Episode 424.

Muston swallowed hard as he stared at the dark green distortion of space.

“What is this?

A portal of a structure he’d never seen before. It’s neither magic nor witchcraft. It felt similar to the magic used by the demons of the Black Tower.

“No, that’s not the problem right now.

The presence of the monster in that dimensional gap was terrifying. Not even the slightest aura could be felt, but its mere presence was enough to take my breath away.

‘I can kill him with my fingernails….’

Like a mouse in front of a cat, I can’t move. As I froze like a statue, not knowing what to do, I heard a second voice from inside the dimension.

“It’s not often that a child speaks of jealousy so openly these days.”

A chill ran down my spine at the sound of the excited young woman’s voice.

“Da, who are you?”

Muston clasped his hands around his throat and forced his tongue to move. He didn’t want to die, so the honorific came out instinctively.

“You called me.”

Light green light glinted in the rhombic eyes of the dimensional creature.

“I called you, what do you mean….”

“You said, ‘I’m jealous. I will do everything in the world to take what you have. I’ll never let go.’ Have you forgotten already?”

“Hmph….”

Muston cut himself off.

“You heard that?

He shouted because he felt like his heart was going to burst, but he hadn’t expected anyone to hear him. Heat rose to his face and neck in embarrassment.

“No need to be ashamed.”

A chuckling voice drifted down from the dimension.

“<Jealousy> is an essential emotion, possessed by the wisest sages, the most powerful emperors, and the most deserted islands. It is said that everyone has a snake in their heart.”

“Snake….”

“You’ve worn your heart on your sleeve, unlike those hypocrites who wear masks to hide their true feelings, and that alone makes you far better than those pompous scum.”

“Ah….”

Even though the voice belonged to a woman who sounded much younger than she was, it still struck a chord in her heart.

“I’m better?

She hadn’t been recognized by anyone since she met Raon.

Everyone chanted Raon’s name, even her teacher wouldn’t look at her, and she felt her hair stand up on end when she was finally recognized.

“Emotions are only meaningful if they are expressed, and you are one step ahead of everyone else.”

The energy in my body that had been pulsating like it was about to explode slowly subsided. It was like a violent storm lapping at the shore, the clouds clearing to reveal a clear sky.

“So, you’re saying you can give me power?”

“Of course. I came here for that, and everything that the human you were jealous of had will be yours.”

Within the dimension, red lips curled into a thin smile. There was a sinister quality to the beautiful laugh that I didn’t understand, but I couldn’t resist the power it gave me.

“Is it possible that his fame, his talent, and his people’s approval will be mine?”

“It’s not that difficult.”

The woman replied as if she didn’t have to think about it.

“It doesn’t make sense, but….

Hearing her voice made me feel like I could do anything.

“Who the hell is this?

I was so surprised, I realized I hadn’t heard the answer to my first question.

“Da, who are you?”

Muston asked the dimensional woman once more.

“I am the Fifth Demon of the Demon Realm. Lord of Jealousy. I am ENVY.”

A hand emerged from the cracked dimension, pure white as if it had never seen the sun.

“If you take my hand, I will give you everything of the human you have been jealous of.”

“Ah….”

Muston’s jaw dropped as he looked at Envy’s hand.

“He was a demon?

No, a demon, that made sense.

Now that explains that huge presence. To overwhelm a man with a mere gesture, without any energy, was impossible for anyone but a transcendent being.

“Is this a chance or a….

Demon King. No, I remembered the folklore about demons granting people’s wishes and taking their souls.

“So, what do I have to offer you, a soul?”

“To be with me.”

“Being with me means….”

“To come into my power?”

“Does that mean becoming a subordinate?”

“Yes.”

Envy told me bluntly what he wanted.

“A subordinate is fine, isn’t it?

It’s not like I’m going to live to fight another day.

The Master’s attention has shifted to Raon, and he’s sticking up for him, so I’m going to wither away.

As long as it didn’t cost him his soul, it was a fair enough deal.

“Mmm….”

Muston stopped short of reaching for Envy’s hand. He looked at the snow on the ground and saw the face of his master, his graying hair neatly swept back.

“Maybe I should ask him a question.

Envy’s presence sobered him, and he wanted to go to Rectar once more and ask him about himself and Raon’s worth.

“Now, can you give me a few minutes, there’s someone I’d like to meet at….”

“It’s too late.”

She was about to refuse when Envy’s hand shot out and squeezed hers.

“The deal had already started to take shape when you called me.”

As soon as the words are out of his mouth, a breathtakingly nasty wave of magick washes over the back of his hand.

Koo-koo-koo!

The dark green magick quickly pushed the auror away, seized control of his mana circuitry, and dug into the very core of his soul.

Sizzle!

Muston screamed in agony as his soul was crushed by the flaming pharynx.

“Turn it off!”

“You just have to be patient. If you hold on, you’ll get what you want… ah?”

Envy stepped outside to finalize the contract, then jerked his head toward the top of Mount Sturin.

“Sloth.”

Her red lips curled up in a thin quiver.

“You were there?”

* * *

Raon jerked his head up to look at the flashes of messages.

[All stats increase by 12 points].

[Gain an additional 6 points from the effects of your winning streak].

[Increase all stats by 18 points] He could feel the exhilaration of his muscles and mana circuits pulsating throughout his body.

My spirits were also lifted, and I felt all my fatigue melt away.

“They’re paying me right.

As Rath had said, the system was rewarding him for his bet.

-No, this is too much!

Lars gaped at the message.

-The Bone King only asked for five pineapple pizzas, so why is he getting 18 stat increases!

He screamed at the top of his lungs, calling it a fraudulent contract.

“The system you entrusted me with handled it very fairly, so what’s your problem?

-‘I don’t give a shit about fairness! When King Bone returns, I’ll destroy it and rebuild it.

‘So be it.

Raon shrugged, then checked the message after his stats.

[Talent <Legendary Armor> has been created].

Once again, the talent was named after a story. He’s got an odd fondness for flowers.

“What is this?

-What, you’re giving me armor? Are you crazy?

Seeing as how Rath danced in rage, it seemed like a pretty good talent.

<Legendary Armor

Utilizes Glacia’s coldness to harden the inside and outside of the body.

The description was simple enough that I understood it immediately. Narrative Armor was a defensive talent that reduced internal injuries and trauma.

“Not bad.

The way it works with Cold and Fury, it shouldn’t be too difficult to use.

‘Thank you for your service again today. Mr. Hogang.

Raon cocked his head in a mocking manner.

-‘You shall be punished with a thousand punishments!

“Heavenly punishment, as the demons say.”

-True, true, the king is… eh?

Rath stopped grinding his teeth and turned to look down the mountain.

-Why is that wretch here? Did it really happen?

His eyes widened and he shouted.

“What. Why are you suddenly….

I followed Rath’s gaze, but all I could feel was Sloth’s breathing.

-Is it too much to run away?

Rath frowned and climbed onto my shoulder.

-Rise, and be ready, for it is coming!

“You must tell me what’s coming!

Raon turned to look at Rath, to ask who it was, when he felt a huge presence overhead, like the sky itself.

‘This is….’

He lifted his head, his jaw trembling. A tall girl was floating in the air.

As he locked eyes with the girl who seemed so out of place in this place, he felt a shock like the shattering of a soul vessel.

‘No way….’

Only twice has my soul been shattered to this extent. The first time was when she met Rath and Sloth. She seemed to be a demon lord like them.

His eyes fluttered as he examined her more closely.

Despite her youthful appearance, her body was as slender and long as a flower stem. The golden jewelry on her wrists and ankles gave her an aura of dreaminess and mystery.

I could feel a torrent of intense emotion in his dark green eyes. Jealousy, not of an individual, but of the entire world. My heart tightened to the point of bursting as I faced that deep, dark pool of emotion.

“…Is that Envy?

Seeing the emotion in that woman’s eyes, the only person I could think of was Envy, the Lord of Jealousy.

-Yes.

Rath furrowed his brow deeply.

-That stupid jealous bastard must have gotten himself into trouble.

He glanced at Envy again, a dazed Muston floating behind her.

“He summoned you?

-As I said, he was on the verge of crossing the line. His emotions must have subsided after you beat him, but something must have happened after he woke up.

‘Damn….’

It occurs to me that I should have been more firm, but it’s too late. Now I had to find a way to get out of here somehow.

Gooooooo!

As Envy slowly descended, the crystalline barrier Sloth had set up rose up and blocked her path.

“I thought I was wrong about Sloth’s crystals.”

Envy reached out, unfazed, as if she had felt Sloth’s binding like Rath had.

It was irresistible!

The dark green energy from her hand coiled like a snake, and Sloth’s karmic circle of black air currents twisted diagonally.

“Ha?”

Landing lightly on top, Envy shook her head at Raon, who stood beside Sloth.

“Why is a human here?”

Her eyes swept over Raon’s body like a snake’s tongue.

“What a jealous piece of trash. It’s just that I saw you somewhere….”

Envy narrowed her eyes and clapped her hands lightly.

“Ah!”

She nodded and flashed a sweet smile.

“You’re the one who got this kid’s jealousy.”

Envy gestured to Muston behind her.

“I was going to give him a moderate dose of greed and move on, but now you’re here.”

“Ugh….”

Raon bit his lip and lowered his stance.

“Live?

Envy’s mood shifted. The teenage girl’s mischievous grin twisted into a flesh-covered battlefield demon.

It wasn’t an aura, just a shift in emotion that sent a searing pain through his brain.

“I must endure this somehow.

I rolled my eyes as I maneuvered my fire rings and kaleidoscope. Sloth wasn’t waking up from this, sleeping soundly.

‘Why isn’t that happening? That’s dangerous!

-Even Envy can’t kill Sloth with a single blow. It means he’s not in danger yet.

Rath shook his head, telling me not to try to understand Sloth.

“I think it was bad luck.”

Envy’s voice dripped with melancholy and he waved his hand. From the light movement, like swatting a fly, came a great surge of power.

Gooooooo!

It felt like the sky was crushing his entire body. I felt like I was going to turn into a handful of blood and disappear from the world.

‘But this feeling….

I’ve experienced it before.

The memory came flooding back to him as he watched the sword demon strike down the ten thousand swords.

Raon had polarized the Rings of Fire. The seven rings spun in his most deliberate spin yet, drawing him into a world of hyper-focus.

-You fool, if you want to stop it, summon your rage!

Rath shouted at him to rage, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to block that attack at his current level, but since it was the same demonic emotion, it seemed to offset it.

‘…No.’

Raon chewed his lip until it bled.

‘Not now.

To live, one must save one’s spleen. Now was not the time for anger and sloth.

“Big….”

Trusting in his growing strength, he took a step forward and drew his Heavenly Sword.

“It’s too late to parry or spill.

I hadn’t expected the attack to come right away, so even though I was in a hyper-focused world, I was running out of time. I could only parry now.

Grasping the hilt of the Heavenly Sword with both hands, I struck upward from the bottom.

Kaaaaaah!

The strongest defensive herbivore prayer beads in the martial arts world spat out flames from the back of the sword. Not a destructive fire, but a protective flame, forging a magnificent shield of flame to protect its master.

Woof, woof, woof!

Raon didn’t stop when he raised the wall of prayer beads. The shield of flames that rose up contained the techniques of heavy and short swords. It was a move that forsook softness and fluidity and focused solely on defense.

Kuwaaaaaaaaah!

Envy’s dark green aura clashed with the flames of the bead wall, causing the entirety of Mount Sterin to shake. A heat radiated from the entire mountain, melting all the snow.

“Boom!

His shoulders felt like they were going to crumble even though he was pulling all the aurors up.

He hadn’t used any technique, just brute force, and the impact was unbelievable.

-You fool, use your anger!

“Not yet.

It’s not a crisis yet.

I strained my weak legs and drew all the heat out of the cartoon ball. He pushed back the dark green energy, enduring the pain of burning mana circuits.

Kuwah!

The ice on the top of Mount Sterin shattered like a spider’s web, and Envy’s energy melted through the prayer bead wall, unable to break through the heat.

“Ha?”

Envy snorted and tilted his head. His eyes narrowed in irritation.

“Stop that?”

A different kind of giddy energy gathered in her grip.

-You’re going to stop that? Do you really want to get yourself killed?

Rath flew in front of Raon’s face, her lips quivering.

-Sloth is what Envy is after. If Sloth were to wake up now, he wouldn’t save you. She’ll rush in and crush you first!

“So what?

-There is only one way for you to survive this. Give yourself over to the king!

His lips curled up in an expression she couldn’t tell if it was a laugh or a smile.

-Envy is not like Sloth, who can’t be bothered to think. You will not be able to get away with it like you did before!

Rath urged her to hand over her body quickly, saying that things couldn’t go as well as they did with Sloth.

“When you enter my body, you run wild, so what happens when three demons collide?

-With his inspiration, he’ll survive for a while, but he’ll die a lot.

He said that the aftermath of the power would be too great to stop.

-But I’ll try to get King Vaughn to come to his senses as soon as possible, for he has his men there.

-One more thing.

Raon swallowed dryly and opened his mouth.

‘You said there’s a natural connection between the blood of humans and monsters in the Lower Realm, but is that also broken?

-Of course it will break. The lizards will probably jump out and run amok.

Rath shook his head, unable to help himself at this point.

“Then no.

Raon shook his head. ‘That must not happen if we are to save the people of the Subdivision.

-Envy may be ugly and nasty, but he’s not stupid! Your words don’t work! Give yourself up!

Rath wasted no time, grabbing his muzzle and shaking it.

‘Snout… ah!

The information about Envy I’d heard from Rath and the way I’d dealt with Sloth before began to fit together like cogs, and I realized the only way I could survive here and now.

“What a jealous scumbag to make me move twice.”

He took a step in front of her as she was about to make a second gesture.

“I’ll leave it at that.”

“What the hell is that worm saying….”

“You just gave me permission.”

Raon summoned up a rage she hadn’t brought out even in the face of death.

Gooooooo!

Rage, crystallized with cipheran malice, coursed through his soul and bared his sharp teeth at Envy.

“Boo, rage? Why would you have rage….”

“Lord of Jealousy. Envy. I am a vessel for the Lord of Fury.”

Envy’s hand stopped him in his tracks.

-You idiot, that doesn’t work!

“I’m not stopping here.

Raon swallowed back the blood that had risen to the base of his throat, his eyes narrowing.

“Vessel of Wrath, why is a servant of Rath on Sloth’s turf?”

“Because this land belongs to Lord Rath.”

“You’re out of your mind. Sloth is fucking him!”

“He too belongs to Lord Rath.”

“What the….”

-What?

Envy and Rath blinked at the same time.

“The Lord of Sloth. Sloth is already under Lord Rath’s control.”

A jealousy-melting gleam flashed in Raon’s eyes.

-You cheating bastard, what are you going to do this time!