I Gave Up Being Stronger

The universe-level Scenario had skipped again.

[(10) Dear wanderer, much time has passed. How do you feel, having faced the truth that slumbers within the Sword Fragment? Ah, corrupted believer. The sacrilegious armor you boasted of has pierced your heart instead. The era of false peace draws to a close, and now we shall march toward the truth.

(12) The truth lies beyond reach, so seek and pioneer the unknown. There, you shall gain everything.]

Cha Jin-Hyeok tilted his head. ‘Why does it feel like they’re just stringing me along with words?’

Initially, he would readily receive rewards along with the progression of the universe-level Scenario. Skipping stage (11) was one thing, but activating stage (12) should have given him some rewards. Yet, there was none. He waited a bit longer but didn’t receive anything.

‘Is this a scam?’

It was a common problem in human affairs—things would start promisingly but fizzle out over time. Even Jin-Hyeok’s math textbook was only thorough in the first couple of pages.

He thought he needed to look into this with Yolin.

“O Demon King! Wielder of great power! Would you grant me the honor of inviting you?”

[Will you accept the invitation of Count Piklu of Picture Castle on the Cliff?]

Simultaneously, Jin-Hyeok received a notification about Ysael.

[Count Piklu of Picture Castle on the Cliff requests to terminate the contract with Kim Ysael.]

“Terminate the contract?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“To invite the great one, I must open a larger dimensional gate. However, my current power is insufficient, as much as consumed by the contract. Therefore, I would appreciate it if she would terminate our contract for my sake,” Piklu said.

“I don’t want you to do that.”

“W-Why not? Even though it’s to invite you?!”

Jin-Hyeok sighed, feeling sorry for the Demon. Now that he had an ordinary person’s perspective, he could tell this world had too many socially inept beings, this count being one of them.

“That might be grand and good for you, but it’s not good for Ysael, is it?”

Most people would understand this explanation, but the Demon before them was far from ordinary.

“This is a momentous occasion, my lord. Tens of millions of Demon troops await the Demon King’s return. Isn’t this cause for joy and celebration?”

“That’s exactly why it is not good for Ysael.”

“???”

Jin-Hyeok patted the shoulder of Ysael, his precious fan, and said, “In my experience, quite a few people think like this. It’s a bit foolish, but…”

Visiting the Demon Realm could be a significant event. It was tied to the universe-level Scenario, and he would be the first Eltuber to go there. Jin-Hyeok hesitantly said, “Ysael, it’s a difficult request, but could you…”

“I’ll do it!”

This surprised Jin-Hyeok. “I haven’t even stated the request.”

“I can do it!”

“What if I asked for something like your kidney?”

“Do you need my kidney?” Ysael suddenly drew her sword, startling Jin-Hyeok.

He was momentarily overwhelmed by her madness.

“The contract between you and that Demon is important to you, right?” he asked.

“Um… I guess you can say that.”

It allowed her to read more information and emotions about Chul-Soo that others did not know, making her feel like she was with Chul-Soo!

“Then… forget it,” Jin-Hyeok said.

While the universe-level Scenario and Eltube content were important, he could not bring himself to ask his fan to terminate a contract she cherished. Since he now had an understanding of people’s hearts, he could not do it.

However, Ysael was quick. She intuitively grasped what Chul-Soo wanted and acted immediately.

“Muahahaha! Finally, it’s over! My contract is gone! Piklu is free!”

***

“I want you to contract with her again after this is all over,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“That’s a bit…”

“If you don’t want to, I’m not going.” Jin-Hyeok stood up, uninterested. He made it seem like the negotiation had failed. His firm resolve to ignore the Demon Realm was evident.

“A-Alright, I understand.”

Piklu reluctantly accepted Jin-Hyeok’s proposal. Finally feeling somewhat relieved, Jin-Hyeok smiled at Ysael. “Thank you, Ysael.”

“Could you… call me Kim Ysael?”

Though he was unsure why it mattered so much, Jin-Hyeok nodded. “Thank you, Kim Ysael.”

“Yay!” Ysael beamed as if she owned the world, squirming with joy. “Now I can die without regrets!”

Piklu shook his camera-shaped body. While moderate corruption was a tasty meal, excessive corruption could corrupt even a Demon’s soul. He vowed to delay re-contracting with Ysael using every excuse possible.

“I shall open the dimensional gate, Great Demon Lo—”

“Wait. If you call me Great Demon or Demon Lord one more time, I’m not going.”

This was a gamble for Jin-Hyeok too. He had to visit the Demon Realm. If Piklu just decided that enough was enough, Jin-Hyeok would have been at a loss. However, Piklu was desperate.

“I shall open the dimensional gate.”

Jin-Hyeok reached into the dimensional gate. Something seemed to pull him there as if the world itself was drawing him in.

“It’s quite an interesting feeling. It’s like being sucked into a vacuum cleaner,” Jin-Hyeok said.

He was currently recording from the first-person perspective. Thankfully, his high Level allowed him to convey this strange sensation to his viewers. The feeling of crossing from one dimension to another was accompanied by slight dizziness, but it was not a major issue for him.

“What a strange world.”

It was a pitch-black night with nothing around. Only a picture frame was visible before him, containing a painting of a solitary castle atop a high cliff.

“This dimension seems to contain only this painting.” Jin-Hyeok stared at the painting for a while. Once again, he felt the world spinning. “I’m being sucked into the painting.”

When he came to his senses, he heard a booming noise.

“Muahahaha! You have been fooled, you idiot!”

It was Piklu’s voice. The once small camera-shaped Piklu had become a massive blob of corruption, like a giant slime made of dark water.

“Welcome to my world, stranger.”

Jin-Hyeok found this space somewhat familiar, having experienced similar energies before. ‘It’s similar to the space created by Omnipotent Director.’

This world inside the painting was Count Piklu’s domain. Just as Jin-Hyeok had dominated the Omnipotent Director’s space, Piklu seemed to rule this world.

“My true name is Dragan the Gluttony.”

That was Piklu’s real identity. Piklu was one of the Demons devoured by Dragan.

“I shall devour your soul!”

Dragan the Gluttony, a massive slime, writhed toward Jin-Hyeok.

“So, you tricked me?”

Jin-Hyeok immediately swung Miri.

Splash!

Miri failed to inflict significant damage and became lodged in Dragan’s body.

“You dare attempt such an insolent act against the ruler of this world!”

After swallowing Miri, Dragan crept up Jin-Hyeok’s arm. Soon, Dragan had engulfed him entirely.

“Uahahaha! Now, I shall become the Great Lord and continue the grand plan of the previous Demon King Garbinu!”

***

Dragan was elated. To encounter such pure corruption was rare. While Ysael also possessed tremendous corruption, her soul was quite muddied. Her soul was not self-corrupted but rather tainted by external factors. Such a soul did not suit Dragan. Since he could finally devour pure corruption now, Dragan laughed heartily.

‘I shall continue Garbinu’s grand plan!’ he thought.

“Are you done?” Jin-Hyeok asked, sounding somewhat disappointed.

Caught off guard, Dragan realized that he had not managed to absorb any corruption from this man. The devouring process had not even started. Only then did Dragan notice a strange barrier enveloping Jin-Hyeok. He tried to analyze it, as he could usually analyze and understand everything inside his stomach.

‘I can’t figure it out!’ Dragan couldn’t analyze anything about it. He did not know why. Instead, he could feel just one emotion coming from the man: disappointment. ‘Why does he look so disappointed?’

“I understand it’s a powerful ability, but…” Jin-Hyeok said. Mere power was not enough. The ability needed to look impressive for viewers to cheer. “It’s too boring.”

Jin-Hyeok walked out of Dragan’s stomach.

“???”

Dragan was bewildered. He did not know why he was unable to devour Jin-Hyeok. Dragan was one of the Demon Lords who had lived for eons, so this was unprecedented for him.

“I should learn more from Garcia,” Jin-Hyeok muttered to himself. He thought it would be great if Dragan could understand livestreaming like Garcia and create appropriate tension. However, setting such a high standard was not fair. It was too harsh to expect something of that level from an average being. “I don’t think we can use this scene.”

Jin-Hyeok had pretended to be surprised, feigning he had been tricked, but it felt a bit forced.

‘It’s too anticlimactic,’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

It was too excessive to use Dragan for his next video, and although the Demon’s name, Dragan the Gluttony, sounded cool, it did not meet his expectations.

Dragan the Gluttony had lived for eons and considered himself a wise ruler, which was somewhat true. He had accumulated considerable wisdom by devouring numerous Demons.

‘I don’t know what’s going on… For now, I should pretend to cooperate and figure out why my devouring power isn’t working,’ Dragan thought.

More precisely, the reason was important. He needed to find a way to neutralize that strange barrier (Absolute Barrier) surrounding Jin-Hyeok.

“Haha! This is how I welcome all visitors to my castle!”

“Oh? I thought you were attacking me.”

“?!”

“I’m just kidding. It couldn’t have been a real attack if it was that weak.”

“Is that so? I am glad there is no misunderstanding. Hahaha!”

There was little to misunderstand since the attack was indeed too weak.

“You don’t seem to have much talent for livestreaming,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“I-Is that so?”

“So don’t try too hard to create livestreaming-worthy moments. It might end up feeling forced.”

“...”

“Well, not everyone can be talented in livestreaming. I appreciate your effort, though.”

“T-Thank you!”

Dragan the Gluttony’s pride was severely hurt, but he couldn’t complain.

“Now let’s talk about Garbinu. What exactly is this grand plan of the previous Demon King Garbinu?”