Volume 2 - CH 5

Chapter 5 – The Four Celestial Kings

I’m definitely going to get chewed out this time…what could I say to get out of this mess…?

I was lost in such thoughts, when I suddenly felt someone’s gaze on me.

It was too far to make out clearly, but definitely hostile.

I looked all around, but despite my sight reinforced by Physical Boost, all monsters were gone; Dyne and the other people at the frontlines were still frozen, so it couldn’t be one of them.

I checked the map too but did not find any suspicious presence nearby.

I tried enlarging the scope of the map and finally found something.

It wasn’t in the direction the monsters came from, but more to the right…on a small hill to the northeast of the capital. Around 1.5 Kilometols from my current position.

I couldn’t use teleportation because I had never been there before, and since I was apparently under observation, it was probably wiser not to use it.

I used Wind magic to raise a cloud of smoke again, thus disappearing from the observer’s field of sight.

I followed by activating Stealth, Conceal Presence, and Physical Boost: before the smoke cleared, I started running towards the observer, as fast as I could.

If I ran at full speed, using Physical Boost and repeatedly activating Accelerate, I could cover 1.5 Kilometols in less than one minute.

I arrived on the small hill where the mysterious observer was, then started studying him from behind.

First, I analyzed him with God Eye.

NAME : 

Gheel

LEVEL : 

137

AGE : 

189

SPECIES : 

Demon

UNIQUE SKILL : 

Charm Manipulation 

SKILLS : 

Darkness Magic LV7

Fire Magic LV6

Wind Magic LV6

Monster Taming LV8

Sword Arts LV6

Intimidation LV5

Physical Boost LV6

Quick Chant LV6

TITLES : 

Heavenly King

Tamer

Heavenly king? If he’s a demon, does it mean he’s one of the classic four heavenly kings of the demon king’s army?

I had never seen “Charm Manipulation” and “Taming” either, so I checked those first.

.

<Charm Manipulation>

This skill allows the user to control beings lower in level and boost their abilities. There is no limit to the number of beings that can be controlled. However, beings with the Mental Fortitude skill cannot be controlled, even if their level is lower than the user’s.

.

<Monster Taming>

This skill allows the user to control monsters, regardless of level, by satisfying specific conditions. The controlled monster can be reinforced, depending on this skill’s level. The number of controllable monsters depends on this skill’s level.

.

So he was controlling all those monsters with these skills.

His level was pretty high, so maybe the disaster class monsters in the pack were created by him, by powering up normal monsters with the Monster Taming and Charm Manipulation skills. He could be the cause behind the high-level monsters I faced recently too.

My reflections were interrupted by the usual robotic voice.

<<Skill “Monster Taming” acquired. Skill level reached 10. Skill added to Magic Unification.>> 

…good, I got it. Hopefully, I’ll be able to put it to good use sometime.

After obtaining the observer — Gheel’s basic information, I decided to study him a bit longer.

The so-called “Heavenly King”, on the other hand, took advantage of his apparent privacy to openly express his shock and anger.

“What!? Where did that human disappear to!? Shit…! My plan would have been definitely successful if it wasn’t for that bastard…! I wasn’t told they had a monster like that in their ranks! In any case… the plan was a failure, I must return imme— ”

I chose that timing to show myself and interrupted the demon’s monologue.

“I’m the monster here? You’re hurting me, honestly.”

“!? How can you— !!”

Gheel turned around, then jumped back as soon as he recognized me.

“ — Dark Flame!!”

“Whoa, attacking already…?”

The black flames unleashed by Gheel enveloped my body in an instant.

Dark Flame was probably a Darkness and Fire magic spell: I had never seen anyone other than me use combination spells, so I guessed he wasn’t a Heavenly King for nothing…thanks to my Black Coat’s magic resistance, however, the Dark Flame just made me feel a bit hot.

I didn’t waste efforts in swatting away the flames, but Gheel apparently took it as a sign of victory: he started laughing and gloating.

“Hahaha!! Puny human! I grant you fiery death, by the blaze of— ”

“Phew.”

I activated a Wind magic spell and blew away the flames.

“What!? How can you be unhurt!?”

“Not enough firepower, I guess?”

“D-DAMN YOU…!!!”

So raucously shouted Gheel, while reaching for the sword at his waist: yet he stopped before he could draw it.

The reason was that I used an Earth magic spell to encase him in soil from the neck down, blocking his movements.

“Tch! Take this, then!!”

Gheel glared at me: for an instant, his eyes literally glowed.

“Hahaha!! You are now my servant!! Free me from these constraints, pawn!”

Had he lost his mind, all of a sudden?

“And why would I do that?”

“W-what!? My Charm Manipulation doesn’t work!? That cannot be!!”

Gheel was utterly shocked by my reaction.

So that glow was him activating Charm Manipulation.

“Yeah, that won’t work on me. I have Mental Fortitude, and probably a level higher than yours too.”

The robotic voice kept telling me I leveled up while I was exterminating the monsters, after all. I didn’t know exactly how much it had increased, so I had to check later.

Thanks to the level, I probably didn’t need Mental Fortitude…oh well, no harm in having it.

<<Skill “Status Effect Immunity” acquired. Skill added to Magic Unification. Skill “Mental Fortitude” erased.>> 

…as usual, All Creation makes skills for me even if I don’t say anything. Perfect.

I had mixed feelings about it, honestly, but it wasn’t the time to think about it: Gheel was still there, glaring at me.

“Your level is higher than mine…? That’s simply absurd, human!!”

The demon didn’t believe me in the slightest, so I tried using Intimidation.

“T-this intimidating aura…!! It cannot be…! You’re stronger than me…no, even stronger than the Demon King…!?! Could it be…are you a hero!?”

That was the worst misunderstanding I could ever hear…

I flatly denied Gheel’s assumption.

“No, I’m not a hero.”

“You lie!! If you are not a hero, then what in blazes are you!?”

“Just an adventurer.”

“Someone as powerful as you is ‘just an adventurer’…? Nonsense!!”

“I’m really telling the truth, though…”

“Damn it all…!! Wait until I get my hands on you…!!”

Gheel tried to break free by force, but the earth encasing him was imbued with my magic power: it wasn’t going to budge.

Let’s see what I can get out of this guy now.

“So… tell me about the plan you mentioned just now.”

“Hah! As if I would talk! Release me, human!!”

“Like hell I will. Okay, let me change the question. Do you know anything about the Dragon Wyvern in the western mountains? Did you demons have something to do with it?”

Gheel grinned at my question.

“Dragon Wyvern? Ah, that…hahaha, I bet that beast was too strong for you, huh? Not even I could fully control it, after all…”

Gheel’s misunderstanding seemed to fill him with joy.

As it turns out, the wyvern and the monster horde were unrelated: it was just a coincidence that I happened into them in such a short span of time.

“Hmm? Too strong for me? Are you talking about this?”

I took out the mutant wyvern’s head from my dimensional storage and showed it to Gheel.

His reaction was so shocked it was almost funny.

“No! NononoNO!!! Impossible!! Not even a Heavenly King such as I could control that monster, and you…!!”

“Sheesh, accept the reality already…do you finally understand that you aren’t a match for me?”

Gheel swallowed his breath.

“Once again, what’s this ‘plan’ of yours?”

“…the plan consisted in using that large monster horde to attack and annihilate the kingdom of Perdis, one of the ‘Three Great States’ you humans created, The horde was supposed to trample Perdis and all its people…!! Damn it…! If it wasn’t for your interference, the royal capital would be reduced to ruins by now…!”

Gheel gave up on resisting and finally spoke about the plan, though with clear frustration.

“I see, I see…was it all on the demon king’s orders?”

“No, His Majesty the Demon King knows nothing of this…I ideated the plan on my own.”

“Is that so. Well, I’ve asked everything I wanted to…time to end this.”

I raised a hand over Gheel’s head. He probably understood he was in danger and started begging for his life.

“H-hey, wait just a moment! You might not know me, but I am one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King’s army!! Do you dare kill me!? His Highness the Demon King’s fury will not be sated until he takes your life!! Do you really understand what you’re doing!?”

“If he comes, I’ll just take him on. So long.”

As I spoke, I activated Purification, a high-grade Light magic spell.

Gheel was enveloped in light and started screaming in pain.

“GWAAAAAHHHH!!! I-I am one…of the Four Heavenly Kings…! I can’t— ”

Gheel’s words stopped halfway: he dissolved into light particles before he could finish his sentence.

“Okay, now we know what caused that large monster pack, time to go back and report…hm?”

I was about to teleport back into town when the robotic voice in my head informed me I had leveled up again.

Gheel’s level was pretty high, after all, so I surely received a good amount of experience by finishing him off.

The robotic voice continued for a little while, then eventually stopped.

<< — Level increased. New title acquired: “Transcendent One”.>>

Oh, a new title?

I was curious, but the voice continued.

<<Black Katana reached level 10, evolution has become possible. Black Coat evolution has become possible as well.>>

As the voice spoke, a window prompting me to choose whether to go ahead with the evolution or not popped up.

I decided to leave the new title for later and make the Black Katana and Black Coat evolve.

I picked the “yes” option for both: the katana I held at my waist and the coat both started shining bright.

I had no idea what was going to happen, so I removed them both and placed them on the ground in front of me.

“Do they really have to shine so much? Pretty over the top…”

So I whispered to myself as I watched the evolution process.

After a few minutes, the lights finally died down.

<<Evolution complete>>

The robotic voice, as emotionless as always, announced the end of the process.

Let’s see the Black Katana first.

In the sheath, but it looked the same as before…

I extracted the katana from the scabbard and saw that the blade had become a black so deep it looked like it could swallow all light. It was also engraved with a reddish pattern, close to the color of cherry blossoms. It was just a black katana at first, but it looked much more elegant now.

I used Appraisal on it next.

NAME : 

Black Katana – Benizakura

RARITY : 

Divine

NOTES : 

Weapon exclusive for Haruto.

“Absolute Cleave” becomes usable.

The following effects are constantly active: 

Unbreakable weapon

400% boost to user’s martial skills

400% boost to physical abilities

I read through Appraisal’s information and was at a loss for words. What eventually came out of my mouth was just “Eeeeehhhh!?!”

First of all, the rarity grade became Divine. I was told that items of that grade were only found in ancient records: none were supposed to exist at present.

Of course, I would be surprised after making such an item with my own hands.

I drew a couple of deep breaths, then checked the other details.

“Absolute Cleave” was a skill that made it possible to cut through any material by infusing enough magic power into the blade.

The constantly active effect “unbreakable weapon” meant, quite literally, that the katana would never break or even grow dull.

The two other abilities provided a 400% boost to the Martial skills I used and my physical abilities, just as the name said.

…it’s even more broken than before.

I’m almost scared of checking the Black Coat now…

I nervously activated Appraisal on the Black Coat. It looked exactly the same as before, but…

NAME : 

Ebony Coat

RARITY : 

Divine

NOTES : 

Equipment exclusive for Haruto.

Unbreakable.

Absorbs magic power to produce the following constant effects:

Magic Resistance (Ultimate)

Physical Resistance (Ultimate)

Physical and Magic resistance went from 30% (medium) to 80% (ultimate). I did think it’d be nice to have them at ultimate, but I didn’t expect to get there so fast…

The coat was unbreakable too, just like the katana.

…might as well complete it by checking my own status.

I just received a new title, should have a lot of new skills with all the copying I did, and leveled up a lot too…I honestly felt a bit scared.

Indeed, one glance at my new and upgraded status was enough to make me freeze up.

NAME : 

Yuki Haruto

LEVEL : 

320

AGE : 

17

SPECIES : 

Human (Otherworlder)

UNIQUE SKILLS :

All Creation 

God Eye

Max Skill Growth

Exp Boost

SKILLS : 

Martial Unification

Magic Unification

Language Comprehension

Parallel Thought

Accelerated Thought

Copy

Fighting Demon

Limit Break

TITLES : 

Human (Otherworlder)

Unique Skill User

Master of Martial Arts

Master of Magic Arts

Transcendent One

<Martial Unification> 

Sword Arts

Spear Arts

Shield Arts

Bow Arts

Axe Arts

Barehanded Arts

Ground Shrink

Detect Presence

Intimidation

Hold Back

Night Vision

Roar

Quickdraw Arts

Conceal Presence

Carriage Driving

Poker Face

Fighting Spirit

Detect Danger

Sky Walk

Arm Vigor

Leg Vigor

Diamond

<Magic Unification>    

Fire Magic

Water Magic

Wind Magic

Earth Magic

Lightning Magic

Ice Magic

Light Magic

Darkness Magic

Recovery Magic

Time-Space Magic

No Chant

Physical Boost

Disguise

Enchant

Magic Power Manipulation

Molding

Accelerate

Barrier Magic

Stealth

Magic Engineering

Reflection

Gravity Magic

Auto Healing

Meteo Impact

Monster Taming

Status Effect Immunity

Well…ahem. I sure didn’t expect my level to have gone up so much…

Let’s see the new title first.

As it turns out, the title “Transcendent One” is obtained after the user’s level exceeds 200

Let’s check the new skills then: the ones I didn’t have before are Limit Break, Sky Walk, Arm Vigor, Leg Vigor, Diamond, and Auto Healing.

First, Limit Break: as long as it was active, physical abilities and skills received a 500% boost.

Next was Sky Walk: it was a skill to walk in midair. I probably got it from one of the flying monsters.

Arm Vigor and Leg Vigor reinforced my arms and legs, respectively. Incidentally, the skill “Leap” I used to have was apparently absorbed by Leg Vigor.

Diamond was the upgraded version of Harden, which let me increase the hardness of my body. Just like Leap with Leg Vigor, Harden was assimilated too.

Lastly, Auto Healing: it was a skill that automatically recovered spent physical and magic power. It could also heal minor injuries, but in case of major wounds or loss of limbs, I would need to use Recovery magic.

My skill set had become even more unbelievable…

With my level now over 300, I worried if I wasn’t crossing human boundaries a bit too far.

Just then, the realization hit me.

“Crap, this isn’t really the time to be browsing my stats or evolving stuff…I have to go back!”

Dyne and the others were surely puzzled by my sudden disappearance.

I activated my newly acquired Sky Walk and Leg Vigor, together with Physical Boost and Accelerate, and hurried back to the first line of defense.