The Player Who Can't Level Up

“Think about it carefully before you commit to this. It won’t be easy. And know that I can probably do this better than you. Let’s say you managed to seal away Jupiter, but do you understand that your body will be sealed away or destroyed in doing so? You’ll never get to see your beloved master again. Are you telling me that’s okay with you?” Lou warned El.

El seemed to contemplate for a moment, but she already knew the answer.

“I’m going to do it. For Master, I…” El declared.

Lou sighed, “Haa…”

It seemed that love always ended in sacrifice.

“Fine, but whatever happens, you will have to do your best because I will. Firstly, I will tell you how it can be done. Your consciousness will enter the shell, but you won’t be able to create your form inside. You’ll most likely have to use Shin Yoo-Bin. It looks like Jupiter stole Gi-Gyu’s body, which means Shin Yoo-Bin’s body should be available for your use. So use it to fight Jupiter and subdue him.”

“Okay.”

“Don’t answer so easily. I’m telling you, it won’t be easy.”

El folded away her wings. They remained black, and she still hadn’t stopped trembling. Once an angel was corrupted, there was no coming back from it. Now, she could only keep falling until she had reached the end. This was how this world worked, following the rules of the now-dead God.

El replied, “I know it won’t be easy, but the way I am right now… It is no help to Master. Lou and S-Soo-Jung, you were both right.”

El smiled bitterly and continued, “I have become a burden to my master. I know this. I know I can no longer control my emotions and am being corrupted. My purity brought me strength, but now that I have lost it, I don’t know what I’ll become. I do understand that I’m slowly losing everything precious to me, so the only thing I can do now is to sacrifice myself.”

It turned out El knew everything. She had just been ignoring it and letting her desire take over. She had believed this would give her what she desired most: Happiness.

The kind that came when she was with Gi-Gyu.

El gave them another bitter smile before asking, “Lou… And Soo-Jung, please take good care of my master.”

And before anyone could stop her, El had touched Gi-Gyu’s chest.

‘He’s warm.’ 

Gi-Gyu had always been warm. She had never felt this way for a human or any creature for that matter before. Back when she was the queen angel, she only cared about carrying out God’s will. Such feelings were like a luxury she never knew existed. A fantasy that she had never even dreamt of.

However, she realized the truth some time ago. She had learned that simple physical contact with a human, or any creature, could provide warmth and happiness. This was why she became greedy. This was why she chose to let her desire grow.

And if this was a sin, then…

“Master,” El whispered. If this were a sin, she was ready to be punished for it.

She slowly began losing consciousness.

Soo-Jung, Lou, and Baal watched her in silence.

***

‘Bastard!’ Gi-Gyu couldn't help swearing. His consciousness, which he had almost lost, was suddenly back. But the situation had been reversed. He had been strangling Yoo-Bin a second ago; now, he was flailing for air.

“Hehehe.” Jupiter, piloting Shin Yoo-Bin, laughed wickedly. He promised, “I’ll take over your body very soon. This won’t be a bad thing for you.”

Jupiter spoke like it was whispering. Gi-Gyu couldn’t move, and he wondered if it was because he had used too much Chaos. It had exploded and was suffocating him.

‘No, this couldn’t be my fault. All of this is because of…’

“It looks like you like my trap, huh?”

Jupiter was behind this. It was purposefully making Chaos erupt inside Gi-Gyu to stop him from moving.

While Chaos gnawed at Gi-Gyu, Jupiter could take over his body. Things might have turned out differently had this happened in the outside world, as Lou and El could have helped him. Also, he would have had more options since his consciousness would be in his body.

The problem was that he was stuck in a shell, Shin Yoo-Bin’s shell. If Jupiter overtook his body now, it would be all over.

“B…astard…” Gi-Gyu cursed Jupiter. He was angry and felt swearing at Jupiter might help.

Gi-Gyu thought about El. Did the others outside know what was happening here? Lou and Soo-Jung were doing something to El, so he needed to get out of here to mediate before it was too late. He had known that something was wrong between them, but he ignored it because he believed they could deal with it amongst themselves. Despite his concerns, he let them be until now.

Gi-Gyu threatened Jupiter, “I’m going to do everything I can…”

He focused again on controlling Chaos, but…

Crack.

Yoo-Bin’s hand tightened around Gi-Gyu’s neck, breaking his focus.

“Do you really think I’ll let you do that? Idiot,” said Jupiter.

It was so shocking to hear such crass words from Yoo-Bin’s mouth.

Jupiter whispered, “Why don’t you just accept this? Just give up and let me have your body. I’ll try to let you out once in a while.”

Jupiter treacherously continued, “I can do everything that needs to be done. Everything you want to accomplish. Everything you plan to do. Kill all the hell kings, rip apart Andras, and destroy Ironshield. I can do all that for you. And I’ll do it quickly too.”

“...”

“And…” Jupiter’s lips formed an ugly, wide grin as he added, “El and Lucifer? I’ll let you have your way with them too.”

Crack.

Gi-Gyu felt something in him break. Something that kept him sane and regulated Chaos.

And…

Kaboom!

Gi-Gyu’s consciousness took physical form, and Chaos exploded out of him, flooding his surroundings.

It was a sign of Jupiter’s plan proceeding swimmingly.

“Hahahaha.” Jupiter laughed in satisfaction.

Gi-Gyu lost consciousness again. He found himself in an endless dark ocean. Jupiter was in his body again; this time, he was the one trapped inside.

“Kekeke.” Jupiter cackled. It was ecstatic and pleased since it had finally overtaken Gi-Gyu’s body. Now that he was sealed away, Jupiter wouldn’t have to go back.

Jupiter clenched and unclenched his fists as he looked forward. Shin Yoo-Bin, who had lost her body to Asmodeus and then to it, now stood before it like a lifeless doll. Once he had left her shell, the Asmodeus fragment began breaking her from the inside; she was bound to die soon.

Yes, this was all working out according to plan.

Then suddenly…

“Let go of my Master.”

A familiar voice left Shin Yoo-Bin’s lips.

It was El.

***

Gi-Gyu’s psyche had shattered when he realized Jupiter desired El and Soo-Jung.

‘Where am I?’ 

He didn’t know what had happened after he lost consciousness.

‘Did he take my body? Am I deep inside myself where Jupiter was once trapped?’

He couldn’t be sure. It was so dark all around him.

‘No. I can’t be here.’

Regardless of where he was, he couldn’t just stay put. He had to get out no matter what.

Gi-Gyu moved, or at least he tried, but he couldn’t. It was as if invisible chains had tied him down. Then, he tried to move his magic. Again, he failed, indicating that these chains had also tied down his power.

The enmeshing chains keeping him down had to…

‘The seal…’ Gi-Gyu realized that it was the seal that kept Jupiter in check.

‘Ah…’ Jupiter had eaten his existence, reversing their places. It was out free in the world, but he was trapped in his own body. Here, he couldn’t do anything anymore.

‘So does this mean all I can do is watch?’ Gi-Gyu felt overwhelming despair and shame. This was similar to what he had felt earlier when Asmodeus’s piece had tricked him.

Why was he so feeble-minded? What was the point of gaining power and becoming stronger? Unfortunately, his mental strength had never caught up to his physical power. He had spent all this time with a weak psyche, which even El and Lou’s data couldn’t strengthen.

Actually, their data did improve it a bit, but that wasn’t enough by any means. His mental strength was far behind his physical strength.

‘Level…’ Gi-Gyu wondered if it was because he couldn’t level up. Other players became powerful as their levels increased, but things were different for him. He never leveled up, but he was still stronger than most.

Did “level” provide something more than strength to a player? Since he never had it, there was no way for him to find out.

Suddenly, Gi-Gyu felt angry. Why was he so different? He had suffered so much because of this difference. And despite it, he became stronger, but it seemed that being different was about to cause him more trouble.

Fury and dejection haunted Gi-Gyu for a long time.

‘I need to do something.’ He couldn’t give up. The anguish had spurred him on. He worked harder, and…

Slowly, he opened his eyes. This must have been how Jupiter watched the outside world through Gi-Gyu’s eyes. Now that their positions had been reversed, it was Gi-Gyu’s turn to gain access to Jupiter’s sight.

In front of him…

Gi-Gyu saw Yoo-Bin.

‘Shin Yoo-Bin.’ He felt sorry for her. Would she have led a normal life if she didn’t get involved in his scheme? Getting her body stolen by Asmodeus was bad enough, but even Jupiter had ended up using it.

She stood like a rag doll now.

But…

Yoo-Bin shouted,

-Let go of my Master!

The sounds seemed filtered as if he were watching TV.

‘Master?’ Gi-Gyu became confused. Shin Yoo-Bin didn’t call him “Master.”

‘El?’ The way she spoke, addressed him, and her voice all indicated that it was El.

But how?

Before Gi-Gyu knew it, a battle had erupted between Jupiter, in his body, and El, in Shin Yoo-Bin’s body.

‘Ugh!’ Gi-Gyu didn’t stop his effort to free himself as he watched the fight.

***

The body El possessed felt too heavy. She was used to her old body; it was divine and held Life. Using a human body made of human consciousness was a struggle. But it was the difference in their shells that put her at a disadvantage.

“Bitch. Your master is gone now. You will have to serve me from now on!”

Jupiter’s ridicule made her move faster. Being pushed to the limits like this made her host body creak uncomfortably, but it couldn’t be helped.

For her master…

For Gi-Gyu…

Jupiter dodged El’s attack while muttering, “This is unexpected. I thought his Egos would become loyal to me once I steal his body.”

Its face turned rigid as it continued, “Does this mean I didn’t take over this body completely? Or…”

‘He’s distracted!’ El didn’t miss a beat. She was an experienced warrior, so she wouldn’t let this opportunity go. She decided to use the chance to stab Jupiter’s neck.

“I just don’t understand.” Jupiter suddenly grabbed El’s, or Yoo-Bin’s, wrist.

She had a chance to deliver a fatal attack, and there was no way Jupiter could have escaped it, but she hesitated at the very last second. This was why Jupiter could defend himself.

Jupiter mumbled, “I guess I’ll have to figure it all out later. It looks like everyone outside has already figured it out, though.”

“Master…” El tried to free her hand from Jupiter’s grasp, but it wasn’t easy. She needed to subdue Jupiter and trap him inside her, but she was seemingly about to fail. She felt that she just wasn’t strong enough.

“Master,” El mumbled.

“Be quiet, bitch,” Jupiter mocked.

Suddenly!

“What?” Jupiter gasped in confusion.

El had freed herself.

Jupiter backed away a little, but El didn’t hesitate this time. She used her body to push him down.

She had to subdue him, but she couldn’t kill him. Her fist was about to slam into Jupiter’s face when suddenly…

His face crumpled in an ugly frown as he whispered, “But I’m certain he was sealed away!”

The first stopped but not because El had willed it. It was because an absurd amount of Chaos had cocooned Jupiter and El.

“Ahh…” El moaned not from pain but satisfaction. At this very moment, she was…

“Master…”

El realized that she was connected to Gi-Gyu. Inside this Chaos sphere, Jupiter, Gi-Gyu, El, and Shin Yoo-Bin…

The four had become one.