Chapter 340:

Chapter 340:

There was no way that Gadrius could act brazenly against Sharuriel.

His arrogant personality only shone when he judged his opponent to be easy prey. The moment he perceived strength, he became endlessly insignificant.

Sharuriel was on the same level as his father. No, she was actually even stronger.

Unlike Gadrius, she hadn't inherited her power from the previous generation. She had been incredibly weak from birth, but through sheer determination and effort, she had risen to the position of a Divine Spirit, earning the title of the King of White Scales.

Despite both being Divine Spirits, they were in completely different leagues.

And now, such a Sharuriel was showing immense favor towards Galitz.

Gadrius realized with a jolt exactly whom he had dared to provoke.

"I-I'll tell you everything."

Sweating profusely, Gadrius confessed everything he knew to Galitz.

After hearing the whole story, Galitz furrowed his brows, unable to hide his discomfort.

"So, the person who informed you of this..."

"Yes. It was Lord Mephistopheles."

Mephistopheles.

He had wondered which audacious Divine Spirit had spread the rumor that Satan had secretly given a gift to Yu-hyun. It turned out to be another lord from Pandemonium.

This led to new questions.

Mephistopheles was a lord of the same Great Army as Satan, so why would he spread a rumor that would trouble Satan if he found out?

‘Are they not on good terms?'

Though Satan was part of Pandemonium, he was not known to be particularly friendly with other Divine Spirits within the same Great Army.

There were even rumors that he was quite an alien presence among the other lords because he originally came from Eden a long time ago.

However, they simply did not care about each other. They were not on bad terms.

Nonetheless, the fact that Mephistopheles had done this could only mean that there was some discord between them.

"Phew. I understand. You may leave now."

Galitz issued the order to dismiss him. The positions from their first meeting had completely reversed.

Now, Gadrius was watching Galitz’s reactions, and Galitz was naturally giving orders, treating Gadrius with disdain.

Gadrius no longer felt displeased by Galitz’s natural commands. With Sharuriel glaring at him from behind Galitz with a fierce look, what pride could he afford to uphold?

Gadrius quickly fled the private room as if he had been waiting for those words.

"Are you okay? Should I properly educate that impudent child?"

"There's no need for that. He's not worth the effort. Besides, it's really been a long time since we formally met. Nice to see you, Sharuriel."

"Nice to see you too, Galitz. I heard you became an executive director. Are you going back to work as you used to?"

"Yes, that's how it turned out."

"What suddenly made you change your mind?"

Galitz gave a bitter smile at Sharuriel's question.

Even he found it surprising that he, who had been holed up watching his successors grow, had suddenly made a proper comeback and even received a rapid promotion.

Since the story about Executive Director Hata’s betrayal and Lotfiout’s purge was a secret, Galitz opted for a suitable excuse before shaking his head.

Upon reflection, he thought that his return was most influenced by that guy.

"I discovered a rather remarkable junior."

"One so impressive that it made you decide to come back?"

"Seeing that kid's determination rekindled the fire in my heart that I thought had gone out."

"I'm a bit jealous. He must be an extraordinary Teller, right?"

"Yes. Humbling enough to make me ashamed of the arrogance I once had."

Sharuriel didn’t probe further. She didn't know how extraordinary that junior Teller was, but she even felt gratitude.

After all, that Teller helped Galitz, her first and last contracted Teller, regain his former passion.

"So you’ve decided to fully return?"

"That's why I’m wearing an unfitting suit again. But even though I’ve returned, it won’t be easy to move like I used to. I am an executive director now."

"Indeed. People who don’t know your abilities will try to check or even ignore you."

"In exchange for overturning my convictions, it’s a cheap price. I never expected things to go smoothly from the start."

Although Galitz had taken the executive director position through the chairman's convenience, it didn't mean he had earned the chairman's unlimited trust.

Even if he took the position, if he didn’t show enough ability and consistent performance, he could be ousted in an instant at Celestial Corporation.

Not only must one rise high, but they must also have the skills to maintain that position over the years.

"There will be many who will try to check me, questioning my qualifications."

The ones he had to deal with were not field agents but the top 0.1% of all Tellers who reached the director level.

In terms of the gravity of the situation, it was similar to when he had contracted with Sharuriel and raised her to the throne of the Dragon King when he had nothing.

No, considering the need to strategize more, now might even be harder than back then when he could rely on youthful vigor alone.

"So my heart can’t help but race even more."

"You’ve truly returned."

Sharuriel smiled softly at Galitz’s demeanor.

His current appearance was no different from the one she had admired so deeply.

"So how long do you think it will take to truly take root?"

"At least three years. No more than five."

"Is that enough time?"

"Have I ever failed in anything where I set such a precise timeframe?"

The first thought that came to mind was her memories as a regressor.

‘It’s highly likely. I need to join them as quickly as possible.'

Although the distance from Seoul to Gangneung was over 160 kilometers, at his current level, he could arrive within 30 minutes.

Just as Yu-hyun was about to move.

Something fell from the sky towards him.

Swoosh!

Yu-hyun kicked off the ground, instantly leaping backward. He didn’t think about countering or defending. It was a move guided by his instinct, honed by surviving countless deadly encounters.

And it was the right choice.

The spot where Yu-hyun had stood moments ago turned to dust as if something had chewed it up.

Landing on the ground, Yu-hyun instinctively shot a bullet of condensed energy.

The figure standing at the center of the blast lightly blocked it.

‘It dispersed my attack?'

It looked like the attack was blocked, but on closer inspection, the bullet had been shattered and dissipated before reaching the figure.

The overall shape was human-like, but it was much larger, with its body covered in sharp protrusions like armor. Especially its head, which looked like a mix of a mantis and a grasshopper.

Seeing the new enemy, Yu-hyun tensed and asked.

"What are you?"

"..."

The enemy didn’t answer. Was it incapable of speech, or was it deliberately silent?

Whatever it was, Yu-hyun could tell that it was more dangerous than the Fragment holder he had fought in Russia.

‘Just by standing still, the ground around it is turning to dust.'

It wasn’t just disintegrating. The gravel on the ground was transforming into tiny texts and then those texts were turning to dust.

The aura emanating from it wasn’t just typically breaking down matter.

It was something far more sinister and dangerous.

"Bookworm."

The word came to mind, not by chance.

As Oello had warned, Praytion’s minions had begun to move.

Moreover, the power to naturally turn the surrounding landscape to dust just by standing was indeed formidable.

‘Weren’t most remaining Bookworms said to be not dangerous?'

Yu-hyun recalled Oello’s warning and grumbled inwardly.

Calling such a being not dangerous? Was the standard of danger based on Oello himself?

‘Or maybe Praytion had created new minions without Oello knowing.'

Praytion had managed to get an executive director on his side to eliminate Lotfiout, and that too right within Celestial Corporation, Lotfiout’s own stronghold.

Considering his secretive actions and the ability to turn even an executive director to his side, nothing seemed impossible.

‘Still, to brazenly show up and block my path in such a situation.'

Jin Cheong-woon targeting Kwon Jia and the Bookworm appearing before him.

This confirmed that Jin Cheong-woon was indeed linked to Praytion.

‘Laplace.'

[Command me.]

‘Focus on protecting Jia. I will join you soon.'

[Yes, understood.]

With Laplace gone, Yu-hyun immediately communicated with the remaining three.

"This is Alpha. Do you read me?"

[This is Bravo. What’s the matter, Yu-hyun?]

[It’s Delta. Did something happen?]

Echo, Yoo Young-min, had not yet responded. Only Kang Hye-rim and Seo Sumin, who had finished their fights, answered.

"Jia is in danger."

[Jia?!]

[What’s happening?]

"It’s a trap. The enemies we fought were just bait to scatter us. Unleashed is targeting Jia."

Who would have thought that the Fragment holders were merely bait?

Yu-hyun had assigned demons to each person, but it would be difficult for Laplace to handle Jin Cheong-woon alone. Jin Cheong-woon was also a Fragment holder, and Laplace's ability to see the future wouldn’t work on him.

Their matchup was the worst possible, and at best, Laplace could only buy some time.

In hindsight, he should have sent Darwin.

"I’m currently dealing with another enemy and can’t support immediately. Please move to assist. I’ll join as soon as I wrap things up here."

[Understood.]

[Sigh. Got it.]

"Thank you."

Ending the communication, Yu-hyun glared at the Bookworm before him.

"I don’t know why you’re targeting Jia."

The demon’s eyes glowed red.

"But it won’t go as you plan."