The Player that Can’t Level Up

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“I need to be away for a while.
Why? Are you sad I’m leaving? Will you miss me?” Soo-Jung smiled teasingly and replied. 

“N-no, it’s n-not that.” When Gi-Gyu stammered, Soo-Jung calmly promised, “Once I take care of it, I’ll come back.” 

During her private conversation with Tae-Gu, Tae-Gu ended up making a request to her.
Soo-Jung decided to accept this mission since she was an association mercenary and the request lined up with her interests.

‘The association employing Lucifer herself for a request? Sounds unbelievable.’ On numerous occasions, the association’s might had awed Gi-Gyu, so he wondered just how strong Lee Sun-Ho was to defy the association? What’s more confusing was Lucifer and Baal being powerful enough to make direct deals with Lee Sun-Ho. 

‘What complicated relationships they must have with each other,’ Gi-Gyu wondered.
He couldn’t tell if it was peaceful only because these players’ power was well-balanced.
No matter how hard he tried, Gi-Gyu found untangling this web impossible.

Just then, Soo-Jung suggested, “I’m going to say goodbye to your mother and Yoo-Jung.
You…”

“Yeah, there is something I want to talk to Baal about,” replied Gi-Gyu.
He could tell that Soo-Jung had gotten close to his family during her stay here.
They have spent many days together, and it was nice to see different sides of her.
Seeing the infamous Lucifer’s humane side nearly made him question reality; it was akin to living with a celebrity. 

‘What the heck am I thinking?!’ Gi-Gyu quickly shook his head, surprised by his thoughts.
Soo-Jung was a dangerous figure—Someone capable of ending their world.
And her spending a few days with his family didn’t change that. 

His mind told him not to get too attached, but the heart wants what it wants. 

‘It’s hard not to want her as a friend.’

The darnedest thing happened somewhere along the way.
He began looking forward to seeing her.
Feeling a little embarrassed, he quickly changed the subject.
“Umm… Anyway, go say goodbye to my family.”

Gi-Gyu’s odd response confused Lucifer, but she remained silent and looked at him for a fleeting moment before climbing the stairs.
On the other hand, Gi-Gyu went down to the basement and found Baal standing in the middle, concentrating on something.

“…” Baal was probably very focused on his task because he didn’t even acknowledge Gi-Gyu’s arrival.
Instead of interfering, Gi-Gyu decided to sit down on a chair nearby and wait.
He knew how vital Baal’s work was for Baal and him. 

Various bright and dark lights appeared from Baal, who controlled his magic to form and edit the content of the magic circle.
Watching with interest, Gi-Gyu wondered, ‘What level is Baal?’

Now that he thought about it, he realized he didn’t know the level of any high ranker or above close to him.
Gi-Gyu suddenly became very curious, but it wasn’t the right time to ask such a question. 

‘Haa…’ Gi-Gyu sighed silently.
He was worried about what was to come in his future. 

‘Ironshield…’ He promised himself he would kill Ironshield for the nth time before realizing torture wouldn’t be that bad an idea.
Currently, Rogers was getting less than an hour of sleep every day and was forced to build the pyramid.
Despite the constant whipping and starvation, Rogers didn’t die because he was a player.
After Nine took away his stats, leaving him a shell of his former self, he began resenting Ironshield.
So, torturing Ironshield like Rogers Han could indeed be a splendid idea.

‘After he finishes the pyramid, what should I make him build next? Eiffel Tower seems fun.
Should I hire a talented architect for the next idea?’ Gi-Gyu chuckled, reveling in his fun revenge. 

‘Who knows? Rogers might come in handy in the future.’

Gi-Gyu looked down at his watch.
He had been so deep in his thoughts that he didn’t even notice how much time had passed.
It was already dinner time, so he assumed Soo-Jung must be having dinner with his family.
Gi-Gyu thought about joining them, but he decided to stay with Baal. 

Currently, Gi-Gyu’s head was a little calm, free of its usual chatter.
Brunheart was asleep after getting tired from their incessant chat earlier. 

‘Egos sleep too… How surprising.’ As far as Gi-Gyu knew, El slept most of the day.
The only one who didn’t sleep was…

-It’s definitely not because I slept for so long before.
I’m just superior. 

Lou explained.
Lou had lived an eternity: A period so long that he had to erase his memory just to keep sane.
 

When Gi-Gyu began to feel sad, Lou grumbled,

-Don’t be so pathetic. 

Gi-Gyu smiled. 

Suddenly, Baal greeted, “You’re here.”

Baal had long been aware of Gi-Gyu’s presence, but he still greeted Gi-Gyu out of respect. 

“Yes, I am.” When Gi-Gyu replied, Baal apologized, “I’m sorry I made you wait for so long.”

“Not at all.” Their conversation remained very formal.
Despite their long time together, Gi-Gyu still found befriending Baal hard. 

-And there is no need for you to be his friend.

Baal heard Lou’s annoyed comment and smiled.
Gi-Gyu knew Baal only smiled when his experiment was successful, so he asked, “I guess it worked?”

Gi-Gyu must have guessed right because Baal nodded.
“Nine’s corruption has been completed.
It was already so close to being fully tainted that it wasn’t hard to nudge it further.
You shouldn’t have any problem using it from now on.”

“Thank you.” Gi-Gyu nodded to show his appreciation.
In a way, Nine was a gift Rogers Han gave him.
Because it was a unique sword, neither Lou nor El could absorb it until now.
But Gi-Gyu kept the sword because he knew its potential was endless.
It was also vital in carrying out his next plan.

For the last several days, Baal worked on fully corrupting Nine.
When Gi-Gyu first obtained this sword, it was in an awkward state, so he decided to turn it into an evil sword since it was much easier. 

-But Master, you’ve to maintain a balance.
You cannot lean toward the darkness too much. 

“I remember, El,” Gi-Gyu replied and sheathed Nine before placing it inside the gate. 

Then, Gi-Gyu walked toward Baal.
A stone coffin with damage all over stood before them. 

“Min-Su,” Gi-Gyu murmured as he looked at the little boy.
Old Man Hwang’s grandson and Hwang Chae-Il’s son, Hwang Min-Su, still laid inside the coffin.