I Geon was seriously examining the ability stats floating before his eyes.
[Hatchling (lv.1)]
- Alignment/ Undetermined
- Penalty/ (990 hours)
- God Seat EXP/ 39840 (Points 0)
《Unique Skills of the One Who Knocks on All Things》
[Hyper-Observation▶God’s Stare (F)]
- Eyes that pierce the essence of all things
- Visible range at current level
(Basic data info on objects/people/skills)
[One-Space Workshop▶Creation Workshop (F)]
- Summons a workshop that creates all things
[Hyper Sense▶Thirteenth Sense (F)]
- Converts to the five senses of a liver snake
[Bullfighting Instinct▶War God Instinct (F)]
- Expends all remaining mana to unleash the dignity of a liver god
《God Seat Skills of the Serpent Bearer Constellation》
[Super Regeneration (F)]
- Regenerates a damaged body to healthy state at ultra-high speed for a duration
- However, if attacked during regeneration, regenerative power decreases
- Recovery Low stage
[Retinue (F)]
- Designated as the 88th Legion of the Serpent Bearer Constellation
- Manages the legion protecting the Serpent Bearer Constellation
- Number of retinue designatable increases per master’s level
(Current retinue count 1/2)
[Piggy Bank lv.1 (Near-Death)]
/Low-rank Servant God/ No 88th Legion affiliation/
Seeing that, I Geon smiled.
As expected, even upon rechecking, his abilities had transformed into bizarre forms.
For instance, the skill to perceive enemy openings had changed into a personal information hacking skill, and what had been a simple awakening effect had turned into a supreme ruler skill.
‘Anyway, it’s a relief I can use all the skills.’
Because even for him, fighting without a single skill had limits.
But there was something peculiar.
[Mana State] 100% (Nutrients Sufficient)
[Divine Might State] 40% (Charging Required)
He understood mana, but what was divine might?
And as if responding to that thought, a voice was heard.
[Divine Might is the power to exert and sustain the power of a star god. It is the dignity of a god.]
[Divine Might (divine power) can also be taken from star gods or other holy domains.]
[If the Divine Might state reaches 0%, it is considered that the dignity of the god has been lost, and the corresponding god seat loses its power. If the low state persists, death by weakening occurs.]
[The health state of the retinue god is also affected by the divine might possessed by the master.]
‘Interesting.’
Though he wasn’t sure, if it was simply an energy source for using this skill, was it something like a life force that allows a god to exist as a god?
Perhaps the identity of the aura he’d felt from the star gods was this.
But confirming the info was brief.
“O-Oh my goodness. This person truly is I Geon-nim?”
Before I Geon’s eyes stood a man and a woman he’d never seen. Moreover, at the sight of them trembling as they looked at him, I Geon had no choice but to say,
“What are these things now?”
“Wow! This is insane. I actually spoke with that I Geon-nim!”
“J-Just one more word!”
In the end, it was Hugo who sighed at the spectacle.
In fact, the place Hugo had brought I Geon to was his own holy ground—the sanctuary of the Divine Palace Constellation.
Of course, even calling it a sanctuary, it was the scope of a single five-story building.
Compared to the White Sheep Constellation sanctuary they’d just come from, was it practically gosiwon level?
Anyway, he’d brought I Geon here because it was the safest location. It could avoid enemy detection, and it was optimal for hiding the sacred items of the White Sheep Constellation that I Geon had stolen.
‘Plus, I need to deal with Yang Woei.’
And the place where all that could be resolved was none other than here.
So sending I Geon up to his office first and then following up was fine, but.
“Good heavens, had I known I Geon-nim was here, I’d have entered I Geon-nim’s holy ground instead of the Divine Palace…!”
“Hey. You’re both fired.”
“!”
That was it.
The ones now trembling before I Geon were none other than his own loyal followers—the holy ones of the Divine Palace Constellation’s sanctuary.
Of course, even if they looked like that, they were his direct subordinates and thus high-rank awakeners.
Yet even those guys seemed like fledglings next to I Geon.
The gap in level was palpable.
‘No, anyone next to him would be the same.’
“Anyway, you guys. I don’t know what misconception you’re under, but that kid isn’t I Geon.”
“Huh? Really?”
The followers of the Divine Palace Constellation were visibly disappointed.
That was natural—the incident that had brought the lord of the castle rushing back from England, the news of I Geon. And he was the kid brought in right after that incident. They’d naturally assumed it was I Geon.
“Indeed, there’s no way I Geon-nim could be this young and handsome.”
What did you say, you punks?
I Geon’s eyes flashed oddly, but a flustered Hugo quickly sent his followers out.
When only the two of them remained in the office, Hugo let out a sigh of relief.
‘Anyway, as expected of executive-level, those quick-witted bastards.’
Of course, it wouldn’t have mattered if they knew it was I Geon, but they’d cause a racket, so he’d temporarily sent them out.
But then, at that moment.
“Hey, you traitor.”
Suddenly, Hugo was kicked by I Geon.
Completely dumbfounded, Hugo turned his head.
“Traitor? What do you… Keuk!”
“Why. You’re a criminal stand-in. Going behind my back to get married and even have kids.”
“!”
Unexpectedly, I Geon pointed at Hugo’s family photo. It was a picture with his 5-year-old and 9-year-old son and daughter—both resembling him—but the girl in particular was very pretty.
“Ah. This bastard, I should’ve recognized it since you were wearing a ring. Betraying me by getting married, you traitor.”
Hugo was flabbergasted.
“You never even planned to meet a woman and settle down anyway! You, who hates being in the same space as others!”
“That’s not it. With this, my plan to mooch off your household is totally ruined.”
“What?”
“No matter what, I can’t leech off someone else’s family, right?”
Hugo seemed quite shocked.
For a different reason.
“Wow, you were capable of that kind of common sense?”
“You still haven’t been hit enough?”
But Hugo seemed genuinely surprised.
“Couldn’t you just ask the government for help instead of holding out your hand to me?”
I Geon is a global hero. The whole world coveted him, and there was no way Korea would pretend not to know.
“You said you contacted the Blue House.”
“Yeah. I did. And those idiots—I’m going to kill them all later.”
“……!”
Hugo’s face froze.
With good reason—the call that happened to come to I Geon had been dismissed as a prank and hung up on.
‘Those fools. There’s no way he’d just let that slide.’
If contact didn’t go through even once, that was it. Actually, the ones in a bind were them, not I Geon.
And ever since the old days, I Geon had received VIP treatment, but whenever he got entangled with the government, he always caused incidents. Of course, back then there was one assemblyman he liked, so he had given them some convenience, but well.
Given the times, I Geon had to go to the front lines every day, but he was hugely pissed off.
“If they at least did their job, I’d understand. People are dying out there, but every little thing, they say ‘report to a superior,’ ‘get permission from a superior,’ ‘waiting for a superior’s answer’—ah, I’m just going to flip it all over.”
‘You already flipped everything once…’
He seemed to have forgotten how the army, navy, and air force generals of a nation had shed tears and snot because of him.
Well, whatever.
“Are you really not going to the government? The president’s been calling like crazy.”
“If I go now, a few of them might tattle right away to a neighboring country’s star god, you know?”
‘He has a point.’
They’d definitely go overboard with all the hero’s return hype.
“I’ll go only after I drag them out by the hair.”
I Geon’s eyes glinted.
It seemed there were some who’d handed over his assets to those bastards—he wouldn’t let it slide.
“Anyway, since my so-called friend went and got married and became a traitor, I’ll have to find another place to stay.”
“It’s fine. You can stay for a while.”
“?”
“I live alone anyway.”
“!”
No wife, his capable college daughter independent, and his son…
Soon, Hugo, recalling his I Geon fanboy son, grimaced.
‘Right. Let’s never tell the kids that I Geon is back.’
But perhaps misreading that expression.
I Geon wore a pitying look as he patted his friend’s shoulder.
“Cheer up. Did they clean you out for alimony?”
“I’m not divorced!”
Hugo glared at I Geon. Now that he thought about it, he was pissed for no reason. His wife was also a fan of I Geon, and even though he was one of the original 13 awakeners, his son and daughter liked I Geon more than their own father.
Of course, his family affairs weren’t what mattered now.
“Enough. What the hell happened to you? What’s with that body, and what went on in the tower?”
Hugo felt incredulous just thinking about that time.
No, clearly 12 people had entered the tower, and it was I Geon who’d opened the way up to the 100th floor where the red eyes were.
“Why did the Lion Seat come out carrying the red eyes’ head, and only you didn’t come out? Did you really fall behind before catching the red eyes, like they said… Ugh!”
Hugo got smacked by I Geon.
“You’re dead. I’m the one who caught the red eyes.”
“…Really?”
It was suspicious after all.
Hugo himself had been around the 90th floor or so.
When monsters from outside swarmed in, he had to exit the tower early to join the outer defense battle, so he hadn’t seen.
‘There’s no way those bastards caught the red eyes.’
Yet those guys, saying that anyone not present should shut up, took all the world’s spotlight.
They even claimed the public’s assessment of I Geon was wrong, but instead, they branded him a liar.
Because of that, Hugo gritted his teeth, but now that he’d heard the answer, he felt refreshed.
“Alright, then let’s set up a press conference first.”
Coincidentally, a large gathering where all 12 god seats would soon assemble was approaching.
Naturally, the world would be watching.
A good opportunity.
I Geon’s eyes flashed as well.
“And among them is one. The bastard who stabbed me in the back.”
“!”
“Thanks to that, I fell into a trap space on the 100th floor. Then the monsters there swarmed in.”
“Then how did you evade those monsters and get out of the tower?”
“Evade, my ass.”
“What?”
“I killed them all and came out.”
Hugo fell silent.
“You’re joking, right?”
“It’s true.”
At that, Hugo dropped the drink bottle he was holding. He stared at I Geon with a look that said “are you insane?”
But I Geon let out a scoff.
“Hey. Common sense—if monsters had remained inside, they would’ve followed me out when I left the tower.”
“That’s impossible! How many monsters were in that tower!”
And inside, there were even unknown creatures they had never seen, and a legion of unidentified beings!
Moreover, all of them had been classified as unable to be exterminated.
‘And he says he killed them all?’
“They said there’d be about ten thousand—how could you kill all of them…!”
“Ten thousand my ass.”
“Huh?”
I Geon sneered.
“There were at least a hundred times that many.”
“What?!”
Hugo was horrified, but I Geon chuckled, saying it still pissed him off to think about.
And for good reason—he hadn’t simply been imprisoned in the tower.
‘Impressive, killing the red eyes. Are you even human?’
Inside the trap, there had been a bizarre tower administrator. He didn’t know its identity, but it was no ordinary monster.
Anyway, that bastard had held him captive, torturing him and enjoying his games.
It was the tower’s infinite reset.
He didn’t know whose ability it was, but I Geon had to catch the monsters he’d already caught again. Most were species classified as unable to be exterminated.
And when he encountered the red eyes again, even the unparalleled I Geon thought he’d truly go insane.
“In the end, only after I killed that administrator did that damn trap release.”
“H-How many times did it repeat?”
“I stopped counting after ten thousand times.”
“……!”
Hugo was aghast.
“Anyway, the bastard who pushed me definitely knew about that trap and shoved me in.”
Listening, Hugo’s already pale face had nowhere left to whiten.
He was unmistakably gauging whether the being before him was truly human or a monster.
But at the same time, Hugo thought it was an enormous deal.
Why?
‘Lately, species that came out of that demon tower have begun appearing.’
They were holding out with barriers for now, but even the star gods were on edge.
‘In reality, without I Geon, who conquered that tower, they’re in deeper trouble.’
He’d encountered a few himself, but those things had only been driven away because he’d instinctively sensed danger.
Yet I Geon, who’d casually slaughtered them all, said,
“Anyway, after killing everything, my body ended up like this….”
I Geon paused mid-sentence and glared at Hugo. Then, out of nowhere, he punched Hugo—whack.
And.
“Take a few hits.”
“You already hit me!”
“You quack bastard. You clearly prophesied I’d die, and that missed again, didn’t it? If you’re like that, quit being a fortune-teller.”
Hugo felt truly wronged.
It wasn’t that he was a quack—it was just that, since the old days, his predictions had weirdly kept missing only when it came to I Geon.
“Whatever, enough.”
I Geon furrowed his brow.
“You guys—I don’t know the method, but you used some trick to raise the star gods’ levels, didn’t you?”
“!”
“I experimented on Yang Woei on purpose, but the star god’s blessing had gotten stronger than before. Thanks to that, my hand hurt like hell beating up that pig bastard.”
Even so, it seemed his opponent had been completely turned into minced meat.
But Hugo soon understood.
In fact, the current 12 star gods had used the EXP gathered by their holy ones to grow their gods and had received special blessings and sacred items from their god.
And that wasn’t all.
‘Some have even become demigod-level.’
No matter how mighty I Geon was, he couldn’t be unscathed.
So he spoke with honest feelings.
“Geon-ah. I’m glad you’re back, and I understand the situation. But no matter how strong you are, crushing them is impossible….”
But then, Hugo flinched.
Because of the aura emanating from I Geon.
Small yet imposing and even noble mana.
Unmistakably.
This feeling that inspired even awe…
‘A star god?’
But then Hugo realized—that couldn’t be.
It was at that moment.
“Hey. Why’d you stop talking?”
“Ah, it’s nothing. Anyway, what do you plan to do next?”
At that, I Geon gave a bloody grin.
“What do I plan? Using the sacred items I brought….”
But right then.
“!”
Bang!
For some reason, I Geon suddenly shot up from his seat.
(Continued in next episode)