Overgeared

The rankers’ favorite method of growth were raids and quests. Unlike the boring hunts, it was interesting and thrilling, and a lot of resources were granted at once. However, there were only a few players who could grow by sticking to raids, such as Grid, Kraugel, Yura, Euphemina, and Zibal. Most players were realistically obsessed with quests.

The same was true of Laella, the master of the Overgeared Magic Tower. She actively used her status as a ranker, the magic tower master, and a high ranking noble of the empire. She opened communication channels on various routes and collected all types of information to increase the quest collection rate. The following was a quest obtained as the magic tower master.

[Key to Making Magic of Light and Darkness (1)]

[Difficulty: Unknown

In the chaotic environment of hell, the ‘Fruit of Good and Evil’ was rarely born.

There is a legend that it is a fruit made by the Evil God Yatan to corrupt the good gods and angels.

It is necessary to check if the Fruit of Good and Evil can change the nature of magic power.

Quest Clear Conditions: Secure the ‘Fruit of Good and Evil’ and transport it to a master level magic tower laboratory.

Quest Clear Rewards: Unknown.]

A master level magic tower—there were only two such places on the continent: the Tower of the Sun and the Tower of Eternity. Among them, the Tower of Eternity in Titan belonged to the empire. It was the cruel experiment site where Goldhit, who claimed to be the ruler of magic in the past, studied eternal life. It had a history of being burned down by Grid’s hands. It was now restored and operated as a normal magic tower.

“Thank you again for handing over the Fruit of Good and Evil.” Laella arrived at Titan and politely bowed again. During the journey, she must’ve bowed her waist 90 degrees at least 10 times.

Piaro waved his hand as if he was tired of it. “I told you many times that I am only obeying His Majesty’s orders.”

“I am naturally thankful to Grid, but Piaro, you are the one who made this fruit, right? I want my sincerity to be conveyed to both of you. By the way, was it really a coincidence?”

“You’re so persistent that you aren’t like a magician.”

The Fruit of Good and Evil was grown in the fields Piaro had made in hell. However, Piaro himself didn’t know the principles behind how he grew it. It was because the environment of hell was so capricious. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the weather, temperature and humidity changed every second. Additionally, the density of demonic energy changed every moment. It was impossible for him to accurately remember and artificially create the environment that grew the Fruit of Good and Evil. It was an area of pure chance.

“That is too bad… in any case, I’ll do my best to make you feel rewarded, Piaro.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

The reason why Piaro joined Laella’s trip to Titan wasn’t simply to act as an escort. The Fruit of Good and Evil that made evil beings good and good beings evil—Piaro wanted to see with his own eyes how far the benefits would go.

‘If the effect is really applied to magic power...’

Humanity would be freed from many constraints. The reason to sign a contract with demons to use black magic power and the obligation to serve the gods to use divine power would disappear. The repercussions would be huge. Most gods would slowly lose their influence and there would be less room for demons to intervene in the human world. The Fruit of Good and Evil was a very important key to the independence of humanity from all types of transcendent beings.

Of course, this was only a story of when the effect was real.

“Are you Lady Laella?”

The attitude of the magicians who came to meet their group was unwilling. They dedicated their lives to magic and confined themselves to the tower, like monks, so they tended to be indifferent. Their only interest was magic, so they weren’t impressed when they saw the famous Piaro, apostle of the Overgeared God. They also didn’t particularly react to Laella.

The greatest magician on the continent right now was Braham, and right below him was Euphemina. It was widely believed that magicians other than them were only a bit better than the 10 great magicians of the past, no matter how strong. Additionally, over the past 20 years, the 10 great magicians hadn’t made many achievements. Their performance on the battlefield was lacking compared to the powerhouses currently considered the protagonists of the world. It wasn’t something the magicians of the magic tower should aim for. They didn’t feel much respect.

Laella didn’t have much of a problem with their attitude. Rather, she was pleased. From being an idol to a world star, people’s attention on her was heavy.

“...I think it is real.”

Piaro was about to enter the tower with the guidance of the magicians only to stop. His expression was sharp as he spoke to himself while pulling out a sickle and hand plow.

“What is going on?”

“It is the enemy. Based on the source of the energy, they seem to be aiming for the Fruit of Good and Evil. You should hurry up.”

“Yes, I understand.”

She didn’t insist on fighting together. It was as Piaro said. As long as the enemies were targeting the Fruit of Good and Evil, she had an obligation to focus on her role. It was the obligation to check the efficacy of the Fruit of Good and Evil, clear the quest, and find out how to use it.

In the first place, this was Titan. Basara, the politician Grid and Lauel trusted the most, was the lord, while Lightning God Kyle was the guardian. It was the city with the largest number of troops after Reinhardt. It meant there was no need to be agitated by every attack by the enemy. Laella had faith that she didn’t need to go out.

“Is the master of the Overgeared Magic Tower running away?” A magician criticized Laella, who left Piaro alone and started climbing the tower. Then he soon shut up. He was overwhelmed by the pressure coming from Laella, whose body was encased in powerful fire magic.

“I don’t need to keep the line, right?”

“...You are absolutely right.”

The eyes of the magicians toward Laella changed in an instant. They felt an admiration that was the same as when they watched the performances of Braham and Euphemina on the battlefield. It was a reaction that proved Laella’s growth.

Meanwhile, Piaro blocked the entrance to the magic tower and looked up at the sky. Three angels with four wings spread out were descending to the surface. Once their feet finally touched the grow, a divine light shone around them and dazzled the people on the street.

“Hand over the Fruit of Good and Evil.”

“It is the fruit of the most evil being in the world. Human strength and desires can’t handle it.”

“Did you think we could handle the invasion of the demons?”

“......?”

“It is funny that those who only watched from heaven as the demons climbed up to the surface, slaughtering humans, and starting a great war are talking like this now.”

“...You are truly low level as the apostle of a human god with no foundation. It is ugly to talk about things that have already happened in the past. I heard you are going back and forth to hell with the Overgeared God, so you must’ve become closer to a demon.”

“There is no need to talk any longer.”

Piaro recognized angels as no different from demons. He wondered how they were different from the demons who were blinded by slaughter and couldn’t communicate.

He started his battle by sowing seeds in all directions.

***

“...I see.”

During the hell expedition not long ago, the tower member Fronzaltz fought in the 9th Hell. He defeated the self-proclaimed 9th Great Demon, who usurped Hell Gao’s empty throne. After that, he stayed in the 9th Hell for a long time and searched for something.

Zik found out about this by chance and upon returning to the surface, he immediately visited Cokro Island. He investigated Hell Gao’s emergence point for a full month before becoming convinced.

‘Fronzaltz knew about it from the very beginning.’

Hell Gao, Furfur, Morax, Lepir, Kurson, and Drasion—the great demons who appeared on the surface in the past and were sealed by Muller had something in common: they were reincarnated beings. They weren’t demons from the moment they were born. Rather, they were humans or angels who died and were reincarnated as demons. The fact that Drasion was the archangel Sariel was the first evidence. The fragments of the fire stone that Zik just found were the second evidence.

‘Some parts of the fire stone resemble the Stone of Original Sin in a subtle manner.’

He had seen the fire stone before, but didn’t notice it because it was so insignificant. Now it was clear after a detailed analysis.

‘...Is Hell Gao Bultar?’

Hell Gao’s obsession with the surface was an unsolved mystery. He repeatedly appeared in the dungeon of Cokro Island despite constantly being defeated. As a result, he greatly helped humans. What if it was the will of Bultar, one of the Seven Good People, rather than the Great Demon Hell Gao? The front and back were right.

Zik recalled a story that Grid once told him. He had heard the voice of the 7th Evil, Corruption, when he won the blacksmithing match against Hexetia. He had revealed the original sin of Hexetia and told the old story of Bultar. Grid might not have known it at the time, but the real name of Corruption was Bultar.

‘Maybe Bultar’s consciousness temporarily awakens during each and every short period of time between Hell Gao’s death and resurrection.’

Maybe he was the one who made Hell Gao challenge Cokro again. It was like making an offering to humans.

Zik’s expression darkened as he made this guess. He had believed that the souls of his companions were sealed in the Abyss along with their bodies, but now he realized this wasn’t the case. Their souls were separated from their bodies that were sealed in the Abyss, and wandered through eons of suffering. Just like Sariel was banished from heaven and became a demon for revealing the sins of Goddess Rebecca, they fell and became a demon, accumulating sin.

It wasn’t enough to frame the Seven Good People as the Seven Evils, but they also corrupted the Seven Good People into real demons. What a cruel and terrible punishment it was.

Zik clenched his fists and his grudge against heaven grew further. Then he suddenly noticed something new.

‘Muller knew.’

Was it just a coincidence that Sword Saint Muller defeated the demons and sealed their bodies? Coincidentally, the six demons were special. Perhaps Muller had sealed Sariel and the Seven Good People, who had forgotten their previous lives and were accumulating sins, so that they couldn’t accumulate any more sins.

“Thank you... thank you...”

Zik held the fragments of the fire stone to his chest and shed a few transparent tears.

***

The snow that covered Kaya, the desert kingdom, was the embodiment of the Blue Dragon’s anger. It was far from a natural phenomenon. The environment of impossible cold harmed animals and people or forced them to leave.

Mir had condemned the situation. He lamented that it was very common for a god’s selfishness to harm powerless human beings and that gods who deserved to receive the worship of human beings were truly rare. It was also true of the gods in the Hwan Kingdom.

Maybe it was from that time on—Grid started to become vaguely fond of Mir after realizing he was different from ordinary yangbans.

“He is really here.”

“The rumor that he went crazy after he became a god is true.”

The yangbans muttered to each other as they found Grid walking on a snowy street. They gathered one by one, but none of them dared to block Grid’s way despite being in groups of dozens. However, there was a sense of relaxation in their expressions. They probably believed in Mir. Mir was created to be the opponent of Baal and Raphael, and his armed force was so transcendent in the eyes of the yangbans that it was worth relying on.

‘As much as possible, I didn’t want to fight him.’

Grid took a deep breath as he stood in front of the tile roof house where he could feel Mir’s aura. He remembered the moment when Mir had saved him. It was just that the grace he received at that time and the resurrection of the Blue Dragon had to be calculated separately.

The determined Grid opened the huge gate. The most noticeable thing in the large garden was the outdoor space for earthenware jars containing fermented food. Small birds were gathered on top of the earthenware jars that were covered with white snow. He noticed that Mir often put food over here, but unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case today. The birds searched anxiously, but not even a small piece of millet could be found.

‘...It isn’t just today.’

Grid noticed that the cries of the birds were so faint that it wouldn’t be strange if they were extinguished immediately. Therefore, he opened his inventory. He took out a piece of bread and placed it on top of the jar. There were no deep intentions. It was just a natural thing to do.

Mir’s eyes were hazy as he sat in the main floored room and stared at him. He seemed to be reflecting on a certain memory. However, it didn’t seem to be easy and his expression soon distorted.

“It has been a while.”

Grid gulped as he couldn’t express the happy words and his expression slowly stiffened. Mir’s eyes that were looking at him were full of vigilance and contempt. It felt like he was dealing with an uninvited guest he had never seen before. It was completely different from the attitude that Mir had shown in the past.

“...What happened to you?”

Mir didn’t answer Grid’s question.

There was no more need to talk, so he drew the Blue Dragon Dao and rushed forward. The faces of the yangbans who had climbed onto the tiled roof and watched the scene with interest, stiffened unknowingly. It was because the Overgeared God was fine even though they expected his head to fall off with a single blow.

Hundreds of black gold hands rose like ghosts to block the trajectory of the Blue Dragon Dao and to strike Mir’s body at the same time.

“No, wait a minute. Calm down for a moment.” Grid stopped the God Hands that were beating Mir with ruthless violence.

However, Mir aimed for that gap and attacked again. This caused the God Hands to react reflexively again. The slaps to Mir’s lower cheek area occurred again and again. Mir only managed to shake off the God Hands and back away after raising the energy of the Blue Dragon.

Grid realized it. ‘Have I become terribly strong?’

The reason he didn’t realize it until now was because Baal was so strong...