Chapter 167

...Looking back, Suho's school days were always filled with boredom. Square desks. Square blackboards. Square classrooms. A uniform world where people wearing the same clothes gathered in one place, all learning the same things. That was all he remembered about his school days.

'...Boring.'

Looking back, Suho often yawned and felt bored for no reason during those days. ...Something. A vague feeling that he knew something more exciting and amazing. Whenever he felt that way, Suho couldn't stand the boredom.

Suddenly.

Tick.

Time stopped and an unbelievable sight unfolded before his eyes. Students leaving the school gate. Students exercising. Cars passing by on the road. People walking on the sidewalk next to it. And even a ball flying through the air. Everything that was once moving stopped instantly… And 'it' appeared.

A Gate. 

A round, black hole that suddenly materialized at the back of the classroom. A dark door that seemed to suck you in when you got too close. It was enough to frighten any ordinary child, but instead of crying or screaming, Suho placed a hand on his chest.

Thump, thump, thump. His excited heart was beating wildly. Maybe… Maybe he had been expecting something like this for a long time.

'Mom always said I resembled Dad.'

'If it were his father… How would he act in this situation?' The answer was clear. Suho jumped into the Gate without hesitation. And so it began. The most intense and violent dream of his entire life.

Kaaaaah! Ugh! Kieeeeek!

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

...In that dream, Suho was hurt and died countless times. He fought off an overwhelming number of monsters that attacked him while running forward, always forward. And finally…

At the end of that dream, Suho was able to face 'him.' A man with his face hidden under a hood. A mysterious persona who exuded an overwhelming sense of intimidation. But now, he knew who 'He' was.

'...Father?' Suho couldn't help but be bewildered by the sight of his father, Sung Jinwoo, appearing before him.

Of course, he knew… That was definitely an illusion. His father, who was in space, couldn't suddenly appear here. So that had to be a fake. But, he couldn't help but worry.

'Can I defeat my father as I am now?'

Gulp. Suho swallowed dryly. Looking back, even at level 99 in the dream, he was knocked out in one hit. And his current level was even lower than back then.

'No. Father won't be as strong as he was then either. That's just a fake created by magic.' Suho was certain. There was no way that a mere demonic illusionist could reproduce the power of his father, the Monarch of Shadows. So surely...

'No, even so, the pressure… It's too much!' The relentless aura weighing down on the surroundings. Just how powerful was the magic of the demonic spirit race that Suho's senses had been going haywire since the moment his father's copy appeared? Even though he knew it was clearly an illusion, Suho couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat from the pressure bearing down on his entire body.

[...Kekekeke! To think there was someone with such a memory! The Shadow Monarch!] Javier, finally regaining his composure, burst into laughter. He had finally grasped the situation. Pointing at Suho, Javier shouted in a confident tone.

[You! You must have encountered The Shadow Monarch somewhere! Indeed! The King of the Dead is the personification of terror, a living nightmare !] Javier, the Demonic Illusionist, had briefly seen the Shadow Monarch from a great distance… 

Of course, he had survived until now only because he ran away without looking back as soon as he spotted him. But even just sneaking a glimpse of him from afar made that day his most terrifying and cursed memory. The aura of death that the Shadow Monarch exuded! It was a tremendous shock. If only he could perfectly extract the fear of that day from his memory!

'I could have even the mighty Shadow Monarch as my subordinate!'

'Memory Manifestation' That was the magic Javier had dedicated his entire life to perfecting. Of course, it wasn't perfect, but even if he could just partially recreate the Shadow Monarch, the King of the Dead, his soul would achieve a monumental level of transcendence!

But unfortunately, his spell ultimately failed. Or rather, it was a half-success. He had completed the Mirage, but the image of the Shadow Monarch that Javier himself had witnessed was too fleeting. He couldn't create an illusion of the Shadow Monarch with such a flimsy memory as material.

[But to discover it this way!] He knew that the Shadow Monarch had been living in the human world for a long time. But to think there was a soul among humans who remembered him in his full glory so vividly! Javier licked his lips, looking at Suho with greedy eyes.

[Kekeke. You're mine now! I'll bind your soul and use it as material to summon the illusion of the Shadow Monarch forever!] Then, he gave a cruel order to the Shadow Monarch, still emanating a terrifying aura.

[Kill him!]

[Listen! Shadow Monarch! I am your master, Javier! Kill the human before you at once and bring his soul to me as an offering!] At those words, Suho tensed and drew upon all the magic power within him.

'I'll go all-out from the start.'

In truth, the most effective way to deal with a magic caster was to ignore their illusions and target the caster directly. However, mages rarely foolishly exposed themselves. Javier, too, was hiding somewhere, only his voice reaching them. Suho tried to expand his senses to detect his presence, but strangely it seemed to be coming from all directions simultaneously.

"Honey… I'm... I'm sorry... That I... with my own hands..."

Even within the illusion of a woman that Lim Tae-Gyu was facing with a pained expression.

Even within the illusions that countless other hunters were confronting.

And even from the Shadow Monarch, Sung Jinwoo, standing there.

[Heh. You're quick.] ...Javier's energy was coming from them all.

[That's right. All the illusions here are me. And now, even the Shadow Monarch you summoned is...] Javier's wicked laughter echoed everywhere.

But then.

[...?]

[...Huh!?] A confused shout suddenly came from Javier.

At the same time, Suho also noticed something strange. His father. No, the fake Sung Jinwoo. The one who seemed about to unleash an indiscriminate attack with that overwhelming power. He was now looking at Suho's face and chuckling, as if he found him endearing.

"You're still weak."

"...?" For a moment, Suho felt a strange sensation.

The demonic spirit's magic was truly amazing. That voice and atmosphere, didn't they feel just like his real father? The problem was that this was the illusion his father that had attacked him in his dream.

But then…

[Wh-what?! Why isn't he moving according to my will...?!] Javier's voice was greatly flustered for some reason.

"Hmm." 'Sung Jinwoo' withdrew his gaze from Suho and looked around leisurely.

A fierce sandstorm raged. Within it, the hunters were trapped, struggling against the illusions with pained expressions. Watching the scene, he nodded and spoke again.

"I see. So the current me is an illusion."

"What?"

[...Wh-what?!] Javier was in utter shock. Something truly unbelievable had happened. An illusion created by magic had gained self-awareness and recognized itself as an illusion!

[Th-this is impossible...!]

"Nothing is impossible."

[...]

"At least not for me." At those words, Javier shuddered. Goosebumps rose on his skin. The illusion of Sung Jinwoo was suddenly looking directly at the real him, hidden within the sandstorm, and speaking to him.

'He' chuckled and casually tossed a question at Javier: "Do you know how many demonic spirits have become Shadow Soldiers so far?"

[W-wait a minute.] A sense of foreboding suddenly washed over Javier. It wasn't a question asked out of curiosity. Javier immediately understood the intention behind these words.

How many of his brethren had died at the hands of the Shadow Monarch during the fierce war and been incorporated into the Shadow Army? What if those who had become Shadow Soldiers were still researching magic like they used to even after their transformation? And the king who ruled over those Shadow Demons, the Shadow Monarch...

"Indeed. Thanks to them, I've become quite familiar with the magic of the demonic spirits." 'Sung Jinwoo' expressed his sincere gratitude to Javier.

"So I applaud you. Your magic is quite useful. Especially in a situation like this." Then, 'he' suddenly looked up at the sky. Although nothing was visible due to the sandstorm, his gaze calmly pierced through it, towards the universe beyond, towards his true body that existed there. A faint smile formed on Sung Jinwoo's lips. Then, he lowered his gaze, looked at his son Suho, and called out someone's name.

"Beru."

[...Kieeeeeek!] At his command, Beru, who had disappeared, suddenly emerged through the sandstorm. And upon recognizing his master, Sung Jinwoo, he burst into tears.

[M-My King!] He was just a mirage. But Beru's eyes, spiritually connected to Sung Jinwoo, could accurately perceive his will through that illusion.

"...Beru, you've grown weaker." Sung Jinwoo clicked his tongue, recognizing Beru's condition at a glance.

Well, no matter. He raised his hand and placed it on Beru's head.

"Remember this. Shadow Soldiers share all senses with their monarch. That's the second level of the Shadow Storage skill." Then, as if speaking for Suho to hear, he muttered. 

"If you mix that with the demonic spirit's magic, you can do things like this."

Fwoosh! A black energy swirled from his hand and seeped into Beru. Who closed his eyes in pleasure, finally feeling his master's touch after a long time.

At that moment.

Ding!

[A quest has arrived.]

"Wh-what's this?" Suho's eyes widened as a system message suddenly appeared before him. Before checking the quest details, he looked at the illusion of his father, who was grinning at him.

That's right. It's a bit primitive, but this is originally how quests were created. The Leveling System. It was a high-level magic The Great Spellcaster Kandiaru for a single purpose. And that purpose was...

"The reward is the next Shadow skill." 'Sung Jinwoo' said to his son with a slightly mischievous smile.

"So, show me what you're worth."

[Will you accept the quest?] (Y/N)