Chapter 194: #Owner of the World in a Box (1)

The sudden greeting caught me off guard. A pair of mysterious white eyes peeked through the penguin mask, staring at me.

“Excuse me. Why are you looking at me like that?”

Imagine this: a penguin-masked woman, with glowing white eyes, stared me dead in the eyes.

Scary!

Swoosh!

Just then, the space behind her warped, reminiscent of Choi Bong-Shik’s skill. Five masked women, dressed in black garments like assassins, teleported over.

“Yored, daha musaka...” they muttered in an enchanting voice, like the chirping of birds.

I can’t understand a thing!

In the next moment, they knelt toward the penguin-masked woman in unison.

More importantly, who are they?!

Full of confusion, I used my appraisal skill.

Ding!

[The innate power Blind Eyes of God has been activated.]

-----

[Followers of the Extinct God of Harmony and Balance]

Female elves. Around for over 2,000 years.

Special note: Wields decent sword and magic skills.

-----

“E-elf?”

That term was first used for otherworldly beings who arrived on Earth through gates about twenty years ago. And Royce, an SSS-rank Hunter who was now considered the world’s strongest, was one of them.

One of the masked women reacted at my mention of the word

elf.

Clang!

She drew a dagger from her waist and pointed it at me, her emerald eyes glowering ruthlessly.

“Laksuiru?” The penguin-masked woman shook her head hard. “Lu butu gigu daiso.”

Another unintelligible sentence. What language was that exactly?

The elf woman then withdrew her dagger and bowed to me.

“I apologize for our rudeness to our benefactor.”

Huh? They suddenly spoke fluently in Korean?

“Thank you for saving our princess. We will make sure to repay the favor in the name of the God of Harmony and Balance.”

God of Harmony and Balance? That sounded familiar. Could it be the same vengeful spirit I had encountered back at the dungeon?

Oh, I remember now!

I suddenly recalled where I had seen the penguin-masked woman! It was at the Hunter Association, when they first brought back Akdol’s egg! She was the same woman whom I couldn’t appraise back then!

So, she’s an elven princess? Now that I’m a Mid-tier God, I might be able to appraise her this time!

Ding!

[The innate power Blind Eyes of God has been activated.]

It was faint, but something different appeared this time.

-----

[Allohym]

A female elf of divine blood descent. Around for...

-----

Just as I was about to learn her age, the penguin-masked woman raised her hands in a flurry, putting up the X sign before her face.

[Target has declined appraisal!]

All her information disappeared without a trace. Her hands trembled, as if implying that a woman’s age wasn’t to be trifled with. The elf who pointed a dagger at me stopped her princess, bowing respectfully.

“Benefactor, we must return, for the paladins are waiting for us. May harmony and balance be with you until the day we meet again.”

Then, the elven woman whispered something to her princess. The elven princess nodded in response, then raised her hand at me.

“

Peng-hi!

”

Swoosh swoosh!

And with that, they were gone.

Man, have I gone mad

?

***

As I cradled the sleeping Seong-Yeon, a cup of luxurious, fragrant tea was placed in front of me.

“Mr. Sword God, this is Longjing tea. Please enjoy it slowly while savoring its aroma.”

However, I was too distracted by Lin Xiaoming’s fiery gaze to enjoy the tea.

“I see that your fashion has changed slightly since I last saw you.”

Lin Xiaoming wasn’t in her usual

qipao

, but rather in a neat suit, like a secretary of a tycoon, complete with a pair of glasses.

“What do you think? Does it suit your taste? I tried dressing up according to the orders entrusted to me.”

“Yes, it looks good.”

Personality aside, her looks alone could make her a leading figure in the fashion world with just a piece of cloth.

Lin Xiaoming blushed, twisting her body like a snake. “

Gosh

, Mr. Sword God. I can’t believe you said that I suit you.”

When did I ever say that? I think she’s too easily mistaken.

“Can you give me some room?”

“Pardon? This is the first time Lin mei has seen you in a while! Lin mei would like to serve you for a longer ti—”

I looked at her gently. I did forgive her for the incident with Xu Zhu, but the resentment hadn’t been erased completely.

“I asked you to leave.”

“Y-yes sir!”

Lin Xiaoming shuddered—a far cry from her previous attitude—and made her exit.

“I’ve never seen Lin Xiaoming so docile before. You are truly amazing, Mr. Yu Il-Shin. How did you control that crazy...” Kang Woo gave me a reverent look.

Indeed, I was in the middle of talking to Kang Woo. Even though he couldn’t save the world, a regressor was still a sort of cheat to the system. Asking him about what I didn't know would be the fastest way.

“...The Despair Cult?” Kang Woo tapped his head, seemingly trying to jog his memories. “Actually, there were quite a few of such cults in my past lives. They were terrorists at best, so I didn’t pay much attention to them.”

“But why would they do such a thing?”

I couldn't understand why anyone would worship a monster responsible for so many deaths in what was now known as a cataclysmic event.

"I'm just as clueless as you, but evil sometimes fascinates people—just like how even the most notorious killers have fans,” Kang Woo said, blatantly showing disgust. “They may not have been a major threat in my past lives, but we shouldn't take them lightly. According to what you’ve shared with me, the horrifying, monster-like appearances, and abilities beyond S-rank Hunters... They could pose a greater threat than Johan in the past. I’ll do everything in my power to track them down.”

To my relief, Kang Woo exuded an aura reminiscent of the protagonist from most novels.

As expected of Kang Woo hyungnim!

“But Kang Woo hyungnim, I have another question for you.”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Kang Woo was taken aback when I told him about my encounter with the penguin-masked woman and the other elven women.

Huh? He doesn’t seem to know either?

“I knew that the penguin-masked woman was an elf, but she was of royal status?” Kang Woo continued. “All I know is that she was an elf assigned to the Hunter Association’s Korean Branch, acting as an ambassador of sorts. Her actions were bizarre, but I didn’t pay much attention to her during the last meeting, since it was quite uneventful and she was there for sightseeing.”

Then, Kang Woo ran his hand through his hair. “She was only a B-rank Hunter at best, but royalty...?”

Surprisingly, Kang Woo had never encountered any elven royalties in his past lives. In fact, he’d only learned of their existence now. After emerging through the gate twenty years ago, fewer than twenty elves had naturalized in America.

Meanwhile, I was shocked for another reason. My appraisal was stopped by a mere B-rank Hunter? Well, maybe it was because I was technically a G-rank. Moreover, divine power still couldn’t be measured with Earth’s current technology.

Oh...

The penguin-masked woman—or rather, the elven princess—was of divine bloodline. Her escort elves seemed quite skilled, as well.

Then how the heck did she get kidnapped?!

***

Even until a few days later, I was still on the lookout for any possible sneak attacks, but thankfully, nothing happened. Still, I kept myself prepared just in case.

“Seong-Yeon, repeat after me:

I believe in Yu Il-Shin

.”

“No! Mummy said don’t believe in cults!”

“

Haa...

Where did you learn that? I’ll buy you the doll you wanted before. Just do it for me, please? Noona, you say it too.”

“Are you crazy? I’d rather you ask me to be your guarantor instead.”

“If you say it, I’ll keep babysitting Seong-Yeon for you!”

“Okay, deal.”

I worked hard convincing the mother and daughter.

Ding!

[Faith development is successful!]

[Congratulations. Chase Seong-Yeon and Yu Shin-Ja have become your followers on Earth.]

Now, even if something were to happen to them, I’d be alerted by the Follower Salvation Quest and could respond immediately. I also assigned bodyguards to them.

Aside from my S-rank followers—Lin Xiaoming, Sword Demon, and Shin Yoo—there were also Hunters personally hired by Kang Woo hyungnim covertly protecting them around the clock.

Nevertheless, my investigation into the Despair Dragon Cult hadn’t made much progress. I had looked into Ayaka and Issac, but to my surprise, until a month ago, they were just ordinary people without any abilities. Their rapid rise to rival S-rank Hunters proved how dangerous they were. However, I didn’t have the luxury to focus solely on them, as I also had to prepare for the Sacrificial War against the Emperor.

Pzzz!

“Mr. Yu, is this really okay?” Sung Mi-Ri asked with a worried look.

I reassured her, “I’m fine, so feel free to unleash your power.”

“I believe in you then!

Hyaaa!

Skill, Thunder Body!”

Ruuumble!

Sung Mi-Ri unleashed her strongest thunderbolts onto me. I didn’t panic and raised my phone.

Pzzz!

Her thunderbolts were then transported into Waternia, a channel and world in God-Maker, where the desert was.

As for why I did it, this was all necessary and part of the process. For me, Sung Mi-Ri, and for Waternia.

The cactus girl poked her head from her hiding place underground.

-

Waaah!

You’ve done a great job today as well!