âKeu-heu-heu, have I finally cleared it?â While staring at the giant magical beast that was collapsing in front of Ilahanâs eyes, he let out a laugh showing his good mood.
He had finally completely cleared the quest that had taken a lengthy 2 weeks.
And Ilahanâs retainers that had scattered due to the tussle lined up in front of him after quickly organizing themselves again.
âGreat work, master.â
âYouâve done a great job, Lord!â
Ilahan accepted the greetings of his retainers with a good mood as he stared at the quest completion messages that popped up afterwards.
Ring-!
If the name was literally translated, Shim-myeon meant the âdeep pond of the devilâ.
And Ilahan nodded his head without hesitation.
âIâll enter!â
Following that, a message popped up again.
A big and st.u.r.dy-looking physique that looked to be a little over 2 metres tall.
The devil with red skin and black hair, as well as sharp-looking eyes, was âYankounâ, exactly who Ian was looking for.
âIâm certain it is Yankoun, butâ
However, as soon as Ian saw Yankoun, he couldnât help but tilt his head.
This was because Yankounâs outer appearance had changed a lot.
âWhat a relief, Yankoun. Youâve been released quicker than expected.â
At Ianâs words, Yankoun grinned as he nodded his head.
âThatâs right, I was able to be released within a couple of days thanks to you. Thanks to that, I was able to preserve as much of my Devil Energy as possible.â
Ian asked what he was curious about.
âBut Yankoun, did something happen for your outer appearance to change so much?â
Originally, Yankoun had an incredibly giant build.
Even now, at over 2 metres, his physique wasnât small, but compared to his previous build, it was a small physique that was only about 70% his original size.
On top of that, the hair that grew thickly all over his body had completely disappeared as well.
Fortunately, his facial features were still the same, so Ian was able to recognize him immediately.
Yankoun wore a pleased smile as he responded.
âSeraphim had helped me.â
At Yankounâs out-of-the-blue response, Ian wore a puzzled expression.
âHuh?â
âAt the time when I was released from the Tower of Punishment, my Devil Energy was at about 45 thousand. However, thanks to Seraphim giving me a Highest-ranking Gra.s.s of the Devil Spirit, I was able to reach 50 thousand Devil Energy.â
The two eyes of Ian, who realized the meaning of the words Yankoun said, slightly grew.
âI believe I heard for sure back then that if his Devil Energy was over 50 thousand, he would obtain the right to become a n.o.blesseâ
And as if he had read Ianâs thoughts, Yankoun continued his words again.
âThanks to that, I have met the qualification requirements in order to advance to a n.o.blesse. Although, of course, in order to become a true n.o.blesse, I need to take the promotional round.â
âIs that the reason why your outer appearance has changed?â
Yankoun nodded his head.
âThatâs right. As the bowl within me grew big enough to control the overflowing Devil Energy, my outer appearance has also turned over a new leaf into a more refined image.â
Ian internally let out a shout of delight.
âKeu! To think that he would appear after growing on his own like this!â
Even though he didnât know what the process of the promotional round was, because the fact that the path to becoming a n.o.blesse had sped up alone, Ian wanted to dance joyfully.
âBut from what I noticed during the Devilâs Test was that the difference in fighting power with just one difference in rankings of the devils I faced was incredible, thoughâ
If Yankoun, who was immeasurably powerful as a matter of fact, became even stronger, he would be able to feel a force just like when he first obtained Kaizar in the central continent.
And just when Ian was thinking of this and that, Yankounâs mouth opened up again.
âIan, the reason that I was able to overcome this wall, let alone be released from the Tower of Punishment, is all thanks to you.â
The sound of Ian gulping audibly rang out.
Gulp-.
Yankounâs words continued again, and they were the exact words that Ian was waiting for.
âI was already deeply moved by your strength, and Iâm also greatly indebted to you.â
Ian and Yankounâs gazes met in the air.
âI want to be with you from now on. I want to become your retainer and pay off the debt I owe you, as well as support you on your journey.â
A system message popped up in front of Ianâs eyes.
Ring-!
Of course, Ian immediately nodded his head without having to think about it.
âThanks, Yankoun, please help me out a lot from now on.â
Following that, a message popped up.
âHuh? A message like this pops up now that Iâve maxed out my retainers.â
Ian rubbed his chin as he contemplated for a moment.
Because he filled up his retainer holding amount, a message suggesting a t.i.tle promotion had popped up.
âThe amount of Fame needed for a Duke t.i.tle is 3 million, and the additional amount of Fame needed in order to be promoted once more to an Archduke is 5 millionâ
Even if he was to be promoted straight to an âArchdukeâ t.i.tle at once, he would still have a whopping ten million Fame left.
However, Ian shook his head.
âNo, I will not be promoted now.â
This was because it wasnât a t.i.tle he needed immediately, and he was currently experiencing the incredible power of Fame.
âTo be honest, even the reason why I was able to obtain such an unbelievably powerful retainer like Yankoun may also be thanks to my outrageous amount of Fame.â
Of course, thanks to the bugged play due to a system error, it was true that he was able to have tremendously powerful Yankoun submit to him.
However, even if there was a system error, if it wasnât for the enormous amount of 18 million Fame, it would have been hard to obtain him as a retainer at least.
âIâll take advantage of the Fame a little more, and promote myself later when I need it.â
Ian, who organized his thoughts on Fame, opened up the information of âYankounâ, his newly obtained retainer.
Level: 351
Cla.s.sification: Devil
Cla.s.s: Combat Devil (Berserker)
Position: High-rank Devil
Personality: Valiant
Talent Rank: Heroic
Combat Stats (Expand)
Detailed Abilities (Expand)
Possessed Abilities
As his giant greatsword is pierced into the ground, powerful Devil Energy erupts in its vicinity.
All opponents within a 20-metre range will receive 8927 (17.9% of his maximum Devil Energy) damage per second for 10 seconds.
While Devil Energy Eruption is in use, Yankoun will not be able to move at all, so if he faints or falls into a status condition like paralysis, the activation of the skill will be stopped.
(Cooldown Time 5 minutes)
âDestructive Devilâ Yankoun can focus all of his Devil Energy every time he attacks and deal the maximum amount of damage possible.
His Devil Energy Activation Rate will permanently increase by 20%, and the damage dealt by a normal attack will permanently increase by 30%.
However, his movement speed will permanently decrease by 20%.
(Pa.s.sive)
For 15 minutes, âYankounâ will be in a state where he is engulfed in madness.
While he is engulfed in madness, Yankounâs Defensive Power will decrease by 30%, while his Offensive Power will increase by 50%. As well, his movement speed will increase by 30%, and his Devil Energy Activation Rate will increase by 15%.
(Cooldown Time 30 minutes)
A powerful High-rank Devil that was one of the Twelve Chosen Generals of the Devildom in the past.
He is an exceptional âBerserkerâ who is valiant and has a combative tendency.
Ian, who read through Yankounâs information window, felt himself automatically nod his head.
âAs expected, as all of his inherent abilities are like this, his Devil Energy constantly burst out when I fought him.â
The part that Ian didnât understand the most when he had fought Yankoun was the fact that his Devil Energy Activation Rate was incredibly high.
This was because in Ianâs case, he needed to attack about ten times for a possible chance of his Devil Energy bursting out, but Yankoun had burst out Devil Energy with a normal attack almost once every two times.
âHis pa.s.sive, as well as his buff raises his Devil Energy Activation Rate tremendously.â
His AoE attack called âDevil Energy Eruptionâ also looked incredibly powerful, but he thought that Yankoun would be a card that could display an even more powerful ability in a boss battle.
âTo be able to deal a fixed amount of damage that is Devil Energy at such a high success rate Heâll be just the right person to use when catching a st.u.r.dy defensive-type boss.â
Overall, Yankounâs stats made Ian incredibly pleased.
However, there was just one part that he was disappointed in, and that was his Talent Rank.
âI thought that for sure his Talent Rank would be Legendary-rank or higher, but itâs a Heroic-rank.â
Amongst the 40 retainers that Ian possessed, he had as many as 15 retainers whose Talent Ranks were Heroic-rank.
However, for Legendary-rank retainers, he only had Kaizar, so he was secretly antic.i.p.ating Yankounâs rank.
âWell, still, since his level is so high and even his Devil Rank is a High-rank Devil I should be satisfied with what I have although itâs disappointing.â
Taking Yankoun, who had now become his retainer, Ian headed out of the inn.
âWhew, alright. Shall I head over to the Fortress of the Devil now?â
The Fortress of the Devil was apparently in Zone 80 of the Devildom.
Ian began to move quickly in order to proceed with Seraphimâs quest.
He needed to meet Devil King Ricardo who was supposed to be in the Fortress of the Devil.
âWho knows how much time it will take to get through until I reach Zone 80. I still have quite a bit time remaining until I reach my time limit, but I need to move as quickly as possible.â
As he had finished preparing for all sorts of things, it was time for him to pierce through the gateway of Zone 100.
âI wonder how many gateways I can freely pa.s.s through with the position of a High-rank Devilâ
Ian desperately prayed that he would be able to freely pa.s.s through all of the gateways up to Zone 80.
[1] Shim-myeon = As written in the chapter, Shim-myeon is Chinese/traditional Korean for âdeep pond of the devilâ.