CHAPTER 141 Start of A Battle

Know that I don't hate you. The people of Uruk may harbor anger, but they don't hate you, either. But we are fated to never understand each other.

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Today's meme is here. [ ]

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And with the increased difficulty, the two overpowering shadows, Typhon and Guardian, started to take a more direct approach. They decided to become more actively involved in the battle, moving more aggressively and causing more destruction.

After Jin commanded them, he faced a situation similar to what he had encountered on the 91st floor. He knew he only had two choices.

He could either collect every corpse, which would slow him down significantly as it would take a lot of time.

Or he could leave the corpses and focus on speed running through the dungeon.

Without a doubt, he chose the latter option, especially considering the 'Golden Ticket' that was possibly at stake. This decision wasn't solely about power, but also about strategic thinking.

Time was of the essence, and he didn't want to waste a second of it. Just like a hammer shaping raw iron that had been heated for a long time, he had been constantly polishing his skills as he climbed up from the lowest floor to get to where he was now.

The clear evidence of his progress was his current level, which had already reached 118.

The more he struggled against the superior Demon Noble, the stronger Jin and his Shadow Soldiers' attacks became in order to break through their defenses. As Jin exited the castle carrying the 97th floor's Entry Permit, a haze-like gas rose up from his body. This steam was from his sweat evaporating due to the heat generated by his movements beyond physical limits and the application of numerous speed boosts on his body.

For demons, it was all over in seconds. This clearly indicated how fast Jin was and how much the demons struggled against him. Jin's face was filled with satisfaction from his speed being even faster than last time.

Esil had been hiding until then, and when she saw him, she quickly ran up to his side. She observed a castle roaring in flames behind Jin-Woo, and the Entry Permit firmly held in his hand.

'Fifth-ranked Ricardo Clan, and now, even the fourth-ranked Faetos Clan, too….'

Esil no longer had any reserve energy to be shocked anymore. If every other intruder boasted strength on this scale, then rather than protecting her land, it'd be difficult to even survive the initial assault.

"Are all the other humans as powerful as you?"

Esil asked anxiously.

Jin took a moment to think before giving a suitable reply.

"Maybe there's one more, I think. But even then, she is far behind if I compare my current self to her."

Goh Gun-Hui and Cha Hae-In were those two. Jin had no doubt that they were much stronger than the other rank S Hunters he had encountered so far.

As for the rest—Baek Yun-Ho, Choi Jong-In, and Im Tae-Gyu—he didn't find them particularly strong.

Especially for Choi Jong-In – he seemed to be highly regarded by everyone, but to Jin's eyes, that seemed to be the case solely because he was in charge of South Korea's top-ranked Guild, the 'Hunters', rather than due to his own skills being impressive.

'Judging by their auras alone, Cha Hae-In is several times stronger than Choi Jong-In.'

Differences in power among the ranks of 'S' Hunters were inevitable. However, they were just like the frog at the bottom of the well, thinking the sky was only as big as the top of the well. When he surfaced, he would have an entirely different view.

So even the strongest hunter in the world is just a fly to me, and even the one known as Monarchs and Rulers won't be able to do much to my current self. I'm not sure if he's the Dragon Monarch Antares, he's just that much of a menace and going to be a big pain in the ass.

In fact, concerning other Monarchs, I'm sure even Esdeath could face them and come out victorious in just a few hours.

Yet still, I'm sure I can handle her pretty easily both in battle and in bed.

Speaking of S-rankers, the differences found within this rank would be far greater than in any other ranks, precisely because those who couldn't be measured by regular means were all lumped together here.

Jin formed a subtle smirk.

'How will I perceive others after I get out of here? After all, I'm over Lv 100 which is somewhat of a milestone.'

Does my aura alter in any form or way?

Or from their perspective, do I just not have any aura as mine is so strong that their senses can't compare or pick it up?

Just like how the feelings he got from Baek Yun-Ho differed from their first meeting to the second, would there be a change in how they perceived the tenth S-ranker of South Korea?

Jin's heart raced faster when he thought about checking out how much he had changed.

'But, before I can do that….'

He had to clear this Demon's Castle instant dungeon first. There were only four more floors remaining. He'd get to clear this dungeon soon enough. Jin turned to speak to Esil.

"You should go back to your people now."

She had been utterly dejected after hearing that there were one more person like Jin out there. However, she was jolted out of her morose state and raised her head.

"Excuse me?"

"I'll find my own path on the floors above this one."

Thanks to Esil's guidance, he quickly located the Demon Nobles and their castles. However, he no longer needed her help from now on.

'Well, my Perception Stat has risen pretty high, so that's one of the reasons. But also….'

Ding, 

Distant Insight - Passive (LV. Max): As player Sense stat reaches the remarkable milestone of 300, your sensory awareness expands beyond conventional limits. 

Effects: Distant Insight allows the player to perceive events, objects, and beings that are located far beyond your immediate surroundings. The player's senses extend like ripples across great distances, providing the player with an uncanny ability to witness occurrences in remote locations as if you were there in person. As the player's senses span vast distances, you harness the essence of this skill to unravel mysteries, uncover secrets, and navigate the complexities of a reality that stretches beyond the player's horizon.

It was a great skill, and with it alone, I could already sense that not even a single demon was alive on this floor. So, I don't need to use a calamity level spell on this floor.

His goal was to have all his stats at 300, so he used the stat points he earned from daily missions.

Besides that, the auras emanating from the far superior Dukes were so strong that he could easily locate them from afar. Now, with the skill, he could accurately perceive their locations, shapes, forms, and much more.

She didn't do much besides showing him the way, so he didn't want to walk around with one more luggage if he could help it.

And it's not like he even allowed her to fight. When he finished explaining himself like that….

"A-am I no longer useful to you?"

Esil's complexion had completely paled.

'She's a funny one until the end, huh.'

Jin suppressed his laughter as he saw Esil's reaction that always managed to exceed the cuteness. But sadly, she wasn't alive. If she was, he could have at least tried something funny with her and could have brought her out. But now it would just be necrophilia in some way.

He then walked right up to her nose.

'Heok!'

Esil's eyes opened wider as he got progressively closer.

'A-am I being eliminated, as well?'

Ba-dump, ba-dump….

Her pounding heartbeat sounded like thunderclaps to her ears, as it did to his ears with his super senses.

She then spotted Jin raising his hand. Seeing the tip of his hand slowly approach her face, Esil could only squeeze her eyes shut in terror.

However….

'….Uh?'

His hand lightly rested on her shoulder, instead. The warmth spreading from her shoulder prompted her to open her eyes just a little. Jin's face was oh-so close to hers. As if he was waiting for her to open her eyes, he began smiling brightly right away.

"You really worked hard until now. Thank you."

Even if she wasn't alive, he wasn't heartless enough to not say thank you for what she had done. He could have done more, but again she wasn't alive. But with that, it was done.

Jin thought that he made a good enough goodbye just then, and he took large strides to enter the floor-transfer magic circle. Since there weren't any demons here, there wasn't any need for him to squander his mana.

Ding.

[Floors 1 to 96 have been opened.]

[Which floor would you like to transfer to?]

He turned around to look at Esil's face, and he saw the emotions of surprise and wistful longing forming the perfect two halves of her expression.

Terror, anxiety, shock, wistfulness….

Those were the range of emotions the intelligent monsters had shown him.

Were they truly residents of hell, what the Bible would call demons of this world, just as Esil said? Still, they were simply figments of the original that the System brought to reality for this dungeon.

Meanwhile, the hesitant Esil finally mustered up some courage to call out to Jin.

"Uhm, excuse me…."

But almost at the same time, Jin raised his head and replied to the System message.

"97th floor."

*** 

97, 98, 99….

Jin finally acquired the 'key' to enter the abode of the Demon King.

[Item: Entry Permit]

Rarity: ??

Type: ??

A permit allowing you to enter the 100th floor of the Demon's Castle. Can only be used on the 99th floor's floor-transfer magic circle.

Just how much hardship did he have to go through for this thing? Well, not much as he just let both Typhon and Guardian spam all their attacks one after another while also using healing and holy spells to wipe demons out.

So did every Veteran Elite Knight Grade soldier and every soldier who used every skill at their disposal to end this as quickly as they could.

Before entering the 100th floor where the Demon King was waiting for his arrival, Jin checked his Status first.

[Level: 118 (69.78%)]

Sweet 69.

His level was already knocking on 119's doorway. He could sense his increased stats throughout his entire body. Strength flowed in every corner of his body, and his senses were much sharper than before due to the existence of the new skill. His condition was at its peak.

'Very good.'

'Hmm, it's not too bad, I guess?'

His movement gradually picked up speed, his limbs moving accurately according to his commands.

Faster! Even faster!

Jin left behind countless after-images in the air, but quite suddenly, he stopped moving altogether. Hot steam rose up like a fog from his shoulders.

Should he say this was sufficient for a warm-up?

Whatever the case might have been, he was finished with his preparations now.

"Fuu…."

Jin inhaled and exhaled a big chunk of air, absorbing a great amount of mana in just one breath, before stepping onto the floor-transfer magic circle. 

As Jin had already spammed the calamity level spell 'Necrotic Cataclysm'.

Turning to look at the floor, the super-hot fiery place wasn't there anymore. It had been reduced to barren wastelands, not a single flame to be seen by the naked eye. As if death itself had embraced this place. This was the work and the power of the necromantic spell 'Necrotic Cataclysm'. Jin turned around again and, just like before, the magic circle asked for his destination, to which Jin confidently replied.

"100th floor."

By the time he blinked, the surroundings had already changed. This was really instant teleportation. Jin surveyed his new surroundings. 'Just like I have seen, it looks pretty normal beside the red sky; there are no flames here.' And he also sensed only two presences on this floor.

The horrifying flames that seemingly burned for all eternity on the lower floors were all gone, and he could only see the burnt-out remains. He raised his head and spotted snowflakes falling from the sky.

'….Snow in hell, it's pretty funny.'

'Maybe someday I will do the same thing in real hell.'

The color was a little off for real snowflakes, so he extended his hand out. The flakes falling on his hand didn't melt down, as the air around Jin was very cold due to his makeshift air conditioner spell. But it wasn't the reason behind the snowflake not melting. When he took a closer look, it was actually ash.

Ash was falling from the sky like snow.

It was then.

Ding.

He heard the familiar mechanical beep. Jin's sharpened eyes were directed to the distant skies above.

'So, it can fly very high….'

Soon, the System alerted him to the entrance of the enemy via its trusty messages.

[The Demon King Baran has discovered the intruder!]

A black dot that wandered in the sky….

That black dot gradually got closer to the ground before settling down on a spot pretty far away. It was a winged lizard-like creature, not a dragon but a wyvern.

After successfully landing on the ground, the lizard flapped its large wings and screeched out aloud.

Kiiiiieeeehhhk!!

Just above the head of the lizard, Jin saw the face of a demon with a certain blue aura oozing out from it. A male creature kitted out in a flashy set of armor that only royalty might wear, while riding on the back of the large winged lizard….

The four words could clearly be seen above the male demon's head.

[The Demon King, Baran]

This boss was emitting an extraordinary aura, befitting the boss protecting the top floor of such a massive dungeon. The creature was full of magnificent splendor.

Jin's gaze shifted to the side of the boss. The lizard this boss was riding on also possessed a name of its own.

[The Sky Dragon Kaisellin]

'….Sky Dragon? Really? Come on, don't call that thing a dragon. Calling a wyvern a dragon is an insult to all dragonkind, and so it is to me, someone who is planning to become at least a part dragon.'

Even if he worked his butt off to clean this place, he couldn't extract their shadows. So these aren't real people; they are just fragments of the original. A fragment of a soul, and the soul is the most important factor to turn someone into a shadow.

Like how Child Emperor's soul merged with The Ultimate Teigu, allowing me to raise it as Guardian. At least, I think it would happen like that, as even I'm not sure how that occurs, but what I am sure of is that there are many more factors present that I am keenly unaware of. Anyway, he had already given up on acquiring a useful shadow in this place. But this addition will look great until I acquire a few dragons.

Plus, it will look cool. Yes, Typhon is still faster, but he wasn't like some of the dragons when it comes to riding the winds.

'…So, I want it.'

It was then, Baran raised his hand towards the sky.

Ding.

[The Demon King Baran has activated the 'Skill: The Army of Hell'.]

'…Yes, The Army of fake Hell!!'

Ding, Ding, Ding.

Several warning bells rang one after the other in Jin's ears.

[Demon Soldiers have been summoned!]

[Demon Knights have been summoned!]

[Demon Superior Knights have been summoned!]

[Demon Generals have been summoned!]

[Demon Grand Generals have been summoned!]

Along with the messages filling up his view, an army entirely consisting of demons appeared around the Demon King. Even at a casual glance, there must've been over a few thousand of them.

'So, it begins.'