Kim Jin-Woo stepped out of his labyrinth, only to be greeted by a large army that surrounded it. The stench of various strange-looking beasts and giants filled the air from afar.
āSo, it wasnāt just one,ā he muttered. The moment he saw the familiar faces of the Beastfolk King and the Heavenly Giant Lord in the distance, he knew they had planned this from the beginning. He asked, āWhat about Mjƶllnir?ā
Morrigan answered his question immediately. āTheyāre barely out of range. I donāt think we can do anything about them right now.ā
Kim Jin-Woo began second-guessing his decision to keep the Heavenly Giant Lord alive, thinking that he might have further use.
The king of the cunning giants, who had been heavily bombarded by Mjƶllnir in the last battle, had skillfully learned the exact range of ValhĒ«llās defenses. Thanks to that, unless the enemy made their move first, there was nothing Kim Jin-Woo could do from his end.
āStrange. There are a lot of them, but itās not as if there are enough that we canāt overcome them. They should be aware of that as well,ā Dominique remarked.
Kim Jin-Woo nodded. As long as they maintained a reasonable distance between the two armies, the enemy would have no choice but to come within Mjƶllnirās range once the battle began.
Mjƶllnir was a decisive battle weapon that had the potential to easily make up for the difference in numbers. Kim Jin-Woo couldnāt figure out why the Highlords were starting such a reckless fight when there was no way they wouldnāt be aware of that fact.
Hadnāt the Heavenly Giant Lord already suffered an overwhelming defeat by him once? Certainly, Kim Jin-Woo now knew that the one-sided fight had been intended to some extent, but even so, it was impossible that the gap in power between the two parties could be easily overcome now.
Kim Jin-Woo intuitively realized that it wasnāt going to end with just the two of them. Thus, he decided to face the Highlords alone and instructed Angela to be prepared. āAngela, Iāll take care of the two of them, so hold your position.ā
He then stepped forward and shouted, āYour intentions are as obvious as they come, but still, let me ask you anyway. Why are you here?ā
The two Highlords flinched in response. However, even after retreating a step back, the Beastfolk King quickly stepped forward again and shouted in response, āThe Wish Stone!ā
It was exactly as expected. What the Highlords wanted was the very Wish Stone Kim Jin-Woo had just obtained. He asked, āWere you aiming for this from the beginning?ā
āAt the time, I wasnāt sure whether you possessed the Wish Stone,ā the Heavenly Giant Lord replied.
No wonder three Highlords had shown themselves back then and retreated so easily. It had merely been a process of confirmation for them.
āYou didnāt even know I lost on purpose, and yet you made such a big fuss about it. How pathetic can you be?ā the Heavenly Giant Lord remarked with a snort.
Was he trying to restore his self-esteem? The Heavenly Giant Lordās excuse sounded laughable.
āYour acting skills were pretty good. The way you were crawling all over the floor like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs was so convincing, I thought it was completely real,ā Kim Jin-Woo retorted. His every word was filled with outright mockery and belittlement.
The Heavenly Giant Lord frowned and cursed in return. āYou son of a bitchā¦ā
āEnough.ā The Beastfolk King stopped the Heavenly Giant Lord, who had stepped forward in rage. He remarked cynically āIf you still want to restore your self-esteem, Iāll give you a chance to do so afterward. Is that what you really want?ā
The Heavenly Giant Lordās face turned pale. Contrary to his words, it appeared he wasnāt confident enough to engage in a decisive battle with Kim Jin-Woo anytime soon.
āNow isnāt the time to think about my pride, anyway.ā The giant tried to have the last word, but the more he spoke, the more pathetic he appeared.
āThen stop acting like a fool. Thereās nothing for us to gain by provoking him needlessly,ā the Beastfolk King said calmly. In the end, the Heavenly Giant Lord shut his mouth and backed away. Once the Beastfolk King had taken control of the situation, he went back to the main point of the visit. āIāll keep this short. Hand over the Wish Stone to us. If you do that, we have no intention of fighting you.ā
āIf thatās what you wanted, you should have been looking for the Wish Stone from the beginning,ā Kim Jin-Woo replied.
āIf I could have done that, I would have done so. To be honest, we never wanted to be hostile to you,ā the Beastfolk King said. As if the intent he had displayed in their last meeting hadnāt been a lie, he suggested that he wanted to avoid any battles if he could.
āWish Stone, huh. Fine. Iāll hand it over to you,ā Kim Jin-Woo said.
āMaster!ā his summons exclaimed, panicking.
āIām glad our words could get through to you. With this, we can avoid any unnecessary bloodshedāā the Beastfolk King began excitedly.
āBut.ā Kim Jin-Woo cut off the Beastfolk King with a word. He continued, āYouāll have to pay an appropriate price.ā
āThe price?ā
āA treasure like the Wish Stone isnāt something that can be given away for free.ā
āTell me. As long as itās something I can do, Iāll hear you out.ā
āAs long as you provide me with a treasure worthy of the Wish Stone, Iāll fulfill all your requests.ā
The Beastfolk Kingās face contorted as he asked, āHow can something like that exist?ā
Only one such crystal existed in the Underworld, and there was absolutely no substitute for it.
āNo, there is.ā Kim Jin-Woo grinned widely as he saw the Beastfolk Kingās expression turn cold, as if he had just realized he was being ridiculed. Kim Jin-Woo continued, āSomething of similar valueā¦ Say, a Highlordās life?ā
The atmosphere of the battlefield that had previously calmed down turned fierce once again.
āLooks like thereās no other way,ā the Beastfolk King said. As soon as he finished speaking, the beasts that filled the area began to howl. The giants also raised their axes, maces, and other vicious weapons with a roar.
āMorrigan, relay this to the White Raven. From now on, strike mercilessly at those who dare approach ValhĒ«ll and the Grand Labyrinth,ā Kim Jin-Woo commanded.
āAs you will,ā Morrigan replied.
āAnd you, lead the Einherjar and deal with the enemies that slip through Mjƶllnirās strikes.ā
āLeave it to me.ā
āPut all the Nagas on standby. This battle will be fought with just the Einherjar.ā
There were some rumblings of concern as to whether the Einherjar alone would be able to deal with the armies of two Highlords, but Kim Jin-Woo didnāt care.
āTheyāve already been beaten once. But theyāve returned once more, which means theyāve definitely prepared better this time around. Weāll be sending the Nagas out only after theyāve revealed their hidden cards,ā he said.
It was going to be difficult, but as long as they had Mjƶllnirās assistance and the defensive capabilities of the Grand Labyrinth, they wouldnāt be a pushover.
However, those were just Kim Jin-Wooās thoughts.
The Beastfolk King and the Heavenly Giant Lord had apparently had no intention of personally attacking from the beginning. The beasts and giants split apart as they beckoned, and an endless wave of creatures rushed in from behind them.
āThe Dukesā¦ā Kim Jin-Woo muttered, frowning when he saw dozens of Dukes revealing themselves, as well as their respective armies.
Mjƶllnir was certainly a formidable weapon, but it wasnāt without its flaws. After a few strikes, it had to be recharged.
The giants and beasts aside, the enemies were using the Nobles and their respective armies as cannon fodder; thus, Kim Jin-Woo had to worry about what would happen in the downtime of his firepower.
āDonāt waste Mjƶllnirās firepower. Iāll leave the Dukes and their troops to the defensive capabilities of ValhĒ«ll and the Grand Labyrinth,ā he instructed.
Just as he finished giving his orders, the atmosphere of the enemy camp rose fiercely.
āReady for battle!ā Kim Jin-Woo called out.
Enemies rushed in endlessly. The walls of ValhĒ«ll didnāt allow them to take a single step inside, while the Grand Labyrinth continuously devoured the invading enemies. However, their numbers didnāt decrease at all. It was as if every single Underworld Noble who had survived the Restoration had gathered.
āWhat are they waiting for?ā Kim Jin-Woo wondered to himself as crushed a few unknown Dukes who rushed toward him courageously, before looking off into the distance.
Despite the fact that the troops they had sent werenāt accomplishing anything at all, the Highlords seemed to be rather laid-back. If Kim Jin-Woo had been in charge of this attack, he would have attacked during Mjƶllnirās downtime, while it was recharging.
But the other two Highlords were only continuing to send their overwhelming number of troops, while showing no signs of moving at all. If the situation continued, no matter how large the Dukesā armies were, in the end, it would all be for naught.
The Grand Labyrinth was still starving even after consuming countless enemies, while the walls of ValhĒ«ll were too strong for the Nobles to overcome. It was the perfect defense, and by then, Kim Jin-Woo was simply getting sick and tired of the sight of the endless waves of enemies rushing in.
āThereās something more to this. There must be something theyāve planned, aiming to reverse the current situation in an instant,ā he mused.
āBut even if the walls fall and the Grand Labyrinthās satiety reaches its limit, in the end, what will matter is the battle between Highlords. And I donāt think they can beat you, Master.ā Despite having been ordered to wait from afar, Angela seemed to be itching for a fight, as she approached him quietly and replied to him. āEven if I donāt step forward, they canāt bridge the gap between themselves and Master.ā
āBut it also doesnāt seem as if they have any intention of backing down either,ā Kim Jin-Woo replied.
That was the strangest point. The enemy troops continued to flow despite not achieving anything. Their terribly inefficient strategy was starting to give Kim Jin-Woo a headache.
āThereās no way theyāre hoping that this tactic will eventually cause an opening, are they?ā Angela asked.
Kim Jin-Woo shook his head in response. Although the enemy might seem incompetent, they were still formidable beings who had ascended to the rank of Highlord. There was no way such beings would be so thoughtless.
The one-sided massacre continued for a long time. Due to the sheer number of corpses that had accumulated in the area, the enemy forces were starting to have a hard time even approaching the castle and the labyrinth.
There were so many corpses that Angela made an absurd suggestion. āAre they trying to build their own castle out of corpses and use that to climb the walls of ValhĒ«ll?ā
āMm?ā Kim Jin-Woo exclaimed.
Time continued to pass, and the number of bodies continued to pile up. Angela had been silently observing the situation unfold, and she suddenly exclaimed, āMaster! The atmosphere!ā
Kim Jin-Wooās expression changed. The air of the battlefield had changed all of a sudden, thickly enveloping the area in all directions. Simultaneously, the Dukesā troops started to fall forward as if they had been pushed from behind before dying abruptly.
What was strange was that none of those who had died let out as much as a single scream. They simply moaned as if they were drugged before ending their own lives. What was unfolding couldnāt even be called a battle anymore.
The enemies were choosing an incomprehensible form of suicide, rather than facing a warriorās death. Subsequently, the energies of those who had died in such a manner began to coalesce unnaturally.
Why had Kim Jin-Woo only noticed it now? It was something he should have noticed right away. However, he had failed to fully grasp the strange situation surrounding the war until Angela gave him her warning.
It wasnāt completely incomprehensible. The area where more than tens of thousands of summons had been killed had literally become a gateway to the Underworld. The life forces of the living had been extinguished and a damp chill filled the place; soon, the whole world was filled with an air of death.
Noticing such an atmosphere forming so quickly was unusual. Fortunately, Angela was a Vampire who had half-experienced death before, and thus was sensitive to such energies.
āThis energy, Iāve seen it before.ā Kim Jin-Woo glared in the direction of the enemy forces, his expression hardening. His gaze was directed toward neither the Heavenly Giant Lord nor the Beastfolk King. He exclaimed, āCatherine!ā
The woman had appeared in the middle of the enemy camp before he even knew it, and she looked at him and smiled sinisterly.