Chapter 1396: Side Story 5
Chapter 1396 - Side Story 5
Hou was utterly shocked when Minhyuk suddenly did a standard ninety-degree bow in front of him.
“Ah! Yes, yes!” Hou said, hurriedly bowing in response to Minhyuk.
While he stared blankly at the place where Philos disappeared from, countless strong people had already appeared from beyond the crack in space.
‘What…?’
All of the powerhouses who had appeared in the small village were those who represented the Western Continents. They also went by another moniker: Philos’s Family. Their number was growing at a rapid pace. After all, Minhyuk’s friends were Philos’s friends. That was how many people loved and cared for Philos.
Minhyuk looked at the still stunned Hou and said, “You know the young girl named Philos, right?”
“Yes, I know. I wanted to accompany her to her guardian…” Hou trailed off.
Hou might be slow on the uptake, but that was not the case for others. His friends, who were standing at a distance, stared wide-eyed at him. “No way…”
“That… That shouldn’t be the case, right? That young girl who ran away from home…”
“Huhhhh…? Come to think of it, we heard from Hou that she eats a lot…”
“Is… Is it really her…?”
“No, wait. How come Hou doesn't know that?”
“It’s because he’s living under a rock. He doesn’t even have a TV.”
“No. That’s not it.”
Alas, even though his friends tried to deny it, this was the reality.
“I’m Philos’s oppa.”
“Ah!” Hou shouted, clearly startled by Minhyuk’s words.
However, Hou did not feel as if he wanted to receive any rewards. He just continued to worry about Philos.
“Philos was really upset. The reason why she ran away from home was because her oppa no longer ate delicious food with her.”
“I see, so that was the reason.”
Only then did Minhyuk realize the actual reason why Philos ran away from home.
“Usually, people would demand compensation at a time like this.”
Minhyuk instantly knew that Hou was a good and kind person.
“You must have heard this before, no? What goes around comes back around.”
Whether it was good or evil, whatever went around would always come back around. Minhyuk slowly reached out his hand. Hou’s heart thumped wildly as he stared at the young man’s outstretched hand.
‘Th… the hand of the Supreme?’
For a seemingly useless class like the Knight of Encounter, a simple handshake with the world’s Supreme was something unimaginable.
‘This person… he knows everything.’
Hou grabbed Minhyuk’s outstretched hand. The moment their palms touched, Minhyuk grabbed him tightly and pulled him into a tight hug. He said, “Thank you very much. Because of you, our Philos was able to learn something new.”
According to the notification that Minhyuk heard, Philos had learned something new. This meant that Philos had learned something that she needed to realize in her life by staying by Hou’s side. Since she had received something from this man, they must return the favor.
[You are the Knight of Encounter.]
[You have shaken hands with a strong being.]
[Measuring the Handshake Rating…]
[There are problems with the measurement.]
[It’s not easy to measure.]
[It has been measured!]
Ring!
[The Knight of Encounter evolves into the King of Encounter.]
‘Keok?!’
Hou was aware that his class would evolve into the Knight of Encounter if his Handshake Rating reached 100%. Regardless, all he did was shake one person’s hand.
‘That’s not all. My level will also increase if I shake the hands of the strong…’
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[...leveled up.]
[...leveled up.]
Goosebumps rose all over his skin as he listened to the constant ringing of the notifications.
‘I leveled up 56 times? Oh, shit!’
Then, at that moment…
“This is the gift that I and the rest of Philos’ Family have prepared for you.”
[Minhyuk has gifted you 10,000 platinum.]
[Minhyuk has gifted you a weapon created by Hephaestus.]
[Minhyuk has gifted you an armor set created by Hephaestus.]
[The Master of the Western Continent has bestowed his blessings upon you.]
[No one will ignore you, the one who received the blessings and protection of the Master of the Western Continents.]
‘Keheoooook?!’
The value of what Hou received was beyond anything that he could imagine. To put it in simpler terms, if he chose to exchange the items that he had received for money, the amount could easily allow him to buy one or two houses in Gangnam.
Still, they weren’t done yet.
“Our Beyond the Heavens Empire always returns the grace and kindness that we receive a hundred times over.”
“Yes?”
Minhyuk slowly turned his body. There, Hou saw around a hundred strong men reaching out their hands toward him.
“Thank you for taking care of our Philos,” Spear God Ben said.
[I have been watching over you. Just think of what you have received as something that you deserve.]
That was Evil God Obren.
“Oiiiiiiink!” The baby piggy, Beanie, added.
They reached out their hands as they walked toward Hou.
[...leveled up.]
[...leveled up.]
[...Handshake Rating…]
[...Handshake Rating…]
[...leveled up.]
[...leveled up.]
[The notification window will be temporarily suspended.]
By the time he finished shaking hands with all of the people present…
[You have leveled up 285 times.]
[The King of Encounter has evolved into the God of Encounter.]
[All of your stats will change.]
[You have awakened new skills.]
In just an instant, Hou’s level reached Level 640.
“If you wish to belong somewhere, feel free to find me. I will make sure to leave a seat for you among the Sword of the Gods’ Knight Order.”
The Luvien Empire’s Sword of the Gods’ Knight Order had now turned into the Beyond the Heavens Empire’s Sword of the Gods’ Knight Order. The First Knight Order was made up of NPCs, while the Second Knight Order was made up of players. Regardless, one thing was for sure: every single member of the knight order was among the most powerful beings in Athenae.
“Y-yes! Thank you!”
Not long after, Minhyuk and his men disappeared. Meanwhile, Hou’s friends stared at him with both shock and surprise.
“H-hiccup!”
The other friend’s pupils shook wildly. He whispered, “OMG. Pl… please teach me your ways!”
Hou, with great momentum, said, “Just live a good life, you punks!”
Philos smiled as she watched from a distance.
***
Beyond the Heavens Empire’s audience hall.
“Why is she not coming back yet?” Minhyuk grabbed his hair in worry.
Did he think that Philos would come back to them once she left Hou’s side? Perhaps.
“It just means that whatever is worrying her has not yet been resolved, Your Majesty.”
Minhyuk’s heart felt hollow after Philos ran away from home. At that moment, a carrier pigeon flew in. When Minhyuk saw the carrier pigeon, he immediately knew who it was.
[It’s been a long time.]
It was the absolute god of Olympus, Zeus. The two had become quite close, but right now he looked extremely serious.
[The Gods of Olympus had made their choice. I think we might have to close the passage connecting the Gaia Continent and the West in a week.]
“Yes?”
[I kept on persuading them not to do it. I told them that we needed to work together to continue to grow prosperous. Nonetheless, it’s not easy to convince them alone.]
[It’s because they… really detest you.]
There was no helping it. They had helped him during the war with Heaven, but…
‘If you think about it, I’m the only one who benefited from their help.’
Of course, they also felt the thrill of receiving the people’s attention, but that was all.
[All of them believe that they have been thoroughly used.]
It seemed like this was the result of ignoring the Pillar Quest: Befriending the Masters of Olympus that Minhyuk received just recently.
‘It seems like I have pushed back the matter for way too long.’
“If that’s the case, then I should personally go and persuade them…”
[That’s impossible. The decision is final. The passage will be closed a week later. From now on, you’re banned from entering the Gaia Continent.]
“Zeus, why are you doing this? After I helped treat your baldness?”
[Ah… ahem, ahem.]
Zeus looked embarrassed. He looked around as if he was making sure that no one was listening and said…
[I did my best for you. Now, you only have one way left.]
Zeus was also aware that Minhyuk had received a quest that required him to build friendships and relationships with the masters of Olympus. After all, he was the one who triggered the quest. He had expected that this would happen one day.
[Everything can be solved if you send someone who can build a relationship with us.]
Flap, flap, flap!
Just like that, the carrier pigeon disappeared. Minhyuk’s expression grew increasingly somber. They were in a situation where all of the deals and transactions that they had with the Gaia Continent were at risk of being cut off permanently.
“There wouldn’t be any problem if there weren’t any deals and transactions that had been struck between the two continents. But since there is, they will complain once they know that there’s a risk of the deals and transactions falling through.”
This was how mankind was.
“Who should I send? Sending someone is a problem in and of itself, right?”
Suppose he sent Ben, what if he ended up hurting their feelings, and a fight ensued?
‘Grandpa Ben will definitely die.’
It was not just Ben. The same situation would happen to the members of the Beyond the Heavens Empire. Minhyuk could not let anyone go there without him.
“There’s no one who can make friends with the gods of Olympus among us, right?”
It was an achievement that even Minhyuk had not yet made. Haze and Minhyuk looked at each other, anxiety evident in their eyes. At that moment…
[Guardian Mode is still in progress.]
[Philos has arrived in the Gaia Continent.]
“Not only did she run away from home, she even went to the Gaia Continent?!”
This was equivalent to someone running from South Korea to North Korea!
***
Special Players Management Team.
Surprisingly enough, the atmosphere in the department was peaceful and borderline boring.
“It has been quiet ever since Player Minhyuk has been completely cured of his eating addiction,” Team Leader Park said as he leaned on his chair.
“That’s right. Even Ms. Philos has been quiet these days. It’s probably because her growth had already reached stagnation.”
Were the special players only Minhyuk and Philos? Of course not. There were still many players who had done extraordinary things that needed to be taken note of. However, with the two quiet, the department had become peaceful. Still, there seemed to be a downside to this, too. Although it was calm, they lacked the energy to do anything.
“What shall we eat today, Deputy Lee Minhwa?”
“You.”
“...”
The two had just gotten married recently, and they were still in their honeymoon period. This was the hottest and clingiest time for the two.
At that moment, Lee Minhwa saw something on the monitor that left her shocked. It was none other than Philos.
“No. Why is Philos…?”
Philos’s growth had become stagnant in the West. She had been turned into the Absolute Weapon by the Beyond the Heavens Empire. They gave Philos everything that they could. As a result, she could easily deal with those at Level 600 even though she was only at Level 300. And this was precisely the reason why her growth had stagnated.
“N… NO! Philos is going to the Gaia Continent?!”
The faces of Team Leader Park and Lee Minhwa turned red in excitement.
“Huh? Why do we like each other?”
“...?”
The two unknowingly showered each other with affection. However, the two returned to being Team Leader Park and Deputy Team Leader Lee Minhwa just as quickly as they showed affection.
“Deputy Lee Minhwa, why is it a problem for us if Philos goes to the Gaia Continent?”
“Because even though there’s no other way for her to grow further in the Beyond the Heavens Empire, there are still a lot of ways for her to grow in the Gaia Continent.”
“For example?”
“The Gaia Continent has gods. The prime example is the gods of Olympus, no?”
“But the Gods of Olympus have nothing to do with Philos.”
“Does that even matter?” Lee Minhwa grinned. “What matters here is that Philos owns a cheat-like skill, the Heart Thief.”
***
Philos still hadn’t let go of her grievances toward Minhyuk. Furthermore, things were just as she expected! There were many eyes on her, including Evil God Obren! The proof was the crowd of people who appeared right after she left Hou’s side.
So, Philos decided to go very, very far away. That was why she chose to go to the Gaia Continent. After all, the Pillars and Minhyuk could not come and find her there. Even if her Minhyuk oppa decided to go there, he wouldn’t be able to come easily. This was the true meaning of running away from home, right?
Just like that, Philos arrived at the Gaia Continent.
***
[Philos has entered Ares’ Soldier Training Camp.]
Minhyuk grew increasingly flustered by the sudden notification.
“Nooooo! Philos! Even if you went there, why do you have to go and meet Ares, that mad dog?!”
She was truly Minhyuk’s younger sister. She was smart. She knew that Minhyuk would not be able to come and see her if she had Ares by her side.
‘Wait.’
Minhyuk was currently in a situation where he had to befriend the masters of Olympus one way or another. It did not matter if it was him or someone else. It was enough as long as he designated one person to deal with the matter.
‘Then, how about Philos…?’
It might be possible. After all, Philos might just be the only person who could befriend the Gods of Olympus.
***
Zeus pardoned his son, Ares, and took him out of the Wailing Prison much earlier than he had ordered. This was so he could prevent the weakening of the Gaia Continent’s military force.
Ares had lost his entire Ares’ Army to the Beyond the Heavens Empire and was currently in the middle of fostering and nurturing a new army. The training intensity remained high, but thankfully, it was not as brutal as it was back in the day.
Right now, a young girl was standing among the sturdy and muscular soldiers in front of him. The only ones who knew about Philos were those from the West. So, in other words, none of the people here knew who she was.
“What the hell? Why is this girl here?”
“I think I heard her say that she wants to befriend Lord Ares?”
“...?”
The kid was obviously nuts. Why would anyone say that they wanted to befriend Mad Dog Ares?
Ares cackled, “Ha- Hahahahahaha! Hahaha!”
Because of that, the soldiers also began to laugh at her.
“Kid. You dream big!”
“Achuchuchu~ You have to go out and eat more first!”
Ares liked crazy people. If an ordinary soldier had come to him and asked them to accept him, then he would have already torn their limbs apart. But it was different now.
‘This kid wants to get close to me? Then, do you dare to come out?’
“Brat. If you win a fight against all the soldiers around you, I'll get close to you. I will give you a chance to become my friend.” Ares smirked.
Where was the scene where he had to send them out with their limbs torn off? This accommodation was proof enough that Ares had the tiniest bit of affection for Philos.
The soldiers roared with laughter as well.
“Wahahahahahaha! How can a cute girl like this beat us?”
“Lord Ares! I can win against this brat with just one finger!”
“Achuchuchu~ Our little lady, how about you play doll with this uncle…”
“Animal Farm.”
Swoosh!
Thud!
Hihihihing!
“...?”
“...?”
“...?”
In an instant, all of the soldiers around the young girl fell with blood spurting out of their chests.