Book 2: Chapter 175

Lee Jong-hak looked pretty good in the clothing style of the Dragonmen.

He had tied his slightly longer hair into a single ponytail behind his head, and his gaze seemed to be deeper than before. He also appeared calmer than before.

Nevertheless, there was one thing about him that didn’t change. And that was the sword that rested at his waist.

“…Dragon Hunter Lukas, it certainly was worth it to apply for this escort mission after hearing your name.”

“I’m sure that my name is quite rare in the Heavenly Realm.”

Lee Jong-hak nodded before bowing slightly.

“It’s been a while.”

“Right.”

“…”

After that, neither of them spoke for a while.

Compared to the warm reunion with Min Ha-rin, the atmosphere between them could only be described as stiff.

…This was natural.

After all, Lukas’ current relationship with Lee Jong-hak was very awkward.

Even until now, he was unsure of just what Lee Jong-hak thought of him. His attitude seemed to be much softer and more polite than in the past, but the difference was barely noticeable.

“Where have you been all this time? I looked around for the others but I wasn’t able to find anyone.”

“Not even Ha-rin?”

“…do you know where she is?”

“In a small city called ‘Herui’ that’s not too far from here. She’s the Champion there.”

“Herui’s Champion… you mean Rin Summers?”

Lee Jong-hak raised an eyebrow in surprise before nodding slightly.

“It makes sense that she is Min Ha-rin. I did think that name was a bit unusual, but…”

“Are you also using a pseudonym?”

“Yes. I’m going by the name ‘Li Hao’ right now.”

If both of them were using pseudonyms then it made sense that they weren’t able to find each other.

“I haven’t been in the Heavenly Realm very long. It has only been about a week.”

“Huh? What do you…”

Lukas then explained that each participant entered the Heavenly Realm at different times. Then, in order to figure out the reason behind it, he decided to finally ask the questions he was most curious about.

“How many stages did you clear in the tutorial?”

“8 stages.”

“And when did you enter the Heavenly Realm?”

“…about two years ago.”

“I see.”

Lukas nodded his head.

“It seems that each stage of the tutorial counts as a year.”

“Ah.”

Lee Jong-hak also nodded,

Now that he thought about it, that indeed seemed to be the case.

Min Ha-rin, who had cleared five stages, entered the Heavenly Realm five years ago.

Lee Jong-hak, who cleared eight stages, entered two years ago.

And finally, Lukas, who had cleared all ten stages, was only able to enter the Heavenly Realm around a week ago.

This conclusion gave rise to several possibilities.

Leo Freeman had entered the Heavenly Realm at the same time, or maybe even sooner than Min Ha-rin.

Arid was still an uncertainty.

And finally, Sedi. With her abilities, it was highly probable that she had also cleared all ten stages like Lukas.

‘In other words.’

Sedi had probably entered the Heavenly Realm very recently as well.

* * *

“…”

Sedi Trowman lay on the ground, looking up at the sky.

It was currently as dark as her hair.

A hot yet familiar breeze brushed against her skin. Any other living being might have shuddered at the sensation, but Sedi didn’t seem to notice it as she muttered.

“Where am I?”

She couldn’t help but wonder as she laid there.

She had just cleared the tutorial and was told to check her status window, but when she did, a bright light covered her, and when she opened her eyes again, she found herself in this place.

In other words, all she knew was that she was finally in the Great World or whatever it was called.

Whoosh.

A burst of hot air ruffled her hair.

She didn’t know where it was coming from.

Nevertheless, this place wasn’t unpleasant for Sedi who was used to being surrounded by demonic energy.

‘In fact…’

It felt like her entire body was filled with fighting spirit.

Perhaps this place would allow her to regain some of her past strength.

With that thought in mind, she continued to enjoy the breeze with her eyes closed.

Thud-

Then she felt a vibration.

Wondering what it was, she opened her eyes and was immediately greeted by a gigantic yellow eye.

“…”

[…]

The owner of this eye was looking down at Sedi from a very high place. This wasn’t to say that this being was standing on a mountain or a large building.

No, this being seemed to be able to touch the sky with just the height of its body. It was a monster that looked somewhat like a Dragon, but it was so large that she found it a bit strange.

As she stared at it, Sedi tilted her head to the side.

When did this guy appear? No. In this case, did this mean that she’d appeared in its territory?

“You’re really big.”

It was so ridiculously big that she couldn’t help but say those words out loud. If she weren’t lying down, she would have had to tilt her head almost 90 degrees to look at its eye.

More importantly, there wasn’t just one of these big guys.

Thud, thud…

Maybe it was because they smelled Sedi, but huge dragon-like monsters began to appear one after the other.

Thick saliva dripped from their mouths.

It was only at that moment that she understood just why these guys were looking at her like that. Was this place so desolate that they had nothing else to eat?

But they were all so big. Sedi was pretty sure she wouldn’t be able to fill one of their stomachs even if it swallowed her whole.

Stretching her fingers, Sedi counted the dragons.

“One, two, three, four, five.”

[Krrr…]

Sedi didn’t know.

That these Dragon-like monsters were all Ancient Dragons, beings that could be described as disasters in the Heavenly Realm. More importantly, every single one of these Ancient Dragons was larger, stronger, and more ferocious than the black dragon Lukas had hunted.

Well, in truth, nothing would have changed even if she knew.

At that moment, there was only one primitive thought in her mind.

“Fortunately, I won’t have to worry about going hungry.”

As she muttered this, Sedi got up from her spot on the ground.

“These five lizards will be more than enough.”