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To reach the Audience Room of the God of the Dead, I had to capture the Lords scattered in all directions.

With Black Lily and the User teaming up, we managed to take down the Lords, opening the way for the Raid.

However, the God of Balance had a different situation in store.

The ‘Weights of Balance’ required for entry were two that I hadn’t even located.

Since they’re embedded somewhere on the continent of Deoen, it was impossible to find them without turning the whole continent upside down.

Kwahahaha!!!

In the end, Aisha and I took an ‘unofficial route.’

It wasn’t a direct teleportation through space distortion; we had to fend off treacherous terrain and clumps of light to even reach our destination.

Even if the entire Challenger Alliance came, this place was something they couldn’t break through, but I ground them down without hesitation.

“Whoa…”

“It seems like it’s all coming together.”

Having taken down over 50 enemies, there shouldn’t be more popping up.

This should be too much even for one whose half a body is missing.

[Kyah]

[Daelily]

[Lily’s really cool, LOL]

[Cut! Cut! Cut!]

[Nothing special, haha]

[Why is Lily so strong?]

[OMG]

[With this much, I guess I can go without Black Lily, LOL]

“I think it’s stronger than the Demon Boss Raid?”

“Right now, there’s no need to conserve power.”

This is the final stretch.

I don’t know what bosses might appear next, but the current disaster only involves the God of Balance.

There’s absolutely no reason to hold back, and if I just clean up this ‘self-proclaimed’ God of Balance, peace will likely find its way into the world for a while.

“…Now that I think about it, that’s a bit concerning.”

[?]

[What is?]

[Huh?]

Disasters grow stronger the longer they last after sunset.

In the first year, there was a weak boss of unknown name.

In the second year, three weak ancient monsters.

In the third year, two strong ancient monsters and one intermediate Demon.

Then in the highly anticipated fourth year, two top-tier Celestials and Demons emerged.

So that means…

“How strong is the boss going to be next year…?”

It’s already dizzying and we haven’t even captured them yet.

“Surely, the ‘Left’ won’t appear?”

I think it’s unlikely, though it’s hard to trust the ‘Administrators.’

They’re as elusive as they are mysterious; you never know what tricks they might be up to.

Even the current disaster poses the question.

“Why aren’t they intervening?”

Even at this very moment, users were falling like flies.

Even if it’s the result of contracts made by themselves, in a situation where users can’t even log in, there’s plenty of reason for them to intervene.

During the Kraken battle, when the users were in danger, the Administrator showed up directly to cast a Shield.

Surely, this case would be no different, right?

No matter how much the Administrator’s policy is ‘permissive.’

“…For now, let’s take them down.”

I gripped my spear firmly and scaled the final peak of the gorge.

The ‘Left’ won’t appear.

While nothing is certain, I have a degree of ‘confidence.’

Not certain but predicting that the head of the Administrator might be the ‘Left,’ or something equivalent.

In Deoen, it’s like the operator appearing as a boss, so to speak.

I can only assume that no matter how many bosses show up in the future, there wouldn’t be more than that top-tier Celestial or Demon.

“Shall we go?”

“Sure.”

Before worrying about the future, focusing on the present took priority.

Aisha and I dove into a small lake at the end of the gorge, the dimensional portal leading us to the massive Audience Room.

Actually, it wasn’t the Audience Room.

“…?”

“Who are those…?!”

A colossal shrine that pierced the sky stood magnificently high.

An otherworldly statue in the center, holding a sword aloft, emitted a pure white light, filling the entire shrine.

The sword pointed distinctly towards the sky that was marked by the ‘Scales.’

Countless white stars shimmered around it; this must truly be the Audience Room.

Thud.

Familiar faces approached.

Aisha squinted her eyes and drew her weapon, and ‘they’ did the same.

A brief standoff ensued.

I stared at ‘them’ and spoke up.

“Angel Guild. So you’re all here?”

“……”

[?]

[Angel Guild?!]

[Wait, are they alive?]

[What the hell?]

[LMAO]

[Weren’t they dead?]

[Thought they got betrayed]

[Whoa]

[WTF, they were betrayal artists!]

[I thought they’d be the first to fall]

[Kill them]

[Let’s wipe them out]

The Angel Guild.

They were the ones I had expected to die first by the hand of the God of Balance.

Although it seemed a total of three had perished, the mere fact that they were alive was a shocking revelation.

‘Gabriel, Michael, and… Metatron?’

I was only guessing their names, yet they were the seven archangels I had never seen before.

Even though I had some connection with the Angel Guild, it was my first time encountering them.

Metatron had short white hair, golden eyes, and a brash demeanor, with divine arms made of platinum and shimmering behind him.

…Strangely reminiscent of Duke Huangyeol.

As I stepped forward, Michael attempted to take the lead as well.

However, Gabriel met Michael’s gaze and stepped forward instead.

“Are the others not joining?”

“…They have finished their mission. This is a task for our older siblings.”

“Not abandoned, right?”

“……”

Gabriel’s expression darkened.

I could take a guess.

The flow of power felt vastly larger than the previous users I encountered, evident from the vessel of the soul they bore.

Though I hadn’t reached ‘above,’ their vials were comparable in size to Yena and Aisha.

In other words, it meant they had withstood the ‘reward’ the God of Balance intended for their slaughter.

‘They were intended to grow as Celestial beings…’

Since they were bodies that had continued to hold divinity, it must have been easier to endure.

Of course, if they received more blessings, they would likely crumble, but instead of using excessive power, the God of Balance chose a much simpler way.

“…As you know, we are the first contracted beings with the angels. While we have received a tremendous amount of divinity, we have also had to bear the burdens that come with that power.”

“There’s no such thing as free power. The moment for payment has come.”

It wasn’t like they would give away their powers without any cost.

Certainly, the Angel Guild must have gone through their own ascetic practices and training, but even so, they received too much power.

Gabriel tightened her grip on the rosary hanging from her neck.

With her at the center, the divine energy of balance began to surge forth.

“Although it may seem foolish of us to try to achieve our goals by using angels, we thought it quite rational at the time.”

“……”

“Did we think too simply? Or did we think we could escape because of our status as users? Either way, we have failed and must stop you.”

Gabriel, with a bitter expression, pulled out a small key from her pocket.

A key made of light.

It looked similar to the balance weights and was connected to Gabriel’s very soul.

“This is the key to opening the ‘door’ of the Audience Room.”

“!”

“I would love to hand it over, but we can’t since it’s tied to us. The only way for you to take it is to kill us all.”

“……”

“Of course, we will fight with all our might. This power won’t allow us to fight casually. The bigger problem is…”

“Which will increase the weight of light upon death, huh?”

“Yes.”

To unlock the door of the Audience Room, I would have to kill the trio of the Angel Guild.

Killing the Angel Guild won’t be difficult.

They’re strong but certainly not strong enough to handle me.

The issue was with the growing ‘weight of light’ that would result from their deaths.

The weight was already significant, and at this point of having received their ‘rewards,’ it had grown even larger.

‘If I kill all three, I might achieve perfect balance.’

Perhaps everything would come to an end even before I could reach the Audience Room.

[OMG]

[So what do we do?]

[Are we not going to kill them?]

[I told you not to agree to those contracts, tsk tsk]

[Angel Guild level]

[Sigh]

[Still getting used to it, huh?]

[Can’t you just log out?]

[Poor you, sob sob]

[In that situation, logging out might not be possible.]

[If you exit mid-quest, it’s processed as a death penalty, no no]

[Lol]

[So the others couldn’t hold on either?]

[So without the key, it can’t be unlocked?]

“There might be a way.”

However, to do ‘that,’ it would take a while, and I doubted the Angel Guild would let that happen peacefully.

Yet I couldn’t kill them…

“…For now. Aisha.”

“Sure. Maybe I could try to hold them back? Though I can’t promise I won’t kill them…”

“Hold on tight.”

“W-What?!”

Crunch. I seized Aisha by the nape and soared upward, accelerating thousands, if not millions, of times.

In an instant, the three of them, having lost sight of me, hastily drew upon their divinity to target me.

Each individual wielded power comparable to a considerable upper-tier Celestial.

The force they carried was enough that Yena and Aisha would have to use their full power to even match a standard blow.

An unreasonable level of growth, yet I knew.

‘Touch them, and it’ll explode.’

I barely managed to endure the ‘rewards,’ but the physical resilience of the trio had drastically diminished due to the God of Balance.

They were weaker defensively than any Level 30 or 40 users, and every ability they possessed would ultimately backfire on them when engaged.

That’s why making any clumsy attempt to bind them could lead to my own death.

‘More like a fragile cannon… no, akin to paper cannon levels. Naturally, no resurrection…’

The mere fact that they had survived until now was due to their desperate struggle to stay alive.

If they die like this, it would mean fulfilling the God of Balance’s wishes.

That said, since the divinity itself was currently being regulated, I wouldn’t die from the result of my own power.

I ascended to the divine clouds, where white stars twinkled, and for a moment, set Aisha down.

Though it’s just a cloud, the effective height felt like going from the ground to space.

Down below, three lights were already rapidly chasing up towards me.

“Ugh…”

“Once they catch up, don’t attack under any circumstances. Remember.”

“But how can I not attack…?”

“There’s a way.”

‘The hammer knows the answer.’

I gripped my hammer and channeled my power.

Wha-Wham!

‘Holy Transformation.’

 

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