I Gave Up Being Stronger

After Lucia’s death, Lilia, her sister and former lover, had strengthened the network of the Succubi even further.

“Trust me. The only person who can help the Succubi is Kim Chul-Soo.”

The Succubi had entrenched themselves across the universe, with most of them secretly working in the information or red-light sectors.

“After Lucia died, Chul-Soo felt indebted to us. Even if that isn’t the case, it does not matter. As long as we are useful for his livestreaming, he will eagerly step forward to help us.”

Earth Players, especially the ones in Korea, like Lilia, were greatly inspired by Chul-Soo. She worked even harder. Her employer, Choi Gap-Soo, appreciated her efforts and gave her more time to pursue her endeavors, saying, “Lilia, you are brimming with a vigor rare in young people these days. I like it! It’s okay if you slack a bit on your secretarial duties. Focus on what you want to do.”

Moved by Lilia’s fervor, the Succubi rallied one by one. The scattered Succubi across the universe started to unite.

Lilia did not miss this opportunity. “We both have Kim Chul-Soo as a common ally. How about it? Won’t you join hands with us?”

Angel Girl Song Ha-Young, the leader of the Black Rose Alliance, gladly accepted Lilia’s offer. She had been looking to expand into the universe, and an alliance with the Succubi was the perfect opportunity. Allying with the Black Rose Alliance and Ha-Young meant also joining forces with Kwak Do-Hyeong of the Black Thorn Alliance. The cooperation between the Succubi and the Black Black Alliance was more than just a simple union of two forces.

“If you ever need Assassins, just tell us. We will help you out,” Ha-Young said.

The Seo sisters, who were the early core members of the K-Force, also promised Lilia to cooperate. This marked the beginning of Lilia’s connections with the leadership of the MK Foundations and the K-Force. Chairman Jang Michelle of the MK Foundation was very pleased with this development.

“I have been feeling rather sorry about the situation of the Succubi, so it’s a great opportunity for us to interact and grow together. If there is anything you need, just let us know. However, it has to be beneficial for Chul-Soo’s Play,” Michelle told Lilia.

After establishing this close cooperation with the MK Foundation, Lilia was able to seek advice from Han Sae-Rin.

“Ah really? That guy is a warmonger and suffers from a severe inferiority complex toward the Empress of Hell. He might just blindly charge in, but if he has a strategic team, they would not let him act so rashly. They know about the Guardian Tree here, so they will try to divert our attention,” Lilia said. She already knew about the Armies of Hell from Jin-Hyeok’s livestream.

“Their Server is not officially connected to Earth, so they will probably use various tricks. Have you checked where the Army of Hell would come from?” Sae-Rin asked.

“I am still verifying, but they will most likely enter through the Banyan Tree Dungeon.”

Lilia conveyed this information to Maria too.

“An invasion from another Server is expected. Ms. Shin Yu-Ri, I need you to step forward,” Maria said.

Siege Weapon Yu-Ri and Anus Destroyer Lee Hyeon-Seong were positioned near the Banyan Tree Dungeon. To prepare for any potential damage, Kim Jeong-Hyeon, Mok Jae-Hyeon, and Cha Jin-Sol of the K-Force were also dispatched. The top-ranked Players from various sectors moved organically as one unit to prepare for the crisis.

“The only Player sensitive enough to feel the mana fluctuation here is me, moly!” Mole Woman also joined in monitoring the Banyan Tree Dungeon. “I feel slight vibrations. It seems like the Servers are connecting. Watch out!”

Yu-Ri, Earth’s worst villain before Jin-Hyeok’s regression, nodded, getting ready to strike.

***

Jin-Hyeok gasped for breath, having expended a significant amount of energy. Although he had conducted numerous meditations and sought answers within his microcosm, this time had been particularly challenging.

“It seems like I succeeded, but…”

The Empress of Hell lay unconscious, her clothes torn at the seams due to her drastically increased size.

‘I need to take a break.’ Dizziness overwhelmed Jin-Hyeok, and his breath would not steady.

Amidst this, several messages from Yu-Mi arrived, informing him that the Army of Hell had indeed appeared and that Yu-Ri had decimated them. A thrilling sensation shot through Jin-Hyeok’s neck.

‘Wow, we’ve become much stronger!’ He reminisced about his time as a government official before his regression. ‘I never dreamed of handling things like this back then.’

Back then, whenever he tried to do anything, he had to submit documents, seek approvals, gauge the mood of politicians, and usually miss the right moment to act, ending up accomplishing nothing due to the frustrating bureaucracy of permissions and approvals. Whenever there was damage due to monsters, Jin-Hyeok and his team were the ones who got blamed.

‘But now, everything is clicking into place perfectly.’

He felt a rush from the excellent teamwork, a completely different charm from solo Plays.

‘Are the Succubi and Seo sisters doing well?’

The Succubi, the Seo sisters, the Assassins they led, the Black Black Alliance, and even Park Terse were heading to the Third Hell, guided by Mole Woman, aiming to strike at the enemy’s heartland with their elite forces absent.

“We Succubi need a home too. Watching you, I have realized how important it is to have a leader. I am trying to be that leader for the Succubi, to carve out a territory for us.”

“Are you going to help me with my livestreaming?”

“Of course, I think this is going to be great content for your channel.”

The Succubi were the ones who had devised the initial plan, and Sae-Rin had polished it. Terse had volunteered, intrigued by the exotic life forms he expected to find in Hell. Jin-Hyeok could not help feeling a generational shift.

‘Earth was always the Server being invaded…’

Earth being invaded was a daily occurrence before his regression, due to the Server’s mediocre strength. Earth was strong enough that other Servers did not look cowardly when invading it, but it was not so strong that it could retaliate against other Servers. Earth was just a mid-tier Server.

‘This Beckant bastard used to invade us all the time.’

Before Jin-Hyeok’s regression, Beckant was a villain who overtly demanded three hundred men and three hundred women from Earth, both of decent appearance; he even had a history of causing chaos in the United States and assassinating the president.

‘Now we are the invaders…’ Jin-Hyeok marveled at how much the world had changed.

***

Beckant clenched his teeth in fury. ‘Damn it!’

He had transformed into a massive wolf, crossing his arms to block the barrage of flashes.

“We did not come here to fight you!” Beckant yelled. His plan to create chaos with his Army of Hell and then head straight to the Empress of Hell had crumbled. Somehow, Earth had anticipated and prepared for their invasion.

“But… we are… planning to fight… you…!” Martial King Jeong-Hyeon was talking slowly, but his movements were quick.

Bang!

Jeong-Hyeon’s fist hit Beckant’s chest, pushing him back a couple of steps.

‘The audacity of a newbie from a new Server!’ Beckant instinctively knew that Jeong-Hyeon was inferior to him. If this had been Hell, he could have torn apart the latter with one hand. However, here, it was not that easy. The opponent’s defense was too strong, boosted by the Guardian Tree. ‘Was the power of the Guardian Tree always this strong?’

Beckant had underestimated the new Server, but the power of the Guardian Tree here seemed to rival that of Arvis’s. Moreover, the golden meteor-like lights falling from the sky were stronger than he thought they would be. Thousands upon thousands of beams of light were slicing through the Army of Hell.

‘Damn it all!’ Beckant assumed that a ranker from a powerful Server like Arvis was helping them. ‘Talk about bad luck!’

However, as the fight went on, Beckant realized that there were no rankers from an Arvis-level Server here.

‘How are they so strong? I have never seen such attacks from a new Server.’

Even the one firing those beams of light, Yu-Ri, was surprised. “Was I… really this strong?”

Although she had been intensely training every day, modeling her standard after Chul-Soo, she had not expected to be able to unleash such powerful attacks continuously.

“This is not my power.” Even with her proven strength in combat, continuous firing of such destructive force was impossible.

Shortly after, a voice like thunder rolled down from the sky.

-“Behold! The best defense is offense! Hahahaha!”

This was the power of the Guardian Tree.

***

Beckant swung his claws widely to distance himself from Jeong-Hyeon.

“Retreat!”

He vowed to show these foolish and naive earthlings their place in due time. He returned to the Third Hell with his surviving elite forces, battered and bruised, and stood before the gate.

“Open the gate.”

As he passed through, a scent of peaches filled the air—a scent that inexplicably made his heart flutter. For some reason, he craved alcohol.

Back in his castle, he indulged in drink.

“Perhaps you should stop drinking. You have had quite enough.”

“Who are you?” Beckant looked at the woman serving his drinks. ‘She is beautiful.’

Lilia kept handing drinks to Beckant. “You must have had a very brave day today.”

“Of course!”

The sweet voice delved into Beckant’s mind. As he had suffered a humiliating defeat to an underestimated foe, his mind was riddled with vulnerabilities, making it easy for Lilia to seduce him. The elites led by Beckant were no different.

“Were there always such beautiful women in Hell?”

“They are so beautiful, hehe!”

“Come here. Yes, you. How old are you?”

The Succubi were fully mobilized. Everyone succumbed to the alcohol, and next up were the Black Black Alliance and the Seo sisters.

‘It’s surprisingly easy…’

‘Is it supposed to be this easy?’

The Assassins themselves felt their hearts racing.

‘So, this is the power of gathering information and how a Ruler uses them…’

Had they faced the Hell King Beckant and his minions in direct combat, they would have stood no chance. However, now, they were easily eliminating the forces of the Hell King. Turning the power of ten into the power of a hundred—that was the power of information and a skilled Ruler.

However, there were still problems.

“Beckant’s skin is too tough. My knife won’t go in.”

“His defensive stats are incredibly high!”

Neither the Seo sisters nor Kwak Do-Hyeon could penetrate the thick skin of the Hell King.

Lilia handed them a potion and said, “Use this. And it will be much easier.”

“What is this?”

“This is a potion to weaken defensive stats, especially given by Chul-Soo Land No.1. You all are close to Mr. Chul-Soo, and for Chul-Soo Land, handing out such an item is not a big deal. However, she asked to keep it a secret that she gave this to you.”

Seo Ji-Ah silently accepted the potion and thought, ‘Can this really neutralize Hell King’s defense?’

She opened the potion and applied it to Hell King’s neck. ‘Only one way to find out.’

She swung her dagger.

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