Leveling Up With Skills - Chapter 280: Amelia Aerin (2)

*Boom!*

Amelia was slammed into the ground. Taesan dusted off his hands.

“You’re good… but that’s it.”

Amelia was undoubtedly strong.

With her abilities, she had likely surpassed the level of the 40th floor.

However, Taesan now possessed the power to reach the deepest parts of the labyrinth.

No matter how much Amelia struggled, she couldn’t withstand even a single one of his strikes.

Taesan gazed silently at her collapsed form. Her limp body disappeared.

—

[Quest Complete.]

[You are the winner.]

[Calculating…]

[You have earned 1,250 points.]

[Forced Invitation Activated.]

[You are being transported to the domain of a god.]

—

The space around him distorted.

A massive force crushed everything as Taesan’s body was forcibly moved.

—

Amid the overwhelming pressure, Taesan observed his surroundings.

A dark, murky expanse spread in every direction, resembling viscous mud. It writhed and emitted wails that sounded like the cries of despair.

Taesan frowned.

He could sense it. He knew what that dark mud was.

It was made of human souls. Thousands of them.

The emotions emanating from those souls were filled with despair and betrayal.

‘This is…’

It was a realm where mortal souls and emotions mingled together.

As Taesan quietly took in his surroundings, he noticed a glowing patch within the darkness.

Unlike the others, this soul hadn’t completely crumbled; it wasn’t black, but closer to gray.

However, the gray soul was trembling, seemingly on the verge of being consumed by the surrounding darkness.

‘That’s…’

[You.]

As Taesan approached the gray soul, a booming voice echoed through the realm.

A massive presence began to weigh down on him.

[How dare you, wretched being.]

The voice came from within the mud-like darkness, radiating an almost blinding brilliance.

The souls near the light screamed and fled. A towering, mountain-like entity bared its wrath at Taesan.

[For a mere mortal to disrupt my plans…]

A surge of anger directed at Taesan followed.

For a moment, his breath caught. His entire body was overwhelmed with fear, teetering on the brink of collapse.

—

[You have activated Apostle Transformation (Darkness and Chaos).]

[You have activated King’s Vessel.]

—

The power wrapped around Taesan, protecting him. His breathing steadied, and the trembling in his body subsided.

Taesan opened his mouth.

“I don’t understand why you’re so upset, God of Despair, Essence.”

He smirked.

“I followed the rules you set and achieved victory. I don’t believe I’ve done anything to earn your ire.”

[Pathetic creature.]

The God of Despair’s voice carried a tinge of irritation.

[An insignificant mortal who dares to rely on petty power to defy me. Die.]

With that declaration, the god unleashed its power toward Taesan, intent on annihilating him.

“No.”

Taesan calmly denied the command.

“I’m not relying on my own strength. I have faith in something else, my lord.”

Before the god’s attack could land, the space split apart. A small, white hand appeared.

[That’s enough.]

[How…?]

The God of Despair’s voice wavered with confusion as a mischievous smile spread across the newcomer’s face.

[Hello, Essence.]

[…Demon God, you insolent deity.]

The God of Despair’s voice dripped with annoyance.

[This is my domain. How did you get in here?]

[Oh, it wasn’t easy. Your domain was pretty tough to crack. But you see, I have a connection to this mortal.]

The Demon God glanced briefly at Taesan, and Essence’s expression twisted with fury.

[Are you saying you would stand against me to protect a mere mortal?]

[Oh, don’t take it personally.]

The Demon God grinned.

[We were never on good terms to begin with, were we? And let’s be honest—this mortal is worth far more than you.]

[You insolent god!]

[Look, I usually don’t meddle in other gods’ affairs, but this? This is just embarrassing.]

The Demon God’s face brimmed with derision.

[You set up this whole scheme to toy with a single mortal, giving them every advantage, and now you’re throwing a tantrum because it didn’t work? Even for a transcendent being, that’s pathetic.]

[Silence, Demon God!]

Essence growled.

[You’ve done the same for your favored mortals, haven’t you? Lavished them with everything they needed?]

[Not quite. I only reward fairly for the tasks I assign. Unlike you, I don’t fabricate challenges just to give out rewards.]

The Demon God’s voice carried a sharp edge as it continued.

[And I merely observe. I don’t directly interfere to play games with mortals like you do.]

The Demon God’s power enveloped Taesan protectively.

[I won’t waste time debating this, Essence. This mortal is under my care, and I won’t let you harm him.]

The Demon God smiled wryly.

Essence erupted in rage, and its power surged chaotically. The forces of the two transcendent beings collided violently.

The clash unleashed power capable of annihilating entire worlds.

But the Demon God held the upper hand.

The mud-like darkness began to retreat under the pressure of the Demon God’s pure black energy.

In the trembling, unstable space, the Demon God waved a hand.

[Well, I hope we don’t meet again. Goodbye.]

[You—!]

The space sealed shut.

The pure black darkness receded.

—

[You should be cautious. Gods don’t always favor those with great abilities. Some, like the immortals, act unpredictably.]

“Thank you, Demon God.”

Though the Demon God had once invited Taesan to become an apostle, Taesan had never expected the god to intervene so directly to protect him.

The Demon God grinned.

[Then, would you like to become my apostle now?]

“No, thank you.”

Taesan refused bluntly. The Demon God shrugged it off, as if the question had never been serious.

[I was just the first to act. Even if I hadn’t intervened, there are others who would’ve stopped Essence.]

There were many gods who favored Taesan. They would have intervened to thwart the God of Despair’s schemes.

[This is the result of the efforts you’ve made within the labyrinth. You earned this outcome, so there’s no need to thank me.]

The Demon God gazed at Taesan meaningfully.

The god waved a hand, and the space began to distort.

[Well then, farewell. I look forward to seeing you again someday.]

“One last question, if I may.”

[What is it?]

“If I approach the God of Despair again, how will he react?”

[He will despise it and present you with difficult trials, but… he won’t be able to avoid giving you a trial. The trials of the deep labyrinth are necessary even for gods. And he won’t openly try to kill you anymore—not after I declared my protection.]

The Demon God smiled slyly.

[It’s because of that poor child on the 61st floor, isn’t it?]

“I received a quest. I can’t ignore it.”

[Don’t worry. There won’t be any issues regarding that, nor with Amelia.]

Taesan looked at the Demon God.

“You knew about her?”

[The actions of the God of Despair are well-known even among us. He’s not exactly highly regarded.]

Thinking about it, it was no wonder other gods didn’t approve of him.

Reaching the depths of the labyrinth required significant talent and strength. To use mortals with such potential as mere toys and discard them was contrary to the purpose for which gods had established the labyrinth. That such behavior wasn’t outright rejected was itself surprising.

[The God of Despair looks at two things: talent and ideology. The moment someone fails to meet even one of those criteria, he loses interest. So depending on how things go, Amelia might also be abandoned by him.]

The Demon God’s eyes twinkled with amusement.

[Break her completely. I’ll enjoy watching.]

“Thank you.”

—

As the space around him stabilized, Taesan found himself standing on a solid floor. The sound of murmuring voices filled the air.

He turned and saw a crowd of people gathered tightly together.

“No, that’s not it.”

“Well, of course, you were desperate to survive, but so were we! With the most players, you already had the highest chance of winning, and yet this is what you resort to?”

Taesan spotted Oliver attempting to explain himself while Kim Hwiyeon meticulously dismantled his excuses. Other nations’ players also looked at the Americans with clear hostility.

The United States had blatantly banded together to eliminate players from other countries, ensuring their own victory.

It was a volatile situation, one where conflict could erupt at any moment.

“I’m sorry,” Oliver said, raising both hands in an apologetic gesture. Lee Taeyeon, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke.

“Where is Taesan?”

“Hm?” Oliver looked startled.

“Where is Taesan? What happened to him?”

Her voice was devoid of emotion, cold and icy. The shift in tone made Oliver hesitate.

“We… don’t know.”

An intense aura suddenly surged from Lee Taeyeon. Oliver flinched, raising his hands defensively.

“We asked Amelia when she returned, but she was too dazed to give a clear answer. Since Taesan was declared the final victor, we assume he’s receiving his reward somewhere.”

“So you’re saying, even after all your scheming, you have no idea where he is?” Lee Taeyeon gripped her sword tightly, and Oliver’s face turned pale.

“What are you doing?”

“Huh?”

Lee Taeyeon turned her head and froze. When she spotted Taesan, the coldness in her demeanor disappeared completely.

“Taesan!”

Her voice drew the attention of everyone present, and all eyes turned toward him.

—

[Colosseum Concluded.]

[Final Winner: Kang Taesan.]

[Country with the Most Survivors: United States.]

[Rewards are granted to those who performed exceptionally.]

[Quest Completed. Adventurers from Korea, the United States, France, and Japan gather in the Plaza of Meeting.]

[Two days remain before returning to individual labyrinths.]

—

The quest was over. But if it had simply ended there, everyone would have been left dissatisfied.

After all, they had gathered from various countries only to fight, with nothing more to show for it than determining a single victor.

To mitigate this, the system allowed two days for players to interact, exchange information, and build connections.

‘Originally, this would have been a stage to bolster Amelia’s pride.’

But not anymore.

All attention was now focused on Taesan.

A young man with gray hair approached him. His sharp features gave him the look of a model. The man greeted Taesan politely.

“Hello.”

“Daniel Darmont?”

“Oh? You know me?”

Daniel’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. Taesan replied casually.

“Roughly.”

“Well, I suppose so. I’ve been discussed in the community, so you must have heard of me.”

Daniel nodded, coming to his own conclusion. Of course, that wasn’t the reason Taesan knew him. They had interacted quite a bit in his previous life.

A woman with shoulder-length hair, appearing slightly older, bowed and approached. Kim Hwiyeon tilted her head before exclaiming in recognition.

“Are you Ichijo Eika?”

“Yes…”

Eika scratched her head awkwardly. Kim Hwiyeon smiled.

“You look much younger than I expected. Is it because you used to be an idol?”

“P-please don’t mention my age!” Eika exclaimed, flustered, waving her hands. Daniel chuckled and interjected.

“Anyway… we’re here to lodge a complaint.”

Their gazes turned toward Oliver.

Oliver raised his hands defensively.

“Can I at least explain?”

“No,” Daniel said with a mischievous grin.

“Let’s discuss that later. For now… we need to address something more pressing.”

“…Right.”

Daniel and Eika turned their attention back to Taesan, their expressions filled with awe.

“We knew you were strong, but this…”

He had defeated dozens of hard-mode players and even Amelia, the strongest solo-mode player in the United States.

While other nations had solo-mode players, most were on par with hard-mode players. Even the rare few who stood out couldn’t handle dozens of opponents at once.

They had assumed Taesan and Amelia were strong, but not to this degree.

Oliver shook his head in disbelief.

“Even I’m astonished.”

Taesan wasn’t just stronger than Amelia.

He was overwhelmingly so.

The speed with which the final winner was decided after Oliver’s defeat made it clear that Amelia hadn’t even been a match for him.

“How strong are you, really?”

It was a question of pure curiosity, one that drew the attention of everyone except the Korean players.

Taesan turned away.

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

With the Demon God’s permission, Taesan began walking forward. The crowd parted instinctively, clearing a path.

Amelia, standing in the distance, flinched as Taesan approached her. She glared at him, her eyes resembling those of a cornered cat.

“…What do you want? Did you come to mock me?”

Taesan answered not with words, but with action.

—

[Kang Taesan has challenged Amelia Aerin to a duel. The duel will take place under perfectly equal conditions.]