so long trying to fly when it was easy to do so?


    It was because Joseph was afraid of heights.


    Fortunately, it didn''t take too long for Joseph to get ustomed to heights, and only after Pixie Fairy Elizabeth promised him that she would definitely catch him if he fell from the skies...


    Joseph was finally convinced that he could definitely fly his way towards the City of Eichenwalde which was about a hundred kilometers away from the ce he was in right now.


    After Joseph neared the borders of the City of Eichenwalde which was about ten kilometers away from the City proper. He stopped flying and started walking like a mortal.


    After asking Pixie Fairy Elizabeth to protect him from any sudden attacks, Joseph extinguished his cultivation realm and from the Core Formation Realm, he transformed into a mortal.


    Along the way, Joseph had asked Pixie Fairy Elizabeth if it was better for him to join the several dozens of Sects located near the borders of the City of Eichenwalde, but Pixie Fairy Elizabeth said that it was probably better for Joseph to take his time alone.


    After all, even if he became that particr Sect''s core member. It would take too much time.


    Time that he didn''t want to waste since Alice, Ezreal, and Kayn was still waiting for him outside.


    From his banter with Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and his own understanding of a cultivator''s path due to his several years of reading cultivation novels.


    Joseph understood that it was very important for cultivators to understand the mysterious ways of the heavens if they wanted to be even stronger.


    Walking on the road, Joseph realized that there was a barely imperceptible aura that had the color of blood surrounding his body. He promptly asked Pixie Fairy Elizabeth about it and she replied that it was the manifestation of his body''s killing intent.


    Joseph asked for further information about it and it turned out that his body was truly the body of an evil immortal. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth said that the aura surrounding Joseph right now was actually condensed after continuously killing for several hundreds of years.


    Joseph felt terrified.


    He asked Pixie Fairy Elizabeth how to hide his killing intent and when he learned the method from her. He quickly hid the aura that surrounded his body.


    Right now, he thoroughly looked like a genuine mortal that came from the countryside and wanted to go to the City of Eichenwalde to earn some quick bucks and maybe even be rich.


    While walking, Joseph noticed that the mortals walking with him were carrying a lot of baggage.


    Joseph who didn''t have anything on him looked quite conspicuous and stuck out like a sore thumb.


    Sighing, Joseph stopped on the road and decided to ask for Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s help in making a small woven basket.


    Everything only took about half an hour and afterwards, Joseph filled the basket with all or sorts of leaves from all sorts of random nts in the area.


    He did all of these so that he wouldn''t look so suspicious towards anyone.


    Joseph continued on his walk and he had only walked for several hours at most, but he had already seen several dozens of cultivators passing by on their horses. The poor mortals had to squeeze themselves on the edge of the small road so that the horses of the cultivators wouldn''t harm them.


    Every time these horses passed by, they would leave a cloud of dust that always inundated the mortals, along with Joseph who could do nothing other than bitterly smile and pat himself clean off the dust.


    But at this moment, another set of footstepsing from horses rang from behind Joseph along with a shout that said.


    "Step aside! We''re in a hurry! Make way!"


    Joseph instantly stepped aside the moment he heard the scream, but apparently...


    The horses were running so fast that he only managed to dodge one before another horse came running towards him and was about to strike him head-on.


    Fortunately, before the horse could even hit Joseph. The rider pulled hard on the reins. The horse let out a loud cry as it raised its front legs and ced it to the side.


    Only after a few more steps did the horse stop due to its speed.


    When the horse finally stopped, the rider red at Joseph and swung the whip that he was using on his horse towards Joseph''s head as he cried out, "Did you not hear what I said from afar? Are you deaf?"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth instantly got mad and was about to retaliate when a hand came out of nowhere and stopped the whip. The owner of the hand then shouted, "What the hell are you doing, Kaiser?"


    The man riding the horse coldly snorted.


    He put his whip away and viciously red at Joseph before leaving the area.


    The middle-aged man who protected Joseph didn''t bother about the rider who went away for he turned to look at Joseph and apologized: "I''m really sorry about that, young man. That friend of mine, Kaiser is normally a good man but he''s also quite irritable."


    Joseph replied with a smile, "It''s not a problem."


    Afterwards, he dusted the dirt that clung on his clothes once again.


    The middle-aged man looked quite shocked. From what he could see, Joseph was nothing but a mere mortal. But his courage was actually higher than an average mortal. He carefully looked at Joseph and spotted the basket that he carried that was filled with leaves as he said


    "So, little brother. You''re going to Eichenwalde to be an Apprentice Apothecary?"


    Joseph didn''t bother to say anything else and he just let the misunderstanding continue as he nodded.


    The middle-aged man smiled before he leaped onto his horse. Afterwards, he moved, but instead of going forward, he went backward and apanied the caravan behind him. Joseph found that the middle-aged man along with that Kaiser earlier was actually escorting a merchant caravan.


    There were at least a hundred people escorting this caravan. Just from their shining eyes and posture alone. It was clear that they were experts, albeit not cultivators of course.


    The middle-aged man was on the left side of the caravan and when he noticed Joseph. He turned his head to one of hisrades and started talking with thatrade.


    Afterwards, when the caravan neared Joseph.


    The middle-aged man stopped his horse and asked Joseph a question.


    "Young man, since you are training to be an apothecary, do you perhaps have some medicine there that can temporarily relieve pain? One of our passengers got sick and is in pain right now so if you have any medicine to relieve pain, I will definitely be thankful for your help."


    Joseph didn''t expect that the misunderstanding would continue. A bitter smile appeared on his face and he was about to say that he had no medicine in him when Pixie Fairy Elizabeth suddenly whispered directly into his brain.


    <em>Master! This may be a chance!</em>


    <em>A chance? For what?</em>


    <em>Don''t you find it quite tedious to walk the remaining kilometers before the City of Eichenwalde? If you get their favor then you can possibly join their caravan and arrive there faster!</em>


    <em>That makes sense but do you really think that the leaves in here are medicines? They are just random leaves that I picked up somewhere on the ground earlier!</em>


    <em>Pfft... Master, it seems like you forgot that your Qi is quite special. Just infuse your Qi to one of the leaves and imagine that it can relieve pain. It will definitely work! Trust me on this!</em>


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth gave a decent proposal and even a solution to the reason why Joseph felt conflicted about helping the middle-aged man.


    Actually, Joseph also wanted to help the middle-aged man, but since he didn''t have any medicine on him, he wanted to refuse...


    But what Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had said thoroughly convinced him to help the middle-aged ma.


    He picked up a random leaf from his small woven basket, infused it with his Qi before handing it over to the middle-aged man, "Have the patient consume this leaf. As long as the leaf is consumed. The way of consumption doesn''t matter, you can even make a tea out of it if you want."


    Joseph promptly exined before the middle-aged man could ask any questions.


    The middle-aged man stared strangely at the leaf that was now on his hand.


    No matter at what angle you looked at this leaf, it was nothing but a leaf from any random tree that you could find in the area. The middle-aged man nced at the young man and bitterly smiled, it seemed like the young man wasn''t actually an Apothecary but a madman.


    Otherwise, who would pick up random leaves on the street and pretend that it was medicine? If this leaf was definitely medicine then he would''ve already personally took some of these leaves from the side of the road!


    He was about to secretly throw the leaf away when the voice of an old woman came within the carriage of the caravan.


    "That leaf... Hand me over that leaf!"


    Before the middle-aged man could react, an old woman walked out of the carriage and snatched the leaf from his hands.


    She inspected the leaf for a long time before she eximed: "This is a thousand-year-old panacea leaf!"


    The middle-aged man''s eyes widened in shock due to what he had heard, and even Joseph almost copsed onto the ground...


    <em>What thousand-year-old panacea leaf? I only wanted a painkiller leaf! How did it be something that sounds as rare as a phoenix''s feather or a qilin''s horn? What the fuck just happened...</em>


    The old woman took a deep breath to calm herself down as she asked, "How can this leaf be consumed?"


    Joseph stared at her for a moment before he replied, "You can consume it in any way possible."


    The old woman nodded.


    He nced at the middle-aged man for a moment before he brought the leaf with him back to the carriage.


    The middle-aged man awkwardly scratched his head as he stared at Joseph with a strange expression on his face. He really didn''t know what to feel about this sudden reversal.


    A wry smile escaped on his lips as he asked, "Since it seems like you are alsoing to Eichenwalde, how about youe with us, little brother?"


    Joseph lightly chuckled and nced at Kaiser who was staring at them from the distance.


    "I need a horse to ride on."


    The middle-aged man saw how Joseph nced at Kaiser.


    A bitter smile appeared on his lips as he said, "Kaiser, hand over your horse to him."


    Kaiser who was observing everything from the distance shivered.


    After giving a bitter smile, he got off the horse and brought it over to Joseph.


    After muttering a few words such as "how petty of you to take my horse as revenge".


    He turned around and left, not bothering to care about the petty Joseph anymore.

 Chapter 148: Start of an Epic Journey[9]

    Chapter 148: Start of an Epic Journey[9]


    When Joseph examined the horse he was riding on. He discovered that the horse actually looked quite heroic. Its eyes were filled with intelligence and ifpared to the other horses, it was groomed well and dashing.


    Joseph subconsciously rubbed the coat of the horse and its eyes narrowed, revealing afortable expression.


    The middle-aged man looked baffled.


    Kaiser''s horse was actually known as the most unruly horse within their group and with just a few head pats and head rubs, Joseph actually managed to subdue Kaiser''s horse?


    A wry smile emerged on the middle-aged man''s lips, and Kaiser who was observing everything from a distance in schadenfreude angrily snorted.


    He had been observing Joseph thinking that he would be humiliated by his horse, but he didn''t expect that Joseph could subdue his horse this easily under his deft head pats and skillful head rubs.


    Kaiser couldn''t say anything anymore and he speechlessly entered the carriage under the middle-aged man''s surreptitious nce.


    Joseph finally moved forward along with the carriage.


    The middle-aged man followed behind him as the two of them casually chatted. From their talk, Joseph learned that the name of the middle-aged man was Charles.


    He was actually the Captain of the Mercenary Group that apanied this merchant caravan.


    Joseph merely smiled.


    It actually made sense.


    How else would someone as arrogant as Kaiser would yield if not due to the words of his immediate supervisor?


    Joseph looked around and hearing theughter and all sorts of stories that these mortal experts had. A strange expression appeared on his face. It turned out that this world was actuallypletely simr to the world of Victory when it came to how realistic the NPCs were.


    They had their own worries, dreams, goals, and ambitions.


    They also had their own hobbies, likes, and dislikes.


    They also had their own family, rtives, loved ones, and people whom they hate, dislike, and had a crush upon.


    Listening to the stories of these mortals evoked a strange sensation in Joseph''s heart that he couldn''t quite grasp.


    A light smile surfaced on Joseph''s lips for he felt iparably peaceful.


    A crimson aura subconsciously spread out of his body, but this aura that emanated a fierce killing intent became tame under Joseph''sfortable mood. In fact, it felt like it became a spring breeze that gently rocked everyone making them warm andfortable.


    Eventually, under the effects of this crimson aura, the surrounding spiritual energy gathered around Joseph. Of course, this spiritual energy was invisible to the eyes of the mortals.


    But that didn''t mean that it didn''t affect them...


    The eyes of the surrounding mortal experts brightened. They didn''t know why nor understand, but they felt incredibly great as if they just came from a long and good regenerative sleep.


    After several hours, Joseph finally understood how spiritual energy worked and how it could be manipted.


    Under his careful control, he dispersed the surrounding spiritual energy.


    The mortal experts then simultaneously awakened from their reverie as they started talking about what they had experienced.


    The merchant caravan continued on their journey and night eventually fell.


    On the side of the road, the carriages formed a circle surrounding the main merchant carriage and everyone was gathered within this circle.


    The mortal experts summoned the servants and they all started to prepare dinner.


    Some of the servant girls threw Joseph a few nces before whispering among themselves.


    Their actions were understandable but it elicited a few helpless smiles from Joseph who could only try his best on making sure that he was low-profile enough before they reached the City of Eichenwalde.


    Whenever the servant girls approached Joseph.


    He would gently push them away for he could feel Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s anger bubbling inside his mind whenever one of these girls went near him. Joseph was afraid that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth may erupt, but he also didn''t want to disrespect these servants.


    After all, even though they were mere servants...


    Disrespecting was still the equivalent of disrespecting the master behind them.


    Joseph who was a mere freeloader couldn''t afford to do such a thing.


    Joseph swept his gaze towards the other mortal experts and a light smile escaped on his lips. He distanced himself from them as he sat leaning on a big tree. Raising his head, he stared at the skies and he found a multitude of stars that no mortal could possibly count.


    Right now, he was experiencing a peace of mind that he had never experienced since the death of his parents.


    Back then when his parents were still alive...


    They often traveled remote areas in the City of Sibu to stare at the skies like this and observe the stars flying across the cosmos.


    Joseph pondered for a while, but then Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang out within his head.


    <em>Master... Does staring at the sky like this help youprehend the workings of the world?</em>


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    <em>Of course not, but I don''t know. Maybe the secrets of life are hidden somewhere out there in space.</em>


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth turned silent. Even she could feel the tranquility that Joseph was feeling right now so she didn''t say anything anymore, afraid that she may ruin his peace.


    But it was unexpectedly Joseph who broke the silence as he asked.


    <em>Hey, Elizabeth... How long would it take for me to get out of here?</em>


    <em>It depends, master... If you kill yourself three more times then you can instantly get out of this ce.</em>


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile and shook his head.


    <em>What I meant was, how long do you think would it take me toplete this King''s Trial?</em>


    <em>Oh, that''s what you meant? To be honest, master. I also don''t know. You''re the very first candidate that entered the King''s Trial so I don''t really have anyone to use as a benchmark for how long you would stay here in this ce.</em>


    <em>I see...</em>


    Joseph fell silent.


    He really wanted to go back.


    He wanted to return now and be with Alice and Ezreal.


    But he also knew that with great power came great responsibility.


    If he wanted to live a peaceful life in the future, he must convince the world that they shouldn''t mess with him.


    Only through this method could he achieve true peace.


    That was why Joseph couldn''t settle down until he had be the strongest yer in the world of Victory.


    But...


    <em>Just give me an estimate, Elizabeth. Several weeks? A month? Half a year?</em>


    <em>Half a year, master? Are you underestimating the difficulty of the King''s Trial?</em>


    <em>What? Then, at least a year then? Do you really think that I can wait that long with how many people are waiting for me outside?</em>


    <em>Pfft...</em>


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth chuckled before she dropped a bombshell that absolutely bbergasted Joseph.


    <em>I think at least a hundred years, master.</em>


    <em>A what?</em>


    <em>A hundred years, you didn''t hear me? Master?</em>


    Joseph keeled over as he spat all the air that he had in his lungs.


    <em>A hundred fucking years?! Are you fucking serious, right now?!</em>


    <em>Yes, master. I''m not joking...</em>


    <em>You''re not joking? Wait, that doesn''t make sense. However, what if...</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion as he asked.


    <em>If I spent a year in this ce... How many days is that in the outside world?</em>


    <em>In the outside world?</em>


    It was Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s turn to be silent.


    <em>Ah, I know! It''s about a week, master!</em>


    Joseph heaved a sigh of relief when he heard her answer.


    <em>A week in the world of Victory meant a day in the real world.</em>


    <em> Wow... Just how did P.H Works achieve something unbelievable as this. </em>


    <em>But if I must spend a hundred years here, what will happen to the age of my brain? Will my brain also age for a hundred years while I am here, or what? Damn, I hope that they had thought about this problem...</em>


    Joseph shook his head and he suddenly raised his head. He looked towards the direction of the servants and found that a female servant was approaching him. She was carrying a tray of food on her hands and a sweet smile could be seen on her face.


    She ced down the tray onto the ground before turning to look at Joseph for a while.


    "Thank you..."


    She then turned around and left.


    Joseph didn''t say anything.


    He reckoned that the servant girl should be the one that needed that panacea leaf earlier.


    Joseph turned towards the food on the tray and after Pixie Fairy Elizabeth confirmed that there wasn''t any poison in it.


    Joseph started eating.


    Afterwards, he took the jug of wine and took a sip.


    A mncholic smile appeared on his lips for he remembered certain events when he was still a child.


    Back then, his father wasn''t actually that much of an avid drinker but he often collected rare wines across the world.


    Of course, he only took those wines whenever there were visitors.


    But when those moments came, Joseph often went out and secretly drink a bit of those rare wines.


    He would always be caught by his father after he had sipped and he would senselesslyugh towards his father as if he was mocking him for not hiding the wines properly.


    His father, who was a kind middle-aged man who could nevery a hand on his son relegated the job of disciplining Joseph towards his wife.


    Whenever Joseph was caught secretly drinking his father''s wine. His mother would descend like the final boss of a random game and beat his ass up.


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    With sadness visible within his eyes, Joseph took another gulp of the coarse wine


    Joseph drank the entire jug of wine.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth helped him cleanse his body, while he approached the mortal experts who had already formed a circle around several fire pits in the area. Bursts ofughter came from the men, and as Joseph listened from their stories andughter, a faint smile appeared on his lips.


    Some of the intoxicated mortal experts became courageous as they approached some of the servant girls to flirt with them for a chance of some private time.


    Seeing their actions, Joseph was now looking at these NPCs as if they were genuine humans.


    At first, he thought that the Artificial Intelligence installed within the brains of these mortals in the world of the King''s Trial was vastly inferior to the ones installed within the NPCs of Victory.


    But in the end, he found that both worlds werepletely simr, may it be in the culture, their habits, or even their mindsets.


    Charles approached Joseph, carrying several small jugs of wine.


    After passing over half of the jugs of wine that he was carrying to Joseph.


    He sat down next to him and said, "Thank you for that medication of yours earlier, Joseph. You really are too kind. I only asked you for a painkiller leaf but you gave us a thousand-year-old panacea leaf!"


    After finishing his sentence, he took a cup and drank wine using it. But when he saw that Joseph directly drank his wine from the jug.


    He set that cup aside and followed Joseph''s example of drinking wine directly from the jug.


    "It''s not a problem, but if you are going to ask me where I found that thousand-year-old panacea leaf. I hope that you''d believe me but I really did only find it randomly in the forest."


    Joseph prepared himself for trouble.


    A mortal like him carrying treasures was basically attracting disaster to himself.


    Charles awkwardly scratched his head for Joseph actually predicted what he wanted to say.


    He wanted to ask Joseph where he acquired that thousand-year-old panacea leaf but seeing that Joseph really didn''t have the intention to speak. Charles just set that matter aside. After all, the panacea leaf wasn''t really that useful, even though it was a thousand-year-old.


    Witnessing that Charles went speechless from what he had said.


    Joseph didn''t talk anymore.


    He only slowly savored the taste of the wine he was holding in his hands.


    Charles soon awakened from his trance and he realized that the jug in Joseph''s hands was almost empty. A smile spread on his lips as he asked, "Joseph, it seems like your tolerance for drinking is more formidable than I expected..."


    "How about we go there andpete with my brothers right there?"


    Joseph wanted to refuse at first, but seeing the honest and straightforward smile on Charles''s lips.


    Joseph couldn''t find it in his heart to refuse.


    After all, he was a mere freeloader that couldn''t afford to offend anyone here.


    Joseph followed Charles at the fire pit near the center of the carriages'' encirclement. There were several dozens of mortal experts surrounding the big fire pit and they were allughing together as they talked about the experiences they had encountered throughout their life.


    Charles randomly approached one of them and kicked that guy on his back before jokingly saying: "Jojo, I heard you mention that you enjoyed your time in the Alluring Fragrance Teahouse in the City of Eichenwalde before. You better be not lying, all right?"


    The guy named Jojo that Charles kicked moved aside, and emptied two spots beside him as he replied: "If you''re not convinced then you cane with me. Of course, you must be the one that should settle the bill since you''re the host..."


    "I mean, you can''t expect me to pay for the girls there, all right?"


    "That ce may be good but it''s too expensive for me..."


    The moment he said these words in a self-deprecating tone...


    Everyoneughed out loud and Charles even jokingly scolded for a bit before sitting beside Joseph.


    Joseph swept his gaze at the NPCs around him and a strange sensation overcame his body for he was reminded of the time when he killed several NPCs within the ce perpetually hidden from the sun, several weeks ago.


    Back then...


    Joseph didn''t think too much about what he had done for he thought that they had gone mad.


    But right now, he realized that even though those people may have gone mad.


    That didn''t invalidate the fact that they were still human beings that had their own ambitions, goals, dreams, and all sorts of quirks that make up who they were in this world.


    Joseph felt regret how easily he forgot about those that he killed.


    Tonight...


    Joseph drank a lot even though he couldn''t make himself drunk due to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s constant cleansing. Even though Joseph didn''t say anything that much. The others around him got familiar with him for theyughed and drank together with him.


    Later on, some courageous and flirtatious servant girls gathered around and joined them as well.


    That also included the servant girl that received Joseph''s thousand-year-old panacea leaf.


    However, instead of giving Joseph a random striptease or some kind of a lewd service, she just sat beside him. It was unknown what she was thinking.


    It wasn''t until midnight came did the drunk mortal experts copsed one by one.


    The servant girls also returned to their carriages to sleep.


    Joseph remained in front of the barely alive fire pit and he kept on staring into the fire, his thoughts iparably deep and unknown.


    However, one thing was for sure...


    Right now, Joseph felt a peace that he had never felt before ever since the death of his parents.


    Joseph eventuallyid on the grass and stared at the starry skies.


    He stretched his hand out and tried ying with those stars using his hands, reminiscing about the time that he and his parentsid together on a bed of soft grass as they yed with Joseph who even bragged that he would someday reach the stars.


    What he had said back then sounded silly, but now that Joseph was an Immortal within the King''s Trial. He possessed strength and power that could be considered as the strongest within the world.


    He decided that someday in the near future...


    He would definitely go into space and step on a star, dering one of the silly derations he made back then to his parents asplete.


    Joseph eventually closed his eyes as his consciousness darkened.


    His body, under the guidance of the Gaming Capsule, went into a regenerative sleep under the effects of the True Sleep Mode function.

 Chapter 149: Start of an Epic Journey[10]

    Chapter 149: Start of an Epic Journey[10]


    Joseph spent the night in a peaceful sleep and when he awakened...


    The sun was still about to rise.


    [You were awakened by your Personal Pixie Assistant: Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.]


    "Why did you wake me up so early...?" Joseph whispered in irritation.


    "[Master... I''m really sorry that I woke you up so early, but I had to do it! You can''t miss this opportunity!]"


    Joseph''s eyes instantly brightened when he heard the word opportunity.


    But when he snapped his eyes open...


    He found nothing which made him doubt Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s words.


    "[Master, you don''t stare directly at the horizon! Take a look above you!]"


    Joseph raised his head and his pupils constricted due to the sight that he saw. Above him, there was a vast expanse of mysterious purple fog covering the skies. Joseph deemed it mysterious for, despite the fact that its purple color was clear and vivid, it didn''t cover the rays of the sun at all.


    "What the hell is that?" Joseph blurted out in astonishment.


    His mind quickly spun, looking for any information about this mysterious purple fog within the myriads of eastern fantasy novels that he had read several years ago but he found nothing.


    He couldn''t identify this purple fog at all.


    "[That purple fog is a phenomenon caused by the gathering of yin affiliated spiritual energy at night. They are usually dispersed whenever the sun is about to appear but it would be a waste if we just let them disappear. Go and absorb it, master!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth hurriedly exined.


    Joseph didn''t say anything anymore as he sat down cross-legged. He took a deep breath and started attracting the surrounding spiritual energy to go inside his body.


    The whole process onlysted for a few seconds at most due to Joseph''s high cultivation. But he didn''t know that there was an unexpected boon hidden behind absorbing the purple mist.


    [You acquired Experience from siphoning the Purple Mist From the East: 201,231]


    [You will acquire Experience from doing all sorts of activities within the world of the King''s Trial.]


    [However, it will only be awarded to you after the end of the King''s Trial.]


    [Your sess and failure within the King''s Trial do not affect the Experience rewards you will get.]


    Joseph smiled when he saw several system notifications that appeared right in front of him. At least now, he was assured that even if he failed the King''s Trial. He wouldn''t be left without anything. He would still be able to get something out of the King''s Trial that he attempted.


    He became lively and more rxed than ever before. Of course, the pressure of being sessful within the King''s Trial was still there, but knowing that he has a windfall even if he lost. It greatly reassured Joseph and heightened his mood.


    Early in the morning, the mortal experts and the servant girls along with their masters woke up one by one and washed themselves clean off the dirt of yesterday.


    From the carriage, the old woman who snatched the thousand-year-old panacea leaf from Joseph yesterday came out and started doing some calisthenics.


    Joseph casually nced at her then he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s exim.


    "[What happened?]" Joseph asked.


    "[Her movements...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied in cryptic words.


    "[What''s wrong with her movements? Is there some kind of a trick in it?]" Joseph asked in curiosity.


    "[No, it''s not like that master... Her movements, even though she''s a mortal and there''s not any offensive power behind her movements. When used together and consecutively like that, it actually drastically improves the body of a mortal. If she continues on practicing those movements every day, she''ll be able to live until she''s a hundred and fifty!]"


    There was clear praise in Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice, but this made Joseph chuckle as he said.


    "[Why are you saying that in a tone that makes you feel like a country bumpkin. It''s like you''ve never gone outside and haven''t even seen the world before!]" Joseph jokingly said.


    But Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went silent.


    "[Oh? What happened? Why are you not saying anything?]" Joseph asked.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied, "[It''s nothing, master...]"


    Joseph frowned. He wanted to say something else, but then the old woman at the distance noticed him and was currently waving at him.


    "Young man, did you sleep wellst night?"


    Joseph nodded his head with a smile.


    The old woman stared at him for a moment. There was a clear sh of hesitation across her face before she asked, "To tell you the truth, young man. I wanted to ask where you got that... thousand-year-old panacea leaf."


    Joseph was astonished by what he had heard. <em>Didn''t she send Charles to me to ask about that thousand-year-old panacea leaf?</em> But then Joseph who knew how to read along the lines quickly caught on what was going on as he inwardly shook his head and thought.


    <em>Since she doesn''t know about what Charles attempted to do yesterday. It seems like Charles is actively trying to curry some favor from this old woman. I wonder who she is?</em> Joseph thought for a moment before he chuckled, <em>Nah, I have my own mission and objectives. It doesn''t really matter who she is for as long as I can get to the City of Eichenwalde.</em>


    <em>As long as she doesn''t intend on doing anything against me then I won''t bother with her business.</em>


    Joseph decided and the two of them chatted for a while.


    The old woman tried every trick that she knew on secretly extracting information from someone, but Joseph who dealt against those ck and shameless loanpanies for three years knew his way on how to prevent himself from falling into a trap.


    In the end, the old woman could only sigh as she turned around and left.


    The journey of the merchant caravan continued for several days.


    Within those several days, Joseph slowly became familiar to every person within the merchant caravan. With the exception of the exalted owners of the caravan who always stayed within the main carriage, Joseph knew the names of everyone in here.


    That also included that servant girl who often talked to him. Whenever she approached Joseph, she would always furiously blush which elicited bitter smiles from Joseph.


    It was because one, he already had Alice, and two... Whenever she was beside him, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth would always be mad at Joseph for reasons that Joseph understood.


    After several days of travel, the group finally arrived at the City of Eichenwalde.


    Joseph summoned his Divine Sense and the entire City of Eichenwalde appeared in his mind.


    Beneath the center of the City, there was a huge crystal made out of spiritual energy.


    ording to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth, the huge crystal was a part of the City''s Grand Defensive Formation against enemies.


    It was a formidable Grand Defensive Formation that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth even emphasized that it would take Joseph at least two fully-powered strikes before he could destroy the formation.


    Joseph didn''t evenment.


    He knew that he really was too powerful for this world that he could easily annihte a City with a wave of his sleeves.


    Joseph retracted his Divine Sense and the world around him returned to normal. He then raised his head and found that there were gigantic chains spreading out from the center of the city to its four corners, namely South, North, East, and West.


    "Brother Charles, mind you tell me about those chains?"


    Charles revealed a look of envy and whispered: "Those chains are the restrictions ced on the City''s Grand Defensive Formation."


    It was Joseph''s time to be astonished: "Really? Why is it being tantly disyed? Aren''t they afraid that their enemies would find the weaknesses present on their Grand Defensive Formation?"


    Charles lightly chuckled, "That''s not a problem, my friend. After all, there are rumors that this City is guarded by Immortals! Immortals! You know what kind of people they are, right?" Envy momentarily shed across Charles''s face as he continued, "Due to those rumors, I reckon that the other cities won''t be that daring to invade Eichenwalde."


    The group continued on their journey and at the bridge that separated the Northern Part of the City from the South. This was the ce where Joseph parted from the group. Even though Charles hadn''t been together with Joseph for too long, he became quite fond of Joseph.


    He revealed a prideful look and said that if Joseph ever ran into trouble, he could run to him for help.


    Kaiser who was forced to give up his horse to Joseph hadpletely acknowledged Joseph''s alcohol tolerance and existence after only a few days drinking together.


    Kaiser even bragged that if someone bullied Joseph, he would get the boss of the merchant caravan to act.


    As for the boss of the merchant caravan...


    Joseph finally knew her identity.


    The boss was actually the old woman who snatched his thousand-year-old panacea leaf!


    The servant girl who often apanied Joseph in his drinking was also there. Seeing that Joseph was about to leave, she looked quite depressed and mncholic.


    However, she mustered her courage and exchanged a few words with the old woman before she ran towards Joseph''s direction and handed over a pouch: "Grandma wants me to give my thanks to you personally. Here, take this. Inside is the fee for the medicine."


    Joseph sped his hands together as a sign of gratitude and respect. He didn''t refuse the pouch, after all. Now that he was about to be alone, he really needed the money.


    Afterwards, he turned around and finally left.


    It was only until Joseph was far away did the servant girl turned around and returned to the carriage.


    Joseph continued his walk through the City of Eichenwalde. He carefully guarded the little pouch that he held for he knew that in a city this big. It was impossible that there would be no thieves or pickpocketers.


    He kept on walking for several hours until the heat finally annoyed him, making him seat under the shade of a nearby alleyway.


    <em>Damn, even though my body is the body of an immortal. My mindset is still of a mortal! I really am not used to this kind of heat!</em> Joseph inwardly cursed.


    While he was sitting under the shade of the dark alleyway. A middle-aged woman suddenly passed by him and dropped a piece of bread right in front of him.


    "What?" Joseph nkly uttered. He was about to return the piece of bread when he saw that the woman was actually doing the same to the beggars sitting beside Joseph.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s anger bubbled.


    "[That woman... How dare she... How dare she treat master like a beggar!]" Joseph felt her killing intent and he hurriedly intervened.


    "[Calm down, calm down, Elizabeth. It''s just a misunderstanding, all right? It''s not like she has bad intentions for handing me over this bread.]"


    Although Joseph urged Pixie Fairy Elizabeth to calm down, even he had a bitter smile on his face when he realized that he really did look like a beggar right now.


    After handing over the piece of bread to a nearby beggar.


    He continued walking, his mission was to find a store that sold clothes for him to use.


    With the number of shops present in the City of Eichenwalde. It was quite easy for Joseph to find a random shop to go in and buy some clothing so that he wouldn''t look simr to a beggar.


    Afterwards, using the money that he received from the merchant caravan.


    He went to a restaurant and filled his stomach, while he was eating. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was continuously ranting in his head saying that she really was envious that Joseph could eat so many delicious foods yet she could only stare at them.


    Joseph walked out of the restaurant and he started strolling while thinking about how he couldprehend the way of the heavens.


    For a mortal like Joseph to suddenly be an immortal wasn''t really that of a problem if you considered that Joseph was someone who was an avid reader of the eastern fantasy genre.


    However, if you asked him toprehend the ways of the heavens?


    Even if he wanted to do such a thing it would be pretty difficult for him to do so since he has no prior experience when it came to enlightenments like these.


    Joseph could only shake his head helplessly.


    Eventually, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth gave a piece of advice.


    "[Master, how about you go and rent a small shop? By renting a small shop, not only you would have a ce to rest, but you can also observe the mortals and understand how they live through that small shop of yours.]"


    Joseph nodded his head, but then a bitter smile emerged on his lips as he replied, "[That is actually a good idea at first nce but have you considered how possibly expensive properties are in this ce? I only have like ten gold coins, you know? If I could ess my inventory from Victory then I would even buy a mansion here!]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied, "[I didn''t say that you must buy a property here, master. I only said that you should rent. Wouldn''t renting be a cheaper option than outright buying a property? Master really often jumps to conclusions like this. It makes me wonder sometimes if you are the woman between the two of us.]"


    "[Of course, you''re the woman! Isn''t that quite obvious?]" Joseph was quick to retort.


    But Pixie Fairy Elizabeth fell silent. It was only after a few moments did she reply.


    "[So master is actually... So master is actually acknowledging me as a woman...?]"


    It was Joseph''s time to be speechless.


    He could only gnash his teeth in frustration as he continued his journey in the City of Eichenwalde.


    His target was the Western part of the City where the slums of the City were located.


    He reckoned that if he went to the slums, he would be able to rent a property there at a much cheaper price.


    Joseph seeded on his quest and he did manage to rent a shop for a yearly amortization of only a single gold coin.


    The property that he rented was only behind the main street. Joseph wanted to rent a shop directly on the main street, but after knowing that a shop on the main street costs ten gold coins per year.


    Joseph backed out and decided to rent this shop instead.


    Although it took quite a long time for him to find a suitable property with the cheapest price possible.


    Night came and Joseph spent the entirety of it meditating. He wanted to familiarize himself with spiritual energy as much as possible so he didn''t do anything except meditating for the entire night.


    When morning came, he woke up and acted like apletely normal mortal or human being. He cleaned the shop and afterwards...


    His body momentarily disappeared.


    When he reappeared, he now had a bunch of ingredients for meals in his hands.


    He cleaned the vegetables and ced everything mise en ce. Soon, Joseph began to recall his childhood, when his father personally taught him how to cook.


    These memories gradually filled his mind as Joseph pondered for a long time.


    Afterwards, he moved and prepared everything in the kitchen.


    He was about to make the very first dish that his father taught him.


    Egg Fried Rice.


    At this moment, Joseph''s spiritual energy began to move in mysterious ways.


    They infused themselves into the ingredients that Joseph was holding and those ingredients transformed into something out of the ordinary. They became spiritual ingredients,pletely different from their mortal counterpart.


    Joseph began to move.


    His movements werepletely born from his instincts.


    Soon, the fragrance of meat filled the air and it even spread towards outside, despite the fact that the doors of Joseph''s shop were closed.


    Thankfully, the alluring fragrance of the meat, eggs, and the several dozens of ingredients within the Egg Fried Rice didn''t attract the attention of anyone from outside.


    Joseph had hisplete focus on his cooking...


    But the doors of his shops suddenly snapped open.


    The sudden intrusion startled Joseph and it caused him to be distracted. The delicate ingredients within the wok quickly burned after Joseph''s control of the temperature of the fire loosened. He tried his best on salvaging the Egg Fried Rice, but s. His efforts were to no avail.


    He failed the creation of his very first Egg Fried Rice here in the world of the King''s Trial.


    "[These bastards...]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth angrily turned to look at the doors, but her anger quickly abated for some reason.


    Joseph turned his head to looked at the doors and found that there was a young man who looked to be at the age of five or six standing near the doors.


    His eyes were stered onto the wok that Joseph was using and he suddenly burst into crying when he realized that the delicious-smelling Egg Fried Rice was burnt to a crisp.


    "Uncle! You burned it! Uwaaa... I wanted to eat it... It smelled delicious!"


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head.


    In the end, he decided to not say anything other than...


    "It''s all right... Since there''s no use crying over what had already happened. I''ll just do it again! Even if I fail once more, I won''t settle down until I have seeded. Failure is the mother of sess, young man. Don''t forget that!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled and turned his attention to the wok once more.


    This time, he sealed off his senses from everything else other than the wok he was holding and the Egg Fried Rice in it.


    After only several minutes, Joseph had finally seeded. He hadpleted his very first Egg Fried Rice using the very first recipe that his father taught him.


    A proud look emerged on Joseph''s face as he ced the te in front of the young man and said.


    "Eat up, young man... This is the Entrada Family''s Secret Egg Fried Rice!"<ol><li>putting in ce, ready for cooking.</li><li>Joseph''sst name is Entrada.</li></ol>

 Chapter 150: Start of an Epic Journey[11]

    Chapter 150: Start of an Epic Journey[11]


    "Egg Fried Rice? Uncle, this is an Egg Fried Rice?" The young boy had a look of amazement.


    Joseph smiled, he was pleased: "Yes, that is an Egg Fried Rice."


    "Really? Why does it look so pretty?"


    Indeed!


    The Egg Fried Rice that Joseph served looked incredibly out of ordinary. The spring onions that leaped over the dragon''s gate and transformed into something different from its mortal counterpart along with the other ingredients made the te, dazzling and gorgeous.


    At this point, even Joseph wasn''t so sure if he could still even call this Egg Fried Rice as an Egg Fried Rice.


    It really did look beautiful.


    The grains of the rice were perfectly separated from each other, forming their own independent identity with exquisite vors that whenbined with the meat and the vegetables within the Egg Fried Rice. No words could describe how delightful it was.


    Joseph maintained his smile as he stared at the young boy.


    The young boy, although reluctant was actually quite hungry. It was the reason why he even stumbled into this ce.


    Lifting the chopsticks and the bowl, the young boy''s hesitation stopped as he proceeded to eat his first mouthful of the Egg Fried Rice and bam...


    The young boy looked astonished.


    But he didn''t say anything at all.


    His chopsticks moved even faster than before and in just under thirty seconds, he had alreadypleted the bowl.


    Raising his head with brightened eyes, he turned to look at Joseph and said in a crisp voice: "Uncle! That was so delicious! I never tasted such a delicious Egg Fried Rice before!"


    Joseph let out a smile.


    "But Uncle..."


    The young boy suddenly hesitated.


    "What''s wrong?" Joseph urged him to speak.


    "An Egg Fried Rice that''s as delicious as that can''t possibly cheap and I... no, we... we don''t have money to pay for it, uncle... Will you call the police and put me into prison if I can''t pay the Egg Fried Rice?" A tearful looked emerged on the young boy''s face.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head as he thought for a moment: "It''s all right. You''re my very first customer in this shop so you don''t have to worry about payment. But I hope that you don''t tell anyone about the existence of that Egg Fried Rice, all right?"


    "Huh?" The young boy looked confused, "Why should I not tell anyone about the delicious Egg Fried Rice, uncle? Don''t you want to have a lot of customers?"


    Joseph was briefly astonished by how smart the young boy was despite his age.


    "No, Uncle wants a lot of customers. But that Egg Fried Rice isn''t perfect, yet. Your uncle is trying to make the best Egg Fried Rice in the world!"


    "Oooh!!! So that Egg Fried Rice can still be more delicious?"


    "Yes, that is why I don''t want you to tell anyone about the Egg Fried Rice here first. I want to perfect that Egg Fried Rice peacefully so I can''t handle customers, yet..." Joseph patiently exined.


    "Really? But..." The young boy looked hesitant once again.


    "What''s wrong? Go ahead and say it."


    Joseph smiled and reassured him that he wouldn''t be mad no matter what he said.


    "If Uncle doesn''t want any customers, does that mean that I can''t eat the Egg Fried Rice anymore?"


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head once again.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth chimed in: "[Master! Just let him eat your food every day! Look at him, looking so pitiful. I bet the food in his house isn''t up to par and aren''t even nutritious!]"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and he took another look at the young boy.


    Sure enough, he discovered that the young boy was grossly malnourished.


    Joseph deeply sighed.


    He didn''t know but he could see himself on the young boy.


    <em>Ah, wait...</em>


    <em>Now, I know...</em>


    <em>Back when I abandoned my dignity and started begging for some food and spare change on the wet market.</em>


    <em>I also had that look on my face when I saw myself in the mirror.</em>


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile.


    <em>Perhaps, the appearance of this young boy is a great opportunity for me to repay that karma?</em>


    Joseph turned to the young boy and said.


    "It''s okay, you can still keep eating the Egg Fried Rice here without paying anything. However! You must help Uncle with the chores here! Remember, those that do not work, do not get to eat!"


    "There are no free lunches in this world so if you want to keep on eating that Egg Fried Rice, you must do your job, all right?"


    The young boy was delighted by what he had heard, "Really? I can work here and eat that delicious Egg Fried Rice every day?! Yaaay! I''ll go and tell papa and mama!" He then turned around and made a mad dash towards the exit of the shop but he was stopped by Joseph who cried out.


    "Wait!"


    The young boy stopped on his tracks.


    He turned around and looked quite confused.


    "Why are you looking at me like that? Didn''t I tell you that I don''t want any customers, yet? Why would you want to tell your papa and mama about this?"


    The young boy was astonished by the sudden reprimand. He then hung his head low and exined: "It''s because I... I also want to have mama and papa eat that delicious Egg Fried Rice..."


    "They..."


    "The two of them only eat wheat crackers every day so I want them to eat the Egg Fried Rice for a change... Can... Can I not do it...?"


    It was Joseph''s time to be bbergasted by the words that he had heard from the young man.


    He didn''t expect this level of filial piety from the young boy.


    A smile escaped on his lips as he said, "Fine... Your papa and mama can also eat here for free. They do not have to work here since I don''t have the capabilities to give them a sry, yet."


    The young boy was delighted, "Really? Thank you very much, uncle! Papa and Mama wouldn''t work here, uncle even if you told them to since we have a wooden workshop! Papa is a carpenter and Mama is helping him on the job!"


    Joseph merely smiled. He urged the young boy to leave with his eyes, and the young boy quickly caught on what he wanted him to do, but he looked hesitant to leave as he kept on ncing on the empty wok and the empty bowl and chopsticks on the nearby table.


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    Since he had alreadye to this point when it came to helping this young boy...


    Extra help wouldn''t really matter.


    "Stay here, I''ll go and cook two portions of Egg Fried Rice for your father and mother." Joseph then moved towards the kitchen and started his work with the remaining ingredients.


    The young boy, although delighted, didn''t say anything when he saw how serious Joseph was on his preparations.


    Half an hourter, Joseph hadpleted the two portions of Egg Fried Rice and he handed it over to the young boy along with the bowl. The bowls were covered with parchment of paper to seal in the freshness.


    After saying his thanks and expressing his gratitude, the young boy bowed towards Joseph''s direction before heading towards the exit.


    But before he could leave, Joseph asked him another question.


    "Where do you live?"


    The young boy replied with a bright smile: "I''m from the wooden workshop across the street, uncle! Goodbye!" With that, he ran out of the shop and soon disappeared from Joseph''s sight.


    Staring at the direction where the young boy left, Joseph felt inexplicably peaceful. The spiritual energy in his body once again moved in a way that it never had before.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth suddenly chimed in from: "[Master, are you okay?]"


    "Yes, I''m fine. What''s wrong?" Joseph forgot that he couldmunicate with her telepathically.


    "[I don''t know the reason master, but when you were interacting with that boy earlier, you looked quite sad and mncholic. Did something happen in your past that made you see yourself in that boy earlier, master?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth urately struck the mark as to why Joseph helped the young boy earlier.


    But he didn''t say anything.


    Despite the fact that he was living a much better life than the young boy, he was actually envious of the boy.


    But why?


    It was because at least, the young boy had parents that cared for him and he could care for, but him?


    Since three years ago, Joseph had nothing.


    This was why he felt envious of that boy.


    The room fell silent, no one spoke.


    But it was broken by Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who quickly switched the topic when she realized that Joseph was ufortable.


    "[Speaking of this shop, master... I remember you saying that you do not want any customers. What does that mean, master? Does that mean that even though you will be cooking, you won''t serve any customers?]" She asked in doubt.


    Joseph nodded his head, "[That''s exactly what I mean.]"


    But Pixie Fairy Elizabeth unexpectedly erupted in anger: "[That cannot happen, master! If we do not serve any customers, how can we measure the value of your Egg Fried Rice? The value of something is only limited to how much a customer wants to pay for it, after all!]"


    Joseph was astonished by what he had heard.


    He really didn''t expect that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth actually had the talent to be a merchant.


    <em>To think that she would know such a philosophical phrase...</em>


    Joseph inwardly chuckled.


    He then yielded to her suggestion as he said, "[Fine, I will go and ept customers but how much should I sell a bowl of my Egg Fried Rice for?]"


    "[As I said, the value of something is only limited to how much a customer is willing to pay for it. In other words, we won''t know the value of that Egg Fried Rice until a customer has tasted it and has judged its value...]"


    "[As for me, how can I possibly tell you the value of that Egg Fried Rice, if I haven''t even tasted it, yet?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth proudly replied.


    Joseph bitterly smiled, "[So, in other words... You really don''t know how much the Egg Fried Rice should be sold and you''re just telling me all of this so there would be a proper logical reason for me to let you taste it?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went silent.


    If she had manifested her physical form right now and was standing right in front of Joseph.


    Joseph would''ve discovered that there was a furious blush on her face out of embarrassment of being caught red-handed.


    Joseph sighed...


    "[Okay, I understand your frustrations of not being able to eat the Egg Fried Rice, but how about this? I can let you eat the Egg Fried Rice, but you must also work and help with the chores here like what that young boy earlier will do.]"


    "[Eeaaah...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth pouted and loudlyined.


    "[What Eeaaah? Those that do not work, do not get to eat. If you don''t want to ept my proposal, then obediently stay there inside my mind!]" Joseph retorted.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went silent once again but after a few seconds...


    She broke that silence and said, "[How about I go and be a waitress in the shop? With someone as gorgeous as me, I bet we''d be full in just a single day.]"


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "[Oh, so you want to be a waitress? I guess that sounds fine, but you must hide your wings.]"


    "[No!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was quick to retort.


    "[Damn, that pride of yours is really at the wrong ce. How can you not be embarrassed to be a waitress? In fact, do you even know what are the jobs of a waitress?]" Joseph asked in doubt.


    "[Of course, even I know that much? Isn''t being a waitress just a simple job of delivering food to customers on their table?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth proudly replied.


    Joseph inwardly chuckled, but he didn''t say anything anymore.


    "[I''ll take your silence as Yes. Does that mean that I am free to appear now and work?]"


    "[No!]"


    "[Why not?]"


    "[It''s because you are not suitable to be a waitress!]"


    "[Why? You haven''t even seen me in the field, yet. How can you say that I''m unsuitable?]"


    "[No, means no! My words are the rules!]"


    "[What? At least tell me why you think that I''m unsuitable for the job!]"


    "[Nah, it''s such a pain in the ass...]" Joseph shook his head and denied her an exnation.


    "[Then... How can I... How can I eat that Egg Fried Rice, then?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied in a heartbroken voice.


    Joseph was startled and astonished by what he had heard.


    "[Okay, fine, all right. You don''t have to be a waitress, I''ll let you eat as much Egg Fried Rice as you want!]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s mood instantly turned for the better.


    "[Really? Do you mean it? Does that mean that I don''t have to work to eat?]"


    Joseph nodded his head, "[Yes I mean it, but you still have to work to eat.]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied, "[Eeaaah... What work will I do? What else can I do if you don''t want me to be the waitress?]"


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion, "[Let''s see... Hmmm... How about you guard the ce for me? If someday we''ll have troublemakers in the shop, it''s your job to teach them a lesson.]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied in delight: "[Yeah, that''s a good idea! I''ll do that! But how do I protect the ce?]"


    "[First, you must hide those wings.]" Joseph almost immediately replied.


    "[No! I will do everything except hiding my wings!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth also replied instantly.


    Joseph facepalmed.


    But then an idea popped up in his mind as he replied, "[If you really can''t hide those wings of yours, how about you transform into something else? Can you do a transformation?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied in excitement: "[Yeah, I can do that! I can transform into anything that you want me to! But what should I transform into?]"


    "[That''s a good question if we want those troublemakers to lower their guards against you, how about you transform into something cute, like a kitten or a dog?]"


    "[I don''t like dogs!]"


    "[You heathen...]" Joseph inadvertently used Pixie Fairy Elizabeth of heresy for not liking dogs, but he quickly regained his wits as he cleared his throat and continued, "[Then, how about a cat or a kitten?]"


    "[Yeah, I like them! I''ll go and transform into a cat!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied and a brilliant sh of light appeared in the middle of the shop.


    The dazzling light washed the entire shop, but it disappeared as fast as it appeared. When Joseph could finally open his eyes properly, he saw a cat that was about a foot long.


    The cat didn''t look anything out of the ordinary. It also didn''t have Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s wings.


    It was perfect for Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who wanted to be low-key.


    However, despite lookingpletely ordinary.


    The cat suddenly opened its mouth and spoke in a familiar voice.


    "How about this form, master? Will this suffice?"


    <em>Pfft!</em>


    <em>Fuck!</em>


    <em>The cat opened its mouth and spoke!</em>


    "[Don''t do that! You''re already a cat so you should only purr and meow! You should onlymunicate with me through telepathy!]" Joseph telepathically scolded Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth pouted, "[Okay, I will do that, but master... Can I change into my original form whenever we are alone? At least, I want to be with you in that form if there''s only the two of us in the room.]"


    Joseph nodded his head.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s request was reasonable and logical so there were no grounds for refusal.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of happiness on her face and she wanted to say more, but then footsteps suddenly came from outside the shop.


    Those footsteps were clearly approaching the shop, so she instantly transformed into her disguise while Joseph faced the entrance with a calm andposed look on his face.


    The doors of the shop opened and Joseph saw a man and woman walk in along with the young boy earlier.


    The man''s eyes lit up when he saw Joseph and he walked towards him with a smile, "Little brother, that Egg Fried Rice really was delicious."


    He then handed over a pouch towards Joseph and said, "The vor of the Egg Fried Rice alone meant that it took you great effort to make that Egg Fried Rice."


    "It''s the creed of my family to not do something that you are good at for free. We cannot ept those bowls of Egg Fried Rice for free, little brother..."


    "The money inside that pouch may not be a lot but it''s the most that I can gather right now. Tell me how much those bowls of Egg Fried Rice and I will save up to pay for it in the future."


    Joseph was shocked.


    <em>Wow... This guy is a true man...</em> He thought to himself.


    But he shook his head and replied, "It''s fine. Just consider those bowls of Egg Fried Rice as the token of my greetings, I am new here in this ce, you see..."


    The father of the young boy hesitated for a bit.


    He swept his gaze across the shop and said with a smile: "In that case, since you do not want to ept the money. How about I just help you clean this ce up? If you are nning on establishing a restaurant, the furniture and tools you have right now won''t suffice."


    Joseph felt a strange feeling in his heart when he heard the kind words of the man.


    After hesitating for a bit, he nodded and agreed.


    The boy''s mother was a very kind-looking woman.


    Although she was young, she was patient and mild.


    Shecked the hot-headedness of the youth and it was clear that she was a virtuous wife and a responsible keeper of the house. With just a single nce at them, Joseph understood that despite their difficulties right now. They were a happy family.


    Their child was a cute and sensible young man, while the husband and wife thoroughly loved each other.


    Joseph felt envious of the young boy once again.


    He suppressed the sadness boiling in his heart as he faced the family with a smile.


    After the father of the young boy and Joseph agreed as to what furniture Joseph needed and how long would the job take along with thepensation required for thepletion of the job.


    The family soon left.


    The father of the boy sped his hands together as a sign of respect and gratitude, while the mother of the boy slightly bowed her head.


    "Goodbye, uncle! That Egg Fried Rice was delicious!"


    The young boy waved and soon, the family disappeared from Joseph''s sight.


    Joseph sat on the chair and stared nkly at the doors of the shop.


    It was unknown what he was thinking about, but then a single tear suddenly dripped down from his left eye towards his chin.


    "[Master!]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth quickly recognized the tumultuous turmoil of Joseph''s emotions.


    "[What''s wrong, master? Are you okay?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice awakened Joseph from his trance as he calmed himself down and chuckled.


    "Yeah, I''m fine..."


    "I was just..."


    "I was just feeling a little bit jealous, you see..."


    He audibly replied.

 Chapter 151: Start of an Epic Journey[12]

    Chapter 151: Start of an Epic Journey[12]


    With the help of the wooden workshop, the small shop that Joseph rented was now a small restaurant. Even though the restaurant looked simple and quaint, it was neat and tidy.


    With an area of about thirty square meters along with only a few chairs and tables, one could say that it was indeed only a small restaurant.


    Joseph stared at the two dishes listed on the menu. He shook his head and helplessly sighed. It was because despite Joseph''s efforts on recreating the moreplex dishes that his father and mother taught him within these past few days.


    He only managed to reach mastery in regards to the Egg Fried Rice.


    As for the other dishes such as the Pork Adobo, and Pork Nga...


    Joseph could only sigh in regret.


    The onlyfort that he had was that even though he only had two dishes on his menu.


    The prices of these dishes were extraordinarily high!


    A bowl of an Egg Fried Rice costs a single gold coin, while the Entrada Family''s Secret Special Egg Fried Rice had a price of a single Spirit Stone!


    Spirit Stones were the official currency of cultivators ording to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    A single Spirit Stone could be exchanged for a hundred gold coins, but it was still something that only cultivators had. After all, Spirit Stones were useless in the hands of mortals.


    For an unknown restaurant, these prices were exorbitant.


    It really made Joseph wonder as to how expensive would his other dishes be.


    "[Why are you sighing again, master? Are you not satisfied with the evaluation of the prices that I told you about?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang inside Joseph''s mind.


    Joseph turned to look near the entrance of the shop and he found a cat sittingfortably near the doors. The eyes of the cat were focused on Joseph as a bitter smile emerged on his face.


    "[No, I think the prices are reasonable, but how do I attract customers with these ridiculously high prices?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied, "[Didn''t master say that master doesn''t want any customers for now? Why the sudden change of mind?]"


    Joseph raised his head and stared at the cat before sighing: "[You don''t understand, Elizabeth. For a chef, there''s this certain satisfaction of seeing others happily eating the dishes that you make. Without that satisfaction, everything feels empty. It''s like I''m working, but for nothing... Will this really help meprehend the ways of the heavens?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabethzily replied, "[Well, isn''t that just how oneprehends the heavens? Cultivation is always mundane, master. For you to be a proper cultivator, you must endure through that loneliness with only one focus in mind, and that focus should be onprehending the ways of the heavens...]"


    Joseph bitterly smiled, "[There you go again with those vague words...]"


    Even though Joseph had a lot of stock knowledge regarding cultivation. It didn''t mean that he had mastery regarding the topic. It was like even though you knew how something worked since you have read some books about it. It didn''t mean that you were a master of it.


    Mastery wasn''t something that could easily be obtained by just reading a book or two. Masteryes with time, only by spending enough time in repetition could one be a master of something.


    <em>Will I really be able to endure a hundred years of loneliness?</em>


    Joseph inwardly sighed.


    The doors of the small shop suddenly opened, but the person who came in wasn''t a customer.


    It was the young boy who was now an employee of the small restaurant.


    The restaurant was closed for the day, yet Joseph ordered the young boy toe to the restaurant.


    Of course, the young boy who wanted to eat the delicious Egg Fried Rice didn''t refuse. In fact, he even rushed towards the small restaurant when the time for him to go to the restaurant came.


    "You''re finally here... Sit down on the table for now. I''ll go and prepare everything for a bit."


    Joseph went into the kitchen and readied everything mise en ce.


    Then, he started cooking.


    Joseph who had cooked Egg Fried Rice every day for at least a week now was growing increasingly proficient in cooking the dish. Of course, it wasn''t to the extent that Joseph could cook it even while his eyes were closed, but it was close enough.


    The dishes brought within the small restaurant couldn''t be brought outside. This was one of the rules that the Pixie Fairy Elizabeth made. She also proposed that the small shop should be opened around the clock, but Joseph protested, saying that he needed to rest.


    Joseph''sint became the reason why the small restaurant now had a strict regtion regarding opening hours. Of course, Joseph could choose not to obey these words, but there was no ce for someone who was whimsical in the world of cultivation.


    Fighting against the heavens was dangerous enough, so there was no room for hesitation.


    A single hesitation could cause the birth of an inner demon inside your heart.


    An inner demon could easily cause your death once the Heavenly Tribtion descended.


    This was one of the lessons that Joseph learned from his several years of reading Eastern Fantasy books.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth also confirmed that this was indeed the truth.


    Half an hourter, Joseph was done with his cooking.


    Carrying a tray, he ced it in front of the elevated tform near the kitchen that faced the customers. The young boy revealed a dazzling smile. This small restaurant had a strange rule, customers should serve themselves and there were no waiters nor waitresses.


    The young boy stood up and fetched the bowl of Special Egg Fried Rice and started eating it with gusto.


    Even though the young boy wasn''t saying anything regarding how delicious the Egg Fried Rice was. Words weren''t necessary when Joseph could see the satisfaction on the young boy''s face.


    The young boy frequently visited the small shop within the past few days.


    Within those days, Joseph came to know the name of the young boy.


    The young boy was named, Keh.


    He looked to be about six-years-old, yet he was actually twelve-years-old.


    The reason why he looked incredibly young despite his age was because of malnourishment.


    He was so grossly malnourished that it stunted his growth.


    Despite being twelve-years-old, he looked like he was about five or six-years-old instead.


    When Joseph learned this fact, he began to like the young boy as if he was his sibling.


    Whenever the young boy requested an Egg Fried Rice, he would give it to him, but of course...


    There was an exchange ofbor after the meal.


    Joseph didn''t want to see the young boy be a spoiled brat, after all.


    However, the Egg Fried Rice that Joseph always gave to the young boy wasn''t actually the cheapest option within the menu.


    It was actually the Entrada Family''s Secret Special Egg Fried Rice.


    ording to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth...


    The reason why that Egg Fried Rice was priced as such was that it could increase a cultivator''s chances of breaking through the next realm or tier.


    But what if the mortals ate this Egg Fried Rice?


    Since they didn''t have any cultivation...


    The Egg Fried Rice would instead transform into an incredibly nutritious meal for them, which not only gave them their daily requirement for vitamins and minerals. It also increased their lifespan.


    Even now, after only several days of consecutive consumption of the Special Egg Fried Rice. Keh the young boy''s body was finally showing signs of catching up to his true age. He was now steadily growing like how a boy at his age should be.


    "Thanks for the meal, uncle!" Keh said with a wide smile.


    Joseph replied: "No problem. However, now that I am about to open the restaurant tomorrow..."


    "This is thest day that your father and mother can eat the dishes of this restaurant outside. You''re not exempted from the rules and if you vited it, I will definitely cklist you so you should be careful, all right?"


    Keh who attentively listened nodded his head in understanding.


    "I will be obedient, uncle!"


    "Good! Now take these two portions of Egg Fried Rice and hand it over to your father and mother. Tell them that I liked the furniture that they made." Joseph handed over two bowls of Special Egg Fried Rice to Keh.


    "Mkay, uncle! Goodbye!"


    Keh turned around and made another mad dash towards the exit of the restaurant.


    "Finally, he''s gone..." A feminine voice rang near the entrance of the shop. Dazzling light briefly shed and a beautiful woman appeared after the disappearance of the light. The gorgeous young woman was d in a dress that perfectly depicted the sensations of Spring and its colors.


    She had wings attached to her back and there was a wide smile on her face as she ran towards the kitchen and fetched herself a bowl of Special Egg Fried Rice.


    Joseph sat cross-legged on a nearby mat and started cultivating.


    Since the shop was closed for the day, it was impossible to have any customers.


    Instead of wasting time doing nothing, Joseph proceeded on absorbing the nearby Spiritual Energy so that he could acquire as much Experience as he possibly could.


    [You are absorbing the nearby Spiritual Energy...]


    [You have acquired Experience: 20,231]


    [You have acquired Experience: 21,612]


    [You have acquired Experience: 25,021]


    [...]


    Just by merely absorbing the spiritual energy in the air into his body.


    Joseph was steadily gaining experience that he could eventually withdraw once the King''s Trial ended. What''s even better was that even if he failed the King''s Trial, the Experience Points that he acquired within the King''s Trial wouldn''t be lost and would still be awarded to him.


    Acquiring experience points by just absorbing the nearby spiritual energy was awesome, but it was also such an incredibly boring activity.


    However, Joseph who was an avid yer of MMORPG games five years ago was someone who was used to grinding. No matter what kind of grinding it was, Joseph wouldn''t be bored.


    In fact, he was even excited as to what level he would reach after he received these Experience Points when he returned to the world of Victory after this King''s Trial.


    The next morning, Joseph woke up after a good night''s sleep through the use of True Sleep Mode.


    After he washed up, the restaurant was finally opened to business.


    However, the small restaurant was still deserted.


    Not a single person could be seen inside.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who transformed into a cat was stillzily lying on the floor as usual.


    Joseph went outside of the small restaurant.


    He carried a chair and ced it near the entrance so he could enjoy the warm sunlight of the morning. He felt toofortable sitting outside to the extent that he slid downwards as he closed his eyes and started absorbing the abundant spiritual energy in the air once again.


    The location of the small maybe only behind the main street, but every person who wanted to buy or sell something ced their stalls or shops on the main street. After all, the main street received all, if not most of the traffic for this side of the City of Eichenwalde.


    The cat inside the small restaurant also went outside and sat beside Joseph. Itzily nced at Joseph for a moment before itid its head on the floor and started sleeping under thefortable warmth of the sun.


    "[Elizabeth...]" Joseph couldn''t help but speak.


    The cat raised its head and stared at Joseph, "[What''s wrong, master? Are there any troublemakers?]"


    "[No... I just want to say that it seems like you''re getting quite used to being a cat. Are you sure that you will still want to return to your original form after all of these?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth coldly replied: "[Are you mocking me, master? Of course, I will still return to my original form! I just want to enjoy the warm sunlight! That''s the reason why I am here outside!]"


    <em>Youpletely missed my point...</em>


    Joseph inwardly chuckled. Of course, he didn''t dare to say these to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Time slowly passed and after about an hour, footsteps came from the distance.


    Although Joseph could hear a lot of footsteps on a daily basis due to the fact that the small restaurant was just behind the main street. This was the first time that he heard footsteps from strangers and not just from the young boy Keh and his parents.


    Joseph raised his head and found that the person approaching was Keh with a wide smile on his face. Beside him was a young man who looked incredibly feminine to the extent that Joseph had to take another look.


    He then discovered that if not for the wide shoulders and the protruding adam''s apple on the young man''s neck...


    Joseph would''ve been convinced that he was a woman.


    <em>Fuck... As expected... If there''s an apple above, there''s a banana below.</em>


    Keh quickly walked beside Joseph and whispered: "Uncle... I saw the prices listed on the menu. Can you reduce those prices for a little bit? It''s really too much..."


    Joseph merely shook his head, "Rules are rules..."


    "Only those that are willing to pay shall be able to eat."


    Keh could only reveal a bitter smile.


    He approached the beautiful young man once again and said, "Young Master ss, this is the shop that I told you that''s selling the most delicious Egg Fried Rice that I have ever tasted in my life. It is an Egg Fried Rice that''s one of a kind. Once tasted, it''s always wanted!"


    Joseph smiled. This young boy, Keh, obviously saw that Joseph didn''t have any customers on his first day of opening even though his dishes were too delicious. Keh probably visited the residence of this beautiful young man and improvised some schemes so he could lure him here.


    The beautiful young man turned to look at Joseph.


    Joseph smiled at the young man.


    But the beautiful young man merely nced at him and went inside the store.


    "Keh, there''s no one here. I thought this ce was rmended by your father?"


    "Yes, my father greatly rmends this store."


    "Then, where''s the owner?"


    "Ah, the owner? He''s right outside."


    The beautiful young man paused.


    He turned around and found that Joseph was the only person outside.


    "So, you''re the owner? My apologies. I just didn''t expect that the owner of this restaurant rmended by the father of this young boy would actually be so young." A smile could be seen on the beautiful young man''s face.


    There was a saying that one cannot punch a smiling face.


    Faced with politeness, Joseph couldn''t ignore something like that so he responded in kind.


    sping his hands, he slightly bowed his head and smiled: "Yes, I am indeed the owner of this small restaurant."


    The beautiful young man replied: "Wow, you''re really polite. If you keep that attitude up you''ll definitely make it big..."


    Joseph merely smiled and didn''t reply.


    Silence fell, but it was broken by the beautiful young man who asked, "It''ste in the morning and I''m getting quite hungry. May I see the menu, perhaps?"


    Joseph maintained the smile on his face as he darted his gaze on a nearby que.


    The moment Keh saw Joseph''s gaze. He secretly sighed and thought that it was over. He had bragged to quite a few people about this shop, but whenever they heard the prices. They would shake their heads in dismay.


    And this was Keh''s expectations as soon as the beautiful young man saw the prices listed within the menu.


    Indeed...


    When the beautiful young man''s gazended on the que.


    His figure froze and a wry smile escaped on his lips.


    "Uh..."


    "It seems like I came to the wrong restaurant..."


    He then turned around and headed for the exit.


    Leaving the bitterly smiling Keh and the sighing Joseph on his wake.

 Chapter 152: Start of an Epic Journey[13]

    Chapter 152: Start of an Epic Journey[13]


    "Uncle... As I said, you really should lower the prices for a bit..." Keh dejectedly sighed.


    Joseph nced at Keh and smiled.


    He knew that the young boy was concerned about his uncle and the small restaurant.


    Unfortunately, Joseph couldn''t possibly bend the rules that he had already established.


    Bending the established rules meant disying weakness and if Joseph did that, he was afraid that he''d make an inner demon for himself.


    Keh puffed his cheeks and pouted.


    At this moment, Joseph could see that even though Keh was smart for his age.


    He was still a growing kid.


    "Don''t be unruly, all right? It doesn''t really matter if I don''t get customers. Although I would prefer it if I had customers so I can see their satisfaction whenever they are eating..." Joseph lightly chuckled and ruffled Keh''s hair.


    Although unconvinced, the young boy couldn''t do anything for he was just a mere employee of the small restaurant.


    He could only move to the kitchen and clean it along with washing the dishes.


    Joseph went to his spot and everything was at square one once again.


    However, before Joseph could even start absorbing the spiritual energy in the area.


    Another series of foreign footsteps rang...


    Joseph raised his head and found that there were three men approaching the vicinity of the small restaurant.


    They wore smiles on their faces, but in their hands were wooden bats and paddles.


    Joseph merely shook his head and returned to rxing.


    The cat raised its head and stared at the three men. Its eyes gleamed with the light of curiosity. It was curious of these three men came here in peace or if they were troublemakers that wanted a fight.


    The three men who looked to be in their early thirties finally arrived at the entrance of the small restaurant.


    "What the hell? Are you sure that this shop has been rented out?"


    "Yeah, can''t you see that there are brand new furniture inside? Why else would there be something like that if this ce doesn''t have a new owner?"


    "That makes sense. But since there''s no one inside, what should we do?" One of the men asked.


    "Hoffman, how long have you been in this industry? Of course, if we want to summon the owner of this ce. We should thrash the ce. I bet if we do that then the owner woulde here running as fast as he can, hahaha!"


    The man who spoke first replied, a menacing grin could be seen on his face.


    The two other men also revealed malicious smiles on their faces.


    They stepped forward inside the restaurant, but they stopped in their tracks for there was a cat blocking their way.


    "What the heck, a cat? Why is it blocking us?"


    For some reason, the three men felt inexplicably nervous while staring at the cat.


    "It looks like it doesn''t want to let us go inside the restaurant. What should we do, boss?"


    "Huh? Hoffman, are you seriously asking me that question?"


    "If something blocks our way then we shall kick that obstacle away!"


    "Kick that obstacle away? But, Hector... It''s just a cat. I don''t think that we should be that violent towards it."


    "Hoffman, are you trying to disobey me or what? Okay, since you want to y like that then you go and kick that cat. If you don''t dare to kick that cat, then I will kick you along with that cat!" Hector red at Hoffman.


    Hoffman''s face turned as pale as a sheet of paper. Evidently, he was afraid of Hector''s strength.


    "Calm down, Hoffman. It''s just a cat, you don''t have to disregard our friendship just because of a cat." ncy who was observing all this while finallymented and disapproved of Hoffman''s idea of making Hector kick the cat.


    Hoffman gnashed his teeth, "You guys..."


    "Fine! If you don''t want to obey my orders, then I''ll do it myself!"


    Hoffman raised his leg and sent a kick directly at the cat.


    Joseph lightly smiled and thought to himself.


    <em>If the words courting death can''t be used to describe what they are doing right now, then I don''t know how to describe their actions.</em>


    He shook his head and closed his eyes, acting as if everything didn''t concern him.


    The moment Hoffman lifted his leg. He swung it at the cat, but he struck nothing.


    "What?"


    Hoffman nkly uttered and he nced at hisrades only to find that there was a look of horror on their face.


    "What the hell you guys, why are you staring at me like that?" Hoffmanined to them.


    ncy and Hector simultaneously pointed at his right leg and cried out.


    "Your leg! Your leg!!!"


    Hoffman heard their piercing screams and his eyesnded on his no- there was nothing for his eyes tond on. It was because his leg had disappeared and was now underneath the ws of the cat.


    The moment Hoffman saw this scene, reality struck him. Pain surged through his entire body as he instantly copsed, frothing at the mouth with his body continuously twitching.


    ncy and Hector fell onto their butts. They scrambled to run for it was the most logical thing to do in the face of an innocent-looking cat that was actually an absolute monster. However, before they could even take their first steps towards running away from the small restaurant.


    Joseph''s voice rang out.


    "Sigh..."


    A long sigh escaped from his mouth.


    "Out of all things that you can mess against in this shop, you messed against that cat." Joseph swept his gaze at the three, particrly at Hoffman who was still profusely bleeding.


    "W-W-Who are you...?" ncy uttered in shock. Hector was trembling in fear. From the looks and stature of these men, it was clear that they were people that frequently shed against thew. It was even possible that these three men were a part of some kind of an underground organization.


    But that didn''t matter at all for Joseph. What a joke. He was someone whose cultivation could instantly annihte this entire City with just a wave of his sleeve, why would he be afraid of some hooligans?


    However, it was a different story if Joseph wanted to remain peaceful in the city. If possible, he didn''t want any scuffle against these hooligans.


    After all, if they were a member of an underground organization.


    It would be a hassle for Joseph to deal with those bastards.


    In other words, it was better for him to avoid trouble if he wanted to maintain the current status quo.


    However, that didn''t mean that it would invalidate the sins that these bastardsmitted.


    Trying to kick Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was one thing, but to actually dare on thrashing the shop?


    That was quite unforgivable for Joseph.


    Thankfully, the men didn''t actually do any damage against the small restaurant, yet but if they had done it.


    It was impossible for Joseph to forgive them.


    Now...


    "I''m the owner of the small restaurant that the three of you wanted to thrash. Now, I won''t waste any time. All three of you must answer my questions or else your friend right there will die..." Joseph made a sidelong nce at Hoffman who was still frothing at the mouth.


    ncy and Hector were astonished by what they had heard. But seeing the serious look on Joseph''s face. They swallowed their doubts and said, "We won''t... We won''t give any answers..."


    It was ncy who replied.


    Hector remained silent.


    Joseph raised an eyebrow.


    He didn''t expect that ncy would actually abandon one of his friends: "Oh? Are you sure that you do not want to answer? Are you just going to let your friend right there die?"


    ncy shook his head, "No... I don''t want him to die."


    "Then, why are you abandoning him?"


    It didn''t make sense. If he didn''t want Hoffman to die, then why was he unwilling to answer Joseph''s questions?


    "He''s crippled... He''s no use anymore... He''s useless... If those guys found out that he''s crippled. I''m sure that they''ll kill him in a way that''s even worse than dying here outright..." ncy replied while stuttering. Both of his feet were angled diagonally towards a nearby alleyway and it was clear that he was deliberating if he should run right now or not.


    "I see, that makes sense. It turns out that that it''s my fault, I didn''t tell you that if you answered all of my questions. Not only I would let him live, but I will also reatt-"


    "Help! Help!!!"


    Before Joseph could evenplete his sentence. Hector suddenly gave a piercing scream. The man who often shed against thew was now asking for help from a nearby person of thew.


    Joseph followed Hector''s gaze and he found that his scream was directed at the several men in uniforms casually strolling the street. From the fact alone that they wore uniforms. It was clear that these men were officials and had some say in regards to thew.


    However, those men didn''t seem to hear Hector''s scream.


    In fact, they just kept on walking and was ignoring the gory scene happening in front of the small restaurant.


    "What...?"


    "Why are they...?"


    "Why are they ignoring us?"


    "Can''t they see what''s going on right here?!"


    "Hey! You there! Help us!" Hector pointed at a man armed with a sword on his back, but the man never responded. He didn''t hear Hector''s screams. But it wasn''t because he really didn''t hear Hector''s screams...


    It was just physically impossible for him to hear Hector''s screams for right now, the small restaurant was in an independent space.


    Yes, an independent space.


    Joseph who was a Core Formation Realm expert realized that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth would definitely go too far when punishing these impudent bastards who actually dared to kick her. That was why at the moment that Hoffman raised his leg and swung it towards Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Joseph instantly separated the space of the small restaurant from the space of reality.


    Joseph didn''t literally transfer the entire small shop into an independent space. Instead, he made an independent space and superimposed the image of the small shop on top of it, and then he used that image to cover up what was really going on inside the small shop.


    In other words, Joseph made an impable illusion that no one in this world could possiblyprehend.


    That included ncy and Hector who looked incredibly confused when they realized that none of their shouts were reaching the people passing by.


    Both of them had the idea of jumping onto a passerby to see their reaction, but none of them dared to do such a thing.


    It was because Joseph was still staring at them with a proud smile on his face


    Yes, a proud smile.


    ncy and Hector felt that Joseph was the reason why all of these were happening and he was proud of the script that he had created.


    "Are you convinced now? Unless I am willing, there''s no way that the three of you can escape this ce." Joseph said.


    ncy fell onto the ground.


    Hector soon followed.


    "Don''t worry, I won''t do something so barbaric as to killing all three of you. I just want answers, you see... I just want to know why the three of you had the idea ofing into this ce while carrying those unsightly weapons."


    Joseph nced at the wooden bats and paddles that the group had at their disposal.


    ncy and Hector gulped a mouthful of saliva. They found themselves unable to stare directly at Joseph''s eyes for they felt as if his eyes were two ck holes that were keen on sucking them in.


    It was such a strange sensation, that Hector who often didn''t talk and was quite a timid guy spoke up and asked.


    "You... Are you an... Are you one of those immortals?"


    Joseph paused for a moment and a smile escaped on his lips. He was about to answer Hector''s question when ncy cried out and scolded Hector.


    "An Immortal? What are you a child? Do you really believe that something like that exists in this world? Wake up, Hector! Have you gone mad from the fear, huh?!" ncy shook Hector''s shoulders, but then Hector replied.


    "No... He must be an immortal, only an immortal can possibly do something like this! Immortals are true, ncy! They exist! Even the boss said that they exist and are guarding Eichenwalde!" Hector blurted out.


    ncy''s expression changed when he heard Hector mention their boss.


    He looked quite reluctant, but there was no way for him to doubt the words of their boss.


    He turned to look at Joseph and said.


    "Sir, you... Are you really an immortal?"


    Joseph merely smiled. He didn''t deny nor confirm their theories.


    "Okay... We''ll answer... But please... let us... let us go afterwards..." ncy hung his head low and the despair was clear just from his expression alone.


    It was evident that he was preparing himself for the inevitable.


    After all, the man standing in front of them could possibly be an immortal who had unimaginable supernatural powers.


    It was impossible for them to escape.


    Hector heaved a deep sigh. He passed over a piece of paper to Joseph and said, "Ever since I started earning a living through this work, I was already prepared for the day that I will die like how I threaten to kill people..."


    "Immortal, after you''ve done what you wanted to do to us, I hope you can pass this piece of paper to my loved ones..."


    "The address is written behind the note. You can kill me if you want, but if you do not dare to pass that note to my loved ones after my death. I will use my soul to curse you for eternity!" Hector maliciously dered.


    The cat who was observing everything from the side was about to jump onto him when Joseph raised his hand and stopped her from attacking.


    "[Why are you blocking my way, master? This bastard... How dare he say such a violent curse! I won''t forgive him!]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth angrily cried out.


    "[You need to calm down, Elizabeth. I really hate unnecessary bloodshed. And also, it''s not like I don''t have any ns regarding these bastards...]" Joseph replied.


    "[ns? Does that mean that master is willing to let them go?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was astonished.


    Joseph gnashed his teeth and suppressed the killing intent that was slowly about to overtake his body. This body that Joseph was using came from an evil immortal whose path to immortality was riddled with blood and the bodies of his enemies.


    Its killing intent was terrifying and could easily be triggered by anyone that dared to offend Joseph.


    Right now...


    Joseph was using his entire willpower on suppressing the killing intent boiling inside him.


    "[Let''s hear them out first. If they don''t have any possible use then I will dispose of them.]" Joseph coldly replied.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was startled due to the coldness of Joseph''s voice and she went silent.


    Joseph turned to face Hector and smile emerged on his lips: "What a vicious deration. Sure, if you two do not prove to be useful to me then I will kill you two and hand this note over to your loved ones. As for you?"


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at ncy before continuing: "Do you have any note there that you want to hand over?"


    ncy revealed a bitter smile. He hung his head low and didn''t say anything in reply.


    Hector nced at Hoffman who was still bleeding from his leg. He noticed that Hoffman was going purple so he hurriedly spoke up: "What does senior Immortal want to ask from us? I will answer it to the best of my ability and without any lies."


    Joseph repeatedly nodded his head, looking quite pleased: "Good, finally..."


    He lightly chuckled and continued, "What are the three of you trying to do earlier?"


    Hector almost immediately answered: "We came here to collect protection fees, Senior. We are doing all of these every week and we came here to visit and intimidate you since you are new to the street..."


    "If we intimidated you outright, it would be easier for you to join the protection program that we have."


    "Oh? Protection fees? So you guys are the reason why the residents are actively avoiding this street. It''s actually because of your presence. But I wonder, why are the authorities not doing anything against you guys? Is it because of money?" Joseph stared at Hector''s eyes.


    Although intimidated, Hector answered: "Yes..."


    "I see, that makes sense. But I can''t see why something like that is useful to me. In fact, the presence of your group is actually bad to my business since the residents are afraid of going into this street." Joseph smiled.


    Hector and ncy gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Hector mustered his courage and after a moment of swift thinking, he replied: "Yes... That is true, but that is only true for now! If you let us go then we can call our boss here and have him talk with you! Senior Immortal, it''s better for you not to shed too much blood for it will be bad karma that will harm you on your path to true immortality."


    Joseph and ncy were astonished by Hector''s words.


    Amusement shed across Joseph''s face as he said, "I say that''s a good proposal..."


    "But you do know about the popr adage that if one wanted to eradicate weeds, it must be pulled out from its roots. In other words, if I wanted peace to return to this small shop of mine. I must annihte you all without sparing anyone nor any witnesses."


    "[Yes, that''s right, master! Kill them all! KILL!!!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth cheered


    Joseph became speechless after hearing Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    He then replied to her, "[Is killing the only way to achieve peace in this world? You''re just too bloodthirsty, Elizabeth. And from what I heard from them, it seems like I can use them in all sorts of ways. Why should I let go of that opportunity just to satisfy this killing intent of mine and yours?]"


    Joseph scolded Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth didn''t reply anymore.


    Hector opened his mouth and spoke: "There''s no stopping you from doing that, Senior Immortal, but I believe that we do have a few uses that you can take advantage of. As long as you spare our lives, we will call our boss here and you can talk to him for the specifics..."


    Joseph nodded his head, "Interesting... All right, I''ll let all of you go... However, you must bring that boss of yours today, or else. No matter what happens, I will definitely kill you all and annihte that group you belong to! Mark my words..."


    ncy and Hector were visibly relieved by what they had heard, and they nodded their heads like chicken pecking rice.


    Afterwards, they nced at Hoffman who was lying on the ground and said.


    "Senior Immortal, can you help our brother now?"


    Joseph shook his head, "It''s toote, you bastards took too long to agree to my proposal and now he''s dead."


    He nced at ncy and Hector and found that the two were frozen in utter shock.


    "What? You want me to revive the dead? You''re asking for the impossible."


    Hector shook his head and said, "No... That''s not it, Senior Immortal. I just want to ask... Can we bring his body back?"


    "No, you cannot bring his body back. Wouldn''t it be suspicious if the people passing by saw you guys carrying a corpse from my shop? That will hurt my business even more!" Joseph promptly replied and even scolded.


    Hector and ncy revealed looks of disappointment on their faces, but as soon as they awakened from their trance. It was the trigger that made them run away as fast as they could from the small shop. The two of them hurriedly hid inside a dark alleyway...


    Joseph and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth remained inside the independent space.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth transformed into her original form as she said, "Master... Why did you let them go? They''ll bring more trouble to us than if you just killed them!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled and replied, "You don''t understand for now, but you''ll soon understand why I spared them, Elizabeth..."


    "Don''t worry, Elizabeth..."


    "Everything is going ording to n."

 Chapter 153: Start of an Epic Journey[14]

    Chapter 153: Start of an Epic Journey[14]


    The leader of the underground group that solicited fees on the streets of Eichenwalde was also the leader of the strongest family within the City of Eichenwalde. His name was Matthew Astolfo. He was the current patriarch of the Astolfo Family and due to their position, fame, and strength...


    No one within the city...


    Not even the City Mayor of Eichenwalde dare to carelessly provoke the beehive known as the Astolfo Family.


    It slowly becamemon sense for every resident within the City of Eichenwalde that the Astolfo Family shall never be challenged nor humiliated.


    However, at this moment...


    Thatmon sense was shattered.


    Someone actually dared to trample upon the dignity of the members within the group that Matthew Astolfo made!


    Not only that but the person who dared to kill one of them and humiliate the survivors also imed to be an Immortal!


    <em>I have to go... I have to meet that person... if he''s weaker than me then I shall kill him to spare myself of the trouble.</em>


    Matthew decided.


    He went outside and donned a disguise that made him look like an ordinary middle-aged man.


    But why was he doing all of these?


    It was because he wanted to test that so-called person who imed to be a cultivator. If that person could easily see through this disguise of his that he supplemented with spiritual energy.


    Then, he would give that person the respect that he deserved just by being a cultivator that fought against the heavens.


    Matthew snuck out of his residence and walked towards the street just behind the main street.


    Raising his head, he instantly found his target near a dark alleyway.


    <em>So, that''s the target shop? Hmmm, why does it look like it''s deserted? Well, the night is about toe and this ce is often empty since most of the foot traffic is at the main street itself...</em>


    Matthew hid on the dark alleyway beside the shop and summoned his Divine Sense. His Divine Sense covered the entire shop, and he found two figures within the shop.


    One of them belonged to a human, while the other belonged to a cat?


    <em>What''s going on? Didn''t Hector say that there''s an immortal in here? Why can''t I feel any spiritual energy fluctuations from this guy? Could it be that he''s just a mortal? </em>


    <em>Wait...</em>


    <em>What if his cultivation realm is high enough that it''s impossible for me to detect it?</em>


    Matthew hesitated.


    He was a man who always went into battle while prepared, but right now.


    He had no preparations at all. In order to not offend the potentially fellow cultivator owner of the small shop. Matthew went out in a rush, and now that he was facing a conundrum, he suddenly felt at loss as to what he should do.


    He thought for a moment and decided that he would just go inside the small shop.


    <em>I''ll just go inside and be straightforward. I don''t think that the owner of the shop would do something against me since he wanted my presence and summoned me through the use of my subordinates.</em>


    Matthew repeatedly nodded his head.


    Taking a deep breath, he took a step forward and approached the front doors of the small shop.


    Afterwards, he paused and spread his Divine Sense once again.


    When he felt that there wasn''t any spiritual energy fluctuation within the shop.


    He took another deep breath and a fierce look appeared on his face.


    He dashed inside the small shop and loudly dered, "Where''s the owner of this shop?" His eyesnded at Joseph and he frowned when he saw that Joseph didn''t even spare him a nce. He just continued on what he was doing, and that was cooking.


    "[Master! A troublemaker! Should I attack?]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang within Joseph''s mind.


    "[If you asked me questions before you attacked a troublemaker then they will have enough time to wreak havoc within the shop. Next time, you shouldn''t ask any questions before you attack. Ask those questions while you are attacking.]"


    Joseph responded with a piece of advice.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went silent, but Joseph took no offense to her silence. It was because her silence usually meant that she was in deep contemtion.


    Joseph made it his habit to not disturb her whenever she was silent after a scolding.


    "I''m the owner of this small shop," Joseph replied with a smile.


    Matthew stared at Joseph and frowned.


    <em>He''s the owner? That cannot be! ncy and Hector said that the owner may be a cultivator. </em>


    <em>Wait, did those guys lie to me? </em>


    <em>No, that''s impossible! </em>


    <em>I''ve known them for at least a decade already! They also aren''t the type of person to lie for something as crucial as this.</em>


    <em>Then, what is going on? If they didn''t lie, then why is the owner of this shop so young?</em>


    Matthew fell into deep contemtion.


    In the end, since he wasn''t so sure of the background of the shop owner. He decided to probe first.


    "I see, so you''re the owner of this shop?" Matthew raised an eyebrow and let out a hint of his spiritual energy.


    "Yes, I am. I just told you..." Joseph felt a wave of pressure descend upon him. However, a single thread of his Core Formation Spiritual Energy was enough for the pressure to dissipate as Joseph gauged the strength of his enemy.


    <em>A Foundation Establishment expert... Quite strong, I say...</em>


    Joseph let out a smile. He didn''t say anything anymore.


    "I came here to ask for an exnation. Do you have something to say about what you have done to myrades?"


    "Oh? You should''ve asked thoserades of yours as to why they came here..."


    "They came here upon my orders. It was my order for them to collect protection fees from the shops here, and in exchange. Those shops will be under my protection. Do you really think that something like that is unreasonable?"


    "No, I don''t. It seems like a good deal at first nce, but have you considered what will happen to the businesses here if those subordinates of yours whom I don''t think have taken a bath in thest few months strolls around and collect fees as if they own the ce?"


    "Even though your intentions may be nothing but good. Everyone isn''t under that kind of an impression. They are quite scared, you see?"


    Matthew frowned, "Did you call me here just to scold me? You think you''re qualified?"


    Matthew increased the pressure he was exerting towards Joseph but at this moment, his frown deepened.


    It was because he noticed that even though he was now using half of his cultivation to pressure Joseph.


    It felt like nothing was happening.


    Joseph was still standing there, and there was still thisnguid smile on his face.


    <em>This guy... He''s definitely not a mortal... As for his cultivation... Damn, I can''t see through him! Could it be that he''s a Core Formation Realm Expert? Impossible! People like them are only at the Capital!</em>


    <em>But... If he''s acting like a mortal even though he''s a cultivator... There''s a huge chance that he may be a peak Core Formation Realm expert that''s trying toprehend the ways of the heavens to awaken his Nascent Soul.</em>


    In that case...


    <em>No...</em>


    <em>I think I''m jumping to conclusions here...</em>


    <em>Core Formation Realm experts aren''t cabbages on the streets that you can just find everywhere. Until I ampletely sure about the identity and the cultivation of this young man, there''s no way that he can just order us around! </em>


    Matthew''s innate arrogance as the Head of the Astolfo Family came out and a stern look appeared on his face.


    "Can we not waste more time anymore? If you have something to tell me, then I hope that you can just tell me outright. I don''t have that much time to deal with nonsense like this." Matthew had a look of displeasure on his face.


    But Joseph was actually shaken and astonished by Matthew''s reaction.


    <em>What?</em>


    <em>He''s not mad?</em>


    <em>I thought he''d get mad and start pointing at me while shouting, "courting death", if I tried to show him some arrogance.</em>


    <em>Wow, he''s quite a sensible man.</em>


    <em>It seems like I''ll be able to test that theory of mine as soon as possible.</em>


    Joseph''snguid smile disappeared as he turned around and walked towards the kitchen.


    When he returned, he brought with him a bowl of Entrada Family''s Secret Special Egg Fried Rice.


    He ced it on the elevated tform that faced the desks of the restaurant as he said.


    "Eat this..."


    <em>Huh?</em>


    Matthew was speechless.


    He didn''t know what to say.


    <em>He came here demanding an exnation, yet his enemy. If you can even call him as his enemy was actually giving him food instead of trying to fight him outright? What was going on?</em>


    Wait... What if that bowl of Egg Fried Rice is loaded with poison?


    <em>No, that''s stupid...</em>


    <em>There''s no way that someone would tantly offer poisoned food towards someone that he wants to kill...</em>


    <em>But there''s also this popr adage that if you want to hide a tree, hide it in the forest. The best way to hide a lie is behind the facade of frankness. What if this man knows about those adages and is trying to kill me in an unexpected manner like this?</em>


    <em>But should I refuse or what? If I refuse, what will happen?</em>


    <em>If I refuse him, will he kill me?</em>


    <em>No, I don''t think so.</em>


    <em>If he wanted to kill me, with his unfathomable cultivation strength then he could''ve done that already.</em>


    <em>And I don''t think that he would like bloodshed for he''s trying to act like a mortal in order toprehend the heavens.</em>


    <em>But if that''s not the case, just what the hell is he nning...</em>


    Matthew furtively nced at Joseph and found that there was this look of indifference on his face that he couldn''t decipher.


    <em>Goddamned it, I can''t read what this guy is thinking...</em>


    <em>Shit, what should I do...</em>


    Matthew maintained a look of calmness on his face, but inwardly he was already panicking.


    Thankfully, Joseph swiftly ended his plight by saying.


    "Don''t worry, there''s nothing wrong with that bowl of Egg Fried Rice. You''re hungry, right? Eat up first, then we''ll talk about the specifics as to why I summoned you here." Joseph casually said as he took a chair andzily sat down.


    Matthew reluctantly lifted the bowl of Egg Fried Rice. His eyes focused and narrowed into eachponent within the bowl and he found nothing out of the ordinary. Yes, he found nothing strange and dangerous within the Egg Fried Rice.


    But...


    <em>Wow, it smells so good... Is this really Egg Fried Rice?</em>


    <em>Why is this Egg Fried Rice so beautiful?</em>


    <em>How did he cook something like this?</em>


    Matthew took the chopsticks that sat beside the bowl and started eating.


    As soon as Matthew ced a mouthful of it into his mouth, an inexplicable burst of vor urred inside his mouth!


    Matthew was left trembling.


    "This..."


    "How can something like this..."


    "Exist...?"


    Tears dripped down Matthew''s cheeks all of a sudden, astonishing Joseph who inwardly panicked.


    <em>What the fuck? Why the hell is he crying? Should I feel happy that the Egg Fried Rice I made was so delicious that it moved him to tears, or what?</em>


    Joseph couldn''t understand why Matthew was crying.


    But Matthew himself knew why he was emotionally moved by this particr Egg Fried Rice.


    As a cultivator, Matthew cultivated in defiance of the heavens.


    Cultivation itself was cumbersome, lonely, and tedious.


    Even though Matthew was quite used to the loneliness and the peculiarity of cultivation. That didn''t mean that he couldn''t feel any emotions and didn''t have any feelings. Cultivators were often called by mortals as Immortals but they all started as mortals.


    It was impossible for any cultivator with a cultivation realm below that of a god to be detached from the emotions, worries, goals, and ambitions of a mortal. This was why even though Matthew was hard at work on his cultivation, he also had his own hobby.


    And that hobby of him was something that everyone could rte to.


    It was eating.


    Yes, Matthew had the hobby of eating.


    He often traveled to the remote corners of the continent in order to taste delicacies that he had never tasted before. Of course, it didn''t mean that only Matthew had a hobby like this.


    Many cultivators, including those that have incredibly high cultivation realms, for as long as they started as a mortal would always crave the delicious delicacies of the mortal world.


    Eating was optional for cultivators, but who would refuse a delicious treat?


    At this moment, Joseph could finally understand Matthew''s feelings.


    His spiritual energy churned, in a way that it had never done before.


    Thunder rumbled from the distance and clouds rolled against each other producing lightning that eventually dissipated for it was still not the right time to descend.


    <em>Cooking and Eating... </em>


    <em>Both of these concepts are something that not even a god can escape from.</em>


    <em>In other words, Cooking and Eating could be considered as a part of a concept that transcends the limitations of cultivation.</em>


    <em>But what are those concepts?</em>


    <em>If I say that cooking involves taking the lives of animals and vegetables to supplement the life of another.</em>


    <em>Can I say that cooking is somehow connected to death, while eating is intertwined with life for it nurtured the life of everything or everyone in this world?</em>


    <em>Yes...</em>


    <em>Cooking is death...</em>


    <em>Eating is life...</em>


    <em>Both are concepts intertwined with the Grand Concept of Life and Death!</em>


    Joseph''s eyes twinkled with enlightenment.


    His spiritual energy surged and the core that formed his cultivation inside his dantian madly spun.


    "[Master! Absorb the spiritual energy in the surroundings! Take this opportunity to push yourself into the Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm!]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang inside Joseph''s mind.


    Joseph hurriedly separated the space of the small shop from the space of reality. He ced the space of the small shop into an independent space so that he wouldn''t disturb the surroundings of reality when he started absorbing the spiritual energy in the area.


    Joseph leaped andnded onto the ground cross-legged.


    He opened his mouth and started sucking in the spiritual energy in the air into his body.


    [You are absorbing the nearby Spiritual Energy...]


    [You have acquired Experience: 23,125]


    [You have acquired Experience: 25,722]


    [You have acquired Experience: 28,201]


    [...]


    <em>Wha...</em>


    Matthew staggered backward and fell onto his butt.


    The changes happened so fast, and so suddenly that it gave him no time to react. He turned to look at the exit of the small shop and realized that there was an illusionary mist covering the space of reality.


    In other words, Matthew quickly realized that Joseph had sealed the entire small shop in an independent space.


    There''s no way for Matthew to escape!


    Staring at Joseph, Matthew felt his mouth run dry.


    His throat moved ever so slightly to whisper these words of astonishment.


    "P-P-Peak Core Formation Realm Expert?!"


    Matthew suppressed the fear that appeared in his heart.


    <em>What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck?! What the fuck should I do?! Shit, should I go out?</em>


    <em> No!</em>


    <em> If I go out that can be considered as disturbing his cultivation, if senior notices that I did something like that then fuck, I''ll be deader than dead!</em>


    <em>Then, what the fuck should I do?</em>


    <em>Should I just stand here, or what...?</em>


    Matthew''s eyes darted around the room as if he was looking for some cover. However, his eyes subconsciouslynded on Joseph and his pupils constricted when he saw that there was a mini-version of Joseph that had the size of an infant floating above his head.


    <em>A Nascent Soul!</em>


    <em>Senior is trying to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm?!</em>


    <em>Shit, if that happens then Heavenly Tribtion will descend!</em>


    <em>If Heavenly Tribtion descends and I''m standing this near to him...</em>


    <em>Fuck...</em>


    <em>Sorry, Mama, Papa... It seems like I''m fucked...</em>


    Matthew copsed onto his knees, despair could be seen on his face.


    But he soon raised his head and determination shed across his face.


    <em>I can''t just die here... No, I won''t let myself die here... I still have about a hundred years of my lifespan! I earned a lot of money and I established an empire of money-making schemes only for me to die without enjoying the riches that I made by myself?</em>


    <em>I''m not willing!</em>


    <em>I am not willing!</em>


    Matthew raised his head and stared at Joseph.


    <em>But how do I stop him?</em>


    Matthew''s mind madly spun in order to find a solution in his current conundrum.


    Meanwhile above the City of Eichenwalde. The skies suddenly darkened as the clouds rolled and shed against each other. Thunder boomed and lightning shed within these clouds, but for some reason...


    These dark clouds were still gathering each other''spany as they increasingly became bigger and bigger.


    <em>Fuck it!</em>


    Matthew inwardly screamed and his Foundation Establishment Realm cultivation madly spun.


    Spiritual Energy gathered onto his fist and he flew towards the entrance of the shop. Surprisingly, instead of attacking Joseph in order to stop him, he attacked the entrance of the shop instead so that he could shatter the independent space and escape.


    However...


    Before he could even reach the entrance.


    A cat leaped in front of him and under Matthew''s astonished eyes.


    The cat roared in anger and a soundwave directly struck Matthew on his chest, sending him flying backward as a fountain of blood rushed from his chest towards his throat.


    A trail of blood followed him as he crashed against the walls of the shop, he couldn''t stand up anymore nor make any noise...


    His condition, unknown.


    The cat became enveloped with a dazzling light and when that light vanished...


    The cat was nowhere to be found.


    It was reced by a beautiful young woman who had a clear look of worry in her eyes as she stared at the skies.


    "Heavenly Tribtion?"


    "No... This is Lightning Tribtion..."


    "But why would Lightning Tribtion suddenly appear at this moment? Did a treasure appear right in this shop? Or could it be that..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nced at Joseph who was sitting cross-legged on the ground...


    "Did Masterprehend a Grand Concept?"

 Chapter 154: Start of an Epic Journey[15]

    Chapter 154: Start of an Epic Journey[15]


    Cooking is death...


    Eating is life...


    Life is the beginning...


    Death is the end...


    These two concepts are inevitable and could never be escaped.


    But why?


    Aren''t immortals undying beings that could never die?


    Since they can''t die, then they had already escaped the constraints of this concept.


    But is that really the truth?


    They are not dead, therefore...


    They are alive.


    But when you are alive, there''s only one way for you to go and that is death...


    Zero may be nothing, but it also signals a beginning.


    Death is the end and it signifies the state of zero.


    Life is the beginning for it starts at zero.


    From when we are born in this world as infants until we be adults, and then die as elders...


    The journey that took us from Zero to the end is Life itself.


    Life is a journey and death is the destination.


    This journey can be considered as the same journey that the raw ingredients undertake in the process of cooking.


    Once cooked, their destiny was to be eaten and that can be considered as Death...


    Death cannot survive without Life and without Death, Life cannot begin.


    These two are always intertwined and can never be separated.


    In other words, The Grand Concept of Life and Death is an inevitable fate that will definitely fall upon everything.


    In that case, what''s the use of cultivating?


    What''s the use of pursuing immortality when one will still die anyway?


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    He thought of an idea towards the answer to this question, but a sharp headache assaulted his body. Pain spread through his nerves as his body continuously twitched. His mouth opened and gave a silent roar in order to release this pain, but it was still continuing.


    Suddenly, Joseph''s consciousness cked out, and when he opened his eyes.


    He found himself inside apletely dark space with something floating in the center.


    Yes, something...


    No...


    Someone was floating at the center of this dark space.


    <em>Who is that? </em>


    Joseph wanted to approach the person floating at the center of the dark space, but he didn''t have any limbs that he could use to move. In fact, Joseph didn''t feel like he was even in the dark space. It felt like he was truly in it, but at the same time, he felt like he was just nothing but a mere observer.


    Joseph narrowed his illusory eyes and his eyesight became better. He closely observed the person floating in the dark space and his illusory pupils constricted. It was because he found out that the person floating at the center was actually him!


    Precisely, it was an infant that had the face of the adult Joseph!


    Joseph felt iparably disturbed.


    <em>What the fuck?</em>


    These were the words that he inwardly uttered as he violently cursed.


    The infant that had his face calmly floated there as if it was a boat on calm seas.


    Joseph closely observed the infant and it suddenly opened its eyes!


    Its nk and lifeless eyes stared directly at Joseph''s eyes and at this moment, enlightenment suddenly dawned upon Joseph.


    <em>An infant...</em>


    <em>Everyone starts as an infant, one way or another.</em>


    <em>When one is at this stage, they are beginning to show signs of their own talents and potential.</em>


    <em>In other words, this infant version of me is probably the manifestation of my Nascent Soul.</em>


    Joseph imagined himself sitting cross-legged on the floors of the dark space as he took an illusory deep breath and sucked the illusory spiritual energy in the area into his body.


    <em>Life and Death can never be separated.</em>


    <em>Zero is the beginning, yet it also signifies the end.</em>


    <em>The Grand Concept of Life and Death...</em>


    Joseph inwardly uttered.


    A strange sensation of grasping something popped up in his mind as several system notifications simultaneously popped up in front of him. However, since Joseph had his eyes closed, he couldn''t see these system notifications along with the message that they disyed.


    Joseph waspletely absorbed inprehending the Grand Concept of Life and Death at this moment.


    <em>Infancy signifies the start of life so, therefore...</em>


    <em>My Nascent Soul is life!</em>


    <em>Breathe life into my Nascent Soul!</em>


    <em>Ascend!</em>


    Spiritual Energy from all directions madly surged towards Joseph as if his body was a ck hole.


    The infant Joseph opened its eyes once again, but this time...


    Its eyes which previously didn''t have any life in them now radiated the vitality of life.


    This signified that Joseph had thoroughly understood the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death which was...


    Life!


    Joseph opened his eyes and the spiritual energy flowing into his body abruptly disappeared.


    In just a few seconds, everything had returned to normal.


    "M-M-Master..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nervously uttered as she surreptitiously nced at the skies.


    She thought that Lightning Tribtion would descend at this moment, yet it mysteriously backed out and disappeared.


    <em>Did Master fail onprehending a Grand Concept? That''s the only reason why the Lightning Tribtion would voluntarily dissipate itself!</em>


    She turned her eyes to Joseph and found that the killing intent that his body subconsciously let out actually became tame.


    <em>Does this mean that Master seeded?</em>


    <em>I don''t know...</em>


    <em>Let''s ask him!</em>


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth decided as she opened her mouth and said, "M-Master... Did you seed?"


    Joseph gave a light smile, "Hehe... I did. I managed toprehend the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death."


    "T-T-The Grand Concept of Life and Death?! Master! That''s the first of the Grand Concepts in existence! Y-Y-You managed toprehend something like that?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth whispered in utter shock.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head, "Y-Yeah... I did..." He didn''t know, but Pixie Fairy Elizabeth being shocked made him feel somewhat embarrassed.


    It was the same feeling that everyone has whenever they were being serenaded with a happy birthday song, and they couldn''t understand if they should smile or p along with their friends and family.


    "That''s awesome, master!"


    Joseph gave an awkward smile and kept on scratching his head. He swept his gaze in the shop and found that he made quite a huge disturbance. Turning to look at the entrance of the shop, Joseph found that the independent space he established was still holding on. He felt relieved.


    But before he could even sigh in relief, his eyes were attracted to something. He saw that the leader of those people who visited the shop earlier was lying on the ground. There was blood on his mouth and it was clear that the blood marks on the floor belonged to him.


    Joseph then diverted his gaze to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and asked, "What did you do to him?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth momentarily nced at Matthew and said, "Master, you can''t me me on what I have done to him, he tried on interrupting your cultivation earlier just so he can save himself..."


    "I had no choice but to attack him so he won''t be a hindrance to your cultivation. But don''t worry, master. I didn''t kill him."


    Joseph wore a bitter smile on his face when he saw Matthew''s injuries.


    <em>Yeah, you didn''t kill him but you did seriously injure him to the point that he''s now on the brink of death.</em>


    Joseph could only sigh as he ordered, "Fix him up..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied, "I''ll do that, master. But first! Can you show me what you have learned from the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death?"


    "What I''ve learned from the Grand Concept of Life and Death?"


    Joseph thought for a moment before a look of rity shed across his face.


    He could seem to remember that several system notification sounds rang when he was in the middle of contemtion.


    He opened up his [Logs] and saw that indeed, there were several unread system notifications within his [Logs]!


    Joseph opened them all and they simultaneously appeared in front of him.


    [You are absorbing the nearby Spiritual Energy...]


    [You have acquired Experience: 22,533]


    [You have acquired Experience: 23,722]


    [You have acquired Experience: 21,723]


    [...]


    [You haveprehended the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life.]


    [As a reward for yourprehension of a Grand Concept. You are awarded a Unique Skill.]


    [Unique Skills are skills that are unique to a user in this world. They can never be copied nor reverse-engineered by others. It is a skill only for the owner of the Unique Skill.]


    [Unique Skill: Bolster has been added.]


    [Unique Skills are procedurally generated whenever a user meets certain criteria such asprehension regarding a certain concept. Since it is something that cannot be defined, the skill is unknown and the user is encouraged to find out about the effects of the skill by practical usage.]


    [You have ascended to the Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm.]


    [As a reward for your ascension, you are given Experience: 1,502,531]


    <em>Unique Skill Bolster...</em>


    <em>There''s no description about it, so in other words... I don''t know what it is about...</em>


    Joseph thought for a moment before he proceeded to open Mister Google and ask about the meaning of the word Bolster so he could have an idea about the effects of his very first Unique Skill.


    <em>It says that bolster means to reinforce, support, and strengthen. Hmmm, it doesn''t really sound nor feel dangerous. How about I just try to use it and see its effects?</em>


    Joseph turned to look at a nearby fallen chair and whispered.


    "Bolster."


    A ray of brilliant light flew from Joseph towards that fallen chair.


    The light sunk into the chair as if it was a stone dropped into an ocean.


    [You have used your Unique Skill: Bolster.]


    [Your identity as the Grand Duelist has been recognized and Bolster''s effects have been reinforced with your Divinity.]


    [-10 Divinity.]


    <em>What? It actually deducted points from my Divinity stat. But now, what? Do I assume that the chair has been reinforced?</em>


    Joseph turned to look at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and said, "Can you try attacking that chair for me?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of confusion on her face when she was observing everything, but it changed when she heard Joseph''s request. She hurriedly opened her palm and flicked her wrist, sending a ball of dazzling light towards the chair.


    Bang!


    A small explosion urred when the light struck the chair, but miraculously...


    <em>The chair was unharmed?</em>


    <em>Interesting...</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    <em>So this Unique Skill of mine is drastically increasing the defense of objects?</em>


    <em>But to what extent?</em>


    <em>How can I measure something like that?</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion, but he was interrupted when Pixie Fairy Elizabeth suddenly spoke up.


    "Woah! Master! So, the ability that you acquired fromprehending the Grand Concept of Life is reinforcement? That chair actually became really strong! I thought my attack would turn it into dust, but it survived!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth said.


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at her and replied, "How strong was that attack of yours?"


    "Uh..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth hesitated for a moment, "About one percent of my full power?"


    "Ugh..."


    Joseph almost immediately facepalmed.


    Afterwards, a magnificent idea suddenly came to him as he walked towards the chair.


    He picked it up and ced it into his inventory. There, he tapped on the icon of the chair, and the information that he saw about the chair thoroughly astonished him.


    [Wooden Chair


    Tier: Epic


    Durability: Infinite


    This chair was apletely normal wooden chair that had a lifespan of about a decade. However, after the reinforcement of the Grand Duelist through the use of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life. The chair had gained infinite durability and could now endure through everything in the world, save for Death.]


    Joseph rapidly blinked.


    <em>Say, what?</em>


    <em>The chair became an indestructible object?</em>


    <em>What am I supposed to do with this chair now?</em>


    <em>Wait, if a chair can be this durable after the enhancement of Bolster and my Divinity. What will happen if I used Bolster on a living being? Will they transform into an immortal, or what?</em>


    Joseph didn''t know whether tough or to cry.


    The skill that he got was too overpowered and ridiculous that he didn''t know what to say.


    <em>But where should I try this?</em>


    <em>Hmm...</em>


    Joseph''s eyesnded on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    <em>Should I test it on her?</em>


    <em>Nah, what if something goes wrong?</em>


    <em>How about I test it on that guy? I heard from Elizabeth that he tried ruining my cultivation earlier. But actually, I don''t really me him. I mean, he was just trying to save his life. I can''t possibly me him for doing everything that he can to save his life.</em>


    <em>However!</em>


    <em>That does not invalidate the fact that he tried on interrupting my cultivation.</em>


    <em>That may be a crime that does not deserve capital punishment for me, but it doesn''t mean that I''ll just let him off.</em>


    <em>Hehehe...</em>


    An evil grin appeared on Joseph''s lips.


    <em>I''ll just try it on him.</em>


    Joseph lifted his finger and pointed at Matthew.


    "Bolster."


    Another ray of light flew towards Matthew. It entered his body and swiftly disappeared as if it had never existed.


    Joseph then turned to look at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and said, "Punch him."


    "Punch him, master?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked in confusion.


    "Yeah, just do it. But you must hold back, of course, we don''t want him to die after all." Joseph lightly chuckled.


    Matthew who was lying on the ground felt a surge of energy that awakened him from his slumber.


    When his eyes slowly opened, he could vaguely see the figure of a beautiful young woman who had this sweet smile on her face.


    <em>A Goddess?</em>


    Matthew subconsciously lifted his arm and stretched it towards the young woman as if he wanted the young woman toe closer to him.


    <em>But why is a Goddess here? Am I already dead?</em>


    Matthew uttered in doubt.


    Then, that Goddess that stood before him suddenly raised her arm above her head and clenched her hand into a fist.


    <em>What...?</em>


    Matthew nkly uttered as the fist of the Goddess descended unto his face.


    <em>Aaah!!!</em>


    Matthew pushed himself backward in a panic, but he failed for he was already at the border of the independent space.


    The punch grew closer in his eyes, but before it could strike him squarely on his face. It was stopped by an invisible force that made contact with Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s fist and gave off a dull thud.


    "AAAHHH!!!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth gave a shrill scream as she held her fist.


    Joseph held back hisughter as he stepped forward in front of Matthew.


    The reason why Joseph made Pixie Fairy Elizabeth punch Matthew first was that Joseph wanted to make sure that Bolster gave protection to living beings.


    If Joseph punched Matthew without any sort of protection, his cultivation strength would definitely enough to turn Matthew''s body into dust with a single attack.


    This was the reason why Joseph urged Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    He wanted to make sure that Bolster was protecting Matthew.


    "Oh, you''re finally awake..." Joseph moved closer to Matthew.


    Matthew''s expression paled.


    Joseph lifted his arm and formed a fist with his right hand.


    "Senior... Yes, I''m already awake... Please don''t punch me... I don''t want to sleep no more." Matthew whispered in fear.


    Joseph gave anguid smile: "It''s fine, didn''t you see how you didn''t get hit by her punch earlier? Something is protecting you right now. I am just testing the limits of that protection."


    Matthew gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Indeed, an invisible wall protected him from Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s punch.


    <em>That wall should be able to hold back against the might of a Nascent Soul Expert who was assuming the form of a mortal without breaking, right?</em>


    Matthew reassured himself and calm himself down.


    However, in the very next moment, Joseph circted his entire cultivation base and embued the strength of his Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivation into his fist.


    <em>Fuck...</em> Matthew audibly cursed.


    But before he could even say hisints. Joseph had already raised his fist above his shoulders before swinging his arm, sending a punch flying towards Matthew''s face.


    <em>Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!!!</em>


    Matthew went pale. He subconsciously rotated his cultivation base to react, but Joseph''s punch was actually stopped by an invisible wall?


    Ding!


    A crisp sound rang out as Joseph''s punch was audibly stopped.


    Matthew raised his head and stared at Joseph. He found that there was this look of amusement and calmness on Joseph''s face as he said.


    "Oh... It can block a fully-powered punch... Interesting..."


    Joseph then turned around and faced Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    At this moment, unbeknownst to Matthew...


    Joseph''s face contorted in pain as he held back his breath.


    "Pfft..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth almost busted her guts when she saw the look of pain on Joseph''s face, but she quickly held herself back when she realized that Joseph was trying to keep up his appearance of an unfathomable expert in front of Matthew.


    Matthew stared at Joseph''s back and inwardly praised.


    <em>What a god... Having an attack forcibly stopped like that must hurt! But it looks like senior doesn''t feel any pain. If it was me I would be jumping up and down right now in pain.</em>


    Matthew was finally convinced. He opened his mouth and spoke, "Senior... Congrattions on reaching the Nascent Soul Realm!"


    Joseph turned around and faced Matthew with anguid smile. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth, on the other hand, even though she had a smile on her face. There was this clear look of enmity in her eyes.


    Matthew gave a bitter smile. He knew the reason why this gorgeous young woman whom he misunderstood as a goddess was angry at him. It was because he tried on escaping from this shop earlier when he thought that tribtion was about to descend.


    Matthew heaved a sigh.


    He turned to look at Joseph, bowed his head, and then confessed: "Senior... I will tell you the truth. I tried on escaping this shop earlier since I was afraid that I''ll get involved with your tribtion. But please, believe me, senior that interrupting your cultivation never crossed my mind!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "A man like you in the world of cultivation is incredibly rare! Usually, cultivators with cultivations like you are innately arrogant, not knowing that in the grand scheme of things. Their strength amounts to nothing!"


    Matthew was astonished by the words that he heard.


    Admiration shed across his face as he said, "I thank you for the praise, senior!"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth revealed a look of satisfaction when she saw how Matthew was worshipping her master right now.


    <em>Hehehe, Master doesn''t want me to bully him right now, but if he bes a subordinate of the master. That means that I''ll gain superiority over him! I''ll be able to bully him that way, hehehe... Hmmph, how dare he try to interrupt the master''s cultivation earlier...</em>


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was inwardly making her own schemes.


    Joseph and Matthew worked together and Joseph finally understood how Bolster worked along with its usage conditions and cooldown.


    [Your trial use of the Unique Skill: Bolster has beenpleted.]


    [The Description of the Unique Skill: Bolster has been updated.]


    [Unique Skill: Bolster


    A unique skill created based on the Grand Duelist''sprehension on the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life. This Unique Skill based on the Grand Duelist''s input can reinforce, strengthen, and support anything in the world.


    *If used on an inanimate object, the object will acquire infinite durability albeit with some limitations.


    Number of inanimate objects reinforced: 3/3


    Dispelling the skill on the reinforced inanimate object will cause the inanimate object to crumble into dust.


    * If used on a living being, the living being will acquire [Absolute Protection].


    [Absolute Protection]sts for a minute and grantsplete immunity to any form of damage. The blessing of life is selfless. This skill can never be used on oneself.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Uniqueprehension in the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death.


    Skill Cost: Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown Time: 12 hours.]<ol><li>He still not confident if he can hold back his strength since he just ascended lol.</li></ol>

 Chapter 155: Start of an Epic Journey[16]

    Chapter 155: Start of an Epic Journey[16]


    "How fascinating..." Matthew stared at the wooden chair that Joseph reinforced with Bolster. There was a clear look of astonishment on his face. Matthew had tried all methods that he knew in his dictionary in order to damage the wooden chair but to no avail.


    In other words, the wooden chair became the strongest material in the world after Joseph''s enhancement!


    Matthew''s eyes shed with enlightenment. When he heard that Bolster was created due to Joseph''s enlightenment of the Grand Concept of Life and Death. Matthew who experienced its effects first-hand seemed to have gained some knowledge regarding the Grand Concept of Life.


    He sat down cross-legged on the ground as Joseph chuckled and went to the kitchen.


    He didn''t try to interrupt Matthew.


    He went to the kitchen and started cooking.


    It was time to try and cook Pork Nga and Pork Adobo!


    Joseph lightly smiled as he abruptly vanished from the small shop.


    When he reappeared, he was carrying livestock on both of his arms.


    He had decided that in order toprehend thest half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Death.


    He must personally take the lives of every living ingredient that he must use.


    Joseph stared at the pitiful animals. He sighed, circted his cultivation strength, and ended their lives painlessly.


    "I''m sorry, piggy... But don''t worry, I''ll definitely cook you to perfection with the recipe that mama and papa handed over to me!" Joseph inwardly swore as he grew focused. His eyes zeroed onto the ingredients as his hands moved like a blur, in just a few seconds... He hadpleted the mise en ce of the vegetable and spices.


    At this moment, Matthew finally opened his eyes as he let out a breath of turbid air.


    The first scene that he saw was a starstruck Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    <em>What''s going on?</em>


    He thought then he diverted his gaze towards the kitchen and found that Joseph was currently cooking something.


    <em>Damn that really smells good. Judging from the taste of that Egg Fried Rice, I bet its taste will also be top-notch!</em>


    Matthew wiped the droll that started seeping out of the corner of his lips.


    He opened his mouth and wanted to speak, but then Pixie Fairy Elizabeth turned her head towards him and red.


    <em>What...?</em>


    She seemed to be silently saying something along the lines of, "Speak if you want to die."


    Matthew gulped a mouthful of saliva and suppressed his urge to speak.


    He then diverted his gaze to Joseph and started admiring the way that he handled his ingredients.


    Matthew was someone who liked to eat to the extent that he would pay any price, for so long as he thought that it was reasonable, to eat any delicacy in this world.


    However, despite being a connoisseur when it came to eating...


    Matthew was a cluelessyman when it came to cooking.


    But it wasn''t because he found it beneath him to cook.


    It was because the culture of the Kingdom and the City made it unnatural for men to cook since cooking was a job for women and a man''s job was to bring the money that could be used to buy those ingredients for cooking, nothing else.


    This was way even though Matthew admired Joseph at this moment, he also felt inexplicably weird staring at him. It was as if he was staring at an alien doing some cooking.


    Of course, that didn''t mean that Matthew was doubting Joseph''s skill.


    He only felt like this because of the culture of this Kingdom and his City.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of excitement on her face when she saw Joseph cooking once again.


    Her excitement surged and she had the urge to bber about her excitement to someone else, but when she saw that only Matthew was here whom she disliked and Joseph was extremely focused on his work.


    She decided to suppress her urge to speak and even red at Matthew so that he wouldn''t dare to try and speak lest he disturbed Joseph.


    Half an hourter, the cooking process was done and Joseph finally ced the tes containing both Pork Nga and Pork Adobo on the elevated tform that faced the customers near the kitchen. He made a sidelong nce at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and said.


    "How about it, can you gauge what you think about the prices of these two?" Joseph had a confident smile on his face.


    The cooking process for both dishes should''ve taken longer for they were meat dishes whose meat needed to be tenderized first.


    However, after infusing the meat with the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life. Joseph found that he could also fundamentally affect the nature of the meat like his Spiritual Energy.


    This discovery excited Joseph and this made him work faster than ever before. In just about half an hour, he hadpleted the creation of these two meat dishes.


    Matthew''s eyes brightened, he turned to face the Pork Nga and furrowed his eyebrows. It was because he found that the broth of the Pork Nga didn''t really look out of the ordinary. It was just a clear broth with some root and leafy vegetables.


    As for the Pork Adobo...


    The meat actually looked quite strange since it was most definitely simmered with soy sauce.


    However, the aroma that it emanated was enough to rouse Matthew''s appetite.


    He gulped a mouthful of saliva and now had high expectations for the Pork Adobo, but before he could even stretch his chopsticks and take a piece of it.


    Joseph coldly dered, "Watch where those hands of you are going..."


    Matthew paused in his tracks.


    He turned to look at Joseph and the eyes of this middle-aged man actually welled up with tears!


    Joseph almost coughed a mouthful of blood.


    <em>Really? You''re trying to look pitiful to earn my sympathy? Hmmph, just how old are you, huh? And also, I still don''t even know your name!</em>


    Joseph inwardly scolded.


    Unfortunately, since he needed to keep up his facade as an unfathomable expert at the Nascent Soul Realm.


    He couldn''t say anything.


    He surreptitiously nced at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth instead and she quickly caught on what he was hinting at as Pixie Fairy Elizabeth frowned and said.


    "You... Why are you stretching those chopsticks of yours?! Have you already forgotten your sins? Hmmph! Even if we say that master forgives you, forgiveness doesn''t invalidate your sins at all!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth red at Matthew.


    Matthew was taken aback.


    "Then... What should I do?"


    Matthew''s head became muddled with the temptation of delicious food.


    Joseph''s lips lifted to a smile.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth also had a smile on her face. Joseph could vaguely see ill intent within her eyes, but he didn''t say anything anymore as he silently grieved for Matthew.


    <em>Dang, a woman''s revenge really is scary</em>...


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth thought for a moment: "Hmm... What should you do to redeem yourself, eh?" She swept her gaze across the small shop and said, "You mustpensate the shop by buying brand new furniture! You and your subordinate must also advertise the shop and they must never scare any customers off this shop nor in this street!"


    Matthew was taken aback when he heard her words: "I can redeem myself that easily? Okay! That''s a deal! I''ll do it! As long as I can eat the delicious meals here then, I''ll do anything as long as it''s reasonable!" He then stood up and walked towards the exit.


    Joseph nced at the entrance and dispelled the independent space that covered the small shop.


    Matthew was finally able to get out of the shop and he went directly into his residence.


    It was time for him to gather hisrades and have theme to this shop and have them help him with this problem.


    Back at the small shop, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s mood turned for the better.


    It was because not only she got to act like she was Matthew''s boss.


    She also got to help her master with the problem of the shop''s small customer base, along with also having the privilege to eat these delicious meat dishes first!


    It wasn''t even hitting two birds in one stone anymore!


    It was three birds in one stone!


    How could she not be delighted by this turn of events?


    She even hummed a tune that abruptly stopped when she ced her first mouthful of the Pork Adobo into her mouth.


    "This..."


    "M-Master... This is... what do you call this dish?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked in doubt, but her words were somewhat unclear for she kept on stuffing meat into her mouth.


    Joseph lightly chuckled. It was always a delight for him to see someone eating his meals with gusto.


    "Its name is Pork Adobo..."


    "Pork Adobo? It''s my first time hearing a dish with a name like that. Is this an original dish of yours, master?"


    Joseph shook his head and replied, "Nope... But that dish can be considered as the national dish of my hometown..."


    "I see... Uwaaa... It''s too delicious, master... The vors are exquisite, delicate, yet bold! The tangy, savory, and ever so slightly sweet vors of the sauce reallypliment that pork well! Master! This is a masterpiece, I don''t even know if I should put a price on it with how delicious it is..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth praised.


    Joseph chuckled: "Here you go again with those exaggerations. Just put a price on the dish, no matter how expensive it is, just tell me how much you are willing to pay for a dish like this."


    "How much I am willing to pay for a dish like this?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth thought for a moment.


    She raised her head and revealed all the fingers of both of his hands.


    "Ten...?" Joseph whispered with some hesitation.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded her head, but she didn''t say anything.


    "Ten, what? Ten silver coins? Ten copper coins? Ten gold coins? Specify it!" Joseph replied.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth revealed a smile and whispered: "Ten Spirit Stones!"


    "Ten spirit stones? Woah... That''s more than what I had expected."


    Joseph''s irritation turned into glee when he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s assessment.


    Joseph actually wasn''t so sure if he could bring those Spirit Stones over back to Victory.


    What would happen if he brought back those Spirit Stones? W


    ould they transform into something else or would they just remain as Spirit Stones?


    He was curious as to what would happen so he was quite delighted when he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s assessment of the Pork Adobo.


    As for the Pork Nga, it received an assessment of eight Spirit Stones. Even though it wasn''t the same as the Pork Adobo, it was still better than the price of the Egg Fried Rice.


    Matthew finally returned after about half an hourter and he brought with him about several dozens of his subordinates.


    "Senior! We''re finally here!" Amidst the crowd were ncy and Hector who had a look of astonishment on their faces when they heard how their master greeted Joseph.


    Their master was a middle-aged man, yet he actually addressed a young man who looked to be in his early twenties as a senior?


    What the hell is going on?


    Joseph turned to look at the group that Matthew brought and he made a sidelong nce at the streets behind. He found that the streets became empty and the residents who were hawking their merchandise on the street had somehow disappeared.


    Joseph nced at a nearby window and found that there were people watching what was going to happen from the safety andfort of their houses.


    Fear could be seen within their eyes as Joseph facepalmed and scolded: "You... What did Elizabeth tell you earlier?"


    Matthew was confused: "Senior... She told me to advertise the shop and rece the broken furniture. I came here with theserades of mine to help clean up the shop and carry the brand new tables and chairs that the shop requires from that nearby wooden workshop there..."


    Joseph facepalmed once again, there was a look of disappointment on his face as he replied.


    "Yes, that is right. That is indeed what she had said, but have you considered what the residents around here would feel seeing you guys who probably hadn''t taken a bath for several monthse here in suchrge numbers?"


    "Wha..."


    "Brat... What did you say?"


    "Shut up!"


    One of the men frowned and spoke up, but Matthew was quick to shut him down. Panic shed across his face as he hurriedly exined: "I am really sorry about that, Senior... It seems like I havemitted a blunder. I''ll give them the order to return so they won''t cause any trouble."


    Joseph sighed: "It''s fine... Since they are already here, they should just stay here for now..." He nced at them all for a moment before he asked, "Have you guys eaten, yet?"


    Matthew wore a look of excitement on his face as he repeatedly nodded his head and interrupted one of his subordinates who was about to say that he had all eaten.


    Afterwards, he opened his mouth and spoke: "No, no, no! We haven''t eaten yet! Is it possible for us to order some dishes at this time?"


    Joseph nced at a nearby window and found that it was still in the middle of the afternoon.


    He nodded his head and replied: "Yeah, just choose what you want to eat there and read the rules written below it too. I don''t want to cklist any of you guys, you see... Since every customer is precious." Joseph lightly smiled before he moved to the kitchen.


    When Joseph disappeared...


    The men turned their heads to the menu and their eyes almost popped out of their sockets.


    "You what?"


    "Huh? They are actually asking for gold coins? What the... How ridiculous! A single gold coin is enough to eat three times a day at the most luxurious restaurant of Eichenwalde, yet here..."


    "It is only a bowl of Egg Fried Rice? Wait, what is a Spirit Stone? I haven''t heard of something like that, but judging from the price of the normal Egg Fried Rice..."


    "A Spirit Stone should be quite expensive."


    The men nodded their heads and they didn''t know what to say.


    Their master, Matthew, told them to bring as much money as they could so a lot of them brought several gold coins at once.


    But when their master exined that they were about to go to a restaurant, they hid their gold coins and reced them with silver coins. They thought that a few silver coins were enough for them to eat to the fullest in a single meal.


    However...


    An Egg Fried Rice... A single bowl of an Egg Fried Rice... Has the price of a single gold coin? What the fuck? Doesn''t that mean that all of them will not be able to eat anything in this ce?


    The men looked somber and annoyed at the same time. But it wasn''t because they couldn''t eat in this small and unknown restaurant, but it was because they thought that the prices of this small restaurant were so ridiculous to the extent that it waspletely absurd.


    "Man this is fucking bullshit... A single gold coin for a mere Egg Fried Rice? How about he just go and rob a bank?" One of the men violently cursed.


    Matthew raised an eyebrow: "Hey, don''t be quite rude. Senior is someone that we cannot possibly afford to offend."


    He had this serious look on his face which shocked everyone to speechlessness.


    The man who got scolded by Matthew awkwardly scratched his head and said, "Well... How about we give him the benefit of the doubt? Since master is confident about the Egg Fried Rice here then we have no right to doubt the capability of the owner."


    "That sounds like a good idea. But how do we proceed from there?" One of hisrades asked.


    The man replied, "Of course, we should pool our money together then we can use that to order a bowl of Egg Fried Rice. Afterwards, we will taste that bowl of Egg Fried Rice. What do you think?"


    The man turned to look at hisrade that asked him the question, but hisrade shook his head and replied.


    "Baldy... Did you even read the rules?"


    "What rules? Wait, did you just call me Baldy?"


    "The rules are there!" The man''srade pointed at the que just below the menu: "Just read through it and you''ll see why your n is impossible toplete."


    Baldy turned to look at the list of rules and he choked on his own saliva: "Uh... What? The customer is not allowed to share his own bowl of food? Not only that but, you are also not allowed to bring the food outside the store?"


    "Furthermore, every customer is expected to clean after themselves? Each customer can only order one dish in a certain type a day?"


    "Opening times are strictly regted by the owner. Conflict of any form is strictly not allowed within the restaurant, but an exception is allowed if the conflict involves the well-being of the restaurant, its employees, the owner, and the customer? What does this mean?"


    "And also, additional rules may be added as necessary by the owner, and those that will not abide by the rules will be permanently banned from ordering anything within the store without any possible appeals?"


    "What the fuck? This is ridiculous! The customer is king! Why do we have to clean ourselves after we eat? And why are we not allow to share our own food with others?"


    "And we also can''t eat as much as we want since we cannot order seconds? Holy fuck... What kind of a restaurant operates with these rules?"


    Baldy couldn''t believe what he was saying.


    He turned to look at his master and found that there was a look of sympathy on Matthew''s face.


    Doubtful about what was going on...


    Baldy decided that he would take the matter into his own hands as he walked towards the kitchen where Joseph was cooking the dishes.


    However, when he was about to approach the kitchen.


    A cat suddenly stopped him on his tracks.


    The cat had a strangely menacing look on his face that irritated Baldy.


    "What the? A cat? A cat actually dares to block my way?"


    ncy and Hector who were talking with each other jolted in fear when they heard Baldy''s words.


    Even Matthew''s attention was attracted to Baldy.


    "Fucking hell, an obedient cat does not block the way of strangers! Scram for me!"


    Baldy raised his leg and was about to swing it in order to kick the cat when Matthew instantly appeared in front of him and sent a smack across his face.


    Baldy flew backwards towards the exit of the small restaurant and hended outside.


    Matthew''srades stared at him in shock. <em>What the hell just happened?</em> They all thought in their minds. Matthew''s actions of pping Baldy for the sake of random house cat was incredibly weird for them, if not abnormal.


    But for Matthew who finally realized that the cat was probably the shapeshifted form of Elizabeth whom he asked for an apology with all of his might. Matthew''s anger erupted when he saw his subordinate about to kick the cat that Elizabeth transformed to.


    Furthermore, the fact that Matthew had a rule among his subordinates to never hurt a woman if necessary.


    Matthew''s anger red up and he couldn''t hold himself back.


    He raised his arm and pointed a finger at Baldy.


    "You..."


    "How dare you try to hit a fucking woman!"


    He cried out in anger.


    Huh?


    A woman?


    The men stared at each other with weird expressions on their faces.


    Even Baldy had the look of wanting to cry but had no tears to shed.


    Did their master finally go crazy?


    First, he was calling a young man as his senior, and now he''s treating a house cat as a woman?

 Chapter 156: Start of an Epic Journey[17]

    Chapter 156: Start of an Epic Journey[17]


    Back at the world of Victory.


    A crowd could be seen gathered on the courtyard of the Royal Pce.


    Their numbers surpassed several hundred and there were frowns stered on their faces. They all stood in front of the double doors that led to the narrow passageway, but unexpectedly, there was a barrier blocking their way.


    Standing at the helm of these yers was Kristian, the first and one and only known Legendary yer of Victory.


    The Absolute Monarch.


    After suffering a strange defeat one-hit-kill defeat against a yer.


    Kristian deduced that the yer who killed him in an instant was probably the first Mythical Ranked yer of Victory. Kristian''s defeat against that yer was bizarre and one shouldn''t probably me him for his defeat since Joseph''s attack waspletely unexpected.


    However...


    He was the very first Legendary yer!


    He was prideful and he had the strength to back that pride of his, but with just a single attack...


    He crumbled and was defeated.


    Kristian was unwilling.


    He wanted to face that yer once again and fight him in a duel.


    "Kristian... Don''t you think that we are going too far if we barge in there now?" One of his subordinates asked in concern.


    "Going too far? Even though he imed this Abandoned Kingdom as his territory. That does not mean that we are not allowed to go inside his territory!


    We are only here to reim the items that we lost after we died. Don''t you also want to im the items that you dropped?" Kristian asked with a frown.


    His subordinates who looked to be a Knight scratched his head and said, "Of course, I want to do that, Kristian. But let''s be realistic here. That yer is probably the First Mythical Ranked yer, the Sun that Overlooks Everything!"


    "Look at me!"


    "My Health Points is a little more than a hundred thousand, yet he killed me in a single hit!"


    Kristian''s frown deepened as he replied: "That''s true. Let''s follow your mindset of being realistic. Do you really think that P.H Works would allow the usage of such a broken skill? I bet that skill that he used against all of us was a skill that''s probably a one-time-usage skill, or something that requires a lot of sacrifices before it can be used."


    "Using a skill like that..."


    "Do you think that he can keep on using a skill like that every time he wants?"


    "Ah..." His subordinate Knight revealed a look of enlightenment and he was finally convinced: "Yeah, it really does not make sense that P.H Works would allow the existence of such a character. It''s clear to us that they want a Sun that Overlooks Everything, but I don''t think that they would want a Sun that Scorches Everything beneath it."


    Kristian nodded his head and smiled: "That''s right."


    He felt that it really was too easy to talk with someone who could read along the lines.


    This was why Kristian felt blessed to have theserades of his that could easily adapt depending on the circumstances.


    Kristian stared at the humungous double doors in front of him.


    One of his subordinates spoke, this time...


    It was a man d in a gear that made him look like an Assassin.


    "Kristian... What do you think should we do against these people?"


    Kristian made a sidelong nce at the guilds and their members behind him as he lightly chuckled: "What do you think?"


    The man, d in an Assassin''s armor frowned and said: "On the surface, they ced us at the front of this strange formation so that we could get the honor of taking our lost items first. But to be honest, Kristian. I think these bastards are taking advantage of us. I can sense their ill intent behind their fake smiles."


    Kristian''s eyes narrowed into slits as he said: "Yes... Earlier, they proposed that we should be at the front since we are from the prestigious guild, Strongest Under Heaven. They even told us that it is an honor for them to stand behind such a powerful and popr guild, but really... the guild masters of these guilds are quite cunning..."


    "By letting us go at the front, that means that we would have to handle the onught of those monsters..."


    "In other words, they are essentially using us to defeat those monsters, all while without attracting the disdain of their members and the world by hiding their schemes behind the facade of honor. Hahaha, these guild masters... Really, I never did expect that they would try to do such an obvious scheme under my nose." Kristian exined.


    His subordinate swept his gaze at the members of the guilds behind them and said: "What should we do, Kristian? Do we just let them ride our coattails so easily, like that?"


    "Of course not! Since they are nning on using us. We will have them pay the price..." Kristian''s lips lifted.


    A look of excitement shed across his face as he raised his arm and pushed the double doors leading to the narrow passageway.


    ...


    Joseph sat on a table by the window on the second floor of his restaurant. By now, under the support of Matthew and his subordinates. The small shop had transformed into a bigger restaurant. It now had a seating capacity of several dozens of customers at once instead of just a handful.


    Despite the growing number of customers, Joseph didn''t feel that tired of serving them food. In fact, cooking became somewhat of a catharsis for him due to his growing frustrations of not being able to formally break through the Nascent Soul Realm from the Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm.


    It has been half a year since Joseph established his restaurant and gained Matthew''s trust and admiration. Joseph never stopped cooking and he even added beverages, desserts along with pastries to his menu, but his cultivation never moved...


    He felt like he was stuck in a quagmire.


    A bottleneck that was slowly shaving away his courage to continue on the King''s Trial.


    Joseph stared at the endless night that had no moonlight for there was no moon.


    A jug of wine could be seen on his table. He picked that wine up and took a drink.


    Joseph could feel that within the past months, he was now slowly forgetting the fact that he was an immortal. Even though he was still looking for that opportunity or enlightenment to break through to the next realm.


    Joseph was growingfortable with his life as a mortal but at the same time. He felt frustrated for if this continued, he would definitely not be able toplete the King''s Trial.


    "Master..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of worry on her face.


    She stretched her hand and sent a wave of purifying energy towards Joseph''s body.


    Joseph gave her the order to constantly cleanse his body so, that he wouldn''t get drunk even while drinking alcohol.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth obliged, but she couldn''t suppress the growing worry in her heart.


    It was because she could see that Joseph was slowly bing dependent on alcohol to the extent that he would drink it as if it was water.


    This wasn''t something good at all, and it endlessly worried her within the past few months.


    Thankfully, her master didn''t do anything drastic. Although he kept on drinking alcohol every day. He was still the same old Joseph, he hadn''t changed at all. Aside from not using his cultivation strength ever since the day he convinced Matthew about his identity...


    Joseph hadn''t changed at all.


    This was a good development for Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Joseph picked up the jug of wine once again and downed a gulp. Then, he suddenly frowned.


    At that moment, three people arrived outside his store.


    Their bodies looked illusory and one of them walked towards the walls of the store. He went straight and walked through the walls as if he was a ghost. The person who barged into the store gestured to hisrade and the main doors of Joseph''s small restaurant slowly opened.


    The remaining two outside quickly entered, and the passing winds closed the doors.


    "Intruders!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth gasped and an angry look appeared on her face. She was about to go down below and face off against those intruders when Joseph stopped her with his hand.


    "Master! Why are you stopping me?" She asked in a low voice.


    Joseph shook his head and replied: "Calm down. I want to see their intentions first."


    He then took the jug of wine on the table and downed another gulp.


    Seeing that Joseph had no intention of withdrawing his orders...


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth could only sit in front of him and pout.


    When the three men entered the kitchen, their eyes widened in shock when they saw how many spiritual ingredients Joseph had at his disposal.


    "Woah... There are so many spiritual ingredients! So this is the secret behind how delicious the food in this restaurant!"


    Under Matthew''s fervent advertisement and the overwhelming vors of the dishes that Joseph cooked every day. There was no one within the City of Eichenwalde that didn''t know his name. In fact, with how many influential people visited Joseph every day...


    The Main Street that was supposed to be where most of the foot traffic of Eichenwalde concentrated was now irrelevant.


    The main street couldn''t be considered as the main street anymore. It was reced by the narrow strip ofnd that could barely be considered as a street behind it.


    What was the reason for all of these?


    It was because of Joseph!


    The shopkeepers and hawkers were infinitely grateful to Joseph due to the traffic that his poprity brought over to this street.


    One of the intruders had a ck bag and he stuffed everything that he could into this bag.


    As for the others, they strolled around and looked for any valuables but to their dismay...


    The only valuable objects within this kitchen were the ingredients, apart from the spiritual ingredients, there was nothing of value.


    But that was enough!


    It was because...


    "With this... My Prestigious Luxury Restaurant can finally dethrone this unassuming restaurant!"


    One of the intruders whispered to himself.


    Joseph''s appearance along with his culinary skills became a tragedy to the restaurant owners whose restaurants focused on vors and luxury. Their dishes were as expensive as Joseph''s, yet the vors of their dishes couldn''t evenpare to the vors that Joseph introduced to those who were truly rich and capable.


    These three intruders were owners of the three most expensive restaurants within the City of Eichenwalde.


    Their objective was to steal the superior ingredients that Joseph had so they could confirm their theories that Joseph wasn''t really that skillful when it came to cooking.


    He just had better ingredients, that was all.


    "Dang... I heard some rumors that there is something or someone guarding this restaurant, but right now. It seems like that was just a bunch of nonsense!"


    "This is too easy!"


    "Now we have something to work with! I''m nning on handing over some of the seeds of these ingredients to one of my experts. I think he will be able to understand it better than me..."


    "Yeah, that''s definitely a good idea. I will also do that and once we have understood how that brat owner procured his spiritual ingredients here in Eichenwalde. We will also be able to strike it big and return to our peak!"


    "That brat..."


    "If only he didn''te here and establish that restaurant of his... We wouldn''t be forced to do this! It''s all his fault!"


    The three restaurant owners casually walked towards the exit of the restaurant. Their faces were calm, yet the spiritual energies within their bodies were surging. It was clear that this calm andposed postures and expressions of theirs were just a mere facade.


    They were men who experienced the various vicissitudes of life.


    How could they possibly let their guard down so easily?


    But that didn''t matter at all...


    It was because when they had just opened the doors of the restaurant to go outside and escape. A figure suddenly appeared right in front of them with thisnguid smile on his face.


    Joseph drank a mouthful of wine: "Those spiritual ingredients are quite expensive. I''ll be taking them back. But if you really want to take it away from here. You must pay me a thousand gold coins at least."


    When Joseph suddenly appeared in front of the three, they suddenly stopped and stared at Joseph in horror.


    In their eyes, Joseph''s appearance was just too strange and abnormal. Before they even entered the restaurant. They used their spiritual energy to check if there was someone inside, and they didn''t find anyone. That was the reason why they felt confident about going inside.


    But now...


    Someone actually silently appeared in front of them. They felt like a bolt of lightning struck them out of nowhere causing them to be dumbstruck. However, even though they were struck dumb at this moment. That didn''t mean that they couldn''t recognize how powerful this young man was.


    "You... You are that... You are that owner of this shop!" One of the men recognized Joseph.


    Joseph merely nced at the man and kept his silence.


    The three of them looked at each other before respectfully saying: "Greetings, Senior. We juniors have the Immunity Token of the City Mayor." They reached out to their robes and revealed a token that had an air of magnificence and antiquity to it.


    On the surface of the token, the word, "Immunity" was written.


    The three expected that Joseph would definitely let them off once he saw the Immunity Token. After all, no matter how powerful you were, even if you were as powerful as the Astolfo Family. There was no way that you could disregard the authority of the City Mayor and those favored by him.


    But Joseph inly replied: "Do you have a thousand gold coins?"


    The three of them looked at each other once again.


    If Joseph asked them for Spirit Stones. He had them right now in their possession, but gold coins?


    They were cultivators so, they didn''t have that much use regarding gold coins.


    In other words, they don''t frequently carry gold coins with them when they travel.


    But of course, if given enough time...


    They could prepare a thousand gold coins or maybe even ten thousand.


    Joseph saw through what they were thinking and he sighed.


    He waved his hand and a powerful force swept the three outside.


    They flew for about five kilometers before they managed to stabilize themselves.


    Their expressions revealed unimaginable fear and shock.


    They couldn''tprehend how powerful the young owner of that small restaurant.


    The three thought for a moment and they considered themselves lucky that the young man didn''t kill them. After all, with the unfathomable cultivation of that young man. He could''ve easily killed them without anyone knowing about their deaths.


    The three quickly left and dispersed...


    From now on, these three would never scheme against that small restaurant anymore.


    But of course, little did they knew that when Joseph pushed them away from the store. He had ced a seed of Discord and Disorder inside their minds. If they had any malicious intent against the small restaurant or Joseph himself...


    That seed of Discord and Disorder would trigger, killing them instantly.


    Joseph went back into the store and contemted: "Elizabeth... Could it be that I am too nice to the residents here and that is the reason why I am now on this bottleneck?" He asked Pixie Fairy Elizabeth with some hesitation.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth shook her head and replied: "I don''t know, master... All I know is that you will definitely seed."


    "Hehehe..." Joseph lightly chuckled. He didn''t mind praise nor admiration, but baseless praise like what Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was doing really did grind on Joseph''s nerves.


    But since he didn''t want any trouble today.


    He kept his thoughts to himself and drank until daybreak came.


    When the small restaurant opened again. It was once againpletely packed with people. Matthew came along with his subordinates to eat and Matthew personally requested that he wanted to talk with Joseph.


    "Keh, you handle the customers here for now, all right?" Joseph turned to look at Keh.


    Keh, under the nourishment of the spiritual ingredients that Joseph added onto his dishes that he gave to Keh, now looked taller and sturdier than ever before.


    Back then, even though he was already twelve-years-old, he looked as if he was just a five or six-year-old kid.


    He really was grossly malnourished several months ago.


    "Boss, I have the payment here!" One of the customers cried out.


    "Just put it in the basket!" Joseph gestured to a nearby basket.


    Keh nced and saw that the customer paid ten gold coins for a bowl of Egg Fried Rice.


    Aplicated look shed on Keh''s face as he said: "Uncle... I really admire how much money you earn with just a single bowl of Egg Fried Rice."


    Joseph paused and turned to look at Keh: "Oh? Really?"


    Keh nodded his head: "Yes, Uncle... Our wooden workshop only earns about seven gold coins a year and in your restaurant, you can earn ten gold coins in just a single bowl of Egg Fried Rice! I really am envious... Is it possible for me to learn your culinary arts, Uncle?"


    Joseph stared right at Keh and found that there was a determined look on his face.


    He smiled, ruffled Keh''s hair, and replied: "You want to learn my culinary arts? Won''t your father get angry if you do that? I heard him talk a few days ago that he wants you to be the sessor of the wooden workshop."


    Keh puffed his cheeks and pouted: "No, uncle! I don''t want to be a worker in the wooden workshop! The work is too tedious, but the pay is too low! If I learn your culinary arts, I''ll be able to earn ten gold coins in just a bowl of food..."


    "Why would I bother being a worker in the workshop when I can learn your culinary arts?"


    He raised his head and stared at Joseph with twinkling eyes.


    Joseph lifted a smile of amusement.


    "Let''s see, maybe I''ll take you as my disciple someday. But for now, you''re still too young! You''ve got to enjoy life, all right?" Joseph ruffled his hair and continued: "You go and handle these customers, okay? I''ll go talk with your Uncle Matthew for now."


    Keh obediently nodded his head and didn''t stall Joseph any longer.


    He turned around and faced the customers.


    Joseph directly walked towards the second floor of the small restaurant and there, he met Matthew who had a look of excitement on his face.


    But was he excited that Joseph was going to meet him?


    No!


    It was because of the food that Joseph was carrying on his tray.


    Joseph lightly chuckled and ced that tray on the table.


    Matthew didn''t even start his discussion with Joseph as he went for the food first and started eating with gusto.


    Joseph really didn''t mind that Matthew seemed to be disrespecting him by going for the food first.


    Instead, he was happy that Matthew was enjoying his food.


    Finally, in just several minutes. Matthew was done with the food.


    A look of satisfaction appeared on his face as he sighed.


    "This food... I really regret that I will not be able to eat this much longer..."


    "Oh? What''s wrong?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and asked.


    "Well, I will still be able to eat this in the future, but after ten years? Nah..." Matthew shook his head and sighed in regret.


    "What''s going on?" Joseph asked him once again.


    Matthew finally raised his head and said: "The thing is, Senior. With the connections that I have, I predict that an inescapable war will happen in the next five years to ten. I''m not so sure when will it happen but at least, it''s still five years from now. I still have about five years toe here every day and enjoy this food."


    Matthew lightly chuckled, but it was clear that there was bitterness in hisugh.


    "Are you going to participate in the war?" Joseph asked with doubt.


    Matthew turned to look at him and said: "Yeah... I have no choice but to participate."


    "Our Kingdom of Evergreen will fight a three-way fight against the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis. Honestly, I don''t think that we will be able to win when we''re alone and those two powerful Kingdoms are joining forces together just to fight us."


    Joseph fell silent.


    Despite the casual air that Matthew brought with him whenever he was traveling. He was still the Head of the most prestigious family in the City of Eichenwalde, the Astolfo Family. It was impossible for him to escape his responsibility of leading the experts of his family to battle.


    <em>War...</em>


    <em>Perhaps, I will be able to gain enlightenment in that war, but bloodshed?</em>


    <em>Sigh...</em>


    Joseph shook his head.


    Matthew turned to look at him and asked: "Senior, do you have any ns for that uing war?"


    "No..."


    "Nothing?" Excitement shed across Matthew''s face for a moment before he restrained himself: "In that case, how about I invite you Senior to join us to the war? With your help and how powerful you are. I bet you''ll be able to easily annihte those dogs from Shade and Iblis."


    Joseph stared right at Matthew and revealed a look of irritation: "No... Don''t bother inviting me. I will not be joining the war.


    "I see... That''s too bad..." Matthew stood up and smiled: "I''ll be going now, Senior... Thanks for the meal and here''s the payment for the dishes." He ced several Spirit Stones on the table and walked out of the restaurant. Leaving Joseph who was still in deep contemtion behind.


    <em>War, eh...</em>


    <em>I wonder how many lives will be lost in that war...</em>


    The faces of every shopkeeper, hawkers, neighbors, and residents that Joseph remembered in his City within the past few months of staying here shed across his mind. Particrly the image of Keh and his parents who were both hard at work.


    When Joseph awakened from his trance, it was already closing time and the restaurant was empty.


    The only person remaining in the restaurant was only Keh who unknowingly fell asleep leaning on a table.


    Joseph walked downwards and smiled when he saw him passed out from exhaustion.


    After secretly cing several gold coins into his pocket.


    Joseph woke him up with a push.


    "Hmm? Ah! Uncle!" Keh immediately realized the situation he was in as he panicked: "No, Uncle! I wasn''t cking! I was working for the entire afternoon!"


    Joseph gave a boisterousugh. He ruffled Keh''s hair and said: "It''s fine, I won''t deduct your wages for that. But I have some good news for you."


    Keh''s eyes twinkled: "What is it, Uncle? Are you giving me a bonus?"


    Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched for he could literally see the greed in Keh''s eyes when he mentioned "bonus".


    However, Joseph shook his head and said: "It''s even better than a bonus. Can you guess what is it?"


    Keh puffed his cheeks and pouted: "Don''t make me guess, mean Uncle! Just tell me already!"


    Joseph loudlyughed once again.


    He decided to stop teasing the young boy anymore as he dered: "I''ve decided to take you as my disciple in the culinary arts! I''ll teach you everything that I know about cooking!"

 Chapter 157: Start of an Epic Journey[18]

    Chapter 157: Start of an Epic Journey[18]


    Keh endured an unreasonably hellish training under Joseph just for the sake of inheriting his culinary arts. Not only Keh had to constantly endure the heat of the kitchen even though when he was sleeping.


    Joseph also made him meditate every day ording to some breathing techniques.


    Joseph had consulted Pixie Fairy Elizabeth regarding this and she gave Joseph a set of breathing techniques that Keh could practice without bing a cultivator.


    But why didn''t he just gave Keh a set of cultivation manuals?


    It was because even though Joseph wanted Keh to control his Spiritual Energy in order to infuse them to mortal ingredients so, that they could be spiritual ingredients...


    He didn''t want Keh to be a cultivator.


    Despite not having any practical experience regarding the life of cultivators. Within the past few months that Joseph stayed here within the world made by the King''s Trial. He found out that the life of cultivators was indeed quite ruthless and harsh.


    Joseph didn''t want Keh to live in a world like that, but he also didn''t want Keh to be defenseless when the war that Matthew was talking about arrived.


    This was the reason why he asked Pixie Fairy Elizabeth for a set of breathing techniques that could fortify Matthew''s strength and body, enough for him to survive the war of mortals against mortals.


    Joseph doubted that those arrogant and haughty cultivators would deliberately attack mortals.


    If Keh had some brain cells, he should know when to retreat or advance.


    But Joseph actually wanted to do more for Keh.


    Sadly, he received a warning from Pixie Fairy Elizabeth, saying that if he intervened too much with the fate of a mortal.


    Something undesirable may happen.


    Joseph could only sigh and oblige.


    Time quickly passed, and three years swiftly passed in the King''s Trial.


    Joseph felt quite weird for even though he had spent a long time within the King''s Trial.


    Only a few hours had passed in the outside world.


    This abnormality created a strange confusion in his mind which always resolved itself whenever Joseph returned to the world of the King''s Trial.


    The breathing techniques that Joseph gave to Keh made him grow stronger, sturdier, and taller.


    The grossly malnourished young boy who had a physique that made him look like a matchstick was now a thing of the past. The owner of the hardware shop beside Joseph had died two years ago and was now reced by a Fabric Shop.


    Keh''s parents now had a few more wrinkles on their faces, yet the smiles on their faces remained as kind as ever.


    But even though they were still young, they couldn''t avoid the passage of time.


    It was also worth mentioning that within these three years, countless families within the City of Eichenwalde had visited Joseph''s restaurant that now had dozens of branches within the City of Eichenwalde under Keh''s leadership.


    All of them came to the restaurant to talk about marriage.


    Sadly, all of them were kindly rejected by Joseph in all of their attempts.


    Matthew had gotten married once again after two decades and had a healthy baby.


    Matthew visited the small restaurant to pay respects and offered several gold coins to Joseph so that Matthew''s baby could be his godchild. Joseph merelyughed and said that he''ll be the godparent of the child even without the money to which Matthewughed in delight.


    Winter came and autumn passed. The sun rose and went down.


    During these three years, Joseph saw the birth of the young and the passing of the old.


    He felt incredibly sad by their passing.


    Especially the passing of that particr customer who often talked to him regarding his sons and daughters and how they liked Joseph''s food.


    That customer would alwayse to the restaurant at the exact same time, without a second more, or a second less and he would order the same dishes every time.


    Namely, Pork Nga, Pork Adobo, and the two Egg Fried Rice.


    But after a simple and delightful afternoon. That old customer bid him farewell and he never returned the next day.


    His sons and daughters visited and informed Joseph of his passing.


    In thest three years, Joseph had never even cultivated again. With Matthew''s backing, no one within the City of Eichenwalde dared to cause trouble in his restaurant and its branches. In other words, Joseph lived aidback life within the world of the King''s Trial.


    The restaurant''s growing branches made it so that the workload also became astronomical.


    But Joseph''s heart was still calm, he believed in the young boy, Keh...


    Unfortunately, when the third year arrived. Keh was unable to refuse his father anymore and he began to learn the art of carpentry. But of course, whenever he was on a day off. He would go to the restaurant and cook for the customers, assisting the other workers of the restaurant and Joseph.


    Speaking of other workers, Matthew had dissolved the gang that he made and Joseph adopted them all in his restaurant.


    With the prospects of good food and afortable sry...


    None of the men refused and they all became gentlemen with pleasing, yet unique dispositions.


    Treating the customers as the king was now their number one priority.


    Today marked the fourth year since Joseph came to the City of Eichenwalde.


    Joseph experienced a whole new experience every year, but there were still some regrets that he had in his heart whenever the celebrations for the new year came.


    And that was the fact that he spent most of his childhood ying video games instead of interacting with his parents.


    Keh ran out of the wooden workshop from across the street with fireworks in his hand.


    There was this smile on his face that Joseph greatly envied as Keh yed.


    However, Joseph''s enviousness was soon reced with happiness when he saw how happy the hardworking Keh was...


    Joseph had watched this young boy grow up from a twelve-year-old kid to a sixteen-year-old kid after all.


    Igniting some fireworks and holding it in his hand as he ran and hurled them away at the distance.


    A booming sound rang out as Kehughed in delight.


    Afterwards, he ran towards his Uncle Joseph and sat down beside him on the cold bench.


    He didn''t seem to mind the cold as he winked at Joseph and said.


    "Uncle... I heard some rumors that shopkeeper Dan beside our workshop wants to have his daughter marry you. I also heard that you rejected him... Uncle... Why did you not agree? I actually saw her face behind her veil for the moment and I saw that she was very beautiful..."


    "[T-T-This brat... Saying something like that again...]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth almost immediately exploded in fury when she heard what Keh had said.


    Joseph felt a shiver run down his spine. But he maintained a calm facade on the outside. He smiled and ruffled Keh''s hair before saying: "Uncle already has a wife."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was startled but she didn''t say anything.


    "Ah? Really? Howe I have never seen her?" Keh jolted in shock, there was this look of disbelief on his face that looked iparably amusing to Joseph.


    "She''s in a very very far away ce, waiting for me. One day, I''ll be back there and be with her again!" Joseph''s voice was iparably gentle as he said these words.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went strangely silent.


    Keh lifted a mischievous smile: "I see, I see! So the reason Uncle came here to Eichenwalde is to earn money toe back to where she is and get married!"


    Joseph smiled.


    But he didn''t refute what the young man had said as he replied: "That''s right, once your uncle here made a lot of money. I''ll be back there and get married."


    Keh lightly chuckled and the two talked with each other for quite a long time.


    However, Keh''s father suddenly shouted from across the street, eliciting a bitter smile from Keh as he awkwardly scratched his head and said: "I am really sorry, Uncle... I have to go back to the workshop again."


    "Go..." Joseph merely smiled.


    Keh soon disappeared from Joseph''s sight and he was now left alone sitting on the cold bench. Staring at the starry skies, the snowkes struck his face and quickly turned into ice water. Joseph opened his palm and with a will, the snowkes surged towards his opened palm.


    Taking a deep breath...


    Joseph retracted his spiritual energy and the snowkes scattered in all directions.


    This happened so quickly that none of the passing mortals noticed something strange.


    But it wasn''t really anything out of the ordinary that they didn''t notice something extraordinary for they had their heads hung low as they hurried towards their homes.


    Tonight was the celebration of new years, these mortals were excited to go back to their houses and celebrate this holy night with their loved ones.


    The night deepened and the number of mortals passing by decreased until there was no one left on the street. All the shops in the entire City of Eichenwalde had closed due to the harsh coldness of the outside world.


    Everyone had gone over to their families for the new year''s eve feast and for the warmth from their fireces that could expel the cold.


    Joseph nced at the imposing restaurant that had gone from being a small restaurant into a prestigious four-story restaurant.


    Within these past few years, Joseph earned a lot of money along with Spirit Stones as well as Experience Points. However, sadness filled his eyes, and bitterness overwhelmed his soul every time the new year''s eve came.


    This bitterness and sadness wasn''t something that a mere wine could dissipate.


    The coldness that surrounded the City didn''t really physically harm him, but when he saw the smiles of the mortals and theughter of the children when they received their presents from their parents. The coldness of the surroundings seemed to seep into Joseph''s heart.


    This type of coldness came from Joseph''s bitter experience of losing both his parents from that tragedy. But this coldness also came fromprehending the heavens and was a must for cultivators that wanted to experience life.


    In order to be a true immortal. One must first be a mortal.


    Of course, Joseph was a mortal for this was only a game.


    But here in the King''s Trial...


    He had the body of an immortal, as a being who could be considered as an immortal.


    Was it really that easy to be a mortal?


    Right now, Joseph was experiencing unprecedented loneliness.


    But despite knowing that this loneliness was a mere product of his deep-seated insecurities.


    He must keep on experiencing this loneliness for the sake of the King''s Trial.


    Joseph began to ponder. No one knew when, but Joseph eventually stood up. His face looked young, but his eyes seemed as if he had just aged a lot.


    He slowly turned around, opened the doors of his restaurant, and went inside.


    Inside, Joseph sat in front of the fire. It was very warm inside the restaurant, but coldness was the only sensation that his heart and soul could feel. After thinking for a long time. He went into the kitchen and started working.


    Soon, the smell of Egg Fried Rice filled the air.


    Joseph eventually returned to his seat, carrying a bowl of Egg Fried Rice and a pair of chopsticks.


    Staring at the greasy Egg Fried Rice made with mortal ingredients.


    Joseph let out a smile.


    The smell of this Egg Fried Rice that he didn''t enhance with his spiritual energy may be quite strange, but for Joseph...


    It was iparably familiar.


    The coldness in his heart lessened a bit.


    He opened his mouth and stuffed a mouthful of Egg Fried Rice into his mouth.


    "As always... It''s really delicious..."


    Another smile leaked out of his mouth, but although this smile looked to be of satisfaction. Anyone who saw this would think otherwise. After all, the eyes were the windows to one''s soul, and despite the satisfied smile on Joseph''s face...


    His eyes were radiating the light of bitterness, regret, and loneliness.


    "I won''t let go... I will never forget... Never let go..." Joseph lightly uttered. Despite it being several years since the tragedy, there was no way that Joseph could forget about his family and the tragedy that dramatically changed his life.


    Even though he may look like he had moved on from that incident. Deep inside his heart, there was still this pang of regret that he secretly harbored.


    "If I wasn''t... If I wasn''t ying in that inte cafe sote in the night... Both of you wouldn''t have..."


    Joseph clutched his chest in pain.


    A cultivator fighting against the heavens must be ruthless and detached from everything.


    But if an immortal wanted to be a mortal toprehend the ways of the heavens. They must remember everything that they had done back when they were a mortal. They must experience the joy, the sorrows, the seven deadly sins, and the six eternal desires that gued the mortals.


    If a cultivator truly became detached from everything and had lost the emotions that he had as a mortal.


    It would be impossible for them to transform into a mortal andprehend the ways of the heavens.


    At this moment, Joseph was immersed in thoughts about his parents and the regrets that he had back then.


    The spiritual energy in his body wildly surged.


    They soon came out of his body and formed threads that transformed into phantoms that were iparably familiar to Joseph.


    "Seph... If you want to learn cooking, you must learn it the same as me! You must not ask questions! Just watch and learn!"


    "Dear... You must not be so harsh on Joseph... He''s also trying his best, you see?"


    "What being harsh? This is the gentlest that I can be when ites to teaching this brat! Hey,e here! Don''t use the knife like that or you''ll hurt yourself!"


    Familiar voices rang out within the room.


    Joseph raised his head and was astonished to find three illusory figuresughing and talking in the restaurant''s kitchen.


    One of the figures was a man who had this stern expression on his face, but a gentle and patient light in his eyes. The other was a woman who looked to be in her early thirties.


    The woman had a worried look on her face, but it was clear from her eyes that she was amused and joyful about what was going on...


    As for thest figure...


    It was the figure of a young boy.


    That young boy stood on a stool and was trying his best to imitate the way his father cooked.


    Despite the numerous scoldings that he received...


    The determined look on his face never faded.


    Joseph let out a smile and stood up.


    As soon as he stood up.


    The illusory figures vanished and silence descended from the restaurant once again.


    "[Master...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang inside his mind.


    "[It''s fine... I''m fine...]" Joseph replied.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth wanted to further express her worries, but seeing the defiant look on Joseph''s face...


    She kept her silence.


    Joseph walked towards the doors of the restaurant and opened it.


    Keh and both of his parents were about to leave the wooden workshop from across the street when they saw Joseph staring at them. Keh wore a smile on his face, he ran towards Joseph and said: "Uncle... Did you wait for us here?"


    "Huh?" Joseph replied in astonishment.


    "Oh... I thought Uncle knew that we were going toe." Keh revealed a smile before he rushed inside. He sat next to the fire inside the restaurant.


    Keh''s mother carried a wooden basket with her as she said: "Brother Seph... Are you busy?"


    Joseph let out a smile as he shook his head: "No, I''m not... Come inside. It''s cold here outside."


    Keh''s mother chuckled, "Really... The winter this year is particrly harsh. It makes me think that something ominous is about to happen. I just hope that I''m just being overly dramatic."


    Joseph paused for a moment before he shook his head and bitterly smiled. He didn''t say anything towards what she had said as he turned around and guided Keh''s father into the restaurant.


    Keh''s father found a table and he helped his wife ce the wooden basket on top of it. Joseph nced at the basket and realized that it was filled with all sorts of food, delicacies, and even some wooden bottles of wine.


    Keh''s mother revealed an apologetic look.


    It was clear that she didn''t expect to hide the smell of food from a master chef like Joseph.


    Keh''s father saw the expression on his wife''s face as he said: "I know that the food that my wife makes can''t possiblypare to your food, Brother Seph. But I hope that you ept it."


    Joseph smiled, "Yes, I''ll do. Let me get some tes..."


    "From the looks of it, all of you still haven''t eaten yet, right?"


    Keh almost immediately replied: "That''s right, uncle! Father insisted that we eat here with you because he wants to borr-"


    "Keh!" Keh''s father scolded Keh and the young boy revealed a wronged look: "What''s the problem with borrowing some silvers? Uncle here can easily earn those silver coins in just a single bowl of Egg Fried Rice!" He coldly harrumphed and revealed a proud look on his face.


    He felt proud since he was an employee of this incredibly lucrative restaurant.


    Keh''s father revealed a look of embarrassment as well as his wife: "Brat, let''s see when wee back home..."


    Joseph turned to look at him and said: "Brother, you want to borrow some money from me?"


    Keh nced at his father and found that he had a sheen of red on his cheeks.


    Keh then lightly chuckled, seemingly teasing his father as he said: "Since father is too embarrassed to say it. I''ll say it. Uncle, they think that the wooden workshop is not earning enough to sustain us in the next few years..."


    "Mother wants to expand the shop. She wants to buy the two shops beside us."


    Joseph smiled and nodded: "How much do you need brother?"


    Keh''s father let out an awkward smile and said: "Those shops are pretty big and we have to pay two years rent at once along with a year of safety deposit so, it would be seventy-five... no, fifty pieces of silver will do."


    Keh puffed his cheeks and stared at his father in disapproval: "But mother said that we need at least ny pieces of..." Before he could finish, his father gave him a vicious re.


    Joseph lightly chuckled and stood up. He went to the second floor and walked towards a certain back room. There was a basket filled with gold coins and silver coins. Joseph casually scooped some gold and handed it over to Keh''s father.


    When Keh''s father saw that there were at least a dozen gold coins. He revealed a look of astonishment and hurriedly said: "Brother Seph... This is too much... fifty pieces of silver will do."


    Joseph let out a smile and nced at Keh: "I''m not lending you this money. This is an advanced payment for Keh''s work here in the restaurant. You see, this kid is not only talented with his hands. He''s also quite good when ites to logistics. He''s now a great asset to this restaurant."


    Keh''s father hesitated for a bit.


    There was a trace of sorrow in his eyes that Joseph captured.


    Joseph further exined: "Don''t worry, I won''t stop Keh from inheriting your wooden workshop. But until that timees, I hope that he can work with us and be with me."


    Keh''s father raised his head and stared at his son for a moment. Seeing the look of anticipation and excitement on Keh''s face. His father could do nothing other than sigh: "If that is what my son wants to do, then it''s fine. I won''t say anything against it anymore, Brother Seph."


    "But Keh... aren''t you too focused on cooking? You should also listen to me, all right? Who is your father here?" He then proceeded to scold his son asughter rang within the restaurant.


    Josephughed along with them. Staring at the pair of father and son before him. His heart was no longer cold. He felt a little bit of warmth and he didn''t envy Keh anymore.


    That night, Joseph made an exception and decided to get drunk.


    He and Keh''s father drunk a lot. Only when they had drunk at least twelve jugs of wine did the two of them passed out from drinking. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth materialized in the middle of the night and there was a strange smile on her face as she stared at the sleeping Joseph.


    She summoned a quilt out of nowhere and covered Joseph with it.


    She then turned to look at Keh''s father and discovered that even though he was unconscious...


    He was tightly holding the gold coins that Joseph gave unto him.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth also covered him with a quilt as she said.


    "Really... I''m such a bad woman."


    "I''m such a bad woman for wanting this trial to continue forevermore."

 Chapter 158: Start of an Epic Journey[19]

    Chapter 158: Start of an Epic Journey[19]


    Time quickly went by and another five years passed...


    On this day, the wooden workshop sessfully expanded.


    Their branches were now at the dozens and due to the family''s extraordinary humanitarian treatment of their workers.


    Joseph reckoned that if they continued on this pace, they would soon be one of the wealthiest ns in the entire City of Eichenwalde.


    As for Keh''s father, he retired after passing most of his skills in carpentry to his son. But when he realized that the wooden workshop needed an experienced supervisor that was far capable than Keh. He came out of his retirement and became the supervisor of the workers.


    The father and son decided that they would appoint leaders from their workshops to whom they would teach them their skills in the trade. In exchange, those workers would be supervisors of that respective branch and now, the workload of the father and son wasn''t so heavy anymore.


    Keh decided that he would be a full-time restaurant chef in Joseph''s restaurant.


    The war that Matthew predicted didn''t happen for some reason and Joseph spent years, after years, after years within the world of this King''s Trial.


    Every day he would cook for the customers, while every night he would sit beside Pixie Fairy Elizabeth while staring at the endlessly starry skies. Joseph couldn''t help but think, every time those nights arrived that everything would be perfect if his parents were here with him...


    He wouldn''t have any regrets in his life.


    Time quickly went by and in a sh, twenty-five years had passed...


    All the branches of the Keh Family''s wooden workshop were closed and there were greenish gs outside that depicted the colors of Spring with the mixture of fall as well as the waves of cryinging from the inside.


    Joseph stood outside his restaurant and stared at the wooden workshop. He couldn''t help but remember that scene from twenty years ago when that young man who wanted to expand his shop, came to him and awkwardly asked for some money to borrow.


    In these past twenty years, Joseph could still vividly remember whenever Keh''s family visited him so that they could eat together. But unfortunately, the cycle of life and death wasn''t something that Joseph could change nor intervene.


    Growing old and dying of old age may be a part of his efforts onprehending the second part of the Grand Concept of Life and Death.


    Even if Joseph infused all of his spiritual energy into the body of Keh''s father to extend his life, it would still only be a few years before he would eventually be sucked back into the cycle of Life and Death.


    Joseph let out a sigh.


    Joseph opened his palm and his spiritual energy became filled with the endless vitality of life. Pixie Fairy Elizabeth told him that if he infused his Spiritual Energy embued with his understanding of the Grand Concept of Life into the soul of Keh''s father.


    His soul would be even stronger, allowing him a better chance of getting a good family within the cycle.


    Joseph slowly walked into the wooden workshop.


    Inside the workshop, dozens of rtives, uncles, and aunts were mourning.


    A depressing and oppressive atmosphere filled the air.


    Keh''s fatherid peacefully within the coffin. Beside the coffin were his son, Keh, and his wife. Keh''s eyes were swollen and reddened, it was clear that he had been crying.


    Beside him stood a woman, it was Keh''s mother. Her heart was filled with sadness as she looked at her husband inside the coffin with eyes filled with grief and despair.


    Ever since Joseph first encountered the couple...


    He had already realized back then that their love for each other was very deep.


    The moment Joseph entered the wooden workshop. Everyone raised their heads and revealed looks of astonishment and respect when they saw him inside.


    There was virtually no one within the City of Eichenwalde who didn''t know who Joseph was.


    After all, he was considered one of the wealthiest people within the City due to his chain of restaurants.


    After Keh''s mother saw Joseph...


    She knelt down and whispered: "Widow Lara greets Brother Joseph..."


    Joseph gave a sigh and went forward to help her up.


    He then fetched an incense from someone nearby, lit it up, and closed his eyes to pay his respects.


    As soon as Joseph closed his eyes and paid his respects, the skies darkened.


    But this darkening of the skies wasn''t something that mortals could detect nor see.


    Spiritual energy surged from Joseph''s body and it manifested in the form of a slight breeze that swept past everybody within the workshop.


    However, no one paid any attention to this slight breeze. After all, it was breezy and cold outside so it wasn''t out of the ordinary for a rogue wind to go inside the workshop.


    Joseph infused his Spiritual Energy with the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life.


    His Spiritual Energy turned green and they formed countless threads that flew towards the body of Keh''s father. They sunk like stones dropped into the ocean and soon, an illusory figure that had the shape and image of Keh''s father manifested.


    He raised his upper body and looked around confusedly.


    When he noticed that no one else could see him other than Joseph. He stared right at Joseph.


    Joseph secretly sighed and infused more of his Spiritual Energy into the soul of Keh''s father. As soon as his spiritual energy seeped into the soul of Keh''s father. His soul became even stronger and the confusion within his eyes abruptly disappeared.


    He gratefully looked at Joseph.


    The current him finally understood that this person, who had been his neighbor for the past twenty years, was not a mortal. His soul floated into the air before reappearing right before Joseph. Then, he knelt down and kowtowed three times towards Joseph''s direction.


    Afterwards, he reluctantly looked at his wife and Keh before his body rose to the skies as if he was climbing adder before soon disappearing from Joseph''s sight.


    "Mama! Papa! I saw grandpa!" Keh''s son who was now about five-years-old spoke up. He was looking at the skies with a confused look on his face.


    However, no one could possibly believe the words of a kid. When he saw that not anyone paid any attention to him. He puffed his cheeks and turned his head away, not saying anything anymore.


    Joseph sighed and swept his gaze at the surroundings.


    Within these past twenty-five years, Joseph had visited this wooden workshop a lot and even the wooden workshop itself couldn''t withstand the passage of time.


    The once glorious wooden workshop now looked quite dpidated, but it was mostly because it has been a decade since its renovations.


    Joseph''s eyes thennded on the lifeless body of Keh''s father. It was impossible for anyone to escape the cycle of life and death.


    That was what Joseph understood when he gainedprehension of the Grand Concept of Life and Death.


    He looked at the body of Keh''s father and he could seem to see the image of a strong young man, slowly decaying year after year within these past twenty years until he died.


    He took a deep breath, suppressed his feelings for a moment before he turned to look at Keh''s mother.


    When he first met her, she was still so young, but after twenty or so years...


    She was now over fifty-years-old.


    The passing of over twenty years of time left its mark on her body.


    Joseph''s eyes darted once again, and then itnded on Keh. Back then, Keh was just a grossly malnourished child whom Joseph resolved to help out of pity.


    But he was now a grown man...


    He not only had a wife and a kid, but he was also his beloved father to the grave.


    From a grossly malnourished child whose body looked more like a matchstick. To a grown man who now had a family of his own and aplishments that he could brag about in his lifetime. Time sure did change Keh''s life for the better.


    Keh''s journey in his life seemed to be reminiscent of a small tree that slowly grew over the past two decades, bing a strong and powerful tree that not only provided shade to those that cared and loved for it...


    It was also now a tree that could withstand the changes of season and the harshness of the weather.


    Thinking of these, Joseph''s heart seemed to have gained a hint of understanding.


    This sensation of understanding something profound became deeper and deeper.


    He didn''t know when he left the workshop and returned to his restaurant.


    The only thing that he knew was that there were images shing across his mind.


    The interaction Joseph had with Keh''s father, Keh''s mother and Keh shed across his mind. The appearance of the three gradually changed within the past twenty years and this could be considered as the gift of a journey that life had given to them in their lifetime.


    Joseph felt profound and invisible energy surrounding the figures of the three. This energy caused them to grow older and older until they eventuallyid in their own coffins, surrounded by their loved ones, crying for their loss and wishing for their pleasant journey within the yellow springs.


    Joseph felt something click in his mind. His eyes snapped open and it twinkled with the abysmal light of death. At this moment, several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph.


    [You haveprehended the second half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Death.]


    [As a reward for yourprehension of a Grand Concept. You are awarded a Unique Skill.]


    [Unique Skills are skills that are unique in this world. They can never be copied nor reverse-engineered by others. It is a skill only for the owner of the Unique Skill.]


    [Unique Skill: Stagnate has been added.]


    [Unique Skills are procedurally generated whenever a user meets certain criteria such asprehension regarding a certain concept. Since it is something that cannot be defined, the skill is unknown and the user is encouraged to find out about the effects of the skill by practical usage.]


    [You have ascended to the Nascent Soul Realm]


    [As a reward for your ascension, you are given Experience: 2,322,564]


    <em>That''s it...? I have ascended to the Nascent Soul Realm?</em>


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and thought, <em>why was it so incognito? I thought when I finally ascended to the Nascent Soul Realm the skies would darken and the earth would tremble upon my might, but to think that my ascension would be so low-key...</em>


    <em>There''s not even a Lightning Tribtion!</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    But then enlightenment shed across his face as he lightly chuckled.


    <em>I see...</em>


    <em>The appearance of life is worthy of celebration and noise, but the appearance of death is only met with silence. After all, no one really celebrates the death of a beloved. This makes sense if I think about it this way...</em>


    <em>However, now that I am at the Nascent Soul Realm and had spent at least twenty-eight years here in the King''s Trial...</em>


    <em>I don''t think that I have seeded, yet...</em>


    <em>I still have toprehend the Concept of Order, Justice, and Law.</em>


    <em>In other words, myprehension of the Grand Concept of Life and Death was just a mere bonus, nothing else...</em>


    <em>But it''s a bonus that I would never refuse. After all, who wouldn''t like to be stronger?</em>


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    <em>Stagnate...</em>


    <em>Hmm... I wonder how this unique skill works...</em>


    Joseph lifted his arm and pointed at a chair.


    Yes, like how he tested Bolster.


    He decided to use Stagnate on a wooden chair.


    "Stagnate..."


    Joseph whispered and a system notification appeared in front of him.


    [You have used a Unique Skill: Stagnate.]


    [-100 Divinity.]


    <em>It takes a hundred Divinity Points to cast? What?</em>


    A barely imperceptible ck light flew from Joseph''s finger towards the wooden chair.


    When it entered the wooden chair, it sunk as into the chair as if it was a stone dropped into the ocean.


    Then, in the very next moment. The wooden chair abruptly turned into dust.


    <em>Huh?</em>


    <em>What happened?</em>


    <em>The chair turned into dust?</em>


    Joseph rapidly blinked, he couldn''t understand what had happened.


    He experimented with another wooden chair and it also turned into dust.


    Joseph wanted to continue experimenting but he realized that he was running low on Divinity Stat.


    If he kept on using Stagnante then he would soon run out of Divinity.


    Joseph could only shake his head, but then a brilliant idea came to his mind.


    <em>What will happen if Ibine two Unique Skills together? Would something special ur?</em>


    A smile escaped on his lips as Joseph pointed at another wooden chair and whispered.


    "Bolster, and... Stagnate!"


    The dazzling light of Bolster and Stagnate flew and perfectlybined with each other in mid-air before they sunk towards the wooden chair as if stones dropped into the ocean. At that moment, several system notifications appeared right in front of him informing him of what happened.


    [You have sessfullybined two Unique Skills with opposing affiliation.]


    [A Unique Skill born from the fusion of Life and Death has been born!]


    [The title: The Cycle of Life and Death has been awarded to the user!]


    [Title: The Cycle of Life and Death


    (The Grand Concept of Life and Death had existed even before the universe was born. Life is the beginning, Death is the end. Combining both concepts creates a cycle, a cycle that would continue forevermore.)


    All stats + 200]


    [Unique Skill: Death''s Reversal has been added.]


    Joseph excitedly experimented with Death''s Respite and he found out that the skill was actually an overpowered skill that could reverse the tides of any battle!


    Those afflicted with Death''s Reversal would have their health bars, mana bars, and their four main stats swapped with the user!


    This was an extremely overpowered skill!


    What''s more, was that Joseph could use the skill on himself and it didn''t have any apparent restrictions!


    Joseph trembled in excitement. He imagined himself fighting against a heaven-defying monster. He was standing on the brink of death, but with just a single skill, Death''s Respite. He swapped his Health Bar with the Health Bar of the monster and instantly reversed the course of the battle!


    How exciting was that!


    Joseph revealed a smile.


    Now that he had confirmed that everyprehension of a concept granted a Unique Skill...


    He was now excited to know what Unique Skills he would receive after he understood the concept of Law, Order, and Justice.


    Joseph turned to look at the skies before abruptly closing the doors of his restaurant.


    He decided to not open any branches of his restaurant today in honor of Keh''s father.


    In lieu of working, Joseph proceeded on experimenting regarding the effects of Stagnate.


    Even though he knew that it would cost him a lot of Divinity Stat...


    He was quite sure that the system would give him rewards more than his consumption of Divinity Stat after the end of this King''s Trial. Everything that he had spent here in this world made by the King''s Trial would definitely be reimbursed so Joseph didn''t hesitate anymore.


    Soon, a system notification appeared in front of him.


    [You have gained sufficient understanding of the Unique Skill: Stagnate.]


    [The Description of the Unique Skill: Stagnate has been updated.]


    [Unique Skill: Stagnate


    A unique skill created based on the Grand Duelist''sprehension on the first half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Death. The resulting usage of this Unique Skill is procedurally generated depending on the Grand Duelist''s input and his understanding regarding Death.


    *It has been discovered thatbining Stagnate with Bolster creates a Unique Fusion Skill: Death''s Reversal. Death''s Reversal can be applied to everything in the world, may they be inanimate objects or living beings


    [Death''s Reversal]sts for half a minute and swaps everything that the enemy has to the user. Including, but not limited to, the enemy''s four main stats, health bars, mana bars, and ss. The user can also appoint an ally as the target for Death''s Reversal.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Uniqueprehension in the second half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death.


    Skill Cost: Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown Time: 12 hours.]


    <em>12 hours... The cooldown is 12 hours... As for the skill description. Procedurally generated? What does that mean? From what I can see here in the dictionary. Stagnate means to cease, or to turn foul... </em>


    <em>Wait, what if...?</em>


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock. He ran to the kitchen and fetched himself a bowl of water.


    Pointing at the water, he imagined the water turning stagnant as he whispered.


    "Stagnate..."


    As soon as his words came out, an abyssal light flew from his finger and infused itself into the water in the bowl. At that moment, something magical happened. The crystal clear water that came from the nearby mountains suddenly turned lumpy and ck!


    Foul odor came out of the water and it was clear that it was now unfit for human consumption!


    <em>I see!</em>


    <em>So this is how Stagnate works!</em>


    <em>Since the resulting effect of the skill is based on what I want it to be. This skill is really versatile.</em>


    A joyful glint shed across Joseph''s face. After experimenting some more, Joseph discovered three ways that he could effectively use Stagnate.


    One, it was to dramatically lower someone''s movements...


    Two, corruption. Stagnate could directly attack the minds of others causing them to copse from within.


    Third, it was to cease.


    Joseph could use Stagnate to temporarily inflict the [Silence] Debuff on someone.


    In other words, Joseph could use Stagnate against a yer, and for the next thirty seconds, he would not be able to use any of his skills. This method of application was definitely overpowered, though it was a pity that Joseph could only apply Stagnate to a single target at a time.


    Joseph could only sigh. He turned to look at the skies and found that it was night.


    Revealing a light smile, he decided to sleep but when he awakened the next day...


    He was astonished to find the streets of Eichenwalde deserted.


    "Huh?"


    "What happened?"


    As if on cue, Matthew kicked open the doors of the restaurant as he cried out.


    "Senior! You''re finally here! Just where did you go in these past few months?"


    Matthew eximed in a panic.


    "What? In the past few months? What are you talking about? Exin yourself!"


    Joseph sternly replied.


    "Y-Y-Yes... I will... It''s the war...! Do you still remember the war that I told you about twenty years ago, senior?"


    "It''s starting! It''s finally starting and those bastards... They are recruiting everyone!"


    "Every mortal, may it be a child or a woman, all of them are being recruited into the army to serve as the weapons of the Kingdom!"


    "What?!"


    Joseph abruptly stood up from his seat.


    He couldn''t believe what he had heard.


    "You must get out of here as fast as possible, Senior!"

 Chapter 159: Start of an Epic Journey[20]

    Chapter 159: Start of an Epic Journey[20]


    "What did you say?!"


    Joseph fiercely retorted.


    For the first time ever in this King''s Trial, there was a look of confusion and panic on his face.


    Matthew''s face paled when he saw how shaken Joseph was by the news that he brought.


    However, he forced himself to remain steadfast in the face of Joseph''s intimidating aura as he replied.


    "S-S-Senior... The war has started! The Kingdom of Evergreen is being attacked by the alliance of the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis!"


    "No! Not that! What did you say? I was gone for several months? What are you talking about?"


    Matthew revealed a look of confusion on his face: "Surely, you jest, senior... I was practically visiting you every day since thest four months ever since I received intelligence that the war was neigh..."


    "But all I got from your disciple in the culinary arts was that you disappeared somewhere without leaving any message..."


    "I really thought that you had abandoned us, senior..."


    Matthew looked like he was about to cry.


    Meanwhile, within Joseph''s mind, waves of turmoil inundated his brain as he fiercely called upon someone''s name.


    "[Pixie Fairy Elizabeth! I know that you can see what''s going on so exin to me everything that is happening, right now!]" Joseph screamed in an authoritative voice that allowed no objections


    "[Master...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s voice rang.


    "[It''s true master, you have indeed disappeared from this world in the past four months.]" She confessed.


    "[Howe? How did something like that happen? Could it be because of...]"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted, he thought of a certain possibility.


    "[Could it be because I went into True Sleep Mode?]" Joseph continued.


    "[That is a possibility that I cannot deny, master...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nervously replied. She could feel the anger within Joseph''s voice due to this sudden revtion.


    "[Just what the hell happened? Going into True Sleep Mode doesn''t pause the time within the King''s Trial anymore, and now I unknowingly spent ten hours sleeping which was actually about four months? What the fuck, P.H Works?]" Joseph angrily turned to look at the skies.


    He inwardly decided that he would definitely question the P.H Works whenever he visited them in the future. After all, the systems within the world of Victory had so many fail-safe mechanisms behind it that it could never possibly fail.


    In other words...


    The only exnation why True Sleep Mode didn''t pause the time within the King''s Trial was because of external intervention.


    And who else could do such a thing?


    Obviously it was the P.H Works!


    Joseph took several deep breaths as he calmed himself down. He then turned to look at Matthew but before he could speak, the door was rudely opened with a kick and a middle-aged man whose height was at least seven feet tall came walking inside.


    "Matthew... So you are here in this restaurant after all..."


    The middle-aged man spoke in a stern voice.


    "Great-General Emilio!" Matthew''s expression paled.


    Joseph turned to look at the middle-aged man in astonishment.


    Great-General Emilio swept his gaze around the restaurant and he quickly found Joseph. A frown appeared on his face as he said: "A mortal? Why is a mortal in here when we already deployed most of the mortals here to the southwest?"


    "Matthew... Could it be that the reason you came here was to warn them about the deployment?"


    Great-General Emilio sharply red at Matthew.


    Matthew gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Despite being twenty-years older than the middle-aged man.


    The middle-aged man''s position as a Great-General alone served as a huge deterrence for Matthew.


    Matthew was just a rich merchant in a single City, while the Great-General Emilio was someone bestowed upon his position by the Kingdom


    Great-General Emilio shed a golden token at Matthew and when Matthew saw the token. His fear intensified, the dual dragons inscribed within the golden token as well as the depictions of Spring indicated that the token came from the Royal Capital


    Dual dragons were the symbol of the empire and arbitrary usage of the dragons was considered as lese-majeste. This was why Matthew was convinced that Great-General Emilio really came here with the intention of forcefully having him join the war.


    "Now that you have seen the token. You know what it means, right? I know that you just went into retirement recently, but I hope that you can forgive me, Head of the Astolfo Family. The Kingdom of Evergreen is in desperate times at this moment and we need your help."


    The Great-General Emilio lifted a smile that contrasted his domineering entrance earlier.


    Matthew heaved a deep sigh.


    Great-General Emilio seemed to have seen through Matthew''s worries as he said: "You do not have to worry about your family. Their safety will be prioritized, and we will never let any harme their way..."


    "However, as for this old man here, I don''t think that he can be considered as your family, right?"


    Great-General Emilio raised his head.


    He stared right at Joseph.


    <em>O-O-Old man? How rude!</em>


    Joseph was about toin when he realized that his physical body here in the King''s Trial was indeed fifty-years-old in age.


    In other words, Joseph was an old man near the appropriate age of retirement.


    Matthew nced at Joseph.


    The gazes of the two met in mid-air.


    <em>War...</em>


    <em>I thought about it back then but will it be advantageous for me to participate in the war?</em>


    <em>Law, Order, and Justice...</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion, but before he could even think any further.


    Great-General Emilio gave his orders: "Men, capture this mortal and send him to the nearest military camp!"


    As soon as his words came out, heavy footsteps rang inside the restaurant, and Joseph was easily subdued by the men.


    Matthew had a look of horror on his face: "W-Wait, you can''t..."


    He was about to exin everything when he saw Joseph staring at him with a light smile on his face. Matthew was dumbstruck, he understood the reason behind that smile so he remained standing there, rooted in ce.


    Great-General Emilio turned to look at Matthew and asked: "Head of the Astolfo Family. I really am curious, why are you referring to that old man as senior when you''re older than him?"


    Matthew awakened from his reverie and he coldly replied to Emilio: "I suppose the matters of mortals isn''t something of your concern, Great-General Emilio? I only refer to him as my senior due to the fact that his culinary skills are much better than me."


    Great-General Emilio''s eyes narrowed into slits when he heard Matthew''s reply.


    He didn''t believe at Matthew''s exnation at first, but when he remembered that Matthew indeed had the peculiar hobby of consuming the food and delicacies of mortals. He found Matthew''s exnation as reasonable and he didn''t say anything anymore.


    But Great-General Emilio still turned to look at one of his soldiers and said: "You remember that old man, earlier?"


    The soldier sternly nodded.


    Great-General Emilio lifted an evil smile: "Since he''s an acquaintance of this disrespectful Head of the Astolfo Family..."


    "Make sure that old man he doesn''te out of this war alive..."


    The soldier was astonished by the order, but when he saw Great-General Emilion''s serious expression. The soldier gulped a mouthful of saliva and obediently nodded.


    He didn''t say anything anymore as he walked away and went towards the direction of the military camp where Joseph was scheduled to be deployed.


    Joseph walked on the familiar street that he had lived on for thest twenty years.


    There was a somber look on his face when he saw that the once lively and boisterous streets were now empty and devoid of any activity. Joseph couldn''t imagine what happened in the past four months for everything to change so drastically like this.


    But one thing was for sure.


    <em>War ising...</em>


    Joseph didn''t know what would happen to him in the war, but he had no other choice but to obey the orders of themanders and generals for he was nothing but a mere mortal at this moment.


    He could reveal his true power to everyone, but that would contradict what he said about before one could be an immortal, one must be a mortal. Unless his bottom line was crossed, Joseph decided that he wouldn''t use his true strength.


    Joseph heaved a deep sigh.


    He entered a carriage and found that within the carriage were old men whose age looked to be the same as Joseph.


    Some of them had nervous looks on their faces, while some were quite excited.


    Those excited about the uing war looked to bemoners that wanted their name immortalized within the annals of history as brave and courageous soldiers.


    While those who were nervous within the carriage had plump bodies that clearly enjoyed the depravity of the world and society.


    They were anxious for they were afraid of dying.


    They had a lot of wealth, dying as some nameless soldier in the war wasn''t something that they dreamt of when they retired from their jobs.


    However, in the face of impending doom, everyone was equal.


    There was no such thing as "hierarchy" in the face of death and only those that stood higher up in their positions could possibly choose their own ending.


    Soldiers wielding de would always die under the de while generals in the position ofmand would almost often die from the schemes of other generals.


    Joseph inwardly nodded. He understood this point at least... He understood that a hierarchy was necessary for Order, but without authority that could create Law. Establishing Order was impossible and without Order. There could possibly be no Justice in this world.


    Joseph repeatedly nodded.


    The old men around him subconsciously distanced themselves from Joseph when they saw how he always nodded his head and mumbled some nonsense to himself. It was clear that they had already thought that Joseph had gone senile due to his age and was mentally ill.


    Provoking the ire of the mentally ill wasn''t wise at this moment.


    They knew that they must distance themselves from him.


    Their actions elicited a bitter smile from Joseph, but he didn''t say anything.


    After all, Joseph felt peaceful that this position within the carriage wasn''t so cramped anymore.


    However, there was one old man who approached him with a kind smile on his face.


    "Brother... Are you doing good there?"


    Joseph raised his head and turned to look at the old man.


    The face of the old man was filled with wrinkles and it was clear from a single look that he should be at least seventy-years-old of age.


    But despite his age, there was this excited look in his eyes as if he couldn''t wait until the war formally started.


    "I''m fine... I''m doing fine... I was just thinking about something."


    The old man nodded his head and replied: "I see... If you are thinking about something..."


    "I reckon that you must be thinking of your family, right?"


    Joseph paused.


    A bitter smile escaped on his face as the old man patted his shoulders: "It''s fine... We may be old and people may think that we do not care about the world anymore. But I believe that there''s something that we will definitely care of no matter what happens to the world..."


    "And that is our family!"


    "Hahaha! Am I right? You''re thinking about your family, right?"


    Joseph revealed astonishment to the old man''s words.


    "I suppose... What''s your name?" He didn''t deny nor agree to what the old man had said.


    "My name? Hahaha, it''s been so long since someone asked for this old man''s name. I already forgot about it!"


    "But you can call me Old Two if you like." The old man winked.


    "Old Two? Why not One?" Joseph jokingly said.


    "Oh!!! That''s a good question, I wonder why I don''t call myself Old One? Hmmm... I feel like there''s some reason behind it, but oh well... Let''s just forget about it since I can''t remember it anyway. Hahaha!!!" The old manughed at loud, acquiring the ire of the nervous old merchants at the front of the carriage.


    "Hey there, you shut up!"


    "Can you notugh so loud? How uncouth..."


    "Ooohhh! That voice! It sounds like you''re challenging me!" The old man suddenly whipped out a dagger from inside his pants and brandished it to theining old merchants.


    "Ah! He has a dagger!"


    "Shit! Help!"


    Joseph was shocked by the sudden esction of events, but the old man merely cackled: "Hahaha! Look at these bastards getting scared by just the sight of a dagger! This Kingdom has really been so peaceful for too long that even the old generation doesn''t get excited by the sight of a de..."


    "They fear it, instead!"


    Joseph''s eyes suddenly narrowed when he heard what the old man had said,<em> That even the old generation doesn''t get excited by the sight of a de? What the hell is he talking about? Isn''t he part of the old generation of this Kingdom too?</em>


    <em>Or could it be that he''s also...?</em>


    Joseph stared suspiciously at the old man but he couldn''t feel anything strange from him.


    Soon, the carriage came to a halt and the passengers disembarked.


    Joseph came out of the carriage first for he was the nearest to the exit and when he came out.


    A soldier was waiting for them with a stern look on his face.


    The rich old merchants were thest to came out and when they saw that they were in a campsite somewhere in a great in. Their faces turned ugly as they simultaneouslyined.


    "Why the hell is the Great-General doing this to us? Even though we are mere mortals we are contributing greatly to the Kingdom by paying our taxes in time! If you really need the manpower then you shouldn''t have done this to us!"


    "You should''ve taken those who are useless to society like these senile bastards here..."


    "Yeah, that''s right! If you need people to help you why not hire mercenaries? Hmmph... I''m out of here, you will never be able to force me to participate in this war!" One of the rich merchants waved his sleeve and walked towards the exit of the campsite.


    But before he could even take a few steps towards the exit.


    A silvery light shed and in the very next moment, the head of the rich merchant rolled onto the ground, leaving behind a crimson trail of blood.


    "Ah... Ahhh!!! You''re killing people! Murdeeer!!! Help!!!" The rich old merchants fell onto the ground andnded on their butts. Some of them directly screamed out loud.


    The soldier who did the execution exined: "All of you bastards must know that since all of you are here at this campsite already. You are now a soldier of the Kingdom. Disobeying orders and cowardice are absolutely not allowed and are equal to a death sentence!"


    The soldier then swept his gaze across the terrified old men.


    A satisfied smile appeared on his face before he walked forwards and started jotting down the names of everyone along with their talents and skills on a piece of parchment.


    Joseph had a pale look on his face when he saw the gory scene, but he managed to calm himself down after several deep breaths. He then raised his head and swept his gaze around the area to which, he discovered a familiar figure at a nearby carriage.


    "Shopkeeper Dan!" Joseph subconsciously eximed.


    "Brother Seph!" Shopkeeper Dan turned around and also eximed when he saw Joseph.


    Joseph let out a smile and approached Shopkeeper Dan.


    Shopkeeper Dan was the owner of the shop beside Joseph''s restaurant. He once visited Joseph''s restaurant and offered the hand of his daughter for marriage twenty-years ago. Of course, Joseph refused his offer but the two still became good friends after that ordeal.


    Now after two decades...


    Shopkeeper Dan who was a middle-aged man back then was now at the twilight of his life.


    "What are you doing here, Brother Seph? Did they capture you too?" Shopkeeper Dan asked.


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile and said: "Yeah, they captured me. Just what are we going to do here? Do you have any idea? I don''t think that they are going to let a bunch of old men wield swords and rush at the enemies, right?"


    Shopkeeper Dan lightly chuckled: "It seems like you''re still quite a charmer despite your four-month disappearance, brother Seph. But you really shouldn''t have returned this time..."


    "Earlier, you should''ve bribed them not to capture you so you don''t have to be here and possibly sacrifice your life for these bastards..." He revealed a mournful look on his face.


    Joseph heaved a sigh: "How is your daughter, Shopkeeper Dan?" Joseph asked in worry, but the moment he spoke these words...


    Shopkeeper Dan revealed a fierce look on his face.


    Joseph rapidly blinked his eyes.


    He suddenly remembered that back then when he and Shopkeeper Dan were drinking.


    Thetter told him that he was a mercenary before he decided to settle down and be a merchant. Joseph had never seen Shopkeeper Dan''s mercenary side but at this moment. Sensing the killing intent from his body. Joseph was convinced that he really wasn''t lying at that time.


    "Hey, both of you! Come here!" At this moment, a fierce voice interrupted the reunion of the two.


    Joseph and Shopkeeper Dan turned to look at the source of the voice and they found that it was a soldier holding a pen and a parchment.


    "You!" He pointed at Shopkeeper Dan and gestured for him toe closer.


    Shopkeeper Dan obliged and Joseph followed.


    "What are your talents? Any skills? I suggest that both of you do not lie to me. Trust me, we have a lot of ways in confirming your true identity so both of you better be not lying or else, you''ll be dealt with ording to the militaryws!"


    The soldier gravely warned.


    Shopkeeper Dan stepped forward and said: "I''m a retired Mercenary, now a merchant of a Fabric Shop..."


    The soldier revealed astonishment for a moment before he scribbled down some words on the parchment.


    He proceeded to ask Shopkeeper Dan several questions before he turned to look at Joseph and said: "It''s your turn, you heard my questions to him earlier so I think you should know right now how you''re supposed to answer."


    "I''m a shop owner, I own a restaurant... As for skills..." Joseph hesitated for a moment, "I don''t know, I''ve been cooking for my entire life."


    The soldier lifted a mocking smile when he heard Joseph''s question. Afterwards, he then handed over a sword and a crude armor to Joseph before saying...


    "Congrattions, you''ve been chosen to be one of the soldiers that will handle the first wave of attack from those dogs at Iblis and Shade! Be honored, take this, and rendezvous with the other."


    Joseph''s eyes widened in shock when he heard what the soldier had said.


    Shopkeeper Dan almost leaped up from shock as he protested: "But sir! Brother Seph has never held a sword before! He''s just a Chef! Why would you send him to the battlefield and send me to the logistics squad? That doesn''t make sense!"


    "Heh..." The soldier stared at Shopkeeper Dan in derision: "I do not have the obligation to exin everything. Just follow the orders and if you dare to disobey..." He stared right at Joseph before continuing: "Only death is waiting."


    He then turned around and never bothered about Shopkeeper Dan and Joseph anymore.


    "Fucking hell... Is there even Justice in this world anymore?" Shopkeeper Dan had a mournful look on his face as well as helplessness.


    It was because even though he wanted to help Joseph as much as possible.


    He understood that now that they were in the territory of the army.


    Their fate wasn''t in their hands anymore.


    "It''s fine, Shopkeeper Dan... I''ve endured countless things in my life..."


    "I won''t let this war end me so easily..."


    Tears welled up in Shopkeeper Dan''s face as he said: "I''m sorry... I''m really sorry, Brother Seph. As much as I want to help you... I can''t afford to offend those bastards... I have to... I have to save my daughter and wife..."


    Joseph patted his shoulders: "It''s fine, Shopkeeper Dan. We do what we must. I won''t me you."


    Shopkeeper Dan gratefully stared at Joseph and even bowed.


    Out of everyone that he knew in his lifetime.


    Joseph was one of those rare people whom he respected the most.


    His culinary skill alone was enough to earn Shopkeeper Dan''s respect, but when he got to know Joseph...


    He also found that Joseph was altruistic and kind.


    There was even this time twenty-years ago when Shopkeeper Dan begged Joseph for some money.


    Back then, Shopkeeper Dan beseeched Joseph for a few gold coins even if the interest rates were high.


    However, not only Joseph gave him the gold coins that he required...


    He didn''t even ce any interest rates.


    This event made Joseph earn his respect and from there on, everything was history.


    Shopkeeper Dan took a final look at Joseph before he turned around to report to a nearby soldier.


    Joseph did the same and he was guided to a location full of people around the same age as him.


    Old Two was also there and he revealed a wide smile: "Oh, you''re also here? Hahaha! I had a hunch that you''d be here too!"


    Joseph waved his hand and sat down beside Old Two. He found the old man''s antics quite amusing.


    "Hey, hey, hey... Do you know about the reason why those soldiers want us to fight at the front lines?"


    "Oh? Do you know anything about it?" Joseph raised an eyebrow.


    "Hehehe? What? You don''t know the answer to the question? Take a look around us!" Old Two gestured at Joseph.


    Joseph obliged and he found that everyone had deted expressions on their faces.


    Joseph even recognized some of the excited men earlier in the carriage, but now...


    Their excitement was nowhere to be seen.


    Instead, there was this look of despair and hopelessness on their faces.


    Joseph''s expression turned grim: "Are you saying that the reason why they gathered a bunch of old men instead of young soldiers to fight at the front lines is that they want us to be their cannon fodders?"


    "Yes!!!" Old Two leaped up in excitement, "That''s the answer! They want us to be their cannon fodders! Hahaha, it seems like you''re quite smart too, my friend. What''s your name?"


    "Just call me Seph," Joseph replied with a faint smile.


    "Oh, Seph... Hehehe... Since you are here... Let me show you something good. It''s something that us soldiers have the privilege to use, but since we''re already this old. I don''t rmend using it since it''s really for those young men."


    Old Two suddenly gave an ambiguous smile as he gestured for Joseph to follow him.


    On the way, Joseph had a frown on his face for he could hear ambiguous moans around the area.


    Old Two maintained the ambiguous smile on his face and when they arrived at the tent where the ambiguous moans wereing from. Old Two slowly opened the tent and the sight that revealed itself in front of Joseph thoroughly shook him to his core.


    On top of a table was a grunting young soldier.


    Beneath him and on the ground were two women continuously sobbing.


    When Joseph saw the two women...


    He subconsciously uttered.


    "Shopkeeper Dan''s daughter, Miss Linda, and her daughter, Abigail?!"


    The instant he uttered these words, spiritual energy burst forth from his body as Joseph instantly separated the space surrounding the tent into an independent space.


    "You bastards..."


    "Hands off them!"


    He screamed, his voice rang like thunder.

 Chapter 160: Besieged by Three Guilds

    Chapter 160: Besieged by Three Guilds


    He was angry...


    He felt fury...


    Seeing the humiliation and disgrace that the two women suffered under the hands of these depraved soldiers.


    Joseph didn''t even suppress his power anymore as his spiritual energy surged.


    In an instant, he covered the tent and the surrounding thirty-meters of area inside an independent space.


    At this moment, all sorts of evil thoughts surfaced within Joseph''s mind.


    <em>Kill...</em>


    <em>Kill...</em>


    <em>Kill...</em>


    <em>Kill them all!</em>


    <em>Leave nothing behind!</em>


    <em>Not even dogs and chickens shall be spared!</em>


    <em>How dare these bastards... How dare they touch Miss Linda and Abigail?!</em>


    Images shed across Joseph''s mind.


    On a certain afternoon, two decades ago...


    Joseph had trouble pacifying the fierce subordinates of Matthew.


    It was Miss Linda who stepped forward and acted like a domineering marchioness, subduing those men and making them subservient to Joseph.


    As for Abigail...


    She was a cute little child who visited the restaurant three times a day for some Egg Fried Rice.


    Joseph could never forget her face whenever Joseph teased him that he won''t give her any Egg Fried Rice anymore if she was naughty and rebellious to her parents.


    But now...


    What did these soldiers do?


    Joseph''s eyesnded on the miserable figures of Miss Linda and Abigail.


    His fury and towering killing intent seemed to take over his mind.


    <em>Fuck...</em>


    <em>What is this?</em>


    <em>What is going on?</em>


    Joseph was panicking. He regained some rity.


    But then he remembered a certain detail from before this phase of the King''s Trial started.


    <em>My body...</em>


    <em>My body is the body of an evil cultivator!</em>


    <em>Faced with rage, my killing intent is bursting with power.</em>


    <em>Fuck, what should I do?</em>


    It was quite a feat that Joseph was still able to maintain his consciousness all while under the assault of the evil thoughts from the Art of Discord and Disorder.


    <em>Wait... This is actually pretty tame...</em>


    <em>The whispers...</em>


    <em>They can''tpare to the bewitching whispers of that Demon of Deceit and Temptation, Gelial!</em>


    <em>I can do this!</em>


    Joseph gnashed his teeth.


    Pain washed over his body as the anger reigning in his fightbined with the killing intent deep in his soul.


    <em>Ah... Fuck... I''m losing control...</em>


    Joseph''s eyes started bleeding as soon as he inwardly let out roars of fury and unwillingness.


    <em>Shit... Am I going to fail?</em>


    <em>I''m about toplete this King''s Trial, yet am I going to fail just because of some bullshit killing intent?</em>


    Images shed across Joseph''s mind.


    They were the memories that the owner of his current body had gone through.


    The mes of warfare wreaking havoc to an entire vige.


    The cries and aggrieved moans of vited women, and the death throes of men who fought till theirst breath for the sake of their families and loved ones. Countless corpses were strewn across thend, faces of men distorted with fear, their bones slowly decaying into ashes.


    And then there was Joseph.


    He was standing at the center of this bloodshed with a look of excitement and an evil smile on his face.


    Joseph gasped in fear.


    His body started trembling like a sieve, but a fierce voice awakened him from his trance.


    "[Get a grip, master! Are you going to let yourself be dominated by a mere inner demon?!]"


    It was Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    Her voice didn''t contain any hint of gentleness that she had these past years. Instead, there was clear contempt in her reprimand as Joseph lightly chuckled.


    <em>Hahaha...</em>


    <em>That''s right...</em>


    <em>I''ve endured twenty plus years just to reach this step and I''m going to be hindered by a mere inner demon? I''m not willing! No matter what demon you are, even if you are a demon that lives within me. You shall be expelled! Get the fuck out of my mind!</em>


    Joseph inwardly screamed and something clicked inside his mind.


    [You gainedprehension of the Concept of Discord and Disorder.]


    [A unique skill has been granted.]


    [A unique skill has been granted.]


    [...]


    Several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph as the murmurs of the damned close to his ears disappeared at once.


    The pain that wreaked havoc on his body had vanished and he could finally open his eyes.


    As soon as his eyes opened, an abysmal light of darkness seemed to sh across his eyes as he swept his gaze at the surroundings.


    The soldiers who were astounded by his arrival had already copsed from the sheer ferocity of Joseph''s killing intent.


    The women weren''t spared by Joseph''s killing intent that knew no foe nor ally.


    "Shit!" Joseph audibly cursed.


    He rushed towards the naked young woman on the table.


    His expression became as pale as a sheet of paper.


    But it was Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who revealed her true condition.


    "[Syphilis, Gonorrhea, all sorts of sexually transmitted disease. Most of her joints are broken and some quite severe hematoma... With injuries like these, I suppose... her mental condition probably isn''t that good anymore, master...]"


    Joseph gnashed his teeth.


    He turned towards the unconscious soldiers in anger and his spiritual energy involuntarily surged.


    "Can you fix her up, Elizabeth?" Joseph asked.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth went silent for a moment before she replied: "[Yes... I can do that, master... But... I can only heal her physical body... As for her mental health and condition. There''s no way that I can do something about that, master...]"


    "Fuck!" Joseph almost mmed the table in anger.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s words implied that even she was able to heal them properly. There was no way that they could regain the will to live. After being humiliated by these filthy and unscrupulous soldiers.


    There was no way that these two would be willing to live in this world anymore.


    <em>But...</em>


    <em>Shopkeeper Dan!</em>


    Joseph gasped in anger.


    But at the very next moment, he decided: "Fix them up..."


    "[But...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth hesitated.


    "No buts! Just fix them up!" Joseph fiercely retorted.


    "[O... Okay...]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth became nervous and tensed up when she heard Joseph''s reply.


    A dazzling, yetfortable light reminiscent of the arrival of Spring surged from Joseph''s body and flew towards the bodies of the two women lying on the ground and on the table. The brilliant light enveloped every nook and cranny of their bodies and after a few seconds...


    The light disappeared.


    "[It''s done, master... They''re fully healed.]" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied in a courteous tone.


    Joseph nodded his head and said: "Do you have the ability to make clothes?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth shook her head and replied telepathically: "[No, master... I can create an illusion that would make everyone think that you are wearing clothes, but an illusion is just an illusion in the end. It has no substance and the clothes that I can create from it won''t protect you from the elements or the wind.]"


    Joseph replied with a simple nod. Afterwards, his body temporarily disappeared from the campsite before reappearing inside the locked Fabric Shop of Shopkeeper Dan. He swiftly took two women''s clothing before returning back to the campsite.


    All of these took quite some time to describe, but everything actually happened in less than five seconds.


    Joseph approached the two women with the clothes, but Pixie Fairy Elizabeth stopped him in his tracks.


    "Master..." She manifested her physical form and appeared behind Joseph.


    Joseph turned around and asked: "What is it?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked with hesitation: "What are you nning on doing, master?"


    Joseph frowned, "Can''t you see that I''m holding clothes? I''m obviously going to dress them up!"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth puffed her cheeks and pouted after being scolded by Joseph: "Why are you getting mad at me, master? I''m just trying to say that you must not go and carelessly touch a woman''s body! Let me handle it! I''ll go and dress them up instead of you, hmmph!"


    "Tssk, such a trivial problem. I''ll just do it instead!" Joseph retorted.


    "No! I will do it! Whether you like it or not. I will be the one to dress them up!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth didn''t back down.


    Her eyes radiated coldness that awakened Joseph from his trance.


    "Uh..." At this moment, Alice''s pouting face seemed to ovep with Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s cold expression.


    An awkward smile escaped on his lips as he handed over the women''s clothes and said: "Okay, you handle it then..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth practically snatched the clothes from Joseph''s hands before she went over to the two women.


    When she was done dressing them up, Abigail who was on the table slowly awakened.


    Her eyes snapped open.


    When she saw the unfamiliar ceiling above her and when the filthy stench of bodily fluids entered her nose.


    Reality struck her as she started panicking.


    "AAAHHH!!! Nooo... Nooo... Where am I? Mommy? Mommy, where are you...? Mommy!" Amidst her panic, she saw the gorgeous Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and she started whispering in shock: "You... Are you one of the Seven Gods and Goddesses? Am I now in Heaven?"


    "No!"


    "That cannot be! I didn''t want to die, yet... I still haven''t... I still haven''t..."


    Joseph had a pained look on his face when he saw the current Abigail.


    Back then, Abigail was a cheerful woman who often teased Keh back at the restaurant.


    She greatly respected Joseph''s culinary skills and was even looking forward to being Keh''s disciple in the culinary art.


    But now...


    She was far too different from her past.


    Even though her body has been repaired back to before she was kidnapped by these despicable soldiers. The mental trauma that they had inflicted on her would forever apany her throughout her entire life.


    Joseph clenched his fists...


    <em>Is there really no way for me to erase the traumatic experiences that she went through?</em>


    Joseph''s mind madly spun, but then an idea suddenly came to his mind.


    <em>Ah!</em>


    <em>I know!</em>


    <em>The Art of Discord and Disorder can directly affect the mind of others! If I use that art to create disorder between her joyful and traumatic memories. I may be able to erase her traumatic memories by selectively targeting them!</em>


    Unprecedented excitement shed across Joseph''s face.


    He quickly moved, sending a quick chop on the panicking Abigail''s nape.


    Abigail''s consciousness darkened, but before her consciousness could fully disappear. She seemed to have regained a moment of rity for she uttered these words before her world darkened.


    "You..."


    "Owner Joseph...?"


    She murmured before copsing back onto the table.


    "Master?!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth jolted in panic.


    She really didn''t expect that Joseph would attack Abigail at this moment.


    "Calm down... Don''t directly jump into conclusions, all right?" Joseph exined.


    "What are you nning on doing to them, master?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked in curiosity. She couldn''t help but ask when she saw the confident smile on Joseph''s lips.


    "Just watch and you''ll understand!" Joseph didn''t dy anymore. He opened his palm and summoned a Seed of Discord and Disorder. He stuck his middle and index finger close to each other before pointing his fingers directly at the center of Abigail''s forehead.


    "Master?!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth cried out, but this time. There was clear panic in her voice.


    She didn''t expect that Joseph would directly use the Art of Discord and Disorder towards Abigail.


    But when she saw the serious look on Joseph''s face. She didn''t dare to speak nor raise any questions anymore.


    From what she had learned about her master in the past twenty or so years here in the King''s Trial.


    Joseph wasn''t someone who would do random things without being sure of its sess rate.


    She decided to ce her trust in Joseph once again as she waited.


    A few minutester, Joseph finally stopped and heaved a big sigh of relief.


    Beaded sweat could be seen on his forehead as he said: "It''s a sess... Wheeew... That was harder than I thought."


    He let out a smile.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nervously asked: "A sess? What did you do, master?"


    Joseph turned to look at her and grinned: "I erased all of her traumatic memories. I also inserted some fake memories that I constructed from her joyful memories so now she won''t notice that there''s a gap in her memories."


    Joseph stood up and walked towards Miss Linda.


    He did the same on Miss Linda and afterwards, he then said to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    "I''ll transport them to the restaurant for now."


    "Huh? I thought master ns on reuniting them with Shopkeeper Dan?"


    "Yeah, I nned on doing that, but this is not the right time. Shopkeeper Dan is in the middle of doing some logistics here in the camp and I don''t think that I can keep on establishing independent spaces here at this campsite..." A wry smile escaped on Joseph''s lips.


    "What? Could it be that you are thinking that someone can possibly notice who you are, master?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied.


    She found Joseph''s words as quite ridiculous and absurd.


    Joseph nodded, "That''s right. I can''t afford to underestimate the residents in this ce, Elizabeth. Furthermore, there''s only that Great-General Emilio whose cultivation was at least at the middle of the Core Formation Realm..."


    "With his strength, I think he will be able to notice me if I keep on establishing independent spaces to rescue the others that I know here..."


    Hearing Joseph''s exnation, a stern look appeared on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s face.


    "All right, I won''t disturb you any longer, master. I won''t say anything anymore. From the looks of it, it seems like you are about ready to summon the Heavenly Tribtion." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth wore a sweet smile on her face.


    But for some reason, unbeknownst to Joseph.


    There were traces of sorrow in her eyes.


    "Mhm! It''s about time for me to return. I have people waiting for me toe back." Joseph returned her smile in kind and even ruffled her hair: "Thank you for everything, Elizabeth. Now, just stay back, watch the show and enjoy the ride, all right?"


    "Mhm!"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded with determination as her body transformed into a ray of light. The ray of light that she transformed into flew directly towards Joseph''s forehead and disappeared as if a stone dropped into the ocean.


    Joseph carried the mother and daughter on both of his shoulders and abruptly disappeared from the tent.


    When he reappeared, the mother and daughter were nowhere to be seen on his shoulders. He turned to the soldiers lying on the ground and he proceeded to erase their memories regarding the mother and daughter.


    He also removed Old Two''s memories regarding the encounter.


    Joseph carried Old Two to a nearby tent and he awakened him from his trance.


    "Uh? What happened? Oh? You''re here! Now that I think about it. I still haven''t shown you what soldiers like us have the privilege to use! Hehehe, oh! We''re quite near to those tents! Come, follow me!" Old Two turned around and headed for a nearby tent, but Joseph stopped him with a chuckle.


    "Hehehe... I already saw what you wanted me to see... It''s definitely good, but I''m already quite old, you see..." Joseph lifted a bitter smile.


    Old Two turned around andughed.


    "Hahaha! That''s right! But even though we''re already at this age. That doesn''t mean that we can''t watch, all right? Hehe,e... Follow me, let us judge the prowess of these young soldiers at that department." Old Two revealed a lecherous smile as he walked towards the nearby tent once again.


    Joseph was about to stop him on his tracks when a fierce voice suddenly rang from the distance.


    "Notice! Notice! Notice! We are about to deploy in the third quarter of the wu hour! Prepare yourselves! From now on, any soldier that dares to run away will be summarily executed without any room for appeals!"<ol><li>23:45</li></ol>

 Chapter 161: Besieged by Three Guilds[2]

    Chapter 161: Besieged by Three Guilds[2]


    The fierce voice announced these words three times before it stopped.


    The words carried by the voice swept through the entire campsite.


    Joseph had a frown on his face: "From now on, any soldier that dares to run away will be summarily executed? Does that mean that the merchant earlier wasn''t supposed to die? He was arbitrarily executed?"


    Old Two heard what he had said and heughed out loud: "That''s right! That merchant earlier wasn''t supposed to die, but do you really think that these soldiers care about us meremoners?"


    "Even if that merchant was quite rich, he was still amoner at the end! Prevention is also better than cure, Imend the move of that soldier earlier!"


    Joseph turned to look at Old Two with a frown: "Why are youmending what the soldier had done?"


    Old Two boisterouslyughed: "Hahaha, brother... Do you seriously not understand? If that soldier didn''t stop that merchant from running away, everyone would follow suit!"


    "As I said, prevention is better than cure and there''s also a popr adage that says about killing the chickens to warn the monkeys."


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits when he heard what Old Two had said.


    But he didn''t say anything anymore.


    He calmed himself down and moved ording to the orders of the other soldiers.


    Wearing the armor issued by the Kingdom of Evergreen to infantry soldiers.


    Joseph went with the flow and followed the others towards the Central ins.


    ording to theirmander, the battle between the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis would happen at the Central ins, north of the Kingdom of Evergreen about fifty kilometers from the capital.


    Infantry soldiers like Joseph carried provisions on their backs due to the fact that the Kingdom of Evergreen had limited resources when it came to provisions. They didn''t have enough horses to use for carrying these provisions so they resorted to having the infantry soldiers carry them to battle.


    At first, Joseph didn''t understand why themander made the elderly soldiers like him carry these provisions.


    But then, when the first batch of elderly soldiers copsed from exhaustion.


    Joseph finally understood what was going on.


    And his understanding of the matter thoroughly angered Joseph.


    They made the elderly soldiers carry the provisions so that the younger soldiers wouldn''t be exhausted when they arrived at the Central ins.


    They didn''t care about the physical conditions of the elderly soldiers at all. The fact that these young soldiers thought of the elderly soldiers as cannon fodders made Joseph''s blood run cold.


    <em>Yet, why are these elderly soldiers still obeying the orders of these younger soldiers and this despicablemander?</em>


    <em>With their numbers, they could easily censure these younger soldiers and thatmander!</em>


    <em>They could lodge aint to the General in charge of this regiment!</em>


    Joseph couldn''t understand what''s going through the mind of these elderly soldiers and why were they letting these younger soldiers step on their dignities to the point that they may as well order them to strip themselves naked and run to the Central ins in their birthday suits.


    Joseph pondered for a while.


    He then heard the groans of Old Two who was marching beside him.


    Old Two was struggling while carrying the provisions on his back due to his age.


    Joseph shook his head and lifted a teasing smile.


    "Old Two, do you want me to carry those for you?"


    Old Two nced at Joseph and said: "I know what you are thinking, my friend. But I can''t hand these provisions to you, they may possibly be the provisions given to us before the battle!"


    "Since we''re infantry. There''s a huge chance that we will be ced at the front lines and with our age, being at the front lines is tantamount to death..."


    "That is why I am going to hoard these provisions and consume them all at once when we arrive at the campsite there at the Central ins!" Sweat filled Old Two''s mind but he still managed on properly articting each and every word that he had said.


    Joseph couldn''t help but feel admiration towards the old man.


    He could only sigh and continue marching.


    Soon, after about half a day of walking...


    Joseph and the other soldiers finally arrived at the Kingdom of Evergreen''s campsite.


    He swept his gaze at the surroundings. He then closed his eyes and infused some spiritual energy into them.


    When he opened his eyes once again, the veil of the dark had disappeared and he could now see in the middle of the night as if it was daylight.


    Joseph saw that there were several dozens of campsites with the g of the Kingdom of Evergreen.


    "Keh, I wonder where he is..." Joseph had a look of worry on his face.


    Despite Keh''s aplishments in life and his poprity within the City of Eichenwalde.


    He was still considered as amoner and the despicable soldiers of Evergreen who often envied thosemoners who were rich may possibly send Keh to the front lines.


    Although Joseph didn''t know anything about warfare.


    He wasn''t so naive to think that a mortal like Keh could possibly survive at the front lines.


    Even if Keh haddy luck supporting him. His chances of surviving were practically the lowest since as infantry, he would be one of the first soldiers to lead the attack.


    The most severe casualties in battle usually happened at the first wave of attacks. Joseph understood this point at least, so before the battle began...


    Joseph must find Keh and ensure his safety without being discovered by the Great-Generals gathered around him.


    Joseph had already unlocked his spiritual energy, yet he knew that he still had the chance ofprehending if he participated in this war. It was a must for him to participate since he felt that it was now time for him to reap the rewards of his twenty years of patience and effort.


    If he was discovered by the Great-Generals of the Kingdom of Evergreen.


    Joseph had a hunch that he may lose his chances of participating in the war as a mere mortal.


    This was why Joseph was on guard against the detection of the Great-Generals.


    After all, Joseph wasn''t so naive to think that he could easily move undetected towards one campsite to another.


    The Kingdom of Evergreen instructed the elderly soldiers to ce the provisions at the rear and to get ready for the battle at the front lines.


    Joseph obliged with the orders and holding his sword, he felt inexplicably nervous.


    Despite knowing that he wouldn''t die in battle due to the fact that he was just masquerading as a mortal...


    He still felt anxious standing at the front lines while holding a sword in his hands.


    "Hehehe... You look quite pale right there, my friend. Are you nervous?"


    Old Two who was still beside Joseph asked with a smile.


    Joseph lifted a slight smile: "Yeah... I won''t deny that. How about you? You seem quite nervous yourself."


    Old Two was taken aback by the question: "Me? Nervous? Never!" He patted his right chest with his left-hand elicitingughter from Joseph who thought that even though Old Two looked to be at the twilight of his life. His antics seemed simr to the antics of a child.


    His strange movements and weird quirks really lessened the anxiousness and apprehension in Joseph''s heart.


    "I see, so that was a foolish question, then..." Joseph praised Old Two and the old man seemed to be happy with the praise that he had received. The two talked for quite a while for the moment until Joseph heard whispers in his ears which made him turn to look at Old Two and smile.


    The troops of the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis were stationed directly ahead of the troops of the Kingdom of Evergreen.


    As for the reason why the Kingdom of Evergreen dared to face the alliance of both Kingdoms in a frontal battle. It was because even though the Kingdom of Evergreen was without any allies. The sheer number of their troops made up for it.


    Whenbined, the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis only had about a million soldiers, while the Kingdom of Evergreen had about two million soldiers right now on this Central ins.


    Of course, Joseph wasn''t so sure about the quality of the soldiers in the Kingdom of Evergreen due to the fact that they were literally recruiting everyone even children...


    <em>Wait...</em>


    <em>Children...</em>


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    <em>Keh''s son!</em>


    <em>Could it be that his boy was also recruited by the Kingdom of Evergreen as a child soldier?</em>


    Memories shed across Joseph''s mind and it made him ultimately sigh in relief.


    The Kingdom of Evergreen utilized child soldiers but they weren''t ced in the front lines.


    It was because the Kingdom of Evergreen at least understood that children were the lifeblood of the poption and the country. Despite recruiting them for the war, they only gave those children menial jobs such as cooking for the soldiers, simple logistics, etc...


    <em>I see... If Keh''s son is recruited, then he should be quite safe.</em>


    <em>I should be more worried about Keh and his wife.</em>


    <em>But it''s not the right time yet...</em>


    <em>I can only hope that Keh''s wife is still safe...</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    He clenched his fists and suppressed the desire to transform into a cultivator right at that moment.


    Patience is a virtue. This phrase could be considered as a popr adage, and Joseph was currently doing his best on being the most patient that he could as long as possible.


    Taking deep breaths to calm himself...


    Joseph raised his head and realized that the Great-Generals from both sides were now speaking with each other.


    Joseph turned to look at Old Two who looked like he was raring to go and said.


    "Old Two... Don''t you die today, all right?"


    "Heh... Die?" Old Two shook his head and a rare sigh escaped from his mouth: "I can''t say for sure if I won''t die, but if I do, I won''t have any regrets knowing that I died serving the Kingdom and his Majesty!"


    Old Two''s words thoroughly astonished Joseph.


    But before he could even ask any questions.


    The war horns red and the war officially started.


    "KILL!!!"


    The soldiers from both sides simultaneously screamed.


    Swords were drawn and arrows aimed tautly. Joseph who stood frozen in the midst of these was eventually forced to move by the wave of peopleing from behind him.


    Joseph held his sword and ran towards the soldiers of the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis.


    He was supposed to be at the front lines but his hesitation earlier forced him several rows back.


    Joseph stared at the soldiers of the opposing Kingdoms and he found that even though their expressions looked ferocious and bloodthirsty, their eyes, which could be considered as the windows to their souls radiated sorrow, anxiousness, and fear.


    <em>These soldiers...</em>


    <em>They are afraid of death!</em>


    <em>Yet...</em>


    <em>Despite being afraid of death.</em>


    <em>Why are they moving towards their enemies?</em>


    <em>Why do they hold their swords against the neck of their enemies knowing that they may die the same way?</em>


    <em>What is it?</em>


    <em>What is the reason?</em>


    <em>What is the force urging them to do such a decision?</em>


    Joseph''s eyes darted around the battlefield until his gazended on a middle-aged man standing at the helm of the charge.


    The middle-aged man''s back looked like a towering mountain and while staring at him, Joseph felt an inexplicable sensation that as long as that middle-aged man doesn''t copse...


    The entire army won''t copse and victory would eventually fall into the hands of the soldiers he was leading to battle.


    <em>I see...</em>


    <em>Now I understand...</em>


    <em>The reason why these soldiers are still moving even though they have such fears within them...</em>


    <em>Isn''t because they are willingly courting death...</em>


    <em>It is because of this strange, urging power thates from the towering back of that middle-aged man.</em>


    <em>The General''s Orders are absolute and can never be disobeyed.</em>


    <em>The deterrence that the middle-aged man has that urges these soldiers to obey him even if the result is their death is his authority.</em>


    <em>Authority stems from Law which creates Order. I understand this much at least, but what is Justice?</em>


    <em>If Law is the deterrence and Order is what fuels these soldiers to offer their lives for the sake of the Kingdom.</em>


    <em>What is Justice?</em>


    <em>Is Justice somehow connected with Law and Order?</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion.


    But his deep pondering didn''tst long for the first sh of this war was about to happen.


    "KILL!!!"


    The infantry soldiers of the Kingdom of Evergreen charged at the soldiers of the Kingdom of Shade and Iblis.


    Right before the two sides made contact with each other. The soldiers from Shade and Iblis suddenly leaped backward and retreated. Their retreat enabled the soldiers behind them to overtake them and when those soldiers arrived at the front lines, they had spears whose tip coated with poison pointed at the charging soldiers of the Kingdom of Evergreen.


    "Shit! They have poisoned spears!"


    "What the fuck? They are treating infantry as if we''re cavalry?"


    The soldiers at the front lines from Evergreen screamed and they pushed on the brakes.


    They managed to stop themselves on time, but the soldiers at the rear who were already at their maximum speed and didn''t see the spears that their enemies were holding didn''t manage to stop on time.


    They shed against the back of their allies, impaling the soldiers of Evergreen who stood at the front lines but managed to stop on time.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    Thankfully, he still wasn''t at his top speed so he managed to stop himself on time.


    But before he could even rx...


    The infantry soldiers of Iblis and Shade who retreated to make way for their spear-wielding allies rotated around the sides and made a pinch attack against the soldiers of Evergreen.


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    "HELP!!!"


    "Calm down! Steel yourselves! Face the enemy! Those who will run away from the battle will be executed!" A youngmander cried out but as soon as the words left his mouth, he was cut down by a soldier from Iblis.


    His eyes widened in disbelief and as he copsed...


    He still couldn''t believe that he died so easily and this fast in the war that he had prepared and trained for, for so long.


    Joseph felt pity towards the youngmander, but then his eyesnded on Old Two.


    Old Two turned berserk upon seeing the blood of hisrades. His eyes reddened in anger and he fiercely swung his sword. Whenever he swung his sword, heads would separate from their shoulders, leaving only a trail of crimson as another life was lost.


    However, Old Two''s actions of killing several soldiers from Iblis and Shade made him the focus of their firepower. Even though Old Two acted tough against the attacks of several people at once.


    He wasn''t invincible.


    He was still a mortal and in the end...


    Before Joseph could even scream.


    Dozens of attacks pierced through his body and the final attack sent his head flying towards Joseph''s direction.


    "O-O-Old Two..." Joseph trembled.


    Old Two''s death was gruesome and brutal, yet there was this smile offort stered on his face.


    Joseph stared right into his lifeless eyes and then suddenly...


    Enlightenment came to him.


    <em>I see...</em>


    <em>Now, I understand...</em>


    <em>Old Two charged to his death due to an Order created by someone wielding the Law.</em>


    <em>It is unfair for themanders to send elderly soldiers like Old Two to the front lines, but who decides what is fair or unfair?</em>


    <em>Justice is the advantage of the strong.</em>


    <em>If Old Two and the other elderly soldiers were stronger then they could''ve opposed the Order of that person behind the Law and imposed Justice upon themselves.</em>


    <em>But now, I understand...</em>


    <em>Whoever is stronger gets to decide what "justice" is.</em>


    <em>If I were to make an analogy.</em>


    <em>If I found a turtle on its back. I could flip it right or capture it to eat. The action of capturing it to eat is unfair due to the fact that it was incapable of movement when I encountered it. However, without the ability to say anything against me, they are unable to have a say in the matter unless I chose to do so.</em>


    <em>So in other words.</em>


    <em>In essence.</em>


    <em>Justice is...</em>


    <em>Strength.</em>


    Joseph''s spiritual energy surged.


    [You haveprehended the Concept of Law, Justice, and Order.]


    [As a reward for yourprehension. You are awarded a Unique Skill.]


    [You gained a Unique Skill.]


    [You gained a Unique Skill.]


    [You gained a Unique Skill.]


    [...]


    Several system notifications appeared right in front of Joseph, but he suppressed them all with a single thought.


    He raised his head and stared at the skies. He felt something beckoning at him from beyond the clouds. But he knew that it still wasn''t the right time to answer that beckoning. Joseph still had to do what he must as a smile lifted on his lips.


    "Dieee!!!"


    At that moment, a soldier from Iblis charged at Joseph with a ferocious look on his face.


    However, when he shed and blinked his eyes.


    His opponent had suddenly disappeared from his sight as if he didn''t exist in the first ce.


    "Wha...?"


    The soldier from Iblis was so shaken about Joseph''s sudden disappearance that he fell onto the ground. The surrounding soldiers who didn''t notice Joseph''s disappearance quickly took advantage of this opening and the soldier from Iblis was ughtered by his enemies.


    On another battlefield just several kilometers away from where Joseph had disappeared...


    Keh stood at the rear of the formation as he tightly held his sword. He kept on reminding himself that everything would be fine and that he could return alive, but his chest still kept on violently heaving from anxiety and fear.


    Yes, fear...


    He didn''t want to die and he didn''t want to kill.


    He missed his son, he missed his wife and most of all... He missed Uncle Joseph.


    Everything disappeared in the face of this war.


    Before this war, he was someone that had an enjoyable and fulfilling life despite his tight schedule...


    He owned a wooden workshop that had dozens of branches all over the City of Eichenwalde, and he was also the Head Chef of the most popr restaurant within the same City.


    One could say that he had a great life ahead of him.


    On that street, one could say that he was doing great.


    He and his wife thoroughly loved each other. Life was filled with joy. He even nned on persuading Uncle Joseph to fully retire so that he could serve him in thest few years of his life.


    The death of his father made him think of Uncle Joseph.


    That Uncle who watched him grow up, and supported him throughout his journey to adulthood.


    But now, everything had changed and copsed.


    All because of this war.


    He didn''t know how his wife and mother were doing right now, but he had heard some rumors.


    He heard some rumors that the soldiers were capturing women from the cities to serve as theirfort women before and after the battles. The thought of having his wife and mother kidnapped by these despicable soldiers sent shivers down the spine of Keh.


    But what could he do?


    He was just a lowly owner of a wooden workshop and a Chef of some popr restaurant.


    He wasn''t amander, nor a general. And he sure wasn''t an Immortal.


    In addition to his wife, he was also worried about Joseph. In his mind, Uncle Joseph was already old. Would he be able to survive the harsh conditions of this war? Could his body keep up?


    He had already lost his father, he didn''t want to lose Uncle Joseph too.


    Keh gritted his teeth and steeled his resolve.


    Everything wouldn''t matter if he lost and die here! He must survive!


    For the sake of his mother, wife, son, and for his Uncle Joseph.


    He must survive!


    Unyielding determination shed across Keh''s face.


    He rushed at his enemy with his sword in front of him.


    This battlefield he was in was at the left nk of the Central ins so the enemy soldiers here weren''t usingplex formations.


    They just rushed and sliced at each other and hoped for the best.


    After all, most of the soldiers from the three Kingdoms weren''t really that proficient in the art of battle and war due to the centuries of peace between the three kingdoms.


    Keh felt his sword connect as blood spilled from the chest of his enemy. He raised his head and found that the ferocious look on his enemy seemed to have been frozen in time. His enemy''s eyes radiated disbelief as well as grief, sorrow, and regret.


    Keh hurriedly pulled out his sword, his instinct told him that he must help the one he stabbed but his actions of pulling his sword from the man''s chest further hastened his death.


    "Brother Louie!!!"


    Keh''s attention was attracted by a scream from the distance.


    He turned his head to look at the source of the scream and he found a man rushing towards him with tears dripping down his cheeks.


    "I WILL KILL YOU!"


    The man cried out loud and raised his sword above him, but before he could even attack Keh...


    A sword pierced through his throat.


    "Keh! Stand up! What are you doing there? You''re being an easy target!"


    Keh turned to look at the soldier that helped him and he found that he was the son of the shopkeeper on the same street as the wooden workshop.


    "T-T-Thank you..." Keh slightly bowed his head, but then his pupils constricted when he saw that the man that got his throat pierced by the sword miraculously lifted his sword and sent a stab at the son of the shopkeeper.


    "Look out!"


    Keh cried out in order to warn the son of the shopkeeper but it was already toote.


    The attack pierced his left chest and went through his heart.


    The son of the shopkeeper promptly copsed on the ground.


    He coughed a mouthful of blood and whispered: "Keh... You... survive..."


    He then closed his eyes onest time.


    He died...


    Just like that?


    Keh felt his blood run cold.


    Fear gripped his entire being and as he looked around, he saw countless bodies littered around him.


    Keh was just a mortal. He was longing for his wife, his mother, and his Uncle Joseph and seeing all of these corpses and realizing how easily one could die within the battlefield.


    He broke down.


    He squatted down in the middle of the battlefield and cried.


    After quite a long time, Keh felt something warm patting his head.


    "Keh... Don''t be scared."


    Keh raised his head and turned to look at the youth that appeared in front of him. This youth looked much younger than him, but his eyes radiated an ancient light.


    He looked incredibly out of ce. He wore a simple tunic and there was a smile on his face that you could never find in the middle of the battlefield.


    But...


    Keh was incredibly familiar with this youth.


    He was the Uncle Joseph that he was longing for.


    But this youth''s current appearance waspletely different from the old Uncle Joseph that he knew. Keh stared at Joseph and he suddenly remembered the first time he encountered Joseph and the first time that he received his grace in the form of an Egg Fried Rice.


    He thought for a while, then asked: "You... You are an Immortal?"


    Joseph looked at the chaotic battlefield. Keh finally noticed that even though there was chaos in the surroundings, he felt as if he wasn''t a part of this ruckus despite being a soldier of the Kingdom of Evergreen. In fact, no one paid any attention to him nor to the out of ce Joseph.


    Joseph looked at Keh and said: "It''s okay... You don''t have to be scared. Uncle Joseph is here. Let us go find your wife, your son, and your mother."


    Keh felt like he was in the middle of a nightmare. He had finally found the Uncle Joseph that he was looking for, yet he was actually an Immortal! A panicked and worried look could be seen on Keh''s face, eliciting a sigh from Joseph who then pointed at his forehead.


    As soon as Joseph''s finger pointed at his forehead...


    Keh felt an irresistible urge to sleep.


    Then, his body loosened as he leaned forward and fell asleep.


    Joseph carried Keh on his shoulder before he abruptly disappeared.


    No one noticed his presence, nor anyone noticed the disappearance of Keh.


    Joseph reappeared inside his restaurant and he was carrying Shopkeeper Dan on his right shoulder.


    He ced the unconscious Shopkeeper Dan beside his unconscious wife and daughter before disappearing once again.


    About a hundred kilometers south of the Central ins.


    There was a campsite filled with women holding pen and parchment on their hands.


    These women were spared from the duty of being afort woman.


    Instead, they were given the task of handling the terrifying logistics necessary for the war.


    Keh''s wife was here.


    As for Keh''s son.


    Joseph discovered him sleeping at the campsite dedicated to child soldiers.


    Joseph''s rtionship with Keh and his family started more than twenty years ago. He could''ve just summoned the Heavenly Tribtion and left, but with how Keh''s family and Keh himself treated him in the past two decades...


    It was time for Joseph to pay them back a hundred times.


    Joseph quickly moved while carrying Keh''s family.


    He flew towards the skies and his Divine Sense covered the entire continent.


    His eyes thennded in a distant Kingdom in the south.


    The war between the Kingdom of Evergreen, Shade, and Iblis had just started and it would probably not end for the years toe.


    But even though this part of the continent was in turmoil and chaotic. The other Kingdoms in the continent were at peace with each other and bustling with activity and life.


    Joseph casually chose a Kingdom before he flew towards the edge of its border.


    Joseph ced Keh and his family on the soft grass and sighed.


    He rotated his Spiritual Energy and infused some of his cultivation strength into the bodies of Keh and his family so that they could live a long life. Then, after leaving a certain wooden basket on the ground, he turned around and disappeared.


    After a while, Keh opened his eyes.


    He felt like he had just seen a dream about his Uncle Joseph. The image of his Uncle Joseph in his dreams seemed to have returned from when he was just a young teenage boy.


    He let out a sigh.


    Then, he suddenly noticed the presence of others beside him as he let out a scream.


    He quickly moved and shook the people around him and when they awakened...


    They revealed shocked expressions on their faces which quickly dissolved, reced by the tears of joy as they tightly hugged each other.


    Eventually, after crying for a while, Keh''s wife asked: "Keh... Why am I here? I remember that I was still working back at the logistics campsite..."


    Keh turned to look at the skies and sighed.


    He finally realized that what happened wasn''t a dream.


    He didn''t say anything. He just hugged his wife before turning his attention to a peculiar wooden basket ced several meters away from where they had awakened.


    After moving towards the wooden basket, Keh found a lot of gold.


    He and his family then kowtowed towards the direction of the wooden basket as Keh whispered: "Uncle Joseph... Thank you... Thank you so much..."


    Keh picked up the wooden basket and left. He seemed to have discovered that he was on the border of another Kingdom so he quickly found the right direction.


    Shortly after Keh left the ce where he and his family awakened...


    Joseph appeared at the spot where he and his family kowtowed.


    As he stared at the disappearing figures of Keh and his family, his eyes teared up.


    With Joseph''s Divine Sense that could epass the entire Kingdom. Joseph could see that Keh was moving in the right direction. He just needed to follow the main road and he would eventually reach the Kingdom where he would spend the remainder of his life.


    However, even until the moment that he died.


    He couldn''t forget Uncle Joseph who watched him grow up.


    Sadly, until his death, he never had the chance to meet his Uncle Joseph again.

 Chapter 162: Besieged by Three Guilds[3]

    Chapter 162: Besieged by Three Guilds[3]


    Only the final step remains!


    The Heavenly Tribtion!


    From the novels that Joseph frequently read within the past few years, Heavenly Tribtion was quite simr to Lightning Tribtion. The only difference was that the lightning sent by the Heavenly Tribtion was far more powerful than the lightning sent by the Lightning Tribtion.


    But there was one thing that Joseph thoroughly understood about Heavenly Tribtion.


    Whenever it descended it caused panic among everyone, mortals, and cultivators alike.


    Despite the fact that Heavenly Tribtion wouldn''t really target anyone apart from the sinful cultivator who dared to summon it.


    The sight of dark clouds churning and spewing out bolts after bolts of tremendously powerful lightning would definitely rattle the minds of everyone who witnessed it.


    Even if it wasn''t their first time.


    But Joseph was ready.


    He would never underestimate the might of the Heavenly Tribtion, but havingprehended several concepts along with the Grand Concept of Life and Death. He was now ready to face the punishment of the Heavenly Tribtion.


    The only problem that he had right now prior to the summoning was that where he should summon the Heavenly Tribtion.


    Joseph thought of summoning the Heavenly Tribtion above the seas, but he reckoned that once those lightning bolts descended onto the ocean.


    They would definitely create a cataclysmic disaster in the form of tsunamis that would kill several thousand, if not hundreds of thousands with their towering waves.


    But what if Joseph summoned the Heavenly Tribtion onnd?


    Joseph pondered for a long time, but he went against the idea of summoning it onnd. After all, if the Heavenly Tribtion could do such damage even though it was summoned above the seas.


    How could it possibly not damage thend beneath Joseph if he summoned it onnd?


    Joseph let out a sigh.


    He flew towards the skies and swept his eyes around him.


    Despite being so high up in the skies, Joseph who was somewhat afraid of height was instead inexplicably peaceful at this moment.


    "[Elizabeth, are you sure that the mortals and cultivators beneath me won''t be harmed by the Heavenly Tribtion as long as I block it?]" Joseph asked in a stern voice.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s reply soon came: "[Yes, that''s right. As long as master blocks the lightning bolts sent by the Heavenly Tribtion and doesn''t let it descend onto the ground. No one will be harmed.]"


    Joseph nodded, "[But just how does Heavenly Tribtion send its punishment? Does it send all the lightning bolts at once or does it slowly send its lightning down to me one at a time?]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied: "[Yes, master. The Heavenly Tribtion sends its lightning one at a time. But I don''t think that you''ll be able to get some room to breathe once the Heavenly Tribtion starts its punishment.]"


    "What do you mean?"


    Joseph was astonished by what he had heard that he couldn''t help but audibly reply.


    At this moment, he forgot that he could reply telepathically to Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    "[I don''t know master, I just feel like... I have this intuition that the Heavenly Tribtion is stronger than what you think.]"


    "[Oh? How can you say so? Have you seen a Heavenly Tribtion before?]"


    "[No! You''re my first time, master... I haven''t seen a Heavenly Tribtion, yet.]"


    Joseph lifted a bitter smile when he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s strange use of words. But after shaking his head, he suddenly remembered a certain conundrum that he had these past few days as he asked.


    "[Hey, Elizabeth... Can you answer me honestly?]"


    Joseph asked with sincerity stered across his face.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth froze.


    She seemed to have an idea as to what Joseph wanted to ask from her for her reply only came after five seconds: "[What is it, master? I''ll answer as honestly as I can to the best of my abilities.]"


    Joseph let out a sigh.


    He opened his mouth and chose to say his question out loud instead of telepathically.


    "What will happen once I''m done with the King''s Trial?"


    The air froze and everything came to a standstill.


    No one spoke, even Joseph who asked the question didn''t ask any further.


    But it was Pixie Fairy Elizabeth who broke the silence as she replied: "[Once the King''s Trial is done... Master can finally return to the world of Victory along with all the spoils that you gained from this world, master.]"


    Joseph raised an eyebrow. There was nothing wrong with Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s answer, but Joseph could feel that she was dodging the issue as he continued: "That was not the answer that I was looking for. I want to know... What will happen to you once I''m done with the King''s Trial..."


    "Will I be able to bring you with me back to the world of Victory?"


    Joseph couldn''t stop himself anymore as he asked.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth audibly gasped.


    Everything froze once again as Joseph patiently waited for Pixie Fairy Elizabeth to calm down.


    But Joseph didn''t expect that he would receive his answer so quickly as Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied...


    "[No, master... I am an Artificial Intelligence created for your ease and convenience here in the King''s Trial. Once you''re gone, I''ll also be erased from the system so, in other words, there is no way for me to follow you back to Victory, master.]"


    "Haaah..."


    "I see..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s answer elicited a sigh from Joseph.


    He then descended from the skies andnded on the soft grass. His spiritual energy converged into a point and disappeared. In turn, Joseph''s body transformed from an immortal cultivator to a mortal. However, his physical age as a mortal wasn''t the old man Joseph, but clearly younger.


    Just a single look at him was enough for you to conclude that Joseph was a man in his early twenties.


    But Joseph''s transformation astonished Pixie Fairy Elizabeth: "[M-M-Master? Why did you turn yourself into a mortal? I thought you were going to summon the Heavenly Tribtion?]"


    Joseph lightly chuckled: "Yes, I was about to summon the Heavenly Tribtion, but I have decided to postpone it for now..."


    "What? Are you trying to say that I can''t postpone it?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth reeled from shock as she tried to calm herself down. However, despite her efforts. Her words still came out in a stutter as she replied: "[But master... Your loved ones are waiting for you outside, are you really going to make them wait again?]"


    Joseph boisterouslyughed: "Hahaha... That''s right, they are indeed waiting for me outside. But a few days or even a month here may not even a day outside. The reason why I decided to postpone the Heavenly Tribtion is that I want to pay you back this debt of gratitude, Elizabeth."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth revealed a look of confusion: "[Debt of gratitude? What do you mean by that, master?]"


    Joseph shook his head and said, "Can youe out here for a second? It''s really getting tiring to try and talk to you telepathically. I just can''t get used to it."


    "[Well... If you say so, master...]"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth obliged and her gorgeous figure appeared in front of Joseph after a sh of brilliant light.


    "What do you mean by debt of gratitude, master? I don''t remember anything about you owing me something..."


    Joseph patted her shoulder andughed: "Elizabeth..."


    "Ever since you apanied me twenty plus years ago in this ce, I could already feel your fascination with the outside world. I bet that before I arrived, you had never gone outside and explored the world, right?"


    A smile escaped on Joseph''s lips as he asked.


    But Pixie Fairy Elizabeth unexpectedly shook her head: "No, master... But I don''t know... When I acquired an awareness of myself and my surroundings..."


    "I found myself floating in a dark space without any form nor figure. In that dark space, there was nothing, so nothing was everything and everything was nothing."


    A strange expression appeared on Elizabeth''s face.


    Joseph awkwardly scratched his head. It was clear that he didn''t reach the effect that he was hoping to reach. But since he was already at this point, why should he hesitate any longer? He suppressed the sadness that he felt due to what he had heard as he chuckled and replied.


    "My point still stands, Elizabeth. I owe you a lot. Just the fact alone that you apanied me throughout my mundane and boring life of cultivation within the past two decades is enough for me to think of you as something like a close friend, or maybe even a family..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth trembled, "A family..."


    Joseph revealed an astonished look towards her reaction as he said: "Eah? Why do you look so shocked? Does that mean that I''m the only one who thought we''re family?" A wronged expression appeared on his face and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was quick tofort him as she said.


    "No! That''s not what I meant, master!"


    "But..."


    "Aren''t we going too far? We aren''t even lovers, yet but you are already thinking of me as your wife..." A crimson blush appeared on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s cheeks.


    Joseph almost coughed a mouthful of blood as he said: "Pffft! Hah?! What wife? No! You''re misunderstanding something here, madame Elizabeth. What I mean by us being like family is that we''re friends, but we''re even closer than friends since we spent thest two decades together..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth froze: "Oh... So that''s what you meant... Sorry, I misunderstood." She slightly bowed her head in an apologetic manner towards Joseph.


    "Hahaha... Don''t mind it, it''s just a small misunderstanding. You don''t have to apologize." Joseph ruffled Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s hair with his right hand.


    But unbeknownst to Joseph, as soon as his handnded on her hair, the crimson blush on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s cheeks spread until it covered her entire neck.


    She realized this fact so she was trying her best to not raise her head.


    She didn''t want Joseph to notice that she was blushing all over the ce.


    But Joseph could only shake his head and sigh.


    Joseph wasn''t as clueless as Pixie Fairy Elizabeth expected. Having studied a lot regarding the realm of bodynguage, he knew that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had certain feelings towards him. Yes, that kind of feeling that a woman could feel towards a man.


    But Joseph who already had Alice knew that the two of them could only be friends.


    Joseph let out a sigh once again.


    After sighing, his expression turned into a vibrant one as he offered.


    "How about it?"


    He extended his hand towards Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    "Do you want to travel the entire world with me?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth froze when she saw Joseph''s stretched hand.


    It was clear from her listless expression that she was still in shock due to what she had heard.


    However, her heartbroken expression transformed into joy and excitement in the very next moment when she heard Joseph''s offer.


    Without any hesitation, she replied: "Yes!"


    "I''ll travel the entire world with you, master!"


    "Hahaha..." Joseph boisterouslyughed, "You know what, Elizabeth? That''s all you had to say..." He then wrapped Pixie Fairy Elizabeth around his arm as his spiritual energy surged.


    In an instant, he transformed into a supreme immortal cultivator as he took off to the skies and flew towards a distant archipgo.


    A few dayster, a rtively crude and small boat could be seen floating on the vast ocean, just east of the continent.


    Despite the huge ocean swells and the waves that smashed onto the boat. It remained steadfast and unmoving. It was as if nothing in this world could possibly sink it.


    Sitting on the boat was Joseph and Elizabeth.


    Elizabeth wore a bikini that Joseph specifically ordered from the best tailor in the world for the sake of this ind-hopping event.


    As for Joseph, he wore a simple short that he also ordered from the same tailor. After all, they were in the ocean and it would be quite weird for him to wear a robe while in here.


    "Uwaaah! Master look! What is that? Is that a fish? No! I don''t think that it''s a fish, master! It''s too big!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth pointed at the distance.


    Joseph curiously turned his head to look at the direction where she was pointing.


    "Ah, that''s a whale." Joseph blurted out.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth almost immediately turned her head towards Joseph as she said: "A whale? That''s its name, master?"


    "Uwaaa... How fascinating... I wonder how big it is." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth paused and pondered.


    She then turned to look at the whale once more and squinted her eyes, intent on seeing through the waters of the ocean.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled when he saw her antics: "You will never be able to see how big that whale is if you stay above the ocean..."


    "If you really want to see how big it is, how about youe with me and take a look? Let''s dive down and see for ourselves..." A light smile appeared on Joseph''s face.


    It was clear that he was also excited to see how big the whale was. Judging from the almost fifty-meters ocean swell that it produced just by simply moving. Joseph understood that this whale may possibly be even bigger than the whales on the outside world.


    "Uwaaa! Really, master? You''re letting mee with you?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth turned to look at him in excitement.


    Joseph nodded, "When did I ever lie to you? Of course, I''m letting you go with me. Come here..."


    Joseph gestured and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth hurriedly moved closer to Joseph albeit with a crimson blush on her cheeks.


    When Joseph wrapped her again around his arms, the blush on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s face spread towards her neck.


    But Joseph was oblivious to this fact since he was really excited about diving down the vast ocean and seeing the monstrous whale with his own eyes.


    Wrapping himself and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth with his spiritual energy.


    Joseph took a leap from the boat and dived down.


    As soon as he opened his eyes, he found himself floating in a whole new world.


    The world underneath the ocean was filled with vibrant corals and colorful fishes that curiously swam around while looking at Joseph and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    "Woah..." Joseph whispered in amazement.


    "Uwaaa! Master! It''s so big!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth pointed at the distant whale.


    "Yo, what? Is that really a whale?" Joseph reeled in shock when he saw the whale at the distance.


    The whale was even bigger than Joseph had expected.


    He reckoned that it should be at least as big as an ind.


    It was that huge.


    Recovering from his shock.


    Joseph turned his attention towards the other living beings beneath the ocean.


    Wrapping Pixie Fairy Elizabeth even tighter around his arms...


    The two of them floated towards the nearby fishes and observed them close-up.


    The curious Pixie Fairy Elizabeth even tried on poking at a coral only for her to be startled when the coral suddenly moved.


    It turned out that the colorful coral was actually a giant octopus masquerading as a coral!


    A bitter smile emerged on Joseph''s face as he hurriedly dragged Pixie Fairy Elizabeth away from the tentacles of the octopus. After all, he had watched enough of those kinds of animated videos that he knew what would happen if Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was caught by those tentacles.


    The duo traveled the world beneath the ocean until sunset.


    When it was already night, Joseph and Pixie Fairy Elizabeth came out of the ocean and returned to the boat.


    The smile on Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s face never faded.


    The past few days that she spent with Joseph didn''t only open her eyes regarding how big the world was, it also gave her immense enjoyment.


    "How is it? Did you have fun?"


    "As for me, hahaha..."


    "That''s the most fun that I had since years ago..."


    Joseph was stillughing.


    It was because when they were about to return to the boat. The giant octopus that Pixie Fairy Elizabeth tried on poking earlier almost caught her, eliciting a fearful scream from thetter as Joseph carried her away while hystericallyughing.


    "Hmmph! Master, you''re such a bully! You clearly knew that the giant octopus was waiting for us in that location, yet you still went there." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth crossed her arms and red at theughing Joseph.


    Joseph merely chuckled in return as he sat down and sighed.


    "Wheeew... That was fun... But it made me quite tired..."


    Josephid down on the boat as he stared at the starry skies.


    Silence surrounded the boat, but then it was shattered by Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.


    "Hey, master..."


    "Can Iy down beside you?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth made sure that her voice was as the quietest, but in this environment where only the sound of the waves crashing against the boat could be heard. Her voice rang extremely loud she might''ve as well as shouted what she wanted to say.


    Realizing her faux pas, a furious blush appeared on her cheeks.


    But Joseph seemed like he didn''t mind.


    He lifted a teasing smile and said: "It''s fine... If that is what you want, thene here. Lay down with me."


    He gestured for her toe closer.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth visibly trembled.


    She descended into internal conflict with herself, but her desires won against her logical thinking as she slowly inched closer, and closer towards Joseph until she was right beside him.


    Eventually, sheid her body beside Joseph and raised her knee up to her chest, she was anxious just by lying beside him.


    "Elizabeth..." Towards her actions, Joseph could only shake his head: "Did you have fun?"


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth replied: "Yes, master... I had fun..."


    "It''s the most fun that I had since I gained ''awareness'' "


    "I see..." Joseph let out a sigh and smiled.


    His eyes turned to look at the starry skies.


    It was unknown what he was thinking but it was clear that he was in deep contemtion.


    Having been with Joseph for about two decades, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth was quite clear about what he was thinking.


    A bitter smile appeared on her face as she said: "Master..."


    "Do you miss the people waiting for you outside?"


    Joseph was astonished by her question. A bitter smile appeared on his lips as he said: "Yes, I do miss them. Even though there''s time dtion. I still spent two decades in this world. That''s quite a long time so it''s impossible for me to not miss them at all."


    "I see..." Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s smile turned into a gentle one.


    She raised her upper body and stared at Joseph before seriously saying.


    "Master... I think that it''s about time for you to return."


    Joseph froze.


    He raised his upper body and also stared at her before sighing: "If I left this world andpleted the King''s Trial. What would happen to you, won''t you disappear? You''ll disappear, right? As you have said to me a few days ago..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded her head, but the gentle smile on her face never faded: "Yes, master... I will disappear. My disappearance is a fact that can never be changed. That is why... There''s no difference even if youpleted this trial today or in the next fifty-years or even sixty..."


    "The only difference is that it will take you even longer to reunite with your loved ones."


    "I don''t want that to happen, master..."


    "Even someone as selfish as me does not want you to continuously suffer like this for my sake, master..."


    "That is why..."


    "I beg you, master..."


    "Please..."


    "Pleaseplete this trial and let me go."


    "Let everything that happened here be something simr to a dream than reality."


    At the end of her sentence, her gentle smile disappeared.


    It was reced by a determined look that didn''t allow for any objections.


    "I see..." Joseph sighed.


    <em>It seems like she has already decided...</em>


    <em>Sigh...</em>


    <em>It''s time for me to make my own decision.</em>


    <em>It''s time to be decisive...</em>


    He stood up and there was a smile on his face as he took a deep breath and manifested the several concepts that he hadprehended.


    The Concept of Discord and Disorder manifested in the form of a pitch-ck crow that stood on top of Joseph''s head.


    The Concept of Life and Death manifested in the form of two angels, one d in a dazzling white robe while the other d in a robe that consumed everything around it including light.


    As for the Concept of Law, Order, and Justice...


    Justice manifested in the form of a golden scale.


    Order manifested in the form of a parchment covered in the same golden light, while Law...


    Materialized in the form of a small one-handed hammer.


    As soon as they materialized into their closest physical form based on Joseph''sprehension...


    The skies dimmed as dark clouds instantly formed above Joseph.


    An iparably oppressive and stifling feeling seemed toe down from the skies and pressed on everything beneath it. This feeling was also getting heavier and heavier as time passed by, making everyone feel that their souls were being shaken constantly in suffocation.


    The world gave off a terrible feeling.


    It was as if the skies itself was on the verge of caving in, and swallowing all life.


    Joseph turned to look at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth onest time before he flew towards the skies.


    "Thank you for everything that you have done to me, and..."


    "Thank you for being with me on this journey."


    Joseph left these words in his wake as he transformed into a ray of light that pierced the skies.


    When Joseph''s figure disappeared from her line of sight.


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth couldn''t hold herself back anymore.


    Tears dripped down her cheeks as an iparably dazzling light covered her body.


    "I should be the one to thank you, master..."


    "Thank you for everything..."


    "Thank you for making me feel that I am alive."


    "That I exist..."


    "That I am here..."


    Pixie Fairy Elizabeth raised her head onest time as she squeezed these words out of her throat.


    "Thank you for everything, master."


    "And..."


    "I loved you..."


    The brilliant light that surrounded her body shattered into innumerable crystals that wafted into the air before descending onto the ocean. The dazzling light that miraculously appeared in the midst of this vast and dark ocean had finally disappeared.


    The light was fleeting, yet its light made a mark on the souls of every living being that witnessed its disappearance.


    [Your Personal Pixie Assistant: Pixie Fairy Elizabeth has retired.]


    A single system notification informed Joseph of Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s disappearance.

 Chapter 163: Besieged by Three Guilds[4]

    Chapter 163: Besieged by Three Guilds[4]


    Mortal cultivating to be immortals would inevitably meet heaven''s wrath.


    Be it humans, demons, beasts, or spirits.


    If one wanted to thoroughly create a stable foundation and future-proof their cultivation.


    One must face the heaven''s wrath and survive through it.


    Only when one had survived against the punishment of the heavens could they be considered as true immortals.


    Joseph stared at the skies and frowned.


    The Heavenly Tribtion that he knew would only gather in a small area over the head of the cultivator who wanted to temper his foundations on fighting against the heavens. An ordinary and average cultivator would usually condense only about ten kilometers worth of tribtion clouds.


    At the least, Joseph had never heard that a cultivator could condense tribtion clouds that exceeded fifty kilometers like what Joseph himself was doing.


    "What the fuck..." Joseph audibly cursed.


    Heaven''s wrath still hasn''t descended upon him, yet he could already feel his spine shiver from fear.


    The clouds gathering over Joseph''s head were omnipresent, encapsting the entire continent of the world created by the King''s Trial. At this moment, the experts within the world of the King''s Trial had raised their heads to stare at the skies and when they saw the scene unfolding before them.


    Shock shed across their face before being quickly reced by terror.


    It was because at this moment...


    Those dark clouds started rolling over each other, generating lightning arcs that left thunderous booms on their wake.


    "T-This.."


    "Heavenly..."


    "Tribtion...?"


    An expert buried underneath the earth suddenly pierced through the earth around him to stare at the skies.


    His body, d with innumerable bandages shivered in fear.


    When reality struck him, his face turned as pale as a sheet of paper as he quickly leaped and dove back into the depths of the earth.


    "How could this be...?"


    "Are those clouds, really the effect of a Heavenly Tribtion...?"


    "No..."


    "That can''t be..."


    "With how wide those clouds are... When tribtion lightning descends, one of them would inevitably miss their target and if they struck thend below. Mayhem will follow suit!"


    "Heed my orders! Awaken the ancestors! We need their help if we want to survive this cmity! As for the one who dared to summon such a cataclysmic Heavenly Tribtion. Try and find out who he is, but you must never approach the surrounding five-hundred kilometers of space around him!"


    A King of a distant Kingdom gave a series of orders when he realized what was about toe.


    The Kings of the other Kingdoms had the same reaction and in just a few minutes...


    Several hundred, if not, thousands of Grand Defensive Formations were erected around the border of these Kingdoms.


    When Joseph saw the luminescent colors appearing at the horizon...


    A bitter smile appeared on his face.


    He knew what these Kingdoms were thinking and he really couldn''t me them for their actions.


    Even Joseph was astonished by the clouds that the heavens gathered for him.


    A serious look appeared on his face as he stared at the skies


    The physical manifestation of the concepts that he hadprehended floated around him.


    But since the dark clouds were still gathering above him.


    He decided to take a look at the Unique Skills that he had acquired from the concepts that heprehended.


    [Unique Skill: Royal Edict.]


    [Unique Skill: Iron Hand of Justice.]


    [Unique Skill: Conviction.]


    [Unique Skill: Strife.]


    [Unique Skill: Chaos.]


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion whilst he was staring at the list of unique skills that he acquired fromprehending these corresponding concepts.


    <em>Royal Edict... I suppose that came from the Concept of Law?</em>


    <em>As for the Iron Hand of Justice... That''s pretty obvious, so if I fill in the nks. Conviction shoulde from the Concept of Order. But, Strife... Hmm, I think thises from the Concept of Discord, andstly. Chaos is most likely from the Concept of Disorder.</em>


    <em>Regarding their effects, as expected I need to use them in order to gain an understanding of their usage so that the information about them would be updated. Dang, this mechanic is such a pain in the ass.</em>


    Joseph revealed a bitter smile.


    He closed the opaque windows floating in front of him as he let out a sigh and raised his head to stare at the skies.


    At this moment, the dark clouds had already condensed to the point that they looked to bepletely saturated with lightning.


    It was clear that at any moment, they could descend and strike!


    Joseph mustered his courage. He remembered Pixie Fairy Elizabeth''s reminder to not underestimate the power of the Heavenly Tribtion.


    His heart became filled with trepidation as he stared at the churning clouds and as if on cue...


    Screech!!!


    An earth-shattering crack suddenly echoed from the skies whilst a bolt of lightning shed across, as if it wanted to separate the heaven and earth into two halves. A clear bluish-purple ray of lightning started condensing within the dark clouds and started emanating horrifying sounds.


    "That''s..."


    "That''s definitely Heavenly Tribtion Lightning! I''m sure of it!"


    The various monarch and sovereigns around the world gasped upon the sight of such terrifying lightning. They couldn''t help but imagine how strong the individual who gained such tumultuous wrath from the heavens.


    The bluish-purple lightning within the dark clouds gave a heavy sense of dread to Joseph to the extent that he started regretting the fact that he may have been too naive and his preparations weren''t as good as he had expected.


    To those cultivating to be a true immortal...


    Lightning tribtion was a form of a test as well as punishment.


    However, the average cultivators only underwent through the wrath of Lightning Tribtion. Most, if not all of the cultivators here in the world created by the King''s Trial hadn''t even seen a Heavenly Tribtion. Completely opposite to what Joseph had expected from the residents in this ce.


    Before going through the baptism of Lightning Tribtion.


    Every cultivator could prepare for it by gathering as many defensive talismans, high-quality spirit medicine, blessed artifacts, and profound formations as they could as possible as well as other methods of preparation that they could use to defend themselves against the might of the heavens.


    This was the reason why most of the cultivators who underwent through the tempering of Lightning Tribtion and survived were only those who were rich enough to gather these resources necessary for increasing their chances of sess.


    An average andpletely ordinary cultivator may not even try to provoke the heaven''s wrath.


    They would be satisfied with their lifespan that''s longer than the average mortal than pursuing true immortality. It would be the opposite if the average cultivator could gather helpers to help him survive the tribtion, but unfortunately...


    The cultivator undergoing the tribtion may not receive help from others during his trial.


    It was because not only it wouldn''t help the cultivator at all, the person lending his help would also receive heaven''s wrath.


    Joseph shook his head in disappointment.


    But since it was already toote for regrets...


    He could only steel his resolve and raise his head.


    Screech!


    A ray of lightning exploded as startling thunder roared through the skies. A streak of bluish-purple lightning from the heavenly tribtion ripped the skies apart before descending right onto Joseph''s head.


    "Shit!"


    The experts watching the event unfold from afar forgot about their dignity at this moment as they simultaneously cursed out loud.


    Within the knowledge that they had in their history.


    Heavenly Tribtion usuallysted for about two minutes, yet those two minutes would probably be as long as eternity to the practitioner undergoing its baptism.


    Furthermore, the Lightning from the Heavenly Tribtion usually came every ten seconds so the cultivator could have some time to breathe.


    But not even three seconds have passed when the second lightning strike descended onto Joseph''s head!


    Bang!


    The two tribtion lightning stacked upon each other and formed into a thousand-meter long bluish-purple lightning that exploded with Joseph standing at the center.


    It released the undeniable and terrifying might of the heavens as if it was intent on thoroughly annihting Joseph at this moment.


    "Two tribtion lightning in just three seconds! What the fuck! He''s dead! He''s definitely dead!"


    A King who was known for being gentle and a pious follower of decorum and had never cursed in his life actually cursed at this moment when he saw the sessive lightning strikes hitting the practitioner floating in the skies!


    But...


    Bang!


    Before the others could react, another thunderous boom rang out across the skies as two streaks of heavenly tribtion lightning from the dark clouds struck down towards Joseph at the same time.


    Boom~~~


    The bluish-purple ray of lightning covering Joseph hadn''t even shown any signs of dissipating yet when it once again exploded in an even more dense and terrifying bluish-purple brilliance.


    "Holy mother of Susej! Two lightning bolts at the same time?"


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    "Three lightning bolts at the same time? Is he still alive? How is he still alive?!"


    The ancestors sleeping beneath the earth had awakened at this moment and their eyes almost popped out of their sockets when they saw the figure still floating amidst the showers of heavenly tribtion lightning. These ancestors had once endured the might of Heavenly Tribtion so they knew how powerful it was.


    Their cultivation was enough for them to clearly see an object tens of thousands of kilometers away. Yet, when they squinted their eyes to see clearly at what was the condition of the cultivator undergoing through this cataclysmic and horrifying Heavenly Tribtion of proportions that they had never seen before.


    These old ancestors were bbergasted.


    It was because they saw that the man facing the lightning strikes actually had an excited look on his face as if he wanted more lightning to strike him!


    "HAHAHA..." Joseph let out a maniacalugh.


    At the moment before the lightning could strike him...


    Joseph tried his luck on using the Unique Skill Royal Edict.


    He didn''t know how it worked but he had a vague idea of its effects due to its name.


    Edict!


    This was a word synonymous with decree!


    In other words, Joseph gambled and used the Unique Skill Royal Edict at the same time to grant himself permission on absorbing the lightning bolts of the Heavenly Tribtion Lightning!


    [You have sessfully absorbed the Heavenly Tribtion Lightning. Gained: Experience...]


    [You have sessfully absorbed the Heavenly Tribtion Lightning. Gained: Experience...]


    [You failed on absorbing the Heavenly Tribtion Lightning. Damage is doubled...]


    Of course, Joseph wasn''t sessful in absorbing each and every lightning.


    But in the end, when the Heavenly Tribtion sent by the heavens retreated.


    Joseph wore a victorious smile on his face.


    Despite being stark naked at the moment and his Health Bar in the brink ofplete depletion, the golden light of the parchment of the Royal Edict was still as strong as when Joseph first summoned it.


    "Finally..."


    "The trial..."


    "It''s done..."


    Joseph huffed and puffed as he tried on catching his breath. His absorption of the Heavenly Tribtion Lightning may look easy and rxed to others, but for him...


    It was quite a nightmare.


    After all, even though his body was the body of an immortal, he could still feel pain...


    The numbing, yet sharp pain of lightning flowing through his body was definitely an unforgettable experience for him here in the King''s Trial.


    Nevertheless, the Heavenly Tribtion was now in the past.


    Joseph had finallypleted the King''s Trial.


    Several dozens of system notifications shed across Joseph''s eyes at this moment, yet he disregarded them all.


    His lips lifted to a bitter smile as his consciousness slowly disappeared from the King''s Trial.


    "Elizabeth..."


    "I had fun here... with... you..."


    Joseph left these words as his consciousness finally vanished from the world within the King''s Trial.


    When he reappeared, he found himself standing in the same spot that he remembered when he disappeared into the world of the KIng''s Trial.


    The only difference was...


    Kristian, the first Legendary yer was standing in front of Alice, Ezreal, and Kayn as he dered.


    "So the first Mythical yer of Victory has finally appeared? Just where did you go? I was about to ask these friends of yours for an exnation as to what happened thest time we met." Kristian revealed a smile as if he was a close friend of Joseph.


    When Alice, Ezreal, and Kayn heard his words.


    They turned to look behind them at the same time as they simultaneously screamed.


    "Joseph!"


    "Master!"


    "You''re finally here!"


    Alice, Ezreal, and Kayn rushed towards Joseph but an invisible force suddenly swatted them from above and forced them to kneel.


    "Oh? Did you guys forget the order that I gave earlier? None of you are allowed to turn around!"


    Kristian''s eyes radiated a sharp light.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    He stood up and casually walked towards Kristian''s direction.


    He stopped when he was about five meters in front of Kristian as he asked in a loud voice.


    "Just where did this barking dog came from?"

 Chapter 164: Besieged by Three Guilds[5]

    Chapter 164: Besieged by Three Guilds[5]


    "Just where did this barking dog came from?"


    There were several dozens of yers in front of the doors just before the Pce Halls. When these words left Joseph''s mouth, the moring crowd of yers instantly went silent.


    Some who knew how powerful Kristian was couldn''t help but sweat and gulp a mouthful of saliva.


    Kristian''s eyes narrowed into slits. But as expected of someone whose guild was within the top five of the Universal Rankings dedicated for guilds. He managed to calm himself down in just a few moments. A teasing smile escaped on his lips as he said.


    "From that arrogant tone of yours, it seems like you really are that Mythical Ranked yer."


    Kristian had a confident tone on his voice when he said these words. As for why he was so confident. It was because of the appearance of a system notification that abruptly appeared when Joseph approached him a few seconds ago.


    [You are in front of an overwhelming presence!]


    <em>You are in front of an overwhelming presence...</em>


    Kristian was a Legendary yer whose skill was second to none, yet the system was actually giving him a warning?


    <em>What was going on?</em>


    Well, Kristian knew the answer to this question of his.


    It was because this yer was undoubtedly that lucky yer who acquired the First Mythical ss.


    Joseph turned to look at Kristian. He didn''t deny what Kristian had said. But a frown appeared on his face for a system notification had appeared in front of him when he interacted with Kristian.


    [You are standing in front of a unique presence.]


    <em>A unique presence? Could it be that this guy is possibly a Legendary yer? That Kristian?</em>


    Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    But he wasn''t the type topletely specte so he decided on asking.


    "Are you that Legendary yer, the Absolute Monarch, Kristian?"


    His words sounded soft and low in volume but in thispletely silent Pce Halls. His words became akin to the peals of thunder. When the crowd of yers heard what he had said, they all gasped in astonishment with some even disying horror on their faces.


    <em>How dare...</em>


    <em>How dare he...</em>


    <em>How dare he talk to Kristian like that!!!</em>


    <em>Why is he acting like he''spletely clueless about who Kristian was? Didn''t he kill Kristian with a single strike before?</em>


    These were the thoughts that appeared within everyone''s mind at this moment.


    A particr figure within the ranks of the Crimson Guild slowly made her exit when she saw that Kristian was indeed talking with Joseph.


    A rueful smile could be seen on her lips as she took one final nce at her precious Karabiner 98k behind Ezreal and Alice before decisively turning around to leave.


    Kristian wasn''t an unreasonable man, but he also wasn''t a saint. The moment he heard Joseph''s questioning, a vein popped out of his temples as he silently took several deep breaths before managing to calm himself down. After a moment of silence, he finally answered Joseph''s question.


    "Yes, I am indeed that Legendary yer... Are you purposely doing this? There is no way that you don''t know who I am... Anyone who ys, and loves Victory knows my name." Kristian lifted a smirk.


    To the eyes of everyone, his smirk looked like a smile from a saint, but for Joseph...


    It was nothing but an eyesore.


    Joseph inwardly chuckled as he replied: "I see... Then, what is the Legendary yer of Victory doing in here? Why are you trying to fight against my friends right here?"


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at the injured Ezreal, Alice, and Kayn.


    Anger shed across his face but he quickly withdrew his ire.


    "So these people are your friends?"


    "Are you sure about that or are you just trying to cover them up?" Kristian sneered.


    "What do you mean?" Joseph raised an eyebrow.


    "Nothing... I''m just wondering why a high and mighty Mythical Ranked yer like you would associate yourself with these bunch of trashes..."


    "One is nothing but a mere Sword Adept who haven''t evenprehended her own Sword Style, while the other is a strange being who''s trying to pretend to be a human while the other is a douche bandit..."


    "If these are your friends, I really hope that my assumption that you are the Mythical Ranked yer is wrong. A rotten fruit mixed with healthy fruits would undoubtedly corrupt the others. I''ll judge you ording to your friends and from what I can see, you are nothing good..."


    "Are you a delinquent, perhaps?" Kristian crossed his arms together in front of his chest and asked.


    Joseph sneered: "Why do my friends matter to the mighty Legendary yer? That is such a weak argument..."


    "I''m paying several hundreds of dors for this game every month and I am entitled to do whatever I want in this game. You don''t have the right to tell me what to do." A serious look appeared on Joseph''s face as he finished his sentence.


    Kristian was astonished for a moment before heughed: "What a pity... It seems like you don''t quite understand how valuable a Mythical ss is. To think that you don''t even know it''s potential..."


    "If I had your ss then I would''ve done the opposite to what you did."


    Joseph replied: "What did you say?"


    The air suddenly thickened and the crowd of yers below instantly turned vignt. Despite the fact that Joseph was just a single yer. They knew that they couldn''t underestimate him.


    After all, he had killed them all in a single strike back on their recent encounter.


    These yers weren''t so naive as to underestimate him.


    Kristian shook his head and walked closer to Joseph.


    He then raised his hand and patted Joseph''s shoulder.


    "Are you not curious about the true potential of that ss of yours?"


    Joseph was astonished by what he had heard, but then his lips lifted into a mocking smile as he replied: "If you are trying to recruit me into your shitty guild, then don''t bother. You will never be able to recruit me no matter what you do."


    Kristian''s pupils constricted. He took a step backward and sighed: "It seems like we won''t really get along with each other. What a pity, if both of us united our strength. We could easily establish the strongest guild within the world of Victory!"


    "Hahaha..." Joseph chuckled and sneered: "The strongest guild? Yeah, definitely..."


    Sarcasm was thick in his voice and Kristian couldn''t take it anymore.


    When Kristian heard Joseph''s reply he had already decided that he would fall-out against this arrogant Mythical Ranked yer.


    From the information that he had obtained from this short conversation that he had with Joseph.


    It was clear that Joseph still doesn''t understand how the innumerable guilds within the world of Victory functioned.


    Victory wasn''t a game that a single person could conquer.


    If it was then, Kristian could''ve easily kept his guild at the highest ranking within the Universal Rankings for guilds.


    He may be the highest-ranking yer within the Universal Rankings for yers.


    But his guild, unlike its arrogant name, wasn''t even able to enter the top three within the Universal Rankings dedicated for guilds.


    As for the reason why?


    It was because Victory was a game that relied heavily on teamwork!


    A man cannot be an ind.


    Kristian was sure that this rule also applied to Joseph.


    Sure, he may be a Mythical Ranked yer. Possessing possibly the strongest ss within the world of Victory.


    Joseph was undoubtedly strong and could never be underestimated by everyone.


    But does this mean that he was invincible?


    No!


    No one could possibly be invincible under the attacks of several dozens of elite yers who were familiar with each other and could employ high levels of coordination, teamwork, and gamey.


    Kristian let out a sigh.


    He turned to look at Joseph and said: "I''ll just assume that this rude attitude of yours is because of the influence of these bad eggs. I''ll excuse your bad attitude today, but you must return the items that dropped from us when we died!"


    "That''s the reason why all of us came here, it is to get those hard-earned weapons of ours back!"


    Joseph wore an amused look on his face when he saw how quickly Kristian switched his personality.


    When Kristian was acting quite arrogant and haughty.


    His voice was low to the extent that probably only Joseph could hear it.


    However, now that he had a righteous look on his face as he rallied for the support of other yers, his voice suddenly became loud and clear.


    It was as if he wanted everyone to hear what he wanted to say.


    Witnessing Kristian''s transformation...


    Joseph became even more adamant about the idea that he would never return these high-quality items.


    But...


    "Okay, fine... I''ll return these items to everyone." Joseph replied with anguid smile.


    ... His thoughts were opposite to what he had said.


    Alice, Ezreal, and Kayn who almost died from defending these items were astonished and shocked by Joseph''s words.


    Alice was the first one to speak as she almost immediately scolded: "Joseph! What are you saying?"


    "Are you just going to obediently hand over these weapons to them? We defended these weapons for you since we know that you might need it for the treasury, but are you just going to return it to them?"


    Alice''s voice rang loud and clear.


    The yers, although angry at Alice''s words also agreed at what she had said.


    Yeah, it didn''t make sense.


    It took great effort for the three to defend these items, yet he''s just going to return them to us?


    These yers were doubtful, but their excitement seethed from within.


    After all, even if they were in doubt.


    That didn''t mean that they didn''t care about their items. In fact, for as long as Joseph returned their valuable items to them then they wouldn''t really mind retreating.


    But until that happened, there was no way that they could retreat after already going this far.


    Kristian heard what Alice had said and he shot her a death re: "Silence..."


    He uttered a single word and Alice found herself unable to speak.


    Joseph revealed a look of shock on his face when he saw what Kristian had done to Alice.


    He was suddenly reminded of that Staff of Obedience that the City Chief from the City Perpetually Hidden from the Dark wielded. It seemed like Kristian had the ability topel everyone or anyone into obeying him.


    His capabilities really suited him as an Absolute Monarch.


    A Monarch whose orders are absolute and can never be offended!


    Joseph inwardly nodded.


    But on the outside, he revealed a light smile as he exined.


    "That''s right..."


    "Please don''t mind Alice''s words..."


    "I will certainly return these items to everyone." Joseph swept his gaze across the faces of everyone behind Kristian as he continued: "But I will only return these items to all the guilds here with the exception of the guild that this guy is handling..."


    "I won''t return the items of those yers affiliated with this person."


    Joseph even pointed at Kristian in aical manner, yet his words struck deep into Kristian''s heart.


    His face paled and Joseph quickly caught onto the changes on his face as he said.


    "Oh? Why are you suddenly getting pale? Do you perhaps want to log-out and take a shit?"


    "Or could it be that my simple deration shattered this fragile alliance that you have with these other guilds?"


    Joseph''s words were soft and only Kristian could hear it. But for Kristian, his words were akin to the lightning bolt from the nine heavens as Kristian stared at him in a stern manner before saying.


    "You..."


    "Why are you so arrogant?"


    "Do you really think that just because you have shattered our alliance that I can''t recruit them into my cause once again?"


    "Oh?" Joseph raised an eyebrow, "How about you go and try recruiting them after I hand them over their items?"


    Kristian went silent.


    Joseph turned to look at the yers behind Kristian before loudly announcing: "yers from the other guilds who came here in alliance with this mighty Legendary yer, Kristian. You may now take your items from the pile behind me..."


    "You don''t have to worry, I won''t attack you..."


    "We''re in the same Kingdom, after all... We''re basically neighbors."


    "How could I possibly hurt my neighbors for the sake of a foreigner? I''m not that despicable..."


    The yers were ecstatic by what they had heard. They were still doubtful, but when they saw Joseph''s calm expression and the fact that he allowed the others to fetch their items from the pile of items without attacking them.


    The hesitant yers turned decisive as they ran towards the pile.


    Each of them took their own items as they all sighed in relief.


    Yes, relief...


    Item creation and enhancement in the world of Victory was iparably brutal to the extent that a single item loss could set you back for several months in progression. This was the reason why these guilds were so desperate to take their items back.


    Joseph turned to look at the remaining yers that didn''t have their items in their hands.


    It was clear from the anxious expressions on their faces that they were members of the guild that Kristian managed.


    Joseph then turned his gaze to Kristian and said: "Go on... You go and recruit them now. I''ll stand here and watch."


    Kristian''s face alternated from green to red.


    With the words that Joseph said earlier regarding treating your neighbors nicely and prioritizing them over foreigners.


    It was clear even for Kristian that there was no way that he could establish another alliance with the other guilds.


    After all, the reason why these guilds made that alliance with them in the first ce was that they were afraid of Kristian''s might as a Legendary yer. None of them wanted to be spawn-camped to Level 1, and none of them wanted to offend a mighty Legendary yer.


    However, now that it has been revealed that Joseph, a person who started his journey in Victory here in the Kingdom of Nether was actually the first Mythical Ranked yer.


    All of them were sighing in regret.


    They really didn''t want to fight against one of their own, but since they already made that alliance with Kristian, there was no room for regrets anymore.


    But in the end...


    Just as these yers were preparing to fight to the bitter end against the Mythical Ranked yer, Joseph...


    Joseph himself actually gave them a route to heaven?


    The yers felt grateful to Joseph and they felt guilty towards him.


    After all, they were a part of the alliance who fought against his friends and hurt them.


    But to think that he would actually forgive them all and even return their weapons?


    If Joseph''s heart was as boundless as the ocean, then what would happen to them if they still associated themselves with the Strongest Under Heaven Guild?


    Wouldn''t they be heartless and ungrateful bastards, unworthy of living in this world?


    But weren''t they afraid of Kristian''s might and the strength of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild?


    Of course, they were afraid!


    But Joseph gave them sufficient reason so that they wouldn''t stand together with Kristian''s guild.


    The act of forgiving them for what they had done was enough to serve as their reason.


    This way, they could just exin to the Strongest Under Heaven Guild that they had merely repaid Joseph''s kindness with kindness and that their actions were reasonable. If Kristian''s guild insisted that they made an hical decision for abandoning the alliance for their own sake.


    With the reasons that Joseph gave them...


    These guilds could easily reverse the tide against Strongest Under Heaven.


    Nie Yan from Dark me repeatedly nodded his head as he confirmed his decision with the other elite members.


    Giving out his orders, his guild members proceeded on their retreat.


    Joseph saw the retreat of Dark me and a smile appeared on his lips.


    However, when he saw that Knights of Justice and Crimson remained steadfast in their locations.


    Joseph''s expression froze.


    Kristian noticed this and heughed out loud: "Hahaha..."


    "I really didn''t expect that you were so naive to think that these two guilds would retreat just because of your simple actions of returning their items. I have an idea why they are still here despite the goodwill that you showed to them, do you want to know why?"


    William and dimir, the leader of both guilds frowned when they heard what Kristian had said.


    Kristian''s words weren''t just directed against Joseph, it was also for them.


    Kristian was basically saying that even though he approved of their decision to stay in the alliance.


    He was also admonishing them for being so ungrateful to the one that decided to forgive them for their sins.


    However, none of them speak.


    Not even their members.


    They just remained standing in their positions.


    Stern looks stered on their faces as they waited for Kristian''s orders.


    Joseph turned his gaze towards the Crimson Guild and upon seeing the familiar face of dimir.


    Joseph instantly understood why the Crimson Guild chose to remain in the alliance.


    But Joseph couldn''t understand the actions of the Guild Knights of Justice.


    A cold look appeared on Joseph''s face as he loudly dered.


    "So I finally identified the ungrateful dogs?"


    "Hahaha... It doesn''t matter."


    "I took those items from you dogs once and I sure do have the ability to take them again!" Joseph turned to look at Kristian and said: "Bringing these many people in this ce, it seems like you were ready to fight me from the start."


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at dimir before turning his attention to Kristian once more.


    "So, what about it? Do you want to fight or not?"


    Kristian revealed a satisfied look on his face.


    For him, Joseph''s action of wanting to fight was a mere desperate attempt to intimidate them all.


    "Fight? We sure can fight but are you sure that you can? Take a look at those friends of yours, do you really think that they can still fight?"


    "And as for you..."


    Kristian''s eyes narrowed into slits: "You may be a Mythical Ranked yer, but I hope that you are not so arrogant to think that you can fight all three of us at the same time?"


    By three, Kristian meant the Guild Crimson, Guild Knights of Justice, and Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    Kristian thought that Joseph was trying to intimidate them into submission so, he retaliated by intimidating him. He specifically emphasized the word, <em>"three"</em> so that Joseph would understand that he wasn''t fighting a single person.


    But three guilds at once!


    If Joseph chose to fight, then...


    He would be besieged by three guilds!


    But...


    "Heh..."


    ... Joseph merely gave a cold chuckle.


    His mocking eyes swept across the faces of everyone from the three guilds in front of him as he dered.


    "It seems like all of you are quite underestimating me..."


    "It is indeedmon sense that no man is an ind and no one can possibly win against several dozens at once."


    "But have you guys forgotten?"


    "Have you guys forgotten the fact that I am a myth and not a legend?"


    Joseph casually said.


    "If you want a fight, then let''s fight! Me versus your puny alliance with these ungrateful dogs!"


    Joseph stared right at Kristian.


    At this moment, Joseph activated one of his unique skills as a golden parchment appeared out of nowhere.


    Holding the golden parchment with both of his hands.


    He loudly announced...


    "Ungrateful dogs from the two guilds and the guild of the Legendary yer whose mouth smells like my grandfather''s colostomy bag..."


    "Receive the Royal Edict!"


    The moment these words left Joseph''s mouth.


    The golden parchment in his hands started shining in a brilliant, blinding light.


    At this moment, for the first time ever...


    Joseph was using one of his Unique Skills within the world of Victory!


    The Unique Skill born from hisprehension of the Concept of Law.


    Unique Skill: Royal Edict!

 Chapter 165: Besieged by Three Guilds[6]

    Chapter 165: Besieged by Three Guilds[6]


    [Unique Skill: Royal Edict.


    A unique skill created based on the Grand Duelist''s Comprehension on Concept of Law. This unique skill, depending on the Grand Duelist''s input can establish aw that will affect those who had heard the announcement of the edict with no exceptions unless exclusively defined.


    *The Edict must be announced in a loud voice for it to take effect. The user can define any Law, but the defined Law must never be one-sided. No one is an exception to the Law and that includes the user.


    *Only a single instance of Royal Edict can be activated one at a time. The effect of a Royal Edict is indefinite, but once the user uses another Royal Edict. The effects of any ongoing Royal Edict prior to the activation of the new Royal Edict will be invalidated.


    *There are no known limitations to this Royal Edict ording to the Grand Duelist''sprehension regarding it. However, the sacrifice of Divinity Stat necessary for its activation scales depending on how many variables are affected by the established Law.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Uniqueprehension of the Concept of Law.


    Skill Cost: Divinity Stat.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 48 Hours.]


    This unique skill enabled Joseph to establish aw that those affected couldn''t possibly defy.


    However, from what Joseph could see within its skill description.


    It was clear that the Royal Edict had a fatal w.


    That w was the fact that for it to take effect, it must be loudly announced and heard by everyone that you wanted to be affected by thew.


    In other words, if a yer simply covered his ears.


    He wouldn''t be able to listen to the Royal Edict and in turn, he wouldn''t be affected by it.


    But no one within this ce could possibly take advantage of this fatal w. After all, this was the first time that Joseph would use the Royal Edict within the world of Victory.


    He himself wasn''t so sure about the effects of the Royal Edict. But after reading through the skill description. He now had an idea about how it worked and he was quite excited to put his imagination to use and create aw for his advantage.


    A smile crept on Joseph''s lips as he dered.


    "Listen to the Royal Edict!"


    "The ungrateful dogs of Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice along with the arrogant Guild Strongest Under Heaven are trying to challenge the authority of the Grand Duelist! Such audacity should not be forgiven, but the Grand Duelist is lenient enough to give them a chance..."


    "A chance to besiege the Grand Duelist with the power of their three guilds."


    "The members of the three guilds right now at this moment will face the Grand Duelist in a battle!"


    "The winner takes it all!"


    "The stakes for the battle are hereby dered..."


    "The items of the challengers will fall to the winner. If the challenger loses, they will lose rights to their items and if they win... They will be able to take their items back with some bonus."


    "If the Grand Duelist loses, the Grand Duelist willpensate the three guilds for any losses that they have suffered in the middle of the battle and prior to the battle..."


    "But if the challenger loses, they will pay reparations to the Grand Duelist and to his friends for all the damages that they had suffered, in the middle of the battle and prior to the battle..."


    "Additionally, unspecified outsiders are not allowed to intervene in the middle of the battle."


    "The battle will happen within the Pce Halls of the Royal Pce of the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether..."


    "May the best fighter wins..."


    "Receive the decree!"


    Joseph properly articted each and every word that he said as if he was afraid that the yers here wouldn''t hear what he had said.


    At the end of his deration, he even screamed for them to receive the decree.


    The astonished and clueless elite yers of the three guilds had nk looks on their faces. Kristian wore a frown and he was about to say something when several system notifications appeared in front of him.


    [You have heard the Royal Edict.]


    [There is no escaping the constraint of the Royal Edict.]


    [The effects of the Royal Edict will now take effect...]


    [Please pay attention.]


    These system notifications appeared at the same time to each and every member of the three guilds.


    Meanwhile, Joseph was casually scrolling through his brand new skill tree that he acquired after his ascension.


    He then opened up his [Logs] and the system notifications that he hadn''t read ever since his return popped out at once.


    [You havepleted the King''s Trial!]


    [You have obtained 502,686,301 Experience Points!]


    [You are now Level 200.]


    [You are now within the Top 50 of the Universal Rankings for Levels.]


    [Your 70,021 Spirit Stones have been converted to 70,021 Essence of the World.]


    [You obtained, Kingdom Establishment Token.]


    [You obtained, 52,582 Gold Coins.]


    [You now have full control over the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether!]


    [The system has detected that you are in possession of a Kingdom Establishment Token.]


    [Kingdom Establishment Token]


    [A token that grants a yer the right to im an unimed territory as his own and establish his own kingdom


    Note: Establishing a Kingdom may be quite easy with the Kingdom Establishment Token but please keep in mind that managing a kingdom requires a lot of expertise and allies to work with! It is impossible for a single yer to manage a Kingdom so for the sake of not making any mistakes.


    It is advised to only use this Kingdom when you are ready for the heavy responsibility that it brings!


    Status: Soul-Bound to the Grand Duelist.


    Note: A Soul-Bound Item cannot be imed by others as their own item. However, others can borrow the soul-bound item for as long as the owner of the Soul-Bound item consents to the usage of a third party.]


    [The system has detected that you have the qualifications to establish a Kingdom. However, you are advised to not do so until you are confident that you can handle the workload necessary on managing a Kingdom, or until you have enough allies that can help you with the job.]


    [Do you want to use the Kingdom Establishment Token to dere the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether as your Kingdom?]


    [Note: You cannot dere a territory as your Kingdom if you do not have the Crown of a King!]


    [The system has detected that you do not have the Crown of a King.]


    [A Unique Quest has been activated.]


    [Duties of an Aspiring King(Unique-Quest)


    Quest Difficulty: SS


    You have seeded in the Trial of Kings and have sessfullyprehended the necessary concepts in order to manage a Kingdom.


    You have also acquired the necessary Kingdom Establishment Token.


    However, a dignified king must have a fitting crown that will restfortably on his head for all eternity.


    Gather the materials and ingredients necessary for the creation of the Crown of a King!


    Quest Clear Conditions: Acquire the Crown of a King.


    Quest Rewards: ??? (Guaranteed)


    Quest Failure: You will forever lose the qualifications of bing a King. ]


    [It has been detected that the Unique Quest has been epted.]


    [Due to your impressive sess within the world of the King''s Trial.]


    [You have gained the privilege of a grace period!]


    [From now on, for a year, no one, even the Empire of Dawn can steal your dered territory from you!]


    [This grace period is effective for a year, but this grace period does not prevent the copse of your Kingdom due to all sorts of internal problems.]


    [It is rmended that the user must first fix the domestic problems of the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether before he goes on the adventure for his Crown of a King!]


    Joseph inwardly shook his head. As an avid reader of novels back in the day, it only took him a few seconds to skim through the system notifications.


    When he dismissed them all and opened his Inventory...


    Joseph had an unprecedented look of excitement on his face.


    But the yers in front of him who saw his excitementpletely misunderstood the reason for his excitement.


    "Damn that bastard... He''s too arrogant! He''s standing in front of a Legendary yer and he''s not even paying attention to him? Big Dipper, let me go..."


    "I''ll punch that arrogant smirk off his face!" A yer whose frame and figure made him look like a giant furrowed his brows as he stared angrily at Joseph.


    Big Dipper, the Main Tank, and Pdin of Guild Strongest Under Heaven hurriedly went forwards to calm him down.


    "Your name is No Sucker Punch and you are going to sneak attack him? Isn''t that going against your name? And also, he''s a Mythical Ranked yer. If Kristian is already that strong and his ss is just a Legendary ss..."


    "How powerful do you think would a Mythical ss be? I''m sure it''d be at least as strong as Kristian''s ss!"


    Big Dipper patiently advised.


    No Sucker Punch let out a sigh: "Fine... If someone as cautious as you is even advising me then, I guess I won''t go and sneak attack him. To tell you the truth. I don''t even want to fight for as long as this guy wasn''t so arrogant. I''m a true pacifist... I avoid battle if I can."


    Big Dipper rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah, you want to sneak attack him?"


    Big Dipper scanned No Sucker Punch''s almost two meters tall figure and amusement shed across his eyes. This guy whose height was almost as tall as a school bus was actually saying that he nned on making a sneak attack?


    He should be joking, right?


    "What?" No Sucker Punch turned to look at Big Dipper with a re.


    Big Dipper could only shake his head in retreat.


    Meanwhile, hisrades behind him were alreadyughing.


    "Boss Dipper, you should really go and scold that guy... We''ve been with each other for so long and I haven''t seen you scold that guy even once..." A yer with the name Ama Namin floating above his head boisterouslyughed.


    The others were alsoughing as one of them interjected.


    This time, it was a yer named Big Boss. His stature wasn''t a burly and big as No Sucker Punch but the way he carried himself and the confidence radiating from his body really made him deserving of his in-game name.


    "Dipper... Just try to scold him once. I bet he won''t fool around anymore. After all, everyone in here knows that you''re only second to Boss Kristian." Big Boss said in a deeply ented voice.


    "That is right... Dipper is too patient. Shout at him once and he''ll obey." Another yer spoke, his English was quite broken. An indication that he wasn''t using the system''s automatic trantor. His yer name, Fuurinkazan alone made his true nationality obvious to everyone.


    Big Dipper lifted a bitter smile. He may be considered as the Vice-Captain of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven but he didn''t think that he was that high and mighty. He didn''t really crave for power.


    As long as he can enjoy the game, he''ll be fine without anyints.


    However, his status meant that he must also discipline the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven along with Kristian.


    Unfortunately, Big Dipper was a man who never knew how to scold someone. He knew what to do when receiving a scolding since he was used to receiving one due to some family issues.


    But he didn''t understand how you were supposed to scold someone.


    This was why he could only shake his head and reveal a bitter smile.


    But then at this moment, a system notification appeared right before their eyes.


    [You have heard the Royal Edict.]


    [...]


    [...]


    [The effects of the Royal Edict will now take effect...]


    "Royal Edict? What is this?" Slice of Life, the yer whose presence was too vague that you wouldn''t even notice him standing beside you unless you looked at him finally spoke.


    When his voice rang out...


    He attracted the attention of every elite member of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    "Slice, you''re finally willing to speak up?"


    Ama Namin, the Theologist and main support of the team jokingly said.


    "That''s not what''s important right now. What I want to know is what is this Royal Edict?" Slice of Life frowned.


    Ama Namin patted his shoulder and said: "Don''t be such a tight ass, Slice. That Royal Edict''s probably just a small trick, you know about how powerful our boss is, right? A puny trick won''t do much damage to us. Plus we are here so it''s going to be fine..."


    "Heh..." Slice of Life lightly chuckled: "Are you sure that you''re not going to take back what you said?"


    An amused expression surfaced on his face as Ama Namin quickly paled.


    He turned around and found out that it was toote.


    Big Dipper was already staring at him with an annoyed look on his face.


    "Ama Namin... How many times have I told you already to never underestimate our enemy? Let me tell you this, the reason why our guild is in the top 3 of the Universal Rankings isn''t that we''re strong. It''s because we had never underestimated an enemy, and also..."


    Big Dipper''s lectures made sense, but when the members of the Strongest Under Heaven heard his words. They chuckled with schadenfreude at Ama Namin who looked like he was about to cry.


    Big Dipper may be a kind man who didn''t know how to scold hisrades, but when it came to lectures.


    He was a connoisseur.


    To be honest, his friends preferred that he scolded them instead of these lengthy lectures with recycled content.


    Once Big Dipper''s lecture started, there was no way that someone could intervene and forcefully end it.


    But fortunately for Ama Namin...


    The changes that suddenly happened in the area along with Kristian''s scream took Big Dipper''s attention away.


    "Get ready... We''re about to fight..."


    Kristian turned to look at hisrades and revealed anguid smile.


    Hisrades merely nodded their heads.


    It was clear that they were used to fighting since the moment Kristian said these words, the members of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven actually walked away from each other and formed a popr formation that made William and the Crimson Guild gasp.


    "So that''s the popr Life Reaping Formation of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven?"


    dimir stared wide-eyed at what was happening and so did William.


    These two renowned Guild Leaders here in the Kingdom of Nether normally had nothing to fear nor to be astonished at, but when it came to the seamless teamwork of the third guild in the Rankings...


    It was clear that they still had a lot to learn and that they were mere frogs in a well.


    Even the members of their guilds revealed looks of admiration.


    As they stared right at what was going on in front of them, it looked like they didn''t want to miss any detail about the uing fight.


    "Leader..." Suddenly, a voice came behind dimir.


    dimir turned around and said, "What is it?"


    The yer who attracted dimir''s attention asked: "Are we not going to help them in this battle?"


    dimir shook his head: "Help them? Even though we are included in this battle. I''m sure that these bastards are arrogant enough to not let us in the fight. Take a look at Kristian, the fact that he didn''t even take a nce to us means that he just wants us to be a spectator in this battle."


    The yer turned to look at Kristian who stood at the helm of the formation.


    If one stared at their formation from above. One would find that if you formed a line and traced the positioning of Guild Strongest Under Heaven from Kristian to thest yer, Ama Namin.


    You would realize that the way they calmly stood resembled a scythe from above.


    This was the Life Reaping Formation!


    The strongest offensive formation that the Guild Strongest Under Heaven has at their disposal!


    It was clear that they wanted to end this fight as soon as possible!


    Joseph stood in front of the intimidating Life Reaping Formation of his enemies.


    He swept his gaze and revealed a smile when he realized that Guild Strongest Under Heaven was actually that arrogant to fight him without the help of the other two guilds who remained here for the sake of their alliance.


    Inwardly chuckling, Joseph proceeded to withdraw the Mythical Ranked Weapon that the Legendary Krid forged for him.


    Appearing in a burst of dazzling light, the moment the Rapier appeared...


    The world itself seemed to dim as the air in the room grew thick.


    Everyone''s attention turned to the Rapier and they were astonished to find that the Rapier was actually as long as Joseph''s height!


    Furthermore, despite having such a length...


    Joseph and the Rapier didn''t look out of ce as the former held thetter on his right hand!


    It looked like the Rapier was made for him and he was made for the Rapier!


    This was the realm of bing one with the weapon!


    Alice abruptly stood up.


    Her eyes widened in shock when she saw the scene unfolding before her. As a Sword Adept, one needed to be one with his or her weapon before one could ascend to the realm of Sword Connoisseurs.


    It has always been Alice''s dream to be one with her weapon so she could reach the Sword Connoisseur realm, yet she had never touched the borders of that realm even once.


    Yet, right now...


    Joseph actually became one with his weapon?


    Was this the privilege of being a Myth?


    Ezreal noticed Alice''s emotional turmoil.


    "Calm down, and observe the battle. Observe how the master moves while being one with the weapon and you may be able toprehend something and be a Sword Connoisseur!" Ezreal spoke in a confident voice which made Alice turn to look at her as she replied.


    "You..."


    "You know that I am a Sword Adept?"


    "Just who the hell are you?" Alice asked with a frown.


    Ezreal lightly chuckled before replying with a rueful voice.


    "I''m just a servant that''s pretending to be a human, that''s all..."


    Ezreal''s cryptic reply confused Alice, but when she realized that the battle was about to begin.


    She took Ezreal''s advice seriously as she stared right at Joseph and the members of the Strongest Under Heaven. After hearing the contents of the Royal Edict, she had already realized that it was impossible for her to help Joseph in this battle.


    But was she afraid of him losing against these people?


    Of course, not!


    Joseph was, after all, one of the Myths, the Grand Duelist of the current generation, and most importantly...


    He was her man!


    She didn''t believe that her man could lose against these arrogant bastards.


    A proud look appeared on Alice''s face and her mood seemed to have slightly improved.


    Meanwhile, back at the battlefield.


    Joseph pointed his Rapier at the members of the Strongest Under Heaven Guild.


    Fuurinkazan, the de Master of the team, frowned and warned his friends: "Be careful... His stance is strange. He''s revealing so many openings to us so he''s probably trying to bait us on attacking him..."


    Fuurinkazan was within the top 50 of the de Master Rankings within the Universal Rankings so everyone in the team believed him the moment he said these words.


    In an instant, everyone''s nerves stretched to their limits as their eyes stared right at Joseph, ready to react at the moment he attacked.


    "Oh, what''s wrong? Are you guys not going to attack?" Joseph casually said.


    The members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven didn''t reply.


    "Tsskkk... If you''re not going to attack, then..." Joseph suddenly bent his knees.


    The eyes of Kristian and his subordinates saw this change as they did some adjustments.


    "Oh... That''s some definitely some swift reactions... But if we just keep staring at each other, this battle will not-"


    Joseph''s words were interrupted by the appearance of a shadow behind him. He was quick to react as he turned around to block the iing attack, but his split-second decision revealed his back to his enemies.


    "Fool!" dimir coldly spat when he saw what Joseph had done.


    Revealing one''s back to his enemies in a high-level battle like this was practically sending himself into the tiger''s mouth. The moment he turned around to face Slice of Life, the other members of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven quickly moved.


    Like raindrops, they scattered before quickly converging into Joseph''s position.


    Schadenfreude shed across dimir''s face as he stared wide-eyed at the battle. He didn''t want to miss any detail, he wanted to see how Guild Strongest Under Heaven would kill the one and only Mythical yer of Victory.


    In fact, he was already recording these events using the in-game recording function.


    But the moment the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven appeared around Joseph.


    A smile suddenly appeared on Joseph''s lips as he softly whispered.


    "Pierce Blossom!"


    [Pierce Blossom]


    Unleash an omnidirectional flurry of attacks in an instant.


    *Each attack deal 120% of your Attack Damage, but will not go through objects and units


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.


    Skill Cost: 55 Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown: 15 Seconds.]


    Light burst from Joseph''s body as the members of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven flew backwards. Even the Assassin, Slice of Life who sneaked attacked Joseph wasn''t spared.


    An illusory Rapier could be seen piercing through his chest as he flew around and coughed a mouthful of blood.


    [You suffered 20,641 damage!]


    [You suffered tremendous damage in an instant and your body is in state of shock!]


    [You will be unconditionally Stiffened for the next two seconds.]


    Slice of Life stared wide-eyed at the system notification floating in front of him.


    What?


    Why was the damage so huge?


    My Health Bar is only at 40 thousand!

 Chapter 166: Besieged by Three Guilds[7]

    Chapter 166: Besieged by Three Guilds[7]


    Slice of Life''s shock was quickly dissipated by a sh of holy light that brought his Health Points back to life.


    Joseph turned around and swept his gaze at his enemies with a contented smile on his face.


    The skill that he used, Pierce Blossom was a skill from his skill tree as the Grand Duelist.


    However, despite being powerful, Pierce Blossom was just one of the eight new offensive skills that he acquired after his ascension as the Grand Duelist of the current generation.


    Taking a look at his astounded enemies, an excited look appeared on Joseph''s face as he rushed at one of them and attacked with yet, another brand new skill.


    But Kristian and his subordinates weren''t newbies in this game. They quickly recovered from their reverie as they assumed the Life Reaping Formation once again.


    This time, there were stern looks on their faces as they collectively rushed at Joseph and met his offense with offense.


    Fighting fire with fire!


    "Heh..." Joseph smirked.


    He raised his Rapier above him and swung horizontally directly in front of him.


    "Dividing Line!"


    <em>[Dividing Line]</em>


    <em>A downwards sh with the Rapier. The attack will leave a clear mark of demarcation which will deal damage to enemies but empower friendlies if they crossed the demarcation line.</em>


    <em>*If the downwards sh struck an enemy. It will deal 200% of your Attack Damage.</em>


    <em>*The demarcation line will deal 50% of your Attack Damage to enemies who dare to cross it.</em>


    <em>*The demarcation line will increase the Movement Speed of your allies by 30% if they crossed it.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 80 Divinity Stat</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown: 60 Seconds.]</em>


    A burst of dazzling light briefly shed and a clear mark was left on the sturdy tiles of the Pce Halls.


    Kristian and hisrades abruptly leaped backward. Kristian raised his head and found that Joseph wasn''t moving towards their direction anymore. Realizing this, he quicklymanded.


    "Step back, I''ll check."


    As if on cue, the other members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven retreated.


    Kristian rushed towards the demarcation line and as soon as he passed the line.


    Something abruptly slowed him down but was quickly dispelled by his passive.


    What slowed him down was the damage that descended out of nowhere as Kristian hurriedlymanded.


    "Careful! Go around!" His words may be short but it contained enough detail for the others to understand. As soon as his words came out, his subordinates went around the demarcation line before rushing towards Joseph''s direction once again.


    Joseph leaped backward, but he instantly turned around when he felt a biting cold killing intent aiming at him.


    It came from Slice of Life whose daggers were aimed at his ankles.


    "Ankle Breaker!"


    <em>[Ankle Breaker]</em>


    <em>Cut the enemy''s ankle to inflict massive amounts of damage and incapacitate.</em>


    <em>*Attack is guaranteed to critically strike.</em>


    <em>*Can be used in tandem with other movement skills.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Assassin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 552 Stamina</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 13 Seconds.]</em>


    Joseph pupils constricted but his responses were quick enough. He softly jumped into the air and avoided the daggers that aimed for his ankles.


    "Point!"


    While in mid-air, his Rapier shone in a dazzling divine light that quickly converged into a Point at the tip of his Rapier.


    All of these took time to describe but it only happened in a few seconds.


    Joseph stabbed at Slice of Life with his Rapier, but his expression changed when the feedback felt solid and was reminiscent of wood instead of human flesh.


    A burst of smoke followed that quickly dispersed and then Joseph found that his enemy had miraculously avoided his attack.


    Leaving behind a wooden log in his wake.


    "Gotcha!" Slice of Life uttered in the distance.


    <em>[Gotcha!]</em>


    <em>Upon receiving damage, immediately use this skill to negate that damage. Upon usage, the character will abruptly disappear from the sight of everyone, leaving a wooden log on his wake.</em>


    <em>*There is a certain probability of inflicting Confusion to the enemies.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Assassin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: None</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 35 Seconds.]</em>


    At this moment, Kristian and his subordinates were now nearing Joseph but something arrived quicker than these characters.


    It was a ball-shaped object painted with the color of yellow decorated with some stars.


    When Joseph saw this objectnd on his feet, a gasp escaped his mouth as the ball-shaped object exploded.


    "Stun Grenade!"


    Une Balle Un Mort, the Gunner of Guild Strongest Under Heaven softly called out.


    When hisrades saw the brief sh of light that instantly swallowed Joseph.


    They swarmed him in an instant.


    The barbarian, No Sucker Punch was the first one to arrive. Soaring through the air, a scream escaped his mouth as he boisterouslyughed.


    "Madman Rolls in the Air!"


    <em>[Madman Rolls in the Air!]</em>


    <em>The Barbarian leaps into the skies with his Axe. Rolling in the air and ending the attack with a fierce downwards sh.</em>


    <em>*Super Armor is granted in the middle of the skill.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Barbarian</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 3505 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 32 Seconds.]</em>


    The reason why he wasughing was that he was confident that Joseph couldn''t possibly interrupt his skill.


    After all, Madman Rolls in the Air granted Super Armor while it was currently being in use so there was no way that he could suffer under the effects of any Crowd Control skills with the exception of skills with grab effects.


    But as for grab effects, those who wielded the sword or de often do not have skills that have that kind of effect.


    This was the reason why No Sucker Punch was confident and so excited to use this skill.


    But of course, the primary reason was that using Madman Rolling in the Air made him look quite cool.


    But despite being in Super Armor.


    Does Joseph really need to interrupt his attack to avoid taking any damage?


    Of course, not!


    Joseph lifted a smile on his face and stood his ground.


    At this moment, he was facing eight yers at once with six of them sending their attacks at him at this instant.


    But was Joseph afraid?


    No!


    Why?


    Because he still hasn''t used his Parry!


    "What...? Why is he smiling?"


    dimir who was observing the fight from a distance suddenly had a bad premonition in his heart.


    But before he could even think, the attacks of Strongest Under Heaven had finally descended onto Joseph.


    "Parry..."


    [<em>The Grand Duelist''s Parry Lv Max.]</em>


    <em>The Grand Duelist enters a defensive stance. Every debuff, damage, and all forms of hard crowd control abilities are parried and rendered useless within the duration of the defensive stance.</em>


    <em>Furthermore, every damage, debuff, and hard crowd control abilities received within the duration of the defensive stance can be recycled by the Grand Duelist in a single devastating attack.</em>


    <em>*The Grand Duelist''s Parry is absolute, everything can be parried as long as the timing is right. *</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 150 Divinity Stat</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 3 minutes.]</em>


    Right before the attacks couldnd onto his body...


    Joseph swiftly activated Parry.


    A burst of dazzling divine light covered his body and the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven found their attacks disappearing as if they were stones dropped into an ocean.


    "Wha..."


    The most puzzled of them all was No Sucker Punch as he nced at Kristian with confusion.


    Kristian had a frown on his face, but before he could even think of the possibilities...


    He suddenly saw Joseph lifting his Rapier.


    "Shit, this is bad!"


    "Retreat!"


    Kristian howled and hisrades instantly leaped backward in order to retreat.


    But then Joseph suddenly spoke.


    "Don''t bother..."


    "It''s toote."


    Time seemed to have slowed down.


    When Kristian and hisrades blinked and opened their eyes once again, they suddenly found Joseph standing amidst them all.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship Second Form..." The holy light of the Grand Duelist filled Joseph''s body with power as his Rapier moved, seemingly intent to express the harmony of heaven and earth with a stroke of his weapon.


    At this moment, Kristian''s pupils constricted as he barked at Big Dipper, the Pdin of the Team.


    "Divine Avatar! Quick!" Kristian''s words came out fast but Joseph was even faster.


    "Discharge..."


    "Harmony..."


    sh!


    Space itself was ripped as Joseph''s iparably powerful attack expressed the harmony of heaven and earth.


    But...


    [You suffered 42,502 damage!]


    "You..." Joseph''s pupils widened in shock.


    The enemies whom he thought would die for sure with thebination of his Parry and Harmony were actually still alive!


    What''s more, what defended them from Joseph''s mighty attack was a single person!


    It was Big Dipper!


    The Pdin of Guild Strongest Under Heaven!


    His body was shining in a brilliant golden light.


    Even Joseph felt trepidation while staring at this golden light.


    "What..."


    "What is that?"


    Joseph uttered in astonishment.


    Big Dipper lifted a proud smile on his face as he dered.


    "Ultimate: Divine Avatar!"


    [Ultimate: Divine Avatar]


    Channels the might of the Seven Gods and Goddesses to acquire Invincibility within the battlefield. Enemies near you will receive damage equal to 500% of your Attack Damage upon the activation of Divine Avatar.


    The vitality of your allies will be more rigorous, increasing their maximum health in return.


    *Enemies will be slowed for 30%.


    *You and your allies will receive 50% more Movement Speed.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Pdin.


    Skill Cost: None.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 300 Seconds.]


    As soon as his words came out...


    Hisrades, the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven rushed at Joseph once again.

 Chapter 167: Besieged by Three Guilds[8]

    Chapter 167: Besieged by Three Guilds[8]


    When fighting against numerous yers, what was the mostmon strategy?


    It was keeping an appropriate distance and positioning away from their enemies!


    Guild Strongest Under Heaven expected that Joseph understood this fact so they kept on rushing at him like a wave.


    But Joseph knew what he must do.


    Unfortunately, Guild Strongest Under Heaven also knew what Joseph was thinking at this moment.


    At the exact moment that Joseph turned to look at the Theologist of Guild Strongest Under Heaven, Ama Namin.


    They instantly saw through his ns and converged to surround and protect their main healer.


    Joseph leaped backward and revealed a bitter smile on his face.


    <em>Yeah, right...</em>


    <em>Why did I even think that such amon strategy can possibly work against one of the strongest guilds in Victory?</em>


    A light chuckle escaped from his lips as he retreated backward and scanned the cautious members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    The Theologist Ama Namin was inside the encirclement of the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven. The encirclement was quite tight ensuring that Joseph couldn''t use any instantaneous movement skill without being caught while trying to attack their main support.


    This was quite a smart strategy.


    In an even team fight, the death of healers was a must if you wanted to win.


    It was impossible to win an even team fight if the healers of both sides were alive.


    If a battle like that happened, then thebat would be an incredibly boring battle of attrition instead. Constantly shaving off the health of the members of both sides until their healers ran out of mana to which the healers would immediately be useless.


    But in this kind of an informal battle that Joseph created with his Royal Edict.


    He actually forgot a single detail to add to the establishment of his decree.


    That detail was disabling the usage of Health and Mana Potions.


    A bitter smile escaped on Joseph''s lips when he saw the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven''s backline casually drinking some Health and Mana Potions to restore themselves.


    But does this mean that it was hopeless for Joseph to win?


    Of course, not!


    He still hasn''t used one of his trump cards!


    But since everything had already gone this far and it was clear that Guild Strongest Under Heaven wouldn''t possibly let him go near their Theologist, Ama Namin.


    Joseph could only let out a sigh as he raised his Rapier and pointed at Ama Namin.


    "Careful!" Kristian whispered under his breath and his subordinates turned cautious in an instant.


    At the center of their encirclement was Ama Namin who had a light smile on his face.


    He didn''t feel any trepidation at all.


    With how he was protected by hisrades, how could he possibly feel any danger?


    With the Legendary yer, Absolute Monarch, Kristian, standing in front of him and serving as his shield.


    How could he be afraid of anything in this world?


    Ama Namin closed his eyes and started chanting.


    From the magical runes that materialized and surrounded his body, it was clear from their sheer number that he was channeling a quite powerful spell.


    Joseph lifted an eyebrow.


    He found that he couldn''t point the tip of his Rapier at Ama Namin.


    The usage conditions of the Grand Duelist''s Grand Challenge was that he must be within ten meters from the target. Furthermore, there was also a hidden usage condition and that was he must point his Rapier at his enemy before he could activate the skill.


    "Tsssk..." Joseph clicked his tongue, but he still decided to proceed in his n.


    He ran and rushed directly at the encirclement of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    As soon as he stepped forward...


    The Gunner, Une Balle Un Mort whipped out a minigun and started to shower him with bullets.


    "Gatling Gun!"


    <em>[Gatling Gun]</em>


    <em>Summons a minigun to rain bullets upon the helpless enemies.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Gunner</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 802 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 45 Seconds.]</em>


    Joseph raised his Rapier and furiously waved it in front of him, blocking as many bullets as he could with his deflect.


    But of course, with a minigun''s firing rate. It was practically impossible for him to block every bullet that came his way.


    [You suffered 201 damage!]


    [You suffered 251 damage!]


    [You suffered 225 damage!]


    Nevertheless, his persistence paid off and he was now quite close to the encirclement of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    But as soon as the final bullet from the minigun came out.


    What faced Joseph wasn''t the barrel of a minigun anymore.


    It was now the ck barrel of a sniper.


    "Snipe!"


    <em>[Snipe]</em>


    <em>Whips out a long-ranged Sniper Rifle. Takes a moment to draw a bead and then fires in an effort to deal a tremendous amount of damage to an unsuspecting enemy.</em>


    <em>*Deals True Damage</em>


    <em>*Bullet can go through objects and units</em>


    <em>*Bullet can be blocked by another yer or living being.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Gunner</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 1025 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 60 Seconds.]</em>


    Une Balle Un Mort softly whispered and a thunderous roar followed by a beam of light flew from the barrel of his Sniper.


    "He''s dead!" dimir whispered to himself.


    The members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven lifted a smile on their faces as the beam of light collided with Joseph. With the speed of the bullet from a Gunner''s Snipe.


    It was practically impossible for someone to dodge it.


    What''s more, Joseph was only about a mere ten meters away from Une Balle Un Mort, how could he possibly dodge his bullet?


    However, what they expected to happen didn''t ur.


    Instead of the stter of blood and brain matter onto the ground.


    What happened was that the moment the beam of light collided with Joseph.


    It unexpectedly turned backward and flew towards Une Balle Un Mort''s direction?


    "Careful!" Kristian''s pupils constricted but there was nothing that he could do other than crouch.


    "What the..." Une Balle Un Mort only managed to utter these words as the devastating tungsten-tipped bullet of his attack took out his head and made it explode like a watermelon. Blood and brain matter scattered onto the clothes of hisrades as he was instantly killed by his own attack.


    "Composure..." Joseph left these words in his wake.


    [The Grand Duelist''s Composure Lv. Max]


    Activate to enter a state of [ Calm and Composed ]


    * While in the state of [ Calm and Composed ] every attack sent at you can be reflected back at your enemies with 20% reduced damage.


    * In every sessful [ Deflect ] you will gain two points of [ Imminent Counter-attack ] up to a maximum of a hundred.


    * Once [ Imminent Counter-attack ] has reached its maximum capacity. You can deploy it in a single catastrophic strike that deals about 40% of the damage from all attacks that you have deflected, plus 1000% of your Attack Damage.


    * The effects of [ Calm and Composed ]sts for a minute, or when [ Imminent Counter-attack ] reaches maximum capacity.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 hours. ]


    At thest moment, Joseph was forced to use one of his trump cards that had a really long cooldown of three hours.


    Fortunately, he activated the skill in time before the bullet could drill a hole through his head.


    Despite being a game, Victory prided itself on its realism. If a head exploded just like that then the owner of that head could be considered as undoubtedly dead. No, he was beyond dead. There were no chances for resurrection apart from reviving back at the yer''s hometown City.


    [Your party member, Une Balle Un Mort has died!]


    A system notification notified each and every member of Guild Strongest Under Heaven about the gruesome death of theirrade.


    As soon as the smoke and the cloud of dust settled down. Kristian and his subordinates saw a sh of light and a system notification once again appeared in front of them.


    [Your party member, Ama Namin is unreachable.]


    "Huh?"


    "Ama Namin has disappeared?!"


    "Did he disconnect?"


    "No! That bastard also disappeared!"


    "What?" Kristian uttered in shock.


    He waved his hand and cleared the smoke, only to find not any trace of Joseph.


    "What the fuck just happened..." Even Kristian who kept on maintaining his dignity and had never cursed in the face of audiences apart from the members of his own guild couldn''t keep his calm any longer.


    He turned to look at his guild members and sternly dered.


    "Find him!"


    "He must still be here I''m sure about it!"


    "Yes, sir!"


    Big Dipper solemnly nodded but as he turned around and swept his gaze across the wide spaces of the Pce Halls.


    He realized that there wasn''t really anything that someone could use to hide from the eyes of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    The pirs of the Pce Halls may be quite thick but it was impossible for Joseph to hide behind them along with Ama Namin unless Ama Namin was a traitor and was colluding with him to confuse Guild Strongest Under Heaven which was impossible.


    At this moment, someone who didn''t speak that much finally spoke.


    It was Fuurinkazan, the de Master of the team who suggested: "Boss, what if that guy has a skill that lets him take away a single person from an area towards another area along with him?"


    Kristian''s pupils constricted.


    He would be quite stupid if he didn''t understand what Fuurinkazan meant.


    In other words, Fuurinkazan was saying that it was practically impossible for them to rescue Ama Namin in this current situation.


    What they must do right now was to prepare themselves for Joseph''s return.


    "That is a possibility that we cannot reject. But is something like that really possible? Would P.H Works even allow the existence of such a broken ability?" Big Dipper shook his head.


    Among everyone in here, he may not be one of the strongest yers but he was the one that had the strongestposure.


    Despite the strange event that suddenly happened which sent everyone into confusion.


    He still managed to retain hisposure and had even managed to counter Fuurinkazan''s proposal regarding the current situation.


    But just as everyone was agreeing to what he had said.


    Kristian suddenly spoke: "There''s no use questioning its existence since it already exists and we already know about it. And as for if the P.H Works would even allow the existence of such a broken ability? Did you already forget that he''s a Mythical ss yer?"


    "He''s broken for you guys, but for him being broken is normal. In fact, it would be quite strange if he wasn''t overpowered at all." Kristian rolled his eyes at his subordinates and they all scratched their heads awkwardly.


    Some of them even turned their gaze away. They couldn''t help but secretly admit that they were indeed grossly underestimating the might of a Mythical ss.


    Big Dipper was astonished when he saw the reactions of the others towards Kristian''s words.


    A frown flitted across his face as he turned to his friends and said: "Did you guys really think that a Mythical ss is weaker than Kristian? It''s a Mythical ss for fuck''s sake, don''t even try to underestimate it. Just what did I tell you guys earlier?"


    Fuurinkazan answered: "We were not underestimating him, Dipper..."


    No Sucker Punch, Big Boss, Slice of Life, and Kristian turned to look at Fuurinkazan as if they were looking at their savior.


    Fuurinkazan''s unpredictable attitude and his whimsical manner made him quite an entric person but whenever he spoke, Big Dipper would always believe him as if his words were the gospel of the seven gods and goddesses.


    But at this moment, they were bound to be disappointed as Fuurinkazan nced at them all and further exined.


    "At least, that''s what I think... I wasn''t underestimating him, but I don''t know about these guys."


    The others simultaneously froze.


    As expected, Big Dipper narrowed his eyes into slits.


    He turned to look at them, particrly at No Sucker Punch who had the highest tendency of underestimating his enemies due to his strength.


    But as soon as he opened his mouth and was about to speak.


    A sh of light once again appeared out of nowhere.


    The shockwave brought by the sh of light briefly stunned them all as Big Dipper froze.


    Ama Namin emerged from the light.


    His slowly darkening consciousness turned to look onest time at hisrades and there was a tragic look on his face as if he greatly failed them on his task.


    However, the others didn''t even turn to look at him.


    Instead...


    They had smiles on their faces when they realized the fact that Big Dipper forgot that he was about to scold them.


    After all, none of them wanted to through a round of scolding from the stern and tight-ass Big Dipper.


    But the poor Ama Namin that knew nothing about what was going on only saw their smiles as smiles born from Schadenfreude.


    "You bastards..."


    "Why are you guys smiling like that..."


    "Are we still evenrades?"


    These were the final thoughts that he had as his consciousness finally disappeared and his body vanishing into countless light crystals.

 Chapter 168: Besieged by Three Guilds[9]

    Chapter 168: Besieged by Three Guilds[9]


    Without the main support, the winner of this battle was now unclear.


    Would it be Joseph?


    But he was alone and there was a well-known adage that said that no man was an ind.


    Could he really win against the remaining six members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven?


    Furthermore, these yers weren''t average yers that Joseph could easily defeat with brute strength alone.


    Sure, Joseph''s burst damage was quite strong that a single attack could possibly end the life of anyone in this battlefield.


    But despite Joseph''s powerful damage. His Health wasn''t actually that high!


    When the Grand Challenge was over he received some of the four main stats of Ama Namin and healed for twenty-percent of Ama Namin''s Health.


    Unfortunately, Ama Namin''s ss was Theologist and his Health also wasn''t that huge.


    The Health that Joseph recovered from killing him couldn''t evenpare to the damage that he suffered while fighting against the Gatling Gun of that Gunner and that Assassin earlier.


    Of course, Joseph still had about more than half of his Health.


    But Guild Knights of Justice and Guild Crimson was still here. They hadn''t even participated in the fight, yet from the looks on their faces. It was clear that they were actually trying to find the best opportunity to enter the battle and deal a great deal of damage to Joseph and defeat him.


    Joseph bitterly smiled.


    He suddenly remembered the fact that when he was fighting Guild Strongest Under Heaven earlier.


    They kept on trying to corner him towards the general direction of the two guilds.


    If Joseph didn''t retreat and kept on fighting them inside their encirclement then this battle would''ve been over right at that moment.


    After all, even though Joseph was a Mythical ss yers.


    These yers weren''t noobs.


    They were quite experienced and in the face of about a dozen and a half experienced yers all at once.


    Even Joseph wasn''t confident that he could defeat them all.


    But didn''t that mean that Joseph was quite stupid for even inviting them all to fight him at once?


    Yes!


    Joseph''s move of inviting them all for a battle was definitely a bad idea, but only if...


    He didn''t have his own ns.


    Of course, Joseph had his own ns on dealing against these bastards from the three guilds but the right time to unveil his ns still hasn''te.


    For now, until that time...


    Joseph nned on personally dealing against these bastards and whittle their ranks for as much as possible until that time arrived.


    "Charge! He can''t possibly use that strange skill again and again! It should still be on cooldown at this moment!"


    Big Dipper raised his il and whispered.


    "Relic of the Gods and Goddesses!"


    <em>[Relic of the Gods and Goddesses]</em>


    <em>The Pdin will shine, bing a beacon of light amidst the darkness. Arge cross-shaped relic that is at least a fourth of his height will appear on his back. This cross-shaped relic will continuously pulsate with divine light, amplifying the strength of his allies while weakening his enemies.</em>


    <em>*Allies affected by the pulse of divine light will gain a 30% bonus movement speed and 20% bonus attack damage. This effect is not stackable with the other Relic of Gods and Goddesses from other Pdins.</em>


    <em>*The relicsts for thirty seconds. Cooldown starts upon the destruction of the relic or its disappearance.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Pdin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 560 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 20 Seconds]</em>


    Big Dipper while still under the reinforcement of the Divine Avatar rushed at Joseph with a stern look on your face.


    The members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven who received an 80% boost of movement speed due to the effects of Divine Avatar and Relic of the Gods and Goddesses became as swift as the wind as they appeared right in front of Joseph.


    Their movement speed startled Joseph as Fuurinkazan made his attack.


    A thrust flew directly at Joseph''s chest but Joseph merely swung his Rapier like a whip and fiercely deflected that attack away from his body.


    However, Fuurinkazan whose attack was deflected by Joseph suddenly lifted a light smile.


    He ducked his head down below and what came from behind him was a punch from the Barbarian, No Sucker Punch.


    "Fist of a Barbarian!"


    <em>[Fist of a Barbarian]</em>


    <em>Takes a moment to deliver a powerful punch to a single enemy.</em>


    <em>*Deals devastating amounts of damage if itnds.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Barbarian</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 2521 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 20 Seconds.]</em>


    Barbarians were known for their ability to deal devastating amounts of damage and the ability to inflict Stuns and Staggers to their enemies due to their innate ss passive. However, despite all of these, No Sucker Punch''s attack wasn''t actually directed at Joseph''s body!


    Instead, it was at his Rapier!


    Yes!


    His attack was directed at the Nameless Rapier in Joseph''s hand!


    Even Joseph wasn''t able to react to this change!


    His Rapier was struck and even though he didn''t suffer any damage.


    The attack was strong enough to disce his Rapier away from his hands.


    Joseph was quick to react and he was about to recall his Rapier back to his hand, when suddenly...


    Cold killing intent came from in front of him and the Assassin, Slice of Life emerged from Concealment.


    Slice of Life''s eyes shed with a dangerous light as he sent a punch towards Joseph''s face.


    Although confused as to why Slice of Life was punching him instead of stabbing him with his daggers. Joseph''s reactions were quick as he swiftly activated one of his few defensive skills.


    "Parry!" He softly uttered when Slice of Life''s punch was about to hit his face.


    But before the punch could evennd on his forehead.


    Slice of Life''s clenched fist suddenly opened and revealed a handful of sand that he hurled directly into Joseph''s eyes.


    "AHHH!" Joseph cried out loud in pain, but the sand didn''t take away his vision.


    After all, being blind in the world of Victory was also a form of abnormal status.


    He was immune to all sorts of abnormal statuses so he couldn''t possibly be blind.


    But when Joseph blinked his eyes to remove the sand from his eyes.


    He realized that Slice of Life wasn''t standing in front of him anymore.


    <em>Where did he go?</em>


    Joseph whispered and a sense of dread suddenly came from behind him.


    But it was already toote.


    "Shameless Trick!" Slice of Life softly uttered as Joseph''s blood scattered across his clothes.


    <em>[Shameless Trick]</em>


    <em>After throwing any object that can block the vision of the enemy. Quickly move around him to deal 200% of your Attack Damage to the enemy.</em>


    <em>*Bleed Status is guaranteed upon a sessful attack.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Assassin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 25 Stamina</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 15 Seconds.]</em>


    Slice of Life''s dagger plunged deep into Joseph''s back as a system notification informed him of what happened.


    [You suffered 30,506 damage!]


    [You are bleeding!]


    [Due to the effects of your title, The Sun that Overlooks Everything. You have resisted.]


    "Fuck..." Joseph uttered a curse.


    These system notifications had just appeared in front of Joseph''s eyes when No Sucker Punch''s elbow attacknded on his abdomen.


    Then, afterwards...


    "Soaring Swing!"


    <em>[Soaring Swing]</em>


    <em>Elbows an enemy before swiftly swinging the Axe to send an enemy into the air.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Barbarian</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 231 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 13 Seconds.]</em>


    His Axe swung upwards and sent Joseph flying into the air.


    Fuurinkazan quickly took advantage of this opening as he leaped into the air and met Joseph in mid-air.


    His sword gleamed in a dangerous light but Joseph was even faster than him due to the nature of his weapon and its length.


    "Bite of Justice!"


    <em>[Bite of Justice]</em>


    <em>A swift thrust with the Rapier. The attack will briefly stun every enemy struck by the Bite of Justice.</em>


    <em>Deals 130% of your Attack Damage.</em>


    <em>*Can go through objects and units</em>


    <em>*Does not break Super Armor.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 10 Divinity Stat</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown: 8 Seconds.]</em>


    Fuurinkazan''s expression froze when he saw the system notification informing him that he was in a stunned state.


    Big Dipper saw that hisrade was in trouble.


    "Unbreakable Will!"


    <em>[Unbreakable Will]</em>


    <em>A buff that lowers physical damage and magical damage received from enemies by 30%</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Pdin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: None</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 60 Seconds]</em>


    A beam of divine light flew in high speeds towards Fuurinkazan and reinforced his body.


    But Big Dipper wasn''t done here. He pointed his il at Joseph and eximed: "Lightning Smite!"


    <em>[Lightning Smite]</em>


    <em>Calls upon the might of the Seven Gods and Goddesses to strike a heathen with divine punishment.</em>


    <em>*There is a certain probability of inflicting Electrified to enemies struck by the lightning bolt.</em>


    <em>*Electrified - For every three seconds during the duration of Electrified. The user will be forced into a brief stun.</em>


    <em>*Deals 208% of your Attack Damage</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Pdin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 4204 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 32 Seconds.]</em>


    Lightning descended out of nowhere, but Joseph who was ready for any attack while he was still in the air was clearly prepared, he managed to perfectly deflect the attack back towards the ceiling of the Pce Halls where it came from.


    Fuurinkazan was still in the middle of the Bite of Justice''s stun.


    Joseph quickly took advantage of this opening.


    "Aim for the Skies!"


    <em>[Aim for the Skies]</em>


    <em>A sh that starts from below and ends above. It will send a single targeted enemy up in the air.</em>


    <em>Deals 105% of your Attack Damage.</em>


    <em>*Cannot go through objects and units.</em>


    <em>*Does not break Super Armor.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost:25 Divinity Stat.</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown: 12 Seconds.]</em>


    [You dealt 18,107 damage!]


    Fuurinkazan flew even higher into the air instead of descending and with the help of the momentum from his attack, Joseph also flew upwards along with Fuurinkazan until no one below could possibly reach them anymore.


    However, right at this moment, the Legendary yer, Kristian suddenly exerted his authority as the Absolute Monarch.


    "I order you toe down!"


    His words were only directed to Fuurinkazan for he was sure that he couldn''t possibly affect Joseph with his skill.


    After all, even though he was a Legendary yer.


    Joseph was Mythical ss yer, a yer whose ss was a tier higher than him.


    He wasn''t so conceited to think that he couldpel obedience from such a figure.


    Furthermore, his order for Fuurinkazan toe down also had another purpose.


    It was to prevent Joseph from attacking Fuurinkazan in mid-air where none of them could reach and help him.


    The orders of the Absolute Monarch were absolute and gravity itself moved to drag Fuurinkazan as fast as possible down towards the ground.


    Joseph was astonished by this change but he wasn''t surprised.


    He knew that Kristian''s ss gave him a strange ability simr to the Staff of Obedience that the City Chief had back at the City Perpetually Hidden from the Sun. Knowing this fact, Joseph wasn''t that surprised when he saw that Kristian could evenpel the forces of nature to obey him.


    Kristian''s intervention prevented Joseph from executing his ns, but Joseph had a few tricks up his sleeves. The moment Fuurinkazan rapidly descended from the skies. Joseph suddenly held his Rapier as if he was holding a harpoon before swiftly throwing it towards Fuurinkazan''s direction.


    "Post-humous Justice!"


    <em>[Post-humous Justice.]</em>


    <em>From the air, throws the equipped Rapier towards a single targeted enemy. Deals 300% of your Attack Damage.</em>


    <em>*Can go through objects and units.</em>


    <em>*The knockback effect caused by the Rapier''s impact negates Super Armor.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 10 Divinity Stat.</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown: 25 Seconds.]</em>


    "FUCK!" Kristian loudly cursed when he saw Joseph''s attack.


    At this moment, he suddenly realized that what he did wasn''t actually helping Fuurinkazan.


    Instead, by forcefully dragging him downwards...


    He rendered Fuurinkazan immobile and under the mercy of gravity as Joseph''s incredibly sharp and fast Rapier flew towards him and burst his head open, killing him instantly.


    Blood and brain matter spilled onto the ground as yet another member of the Guild Strongest Under Heaven met his demise under Joseph''s fierce attacks.


    "I''ll kill you!" Kristian''s eyes went red.


    He stared right at Joseph as if he had gone mad.


    "Space Copse!"


    Kristian flicked his sleeve and he tore the space surrounding Joseph through his understanding of the Concept of Obedience.


    Hepelled the space around Joseph to copse on itself, but copsing space was an extremely difficult task and even if it was possible, it wasn''t one of the fastest attacks to execute.


    As soon as Joseph felt the space around him contort.


    He quickly turned to look at Big Dipper and fiercely whispered, "Dash!"


    <em>[The Grand Duelist''s Dash Lv. Max]</em>


    <em>Be briefly untargetable and dash to a targeted enemy. Upon arrival, your next skill or basic attack will unconditionally deal 200% of your Attack Damage stackable upon other effects such as skill effects, or on-hit effects.</em>


    <em>* When not using the designated ss-specific weapon. The skill deals 50% reduced damage.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: None</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 5 Minutes. ]</em>


    Kristian''s attack was still sessful and space had indeed copsed around Joseph.


    But since the Grand Duelist''s Dash granted a moment of invincibility while it was being used.


    His attack didn''t deal any damage to Joseph at all.


    Furthermore, when he blinked and opened his eyes once again...


    He realized that Joseph had disappeared and Big Dipper''s cry for help echoed from behind him.


    The Knight, Big Boss, Kristian, and the Assassin, Slice of Life instantly turned around the moment they heard Big Dipper''s cry for help.


    But it was already toote.


    Joseph had alreadypleted the initial stance necessary for the activation of the Grand Duelist''s Divine Art.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, Third Form..."


    Joseph lifted a smile on his face.


    "Dipper! Stance of Faith!" Kristian cried out loud.


    <em>[Stance of Faith]</em>


    <em>Takes a deep breath and channels the power of faith to the Seven Gods and Goddesses to enter a defensive state that is canceled upon any movement input. Receiving damage while in the Stance of Faith will automatically reflect that attack to the enemy.</em>


    <em>*Does not reflect attacks that deal True Damage.</em>


    <em>*You will be invincible against skills with Crowd Control Effects for the duration of the skill.</em>


    <em>*Stance of Faithsts for six seconds.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: Pdin</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 3863 MP</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown Time: 75 Seconds.]</em>


    But Big Dipper only shook his head.


    Stance of Faith could indeed grant him the invincibility that he needed to survive Joseph''s iing onught.


    Its initial cast time may only be two seconds but in a battle like this...


    Two seconds was far too long.


    In fact, the moment Big Dipper shook his head in reply...


    Joseph''s Rapier was already heading towards him.


    "Grace!" Joseph uttered.


    His body turned into a blur and his Rapier followed.


    <em>[Grace]</em>


    <em>A three-movement attack that ends with a devastating thrust.</em>


    <em>Each strike deals 600% of your Attack Damage.</em>


    <em>* Can go through objects and units.</em>


    <em>* User must maneuver during the Rapier Dance.</em>


    <em>* This skill is affected by Attack Speed.</em>


    <em>* Can critically strike.</em>


    <em>* When not using a ss-specific weapon. This skill deals 50% reduced damage and cannot critically strike.</em>


    <em>Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.</em>


    <em>Skill Cost: 65 Divinity Stat</em>


    <em>Skill Cooldown: 60 Seconds.]</em>


    The Grand Duelist''s magnificence was perfectly disyed at this moment.


    In the form of a Rapier Dance that no one could possibly forget.


    [You dealt 318,420 damage!]


    [Your party member, Big Dipper has died!]

 Chapter 169: Besieged by Three Guilds[10]

    Chapter 169: Besieged by Three Guilds[10]


    A few seconds and a few attacks were all it took to kill Big Dipper, the one and only remaining character within the ranks of Guild Strongest Under Heaven that had support capabilities.


    With the deaths of their Theologist and Pdin.


    Only DPS characters and a main tank remained alive within the ranks of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    Kristian red at Joseph.


    He expected that Joseph had the capability of dishing out damage in the six digits.


    After all, even he whose ss was only a Legendary ss could do damage in the six digits.


    It would be a huge joke if Joseph couldn''t do the same.


    Unless of course, that Mythical ss was a support-type ss.


    But seeing the strange de in Joseph''s hands whose length was at least as tall as him. There was no way in hell that Joseph''s ss was suited for support. Furthermore, he annihted Big Dipper, the Off-tank, and Off-Support of Guild Strongest Under Heaven in just four attacks.


    He may not be as sturdy as the Knight of the team, Big Boss, but his Health was at least higher than the Health of the Theologist, Ama Namin by several folds.


    The fact that he killed Big Dipper in mere four attacks was a testament to his offensive strength.


    At this moment, Kristian swept his gaze at hisrades.


    Slice of Life''s health was about eighty-percent while Big Boss''s health was still at about ny-percent.


    His Health Points were about the same as Big Boss and the one who had the lowest Health among them was No Sucker Punch.


    The hyper-aggressive Barbarian whose fighting style really suited his ss.


    His actions, and attitude in battle really was the definition of a barbarian.


    Unsophisticated, it was as if he was fighting on the streets.


    Kristian''s mind madly spun at this moment. The Health Points of everyone in here, excluding the Knight, Big Boss were actually lower than Big Dipper''s Health Points.


    If Joseph could instantly kill Big Dipper in just a few strikes.


    What was stopping him from killing them all in the same manner?


    In fact, Kristian could see that the only reason why Joseph was unable to dispatch them all in just a few minutes was actually because he didn''t have that much experience on fighting yers!


    But from the swift death of his four members, it was clear that Joseph was slowly adapting.


    If the battle continued then there was only a single path remaining for the elite members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven here, and that was death.


    Kristian gnashed his teeth and swept his gaze towards hisrades.


    When he saw them nod their heads. Kristian took a deep breath and gave hismands through the use of a private voice transmission line.


    "Let''s tell these pretentious bastards behind us to help in the battle. I don''t think that they won''t help. It''s already toote for them to withdraw from the alliance. They already offended him!"


    Slice of Life raised his head and turned to look at Kristian: "But Kristian, what will you do if we lose in this battle? Will we do what we told them before? Or will we renege on those terms?"


    Kristian made a sidelong nce at Slice of Life for a moment before he turned to nce at Big Boss.


    Afterwards, a decisive light shed across his eyes as he dered: "We will renege! I don''t think that these bastards will be able to do anything! What''s more, we didn''t even sign a formal contract. All of the talks earlier were just verbal agreements."


    No Sucker Punchughed out loud: "Hahaha... Smart! Renege! Let''s renege!"


    It was obvious that No Sucker Punch was happy regarding this arrangement, though he didn''t think too much about it. For as long as he could fight someone, he was happy.


    But Slice of Life had other thoughts: "Kristian, what will happen if they made a post in the forums? Won''t that harm our overall reputation?"


    Kristian nced at Slice of Life and said: "You''re thinking too much! What can a mere Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice do in this remote kingdom that''s already on the verge of ruins?"


    "But let''s see... If they want to pursue us then let them! I''ll see if they dare to follow us back to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven!"


    At this moment, Big Boss, the Knight of Guild Strongest Under Heaven finally spoke.


    "I don''t approve of reneging."


    Kristian turned to look at Big Boss and sighed.


    Despite the fact that Big Boss didn''t talk much.


    He''s actually one of the most valuable yers of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    Kristian had to seriously consider his opinion.


    Furthermore, Big Boss was extremely popr with the ordinary members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven due to his righteousness and principles.


    Kristian may be the Guild Leader of Guild Strongest Under Heaven but he knew that Big Boss was the most respected yer within his guild.


    If Big Boss exited the guild due to the guild''s shady practices.


    It would deal a huge blow to Guild Strongest Under Heaven. In fact, a significant number of yers may even quit the guild just to go with Big Boss.


    Kristian let out a sigh. Someday, he will find a way so that he could kick out Big Boss from the guild without causing anymotion but at this moment...


    There was no way that he could ignore Big Boss''s opinion.


    He raised his head and turned to look at Big Boss before smiling: "Don''t worry about that, Big Boss..."


    "It''s just a proposal, if possible even I don''t want to renege on the promises that we made towards those people. But take a look at them. We are all in this together, yet why are they just standing there and observing the battle?"


    Big Boss made a sidelong nce at Guild Knights of Justice and Guild Crimson at the distance.


    dimir felt Big Boss''s gazend on his body and he felt a shiver down his spine.


    Big Boss may not talk that much but he was actually a feared existence within the world of Victory, especially to those who had the same ss as him, Knight.


    He also had a popr nickname, Unsurpassable Mountain.


    His wide stature and silence made him seem like a mountain that could never be surpassed. Those who dare to fight him in a duel eventually realized that it was impossible to win against him.


    But what was the reason?


    Was it because Big Boss was just that good?


    No!


    Actually, Big Boss''s mechanical skill wasn''t even as good as the Assassin, Slice of Life.


    The reason why everyone feared him was because of his ability to casually drag those fighting him down his level.


    He could decide the tempo of the battle with just a few micro ys. One moment, the battle may be fast-paced, but at the very next moment. Its pace could be as slow as a turtle.


    This was the reason why everyone feared him.


    In addition, his silence in battle made it so that no amount of taunting could work.


    Tilting him was impossible for he seemed to be unaffected by emotions, like a true mountain, unfeeling and distant to everything living within it and to everyone that dared to scale it.


    dimir tensed up and cold sweat drenched his back.


    Big Boss''s casual stare made him feel like he was being stared at by a thousand-year-old ancient beast.


    Big Boss revealed his pearly-white teeth as he smiled.


    "Gulp..." An audible gulp came from dimir''s throat.


    He stood there, frozen.


    Not daring to say anything nor even return Big Boss''s smile in kind.


    Big Boss then turned to look at Kristian once again as he thought.


    <em>Did I do it right?</em>


    <em>Was my smile good?</em>


    <em>Dang... It''s been so long since I smiled... I hope I didn''t mess it up...</em>


    Big Boss inwardly sighed but his expression remained indifferent.


    Kristian had a confused look on his face when he saw the murky light within Big Boss''s eyes. It was clear that Big Boss was experiencing some confusion at this moment, but Kristian couldn''t draw any answers nor conclusions due to the fact that Big Boss never expressed his emotions on his face.


    Kristian could only wait until Big Boss recovered from his trance.


    "Now that you have seen what those bastards are doing. Can you still say that we should keep what we promised to them?"


    Big Boss stared right at Kristian.


    "Yes..."


    Kristian was taken aback by the answer that he received.


    Secretly gnashing his teeth, he replied: "Fine. But that is in the condition that we simply lose and do not get wiped out."


    Kristian nced at Joseph who was now sitting cross-legged on the ground when he realized that he couldn''t eavesdrop.


    It was clear that Joseph was trying his best to recover as much Health as possible.


    This was why he didn''t intervene in their talks.


    "What do you mean?" Big Boss cidly asked.


    Kristian turned to look at him and exined: "If we''re all wiped out by this bastard. All three of us would suffer. Even I, don''t think that it''s right to kick a person while he''s already lying down. I''ll just consider it as fulfilling our promises to them and we''ll help them escape this ce."


    "But if we lose but did not get wiped out by this bastard. Say, one of those two guilds decided to change sides or surrender in the middle of the battle then we will not help them..."


    "After all, if these bastards can''t sacrifice their lives for us, then why should we bring them to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven?"


    "That is basically the same as inviting snakes to our homes!"


    Slice of Life and No Sucker Punch nodded their heads.


    Big Boss let out a sigh and finally agreed: "Fine."


    Kristian finally rxed when he heard Big Boss''s answer.


    It was clear that convincing this big guy alone took quite a toll on him.


    Afterwards, he then turned to look at Guild Knights of Justice and Guild Crimson and said.


    "Are both of you just going to stand there and watch us? You shameless bastards, we''re all in this together. Lending us your help is the least that you can do!" Kristian loudly criticized both Guild Knights of Justice and Guild Crimson.


    At this moment, hearing Kristian''s loud shout.


    Joseph finally opened both of his eyes and stood up.


    Sweeping his gaze at the approaching members of Guild Knights of Justice and Guild Crimson.


    A bitter smile appeared on his lips.


    The faintly glowing items that these yers were wearing made it clear that they weren''t your average yers of Victory.


    Joseph was already having a hard time fighting against the eight members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven, yet right now, sixteen yers were about to join the fray and simultaneously attack him together?


    A sigh escaped Joseph''s lips.


    But was he afraid?


    No!


    For him, despite the sheer numbers of his enemies.


    The battle has just begun.


    It may be a fact that he still hadn''t seen the true strength of his enemies but it was also the same for them!


    Joseph still had trump cards that he hadn''t revealed yet!<ol><li>A psychological attack against a yer, making them angry or unable to y at their fullest.</li><li>Joseph can see them open their mouths but he can''t hear what they are talking about.</li></ol>

 Chapter 170: Besieged by Three Guilds[11]

    Chapter 170: Besieged by Three Guilds[11]


    "J-Joseph! He''s being surrounded! Retreat! Don''t face them for now!"


    "Alice... Master is a Mythical ss yer. I''m sure that it would be quite easy for him to defeat these punks."


    "What are you saying? Joseph may be the Grand Duelist of the current generation, but I don''t know. Something is telling me that he does not know what he''s doing..."


    "Now, you''re just disrespecting master. You may be his mistress, but don''t me me if I get mad at what you are saying!"


    Alice finally turned her head to look at Ezreal.


    "How long have you been together with that master of yours?"


    "Uh..." Ezreal was taken aback. But after seeing the slight smile on Alice''s face that seemed to be mocking him. He mustered his courage and replied: "I''ve been together with the master for more or less a week!"


    "Pfft! A week? Only a week? It seems like the two of you didn''t spend that much time to the extent that he''d reveal his true nature to you!" Alice shook her head and was even clicking her tongue, emanating "tssk, tssk, tssk," sounds from her mouth as she said these words.


    Ezreal revealed a puzzled look and finally frowned: "Are you saying that he''s a fake person? Now that is something that I cannot ept."


    "Master is an iparably pure divine being..."


    "How could he be fake? If you don''t exin yourself then don''t me me for being rough even if you''re the master''s mistress!"


    Ezreal''s energy surged and his clothes pped along with it. A stern look could be seen on his face as Alice covered her mouth and chuckled: "Yeah, judging from that reaction. It seems like you really don''t know what kind of a person your master is."


    "Exin yourself!"


    Ezreal decided that he wouldn''t listen to Alice''s words anymore as he sternly dered.


    "Fine, fine, fine... Don''t be mad, all right? But let me tell you this! That master of yours isn''t as pure as you think! He may look tough and brave at this moment but he''s merely acting tough!"


    "In other words, Joseph is a pretentious person!"


    "That is what kind of a person he is!" Alice gestured to Joseph''s direction.


    Ezreal followed her line of sight and his eyes constricted when he saw that even though Joseph had a cid smile on his face. His back was actually drenched with sweat. Furthermore, Joseph''s legs were slightly trembling with emotions that Ezreal couldn''t analyze norprehend.


    If Alice didn''t purposely let him see such small details.


    Ezreal would''ve thought that Joseph could really take on these bastards.


    But now that Alice let him see such details.


    He couldn''t help but worry.


    "I must help him!" Ezreal stood up.


    "No, you stay back." Alice suddenly spoke.


    Ezreal red at her.


    Alice chuckled and exined: "Just let him fight them."


    "What is wrong with you? Can''t you see that master is struggling?"


    "I can see it just fine. But do you really think that we can give him any help?"


    Alice suddenly stretched her hand out and sent a beam of Sword Qi towards Joseph''s direction.


    But before the Sword Qi could even fly for several feet away from Alice...


    It suddenly disintegrated due to the intervention of some mysterious force.


    "The Royal Edict!" Ezreal softly uttered.


    "That''s right!"


    "With the Royal Edict in effect, there''s no way that we can intervene in the ongoing battle."


    "Damned it!" Ezreal sat down in frustration.


    Alice turned to face him and smiled: "Now don''t be so worried..."


    "I''m confident that Joseph can pull this through."


    "What makes you say that?" Ezreal replied.


    Alice lightly chuckled: "Ezreal, did you already forget what you said earlier? Joseph is the Grand Duelist of the current generation. He can easily beat those punks."


    Ezreal frowned: "But didn''t you told me that he doesn''t have any n on dealing against those bastards?"


    "Huh?" It was Alice''s time to be confused, "When did I say that he doesn''t have any n on defeating them all?"


    "I just said that right now, he''s struggling against those bastards due to their sheer numbers. But that doesn''t mean that Joseph doesn''t have any n on fighting them..."


    "The keyword here is struggling. As long as he can calm himself down and proceed on his ns. I''m sure that nothing will happen to him. Let''s just stay here and watch." Alice smiled.


    What she said made sense so Ezreal didn''t argue with her anymore.


    However, when Ezreal stared right into Alice''s eyes. As a member of that particrly pure species that could see through the souls of anyone with just a single look. Ezreal saw that even though Alice was saying that Joseph could easily pull his n through and defeat these guys.


    She was still actually anxious.


    But within her apprehension was an unwavering light of faith.


    Yes, faith...


    Faith to Joseph.


    Faith to her man.


    Faith that he wouldn''t lose.


    "Sigh..."


    Ezreal let out a sigh, <em>It seems like my faith towards master is not as firm as I thought. But I think, it''s probably because I''m also trying to take advantage of him... I wonder, if master discovers what I am nning, will he hate me?</em>


    <em>Will he despise me and take this blessing of a ss that he granted onto me?</em>


    <em>I don''t know...</em>


    <em>I still don''t know the answer to that question.</em>


    <em>But one thing is for sure.</em>


    <em>No matter what...</em>


    <em>Even if he will hate me in the future.</em>


    <em>I will do what I must.</em>


    <em>I must take back what should''ve been mine.</em>


    <em>But for now, no matter what will happen.</em>


    <em>I will serve the master to my fullest.</em>


    <em>I''ll consider this as an atonement to the sins that I will definitely do against him in the future.</em>


    <em>Forgive me, master...</em>


    <em>I must do it.</em>


    <em>There''s no way out for me.</em>


    <em>As someone born with this divine light. I have my own duty to uphold.</em>


    <em>Forgive me, master...</em>


    Ezreal suddenly closed his eyes as he silently prayed to the Grand Duelist and to the Holy World Tree, Yggdrasil.


    [Your affection with Ezreal has increased +10]


    [Your affection with Ezreal has reached the maximum limits!]


    [Certain privileges have been unlocked.]


    [You may now propose marriage to Ezreal!]


    [You may now be Ezreal''s sworn brother!]


    In the middle of the battle, Joseph suddenly coughed a mouthful of blood when he saw the system notifications appearing right in front of him.


    <em>What the fuck? Propose a marriage? To Ezreal?</em>


    Joseph''s movementsgged and he was almost struck by an attack from all sides. He managed to evade, but since he noticed the attack toote. He was forced to use Emergency Escape instead.


    [Emergency Escape]


    When in danger...


    The activation of Emergency Escape will let the user escape.


    *The user must activate this skill before being inflicted with the grab effect. Precise timing is a must or else the skill will fail to activate and will go on cooldown.


    Skill Usage Conditions: None.


    Skill Cost: 80 Stamina.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 120 Seconds.]


    "Emergency Escape!"


    A resonant voice rang out.


    It came from Kristian and when his words echoed.


    Their attacks against Joseph turned even more intense. But this was something that Joseph had expected.


    The skill, Emergency Escape was something that everyone had in their arsenal regardless of their ss.


    After all, it''s a skill given by default to everyone.


    Its functions and usage were clear from its name alone. As soon as they heard what Kristian had said. They realized that they had finally pushed Joseph into a corner. At this moment, excited looks appeared on their faces as they thought.


    It was finally time to reap what they had sowed!


    "Biochemical Missile!"


    The Gunners of both Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice turned their guns towards the skies and sted Biochemical Missiles into the air.


    [Biochemical Missile]


    A missile that creates an area of debuffs and disables upon its explosion.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Gunner


    Skill Cost: 833 MP


    Skill Cooldown Time: 18 Seconds.]


    Joseph raised his head and saw the Biochemical Missiles raining down onto him.


    These Biochemical Missiles were actually quite dangerous, but only because of the debuffs that they could inflict upon a yer.


    But Joseph was a Mythical ss yer.


    Surely, they know that he was immune to all sorts of disables and abnormal statuses, right?


    Joseph wasn''t so naive to believe that these yers didn''t know about that fact.


    After all, it was a well-known fact that the Legendary yer Kristian, the Absolute Monarch was immune to disables and debuffs.


    It would be strange if Joseph didn''t have the same characteristic as him at least.


    Joseph''s mind madly spun as he dodged the attacks flying towards him.


    Of course, he wasn''t able to evade all of their attacks for there were just too many of them.


    But ording to Joseph''s calctions. If he could continue his performance in this battle then he would be able tost for at least fifteen minutes.


    Before that time was up, Joseph must annihte these bastards...


    "Overwhelming Presence!"


    [The Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence]


    Activate to enter a state of [ Indomitability ]


    * While in the state of [ Indomitability ] all of your basic attacks will turn into ranged attacks. The damage of your ranged basic attacks while in this state falls off at about fifteen meters.


    * Your ranged attacks can critically strike for 300% of your Attack Damage.


    * While in this state, you will be a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. Enemy soldiers will have drastically reduced morale when they are facing you, and allied soldiers will be empowered while they are around you.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 hours.]


    "Reveal Vitals!"


    [The Grand Duelist''s Reveal Vitals]


    No weaknesses are hidden from your eyes.


    Reveals every weakness that the target has to the Grand Duelist.


    * Whenever a weakness is attacked, the target suffers 2.5% of their maximum Health as damage. The Grand Duelist''s movement speed is also increased by 10% which stacks for up to three times.


    * The weaknesses revealed onlysts for a half a minute. But whenever a weakness is attacked, the duration of the skill is increased by a second. *


    Skill Usage Conditions: Grand Duelist.


    Skill Cost:200 Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown Time: 10 minutes.]


    The world within Joseph''s eyes was suddenly deprived of color. But white circles that had the size of a small te were stered all over the bodies of his enemies.


    Joseph raised his Rapier and sent a thrust towards an approaching enemy.


    "What is he doing?" The yer from Guild Crimson was astonished as to why Joseph was attacking him when he was still quite too far when suddenly... He heard a cracking sound, simr to the sound of ss being shattered as he coughed a mouthful of blood.


    He flew backward in disbelief as a system notification floated in front of him.


    [You suffered 25,831 damage!]


    <em>What the fuck? Twenty-five thousand Health Points worth of damage? Did he use a skill?</em>


    <em>No, I don''t think so. He only pushed his weapon towards my direction and I was suddenly hit?</em>


    The yer''s eyes widened in realization and he hurriedly sent a message to hisrades.


    But it was already toote.


    Joseph was already wreaking havoc on the battlefield. He danced around and sent shes after shes and thrusts after thrusts towards enemies who were normally out of reach. The poisonous pools made by the explosion of Biochemical Missiles didn''t do anything to stop him.


    However, Kristian''s goal wasn''t really stopping Joseph.


    It was to zone him out from moving.


    After all, even though Joseph wouldn''t suffer any disables if he passed through those poisonous pools.


    It didn''t mean that they wouldn''t do any damage.


    Of course, if Joseph dared to cross those pools.


    He would still suffer some damage even if he wouldn''t be stunned nor disabled.


    Having achieved his goals, Kristian wore a smile on his face as he uttered, "Spatial Lock!"


    The space around Joseph distorted.


    [The surrounding space has been locked. Instantaneous movement has been disabled.]


    Joseph red at Kristian''s direction but he didn''t say anything.


    Kristian stared right at Joseph for a moment with that smile on his face before he signaled to the other yers.


    When those yers saw his signal, they all leaped towards Joseph''s direction.


    "Kill him!"


    "He can''t move now!"


    "Take advantage of this opportunity! Kill him!"


    The members of Guild Crimson was the first one to arrive in the air above Joseph.


    But Joseph didn''t just stand there and let himself be beaten to a pulp.


    He took a stance and chanted, "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, Second Form..."


    Divine light covered his Rapier as he shed at the yers descending at him from the skies.


    "Harmony!"


    His Rapier sliced through every obstacle on its path and in just an instant, several yers from Guild Crimson had died.


    dimir was angered by what he had seen.


    But he was angrier towards his subordinates who didn''t think twice before jumping onto Joseph.


    However, the fact that his subordinates died under Joseph''s de was something that he couldn''t forget nor forgive.


    He then rushed at Joseph as soon as the bodies of hisrades struck the ground.


    But unexpectedly, Joseph smiled when he saw him as he loudly dered.


    "dimir! So you''re finally willing to abandon these bastards and join forces with me?"


    dimir''s movements came to a halt as everyone who heard Joseph''s words looked as if they couldn''t believe their ears.


    Kristian and William paused what they were doing as well as they simultaneously stared at dimir.


    dimir''s pupils constricted as he realized what Joseph was trying to do here.


    "Fuck..." He audibly cursed.<ol><li>prevent on moving control movements limit movements.</li></ol>

 Chapter 171: Besieged by Three Guilds[12]

    Chapter 171: Besieged by Three Guilds[12]


    "dimir! So you''re finally willing to abandon these bastards and join forces with me?"


    The moment these words came out of Joseph''s mouth. Kristian and William, the Guild Leaders of Guild Strongest Under Heaven and Guild Knights of Justice all turned their heads to look at dimir.


    "Fuck..."


    dimir felt their gaze and he instantly became furious.


    <em>How could he not understand what Joseph was trying to do here at this moment?</em>


    <em>How shameless!</em>


    <em>He can''t defeat us all in a fair battle so he''s trying to break our alliance by nting suspicions!</em>


    dimir instantly saw through Joseph''s ns.


    The alliance that the three guilds made wasn''t really an alliance that one could consider as a solid alliance.


    This was an alliance done in a race against time and the terms were heavily tilted towards the advantage of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    Guild Dark me was once a part of this alliance, but since they had left.


    Of course, they were now considered as enemies of this alliance.


    The way their cooperation worked was that in exchange for Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice''s help, Guild Strongest Under Heaven would help both Knights of Justice and Crimson in their relocation.


    Yes, relocation.


    The ambitions of William and dimir weren''t just limited to the confines of the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether.


    They also nned on nting their foot into the bigger and wider yground known as the Kingdom of Burning Heaven.


    With Victory''s yer poption, the number of yers in that Kingdom wasn''t even in the hundred million anymore.


    It was reckoned to be in the billions.


    After the nobles of the Kingdom of Nether abandoned the Kingdom...


    dimir and William understood that it was only a matter of time until the end of the Kingdom arrived. Without a King to rule, and without any Knights to enforce thew along with the disappearance of the nobles and merchants who brought with them their riches and the economy...


    It was quite easy to foresee the end of this Kingdom.


    Joseph''s appearance as the First Mythical ss yer and the im that he made regarding the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether didn''t change the fact that the Kingdom was heading to ruins.


    In the first ce, William and dimir didn''t even believe that a yer could run a Kingdom by himself.


    These two Guild Leaders thought that it was probably better for them to relocate to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven than to stay here in a Kingdom that''s definitely heading for the worst.


    But there was something that they couldn''t understand...


    Why did Guild Dark me pull back from the alliance?


    Could it be because they knew something about this Mythical ss yer, or could it be because they were too afraid of offending both and not gaining anything in return?


    dimir and William pondered hard about this question while Joseph and Guild Strongest Under Heaven were still fighting.


    Of course, they were forced to stop their assumptions when they heard Kristian''smand that they must join the battle.


    However, that didn''t mean that their suspicions weren''t there anymore.


    They just didn''t think too much into it for now while the battle was ongoing.


    Despite the fact that their alliance was made impromptu. It could still be considered as a somewhat solid alliance due to the fact that the three guilds hadmon goals. First, they wanted to recover their weapons, and second...


    They wanted to go to the Kingdom of Burning Heaven.


    Joseph''s arrival and interference was just a bonus.


    The true target of their alliance wasn''t even Joseph.


    Instead, it was the Unique Boss, Ezreal.


    They had defeated Ezreal in the battle, but Joseph appeared and ruined everything.


    Now they were in this strange battle where the three guilds fought against a single person.


    That person nted a seed of doubt and suspicions into the minds of William and Kristian.


    dimir gnashed his teeth.


    He rushed towards Joseph''s direction, intent on beating him into a pulp.


    Joseph leaped backward in order to avoid a punch.


    He stabbed forwards with his Rapier and dimir raised his hand to block the Rapier and also p it to the sides. A smile could be seen on his face, it was clear that he intended on disrupting Joseph''s bnce by pping the Rapier to the side.


    Through that method, Joseph would be forced to prematurely retract his Rapier. But due to its length, he was bound to not have enough time on retracting his weapon.


    Taking advantage of that opening, dimir was sure that he would be able to suppress Joseph at that moment, however...


    When dimir raised his hand to block Joseph''s iing attack...


    The weapon in Joseph''s hand suddenly turned transparent as it passed through dimir''s defenses and struck him right through his chest.


    <em>Puchi!</em>


    <em>Crack!</em>


    The sound of meat being prated and ribs simultaneously cracking rang out as dimir coughed a mouthful of blood.


    His figure stiffened, it was clear that he suffered tremendous damage from the attack.


    "Protect the Leader!"


    "KILL!!!"


    Joseph wanted to continue attacking at first, but then the other yers had finally arrived. They rushed at Joseph from all directions and Joseph was forced to retreat by stepping into the areas covered by the poisonous pools made by the Biochemical Missiles from earlier.


    "Push him! Don''t stop!" William cried out and the Knights under hismand ran towards Joseph''s direction.


    "Don''t bother using any disables or stuns! He''s immune to all of those! Just attack him! Deal as much damage as you can!" Kristian also gave the yers some advice.


    As a yer with a Legendary ss, he knew that Joseph must also have that passive that grants himplete immunity to disables and stuns.


    The yers hadmon sense so they understood that much at least. As soon as Kristian''s words rang out, space itself distorted as colorful lights filled the air. These colorful lights transformed into a shower of attacks that descended towards Joseph''s direction.


    With the speed of these attacks, and Kristian''s Spatial Lock. There was no way that he could escape.


    Joseph let out a sigh and turned to look at the skies.


    The myriad colorful lights became simr to fireworks in the starry skies as Joseph softly uttered.


    "Parry..."


    As soon as these words came out of his mouth.


    The attacks raining onto him disappeared as if they were stones dropped into the ocean.


    Of course, there were some attacks that managed tond on Joseph''s body due to the perfect timing of their arrival to the disappearance of Parry''s effect, but it was still a fact that Joseph had indeed absorbed their attacks.


    "What?"


    The yers nkly uttered when they saw the disappearance of their attacks into Joseph''s body.


    "He absorbed my attack? What''s going on?"


    Joseph''s body emanated a faint glow as the energy of the attacks that he absorbed surged.


    He then slowly raised his Rapier and pointed towards the skies.


    "Discharge, Pierce Blossom!"


    A shockwave burst forth from Joseph''s body.


    Thousands upon thousands of illusory Rapiers flew to all directions with Joseph at the center. These illusory Rapiers instantly pierced through the bodies of everyone that dared to block their way and those yers simultaneously copsed from suffering tremendous damage.


    Joseph smiled.


    His body moved and he started dancing. He flicked his Rapier towards the copsed yers, sending waves after waves of attacks towards their direction through the help of the Grand Duelist''s Overwhelming Presence.


    [You dealt 30,260 damage!]


    [You dealt 26,682 damage!]


    [You dealt 25,495 damage!]


    The ringing sound of system notifications became like a symphony for Joseph''s ears, giving him utmost satisfaction as the lives of his enemies constantly whittled down with a flick of his Rapier.


    Kristian''s eyes reddened in anger.


    He pushed forwards with his palm and whispered, "Spatial Wave!"


    By distorting the space directly in front of Joseph. He could form an irresistible wave of force that would send enemies away from their original location, effectively zoning them out from essing an area.


    Since the shockwave born from the distortion of space wasn''t considered as an abnormal status...


    Joseph was sent flying and when he was in mid-air, the Gunners quickly took advantage of this moment to Snipe.


    "Snipe!"


    Several whispers rang out at the same time as the thunderous booms of high-powered rifles echoed.


    Bullets flew as fast as lightning from the barrels of their snipers.


    Joseph raised his Rapier in order to defend himself, but his efforts proved minimally effective. He did manage to block some of the shots but since he was in mid-air and the bullets came from every angle possible, it was impossible for him to block every attacking his way.


    Joseph pitifully rolled onto the ground, the dust that stuck close to his clothes made him look quite helpless.


    William clicked his tongue when he saw this scene as he whispered: "Fucking hell! How much Health Points does this bastard have? To think that he can endure through the simultaneous Snipes of several Gunners at the same time! Is this guy''s Mythical ss a Tank-Type ss?"


    dimir coldly snorted: "Have you gone senile, William? Have you seen a Tank-Type ss holding a weapon like that?"


    William merely nced at dimir, he didn''t reply.


    It was clear that he didn''t want to entangle himself with dimir.


    But when Kristian heard the banter of the two...


    His eyes suddenly brightened and a look of excitement appeared on his face as he cried out.


    "I found it..."


    "I found that bastard''s weakness!"

 Chapter 172: Besieged by Three Guilds[13]

    Chapter 172: Besieged by Three Guilds[13]


    "What is it, sir Kris?" William was the first one to ask.


    Kristian turned to look at him and dimir before saying in a voice that sounded more like an exim: "It''s his Health!"


    "His Health?" William replied with a frown.


    He then turned to look at Joseph and saw that there was a pale look on his face.


    "Wait, his Health?" dimir also pondered. A moment of silence ensued and when it was shattered. It was destroyed by dimir''s shout.


    "That''s about right! Yeah! His Health is indeed his weakness!" dimir''s eyes brightened as he dered.


    William had a look of confusion on his face, but his doubt didn''tst long when Kristian suddenly pointed out.


    "Have you noticed him ever take out a Health Potion to consume?"


    It was at this moment that William finally understood what was going on.


    Enlightenment shed across his face and he almost eximed: "That''s right! How did I not notice that?! Ever since the battle started, he had never consumed any Health or Mana Potion. I can understand why he''s not consuming a Mana Potion..."


    "He may have a different gauge, such as the Barbarians having Stamina Bars instead of Mana Bars. But Health? I have never heard of a ss that has something in substitute for Health..."


    "After all, Health is a universal concept here in the world of Victory. Even though he''s the first Mythical Ranked yer, I don''t believe that he doesn''t have any Health Points."


    Kristian nodded his head and lightly smiled, "That''s right."


    He began to look at these Guild Leaders in a different light.


    He thought that these two were quite stupid at first since they were willing to offend a Mythical ss yer just for the sake of relocating away from the Kingdom of Nether. But when Kristian received his subordinate''s report regarding the circumstances of the two guilds.


    He finally understood what was going on inside their heads.


    dimir was once an enemy of Krid, the Legendary cksmith.


    Furthermore, the disciple of that Legendary cksmith was dimir''s enemy and Krid''s disciple was now Joseph''srade. It was easy to see why dimir decided to go against the Mythical ss yer instead of establishing rtionships with him.


    It was impossible for them to form any kind of friendship with what happened between both sides in the past.


    Kristian let out a sigh.


    He decided that if this alliance really did seed.


    He''d help them achieve their goals of relocation.


    Of course, he would add some terms that were advantageous to Guild Strongest Under Heaven. Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice would have no way of refusing his terms once they were at Burning Heaven.


    Kristian secretly formed some ns before cing those schemes in the back of his mind. He then swept his gaze at the two and said: "dimir, William. It''s time for us to do this seriously. Both of you are the number ones here in your respective sses so I suppose that the two of you are quite confident in your abilities, right?"


    A frown simultaneously appeared on the faces of dimir and William. Even though they were instantly killed by Joseph with a single attack back then. That didn''t mean that they were weak. In their respective sses, they were the number ones. Of course, they were capable! Of course, they were confident in their abilities!


    <em>What the hell is this guy talking about?</em>


    Despite their irritation, the two didn''t speak up.


    They just stared at Kristian, seemingly urging him to continue speaking with their eyes.


    Kristian paused for a moment, but he then let out a sigh and spoke: "I''ll go and focus on zoning him out. Both of you should know what you two are supposed to do when I zone him out, right? Also, don''t forget to constantly shower him with attacks. I suppose that both of you provided enough Mana Potions to your yers, right?"


    dimir nodded his head and coldly replied: "Of course, we know that much at least. Does sir Kris really think that we are that stupid as to not prepare enough Mana Potions for our subordinates?"


    Kristian was taken aback by dimir''s sharp words.


    A strange expression appeared on his face, but his reply came quickly as he said: "That''s not what I mean, I''m just saying that we may need to keep up our attacks on him for the next ten minutes or so without stopping. I want to know if your yers can handle such a thing."


    dimir raised his head to stare at Kristian. After a moment of silence, a determined look appeared on his face as he said: "They can do it. Just trust them. We, the Crimson Guild had never failed even once."


    At this moment, William rudely interjected: "Crimson Guild has never failed? Why do I seem to remember that time when you tried to lure us into the Forbidden Region but miserably failed? Hahaha..."


    dimir''s eyes narrowed into slits, "Watch your mouth, William. Are you sure that you want to talk like that while standing beside a Grappler?"


    "Oh?"


    William was astonished.


    But he didn''t cower in front of dimir''s attitude as he said: "You want to fight?"


    "Stop!"


    Before dimir could even reply, Kristian had already interfered.


    "Save the yfighting forter! We still have to beat that bastard to submission!"


    William and dimir awakened from their trance, but they still stared at each other with hostility evident on their faces.


    Meanwhile back at the battlefield...


    Joseph danced around like some kind of a brain-damaged ballerina in order to dodge the attacksing his way.


    Strangely, despite consistently doing all of these in the past few minutes. Joseph didn''t feel that tired. However, not being tired didn''t mean that he was calm. It was clear from his erratic footsteps and panicked evasion measures that he wasn''t as calm andposed as before.


    Offense was the best defense, but Joseph couldn''t be aggressive anymore.


    He kept on dodging the attacksing his way.


    Of course, this didn''t mean that Joseph was truly in a passive state in this battle.


    If an enemy with a melee-type ss approached him.


    Joseph was quick to dispatch several attacks in order to kill that enemy. He was only dodging those that he needed to dodge such as attacks that looked like they would deal a lot of damage.


    But what about the attacksing from the Gunners whose projectile attack travels too fast for the naked eye?


    Joseph could only shake his head and bitterly smile.


    Against those attacks, he really didn''t have a way of blocking nor defending himself against them. Thankfully, bullets, although fast didn''t deal as much damage as the attacks from other sses such as Elementalists and Pyromaniacs.


    As for the attacks from the other sses except these two, they were slow enough that Joseph could block them with deflect...


    Unfortunately, Joseph understood that what he was doing was a mere stop-gap.


    He may be able to consistently block attacks from these bastards, but some of those attacks would inevitably slip past his defense and deal damage against him. In other words, eventually, this battle would be a battle of attrition and Joseph would definitely lose.


    However, this wasn''t the right time for him to attack.


    Joseph was waiting for something.


    And before that opportunity came, he couldn''t use all of his cards yet.


    [Your skill, The Grand Duelist''s Dash is now avable for usage.]


    A barely imperceptible window of system notification appeared in the periphery of Joseph''s vision.


    A smile that looked more like a smirk appeared on his face as he swept his gaze at one of the Gunners from a distance.


    He readied his Rapier and was about to teleport towards that Gunner, when suddenly...


    Bang!


    A Knight descended in front of him.


    Joseph frowned but he still continued his attack. The only difference was that instead of teleporting beside that annoying Gunner from earlier. He attacked the Knight in front of him instead.


    "Point!"


    Joseph uttered his breath and a dazzling light covered his Rapier.


    The Knight had a cid look on his face. The heavy armor that he wore didn''t seem to restrict his movements at all as he took step sideward and pped Joseph''s wrist aside.


    The p came so suddenly that Joseph had no time to prepare.


    He couldn''t stop his Rapier as the Knight raised his knee and attacked Joseph''s abdomen.


    Bang!


    [You suffered 25,160 damage!]


    Joseph flew backward and he struck one of the pirs that supported the ceiling of the Pce Halls.


    "Leader William is giving us this opportunity! Attack!"


    "KILL!!!"


    Joseph was still struggling to stand up when attacks suddenly rained down at his location.


    "Fuck!" Joseph violently cursed as he forced himself to roll backward.


    But when he was about to stand up...


    A purple-colored grenade suddenly rolled in front of Joseph.


    "Gravity Flux Grenade!" Joseph instantly recognized this Grenade.


    [Gravity Flux Grenade]


    Hurls a grenade towards, upon explosion. A shockwave will appear, sending enemies away from the center of the shockwave.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Gunner


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 9 Seconds.]


    Bang!


    The grenade exploded and Joseph flew into the air.


    He hurriedly adjusted his pose so that he could deflect the attacks of his enemies, but at this moment...


    The Assassin, Slice of Life emerged from his Concealment and leaped at Joseph.


    "The Wolf Leaps To Its Prey!"


    [The Wolf Leaps To Its Prey]


    Blinks to a nearby airborne enemy to deal devastating amounts of damage in a series of consecutive attacks.


    *The consecutive attacks of The Wolf Leaps to Its Prey can be canceled by any form of debuff.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Assassin


    Skill Cost: 605 Stamina


    Skill Cooldown Time: 45 Seconds.]


    Slice of Life''s movements were quick and following him were the missiles from the Gunners. They all descended onto Joseph at once and Slice of Life reckoned that it was impossible for Joseph to dodge any of these attacks.


    Furthermore, Kristian also sealed the space around Joseph at this moment so that he wouldn''t be able to use that strange teleportation ability of his.


    "You''re dead!" Slice of Life wore a look of excitement on his face, but when he stabbed forwards. What he got was nothing but dull feedback. He didn''t get the feedback that he expected from stabbing his daggers into flesh.


    "Parry!"


    At the veryst moment, Joseph''s Parry went off cooldown and he managed to activate it on time.


    Absorbing each and every attacking his way.


    Joseph raised his Rapier, anger could be seen on his face as he uttered.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship..."


    "Discharge..."


    Joseph prepared a stance and stared right at Slice of Life.


    Slice of Life gulped a mouthful of saliva. He hurriedly leaped backward a great distance to dodge the attack. But his pupils constricted when he realized that...


    Joseph''s target wasn''t even him in the first ce!


    It was Kristian, the Absolute Monarch!


    Joseph concluded that Kristian''s spatial locking abilities and his incredibly strong burst damage were extremely dangerous so he decided to execute him first.


    Vanishing and reappearing beside Kristian through the use of The Grand Duelist''s Dash...


    Joseph activated the third form of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship.


    "Grace!"


    A magnificent sword dance was then disyed.

 Chapter 173: Besieged by Three Guilds[14]

    Chapter 173: Besieged by Three Guilds[14]


    "Bastard... If you think that a flimsy sword dance is enough to defeat me then you''re too arrogant! Holder of the Mythical ss!" Kristian roared in anger when he saw that Joseph was targeting him. But everything happened too fast, the moment these words left Kristian''s mouth.


    Joseph''s attack had already descended and he was now disying the first part of the Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship''s sword dance.


    First part!


    All yers were in their most vulnerable state when they were in the air.


    Joseph quickly decided that the first part of his sword dance must send Kristian into the air.


    cing his Rapier below Kristian''s waist. Joseph swung upwards and made a motion as if he was a fisherman taking his catch away from the seas. Since this attack wasn''t considered as having any crowd control effects. Kristian easily flew upwards, shock evident on his face.


    Second part!


    Joseph leaped into the air, and like a whale diving back into the ocean. His Rapier shone in a dazzling light before piercing through Kristian''s body.


    A fountain of blood burst from Kristian''s throat as he spat a mouthful of blood.


    The divine lighting from the supports immediately enveloped his body and their support made him recover some of his health.


    However...


    [You suffered 106,812 damage!]


    That recovery wasn''t enough!


    Joseph''s attacks were far too strong for him to handle.


    Descending from the skies, Kristian adjusted his body while in the air despite air resistance and he managed to flick his wrist towards Joseph''s direction.


    "A Slice of Space!"


    "Spatial Lock!"


    "Spatial Prison!"


    Three consecutivemands came out of his mouth.


    The first distorted the space in front of him before shattering it into sharp pieces whose sharpness resembled ss. They all flew towards Joseph''s direction, while the secondmand prevented him from making any sudden and instantaneous movements.


    Thestmand, Spatial Prison instantly sealed Joseph''s movements in the form of physical, yet intangible chains made from the void. Since these chains weren''t considered as made by a skill that had crowd control effects.


    They sessfully restrained Joseph as attacks almost immediately rained down onto him.


    "What a tough bastard!"


    Joseph whispered a curse.


    He dealt at least six digits of damage against Kristian in just a few moments, yet he was still alive?


    There was nothing else that one could use to describe him other than being tough!


    Joseph lifted a bitter smile.


    Seeing the rainbow of colors made from all sorts of elemental attacks, he let out a sigh as he activated, yet another skill.


    "Fame and Honor."


    [The Grand Duelist''s Fame and Honor]


    Activate to temporarily enter a state of [ Valiantness ]


    * While in the state of [Valiantness] every attack received from all sources deals reduced damage, with the exception of attacks imbued with Divine Energy.


    * There''s a rare probability of inflicting [Fear] to those that dared to attack you while you''re in the state of [Valiantness]


    * Base duration of the skill is a minute, but the duration scales depending on how many enemies does the Grand Duelist have in front of him/her.


    * For every enemy facing the Grand Duelist on the battlefield. The duration of [ Valiantness ] increases by half a minute.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 3 Hours. ]


    A popping sound rang out and a burst of energy followed suit.


    At this moment, Joseph was now d in a magnificent dazzling robe that made him look like a courageous and brave general in the middle of a battle. When the yers that had low Spirit stat saw his current image, they all subconsciously cowered in fear.


    Some even directly copsed onto the ground, unable to endure Joseph''s prestige.


    "Calm my thoughts and emotions... Open my heart to your peace and magnanimity. Help me not to live in fear and reduce these feelings of anxiety in my body and soul... Lion''s Heart!"


    The Theologist, Forest Rain from Knights of Justice was quick to react as she almost immediately used Lion''s Heart the moment she saw the copse of herrades. A warm light burst forth from her body and promptly covered his allies.


    The fallen yers quickly recovered from their system-induced fear as they all stood up, staring angrily at Joseph who was still in the air and was about to swallow all the attacks that they sent towards him.


    Bang!


    A loud explosion urred.


    Joseph raised his weapon horizontally in front of him at the final moments and activated [Guard].


    [Guard]


    Briefly raise the weapon horizontally in front of the user to block iing damage from a single direction.


    The damage received will be reduced to a portion of the original damage, but it requires timing and precision to use properly.


    *Can block Super Armor negating skills.


    *The damage negated depends on the gap between the strength of the attacker and the defending user.


    Skill Usage Conditions: None.


    Skill Cost: None.


    Skill Cooldown Time 12 Seconds.]


    His timing was precise, maybe because he frequently used Deflect. A mechanic that required exquisite timing to use.


    However, the damage that he suffered was still too much as Joseph almost fell from the air onto the ground in apletely opposite direction from where Kristiannded at.


    <em>Shit, I''m not going to make it... WIll my Grace end here without it being used to its fullest?</em> Joseph inwardly thought. An attack came in his direction and there was no way that he could block it for he just used [Guard] and [Parry] was still on cooldown.


    But then suddenly...


    Joseph remembered a particr skill that every yer in the world of Victory had.


    "Aerial Evasion!"


    [Aerial Evasion Lv. 1]


    The user will immediately recover while being attacked in the air. Invincibility is provided for a moment, immediately after activation but is removed upon the next user input or upon a sessfulnding.


    Skill Usage Conditions: None.


    Skill Cost: 15 Stamina


    Skill Cooldown Time: 45 Seconds.]


    Joseph made a double jump while in the air.


    "Aerial Evasion!" Someone from Guild Crimson cried out.


    Joseph maneuvered himself while still in the air as he descended towards Kristian''s direction, intent on activating the third part of Grace. Unfortunately, when Joseph was about to reach Kristian. A Knight wearing a shining armor stood in front of him and blocked his way.


    "Sweeping Kick!"


    [Sweeping Kick Lv. 1]


    Perform a sweeping kick that will temporarily incapacitate an enemy once it connects.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Have at least a leg to kick.


    Skill Cost: 12 Stamina.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 6 Seconds.]


    Joseph didn''t even think before activating this skill.


    But the Knight, William was showing his experienced side at this moment.


    He hopped upwards and avoided Joseph''s attack.


    When hended, he turned his torso around and raised his leg. Sending a Roundhouse Kick at Joseph''s chest.


    [Roundhouse Kick Lv. 1]


    Perform a roundhouse kick to a single targeted enemy.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Have two legs to bnce and the other to kick.


    Skill Cost: 15 Stamina.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 8 Seconds.]


    Joseph pped the leg aside with a simple deflect and sidestepped to get past William. But when he leaped towards the left, what greeted him were not only the attacks of the other yers around him, but dimir was also standing on his way.


    "Bastards... You three are really ganging up against me, huh?"


    "Hmmph, stop joking. Aren''t you the one that wanted this in the first ce?"


    dimir coldly scoffed.


    William gave a smirk and interjected: "What''s wrong mighty Mythical ss yer? Are you out of steam, yet? Just admit your defeat already and give us our weapons back and we can consider forgetting what happened today."


    Joseph didn''t even spare a nce at William as he stared at Kristian.


    Right now, Kristian was madly chugging as much Health Potions as he could and from the healthy glow on his cheeks. It was clear that he was steadily recovering his health. This was something that Joseph couldn''t allow to happen.


    But what could he do?


    The Grand Duelist''s Dash was still on cooldown and apart from it.


    He had no other movement abilities!


    What about The Grand Challenge?


    Joseph really wanted to use that skill so that he could single out Kristian from the rest of his team, but it was still on cooldown! He used it against Ama Namin earlier, so it wasn''t avable to use.


    Joseph''s mind madly spun, but it was clear that these two wouldn''t give him any time to think.


    Right after William''s words rang out, dimir extended both of his hands.


    Joseph almost immediately leaped backward and dodged. Grapplers were masters of extreme close-quarterbats. It was unwise to fight them up close. He had to distance himself from dimir, but the Knight from Knights of Justice, William was coordinating beautifully with dimir.


    The moment Joseph retreated, he maneuvered around Joseph and sealed his escape route behind.


    Effectively creating a pincer attack that Joseph couldn''t possibly escape from.


    But what if he went for the sides?


    It was impossible since even though the effective range of a Grappler was short.


    A Knight''s effective range was enough to cover both sides and if Joseph really attempted to escape through the routes on the left and right. Not only would William stop him from escaping, but the other yers would also swarm up to him.


    That was something that Joseph didn''t want to happen until Kristian was killed.


    If he fell into their encirclement and Kristian supported them with a Spatial Lock and Spatial Prison.


    That situation would definitely spell Joseph''s doom.


    Even if he had a Mythical ss that was vastly powerful than the sses of the average yers here.


    But what if he leaped into the air?


    Joseph had no means of escaping whatsoever at this moment.


    He just used Emergency Escape, Aerial Evasion, and Guard.


    The yers from Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice seemed to have noticed Joseph''s plight as their attacks grew even more concentrated. Slice of Life abruptly came out of Concealment and appeared in the air above Joseph.


    A look of anticipation could be seen on his face since he was thinking that Joseph would definitely leap into the air so he could escape.


    Once that happened and if Joseph really did choose that route.


    There was only one destination for him.


    And that was his daggers.


    Slice of Life snickered.


    <em>Come... Hurry up... I can''t hold back anymore!</em>


    Slice of Life adjusted the daggers he held in his hands as a crazed light appeared in his eyes.


    But it was at this moment that a change suddenly urred.


    Right before dimir, William, and Kristian''s attack along with the attacks from the distance couldnd onto Joseph.


    A dangerous glint shone within Joseph''s eyes as he calmly whispered.


    "Strife."


    [Unique Skill: Strife.]


    A unique skill created based on the Grand Duelist''s Comprehension of the Concept of Discord.


    This unique skill, depending on the Grand Duelist''s input will turn everyone against each other. Once activated, all living beings inside including those with man-made souls will fight against each other.


    If activated against yers in a party, friendly-fire will be forcefully turned on and they will bepelled to attack each other without any exceptions.


    *Strife does not distinguish between foes and friends. Before activating this skill, please be mindful of your surroundings and make sure that a friendly ally is not in your line of sight!


    *The effect of Strifests for five seconds.


    Skill Usage Conditions: Unique Comprehension of the Concept of Discord.


    Skill Cost: Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown Time: 48 Hours.]


    Chaos descended onto the battlefield upon the activation of this Unique Skill.

 Chapter 174: Besieged by Three Guilds[15]

    Chapter 174: Besieged by Three Guilds[15]


    [The seed of discord has been nted into the minds of you and your allies.]


    [You cannot resist.]


    [Friendly-fire has been activated.]


    "What...?"


    These were the only words that Slice of Life managed to utter as the attacks from his allies that should''ve passed through his body and safelynded on their enemy, struck him squarely on his chest and body.


    Some attacks evennded on his butt, making him feel as if his bottom was undergoing a cataclysmic tragedy.


    Kristian, William, and dimir weren''t spared.


    Attacks rained down on their bodies and the three had no choice other than to dive forwards and ce their bodies onto the ground, reducing the surface of their bodies, thus reducing the damage that they had to suffer from the attacks of their allies.


    "What the fuck is going on?"


    "The seed of discord?"


    "What is that? A debuff? Supports, what the hell are you guys doing?"


    dimir angrily cried out.


    "I''m trying, sir! I''m still chanting!" A response came quickly in the form of a direct voice message.


    It came from Mapo Tofu, the Priestess of Guild Crimson.


    However, her face quickly changed when she realized that her spells weren''t giving any benefits to her allies. Instead, all the heals and buffs that she used went towards Joseph.


    "Sir, there''s a problem! All the spells that I am trying to use to support you are going to the enemy!"


    "What?" dimir asked in shock and visible confusion.


    William also received a simr report from the Theologist of Guild Knights of Justice, Forest Rain.


    He then turned to look at Kristian and said, "Sir Kris... The bastard is absorbing the support of our healers!"


    "Then, what are you waiting for? Stop your healers from giving out support!"


    "But what should we do now, sir? If this continues..." William nced at Joseph''s direction and he found that Joseph was already taking advantage of the chaos by killing several members of both guilds in quick consecutive shes of his Rapier.


    William tightly clenched his fists.


    dimir detected his anger but he could only let out a sigh as he said: "Don''t think too much about it, William! We''re going to get the hell out of this shithole after this ordeal. We''re going to start anew! Don''t think too much about those losses!"


    William nced at dimir.


    It was clear from the shocked look on his face that he really didn''t expect that dimir was the one that wouldfort him. Out of all the people on this battlefield, the person whom he regarded as his life-long rival would actually be the one that''s trying to calm him down?


    <em>What the hell is he trying to do?</em>


    William inwardly scoffed.


    But on the outside, he faintly nodded his head towards dimir''s direction, seemingly in thanks and gratitude.


    After all, even though he hated dimir. He didn''t want toe across as an ungrateful brat. That would hurt his prestige and dignity if his subordinates came to know that he was someone like that.


    But since he disliked dimir, he didn''t say anything. He merely gave a faint nod.


    dimir noticed William''s irritation towards his goodwill.


    He faintly shook his head.


    He knew that William wasn''t someone immature. Their rivalry just went for too long and at this moment, no amount of goodwill could possibly make the two join their forces together. In fact, if not for the powerful deterrence that Kristian had due to his guild...


    These two wouldn''t probably even cooperate with each other for this mission.


    Kristian gave a nce at the two.


    But after this nce, he didn''t pay any attention to them anymore as he kept on chugging Health Potions. The attacks that came from the elite members of his guild and the members of Guild Crimson and Guild Knights of Justice proved somewhat difficult for Kristian to endure.


    Despite the numerous passives that granted him immunity to disables and reduced physical and magic damage received. The damage that he took had reached at least six digits in just a few seconds. The number of casualties within the battlefield also soared.


    Kristian sent Spatial Locks after Spatial Locks, but it proved ineffective for the battlefield was in too much chaos. The yers from Guild Crimson thought that those from Guild Knights of Justice had betrayed them, while thetter also thought that the former had betrayed them.


    A fierce fight ensued, only stopping when the effect of Strife ended.


    Strife onlysted for five seconds, yet it turned the battle around into Joseph''s favor.


    At this moment, only nine people from the original twenty-four remained.


    Guild Crimson lost their Crusader, Tempest, Knight, Kung Fu Master, and their main support, the Priestess Mapo Tofu.


    Only dimir, a Grappler, and Ako Si Sean, a Destroyer, along with MartyrNoble, a Gunner, remained standing in their team.


    As for the Guild Knights of Justice; they lost their Barbarian, Pdin, Grappler, Elementalist, Destroyer, and their main support, the Theologist, Forest Rain.


    Their situation was even bleaker than Crimson.


    At least Guild Crimson still had three yers remaining including their Guild Leader.


    Guild Knights of Justice lost most of their elite members due to that sh, and what remained were William and a particrly bright Gunner who stayed away from the battlefield as soon as he saw the system notification regarding the friendly-fire.


    None of the remaining forces from Guild Strongest Under Heaven died from that onught.


    Although their health was quite low, it wasn''t something that a Health Potion couldn''t solve.


    Joseph stood at the distance and gave out a light smile.


    A pale look could be seen on his face.


    His crude tunic had towns from all sorts of ces and it looked like they were about to copse at any moment, revealing Joseph''s birthday suit to the world.


    Nevertheless, thenguid smile on his face never disappeared.


    He stared at the remaining yers from a distance and said, "Are you guys sure that you still want to continue this? Take a look at the corpses on the ground and count how many of your so-called elite members I killed, even though I''m alone..."


    Joseph''s sharp words stung deep into the hearts of the three Guild Leaders. Death within the world of Victory had harsh penalties...


    Aside from the fact that a single item would always unconditionally drop from the bodies of the dead.


    The dead also had their Experience Points deducted.


    And if their Experience Points were low enough, they could be demoted back to the previous level.


    A single percentage of Experience Points were extremely valuable for these elite yers.


    After all, an MMORPG was an unfair game that a single level difference could be enough to swerve the tides of the battle to one side. A demotion, may it be only by a single level could mean the difference between being at the top and second ce.


    Kristian gnashed his teeth. A particrly vicious light shed across his face as he said: "You may have won the battle, but there''s no saying who will win the war! You might have killed a lot of our men, but do you really think that you can be the victor in the end? We will have thestugh!"


    Kristian''s words gave courage to the remaining people within the battlefield.


    But there was no way to know if this courage only came from Kristian''s high Dignity stat, or could it be because these yers really did believe that they could still win against Joseph by overwhelming him with numbers.


    Nevertheless, Joseph was quick to knock Kristian down from his pedestal as he said.


    "Thestugh, you say? Well, I''m alreadyughing here!"


    A mocking expression shed on Joseph''s face.


    Kristian painstakingly suppressed his anger when he realized that his opponent was purposely riling him up. In a battle between experts, a single difference could mean defeat or victory. That also included the difference between your mentality and your opponent''s mentality.


    Anger often caused tunnel vision, and going tunnel vision in a game like this that had a lot of variables and required a lot of micro-ys in order to achieve victory was a death sentence.


    Joseph was taken aback by the fact that Kristian didn''t bite his bait.


    Sure enough, Kristian was still quite a sensible man.


    Even though he was arrogant and full of himself, he still had a few brain cells.


    Joseph inwardly chuckled.


    "Are you guysing for me or not?" A confident look appeared on his face as if he wasn''t severely injured himself.


    William and dimir nced at each other.


    At this moment, they really couldn''t understand where Joseph''s confidence wasing from.


    Just a single look on his face made it clear that his Health was less than thirty-percent.


    It was also obvious that he didn''t have any Health Potions.


    After all, if he had those then why wouldn''t he use it sooner?


    William and dimir became cautious.


    Kristian turned to look at them and whispered a few words.


    "Really?"


    "That can definitely work! I still have a Gunner and Guild Strongest Under Heaven still has that Assassin. We can zone him out with my Gunner and if he manages to slip past our Gunner''s firing zone, the Assassin will meet him halfway!"


    William eximed in excitement. It was clear that he liked Kristian''s n.


    dimir also had a light smile on his face. He was itching for a fight.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows but he didn''t stop his enemies from talking to each other.


    After about half a minute of waiting, the remaining yers of the three guilds started their move.


    Both Gunners from Crimson and Knights of Justice, MartyrNoble and Look At Me ran backwards and made sure that they could see the entire battlefield from behind.


    The Assassin, Slice of Life also entered Concealment and hid within the shadows.


    The Barbarian, No Sucker Punch rushed towards the front lines along with the Knight, Big Boss.


    dimir, Ako Si Sean, and William apanied them on their attack while Kristian stayed behind.


    Joseph''s furrowed his eyebrows.


    A look of astonishment appeared on his face when he suddenly saw Kristian open several bottles of Health Potions and chug them down his throat at once.


    <em>What the hell is he doing? Is he not going to attack?</em>


    As a yer that had a Legendary ss, Kristian''s DPS was far stronger than anyone in this battlefield, except Joseph.


    It didn''t make sense that he wouldn''t enter the battle along with hisrades.


    <em>Why would he stay there and chug Health Potions instead?</em>


    Joseph swept his gaze at the battlefield.


    He saw the Gunners standing from way behind at the distance. Their weapons were ready, yet they weren''t aimed directly at Joseph.


    Instead, it was aimed at a location that was directly ahead of Kristian. It was as if they were nning on zoning out whoever it was that nned on approaching Kristian.


    <em>Wait...</em>


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    A foreboding sensation enveloped his heart.


    "This strategy..."


    "This is Protect the President!"


    Joseph had no more time to think as the attacks from the remaining members of the alliance of the three guilds descended onto him.


    Finally, the battle was on its climax.

 Chapter 175: Gate Crashing

    Chapter 175: Gate Crashing


    Protect the President.


    This was a strategy that only had a single goal.


    It was to protect a single yer.


    Now, one may say that this strategy was needlesslyplicated. Was it really that hard to protect a person from a single enemy? Of course, not! It was easy to zone out a single enemy from the person you were protecting. But the problem here was that Joseph wasn''t just a simple enemy.


    He was the holder of the very first Mythical ss in the game.


    His heavy attacks dealt a quarter of a hundred thousand in damages in just a single flick of his sleeves. That was how overpowered Joseph was. How else could he possibly dispatch most of the elite members of the three guilds in just under five seconds?


    Kristian was finally taking him seriously.


    Joseph''s expression turned grim.


    Protect the President may be a strategy that had a single simple goal, but achieving that goal was actually quiteplicated.


    It had a lot of variables and a lot of conditions that must be met for it to seed.


    For example, if the enemy yer managed to take advantage of an opening and sweep past the attackers and attack the President...


    The strategy would crumble.


    If the backline couldn''t dish out enough firepower to prevent the enemy from approaching the President...


    The strategy would crumble.


    If the President couldn''t maintain the right bnce between focusing on himself and helping the front-liners and the backline...


    The strategy would crumble.


    Protect the President required deploying an airtight defense that not even a fly could prate around the President. In order to achieve something like this, each member of the team, may they be a front-liner or someone from the backline must have enough technical and mechanical skills...


    As well as game awareness so that this strategy could seed.


    Did these elite members of the three guilds have the skills necessary for the strategy to seed?


    Joseph didn''t know the answer to that question.


    Neither he had the time to think about it since his enemies were fast approaching.


    dimir was the first one to arrive, he leaped into the air andnded behind Joseph while Ako Si Sean, the Destroyer of Crimson Guild faced Joseph in front.


    The Barbarian from both Crimson and Strongest Under Heaven soon arrived as well as their Knights. With how huge and well-built the bodies of these Knights and Barbarians. Shouldn''t they move slower? Why were they so fast as if they were Assassins or Tempests?


    Joseph pondered, but he had no time to continue his train of thought.


    dimir made the first move.


    He stretched both of his hands out and Joseph was quick to deflect them away. However, the attacks from both Barbarians came at this moment.


    "Fist of a Barbarian!"


    "Soaring Swing!"


    Joseph swiftly ducked his head and avoided the Fist of a Barbarian by a hair''s breadth. As for the Soaring Swing, Joseph jumped sideways in order to avoid it. But the direction where he retreated was towards the bosom of the Knight from Strongest Under Heaven, Big Boss.


    If one looked at this move at first nce, one would discover that Joseph''s actions were incredibly stupid. He may have avoided the cmity of being sent into the air by dodging the Soaring Swing, but moving towards the direction of a Knight was basically sending yourself to the tiger''s mouth.


    Big Boss quickly took advantage of this opportunity as his armor shone in a brilliant dazzling light.


    But before he could evenunch his attacks, Joseph was even faster and a Bite of Justice interrupted him from continuing the short channeling window that every Knight required to do before being able to use their skills.


    This channeling window was only about half a second at most, it was too quick to intercept, yet Joseph had done it as if he had predicted that Big Boss would attack at that moment.


    Bite of Justicended right on Big Boss''s chest and it stunned him.


    William, who was also a Knight was done with his channeling and his zing attack flew towards Joseph.


    But...


    Peng!


    Joseph flicked his Rapier as if it was a whip and urately deflected the iing attack from William. Afterwards, an Axe descended onto him from the skies as Joseph utilized [Guard]. The sudden attack from the Axe was so swift that Joseph had no time to think about how he should deflect it.


    He had no choice other than to use [Guard]


    ng!


    The sound of metal shing against metal rang out.


    Joseph was forced to several steps backward.


    dimir reached out to him once again, but his movements were iparably slow as if he was hesitating.


    Joseph easily saw through his attack as he lifted his Rapier and moved to deflect dimir''s hands.


    However, when he thought that he had seeded in deflecting dimir''s attack. It was actually just a feint. It was the reason why dimir''s attack at this moment approached Joseph in an iparably slow manner. His true attack wasn''t actually using his hands, but both of his legs.


    "Roundhouse Kick!"


    dimir turned his body around and sent a Roundhouse Kick at Joseph''s chest.


    Joseph wanted to teleport and avoid damage through the use of The Grand Duelist''s Dash, but a system notification gave him a grim, yet timely reminder.


    [The surrounding space has been distorted and sealed. Instantaneous movements are impossible.]


    "That bastard..." Joseph lifted his head and saw that there was a contemptuous smile on Kristian''s face at this moment.


    <em>Yeah, go on... Keep on smiling. I''ll wipe that smile off your face soon!</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought in rage.


    The attacks from the remaining elite members of the three guilds descended onto him.


    [You suffered 5,602 damage!]


    [You suffered 8,759 damage!]


    [You suffered 6,306 damage!]


    His Health swiftly dropped under thirty-percent and a system notification popped up in the air in front of Joseph.


    [Conditions have been met. The skill has been unlocked for usage.]


    He couldn''t understand what this system notification meant at first, but when memories shed across his mind. He suddenly remembered what they meant.


    He raised his head towards the skies in response as a roar of desperation escaped from his lips.


    "Desperate Roar!"


    [Desperate Roar Lv. 1]


    Once your hp falls below 30% you can activate Desperate Roar.


    A scream filled with desperation enough to shake those who listen to it.


    Everyone who hears the scream will fall to a state of shock for three seconds.


    Skill Cost: 1/4th of your current Mana


    Skill Usage Conditions: Health must be below 30%.


    Skill Cooldown Time: 24 hours]


    This was a skill that Joseph acquired back at that Wolf''s Den. He never had the opportunity to use this skill since then, and finally at this critical moment. It proved quite handy.


    [You heard a scream of desperation and your will is shaken.]


    [You are now in a state of shock for three seconds.]


    The battlefield abruptly turned silent.


    The attackers in the middle of their frenzied attacks suddenly froze as if they had turned into statues.


    Three seconds!


    Three seconds couldn''t be considered as a long time, but in a battle like this. Especially when the enemy had a Mythical ss that specialized in offense.


    Three seconds of stun was a death sentence.


    Three seconds was enough for Joseph to annihte at least three of these attackers.


    "Sharpened Eyes!"


    [The Grand Duelist''s Sharpened Eyes Lv. Max]


    Once activated, your eyes will turn into [ All Seeing-Eyes ].


    * While in the state of [ All Seeing-Eyes ], nothing can escape your eyes. Every weakness or advantage of your enemies will be revealed. But it''s still up to the Grand Duelist on how he could see the truth from the false.


    * Whenever a weakness revealed by Sharpened Eyes is struck, you deal damage equal to 250% of your Attack Damage, plus 5% of your enemy''s current Health. Your Movement Speed is also increased by 10%, while your enemy''s movement speed is reduced by the same amount.


    * Whenever an advantage is struck, the number of weaknesses increases by one.


    * The effect of Sharpened Eyes automatically disappears after half a minute, or until all weaknesses are disposed of.


    * Can also be activated with enough concentration.


    * If you managed to destroy every weakness of a single targeted enemy, you can activate [Expunge]


    Expunge Lv. Max


    Detonates all remaining weaknesses for 40% of the damage dealt by the explosion of those weaknesses prior to the usage of [ Expunge ] and a certain percentage of your enemy''s current Health.


    Skill Usage Conditions: The Grand Duelist


    Skill Cost: None


    Skill Cooldown Time: 6 hours. ]


    At this moment, circles that were as big as small tes appeared all over the bodies of his enemies.


    Then, Joseph moved.


    His target?


    Those who had the highest DPS among the remaining elite members of the three guilds.


    Joseph quickly judged which of them should be his target, and his Rapier turned into a blur.


    He started out with Point, and then a Harmony, before quickly ending it all with an Expunge.


    [You dealt 53,592 damage!]


    [You dealt 152,602 damage!]


    [You dealt 350,215 damage!]


    A small explosion signaled the end of three lives from the three guilds.


    In just two seconds at most, they had lost both of their Barbarians and a Destroyer.


    These sses excelled at DPS, and at this moment. The three guilds lost their primary sources of damage. Kristian was the only DPS remaining on this battlefield.


    "How..."


    "How was that possible?"


    "How did you kill them in just three seconds?"


    Joseph turned to look at the incredulous William who was mumbling in disbelief.


    "I didn''t kill them in three seconds."


    "What?" William stared at Joseph in confusion.


    "I killed them in two seconds, at least be precise in your counting."


    "T-Two..." William''s astonishment deepened.


    Big Boss furrowed his eyebrows. A serious look could be seen on his face.


    Barbarians and Destroyers may not have high Health Pointspared to Knights, but they were not squishy targets.


    He reckoned that even Kristian needed at least ten seconds to kill those barbarians and that Destroyer earlier.


    But Joseph actually finished them all in just under two seconds?


    Even though those yers had injuries in the first ce. They shouldn''t have died that fast!


    <em>Dying in just two seconds...</em>


    Big Boss bet that those two yers shouldn''t even be mad at this point. In fact, they should be impressed and awed.


    Admiration shed across Big Boss''s face. He always respected strength so he couldn''t help but slightly bowed his head when facing towards Joseph''s general direction. But when he remembered that Joseph was their enemy. A sigh of regret escaped from his lips.


    <em>How good would it be if we were allies? I''d be d to be able to spar with him every day!</em>


    The shock was evident on Kristian''s face when he saw what happened.


    Joseph lifted anguid smile on his face.


    "Do you guys still want to continue? I can kill those three in just a few seconds. Do you really think that you can survive longer than them? If I were you, I would just surrender so I can save face and save my Experience Points."


    dimir had a dejected look on his face. He tightly clenched both of his fists and he looked like he was about to rush at Joseph.


    But he decided to not be hasty.


    The confidence radiating from Joseph''s body at this moment made him feel like he was an insurmountable mountain.


    It greatly reduced the morale in his heart, as well as William.


    "Arrogant... Do you really think that you have already won? Compare yourself right now to me. I don''t even think that your Health Bar is even at thirty-percent. As for me? I have already recovered. My Health is full and I am ready to fight you again to death..."


    Kristian lifted acent smile on his face.


    His words rekindled the hope of victory within the hearts of dimir and William.


    <em>That''s right!</em>


    <em>Why did we feel so scared against this bastard when his Health is already that low?</em>


    <em>Wait, what if he is hiding some Health Potions?</em>


    <em>Not possible!</em>


    <em>We won''t even let him have the time to use those Potions in the first ce!</em>


    Killing intent once again surged inside dimir''s heart.


    William looked like he was raring to go, but then Joseph suddenly spoke and said.


    "So you think that you can win against me? Remember that a tired camel is still stronger than a horse! My Health may be low, but that does not mean that I can''t defeat you all!" Joseph replied with gusto.


    But for Kristian, his words sounded more like desperate pleas.


    A light smile appeared on Kristian''s face as he unsheathed his sword.


    The faint glow on his sword and the dazzling light radiating from its de was enough to conclude that his sword was a high-quality sword. It should be an Epic-Tiered sword.


    The healthy glow on Kristian''s cheeks made it evident that the Protect the President strategy had seeded.


    At this moment, Joseph was now about to face a yer with a Legendary ss at full health!


    Furthermore, he also had to be careful of the attacks from the Gunners at the distance and the attacks from both dimir and William.


    No matter what angle you looked at this scene.


    The odds were stacked against Joseph.


    But was he discouraged?


    No!


    He was even excited!


    It was finally time to use that trump card of his!

 Chapter 176: Gate Crashing[2]

    Chapter 176: Gate Crashing[2]


    Kristian now had confidence that he could win this battle.


    Having the Legendary ss, Absolute Monarch. What''s more, in a fully healed state with a hundred percent of his Health Bar avable for usage. Kristian was sure that he would be able to win. If he still couldn''t win in this battle despite these conditions.


    He would probably take a long rest from the world of Victory...


    His guild was named Strongest Under Heaven.


    Being the Guild Leader of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    Kristian possessed sufficient strength to back up his ims that his guild was indeed strongest under heaven.


    However, in the face of this yer that had the first Mythical ss.


    Kristian realized that themon sense he knew regarding the world of Victory was crumbling.


    Twenty-four elite yers with high-quality equipment and items as well as rare sses. The yers from the three guilds that were indeed elites, yet a single yer managed to push them all to this extent?


    Kristian wasn''t willing!


    He wasn''t willing to believe that a single yer, even though that yer had a Mythical ss could easily defeat yers at their caliber!


    If that was true then the equilibrium of Victory would surely be broken!


    Yes, Kristian didn''t believe this assumption at first.


    But now that the truth wasid out bare in front of him.


    Kristian realized that he couldn''t ignore Joseph at all.


    Regret shed across Kristian''s face. He actually wanted to befriend this Mythical ss yer, but who told Joseph to be so arrogant? If Joseph epted his invitation back then, then the two of them could''ve been friends at this moment instead of trying to battle each other to death!


    Unfortunately, it was toote.


    There was no use crying over spilled milk so Kristian could only move forward.


    "There are six known primary elements in the world of Victory. I''m sure that you know about it already. However, among those elements and theirbinations. What do you think is the sharpest?"


    Kristian calmly walked towards Joseph''s direction, he started talking as if Joseph wasn''t in the middle of a battle against dimir, William, and the two Gunners at the back.


    Joseph rolled forwards and avoided a Stun Grenade.


    He then turned his head to look at Kristian and said: "What is it?"


    "Don''t you dare turn your head away from us!"


    dimir''s anger exploded.


    They were having a life and death battle here, yet Joseph actually had the leeway to be distracted?


    This is uneptable!


    dimir''s attack became even more rigorous.


    Joseph wanted to say something but he was instantly drowned by the attacks of his enemies.


    He was forced to devote all of his attention on deflecting as many attacks as humanly possible.


    Among the remaining yers that were attacking him right now...


    dimir was the most dangerous.


    Even though his ss wasn''t directly categorized as DPS.


    If he managed tond consecutive attacks on Joseph, it would be quite serious.


    After all, Joseph didn''t have any Health Potions with him.


    Joseph hurriedly retreated, but William stuck close to him like gum.


    "Fuck off!"


    Irritated, Joseph sent a Roundhouse Kick at William''s direction.


    "Heh..."


    William lunged forwards, acting like a Grappler.


    He held Joseph''s feet in ce and was about to twist his ankles, when...


    "Pierce Blossom!"


    Illusory Rapiers flew in all directions, turning William who was the nearest to Joseph into a porcupine.


    William swiftly retreated.


    Joseph pursued him but was blocked by dimir.


    "Where the hell are you going?"


    dimir''s fist came descending down onto Joseph''s face.


    "Persistent bastard!"


    Joseph allowed dimir''s fist tond onto his face, but almost immediately after itnded.


    Joseph''s Rapier flew like a snake and pierced through dimir''s chest.


    Furthermore, it also pierced through William''s body who was standing behind dimir and was currently chugging his own stash of Health Potions!


    "Just Counter!"


    [Just Counter]


    Quickly stabs at an enemy immediately after taking damage.


    Deals 110% of your Attack Damage.


    *Due to the nature of your weapon. Stabbing attacks will go through objects and units.


    Skill Usage Conditions:The Grand Duelist, Rapier Type Weapon Equipped.


    Skill Cost: 15 Divinity Stat


    Skill Cooldown: 4 Seconds.]


    William coughed a mouthful of blood. His body trembled and his face became flushed with crimson. This was a sign that William''s health was at critical levels. A single attack from Joseph could possibly end his life.


    The Gunners, Look At Me and MartyrNoble saw what was happening and they hurriedly directed their gunfire towards William''s direction.


    But why were they attacking William instead of directly sending their bullets towards Joseph?


    Well, it was because they nned on creating an encirclement of bullets around William.


    Was this effective?


    Of course, not!


    Since these rapid-firing bullets didn''t have the properties of knocking back enemies upon a sessful hit. Joseph could just dive into the hail of bullets and kill William. In other words, it wasn''t quite effective.


    However, it was actually useful.


    If Joseph decided to enter the encirclement of bullets.


    He may be able to kill William, but he would also lose a few hundred Health Points.


    With Joseph''s current Health Points, losing a few hundred health points was a gamble.


    Joseph would definitely not take such a gamble.


    He would y safe, conserve as much Health as he could until he faced Kristian in a decisive battle.


    But...


    Contrary to the expectations of the Gunners, what happened was the opposite.


    Joseph actually rushed through the rain of bullets!


    Carrying with him his Rapier shining in a blinding light. A whisper came out of his mouth, "Point!"


    <em>Guah!</em>


    William coughed a mouthful of blood.


    Joseph''s Rapier pierced through his heart, ensuring his death.


    "You..."


    "You bastard..."


    "You actually dared to rush me..."


    "Don''t you care about your Health Points at all?"


    William helplessly uttered as his consciousness darkened.


    Thest scene that he saw before his death was dimir''s frenzied attacks.


    "I''ll kill you!" dimir''s eyes went bloodshot.


    His fists transformed into a tempest that thoroughly battered Joseph''s body.


    Joseph deflected some of his attacks before retaliating with his own.


    "Bite of Justice!"


    His Rapier lunged like a snake, yet dimir actually managed to avoid it!


    A simple sway of his head to the sides made him avoid the iing attack.


    Joseph was quick to adapt as he leaped backward.


    However, dimir pounced forwards.


    It was clear that he didn''t n on giving Joseph any time to breathe.


    But he was bound to be disappointed for Joseph had drawn a clear line of demarcation on the ground.


    "Dividing Line!"


    A line shining in a divine light was carved onto the ground. dimir''s movements paused.


    As far as he could remember, if one crossed this line, they would suffer damage.


    In that case, dimir could just go around!


    dimir leaped sidewards and went around the demarcation line.


    His movements were swift and he was once again standing in front of Joseph in just under five seconds. However, the three seconds that took him to return to Joseph''s side was enough for Joseph to formte some ns as he inwardly chuckled.


    "Reveal Vitals!"


    dimir instantly felt that he was naked as soon as Joseph uttered these words.


    His expression went pale, yet his anger triumphed against his instincts.


    A roar came out of his mouth, seemingly encouraging himself to attack.


    <em>Peng!</em>


    A dull sound rang out as Joseph deflected his first attack.


    dimir suddenly fell t onto the ground, his feet became like a broom as it swept towards Joseph''s feet.


    "Sweeping Kick!"


    Joseph saw dimir''s attack so he jumped upwards in order to avoid the Sweeping Kick. However, as soon as Joseph leaped into the air. A cold ray of light shed across his eyes before it pierced his chest and went through his heart.


    [You suffered 10,582 damage!]


    "Heat-Seeking Bullet!"


    MartyrNoble wore a smile on his face. He looked proud that his attack seeded.


    Look At Me turned towards him and revealed a smile of praise. Look At Me was the type of person who admired those that had sufficient skills or abilities.


    Seeing MartyrNoble''s disy of skills...


    He instantly regarded him as one of his friends.


    But even though he was inwardly praising MartyrNoble.


    He didn''t stop attacking. As soon as MartyrNoble''s bullet pierced through Joseph''s heart, he flew backwards due to the impact.


    At that moment, a purple grenade from Look At Mended in between dimir and Joseph.


    "Gravity Flux Grenade!"


    dimir''s movements came to a halt.


    A Gravity Flux Grenade would drag enemies around it to the center of the explosion.


    In other words, he didn''t need to go after Joseph.


    Joseph was the one who would go to him.


    Boom!


    A resonant boom rang out, the Gravity Flux Grenade exploded and turned into a mini-ck hole that sucked everything around it into its center.


    "There it is!"


    dimir''s eyes widened in excitement. His fists were already trembling.


    As expected, the moment the Gravity Flux Grenade exploded.


    Joseph was swiftly sucked towards the center of the explosion.


    However, instead of fighting the gravitational pull of the grenade. Joseph even leaped towards the ck hole, further increasing his speed and messing up dimir''s rhythm.


    "Fuck! This shameless bastard! He actually delivered himself to the ck hole instead of retreating!"


    Sweat formed on dimir''s forehead, he canceled the powerful attack that he was channeling since he was sure that he wouldn''t be able to hit Joseph with it since his rhythm had been messed up.


    He swiftly changed his attack into a simpler one, but Joseph was even faster.


    Augmented by the gravitational pull of the Gravity Flux Grenade.


    Joseph reached dimir in a blink of an eye. His Rapier shining in the divine light of the Grand Duelist as Joseph whispered into the air.


    "Point!"


    His Rapier pierced through dimir''s heart.


    But this wasn''t the end of it all.


    "Plus, Harmony!"


    Joseph added Harmony as a cherry on top and instantly annihted dimir''s Health Bar.


    "Bastard..." dimir''s legs weakened and he directly copsed onto his knees. He felt incredibly humiliated kneeling like this in front of his enemy, yet there was nothing that he could do.


    His body wasn''t responding to his inputs anymore as his consciousness slowly darkened.


    dimir then died with great indignance and frustration.


    MartryNoble saw that his Gravity Flux Grenade helped his enemy on killing his Guild Leader and cold sweat instantly drenched his back.


    Look At Me turned towards MartyrNoble''s direction. He didn''t know what to say.


    Joseph was far daring than everyone had expected.


    Instead of retreating from a Gravity Flux Grenade, he actually used it against his advantage!


    Fighting against an entric enemy like Joseph who often broke themon sense of fighting in Victory...


    Look At Me felt pity for MartyrNoble.


    But since the two of them belonged to different guilds. He didn''t say any words offort, he just kept his silence. He knew that any words that he would say to him at this moment would definitely be misunderstood by MartyrNoble as sarcasm. This was why he wasn''t willing tofort him.


    "What are you trying to do?" Joseph turned to look at Kristian with suspicions.


    "What?"


    "Still ying dumb? Aren''t you in an alliance with those two earlier? Why did you not help them?"


    "Help them? It''s not necessary. We used the Protect the President strategy so they know why I didn''t help them in the battle."


    "What do you mean?" Joseph raised an eyebrow. He couldn''t understand Kristian''s thought process.


    "If you can''t spare even a brain cell to think about what I meant, then you don''t have to worry about it." Kristian''s expression turned serious, a menacing light radiated from his eyes as he continued: "You are about to die anyway, so what''s the use of knowing such things?"


    "Heh... You really are such a hypocrite. You said that I was arrogant, yet you''re even more arrogant than me!" Joseph''s words became as sharp as knives.


    Kristian was taken aback for a moment before he chuckled: "My arrogance isn''t blind arrogance."


    "Your arrogance isn''t blind arrogance? Stop joking, what you are trying to do right now is being blind itself!"


    "What are you talking about?" Kristian''s pupils constricted.


    "If you can''t even spare a brain cell to think about what I just meant, then you don''t have to worry about it. You are about to die anyway, so what''s the use of knowing such things?" Joseph returned Kristian''s words at him.


    "You..."


    "Arrogant bastard!" Kristian''s anger surged.


    But Joseph didn''t pay any attention to him anymore as he turned towards the two Gunners at the back.


    "Both of you, do you guys still want to fight? Your guild leaders are already dead, and I don''t think that you two would be willing to work with a guy that didn''t even help your guild leaders earlier, right?" Joseph''s words rang loud and clear.


    MartyrNoble and Look At Me hesitated, but when they turned to look at Kristian.


    It was clear that Kristian didn''t even care.


    He didn''t care if these Gunners would lend him some help or not.


    "He... He really is arrogant." MartyrNoble coldly scoffed.


    Look At Me bitterly smiled and nodded: "Yeah... What are you going to do? Are you going to help that bastard?"


    MartyrNoble turned to look at him for a moment before he replied, "Of course not! That bastard isn''t even from our guild, why should I help him? I''m a member of Guild Crimson, I move, only for the sake of the guild!"


    Look At Me was astonished by MartyrNoble''s words. But his expression revealed that he was apparently convinced as he ced his weapons down and squatted on the ledge of the pir that they were standing on.


    "I''m the same as you. I would help anyone save for that arrogant bastard!"


    Look At Me softly whispered.


    MartyrNoble smiled and sat beside him. Afterwards, the two actually started talking about their favorite hobbies and some other misceneous topics. From their leisurely expressions, it was as if they weren''t even a part of this battle in the first ce.


    "Heh..." Joseph scoffed.


    "Yourrades abandoned you due to your arrogance. Now, tell me. Which is more arrogant? Is it you, or me?" He didn''t let this opportunity pass.


    His words stabbed deep into Kristian''s heart.


    "Hmmph! As if I care about trashes like them! There are a lot of yers at their caliber here in the world of Victory. Or what? Did you actually think that they were special? Hahaha, I''m sorry but they are nothing." Kristian coldly snorted and even mocked Joseph due to what he had said.


    Amusement could be seen within the depths of Joseph''s eyes.


    Kristian didn''t speak anymore, as well as Joseph.


    The two slowly approached each other.


    Their nerves stretched tautly as every step they took sent them one step closer to their enemy.


    Finally, when the two were about twenty meters away from each other.


    They moved!


    Joseph''s movements were fast, but Kristian wasn''t slower.


    In a blink of an eye, the two met in mid-air, and their weapons fiercely shed!


    Boom!

 Chapter 177: Gate Crashing[3]

    Chapter 177: Gate Crashing[3]


    A loud explosion urred from the shing of their weapons.


    The impact sent both Kristian and Joseph flying backwards as they hurriedly stabilized themselves in mid-air.


    "Good weapon! After this battle, can you let me borrow that weapon of yours?"


    "Not a chance! As if you can even use it in the first ce!"


    "Ah, that''s right! Dang, how could I forgot that yers with sses whose tiers are Legendary and above have their own ss-specific weapons."


    "Oh, really? Does that mean that the weapon you''re holding right now is your ss-specific weapon? To be honest, it doesn''t look different from ordinary swords."


    "But of course! How can this look out of the ordinary when the weapon you''re holding right there is a ss higher than mine!" Kristian lightly chuckled.


    "Thanks for the praise." Joseph wasn''t humble at all and took his praise to heart.


    "Do you still remember the question that I asked you earlier?" Kristian suddenly said.


    "Oh? Is it about what element is the sharpest?"


    "Yeah, that question."


    "Come to think of it, you still haven''t given me the answer to that question." Joseph''s eyes narrowed. He could feel something surging within Kristian''s body.


    "The sharpest element in the universe is Space. There is nothing sharper than the primordial currents of space that could cut through everything in this world." Kristian had a look of excitement on his face.


    "Is that so? Howe I haven''t seen you utilize that sharpness at all?" Joseph almost immediately replied. As far as he could remember, he saw Kristian using his Space maniption abilities on restricting his movements.


    He may have used an attack back then, but Joseph didn''t think that the attack was quite sharp.


    "No worries. You''ll soon see what I''m talking about." Kristian''s eyes narrowed.


    He flicked his sleeves towards Joseph''s direction and sent a de made out of distorted Space.


    Space itself was invisible, but since manipting space required a lot of energy. Its movement would inevitably leave traces that others could see so that they could track the movements of space.


    As soon as Kristian flicked his sleeves and sent his attack.


    Joseph vaguely saw the air in front of him twisting as he hurriedly leaped backward and...


    Boom!


    A loud explosion urred on the previous location where his feet stood.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted when he saw the damage caused by Kristian''s attack.


    His attack actually managed to put a dent on the floors of the Pce Halls?!


    It has to be known that everything within the Pce Halls was incredibly sturdy. Of course, that included the floors of the Pce Halls. Despite fighting against twenty-plus yers at once, those yers and Joseph never managed to leave even a scratch on the floors of the Pce Halls.


    Yet, Kristian actually managed to do something like that?


    Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air. It seemed like this enemy of his, the Absolute Monarch, despite having only a Legendary ss was far formidable that he previously thought.


    This discovery made Joseph rethink most of his ns.


    If Kristian''s attack could leave a dent on the floors of the Pce Halls. Kristian''s offensive power was something that shouldn''t even be mentioned.


    Although Joseph could feel that there was something strange going on here.


    If Kristian was this strong, then why didn''t he fought him earlier?


    Why did he wait until most of hisrades were annihted before fighting him?


    That didn''t make sense.


    Joseph''s mind madly spun.


    But before he could even think any further.


    Kristian himself gave the answer to his question.


    "Is it that strange? Having the ability to manipte space; the sharpest element in the world. Being able to leave a simple dent on the floors of this Pce Halls is not something hard..."


    "But think about it. If I can leave a dent on the floors here, what would happen if I sent that attack to you instead?" Kristian had a mocking look on his face.


    But Joseph frowned.


    <em>Didn''t this guy wanted to fight me so much that he even employed the Protect the President strategy earlier so he can take the advantage? Why is he trying to intimidate me now? This is really strange.</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    But on the outside, he maintained a calm andposed expression as he replied: "Well, what you expect may indeed happen. After all, I don''t have any high-tiered equipment and armors like you..."


    "Look at me, I''m only wearing a simple washed-out tunic. In other words, I can consider myself as garbage."


    Joseph''s words were self-deprecating, but his eyes radiated intense mocking.


    Kristian fell into deep contemtion and he suddenly realized what Joseph meant by his words.


    If Joseph considered himself as garbage due to his bad items. What would be of those elite yers that he defeated? Wouldn''t they be lower than garbage since Joseph defeated them despite having high-tiered items and equipment?


    "Bastard!" Kristian growled.


    Joseph merely shook his head and chuckled. If Kristian still couldn''t understand what he meant even though he alreadyid out everything in front of him. Joseph could only say that Kristian reallycked some brain cells.


    Kristian suddenly rushed at Joseph at this moment.


    His sword radiated the distorting light of space and looking at it made Joseph feel as he was staring at the abyss itself.


    In an instant, Kristian arrived in front of Joseph and swung his sword downwards.


    Joseph raised his Rapier and met Kristian''s sword mid-way.


    Peng!


    The sound of metal shing against metal fiercely rang out.


    Both sides were forced backwards from the impact, but none of them capitalized on that opportunity and retreated.


    Instead, they rushed at each other once again.


    Peng!


    In a blink of an eye, Kristian appeared before Joseph and sent a thrust towards his chest.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted, "How fast is this bastard?"


    He leaned sidewards and evaded the attack that flew to his heart.


    His Rapier shone in a dazzling light and lunged like a snake towards Kristian''s chest, but...


    Bang!


    Kristian''s knees struck Joseph''s stomach, sending him flying into the air as Kristian followed after him.


    [You suffered 5,502 damage!]


    Joseph hurriedly stabilized himself in the air, but Kristian was already above him.


    "Bite of Justice!"


    Nevertheless, he sent an attack towards Kristian''s direction but Kristian blocked it with a simple [Guard].


    Having taken the higher ground in the air, Kristian had the advantage in this battle.


    But that advantage was swiftly taken away when Joseph activated Aerial Evasion and sent a Point at Kristian.


    "Point!"


    The blinding light of the Rapier forced Kristian''s eyes to squint, yet the sly smile on his face never disappeared.


    Instead of dodging Joseph''s devastating attack with Point. Kristian pounced forward, this was a suicidal act, yet his sword was also descending towards Joseph''s neck.


    "This bastard... He''s trying to trade blows!"


    Joseph hurriedly retreated.


    Since he was in the middle of sending an attack. It was impossible for him to cancel Point, so in order to retreat. He had no other choice but to let go of his Rapier and let himself fall on his back first onto the ground.


    Uponnding, Joseph immediately rolled backwards andmanded his Rapier to fly back to him.


    Swoosh!


    Air itself was torn as the Nameless Rapier returned to Joseph''s hands in neck-breaking speeds.


    Just as Joseph''s Rapiernded onto his hands, Kristian appeared in front of him once again.


    Joseph was shocked.


    He instantly nced at the Gunners at the distance, but Kristian realized what he was nning on doing as he whispered.


    "Spatial Lock!"


    [The surrounding space has been sealed and distorted. Instantaneous movements are now impossible.]


    "Bastard!" Joseph angrily shouted. He flicked his Rapier like a whip and deflected Kristian''s attack.


    Afterwards, he leaped backward and whispered.


    "The Grand Duelist''s Graceful Swordsmanship, Third Form..."


    The divine light of the Grand Duelist enveloped Joseph''s body at this moment as his Rapier moved.


    Kristian merely lifted a smile. He rushed forwards and met Joseph''s Rapier and at that moment, a magnificent rapier dance was unleashed.


    "Grace!"


    Joseph''s movements hastened and he reappeared behind Kristian.


    His Rapier shed at Kristian''s neck, yet Kristian managed to block it with his sword. But at the moment when Kristian blocked Joseph''s attack. Thetter abruptly disappeared before reappearing behind Kristian once again, carrying, yet another attack.


    Peng!


    The sound of metal shing against metal rang out and Joseph disappeared once again.


    "Above!"


    Kristian looked upwards and the gleam of Joseph''s Rapier met his eyes.


    sh!


    Kristian leaped backward to avoid the attack but it was toote. The Rapier carved a bloody line on his chest, dealing devastating amounts of damage but Joseph''s dance still wasn''t over. The curtain call hadn''t arrived, yet.


    There was still the final thrust of Grace that Joseph promptly sent directly into Kristian''s chest.


    Guah!


    Kristian coughed a mouthful of blood.


    He raised his knee and sent a Knee Strike onto Joseph''s stomach, but Joseph had already retreated.


    "That... You''re really strong... A single skill is enough to take away thirty-percent of my Health..." Kristian wiped the blood on his lips andughed.


    "If you focused and killed me earlier in the fight then you could''ve won, but right now? It''s already toote. You may have taken thirty-percent of my hp, but I still have about seventy-percent of my Health Points remaining. Do you really think that you can still win?" Kristian calmly said.


    Joseph lifted a smile, "Winning or losing is my business. Are you just going to stand there and talk to me? Hurry up ande to me already, I''m getting quite tired so I want to end this battle as fast as possible."


    Joseph''s words and tone of voice made it obvious that he didn''t care that much about his Health Points.


    Kristian''s eyes narrowed.


    He could feel that there was something strange going on, but he couldn''t see anything strange.


    This nagging feeling disturbed Kristian so he took a good look at Joseph, but there was nothing wrong with him.


    One of Kristian''s unique passives as the Absolute Monarch enabled him to see through the vital stats of his enemies such as their Mana Bars and Health Bars. From what he could see, Joseph only had about ten percent of his Health Bar remaining.


    Ten percent was basically nothing in a battle between experts, yet why was he so arrogant?


    Kristian''s eyes dangerously narrowed.


    He decided that he would use all of his strength tond that single and final decisive blow of this battle!


    Even a tiger uses its full strength against a rabbit!


    Kristian''s experience against fighting Joseph made him conclude that underestimating him was a suicidal act!


    "Fine... Let''s end it."


    "Let''s end this all in a single strike."


    Kristian took a deep breath and his eyes shed with killing intent.


    "Monarch Manifestation."


    Following Kristian''s internal chant, his figure became enveloped with a dark light that seemed to be even cker than darkness itself. The void trembled, space screeched, and the air itself was torn as a power of unimaginable scale burst forth from Kristian''s body.


    The whites in both of Kristian''s eyes disappeared, reced by two pupils that turnedpletely blood-red. Contrasting the darkness that covered his body and the undeniable might and dignity that radiated from his being.


    A wicked and malicious aura that demanded respect and obedience from all existence emanated from his body, causing everyone who was looking at him at this moment to gasp.


    "The Absolute Monarch''s Divine Art''s Ultimate Style: The Sword Explodes like a Supernova!"


    In contrast to the lengthy name of the skill that Kristian uttered.


    The single move that he unleashed was iparably simple.


    It was just a downwards sh, but when it descended towards Joseph.


    Time itself seemed to havee to a halt.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    While he was staring at the sword. He was shocked to find that there were no weaknesses or some sort that he could capitalize on to deflect the iing attack.


    Joseph quickly adapted, he took a stance and was about to activate Parry but he was astonished once again when he discovered that...


    The sword was blurry!


    The sword descending towards moved incredibly slow, so it should be easy for Joseph to time his Parry when it arrived, yet he found out that he couldn''t estimate when the sword would arrive at him!


    Deflecting required precise timing.


    Parry was the same.


    Joseph sucked a mouthful of cold air.


    The sword was now about a meter before him.


    He chose to leap backward in order to dodge the attack but his movements were slow.


    He was moving at a snail''s pace.


    Joseph''s gaze wandered and he then discovered that everything within the Pce Halls had slowed down.


    He could even see a speck of dust slowly floating back towards the ground.


    He then turned his gaze to Kristian.


    Determination shed across his face, and it was at this moment that Kristian''s attack finally descended.


    BOOM!!!


    An explosive rumble rang out and it made one feel as if the sky and earth had copsed.


    The entire Pce Halls trembled with iparable intensity, and even the pirs that served as the foundation of the Pce Halls had started to sway. It was as if a terrifying natural disaster had suddenly descended.


    Within the explosive sound, MartyrNoble and Look At Me who observed the battle from afar with bated breaths immediately lost their ability to hear.


    Shattered rocks along with some sand flew haphazardly into the air and for a moment, it blotted out everything within the epicenter of the explosion.


    Kristian and Joseph''s figure were nowhere to be seen.


    But a single system notification informed both MartyrNoble and Look At Me of the aftermath of the explosion.


    [Your Party Member, Kristian, has died!]


    The eyes of both Gunners almost popped out of their sockets when they saw the system notification floating in front of them. Kristian, the Absolute Monarch, who was on the offensive and attacked using such a powerful skill, was the one who died in the end...


    "What the fuck just happened?"


    The minds of the two Gunners nked out, they didn''t even know what to think anymore.


    The tremoring of the Pce Halls soon stopped and the dust settled down. Both Gunners stared wide-eyed at the epicenter of the explosion and the two collectively gasped when they saw the aftermath.


    What appeared before their eyes, was a huge crater of at least a hundred meters in diameter!


    In the center of the crater, was the lone and bloodied figure of Joseph.


    A relieved and satisfied smile could be seen on his face as he whispered.


    "Finally... It''s over..."


    He slowly raised his trembling hand and used his Rapier to pierce through the skies.


    Afterwards, a roar filled with deep joyousness came out of his mouth.


    "AAAHHH!!!"

 Chapter 178: Gate Crashing[4]

    Chapter 178: Gate Crashing[4]


    [Your ount bnce in bank ount ending in 4216 is: $6,863,572]


    Staring at the series of numbers in his bank ount.


    Joseph let out an audible gasp.


    <em>Wow... So, I am already this rich?</em>


    Joseph still couldn''t believe that the scene unfolding in front of him was a part of reality.


    Just a day ago, he defeated Kristian and the alliance of the three guilds and acquired a lot of loot.


    Of course, he hadn''t sold those items yet, but he directly converted the gold coins that he received from the King''s Trial into real-life money.


    But why?


    Well, the reason sounded quite silly.


    It was because Joseph just wanted to see a series of numbers that were more than five digits in his bank ount.


    He could still remember the scene when he got that prize money from the Festival of Battles.


    But that sensation didn''tst back then.


    After all, he had to use that money as soon as possible to pay off his debt.


    He didn''t have enough time to savor how rich he had be back then.


    But now?


    Now that Joseph was technically debt-free. He had all the time in the world to savor his money.


    And that was what he nned on doing!


    <em>It''s been six years since I upgraded this PC rig. I''ll be sure to fetch thetest GPU and CPU avable right now in the market. I''ll also get that PS30 that I''ve been wanting to get since three years ago. It''s time to scratch this itch!</em>


    Joseph''s eyes zed with excitement.


    He couldn''t wait to squander a part of his money, so he could feel like a rich tycoon.


    A silly smile appeared on Joseph''s face. He spent such a long time being poor that the feeling of having money made him feel as if he was a thirsty man who had just discovered an oasis in the middle of a desert. The sensation was exhrating, yet at the same time, indescribable.


    Joseph walked over to his cab and opened it. Inside were expensive branded clothes that his parents brought for him several years ago.


    Joseph spent a long time being poor, he didn''t have the heart to wear these clothes since that tragedy since he was afraid to be branded as a pretentious bastard that wore imitations of expensive brands to satisfy his ego.


    But now that he had the money... He now deserved to wear these luxurious clothes.


    A smile of satisfaction appeared on Joseph''s face.


    He proceeded to take a shower and return to his room.


    He then took out those expensive clothes from his cab, yet a bitter smile appeared on his face when...


    He discovered that none of theses clothes could fit him anymore.


    <em>Mama, Papa... Your son grew so fast... I only wore these clothes a few times in the past. Now, they don''t fit me anymore.</em>


    Joseph shook his head, sorrow briefly shed across his face but it was quickly reced with determination.


    <em>I''ll go and buy these clothes again! Then, I''ll visit the two of you, Mama, Papa...</em>


    He stood up and after dressing himself modestly. He then proceeded to walk towards the door, but at this moment.


    A mechanical voice rang out. It came from Yawa, his Artificial Intelligence Assistant.


    "Do not disturb; disabled."


    "You''ve got mail!"


    Joseph quickly turned around and uttered with a frown, "I''ve got mail? What is it? A spam mail? The filter that I made should''ve been able to stop those things from reaching me. Just how did those bastards bypass it?"


    He approached the Gaming Capsule and pressed the button on activating Do Not Disturb Mode.


    Afterwards, he walked towards his personalputer and opened his email.


    The email that he received came from P.H Works.


    [Greetings, Joseph!]


    This was the opening greeting of the email.


    [We''ve seen how you fought against the elite members of the three guilds. We were amazed by your ingenuity inbining both Unique Skills to defeat Kristian, the Absolute Monarch...]


    [We are hereby inviting you to our headquarters here in the Capital City of Pilipinas, Lans. You should''ve received a 3D Printable ess Keycard.]


    [We hope for a positive response. Please ce our request as your priority since we have to do some tests on you to make sure that you are not experiencing any negative effects from participating and staying within the world of the King''s Trial for no less than thirty years.]


    [We hope that you understand the severity of our request.]


    [Please rest assured, P.H Works will do everything in its power to make you asfortable as possible. With this responsibility in mind, we worked together with the Heritage Hotel Lans and we will be giving you free amodation as well as ne ticket reimbursement.]


    [We are looking forward to your visit.]


    [Sincerely yours, Elizabeth.]


    Joseph couldn''t help but lightly chuckle when he saw the contents of the message.


    <em>Dang... They even included a small advertisement in this email. But wait... How did they know that Ibined Bolster and Stagnate to create Death''s Reversal in order to defeat Kristian? Could it be that they were watching that fight yesterday?</em>


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion. He then decided that there was no way for P.H Works to know what happened yesterday if they weren''t watching everything the whole time.


    <em> But what was wrong with watching? </em>


    <em>They didn''t really do anything that''s detrimental to me, they were just watching.</em>


    <em>But Death''s Reversal, I hope they won''t publicize the details of that skill.</em>


    [Death''s Reversal] created bybining Unique Skill: Bolster and Unique Skill: Stagnate.


    Itsts for half a minute and swaps everything that the enemy has to the user. Including, but not limited to, the enemy''s four main stats, health bars, mana bars, and ss. The user can also appoint an ally as the target for Death''s Reversal.


    Joseph proceeded to shake his head. It was impossible for P.H Works to publicize private information about a user. If they did such a thing, then they would their credibility and several millions ofwsuit cases would follow.


    <em>Although I admit that it somehow creeps me out, knowing that they were observing me. What if they observed me at a particrly inappropriate time...</em>


    <em>Say, I''m getting somewhat sweaty with Alice...?</em>


    Joseph suddenly gulped a mouthful of saliva. Beaded sweat appeared on his forehead.


    <em>I must tell them that they must not observe my actions anymore! If they refuse to do so, then I''ll report them to the Games and Entertainment Association of Pilipinas!</em>


    Joseph secretly made some ns, so he could stop P.H Works from observing him in the dark.


    Afterwards, he then proceeded to print the ess Keycard that he received a week ago.


    Carrying the ess Keycard, he was about to leave his door when suddenly...


    His smartphone rang.


    It was a message.


    It came from Lily Aguinaldo.


    [Joseph! I hope you didn''t forget the promise that we madest week, all right? We are going out today! Where are we going to meet up? How about I just go to your house and fetch you from there?]


    Joseph bitterly smiled, <em>Just when did I promise her something? Wait, a message?</em>


    A frown quickly appeared on his face and when he scrolled back to see Lily''s earlier unread message...


    He almost coughed a mouthful of blood.


    The message was sent when he had just entered the King''s Trial!


    <em>Indeed, it has been a week since then.</em>


    <em>So, does that mean that I must meet her today?</em>


    <em>But I nned on going to Lans!</em>


    Joseph scratched his head, unsure of how he should proceed.


    I''ll just tell her honestly that I''m not avable today.


    After a few minutes of thinking, Joseph finally reached a conclusion that he was agreeable upon.


    He opened up his smartphone''s messaging app and replied to Lily''s message.


    [I would like to meet up with you and catch up after a long time but I have something to do. I''ll be going to Lans. I''m sorry, but I have to refuse your invitation. How about we go and meet up next time? I''ll make sure to clear my schedule by then.]


    Joseph reviewed his message for quite a long time before finally sending it.


    He sighed in relief and ced his phone back on the desk.


    But he didn''t expect that Lily''s reply woulde so fast.


    <em>The fuck? Am I talking to aputer bot?</em>


    Joseph inwardly thought.


    He opened the message and it read.


    [Really? But I''m already here! I just arrived. Open the doors, please...]


    <em>What? She''s already here? Dang, I don''t think that I can deceive my way out of being with her today!</em>


    Joseph walked downstairs and opened the doors.


    "Yo! What''s up?"


    There, Lily was standing with this wide smile on her face.


    Her light, chestnut-colored hair fluttered with the wind. Her ck, one-piece dress perfectly entuated her figure and made her look even more alluring.


    Without waiting for Joseph''s answer...


    She took a step forward and entered the mansion.


    She swept her gaze across the room and after discovering that nothing had changed. A slight frown appeared on her face, but it disappeared as quickly as it appeared. Joseph didn''t discover her displeasure as he stood there, looking at her with an awkward smile on his face.


    "What''s wrong? Are you not going to invite me in?"


    "O-Of course... I will. Come here, take a seat. Just treat this ce as your home, all right?" Joseph gestured for her to take a seat on the couch and Lily obeyed his instructions.


    Joseph fetched some bottled drinks from the refrigerator and ced it on the table.


    But Lily didn''t seem to care for the beverages as she smiled and asked: "I really didn''t expect that you weren''t lying to me back then. You really had a Mythical ss! That''s awesome! How did you get it?" Lily''s eyes gleamed with curiosity as well as excitement.


    Methods on acquiring hidden sses may be unique, but knowing the acquisition conditions was enough. Lily could then sell that information to the public and she reckoned that she would be able to fetch a sizeable sum if she sold some information regarding Joseph''s ss.


    However, she didn''t expect that Joseph would actually avoid the topic.


    "I don''t know... You won''t believe me if I told you. But anyway, I really don''t have time to apany you today. I''m nning on getting a ticket to fly there to Lans. How about we just continue this next time?"


    Lily frowned when she heard his words, "Joseph... Why are you treating me as a stranger? Aren''t we friends? As friends, I''m willing to be with you wherever you might go. I''ll apany you, okay? You want to go to Lans today, right? Then, I''ll book my own tickets and go there with you..."


    "By the way, why are you going to Lans?"


    Joseph was astonished by her words but he didn''t argue anymore: "I''ll be there to answer P.H Works''s invitation. It seems that they are nning on running some tests on me to make sure that I''m okay."


    "Wow! The P.H Works personally invited you to visit their headquarters! That''s awesome! Now, that makes me want to go there with you even more! Can you ask them if you can bring a friend? We need to make sure that I''m allowed to go there first since it would be quite embarrassing if I was stopped by the guards."


    "Yeah, that makes sense." Joseph nodded his head and contacted Elizabeth.


    Elizabeth''s reply came fast.


    "It''s okay! I can bring you with me, but she says that you must sign a contract first before going in."


    "A non-disclosure contract? It''s fine. In fact, just going there alone is already such an honor."


    Lily inwardly sneered, a non-disclosure contract? She had her own methods that she could use so that she wouldn''t get caught viting such a contract. Making her sign such a thing was basically useless with the methods that she had in her sleeves.


    "Okay."


    The two then proceeded to book the flight tickets to Lans.


    But while they were on their way to the airport, Lily suddenly eximed.


    "Ah!"


    "What''s wrong?! Damn, you scared me. Don''t just shout like that."


    "No, I''m sorry... I just realized that the clothes you''re wearing aren''t really appropriate."


    Joseph narrowed his eyes, <em>what was she talking about? These clothes may be old, but they''re still usable. Aren''t clothes supposed to be worn? And I am just going there to visit, not walk on the runway!</em>


    Nevertheless, he still asked her a question: "What do you mean?"


    Lily puffed her cheeks and it made her look quite cute.


    "You don''t understand what I''m talking about? Look at these clothes of yours! The whites are about to be yellows! These must be changed! Let''s go to a department store right now. I''ll help you pick clothes that will transform you into a handsome tycoon!"


    "Just leave it to me!" Lily crossed her arms in front of her chest and proudly dered.


    Joseph was taken aback by what she said, but when he heard the words, <em>"handsome tycoon"</em>.


    A gleam of anticipation appeared in his eyes as he said.


    "Okay, I''ll take you up on that offer!"

 Chapter 179: Gate Crashing[5]

    Chapter 179: Gate Crashing[5]


    The taxi turned around and went towards the most luxurious department store avable in the City of Sibu.


    Joseph was a spoiled brat before that tragedy. His parents brought him to this department store for at least two times a week, so he was quite familiar with the surroundings. The only problem was that it was about three years ago since he had visited this department store.


    Despite the familiarity, Joseph couldn''t help but feel a strange trepidation. He was afraid, even though he had money that he couldn''t afford even the most basic clothes avable in this department store.


    Lily dragged Joseph to the one and only branch of the Napoli Designer Brand here in the City of Sibu.


    The branch looked particrly deserted.


    Probably because everything in here was too expensive.


    Joseph nced around the store and his eyes almost popped out of his sockets when he saw that an overcoat costs about fifty thousand dors.


    Fifty-thousand dors!


    Not pesos!


    Dors!


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    A dor was about twenty pesos in the current exchange rate.


    Joseph made some quick calctions and discovered that the overcoat costs about a million pesos!


    <em>A million pesos for an overcoat?</em>


    <em>What the fuck?!</em>


    <em>That overcoat better have an all-expense-paid vacation to Canada with it or some shit.</em>


    Sweat instantly formed on Joseph''s forehead.


    It has to be known that the minimum wage in the City of Sibu was only about five hundred dors a month. In other words, an average citizen of Sibu would need to save his entire sry for a hundred months just so he could afford a single overcoat in this store!


    <em>Fuck...</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed.


    It was because he noticed an article of familiar clothing hanging on a hanger inside a cab.


    <em>Isn''t that the clothes that Papa gave to me back then on my birthday?</em>


    <em>Holy shit! A hundred thousand dors?</em>


    <em>For a t-shirt?</em>


    Joseph gulped another mouthful of saliva once again.


    Lily turned to look at Joseph and she was embarrassed when she saw how he was acting.


    <em>Wasn''t he a frequent patron of this ce back then? Why is he acting like a country bumpkin? Is he doing this in purpose to embarrass me?</em>


    <em>No, that''s not possible. We''re not in bad terms, so why would he purposely do something to humiliate me?</em>


    <em>But why is he acting like this?</em>


    <em>Could it be that the three years of struggling as a beggar turned him into an ignorant country bumpkin?</em>


    Lily''s eyes suddenly gleamed with realization.


    <em>That''s it!</em>


    <em>That should be the answer.</em>


    <em>But it doesn''t matter...</em>


    <em>He''ll eventually be rich anyway, so right now. The best thing that I can do is to not show any contempt towards him. I will be able to win him over that way!</em>


    Lily decided to swallow her pride.


    A smile appeared on her face as she turned to look at the young woman standing on the receptionist''s desk.


    "Can we have a salesgirl to guide us?"


    "A salesgirl?" The woman behind the receptionist''s desk hesitated.


    Are they seriously asking for a salesgirl?


    The woman''s eyes narrowed. She was someone experienced in this industry and had served a lot of wealthy customers.


    Lily didn''t look so bad with her clothes, but Joseph only wore a simple white t-shirt and pants...


    He looked incredibly shabby and out of ce here in this shop.


    The woman''s eyes narrowed.


    She noticed that there were some droplets of sweat forming on Joseph''s forehead.


    But this wasn''t out of the ordinary for the woman. It was because she had seen plenty of men arrogantly bringing their women into this shop to satisfy their ego, yet they ended up being defeated due to the prices of the items in this shop.


    <em>Was he one of them?</em>


    <em>Probably...</em>


    But the woman was trained to not judge someone due to what they were wearing.


    She maintained her professionalism and smiled towards Lily''s inquiry.


    "We have here our new arrivals for the season. Please take a look. We also have some items for those who identify as a member of the non-binary gender." The woman herself dragged the two of them towards a nearby tform where clothes could be seen neatly folded beside each other.


    Joseph felt his throat run dry when he saw the prices listed for each clothes.


    Even though he wanted to act like a handsome tycoon.


    That didn''t mean that he wanted to needlessly squander his money like this!


    Joseph turned to look at Lily and asked, "Can we go somewhere else? A ce that''s cheaper than this?"


    Lily''s figure visibly trembled.


    Joseph''s words weren''t quiet at all. It rang audibly within the silent and deserted shop.


    The salesgirl heard his words and her eyes narrowed into slits, but she didn''t say anything.


    <em>It turns out that this man is actually just pretending to be rich!</em>


    <em>Hmmph! </em>


    <em>Disgusting...</em>


    <em> If you didn''t have the money then you shouldn''t really havee inside this shop in the first ce!</em>


    <em>Come to think of it, we have that policy to kick those who only came here to window shop.</em>


    The salesgirl was already thinking of kicking out these arrogant teenagers, but she managed to calm down after reminding herself that she must maintain herposure in front of potential customers.


    "What are you saying, Joseph? A cheaper ce than this? Don''t you want to act like a handsome tycoon? If you want to feel like you''re handsome and rich. There''s no other ce than this!" Lily gently scolded him.


    Joseph wore a bitter smile on his face, "That makes sense, but this ce is just too expensive! I can afford it, but it''s just not worth it to buy from this store just to feel like I''m rich."


    "Then, what do you want to do?" Lily looked impatient.


    "How about we go and look for a simr shop like this, but with discounts? I can consider buying clothes that are as expensive as this ce for as long as they have some pretty good discounts, and maybe..."


    "Some freebies if we bought a certain amount of clothes, do you catch my drift?" Joseph made a proposal.


    Lily looked displeased, but it has also been quite a long time for her since she visited a shop like this.


    About six months ago to be precise...


    When she apanied her wealthy boyfriend back then in a ce like this at the City of Lans.


    A look of hesitation appeared on her face, but she eventually said.


    "Can we at least take a look at these clothes first? They look really pretty."


    Joseph''s expression softened when he saw her pained look.


    No matter what, Lily was still his good friend.


    "Okay, fine. I don''t think that there''s a problem if we just take a look."


    Lily nodded her head and she stretched her hand to one of the folded clothes.


    The salesgirl''s indifferent expression finally shattered. It turned out that she was right! This guy was really just trying to pretend that he was rich!


    Her expression became cold as she uttered, "Miss. If you are just going to take a look and not buy anything. Please don''t crumple any of the clothing."


    Joseph and Lily turned to look at the salesgirl and found that there was a sarcastic smile on her face. Her words weren''t kind at all andced with coldness: "It will be quite difficult for us to continue selling these clothes once they are crumpled..."


    "They are folded at the factory once, and some customers would consider these clothes as second-hand clothes once someone else touched and crumpled them."


    This salesgirl had a lot of experience in her sleeves, so she had seen many people simr to both Joseph and Lily.


    They woulde in just to admire these expensive clothes. They would touch and feel them and eventually crumple them to the extent that the shop had to send the clothes back to the factory so it could be sanitized and folded once more.


    Such an endeavor costs a lot of money, so the store made a policy to kick out those that only came here to window shop...


    Lily''s face turned red from embarrassment.


    But Joseph felt wronged and instantly became angry, "Why do you talk like that to your customers? Aren''t these clothes ced here in this tform for people to see and try them on before buying?"


    "And what if I really have the intention to buy?"


    "Sir, if you really have the intention to buy. You could touch and try them all for as long as you want, but can you prove that you can buy them first?"


    A faint smile of contempt appeared on the salesgirl''s face. A single look at Joseph earlier made her realize that the clothes that he was wearing were clothes that had been washed for several thousands of times already to the extent that the whites were faintly turning into yellows!


    And so, at this moment...


    She was fairly certain that these two didn''t have the money to buy any of the clothes in here!


    Joseph was furious.


    This was the first time in Joseph''s entire life that he had to prove his financial capability first before he was allowed to buy some clothes.


    This shopkeeper was being too arrogant!


    Only coldness could be seen on Lily''s face. But she didn''t say anything. After all, she really couldn''t afford these clothes and the only reason why she was even here in the first ce was that she wanted to get some free clothes from Joseph.


    If she chose clothes for Joseph...


    Judging from Joseph''s personality, there was a huge chance that he would also buy her clothes from the same store.


    This was why Lily brought Joseph into the most expensive clothing store here in the City of Sibu.


    But this salesgirl...


    She actually ruined all of Lily''s ns!


    Lily became furious.


    But she didn''t dare to reveal any of it as she nced at Joseph and said.


    "Forget about it, Joseph... Let''s just go."


    Lily didn''t want to cause a scene while she was with Joseph. She had to be in her best behavior today. But if she wasn''t with Joseph at this moment, then the scene could''ve been different.


    Lily wasn''t actually a patient woman. If Joseph wasn''t with her, then she would''ve already pped this salesgirl!


    "That''s right. If you can''t afford it, then you''d better get going. It''s good enough that I gave you both the luxury of seeing these clothes."


    The salesgirl impatiently waved her hand as if she was shooing away some dogs and cats instead of a customer.


    But then an idea suddenly popped up in her mind. She took her smartphone and said, "This here is ourtest and most expensive collection of clothes. You can go online and take a look. I think the imitations of these clothes should be avable soon."


    Her words were extremely vivid for both Joseph and Lily.


    What she meant was that they only came here to look and memorize the designs of the most expensive collection of clothes in this shop, so that they could buy their imitations online.


    Did they think that she couldn''t see through their schemes?


    The shopkeeper mockingly scoffed.


    "You bi..." Joseph lifted a finger and pointed at her in anger, but he didn''tplete his words.


    He was afraid that this unscrupulous salesgirl may use them of harassing her.


    But Joseph was really angry.


    "Where''s your manager? Call your manager here! I''m going to lodge aint against you!"


    Joseph wanted to teach this salesgirl a lesson.


    Who on earth did business the same as she does?


    Anypany would be bankrupt the moment they did that!


    "Sir, you can''t afford the clothes here, so you want to lodge aint against me? I''m not the reason why you cannot afford these clothes, you know?"


    The salesgirl''s voice became quite loud and it attracted the attention of the passing customers who then paused to look at the unfolding scene with curiosity.


    Lily was even more embarrassed now. This was really humiliating!


    "This store is a part of a global chain of stores and in this department store, this branch of ours is the anchor tenant of this mall. I think both of you came to the wrong ce. Isn''t there a sale going on downstairs for the new season? Both of you can go there and take a look."


    "All right, I think we''re done here. May I ask the two of you two leave at this moment? You''re wasting my time, please leave..."


    The shopkeeper actually ordered them to leave?!


    Lily''s expression became covered with anger. It was the first time that she met a mere salesgirl with such an arrogant attitude! What kind of a person was she? How was she working in the retail industry with such an attitude?!


    Joseph looked as if he was having a seizure from anger.


    It wasn''t that he couldn''t afford these clothes.


    He just couldn''t bear to spend the money that he painstakingly gathered from selling those gold coins for only a few clothes.


    However, at this moment. Joseph didn''t think about saving anymore.


    The only thought in his mind at this moment was to teach this salesgirl a lesson!


    "What''s going on?"


    Suddenly, a voice came from one of the doors behind the receptionist''s desk.


    The shopkeeper was taken aback for a moment, but after hurriedly arranging her posture and clothes. She slightly bowed her head towards the direction of the man who just came out from the staff room.


    "Sir Lacaba."


    The man who came out of the staff room had a tag on his chest stating that he was the Manager of this store.


    Joseph turned to look at him and his eyes widened in shock.


    The man looked familiar to him!


    "Sir Bryan Lacaba...?" Joseph absentmindedly uttered.


    The salesgirl frowned when she heard Joseph''s informal mentioning of her boss.


    But Bryan Lacaba, the General Manager of the store revealed a joyful expression when he saw Joseph.


    "Sir Entrada! It''s been a long time since we saw each other! Wow, you''ve grown up so much!"


    Bryan Lacaba revealed a wide smile on his face and patted Joseph on his shoulder, "How are your parents? Dang, I really missed them. They doted on you too much that my business boomed whenever they visited this humble shop of mine!"


    "Hahaha..." Joseph lightly chuckled.


    He then whispered everything that happened to Bryan and when he heard what Joseph said...


    A sigh came out of his mouth and he suddenly looked depressed.


    "I see... So, that''s the case... I''m really sorry for having you recall such a horrible thing."


    Joseph shook his head, "No worries."


    Bryan nodded and hurriedly changed the topic, "I wonder why sir Entrada came here to this humble shop of mine? Do you want to buy some clothes for you to use and for this girlfriend of yours?"


    "Hahaha, in that case, then let me present to you the newest clothing line in our collection! It may be quite expensive, but believe me! It''s worth it!"


    "Also, since you can be considered as a VIP Customer of this shop. I can grant you a discount."


    Lily''s anger swiftly transformed into a crimson blush when she heard what Bryan had said.


    Joseph saw the crimson blush on her cheeks and he felt awkward, not knowing how to react, nor what to say.


    But when his eyes wandered towards the salesgirl who was already fidgeting as she stood there, not knowing what to do...


    A sly smile appeared on Joseph''s lips as he said.


    "I would like to buy some, sir Lacaba. But I can''t."


    "Why?" General Manager Lacaba frowned.


    The salesgirl gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    A sense of dread filled her heart as she nervously nced at Joseph.


    "It''s because your employee here thinks that we''re too poor for your store!"


    Joseph pointed at her and directly singled her out, making sure that she couldn''t deceive her way out of this quagmire.

 Chapter 180: Gate Crashing[6]

    Chapter 180: Gate Crashing[6]


    "You bitch!"


    Being an experienced man in this line of work. Bryan Lacaba swiftly caught on what Joseph was hinting at. His hand flew fast and a resounding p rang out. Five bright red finger marks could be seen on the salesgirl''s face as she staggered backward and fell onto the ground on her butt.


    "How dare you go and offend a VIP Customer of this establishment?! Go back to the staff room and take your sry for this month, then get out! Don''t you dare show yourself to me ever again!"


    "M-M-Manager..."


    All the people watching outside were astounded by the sudden turn of events. Both Joseph and Lily couldn''t believe what they were seeing as the former felt a shiver down his spine.


    <em>This man... How decisive... He just fired an employee, just like that?</em>


    But Lily had different thoughts.


    She turned to look at the teary-eyed salesgirl and revealed a mocking look on her face.


    <em>Who''s looking down at whom now?</em>


    Lily felt ted.


    The salesgirl had a pale look on her face.


    She realized at this moment that she really did bark at the wrong tree.


    Insulting a VIP Customer of the store was tantamount to a death sentence. Not only she would be fired, but she would also be cklisted from the retail industry.


    Unfortunately, the salesgirl only had work experience in the retail industry.


    She reckoned that once everything was over and she was cklisted.


    There was no way for her to find any job in this industry anymore.


    She''d probably be forced to sell herself into the red-light district and live a life more miserable than a beggar.


    That cannot be!


    The salesgirl leaped into the air and under everyone''s shocked gazes.


    She kneeled onto the ground and started begging.


    "Sir... I''m sorry! I''m very sorry! It''s my fault! All of this is my fault!"


    "I failed to realize who you were and looked down on you!"


    She started pping herself repeatedly and when her left cheek bled. She moved over to her right cheek before pping both of her cheeks continuously. She even spat several teeth from her bloodied mouth.


    An indication that her ps weren''t just for show...


    They were fierce and filled with strength!


    "I hope you can forgive me, please forgive me!"


    The salesgirl even crawled to where Lily was standing and she started kowtowing to her.


    Her forehead almost instantly bled from the force that she was using.


    "Big sister... All of this is my fault! I''m very sorry, you can hit me or scold me, but please let me off! Please give me onest chance!"


    Lily momentarily revealed a look of disgust from her desperate pleas and begging, but that look quickly disappeared and reced with worry. She nced at Joseph, indicating that she didn''t know what to do nor how she should proceed.


    "Big sister... Please let me off. I have a family to take care of, both of my parents have illnesses and I can''t afford to lose this job! I really can''t get into trouble! I will bear all responsibility otherwise, but please... I beg you to let me off."


    Joseph was moved.


    His anger miraculously dissipated as he let out a sigh.


    "I see... So you are working here to help your parents?" Joseph said in a gentle tone.


    The salesgirl raised her head and her beauty couldn''t be seen anymore. It was reced with a bloodied and swollen mess, yet her eyes radiated with the light of hope as she stared at Joseph.


    She nodded her head and added, "Yes... That''s right, sir... I can''t afford to lose this job since I will not be able to afford their medicine anymore. If I lost this job... I''ll be forced to disappoint both of my parents and sell my own body in the red-light district so that I could afford their medicines"


    The salesgirl disyed such strong filial piety that the customers who were previously gloating at her changed their minds.


    At this moment, they were hoping that the VIP customers that she offended would let her keep this job, despite her offense.


    Joseph nced at Bryan Lacaba and found that there was an indifferent, yet urging look on his face.


    It was clear that he was letting Joseph decide the fate of the salesgirl.


    Joseph let out a sigh and said, "Fine... I won''t cause you trouble this time seeing that you''re so filial. But I hope that you are not doing this for show and your circumstances are true, or else..." Joseph''s eyes narrowed into slits.


    The salesgirl''s figure visibly trembled but she didn''t say anything, afraid that she may further offend this VIP Customer.


    "What she''s saying is true, Sir Entrada... That is really her true circumstances. In fact, I don''t remember her being such a tactless employee. She used to be more obedient and caring to the customers..."


    "I wonder what changed her attitude like this? Could it be because she''s now too arrogant due to the high wages that she''s earning right now?"


    Bryan Lacaba made a sidelong nce at the salesgirl and she once again felt a shiver down her spine. However, she kept her silence and just hung her head low in shame.


    It was because she knew deep inside that General Manager Bryan Lacaba was right, she truly got too arrogant due to the fact that she was earning five times more than the minimum wage.


    Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regrets in this world and it was impossible to turn back time.


    Otherwise, she would definitely not offend both Joseph and Lily today nor in the future!


    Joseph slightly nodded his head and said, "All right, I won''t make it too hard on you. However, failure needs punishment and so does rewards..."


    "You know, that carrot and stick, right? In that case, your punishment is that you must donate fifty percent of your sry this month to a charity of your choice. That''s all that I want you to do."


    The salesgirl sobbed.


    Despite not saying anything...


    It was clear that she was agreeable to the terms that Joseph proposed.


    General Manager Bryan Lacaba helped her up and ordered her to clean herself up.


    A few minutester, instead of going to rest.


    She returned and stood in front of Joseph while staring onto the ground.


    Lily''s eyebrows furrowed.


    <em>Just what is this bitch trying to do?</em>


    Lily felt that everything that happened was quite anti-climatic.


    Joseph should''ve not let her off so lightly! If I was the one that made the decision, then I would''ve already made the manager fire this vixen!


    Lily could only shake her head inwardly. But on the outside, a slight smile could be seen on her face.


    Joseph nced at the salesgirl and found that her cheeks were indeed swollen.


    But before he could say anything, Lily suddenly spoke up.


    "Are we still going to buy clothes in this store, Joseph?"


    Joseph awakened from his trance, and so did General Manager Lacaba.


    General Manager Lacaba bowed his head and said, "I''m really sorry for the unwanted disturbance, sir Entrada..."


    "As an apology, I would like to increase your membership category from VIP to VVIP. From now on, instead of receiving thirty-percent discounts for our products. You will now receive a fifty-percent discount, without any mary limits like before."


    "Really?"


    Both Joseph and Lily eximed at the same time.


    They looked quite excited, particrly Joseph who felt that the clothing in this store didn''t look so expensive anymore.


    After all, with a fifty-percent discount...


    Buying these clothes were now worth it, so Joseph didn''t dy anymore.


    He turned to look at the salesgirl who still had her head hung low in shame.


    "You... Come here and help us wrap these clothes."


    The salesgirl raised her head and revealed a look of shock, "Me?"


    "Yes, you! What...? You don''t want these sales anymore? Okay, I''ll give them to sir Lacaba..." Joseph lightly chuckled and even teased the salesgirl in an attempt to soften the tense atmosphere.


    The salesgirl stood there as if a bomb had exploded near her ears.


    It was until General Manager Lacaba gave her a slight push did she move and run towards Joseph''s direction.


    She took the clothes from Joseph''s hands and meticulously wrapped them as if they were her family''s heirloom.


    Visible on her face, despite her swollen cheeks, was her excitement as she wrapped these clothes. It was because of the fact that the value of the clothes that Joseph wanted to buy whenbined reached at least two hundred thousand dors!


    In other words, hermission could be at least twenty thousand or even thirty thousand dors!


    Even if hermission was halved due to her promise to donate half of her month''s sry to a charity.


    She''d still earn ten to fifteen thousand dors in just a single transaction.


    This was really worth it!


    She couldn''t care less about the mocking gazes of the people outside anymore.


    Even if they thought that she was a materialistic girl, so what?


    As long as she could get money in a clean way, she would do anything!


    Especially at this point in time when his parents needed her money the most for their medicine.


    The transaction was swiftly done.


    Joseph received a VVIP Membership card from General Manager Lacaba and so did Lily who managed to sessfully ride on Joseph''s coattails and receive a VVIP Membership card for herself.


    The excitement and joy on her face were impossible to hide which made Joseph feel incredibly satisfied.


    The salesgirl then handed over everything to Joseph along with the receipts.


    Joseph received the items with a smile and turned around to leave the store.


    But the salesgirl suddenly opened spoke, "S-Sir...!"


    Joseph turned his head to look at her, but he didn''t say anything.


    "May I know..."


    The salesgirl hung her head low in apparent embarrassment, but she quickly found some courage as she asked, "May I know your name?"


    Lily''s eyes dangerously narrowed.


    The salesgirl noticed Lily''s gaze and she iled her hands in a panic.


    "Forget about it, sir! Forget about it! I didn''t say anything!"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and was quite confused.


    But since the salesgirl had already retreated back to the staff room...


    Joseph could only turn to look at Lily and ask.


    "What''s going on?"


    Lily smiled before shaking her head, "It''s nothing. She''s still probably in shock due to what happened. Let''s not think about her for now. We only have about three hours left before the flight so we can''t possibly think about something else..."


    She quickly changed the topic and ced a crucial detail inside the new topic.


    She sessfully distracted Joseph''s attention away from the salesgirl as Joseph eximed.


    "Holy! You''re right! Let''s go! Goddamned it, I hope we''re not toote, yet."


    Joseph then dragged Lily by the wrist, afraid that she may find another interesting store for them to shop for goods.


    After all, the two of them really didn''t have that much time.


    With how muchnd and air traffic the City of Sibu received...


    Two hours was barely enough for them to catch the uing flight.


    Lily made a final nce at the staff room of the store before she turned around and focused on Joseph.


    Back inside the store, within the staff room.


    General Manager Lacaba stared at the salesgirl with a frown on her face.


    "Don''t be too happy, yet..."


    "That VIP Customer may have forgiven you, but that doesn''t mean that I will forgive you so easily for offending him."


    The salesgirl gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Fear shed across her face as she subconsciously took a step backward when she saw Lacaba''s menacing gaze.


    "What... General Manager... Are you saying that..."


    "Yes..."


    "The VIP Customer may have spared you from his wrath, but I won''t let you off. I''ll be firing you. Take half of your month''s sry this month then get out. Never show yourself in front of me once again." General Manager Lacaba coldly said before he reclined on his chair.


    The salesgirl instantly copsed on her knees and started begging.


    "No, please... Sir... You know my circumstances, please sir... Please find it in your heart to spare me!"


    "Find it in my heart to spare you? What a joke! Every action that you do in this world has its own consequences! I am sure that you know about that, right?"


    "But well, if you really don''t want to get fired, then I guess..."


    General Manager Lacaba licked his lips and stared lustfully at the salesgirl.


    "I can help you forget what happened today but in exchange..."


    The salesgirl''s expression paled. She could feel General Manager Lacaba''s desire for her, but in the end, she steeled herself and nodded her head, "I''ll... I''ll do anything! I''ll do anything, just don''t fire me from this work!"


    "Is that so? Hahaha..." General Manager Lacaba lightly chuckled. He then took off his belt and ced both of his hands on the back of his head before spreading his legs in front of the salesgirl.


    "Since you said that you''re going to do anything. Then, I''m sure that you know what you must do right now, right?"


    The salesgirl gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    Tears dripped down her cheeks as her trembling body scooted over in front of General Manager Lacaba''s legs and slowly opened his zippers. Afterwards, not any sound lingered within the staff room anymore except some sucking sounds and a male''s faint panting.

 Chapter 181: Gate Crashing[7]

    Chapter 181: Gate Crashing[7]


    The City of Lans.


    If this City could be summarized in a single sentence.


    It would be an understatement to say that this City was lively.


    Yes, it was definitely lively but it had a somewhat ethereal vibe to it.


    A City covered with all sorts of neon lights, one could describe this ce as a cyberpunkish City.


    Aftering out of the airport, both Lily and Joseph were weed by the sight of several dozens of high-speed rail trains crossing over above and beneath each other within the City. The sight made Joseph gasp. This City was indeed technologically advanced!


    The City of Sibu couldn''t evenpare to the advanced infrastructures and systems in this ce!


    Following the directions disyed within his smartphone; both Joseph and Lily slowly made their way towards the Headquarters of P.H Works.


    Joseph had this look of amazement on his face, making him give off a vibe that he was indeed a country bumpkin who had only lived within the provinces outside of the Capital City in his entire life.


    Lily was embarrassed.


    She wanted to act as if she didn''t know Joseph at all, but she knew that she must endure all of these.


    For the sake oftching onto Joseph''s rich and fat thigh; Lily steeled her resolve to endure everything.


    "Lily! Look! Victory is featured on that floating blimp right there!"


    Joseph pointed out of the window.


    Lily swallowed her dignity as she ignored the heated and mocking gazes of everyone around them.


    Turning to follow Joseph''s finger, she saw a gigantic blimp casually floating in the air. On the body of the blimp was a huge LCD screen disying some epic scenes within the world of Victory.


    Indeed, Victory was definitely a huge game!


    With its poprity, why would P.H Works bother on spending their money on advertisements when the game was already popr to the point that it had several hundred millions of concurrent yers a day?


    Joseph couldn''t understand the mindset of the marketing team of P.H Works.


    But that didn''t mean that what they were doing was useless.


    After all, their way of advertising was quite domineering and awesome!


    At least, that was what Joseph thought.


    On the other hand, Lily inwardly scoffed, <em>I underestimated the technological differences between Sibu and Lans. To think that he''d be like this! Indeed an ignorant man and a country bumpkin!</em>


    Lily lifted a slight smile of bitterness.


    But she knew that since she was already at this point; it would be a waste for her to turn back.


    Now that ball was rolling, why bother stopping it?


    Lily decided that she''d just ride along, hoping that the bowling ball may topple every pin and create a strike of sess.


    The nearby passengers focused their attention on Joseph. From their expressions, it was clear that they held him in contempt but unfortunately for them. Joseph didn''t really care about their opinion. He may be ignorant about the City of Lans, so what?


    <em>What''s wrong with being ignorant?</em>


    Joseph thought that the minds of these bastards were very narrow.


    He didn''t bother about them at all.


    "Look at that guy. His mouth is wide agape just staring at the scenery of Lans..."


    "Hahaha, don''t think too much of him. I''m sure that he came from the province to find a job in this ce."


    "Damn, I really hate immigrants like these bastards. Theye here from their province jobless, and then what? They go and steal our jobs!"


    "Wait... Take a look at the bags that he''s carrying..."


    "Aren''t those bags from Napoli?"


    "Napoli? What''s that?"


    "You don''t even know what Napoli is? It seems like you''re the country bumpkin here instead of him! Napoli is a popr designer clothing brand! To think that he has several of their exclusive bags... We can''t underestimate this man."


    "Hah! Look at yourself being so afraid of a country bumpkin. Those bags are just imitations!"


    The other passengers within the train started whispering with each other. They weren''t polite at all; their voices were loud as they criticized Joseph.


    However, when their eyesnded on the bags that Joseph held in his hands.


    Those who criticized him suddenly felt themselves choking in their own saliva.


    They nced at each other and decided that they wouldn''t say anything about Joseph anymore, lest he''s actually someone with a solid background.


    The train ridested for about thirty minutes.


    Next, both Lily and Joseph rode a monorail towards the gates of the P.H Works Headquarters.


    When they arrived, they found a lot of people loitering about the courtyard of the P.H Works Headquarters.


    The Headquarters of P.H Works wasn''t inside a high-rise building.


    Instead, the entire headquarters was situated in a huge lot and had several third-story buildings arranged in a way simr to schools. The female employees wore sailor uniforms while the male employees wore ck standing cor tops buttoning from top-to-bottom.


    Their buttons were decorated with the popr insignia of P.H Works, while down below...


    They wore ck straight-leg pants and a dark-colored belt was worn over those pants. As for their footwear, most of them wore penny loafers, while the others wore sneakers.


    No matter what angle you looked at this ce, it seemed to be more like a school than the Headquarters of the great minds that created the world of Victory.


    "What the fuck is this ce? Lily, are you sure that we came to the right ce?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows. Was this really the headquarters of P.H Works? Shouldn''t scientists be wearingb coats? Why were these guys wearing school uniforms?


    <em>This sure is a surprise, but definitely a wee one. Look at those thigh-high socks...</em>


    Joseph''s imagination ran rampant as his eyes wandered onto the women wearing sailor uniforms in the distance.


    "Ah!"


    A sharp pain suddenly assaulted his nerves.


    Joseph turned around and saw that the pain came from Lily who was pinching the fat from his waist.


    "You brought with you a beautiful woman, yet you are looking at other women? You sure are promiscuous, eh?" Lily puffed her cheeks in annoyance and Joseph had to admit that seeing her being jealous like this made her incredibly cute.


    "I''m not looking at them!"


    "Oh, really? Then, why are your eyes saying otherwise?" Lily articted each and every word that she said, sending shivers down the spine of Joseph who could do nothing other than revealing a bitter smile.


    "Let''s just go inside!" He hurriedly changed the topic.


    "Oh, right." Lily nodded her head and loosened her hold on Joseph''s waist.


    After signing some paperwork with the security guard, the two proceeded to walk towards the courtyard of the Headquarters of P.H Works. Joseph swept his gaze across the courtyard and admiration could be seen stered on his face.


    The ce really gave off a vibe that it was a school instead of the headquarters of the wealthiest gamepany in the world.


    What''s more, there were a lot of people here.


    As far as Joseph''s eyes could see, he estimated that there were at least several hundreds of people loitering on the courtyard of P.H Works.


    Since these people clearly knew about P.H Works. Why were they here instead of ying Victory? Shouldn''t they be at their homes and y Victory instead of loitering around here? Could it be that all of them had some business with P.H Works and that was the reason why they were here?


    But damn, there''s so many of them!


    Joseph inwardly said.


    His eyes wandered towards a distant building where the people seemed to have concentrated. Unfortunately, Joseph was somewhat nearsighted, so he couldn''t see the distant signage.


    He turned to look at Lily.


    Lily underwent LASIK Eye Surgery back then, so she should be able to see the signage just above the main doors of that building.


    "Can you tell me what the building is for?"


    Joseph pointed.


    Lily followed his finger and replied, "That''s a Virtual Inte Cafe."


    "A Virtual Inte Cafe? This near to the headquarters of P.H Works? Why would they build something like that?"


    Lily shook her head, "I don''t know. But that is what the signage is saying. Maybe, if you y there you will be able to get some early ess towards Victory''s future content?"


    Joseph revealed a look of enlightenment.


    What Lily said made sense.


    If there was an attractive enough incentive to ying in the Inte Cafe that the P.H Works made, so close to their headquarters. Then, it would be early ess to Victory''s future content. Only something like that could possibly attract these many yers of Victory in one ce.


    Joseph pondered for a while.


    In the end, he concluded that these yers must be yers within the Universal Rankings.


    Only yers like them would possibly have any interest in essing some early future content in the world of Victory.


    <em>So, that building is kinda like a ce simr to the Public Test Servers of other games?</em>


    <em>Interesting...</em>


    <em>I think I''ll be going thereter.</em>


    Joseph made a decision in his heart.


    Afterwards, the two of them continued walking towards the building whose entrance looked to be deserted of people.


    As for the reason?


    It was because there were dozens of uniformed security guards guarding the entrance of the Headquarters.


    They stood there, underneath the zing heat of the sun as the ultimate deterrence to criminals.


    None of the surrounding people approached the security guards.


    Lily had a look of anticipation on her face.


    It was because she could feel the gazes of everyonending onto them.


    What''s more, those gazes were clearly of contempt! None of the surrounding people believed that both Lily and Joseph could pass through these security guards!


    But this was the reason why Lily was excited.


    She was so excited to see the moment of shock that these people would feel when these guards stepped aside to let them through the headquarters.


    On the other hand, Joseph only had an indifferent look on his face.


    He continued on walking and when the two of them were about to reach the vicinity of the guards.


    A voice suddenly came from behind them.


    "Oh, Lily? Is that you? What a coincidence to see you here!"


    Lily''s figure abruptly froze when she heard the familiar voice.


    Joseph also stopped on his tracks and turned around to look at the figure who spoke.


    From what he could see, the person who spoke up was a young man who looked to be at the same age as Lily.


    The only problem was that he was embracing women on both of his sides and these women were jeering at Lily.


    "Thomas, is she that Lily that you were talking about to us,st time?"


    "Yeah, it''s my sweet little ex-girlfriend, Lily... It must''ve been fate that we came across each other here." Thomas revealed a wide smile on his face.


    Joseph nced at Lily and found that thetter''s figure was visibly trembling.


    It was clear that she was ufortable regarding what was going on.


    ncing at Thomas who didn''t seem to care about his presence; Joseph held Lily''s wrist and dragged her towards the headquarters of P.H Works. It was obvious that he didn''t have the intention of dealing with such a licentious man.


    But...


    "Stop! Where are you bringing her? I wasn''t done talking with her!"


    This man actually blocked his way.


    His arms crossed in front of his chest and there was an arrogant look on his face.


    Joseph let out a sigh.


    He raised his head and turned to look at Thomas.


    "Can you step aside?"


    His face had a polite smile, yet his voice, iparably cold as he asked.

 Chapter 182: Gate Crashing[8]

    Chapter 182: Gate Crashing[8]


    "You..."


    For some reason, Thomas felt that Joseph''s gaze was quite intimidating.


    He subconsciously took a step backward, but when he remembered that he was here with two women. He regained his courage from out of nowhere and pointed a finger at Joseph.


    "So, you really are someone from the provinces? To think that you don''t even know the fact that only authorized personnel can go inside the main building of P.H Works." Thomas revealed a sneer.


    He took something out of his pocket.


    It was a green card with the words, "Guest", embossed on its surface.


    "Unless you have something like this, then forget about going inside. And also, you seem to be quite strong, right? How about you try and force yourself in?" Thomas nced at the dozens of fierce-looking security guards.


    The moment they heard what Thomas said...


    Their ears perked and they turned to look at Joseph in a serious manner.


    It was clear that they were now on guard against Joseph. If he tried to ce even a single foot inside the territory that they were protecting without the necessary authorization required. They would immediately swarm, take him down, and put him in his ce.


    "Wow... Isn''t that the Guest ess Keycard that only those invited by P.H Works can get? Damn! It seems like that guy is quite influential..."


    "I heard that P.H Works only give their Keycards to those that are powerful enough to get it. After all, within the main building of P.H Works exists another Virtual Inte Cafe, but this time, with more powerful hardware."


    "What? There''s a Virtual Inte Cafe within the main building of P.H Works?"


    "Of course, there is! Not only do they also have ess to the Public Test Servers, but every Experience Points that they will acquire within the world of Victory while ying in that Virtual Inte Cafe is effectively doubled, if not... Even tripled!"


    "What the fuck, that''s broken! Wait... Could it be that the people ying there are a part of the Universal Rankings?"


    "That is highly possible... Wait, no!"


    "Only those people could be possibly influential enough to y in that Virtual Inte Cafe."


    The whispers finally ended, but its ending wasn''t so good.


    The crowd let out a sigh of bitterness and some grievances. It was because they realized that they were not influential enough to enter the main building of P.H Works. In this lifetime, most of them could only probably dream of entering such a ce, but never actually enter it.


    <em>But how about this woman and that guy?</em>


    <em>If they are trying to enter the main building; that only means that they are influential enough.</em>


    <em>But howe we haven''t seen nor heard anything about these two?</em>


    The crowd simultaneously frowned.


    Thomas could hear their whispers and a gleeful look could be seen on his face. The two women that he was holding around both of his arms also gave sweet smiles to him. Seeing this, Thomas''s ego was satisfied.


    Joseph nced at Lily, but he didn''t say anything.


    He really couldn''t understand how Lily got together with Thomas.


    But in the end, he could only shake his head.


    "Is something like this, enough?"


    He took something out of his pocket and presented it to the nearest security guard.


    He didn''t even spare a nce at Thomas, but his actions made Thomas feel even more disdain towards him.


    "Trying to show a fake ess keycard? Hahaha, how desperate. But let me tell you this, showing them a fake keycard is tantamount to courting death!" Thomas clearly saw that Joseph handed over a keycard to the security guard.


    The security guard had a serious look on his face, but when he saw the keycard in Joseph''s hands...


    His expression froze and his face immediately paled.


    "T-This card..."


    "This is an Executive ess Keycard!"


    The security guard couldn''t hold his emotions fast enough for a scream came out of his mouth.


    His words attracted the attention of others, and Thomas reeled in horror for he saw that indeed, within the security guard''s handid a ck card embossed with the word, "Executive", on its surface.


    "I-Impossible! An Executive ess Keycard?! That''s something that not even the employees of P.H Works can get!"


    "A card like that..."


    "A card like that is only for business partners of P.H Works!"


    "How could this country bumpkin have such a card?!"


    Thomas staggered backward and cried out in disbelief.


    But despite the panic on his face, his words were clear and logical enough that everyone immediately doubted Joseph.


    Joseph couldn''t finally hold it anymore as he scoffed, "Can you shut the fuck up? I''m sick and tired of you barking all over me. A good dog doesn''t block the way of the guests, so keep your mouth shut and stay right there, all right?" He even shook his head as a gesture of disdain.


    Thomas''s expression went red, he was really angered this time!


    Pointing a finger at Joseph. He yelled at the security guards, "Can''t you guys see what''s going on? This country bumpkin can''t possibly have an Executive ess Keycard! There''s only a single exnation as to why he has such a card! It''s probably because he stole it!"


    Thomas dropped a bombshell, an usation that Joseph stole the Executive ess Keycard that he was holding.


    Joseph''s eyes dangerously narrowed. He wasn''t a saint, but he wasn''t a punching bag either.


    But he knew that if he made a move while everyone''s opinion highly supported Thomas''s im.


    It was obvious that he would be on the losing side.


    This was why Joseph decided that he wouldn''t say anything at this time.


    He just stared at Thomas with this smile on his face that looked as if he was thoroughly mocking Thomas for his ignorance.


    "Holy shit! He stole an Executive ess Keycard?! Damn, that''s ballsy!"


    "Does he not understand the possible consequences of doing something like that? Not only he would be permanently banned from ying Victory... He could possibly be banned from ever entering any virtual world in the future!"


    "Woah..."


    The crowd reeled in utter shock and astonishment when they heard Thomas''s usations. Of course, they saw the Napoli bags that Joseph carried around, but these people here were quite influential. Even though the Napoli clothing line was quite expensive, they could still afford it.


    And also, who knows if those bags were genuine?


    They could possibly be an imitation!


    The crowd simultaneously nodded their heads. They now stared at Joseph with hostility in their eyes.


    Some even regretfully sighed.


    But they were sighing, not for Joseph''s sake, but for the sake of the beautiful woman beside him that would definitely be implicated in this scandal.


    "Hey, you there... If you are in doubt, then can you just call your supervisor? This is really such a waste of time." Lily turned to look at the security guard who received the Executive ess Keycard with displeasure.


    The security guard was taken aback, but he soon straightened his back and turned around.


    Carrying with him the Executive ess Keycard as he went to look for his supervisor to ask for confirmation of its legitimacy.


    Thomas was surprised that Lily actually spoke up for Joseph.


    Why was she so confident that Joseph really owned an Executive ess Keycard? But Thomas shook his head and thought that it was impossible. Executive ess Keycards weren''t mass-manufactured, instead, they were made ording to the whims of the CEO, Ray Gabriel.


    From Thomas''s connection, there were only about a dozen Executive ess Keycards in existence.


    P.H Works'' business partners numbered at least several thousand.


    This was why Thomas and everyone thought, along with the security guards that Joseph probably stole this Executive ess Keycard!


    It was just unfeasible to think that he owned this Keycard.


    In fact, that thought never crossed the minds of everyone.


    But they remained standing here and observing everything.


    It was because they thought that Joseph''s actions were quite amusing.


    They wanted to see the end of someone as arrogant and as ballsy as Joseph.


    Thomas had the same thought as he turned his attention to Lily.


    He licked his lips, seeing that her figure was as slim as ever before.


    "My sweet little, Lily... I really wondered why you returned to Sibu as fast as you could. Though I said that I was already tired of you, that didn''t mean that your novelty has disappeared. After all, no one in this world could possibly get tired of you and your refined tech-"


    Pa!


    A fierce pnded on Thomas''s cheeks before he couldplete his sentence.


    The p was so powerful that it made him fall onto his butt.


    Joseph stared at Lily with shock evident in his eyes.


    He really didn''t expect that Lily would get physical at this moment and p Thomas''s arrogance out of his soul.


    "Li-Lily..."


    Joseph whispered in hesitation when he saw the tears welling within Lily''s eyelids.


    "You... shameless! I was stupid that I got together with you back then! I was blind! It''s a huge mistake!" Lily pointed at Thomas, her petite figure quivering in anger and grievance.


    Joseph walked beside her and dragged her over to his arms.


    Lily instantly buried her face into Joseph''s chest as she let out stifled sobbings that broke the heart of everyone around.


    How pitiful!


    Everyone had this thought the moment they saw Lily''s quivering figure.


    "What a bastard!"


    At this moment, everyone''s anger got transferred over from Joseph towards Thomas.


    The women from the crowd even loudly denounced him for being such a bastard.


    "It''s one thing that you''d break up with your girlfriend over other women, but to actually try and humiliate her in public?"


    "What a shameless bastard!"


    "Yeah..."


    Thomas held his painfully throbbing cheek with his left hand.


    His eyes filled with fury as he stared at both Joseph and Lily.


    But he didn''t say anything at this point.


    It was because he knew that everyone now had a good opinion of the two.


    Everything that he''d say at this moment would just be used against him.


    This was why he had to wait.


    He must wait until that security guard returned and reveal the truth to everyone!


    Thomas coldlyughed in his heart.


    But Lily whose face was still buried into Joseph''s chest let out a triumphant smile.


    She was happy.


    She was looking for the right opportunity to get into Joseph''s good shoes, but she didn''t expect that Thomas, her ex-boyfriend would actually be here and stir trouble with her and Joseph.


    Capitalizing on that opportunity, Lily instantly yed the victim card to try and gain Joseph''s sympathy and in the end, she seeded!


    "I really have to thank you for this help, Thomas..."


    Her eyes radiated the coldness of a thousand-year-old icy cavern.


    One couldn''t find any traces of a heartbroken and ashamed young maiden on her face at this moment. Yet her mouth let out heartbreaking sobbing sounds that could melt even the heart of the toughest man.


    Being in such a "pitiful" state, how could anyone ignore her sobbing pleas?


    Joseph''s embrace around her tightened and this made Lilyugh even more inside.


    "Soon, I''ll be able to..."


    "I''ll be able to get in his bed and once that happens..."


    "There''s no escaping me anymore, Joseph..."


    "We''ll be together..."


    "Forever..."


    Lily inwardly narrated.


    Imagining her future as a wife of the sole holder of a Mythical ss.


    Lily was filled with unimaginable anticipation and joy.

 Chapter 183: Gate Crashing[9]

    Chapter 183: Gate Crashing[9]


    The security guard who was holding the Executive ess Keycard that Joseph had in his possession rushed towards the building where his supervisor was located. He didn''t bother knocking, he pushed the doors open eliciting a coldment from his supervisor who said.


    "What''s the rush? You didn''t even knock..." His supervisor, a rugged middle-aged man wearing the uniform of the guardsmented. Right now, he was making himself a cup of coffee. His duty starts fromte afternoon to midnight, so he definitely needed this coffee.


    "Supervisor, sir! Something of utmost importance has happened! Forgive me for my trespass of not knocking, but this matter is really urgent!" The security guard was so nervous that beaded sweat could be seen on his forehead.


    The supervisor frowned, he could see the nervousness of the security guard.


    <em> Just what did happen? </em>


    <em>To think that a man like him who had already witnessed a lot in his life would be so nervous like this. </em>


    The supervisor''s expression turned serious.


    "Speak, but this matter better be important, or else... You know what will happen, right?"


    <em>Gulp!</em>


    The security guard audibly gulped.


    But since he knew that the matter on hand wasn''t falsified and was definitely urgent...


    He steeled his resolve and presented the ck Executive ess Keycard towards his supervisor.


    "Huh?!"


    The supervisorzily took a look and he instantly awakened. He knocked over his coffee, scalding himself which made him jump from his chair.


    <em>An Executive ess Keycard?!</em>


    "Where did you find such a thing?"


    The security guard was finally reassured that the ck card in his hand was truly genuine.


    But this made him be even more nervous instead when he remembered that hisrades were surrounding that young man earlier. However, there were still some doubts in the heart of the security guard, so he gave an honest answer.


    "This was handed over to me by a young man who wanted to enter the main building."


    "A young man? What did he look like?"


    "He''s wearing a in white t-shirt and pants, he doesn''t really look... particrly rich." The security guard wanted to add that the young man had several Napoli bags in his hands, but since he doubted that those Napoli bags were even the real deal, he didn''t recount it to his supervisor...


    For him, such details were unnecessary and just added clutter to the story.


    "Are you sure about what you are saying?" The supervisor stared right at the security guard.


    The security guard felt immense pressure descending onto his shoulders. Despite the fact that his supervisor looked to be an ordinaryzy middle-aged man. This supervisor of his was actually a leader of that terrifying 420th Brigade of the Armed Forces of Pilipinas!


    This middle-aged man was the real deal!


    But the security guard was sure of his judgment.


    Joseph definitely didn''t look rich.


    "Could it be that... he picked it up?"


    The security guard didn''t dare to directly say the word, "steal", but there was clear disdain on his face.


    The supervisor quickly caught on what was going on as a look of anger appeared on his face.


    "Humph! How bold of him to steal such an ess keycard? And what''s more, he actually tried to use it to enter our Headquarters? He''s really underestimating us, isn''t he? He''s asking for it!"


    The supervisor quickly took his walkie-talkie and sounded out his orders, "Surround that bastard! Hold him down and prepare to call the police!"


    The Executive ess Keycard wasn''t something that ordinary people could get their hands on.


    Much less, a young man who shabby and simple.


    The supervisor was certain from the security guard''s description alone that the young man possibly stole that Executive ess Keycard to try and enter the Headquarters of P.H Works!


    Doing something like that was a huge crime!


    Not only he would serve some jail time. He''d also be barred from entering any virtual world for his whole life, without any chances for appeals! That was how ruthless P.H Works was as apany when dealing against cheaters, and those that try to oppose them!


    This was why P.H Works ascended to the peak of allpanies in just a few years'' time!


    "Wow... what a supportive boyfriend..."


    "Not gonna lie, both of them actually look cute together."


    "Shut up man, you''re just lonely."


    "..."


    Joseph was still waiting outside and was wondering why the security guard that he ordered to talk to his supervisor was taking so long to return.


    <em>Could it be that their base was a few kilometers far from here? What is this lollygagging?</em>


    Lily was still buried into his chest and feeling the burning gazes of the women and the envious gazes of the men...


    Even Joseph felt somewhat embarrassed as he patted Lily''s shoulder and dryly coughed.


    Lily finally raised her head and her cheeks werepletely red from crying. Her eyes were swollen and Joseph couldn''t help but feel even more pity for her as he smiled.


    "Don''t worry about that bastard. I''m here." He didn''t say much, but his words gave utmost joy to Lily as if she was a thirsty woman stuck in the middle of a desert and had just discovered an oasis.


    "Thank you..." She simply said before wiping the tears that welled up in her eyes. After taking several deep breaths, she calmed herself down and could finally take her head away from Joseph''s chest.


    But while she was moving away, Joseph could see this look of reluctance on her face.


    Though, he didn''t say anything about it.


    "Sir, pleasee with us."


    Suddenly, two of the several dozens of security guards walked over. They had serious looks on their faces as they stood on the left and right of both Joseph and Lily. nking the two, they made sure that they couldn''t possibly escape from their hands.


    Joseph raised an eyebrow and asked, "What is it? What do you want?"


    Joseph was surprised.<em>, </em>


    <em>What do these guards want from me? Could it be that they were thinking that the Executive ess Keycard that I gave to them was fake? But it was given by Elizabeth! That secretary of the CEO of Victory and the Head of Victory''s Development Team, Ray Gabriel!</em>


    How could it be fake?


    A frown appeared on Joseph''s face.


    Lily looked nervous.


    She was inwardly cursing.


    <em>Did this bastard actually bring a fake ess Keycard?</em>


    <em>No!</em>


    <em>He wouldn''t do such a thing.</em>


    <em>He doesn''t have the guts to do that.</em>


    <em>He couldn''t even confess to mest year before I left for Lans, yet you are telling me that he came here to visit the Headquarters of P.H Works with a fake ess Keycard? That''s impossible!</em>


    "We have instructions from our supervisor. Please do not resist, sir. Cooperate with us. Otherwise, we will have to use force!"


    The two guards held both of Joseph''s arms, intending to drag him towards the office of the supervisor.


    "Let go of him! What are you trying to do in broad daylight?" Lily started shouting in shock when she saw how the security guards wanted to drag Joseph away. The crowd reeled in shock when they saw what was going on, and all of them had this thought in their minds.


    <em>Was that ess Keycard really fake?</em>


    "Hahaha!"


    Thomasughed out loud.


    Finally, he spoke up: "See? Didn''t I tell you guys earlier that this bastard brought with him a fake Executive ess Keycard? Hahaha, now who''sughing at whom?" Thomas stared at Joseph with deep disdain in his eyes.


    The other security guards scolded themselves for being too cautious. The reason why they didn''t take action earlier was that they were suspicious if the Executive ess Keycard was really fake or genuine. But now that it was confirmed by their supervisor itself that the Keycard was indeed fake.


    These security guards didn''t suppress themselves any longer.


    "Take him down!"


    Thomas cried out and the security guards moved.


    The fact that the guards moved to suppress Joseph after his shout made him look incredibly handsome and valiant to the surrounding crowd. The two women that he had in his arms revealed proud expressions on their faces as if they were saying.


    <em>Look!</em>


    <em>This is our handsome Thomas!</em>


    "You bastards! What the fuck are you trying to do? That keycard isn''t fake!" Joseph jumped backwards in order to retreat, but since he wasn''t in the world of Victory. His jump looked pathetic and the guards instantly swarmed him the moment he tried to retreat.


    He was pushed onto the ground as Lily cried out.


    "You..."


    "Let go of him!"


    "Let my boyfriend go!"


    One of the security guards even stepped on Joseph''s face, he wanted to look good in front of his supervisor.


    "Sir! We''ve suppressed the intruder!"


    "What are you trying to do?!" Joseph angrily shouted at the supervisor.


    The supervisor stared at Joseph and snorted, "Young man... You really are bold!"


    Joseph was confused.


    <em>What the fuck? Was that ess Keycard really fake?</em>


    <em>No! That''s impossible!</em>


    <em>That email that I received containing that ess Keycard indeed came from P.H Works. It can''t possibly be fake!</em>


    <em>Yet, what is going on? Why are these guys using me of bringing a fake keycard?</em>


    "Stop pretending."


    Joseph''s train of thought dissipated when he heard the supervisor''s cold voice.


    The supervisor stared at Joseph in disdain when he saw that he was indeed simr to what the security guard had described. Ignoring the Napoli bags that were surely counterfeits lying on the ground beside the young man, it was clear that he was definitely an intruder.


    How could he possibly have such a card?


    "Just confess. Did you steal this card, or did you pick it up from somewhere?"


    Joseph''s expression changed.


    Fury surged from within him.


    Steal?


    Joseph never expected that he would be used of stealing something that was given to him.


    And how could he steal?


    No matter how hard everything became for him ever since his parents died, stealing never came to his mind. His parents brought him up as a decent human being.


    How could he steal?


    "You... You''re ndering me!"


    "That card was given to me by the Secretary of the CEO of P.H Works, Elizabeth!"


    Joseph finally spelled the truth out for everyone.


    But instead of being shocked...


    Everyoneughed out loud instead.


    "Hahaha! My friend, the police is already on the way. There''s no use trying to get yourself out of this!" Thomas boisterouslyughed.


    He then turned to look at Lily and said, "My sweet little Lily, how about you return to me? As long as you return to me and break up with that pathetic piece of trash there, then I''ll help you escape this predicament."


    Lily nced at Thomas and frowned.


    At this moment, she was actually hesitating.


    Should she go to Thomas and have him help her escape this conundrum?


    Lily was musing over this statement when she remembered Joseph''s exnation that the Keycard came from Elizabeth, the Secretary of the CEO of P.H Works.


    Remembering those words, Lily''s doubts disappeared and she decided that no matter what...


    Today, she would stay with Joseph and apany him through everything.


    Lily lifted a sneer of contempt towards Thomas''s direction and said, "What will happen to me is none of your business."


    Thomas choked in his own saliva. He expected Lily to instantly go over to him and try to coax him on helping her out of this predicament, yet what he got in return was Lily''s mocking.


    "You..."


    "Fine!"


    "See you in jail!"


    "And also, I know a few brothers working with the police... I''ll make sure that you won''t forget your stay in that jail!"


    Thomas solemnly swore.


    Lily furrowed her eyebrows but she didn''t say anything anymore.


    The supervisor merely nced at what was going on.


    He didn''t pay attention to their banter.


    Instead, his attention was focused on Joseph as he asked.


    "Young man, why would you waste your life like this? You''re still at your prime, yet you have already ruined your life by stealing something incredibly precious such as this Executive ess Keycard..."


    "Just confess to us already about where you got this Keycard and I can consider giving you a light sentence." The supervisor kindly advised.


    Joseph was so mad.


    He had never been this mad since that fight against the three guilds!


    His eyes went bloodshot and he started struggling from the hands of the security guards.


    But he was ultimately powerless in the face of these powerful security guards. His struggle was akin to pouring a cup of water into a burning cart. It was useless!


    "Let go of him! Let go of him!"


    "What are you guys doing? This is a crime! This is police brutality!" Lily shouted.


    She walked over to the security guards and tried on helping Joseph but she was harshly shoved by a security guard.


    The supervisor realized that Lily was an aplice of Joseph, so he quickly ordered, "Tie that woman up. It seems like the two of them are in cahoots!"


    One of the security guards approached Lily.


    "You... Let go! Let go of me!"


    Lily tried to struggle free but the security guard pped her across her face.


    "You better fucking cooperate, you bitch!"


    Five bright red clear marks could be seen on her face.


    She waspletely shocked.


    This was the first time that she received a p on her face in her entire life.


    She prided herself on her beauty, so this p wasn''t only a p on her face, but her pride as well!


    "How dare you hit me... I''ll... I''ll fight it out with you!" Lily''s eyes turned bloodshot and she seemed to have gone mad.


    She managed to break free and as she pounced at the security guard.


    Joseph''s shout could be heard from the background.


    "Lily, no!"


    But it was already toote...


    Lily was already pouncing on the guard.


    Of course, she was no match for the security guard.


    She was immediately pushed onto the floor and then subsequently tied up.


    The security guard who tied her up got apparently annoyed by her struggling, so he tied her up in a rough manner, causing rope burns to immediately appear on Lily''s wrists.


    "Let her go!"


    Joseph''s cried out loud and started struggling as well.


    But with several security guards suppressing him at once.


    He was no match for them as all and he was forced to remain onto the ground.


    "Hahaha... This is what you get... This is what you get for being such a stupid bastard! Just confess to the supervisor already! Know your ce, and know what''s good for you and your girlfriend!" One of the men from the crowd who was envious at Joseph earlier jeered.


    The crowd then started mocking both Joseph and Lily.


    Thomas stared at this scene with a smile of satisfaction on his face.


    The supervisor let out a sigh and said, "Seeing that you are so young, I''ll give you a chance, young man. What do you want to say for yourself?"


    Joseph gnashed his teeth in frustration, "I want to call someone!"


    "You want to call someone?"


    Before the supervisor could even reply...


    Thomas interjected, "Hahaha! So, you''re going to call someone? Stop being so pretentious! I already know that you''re not someone influential..."


    "I''ve lived for so long here in the City of Lans, yet this is the first time that I saw your face. In other words, you may be a big shot in your small little province, but in here?"


    "Know your fucking ce, trash!" Thomas spat in disgust.


    The crowd had the same look of disgust on their faces. Some of them evenmented for Lily''s fate, being thrown into the jail while being such a beautiful woman would definitely break her.


    They really wanted to help her and possibly even gain her favor through that way and sleep with such a beauty, but knowing that Thomas was interested in her...


    They could only shake their heads in regret.


    It wasn''t worth it to offend Thomas for just a beautiful woman.


    There were plenty of fishes in the sea, after all.


    The supervisor shook his head, "I won''t let you call someone. But you can text them instead."


    Joseph didn''t say anything.


    He took out his phone and started typing out some words towards the one that invited him toe here.

 Chapter 184: Gate Crashing[10]

    Chapter 184: Gate Crashing[10]


    "I wonder when he''s going to arrive."


    Within an adjacent room in the Main Control Room of the Headquarters of P.H Works.


    Elizabeth uttered under her breath.


    Earlier...


    She had received a message from Joseph that he was now about to arrive. In response, Elizabeth, Ray, and Mar prepared themselves to receive Joseph. But two hours had already passed since then, yet he still wasn''t here.


    "Maybe it''s because of the traffic? The traffic in this City is quite serious. This is why I''m really d that we made a separate building for our amodations..."


    "If possible, I don''t really want tomute from anywhere in this City to this ce. The traffic is just terrifying and horrendous." Mar jokingly said.


    Elizabeth turned to look at him and said, "He sent me that message two hours ago. The airport is only about a few kilometers away from here. I don''t think that even with the traffic, it''d take him that long toe here. Something must''ve happened. Is he going to cancel his appointment?"


    Mar nodded his head, "That makes sense." He then proceeded to open a bottle of water. But before he could even drink it, an idea suddenly sprung in his mind which made him exim.


    "That''s right! Why did we not think of this? Since we want to know where he is right now, how about we go and use that Messenger ID of his to track him through our satellite? In that manner, we could be reassured that he isn''t scamming us and he''s really going here."


    But Elizabeth could only reveal a bitter smile when she heard his proposal.


    "Sir Mar..."


    "Hmm? Did I say anything wrong?" Ray turned to look at her as if she was someone weird.


    "Hahaha..."


    Ray Gabriel lightly chuckled, "Let me trante what she said..."


    "Eli here is basically saying that there are somews established for the protection of every person''s privacy called the Data Privacy Act. What you are nning on doing is a vition of thatw and you could potentially get some jail time. Furthermore, it''s also quite hical."


    Mar turned to look at Ray before ncing at Elizabeth, then saying in a strange voice, "How did you know what she was thinking? Didn''t she only reveal a smile to what I said? Wait... Could it be that this is something that youngsters nowadays call Mutual Understanding?"


    "I see, so both of you are already in that stage..." Mar shot an ambiguous look at Elizabeth causing her to direct her stare onto the ground and hide her expression from Ray. Of course, she didn''t deny what he said, but she also didn''t directly approve of it.


    Ray almost choked in his own saliva when he heard what Mar had said, "Old man... It seems like you''re being quite nosy, eh? Haven''t gotten that much love from your wife at home? How about you go back right now to your wife?"


    Mar squeezed out a bitter smile.


    The reason why Mar stayed within the Headquarters of P.H Works and didn''t go home was that he''s on bad terms with his wife.


    Despite the fact that Mar was such a smooth-talker and an efficient wingman...


    He''s actually the type of person that couldn''t obey his own advice. Right now, he''s still quite afraid of his wife despite ten years plus of marriage.


    However...


    He still doesn''t want toe home.


    Maybe in the next few days, but not now...


    His heart wasn''t ready.


    Seeing the look of satisfaction on Ray''s face...


    He scoffed inside and hurriedly changed the topic, "Have you checked if he sent a follow-up message?" He asked this question to Elizabeth.


    "No, I haven''t received one from him..."


    Elizabeth took her phone and right as she finished this sentence.


    Her phone vibrated.


    Unexpectedly, it was a message from Joseph.


    But as soon as Elizabeth saw the contents of the message.


    Her body suddenly trembled in anger.


    "T-Those bastards..." Elizabeth whispered in fury.


    Ray Gabriel and Mar simultaneously a shiver down their spines.


    "Wh-What''s wrong? Did something happen?"


    "Is he canceling his appointment? Damn, that punk! He made us wait here for a long time just for him to cancel his appointment so abruptly? Hmmph!"


    Elizabeth shook her head.


    "No, he didn''t cancel his appointment. The reason why he''s not here for so long is that he''s not being allowed to get inside despite having that Executive ess Keycard that I handed over to him."


    "What?!" Ray instantly shot up from his seat. Fury could be seen within his eyes.


    Thepany rules stated that those with an Executive ess Keycard must be treated with respect. They must be treated as if they were the owner of thispany!


    Yet, a person carrying such a Keycard was actually being blocked from entering the facility?


    Did those bastards think that his words were mere fart?


    Ray rushed towards the exit of the room.


    Elizabeth followed him from behind, while Mar remained in the room.


    "Sigh... How chaotic..." Mar shook his head and proceeded to drink that bottle of water that he opened earlier.


    "Sir Supervisor here has given you a good chance? Who did you call? Your mama? And what did you say? Mom,e pick me up, I''m scared...?" Thomas mocked. He even acted along with his sentence making his actions look hrious from the eyes of the crowd.


    Joseph coldly stared at Thomas. He didn''t say anything.


    It was because he knew in his heart that Thomas was someone that would never amount to anything.


    He was a fool.


    And fighting with words against a fool was useless since he would just drag you down to his level and beat you with his experience.


    Thomas was irritated that he didn''t get any response from Joseph.


    As someone that wanted the spotlight for himself, he really hated it when people deliberately ignore him.


    "So, you''re trying to ignore me, eh? You stealing bastard!" Thomas rushed at Joseph and raised his right leg.


    He then swung it towards Joseph''s face.


    "STOP!"


    An unfamiliar feminine voice rang out like thunder.


    Thomas subconsciously stopped what he was doing in astonishment. Without even turning his head, he angrily retorted.


    "Who the fuck is that bitch that dared to stop me?"


    His words rang loud and clear, and he suddenly realized that apart from him. No one was speaking.


    The scene was silent to the extent that one could even hear a pin drop.


    He then swung his head behind him out of irritation and his eyes widened to saucers when he saw the two people standing right behind him.


    Secretary Elizabeth and CEO Ray Gabriel!!!


    What are they here?


    Could it be that...


    Thomas was no fool; remembering what Joseph said earlier in his exnations.


    He felt his throat go dry and he found himself unable to speak.


    Ray Gabriel''s eyes dangerously narrowed into slits, "That bitch is my secretary, what do you want?"


    "N-N-No... Nothing... I didn''t say... that..."


    Thomas fell onto his butt and didn''t dare to say anything anymore.


    Ray turned his gaze away from it and directed it to Joseph.


    Ray wanted to be happy upon seeing Joseph for the first time, but witnessing his current state. He felt nothing but anger.


    "Are you okay?" Elizabeth promptly helped the woman who seemed to be here with Joseph.


    "I-I''m fine, madame..." Lily''s cheeks blushed crimson when she saw how beautiful Elizabeth was.


    After being helped by Elizabeth, she finally stood up and red at the direction of the security guards.


    Ray helped Joseph up and after checking that the two suffered quite a lot...


    Both Elizabeth and Ray turned to look at the security guards.


    Particrly at the supervisor, and Thomas.


    "S-Sir... I was just... I was just doing my job..." The supervisor directly kneeled down and profusely exined his side.


    "Doing your job?"


    "Y-Yes... I was just... I thought that he stole the Executive Keycard... that is why I didn''t allow him to go... inside..."


    "Stole the Executive Keycard?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow.


    "Stole the Executive Keycard?" Ray repeated what she said, "What bullshit!"


    "How can something like that be stolen? The locations of all Executive Keycards are monitored around the clock and whenever they are held by someone other than their owner for an extended period of time, they would be disabled and rendered useless..."


    "And also, why did you not bother on checking the legitimacy of his Executive Keycard?"


    "All of this wouldn''t have to happen if you just did your job properly and checked if the Keycard that he has was real or not!" Ray Gabriel furiously scolded. It has been such a long time since he got riled up like this.


    "Sir... It''s because I thought... I thought that..."


    "Yeah, you don''t have to exin." Elizabeth suddenly spoke up at this moment, "You and every security guard under you are hereby fired. Go to the finance department and take your sry for this month and scram!"


    "M-Madame..." The supervisor trembled. Elizabeth was uprooting the problem from its roots!


    <em>How ruthless!</em>


    Before the crowd could even breathe...


    Elizabeth turned to Thomas and said, "Earlier, you called me a bitch, right? Then, I''ll act like a real bitch and tell you this! From now on, you are permanently banned from using all services of P.H Works, you are also banned from entering any virtual world in the future!"


    "Forget about ying any virtual game in this lifetime of yours!"


    The crowd reeled in shock when they heard what she said.


    "No..."


    "No... I''m not..."


    "I did not do anything wrong... Why would I..."


    "Why must I be permanently banned?"


    "Please... madame... Don''t... Don''t ban me... Victory is my life!"


    Thomas sprawled forwards and started begging.


    But Elizabeth remained indifferent.


    Everyone then suddenly realized that with just a few words from Elizabeth.


    Thomas had lost everything that he had.


    Everyone looking at what was going on at this moment realized that...


    Elizabeth...


    This woman...


    Was someone that they must never offend!

 Chapter 185: Gate Crashing[11]

    Chapter 185: Gate Crashing[11]


    "I apologize for the inconvenience that these iplete guards caused for you, sir Joseph!"


    When the group finally entered the headquarters of P.H Works...


    Elizabeth hurriedly apologized to Joseph.


    Joseph turned to look at her and smiled.


    The reason why Elizabeth deliberately apologized within the building was that she clearly didn''t want to cause unnecessary trouble to Joseph.


    After all, she was actually quite popr online, and if her fans saw her bowing her head towards a young man...


    That young man would definitely attract their anger no matter what.


    Joseph waved his hand, "It''s okay, I''m fine..."


    The smile on his face indicated that he had already forgotten about that incident. Since those that needed to be punished already received their punishment, there was no use on pursuing the matter anymore. Joseph was more curious about the headquarters of P.H Works...


    Sweeping his gaze around, Joseph revealed an astonished look on his face.


    "This ce..."


    "Why does this seem more like a traditional Inte Cafe than a ce for work?"


    Lily also noticed the same and she couldn''t help butment under her breath.


    Ray turned to look at Lily and smiled, "I didn''t expect that someone so young as you would know about traditional Inte Cafes..."


    Lily''s knowledge was really unexpected since it has been thirty years since traditional Inte Cafes went obsolete.


    With the materials necessary for the creation of one''s personalputer going so cheap...


    A Personal Computer became a staple of one''s household; even the poorest of the poor had their own personalputer.


    "Hahaha..." Lily lifted a smile, "It''s because my grandpa always talked to me a lot about what he did when he was still young."


    "Oh, really? How old is your grandpa?"


    "He''s a hundred and thirty-years-old," Lily answered without hesitation.


    "Wow! Being able to reach such an age is quite rare. Your grandpa must be a treasure trove of information. The reason why he keeps on talking about what he did when he was young and the times back then to you is probably that he''s afraid..."


    "Afraid?" Lily was taken aback.


    "Yes, afraid..." Ray revealed a mysterious look, "He''s afraid that the youngsters of today may forget about the good old times back then."


    Elizabeth turned to look at him in shock, "Why do you know so much about those chaotic times?"


    Ray smiled, "It''s because my grandpa back then was also acting like this youngss''s grandpa!"


    Lily sweetly smiled, "So, that''s the case! I see, then sir Ray. Both of our grandpas are kindred spirits!"


    Ray nodded his head and didn''t object, "That''s right."


    Elizabeth revealed a frown on her face when she saw how Lily was slowly getting close with Ray.


    Lily noticed the frown on her face, but she didn''t think too much of it.


    She was nothing but a mere Secretary.


    <em>A mere Secretary like her actually wants to hook up with her boss?</em>


    <em>That''s taboo!</em>


    Lily inwardly sneered.


    She proceeded to slowly hook Ray into her, all the while, also keeping her attention on Joseph so that he wouldn''t feel neglected. Through this manner, she could hit two birds in one stone! How profitable! What a bright scheme!


    The frown on Elizabeth''s face never disappeared until they arrived at the room where Mar was staying.


    The doors automatically opened when the sensors detected Ray''s unique presence.


    "Oh, finally you''re back! Wait, he''s here!" Mar eximed in delight when he saw Joseph.


    He instantly felt that Joseph was a decent man when he saw that his appearance in-game didn''t differ that much from his appearance here in the outside world.


    In other words, Joseph wasn''t a fake person who would try to beautify themselves as much as possible for their pursuit of short-lived vanity and self-satisfaction.


    "Young man, we''ve been waiting for you. Come here for a bit."


    Mar gestured for Joseph toe closer and the two started their own banter.


    After a short introduction from Mar, he then proceeded to ask, "Are you feeling well after that lengthy King''s Trial? You spent quite a long time in that world... I''m really amazed that you managed to endure such a long stay and didn''t drop out of the trial."


    "Hahaha... I''m doing fine, sir... I don''t really feel anything weird. But if I were to nitpick, I''d say that my horizons were widened." Joseph honestly answered.


    He came here upon the request of P.H Works since they wanted to make sure that there was nothing strange going on within his body.


    Why would Joseph lie on answering their questions?


    That didn''t serve any benefit to him and was nothing but detrimental.


    "I see, so your horizons were widened?"


    "Hahaha..."


    "If you say so, but we''re still going to run some checks on you. Even if you say that you don''t feel anything strange in your body. We still have to make sure that you''repletely fine." Mar patted Joseph''s shoulders and boisterouslyughed.


    "Do you have any questions before we start those tests? You can ask us anything you want."


    Elizabeth suddenly interjected.


    "Really?"


    Joseph was delighted.


    Ray faintly nodded his head, indicating that he was agreeing to Elizabeth''s proposal.


    "Then..."


    Joseph swept his gaze across Elizabeth, Mar, and Ray.


    "Can I somehow get Elizabeth back?"


    "Hmm?"


    Everyone was taken aback by his question.


    Especially, Lily who had no clue about what they were talking about.


    Complicated emotions shed across Ray''s face as he let out a sigh and replied, "I''ll exin everything to youter, that also includes everything about the King''s Trial and why the time dtion in the King''s Trial is so hugepared to the world of Victory..."


    "That also includes everything about your Personal Pixie Assistant, Elizabeth..."


    Joseph nodded his head, even though he had a lot of questions at this moment.


    There was no use rushing for it.


    Ray would eventually have to answer himter this day, so what''s the rush?


    "Okay, let''s go and start the test." Mar stood up.


    Ray nodded and turned to look at Elizabeth, "Eli, give the orders to start the tests..."


    "Joseph, follow us outside, and as for you, youngss..."


    He turned to look at Lily before continuing,"I''m sorry, but you are not allowed to follow us from this point. Outsiders aren''t allowed but don''t worry. You can stay in this room and maybe even borrow that capsule there to y while you wait..."


    "The test will take several hours toplete, so you can y Victory until we return,"


    Ray patiently exined.


    "Outsiders aren''t allowed? But I''m not an outsider! I''m his girlfriend!" Lily pointed at Joseph.


    Elizabeth and Ray turned to look at him for confirmation.


    Joseph was immediately ced onto the hot seat.


    A bitter smile appeared on his face as he said, "Yes, that''s right..."


    "I see..." Ray''s eyes shed with a barely imperceptible light before he turned to look at Lily and said, "I''m sorry to cause such a misunderstanding but by outsiders..."


    "What I meant is that people that don''t know about what Joseph went through aren''t allowed to follow us..."


    "That ce is highly-ssified..."


    "Even if you''re Joseph''s girlfriend, that doesn''t mean that we can just allow you to go in. We can''t really risk leaking valuable information to yourpetitor after all. Sorry, if this sounds as if we''re being cautious at you but this is just how everything works." Ray promptly exined.


    Elizabeth coldly snorted, "Sir Ray, let''s just go. I''m sure she''ll be fine here. This ce is big and it has everything that a person needs, there''s also a gaming capsule."


    Ray turned to look at her and simultaneously thought.


    <em>Why does it feel like she''s in a bad mood?</em>


    <em>I''ll go and pamper herter.</em>


    Ray decided.


    "Hahaha... How about you stop being so stingy Ray and also give her an Executive ess Keycard valid for today? In that way, she will be able to go wherever she wants. This room is quite boring and dull, I don''t think she''d want to stay here for such a long time." Mar gave a proposal.


    Ray nced at Mar for a moment.


    "That makes sense. Elizabeth, give her an Executive ess Keycard valid for today."


    Elizabeth faintly nodded and quickly went to work.


    She then returned after a few minutes, carrying a brand new Executive ess Keycard.


    "Lily... I''ll be going with them now. You can take a stroll while you wait. I''ll just text you when the tests are finally done."


    Lily nodded her head and sweetly smiled, "Okay... You take care now, all right? I''ll take a tour around here for a while, don''t get into trouble, okay?" She then moved closer to Joseph and nted a kiss on his left cheek, eliciting a bitter smile from thetter.


    After this small event...


    The group left Lily in the room and proceeded to the testing area where they would conduct the tests necessary for checking if Joseph was suffering from the side-effects of the King''s Trial.


    But while they were in the middle of their journey, Ray suddenly stopped and asked.


    "Joseph..."


    "Are you curious as to why we created the King''s Trial?"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows, but he still answered honestly, "Isn''t the King''s Trial made for those yers that wanted to be Kings?"


    Ray nodded, "Yes, that''s right, but don''t you think it''s strange that the time dtion in that world is quite hugepared to the world of Victory and on the outside world?"


    Joseph finally understood what Ray was talking about.


    It was indeed quite strange that the time dtion was so huge, it didn''t make sense.


    Now that he thought deeper into it, he suddenly got curious as to why such a world was made, yet wasn''t really widely used. If Victory had such a time dtion, then it would definitely be everyone''s second world.


    After all, with a person''s average lifespan...


    They would be able to live several hundreds of lifetimes in the world of the King''s Trial.


    "Are you curious now?" Ray asked with a faint smile.


    Joseph nodded, "Yes..."


    Ray let out a sigh and replied, "In that case, then let me show you..."


    "Wait!"


    Elizabeth suddenly chimed in.


    "What''s wrong, Eli?" Ray asked.


    Mar also stared at him, but he didn''t say anything.


    Strangely, there was this rare look of seriousness on his face.


    The atmosphere turned thick to the extent that Joseph felt ufortable.


    "I just want to know if Sir Ray... if Sir Ray really wants to exin everything to him..."


    "Yes, I do..." Ray lightly chuckled.


    "But doesn''t that mean that you must show her to him, so he''ll understand everything?"


    "Yes, that''s right."


    Elizabeth reeled in astonishment, "But if we do that, then sir Ray may..."


    "It''s fine." Ray didn''t let Elizabeth continue her sentence.


    He interrupted her and his faint smile deepened.


    Seeing the smile on Ray''s face, Elizabeth didn''t stop him anymore.


    The group continued their journey until they reached a ce that looked more like a hospital.


    The thick smell of antiseptic made Joseph furrow his eyebrows.


    "We''re here." Ray suddenly spoke.


    The automatic doors in front of them opened, and when they stepped inside.


    They found themselves standing in front of a room that had ss for its walls.


    Within that room was a single bed, and lying on that bed was a little girl who looked to be at the age of six to seven-years-old.


    The little girl was quite beautiful and charming.


    But there was something horrifying about her situation.


    All sorts of tubes and machines were attached to her body.


    It didn''t take a genius to know that this little girl''s life was only being maintained by machines.


    In other words, she was effectively dead.


    Ray let out an audible sigh.


    He turned to look at Joseph and said.


    "This little girl is my sister..."


    "She doesn''t have any name here in the real world, but you probably know her name within the world of the King''s Trial."


    Joseph''s pupils constricted upon hearing what Ray said.


    A sense of foreboding washed over his body as he whispered in utter astonishment and shock.


    "Are you saying that she''s..."


    "Are you saying that she''s Elizabeth?!"

 Chapter 186: Gate Crashing[12]

    Chapter 186: Gate Crashing[12]


    Silence descended, the atmosphere became incredibly thick that it suffocated everyone, yet none of them spoke.


    Their silence seemed to be born from their tacit understanding in agreement that Joseph''s conclusion was correct.


    The little girl on the bed was indeed Elizabeth!


    <em>His Personal Pixie Assistant?</em>


    <em>But howe?</em>


    <em>What was going on?</em>


    The Elizabeth that Joseph knew within the world of Victory was a witty, somewhat shy, yet cold outside and hot in the inside type of a girl! How could she be a little girl?


    "What the fuck is going on?" Joseph couldn''t help but curse.


    Ray turned to look at him and bitterly smiled.


    "The King''s Trial..."


    "Is also known as Project: Second Life."


    "Project: Second Life?" Joseph turned to look at Ray in shock.


    "Yes..."


    "That is the reason why the time dtion within the King''s Trial is so huge..."


    "A hundred years for a week. In other words, patients like my sister here whose only part of her body that''s working is her brain can live several lifetimes in just a single month within the world of the King''s Trial."


    "And she''s been within the world of King''s Trial for several years already. Living a lifetime after a lifetime. That''s how her life is, a cycle that never ends. A cycle that I can''t bear to end."


    Ray let out a heartbroken sigh.


    Her secretary, Elizabeth approached him from the side and hugged his arm. The look on her face was the same sa Ray, it was clear that she knew a lot regarding Ray''s situation with his sister. As her Secretary for so long, she knew how Ray thoroughly loved her sister.


    Even the ringtone of his phone was the voice of her sister before she fell into this horrendousa!


    "So..."


    "The King''s Trial was created for the sake of those who are trapped in their own bodies? It''s made so that they could live the life that they deserved here in the real world in the virtual world?"


    "Yes, that''s right..."


    "I figured that since you''re the very first person to have entered the King''s Trial and in return, unknowingly became one of our test subjects..."


    "It''s just right for us to inform you about all of these. But I trust that you don''t tell anyone about what I saw or heard today." Ray nodded, a faint smile was stered on his lips.


    "Sir..."


    But when Elizabeth saw that smile, she tightened her hold around Ray''s arm.


    "It''s okay, Elizabeth... It''s fine... I''m all right." Ray Gabriel affectionately ruffled her hair, making sure that she understood that there was nothing for her to worry about.


    "..."


    Joseph couldn''t speak at this moment. He couldn''t find any appropriate words to use in this situation. He felt that he should agree to their request, but bing a test subject? He didn''t sign up for something like that! Why would he be their test subject?


    Yet, when Joseph saw the miserable little girl lying on the bed. He let out a sigh and asked, "Since I already became one of your test subjects, does that mean that the information that you will get from me will greatly help you all in this project?"


    Mar stepped forward and replied to his question, "Yes, that''s right! We have always been researching Project: Second Life, even before Victory was made..."


    "In fact, if not for Project: Second Life. Victory wouldn''t have been created. The virtual world that everyone is enjoying right now around the world wasn''t actually made for the world."


    "All of them, including the world of Victory is actually only created for the sake of a single person..."


    "And that is Elizabeth, Ray''s little sister."


    "..."


    Joseph was moved.


    For Ray to devote several decades in his life just for the sake of his sister. One could see how dedicated he was for the sake of his family. Such a man of integrity and filial piety was something that Joseph always respected.


    At this moment, his view of Ray Gabriel greatly changed.


    From what he could see on the television and from earlier.


    He thought that Ray was a ruthless, decisive, and cold man.


    He thought that he was someone that would do whatever he could possibly do just for the sake of his goals.


    But now?


    Those thoughts in Joseph''s mind disappeared as if they didn''t even exist in the first ce.


    Now he had nothing but admiration for such a man.


    If the ocean was boundless, then Ray''s heart was even more boundless than the ocean.


    Joseph''s eyes glittered with the light of even deeper respect.


    He didn''t even dare to look straight at Ray anymore. He discovered that he found himself unable to ask more questions when he realized just what kind of a man Ray was. But Ray merely chucked when he noticed Joseph''s change in attitude towards him.


    "I can see that you are bing cautious to me..."


    "But don''t be like that, please. After all, we''re family." Ray casually said.


    But Joseph almost spat a mouthful of blood when he heard Ray.


    <em>A family?</em>


    <em>When did we be a family?</em>


    He had a confused look on his face that was particrly amusing to both Ray and Elizabeth.


    Elizabeth couldn''t help butment, "We saw everything in the King''s Trial... Didn''t I already tell you that in that email that I sent you a few days ago? Hahaha, there''s no use for excuses. We saw everything, including how you flirted with your Personal Pixie Assistant."


    <em>Pfft!</em>


    Joseph almost keeled over when he heard Elizabeth''s words.


    He surreptitiously nced at Ray, but he found that Ray still looked as indifferent as ever. Except for the slight smile on his face, one couldn''t read his emotions at all. This was probably the reason why Joseph thought that he was a cold manparably to that of a thousand-years-old icy cavern.


    "I-I didn''t..."


    Joseph was quick to hold fast on his wits as he waved his hands in front of him in a panic.


    Mar lightly chuckled, while Elizabeth stared at him in amusement. The slight smile on Ray''s face seemed to have vanished at this moment and not a trace of warmth could be felt on his person anymore. There was nothing but coldness.


    <em>Fuck... I hate you, Secretary Elizabeth!!!</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed.


    After a few seconds that felt more like an eternity.


    Ray gave an audible sigh and said, "Answering your question earlier, she..."


    "She will be back."


    "If you consent to be our test subject, we will be able to gather enough data..."


    "If we managed to do that then, we can implement that patch as soon as possible. In other words, every yer in the world of Victory will now have their own Personal Pixie Assistant. Of course, there are varying levels of A.I Intelligence, but as for you..."


    "Since you are the man that my sister chose, I will let you be with her. I promise."


    Ray stared at Joseph with firm determination.


    Joseph''s lips repeatedly twitched.


    <em>What the hell are they talking about? A man that Elizabeth chose?</em>


    <em>Me?</em>


    <em>Elizabeth looked at me back then like a woman would look at a man?</em>


    <em>Are they serious? She''s only a kid! A six or even seven-years-old kid!</em>


    Mar saw the confusion on Joseph''s face and he couldn''t help but tease, "It seems like you''re quite ignorant regarding that particr matter. Do you want to look at that event that happened just as you disappeared from the world of the King''s Trial and returned to-"


    "Stop..."


    Ray red at Mar.


    Of course, he knew what Mar was talking about!


    It was that scene when Elizabeth confessed to Joseph by screaming her confession to the skies!


    How could Ray let Mar show that footage to Joseph?


    If her sister found out about what she did, then she would definitely kill him!


    <em>Gulp!</em>


    Mar gulped a mouthful of saliva upon seeing Ray''s cold re.


    <em>Cough!</em>


    He coughed and swiftly changed the topic, "Now that I think about it, don''t you have a girlfriend, young man? What was her name again? That disciple of the Legendary cksmith, Krid... Ah! I know, it''s Alice! Yeah, her name''s Alice. She''s your girlfriend, right?"


    <em>Pfft!</em>


    <em>You bastard!</em>


    <em>You threw me to the den of the wolves!</em>


    Joseph inwardly cursed once again.


    He turned to look at Mar and found that there was this silly smile on his face.


    At this moment, Joseph finally discovered that Mar wasn''t a decent person like he thought he was.


    Even though he was one of the great men behind the creation of virtual worlds, Project: Second Life, and the world of Victory...


    He was actually just a shameless old man who''d sell out his acquaintances just so he could escape!


    Joseph surreptitiously nced at Ray and found that his eyes went cold.


    Even Elizabeth revealed a bitter smile and took a step backward.


    Both Ray and Elizabeth knew about the existence of Alice and how she was so close to Joseph.


    Joseph himself knew about this fact and adding this to the fact that Ray''s sister, Elizabeth had some feelings for him...


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    He didn''t dare to speak anymore, afraid that his words may be used against him.


    Of course, that didn''t prevent him from repeatedly cursing the shrewd Mar inside his mind.


    "So you''ve advanced your rtionship with Alice already?" Ray finally had some changes in his expression. He raised his eyebrow and asked, "Did you acquire Krid''s blessing?"


    Joseph was confused,<em> I thought they were observing each and every move that I make? If that''s the case, then they should''ve known about something like this already!</em> His confusion rendered him unable to answer outright.


    Ray saw his confusion and he couldn''t help but shook his head and exin, "This shrewd old man, Mar right here knows about it since he has a lot of time up his sleeves. He''s nearing his retirement age, you see?"


    "As for me, since I''m still so young and as the CEO of P.H Works, I have a lot of things to do..."


    "Heck, I''d kill for eight hours of sleep!"


    Joseph was taken aback by Ray''s words.


    But it wasn''t because of what Ray had said regarding Mar. It was because, his tone when speaking suddenly became casual as if he was talking to a friend, instead of a mere test subject.


    At this moment, the coldness that he radiated disappeared, reced by a casual air that made everyone feel close to him.


    <em>So, this is a CEO!</em>


    <em>The fact that he can change his mood in a whim is enough evidence for me to say that he really is a true CEO!</em>


    <em>Dang...</em>


    Joseph felt a mixture ofplicated emotions. One, he was afraid to trust Ray. After all, being able to change one''s mood in a whim was the same as being a fake person. No one would be able to trust a person that they couldn''t see through, and Ray was that kind of a person.


    Second, he wanted to trust Ray since he was a man of sheer dedication, boundless filial piety, and love.


    A man like him that could care for his family to that extent wasn''t someone bad.


    Joseph thought to himself.


    <em>But what if Ray was only good to those who are a part of his family?</em>


    This was why Joseph suddenly became hesitant.


    "Ray, you bastard! You''re saying that I''m old?"


    "Aren''t you only a few years younger? Don''t be too arrogant!"


    "Yeah, I may be only a few years younger, but my physical condition is quite good. I don''t have to apply those shady creams for joint and muscle pains, and I also don''t have to use those male enhancer pills in bed!"


    <em>Pfft!</em>


    Joseph almost keeled over as his shoulder continuously trembled. He wanted tough out loud, but when he realized that these seemingly childish men were one of the most powerful men in the world. He restrained himself and surreptitiously nced at Elizabeth instead.


    Elizabeth furiously blushed when she heard what Ray Gabriel had said.


    <em>Male Enhancer Pills? T-Those kind of pills? In bed...? He doesn''t need to use those...?</em>


    But Mar scoffed in disdain when he heard Ray''s words, "Yeah, you don''t have to use those male enhancer pills. I mean, do you even have someone to use them for?"


    "Hahaha!"


    "Oh, right! I forgot... You have none! You''re still single! Or could it be that you have some women outside to relieve that pent-up stress of yours...?"


    Mar purposely lengthened the end of his sentence and even nced at Elizabeth.


    Sure enough, Elizabeth''s figure visibly trembled.


    Her grip on Ray''s arm tightened, making thetter scrunch his eyebrows in pain.


    "Uh... Elizabeth...?"


    Elizabeth didn''t reply, but her trembling shoulders made it obvious to everyone that she was irritated and possibly even mad.


    "So, sir Ray actually has time to spend in leisure outside that sir can even find some women out there to relieve his stress? It seems like sir''s workload still isn''t that huge since sir can still be as leisurely as ever... How about I go and increase sir''s workload for the month?"


    "Oh, right! I remember, there was that foodpany from the South that wanted to meet sir Ray this evening. I''ll make sure to go and set an appointment..."


    "There''s also that truckingpany from the neighboring city that wants to build some connections with sir Ray, I''ll go and set an appointment for that too."


    Elizabeth''s words weren''t really that sharp nor threatening, yet when Ray heard what she said.


    His eyes widened in shock and he almost kneeled onto the grounds as he cried out in a heartbroken voice. "No, please... Elizabeth, I''m already working 17 hours a day, 120 hours a week, and almost five hundred hours a month... I''ll die if I work more..."


    "Please let me off!"


    <em>What the hell is even going on here...</em>


    Joseph couldn''t help but scratch his head in confusion.


    <em>The Secretary should be under the mercy of the CEO, yet why were the roles reversed?</em>


    <em>Why does it seem like Elizabeth is the CEO of this P.H Works, and Ray is her Secretary instead?</em>


    Elizabeth crossed her arms in front of her chest and coldly snorted, "I''ll let you off. But you must tell me honestly. Did you go out and look for one of those dirty women in the streets?"


    "Of course not!" Ray almost immediately answered.


    "Hehehe..." Mar sniggered at the side, but he was shut down by Elizabeth''s death re.


    "I don''t even have time to y Victory anymore, why would I go and find some fun outside?" Ray patiently exined.


    Elizabeth seemed to have been convinced as she let out a sigh and waved her hand. Indicating that she''s forgiving Ray for the matter which made thetter let out a sigh in relief.


    Joseph was still awkwardly scratching his head in the corner.


    An awkward smile could be seen on his face since he didn''t know what to do nor where to look when the three were arguing with each other. However, when he saw the smiles on their faces, despite the facade of anger and indignance while they fought...


    Joseph could see that these three, really adored each other.


    Especially, Secretary Elizabeth.


    Joseph could see that she seemed to harbor some feelings for Ray.


    Although Joseph wasn''t so sure if Ray felt the same for her.


    When the three fell silent, Joseph finally found the time to speak as he swept his gaze across the three of them and asked.


    "Uh... How about that test that I''m supposed to undergo? Am I still going to continue to it?"


    Joseph''s words rang as loud as a peal of thunder.


    The three turned to look at him and simultaneously let out an, "Ah!"


    "That''s right!"


    "How the hell did we forget about that test?"


    "Isn''t it obvious? It''s your fault, old man."


    "Call me old man once again and we''re taking this outside!"


    "Quit it, you two!"


    Elizabeth hurriedly intervened when it looked like the two definitely had the intention to fight outside.


    Joseph could only shake his head and think.


    <em>P.H Works sure is apany of weirdos...</em>


    <em>One is a shrewd old man, the other is someone that can definitely be nominated for the Oscars, while thest one seems to be a dominatrix.</em>


    <em>Just how does apany full of people like this even function?</em>


    Joseph wondered.


    But in the end, he buried these thoughts back into the deepest recesses of his mind.


    He surmised that the answer to this question was probably something that even science itself can''t possibly solve.

 Chapter 187: Gate Crashing[13]

    Chapter 187: Gate Crashing[13]


    Commencing System Check...


    Memory Unit: Green...


    ck Box Temperature: Normal...


    Systems initiated...


    A feminine mechanical voice announced themencement of the test. Lying on a movable table, Joseph''s body slowly moved upwards towards a tunnel formed by a circr machine. At this moment, he felt that this event was particrly simr to getting a CT Scan.


    Closing his eyes, Joseph chose to rx and let the machine do its work.


    "Vital signs normal... Brain activity normal... Blood pressure within eptable range... Should wemence now, sir?"


    A scientist, this time, d in a white coat asked Ray with an excited look on his face. It was clear that he was an employee that knew a lot since he clearly understood the significance of Joseph''s presence. The one who passed the King''s Trial.


    "Oh my god... The data, all the data that we will be able to gather in his brain will definitely... Will definitely help us proceed with Project: Second Life after being stuck for so long!" The scientist eximed in almost a zealous-like manner, his words sent shivers down Joseph''s spine.


    A beeping sound rang out from one of the machines.


    "His heart rate went up by thirty bpm..." Another scientist eximed, he was one of the scientists tasked to thoroughly monitor Joseph''s vital status while he was being checked by the machine.


    Ray took a single nce at the scientist before he said, "Zack, calm down with that shouting of yours, all right? His heart rate went up, it''s clearly because he can hear you shouting as if you''re a cultist."


    The scientist awkwardly scratched his head and apologized. Ray nodded and waved his hand, it was clear that he wanted him to forget what just happened and focus on the job instead.


    A few minutester, after checking that every mechanism was working...


    It was finally time to start the test.


    Joseph felt something warm, simr to the warmth of the sun strike his face.


    He subconsciously opened his eyes and he was astonished to find that he was staring at the blue skies.


    <em>What?</em>


    Joseph looked particrly confused.


    <em>Wait...</em>


    <em>Am I in a virtual world?</em>


    Y<em>eah, that should be the answer. I must be in a virtual world at this moment. </em>


    <em>But that''s strange, the transfer from the real world to the virtual world here is quite seamless. I don''t feel dizzy like I normally would whenever I used that gaming capsule of mine. Well, it''s probably because I''m using the state-of-the-art machines and technology of P.H Works.</em>


    Joseph nodded his head and he raised his upper body off the ground. But as soon as he did this motion, he found himself standing within an iparably familiar room. A room that he was even more familiar with than the mansion that his parents gave to him.


    He was inside that small restaurant inside the world of the King''s Trial!


    "Master! Are you okay? You look pale, I think you should rest, master..." A voice rang just beside Joseph and when he turned to look at the person who was speaking. His pupils constricted and tears welled up in his eyes. The young man who spoke was Keh.


    Joseph nced at his hands and found that his arms were saggy with wrinkles and skin marks.


    This was a concrete sign of aging.


    But such a scene didn''t terrify Joseph.


    Instead, he felt happy and nostalgic as he raised his head and answered.


    "No, I''m f-"


    His words abruptly stopped.


    He found himself sitting on a bench outside his store in the middle of winter.


    All the shops on the streets had already closed and the people who passed by Joseph didn''t even spare him a nce. But from the expression on their faces, the reason why they didn''t nce at Joseph wasn''t that they despised him. It was because they were excited.


    Yes, they were iparably excited...


    Excited to be with their families in the next few weeks toe in the middle of this harsh winter.


    "This... This is that new year''s..."


    Joseph raised his head and found Keh and both of his parents staring at him with smiles on their faces.


    As expected, Keh gave him a stern warning and hinted that he should invite them inside the restaurant since it was quite cold outside. Joseph inwardlyughed and obliged. The group of four ate with each other and even drank some wine.


    Once Keh''s father became sufficiently drunk, Keh then said that his parents came to him to borrow some money.


    Joseph walked towards the kitchen. He then returned while carrying several gold coins with him, but when he stepped his foot back into the dining room of the restaurant. The scene once again abruptly changed. He suddenly found himself in the middle of the ocean.


    In front of him was a gorgeous young woman that had this innocent, yet a somewhat devilish smile on her face.


    "Elizabeth!" Joseph abruptly cried out.


    "Hieeek!" Elizabeth was scared out of her wits and almost jumped out of her seat, "Master... Why would you suddenly scream?"


    "Did you fall asleep and dream about me of something? Oh, right! That must be it! Then, in that case. I wonder what kind of dream was that master? Could it be some lewd dr-"


    "Cut it off!" Joseph hurriedly stopped her from speaking any further. He nced at the skies and thought that Mar, that shrewd old man must beughing his ass of right now. Letting out a sigh, he turned to look at Elizabeth and he couldn''t help but facepalm.


    Joseph stared seriously at Elizabeth.


    "W-What...? Why is master staring at me like that...? Could it be that master wants to... here...?" Elizabeth''s face went pale at the end of her sentence and she couldn''t help but inch closer towards the edge of the small boat.


    Exasperated, Joseph rolled his eyes, but he didn''t say anything.


    Instead, he pulled Elizabeth closer towards him until Elizabeth''s head fell into his chest.


    "Ah! Master! What are you doing...? This is inappropriate! We have a... we have a master-and-servant rtionship!"


    Elizabeth swiftly protested and even tried pushing Joseph away. But thetter was clearly stronger than her and since she felt somewhat weak on her knees, she couldn''t muster any kind of substantial protest at all.


    "Elizabeth, you..."


    Joseph looked down and saw the crimson blush on her cheeks.


    He made a sidelong nce at the skies and after seeing that there was no reaction at all from those people from the outside world. Joseph concluded that they may not be able to see what was going on inside the world of King''s Trial at the moment, or...


    <em>Could it be that all of this is a dream?</em>


    <em>This is something more logical than those people being unable to look at this virtual world!</em>


    <em>If this is indeed a virtual world, then Ray should''ve done something when he saw me taking advantage of his sister, earlier...</em>


    <em>But since he did nothing...</em>


    <em>In other words, this must be a dream!</em>


    <em>Yeah, that should be the answer.</em>


    <em>The shock that I received earlier from seeing Ray''s sister on that hospital bed must''ve caught onto me and even now, I''m dreaming of Elizabeth.</em>


    "Sigh..."


    Joseph let out an audible sigh.


    Since this was a dream, then he could just wait until he woke up.


    Leaning on the edge of the boat, Joseph raised his head and stared at the starry-skies.


    Elizabeth saw that Joseph seemed to be in the middle of deep contemtion.


    She wanted to say something, but when she saw the unapproachable look on his face. She became inexplicably nervous, and afraid.


    However, at this moment, she drew courage out of nowhere and suddenly asked.


    "Master... Once you are out of here... Is it possible for you to visit me?"


    Joseph''s interest was immediately piqued.


    "Visit you? What do you mean?" Of course, Joseph yed dumb. He wanted to extract more information from Elizabeth, so he had no other choice but to act like he didn''t know anything.


    Elizabeth tightly clenched her fists and said, "Actually, master... I''m not your Personal Pixie Assistant. It should''ve been someone else, but when I saw that master looks to be an interesting and honest person..."


    "I decided to steal you from that person, so I can be your Personal Pixie Assistant instead."


    Elizabeth looked down onto the ground, she was incredibly ashamed at this moment.


    But Joseph was amused.


    He waved his hand and said, "It''s fine... Since everything has already happened, then there''s no use crying over spilled milk. Let bygones be bygones! I''ve also enjoyed yourpany all this while, so I can''t say that I have something toin about your service as my personal assistant."


    "Really?"


    Elizabeth suddenly became invigorated when she heard his words.


    "But I stole you from her! Are you not mad at me, master?" Elizabeth''s eyes were widened in astonishment, making her look even more amusing to Joseph.


    "I''m not!"


    "I see... I''m d... I really thought all this while that master would hate me if I told you the truth. But it turns out that I was just overthinking!" Elizabeth let out a sigh of relief and her body became even more rxed as she leaned on the edge of the boat.


    "Then, what did you mean about that visit? I can visit you? How? I don''t think that I can even return to this world." Joseph lifted a bitter smile.


    Elizabeth turned to look at him and said, "Does that mean that master really wants to visit me?"


    "Of course, I want to visit you! Why would I not want to visit my assistant who''s been with me for so long?" Joseph stretched his hand out and patted Elizabeth''s head, "No matter what, even after this, we will always be best friends! I promise you that!" Joseph solemnly vowed.


    After all, this was just a dream. Why not savor it?


    Elizabeth was taken aback by his words, but then her figure suddenly trembled.


    "M-Master... Do I really... Do I really deserve your kindness...?"


    It was Joseph''s time to be confused. He couldn''t understand what Elizabeth was talking about.


    "But Master is saying that he wants to visit me. But will master really continue to say that if master knows what I look like?"


    "Actually, master. I''m not that pretty..."


    "I''m ugly and I have these tubes attached to my body. If master sees me like that, will master continue to be my friend? Will master not be disgusted with me?"


    Joseph shook his head and said, "Of course not! Elizabeth, we will always be friends, forever! One cannot judge a book by its cover. Even if you''re physically ugly like what you said, I am absolutely certain that you are incredibly gorgeous and beautiful inside!"


    "Really?" Elizabeth''s eyes twinkled with joy.


    "Yeah, so I''ll definitely go and visit you!"


    "If you say so, master... Then... I''ll let you visit me." Elizabeth said in a hushed voice that sounded more like the droning of a mosquito. But since they were in the middle of the ocean with literally no noise pollution. Her voice rang clear and as loud as the peal of thunder.


    She instantly blushed out of embarrassment and Joseph boisterouslyughed.


    After a few seconds ofughing from Joseph...


    Elizabeth spoke up once again, this time. She stretched her hand and pinched a piece of fat on Joseph''s waist and cried out, "Why are youughing at me, master! I really am serious! I want you to visit me! Okay, once you''re out here, master... Go and ask my big bro Ray about my location!"


    "He''ll tell you everything! I promise!"


    "Once I''m out of here?" Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    "But isn''t this just a dream?" He subconsciously uttered.


    "A dream? What are you talking about, master? This is aputer-generated location based on our memories, right now you are in a miniature world simr to the world of the King''s Trial, but with no time dtion at all!"


    "WHAT?!" Joseph was so shocked that he almost leaped out of his seat.


    He turned to look at the skies and asked Elizabeth in a nervous voice.


    "Then... Does that mean that they saw and heard everything that happened in here...?"


    Elizabeth sweetly smiled, yet her eyes radiated a dangerous light.


    "Yup! They saw everything! Including master pulling me into an embrace and trying to take advantage of me!"


    "Sautee my scallops, fuck!" Joseph was so incensed by this revtion that he let out a strangebination of words.


    "Hahaha..." Elizabeth let out a charming chuckle, "Bye, bye, master... It seems like everything is over... I hope to see you outside! Remember what you said to me here, all right? You must absolutely never hate or be disgusted at me when you see me, okay?" Elizabeth sternly warned.


    Joseph nodded his head as if he was chicken pecking rice and at this moment...


    His vision suddenly blurred.


    Commencing System Check...


    Memory Unit: Green...


    ck Box Temperature: Within eptable parameters.


    Systems initiated...


    A feminine mechanical voice rang and Joseph found himself staring at a concrete ceiling.


    He raised his upper body and he found Ray staring at him with a cold look on his face, while Mar, on the other hand, secretly sniggered at the side.


    Joseph bitterly smiled.


    He went out of the testing area and stood in front of the three.


    "Young man, you really are quite ballsy. To think that you''d do such a thing to Ray''s sister! I''m sure that you know by now how much Ray dotes on her sister!" Mar patted Joseph''s shoulders and even gave him a thumbs up.


    "Stop being so noisy, darn old man!" Joseph subconsciously barked at him in anger.


    Mar''sughter froze.


    Joseph also realized his blunder and when he was about to apologize and exin that he only responded in a fit of anger and irritation. Mar''sughter resumed and this time, he was patting Joseph''s shoulder once again while saying...


    "Yeah, you are definitely quite gutsy. The number of people that would dare to swear at me can probably be only counted with a single hand. It has been a long time since an outsider did that to me. Damn, what you said was actually refreshing.


    Joseph almost keeled over in shock when he heard Mar''s words.


    <em>He''s not angry that I cursed at him? He felt refreshed after I cursed at him? What the fuck...? Thispany''s really full of weirdos, dang... I think I''m not going to return here once I get home...</em>


    Joseph kept all of his thoughts to himself.


    He raised his head and found that Ray and Elizabeth were already at the exit.


    Both of them were staring at Joseph as if urging him to hurry up.


    Joseph jogged towards them and asked, "Sir Ray, are we done with the tests now?"


    "Yes..." Ray replied with only a single word of confirmation.


    "Then, in that case, can I return now? It''s gettingte, and I''m afraid that I would have to take a red-eye flight if I stay here any longer!" Joseph exined his situation to Ray.


    "No... You aren''t going back." Ray coldly replied.


    Huh? What''s wrong? Is he mad about what I did to Elizabeth earlier? But I really wasn''t taking advantage of her! I was just trying to test if I was in a virtual world or in a dream!


    Joseph inwardly sighed.


    Fortunately, Ray''s exnation came a secondter.


    "Are you going against the words that you said to my sister, earlier?"


    Joseph''s expression froze.


    <em>Ah... So, that''s the reason why he''s not letting me go.</em>


    Awkwardly scratching his head, Joseph hurriedly answered that it was all a misunderstanding and the group proceeded to visit Elizabeth''s ward once again.


    As soon as Joseph stepped inside the special ward.


    An incredibly familiar voice rang out from out of nowhere.


    "Master! You''re finally here!"

 Chapter 188: Gate Crashing[14]

    Chapter 188: Gate Crashing[14]


    Everyone raised their head and discovered that the voice came from a nearby speaker.


    "Elizabeth..."


    Ray faintly whispered.


    Joseph stepped forward and approached the ss.


    "What do you think, master? I''m pretty ugly, right?"


    Elizabeth''s voice rang out once again.


    Joseph shook his head.


    Staring at the bare skin and bones image of the little girl whose mental age was even older than himself.


    Joseph didn''t know what to say.


    But there was one thing that he knew for sure.


    Elizabeth wasn''t ugly at all.


    "No, you aren''t..."


    Mar, Ray, and his Secretary, Miss Elizabeth turned to look at Joseph.


    Joseph felt their gazes, but he didn''t pay any heed to their attention as he continued, "You''re beautiful... I''m not lying..."


    "Trust me on this."


    Joseph''s expression was indiscernible, but his tone was firm.


    "I see..."


    "Thank you..."


    Elizabeth promptly replied.


    Silence descended, no one spoke among the group.


    But it was shattered by Elizabeth''s small request, "Kuya Ray... Can I meet... Master?"


    Joseph''s pupils constricted, "I can go inside?" He turned to look at Ray and asked.


    Ray shook his head and said, "No, her room is a carefully made sterile environment. Entering it would mean contaminating everything. With my sister''spromised immune system, something as simple as stepping inside without being sterilized can mean her death."


    "Then, what did she mean about meeting me?" Joseph asked in confusion.


    Ray stared at him for a moment before replying, "There''s a method that''s increasingly growing in poprity. With that method, we could temporarily transfer Elizabeth''s consciousness from her original body to that body, but the only problem is..."


    "You don''t feelfortable to it, right?" Mar took the words out of Ray''s mouth.


    Ray faintly nodded.


    Joseph''s eyes brightened, "If a method like that really exists, then why not use it?"


    "Well..." Awkwardness shed across Mar''s face for a moment, but Ray suddenly stretched his hand out and stopped Mar from answering.


    "Ray..."


    "I''ll do it, I''ll answer." Ray nodded his head to him and Mar kept his silence.


    He then turned to look at Joseph and exined, "It''s because that method involves silicone sex dolls. Only those kind of dolls manufactured in such a way could possibly give anyone''s consciousness a certain degree of freedom..."


    "Not only that, but that person to speak, the doll must have a really good replicated voice box which is quiteplicated to make."


    "We do have one of those dolls, but I don''t really like to use it..." Ray exined and a faint blush could be seen on his face, possibly out of embarrassment or maybe even something else.


    Joseph revealed an astonished look, but his astonishment quickly turned into awkwardness as he scratched his head.


    "In that case... I now understand why you''re so hesitant about using such a method."


    <em>''I mean, who would like to have their little sister use a body made for sex? That''s just...''</em>


    Joseph didn''t continue his train of thought anymore as he let out a cough and stared at Ray. His staring made it clear to everyone that Ray must be the one that should decide. If he didn''t want her little sister to meet Ray in the real world using such a body...


    No one would force him.


    After all, Joseph and Elizabeth would still be able to meet in the world of Victory someday in the future.


    He really didn''t mind waiting.


    Ray stared at her little sister from beyond the ss panels.


    His thoughts, unknown.


    But after a few seconds, he let out a sigh and made his decision known to everyone.


    "Fine, let''s do it..."


    A single sentence was all it took for him to utilize the entire resources of P.H Works into temporarily transferring Elizabeth''s consciousness from her body into another body.


    Even though such a method would onlyst for about thirty minutes at most since this method was still in its early phase of discovery. It was still quite useful.


    Joseph was finally able to meet and talk with Elizabeth in the real world. He learned a lot about the pitiful little girl and throughout their conversation. He discovered that Elizabeth really did love her big brother, Ray Gabriel. Furthermore, she also said that she felt quite guilty towards her brother


    If not for her existence, her brother wouldn''t be shackled and stay devoted to her for so long.


    Joseph could only sigh inmentation upon hearing her words. Within the next thirty minutes, she became Elizabeth''s emotional punching bag, but he didn''t mind. Elizabeth apanied her for more than twenty years in the world of the King''s Trial, so she deserved this treatment at the least.


    "Goodbye, master... My time is almost up. I have to return to my body."


    Joseph faintly nodded.


    A bitter smile stered across his face.


    He still wanted to talk with Elizabeth, but unfortunately. Time was up.


    Elizabeth had to return or her original body wouldn''t be able to take it anymore.


    Consciousness transfer ced a certain amount of burden on one''s body. Ray and Mar purposely hid this fact from him so that he wouldn''t worry about Elizabeth. But after today''s events, Elizabeth would probably be unable to enter the world of virtual reality for a few weeks.


    Joseph returned to the room where he first met Ray and there he found Lily watching television.


    Her eyes were focused on the screen which was currently disying some news about the current affairs of Victory.


    - Good evening, everyone! You are watching, GMA News! -


    - Good evening! -


    - We have here a very special guest, can you guess it? -


    - Shockingly, our guest for today is Kristian! The very first Legendary ss yer, the Absolute Monarch! -


    Joseph who was about toy down on the couch in exhaustion suddenly sprung up.


    He turned to look at the television.


    Lily nced at him and asked, "Look at the headlines. It seems like you have already fought against him."


    Joseph faintly nodded and directed his gaze towards the headlines on the bottom of the television.


    It said...


    - Shocking Revtion! The first Mythical ss yer is more powerful than expectations! -


    The headline sounded like a clickbait, but the two knew that a Mythical ss was indeed extremely powerful. From the fact that it''s a ss that''s a tier higher than Legendary made it obvious how potentially powerful the ss was. These words were unnecessary and shouldn''t even be said.


    But...


    Joseph sat down on the couch and patiently waited until the start of the interview.


    If Kristian himself, the number one yer within the Universal Ranking said that a Mythical ss was something even more powerful than he expected. Then, it was something else. The words of nobles were far valuable than the words of themoners after all.


    - We received word from our honorable visitor Kristian that he and his guild, Guild Strongest Under Heaven had fought against the very first Mythical ss yer. From what we heard, the Mythical ss was far powerful, even within Kristian''s imaginations. -


    - But I bet that the question everyone has right now in their minds is just how truly powerful a Mythical ss is? -


    - Is his or her might that strong that he or she can easily topple the bnce within the world of Victory? -


    - Or is there something more to this mystery? -


    - Let''s find out! -


    With thementator''s cue, some upbeat music yed and after a few seconds.


    The interview finally started.


    - Sir Kristian, you told us that you and your guild fought against the Mythical ss yer just recently. Any impressions that you can tell us regarding his or her ss? -


    - He''s a man, so I''ll use the proper pronoun. I don''t want to risk offending him if he identifies differently, so I''ll just use the pronoun which I think closely describes him. -


    Kristian spoke in an ent that made it clear that he wasn''t a person from any of the countries within South East Asia.


    - As for impressions, hmmm... His weapon is extremely long. It''s also really thin. -


    - An extremely thin and long weapon? Wouldn''t that easily break? -


    - No... It''s impossible to break that weapon that he''s using. I even specte that it''s made by that Legendary cksmith Krid before he died. -


    - I see... Ah, the tragic death of the Legendary cksmith, Krid... What a pity. -


    Thementator let out a sigh and everyone kept their silence for a second as a sign of respect for the deceased.


    - Then, in other words, that weapon of his should be the number one weapon right now within the Universal Rankings, the Nameless Rapier? -


    - Yes, it should be that Nameless Rapier. Being at the number one within the Universal Rankings. It''s a weapon that should have Infinite Durability, simr to my weapon. -


    - But the fact that it overtook your weapon in the rankings, sir Kristian... Does that mean that his weapon is at the same tier as him? -


    Thementator suddenly said something which made Kristian freeze. A bitter smile appeared on Kristian''s face as he shook his head and replied in a clearly hesitant voice.


    - I don''t know... Everything that we will say when ites to his weapon would all be spections until he himself confirms and gives us the truth. -


    - That''s right... It seems like I became too hasty at that part. -


    Thementator scratched his head andughed.


    Kristian also gave a light chuckle.


    Lily turned to look at Joseph and asked, "Is your weapon a Mythical Tiered one?"


    Joseph thought for a moment. Since everything would still be revealed in the future, then what''s the bother of hiding?


    "Yes, that''s right."


    Lily''s pupils constricted in shock.


    "What''s its market value?" She suddenly asked.


    "Market value? What do you mean? I won''t sell it!" Joseph protested.


    Lily revealed a look of confusion, but when she saw how serious he was on saying that he didn''t n on selling his weapon...


    She smacked him on the shoulder and said, "You stupid! Of course, I''m not saying that you should sell it! You can still check the market value of any item without selling them..."


    "Try checking your weapon''s market value in the virtual market ce of Victory."


    "Really?" Joseph turned to look at her and asked for confirmation.


    "Of course! Why would I be lying?" Lily sweetly smiled.


    "Then, okay. I''ll go now and check." Joseph stood up. He walked towards the nearby gaming capsule. He really was curious about the market value of his Nameless Rapier.


    "Wait!"


    "What''s wrong?" Joseph stopped and turned to look at Lily.


    "Wait for me! I''ll be going with you."


    "You''re going with me? I''m in the Kingdom of Nether though."


    "I''m also in the Kingdom of Nether! And since we''re quite near to each other we can just use the synchronized log-in function. As long as the two of us are within twenty kilometers from each other..."


    "I will be able to teleport to your location through the use of that function!" Lily suddenly said a lot of words, astonishing Joseph.


    "Really? That''s actually quite convenient."


    "Yeah! So, how about it? Can I go with you?"


    "Of course! I also have some people to introduce to you."


    Turning off the television and after getting some permission from Ray to stay in this room for the night. The two borrowed the gaming capsules in the room and entered the world of Victory.


    Through the use of synchronized log-in. Lily and her character, Lilium appeared right beside Joseph.


    "Boss! You''re finally back! Take a look at the loots that we gathered here! I bet this will rake us a lot of money!" Kayn''s voice rang out nearby.


    "Joseph! You''re back! We''re done with arranging these items in their own categories."


    "Master, wee back."


    Alice and Ezreal''s voice followed suit.


    When Joseph and Lilium''s body fully materialized in the world of Victory.


    Alice''s cold voice suddenly rang out.


    "You..."


    "You''re that person who tried to kill me back in Reinhardt!"


    Alice abruptly disappeared from where she was standing and reappeared in front of Lilium.


    "Wha...?" Joseph whispered in shock and he raised his hand to try and block Alice''s attack, but it was already toote.


    Alice''s sword had already arrived in front of Lily.


    "Why are you here and why are you with Joseph?!"

 Chapter 189: Gate Crashing[15]

    Chapter 189: Gate Crashing[15]


    "Stop it! Both of you! What the hell is going on?" Joseph quickly interjected.


    His Rapier fizzled with the brilliant light of his divinity before shing between the two.


    Swoosh!


    Both Lily and Alice leaped backwards at the same time. Their shock could be seen on their faces for they really didn''t expect that Joseph would send an attack at the two of them at this moment.


    "Joseph, what are you doing? She''s the one who almost killed me back in Reinhardt!"


    Joseph turned to look at Lily.


    Lily felt a sense of trepidation in her heart. But she wasn''t willing to back down. She was already at this point with Joseph! No matter what happens, she must be with Joseph!


    Lily gnashed her teeth and revealed a heartbroken look, "It''s all a misunderstanding! Indeed, I tried to kill her back then, but all of it is because I didn''t know that you''re with her, Joseph!"


    Joseph''s eyes dangerously narrowed.


    "But you still tried to kill her, Lily..."


    "In fact, why did you even try to kill her? Is it because of money?" Joseph asked.


    He wouldn''t me Lily if she indeed tried to kill Alice for the sake of money since he would probably do the same if he was in her shoes. But that didn''t mean that Joseph would just go and forget everything to forgive her.


    Joseph could still remember the wretched appearance of Alice when he found her lying in a dark alleyway.


    Back then, he swore that he would definitely take his revenge against the bastard that did that to her. But right now, it turned out that the person who severely injured Alice back then was someone that he knew!


    It was actually Lily!


    Joseph was willing to listen to her exnation, but it didn''t mean that he''d forgive her so easily.


    Lily could feel the coldness within Joseph''s eyes and she inwardly cursed. Biting her lips, she made herself look as miserable as possible as she cried out, "Please listen to me! I only tried to kill her because I was forced to do it!"


    "The Guild Leader of Crimson, dimir forced me to do it! I owe him a lot of money and if I didn''t do what he wants me to do... He will... He will personally visit me in the real world and ask forpensation there!" Lily''s expression was pale as a sheet of paper as she said these words.


    She knew that if she tried to exin herself in a conventional way.


    Joseph would definitely not believe her.


    This was why she needed to use another strategy...


    And that was to use amon enemy as her scapegoat.


    If she transferred all the me to dimir who was an enemy of Joseph.


    She was sure that Joseph would definitely not me her for her actions back then anymore.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows.


    "dimir...?"


    As expected, when Joseph heard dimir''s name. His anger was then swiftly redirected from Lily to dimir. In his eyes, Lily was another victim. However, even though she may be a victim. That didn''t invalidate the fact that she indeed tried to kill Alice back then.


    She still sinned.


    And she must pay for it.


    Alice stared right at Lily. She didn''t bother hiding her killing intent. Her sword, a random Sealed Artifact that she took from the treasury of the Abandoned Kingdom of Nether shone in a faint light.


    Ezreal also took his stance.


    Kayn slightly bent his knees and was ready to react at any moment.


    His brothers, Roger, Alpha, Oscar, Charlie, Bravo, Foxtrot slowly moved to surround Lily.


    With their expertise and advantage in numbers, they believed that they could easily defeat Lily as long as Joseph gave the order.


    Yes, as long as Joseph gave the order.


    "Sigh..."


    Joseph let out a sigh and said.


    "Alice... Lily is my friend. Can you just let bygones be bygones?" He turned to look at Alice and said.


    "No!" Alice firmly replied, "What are you saying, Joseph? I almost died from her hands? Are you just going to let her go? If you are, then fine! But not me! I won''t let her go until she paid for what she had done to me!"


    Joseph then turned to look at Lily and said, "That''s what she said... It seems like I can''t do anything about it, Lily. Can you just tell her your sorry and apologize?"


    Lily''s eyebrows scrunched when she heard what Joseph had said. Her eyes shone in an investigative light, yet she couldn''t sense any trace of deceit from Joseph. From what she could see, he waspletely sincere. He really wanted her to reconcile with Alice.


    But...


    Even though Lily knew that everything was her fault.


    She also has her own pride.


    To actually apologize towards another woman who seemed to be particrly close to Joseph was something that he couldn''t possibly do!


    That was the same as stooping to Alice''s level!


    "No, I won''t... As I said, it wasn''t my fault." Lily''s expression went cold. It was obvious that she would definitely not apologize to Alice no matter what happened. Taking a nce at Joseph, she then inwardly sneered at Alice. It was because she believed that Joseph would definitely take her side.


    She stood beside Joseph for a year at one of the lowest points in his life. Her value was far higher than a virtual woman that Joseph probably only met a few weeks ago. Compared to her, Alice was merely nothing but an acquaintance.


    But...


    "Fine... If you don''t want to apologize, then you can go away."


    <em>''What...?''</em>


    Lily nked out in astonishment.


    <em>''What was going on?''</em>


    <em>''Did I hear it wrong?''</em>


    <em>''Did he just say that I should go away?''</em>


    Lily turned to look at Joseph and found that there was this cold and distant look on his face.


    Joseph then nced at Alice and sweetly smiled.


    The tenderness in his eyes vastly differed from the distant look that he was giving to Lily right now.


    "Jo-Joseph... Why are you doing this... why are you doing this to me? Are you going to take her side?" Lily suddenly spoke in a disbelieving voice.


    Joseph didn''t even spare her a nce as he replied, "I''m not taking anyone''s side here, Lily. I''m just merely protecting the interest of who''s in the right. You''re in the wrong, so I can''t possibly support you, right? That is why if you are not willing to apologize, then you should scram."


    "You..." Lily''s face went pale as a sheet of paper.


    "You''re telling me to... scram? You ungrateful bastard!"


    Lily raised her finger and fiercely pointed at Joseph.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    Ezreal''s eyes dangerously narrowed and his power surged, ready to attack at any moment.


    Everyone turned vignt.


    Alice stared right at Lily and said, "How dare you use my man of being ungrateful? You''re the one that''s ungrateful here! Joseph gave you the path to heaven, but you chose to take the path of hell instead! If you really want to die that much, then I''ll send you off!"


    "And who the hell are you even?" Alice drew her sword and readied a stance. It was the familiar stance of the Grand Duelist that lookedpletelyedic due to the fact that it didn''t match Alice''s sword.


    But Lily didn''t seem to mind all of these, instead...


    She was apparently shocked by what she had heard, "What did you say? Joseph is your man? Hahaha... I see now, so that is the reason why Joseph is taking your side." Lily''s arrogance suddenly dissipated at the end of her sentence as she let out a bitter sigh.


    But unbeknownst to everyone, despite the bitterness and grief that she was disying. A cunning light was barely imperceptible within her eyes as she kneeled down and said.


    "Fine... I apologize."


    "What?"


    Alice gasped in shock.


    Joseph was also astounded.


    <em>''She actually apologized? Shit! I thought that I would be able to get rid of her by asking her to apologize since I know how prideful she is, but damn! To think that she''d do something like this just to stay with me!''</em>


    Joseph inwardlymented.


    Alice nced at Joseph.


    The gazes of the two lovers met in mid-air and they instantly understood each other''s thoughts.


    It turned out that Alice had already noticed that Joseph wasn''t so fond of the woman that came along with him. But Alice didn''t n on doing anything at first. However, when she realized that the woman was actually the same woman who severely injured her back then at Reinhardt...


    Alice quickly seized the opportunity to take her revenge against her.


    From the short fight that she had with Lily, she already realized that Lily was quite a prideful woman. It was clear from her statementsced with disdain back then that she was the type of woman that would rather die than be humiliated, yet what was this?


    She''s actually willing to apologize?


    Alice gnashed her teeth in frustration.


    Joseph was also quite frustrated.


    But since there was this popr adage that one couldn''t punch a smiling face and one must not corner a rat. The two couldn''t do anything other thanpromise.


    Joseph let out a sigh and was about to pardon Lily, but Alice suddenly spoke up.


    "Is that so?"


    "You''re willing to apologize?"


    Joseph was astonished by the sudden turn of events.


    He surreptitiously nced at Alice.


    Alice also nced at him and the two instantly made a concession.


    <em>''So, she wants me to be a good cop? I see...''</em>


    Joseph inwardly praised Alice in his heart.


    <em>''As expected of my wife-to-be...''</em>


    He lightly chuckled.


    Lily raised her head upon hearing Alice''s words.


    She was puzzled.


    <em>''She mortally wounded Alice back then to the extent that she stood on the brink of death, yet she''s actually willing to forgive me? Nice! I didn''t expect that everything would be this easy!''</em>


    <em>''As long as she forgives me then I think Joseph wouldn''t say anything about that incident anymore and would just let bygones be bygones.''</em>


    Lily was secretly happy.


    But on the outside, she revealed a nervous look before replying, "Y-Yes... I''m willing to apologize..."


    "I see..." Alice nodded her head.


    She then removed her shoe and stretched out her barefoot.


    "Lick it and shout out loud that you''re sorry to me and I''ll forgive you."


    "You..." Lily''s heart immediately sank.


    "Alice, that''s going too far!"


    Joseph swiftly interjected.

 Chapter 190: Gate Crashing[16]

    Chapter 190: Gate Crashing[16]


    Joseph''s voice was powerful and it astonished everyone who heard him, including Alice.


    "I''m going too far? You''re saying that I''m going too far? She almost killed me back then!" Alice pointed her finger at Joseph, her voice sounded so frustrated that Lily couldn''t help but turn to look at Joseph.


    <em>''He''s going to help me?''</em>


    Lily doubted it at first since it seemed that both Alice and Joseph had an ambiguous rtionship.


    But when she saw the heroic look on his face, Lily stopped doubting anymore...


    She beamed with a smile and replied.


    "Joseph is right, you''re going too far! I''m willing to apologize, but I am not willing to be humiliated!" Lily''s voice suddenly became filled with vigor.


    Now that she was convinced that Joseph was trying to help her escape her current predicament, why would she hesitate? Of course, she''d fight back!


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and said, "Alice, you''re really going too far. Lily is willing to apologize, but please don''t humiliate her. A lick is just too much... How about a kiss? If she kisses your foot and admits to her fault, will you be willing to let her go?"


    <em>''What? ''</em>


    <em>''Kiss her foot?''</em>


    Lily was dumbstruck.


    <em>''What is he talking about?''</em>


    <em>''Isn''t he going to help me?''</em>


    <em>''Why do I feel like he''s trying to push me on the brink instead?''</em>


    Lily''s eyebrows scrunched. But before she could say anything.


    Joseph turned to look at her and said, "You''re willing to do at least that much, right?"


    "What are you saying, Joseph? You want me to kiss her foot? Why would I do something like that? I''m not stupid!" Lily angrily red at Joseph.


    Joseph let out a sigh and said, "Lily... I already negotiated apromise. From the looks of it, Alice really isn''t willing to let you go unless you show to her that you''re sincere in your apologies. And what''s more sincere than a submissive disy of a kiss on a person''s foot?"


    "Sigh..."


    Joseph shook his head.


    "If you''re not willing to do at least that much, then you can get out."


    He then gestured towards the Pce Halls.


    "Jo-Joseph..." Lily''s figure visibly trembled. She looked iparably pitiful at this moment.


    Kayn who didn''t really know anything about Lily apart from the fact that she almost killed Alice felt pity towards her.


    <em>''Why was his liege doing all of this to her?''</em>


    He reckoned that if his boss was in her ce, he would also do the same since he seemed to be quite a greedy man when it came to money.


    <em>''Yet, why was he doing this to Lily?''</em>


    <em>''Why was he being such a hypocrite?''</em>


    Kayn felt that Joseph was a kettle calling the pot ck.


    He wanted to speak up, but before he could do so. Lily''s voice rang out.


    "Fine! I''ll do it..."


    <em>''What?''</em>


    <em>''She''s going to do it?''</em>


    <em>''She''s going to kiss Alice''s foot?''</em>


    Now, Kayn couldn''t understand what the hell was going on.


    He thought that Lily wasn''t willing to humiliate herself, yet what was this?


    Kayn furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.


    Alice let out a triumphantugh, but there was a barely imperceptible light of anxiety within her eyes.


    "Okay, go ahead." She stretched her naked foot in front of Lily.


    She then turned to look at Joseph and the twomunicated with their eyes.


    <em>''I didn''t expect that she was a pervert.''</em>


    <em>''Me too...''</em>


    Joseph bitterly smiled.


    He wanted to humiliate Lily because he wanted her to stay away from him.


    At first, he thought that Alice would serve as enough deterrence and with the addition of that revtion that the two were actually irreconcble enemies. Joseph was sure that Lily would do her best to stay away from him from now on.


    He knew that Lily was a prideful woman, she''d rather kill herself than be humiliated and lose face.


    Yet, what was this?


    <em>''She''s actually going to apologize?''</em>


    Joseph was still stuck on this train of thought until Lily stood up from kneeling. She immediately spat onto the floors of the Pce Halls and wiped her lips, tears welling up in her eyes. ring at Alice, it was clear that she now hated Alice to the max.


    "Sigh..." Joseph let out a sigh and then turned his attention to Kayn and Ezreal.


    "Both of you..."


    "Are you guys done with collecting the Sealed Artifacts and the items that those yers left?"


    Ezreal nodded his head, "Yes, master... We''re done. But what are we going to do with the remaining gold coins in the treasury?"


    Joseph''s eyes brightened, "There are still a lot of gold coins within the treasury?"


    He nced at Kayn.


    Kayn noticed his nce and promptly replied, "Yes, boss. I don''t know how much the members of the Number One Bandit Group took, but there are still several mountains of gold coins in the treasury. Furthermore, those mountains were at least three meters in height."


    "Woah..." Joseph let out an audible gasp of amazement. His eyes then burned with avarice, but when he remembered that he needed to fix the domestic problems of Victory and such an endeavor required arge number of gold coins.


    He couldn''t do anything other than sigh once again.


    This discovery was really painful for Joseph.


    It was akin to having an incredibly beautiful goddess on your bed, but you''re unable to touch her since you couldn''t get an erection.


    <em>''How frustrating!''</em>


    Joseph inwardly screamed.


    But having such a beautiful soon-to-be-wife, Joseph couldn''tin anymore. He soon calmed himself down and turned to look at Ezreal before asking, "Ezreal, what do you think should we do with those gold coins? I don''t think that it''s appropriate for us to just take them all."


    Ezreal''s eyes brightened upon hearing that Joseph wanted to know his opinion.


    Clearing his throat, he swept his gaze across everyone before saying, "I propose that we don''t touch those gold coins at all. We need them for the establishment of your kingdom. After all, kingdom establishment requires a lot of money."


    Everyone nodded their heads, what Ezreal said made sense.


    But Joseph frowned instead.


    "Ezreal, do you have any idea on who can help us manage the domestic problems of this abandoned Kingdom?"


    From the looks of it, Ezreal seemed to have a proposal to make.


    Joseph decided on taking a step ahead and asking him this question instead.


    Ezreal was taken aback when he heard Joseph''s question. However, when he realized that Joseph seemed to have read his mind by taking a look at his expression.


    Ezreal immediately became happy.


    The fact that Joseph noticed his emotions made it clear that he was paying attention to him.


    He took a deep breath to suppress the excitement that he was feeling.


    Afterwards, he said...


    "The Divine Sword Sect may be able to help us."


    Joseph''s eyes shed with understanding.


    At this moment, Alice spoke, "But isn''t the Divine Sword Sect quite far? We''re at Reinhardt right now, and the Divine Sword Sect is directly at the center of this abandoned Kingdom."


    Joseph nodded his head.


    The Royal Pce of a Kingdom must be at the center of the capital city within its territories. Yet, this wasn''t a fact in the Kingdom of Nether. Instead, at the center was the towering mountain of the Divine Sword Sect. The reason as to why something like that happened actually caused quite a stir.


    Rumors say that the true rulers of the Kingdom of Nether weren''t actually the Oligarch Family, but the Divine Sword Sect. Those rumors also said that the only reason why the Oligarch Family became the rulers of the Kingdom of Nether was that the Sect Leader of the Divine Sword Sect was toozy!


    Joseph wasn''t sure if those rumors were true but until then. It was safe to assume that the Divine Sword Sect was an organization that could definitely help them manage the abandoned Kingdom of Nether.


    But what Alice said was also true.


    The Divine Sword Sect was indeed quite far from Reinhardt.


    It would take them several days to reach the Divine Sword Sect and within those days.


    An uncontroble civil war was sure to happen.


    Joseph must manage the domestic problems of the abandoned Kingdom of Nether before a civil war erupts.


    He must cate the citizens of this abandoned kingdom and give them what they needed.


    It was at this moment that Ezreal spoke up, "The Divine Sword Sect is really far from Reinhardt. But I have a solution to that, master..."


    "Really?" Joseph was delighted, "Are you going with us, Ezreal?"


    Ezreal nodded his head, but then determination shed across his face, "I''ll be going with you, master. But I''ll bete. I still have some unfinished business to do here in Reinhardt."


    Joseph was confused for a moment, but then he revealed a look of enlightenment, "I thought you already forgot about those times..." He let out a sigh but didn''t say anything towards what Ezreal was nning on doing. Ezreal was his own individual, not only that but he was also his friend.


    If Ezreal wanted to do something then he would undoubtedly support him.


    He proceeded to not mention it anymore as he asked, "What kind of solution do you have in mind, Ezreal?"


    Everyone turned to look at Ezreal in curiosity.


    The Divine Sword Sect was extremely far from Reinhardt that journey from Reinhardt towards the Sect would take several days.


    None of them was willing to wait that long since they were sure that the Capital City of Reinhardt would probably be already ransacked by the angry citizens by the time that they returned.


    This was why everyone felt confused and conflicted as to what they should do in cating the citizens of Nether.


    But now, they were quite happy since Ezreal had a proposal to make.


    Ezreal lightly smiled and took out an ancient scroll from his chest pocket, "I have here a teleportation scroll that can transport people towards any location that I once visited..."


    "Of course, it can''t go through the defensive formations of the Divine Sword Sect, so I can''t directly transfer all of you inside the sect..."


    "However, I can at least teleport everyone in front of their gates."


    Everyone was astounded by what they had heard.


    Joseph turned to look at Ezreal. A teleportation scroll that could cross extreme distances in an instant probably took a while and a lot of resources to make. In other words, it should be incredibly expensive. However, Ezreal was actually willing to give them such a one-time-use scroll?


    Joseph was moved.


    "Thank you, Ezreal..." Joseph simply said.


    He and Ezreal were brothers, not a lot of words were needed between them!


    "I''ll be going to the Divine Sword Sect? Who is going with me?"


    "I''ll be with you." Alice stepped forward. As a Sword Adept, if she missed such an opportunity of possibly meeting the leaders of the Divine Sword Sect, then she''d be ashamed of herself.


    "I''ll be going with you too, Joseph!"


    Lily hurriedly eximed as if she was afraid that she''d be forgotten.


    Joseph paid her a nce but he didn''t say anything.


    He then turned to look at Kayn and asked, "Kayn, how about you?"


    Kayn shook his head, "I would love to go with you boss, but..." He surreptitiously nced at the Sealed Artifacts piled-up behind him and then continued, "I still have to find some ways on dispatching these items."


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "In that case, then how about you just go and sell them online?"


    "Huh?"


    Kayn was dumbstruck.


    <em>That''s right!</em>


    <em>I could do that!</em>


    <em>Wait, I could do that?</em>


    "Are you sure about that, my liege?" Kayn carefully asked.


    "Yeah, why not? What we need right now are gold coins instead of those Artifacts. Remember it, and make sure that you''re able to maximize profits in selling those artifacts, all right?" Joseph chuckled once more.


    Kayn gulped a mouthful of saliva and he then straightened his back.


    "Yes, my liege! I''ll do my best!"


    "But my liege, what do we do with the items that we got from those yers?" Kayn suddenly asked and it was at this moment that Joseph realized the presence of a certain problem.


    Indeed, how should they maximize profits on selling those artifacts that belonged to the elite members of the three guilds? Especially the items from the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    If the members of Guild Strongest Under Heaven came to know that other yers bought their items, then those yers would undoubtedly acquire the anger of Guild Strongest Under Heaven.


    In other words, it was impossible for Kayn to sell their items to other yers once those yers realized where the items came from.


    Joseph fell into deep contemtion, but his pondering didn''tst long for he now had a brilliant idea in his mind.


    "How about you go and sell those items back to their owners?"


    "Huh?"


    Kayn was speechless and dumbstruck.


    But in the very next moment, heughed out loud and said, "Hahaha! That''s right! How did I not think of that? If I want to maximize my profits on selling these items then I can only sell them back to their original owners! My liege, you''re really such a brilliant and genius man."


    "Stop saying that..." Joseph rolled his eyes at him and rubbed his nose out of embarrassment.


    "He''s saying the truth, Joseph. You''re really such an amazing man."


    Lily quickly took advantage of this opportunity.


    She nced at Alice in apparent pride, but she found out that instead of being bothered about her praise to Joseph.


    Alice had a look of happiness on her face, "You''re right about that, it seems that you''re not blind at the least. My man is indeed quite capable."


    "Stop it, Alice." Joseph rubbed his nose once again and turned his head to the side, he was afraid that Alice would see him blushing. If she did, then Alice would definitely use that as her weapon to tease him for weeks. Joseph wasn''t willing to see something like that happen.


    Kayn''s lips repeatedly twitched when he saw how casually Joseph was flirting with the two women.


    Rubbing his nose in apparent jealousy, he awkwardly asked, "Boss... Can I go now?"


    Joseph noticed Kayn''s awkwardness.


    He didn''t want to judge, but he could see that Kayn probably never had a girlfriend in his entire life.


    But since Joseph was the same as him until he met Alice, he could thoroughly understand Kayn''s feelings.


    He didn''t bother him anymore as he nodded, "Then, go on! Contact me once you are done with everything."


    Kayn also nodded in return before turning around and arranging everything along with his brothers.


    "It seems like there''s only the three of us." Joseph nced at Alice and Lily.


    Alice furrowed his eyebrows, "What''s wrong? I''d love it more if there''s only the two of us though."


    She threw an annoyed nce at Lily and Lily could only bow her head in shame.


    Though, inwardly...


    She was seething in anger.


    Joseph made a sidelong nce at Lily before saying, "Are you sure that you''re going with us?"


    Lily puffed her cheeks when she heard Joseph''s question, "Why are you asking me that question as if you didn''t want to be with your friend here..."


    "You know what, Joseph? I thought we''re still close friends, but now that you have another woman doting on you, you''re suddenly alienating me. It really hurts, you know?"


    Lily''s eyes welled up with tears.


    Joseph let out a sigh and said, "No, I''m not say-"


    "It''s okay! You don''t have to exin. I bet I''m just being a third-wheel." Lily said in a voice filled with sadness. But even though she wasining. There was no way that she''d stay away from Joseph at this point in time. Since she was already this far, there''s no way that she''d let go!


    Joseph could only scratch his head before turning to look at Ezreal.


    Ezreal lightly chuckled upon seeing Joseph''s predicament.


    But he didn''t dare to tease his master as he opened that ancient scroll and teleported the three in front of the gates of the Divine Sword Sect.


    "Ugh... I feel sick."


    Josephined.


    Suppressing the urge to vomit, he raised his head and found that there were numerous members of the Divine Sword Sect staring at him with hatred behind the towering double-door gates of the Divine Sword Sect.


    "What are you doing here, you absolute garbage?" One of them coldly spoke.


    Joseph received several system notifications.


    [You are currently hated by every member of the Divine Sword Sect. Negotiations are impossible.]


    [yers affiliated with the Divine Sword Sect will receive a quest to kill you once you are sighted.]


    [Penalty upon death when dying in the hands of a Divine Sword Sect member or affiliated yer is tripled.]


    [Please be careful!]


    Joseph''s pupils constricted when he saw these system notifications.


    He then realized that there was no way for them to peacefully enter the Divine Sword Sect.


    Since the system itself said that negotiating with these people was impossible.


    Why bother?


    "What should we do... Joseph? It seems like they really hate you?" Lily asked in nervousness.


    She didn''t have her Gunner weapon at this moment, but she still had her daggers.


    Alice stared at the members of the Divine Sword Sect with a frown, but she didn''t draw her sword.


    Upon hearing Lily''s words, she also turned to look at Joseph in curiosity.


    She wanted to know what Joseph had in mind against these people.


    "Since they don''t want us to enter..." Joseph stood up, taking the Nameless Rapier out of his inventory. The brilliant light of his divinity surged as he took a stance and eximed.


    "We''re going to crash their gates!"


    A sh of dazzling light streaked past everyone''s eyes followed by a loud explosion.

 Chapter 191: Crash the Gates!

    Chapter 191: Crash the Gates!


    The dazzling light born from Joseph''s divinitysted for not more than a second, yet the aftermath of its appearance thoroughly shook everyone to their core. The towering double-doors of the Divine Sword Sect had actually copsed with just a single attack!


    "Jo-Joseph! What are you doing?!" Lily cried out.


    When the double-doors copsed onto the ground, as a member of Joseph''s party...


    She instantly saw countless red Health Bars appearing above the heads of everyone standing in front of her. In other words, the sect members of the Divine Sword Sect who originally weren''t hostile to her were now her enemies!


    Taking out her daggers, she rushed towards Joseph''s side.


    Alice also unsheathed her sword.


    "Both of you, what''s the meaning of this? Are you going to take the side of that man?" A sect member who looked to be a senior member of the sect furrowed his eyebrows when he saw how Alice and Lily stood beside Joseph. He unsheathed his sword and stared daggers at the two.


    It was obvious that even though he still asked them such a question...


    There was no way that he would let them go at this point.


    "Surround them! How dare they copse the ancestral gates of the Divine Sword Sect?! This is inconceivable! They are clearly challenging our authority!" The senior sect member roared out and dozens instantly swarmed Alice, Lily, and Joseph from all directions.


    "Lily... What do you think? Can you handle them by yourself?" Joseph asked.


    Lily revealed an embarrassed look.


    She knew that it was impossible for her to deal with these sect members of the Divine Sword Sect by only using the skills of her secondary ss. Her main ss was Gunner, but s, she only had a handgun at this moment. Her signature rifle, Karabiner 98k was still in the hands of Kayn.


    She now regretted that she didn''t ask for her rifle earlier.


    But even though she knew that she couldn''t possibly handle these sect members.


    Lily''s pride didn''t let her admit defeat!


    Particrly when Alice was provocatively staring at her right at this moment!


    "I can handle them! Leave them to me!" Lily proudly dered.


    Joseph nodded his head and turned to look at Alice, "How about you?"


    Alice coldly scoffed, "That is a foolish question."


    Joseph lightly chuckled.


    She was right.


    He did ask a foolish question.


    As a Sword Adept, how could she not handle these puny members of the Divine Sword Sect?


    Unless an Elder figure came out and fought her, she would be unstoppable.


    And if Alice was already unstoppable despite only being a Sword Adept.


    What does that mean for Joseph?


    As a Grand Duelist, could these cannon fodders really do anything to stop him?


    No!


    Joseph raised his rapier and prepared a stance.


    "Senior Brother Qin, what kind of a sword is that? It''s so thin, yet it''s so long! Won''t a sword like that easily break?" A curious sect member asked Senior Brother Qin. He was the one who rallied the other members of the Divine Sword Sect on surrounding Joseph, Alice, and Lily.


    "Hmmph! He''s being pretentious! How can a sword like that survive on a battlefield? He''s only using that, not because it''s good but because it looks intimidating!" Senior Brother Qin coldly replied.


    Indeed, seeing a sword whose length was almost half of an average human being''s height on the battlefield would surely be intimidating.


    But Senior Brother Qin didn''t believe that such a weapon could survive a collision of weapons.


    He reckoned that once his own prized sword, The Dragon Swallows the Moon collided with that so-called intimidating weapon.


    It would definitely shatter and break under the might of his own prized sword.


    Despite knowing this fact, Senior Brother Qin was still quite angry.


    He was considered as an inner disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. His great prestige and power came with a lot of responsibilities and one of them was managing the flow of people into the Divine Sword Sect.


    In other words, he was a gatekeeper.


    But right now, someone actually dared to topple the gates of the Divine Sword Sect whom he patiently guarded?


    How brazen!


    He felt humiliated.


    Senior Brother Qin unsheathed his sword and rushed at Joseph.


    Without saying anything, his sword shone in a faint light, yet when one looked directly at that light...


    Their eyes would feel a hint of pain. Anyone could easily deduce that if they stared at his sword for too long. Their eyes would definitely be blinded.


    This was irrefutable evidence of the sharpness of his weapon.


    Senior Brother Qin lifted a cold smile on his face. He raised his head above him, clearly baiting out Joseph into blocking his attack with his thin weapon.


    "What?"


    But to his astonishment, he discovered that Joseph didn''t even do anything against his iing attack.


    "You''re too arrogant!" Senior Brother Qin cried out and shed.


    Joseph took a step sidewards and pped the side of Senior Brother Qin''s sword with the back of his hand. His p looked slow and gentle, yet when itnded on Senior Brother Qin''s sword. He felt as if a thousand-pound sledgehammer struck his weapon from the side.


    "What the fuck?!" Senior Brother Qin almost fell onto the ground from the force of Joseph''s p.


    His experience made him recover from his blunder, faster than anyone else.


    But Joseph was even faster.


    Just as he raised his head in order to attack once again.


    Joseph''s Nameless Rapier was already pointing at his neck.


    "Don''t move." Joseph coldly uttered.


    Senior Brother Qin''s movements instantly came to a halt.


    His expression became as pale as a sheet of paper. His arrogance vanished as he kneeled onto the ground and said while stuttering, "You... You can''t kill me. I''m an inner disciple of the Divine Sword Sect! If you killed me then the Sect will avenge my death!"


    "You will never be able to sleep peacefully again after my death!"


    Senior Brother Qin threatened.


    Joseph turned to look at him with furrowed eyebrows.


    When Senior Brother Qin saw Joseph''s expression, he inwardly scoffed. Signaling to hisrades with his eyes, he slightly nodded his head in apparent tacit understanding. His expression still looked frozen in fear, yet his eyes radiated the light of determination and the will to fight.


    Obviously, once Joseph spared him from death.


    He would immediately counterattack with his brothers and surround them to kill.


    The Divine Sword Sect may be considered as a righteous sect, but they were ruthless to their enemies. Once they were given the opportunity, they wouldn''t hesitate in taking the lives of their enemies, no matter how hical or immoral their actions would be.


    This was one of the reasons why the Divine Sword Sect prospered within thest thousand years.


    Each and every disciple they produced became figures simr to heroes and myths.


    There was even a rumor that the Emperor of the Empire of Truedawn, Juander was actually a Core Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect.


    Of course, rumors were rumors, so it was impossible to confirm it.


    The point here was that the Divine Sword Sect really was a ce full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.


    But was Joseph underestimating the might of the Divine Sword Sect?


    Of course, not!


    He only found it amusing that the disciples of the Divine Sword Sect were actually acting as if they were characters out of a xianxia novel.


    "Hahaha..." Joseph let out a chuckle.


    "What are youughing at? Do you think that what you''ve done is funny? You bastard! You copsed the ancestral gates of the Divine Sword Sect! No matter what you do, we will still be going to kill you!" Senior Brother Qin pointed at Joseph in anger.


    "Oh? Is that so?" Joseph suddenly asked in a cold voice.


    "Yes, that''s right! If I was you, then I would disarm myself, kneel down, and await my punishment instead of doing something like this!" Senior Brother Qin became excited when he saw that Joseph seemed to have been intimidated by his words.


    He immediately gave a proposal.


    "If a single sin condemns me to hell, then why notmit a million sins and go down to hell as a legend?"


    "Go down to hell? What are you talking about?" Senior Brother Qin felt a strange sense of foreboding in his heart.


    "Heh..."


    Joseph shook his head, he didn''t want to exin to someone as dense as Senior Brother Qin.


    "Now!"


    Senior Brother Qin suddenly screamed. He leaped backwards and took a stance with his sword once again. Hisrades that were long waiting for his signal from the distance instantly rushed towards Joseph''s direction. But when Senior Brother Qin raised his head to look at Joseph...


    He found that he had disappeared.


    Yes, he disappeared as if he never even existed in the first ce.


    "Huh?"


    Senior Brother Qin was dumbstruck.


    He stared at his fellow disciples and found that there was a look of horror on their faces.


    "Se-Senior brother! Behind you!" A courageous disciple pointed out.


    Senior Brother Qin''s pupils constricted.


    He turned around and shed with his sword, but it was already toote.


    Joseph''s palms struck the back of his head and he immediately cked out.


    "Shit, Senior Brother Qin..."


    "He''s dead!" A disciple cried out in fear.


    Joseph rolled his eyes at that disciple and exined, "I didn''t kill him. But I don''t mind killing him if you bastards remained here without calling your elders."


    "Call them! Only your elders can possibly deal with me. If all you remained persistent in fighting me, then I will have no other choice but to cut you all down!" Joseph threatened.


    [Your dignity is far higher than the fools facing you.]


    [You have sessfully threatened your enemies.]


    System notifications appeared right in front of Joseph and a light smile appeared on his face.


    Behind him, both Alice and Lily sessfully subdued their respective enemies.


    Of course, they didn''t kill them. Even without Joseph''s orders, they knew that it was taboo to actually kill a disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. This sect cared for their disciples too much to the point that one could say that they were being overprotective.


    But it was a fact, and killing their disciples was akin to making the entire sect your sworn enemies.


    Both Alice and Lily didn''t want that to happen. Joseph also thought the same.


    After all, they came here to ask for help.


    The only reason why they crashed the gates of the Divine Sword Sect was that they couldn''t afford to waste any time.


    They wanted to attract the attention of the higher-ups of the Divine Sword Sect, and what way was better than crashing their ancestral gates?


    Joseph let out a slight smile.


    "Shit, let''s run!"


    "Yeah, we can''t deal with him! He''s a monster! He killed Senior Brother Qin in just a single move!"


    "Let''s call the Elders!"


    Some of the cowardly disciples hurriedly retreated and ran towards the towering mountain of the Divine Sword Sect.


    But before they could even reach the base of the mountain, an elderly voice suddenly rang out.


    "How cowardly! And you bastards still call yourselves as the disciples of my Divine Sword Sect?!" His stern voice rang like a peal of thunder, instantly incapacitating the cowardly disciples who actually dared to turn their backs towards their enemies.


    Joseph raised his head and found an elder d in a pure-white robe.


    His beard was so long that it could probably reach the floor, but that wasn''t his feature that stuck out the most.


    His most notable feature was the broken sword he was holding in his hand!


    "The three of you obviously do not hold my sect in contempt. But why did you have to copse the ancestral gates?" The elder descended onto the ground and stared right into Joseph''s eyes.


    Taking a stance with his broken sword...


    He uttered.


    "If I did not get a proper exnation from you, then surrender your life today!"


    The elder abruptly vanished.


    Joseph''s pupils constricted.


    He had the eyes of the Grand Duelist, no movement in the world was too fast for his eyes. He saw that the elder disappeared, not because he teleported.


    It was because he jumped.


    His jump was so fast and strong that he arrived in front of Joseph in just an instant.


    His broken sword raised up above his head in a downwards sh, but by this time...


    Joseph had already reacted.


    He raised his Nameless Rapier in front of him to block, and...


    Peng!


    The sound of metal shing against metal rang out.

 Chapter 192: The Sect Master!

    Chapter 192: The Sect Master!


    The flexible de of the Nameless Rapier managed to withstand the force of the broken sword, yet it didn''t stop the kic energy of the broken sword from sending Joseph flying backward and rolling onto the ground.


    [You suffered 22,512 damage!]


    Joseph quickly recovered. He stood up and stared at the old man d with white robes. He couldn''t understand how he received damage from the old man''s attack when the only weapon that he was using was a mere broken sword. But Joseph''s experience in battle made him adapt to the situation.


    He rushed at the old man once again.


    "Point!"


    Brilliant light gathered at the tip of his Rapier as he thrust towards the old man.


    "You''re too open!" The old man scoffed and took a step sidewards.


    The thinness of the Rapier made it so that it was easy to dodge its attacks by just stepping sidewards. But when the old man evaded Joseph''s attack, a smirk appeared on Joseph''s face as the brilliant light gathered on the tip of his Rapier surged with power.


    "To Harmony!"


    The attack that should''ve been suddenly changed into a circr sweeping strike. The old man furrowed his eyebrows and quickly lifted his broken sword in front of him to defend himself. His movements were swift and decisive, without any trace of panic.


    Peng!


    The sound of metal shing against metal rang out once again.


    Boom!


    But it was quickly followed by an explosion that engulfed the old man.


    Joseph leaped backward and raised his guard. The explosion that covered the old man raised a cloud of dust that could potentially be used by the old man as a cover to hide his attacks. Joseph didn''t believe that a single Harmony was enough to suppress the broken sword-wielding old man. This was the reason why he retreated.


    He didn''t want to suffer from a surprise attack.


    "Elder Riven!" One of the sect members cried out.


    "Cough... I''m fine... This much is nothing..."


    Elder Riven?


    Joseph repeatedly blinked out of astonishment.


    <em>''His name is Riven and he has a broken sword?''</em>


    <em>''I-I won''t get into some copyright trouble with this, right?''</em>


    Joseph was so astonished by what he heard that he couldn''t even think straight. Fortunately, at this moment, Elder Riven dispersed the cloud of dust that covered his body with a wave of his hand. His bedraggled figure was finally revealed to the eyes of everyone.


    "E-Elder Riven... Are you sure that you''re really okay?" One of the sect members asked.


    "Yeah, I''m fine! Why are you so persistent? Go to the Penance Hall and repent!" Elder Riven barked at the noisy and irritating sect member.


    "E-Elder... I was just..." The sect member was dumbstruck. He was just showing his concern towards him, why did he receive punishment instead of gratitude?


    "Go now! Don''t make me see you again!" Elder Riven cried out once again.


    The sect member could only dejectedly retreat towards the towering mountain of the Divine Sword Sect. His objective was, of course, to go to the Penance Hall and repent for his "sins".


    Elder Riven wiped the blood that drenched his lips. He swept his gaze across Joseph, Lily, and Alice as he let out a sigh and said, "With your strength, you could''ve requested an appointment and we would''ve entertained you properly. Why did you have to crash the gates of my Divine Sword Sect?"


    Joseph''s eyes dangerously narrowed. He could see that even though Elder Riven looked somewhat pathetic at this moment, a different kind of dangerous energy was surging from his body towards the broken sword that he was holding.


    If Joseph''s theory was right and the Victory development team really did reference that popr MOBA game several decades ago. Then, that broken sword would...


    "Fine, you don''t have to answer." Elder Riven sighed once again when he saw that the three didn''t have any intentions to answer his question, "I just have to force the answer out of your mouth!"


    He screamed and his energy reached its peak. The broken sword within his hands shone in a greenish runic light and after blinding sh of green light...


    The broken sword was nowhere to be seen.


    It was reced by a gigantic greatsword as Elder Riven rushed towards Joseph and attacked.


    He leaped into the air and started with a downwards sh.


    Joseph deflected the attack.


    Peng!


    His deflect was sessful, yet Elder Riven''s smile seemed to deepen when his sword made contact with the Rapier.


    "Runic Surge!" Elder Riven whispered into the air and the dormant energy surrounding his sword burst forth.


    Bang!


    Another explosion urred.


    Joseph was sted away by the burst of runic energy.


    [You suffered 12,521 damage!]


    But Elder Riven wasn''t done yet.


    Before Joseph could recover, he arrived in front of Joseph in a sh and sent another attack.


    This time, a sweeping strike simr to Harmony.


    "Guard!"


    Joseph had just recovered and he had no time to find the weakness of Elder Riven''s attack. In other words, deflecting the iing attack was now impossible so he had no other choice but to use Guard instead.


    Peng!


    [You received 2,683 damage!]


    "You sure are quite good at blocking, but can you block this?" Elder Riven coldly scoffed. Kicking Joseph''s rapier, he leaped into the air and sent another sh.


    "Runic Wave!"


    Joseph''s pupils brightened when he saw the wave of greenish runic energy flying towards him. The runic energy looked untouchable and ethereal. Of course, it was impossible to block such an attack! But this wasn''t a problem for Joseph. It was because after all, he had that cheat-like ability...


    "Parry!"


    Joseph uttered under his breath and when the wave of runic energynded on his body. It disappeared as if it was a stone dropped into the ocean.


    "What?" Elder Riven was visibly shaken when he saw what happened to his attack.


    But before he could even think any further, Joseph sent his attack flying back towards him.


    "Discharge, Dividing Line!"


    Joseph leaped into the air and shed at Elder Riven''s direction.


    An indescribable power descended and struck Elder Riven, sending him tumbling backward and coughing several mouthfuls of blood.


    "Elder Riven!"


    One of the sect members rushed to help, but as soon as he stepped on the demarcation line that Joseph carved with his Rapier.


    He let out a yelp and gasped, "Shit! Don''t touch that shining light! It will hurt you!"


    The dozens of sect members immediately retreated from the area when they heard his shout. On the battlefield, the scariest thing that one could possibly encounter weren''t undying enemies, but the unknown. Facing an attack of an unknown nature, it was obvious that they would panic.


    Elder Riven stood up, his white robes stained with blood yet the fighting intent in his heart remained and never dissipated. He seemed to transform into a hero on his prime as he roared out loud and rushed at Joseph once again.


    Joseph let out a chuckle and weed Elder Riven''s attack.


    But just as the weapons of the two shed against each other, a voice suddenly descended.


    "Stand down."


    "Stop the fight."


    As soon as this voice rang out, every disciple of the Divine Sword Sect, including Elder Riven immediately stopped whatever they were doing to kneel on the ground and pay respects to the person who spoke.


    "Sect Master!"


    They simultaneously cried out.


    Joseph''s expression immediately changed. His guard went up as he raised his head and stared at the figure descending from the skies.


    It was an old man d in pure white robes simr to Elder Riven. The only difference was that he had this air of ancientness surrounding him and despite the kind smile on his face. Joseph could feel deep-seated killing intent and anger surging within.


    His expression instantly turned ugly.


    In this world, the hardest thing to fake was one''s aura. The aura of the Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect wasn''t actually that powerful, yet it suffocated everyone that dared to bask on his aura. It made one feel as if they were being swept by the boundless ocean.


    What was even scarier was that, while this aura was majestic and boundless. It was not fierce or violent. Instead, it waspletely calm. In other words, the aura that the Sect Master was giving off wasn''t a deliberate show of force. This was merely the presence that he normally disyed.


    Alice''s expression instantly turned serious.


    Lily''s face was pale and she was subconsciously trembling. As a Gunner, her Dignity stat was low so she was easily influenced by the boundless aura that the Sect Master radiated.


    The Sect Master finallynded on the ground and he turned to look at Joseph.


    "Are you the one that crashed our ancestral gates?"


    His cid voice seemed to carry a persuasive strength that didn''t allow any refusal to answer.


    [You are in front of an overwhelming presence.]


    [With the effects of your title, "The Sun that Overlooks Everything."]


    [You have resisted.]


    System notifications floated in front of Joseph, but he didn''t even look at them.


    His eyes were focused on the Sect Master, while his mind, already spinning as fast as it could to remember the reason why crashed the ancestral gates of the Divine Sword Sect in the first ce.


    "You are not going to answer me?" The Sect Master asked.


    Joseph still kept his silence.


    The Sect Master stared at him for a moment before letting out a sigh, "In that case, since you are not answering me."


    "Then..."


    "Wait!"


    The Sect Master was about to unsheathe the sword wrapped around his waist when Alice''s voice suddenly rang out.


    Her voice attracted the attention of everyone including the Sect Master.


    The Sect Master turned to look at Alice and when he saw her image...


    His pupils violently constricted.


    Alice revealed a smile when she saw the shocked expression on the Sect Master''s face.


    "So, it''s really you..."


    "Senior Brother Taric!"

 Chapter 193: Traitorous Bastard

    Chapter 193: Traitorous Bastard


    There was one ce within the abandoned Kingdom of Nether that remained unaffected by the turmoil of the outside world. It was unknown whether the residents or the managers of that ce didn''t care about the world outside, or they simply gave up on resisting against the fate of the kingdom''s destruction, but this ce remained pristine.


    Every resident of the abandoned Kingdom of Nether knew that this ce remained peaceful and even managed to retain its stability, yet none of them migrated towards that ce. They knew that once they entered that ce, they would be abandoning their humanity and it was impossible for them toe up anymore.


    But little did these residents know that the people whom they thought as weren''t humans anymore were actually the most affected by the traitorous acts of those nobles. The inquisitors and jail janitors of the Underground Penitentiary of the Kingdom of Nether were convicted criminals. It was impossible for them to return to society.


    This was the reason why despite the fact that they were effectively free to do whatever they wanted to do after the nobles abandoned the Kingdom of Nether. They still remained cooped up in the Underground Penitentiary. It wasn''t like they didn''t want toe not and return to society. They just felt that they didn''t deserve to see the light of the day.


    Hence, they remained here.


    "I won''t stop any of you if you want to return to the surface. Those bastards abandoned us already, and they probably brought the order of the knights with them, so there is nothing stopping us from returning." The Captain of the Inquisitors, a figure incredibly familiar to both Joseph and Ezreal spoke in a somber voice.


    Surrounding him were the inquisitors and jail janitors who seemed to have forgotten the fact that both sides belonged to two different factions with huge differences in their status. At this moment, none of these rugged middle-aged men and rotting old men cared about those trivial matters.


    They gathered here as one, surprisingly in unity.


    "I won''t return, captain... I''m supposed to die six years ago already. Since you saved me that day, I was already prepared to die and be a ghost of this ce." One of the inquisitors spoke. This man had a permanent re on his face, probably because of the abuse that he experienced when he was younger, but none of these men cared about his look.


    All of them turned to stare at him and collectively sighed.


    "You guys... " Even without saying anything, the Captain of the Inquisitors understood that none of these men had the intention to leave the Underground Penitentiary. He felt moved, but at the same time, he felt angry and irritated by the actions of those nobles.


    If they didn''t leave the Kingdom of Nether for the Empire of Truedawn, none of these would''ve happened.


    But of course, he couldn''t me the nobles for their actions. It was a well-known fact that the Kingdom of Nether wasn''t so stable anymore. There were a lot of snakes, even in the Royal Pce. Even he was astonished that the King, Oliver Oligarch lived for so long.


    Speaking of the King, the Captain of the Inquisitors suddenly fell into deep contemtion.


    Until now, they still haven''t received any news regarding the fate of the King of the Kingdom of Nether.


    They still didn''t know if he was dead, missing, or if he abandoned his own Kingdom to be the dog of the Empire.


    Of course, the Captain himself knew that the first possibility was more likely to happen. After all, no King would possibly abandon their Kingdom just to be the dog of others. A king had a significant amount of dignity and wasn''t someone that anyone could easilymand. If a King really did defect to the Empire, then that could cause a conflict of interest.


    The Captain let out a sigh and turned to hisrades once again, "I''ll ask you guys, onest time. Does anyone of you want to go to the surface or not? I know that most of you would probably never be able to enter society if you go to the surface but that is better than just rotting in this ce."


    The Captain sternly asked. From his expression alone, it was clear that he was quite sincere.


    "Say no more, captain. We''ve already decided. For now, I suppose it''s better if we decide on what should we do with these prisoners. Do we release them, or do we give them a painless death?" An old man covered with festering wounds all over his body spoke in a grating voice.


    A putrid odor was continuously released from his body, yet none of the people around himined.


    They knew better than toin.


    After all, this old man''s authority was second only to the captain.


    They knew that they must respect him.


    The Captain turned to look at the old man and sighed, "Alex... I see that you''ve already decided." His eyes then shed in the light of determination simr to the lights from everyone''s eyes, "Okay, let''s decide on what should we do to these prisoners."


    Every prisoner within the Underground Penitentiarymitted all sorts of heinous crimes. Of course, none of them would be released outside. Even though some of the jail janitors and inquisitors thought of escaping to the surface. None of them were willing to release these criminals back to society.


    If that happened then there was only a single result that would definitely arise from this decision.


    And that wasplete mayhem.


    Releasing these prisoners was simr to opening Pandora''s box.


    The Captain stood up and was about to walk towards one of the nearest jail cells when a voice suddenly rang out.


    "Wait..."


    He turned around towards the direction of the voice and as soon as he and hisrades saw the person who spoke, anger quickly appeared in their eyes.


    "You..."


    "You''re that traitorous bastard..."


    "Ezreal!"

 Chapter 194: Swift End to a Life

    Chapter 194: Swift End to a Life


    "Ezreal! How shameless of you toe back!" One of the inquisitors cried out in anger upon seeing Ezreal.


    The rotting old man who could be considered as the Vice-Captain of the Inquisitors frowned.


    "Why did youe back, Ezreal?"


    Ezreal lightly smiled, "I came back, not to cause any trouble but toplete some unfinished business."


    "Unfinished business?" The rotting old man whispered. His eyebrows furrowed even deeper.


    The other inquisitors also had the same look on their faces while the jail janitors felt inexplicably nervous. For them, Ezreal''s name was simr to a legend. They heard about his amazing feats, but ever since he became a traitor of the Kingdom of Nether, they were forced to not speak about anything regarding him anymore.


    Nevertheless, it didn''t mean that these inquisitors and jail janitors would just forget about his existence.


    In fact, some of the inquisitors even felt a shiver down their spines when they saw the mysterious glint of Ezreal''s sapphire-like eyes. With his affinity to nature, Ezreal gave of a cooling and refreshing vibe just by looking at him, but when they associated Ezreal''s actions back then with his image. These men could do nothing other than shiver in fear.


    "What do you mean unfinished business? What are you talking about?" The Captain of the Inquisitors asked. He was the most sensitive of everyone in here regarding killing intent. He could feel a hint of killing intent from Ezreal''s calm and cid eyes.


    The reason why none of hisrades felt his malice was probably because Ezreal was so good on hiding it.


    Ezreal swept his gaze at the inquisitors and the jail janitors. Upon confirming that the person he was looking for wasn''t with them. Ezreal furrowed his eyebrows and replied, "Today, I must kill someone. But don''t worry, I will only kill a single person and apart from him, I will spare the others from death."


    "But if all of you dared to stand in my way, then I will mow you down like him." The killing intent within Ezreal''s eyes thickened to the point that everyone could finally feel his fury.


    The jail janitors gulped a mouthful of saliva. The killing intent struck them like a truck.


    "You''re here to kill one of us?" The Captain of the Inquisitors stared right at Ezreal. He could feel that hisrades were somewhat afraid of Ezreal. But it was probably because they saw his exquisite, yet uniquely inhumane torture methods back then. In truth, the Captain himself wasn''t actually afraid of Ezreal.


    After all, for someone to be the Captain of the Inquisitors. Deep knowledge regarding the human body wasn''t the only requirement. One must also have a certain amount of strength. He was confident that with his strength, he could easily subdue Ezreal.


    But...


    He was curious as to who Ezreal wanted to kill that he could radiate such a thick killing intent.


    He reckoned that Ezreal probably wanted to kill that person for a long time already.


    "Who do you want to kill and why do you want to kill him?" The Captain of the Inquisitors asked.


    The others perked their ears, afraid that they wouldn''t hear Ezreal''s answer. Of course, they didn''t say anything and just kept their silence. Their actions were clearly a silent approval to the questions of the Captain of the Inquisitors.


    "I have no obligation to answer that question." Ezreal calmly said.


    He then proceeded to walk towards the inquisitors and the jail janitors.


    "You... Stop right there! Answer my question first or I will not let you enter this ce!"


    The Captain of the Inquisitors pointed at Ezreal and his power surged.


    Ezreal made a sidelong nce at him, "If you dare to block my way, I''m going to kill you. Mark my words."


    The area immediately descended into silence.


    The Captain of the Inquisitors froze where he was standing and so did the other inquisitors and the jail janitors.


    Despite the fact that Ezreal was walking so close to them that they could probably kill him if they attacked at the same time.


    None of them dared to move.


    Ezreal was moving so casually that he looked as if he was walking in his own backyard. The restrictions ced within the Underground Penitentiary were now useless against him due to the ss Bestowal that he received from Joseph.


    Ezreal received the ss, Enforcer of Order. His ability gave him the power to demandpliance and order from everything that dared to stand in his way. This was the reason why he was so confident that these restrictions couldn''t hurt him. Even though he was ssified by these restrictions as hostile, as soon as they attacked.


    Ezreal immediately dispersed them with just a single word.


    Swooosh!


    A ray of light flew towards Ezreal''s head and chest.


    "Stand down."


    A singlemand came out of his mouth and the lights dispersed and fizzled out.


    "This power that master gave me really is convenient. Although it''s quite exhausting." Ezreal lightly chuckled. The orders of the Enforcer of Order were quite terrifying and almost impossible to defend against. However, it was also really exhausting for the user.


    Even with Ezreal''s boundless vitality as a member of that particr race.


    He wasn''t an exception to it.


    Ezreal soon arrived at the barracks of the Jail Janitors.


    He didn''t bother hiding his presence and he soon saw Javier staring at his general direction with nervousness.


    From the looks on his face, it was clear that it has been a long time since he was staring at Ezreal''s direction. It seemed that Javier already predicted that Ezreal would return to take his head. At first, he may not be convinced of the possibility of such a thing happening since no matter how powerful Ezreal was, he couldn''t possibly go against the Kingdom.


    But now that the Kingdom was in ruins.


    There was nothing protecting Javier anymore.


    A few minutester, a miserable shriek rang out and Ezreal came out from the barracks.


    He was holding the head of Javier, one of the Jail Janitors of the Underground Penitentiary.


    "My business here is done."


    He hurled the head towards the Captain of the Inquisitors and walked out of the Penitentiary.


    Never to return.


    "I..."


    The Captain of the Inquisitors held the head of Javier in his hands.


    Thud...


    He copsed onto his knees and sprawled on the ground.


    His emotions, unknown.

 Chapter 195: Subterfuge

    Chapter 195: Subterfuge


    "Sect Master Taric!"


    The old man''s figure trembled when he heard Alice''s shout.


    "You..."


    "Young Lady Alice!"


    Sect Master Taric hurriedly rushed towards Alice''s side.


    He gently pushed the sect members that were attacking Alice.


    "What the hell are you guys doing? Don''t you know that Young Lady Alice is an Honorable Elder of this sect? By attacking her, what you are doing is tantamount to a rebellion! I can punish you ording to thews of the sect!" Sect Master Taric angrily scolded.


    Wha...


    "What?"


    Joseph wasn''t the only one who subconsciously uttered this word.


    The sect members who were in a battle of life and death against Alice had their mouths opened wide. Their jaws looked as if it would fall onto the fall if not for the fact that they hurriedly closed their mouths for the sake of decorum.


    "Forgive us for what we have done, Elder!" The sect members felt weird calling such a young girl as "elder". But since their Sect Master himself have spoken. It was their duty to obey. The hierarchy was strictly imposed within the Divine Sword Sect and viting it by disrespecting an elder was tantamount to a punishment of expulsion.


    As soon as the sect members heard that they could be punished under thew of the sect. They immediately fell onto their knees and sprawled onto the ground towards Alice''s direction.


    Some of the girls that attacked Alice even cried outright.


    The sudden change of their attitudepletely baffled even Alice who couldn''t help but nce at Joseph as if she was asking for help.


    Sect Master Taric followed her gaze and when his eyesnded on Joseph. He frowned once again, "Young Lady Alice, could he be your servant?"


    Alice immediately frowned, "Don''t say something like that, Sect Master Taric. How could he be my servant?"


    "He''s my man..."


    Alice directly confessed.


    Joseph immediately blushed.


    Sect Master Taric went speechless.


    Lily secretly gnashed her teeth.


    After a few moments of silence, Sect Master Taric spoke once again, "In that case, since he''s with you, Young Lady Alice. Why did he have to crash the ancestral gates of the Divine Sword Sect? Since we both know each other, if you just told me in advance that you''reing to visit the sect, I would''ve personally weed you! Why even do this?"


    Sect Master Taric was clearly displeased.


    Alice lifted a bitter smile and exined, "Sect Master Taric, are you really sure that I will be able to reach you in time if I wanted to contact you? You''re quite simr to grandpa so it would be useless for me to contact you since you would probably make some excuses that you''re in seclusion just so you won''t be bothered by guests!"


    Sect Master Taric replied, "How could that be? If the message came from you, Young Lady Alice then I would immediately receive it! Why would I be so rude?"


    Alice lightly chuckled, "Okay, okay, I believe you. But since everything has already happened. I suppose there''s no use crying over spilled milk, right?" Alice stared right at Sect Master Taric.


    Sect Master Taric was stuck in a tight and hard ce.


    The ancestral gates of the Divine Sword Sect were incredibly valuable for every disciple of the sect, but he really didn''t care too much about it.


    The ancestral gates could be considered as the faces of the Divine Sword Sect. Crashing it was the same as pping the entire sect on its face.


    But Sect Master Taric himself doesn''t really care about such a retarded concept such as keeping one''s face. However, that didn''t mean that his disciples and the other elders agreed with his opinion.


    He reckoned that if he didn''t give the disciples here a proper exnation about what was going on and somepensation, they would be forever unsatisfied.


    This was why he felt conflicted towards Alice''s proposal.


    For him, Alice''s visit was far valuable than the so-called ancestral gates.


    But his people clearly didn''t think the same as him.


    In fact, at this moment, they looked like they couldn''t wait to skin Joseph alive by their own hands.


    Alice stared right at Sect Master Taric and whispered some words close to him.


    Sect Master Taric revealed a look of astonishment on his face as if he was saying, "Really?".


    Afterwards, he then turned to look at Joseph.


    Joseph''s expression turned serious and he subconsciously bent his knees in order to react in time to any sudden changes.


    But when he saw Alice''s nce, he could only reveal a bitter smile.


    ''Ah, so that is what she wants me to do. It seems that she actually cares for this Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect.''


    ''But I''m having second thoughts. Aren''t all members of the Divine Sword Sect supposed to hate me to death? Why is their Sect Master trying to make peace and evenmunicate with me?'' Joseph had a frown on his face.


    Alice made a few discreet gestures and Joseph instantly understood what he had to do.


    He raised his Nameless Rapier and rushed at the Sect Master Taric once again.


    Sect Master Taric stared at him and said, "How foolish." He purposely infused his strength to his voice so that the disciples could hear what he was saying. Right as Joseph''s rapier reached his body, he raised his hand, smacked the Rapier to the side and punched Joseph''s sternocostal.


    ''Fuck...''


    ''I thought we were just acting?''


    ''Shit, it seems that I was too naive.''


    ''He really does hate me.''


    Having lowered his guard for acting purposes, Joseph immediately lost his consciousness when the attacknded.


    Alice let out a light chuckle as if she was amused by what happened.


    Sect Master Taric, on the other hand, was quite confused.


    ''Young Lady Alice isn''t mad? I thought she liked this man?''


    After thinking for a few moments, Sect Master Taric shook his head and bitterly smiled.


    ''I really can''t understand what women are thinking sometimes...''

 Chapter 196: True Identity

    Chapter 196: True Identity


    "Old man why did you have to knock me out..."


    Joseph woke up a few hourster and he immediatelyined when he saw Sect Master Taric staring at him.


    "Brat, if not for the fact that you''re quite close with Young Lady Alice, then I would''ve taken that head of yours instead of punching you at the chest. Be grateful that I didn''t kill you outright." Sect Master Taric''s expression immediately darkened and he red at Joseph as if he wanted to end his life right here and now.


    "Oh, Joseph! You''re finally awake!"


    Before Joseph could even say anything towards Sect Master Taric''s threat, Alice''s voice rang out from the door.


    She came inside along with Lily, and when Lily saw that Joseph was really wide awake. She instantly dashed towards him and checked his body for injuries.


    "Good... I don''t see any injuries. It seems that you''re really okay now. But do you feel well? You can sleep more, you know? We won''t leave and we also won''t court any trouble while you''re sleeping." Lily wore a sweet smile on her face and tried coaxing Joseph to sleep.


    The tender look on his face could melt the hearts of tough men, but when Alice saw it.


    She immediately felt annoyed.


    "Why does it matter to you if he wants to sleep or not? Also, can you not casually touch my husband?" Alice stepped forward and stood in between Lily and Joseph.


    Lily furrowed his eyebrows and said, "Why are you doing this to me? Did I do something to offend you? Didn''t you already forgive me? Why are you still so hostile to me?"


    Alice raised an eyebrow and said, "You sure can act, eh? Why do you ask? It''s because you''re clearly trying to flirt with my husband! How can I not be mad?" Alice''s eyes shone in a dangerous light and both women looked as if they would pounce at each other at any moment.


    "Cough... Cough... Uh... Ladies, can you not fight in front of the patient? Let''s be respectful here, shall we?" Sect Master Taric dryly coughed and swiftly interjected. He could feel that these two were seriously against each other and if he just let them do whatever they please, they may fight and turn this small house of his into smithereens.


    Joseph only wore a bitter smile on his face. He didn''t say anything towards their argument. But it wasn''t because he didn''t care, he just didn''t know what he should say to the two of them when the topic of their argument was him. His social skills also have its own limitations and he could only go so far.


    Alice made a sidelong nce at Sect Master Taric.


    Thetter could be considered as a friend of Krid, so she had to give him face.


    "Fine, I won''t argue anymore," Alice replied.


    "Hmmph..." Lily coldly snorted, but it was obvious from her bodynguage that she also didn''t want to fight anymore.


    "Sigh..." Sect Master Taric heaved a sigh of relief before he hurriedly changed the topic.


    He turned to look at Joseph and said, "Brat, are you an Enforcer of the Grand Duelist?"


    Upon hearing the name of his ss, Joseph stared at Sect Master Taric and replied, "An Enforcer? No, I''m not..."


    Sect Master Taric was confused, "Are you sure that you''re not lying to me? If you''re not an Enforce of the Grand Duelist, then why do you have the Grand Duelist''s aura? And it''s also really thick, it''s almost suffocating." He pondered for a while and Joseph suddenly lifted a cheeky smile.


    "Old man, do you want to meet the Grand Duelist?"


    Sect Master Taric stopped his train of thought and replied with a frown, "That''s such a foolish question. You''re in the Divine Sword Sect. Even though we don''t worship the Grand Duelist as much as we worship the Sword Saint. We still want to meet a person of the myths, and of course, that includes the Grand Duelist."


    "Hahaha..." Joseph lightly chuckled, "I see, so you respect the Grand Duelist, eh?"


    "What will you do if the Grand Duelist arrived in front of you?" Joseph stared cheekily at Sect Master Taric.


    Thetter furrowed his eyebrows and replied, "Of course, I will pay my respects!"


    Joseph raised an eyebrow, "Oh, really?"


    "Brat, you''re really quite rude." Sect Master Taric got angry.


    "No, you''re misunderstanding me." Joseph secretly held back hisughter before continuing, "I just want to know if you''re just going to pay respects? What if the Grand Duelist wants to ask something from you? What if the Grand Duelist wants to ask you a favor?"


    Although confused as to why Sect Master Taric referred to the Grand Duelist with the incorrect pronoun, Joseph proceeded on his questioning.


    "Well, if the Grand Duelist wants to ask something from me, then I will do my best to satisfy every demand that she has!"


    "And if she asks for a favor from me, then I will oblige with all of my heart! To be able to fulfill the request of a person of the myths, even though she''s not the Sword Saint that I wholeheartedly worship, ah... I can only dream." Sect Master Taric suddenly spread his arms wide and almost sang at the end of his sentence.


    Lily felt a chill in her heart as she inwardly cringed.


    Alice stared at the scene in amusement.


    Joseph boisterouslyughed.


    "Old man! Open your eyes! I''m not an Enforcer of the Grand Duelist! I''m the Grand Duelist himself!" Joseph couldn''t suppress himself anymore as he stood up and summoned his Nameless Rapier. The brilliant divine light of the Grand Duelist''s divinity surged within his body, making him look like a human light bulb.


    Sect Master Taric squinted his eyes and when his eyesight finally adjusted to the light. He furrowed his eyebrows and replied, "Stop lying! You''re not the Grand Duelist! You''re the Enforcer of the Grand Duelist. How could the Grand Duelist be a man? Only a woman could possibly be the Grand Duelist!"


    "Huh?"


    It was Joseph''s turn to be confused.


    He nced at Alice and when Alice saw his dumbfounded expression.


    She couldn''t hold herself back anymore as she boisterouslyughed and said, "Hahaha!"


    "That''s right, Sect Master Taric."


    "You don''t have to doubt him, he''s indeed the Grand Duelist."


    "As for why he''s not a woman despite being the Grand Duelist?" Alice teasingly nced at Joseph''s crotch and said, "It may be perhaps because he doesn''t have one of those that every man has in their crotch?"


    Joseph immediately coughed a mouthful of blood.

 Chapter 197: Nameless Rapier

    Chapter 197: Nameless Rapier


    "He''s really the Grand Duelist?" Sect Master Taric narrowed his eyes in doubt.


    "Yes, I am! What the hell are you talking about? Can''t the Grand Duelist be a man?" Joseph immediately replied.


    Sect Master Taric staggered backward, disbelief visible on his face, "How could this be? A man as the Grand Duelist?"


    "You are lying!"


    Joseph facepalmed and let out a sigh, "Damn this is really getting old."


    From the looks of it, Sect Master Taric wasn''t willing to believe that he was really the Grand Duelist. Although Joseph was curious as to why the Sect Master Taric referred to the previous Grand Duelist as a woman. What''s more important at this moment was to make him realize that Joseph was indeed the Grand Duelist of the current generation.


    Joseph stood up and activated Overwhelming Presence.


    The air immediately thickened.


    The divine lighting out of his body intensified to the extent that it couldn''t possibly be given off by a mere Enforcer.


    Sect Master Taric copsed onto his knees and eximed, "The Grand Duelist of the Myths!"


    Joseph lightly chuckled, "So you''re finally willing to believe that I really am the Grand Duelist, eh? Then, do you still remember what you said to me earlier?" Joseph teasingly said.


    Sect Master Taric almost coughed a mouthful of blood, yet he didn''t express his indignance. It was because his shock was far greater than his frustrations! To think that he actually dared to cross swords with the Grand Duelist earlier! Not only that but he also made the Grand Duelist lose his consciousness!


    ''But wait!''


    ''He?''


    ''Shouldn''t the Grand Duelist be a woman?''


    ''What''s going on?''


    ''Were the doctrines of the previous patriarchs of the Divine Sword Sect incorrect?''


    ''No, that shouldn''t be the problem.''


    ''The problem must lie elsewhere.''


    Sect Master Taric reassured himself.


    Afterwards, he replied to Joseph.


    "Yes... I still remember... I will keep my words."


    Joseph nodded in satisfaction.


    He made a sidelong nce at Alice and found that her shoulders were continuously trembling. It was clear that she''s holding back theughter that threatened to burst forth like water from a broken dam. Rubbing his nose out of embarrassment, Joseph then nced at Lily and discovered that Lily''s face was as pale as a sheet of paper.


    [You are standing in front of an overwhelming presence!]


    [A random debuff has been added.]


    [Your Movement Speed is reduced by 20%.]


    When the divine light surrounding Joseph''s body intensified...


    These system notifications suddenly popped up in front of Lily.


    ''An overwhelming presence... Indeed, he''s really powerful... As expected of a Mythical ss.'' Lily keep her thoughts to herself and when she felt Joseph''s gazend on her, she immediately assumed a scared expression as if she was stunned silly by what just happened.


    Joseph quickly understood what was going on.


    Lily must''ve been affected by his Overwhelming Presence.


    Joseph turned off the buff and the divine light covering his body which made him look like a human light bulb dissipated.


    Afterwards, he turned to look at Sect Master Taric and said, "Sect Master Taric..."


    His tone suddenly became full of respect.


    Sect Master Taric was astonished.


    ''Where did his arrogance go? Howe he became so respectful now?''


    ''Could it be that he wants to ask me for a favor?''


    Sect Master Taric was quite old and one could say that he already experienced everything that the world has to offer, in other words, he was an experienced man. From his past experiences, whenever someone acted so respectfully towards him, it usually wasn''t because they really respected him.


    It was mostly because they wanted to ask him for a favor.


    Sect Master Taric hoped that it wasn''t the case.


    But...


    "Can I ask you for a favor?"


    Reality disappointed him.


    Joseph really wanted to ask him for a favor.


    But was Sect Master Taric going to refuse?


    Of course not!


    However...


    He was the Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect and with great poweres great responsibility. He may have a lot of prestige with him, but he wasn''t a free man. He had a lot of things to do, and even though he felt honored that the Grand Duelist of the current generation wanted to ask him for a favor.


    He had far important things to do than to be an errand boy of a pompous Grand Duelist.


    Alice could see his hesitation.


    She lightly chuckled and said, "If you are willing to help us, Sect Master Taric. I''ll make sure that you''ll get thepensation that you deserve. In return for helping us, we will let you inspect the strongest and final weapon that my grandpa made for the Grand Duelist, the Nameless Rapier."


    "What?"


    Sect Master Taric suddenly jolted.


    "The strongest and final weapon that the Legendary cksmith Krid made? Where is it?!" He shot up from kneeling and immediately rushed towards Alice.


    "Calm down, calm down... It''s in the hands of Joseph. Can''t you see that the weapon he''s holding is quite extraordinary?" Alice gestured towards Joseph''s incredibly long Rapier.


    Sect Master Taric turned to look at Joseph and pondered, "Indeed, now that I''m taking a closer look at it. It''s really out of the ordinary. Just the handguard alone is so delicately made that you''ll be left wondering if it''ll break with just a single attack from the enemy''s sword, but it''s theplete opposite..."


    "I deliberately targeted this handguard earlier, yet it didn''t copse from my attack."


    "But I don''t see anything which warrants me to believe that it''s the strongest weapon in the world." Sect Master Taric frowned.


    Alice chuckled once again, "It''s because that Rapier is hibernating... Joseph, infuse your divinity in the weapon."


    Joseph absentmindedly nodded and with a will, he became a human light bulb once again. But this time, he redirected some of the holy light surrounding his body into the Nameless Rapier.


    Swoosh!


    A sound simr to water rushing down the river rang out and the Nameless Rapier seemed to havee alive.


    Magical indecipherable runes abruptly appeared and revolved around its body, making it seem far stronger than anything in this world.


    "This..."


    "A mythical-tiered weapon!"


    Sect Master Taric copsed on the ground once again as he kneeled there and stared right at the Nameless Rapier.


    "Please let me..."


    "Let me hold it!"


    "Let me hold it just for a second..."


    "I''ll promise to do whatever you want me to do..."


    "Just let me hold it!"''

 Chapter 198: Sunk Cost Fallacy

    Chapter 198: Sunk Cost Facy


    "What the heck?" Joseph blurted out a curse.


    Alice promptly exined, "Sect Master Taric and my grandpa are the best of friends. Sect Master Taric was a fighting maniac back then who wanted to do nothing other than swing his sword and look for fights. One day, he challenged my grandpa in a battle and he managed to overwhelm my grandpa when ites to the way of the sword..."


    "Unfortunately, before the battle could be decided. Grandpa broke his prized sword. In the end, he lost, not because he was weak, but because the quality of his weapon was far worse than Grandpa. He vowed since then that he''ll be a proper cksmith while also keeping his attention on practicing his way of the sword."


    "Now, he''s a genuine Advanced cksmith and as for his Way of the Sword. He''s now a Sword Connoisseur, a Realm higher than me who is only a Sword Adept."


    "I... I see..." Joseph could only awkwardly scratch his head upon hearing Alice''s lengthy exnation. He only wanted a nutshell but Alice gave him everything that he needed to know. But there was still something that Joseph was curious about.


    "Why does he want to inspect my sword? Is it because he wants to use it as an inspiration material to break through the next realm since he''s probably stuck for so long as an Advanced cksmith?" Joseph casually asked. But each word that he said struck deep into Sect Master Taric''s heart, making him feel as if he would die of indignance.


    "You got it right!"


    "So, what''s your decision? Are you willing to let him borrow?" Alice asked with this sweet smile on her face.


    Joseph pondered for a while before asking, "I just want to be sure, but are you sure that he''s not going to run away with my weapon?"


    "Of course, not! Damn, you''re really quite rude, you brat!" Sect Master Taric immediately barked.


    "What did you say?" Joseph raised an eyebrow and disyed a look of anger.


    Sect Master Taric didn''t say anything anymore. He felt quite indignant, but he knew that since he''s the one that needed the help of the other the most, he must stay humble and obey their instructions.


    Lily remained silent and observed everything from the side. She was quite shocked to see that Joseph swiftly domesticated this fierce-looking Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect. As expected of someone whom she has her eyes own! A man like that couldn''t possibly be ordinary!


    Lily was even more determined.


    No matter what, even if she''s branded as a shameless slut!


    He won''t let go of Joseph!


    What''s the use of dignity and shame?


    Can you eat that?


    Money was more important!


    Lily clenched her fists and reaffirmed her resolve.


    But then...


    "May I ask any uninvolved person here to get out of the room? Something important is about to happen and we can''t let any random joe to witness what''s about to happen." Alice made a sidelong nce at Lily and spoke with the same sweet smile on her face. The only difference was that her eyes were radiating danger instead of kindness.


    Lily red at Alice and didn''t back down. She just reaffirmed her resolve that she would stick like gum on Joseph. How could she possibly leave? Wouldn''t she lose her face that way?


    She nced at Joseph in a somewhat begging manner, but Joseph merely shook his head and said.


    "This is really important, Lily. I hope you won''t take offense, but what''s about to happen next doesn''t concern you at all."


    "You..."


    "Joseph!"


    "How could you do this to me?"


    "Doesn''t concern me at all? We''re friends, right? Why are you trying to push me away?"


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows, "I''m not pushing you away, Lily. Can you please just listen to what I''m saying? Don''t make things too difficult for me. Just head out, okay? I''ll be back after everything''s over. Be obedient for now, all right?"


    Joseph let out a sigh.


    He was helpless as well.


    He knew that Lily had ulterior motives. It was painfully obvious when her attitude suddenly changed for the better. But Joseph just couldn''t push her away like this. After all, she was his one and only friend and if he did push her away. He would truly lose everything that he had in the outside world.


    He already lost his parents, was he willing to lose his remaining friend too?


    Joseph shook his head and Lily stormed out of the room with an indignant and frustrated look on her face.


    Sect Master Taric furrowed his eyebrows and when the doors of the room closed.


    He waved his hand and activated a formation hidden within the room.


    Magical runes abruptly appeared throughout the room and after pulsating for a few seconds. They vanished like bubbles, never reappearing again.


    "What was that?" Joseph asked.


    Sect Master Taric smiled, "Just some anti-eavesdropping measures. I noticed that even though that girl earlier came with you, you seemed to have no trust in her whatsoever. This is why I decided to activate the formation. You''re not going to me me for what I did, right?"


    Alice answered for Joseph, "No, we''re not going to me you for what you did. In fact, we are grateful."


    Hearing Alice''s words, Joseph was forced to nod his head in agreement.


    Sect Master Taric shook his head and didn''t say anything anymore.


    Alice then spoke, "Joseph, can you exin your rtionship with her to me?"


    Joseph nodded his head.


    Alice was someone whom he already considered as his wife.


    Why would he hide secrets from his wife?


    Furthermore, Joseph was also quite grateful for Alice since even though she knew nothing about what was going on...


    She understood that he also has his own difficulties. He was grateful that she didn''t ruin his ns.


    Joseph then proceeded to exin everything about Lily.


    In the end, Alice was finally enlightened as to what was going on between Lily and Joseph.


    But she was still quite confused.


    "If that''s true, then why are you still with her? Why not just tell her to fuck off?" Alice was so baffled regarding Joseph''s current situation that she forgot to keep her manners in check and subconsciously cursed instead.


    Joseph lifted a bitter smile. Of course, he knew what Alice was thinking.


    Letting out a sigh.


    He replied...


    "Have you heard of the Sunk Cost Facy?"

 Chapter 199: Solved in a Blink of an Eye

    Chapter 199: Solved in a Blink of an Eye


    Joseph exined everything without hiding anything.


    Despite the pained look on his face all while he confessed everything to both Sect Master Taric and Alice. One could see relief within his eyes. Finally, he didn''t have to carry all of these burdens by himself. He now had someone whom he could trust and confide all his secrets.


    Joseph''s exnation onlysted for a few minutes, but his words were rich with content.


    It took Alice quite a while to digest what he said.


    She then let out a sigh and said, "I see... Now, I understand. You''ve done well." Alice patted his shoulder.


    Joseph smiled once again.


    But this time, there was no bitterness in his smile anymore.


    "Since you''re still struggling, then we won''t force the issue anymore. However, Joseph. You must know that sometimes, one must be decisive. If she goes too far, then I hope you won''t spare her just because of the past, all right?" Alice was incredibly understanding of Joseph at this moment.


    Joseph felt happy and he was really grateful that Alice was with him.


    Now, he had virtually no regrets that he got together with Alice.


    Not only she was beautiful, but she was also kindhearted and understanding.


    Joseph had noints whatsoever and he couldn''t wish for more other than to be with her in the future.


    Sect Master Taric stared at the two with a smile. As Krid''s best friend, he knew a lot about Krid. Of course, that included his regrets and struggles in raising his granddaughter. He knew that Krid had this pang of regret in his heart as to why he raised Alice as if he wanted her to be a cksmith than apletely ordinary woman.


    Back then, he told Krid that there was nothing wrong with his upbringing, but Krid merely scolded him by saying that he has no idea about his problems at all since he had no children. Sect Master Taric shook his head and inwardly thought...


    ''Old Bastard... I''m sure you''re quite happy up there Mike already, but I know that you''ll be happier if you knew that you chose the right person to be with your daughter.''


    Sect Master Taric silently prayed.


    A few momentster, when he found out that the couple was done flirting with each other. He turned to look at Joseph and asked, "Since you went so far as to crashing my ancestral gates. You must be quite in a hurry, right?"


    "Ah!"


    It was at this moment that Joseph was finally reminded of a great problem that he was facing.


    The domestic problems of the Divine Sword Sect!


    But when he realized that he was standing in front of the Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect who would definitely lend a hand and help him in his problem...


    He heaved a sigh of relief and confessed.


    "Hmmm... The domestic problems of the Kingdom of Nether? That''s not a problem." Sect Master Taric casually said.


    "Really?" Joseph was doubtful.


    Even though the Divine Sword Sect was indeed quite powerful andrge. Joseph didn''t believe that the domestic problems of the Kingdom could be solved so easily. After all, it wasn''t a problem that could be solved just because you want it done.


    Ample preparations were needed and enough money was also a necessity.


    But this didn''t mean that Joseph doubted the financial capability of the Divine Sword Sect.


    He just found it unthinkable that Sect Master Taric would casually offer his help as if the problem was nothing to him.


    Alice instantly understood what Joseph was thinking and she couldn''t help but lightly chuckle, "Joseph, you don''t have to worry about the domestic problems of the kingdom anymore. If Sect Master Taric wants to lend us his help, then you can consider everything as done! We should focus on something else instead!"


    Since even Alice was saying that he should believe in Sect Master Taric.


    Joseph didn''t say anything about it anymore.


    Though his interest was piqued by something else.


    "What do you mean?"


    Alice stared right at Joseph and replied with a sigh, "You sure are quitecent, eh? You do have the strongest weapon in the world but you look so shabby!" She suddenly became emotional when she realized that the clothes Joseph was wearing at this moment actually came from Hulie and Julie.


    "I see... Now, I understand why you''re not willing to take them off."


    "But I think they won''t be happy in heaven if they see you getting injured because you''re wearing such flimsy clothes. I bet they''d appreciate it if you wore proper armor since I think we''ll encounter battles often in the future." Alice''s eyes shed with sorrow, but her emotions quickly disappeared.


    But how could her emotions escape from Joseph''s eyes?


    As soon as he saw the sorrow in her eyes, he suddenly dragged her into his chest.


    A tight embrace.


    Sect Master Taric hurriedly turned his gaze to the side.


    ''Fucking hell you bastards! How could you do something so indecent such as hugging in front of a three-hundred-year-old virgin?!''


    Sect Master Taric almost coughed a mouthful of blood out of frustration. But when he saw how the two gently held each other, he couldn''t help but envy their rtionship as he thought.


    ''I think it''s about time for me to look for a wife. I might be old, but I can still be as towering as a mountain! And I think that''s all that matters, right?''


    Sect Master Taric repeatedly nodded to himself.


    When he opened his eyes once again, he discovered that both Alice and Joseph were staring at him with this look of amusement on their faces.


    "Hehehe... Sect Master Taric, have you finally realized that it''s time for you to look for a wife?" Alice immediately teased.


    Joseph kept his silence, but the light within his eyes was saying all that he needed to say.


    "You punks!"


    Sect Master Taric roared and leaped into the air.


    While he was in mid-air, he nced between Joseph and Alice and then ultimately decided to go towards Joseph instead.


    "Say your prayers, punk!"


    "Fuck! Why are you going after me old man? I didn''t even say anything!"


    The small house immediately became a mess.

 Chapter 200: I Will Always be With You

    Chapter 200: I Will Always be With You


    Themotionsted for a while.


    Huffing and puffing, Sect Master Taric was finally willing to let go of Joseph.


    "You crazy old man!"


    What kind of an old man was this Sect Master of the Divine Sword Sect?


    To think that he''d actually go so far as to push the heel of his foot onto his crotch just to tickle him!


    Joseph felt somewhat nauseous as a shiver ran down his spine.


    Sect Master Taric only gave a silly smile before asking, "Since you are telling me to manage the domestic problems of the Kingdom of Nether. Then, what I heard from thework of my Sect is probably true. It seems like the Kingdom of Nether has been abandoned and you are iming it as your territory as the Grand Duelist."


    Joseph nodded his head. There was no need to lie.


    "But to be a King, one needs a properly designed Royal Robe and there''s also the Crown of a King."


    "Have you considered how you''re going to go on creating these things?"


    Sect Master Taric revealed an ambiguous smile.


    Alice looked at him in confusion.


    Could it be that he''s thinking of...?


    "Old man, are you implying that you want to create those two for me? I haven''t heard of the so-called Royal Robe, but I do need to find the Crown of a King." Joseph immediately caught on what Sect Master Taric was hinting at.


    "Hmmph." Sect Master Taric crossed his arms in front of his chest, "I do have the n to create it for you. It''s my honor to do that for you are the Grand Duelist. But the Divine Sword Sect is not a charity foundation. I will make those items for you, but it is your job to find the necessary materials required for their creation..."


    "What about it? Can you do it?"


    He threw Joseph a challenging look.


    [You are faced with a dilemma.]


    [Tread lightly. This is a turning point and your decision will affect not only your own future but the future of millions!]


    Joseph lifted a smile on his face, "I''m getting quite bored already since I have nothing to do since that fight against the three guilds. Now, that you are offering me something to do. Why wouldn''t I do it? It''s a win-win proposal anyway!" He didn''t feel intimidated by the message of the system notifications that appeared in front of him.


    He already faced a lot, why would he back down when he was already this far?


    "A wise choice. As expected of a person of the myths."


    [The information about the Quest: Duties of an Aspiring King has been updated.]


    A system notification sprung up, but Joseph didn''t have the time to open it for Sect Master Taric spoke once more.


    "The base material for the Crown of a King is the godly mineral Mythrilite. I have no idea where to find such an exotic material, but if you go eastwards. You will find an archipgo of inds. Go there and you''ll probably notice some rumors about the appearance of that incredibly rare, exotic material."


    "As for the gems decorating the crown... There''s not much of a problem regarding that. If those gems can sufficiently disy and enhance your dignity as the King whenever you are wearing it. It''s sufficient. But since you are the Grand Duelist, a person of the myths. Third-rate gems won''t cut it..."


    "I advise you to dive deep into the oceans of the Las Felipinas Archipgo. There''s a lot of ancient ship wreckage there, and there are also some rumors that the mythical ancient city exists within the deeps of Las Felipinas. Of course, those are just rumors. But if you do find that ancient city, then you''re in luck. That ce supposedly has a lot of treasures."


    "In a nutshell, I want you to collect a certain amount of Mythrilite and eight suitable gems. Seven to represent the Seven Gods and Goddesses and the final gem shall be the symbol of your glory. Only when these items are gathered and created in perfect harmony with each other would the Crown of a King suitable for your dignity be created."


    Sect Master Taric let out a sigh and said, "I hope you''ll be able to find those materials as fast as possible. There''s only so much that the Divine Sword Sect can do in suppressing the boiling unrest of the citizens of Nether."


    "As for your Royal Robes, if you can find a Divine Golden Silkworm. That would be enough."


    [The information about the Quest: Duties of an Aspiring King has been updated.]


    "I will draw a map that will help you on your journey to Las Felipinas. It should be done by tomorrow."


    "By tomorrow? That''s awfully fast." Joseph couldn''t help butment.


    "What? Are you implying that you still want to freeload here? Hmmph. You may be the Grand Duelist, but I still haven''t forgiven you for what you''ve done to our ancestral gates!" Sect Master Taric coldly snorted. He then turned around and harshly closed the doors of the small house.


    Joseph then turned to look at Alice, "What''s wrong with him?"


    Alice shook her head, "Don''t worry about it..."


    "Sect Master Taric is often irritable and it creates huge changes in his mood. I hope that you won''t me him for it."


    When Alicepleted her sentence, awkward silence descended.


    "Uhm... It''s already gettingte. Should we sleep?" Joseph turned to look at Alice.


    He checked and found out that Lily had already logged-out from the game. In other words, there was no one stopping them from doing whatever they wanted anymore.


    Alice lightly chuckled, "So, you really want to sleep with me, eh?" She said in an ambiguous tone.


    Joseph furrowed his eyebrows and asked, "What? So, now. You''re acting like how a maiden should act? You should''ve done that back then when we''re still in that damned ce! Now, I''ve already gotten used to you sleeping beside me. Do you really think that I''d let you go?"


    Joseph dragged Alice upstairs and threw her into the bed.


    "No... Please, no... no... please wait..."


    Alice nervously uttered but then she saw Joseph leap into the air andnd beside her.


    "What are you doing?" Alice asked with a frown.


    "What?" Joseph turned to look at her and cheekily smiled, "Were you expecting something else?"


    Alice''s cheeks immediately grew hot. She bent her knee and sent a knee strike towards Joseph''s stomach, but his hand caught onto her kneecap.


    "That''s growing old, how about you try something else?" Joseph lightly chuckled.


    "You..."


    Alice sat down.


    Her eyes dangerously narrowed while staring at Joseph''s body.


    "Oh no... What are you trying to do... No, please wait! No!!!"


    Before Joseph could evenin, Alice had already leaped into the air and pounced at him. She then proceeded to open her mouth and bite on everything that she could bite all over Joseph''s body, eliciting a bloodcurdling scream from thetter.


    Themotionsted for a while, and when it was finally over.


    The two werepletely exhausted.


    Aliceid snuggly into Joseph''s chest while Joseph kept on huffing and puffing.


    He had never been this exhausted when fighting against Senior Brother Qin, Elder Riven, and Sect Master Taric.


    Damn this girl...


    Joseph inwardlyined.


    But he knew in this heart that he did treasure precious moments like these.


    A light smile appeared on his face.


    "Alice... It seems that we''re going on another journey again. This time, towards the Las Felipinas Archipgo. From what the old man said earlier, it seems to be quite far. After all, an archipgo is a group of inds, and inds can only be found in oceans."


    Alice lightly smacked him and said, "You surely know how to jest, do you really think that I wouldn''t know something asmon as what archipgo means? But what are you trying to say?"


    Joseph stared at her and sighed, "Since my next adventure is in that ce, will you still be able to go with me? I mean, it''s quite far from the Kingdom of Nether. Wouldn''t you be homesick?" Joseph was indeed having some trouble regarding this issue.


    Of course, he wanted Alice to go with him, but he knew that he couldn''t be selfish as to force her to go with him.


    Alice stared at him for a moment before she chuckled, "That''s such a foolish question, Joseph. My grandpa and I are nomads, even though we love our homnd. We''re not so sensitive that we would feel homesick. You don''t have to worry about that. Needless to say. Of course, I will be going with you."


    She then snuggled deeper into his chest before continuing, "I will always be with you."


    Gulp!


    Joseph gulped a mouthful of saliva.


    He couldn''t count how many times he had slept beside Alice.


    But this was the first time that their bodies were this close towards each other.


    His nose faintly twitched, he could smell the faint scent of flowers from Alice''s body.


    For some reason, the scent ignited a fire deep within his body.


    He bit the tip of his tongue in order to not lose against the sensation of arousal but it was growing increasingly hard for him to endure.


    Why is my passive not kicking in?


    Yeah, right...


    This isn''t an abnormal condition, so I guess it won''t be prevented by my passive. But damn it... Why now of all times?


    What would happen if Alice notices that I''m fucking hard as a rock right now?


    Joseph surreptitiously nced at Alice and found that there was a slight shade of pink on her cheeks.


    Gulp!


    Gulping a mouthful of saliva once again.


    Joseph opened his mouth and asked.


    "Uhm... Alice..."


    "Would you like to consummate?"


    "Pfft!"


    Alice almost spat the contents of her guts upon hearing Joseph''s words.


    "What the hell is that invitation? Seriously, you''re not quite romantic, eh?"


    Joseph felt incredibly ashamed, "Yeah, that''s right! Yeah, I''m not that good when ites to romance."


    He then rolled on the bed and turned his back to Alice.


    Alice secretly sniggered seeing his childish reaction.


    But little did she know that the reason why Joseph turned around wasn''t actually because he was angry. It was because he was afraid that Alice would see the furious blush on his face.


    Silence descended in the room.


    But it was soon shattered by a faint rustling noise of clothes being taken off.


    Gulp!


    Joseph audibly gulped.


    Alice''s bodynded on his back, he could feel the perky tips of her breasts hitting him from behind.


    "Are you sure that you are going to keep on sulking?"


    "What should I do?"


    "I''ve already taken my clothes off!"


    Alice seductively whispered into his ears.


    When her words fell, Joseph raised his upper body and let out a voice that sounded more like a scream.


    "Shit, Alice! That''s all you had to say!"


    Needless to say...


    The two never got a wink of sleep that night.


    THE END.


    ===============================


    Greetings!


    Hello guys, this is your author here, TheAdventurer!


    It is with a heavy heart that I announce the abrupt end of The Grand Duelist!


    I did not have a good time choosing this decision for this book.


    I loved this book, I loved every second of it, but unfortunately.


    I have no other choice but to end it this early.


    As for the reasons?


    Well...


    This book is not earning well.


    The minimum guarantee system gave me 800$ within thest four months of writing this novel and now that the minimum guarantee is over. I saw myself earning about a dor a day. Sometimes, even less than a dor.


    Yeah, I know... I bet at this moment you are thinking that I am a very greedy author.


    But am I really being greedy when all I wanted is enough amount for me to pay my 120$ rent every month?


    Am I really being greedy when all I want is enough money to survive until this quarantine ends?


    Since the arrival of COVID, my family business has since plummeted to the ground and with almost no ie to sustain my family apart from government subsidies. It''s been pretty hard for us.


    I''ve been relying on the minimum guarantee system to pay my monthly dues which amounts to about a 150$ a month with the rest going to groceries and dare I say that the minimum guarantee isn''t enough at all.


    However, I wasn''t giving up.


    I told that to myself.


    But then June came.


    And I saw my readership plummeting and with my earnings going even less than a dor for several consecutive days. I received a feature at the end of the month in the form of a banner, but all that it gave me was a boost of three dors.


    That is when I realized that my dream of having a novel that will give me enough money to at least pay for my rent in the middle of this pandemic is just a pipedream.


    But am I ming anyone?


    Am I ming you guys for not giving me any money?


    Of course not!


    The only one that can be med for the downfall of this tragic dream is me.


    Even now, as I sleep, I still me myself.


    Why am I so bad?


    Why are the books I make, so trash that it can''t even attract the attention of readers for more than a few minutes?


    Yeah...


    The early ending of this book isn''t the fault of you guys.


    It''s my fault.


    It''s the fault of my inability to create apelling enough narrative that will make readers look forward to reading my book every day.


    It''s my fault for not creating a good enough book that people will find it worth it to pay for it.


    I''m sorry for letting you down guys.


    I''m sorry for being such a trash author.


    I''m sorry for wasting your time.


    But I''m not giving up.


    I''ll be back, with another book.


    Hopefully, I won''t repeat the mistakes that I made in this book.


    Apparently, based on the words of the reviewers. The book''s start was pretty bad and the main character is retarded. In my next book, I won''t make a stupid main character. I will make sure the start is fast and appealing enough so people won''t say bad things about the start anymore.


    Look forward to that book, titled, "Return of the History''s Number One Historian."


    I hope the book won''t disappoint you guys.


    Before I end this announcement and small rant.


    I would like to give my thanks to everyone who supported this novel until now.


    Thank you, guys!


    I would never make it this far without your support.


    May it be in the form of power stones or in the form of gifts orments.


    Thank you!


    See ya in the next book!


    TheAdventurer.


    Now singing out.

 Chapter 201: Prologue: Records of the Weakest Emperor

    Chapter 201: Prologue: Records of the Weakest Emperor


    Title: End Times


    St!


    Blood sttered everywhere. A man let out his final pained groan as his dazed eyesnded on the sword that pierced through his chest. When he felt the coldness of the de prating his heart, his pupils constricted as his body slowly lost its strength.


    AAAHHH!!!


    As the man copsed onto the ground, an anguished cry rang out as another man rushed towards the sword-wielding man. The swordsman swiftly turned around, his movements didn''t disy any panic and with a single sh of his sword, another life ended once again.


    "You... Why are you not... why are you not helping yourrades?"


    The swordsman turned to look at the distance where another man was standing with tears streaming down his face. In the fact of death, the man was utterly terrified but in order to practice his calling, his profession, or some may call his ss to the very end. The man remained standing there, scribbling some words on a piece of paper.


    Gustav, my best friend of thirty-years died from the hands of the prey... I merely stood in the distance and did nothing.


    I am nothing but a mere observer.


    George, a man of sheer will and determination also died from the hands of the same prey. His movements looked full of fear to me, yet his actions nevergged and had no hesitation as he swung his sword and aimed to end the life of the prey.


    But in the end, it doesn''t even matter.


    The prey was too strong.


    Us, predators...


    Couldn''t do anything about him.


    The man scribbled down these words in the piece of paper and as he wrote the final words in the sentence. The piece of paper shone in a brilliant light. A thick book radiating an air of ancientness appeared beside the piece of paper and it sucked the paper into it, forming a page that could never be removed, defaced, nor altered.


    "That..."


    The swordsman who had already pointed his sword at the man stopped what he was doing. Disbelief appeared on his face when he saw the book, but his expression quickly turned into mocking and some pity when he realized the profession of the man standing in front of him.


    "I see..."


    "So, the reason why you haven''t died yet is because of this..."


    "His Majesty purposely spared you from death so you can record all significant events of this turning point of destiny within that book of history in your hands."


    The swordsman shook his head andughingly mocked, "You truly are a pitiful man." He then sheathed his sword back to its scabbard before stretching his hand towards the man''s cor.


    "Since your job is to observe and record everything that you see, then fine... Record everything... I won''t let you die. If you are severely injured from the shockwaves of the battle then I will heal you until you''re at your top condition. I won''t let you die... I will let you see... I will let you see everything..."


    "I will let you see how my sword cuts through each and everyrade of yours, you pathetic so-called Predator!" The swordsman boisterouslyughed and he dragged the man with such force that he felt painfully suffocated, yet he couldn''t even die nor kill himself.


    He then proceeded to do just as he was told.


    He recorded everything.


    While bawling his eyes out, he stayed true to the facts and wrote every death and every ughter that he saw into the Great Book of History. There were times when he thought of changing the facts within the Great Book of History so that humanity wouldn''t look so pathetic in their fight against the invader, yet he decided that in the end...


    He must stay true to his profession and write without any bias.


    Humanity had ample time to prepare.


    But each and every one of them ignored all the warning signs until it was already toote.


    In other words, they reaped what they sowed.


    The historian could only let out a sigh.


    In the end, he was just a mere observer. Of course, he would still die when his job was done, but until then. He would stay true to his profession and write down everything that he needed to write. Years, after years, after years passed and the historian never falsified any information that he wrote within the Great Book of History.


    Humanity suffered a lot and now, the end finally arrived.


    Cough...


    The copsed woman let out a dry cough. The surroundings were filled with ashes, suffocating her lungs. But her difort onlysted for a few moments. She lifted her head and surveyed her surroundings.


    "Hello..."


    "Is anybody there?"


    A defiant light shed across the woman''s eyes as she forcefully raised her severely injured body from the ground. She took a good look at her surroundings and her pupils constricted when she realized where she was standing.


    "Dead... Everyone... They''re dead..."


    She looked at a mutted corpse near her and bitterly smiled for she realized that the state of this corpse was far better than the others. Some of the corpses didn''t even have the shape of a human anymore. Instead, they looked like lumps of meat and some even looked like pancakes.


    Ugh...


    The woman covered her mouth.


    She managed to forcefully swallow down the vomit that threatened toe out her mouth. Despite seeing hundreds of ughters within the past several decades. The scene around her still disturbed her will as her expression quickly became as pale as a sheet of paper.


    "How..."


    "How did Humanity end up like this...?"


    She copsed on the ground.


    She could still remember that day when everything changed.


    Several years before that change.


    Humanity suddenly gained random supernatural abilities. Along with the appearance of what looked to be system prompts, every human being in the world gained abilities that science couldn''t exin. Of course, some abilities were far stronger than others and the woman was one of those lucky ones that gained such an ability.


    The woman was delighted by the change that the abilities brought to the world and she quickly rose through the ranks, eventually bing an Apex Predator, ssified as one of the strongest humans in the world. But in the end, her abilities were for naught.


    The invaders were far stronger than any Apex Predator and no amount of technology and magic engineering could suppress the invaders.


    Humanity fought valiantly, yet in just several decades.


    Their final bastion, the Empire of the South Eastern Seas finally copsed from the attacks of the invaders.


    At this moment, the woman reckoned that she was the only survivor.


    But why did these invaders invade her homnd in the first ce?


    Even now, the woman still couldn''t find the answer to this burning question of hers.


    And from the looks of it, she''ll forever be curious even as a ghost.


    "Write it down."


    A charming voice belonging to a man suddenly rang out.


    The fog that surrounded the woman disappeared and she found herself standing in the middle of a deep valley. Above her were several hundreds of invaders. They were staring at her with this triumphant look in their eyes.


    But the woman''s eyes weren''t focused on these invaders.


    Instead, they were focused on the image of a trembling man standing at the edge of the valley.


    "You..."


    "You''re that..."


    "You''re that coward!"


    "You''re that coward who instead of fighting for the sake of the homnd, insists on writing on that stupid book instead!"


    "How are you alive?"


    "Howe that you''re alive?"


    "Everyone is already dead, but you''re still alive?"


    "On what basis?!"


    "How is a coward like you still alive?!"


    The woman suddenly became hysterical.


    She lost all her dignity as the Goddess of the de and started cursing at the trembling man.


    The man cowered in fear when he saw the actions of the Goddess of the de. But her words made sense for him.


    Yes, he was a coward.


    After acquiring his Calling, Diary-Keeper. He had never done anything other than write.


    He thought that he''d be stronger than anyone just by writing and he did!


    From Diary-Keeper, he became a Scribe, a Historian and now, he was a Keeper of History.


    He still wanted to advance, the next sequence of his calling was Author.


    He reckoned that in order to be an Author. He must write books.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t have the time nor the leeway to write a book.


    In the end, he got stuck as a Keeper of History and now, the end times have arrived.


    His Great Book of History has reached its limits and only a single sentence could be written.


    Every word that a Keeper of History wrote into the Great Book of History could never be changed. Anyone, including those that have the capability to transcend time, would be unable to go back and change the history that was already written in the Great Book of History.


    This was the reason why the invaders kept the man alive.


    He was basically their shield against time-transcending humans that may go back to the past and change the course of history from there.


    But the powers of a Keeper of History were limited.


    To be exact, the pages of the Great Book of History was limited.


    It was said that if he ascended and became an Author. He would be able to change, write, delete everything as much as he wanted, but s. The man never had the opportunity to ascend.


    In fact, he didn''t even understand what an Author was.


    Profession Ascension required a deep understanding of that particr profession and since the man didn''t understand what an Author was. It was basically impossible for him to be an Author.


    Only a single final sentence could be written within the Great Book of History.


    But a single sentence was enough to seal the fate of humanity.


    "What''s wrong? Write it... That''s the final page of the Great Book of History, right? Go ahead. Write it. Write the end."


    The charming voice spoke once again.


    The man trembled as his hand holding the pen floated over thest space of the Great Book of History''s final page.


    Once he wrote the final sentence, there was no going back.


    The true end of humanity woulde.


    The woman beneath the valley seemed to have recognized this as she cried out.


    "No!"


    "Don''t..."


    "Don''t write it!"


    "Let them kill you, but don''t write it!"


    "Do you really think that they are going to let you off once you''ve done your job?"


    "No!"


    "These sons of bitches are the devils! They will never honor a promise!"


    "Shut up!"


    The charming voice coldly responded and his voice seemed to transform into an iparably sharp de that sliced the head of the woman from her shoulders.


    Just like that, the life of the Goddess of the de ended.


    "Ah..."


    "Ahhh!!!"


    The man loudly screamed and tears rolled down his cheeks as he let out a sorrowful cry.


    "How pathetic...


    "Just write the final sentence already and I''ll grant you a painless death."


    "I am not apletely cold man, so you can consider that painless death as my reward for your service. The great traitor of humanity." The charming voice''s tone of speaking suddenly became filled with intense mocking.


    The trembling man sucked a mouthful of cold air.


    His eyes reddened and he seemed to have lost his mind as he cried out.


    "Fine... You want me to write?"


    "I''ll write it then..."


    "I''ll write..."


    "I''ll write..."


    "I''ll write!!!"


    The pennded on the final page and left its mark as it wrote the final sentence of the Great Book of History.


    Out of defiance and deep regret, the Scribe, the Historian, The Keeper of History, and the great traitor of humanity wrote at the final pages of the Great Book of History.


    "With my body as the sacrifice, I''ll turn back time, change the past, and change the harrowing destiny of humanity!"


    As the pen wrote the exmation mark, the Great Book of History closed on its own for it has alreadypleted its job.


    It transformed into a dazzling light before diving into the forehead of the historian.


    [You have exhausted the pages of the Great Heavenly Profound Treasure: The Great Book of History.]


    [You have witnessed everything and wrote the end times of Humanity while staying true to the facts.]


    [Your name has left its mark on The Great Book of History.]


    [You have be the Author of The Great Book of History.]


    [Congrattions to the user for bing an Apex Predator in the Writer Profession!]


    [You have obtained the Calling: Author of Fate.]


    [With your will as the canvas and your body as the ink. The Author of Fate wrote...]


    [I''ll turn back time, change the past, and change the harrowing destiny of humanity!]

 Chapter 202: Youve Gone Too Far!

    Chapter 202: You''ve Gone Too Far!


    "Calvin! Did you steal your sister''s tuition money again to y those stupid video games?!"


    A fierce voice brought Calvin''s mind back to the world?


    Huh?


    Where am I?


    Calvin raised his head and found that he was sitting in a gaming chair.


    In front of him was a twenty-seven inches gaming monitor.


    The peripherals were awesome and everything had RGB lights, even the chair!


    If one looked at him from a distance, he would seem like a Christmas tree with all the lights surrounding him.


    But that wasn''t the reason why Calvin was so astonished at this moment.


    It was because disyed within the screen were the words...


    [You''ve bought the Skin: Elementalist Laks.]


    [$20,000 has been debited from your ount ending 643.]


    [Thank you for your purchase!]


    It was at this moment that Calvin realized where he was and what was his current situation.


    This...


    This is when I stole my sister''s tuition money to buy that incredibly rare Elementalist Laks skin!


    If I recall correctly, my mother discovered what I was doing and at that time...


    She personally made a visit to the Inte Cafe and...


    Wait, my mother?!


    Calvin''s pupils constricted and he swiftly turned his head to look behind him.


    But what greeted him was the sight of a flying flipflops.


    The flipflop was thrown with such strength and finesse that even with Calvin''s experience in battles.


    He found it hard to evade.


    But of course, it was probably because he didn''t dare to dodge an attack that came from his mother.


    Pak!


    A crisp sound rang out and Calvin''s head directly bent backwards from the impact.


    "There you are, Calvin! Come here! Don''t you dare to run, I''ve already informed the Old Manager and he''s blocking the entrance as we speak!"


    "Hahaha, Calvin... You''re such a mad... To think that you''d be so dedicated to League of Myths that you''d steal your sister''s tuition money just to buy some skins. But for what? Some bragging rights?" A veteran patron of the Inte Cafe where Calvin was in chimed in and sneered.


    But Calvin couldn''t care less towards his mocking.


    Instead, he stared right at his mother with tears dripping down his cheeks.


    "M-Mother..." Calvin finally remembered every detail regarding this incident.


    This was that time when I was kicked out of the family!


    Calvin remembered that back then, he ran towards the emergency exit to escape. But he ultimately failed to run away for the Old Manager wasn''t actually blocking the entrance. He was actually blocking the emergency exit! His mother only said those words to deceive him, so he''d fall right at herp!


    Calvin shook his head and revealed a bitter smile.


    He stared right at his hands and found them devoid of wrinkles.


    He was young again!


    "You..."


    Calvin''s mother was visibly shaken.


    "Why are you not running?"


    She asked in confusion.


    "Madame Yvette, did that brat already run away? I should''ve known that he''s clever enough not to fall to our ns!"


    The Old Manager of the Inte Cafe entered through the emergency exit.


    He immediately saw Calvin staring at his mother with tears streaming down his cheeks.


    "Brat, so you''re finally giving up?"


    "How dare youe back here when you''re still in suspension? Do you really want me to give you a ban?"


    Calvin made a sidelong nce at the Old Manager and his chest throbbed with emotions.


    The Old Manager, despite the fact that he was such a tight-ass when ites to the rules, he wasn''t actually a bad man.


    In fact, Calvin could still remember that time when the Old Manager took an attack for him.


    If not for the Old Manager protecting him in time when those bastards finally invaded...


    Calvin would''ve died.


    "O-Old Manager..."


    "Who are you calling Old Manager, huh?"


    "Do you really think that we''re that so familiar with each other and we''re that close? Don''t you dare show those crocodile tears of yours in front of me!" The Old Manager huffed and puffed as he pointed at Calvin.


    But despite hisints, he was quite moved by Calvin''s crying.


    But he was still unresigned.


    He knew how much of a bastard Calvin was.


    Back then, he deceived his mother by crying as loud as he could and repeatedly shouting the words, "I''m sorry, I won''t y video games again.".


    His actions earned him the forgiveness of his mother, yet he rpsed in just a few days.


    He even scammed his mother by saying that he needed some money for school projects and it turned out that he didn''t actually have any on-going school projects at all!


    He used that money to buy thetest Project Skin line of the video game League of Myths!


    This was why as much as the Old Manager wanted to believe in Calvin.


    He knew that he must not let his guard down against this video game addict.


    Gnashing his teeth, he turned to look at Madame Yvette and said, "Don''t be deceived, Madame! A man can only be deceived for three times at most before he could be judged as foolish! Steel your heart and punish him! Remember that in the end, this is also for his sake!"


    The Old Manager''s voice rang extremely loud to the extent that the yers within the Inte Cafe couldn''t help but remove their headphones and watch the show unfolding in front of them.


    "Oh shit! Isn''t that the baller who brought a twenty-thousand dors Elementalist Laks skin earlier?"


    "Yeah, that''s him, but dang! We praised him for having so much money that he could buy such a skin, yet the money that he used to buy that skin actually came from his sister''s tuition money!"


    "What the fuck? Really? What a bastard!"


    The spectators whispered towards each other. They weren''t courteous at all with their whispers. They deliberately made their voice sound louder so that Calvin could hear what they were saying. They wanted to humiliate the pretentious thief.


    But little did they knew that Madame Yvette was more hurt than Calvin.


    Even though she disliked Calvin''s attitude and outlook in life.


    Calvin was still her son.


    Seeing him being humiliated like this, she gnashed her teeth and dragged Calvin out of the Inte Cafe.


    "Old Manager! Improve the quality of your security guards! To think that they would let a suspended person enter your Inte Cafe!" Madame Yvette even scolded the Old Manager while she was dragging Calvin away back to their home.


    Calvin didn''t say anything along the way. His mother also wasn''t in the mood to talk, so the two of them kept their silence until they returned home.


    But as soon as Calvin entered the living room of their modest house, a fist greeted him and with a pak!


    He fell onto the ground.


    "You bastard! You''ve done it again! You''ve gone too far!"


    The punch came from his father.


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