Ch.156Chapter 156. The Calm Before the Storm (3)

Chapter 156. The Calm Before the Storm (3)

I was worried about Siwoo and the monkey. Those two idiots with overflowing stupidity were sticking together like twins. And sure enough, it turned into a complete disaster.

At first, everyone tried to stop those two troublemakers, but that only lasted a day or two. Since they weren’t causing any real harm and were just posting nonsense in the community, people stopped bothering with them.

Hannah couldn’t stand those guys. She even went looking for them once to vent her frustration about Sanz, who was nowhere to be seen.

“Pretty NotACatfish noona! Please look at cute Siwoo just once~! What? Why am I calling you big sister? The weaker one is always the little brother.”

“A level 7 Paladin bullying someone who’s only level 3-4? Hmm… this can only be seen as violence against the socially disadvantaged…”

When she went to confront them, that’s how they responded. Since she couldn’t beat them up in front of everyone no matter how angry she was, she decided to just let it go.

‘That Malak should see this too.’

Would Sanz, who acts as a messenger, show this to him as well? Thinking that, she checked the comments.

– Comments –

[Bramanda: What’s a Great Demon? Was that setting even in the game?]

ㄴ [DinosaurPunch: It’s just a term these people made up]

ㄴ [MorningTentInstaller: H-honestly, I think the high-ranking demons, dark clouds, and seven-headed dragon should be evaluated differently]

ㄴ [Skynet: Lesser demons, intermediate demons, high demons, and above them in rank, Great Demons. And perhaps the evil gods they protect, or who command them. It’s effective for understanding the hierarchy.]

[ShotgunAttack: I saw those two idiots walking around the plaza in armor earlier. Were they doing that to take this picture? Crazy bastards;;]

[Ghooulr: I’m living in the same house as those jerks;;]

ㄴ [OneSlice: What are you waiting for? Go kill yourself already]

[LuluTV: Is this going to be made into a pamphlet too?]

ㄴ [FullPlay: You mean Templar.]

ㄴ [Angers123: It’s fanfare, idiot]

ㄴ [SsangmundongDispenserDestroyer: Isn’t it temple stay?]

ㄴ [CowBikiniDance: It’s Tumblr, you morons]

ㄴ [TakashiKakashi: Stupid Koreans]

ㄴ [Valkyria: Takashi, have you joined the Tribal Alliance too?]

ㄴ [TakashiKakashi: No. I’ve decided to stay alone]

[OhDoGreatMan: Simply! The best, Air Force Commander Malak!]

Even though MorningTent and the monkey always posted nonsense, unlike MeleeSpy who was similar to them, they weren’t ignored or cursed at. That was because of the subject matter: “Malak.”

Malak was recently voted as the most “likable god” among community users. Even mindless praise for him received enthusiastic responses.

However, Hannah didn’t want to see posts about Malak or the Tribal Alliance.

While she was grateful for the demon hunting, Hannah, with her pessimistic tendencies, couldn’t get used to the concept of gods and native believers.

Perhaps she still retained the sensibilities of a 21st-century modern Korean. The concepts of a god existing and worshipping a deity still didn’t quite click with her.

She had been an atheist from the beginning, back on Earth. There was even a time when she laughed at churchgoers, calling them fools and idiots.

“Sigh.”

While walking aimlessly to clear her stuffy mind, Hannah suddenly found herself at the cemetery.

When she looked up, she stopped abruptly at the sight of someone.

“Ugh.”

Lakye, that Malak fangirl who called herself a Guardian or whatever, was standing quietly in front of a grave.

‘Why is that woman at a grave?’

It was Pope Holland’s grave. Hannah had never met him, but she had heard about what kind of person he was from BasementFirstBattle, whom she had become acquainted with while fighting the dark cloud demon.

‘He sacrificed himself in the battle against the Lich Lord, didn’t he?’

He converted his soul into divine power, if she remembered correctly. She heard that his physical body had vanished as a result. For Hannah, who prioritized self-preservation above all else, it was something she couldn’t even imagine doing.

As Hannah was wondering why that arrogant and haughty woman was at a tombless grave and was slowly turning around to pretend she hadn’t seen anything—

“Do you have a friend buried here?”

Lakye asked without looking at Hannah. She had sensed Hannah’s presence behind her.

Hannah was surprised by her superhuman perception.

“Just, you know.”

At this point, backing away would look awkward. Like she was running away because she was afraid of Lakye.

Hannah’s pride had already been severely bruised whenever she met Lakye. Retreating here would be like admitting defeat.

To others, it might just look like stubbornness, but in Hannah’s worldview, that’s how it was.

Trying not to be conscious of Lakye, Hannah walked to a grave.

It was the grave of Denzo, someone whose face she at least knew. She had sparred with him before in the Blue Moss tribe.

When she heard the news of his death after the dark cloud demon subjugation, she was a bit surprised.

‘Not that I was particularly sad or anything.’

Just an “Oh, that person died” kind of feeling.

“You weren’t close with Denzo.”

Lakye snickered. Hannah didn’t like that laugh.

“Were you close with the Pope?”

“No.”

‘This bitch.’

She swallowed the words that almost escaped her mouth. Though she tried not to show it, Hannah was afraid of Lakye.

The memory of being utterly defeated when they first met still lingered. She always said she’d kill her if they met again, but that was just a defense mechanism.

“I received great help, so he could be considered my benefactor.”

Benefactor, huh. Who knew that woman Lakye could say such things? Hannah scratched her head.

“Although he didn’t fight with weapons, Holland had the heart of a great warrior. He sacrificed his life as an offering for victory. His bravery will be widely praised.”

Hannah thought this might be the highest praise Lakye could give.

“Didn’t you say you couldn’t trust possessors and civilized people?”

Hannah asked mischievously.

When Lakye had said she couldn’t trust Sanz, Hannah had been standing next to a flustered Noah, earnestly defending Sanz. She must have said “Sanz isn’t that kind of person!” about five times.

‘I defended him so passionately, and this is how he treats me?’

She checked her private messages again, but there were no new ones. Ah, suddenly she felt angry.

“This one is an exception.”

Lakye frowned slightly, seemingly irritated by Hannah’s words.

‘Double standards as usual.’

“Did you come here to pay respects to your benefactor?”

Hannah asked, inwardly snickering.

“No. I just had something I wanted to confirm.”

Lakye stroked the totem at her waist with her right hand. It was a small totem she always carried.

The totem wasn’t lit. Hannah didn’t know, but the lack of light meant that Malak had not descended into the totem at the moment.

Just as she was thinking about leaving, a private message arrived from Sanz.

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: Roasted cockroach set meal]

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: (Photo of cockroaches roasting over fire)]

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: Want a bite?]

Hannah let out a small laugh.

[No, didn’t you say you came to the village? Why are you eating that garbage instead of roasting chicken? lol]

The moment she sent the reply, the totem at Lakye’s waist lit up.

“Lord Malak.”

Lakye raised the totem, recognizing Malak’s descent.

– Lakye. Why are you here?

Hannah flinched at Malak’s solemn voice. The deep, magnificent voice that resonated had the overwhelming presence of a being beyond human.

‘What’s with that voice.’

Even an ordinary person would think, “Ah, this is a god. I cannot oppose him,” just from hearing the voice. Even his voice was befitting of a divine being.

“Actually, when I received divine power through the Pope’s sacrifice, I felt some kind of power interference.”

– Power interference, you say.

“It’s difficult to explain, and given the situation at the time, I let it pass. It wasn’t a malevolent presence like a demon.”

– Hmm.

“After sensing the evil god’s presence this time, I realized. That power back then was the aura of a divine being. A divine nature, I should say.”

– Was it Ishtania’s interference?

“I can’t be certain, but it’s quite possible.”

– So she was watching us then, and might have lent power to Holland.

“An enormous amount of divine power entered my body. It was definitely a goddess’s authority.”

– Even so, Holland’s courage isn’t diminished. The final choice was made by Holland’s will.

“I think so too.”

While eavesdropping on their conversation (though she couldn’t understand it), Hannah received another private message from Sanz.

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: What do you mean ‘garbage’? Insects are high-protein food. There’s a reason our ancestors enjoyed eating them]

[Just drop the act already, seriously]

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: And why eat chicken? Using the infinite egg duplication cheat?]

[You crazy bastard lol]

Hannah tuned out Malak and Lakye’s conversation and left the cemetery. Nothing was more important to her than her conversation with Sanz.

[Send me just one more picture]

[UltraSansMadWithMoonlightMassacreMode: Nope, that’s all]

“This jerk, till the end.”