The Player that Can’t Level Up

Those standing ahead of Gi-Gyu now were people he could never forget.

‘How could I?’

Their faces were seared in his brain. After all, they were the legends of the player world.

“Angela…” Gi-Gyu whispered.

“Kirrk?”

Outside the 79th-floor entrance, hundreds of players stood, all wearing different armor but having the same mark on their chests.

The Angela Guild.

Gi-Gyu used to dream about working with them when he had been a powerless guide. He remembered how they had set out to conquer the Tower.

‘So why are they here?’

After Lee Sun-Ho’s defeat, he and his guild had stopped making public appearances, using his injuries as an excuse. When Eden, the KPA’s replacement, had been established, Heo Sung-Hoon had asked them for a meeting, but they had rejected him. So, Gi-Gyu hadn’t expected to see them in front of the 79th-floor entrance.

“Could it be…” A thought crossed Gi-Gyu’s mind. “Wait here.”

“Kirrrk!”

Gi-Gyu dashed toward them, leaving the lizardman behind. He moved at the speed of light. And because Hermes shone like a star, he looked like an arrow of light.

“...!” The members of the Angela Guild spotted Gi-Gyu and quickly got ready for a battle. Someone powerful was coming their way, so this was an expected reaction. But no matter how powerful they were, they were no match for Gi-Gyu now.

Thud!

“Ugh…” the Angela Guild members groaned when Gi-Gyu’s overwhelming energy crashed into them. To Gi-Gyu, these players were no better than the non-players.

A dust storm rose, but Gi-Gyu waved his hands to quickly clear it. The Angela Guild members quickly got back into formation when they saw Gi-Gyu.

The one who looked like the leader ordered, “Get ready!”

“I am not here to fight you.” When Gi-Gyu announced, the Angela Guild players all paused. It wasn’t just because of his words. Gi-Gyu’s powerful energy could restrain his opponents to a certain extent.

“I’m Kim Gi… I’m Morningstar.” Gi-Gyu decided they would recognize his code name faster than his real name. He raised both of his hands to show that he had no intention to fight.

“Morningstar?” the one who appeared to be the strongest whispered.

Gi-Gyu recognized her instantly. “Nice to meet you, Player Kang Ji-Hee.”

Every player admired the Angela Guild. It was an iconic group, so all the famous players in the group were like idols.

“...” Kang Ji-Hee eyed Gi-Gyu cautiously. She was one of the three deputy guild masters of the Angela Guild. Many admired her beauty, but Gi-Gyu wasn’t interested in her looks.

“Why is the Angela Guild here?” Gi-Gyu went right to the point.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

Unfortunately, the Angela Guild members weren’t interested in his question. They raised their weapons and got ready for a battle again.

***

“Huh?” Go Hyung-Chul gasped in confusion. His face was still pale, but his voice had gained a bit of strength. The food Haures had brought back was surprisingly nutritious. It didn’t restore his sorcerous energy, but Go Hyung-Chul felt much better nonetheless.

Haures turned toward Go Hyung-Chul and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Didn’t that move just now?” Go Hyung-Chul pointed at Hal, who was still kneeling. And behind him, the members of the Drake-Knight Order were slowly dying.

“...?”

“I swear! He moved just now!” Go Hyung-Chul yelled in frustration when Haures gave him a doubtful look. But Go Hyung-Chul really believed he had seen Hal and his halberd flinch.

“Oh my…” Haures said sadly. “You must be feeling weak. Shall I give you some more of my sorcerous energy?”

Haures staggered to his feet.

“I’m telling you!” Go Hyung-Chul insisted. It appeared that Haures hadn’t noticed the movement, most likely because he was in rough shape. And Go Hyung-Chul only noticed it by coincidence.

“Listen…” Haures reached out to share more of his sorcerous energy when suddenly, he noticed Hal flinch.

“I think he moved,” Haures announced.

“I told you so!”

Haures and Go Hyung-Chul stared at each other. Hal’s halberd was vibrating most subtly. Until now, while Ironshield and the unknown player battled hard enough to shake the ground, Hal hadn’t moved a muscle. But now, he was moving.

“Could it be…”

“Finally…!”

Both Go Hyung-Chul and Haures asked the same question, “Is his evolution finally over?!”

When Ironshield had attacked them, Hal and his knights had risked their lives to save the group. If it weren’t for them, none of them would’ve survived. Hal and his knights had suffered the most injuries and were barely alive. Then, Hal had announced, “The test our master gave me is over. I am about to evolve. I’m sorry the timing is terrible, but… please take care of me.”

With this, Hal stopped moving.

“But…” Go Hyung-Chul said grimly, “Will this change anything?”

He wondered if their situation would change after Hal’s evolution. Just then, he felt the vibration outside his barrier again.

Dun dun dun dun dun.

“Dammit, it’s starting again.”

***

“I told you… I don’t want to fight you,” Gi-Gyu muttered. Around him, the Angela Guild members dropped one by one.

“Ugh…!”

“Dammit… How could he be so powerful?!”

“He’s even stronger than the rumors!”

It was a very short battle, but their ruined surroundings indicated it was vicious.

‘Guess they are pretty strong,’ Gi-Gyu thought while watching them. They were the elite players of the Angela Guild, after all.

‘But I don’t see the other two deputy guild masters here. And the White Warriors aren’t here either.’

The White Warriors were the symbol of the Angela Guild. Lee Sun-Ho himself had trained those 100 players that were considered the elite of the elites in the Angela Guild. These players accompanied Lee Sun-Ho whenever he climbed the Tower. However, they were absent now. The players here were the best in the guild, excluding the White Warriors.

‘They are definitely strong.’ Gi-Gyu estimated that the ten of these players combined were as strong as Tao Chen before he had become a ruler.

“I can’t believe there are so many high-rankers here,” Gi-Gyu whispered. The title “high ranker” wasn’t something that the Tower bestowed. The players needed to battle each other to obtain this respected tank.

‘And these people are as powerful as official high rankers,’ Gi-Gyu thought in awe. So if they were this powerful, how strong were the White Warriors?

‘Maybe as strong as Kang Ji-Hee over there?’

Gi-Gyu walked up to the deputy guild master.

“No…!” the players on the ground struggled to stop Gi-Gyu.

“Kirrk!” But their effort was useless because the lizardman walked up to Gi-Gyu and growled at them.

“Good job,” Gi-Gyu praised the monster. It wouldn’t have mattered if the players reached him, but he didn’t want to be bothered. He approached Kang Ji-Hee and grabbed her neck.

“Ugh…” Kang Ji-Hee, who was unconscious, moaned. She was stronger than Gi-Gyu had expected. Therefore, he had knocked her out to restrain her.

‘Or else, I would’ve had to cut her arms or something.’

But Gi-Gyu didn’t want to do this. Besides, although Kang Ji-Hee had great power, she couldn’t use it well. So it wasn’t hard for Gi-Gyu to make her faint.

“How…?” Kang Ji-Hee looked confused, failing to comprehend the situation around her. They were supposed to be almost invincible. There were almost 30 high-rankers with her, yet not one could defeat Gi-Gyu. Kang Ji-Hee’s eyes wavered in disbelief.

“I’ll ask you again.” Gi-Gyu squatted down next to her because she still couldn’t stand up. “Why is the Angela Guild here?”

Gi-Gyu didn’t jump to a negative conclusion, but he couldn’t think of a good reason for why they were here. It looked especially suspicious because strange things were happening on the 79th floor, and Haures and some of his creatures were in danger.

“What have you done to the 79th floor?” Gi-Gyu accused her. He suspected that the Angela Guild had something to do with what was happening on the 79th floor.

“...!” Kang Ji-Hee’s eyes wavered even more, indicating that Gi-Gyu’s guess was correct.

“If you don’t answer me, I will have no choice but to force it out of you,” Gi-Gyu warned when she remained quiet. “You do know that I can do that, right?”

“...” It seemed that Gi-Gyu’s threat worked. Kang Ji-Hee couldn’t use her full potential, but this didn’t mean she was an idiot. She asked, “Will you promise to let all of us live if I answer?”

“...” The reply momently made him speechless. He muttered in frustration, “Of course… I told you I wasn’t here to fight you in the first place!”

“I can’t trust the Trumpet of Apocalypse. Swear on your name and your existence,” Kang Ji-Hee demanded harshly; the tone didn’t really suit her beauty.

“The Trumpet of Apocalypse?” Gi-Gyu asked, but when Kang Ji-Hee refused to answer, he sighed. “Haa… Fine.”

He didn’t want to waste any more time, so Gi-Gyu replied, “I don’t know what will change if I swear on my name and my existence, but all right. I will swear on everything that I will let all of you live.”

Kang Ji-Hee looked relieved, and Gi-Gyu quickly added, “But you must answer honestly. And you must also promise not to harm me and my allies.”

When Gi-Gyu gave her a hostile look, Kang Ji-Hee shuddered and answered, “I agree.”

“Good. So I’ll ask you for the last time. Why are you here?” Gi-Gyu had to know that.

“That’s”—Kang Ji-Hee looked up at him with clear eyes—“because we must seal away our guild master.”

“Your guild master?” Gi-Gyu’s brain stopped working momentarily. “You mean Lee Sun-Ho?”

Suddenly, Gi-Gyu realized what this meant.