Everyone's expressions were a sight to see.
Even Igeon rarely opened his eyes wide, and Yang Wei trembled as if wondering what on earth was going on.
Not to mention the ordinary saints who had never been in the same room as subordinate gods.
The Cheon siblings wondered what was happening.
Low-level awakener Han Jimin had already collapsed and was on the verge of fainting.
That was understandable; the subordinate gods were gods of destruction who treated humans cruelly.
They were the kind who treated humans like bugs.
Rather than hating humans, they simply perceived them as lower life forms in their very concept.
‘They’re gods, so it’s understandable.’
It was only fortunate that the Holy God held the reins; otherwise, they would have killed all humans by now.
That was why no one except saints could even approach them.
The very minimum level they acknowledged as communication partners was saint-level, one might say.
But even those saint-level ones were ultimately ignored as mere humans.
Yet those very beings...!
[Ah, I dare not lift my eyes to that noble countenance!]
[We are not even worthy to address Him!]
[O servant of the Bow Palace! What are you doing!]
[Are you not requesting an audience right now!]
[O servant!]
[O servant!]
Hugo stood frozen with his arms crossed.
Of course, he wasn't overwhelmed by the gods' majesty.
‘Servant... servant...’
Being called a servant seemed to be a great shock to him.
But regardless, the beings of light called out to Hugo piteously.
[O servant, you are far too slow!]
[Did you not say you were a friend of that noble one!]
[If you do not announce us, we cannot even speak to Him, so hurry!]
[Hurry!!]
“…….”
Heiji was already lost in a daze.
But regardless, Igeon let out a hollow laugh.
He didn't know the full story, but those subordinate gods were definitely followers of the Gemini Holy God.
The blue aura surrounding them proved it.
So it was a ridiculous situation.
They clung not to Heiji, the contractor of Gemini, but to Hugo of all people.
And they were requesting an audience with him?
Moreover, from the way they spoke, it seemed they had some kind of relationship with Hugo.
So Igeon burst into a hollow laugh.
“Hey.”
Hugo still hadn't recovered from the shock of being called a servant.
“What on earth did you bring? Those are the underlings of the Gemini Holy God.”
When Igeon opened his mouth, the light figures stirred greatly.
They seemed purely moved that Igeon was showing interest in them.
“Why are those things requesting an audience with you, you bastard?”
Hit by a flying remote control, Hugo quickly came to his senses.
He shot a displeased look at Igeon.
“Why else? It's all because of you.”
“What?”
He thought it was more nonsense, but instead of answering, Hugo placed his hand on the surface of his wristwatch.
[Bow Palace's Insignia (Saint-level)]
And when he removed his hand, flames rose along his palm and something appeared.
It was a bow.
The temporary bow Igeon had made.
As soon as the bow appeared, the lights stirred even more.
When Hugo waved the bow, the subordinate gods followed it like dogs. A movement as if enchanted.
[The subordinates are reacting to the power of the Serpent Bearer.]
[They are praising the weapon's power.]
Hugo frowned disapprovingly.
“See? When I'm holding this, a few subordinate gods attached themselves. They said it smells like you.”
“Huh?”
Igeon thought it was another absurd situation, but one of them bowed its head and cried out.
[We humbly report that we, your humble servants, have already surrendered to Lord Igeon.]
[You may not remember, but we tried to offer the treasures of Gemini.]
“?!”
It was Heiji and Yang Wei who screamed.
“How can the subordinates serving Gemini...!”
“Wow, the offerings of Gemini are all high-grade or above! I'm jealous, damn it!”
And at the subordinates' words, Igeon thought, ‘Ah.’
‘Come to think of it, there were Gemini subordinates who surrendered to me.’
It was definitely after he had sent the bombs back to the Palace of Yin and Yang.
[There is a subordinate that declared complete surrender.]
[You can take them as prisoners of the Serpent Bearer.]
[The subordinates say they will offer tribute as a sign of surrender.]
[Will you accept?]
Such notifications had definitely come.
But wasn't it the case that the surrendered subordinates were in a place beyond his reach, and he had to go to the Palace of Yin and Yang personally?
The same was true for the treasures.
[Cannot be transferred to the Piggy Bank.]
[The size and weight of the treasures the subordinates wish to offer are too large.]
That notification had definitely come.
So he had thought he would have to go to the Palace of Yin and Yang someday.
But those guys are here?
[We are humbled, but we felt the aura of the noble Lord Igeon when we were at the Palace of Yin and Yang.]
[From that servant's bow!]
They're calling him a servant again.
Hugo despaired, but regardless, the group of lights screamed.
Because Igeon approached them.
They were incredibly moved and humbled to see his noble countenance up close.
And that wasn't all.
[In truth, that lowly servant you sent, Lord Igeon, was of great help!]
[We had no expectations, yet you sent such a special envoy for wretches like us!]
At that, Igeon tilted his head.
‘They’re under some misunderstanding.’
Actually, he only sent Hugo to sneak away Heiji's body.
He had made a deal that if they helped, he would praise Hugo in front of his subordinates.
But the subordinates, who couldn't have known that, seemed moved.
[When our superior surrendered to Lord Igeon, we were skeptical, but indeed you were right!]
[Such an aura just from a weapon!]
[That skill! We cannot forget it! With such a crude bow, you dealt with all the enemies of the sea!]
[And you even laid waste to the Palace of Yin and Yang!]
At those words, Hugo felt very wronged.
At that point, wasn't the one who did the work him?
But all the praise was going to Igeon.
‘Well, I admit the weapon's performance is great.’
In fact, if it weren't for Igeon's weapon, he wouldn't have been able to rampage that much in the domain of another god.
But in the midst of that, Igeon was puzzled.
There was something among their words that caught his attention.
“Your superior?”
At that, the subordinates flinched in surprise and bowed their heads again.
Because from here on was the main point.
[In truth, our legion commander wishes to meet you.]
[He wanted to personally appear here with us, but was unable to leave the sanctuary and could not contain his sorrow.]
[So he sent us humble servants ahead.]
[We will pledge our loyalty to Lord Igeon!]
[If not, then even as prisoners, it doesn't matter!]
At this, Heiji, who had been dazed, came to her senses.
Any subordinate god would be important, but battle gods were a tremendous force.
‘No, those gods—they’re what kind of gods!’
At the same time, Igeon's eyes sparkled.
It couldn't be helped.
[The Whitest God's Radiance (Legendary-grade)]
[One-Eyed Berserker (Legendary-grade)]
[Giant of the Giant King (Legendary-grade)]
These guys were legendary-grade. And if they had a superior, it would be at least mythic-grade.
‘A bigger fish than expected has been caught.’
And though their distant names couldn't be known with the Eye's level yet, it wasn't impossible to guess.
‘For one, a descendant of the God of Light.’
Anyway, this time he had sent only Hugo because it was a bother, but if it was a mythic-grade subordinate god, the story changed.
‘A strong force is helpful.’
“Where is your superior?”
[Following the Palace of Yin and Yang down to the seabed, there is a god's palace.]
[He is confined there.]
But then.
Bang!
[!]
Igeon struck the floor with his sword as if it were nothing.
At the fierce pressure, the group of lights swallowed nervously.
But the corners of Igeon's mouth went up.
“Why are you so determined to leave your Gemini Holy God and come here?”
[Unable to endure the tyranny of the Two-Faced Lord....]
“Right. Don't bullshit me.”
[In truth, it seemed the lord of Gemini would lose to Lord Igeon.]
“Okay. I like your honesty.”
At this, the three saints were dumbfounded.
Heiji, who witnessed the betrayal of the subordinate gods in real time, was on the verge of losing her mind, while Hugo and Yang Wei were flabbergasted for other reasons.
‘Could it really be possible to take even high-ranking subordinate gods as underlings?’
Though not legion commander level, they were at least commander level.
Of course, Hugo had already seen Igeon taking subordinate gods as underlings.
It was during the Piggy Bank incident.
But now, the situation was completely different from the time with Pixiu. Yang Wei felt the same.
‘Pixiu might be a beast, so it's plausible to beat it into submission, but...’
Those guys came on their own feet.
And such high-level beings bowing their heads to a human?
‘That's ridiculous.’
And even a mythic-grade one says it will pledge loyalty to Igeon.
The saints, who were usually disdained by them, were dumbstruck.
But regardless, Igeon's eyes gleamed.
‘A mythic-grade, I'll have to go to the Pacific side at least.’
Of course, that area overlaps with the sanctuaries of other gods, so it could be a bit dangerous.
Moreover, that place is not human territory.
‘If my memory serves, it's outside the dome.’
It's the realm of an unknown civilization.
Also, I heard the place where the Lion’s constellation fell is roughly around there.
Well, it didn't matter.
[Other loyal retainers will also arrive soon.]
Finally, the subordinate gods bowed their heads.
[You can take the Whitest God's Radiance (Legendary-grade) as a subordinate.]
[You can take the One-Eyed Berserker (Legendary-grade) as a subordinate.]
[You can take the Giant of the Giant King (Legendary-grade) as a subordinate.]
[Will you take them as subordinates?]
Igeon smiled.
“Alright, I'll take them as subordinates.”
Igeon reached out his hand, and at that, Heiji snorted.
“Subordinates? You? For someone like you to take a god as a subordinate, how could that be proper...”
But then.
Flash!
A tremendous light poured out, and an astonishing thing happened.
Flash!
[Warrior King Yareul (High-grade) has become a subordinate of the Serpent Bearer.]
[Giant Jotun (High-grade) has become a subordinate of the Serpent Bearer.]
[Berserk (High-grade) has become a subordinate of the Serpent Bearer.]
[Subordinates: 4]
[Prisoners: 1]
[You can grant names to the subordinates.]
Igeon spoke as if annoyed.
“One-boy. Two-boy. Three-boy.”
[Yareul (High-grade) has been granted the name One-boy (High-grade).]
[Jotun (High-grade) has been granted the name Two-boy (High-grade).]
[Berserk (High-grade) has been granted the name Three-boy (High-grade).]
At the same time, the aura of Gemini vanished from the bodies of the subordinate gods.
And what appeared was the aura of the Serpent Bearer.
At the aura, identical to the one felt from Igeon, the saints were horrified.
“H- high-grade battle gods...!”
“Is that crazy?”
Heiji was completely frozen.
How could a mere human have subordinate gods under his command?
‘No way.’
But regardless, Igeon grinned at Heiji.
“Gemini sure is being generous, too generous.”
Heiji flared up.
“Igeon!”
But.
“Well, it would be too unfair to just receive so unilaterally. Guess I'll receive punishment.”
“!”
Heiji's heart raced at Igeon's words.
As expected, Igeon smiled as if showing mercy.
“I'll return your body.”
Igeon infused magic into his hand.
Heiji was overjoyed, ready to leap.
“Thank...!”
Heiji prepared herself and focused her mind.
But then.
Heiji felt a strangeness as there was no change in her body.
However.
“Thank you! Thank you!”
Heiji stiffened at the sound of her own familiar voice.
Her own body was moving. But the soul inside was not hers.
She was still in the figurine.
That meant.
‘Reriqueen!’
“Lord Igeon, thank you! Thank you!”
At that cry, Heiji shouted out in frustration.
“You said you'd return my body! I am the one!”
At that, Igeon scoffed as if it were absurd.
“Why would I return yours?”
“What!”
Heiji trembled with rage. It was clear. Igeon intended to keep her in this state forever.
‘Damn, if this is the case...’
“Reriqueen! Hurry, the magic!”
At Heiji's shout, Reriqueen, who had been bowing in thanks to Igeon, thought ‘Oh no!’
But then.
“Reriqueen.”
Igeon's cold voice reached Heiji's body.
At the same time, Reriqueen, who had entered Heiji's original body, screamed and prostrated herself flat before Igeon.
“I was wrong! Great Lord Igeon! I'll do anything you command! Please!”
The Fairy Queen was on the verge of tears.
The subordinates who had become Igeon's subordinates were greatly astonished.
[As expected, the new master is different.]
Heiji felt like going crazy.
“Reriqueen!”
But then.
“Now, take this.”
She almost fainted at the object Igeon held out to Reriqueen.
(To be continued next episode)