Chapter 16

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***

It's funny how I have two girlfriends now, even though one of them doesn't even know it's two yet. And I don't have much time for one either. When we got back from the red gate, the guild leader wanted to talk to me, but he wasn't there, and I was exhausted from the training camp and just wanted to go home. So I calmed my little sister down. And then I also visited Ju Hee, but I didn't decide on our relationship yet, I just enjoyed her body, which I missed.

The next day, after resting, I went to sneakily clean up the high rank dungeons.

I picked up a few levels and replenished my shadow army. However, I was not picky and lifted all the monsters, as there was enough space in the vault. And, among other things, I paid more interest in the process of raising shadows. Although, not that it brought any significant result. But I was interested in how exactly they rise.

So, I got two new elite knights, a huge shadow serpent and an incomprehensible massive monster that looked like a giant. I called them Orochi and Chthon, and this guy clearly resembled some sort of chthonic creature. And, those battles were just enough to get one of my servants pumped.

Baruca

General

The ice elf grinned, and triumph sparkled in his eyes.

- It is an honour to serve you, Lord. - He pronounced, bowing.

From the side, Te Shik's shadow looked at him jealously. This fellow felt that he had been overtaken in the rank of chief assassin. And this shadow was determined to prove that he was still worthy of serving me. Noticing this, Baruka himself grinned smugly, glancing at the former inspector of the association.

- Igris...

I looked at Bloody.

- You again... ohhhh, okay....

He likes to bring the heads of slain enemies, so let him. The knight brought the boss's head to my feet again. At least he doesn't carry the heads of ordinary monsters. Only powerful enemies that I immediately pick up. When I looked at the ugly head of a giant beetle with a human jaw, I involuntarily wrinkled my nose. In fact, that was partly why I had trusted Igris to deal with the monster. It was just so ugly that I didn't want to touch it. And for the same reason I didn't lift him up in shadow, or even absorb him into my vestment. No, well he really was disgusting! Disgusting! I don't want to have those things in my army.

Thinking about it, I was reminded of the ant dungeon. It was where one of Jin Woo's strongest servants in the comic book was born. The Ant King. And of course, I wanted to take him into my army. But would he be as groovy in real life as he was in the comic? Or would it be even nastier insectoid stuff?

But, we'll see.

In the meantime, in addition to gathering troops, I tried a little experiment, ripping crystals out of monsters without killing them. But it seems that such a possibility has been considered. Extracting the crystal instantly killed the monster. My supernatural senses allowed me to feel the threads of the spell, like some primitive semblance of my system. This power bound the bodies and souls of the monsters to the magic stones. And thus, dying, the monsters gave all their strength to the stone, which then fell into the hands of people. And the people themselves with the help of such stones learnt to create equipment for hunters, magic weapons, and even buildings that can withstand the most powerful blows. Another gift from the Overlords to the humans.

And, even though there was still some free space in my storage, I decided to finally go to the Demon Castle again. Even after travelling through so many A-rang dungeons, I still hadn't found any flying monsters there! Well, to be exact, the last one had some evil stinking flies with human mouths, but, I wouldn't fly those. Besides being too ugly, those things could barely lift me into the air. And there's a wyvern at Dragon Castle! At least one.

But, before that, I still decided to talk to Ju Hee.

- You came again! - She was happy to see me.

- Yes.

She seemed so happy.

It's become complicated.

- I think..." I sighed. "We need to talk.

- W-what's wrong? - The girl got worried, sensing my mood.

- Mmm... let me pour you some tea first.

Funny, considering it's her house. But, the girl calmly accepted my offer and, still excited, sat down at the table while I poured her tea. Ju Hee always had a brew at the ready.

- Anyway, I'm going underground tomorrow, for a long time.

- I'm used to it. - The girl smiled. - Will you stay the night?

- Hmm... wait, let me make a deal. - I said softly.

The healer nodded, sipped some tea and looked at me less nervously.

- I've been stuck in the red gate for almost three months recently.

- T-that long? - She exhaled dazedly.

- Yeah," I nodded, "Well, I got stronger very quickly, relative to our time. But, that's not the point.

Ju Hee raised her eyebrows, waiting to see what I would say next.

- Hmm... it's more complicated than I thought. Ohhh... anyway, I've somewhat revised my life priorities at the moment. And for now, I don't want to build a... serious relationship. You know?

- You want to... leave me? - The girl clarified.

- No... I mean... I like you, together with you I feel great, but it will be hard for you with me. You're sweet, charming... but I don't think you'd like it if, say, I wanted to date more than one girl at a time.

- Um, what? - Ju Hee was genuinely taken aback.

- I can't promise to be faithful to only you.

- W-wait...did something happen there in the dungeon? - She guessed.

Well, it wasn't hard, given the thread of the conversation.

- Yeah, I could have just covered it up. But I don't want to deceive you, you deserve an honest relationship, whether you decide to keep it or break it off.

- Mmm... - The girl sighed pitifully.

I slowly walked round to her back as she sat with a mug of tea in her hands. And placing my palms on Ju Hee's shoulders, I started kneading them.

- I like you. Maybe... I should have hidden it so you could live in comfortable ignorance, but you deserve to know the truth.

- W-who is she?

- Do you really want to know?

Ju Hee exhaled bitterly.

- 'No... just... go away.

- Are you sure?

- Yes! - The girl angrily blurted out.

- Ehhh... okay. Think about it some more. Though it's unlikely you'll change your mind... I wouldn't want to break up with you.

- Go away. - Ju Hee repeated.

I didn't push her.

The healer was really offended. Unlike Hee Jin, her feelings were different. Stronger affection, and she had more faith in Jin Woo. It never occurred to her that our relationship would lead to such a result. And now, it's like the ground has fallen out from under her feet.

- Ju Hee.

- Go away! - She said it with a piercing voice.

- Okay. - I sighed.

This conversation had gone worse than I would have liked, but it was expected.

As I left the healer's house, I thought about the fact that I'd traded in my soap for soap. Hee Jin is a brilliant beauty, but Ju Hee is not inferior in her looks. Only the healer is more... homely? She was exactly the kind of girl you could easily imagine as a loyal wife waiting for you at home after another raid. Hee Jin, on the other hand, was a beautiful but calculating career woman. On the other hand, a girl like that was just more convenient for me. And I really wasn't planning on getting into a serious relationship just yet.

- I don't understand what's wrong with this woman. - Baruka spoke out with a hint of indignation.

A shadow flickered on my clothes and a ghostly, gloomy figure appeared beside me, shivering in the wind.

- The lord can have as many women as he wishes!

- Calm down. - I chastised the shadow. - It's none of your business.

- Please, my lord.

Igris appeared on the other side for a moment, eyes flashing. He didn't say anything, but he had the air of approval and support.

Good, now the shadows will comfort me after the parting.

- Into the shadows, both of you!

The servants disappeared immediately.

I returned home to face a disgruntled Jin-A.

- Another long raid? You're S-rank now, you should be home more often. - The girl grumbled. - By the way, when are you going to introduce me to your girlfriend?

- Hmm... later. Sorry.

Anyway, she didn't like me being away all the time. And I was starting to get annoyed.

But I didn't really know what to do about it yet. Anyway, I had to make sure that I got my workout in first place. And the next day I wanted to go somewhere else, but first, I went to see Ju Hee again in the morning. Only I didn't talk to her, just left a chocolate cake with a note.

- Now the auction office. - I told the taxi driver.

I need a wyvern.

Well, as for the auction, some of my orders had already arrived.

And before going to the Demon Castle, I got a few more pieces of equipment. In particular, I now had rings on each of my fingers. And on the hands themselves, I also had bracelets. Each item was overflowing with magic that merged with my aura, enhancing it with various effects. True, to keep the artefacts from interfering with each other, many of them had similar effects that enhanced each other.

The costume, unfortunately, wasn't ready yet.

But, in addition to the extra equipment, I got a few more rune stones, and immediately extracted new skills from them.

Fire Arrow level 3.

Casts a piercing blast of fire at the enemy.

Minor Healing grade 1

Slightly restores the target's health

Earthquake grade 2

Shakes the ground beneath the caster, creating rifts in the ground and violent shaking.

Lightning Strike level 4

Discharges an electric shock at targets in front of the caster.

Freeze grade 2

Creates a wave of infernal cold

Wind Blade grade 2

Casts an invisible blade at an enemy.

Critical Strike level 1

Deals increased damage when using a dagger.

Can cause bleeding

Camouflage level 2

Makes the caster invisible while standing still and not attacking an enemy.

Eight more new skills. And I could have ordered more, but I just didn't have enough money already. Alas, even simple skills can sell for huge sums. However, for now, this is enough for me. By the way, the camouflage skill was a bit like my disguise. But this skill worked only as long as I stand in place and do not attack anyone. But under camouflage you can put buffs on allies and heal them. Also this skill just spends less mana than camouflage.

But, when I got this skill, I was able to realise that it's the same cloaking, but kind of cut down. A weakened version of a skill I already had.

You can combine Cloaking and Camouflage.

Yes/no.

Even the system realised that.

And, somewhere in those threads of strange structure braiding my body, I felt professional interest interspersed with contempt. And when I confirmed the merging of skills, in the same instant, it was as if someone's invisible hands wove a new structure of the finest magic net, and then that someone disdainfully shook off that magic on me.

Disappearance level 1

Erases the feeling of your presence from this world

This skill acted almost the same as cloaking, but it was almost no longer wasting mana. In addition, now the skill hid me not only from the usual senses. Invisible veil seemed to merge with the surrounding mana. And if the place I was in was not completely devoid of any magical energy, then even beings with supernatural senses would have a hard time detecting me. And thanks to the ten years since the first gate appeared, this world was already filled with magical power. I could feel its tiny particles in the air, in the ground, in the water, in practically everything around me.

And, with these new skills, I set off towards the tower.

A scarlet key with sharp prongs appeared in my hand and, using it, I went straight to the fiftieth floor.

- Here I am again...

Stepping into a blazing inferno.

- Gryaya!

And with a fierce shriek, a demonic knight comes at me. A monster about A-rang. A half-intelligent demon clad in shining armour. He was about to strike with his spear, but.....

- Stay down. - I spoke gravely.And the unstoppable power of the Monarch's Authority crushed the demon to the ground. As he fell, his face slammed into the rock. His armour crumpled and his bones were broken in many places. The force of the pressure on him was comparable to the fall of a multi-tonne mountain.

Walking forward, letting the darkness envelop my body in a strong armour.

Then, passing by the demon, I simply finish it off by lowering my sword and piercing the monster's heart with its tip.

- Rise.

Darkness penetrated the dead body, but as before, it was useless.

The mana was contaminated, it was impossible to extract the shadow

But, this attempt itself gave me some food for thought.

In the creation of a shadow soldier, his magic plays an important role. Not the soul? Is it really all about mana? Or is it just one of the necessary components? Okay, I'm here primarily for the pumping.

- Hton... - I stretched out.

And from the shadows, right below me, a titanic figure began to rise.

I was right on top of the head of a huge monstrous beast. And this mighty creature stepped forward. The monster was too massive even to walk through some of the streets of the blazing city. But, Chthon himself didn't care at all. If there was a building in its path, it would simply smash it to pieces as it passed through.

- Fire arrow!

After spotting the demons, I decided to test my magic on them.

And, an impressive spear of violently shaking plasma began to grow in my palm. It's definitely not an arrow anymore...

What if...

I infuse the spell with the power of darkness, and the spear turns black. Then, with a light pass of my hand, this projectile was directed and, with a single instant of drawing a line of darkness, the spear pierces the demon in a relatively small group. The poor fellow is simply atomised. The blow came in the chest and, almost the entire body was obliterated. Only the feet hit the ground and the head flew off somewhere.

- You do it now.

The monster beneath me tensed up and thrust forward, opening its jaws, spewing a stream of fire. The power of this attack was less than my fire spear, but the flames of Chthon covered the entire demon squad. And the experience boost suggested that it was more than enough.

- Hehe... well, time to fight the boss.

Soon Chthon led me to the gate leading to the next floor.

And here, the Insatiable Vulcan was still waiting for us. The huge scarlet carcass of the archdemon sat on a bone throne the size of a multi-storey building. In front of him stood the elite guards, S-rank demons, ready to protect their master. The archdemon himself looked lazily at me, as if not thinking of getting up from his throne.

- Let's begin.

My shadow spread out for hundreds of metres, and shadow monsters began to enter this world. My generals stepped forward, followed by the elite knights. Following them, a wave of power swept over every shadow warrior, causing the mystical flames within them to flare up with renewed vigour, blazing with a purple colour.

- Geek...

The guards stepped forward.

And even the archdemon stirred.

- W-what? - I was dumbfounded.

Clumsily, the fat demon fell off the throne and quickly crawled away on all fours. At the same time, a club fell out of his hands, but he did not even pick up his weapon. As he crawled away from me in terror, the demon tried to get through the tall bone spikes sticking out of the ground, but because of his belly, he just got stuck between them.

- Hey! I was outraged. - Where are you running to?

And at that moment, one of my shadows, angered by this behaviour of the enemy, attacked.

The Cyclops roared menacingly and its blazing eye struck the Archidemon's arse with a beam of fire.

- GRUAAAAA!!! - Vulcan screamed madly.

- God... - I covered my eyes. - Okay, just... smash them....

My servants began their assault.

Although the enemy was strong, but with my current level, reinforcing my shadow troops, I easily defeated all those demonic guards. To be more precise, they were defeated by my troops, I personally didn't even lift a finger to do so. Igris slew several guardsmen. Chthon made a dash and simply crushed the hapless demon. Cyclops drew a line with a beam of fire, cutting three opponents with it. And a few more were torn apart by my elite knights, along with Baruka, who emerged from the void and struck swiftly. He along with his squad also completely destroyed the other demon forces in the area, slaughtering the weaker demons.

And so, Chthon retreated into the shadows, allowing me to descend. And Igris somehow walked sadly over to the remains of the archdemon.

He didn't say anything, but it was already clear that Bloody wanted to personally massacre the boss to bring me his head. But, Vulcan's lower back was already too badly burned. The damage was so severe and extensive that the demon didn't survive it.

Your level has been raised!

Your level has been raised!

Your level has been raised!

Your level has been raised!

Your level has been raised!

A sense of triumph gripped my heart.

After all, even every Archdemon guard was comparable in strength to the A-rang Dungeon Boss. Vulcan himself was quite a powerful being. But, it's just that I had already had a great time in the red gate. Here I didn't feel like a great warrior or tactician, but rather a strategist. Faced with a strong opponent, I did not engage, but retreated, gathered more strength, and struck, inflicting a crushing defeat on the archdemon.

- Great...

And now the loot.

From such a monster, accordingly, some very good items fell out.

Archidemon Earrings

Rank - S

Strength +20

Stamina +20

The item is part of a set and additional effects will be activated when using several items from the set

Sphere of Greed

Rank - A

The effect of "Lust for Destruction"

Magic deals double damage

World Tree Fragment

Resource for creating high quality magic items, can be sold in the shop.

Horn of Volcano x2

Can be sold at the shop

After examining the earring, I felt my own ear. There are no holes. But, it's not necessary, I just equipped the item through the system. However, due to a slight conflict in the effect of the items, I had to remove one of my rings, which increased dexterity a bit. I'll take another intelligence ring in its place later.

I also picked up the sphere of greed.

In the comic book, Jin Woo gave it to one of his mages and then gave it to a high-level orc mage who also became his shadow. But, I had already learnt a bit of magic, and the power of my spells on my own was simply overwhelming. With this same item...

- Huh...

Taking a deep breath, I create a fire spear.

And, I can't even hold that massive projectile of plasma in my hands anymore. A spear the size of a tree pillar, blazing with fierce fire. But, in the end, this structure is held together by my magical power. I still, with a simple gesture, send this terrifying attack flying. And the lance of fire pierces the half-destroyed building, piercing and burning through its walls. The impact causes a tremendous explosion, causing the building to collapse. And after destroying the structure, this attack leaves behind a sense of satisfying lust for destruction.

- Heh-heh.

I've got some pretty cool spells, too.

And, I couldn't help but think that just holding the orb like that wasn't very comfortable. Then my vestment shook, and the claws of darkness picked up the sphere, attaching it to my gauntlet.

- That's more comfortable. - I nodded.

Well, now the way is cleared and it's time to go higher.

*** 

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