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Chapter 240: Ballroom (1)

What must Baal be feeling right now, having his recovery ability suddenly taken away? And that wasn\'t the end of his misfortune.

"Sorry. I\'ll take your skill too."

He\'d already become a killer by taking away Baal\'s recovery, so what\'s one more skill?

It wasn\'t even a difficult choice.

Gulp.

[You have consumed a total of ten Baal\'s Spirit Orbs!]

[\'Plunder\' one of Baal\'s skills!]

[Focus your mind!]

He focused his mind as the message instructed. How much time passed?

Suddenly, he came to his senses.

[The skill \'Demon God\'s Eye\', also known as \'Demon Eye\' (EX), has been created!]

\'...Huh?\'

Demon Eye?

The name itself was ominous.

It was literally the eye of a Demon God.

\'But Baal wasn\'t a Demon God, was he?\'

Didn\'t Vulcan say?

In the Demon Realm, just as humans believe in gods, demons believe in a god called the Demon God.

If the Demon Lords were kings, the Demon God was simply a concept close to a god.

"Ah. Maybe it\'s because of the Demon God\'s Stone?"

Come to think of it...

In the original history, Vulcan said he pulled the Demon God\'s Stone embedded in his heart and threw it at the Demon Lords chasing him. To escape their pursuit.

Baal most likely had it, and after a long time, it became the present...

\'It wouldn\'t be strange to have a skill related to the Demon God.\'

What a stroke of luck!

And it was even EX-rank.

\'The second one.\'

The second EX-rank skill he\'d obtained, following the passive skill \'Death Lord\'!

Excited, he checked the skill information.

[Demon Eye]

[Rank: EX]

[Type: Passive]

[Effect 1. Observe and analyze the target. The amount of analysis varies depending on the target\'s strength.]

[Effect 2. If analysis is blocked, consume mana to penetrate deeper. The amount consumed varies depending on the target\'s strength.]

[Effect 3. \'Moment of Insight\' can be activated. See everything. Evading is up to you. However, with your current body, you can only activate it for a very short time.]

"Hmm."

It was a very intriguing skill.

The most basic effect was to observe and analyze.

But it\'s EX-rank.

It\'ll be beyond whatever you imagine. There was no need to overthink it.

He stepped out of the room.

As he went down to the living room, Choi Yuna approached him with sparkling eyes.

"Did you finish eating?"

"Yes. It suited my body well."

As he spoke to Choi Yuna, a strange status window-like display floated around her.

[Choi Yuna]

[Level: 523]

[Occupation: Alchemist]

[Favorability: 82]

[Skills: Advanced Alchemy (S), Ingredient Appraisal (A), Catalyst Conversion (A), Concentration Enhancement (B), Elemental Affinity (B)....]

[Potential: A decent alchemist for a lower-planet human. Shows potential for further growth.]

[Equipment: Wearing a set of Ragged Clothes.]

[Thoughts on the Target: A wealthy individual with impressive skills. Must maintain a strong connection....]

[Awakening Condition: Handling alchemical tools for over 300 hours. The target has already met this condition.]

〈(Tip) You can consume mana to see into the deeper \'Abyss\'.〉

\'What... is this?\'

He could see other people\'s status windows?

What kind of crazy skill was this?

Just how incredible this was could be understood by looking at how the world ranked Awakened individuals.

Usually, they were ranked by level.

A-rank was 350 or higher, S-rank was 500 or higher, and so on.

Why was it done this way?

\'Because Awakened individuals don\'t reveal their information.\'

Titles, skills, equipment, and the like.

Since they didn\'t reveal it, they had no choice but to use level as a standard.

It was the most common and easily disclosed information.

And even then, there were countless people who hid their levels.

But he could see through all of this?

Even potential, equipment, favorability, and thoughts on him, which weren\'t even shown on the status window?

\'No wonder it\'s EX-rank.\'

What was even more surprising was that there was more to uncover.

A message indicated that he could consume mana to see into the deeper Abyss.

But that aside...

"Yuna."

"Yes?"

"What kind of equipment do you use? Could you tell me the average rank?"

"Um... Rare, I guess? Only my alchemy equipment is Unique..."

"So, roughly between Rare and Unique?"

"Yes. But why do you ask?"

"Just curious. I should get you something decent later."

"Oh my! Really?!"

"I don\'t make empty promises. I\'ll try to find something."

Well, the description in the equipment section was quite pitiful.

"Wearing a set of Ragged Clothes."

It made his heart ache.

Even someone like Choi Yuna, who was relatively wealthy and wore equipment that matched her level...

Next, he looked for Chairman Kim.

As he watched him playing with Naye, information floated up.

[Kim Kangchul]

[Level: 163]

[Occupation: Martial Artist]

[Favorability: 95]

[Skills: Steel Fist (C), Sturdy Body (B), Powerful Strike (D), Iron Wall Breathing (E), Harden (F)]

[Potential: A dismal martial artist, even for a lower-planet human. It seems his decision to focus on his main occupation was a stroke of genius.]

[Equipment: Surprisingly decent considering his abysmal level.]

[Thoughts on the Target: My reliable son, I wish he would inherit the company....]

[Awakening Condition: Perform 223 kicks. The target has already met this condition.]

〈(Tip) You can consume mana to see into the deeper \'Abyss\'.〉

First up was his father. The evaluation was merciless. The only compliment was for his dedication to his main occupation as a chaebol, or conglomerate head...

\'He\'s definitely right.\'

His peak was at the level of a C-rank Awakened, so honestly, running the company was a much better option.

Next was...

Kim Naye.

The family\'s darling and a kindergartener hiding the secret of her awakening.

Your turn.

[Kim Naye]

[Level: Unawakened, 0]

[Favorability: 98]

[Potential: Hmm?]

[Thoughts on the Target: My brother is the best.]

[Awakening Condition: ??? (Highly classified information.)]

\'Question marks?\'

It even said the information was highly classified.

He couldn\'t resist.

[Consume mana to see into the \'Abyss\' and reveal Kim Naye\'s awakening conditions?]

He had to see it.

At that moment...

[All of the target\'s mana will be consumed!]

[Security partially lifted!]

"......!"

Mana drained away like an ebbing tide, and he stumbled momentarily, overcome by a strong dizziness.

He hurriedly gulped down a top-rank mana potion.

Then, he checked Naye\'s information.

[Awakening Condition: Un#%kn#wn]

[Target \'Kim Naye\' must #&#% so#eth#@ ab#@ th#% wor#d]

[Th#@ #@ is ver#@ #@!cult to #@hie#e, and re#uir#s #@!norm#@ #@ill &%$ #@.]

...What was this?

Target Kim Naye must, something something, do something?

Even the neighbor\'s puppy could give a better answer.

Oh, well.

He was about to try peering into the Abyss one more time when...

[Warning!]

[The maximum mana you can use to see into the \'Abyss\' is proportional to your current maximum mana!]

[Further analysis is impossible!]

[To analyze further, significantly increase your maximum mana!]

Damn.

He was blocked.

At best, he could increase his mana by 100 or 200 through doping or something similar. But even with that, it seemed like he\'d only be able to see one more letter at most.

\'...I can\'t see it right now.\'

It seemed he\'d have to check again later after significantly increasing his mana.

In any case...

\'I now understand why the users couldn\'t find it.\'

Target Kim Naye had to do something or other.

It looked incredibly difficult at a glance.

The more extreme the awakening conditions, the further away the awakening itself, naturally.

This confirmed it.

Kim Naye (6 years old, in charge of cuteness in the family) had a bigger secret hidden within her than he thought. That\'s probably why even an EX-rank skill couldn\'t analyze it.

\'Well, it\'s not like Naye\'s awakening is urgent right now.\'

What would he do with a six-year-old Awakened, anyway? He decided to think positively for now.

***

After analyzing his family members, he found no one particularly special besides Naye.

And he realized one more thing.

While he was focusing his mind, half a day had flown by.

The Ranking Battles were now just around the corner.

He immediately summoned his Legion Commanders.

"Come here, everyone. We\'re having a meeting."

— A meeting?

— About what?

"I\'ll tell you."

Even Vulcan, who had transformed into a human instead of his giant Balrog form to avoid damaging the house, gathered around.

"It\'s simple. I think Baal is extremely angry with me."

He stated today\'s topic.

He had taken away Baal\'s recovery and skill, and Baal was aware of it.

"Keh, kehaha! Master, is it true? That bastard got screwed over?"

"Yes, he did. He\'s probably feeling very wronged right now."

"Good! That\'s great! And what was it, the Demon Eye? It sounded amazing. Can you see my information too?"

"Of course, since you\'re a summoned creature. I can even see your thoughts."

"Hmm... What do I think of you, Master?"

"Let\'s see, human. If I find you unreliable, I\'ll abandon you anytime. Right?"

"......"

Vulcan flinched as if struck by a truth bomb.

Cedric and Merhen\'s eyes gleamed at the sight.

— Hmm.

— Minwoo, what about me?

"Merhen, well... you\'re a sunflower. A sunflower."

"Hehe. What about Cedric?"

"Well... he\'s better than Vulcan."

Cedric\'s exact thoughts were...

[Thoughts on the Target: A decent human. Perhaps the Lord\'s revenge is possible. So I will trust and follow him.]

Like a true knight, he had fairly orthodox thoughts. It seemed his loyalty to his former master remained strong.

Anyway, the point was this.

"The ball might be dangerous. More than we think."

"So, you\'re not going? Even after seeing my thoughts?" Vulcan said, his eyes wide open.

His eyes were bloodshot, as if his only goal in life was to become a Demon Lord.

"Don\'t be ridiculous. Who said I wasn\'t going?"

"Hmm, hmm. That\'s the spirit."

"I\'m just saying, be careful. It\'s a gathering of Demon Lords, right? That means Baal is likely to be there, and he might try to get the first hit in. Out of the blue."

— Hmm. Master, I believe that possibility is low.

"Why do you think so, Cedric?"

— It\'s simple. It\'s a ball. Even if it\'s a gathering of a king and his vassals, it\'s difficult for the king to act recklessly during a ball. It\'s unlikely to see bloodshed on a joyous occasion. Also...

Cedric stroked his bony chin and continued.

— The Demon Realm is holding a Ranking Battle, right?

"That\'s what I heard."

— Fundamentally, a Ranking Battle is meant to reduce bloodshed. In other words, compared to the Demon Realm of the past, the current Demon Realm might have a relatively moderate tendency.

— Cedric, you\'re so naive! What if Baal attacks Minwoo?

— ...Huh. Isn\'t Merhen the one with the most idealistic thoughts? To think I\'d hear such words from you...

— Hmph! I\'m the one who worries about Minwoo the most! Right, Minwoo?

"Of course. Merhen is the best. In that aspect. Anyway, Cedric\'s words aren\'t entirely unreasonable."

"Why is Master acting like a scaredy-cat?! It would be better if they attack first! This Lord Vulcan will step up! Anytime!"

"...You\'re too much of a musclehead, even your brain is muscle."

"Hah? This body, a muscle brain? No, it\'s called being valiant!"

"Anyway, Vulcan, be serious. Be calm. Think about it. Baal has the Demon God\'s Stone. A lot of time has passed since then. That means he\'s likely much stronger than what we saw in the fragment."

"...So what do you want to do?"

"We\'re going. I was planning to participate anyway. Avoiding things isn\'t my style."

"That\'s the way. That was our promise."

"No, to be precise, the promise was to make you the Rank 1, not to fight Baal."

"...You\'re not going to fight?"

"That depends on the situation. If the Ranking Battle uses proxies, we can\'t fight anyway, can we?"

"Well, fine. As long as you make me Rank 1, I don\'t care how you do it."

"So, don\'t act rashly. Got it?"

"Sure. But you have to be sincere. No matter what method you use. And... don\'t expect me to hold back my anger in front of Baal for long. I have a fiery temper. I was born a Balrog."

"There\'s a good saying, \'bide your time and prepare for revenge.\' You should learn it."

"No thanks. It sounds like a bothersome idea. I have one request. When we go to the Demon Realm, summon me without fail. I\'ll stay right by your side."

"Okay, but try to hold back for at least 10 minutes. If you want to be a Lord."

"I\'ll try. For now."

"Then it\'s settled. We\'re going."

And so, as the clock struck 12 and the date changed to August 1st...

[The item \'Masquerade Ball Invitation\' in your possession has been activated!]

[You are invited to the Demon Lord\'s Banquet!]

[(Warning!) A special event may occur upon entering.]

[Will you accept the invitation?]

"I accept."

It was time to head to the ball.

[TL/N: I believe Vulcan doesn’t have ‘—’ before his texts so no more ‘—’ before Vulcan’s text]