How To Survive As A Demon King

Chapter 96

Seo Woojin, who had arrived in the dark space, was flabbergasted.

“What’s going on? Why?”

Leveling up while walking on the road?

It wasn’t even a web novel title….

“Can I level up just by walking?”

He laughed, “Hehe-“.

Then, he wondered why he had leveled up.

It was a whopping 5 levels.

He had reached level 38.

He had even surpassed Lee Ji-ah’s level.

“If there’s someone who can give me this much experience points….”

Only one thought came to mind.

“Could it be that Gerald died?”

It was a battle that had only lasted about 3 minutes.

Although he had dealt quite a significant blow, that was his limit.

He couldn’t kill him, and it was also impossible to inflict a critical wound.

If Briani hadn’t been there, he would have been the one to die.

If Gerald had died and he had leveled up….

“The experience points are enormous.”

If he had fought alone, he could have leveled up by tens.

He realized once again how strong that monster was.

“But who killed him?”

The experience points he received indicated that his contribution was recognized.

So, Gerald must have continued fighting without recovering from his injuries….

“It’s not the Grand Duke, for sure.”

She was too busy restoring Mernotain.

She wasn’t even in a state to chase after Gerald and kill him.

There was no way to find the answer by thinking about it.

Seo Woojin didn’t know about Crusiel’s existence or their powers.

In the end, he had no choice but to give up thinking about it.

“Well, I don’t know. Maybe he just happened to meet a strong swordsman.”

He had found the answer, but Seo Woojin didn’t know that fact as he exited the dark space.

“Anyway, I’m now at level 38.”

There were only 12 steps left until he reached level 50.

“Didn’t someone say that something would change when I reach that level?”

It was Baek Si-woo’s words.

At level 5, you’re given a skill, and at level 10, your job is determined.

And when you reach level 50, another change occurs.

It wasn’t clearly explained what that change would be, but it wouldn’t be anything ordinary.

“Maybe I’ll grow horns on my head or something?”

He muttered a joke-like phrase as he entered the Academy.

“Mister!”

People must have heard the news through Irene, and people were there to meet him. 

“Are you okay? You were badly injured, right? You almost died, didn’t you? What happened?”

“I’m fine, thanks. I’m just a bit tired.”

“It’s because you lack training, you lack training! From today on, let’s train together, upper body and lower body, every day…”

He was overwhelmed.

But he didn’t feel bad.

It was comforting to know that there were people who cared about him like this.

Seo Woojin smiled and answered each question, hiding what needed to be hidden and revealing what needed to be revealed.

He naturally headed towards the training grounds.

*  *  *

“So, if I use this, I can summon a monster?”

Gye Suji asked, holding a ‘Summoning Stone’.

“They say that it can summon any monster you want.”

“……I can level up, then.”

The monsters provided by the Academy allowed for stable experience gain, but it was too little.

Gye Suji had a strong desire to become stronger, and she thought that way because she was training with Seo Woojin .

“Instead, you should only summon monsters that you can handle, unless you want to die by the one you chose.” 

“That’s natural.” 

Gye Suji’s face was filled with anticipation.

She was the type who couldn’t back down from a fight.

“I can summon a total of ten times, so if I use it efficiently, I can level up by at least 10 levels.”

It wasn’t just a matter of reaching level 10; it was a difficult task.

Even Lee Ji-ah would be able to catch up to the elite friends in one go if she leveled up that much.

“Can we really get something like this?”

Gudonghwan asked in a trembling voice.

While he was grateful, it seemed to bother him that they were receiving such an item for free.

“Anyway, I can’t use it all by myself. Since there’s still some left, it’s better if we all get stronger together.”

“As expected of you Mister!” 

Lee Ji-ah gave a thumbs up, but Seo Woojin twitched his eyebrows.

It seemed like she was trying to praise him, but the content of her words was a bit annoying.

‘Is she saying I’m great, or that I’m really like a Mister?’

He felt a slight sting in his heart, but he didn’t show it.

“Hmm, for now, let’s focus on leveling up. We can postpone the sparring training.”

“That sounds good.”

Gye Suji nodded in agreement with Seo Woojin’s words.

“Thank you!”

Lee Ji-ah bowed her head first, followed by Kim Da-hye and the others, who also thanked Seo Woojin.

‘Is this enough to gain their favor?’

Seo Woojin thought that, at the very least, they would think of him first from now on.

That alone was enough.

“Oh, and it’s better to summon monsters in your individual training rooms. There’s no need to let others know about it.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

It was a kind of experience buff.

As Seo Woojin said, if many people found out, it would only cause trouble.

“I understand!”

“Then, let’s disperse!”

He didn’t need to individually choose a monster for each of them.

They were all experienced warriors who had accumulated a lot of experience.

They would surely be aware of their own abilities.

‘They’ll choose well on their own.’

There was no fool who would recklessly put themselves in danger.

“…Or not?”

Seo Woojin looked at Lee Ji-ah, who was jumping around excitedly.

That girl seemed like she might do something reckless.

‘Let’s not worry about it.’

Lee Ji-ah might seem thoughtless, but she wasn’t.

She knew how to take care of others and was quick-witted.

She wasn’t a fool, even if she seemed carefree.

‘There’s no need to worry.’

Seo Woojin gazed at the people gathered around, looking at the monster guidebook distributed by Jayronin.

*  *  *

“This is what you wanted.”

Thud-

Dariel threw a round object onto Agna’s desk.

“I finally caught him.”

“There’s no body.”

It was torn into many pieces and turned to dust, so there was no body left.

“This is enough.”

Agna lifted up Gerald’s severed head.

The documents she had been writing just a moment ago were now stained with black blood, but she didn’t care.

After all, she had finally defeated Gerald.

“You almost lost the Grand Duke, but you managed to catch him.”

“Heh, it’s no big deal to catch a wounded rat.”

Dariel sat down on the stiff sofa, crossing his legs.

“How many are left now?”

Gerald was the most famous strongman among the demon king’s followers.

But he wasn’t the strongest.

“One is dead, so now there are twelve.”

The 13 apostles had decreased to 12.

“There are still many left.”

“Only three of them have been identified.”

Agna let out a sigh.

Even with Crusiel’s full power, they couldn’t reveal more than that.

Most of them existed outside the empire’s borders.

“When are you going to take care of those three?”

If they knew where they were, they could go and kill them.

But Agna shook her head.

“We can’t kill them now.”

“…What do you mean?”

“It means you’re not strong enough.”

“Hah!”

A sharp aura burst out from Dariel’s body.

“Stop it, you’re being too reckless.”

Agna’s expression was stern, her eyes narrowed.

“Boring.”

In an instant, the aura dissipated.

The power of magic had reached its peak.

“What do you mean by ‘not strong enough’?”

“Zenonia, Gorn, Ardetos.”

Agna replied with three names.

“…It’s definitely impossible.”

Those three were especially powerful among the demon king’s followers.

So much so that even as a swordmaster, he could not be confident of victory. 

“At least three wings have to come together to be sure.” 

Swordmaster, Mage, Warrior, Dark Sorcerer and Grand Duke.

It meant that at least three of them needed to gather to guarantee victory against one of them.

“…So what’s your plan? You’re not going to just sit back and watch, are you?”

“Just wait for one year.”

Agna said nonchalantly, as if implying that a way to deal with them would arise by then.

“You’re planning to use the hero.”

“That’s right. By then, they’ll be usable too.”

It would be like sharpening a sword.

“Seo Woojin seems sharp enough already.”

He had fought against Gerald.

Although he hadn’t fought alone, it was impossible for the current heroes to do so.

“I’m keeping an eye on him too.”

“What’s going on?”

“I asked the Grand Duke, but she just said she didn’t know. It’s clear he’s hiding something, but I don’t know what.”

Agna didn’t believe Briani’s words.

In fact, it only increased her suspicion towards Seo Woojin.

“Why not just capture him and interrogate him?”

There were many ways to find out what he was hiding.

Especially with Crusiel, there were hundreds of methods to choose from.

It was easier to capture a hero and dig up their secrets than to flip one’s hand.

“If we touch him, there are people who won’t just sit back and watch.”

“I’ll take care of that with my sword.”

Dariel was confident.

But Agna shook her head.

“If you can take on the Mage and Grand Duke at the same time, then I’ll think about it.”

Dariel’s eyes widened as she stared at Agna.

“The Grand Duke, and the Mage too?”

“I don’t know why, but Seo Woojin seems to have left quite a strong impression on them.”

“Huh-“

Martes was a noble being.

Compared to the Grand Duke, her status was far higher.

Could it be that the Mage, who was revered by many, had a special affection for a mere hero?

Dariel couldn’t believe it.

“If you’re curious, go ask her yourself.”

Agna said nonchalantly, but it was impossible to do so.

“For now, we’ll just have to keep an eye on him from afar.”

As long as the Martes’ eyes were on Seo Woojin, it was impossible to capture him.

Even if it were possible, it wouldn’t be a good idea.

Martes’s wrath was something that even the swordmaster feared.

“Well, I think that’s enough for now. You can go.”

Agna lit a new cigarette and gave a dismissal.

“You got everything you wanted, so you’re telling me to go away?” 

“I need to appreciate this for a bit, so go ahead.”

Agna’s hand held up Gerald’s head.

The head of the man who had tormented her and Crusiel for so long.

When Dariel left, Agna planned to display it in her office as a trophy.

She would look at it whenever she felt frustrated.

“What a despicable woman.”

“You’re angry?”

“The mobile task force has suffered a lot of damage, so please provide proper compensation.” 

Dozens of knights had died in the process of capturing Gerald.

They were nameless heroes who had sacrificed themselves for the empire.

It was a path they had chosen for themselves.

At least, he wanted to give them proper compensation.

“I’ll take care of it myself, so just go.”

“…Alright.”

Dariel snorted and walked out the door.  

But Agna didn’t even glance at him, instead playing with Gerald’s head with a crazed look in her eyes.