Overgeared

"Wait! Wait a minute!"

People gave Grid all types of praise. Occasionally, there was a group that went beyond the level of a great man and treated him as an angel. It was because he had a good demeanor and did a lot of good deeds. However, from the position of being Grid's enemy, hearing such stories was laughable. It couldn't be denied that he did a lot of good deeds in both reality and Satisfy.

Yet his behavior? Imitating his behavior was just nonsense. This was a real gangster. At this moment, Rose was convinced that the parents who read Grid's biography to their children should keep a close eye on their children so that they didn't grow up to become wicked people.

Suddenly, she felt a cold blade against her neck. No, it was just a feeling. It wasn't really cold. There was no distinctive metallic smell or feeling. It felt non-existent. The blade that touched her neck was clearly real and filled one side of Rose's vision, but for some reason, Rose couldn't feel a sense of reality. On the contrary, it seemed that weapons made with energy-based skills would show a more distinct presence.

'This is a dragon weapon…'

Rose assumed that she was fighting Grid. She remembered herself being cut without being aware of it. She was bound to be cut even if there were no signs of the sword being swung at a transcendent speed.

"For now, please take away your sword."

Threatening her and drawing a sword in the middle of a conversation…

Rose was tired of Grid's outrageous actions and half had a fit. Her eyes and voice were trembling and her breathing was harsh. Through her reaction, Grid gained a lot of information.

'Is the damage from dying very large?'

Rose was known as Team Rocket inside the Overgeared Guild. The villains that appeared in the world-famous anime, Pokemon. A third-rate villain who confidently blocked the protagonist's path, only to repeatedly lose and flee in vain.

Rose's temperament resembled them. Didn't she repeatedly struggle and was smashed terribly every time? Nevertheless, seeing her come back every time, she looked like someone who was anxious to die. She wasn't afraid of failure or death at all.

However, now she was terrified. It meant she had a lot to lose.

'It seems she visited the surface with a clear purpose.'

Grid pondered on the world message that emerged when Rose appeared and made a judgment. Currently, Rose was on a high value quest and the loss she would suffer from dying here was greater than usual…

-It is a great opportunity. Let's push harder.

Lauel was informed of the situation in real time and gave advice.

Grid nodded and opened the Sanctuary of Metal. The village chief's house that the three of them were borrowing immediately opened up. It was like a house built of paper rather than logs. The ceiling and walls separated and touched the ground. The orange polar light flowed like a wave and cast shadows over the area. It was because a high cliff rose. The black-colored cliffs were made of black iron.

"A canyon…" Agnus murmured from among the cliffs that soared into the sky. A vague memory of the days when he wandered around as a madman flashed through his mind.

Taleren Canyon—the place where Grid wrote his first epic was strongly engraved in Agnus' mind. He would probably never forget it for the rest of his life. It was because it was the place where the Grid who resembled him was completed as a totally different being from him. Agnus vividly recalled all the emotions he felt at that time and made a meaningless assumption.

'What if I had affirmed Grid without denying it back then?'

What if he had been honestly envious without being engulfed in feelings of despair, betrayal, and anger? If he hadn't turned away from his desire to become like Grid, maybe he would've changed at that time. Would it have been possible to move forward rather than being stuck in the past?

"Uh…? Uhhh?"

A teleportation event that was difficult to understand using the common sense of players—Rose was puzzled by the suddenly transformed landscape. She half lost her ability to speak while her expression changed in a variety of ways. She seemed to be in a state of great confusion because she couldn't tell if it was a dream or reality.

The cliffs flowed down. The heat from the Red Phoenix's heart, which had become a part of Grid, melted the black iron like it was chocolate. The moment it touched the ground, the black iron that hardened and piled up was like a stopped wave. It was high and big.

Rose was afraid of being swallowed. She felt an overwhelming sense of pressure. Then she noticed one step later. The edge of the black wave was all sharp. They weren't waves, they were tens of thousands of weapons. All these weapons were pointed at her…

'Really… isn't he really crazy?'

Rose was fully aware that she was the villain. She recognized most players as enemies except for herself. Even so, she didn't harbor any hostility toward Grid, who could be called the leader of her enemies. It was because she knew the overwhelming gap between them and felt a sense of respect as a gamer.

Yes. Rose was polite from the moment she met Grid. She never lost her manners for even a moment. However, Grid pointed his sword at her. She asked him to withdraw his sword and he released the mental world that she had only heard about in words, surrounding her with thousands of weapons…

…Why?

She was feeling confused about how to deal with this when Grid offered the answer to her.

"I don't want much. You just have to continue as usual, while giving us the information we want when we want it and take the stance we want when we want it."

This… wasn't he a thief?

Grid's way of speaking was that stinging. Yet surprisingly, Rose's expression relaxed. 'A verbal promise is fine.'

It was impossible to whisper, let alone take screenshots and videos. The great demon Rose was in a closed off state, so the Overgeared Guild had no means to spy on her. In the end, how could the Overgeared Guild confirm that Rose was acting as they wanted?

"…Okay. I can be in great danger if I betray the demons, but well, I actually like the Overgeared Guild. It is an honor to be able to work with the Overgeared Guild."

Rose swallowed the smile that wanted to emerge and spoke with a heroic expression. "In return, please do me a favor. I hope you will form an alliance with Amoract. This isn't a request to satisfy my own self-interests. It is only once we can get rid of Baal that we can plan for the future, whether on the surface or in hell. The cooperation between the Overgeared Guild and Amoract is truly a cooperation for the sake of the world!"

"Okay."

Rose's face was rosy. She was delighted by Grid's attitude as he nodded gently.

Grid told her, "If you go to the Overgeared Guild's hell branch, there will be succubi in thick clothes. They are my subordinates. Take them and meet with Amoract to coordinate the exact negotiations."

"Huh?" She had a rough guess about the Overgeared Guild's hell branch. It was the crystal castle ruled by Yura. However, succubi in thick clothes? A succubus who was obsessed with bewitching the opposite sex couldn't wear thick clothing, right? What did it mean to leave and take a bunch of demonic creatures to a negotiating position with Amoract?

"I can communicate through them, so don't worry about communication. Why don't we talk about the details with Lauel?"

Grid took back the Sanctuary of Metal. The canyon and the waves of weapons disappeared like they were a lie and the three of them were once again seated next to each other.

Knock knock.

There was a knock and another bigshot appeared. It was the prime minister of the Overgeared Empire, Lauel. He was a person who was regarded as an invincible trash, rascal, bastard, etc., to all the forces that opposed the Overgeared Empire.

"I am deeply moved to see the three of you together. I can truly feel the passage of time. Huhut."

The image of a black dragon appeared on the back of Lauel's hand as he smiled and swept back his hair. Then the black dragon disappeared. A certain pattern appeared in one of his eyes. It seemed true that he was covered in skins like rumored.

Rose's eyes darkened. She was tired from dealing with Grid and now she had to get involved with Lauel… she wanted to log out right now.

"Rose, please move with me. I will be in charge of your business."

"Ah… Hahahat… Yes…" Rose followed Lauel with weak steps. Today, she would be thoroughly analyzed and bound. In the future, all her actions and choices would be controlled by the Overgeared Guild during her period of cooperation with the Overgeared Guild. The Overgeared Guild brought together specialists from each field and had too many means and methods.

After a while, Grid was left alone with Agnus and immediately got to the point. "Kill Baal with us."

Agnus' knowledge and experience. Additionally, the synergy that occurred when the powers of the seven malignant saints came together. Grid judged that Agnus was a necessary person. He also noted that Agnus' condition was the same as Betty's. For now, his strength might've declined, but his potential would be enormous.

'Even if he is weakened, he is much stronger than a decent high ranker.'

Grid definitely wanted to cooperate with Agnus, but he didn't know how to persuade the other person. The problem was that he had no card to take out for negotiation. Agnus had retired from active work and it was impossible for him to have the same greed as Rose.

Agnus replied to the troubled Grid, "Okay."

It was an unexpected answer. Grid got up from his seat with delight, while Agnus' gold eyes shone eerily for the first time in a long time.

"I want to laugh at Baal at least once."

Agnus was exploited due to his wish throughout his time as Baal's Contractor. Baal's face as he laughed at Agnus resurrecting his dead lover as a doll was still in Agnus' nightmares. He was robbed of most of the strength he had built up when he was abandoned by Baal.

It was a loss of time. He thought it would be enjoyable to pay it back if possible. Yes, he wanted to have fun. He was tired of this life full of resentment, hatred, and regret. This gave him enough of a reason to work with Grid.

***

"……"

At the Overgeared Castle, Reinhardt…

The members of the Overgeared Guild looked dumbfounded. It was the aftermath of witnessing the man who was walking beside Grid. The green hair, which had always been oily, dropped down, and his gold eyes, which shone with madness, had lost their light. Even so, people immediately recognized the identity of the man.

Agnus—the worst player ever.

Why was he here? They thought he was being escorted as a criminal, but this wasn't the case. He wasn't even handcuffed. There were no signs of shrinking back from the steps that aligned with Grid's ones.

It happened as people were agitated…

"Uh? Uncle!" Lord came running from the end of the corridor. He first greeted his father politely before grabbing Agnus' dry hand with a big smile. He was happy to meet the benefactor who saved his life. "It has been a really long time! Have you been well?"

"……"

There was silence in the tense corridor. People were worried about what type of humiliation Lord would suffer. Shaking off the hand was the default. They guessed that Lord might be cursed at or spat on.

All their predictions were wrong. Agnus didn't shake off Lord's hand, swear, or spit at him.

"Yes." Rather, he even gave a brief answer.

The astonishment of the people followed.