Chapter 183 - Episode 24. Ancient God (8)
Chapter 183: Episode 24. Ancient God (8)
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A short while later, Jaehwan and Maiad entered the ‘Hidden Gate’ under an attendant’s guidance.
“You have arrived. This way, please.”
Recognizing Maiad, the attendant immediately led them underground.
The attendant kept sneaking glances at Jaehwan, likely having recognized him as the central figure in the ‘Metaverse Collapse Incident.’
Maiad, following the attendant from a few steps away, casually asked,
“Jaehwan, are you really all right with this?”
“Wasn’t this a transaction we agreed to?”
As though the suffocating standoff from before had never happened, Jaehwan’s voice remained calm. Maiad gave a slight nod, wearing an odd smile as though Jaehwan’s attitude intrigued him.
Andersen, concealed within Jaehwan’s Unique World, pressed him.
“Have you really lost your mind? That’s the ‘Rupture Lord.’ Do you not know what that monster is?”
‘I know.’
“Know what? How can someone who knows act like this? Have you gotten too full of yourself just because you became one of the Eight Heavens?”
To get straight to the point, Jaehwan had accepted Maiad’s offer to accompany him. Runald, who could not come along because of the attendance limit, had been sent back to Manri Shintong. Jaehwan judged that Runald would be safer with Manri Shintong than wandering near the auction house.
‘I need to see the Three Divine Artifacts myself.’
Whatever Maiad was thinking, it would be a loss to pass up an opportunity to enter the auction house where the Three Divine Artifacts were being sold.
More than anything, the words the Driver left behind before ascending had been decisive.
If you gather all Three Divine Artifacts, you will naturally learn how to reach the First Nightmare.
The Driver had definitely said that.
Jaehwan did not know which of the Three Divine Artifacts would appear at the auction, but he already held the usage rights to 「Void Sword」. That meant only two remained.
The attendant, who had been leading Jaehwan and Maiad down the spiral staircase, turned back to them.
“You may enter here. Inside is a room that automatically recommends attire suited to its user, so please do not be alarmed if your clothes suddenly change.”
Jaehwan and Maiad exchanged a look, then entered the room at the same time. Inside was a mirrored chamber that resembled a small private dressing room.
The next moment, Jaehwan’s clothing changed in the mirror.
“That actually suits you.”
The dress code for this banquet seemed to be formal wear, because he was now wearing a black suit. He could not remember the last time he had worn one.
“You cannot turn back now that you have come this far, but you really need to be careful. Beyond that door are surely...”
‘The strongest gods in the Abyss.’
He knew even without Andersen saying it. The air beyond the door felt different.
Still, Jaehwan did not care much. As far as he knew, fewer than ten gods in the 《Abyss》 were now stronger than him.
And there was no way all ten were beyond that door.
“The World Pressure here is so high that I might fall asleep for a while.”
‘That would be nice and quiet.’
“Stay alert. All right? Wake me immediately if you need my help.”
When he stepped out of the dressing room, Maiad had changed into a white suit as well. Seeing Jaehwan dressed up, Maiad spoke brightly.
“You look quite good in formal wear as well.”
“Is the auction house ahead?”
“Yes. More importantly, you have not forgotten the proposal I made earlier, have you?”
Jaehwan nodded.
Maiad had not simply asked Jaehwan to accompany him.
Maiad’s true goal was to obtain the ‘Three Divine Artifacts’ at this auction.
“Officially, I cannot attend the auction for the ‘Three Divine Artifacts.’ It is because of a treaty I signed some time ago.”
Maiad’s explanation was simple. Certain circumstances prevented Maiad from attending this auction. Therefore,
“You want me to bid in your place.”
“That is correct.”
“What if the other Seven Divine Thrones bid?”
“They are in the same position as I am. They will likely attempt to bid through their own companions.”
In the end, this was a kind of proxy bidding war.
After thinking for a moment, Jaehwan said,
“There is one problem.”
“Please, tell me.”
“I do not have much trust.”
“Do not worry. I can lend you as much as you need.”
With those words, Maiad took a blank check from inside their clothes and handed it over.
“How much?”
“I can guarantee up to five billion. Beyond that, I cannot say.”
Five billion trust.
It was an astronomical sum Jaehwan had never even heard of before.
“What are the terms?”
“If you successfully win the bid, I will lend you one of the Three Divine Artifacts.”
It was not a bad offer.
If anything, the terms were so favorable that they seemed suspicious.
“Why choose me as your companion? You must have plenty of reliable strong people, like your subordinates.”
Maiad shook their head.
“They are members of the 「Rupture」. If they participate in the auction, it would be no different from me participating myself. And my network is narrower than it appears. Finding a companion I can trust is not easy.”
“Can you trust me?”
“I am not asking because I trust you. Let us go in.”
The moment Maiad opened the banquet hall doors, the flow of air changed with a creaking sound. Breathing gradually became difficult. Jaehwan did not need to look around to know. Every god in this hall was looking at him.
Maiad whispered calmly,
“Walk as though nothing is wrong. It is a kind of initiation.”
Every god around them was openly releasing World Force. As though only those who could endure this much pressure deserved to be here.
Jaehwan calmly withstood their stares and walked with Maiad toward the center of the banquet hall. After twenty or thirty steps, he saw a reserved table marked with Maiad’s name.
[Maiad van Declan and 1 Guest]
The moment Jaehwan pulled out a chair from the table, the pressure around them vanished as if it had been washed away.
Maiad smiled and nodded.
“Excellent.”
Seated at the table, Jaehwan calmly surveyed his surroundings.
There were around sixty Vicegerents gathered in the hall. Considering the number of empty tables, the maximum capacity seemed to be about one hundred.
Some looked manageable. With others, he could not judge his odds at all. There were familiar faces among them, too.
One Vicegerent whose eyes met Jaehwan’s walked straight toward him.
“You are...”
Jaehwan recognized him immediately.
God of the Deep Sea Russell. One of the Seven Stars whom he had fought on the Eighth Floor of the 〈Metaverse〉.
Thinking Russell might want to fight, Jaehwan discreetly gripped Solitary Existence’s hilt. Russell curled his lip and continued.
“I owed you a debt from then.”
“...?”
“Thank you for saving my Vicegerent.”
Russell said only that, then immediately turned and returned to his own table.
Maiad, who had watched from beside him, murmured in admiration.
“It is my first time seeing that prideful fellow say something like that.”
“Was he invited too?”
“I saw him at the previous banquet, so most likely. Once someone becomes strong enough to stand among the Seven Stars, they have opportunities to receive invitations.”
According to Maiad, there were three figures at the level of the Seven Stars attending this banquet.
God of the Deep Sea Russell.
God of Javelins Turis.
God of Sleet Pao.
Muscular Turis and pale-faced Pao were watching from afar.
Jaehwan had defeated two Seven Stars and risen to the rank of the Eight Heavens in less than a year. It was perhaps only natural that gods of the same rank would envy him.
He coolly compared the World Force he sensed from them to his own.
He felt certain he could win.
“There are people of the Eight Heavens here as well.”
Following Maiad’s gaze, Jaehwan turned to see an old man in casual hanbok approaching with a loose, swaying gait.
Maiad said,
“Old Heaven has come too.”
Old Heaven, one of the Eight Heavens. He was Shiyu, the God of Aging whom Jaehwan had met in the 〈Metaverse〉 before.
“It has been a while, Rupture Lord.”
Shiyu must have already known Maiad, because he gave Maiad a small nod before turning toward Jaehwan.
“I came to greet this friend. Good to see you. We meet again here.”
“I do not think we are on good enough terms to greet each other warmly.”
“Ha ha, let what happened in the 〈Metaverse〉 end within the 〈Metaverse〉. I hold no hostility toward you now. If anything, I bear you a little goodwill.”
As if to show he had no intention of fighting, Shiyu raised both hands. He genuinely looked pleased to see Jaehwan again.
“Thanks to you, the 《Abyss》 has quieted down a little.”
“Quieted down? Did you not mean the opposite?”
“Maiad, eighty percent of 《Little Brother》 messages were spam from ‘Anonymous Gods.’ But did this friend not destroy the 〈Metaverse〉, which governed ‘anonymity’?”
Unlike Rene, Shiyu seemed to have disliked the existence of the 〈Metaverse〉.
“Thanks to this friend, the young souls of the 《Abyss》 have returned to work. Young people should not just chatter away. They ought to sweat, work hard, and train diligently. That is how it should be.”
Jaehwan could hardly believe the old man who had come to stop him under Chronos’s orders was saying such things.
Then an unhappy voice sounded from behind him.
“Whether you live diligently or not, everyone dies the same in the end.”
“Kid, if you are going to die in the end anyway, why are you stuffing your face?”
At some point, a lanky man had appeared behind Shiyu. The man was dressed in a pitch-black tuxedo and chewing dumplings with his cheeks stuffed full. Dark circles beneath his eyes twitched whenever his cheeks moved.
Maiad spoke with amusement.
“It is rare to see you two together.”
“My luck was bad. This too is mortality.”
“I visited the Martial World Inn because I wanted Heaven’s End as my companion, but I ran into this bastard there.”
It appeared both of them had wanted Jaehwan as their companion.
The dark-circled man spoke to Jaehwan.
“It is my first time seeing you in person, Heaven’s End.”
“Do you know me?”
“I am Thanatos, the God of Mortality. I am usually called Death Heaven.”
God of Mortality Thanatos.
Jaehwan remembered seeing him in messages on 《Little Brother》.
He had not expected that guy to be another member of the Eight Heavens.
“Ancient God Gestalt once said this. The strongest person is the one who remains naked until the end.”
“...”
“Seeing you reminded me of those words. That, too, is one proper way to embrace mortality. I look forward to seeing more from you.”
After saying only what he wanted to say, Thanatos ambled toward his own table. Shiyu also left behind a faint smile as he walked away.
Jaehwan compared the World Force radiating from the backs of the Eight Heavens to his own.
He felt he had a chance.
When he turned his head, Maiad was looking at him with an odd smile. Jaehwan suddenly became curious.
“Are you one of the Eight Heavens too?”
“What do you think?”
Maiad was definitely stronger than the Seven Stars.
Did that make him one of the Eight Heavens?
Jaehwan still could not tell.
[Ah. It has, been, a while, Mai, ad.]
The moment Jaehwan heard the fragmented voice from behind him, chills ran down his neck. It was the first time since Maiad that someone had approached directly behind him without Jaehwan noticing. The hairs on his arms stood on end.
One look at Maiad’s faintly smiling face told him everything.
There was no doubt.
The person standing behind him now was one of the ‘Seven Divine Thrones.’
Slowly turning his head, Jaehwan thought for the first time since coming to the 《Abyss》 that he wanted to avoid fighting this person at all costs.
Footnotes:
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