The envoys were furious. Was Yeon-woo being serious?!

[The godly society expresses hostility towards you!]

[The godly society expresses hostility towards you!]

[The godly society expresses strong hostility towards you!]

…

[The godly society agrees with the societies that have expressed hostility.]

[The godly society looks at you coldly.]

It was a bolt from the blue for the societies. They were already busy preparing for war against Allforone, and now, they were expected to battle for the independence of the descendants of their past enemies. Their first reaction was disgust.

They could understand giving Yeon-woo all the records of the giant race they possessed, helping him discover the sites, and even using their powers to act as his hunting dogs. But this was too much.

『You dare to go this far because we let you off easily?!』

『You damned bastard!』

The most dissatisfied beings, Vayu of Deva and Sebek of Memphis, spoke in their true voices, baring their sharp teeth. Powerful winds blew with the movement of Vayu’s hands, and an immense amount of vapor whirled around Sebek’s body before hurtling towards Yeon-woo. Sebek was a high-level god who controlled great lakes.

However, black-red Sword Thunder suddenly lashed at the whirlwind of winds and water and the incarnations of Vayu and Sebek beyond it. Vayu stepped back in surprise, but he couldn’t completely escape Sword Thunder. He watched as his right arm was torn off.

Sebek couldn’t even scream as his body was split in half from his head to his legs. He disappeared with a dense, burning smell.

The enraged godly envoys who had been about to charge at Yeon-woo stopped. Yeon-woo had reacted more aggressively than they expected. Sebek was a high-level god who represented Memphis, and he’d even been considered a superior god once. However, Yeon-woo had split a powerful entity like that with a single strike.

Vayu gripped his right arm, which leaked with holy power, and bit his lower lip. The gap in power between them and Yeon-woo was evident from the clash. He hadn’t been this powerful when he left the Changgong Library. It was impossibly fast progress, even if he had the domain of fight. Had he become stronger after obtaining the stones from the sites? Or had he been enlightened with something new after becoming the god of the half-giants? It was hard to tell, but one thing was for sure: they wouldn’t be able to defeat Yeon-woo unless they used all their strength.

Crackle. Crackle! Even after demonstrating so much power, Yeon-woo seemed fine. He growled at them. “I already told you to fuck off if you’re not happy. I don’t plan to stop you from doing that.”

Every time black-red bolts sparked from his skin, the godly envoys felt chills going down their spines.

“And I think I should be the angry one here. Were you thinking of taking the entire stone tablet only after giving me a few records of the giant race and helping me explore the sites? You were just planning to sit there comfortably without risking anything?”

Two lines appeared over Yeon-woo and opened up. A gigantic Inferno Sight glared at them. Boo had opened his eyes. 「Who dares…disrespect…Master?」

The eyes of the envoys widened in shock as they saw an entity created from the concept of death standing in front of them. In the past, a player named Faust had almost reached exuviation and transcendence but hadn’t been able to climb past Allforone. But now, he was a huge threat now that he’d returned with the potential of darkness.

Faust already seemed strong on his own, but Agares and Fenrir walked over to stand next to him.

『I see you’re all having some fun here?』

The other demonic envoys who had taken a neutral stance and some anxious godly envoys moved to Yeon-woo’s side, as well.

[The godly society declares it will stand on ###’s side!]

Malach, whom they thought would clash with Yeon-woo the most, was still on Yeon-woo’s side.

[The three leaders of the godly society have voted unanimously to stand on player ###’s side.]

Their leader, Erlang Shen, was also standing with Yeon-woo. Only the ones who’d expressed hostility were in danger now.

“What are you going to do? You should go now if you don’t want to stay. Didn’t you want to avoid the war with the Crawling Chaos?” Yeon-woo smirked at them.

『…Dammit!』

As their fists trembled with fury, the hostile envoys had no choice but to surrender.

* * *

After they were finished exploring the sites, they opened a portal to return to the village of the half-giants, where Shanon waited. There were fewer envoys this time, since many had opted to return to the heavenly world, unable to endure Yeon-woo’s treatment.

Ironically, Vayu, who had clashed against Yeon-woo, was still there. He followed Yeon-woo’s orders silently with an impassive face.

『Aren’t you pushing them too hard?』 Valdebich approached Yeon-woo and asked in concern. He’d been feeling nervous for the last few days because of the conflict between Yeon-woo and the envoys. At times, Yeon-woo was so cold and aloof that Valdebich wondered if it was all right to leave him be. Valdebich knew how narrow-minded and petty the gods were. They might try to harass Yeon-woo after everything was over.

『What?』 Valdebich flinched as Yeon-woo looked at him without saying anything.

“Valdebich.”

『What?』

“Why is your name Valdebich?”

『What kind of nonsense are you…!』

“The last king of the giant race was called Valdebich as well. I think your parents gave you that name hoping you’d become someone like him. Right?”

Valdebich was silent.

“Then you should take some pride in your name. You and I have the duty to resurrect the giant race, and for that, we need to have a specific mindset and attitude. We must be arrogant and full of self-belief.”

Valdebich pressed his lips together. Yeon-woo’s words made his eyes tremble.

“We are equal to them. They may represent their societies, but we represent the giant race. You need to look down on them. If not, our future relationships with them will be messed up. Be wary of this.”

Valdebich clenched his fists. Ever since he’d met Yeon-woo, all his beliefs and assumptions had been crushed multiple times. He’d always thought of himself as a mortal who was inferior to gods and demons, and he felt that he’d put them on a pedestal. After organizing his thoughts, he nodded heavily. 『I didn’t think it through. Sorry.』

Yeon-woo grinned and nudged Valdebich with his shoulder. “You don’t have to make it complicated. This is only the beginning.” He looked at the black book in his hand, the result of combining all the stones together: the Book of the Black King.

[Book of the Black King]

[Rank: ???]

[Description: It is incomplete. Gather the remaining pieces.]

[Special Note: It is currently recreating the sections you’ve already seen in the past.]

‘Not Book of Enoch, or Lemegeton…but Book of the Black King.’ The Crawling Chaos and the otherworld gods worshipped the Black King as an almighty being, and Faust had reached his peak with the knowledge he’d obtained from seeking the Black King. The Heavenly Demon had also said the book was outstanding. Since the giants had believed it would free them, it was possible they thought they would have an opportunity even after death.

‘So, these revelations are…’ Yeon-woo’s eyes darkened as he looked down at the book.

* * *

As soon as Yeon-woo returned to the village, he immediately summoned Shanon and the half-giants.

「There’s no solution for these things.」 Shanon crossed his arms as he complained. The half-giants didn’t show any motivation and grew even more timid as time passed. He thought it was impossible to change them. Valdebich seemed to agree. He sighed as the half-giants looked at him with pleading eyes, hoping for salvation.

On the other hand, the envoys had varied reactions. The godly envoys looked doubtful, wondering if the half-giants could really help them in battle, and they didn’t hide their scornful attitudes. The demonic envoys seemed interested that the giant race still existed and were curious about Yeon-woo’s plans of changing them.

At a glance, it seemed like the demons were more open-minded than the gods, but that didn’t mean they were sympathetic to the half-giants. They were just curious about the giants—nothing more, nothing less. They were observed out of amusement, and they didn’t really believe that Yeon-woo would succeed.

The half-giants felt their gazes and shrank back even more, unable to speak. Even the ones who planned on complaining and asking why Yeon-woo was making them suffer were silent.

It was understandable. If they were players, they would have been less anxious since the envoys were only incarnations. But because the half-giants were still transcendent, they could see the envoys’ true bodies.

Yeon-woo looked into the eyes of each of the trembling half-giants. The half-giants flinched in surprise at the deep abyss in his eyes. Some of them paled, while others almost fainted. However, one of them tried to endure his gaze more than others.

‘It’s the child from Valdebich’s cabin.’ The child was the same size as Yeon-woo, but still smaller than the other half-giants. Still, the determination in his eyes was evident to all. He even glowered back, as if he wouldn’t lose to Yeon-woo.

Yeon-woo grinned. Fortunately, although the giant race had fallen, not all of them had been ruined.

『Starting from tomorrow, you will go to war.』 Yeon-woo began without any explanation. The half-giants couldn’t help but feel shocked. They had only trained for a few days and that had only been for their stamina. They didn’t know how to fight, and they hadn’t even developed muscles yet. However, Yeon-woo was throwing them at the battlefield like that? It was like he was telling them to die.

Their faces paled. However, no one was able to speak because of Yeon-woo’s overwhelming aura. Speaking in a divine voice could carve one’s words into an opponent’s soul, and each word Yeon-woo spoke was like a spell that bound them. 『You must be feeling wronged. You’ve been living here so peacefully, and I’ve come here all of a sudden to tell you to fight.』 A corner of Yeon-woo’s mouth lifted, and it looked almost as though he were laughing at them. 『But at this rate, you’ll slowly die out because of the otherworld gods. It makes no difference if you die now or later.』

The aura around Yeon-woo began to shake. The half-giants felt their hearts shrink. It was hard to breathe. Tremble. Fear slowly crept up their bodies, but it was so extreme, they couldn’t be sure if it was fear alone or something else.

『So if you feel wronged, survive. Become stronger, and get revenge on me.』

Then, fear slowly turned into another emotion. Yeon-woo’s Channels bored into their souls. It was the line of connection that bound gods and their followers. Yeon-woo spoke in a solemn voice at the now enraptured half-giants. 『Fight. That’s all I can say to you.』