“What? On the first night of my honeymoon, you ran to another woman and proposed? Is this real...? Isn’t it like garbage from an affair movie?”

Vantner was straightforward. He didn’t hesitate to scold his friend’s transgressions. It was an attitude that came from goodwill. He was inclined to give attention and a strong warning so that his friend didn’t go wrong from violating morality. This was what Grid liked.

“I couldn’t sit back and watch Mers be sad. Basara also told me to go to Mers first.”

Basara was much older than Grid. She was from the imperial family and a duke who ascended to the rank of empress with the will of the former emperor. She cared for all her people. She had very deep thoughts and had an excellent ability to read the situation. She read Mercedes’ grief at the wedding venue and inferred Mercedes’ relationship with Grid. She weighed the situation where the two of them got married or couldn’t get married, and considered the best choice.

In order to breed the seeds of unity, she raised the issue with Grid. She asked Grid to go to Mercedes. She encouraged the love of the two to come to fruition.

“I think people’s relationships and feelings should be a springboard, not a stumbling block.”

This was what Basara said that night. She was wise and explained the importance of relationships, and this resonated with Grid. Before Mercedes’ heart could fall into an uncontrollable abyss, he ran and caught her.

“Um... Mercedes was sad. Basara understood... then there is no problem... right?”

Vantner heard the explanation and had a subtle expression as he was convinced.

“Thinking positively... I’m glad that you have a sense of responsibility. Every time he meets a new lover, Pon will abandon his former lover.”

“It is rude to compare me with Pon. I’m not a flirt.”

“......”

It happened as his colleagues were looking at Grid with expressions of absurdity…

Grid’s line of sight tilted. His clear eyes stayed at the opposite window behind his colleagues. After a few seconds, Faker’s posture in the shadow shook slightly. A few seconds after that...

“What type of monsters are these...?”

Katz was agitated. His face turned white and the atmosphere became turbulent.

“Is it an invasion?”

Grid restrained the nervous Overgeared members who were arming themselves. “No, they are guests. Don’t worry about it.”

Grid’s combination of Transcend and Shunpo was now as natural as flowing water. He had enough stamina that he wouldn’t get tired even if he used it several times in a row. He calmed down his colleagues and moved out the window, flying over the spires. He also pulled down the mass of Greed above his head and used one of his powers. Greed spread out like a tent to wrap around the surroundings, enclosing the space.

“Have you been well?”

Shortly after, two people arrived. There was Biban of the Tower of Wisdom and the other tower member—

“Hello.” It was Betty. Unlike Biban, Betty’s outings weren’t common, so Grid felt some uneasiness.

“What brings the two of you here...?”

“Baal’s Contractor of this era will lose his qualifications.” Betty was different from Biban. There were no distractions around her, so she immediately revealed her business. The contents were shocking.

“It is very serious since Baal’s power mixed in the contractor’s soul will be released and leaked.”

“Baal’s power is the source of all evil. It will seduce witnesses with strong power and malice. In particular, dragons.”

“I think Baal designed it like this intentionally.”

“The power to attract dragons...”

“Yes, when Granny Betty lost her power, Nevartan and Bunhelier flew in. It was unlucky. This incident occurred close to the lairs of those two dragons. Even if I say it is close, it was still hundreds of kilometers away.”

“There is a high possibility that the dragons will also intervene in this incident. It has to be stopped. If a dragon gains Baal’s power, a second evil dragon will be born.”

“......”

Grid’s heart sank.

Ultimate beings with transcendence—in particular, it was difficult to guess the strength of the dragons that had existed from the beginning. It was only by abandoning the common sense accumulated previously and adding imagination that he could vaguely grasp the outline. He couldn’t hide his tension at the suggestion that he could face them directly.

“In other words, the tower should be responsible for this incident, but there happens to be a problem. Granny Betty detected that the current contractor is on the East Continent. It isn’t our jurisdiction.”

“If the tower members attempt to move between continents, the problem would become serious. We will inevitably show some signs and will be chased by dragons.”

“Every dragon in the world will notice and aim for Baal’s power, which has currently only been detected and targeted by the dragons in the east. In the aftermath, the East Continent will perish.”

“So, Grid, you should go to the east on our behalf. Be sure to destroy that power before someone obtains it and exploits it.”

[A Pioneer quest has occurred!]

[Destroy Baal’s Power Fragment]

[Difficulty: Unable to be measured.

Betty has watched the Baal’s Contractor of this era and predicts that he will soon lose his qualifications. Destroy the fragment of Baal’s power that will be leaked at this time so that it doesn’t fall into someone else’s hands.

Quest Clear Conditions: Destroy the fragment of Baal’s power.

Quest Clear Rewards: Betty’s gift. Affinity with Betty will increase.

Quest Failure Condition: Another person obtains the fragment of Baal’s power.

Quest Failure Result: A new strong enemy that has absorbed Baal’s power will emerge. There is a high probability of massive damage to the East Continent.]

[Would you like to accept the quest?]

It was ominous just from the difficulty level. In the first place, it was a quest that was likely to involve dragons. It was clear that it wouldn’t be easy to resolve. The good news was that there would be no damage done to Grid individually if the quest failed, but this wasn’t a comfort at all.

The people of Cho and Xing—he was already heavy-hearted when thinking about all the soldiers and their families who participated in and helped with the Great Human and Demon War.

“Is this something I can resolve...?”

It would be hard—even if he received such an answer, Grid would accept the quest. He didn’t want the East Continent to become a ruin. The answer that came back was surprisingly hopeful.

“It is hard, but I think it is possible. I wouldn’t have asked you if you couldn’t handle it.”

“Grid, you know that the East Continent is the land of the gods. In the past, the Four Auspicious Beasts existed as guardian gods and exerted influence on all things. Now the expelled gods and the yangbans are directly intervening in the situation. Compared to this place, the flow of magic power is relatively limited due to the overflow of divine power.”

“It means the land is inappropriate to be used as a base by dragons, the masters of magic. This means the dragons in the east are actually close to ‘hidden losers.’ It is very likely that it has a large wound. It is relatively common for dragons to compete over lair locations and this happens once every few hundred years.”

Certainly, the words ‘hidden loser’ were appropriate. It was because the people of the east had never mentioned the existence of dragons. The only dragon they talked about was the blue dragon, who was one of the Four Auspicious Beasts.

Grid’s expression became noticeably brighter.

‘A dragon that is wounded and hid itself... it is possible to discuss the odds of winning.’

It was a chance to get dragon bones and scales. Biban continued speaking as Grid clenched his fists and was delighted, “It is similar to Gujel when we hunted him. Don’t try to overdo it. Even if you can’t kill it, I’m sure you can drive it away.”

“......”

Grid’s jubilant expression stiffened again. The power gathered to hunt Gujel was all the tower members, including Hayate. It meant it was impossible for Grid to hunt it alone. Obtaining the dragon scales and bones became very distant...

Betty added a further warning, “That is before the dragon gets its hands on the power fragment. It will become incomparably powerful and uncontrollable if it gets the power fragment. Then give up and come back. We’ll take care of it.”

“...Yes.” There was no further conversation. Time was short. Grid immediately left for the East Continent while the tower members saw him off from a distance.

Biban sighed and stared at Betty somewhat resentfully. “Granny, I’m disappointed. Why did you stand idly by and watch Agnus leave for the East Continent? If you had killed him yourself and made him lose his disqualification on this land, we wouldn’t have needed to ask for help from Grid.”

Biban shut his mouth.

Why did Baal’s Contractor have to sign with Baal and why did he lose his qualifications...? He understood it by recalling Betty’s past, which he heard from Fronzaltz one day in the past.

A bitter smile appeared on Betty’s usually always expressionless face. “I’m sorry. I hesitated because I felt sorry for him. It is all my fault. I’ll take responsibility and be punished.”

“...I am also sorry.”

Biban’s body trembled. He noticed Betty’s determination and felt anger and sadness.

‘Grid, please...’

Biban’s heart was eager as he looked at the remnants of the Mass Teleport Grid used to disappear.

‘Please create a miracle again this time... take care of the people of the east and this poor granny...’

***

[Someone is praying to you.]

This was the most common notification window after opening the prayer stat. It flashed and disappeared from a corner of his vision, giving Grid great courage.

‘They must be people praying for me on this land.’

At the East Continent...

The gentle air was completely different from what he was breathing just a moment ago. The wind blew the fragrance of pine needles. His head cleared.

‘Hurry.’

Usually, he would first visit the Cho King to say hello when coming to the East Continent, but he couldn’t afford it today. Grid immediately moved toward his destination. He used Shunpo in succession.

***

At Kaya…

Old Sword Demon died without knowing what happened and immediately revived. He was glad that his place of death and the resurrection point were the same. This allowed him to determine the case of death.

“What is this...?”

Old Sword Demon doubted the sight unfolding in the city below the shrine.

A huge dragon was on the rampage. It was completely different from the blue dragon, one of the symbols of the East Continent. Their body was large and it had wings. It breathed out fire every time it opened its mouth and its expression was very vicious.

“A dragon...”

Why did the strongest monster of the West Continent appear in this far eastern land? Old Sword Demon naturally suspected Agnus. He was forced to interpret it as Agnus bringing the monster here.

A light flashed at the shrine behind him. It was a sign that a player had been resurrected. Old Sword Demon looked back only for his eyes to widen.

“Agnus, you!

“It has been a long time since I’ve been resurrected on the surface.”

Agnus was resurrected in hell every time he died. It was a type of penalty and one of the inconveniences that Baal’s Contractor received. Yet at this moment, he was liberated from it. There was no designated resurrection point, so he resurrected at the nearest resurrection base. He thought it was a convenient feature.

“What is that dragon? How many people do you have to hurt to make you feel better?”

“I don’t know that guy.”

After a few years, Agnuus had returned to being an ordinary necromancer. His eyes, which regained tranquility proportional to the sharp decline in combat power, shone as sharply as before. His green hair reminded people of his early years when he was notorious.

“The yangbans are dying easily. A dragon... it is as awesome as rumored.”

“Dammit! This isn’t the time to marvel! The city is going to be destroyed!”

Agnus really didn’t have anything to do with the dragon. Old Sword Demon first put aside his hatred for Agnus. He calculated the timing to step out while nervously looking at the people running away in confusion.

Agnus asked him, “Do you want to save people?”

“Are you trying to mock me? That’s right! I want to save them! You easily hurt people, so you don’t understand, but I...! We...!”

The years he spent with Hwang Gildong passed by through his mind. How many people did he try to save and how many people he couldn’t save...

He wouldn’t be able to save them again this time.

Old Sword Demon was holding his face with frustration when Agnus strode past Old Sword Demon. “If you want to save people, it is better to help the yangbans.”

“What...?”

“That dragon covets Baal’s power. If that is taken by it, the city will become dust without any time to save people. First of all, work together and help the yangbans. Then find an opportunity to destroy Baal’s power.”

“Haha...? Look at this guy? You want to fight with me now? You are going to help people? Who will believe your words? You are just using a trick to eat Baal’s power again.”

“It doesn’t matter if you believe it or not. In the future, I will only do what I want to do.”

It felt like Agnus’ shackles were broken. In retrospect, it was Baal’s Contractor, the only thing he believed in and relied on, that was actually the darkness that pushed him into a greater abyss.

“Enter the shadows, Lantier.”

[Your death knight Lantier isn’t responding. You don’t have the authority.]

“Raise your sword, Cao.”

[Your death knight Cao isn’t responding. You don’t have the authority.]

Nobody responded to the call. He lost his connection to the beings he had gained during his days as Baal’s Contractor. The sudden solitude that made his heart throb was exposed to the cold air. Even so, Agnus proceeded firmly.

“The poor dead, reflect on your resentment.”

Dozens of undead appeared around the advancing Agnus. They were insignificant skeleton soldiers holding rusty iron swords and bows. They were the default minions of a necromancer. Agnus didn’t care. He reached out and pulled a weapon out of his inventory. He armed himself with the old staff used in the past that felt very far away. “I will start over.”

“You...?” Old Sword Demon’s eyes widened as he stared blankly at Agnus’ back. Agnus’ upper body, revealed through the flapping robe, had no skin or flesh. His bones and organs were nakedly exposed and he looked more hideous and shabby than the skeleton soldiers standing beside him.

It wasn’t easy for most people to handle, but Agnus’ expression didn’t waver. He was much calmer and more powerful than before his death to Old Sword Demon. He could feel heat from the gold eyes that looked as cold as metal and it made Old Sword Demon feel strange.