Lee Geon instantly recognized the owner of that voice. And this voice belonged to one of the Twelve, a quack fortune-teller. His one and only friend.
He wasn't the type to miss people, but still, hearing that voice after so long was quite welcome. So, he turned his head, feeling rather pleased—
"!"
Lee Geon's face soured instantly.
"You bastard, if you were alive you should've come straight to me! What the hell is this, the moment you come back!?"
A considerable distance away, Hugo was holding someone by the collar. He couldn't tell who it was, but the man wore a mask similar to his own. Probably one of the Lee Geon crew that had been with him. Maybe one of those who'd rushed out of the museum in a hurry.
But.
"I told you so many times not to come to the sanctuary, yet you go and turn it into a complete wasteland!"
At that shout, Lee Geon's face twisted into a grimace of disgust.
That son of a bitch.
He's mistaken, but there's a limit to how badly you can get it wrong.
The elderly man caught by Hugo was actually flustered and didn't know what to do. But whether Hugo knew this or not, he grabbed the man's arm and pulled.
"Anyway, come over here! Let's go talk... Kkeoheok!"
Hugo went flying in an instant, his face kicked.
Thud!
A sudden dropkick out of nowhere. Hugo, his face kicked abruptly, collapsed onto the ground.
Thud!
And at the sight of one of the Twelve Saints falling, the elderly man who had been seized opened his mouth in shock.
"??"
Even Hugo, the one struck, was dumbfounded.
But.
"You little shit. Wanna die?"
Lee Geon, who had appeared delivering the kick, dusted off his knees.
"There's a limit to what a brat like you can mistake."
Lee Geon glared at the fallen Hugo with a menacing face. Hugo, on the other hand, was utterly bewildered. His expression looked like he had about a million question marks floating over it as he stared at the suddenly appeared Lee Geon. As if asking, who the hell is this guy?
But at the same time, Hugo's eyes went to something Lee Geon was holding. It was a chisel used for carving wood or stone. Hugo was startled by the familiar object. Sure enough, when Lee Geon tossed his tool into the air, it transformed into a form Hugo knew well.
'!'
What appeared this time was none other than a red slime. The creature slapped onto Lee Geon's head and began smacking him repeatedly.
And that was unmistakably Lee Geon's shape-shifting holy relic.
Among the countless items Lee Geon had crafted, it was a living holy relic that obeyed only the commands of its master, Lee Geon.
And as Hugo's face filled with horrified realization, Lee Geon smiled.
"O Taek-su, you dumbass, can't you even recognize your friend's face?"
At last, Hugo screamed inwardly.
'Lee Geon!'
At the same time, the flustered Hugo looked at the person he had grabbed.
"Th-then this person... no, this gentleman? His face..."
It was a man who looked exactly like Lee Geon. The clothes, the mask, even the distorted face—all identical.
At that, the man Hugo had caught scratched his cheek and laughed.
"Ah, sorry. This face is special effects makeup..."
"?!"
He had grabbed Hugo, asking for an autograph. Apparently, he was a die-hard fan of Lee Geon and the Sagittarius Seat.
At the same time, Lee Geon clicked his tongue as if they were pathetic.
"Brat, going around causing trouble for others."
Hugo felt as if he'd been smacked hard on the head.
What? Trouble?
In the end, Hugo hastily gave the autograph-requesting fanatic his signature on his clothes and sent him back. Then he looked at Lee Geon in utter disbelief.
'What on earth is going on?'
Hugo couldn't understand this situation at all. Because the person before him was a completely different person.
Before his eyes was a tall figure over 180 cm with a straight face. Sharp eyes that particularly suited a mocking smile. Even his age was completely different. And even the aura of his magical power.
And it was so shocking that even the Star God he served—the Sagittarius Seat's master—was greatly agitated and displeased.
[The Star God of Sagittarius, master of the Fiery Serpent Seat, says this is impossible.]
[The Star God of Sagittarius, master of the Fiery Serpent Seat, arrogantly insists he is a complete stranger.]
[He says there can't possibly be another human like Lee Geon in the world.]
[The Star God of Sagittarius, master of the Fiery Serpent Seat, orders you to burn him once to death to force him to reveal his identity.]
At that notification, Lee Geon grinned crookedly.
That shitty Star God bastard, 'burn him once'.
It seemed the Star God of the Sagittarius Seat was the one he'd dealt with the most among the Twelve Star Gods. And that bastard was a god of extreme sloth and severe narcissism. Because of that, Hugo had struggled to pay the price, and Lee Geon often had to help him out. That was because Hugo's Star God greatly fancied the items Lee Geon made and cherished him.
Anyway, there was no way he wouldn't recognize him. Moreover, since the god was quite high in rank and powerful, there was even less chance of a mistake.
'Unexpected. I thought the shitheads were just morons and that's why they didn't recognize me.'
Lee Geon, who held infinitely harsh assessments even against Star Gods, was intrigued.
'So even the Star Gods can't distinguish me, huh?'
It was true that he had regained his original face, but it seemed it wasn't just a simple rejuvenation and body regeneration. It was even more certain since they didn't distinguish humans solely by face. Something more significant must have changed about his body.
"Anyway, Taek-su, boy, you've aged like crazy in the meantime?"
Hugo was dumbfounded. Just how many years did this punk think had passed? He didn't know what the hell was going on, but...
"You... are you really Geon? Your voice is a little different too..."
Lee Geon smiled.
"How about now, same?"
"!"
His voice instantly became rough and deepened. And that was a familiar voice to Hugo.
"Back then, my throat wasn't good, so I spoke a little lower."
"......!"
But thanks to super regeneration, his previously bad throat had also gotten better, so there was no longer any reason to speak that way.
And at that point, Hugo laughed helplessly. It seemed he just couldn't believe that Lee Geon had returned.
He had good reason to, since he himself had entered that tower later and knew well. The environment was utterly impossible for a human to survive. So he was bound to be bewildered.
"How on earth did you... No, forget it. If you're alive, that's all that matters."
"No. It matters a lot to me."
Huh?
In an instant, a chill ran down Hugo's spine. Sure enough, Lee Geon was cracking his knuckles and grinning broadly.
"I told you clearly."
"...Wh-what exactly?"
"That I'd find you and kill you, so do your best."
"?!"
Only then did Hugo remember the voice message left for him.
"Ah, n-no, wait—"
Lee Geon approached Hugo with a gentle smile.
"It's great that I survived in the tower, but something's strange. My house got sold off, and even my kid got locked inside a museum glass case and used as a money-making exhibit. The rest of my kids, I have no idea where they went."
"Ah, no, Geon."
"I'm pretty sure I asked you to handle things according to my will if something happened to me. Especially that you take good care of my kids—I even bought you a ton of meat for that. But it's weird. The will got changed to contents even I don't know about?"
Hugo was drenched in cold sweat. His backward steps were pure instinct.
But he had things to say too.
"No, I mean... I never imagined even the will would have been changed... So it just turned out that way..."
"Hey."
"!"
Lee Geon's previously gentle voice turned vicious.
"Shut up, and for now, you can take a few hits too."
***
Crack!
A terrifying sound rang out in the sanctuary of the Aries Seat. And at that sound, the sacred followers of the Aries Seat who had been chasing the intruder were startled and stirred.
"What's that? What's that sound?"
"Wasn't that the sound of magical powers clashing?"
"What? Magical power? What the hell do you have to do to make a sound like that?"
"It's over there!"
Trembling, the sacred followers rushed en masse toward the source of the sound.
And at the same time, Hugo, who had been beaten by Lee Geon, couldn't even scream.
"...#&*!"
No, honestly, even seeing this bastard with his own eyes, he couldn't believe he had returned.
'He really is the real deal.'
Hugo clutched his solar plexus as if he were dying. Of all things, to feel his return through something like this—it nearly brought tears to his eyes.
If it weren't for the Star God's protection skill, it would've ended here; if he were a monster, he'd surely be dead.
But it was then.
"We found the thief!"
"Over here!"
"It's the person who stole the Star Lord's treasures!"
As the Aries Seat's sacred followers swarmed in, Hugo was flabbergasted.
Wait a minute, the Star Lord's treasures?
"If it were your stuff I might understand, but what's this about now..."
At that, Lee Geon cackled and pointed at something.
"They're probably looking for that."
When Hugo turned his head involuntarily, his heart nearly dropped.
Because the park area Lee Geon was pointing to was filled with expensive golden riches.
Most eye-catching of all was a golden chest!
'That's one of the Aries Seat's representative holy relics!'
In the end, Hugo screamed.
"What the hell did you bring with you!? Of all things, an SS-class treasure!"
"Why, what's the problem! Since they stole so much anyway, a bit like this doesn't matter!"
"Hey!"
Was turning the sanctuary into a wasteland not enough for him!?
But at that moment, the gathered Aries sacred followers launched their attacks.
Boom! Boom!
The ground shook violently as divine beasts that protected the sanctuary burst forth. They were gigantic creatures that faintly resembled dragons. And one of them was one of the kin-gods raised by the Star God.
'Pixiu!'
A divine beast of wealth from Chinese mythology.
Pixiu, the ninth son of the dragon, was a creature that lived by eating money. After being struck by the Jade Emperor and having its anus blocked, it could only eat money and never excrete it. And its trait was gluttony.
[Warning. Your holy relics may be taken away.]
[Warning. Your wealth may be taken away.]
At that, Lee Geon looked at Hugo with extreme annoyance.
"Taek-su. Handle that thing for me."
The fallen Hugo was flabbergasted.
"You beat a person like that, and you have a conscience?"
He didn't even have the strength to move from the pain.
Lee Geon clicked his tongue. As if asking, you went down from just that?
"Feeble punk. A combat seat Star Lord, and you're damn weak."
Hugo felt truly wronged.
"You're just too strong! And you're from a production lineage!"
"Oh. Is that so?"
Lee Geon picked at his ear. But Hugo sighed and rose from his spot.
He had no idea how his friend had returned. And Lee Geon, at least outwardly, looked fine.
But Hugo knew Lee Geon better than anyone.
'Geon's combat carries too much risk.'
Lee Geon was the type who consumed his own body when using his abilities. He was even called a half-penny by others because he had no Star God.
And after 20 years had passed in that body, there was no way he could fight properly. Let alone peak abilities, his best bet would be to dodge and move.
"I'll handle this for now... Kkeoheok!"
However, just as Hugo tried to use his magical power, he was kicked again.
Hugo glared, asking what the hell this was for, but Lee Geon clicked his tongue.
"Hey, hey. If you use magical power so recklessly, this whole place will be destroyed. As a Star Lord, you should cause trouble in moderation."
Hugo's insides exploded.
What was that bastard saying now?
'Who was the one that smashed everything up until now?'
But regardless, Lee Geon indifferently transformed his slime into the shape of a blade.
Of course, it wasn't an ordinary blade. It was a small carving knife used only for crafting. The slime was strictly a crafting-type holy relic, so it couldn't be used as a weapon. Originally, it only demonstrated its true ability when transforming into a tool-like implement. So it was useless against kin-gods or monsters.
'Well, still, this much should be enough.'
But that was when.
'!'
The moment he infused magical power, an unexpected change occurred in his holy relic.
(To be continued in the next chapter)