After Ten Millennia in Hell

"U-Understood." Jo Deok-Hyun bowed with an expression filled with fear.

However, it wasn't simply fear; he had completely submitted to the man named Oh Kang-Woo. It was proof that he had been successfully dominated by Kang-Woo's Authority of Fear.

"Don't perform any more rituals. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Deok-Hyun quickly nodded.

Kang-Woo smiled, satisfied by Deok-Hyun's answer.

'This much pressure should be enough.'

He couldn't let the Andras Guild kidnap any more Players to use as sacrifices. Of course, his moral obligation was the main reason, but there was another reason. The government's elite force was keeping the Andras Guild under close watch. So, if the Andras Guild kept going around as they'd been doing, it wouldn't be long before they were caught.

'They'd be on the verge of being caught even if they stayed hidden.'

The Andras Guild had done so many bad deeds that there was no way that the government would let their actions slide. They would be punished for sure, especially considering the number of Players they had sacrificed.

'Once that happens, I can just abandon them.'

In the meantime, the members of the Andras Guild would be useful in helping him find out more information about the Demon Cult. They knew and had demonic energy, so it would be easier for them to find the Demon Cult than regular Players, who didn't even know about demonic energy. That's why Kang-Woo was going to use them until they got caught by the government.

'I've also used the Authority of Fear on him, so he won't leak information.'

Kang-Woo had a tired expression as he turned and left. Was it because he'd used the Authority of Fear, which consumed a lot of demonic energy? His whole body felt like it was weighed down by fatigue.

'I want to rest.'

After hunting and taking care of the Andras Guild issue, Kang-Woo felt a strong desire to rest.

'There's nothing better for recovery than that.'

Kang-Woo's eyes lit up. There was one surefire way he knew would help him recover.

The corners of Kang-Woo's mouth curled up into a grin, and his steps became lighter. He hummed while heading toward Han Seol-Ah's home.

"Let's go eat kimchi stew!!"

The thought of eating a pot of piping hot kimchi stew with meat blew away his fatigue. Kang-Woo used his remaining demonic energy to activate the Authority of the Sky and flew across the sky.

* * *

Click.

"K-Kang-Woo!"

When Kang-Woo entered through the front door, an anxious Seol-Ah approached him.

Kang-Woo looked at her while tilting his head. "Did something happen?"

"That's what I should be asking you! I didn't get any word from you even though so much time has passed since you entered the Gate… and you haven't answered any of my calls."

"Oh."

After leaving the Gate, he'd gone directly to the Andras Guild, so it was true that he returned home later than usual.

"I apologize. Something came up," Kang-woo said.

"Phew. I was worried something bad might have happened to you." Seol-Ah sighed in relief.

Kang-Woo gazed at her with a smile. "Thank you for worrying about me. Next time, I'll contact you in advance."

"O-Okay." Seol-Ah avoided looking at Kang-Woo as a slight blush crept up her cheeks because of Kang-Woo's honest reply. "Since you're here, I'll make you dinner. Is there anything you'd like to eat?"

"Kimchi stew," Kang-Woo replied immediately.

"Oh… Well, I was expecting you to say that." Seol-Ah laughed at that answer.

"And with as much—"

"Yes, I bought some good meat."

"Whoa!"

"Fufu. This is all thanks to you, Kang-Woo."

The money Kang-Woo had given Seol-Ah was like rain during a drought. Of course, it wasn't like Kang-Woo had given her all the money he had earned. However, Players earned so much money that even giving her a considerable portion of it didn't affect his daily life in the slightest.

"Haha. You cook me delicious food every day, so that much is nothing. If you need more money, feel free to ask me."

"N-No! I also got my Second Awakening, so it's time for me to earn money and pay you back."

"I see." Kang-Woo looked at her with great interest. "When did you get your Second Awakening?"

"I leveled up today while hunting Goblins," Seol-Ah said.

She even puffed out her chest slightly as she spoke, seemingly proud of having achieved her Second Awakening.

When her voluptuous chest entered Kang-Woo's sight…

'Mahayabanyabaramildabodhisattvabodhisattva.'

Kang-Woo turned his gaze away from her to exorcize the worldly desire that had entered him through his eyes.

After calming down, he turned back to Seol-Ah again.

"What rank is your Second Awakening Trait?" he asked.

"Fufufu. Listen carefully, Kang-Woo," Seol-Ah said with an excited voice, her eyes shining. "B-rank! After getting my Second Awakening, I got a B-rank Trait called Blessing of Light!"

"Whoa!" Kang-Woo exclaimed.

It was already considered rare that she was a healer-type Player, but on top of that, she'd gotten a high-ranking Trait.

'If she parties with Tae-Soo, it will be no joke.'

A tank and healer with high-ranking Traits… Their combined strength would be on par with carry parties.

After what had happened with the Andras Guild, Kang-Woo had been thinking of creating a team of his own, so this was good news.

'After all, I'm not sure how strong the members of the Demon Cult are.'

It wasn't a bad idea to build up a force of his own so that he could confront them more comfortably.

"Seol-Ah, did you receive any invitations from guilds?"

"Far too many to count," Seol-ah said with a trembling voice, seemingly still in disbelief that she had unlocked a B-rank Trait.

To be honest, it wasn't very rare for a Player to acquire a B-rank Trait. However, Seol-Ah was a healer, so her value was far higher than other Players in the same range of levels.

"Which guild are you thinking of entering?"

"Umm…"

At Kang-Woo's question, Seol-Ah blushed and fidgeted hesitantly. "To be honest, I don't want to enter a guild. I just want to be of help to you, Kang-Woo."

"Mm…" Kang-Woo fell silent for a little while.

After thinking about it, he said, "It's true that you've gotten a high-ranking Trait, but I don't think it's a good idea for you to form a party with me yet."

"Oh…" Seol-Ah let out a disappointed sigh at Kang-Woo's firm words.

"To put it bluntly, I don't think you can be of help to me yet."

"I see." Seol-Ah was disheartened and lowered her head.

Her reaction almost made Kang-Woo change his mind, but he shook his head in the end.

'Not yet.'

Seol-Ah couldn't be of help to him yet. In fact, there was a higher chance of her hindering him. Nevertheless, it wasn't because she was weak. After all, she was far more talented than most Players.

'The problem is that she'll be around me.'

Thanks to his Third Awakening and the ritual, Kang-Woo's demonic energy had increased significantly. He had attained a level of power that no one would believe belonged to a Level 20 Player.

He was overwhelmingly strong, so forming a party was unnecessary because it would only cut the number of experience points he gained.

'Maybe later on, things will be different.'

From what he'd heard, the experience points lost from hunting elite monsters that appeared in B-rank Gates and above as a party was negligible. Once he could do that, he wouldn't mind hunting with Seol-Ah, Kang Tae-Soo, and a couple more people. Nonetheless, it wasn't the time yet. Tae-Soo and Seol-Ah didn't have much combat experience, so they had to gain more of it first.

'You cannot get that type of experience by being carried.'

A Player didn't need to put their life in danger to gain such experience, but they most certainly couldn't get it by standing still and doing nothing.

"There's a tank I got to know recently who has an A-rank Trait. I think that you should form a party with him and gain some combat experience first."

"…I see."

"Once you level up enough and gain enough combat experience, let's form a party together and enter a high-ranking Gate."

"Ah!" Seol-Ah uttered in surprise.

She had been disappointed by the fact that she wouldn't be able to form a party with him, but that wasn't quite the case. Seol-Ah would be able to do it if she kept growing stronger. This was very exciting for Seol-Ah, who was not only grateful to him but also romantically interested in him.

"I understand. I'll form a party with that tank," Seol-Ah said.

"Both of you have high-ranking Traits, so you'll probably level up quickly."

"Yes, I want to level up quickly and form a party with you."

"It probably won't take long since I'm going to give you all the support you need."

After Tae-Soo and Seol-ah gained some battle experience, Kang-Woo was thinking of helping them level up. His level of strength was incomparable to that of an average high-level Player, so he was sure that they'd be able to level up far faster than other Players with his help.

'This is all an investment.'

Kang-Woo had realized something after taking in Balrog as his underling in the Ninth Hell. Tasks could always be accomplished faster and more easily with two or three people, even for tasks that could be done alone. It was such an obvious thing that Kang-Woo was ashamed to say that he had made this realization. However, the realization had truly shocked him because he'd done everything by himself for such a long time.

'Up until then, I always thought that having an underling would only hinder me.'

Before meeting Balrog, Kang-Woo hadn't known that having a capable underling would be so helpful.

"Fufu, thank you, Kang-Woo. Oh, time flew while we were talking. Wait for a little bit, please."

"Okay."

While waiting in the living room, Kang-Woo thought about when he should help Tae-Soo and Seol-Ah level up. He didn't get to think about it for long though, as Seol-Ah soon walked toward him with a fragrant pot of kimchi stew.

"Whoa," Kang-Woo uttered.

Upon seeing the kimchi stew, Kang-Woo quickly approached her. His nostrils flared up with excitement.

Was it because Seol-Ah had used an expensive cut of pork? The kimchi stew looked as if it were emitting a brilliant light.

"Thank you for the food!"

"Oh, just a moment, Kang-Woo…"

Seol-Ah stopped Kang-Woo, who was about to start eating as if he were a starved animal. Kang-Woo looked up at her anxiously in response.

Finding his reaction cute, Seol-Ah laughed before saying, "Try putting this in today."

When Kang-Woo saw what she was giving him, he trembled.

"Th-This is…" Kang-Woo mumbled, seemingly unable to believe what he was seeing.

Shock similar to a strike of lightning spread through his entire body.

"Instant noodles!" he exclaimed.

Kang-Woo looked at the kimchi stew with trembling excitement.

'I don't know who you are, but….'

He thought about the Demon Cult that was planning something sinister.

'I'll protect Earth!'

Kang-Woo had made that resolution while slurping on the instant noodles that had yet to be fully cooked.