84

Emilia knew that she could not become as strong as Lee Ho, Raul, or Jin Yong.

Yet, she wanted to get to the top. That was the reason why she chose another strategy. She had decided to become the wife of the strongest person.

Lee Hwan saw it correctly. Her greatest talent was to act.

She always smiled and acted kindly.

Some people who knew her well had called her a psychopath. But all of those people were dead.

She knew that Ash Howard had a skill called “Poker Face.” She had also acquired that skill.

In fact, her “Poker Face” was SS-rated and much stronger than Ash’s.

To be honest, the Godfather was her sex partner, a relationship they’d had for a long time.

Even the CIA hadn’t spotted that since Emilia hid her information perfectly.

She thought that the Godfather would become king of the world. That was why she had allied herself with him.

However, Lee Hwan made her furious. And so, she’d tried to send a message to the Godfather to have Lee Hwan killed.

But she’d been caught.

There had been no time to think. She’d immediately used teleport, not even knowing where her destination was.

She sighed. She’d managed to escape from the man.

However, where was this place?

Emilia looked around. It was a forested area in what turned out to be quite a familiar place.

It was Hot Springs National Park, which meant she was now in Arkansas. She stood up and tried to go to the Godfather. But that was when someone grabbed her hair and dragged her back.

Who had dared to do that? However, she noticed that something was not right.

She was in Yoo-Jeong’s house. That was the place she had just left. ‘Why am I here?’ Emilia then turned her head. She could see that Lee Hwan was smiling.

That frightened Emilia, so she tried to teleport again. But Lee Hwan responded quickly and kicked her in the face.

Emilia was defeated. That was a definite fact. Hwan was slowly coming toward her, and Emilia knew what she had to do.

She kneeled immediately.

“I… I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”

Lee Hwan laughed.

“What misunderstanding?”

“…Let’s talk.”

Hwan smiled and sat down.

“Did you forget about the warning?”

“…I made a mis—”

She couldn’t finish the words. Lee Hwan had slapped her in the face.

“Don’t act. I can see through it.”

“…”

“Your Poker Face is better than Ash’s. But it’s no use on me.”

Emilia gulped. What this man said was true.

“…What do you want?”

“Nothing much.” He slapped Emilia’s face again. “How dare you try to harm my people? Let me teach you a lesson.” He was ready to smash her.

Yet, there’s a phrase that goes, “Even a worm will turn.”

Emilia was that worm now.

Her body was glowing. This was her unique skill. Soon, her body was cured, and she grabbed her dagger.

Then Hwan slapped her face once again. She endured that and tried to attack Hwan with her dagger, but he grabbed her arm.

“This is an apartment, you know.”

Her eyes glittered. She realized that Hwan did not want the apartment to collapse. But why shouldn’t she? Emilia smirked. She was ready to bring the apartment down. But, suddenly, her powers were fading.

Your skills are negated. “…What?”

It was an unprecedented occasion. Her inner aura had been deactivated.

Your aura has been frozen. ]

You won’t be able to use skills. ]

Temporarily, your aura level has been set to zero. ]

You’ve been hit with a curse named ******. ] Emilia was just a woman now.

She then realized that facing Lee Hwan as her enemy had been her biggest mistake. Emilia wanted to beg for forgiveness. She wanted to talk.

That did not happen.

Lee Hwan punched her in the face. She couldn’t even speak a single word.

He then swung his fist.

***

It had been a while since I worked out like this.

I had learned how to beat someone up without breaking bones. It required an elaborated sense to control the power. It wasn’t like killing Mus Mahhu. For me, it was more like a workout in the gym.

I looked at Emilia’s watch and saw the message she had been about to send. Soon, Kim Yoo-Jeong came to me. She brought Emilia along as well.

“Did you check?”

“Yes… It was there.”

She showed me some photos from the watch. I could see images of Emilia there, naked.

There was a tattoo on her body.

天. A character symbolizing the anti-hunter organization.

However, it was located in a risque spot. I wouldn’t even mention it.

“How did they do that?”

“…I don’t know.”

Even I was surprised by this; Yoo-Jeong had to be much more so.

She asked, “Will you send this to Ash?”

I turned my head. Emilia was sneering at me.

“You son of a b****….”

I guessed she needed more lessons. But I decided to do that later. Instead, I answered Yoo-Jeong’s question.

“We’ll think about that.”

“Alright.”

Then I called to Emilia, “You have two options.”

“…”

“But let me be clear. Either way, you’ll die.”

“…”

“I’ve never spared someone who tried to harm my people. So don’t try to negotiate.” Emilia smirked. “You’re going to kill me anyway. Just do it.” I shrugged.

“But the outcome can be different. You can die by experiencing severe pain or die without noticing any.”

“…What?”

“I won’t send those photos to Ash. I’m not that jackass. So let’s just finish this discussion, then I’ll send you to the place you belong.”

“…Where do you mean?”

“Heaven, of course. Though I’m not sure if you can actually go there.”

I told her to delete the photo. So she did.

I then said, “I want to ask about the Godfather. Is he really finding a place for awakeners?”

“…”

***

Though his purpose was not right, the Godfather was a hard worker.

He worked hard. He even risked his life for growth.

The monster crashed to the ground. Really, it was more like a mixture of man and dragon.

Soon, he noticed that the system was ringing.

You killed Ugallu, one of Tiamat’s children. ]

Five children of Tiamat are dead. ]

[ Beware of Tiamat. She will arrive soon. ]

The Godfather then turned back. He used his weapon to slice through the monster’s dead body until he could see its heart. Below that, there was a life orb of the Ugallu. It looked like a topaz.

The Godfather smiled. This was his plan to become stronger.

Previously, he had fought with Raul. He’d managed to break Raul’s shield, but that was it, and he’d been injured as well. He couldn’t overwhelm Raul. That fact bothered him.

Raul was a man who didn’t use his skill. Even so, the Godfather couldn’t overwhelm him.

He’d learned that he needed to become stronger.

By hunting stronger monsters, he could do so. He didn’t want anyone else to have the opportunity to grow. That was why he wanted to clear the SS-rated gate in Switzerland alone.

And so, he’d gone after the life orb of the Ugallu.

The Godfather swallowed it immediately.

Then he closed his eyes. He concentrated on absorbing the power completely. That was why he didn’t notice what was happening outside.

***

How much would it take to clear the SS-rated gate?

Lee Ho had cleared it alone in a day.

So had Hwan. In fact, Hwan had proven that he was much more powerful than his brother.

Ho used his skill to summon his brother’s power. Even that reflection of Hwan cleared the SS-rated gate easily.

Without Hwan, it would take a lot of time. The SS-rated gate in the Grand Canyon took five days. It would be similar to that.

Lee Ho knew that the Godfather was stronger than him now.

Given that, he analyzed that it would take at least two days for the Godfather to clear the gate.

Meanwhile, Lee Ho met with leaders of other countries and prepared for his organization.

Ho now knew a lot about the Godfather. But there was one thing he didn’t. The Godfather had said that he planned to find a place for awakeners to live. He’d said that he would find that place from the gate.

But was he doing so?

After capturing Emilia, Lee Hwan had asked her that question.

Emilia had sighed and answered.

“No.”

***

The Alps Mountain Range was tremendous. It was located in Europe and touched most of the countries on the continent.

Up in that mountain, someone was there. He was observing something. Soon, his eyes glittered, and then he called someone.

“I’m Hyeon-Soo Park from Team White Tiger. The SS-rated gate in Switzerland is cleared.”

Then, someone answered.

[ I appreciate your hard work. I’ll be there soon. ]

Hyeon-Soo slowly stood up. He was not alone. Other hunters from Team White Tiger stood there as well.

They were looking at one spot, excited about what would happen soon. Today, the Godfather and his companions would die.

There should be only one king in the world.

Lee Ho.

He was their king.