Overgeared

"What? What type of world is it these days? There are still people like that?"

God of War Ares—it was said that his skills weren't as good as his fame and it was a short bubble that would only work in the days when the level of players wasn't high. He had been subject to public ridicule and criticism for quite some time. It was because his comparison target was mainly Grid. It couldn't be helped.

They were the only ones among players to establish a kingdom. Ares had a significant number of high rankers as his subordinates and naturally attracted the attention of the public. He was compared to Grid, who was in a serious position. However, his achievements were relatively shabby. Grid's achievements were so great that being held back by the empire wasn't an excuse. In the first place, Grid wouldn't have been held back by the empire.

In any case, it was a thing of the past. After the Great Human and Demon War, the assessment of Ares changed by 180 degrees. Valhalla's army literally crushed the demons and demonic creatures. They trampled and marched like tanks. It was said that the power of the god of war made the army many times more powerful and there was no exaggeration in this rumor.

The strength of God of War Ares was immense. He defeated a great demon in the 20s alone and won continuous victories. The moment he became the target of a great demon in the 10s, he retreated without looking back, but by then, the public was already blinded by Ares and didn't see any flaws.

People praised Ares for his excellent judgment or the clever strategy of passing through the enemy's main force without evasion even when they saw him retreat. The reputation built up at that time made Valhalla what it was today. It had the largest number of players among the kingdoms serving the Overgeared Empire as a subordinate kingdom. It was a leap forward to become the next powerhouse after the empire.

He also shouldered a great responsibility.

The kingdom in the east, which was building a large port to advance into the Red Sea, acted as a front-line fortress to guard against the expelled gods, while also killing the followers of the martial god who returned after building up their strength on the uninhabited islands in the Red Sea.

It knew that the empire had little leeway due to the conquest of hell, so it assumed the role of keeping the third force in check. There were quite a few ranker-class strong people among the followers of the martial god and they had to always remain tense to guard against any unforeseen incursions of the yangbans.

In the first place, it was very difficult to build a port to advance into the Red Sea. The seawater raged and the weather was unpredictable, causing disasters every day. A tremendous amount of capital and manpower was invested and their mental strength was consumed.

Sima Qian, a native of the East Continent and a super named strategist—if he hadn't strongly insisted on the construction of the port and provided all sorts of reasons for it, Ares wouldn't have even looked at the Red Sea. In a time when the immediate enemy was hell and the future enemy was heaven, why were they already preparing for an advance into the East Continent? Ares had his troops consumed while fighting with the foreign people to expand this far and he felt pained.

'In the midst of this, the PK criminals are running wild.'

Gulp gulp.

The highest grade magic power potion made at Reidan's alchemy facility—Ares drank the precious potion he had saved in a corner of the inventory, which was difficult to get supplies of at the moment in the aftermath of Reidan being smashed. The taste was like a superior version of Coke, so it was good to de-stress. Before the dragon invaded Reidan, he had lived with drinking it every day, but now the price had risen too much.

Ares sighed with regret as he removed the empty bottle.

"It isn't even the remnants of the Yatan Church or the churches of the three gods? They are average players making a fuss?"

The Great Human and Demon War acted as an opportunity rather than a crisis. It made Grid and the Overgeared Guild a more powerful focal point and induced the unity of players. Even the dark players like the Black and White sisters, who were notorious for committing all types of crimes, started to cooperate with the world. It was thanks to the common enemy of hell being revealed to the surface. It was an atmosphere where the players would unite as one, at least until hell was conquered.

However, there were many types of human beings in the world. Even in real history, humanity had never achieved complete unity.

It had been less than a year since the war ended. New dark players sprung up, either because they couldn't stand the boring peace or because they couldn't make money in peace. They created confusion on the surface in a situation where manpower had to be concentrated in hell. The judgment they made was to use other kingdoms as areas of activity rather than the territory of the Overgeared Empire and one of those kingdoms was Valhalla.

Of course, Valhalla had plenty of room to suppress them. However, players didn't die. They were resurrected even when they died. They were killed right away, but after a while, they resurrected elsewhere and caused another incident. The ideal method was confinement in prison according to the law, but a week was the limit even with all types of charges.

It was a constraint of the system. It was for the sake of players' rights or whatever.

In the first place, no one was meekly imprisoned unless they were idiots. If caught, they would rather avoid the crisis by committing suicide. It wasn't so easy to subdue them so that suicide wasn't possible and there was no answer if they took poison in advance. Since ancient times, the production and distribution of poison was the source of side income for the Yatan Church, so poison had evolved into various forms.

"The best way to suppress the commotion of the players is to kill them over and over again. We have to make them passive by persistently decreasing their level. The moment their location is found, we need to dispatch a high ranker who can subdue them at once…"

"I also know that. The main forces of Luck, Scott, Bondre, etc. are operating in hell, while the other generals are blocking the followers of the martial god. However, Sima Qian will oppose it if I move myself."

"Just in time, Oasis has caught the sea creatures and returned."

"Oasis…? That child is a bit…"

Ares showed a reaction that wasn't that pleased. Oasis also fell into the category of a high ranker, but it was only at the level where he barely broke into this category. Most of all, the penalties were too great. Oasis couldn't be defeated. If he was isolated and killed by a group of rankers, then he would be abandoned by the sheath of the Undefeated King this time.

"PK and hunting are completely different fields. A monster's AI has limitations, while a player's behavior is hard to predict. I don't want to send the inexperienced Oasis and endanger him."

Currently, Oasis was one of Valhalla's hopes. Ares hoped he would master the 100,000 Army Swordsmanship safely. The tactician chuckled.

"Oasis has said it. He learned a lot from the Overgeared members when participating in the hell expedition. Let me tell you, the level of the sea creature that he killed was in the 500s. Two of them were even named bosses."

The AI and anomalies of named bosses were superior to decent rankers.

"Now stop treating him as a troublesome child and trust him."

"Cough…"

A fortnight later, the players making a fuss in Valhalla disappeared without a trace.

Certain kill—the power of Oasis' sword, which slaughtered players with every draw of his sword, was so overwhelming that he quickly became an object of fear.

The news about his great performance came to Lauel's ears.

"I knew there was a lot of talent in Valhalla, but I didn't expect Oasis' growth to be so extraordinary."

"You said that he can use 100,000 Army Swordsmanship?"

"Yes, it is only the massacre sword, but…"

"That alone would be considered a legend in terms of firepower."

"Aren't you offended? The Undefeated King's Swordsmanship was originally Your Majesty's signature skill but now you are sharing it with Oasis."

"Not at all. Oasis is a serious and upright man in all things. Not only will him becoming stronger benefit us, but the Undefeated King's Swordsmanship isn't my signature skill. There is no such thing as a monopoly."

Additionally, the Undefeated King's Swordsmanship that Grid had acquired had evolved. Grid's level and stats also overwhelmed Oasis. Even with the same 100,000 Army Swordsmanship skill, Grid's swordsmanship was far superior to Oasis's swordsmanship.

"It is something you already know well."

"Haha, I suddenly remember your former self, Your Majesty."

Lauel looked at the anvil. The last holy weapon was being smelted and extracted. The works that reminded him of Grid's past. The precious works supposedly made by Khan, who became an angel, were dismantled without leaving a single piece behind.

There wasn't a single bit of hesitation. The current Grid didn't dwell on the past, but saw only the future.

'It isn't here either.'

Grid's inventory after completing the extraction of the last holy weapon—

[Adamantium has been received.]

A total of 41 adamantium was piled up. Unfortunately, he didn't gain a single divine stone. The divine stone was a mineral created by the god Hexetia, so the angel that succeeded him… it seemed that Khan didn't have permission to use it. He had inwardly expected it, but it was still disappointing.

Grid sighed before speaking again, "As for Valhalla, I will make new weapons and armor for Uncle Ares."

The amount of adamantium extracted was higher than expected. There would be some remaining after making battle gear for his apostles. The Overgeared members, who were currently active in hell, had supplied him with the materials needed for the items they wanted, so Grid wanted to use the remaining adamantium to support Ares. Not only had Valhalla been reborn as a key location, but he knew that Ares was actively cooperating with the Overgeared Empire. The other side had shown sincerity first, so he should reciprocate.

Moreover, Grid had liked Ares from a long time ago. His personality didn't hold grudges and most of all, he was competent. If he moved an army with Grid's items to Valhalla and let Asmophel take command… it would really be the strongest army. It was necessary to build enough trust to entrust his army there.

A smile spread across Lauel's face. "Now you are making wise decisions without my advice."

"Don't lay the groundwork. Don't even think about running away because it is impossible without you."

"Don't worry. I won't leave even if you push me to leave."

It was after abandoning worthless greed. Grid had become even wiser. He captivated people's hearts without appealing with force or emotion. It went beyond merely being powerful and was becoming great.

***

"It was weak. The outward appearance was plausible, but the power was below expectations. It should've been at the level where trivial beings can wield it and produce great results."

The archangel Raphael smiled as usual. It was a smile that suited their beautiful, boyish appearance. It came out as extremely pure. However, the words coming from his mouth were fierce and harsh.

"It is right for holy weapons to leave immortal achievements in human history, but the ones you made went into the belly of the Overgeared God without leaving any achievements. The battle gear you made under my favor of the heavenly minerals has become mere rubbish, so you have insulted heaven. It is also an insult to me for believing in you and giving you wings. I heard you were praised for your many achievements during your lifetime, but it was just false, right? I had doubts from the time I saw your bulging belly. How lazy were you to accumulate fat like livestock trapped in a cage? Don't you think you need to be prepared to work a bit more diligently?"

"…I'm sorry. I am ashamed."

The angel with the bulging belly couldn't lift his head. When he first heard the news, he simply thought that the one called the Overgeared God was very good. However, he realized that he lacked knowledge after he was reprimanded by Raphael. He felt a great sense of guilt because he couldn't make a holy weapon properly despite borrowing the workshop of God Hexetia.

Raphael's voice softened. "Even so, I still believe in you. If you devote yourself without relying on the memories of your life, I think you will make a better weapon at that time."

"…Thank you again for trusting me. I will definitely live up to your expectations."

"Can I give you one piece of advice? Why do you think angels have halos and wings of light? It is evidence that Goddess Rebecca has given her blessing and is the condensed power of light. This means it can be used."

"The goddess' blessing…"

"Yes, it is incomparably stronger than the blessing I have given you. Try using it. It will be terribly painful, but isn't it worth suffering in order to strive for heaven?"

"Yes… you are correct."

The angel's face was shadowed as he answered. It wasn't just fear of pain. He just wasn't happy. He had been happy when he became an angel and grabbed a hammer again, but his heart became heavy and distressed when he heard that the weapons he created had harmed humans. Didn't heaven and angels exist for humans? The Overgeared God was a traitor and deserved to be punished, but was it really right to harm other humans due to this?

"Ugh…" The anguished angel's mind went blank for a moment. He felt a tremendous pain from his shoulder that stopped his thoughts. He looked back with a trembling gaze and saw Raphael's fine hand on his shoulder.

"You just have to stick to your mission. That is the duty of an angel and the secret to being loved by the goddess. Get rid of all distractions."

Raphael smiled with joy and patted the angel on the shoulder before leaving the workshop. They stared in the direction of the prison where Hexetia was imprisoned for a moment with a sad expression before shaking their head.

"I wish that advice was given about this."

A sword that had become a demon by sacrificing an existence—the power of the demon sword created at the expense of an angel was hard for Raphael to predict. It would be a light match for a dragon weapon.

'Besides, it has good compatibility with the demons of hell.'

Baal, be strong.

Raphael uttered something that would frighten anyone who heard it and made their way to the temple where the goddess resided. They planned to announce Garion's betrayal and give the advice that Garion should be stripped of divinity. Just as in the previous world and the worlds before that, the sufficiently chopped up ground could exist on its own.

Of course, the goddess wouldn't give an answer, so the decision would be made by Raphael.