LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 12
Chapter 12
The Soldier with the Golden Crown. One of the 72 Demon Lords who served directly under the Seven Demonic Gods representing the Seven Deadly Sins.
Ranked 28th among the Demon Lords, Berith.
‘Berith?’
While investigating Mammon’s treasury, Se-woon became well-versed in the Evil Constellations. There was no way he wouldn’t know about Berith.
‘The Duke of Hell commanding 26 legions.’
Although not on par with demon gods, being ranked 28th among the 72 Demon Lords itself symbolized immense status.
Such a Constellation had taken an interest in the old man, Go Chang-seok.
‘Well, it makes sense for Berith to be interested.’
Many thought of Berith as a battle maniac due to his appearance riding a red horse, but Berith’s true strength lay in alchemy.
It’s said he can turn almost any metal into gold. Especially, his skill in handling steel is said to rival Hephaestus, one of the 12 Olympian gods.
‘No, when it comes to weapons, he’s even beyond that.’
While Hephaestus might focus on overall balance and aesthetic beauty, Berith focuses solely on ‘destruction.’
The equipment he creates, with an emphasis on sheer force regardless of means or purpose, is sought after even by the divine gods.
Just as Go Chang-seok was about to start tanning the hide, he tilted his head upon seeing the message.
“What’s this?”
“A Constellation.”
“Constellation? What’s that?”
“Exactly what it sounds like—godly entities. Transcendent beings who reside at the top of the tower.”
“Why would a god be interested in me? They must not have anything better to do. And how do you know all this?”
“I’m also under the attention of other Constellations.”
That should explain it.
As Se-woon pondered this, he considered the possibilities.
While Go Chang-seok’s skills were impressive, they weren’t enough to garner the interest of a Constellation just from a single sharpening session.
Yet, Berith showing up indicated something else was at play.
– The Constellation, ‘Hungry Prince,’ grows impatient and wants you to find new prey instead of handling something inedible.
– The Constellation, ‘Bowed Raven,’ gazes indifferently downward.
Influenced by the gaze of the two demon gods, the 72 Demon Lords have begun to show interest in this camp.
‘So that’s what happened.’
It seemed that the presence of Mammon and Beelzebub with Se-woon, had drawn the attention of other demonic gods as well.
Well, it made sense.
A Constellation at the level of a demon god doesn’t casually take interest in just anyone.
Having not one, but two demon gods watching Se-woon, it was natural for the Demon Lords to become curious.
“So, what am I supposed to do? Perform some tricks?”
“Just keep doing what you’re doing. They aren’t harmful. In fact, their increased interest could be very beneficial.”
“Beneficial?”
“Like how I handled the flames.”
“Oh, now that is intriguing.”
There were many negative perceptions about evil gods among the general public.
Unlike with the good gods, there’s a notion that forming a contract with or receiving power from an evil god results in losing one’s soul, will, and purpose.
However, after thoroughly researching the evil gods, Se-woon discovered that these were mere misconceptions born from the demon’s reputation.
Evil gods, like good gods, take an interest in players, and if they fancy them, they grant power.
Of course, the more power one receives, the more constraints are imposed, but this is also true for the good gods.
Moreover, there is a huge difference between receiving and not receiving the interest of a Constellation as a player.
Both for Se-woon and Go Chang-seok, Berith’s interest was certainly not a bad thing.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Don’t worry. I’m much better at this than swinging a wooden stick at monsters.”
With a short nod, Se-woon left the spot.
Having a professional handle his equipment was something Se-woon welcomed wholeheartedly.
Although it wasn’t certain yet if Go Chang-seok completed his contract with Berith,
‘At least regarding equipment, there won’t be anything to worry about.’
As Go Chang-seok’s skills improved, he would easily surpass the level of most blacksmiths encountered in the tower.
Such was the superiority of the power of a Constellation.
[ Tutorial Chapter One – Adaptation ]
– Time remaining until the fourth monster wave: 3 hours 21 minutes.
Now, Se-woon’s task was to make the most of the time before the next wave.
* * *
Following his pre-set plan, Se-woon focused on building his dantian during the remaining time.
While magic could be handled with a mana circle, using a sword or moving the body efficiently relied most on internal energy channeled through the dantian.
Simply opening the dantian would significantly amplify the power of the martial arts he had been using.
– Opened the Treasury of Greed.
[ Samjaegong (三才功) ]
– Observing the myriad phenomena of the universe through the three origins of heaven (天), earth (地), and humanity (人).
Samjaegong.
Despite its grandiose description, it’s considered one of the most basic internal martial arts practices.
Although known as the safest art, making it suitable for foundational work, its efficiency pales in comparison to other techniques.
It can be likened to the Blue Tower’s training method used for creating mana circles.
Naturally, the reason Se-woon chose Samjaegong out of many techniques was similar to why he chose the Blue Tower’s method. He aimed to establish a firm foundation with Samjaegong, then use other techniques to efficiently build up his dantian.
“Hoo…”
Se-woon regulated his breathing while contemplating the profundities of Samjaegong.
Perhaps due to their similar orientations, Samjaegong had many overlapping elements with the Blue Tower’s training method.
The difference lay in guiding the energy not to the heart but to the lower abdomen’s dantian.
And this time, instead of creating something like a circle, he needed to “open” the hardened dantian.
Boom!
The mana—or rather, internal energy—guided by Se-woon arrived at the dantian, pounding on its door. When there was no response, Se-woon increased both the force and speed, hitting the door harder.
Finding the dantian firmer than expected, Se-woon steadied his breath and compacted his internal energy tightly, hitting it like a battering ram.
Crash!!
Soon, he felt a shock that made his body tremble.
– Successfully opened the dantian through Samjaegong.
– With the dantian opened, you can now manage internal energy within your body.
– The efficiency of all martial arts you use will increase based on your internal energy level.
– Earned a remarkable achievement.
– Earned 1,000 points as a reward.
Se-woon’s dantian opened wide.
Successfully opening the dantian in less than two hours, Se-woon wiped off the cold sweat.
Sensing Se-woon’s internal energy, the Constellations began to gather again.
– The Constellation, ‘General in Shining Armor,’ is astonished by your boldness!
– The Constellation, ‘Fierce White-Haired Old Man,’ declares this isn’t mere boldness, but the domain of superior wisdom, and is impressed.
– The Constellation, ‘General Who Hunts the Wicked Spirits,’ …
It was to be expected.
Just like with the mana circle, opening the dantian was known to take at least several months.
Even those known as prodigies usually take several weeks and at the very least a few days, to open their dantian.
Opening the dantian in less than two hours, as Se-woon did, was known to be impossible unless it was forcibly shocked open.
Knowing this, the Constellations flocked to Se-woon, all trying to converse with him.
– The Constellation, ‘Bowed Raven,’ lifts the treasure it had set down once again.
– The Constellation, ‘Fierce White-Haired Old Man,’ asks for a moment.
– The Constellation, ‘Bowed Raven,’ has blocked all communications from Constellations of lower rank than itself.
Again, due to Mammon’s interference, the messages from the Constellations were all blocked.
Of course, no matter how powerful Mammon was, he couldn’t block communication from beings of similar rank.
Since Mammon possessed a supreme rank even among demonic gods, most beings couldn’t approach Se-woon easily.
Looking up, Se-woon saw that approximately one hour remained.
It was too tight to head to the rocky mountain, so he decided to focus on accumulating more mana.
Just as he was about to close his eyes again—
Thud.
Three items were placed before Se-woon.
A lustrous Gray cloak, carefully tanned, and a crude white dagger laid on top of it—these were the items Se-woon had entrusted to Go Chang-seok.
“That was quicker than I expected.”
“I wanted to find a suitable polishing material, but that would be impossible here. For now, I just tanned the hide and shaped it into a wearable form to the best of my ability.”
“And this dagger…”
“I just sharpened it to set the edge. The material is good, but lacking proper tools, I had to crudely sharpen it with a whetstone, making it quite a task.”
Despite expressing that it was a difficult job, Go Chang-seok’s face looked very bright.
In the midst of battling monsters in a new world, it must have been a joy for Go Chang-seok to return to his true calling, even if only for a moment.
Se-woon decided to appraise the items in front of him.
[ Gray Wolf Cloak ]
Category: Cloak
Rank: D
Description: The hide of the Gray Wolf that ruled over the Brown Wolves in the Wolf Forest. Expertly tanned by a skilled craftsman, preserving its inherent strength to the fullest.
Abilities:
1. Aura of Dominance – Grants charisma to allies and instills fear in enemies as a leader.
2. Blessing of the Wind – Increases movement speed by 10%.
First, the cloak.
The only change in abilities was a slight increase in movement speed, but Se-woon knew. The leather had been tanned to become sturdier and meticulously processed to ensure it did not hinder movements.
This alone would enhance its defensive properties and make movements smoother.
[ Molar Dagger ]
Category: Dagger
Rank: D+
Description: The molar of the ‘Boar that Rips the Hill,’ which ruled the hill. Sharpened and shaped solely with a whetstone, drawing out its inherent power to the extreme.
Abilities:
1. Reckless Charge – Increases attack power and sharpness by up to 20% when thrusting.
2. Durability – Inherits the strength of its former owner, greatly enhancing its durability.
“How is it, do you like it?”
“Yes, truly.”
“Using my strength again after so long has my shoulders feeling stiff.”
Go Chang-seok said this as he rotated his shoulders.
Meanwhile, Se-woon couldn’t take his eyes off the dagger.
‘To raise its Rank to D+ without any tools…’
Despite it being made from a boss monster’s material, they were in a place devoid of even basic equipment, let alone a forge.
Se-woon hadn’t expected much, but the outcome far exceeded his expectations.
No matter how excellent the whetstone from the boss monster was, this result was extraordinary.
It was clear why Berith had taken an interest in Go Chang-seok.
“This is something I threw together with the leftover leather. You can’t be carrying two weapons all the time.”
“Thank you.”
Go Chang-seok handed Se-woon a leather belt.
Se-woon had been worried about how to carry his weapons, and this belt seemed to solve that problem for the time being.
“And from now on, instead of engaging in direct combat, I’d like you to manage the camp’s equipment.”
“…Is that alright? The more fighters we have, the better.”
“No, it would be much more beneficial if you could make good equipment.”
“Ahem. Well, it’s what I was originally doing, so I don’t mind.”
“Don’t worry. The better the equipment you make, the more I can contribute to our strength.”
“Hearing you say that makes me feel reassured.”
Although he still hesitated a bit, he didn’t seem to intend to refuse. After all, handling equipment suited him far better than fighting monsters.
Se-woon then sought out Yoo Seo-ah to discuss Go Chang-seok’s new role.
Moreover, he had something else he wanted to talk to her about.
With roughly an hour left until the fourth wave, this battle was anticipated to be on an entirely different level of difficulty compared to the previous three waves.