Chapter 197

[…]

Antares was silent for a moment after hearing what Suho shouted.

[…Ha.]

Until a laugh finally escaped his mouth.

[Hehehe… Hahahahaha!]

His maddening laughter shook the heavens.

[Did you say you would become the Monarch of Destruction now? How dare a mere human, who is not even a dragon themselves!?]

FWOOM!!

Antares. He was a Monarch of destruction in the true sense of the word, who enjoyed bloody battles and felt complete bliss only on the battlefield. He thought he would never be able to fight again because he was trapped in a distant death, so he tried to enjoy the fight a little more after a long time. Right now, all excitement has gone cold because of the arrogant words spoken by the insignificant worm.

[Perish, child of shadow.]

―――――――!

In a second, doom descended.

Kwah Kwah Kwah Kwah Kwah!

'Keuk!'

Bubbling lava. The huge dragon that was bleeding from Suho's attack turned into bubbling lava and swallowed Suho. As if all the battles up until now had been a joke. The unbearable murderous intent wanted to obliterate Suho. But then–

-Alright, Suho.

From somewhere far away, a voice came like a light breeze.

- I know what you mean.

?!

Despite being extremely calm, it was a low voice that made anyone cry the moment they heard it.

[This, this?!]

At that voice, Antares was more taken aback than Suho.

Flash!

A light appeared. 'Ah…' At the same time, the fire that burned Suho's entire body faded in an instant. Every flame in sight began to perish. Afterwards what filled the place was the pitch-black darkness itself.

[…Ha ha ha ha ha! I see! So it was like that as well!]

Antares, noticing something in the sudden unexpected situation, laughed madly. It was a laugh that was somewhat relieved, welcoming, and at the same time filled with extreme rage.

Shuaaaa

Where all the heat had once been, darkness fell upon it. Suho stood on his own two feet in the pitch black darkness. And Antares, who had transformed into a human form, landed in front of him.

[Yes, I thought it was strange from the beginning.]

His arrogant gaze calmly scanned Suho's figure. A pitiful face was burned pitch-black by the breath of destruction. It's obvious that Suho's physical condition had already been as good as that of a corpse for a long time. The fact that he can stand on two legs like this is a miracle itself. Nevertheless... Suho's eyes, which received Antares's gaze directly, were still burning like an unquenchable flame. But at this moment Antares was seeing something completely different through Suho's childish eyes.

Yes. Those eyes. The existence of a familiar shadow hung over those eyes was similar to 'him'.

Tsk.

[Of course, no matter the state of my spirit, there is no way this youngster's power could reach me.]

Antares clicked his tongue and lashed out at 'him'.

[So don't hide, show yourself!]

Flash!

'!!!'

Before he finished, Suho opened his eyes wide as he suddenly saw the inventory window open by itself. An item that had been quietly stored inside suddenly glowed and protruded out.

Ding!

[Item: Javier's Soul Stone]

Difficulty to obtain: ??

Type: Jewelry

A jewel made by compressing demonic spirits. Javier's Soulstone. An unidentified item left by Javier in Haeundae, Busan.

And this thing...

-It's a safety measure just in case, so put it in your inventory.

… It was something left for Suho before Sung Jin-Woo's illusion disappeared.

"Safety measure?"

-Yes. Seeing how you fight… There is something I'm concerned about.

T-ring!

['Item: Javier's Soul Stone' is activated.]

Shing!

'Ah!' Suho saw it. A shaman's circle of demons extending from Javier's soul stone in all directions. The black energy radiating out through the shaman circle, united as one.

*Summon.*

'He' reappeared in front of Suho.

'!!!!' The moment I saw that firm and solid back. Suho's eyes couldn't help but widen.

'Dad?!'

-This is quite troublesome. But it held up just fine.

Sung Jin-Woo turned his head slightly and looked back at Suho. What he saw, with a faint smile on his lips, was Suho's stamina bar.

[HP: 1/67,340]

only 1.

For a long time, Suho's stamina didn't drop further than 1 as he was holding on steadfastly. It was thanks to the incantation that Sung Jin-Woo had carved into Javier's soul stone. Sung Jin-Woo, who appeared here, was only an illusion in his memory, not his real body, so it was impossible to exert any real influence in reality. But in a place like this, it was different.

-It was worthwhile to squeeze out the souls of the Demon Tribe as much as possible.

Sung Jin-Woo's welcome allowed the last remnants of himself to permeate Javier's soul stone, which had been scattered in Busan.

Sung Jin-Woo, who looked at Suho's complexion, returned to the front again. The moment he met Antares' gaze in front of him, his eyes flashed terrifyingly.

-Yeah, if you're the guy I know, I'd think it would be something like this.

[Long time no see. How have you been?]

Antares even recalled a calm smile on his lips and talked to Sung Jin-Woo. However, there was more vicious energy than ever in those eyes than he had ever seen. With the momentum to run towards Sung Jin-Woo right away. Sung Jin-Woo knew Antares' personality better than anyone else. So he had no choice but to worry about his son, Suho, who was out there claiming to be the priest of dead monarchs. Unbeknownst to the others, Antares was a fierce brawler who spoke only through violence. All he cares about is fighting and fighting and annihilating his enemies. True to his name, the Monarch of Destruction, he was a being who pursued true destruction.

[Your son is terrible. I've been dealing with him for a while. Did peaceful times weaken the Shadow Monarch's blood?]

- But he still gave you a hard time, right?

[Your sorcery must have had an effect. Did you learn the witchcraft of the Demonic Tribe? Since when did a man whose name is the Shadow Monarch start to perform tricks like this?]

-Ah, originally, educating children is always a series of learning.

Sung Jin-Woo shrugged and spread his hands.

-Thank you anyway. Thanks to you, I had a pretty good outcome.

[What?]

A new shaman formation spread over the palm of his hand.

Woosh.

Shoom shoom shoom!

The shaman circle went round and round, until a system message arrived in front of Suho.

T-ring!

['Title: One who overcame adversity' has been acquired.]

'This is…'

[Title: One who overcame adversity]

A title given to those who successfully overcome adversity. Ability increases in proportion to lost HP.

(1% stat per 1% missing health)

A buff that raises your stats by a percentage whenever your HP is reduced. This was a title Sung Jin-Woo earned a long time ago while clearing a job change quest. But Suho was different. It was an achievement that could never be achieved in the system for Suho, who could not receive the job change quest no matter how much he leveled up. However, if this condition was achieved, it was not very difficult to manipulate the system and have it hand it over directly from Sung Jin-Woo.

Whoop!

The moment the title effect was applied, Suho's body, which was in a dying state, suddenly overflowed with power.

[And what do you propose we do now?]

Antares frowned at the sudden appearance of Sung Jin-Woo. In his mind, he wanted to fight him at once since he hadn't seen him in a while, but that was impossible. Sung Jin-Woo's current condition was just an illusion. It was also an illusion surrounded by the witchcraft of the demons who deal with the soul of the Monarch, so there was no way a proper battle was possible. Especially in this world of death, his existence was no different from a foul.

'Father...' At that time, Suho, who finally came back to his senses with strength, blinked at his father. Sung Jin-Woo reached out and tousled his son's hair, answering Antares' question.

- Well, how about normal career counseling?

The face of Sung Jin-Woo, showed nothing but pride and joy towards him.

-My son has finally decided on his own career path, so, shouldn't I help him a little as a father?

As if baptizing, Sung Jin-Woo spread his magic while placing his hand on Suho's head. and asked

-Suho, isn't that right? The purpose of the level-up system from the beginning was to grow the human body and make it into a vessel for the monarch. In my case, it was the 'Shadow Monarch', but it is also possible to replace the title with that of another Monarch. However…

'…' Suho knew what his father was going to say.

- The process will never be easy. Even today, if I hadn't been here, I wouldn't have been able to guarantee your outcome. Are you sure about this then? Are you really prepared to become the Destruction Monarch?

'Yes. I'm prepared.' Seeing his father's concern for him, Suho swallowed his dry saliva and nodded resolutely. 'And in order to ask the location of the World Tree, I had to meet the Dragon Emperor anyways.'

-The World Tree? Are you trying to create the Holy Water of Life?

Why is it that all of a sudden Sung Jin-Woo was able to infer many things just by hearing the word World Tree? However, Suho's reply made even Sung Jin-Woo, who had assumed the number of all cases, be at a loss.

'Grandpa is in danger.'

-!!!

Sung Jin-Woo's expression hardened after hearing the circumstances from Suho. He also made a determined expression and manipulated the shaman formation that was engraved on Suho's head.

-Hmm. I get it. then… I'd love to help you do this and the former quest but—

[Hold on for a moment you—]

-No, not now, this is more important.

[…]

Antares, who had been listening to the conversation between father and son from behind, frowned at the strange situation.

[Can't you use a doctor for that?]

- Antares.

Sung Jin-Woo, who completed the shaman formation, said:

-I also know that my son's vessel is far from sufficient to inherit your power. Not even dragon's power in the first place. So let me make a suggestion.

[A proposal?]

-Yes. You are so bored here after dying, don't you miss the times when you reeked chaos everywhere in the living realm?

[…What are you suggesting?]

At Sung Jin-Woo's words, Antares' brow furrowed. However, Sung Jin-Woo knew Antares' personality better than anyone else. The true embodiment of destruction. He was a fierce fighting maniac who felt the joy of life only in bloody battles. He could be sure that he would not reject his offer.

Grin.

Sung Jin-Woo reached out to the Dragon Emperor and made an offer he could not refuse.

-Ragnar. I will give you the body of Suho's dragon subordinate.

[!!!]

-Come back to life, Antares.

At that moment, a contract has been signed.

T-ring!

[The job change quest has arrived.]