The Player Who Can't Level Up

“What is happening here?” Gi-Gyu wondered out loud. It was an unprecedented situation since he was used to opening the status screen and seeing his Egos’ stats. He was the player who couldn’t level up, but even his miserable stats showed up on his screen.

Lou seemed puzzled.

-Hmm.

El also seemed confused.

Gi-Gyu asked, “Why can’t I see your status screen?”

Now, the trio was sharing a confusing thought. Gi-Gyu tried opening and closing the screen several times, but nothing changed.

Lou ordered,

-Stop panicking and stay still for a while.

After a moment, Lou continued,

-I don’t think your sync with her has any problems. The reason should be something else.

“What is it? Tell me already.” When Gi-Gyu prodded him, Lou asked El,

-System… El, do you remember anything about the system?

El shook her head and replied, “No, I don’t remember anything about the system.”

-That’s what I thought.

Gi-Gyu patiently listened to Lou.

-This explanation is pretty straightforward.

“I’m waiting.”

-It might be because El has broken the system’s power scale. It can no longer judge her.

Gi-Gyu became speechless. How shocking was that? El had become so powerful that the system couldn’t even calculate her level. Remember, it ranked even the most powerful players, including Lee Sun-Ho and Soo-Jung. So, was El now the strongest?

-Bitch, don’t get too ahead of yourself. Let me finish.

Lou added in annoyance,

-What you’re thinking shouldn’t be possible. Even when El and I were in our prime, the system could rank us. So, she couldn’t have become too powerful for the system. That leaves us with only one explanation.

“Well, why didn’t you say so from the beginning?” Gi-Gyu muttered. Was Lou deliberately confusing him? Ignoring Gi-Gyu’s complaint, Lou continued,

-She has, most likely, become something the system doesn’t recognize. Something completely and utterly new.

“What?” Gi-Gyu gasped before asking, “What are you saying?”

-She is either an entirely new species or her form has changed so much that the system can’t recognize her anymore.

It was as confusing an explanation as they came, so Gi-Gyu had difficulty understanding it. However, in summary, it meant that El had become something unspecified.

-Well, either way, there is no way to find an answer. So, just accept we can’t understand her changes… for now.

Suddenly, El murmured with a smile, “I have an idea, Master.”

***

“Is it all done now?” asked Gi-Gyu as he studied the giant cocoon. Surprisingly, the cocoon was now only a fraction of its original size, thanks to Botis’ Ego occupying it. It was now the size of a one-story building, certainly not small but definitely smaller than before.

-Almost.

Lou replied as the cocoon continued to change slowly.

Ba dum, ba dum…

The cocoon continued to thump like a beating heart. It had stopped shrinking, but it was now beating more loudly.

-Botis’ magic enlarged the cocoon, but now, it has been condensed. Kekeke! I’m really looking forward to this.

Lou sounded excited as he continued,

-Beating it again will be so much fun.

While Gi-Gyu was busy watching the cocoon with a smile, he heard strange noises from nearby.

“Krrrrk.”

“Krrrrk.”

Realizing they were monster sounds, he turned around and found the mantises from Botis' gate slowly gathering around him.

Hart appeared from nowhere and shouted angrily, “How dare you, stupid monsters! You’re disturbing the grandmaster!”

Hart was riding the griffin king. He pulled the leash on the bird and rushed forward.

Flap, flap…

The griffin king fluttered its giant wings to land nearby. Hart dashed toward Gi-Gyu, bowed, and murmured, “Apologizes, Grandmaster! I can’t believe these creatures dared to approach you!”

However, Gi-Gyu barely listened because he was busy studying the mantises with interest. These monsters didn’t sync with him directly but still belonged to him. They could be considered his low-level Egos. That was why they were now loyal to him, and in turn, they should have obeyed Hart.

Yet these monsters disobeyed Hart and gathered here. Lou explained,

-They are waiting for their king.

“What?” Gi-Gyu asked.

-Regardless of what Botis may have been like, he was still these mantises’ master. He was their alpha as well as their omega. They must have sensed their king’s rebirth, so they are here to show respect and worship. This kind of loyalty is embedded in their DNA.

Lou chuckled and continued,

-You can’t stop them with a whip. Don’t worry, though. They won’t bother you.

Still bowing in apology, Hart tried to push away the mantises, but it was useless. Finally, Hart decided to use his magic to make them disappear, but Gi-Gyu ordered, “It’s fine. Leave them be, Hart.”

“But Grandmaster…!” Hart protested.

Gi-Gyu replied, “Settle down. It’s not like they’re bothering me.”

In the end, Hart nodded and answered, “A-all right, Grandmaster.”

Hart joined the mantises and stood next to Gi-Gyu. He tried to hide it, but it was obvious he was also curious about the cocoon. Countless mantises gathered; soon, a mountain of them surrounded the cocoon. It looked like every mantis in the gate was here; Gi-Gyu couldn’t even believe his gate had so many of them.

“If Yoo-Jung saw this, she would freak out,” Gi-Gyu said with a smirk. These mantises looked even creepier than the normal ones, to say nothing of their number. If Yoo-Jung, his sister, saw them, she would run around screaming.

Ba dum!

Botis' cocoon suddenly thumped again.

Lou chuckled and announced.

-It’s finally starting.

Crack!

The outer shell began to split. When Gi-Gyu battled the cocoon, he had thought this layer was made of the toughest material imaginable. The cracks appeared slowly; before long, they were covering the entire cocoon.

“Krrrk!”

“Krrrrrrk!”

The mantises suddenly roared. The loud noise was bothersome, but Gi-Gyu ignored it and focused on the cocoon. After all, today was a memorable day, as an almost-demon lord was about to become his minion. Lou, in Gi-Gyu’s body, had torn open the cocoon like an egg, but that didn’t change that Botis was a powerful being.

Gi-Gyu grinned and murmured, “I can’t help but have high expectations.”

He wondered how strong he would become after syncing with Botis. El’s evolution had already increased his magic flow and muscle strength. The growth was so shocking that it made him shiver.

Even now…

Gi-Gyu could feel his power growing as the cocoon before him transformed.

Crack!

A crisp noise of something cracking rang through the gate. The mantises’ shrieking grew louder and louder until…

Gi-Gyu’s eyes widened as a sudden silence fell. The mantises had become so quiet that he wondered if he had imagined their cries. The abrupt calm was a bit unsettling even.

Then, the mantises growled quietly and bowed down. They all moved in unison as the cocoon split open with a loud noise.

Crack!

Immediately, something fell out of the cocoon.

Tap!

The creature was covered in mucus and wiggled to stand up, but no one frowned in distaste. Slowly, it managed to rise. Botis, lips covered in mucus, opened its mouth and announced, “Greetings to the king.”

Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun!

When Botis said this sentence, the whole gate began to vibrate as all the mantises simultaneously kneeled and plunged their hands into the ground.

-Kekeke…

Lou chuckled, and Gi-Gyu grinned widely and replied, “Welcome, Repulsive Earl.”

Gi-Gyu felt a strong connection forming between them, followed by an incredible amount of power swirling inside him.

***

Whack whack whack!

First came loud punching noises and then even louder screams. “Ackkk!”

A gruesome-looking creature was behind these painful cries.

Whack whack whack!

Another round of hitting noises shook the gate.

“P-please… Stop…” the creature begged.

Whack whack whack!

After a few more hits, the creature moaned, “Why… why… why…?”

The creature no longer had any energy left to speak coherently.

Thud thud thud!

This time, much densely packed hitting sounds rang in the gate.

The creature, Botis, begged, “M-My King… Please stop…”

When Botis slumped as if unconscious, Gi-Gyu took a deep breath and said, “Phew… This is harder than I thought.”

Gi-Gyu finally took a step back. For the last three hours, he had been beating Botis with the pommel and grip of Lou’s sword form. And he did that for one simple reason: Lou.

Gi-Gyu asked, “Lou, are you happy now? Was that enough for you?”

-It’s still not enough, but let’s finish up for now. If I get angry again later, then…

When Lou trailed off, Gi-Gyu urged him playfully, “Go ahead. Say it!”

Lou paused before finally adding.

-I will appreciate it if you beat it up again for me later.

“Of course!” Gi-Gyu replied happily. Lou, the ever arrogant prick, had asked him for a favor so respectfully; how could he not be gleeful? Gi-Gyu felt a little bad for Botis, but…

“He would’ve killed all those players in the gate if he could,” murmured Gi-Gyu. If it weren’t for him, so many would have died. And if the gate broke, there would have been even greater fatalities. Therefore, Gi-Gyu felt that this was an appropriate punishment.

“Okay…” Gi-Gyu poked Botis with Lou and ordered, “Get up already.”

“Yes, My King,” Botis greeted and rose as if nothing had happened. It was obvious that Botis didn’t lose consciousness. This Botis wasn’t as strong as the gate Botis, but absorbing the cocoon’s magic still made him insanely strong. The fact that it didn’t faint from Gi-Gyu’s heartfelt beating proved his strength.

“I think Lou is feeling much better now, so let’s talk,” announced Gi-Gyu. It was time to talk about Andras’s plan.

Botis, nicknamed the Repulsive Earl, replied, “I will tell you anything you wish.”

Now the size of a human, Botis resembled a mix of a lizard and a mantis. The Repulsive Earl Botis slowly opened its mouth to reveal the truth.