Leveling with the Gods

Side Story 44

Squirt~

The cup was filled.

The earlier chaos had dissipated, making way for a calm tea session.

Hercules, watching Zeus pour the tea himself, had a continuously surprised expression on his face.

"Drink."

"Do you like tea...? I recall you enjoyed alcohol more."

"I don't enjoy alcohol that much. I drink it out of necessity, not pleasure."

Zeus savored the aroma of the tea.

Hercules sat on the small chair and reached out to take the tea cup.

The cup he held with his fingers looked like a miniature toy, so Hercules put it back down.

Zeus looked at the three present, aside from him, none of them were drinking tea.

"Aren't you going to drink? It smells good."

"It might be poisoned."

"The cup is too small."

"Hmph~"

Zeus, after seeing Pandora discreetly spit out the tea, also set his cup aside.

"It would have been better to bring alcohol."

"Is the place where you got hit okay?"

Heracles asked, to which Zeus responded by patting the spot where YuWon had hit him.

"I bled a bit, but I'm fine. Though I don't feel great."

"To be honest, I'm surprised. I thought you'd get really mad."

"A punch is not a bad deal. It's a hundred, a thousand times better than having a guy like him as an enemy."

The reason Zeus didn't get angry about the unexpected punch.

It was because he had "calculated" Pandora's hatred and YuWon's anger.

He was a more calculating man than anyone.

He analyzed the pros and cons and controlled his emotions more rationally than anyone.

YuWon, who appeared with Pandora.

Zeus, after confirming their relationship, thought.

That if he endured a punch, calming YuWon's anger, it wouldn't be a bad deal.

In response to Zeus's answer, Hercules looked at YuWon, who was pouring tea from Pandora's cup onto the floor.

He was telling her not to drink that stuff, and instead, he gave her a chocolate from his inventory.

'That means he recognizes it to some extent, doesn't he?'

A man whom even Zeus, with his more than arrogant nature, didn't want as an enemy.

The only being who had brought the King of Olympus, Zeus, to the ground.

'Indeed.'

It wasn't a story he couldn't believe.

'It's natural for him to do so.'

Zeus wasn't foolish enough to turn him into an enemy just because his pride had been slightly hurt.

By his side was Hercules. There was also The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, and Pandora.

And most importantly, YuWon was stronger than anyone Hercules knew.

He wasn't even sure if the entire Olympus could defeat him.

One punch.

Just one punch.

Zeus was a man willing to take it if it calmed YuWon.

Of course, YuWon knew that too, which is why he dared to hit him.

"Enough with the guest attention. Tell me why you've called me."

"You also sought me out for some reason, didn't you?"

YuWon and Zeus's words clashed.

Both had matters to deal with the other.

After a brief silence, YuWon finally shrugged and said:

"Well, the order doesn't matter. Go ahead, you first."

"How much do you know about the Administrators?"

The question came as soon as the words ended.

YuWon frowned at the seemingly expected reaction.

"What's with this sudden change of topic?"

"You know, undoubtedly. You wouldn't have appeared like this all of a sudden if you didn't know."

His tone indicated that he knew everything.

"I know."

Of course, he had no intention of revealing everything.

"Just that they're not as special as they seem."

"Are you trying to hide it?"

"Neither you nor I are the type to work as a team. I'll give you the information you need, but I won't tell you everything."

Zeus was a dangerous being.

Much more so than some Administrators.

Even Mimir, who was nobody, had evaluated him as someone whose interior was impossible to know. It was better to be careful.

"The most important thing is... the nature of the power they possess, right?"

"Nature?"

"A long time ago, the Administrators made a contract with a Being. That's how they gained the ability to use mana as if it were their own."

A total of a hundred Administrators.

They attracted Players to this Tower and used the System to elevate them to higher levels.

That's why most Players saw them as Gods.

However...

"Besides that, Administrators are nothing special. They're just a bit stronger than normal High-Rankers."

They are not Gods.

No.

Those who have created their own Myth and obtained Divinity and divine power should be considered Gods.

In that case, Tower Rankers should already be on the same level as Administrators.

"That will be the problem. For them."

"I see."

"...?"

"...?"

Hercules and Pandora, with perplexed expressions, didn't understand Zeus nodding and saying, "I see."

"What the hell does that mean?"

For the two who couldn't understand it right away, Zeus put down his tea cup and added an explanation:

"With time, the power of Players has been gradually increasing. At least, I'm not as afraid of Administrators anymore, and they'll feel it too."

"Ah..."

Hercules nodded at that explanation.

"Players are surpassing Administrators..."

Those who had been beneath them were starting to be seen as a threat.

The same applied to Hercules himself.

At what moment was it?

At some point, Hercules began to feel that the Administrators, who had seemed as high as the sky, were not as formidable as they appeared.

"Do you have any attack plan?"

It's not that I don't. After all, the power they possess is also in the form of abilities."

"How do you know?"

"I have it too."

Swoosh~

Upon YuWon's outstretched palm, a mana sphere the color of pale sky rose.

Mana firmly condensed like a smooth glass marble.

[Mana Orb] (Note: Previously called: Mana Sphere)

It was a skill too basic to display now.

Like Lee SeongYun, talented players sometimes learned Mana Orb from the tutorial.

However, what YuWon was about to show was not a simple Mana Orb.

"A pale sky. It's the most basic color of mana. And as you know, Mana Orb can change to any attribute depending on the nature of mana."

Frrr!

A mana sphere burning like flames.

"Fire as well."

Craack-le!

Lightning overlaid the fire.

"And lightning too."

Auuuu!

Plop!

"Darkness or water, it doesn't matter."

"Wow..."

"How beautiful!"

Unlike Pandora, whose eyes were sparkling, Hercules and Zeus opened their mouths for another reason at the spectacle unfolding before them.

A Mana Orb blending four mana attributes.

Even two would be remarkable, but four unmixable mana attributes had been blended.

"Can water and fire mix?"

Unlike other Rankers, Hercules was not well-versed in mana attributes.

However, even Hercules could understand how incredible what he had before his eyes was.

Bang!

The Mana Orb exploded, and the four-attribute mana dispersed and ascended to the sky.

Zeus was also surprised.

"It's something like that. Of course, my experience is much less than theirs, who have been working with this all their lives."

Normal Rankers could handle a maximum of two mana attributes, no matter how many there were.

And even that was not very efficient, so most, like Zeus or Surt, focused on a single mana attribute.

However, YuWon had been using multi-attribute mana at the level of an upper High-Ranker.

'Now I understand how he can handle so many mana attributes...'

The Mana used by the Administrators.

If he could use it, now he could understand the control and understanding that YuWon had shown so far over mana.

"It takes the form of a skill, so obviously it has its limits. The last battle confirmed it."

"The last battle? In the Celestial Realm?"

"Yes."

"And? What did you confirm?"

"Abilities that strengthen weapons or the body are more effective. Releasing mana directly outward and firing it reduces its effectiveness by half. And that means..."

YuWon's gaze turned to Hercules and Pandora.

"It means close combat is more advantageous in the fight against them."

At those words, Hercules concealed his surprised expression and looked at Zeus.

"If releasing mana directly is a disadvantage, it's a natural enemy for my father."

Zeus's position was that of a javelin thrower. He was a High-Ranker who could throw javelins farther and with more force than anyone else.

On the other hand, Hercules was capable of more powerful close combat than anyone else.

'There's a reason this guy came to see me right after the battle in the Celestial Realm.'

In any case, it wasn't good news for Zeus. However, Zeus's reaction was unexpectedly calm.

"Good information. I'll make sure to share it."

"Don't just share it with Olympus, send it to all the other Guilds too."

"Alright. Besides that, how do you know this?"

"I found out after facing them directly."

"It doesn't seem like everything."

"If you're curious, find out for yourself."

Zeus smiled broadly at YuWon's attitude, responding like a fish out of water.

"As always, this part of you annoys me and pleases me at the same time."

Zeus, reigning as the King of Olympus, had met countless Rankers. And among them, undoubtedly, there were some who could speak and act on equal terms with Zeus.

Magnificent beings like Odin or Vishnu.

However, none of them emitted the same aura as YuWon.

'You are truly different.'

An equal.

That was the impression Zeus got from YuWon.

Talking with him was not boring. It was the first time since Odin that he felt he could have a real conversation.

Everyone in this world seemed like puppets to him.

Ignorant and boring.

The difference between mindless and egoless monsters and Rankers at the top of the Tower was almost nonexistent, except for the ability to speak.

That's why Zeus planted his seed.

In this world, his great realm that he had built himself.

To create a descendant who would inherit the name of Olympus.

The greatest masterpieces he had created.

Hercules and Hargan.

However, an even more magnificent work was in front of his eyes.

'There's only one thing missing.'

Zeus's gaze turned to Pandora, who was standing next to YuWon.

The difference between him and YuWon.

'What would it take to fill it?'

While Zeus was lost in thought, YuWon spoke.

"Now it's your turn."

This time, YuWon mentioned the purpose of his visit.

"Whatever you want."

"More than questions, I have a request."

"A request?"

"I need to use Olympus' information network."

"Is it about the traitors the Administrators planted?"

Zeus smiled ironically, as if he knew everything.

"Don't worry about that. I already have a good understanding of the situation."

"Have you also told Deva?"

Vishnu.

More than anything, YuWon wanted to unravel the secret of his death first.

"That's a delicate matter."

And he seemed to know that question too.

"It may have been delayed a bit because of you."

Zeus had already set his plan in motion.

-KO-FI

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