Overgeared

“Ugh... The cure of boiling heat is a vital critique of my noble soul.”

“Kukukuk! Is this the fate of the great evil eyes? The whole world is watching us and we are tired in many ways."

"It would be nice to sit under the cool shade and meet the blessing of the wind.  Huhut.”

In other words, they wanted a break. After spending four days with the evil eyes, Grid developed the ability to interpret their words in real time. It was possible due to his experience with Lauel for several years.

"How many times do you want to rest? Endure it a bit more.”

The evil eyes had really poor physical strength. The evil eyes complained every 10km, so their movement speed significantly slowed.

'How long will it take to arrive at the evil eyes village?’

The village was located in the underworld of the Gauss Kingdom. When the evil eyes showed him the village’s location, Grid was delighted since it was relatively close to the Overgeared Kingdom. But so what if it was close? The evil eyes couldn’t take a few steps without panting, so it felt far away.

‘I thought we would arrive in three days, but it has been four days and we aren’t even halfway there...’

If he knew this, he would’ve had Sticks accompany them. Braham’s soul whispered as Grid was feeling sorry about Mass Teleport.

‘Don’t fret and enjoy this moment. It’s rare for humans to get the chance to interact with the evil eyes. It might be annoying now, but think positively.’

“Do you know about the evil eyes?”

‘Of course. Like our vampires, they’re demonkin who were driven out of hell. Although the reason why they got kicked out of hell is a lot different from why the vampires were kicked out...’

Grid joked.

"Did they get kicked out for their words?”

‘Right. The great demons avoided the evil eyes every time they spoke and eventually chose to expel them from hell.’

“R-Really...”

Grid thought it was absurd as he learned about the story of the evil eyes’ deportation. Braham laughed.

‘It’s a good thing. The evil eyes are very convenient and powerful. If the evil eyes hadn’t been driven out of hell and still served the great demons, the power of the great demons would be much stronger than they are now.’

‘It’s rare for Braham to give such praise.’

As Grid expected, the evil eyes were a great species. But they were just small fries for Grid.

Mutter mutter.

Grid conversed with Braham while the evil eyes took a break. The evil eyes observed him from under the shade of a tree and laughed.

"Indeed, Grid is an unusually amazing human. He has reached a level where he’s conversing with his second ego. It’s more wonderful than the ordinary evil eyes.”

“I can only feel admiration when I look at Grid. While many people are able to detect a second ego in their souls, it’s rare for anyone to communicate with it."

“...”

These guys, they recognized him as their own? Grid was deeply uncomfortable, but he couldn’t refute it. His conversation with Braham’s soul was reminiscent of a sick patient.

‘Shit.’

Grid blushed with embarrassment. He didn’t know it but his affinity with the evil eyes was rising at a tremendous pace. It was because Grid understood the chuuni nature of the evil eyes. It could be called Lauel and Braham’s merit. On the other hand.

‘I want to see my mother...’

Minor was struggling with pain. He couldn’t help the curling of his hands and feet every time Grid and the evil eyes conversed. He was sweating and his head hurt. That’s right. The evil eyes were deadly to ordinary people. They were demonkin for a reason.

*** 

"How was I demoted to this frontier?”

Amore.

He was a player from the Gauss Kingdom and his class was a knight. He also belonged to a knights division. In short, he was a top-level combat class. In fact, he had killed 34 Overgeared soldiers during the battle of Borneo. His efforts to shoot the Overgeared soldiers on the wall of Borneo were significant.

‘I’m an ace, so why did the king send me to defend this village?’

Amore sighed as he looked around the village he was dispatched to. Rice fields were everywhere and there was the smell of cow dung in the air. Amore was proud of being the ace of the Gauss Kingdom and was disappointed with this mission. A man approached the complaining Amore.

It was the NPC Weston, who had the title of ‘Lepio’s Lord.’ The baron and lord of the village welcomed Amore.

“It’s an honor to meet Sir Amore.”

“You’re welcome... I am glad to meet the prestigious Baron Weston.”

The first virtue that a knight required was manners. Amore smiled brightly, rather than complaining to Baron Weston. Baron Weston felt favorable towards him and immediately got to the point.

“The reason I requested the assistance of the royal family is due to the demonkin who have often been seen in the village recently. Please defeat the demonkin.”

“Demonkin?”

The demonkin were classified as a completely different species from normal monsters. They were residents of hell. It wasn’t good news that demonkin were seen in the human world.

"Are they vampires?”

Among the demonkin, it was relatively easy to see the vampires. Baron Weston shook his head at Amore.

“No. Unfamiliar demonkin have appeared recently. They’re monsters with super deformed body types.”

"Super deformed type monsters...”

What kind of terrible species were they? He was horrified just imagining it. Amore frowned and asked a question.

“What damage did they do to the village?”

Theft, arson, kidnapping, murder...

It wasn’t strange for the demonkin to commit all types of evil. Amore was satisfied with the quest compensation and planned to investigate the damages to the village in order to gather clues. However.

"They make people nervous by talking all types of nonsense.”

“...?”

What was he saying? Amore didn’t fully understand the lord’s words and asked again.

"The demonkin use magic to create a fearful atmosphere in the village?”

"No, it isn’t magic. It's just nonsense. To be precise, it’s a strange atmosphere, rather than a fearful atmosphere. After listening to the demonkin, the villages have their hands and feet shriveled up and can’t do their daily tasks for a while.”

“...?”

What was this nonsense? Amore’s confusion grew as he heard the lord’s explanation.

‘I can’t get a grasp of these demonkin.’

Amore was irritated by being sent here and now he was confused by the quest story. However, the difficulty of the quest was S-grade and the reward was so good that Amore couldn’t refuse. In the first place, the king sent him here. Therefore, he didn’t have veto rights.

“Hrmm... I have to defeat the demonkin?”

"Yes, that's right. I will believe in Sir Amore.”

Baron Weston returned to the castle while Amore visited the village. It was necessary to grasp the characteristics of the village and plan the hunt for the demonkin around it.

‘There are no real people.’

It was a really small village. The inhabitants numbered only 1,000, and there were no players. Amore was looking around the village when he suddenly stopped as he spotted a group standing at the entrance of the village not too far away.

‘At this time?’

Half a day after separating from Baron Weston. Nighttime approached the village and it was time for everyone to fall asleep. It was uncommon for 20 people to visit the village at this time. Amore hid in an alley and felt breathless as he observed the visitors.

'Super deformed...!’

There were exactly 19 visitors, two of them human males. One of them was an NPC called Minor, while the other one hiding his face was either an NPC or a player. In any case, they weren’t important. The 17 monsters with them were the problem. They had super deformed type bodies and big eyes.  Their chubby and childlike faces were quite cute.

‘These are the demonkin Baron Weston was talking about.’

They were cute, unlike the terrible image he imagined.

‘Well, that isn’t important.’

His mission was to defeat the demonkin. It was tremendous luck that a chance came just half a day after he accepted the quest.

‘There are also 17 of them. I can get a huge reward if I kill them all.’

This was a great opportunity. A chance to jump higher!

Clink.

Amore burned with motivation as he placed his hands on his sheath. He planned to strike after looking at the strengths of the demonkin. The demonkin looked weak at first glance, so at level 303, it seemed as if Amore could take care of 17 by himself.

‘The two humans with them might be slaves. If I destroy the demonkin and rescue them, I’m likely to acquire more linked quests.’

That was the best situation. A smile appeared on Amore’s face.

"Huhuhut, the scenery of a tranquil village in the moonlight lightens a traveler’s exhausted mind. The feral instinct of my one eye, sealed in the darkness, is immersed in the scenery of this beautiful night.”

“...?”

“Hoh? A thick fog stimulates the chill in my soul. This is a pretty good feeling. I’m a monster that is ‘impossible to measure’ and ‘unimaginable’ tonight when my mind is clear and power boils up.”

"???"

“Hut, shouldn’t you be careful? There is a possibility that a cruel flame rising from my eyes will block the ‘sin’ of your cold eye.”

“????”

It was the first time he had ever experienced this. Amore’s body twisted as soon as he heard the words of the 17 demonkin that entered the village. In particular, the hands on his sheath were so shriveled up that he couldn’t grip the blade.

“Ugh... Is this the curse that Baron Weston mentioned?’

His hands and feet were shriveled? Amore was confused. He couldn’t bring himself to rush at the 17 demonkin who seemed so easy to defeat a little while ago. It was obviously dangerous if he couldn’t even resist their ravings.

‘E-Earplugs.’

The day had come when he needed this junk item!

“Huh?”

Amore, who was in a hurry, came to his senses. It was because the 17 demonkin and two humans moving to the center of the village disappeared without a trace.

"Indeed, they are demonkin...”

They were ghosts. Scary. Amore seriously considered abandoning the quest.

***

[You have entered the evil eyes village!]

[You are the first discoverer of the evil eyes village.]

[Over the next 10 days, the probability of finding hidden quests and the rewards from quests will increase.]

‘Finally!’

Grid was excited when he entered the village. He was delighted to have the privilege of finding a particular area for the first time. He was in a leading position, just like Kraugel. It was new.

‘It’s a really great village.’

Grid smiled, not filled with nervousness at all, despite entering a village filled with demonkin. His boldness caused Minor to feel amazed and envious. He was once again eager to be like Grid. Minor gritted his teeth and tried to calm down his trembling legs. Grid was proud of him.

"This right here is the place where our king dwells: the Dark Flame White Ice Castle. Huhut.”

“....”

Was it because the evil eyes were small? Overall, the castle at the end of the charming city was very small, and was more like a mansion than a castle. The height of the gate was only 1 meter and 60 centimeters, so Grid had to bow his waist to enter. An evil eye minister was waiting for him.

“This is the human who helped you secure the light dragon egg? I heard he was pretty good for a human.” 

“But I doubt if he’s qualified to see our great king, who deals with dark flames and white ice and sees the truth of the world.”

“We aren’t enemies. The evil eyes king is an absolute presence that takes away the life and destiny of a man with just his eyes. An unqualified person who meets him will fall into the hell of eternity and eventually reach death. I have to test you. Submit.”

[You have made eye contact with an evil eye.]

[You have fallen into the ‘submissive’ state.]

[You have resisted.]

[Due to the effect of the ‘First King’ title, ‘Great King’s Majesty’ is activated.]

[You have counterattacked against the abnormal status.]

“Kukuk! Great human, we welcome your visit to our great king.”

“...”

They were playing well alone. Rather than cringing, Grid entered the great hall. It was the moment he came face to face with the evil eyes king, who Braham acknowledged.