God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 265: Episode _Sixth Awakening (2)

3.

Hundreds of years ago, when demons invaded the human world and the continent was on the brink of collapse, five heroes defeated the Demon King and sacrificed themselves to drive the demons out.

Eccentrics whose names were never even recorded.

A Buffer. An Enhancer. An Archmage. A Pope. A Tamer.

It was a party composition that lacked the knight-type classes so common on the continent, and aside from the Archmage and the Pope, they were jobs that were rarely seen at all.

They became the five legendary heroes not only because of a few great feats but primarily because the five of them traveled together and slew countless demons.

In other words, they were a party.

Just like how users now band together to hunt and make a name for themselves.

In an age before adventurers existed, they were a single party roaming the continent and seeking adventure.

Four men and one woman.

With that lineup, romance was practically inevitable, yet they managed to protect the continent without ever descending into love triangles or petty drama. The reason was, of course, a bond deeper than love—friendship!

Or, more accurately, because that one woman was the Pope.

Her purity was reserved for God.

No hero would dare ask a Pope, devoted entirely to her faith, to betray it.

They were people who placed more value on adventuring and traveling the continent than on silly games of love.

Moreover, before the demons invaded, their “party” existed mostly in name only; they would meet occasionally, but for the most part, each pursued their own adventures.

They had to, because their respective classes forced them to move independently.

The Enhancer had to wander to perform enhancements, and the Tamer had to journey into uncharted lands to tame monsters no one else could.

The Buffer helped others by casting buffs on them so they could defeat monsters in hard-to-clear regions, and the Archmage holed up in the Mage Tower, researching how to reach higher circles of magic.

And the same went for the priestess who was both Pope and Saintess.

There was no way such legends didn’t each have their own personal stories.

If you dug into them one by one, from a user’s perspective, you could easily spend months just following the chronicles of the legends without touching any other gameplay and still be thoroughly entertained by the dense, rich storytelling.

Every day was an adventure, a walk across a knife’s edge, an extension of death itself.

What adventure could be more thrilling than that?

Especially for users who were sick and tired of grinding levels, the tales of legends who had already grown to a certain point and begun to make their names known across the continent would feel like enjoying content with a fully leveled character.

Unfortunately, the only story that had been made public so far was that of Han Simin’s Enhancer.

Dino was progressing through his Story Quest off the record, and the heir of the legend who had been both Pope and Saintess had been taken by a dragon, not a user.

Not that the users knew that.

And while Han Simin had also taken the Tamer class, he had not yet begun its Story Quest. As for the last remaining Buffer class, it had never once surfaced in the community or in-game, so its whereabouts were completely unknown.

Given the circumstances, it was only natural that countless people clamored to follow in the footsteps of the Five Legends.

Even so, Dino made nothing public. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

While it was true he had no particular reason to reveal his class, there was absolutely no upside to doing so.

That much had been proven by the voice of the previous Archmage, which had whispered in his ear along with the power he was granted upon absorbing the red ruby.

—“That damned Enhancer was always putting on airs, strutting around like he was hot stuff when he couldn’t even get an item to +15. He was the kind of bastard who’d enhance a random rock and sell it if there was money in it. I pitied the succubus he duped and tried to help her, but before I knew it, I had fallen in love. By the time I sorted out my feelings, however, the two of them were already together. That bastard. In the end, the Enhancer even stole my love. Yet as a 9th-Circle Archmage who had transcended the limits of humanity, I couldn’t shun a friend over such petty emotions. Successor, I ask this of you: with my no-chant penta-casting, you must never lose to that Enhancer’s heir.”

In the official histories, the Archmage was recorded as one of the greatest heroes of the final war against the demons, second only to the Pope.

The support from the others had certainly been invaluable—the Enhancer who strengthened his weapons and armor, the Pope who cast blessings and spread Sanctuaries from the rear to buy him time to chant, the Buffer who raised his magic and offensive power, and the Tamer who stalled with monsters.

But in the end, the one who slaughtered the greatest number of demons with overwhelming magic was the Archmage.

Moreover, he was a 9th-Circle Archmage who had broken through the human limit.

Had he not died in the war, he might even have reached for the 10th Circle.

Such was the caliber of his talent.

If Dino were to reveal that a genius of that stature had died spouting such lines, how would that reflect on the man who had inherited his class?

Even without that to consider, he had never intended to share any information about his class if he could help it, but hearing those words solidified his resolve.

Somehow, the way the Enhancer had “stolen” from the Archmage felt disturbingly similar to having a skill book stolen from him, which only made it worse.

The Archmage’s legacy should have been his.

The Enhancer had made a polite request, in his own way, but Dino had blown him off, put the item up for auction, pocketed a whopping $6.2 million, and then sold it to his own guild member. He was utterly shameless.

Dino had sworn that one day, he would have his revenge.

And now, things had fallen perfectly into place.

For a Story Quest to appear just like this was a godsend.

“With this...”

Unlike before, when he had lost the skill book and been forced to rely solely on his innate talent, this time he was gaining power as he progressed through the Story Quest.

He now had the firepower of the fire attribute, granted by the red ruby, and he would obtain the remaining elemental powers as he advanced the quest.

This was enough.

He would grow stronger and stronger, fulfill the late Archmage’s wish, and carry out his own personal revenge.

“Epia, is it? First, we’re going to need a demon invasion of the continent. Heh heh.”

He fell asleep, dreaming of a rosy future.

*

Kaini and eleven other top-tier demons had gathered.

In the Demon World, where fewer than fifty top-tier demons existed in total, getting so many in one place was no easy feat.

Naturally, their followers numbered in the thousands.

From upper demons, who were a rare sight themselves, to mid- and low-tier demons, they were all present.

The number of pet monsters trailing behind them was too great to even count.

Despite such a massive force, Kaini remained cautious.

“The opponent may be a succubus bitch, but she’s still the Demon King. We strike all at once.”

“Let’s throw the small fry in first and wear her down.”

“Agreed.”

The other top-tier demons felt the same.

They were not ignorant of the pressure and majesty the title “Demon King” commanded.

They were challenging her to topple the current ruler and become the new one, and they believed their chances were high because the Demon King in question was a succubus. But that didn’t mean they dismissed her outright.

They were just disparaging her out of a sense of inferiority.

If they truly looked down on her, they would never have gathered such a large force.

“Listen up, all of you! The biggest reason we failed in our recent invasion of the continent was the Demon King’s lack of power! We will never conquer the continent with the sneaky, opportunistic methods of a succubus who hides in the back and looks for openings! The Demon World must be reorganized before we create another opportunity. We will fight and seize it! Understood?!”

“WRAAAAH!”

The Demon World was no different from the human world. They roused their morale and charged.

Far in the distance, a presence could be felt—so far that their thunderous roars could not yet be heard, yet it was already causing tension and tremors.

That was the only difference.

They charged forward with the will to annihilate their enemy, but at the end of that road stood a colossal wall.

The only question was whether they could break through it.

Even so, they ran.

Was that not the greatest strength of the demon race?

A race born to fight.

A race that did not regret dying in battle.

Especially when the battle led directly to the Demon King’s throne, not a single demon had any complaints.

“Let’s drag down the Demon King who assassinated her predecessor through cowardly means, took the throne, and has hidden away without ever showing her face!”

“WRAAAAH!”

Epia hadn’t been holed up in the Demon King’s Castle for hundreds of years.

She had simply roamed the Demon World, enjoying herself, without ever acting like a ruler.

She had just happened to get caught up in this.

In any case, the Demon King, who had become a coward in their eyes, was like a drug to the demons.

A sweet drug that would make them forget their imminent deaths.

*

“...My King.”

“I know.”

The roars echoed from afar.

The ground trembled.

And a massive dark magic power could be felt.

Grokile’s expression hardened as he sensed the energy rolling toward them, making no attempt at concealment.

Epia’s brow furrowed as well.

This situation was neither strange nor unfamiliar.

The previous Demon King had faced it countless times, and Epia herself had experienced it often while secretly wandering the Demon World.

Of course, never before had so many enemies come at her in such a coordinated attack.

“What shall we do?”

“Wait.”

Only a single demon who defeated the Demon King could become the new one. They had to know that even if they joined hands now, they would eventually become enemies and have to fight again.

And yet, they had come together.

That could only be interpreted as a determination to bring down the current Demon King, no matter the cost.

This meant the best option was to run.

They could simply live to fight another day.

There was no law stating the Demon King had to accept every head-on challenge.

All that mattered was surviving and killing the opponent.

That was the law of the jungle.

And in the law of the jungle, were there rules, etiquette, or obligations?

Of course not.

The dead do not speak.

However, Epia did not run.

It wasn’t because of her pride.

“We can’t run.”

Demons were not fools.

They knew that broadcasting their overwhelming numbers from afar, letting their presence stream out in waves, would naturally make their enemy think of fleeing.

The fact that they were still so conspicuous meant they were confident.

They were closing in, surrounding them from all sides.

They had even sealed the movement of dark magic with their own, preventing any escape.

Epia alone could have pierced through their barrier and teleported away.

But the ones who had come with her would die.

She might not have cared under normal circumstances, but to Epia, Han Simin was not someone she could be indifferent about.

So she waited.

Calmly.

Even as the demons drew close enough for her to make out their faces with the naked eye.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

She waited for the hammer to strike.

For the light to burst.

“No need for greetings! Attack!”

As if in answer to Epia’s wish, Kaini’s practical order to attack rang out.

The distance closed in an instant.

Facing tens of thousands of troops, an individual’s heart wouldn’t just tremble; it would feel as if it might stop altogether.

Yet Epia remained calm.

She waited, composed.

FWOOSH—!

And then, her patience bore fruit.

“Ugh. What the hell is this bullshit situation?”

At that moment, Han Simin hurled the +13 twin swords to her.

Into Epia’s hands—still clad in a fluttery, delicate dress—fell the twin swords. The effects sealed by the previous Enhancer finally broke, pouring out thick streams of golden light.

No, it wasn’t just golden light.

The pitch-black darkness mixed into that golden glow began to spread.

“This is fun.”

Even then, a bewitching smile played on Epia’s lips as her body vanished.

Or rather, it was the world—the Demon World—that vanished, swallowed by darkness.