Kim Jin-Woo frowned at the feeling of being ignored. However, he calmly waited for Catherine’s laughter to subside.

“Sorry, sorry. I just couldn’t help but laugh.” Catherine barely started speaking after laughing for a long time, and although she apologized verbally, she was still unable to hold back her laughter.

“What’s so funny?” Kim Jin-Woo could no longer stand it and asked why Catherine was laughing non-stop.

Catherine narrowed her eyes, barely managing to put together her answer. “It’s so funny that you’re still talking about ‘unifying the surface and the Underworld’ and whatnot.”

What’s this about now? Kim Jin-Woo wondered to himself. Wasn’t the greatest task at hand the unification of the two realms? But Catherine’s attitude indicated that she couldn’t give a damn about that matter. He looked at her, wondering whether she was bluffing. But no matter how much he looked, Catherine’s reaction seemed genuine with no signs of exaggeration.

“You still don’t get it, do you?” Catherine remarked smugly. Both the Heavenly Giant Lord nor the Beastfolk King had the same expressions as her.

Feeling as if he were the only one missing a critical piece of information, Kim Jin-Woo pressured Catherine in an even more subdued tone. “Explain to me so I can get it.”

“Well, I don’t really wanna,” Catherine replied. The Wailing Lord who had once explained everything in detail was no longer. Revealing her true nature, she seemed unwilling to divulge any information. Instead, she continued, “That aside, shouldn’t you be worried about how you’re gonna make it out of here alive?”

There were three Highlords who were hostile toward Kim Jin-Woo. Although he had Angela by his side, his most powerful weapon—the power of Greed—was unavailable. Knowing that fact, Catherine looked quite laid-back.

“I don’t think this situation is as bad as you’re making it out to be,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

“Is that so?” Catherine replied. She was smiling brightly, but her dark eyes were as eerie as could be. As soon as Kim Jin-Woo saw the look on her face, he knew this wasn’t the end of his enemies’ plans.

Catherine said smugly, “You won’t be able to bring out your full strength because you’re afraid that Night might take over your body, and your lovely little Vampire won’t be able to actively help you because she’s too preoccupied with having something to protect. On the other hand, we still have much more left in store. This is rather clichéd and sounds like a typical villain’s line, but you see, we have yet to reveal the full extent of our powers.”

In a world where killing and getting killed was routine, it was common not to reveal the full extent of one’s powers prematurely until one was ready to end the life of their enemy. Therefore, when the Highlords said they had entered into battle with plenty of power to spare, they truly meant it.

But nevertheless, Kim Jin-Woo laughed. His inexplicably leisurely expression, with a corner of his lips twisted upward into a smirk, didn’t look like that of a man in crisis.

Perhaps that was why Catherine’s expression, which had seemed relaxed the whole time, cracked and fell apart. Having lost all sense of levity, Catherine stared at him wryly and asked, “You’re laughing? In this situation?”

“You prepared so meticulously for such a long time. Honestly, I’m truly amazed,” Kim Jin-Woo remarked.

How long ago had they foreseen this current situation? Seeing the large armies of the surviving Dukes that had come forth following the Restoration, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t help but be amazed at the extent of the enemy’s preparations and the cunning moves they had made in order to approach him and win his favor.

“It seems the greatest thing about being a Highlord isn’t the powers that come with being one, but the ability to lie and deceive others,” Kim Jin-Woo continued, and he meant every word.

Just like the Immoral Lord, the other Highlords were equally proficient at deceiving others. No one could tell exactly how many thoughts ran through their heads, so much so that not a single word that left their lips could be easily trusted. Those were the kind of beings Highlords were, and they were more likely to speak lies than truths.

“But you guys are also forgetting one important fact,” Kim Jin-Woo said confidently.

The traps prepared by the Wailing Lord and the other Highlords were truly insidious, but the more it seemed that way, the further Kim Jin-Woo’s lips twisted into a smirk.

It was the other Highlords, including Catherine, who were starting to become anxious. Catherine began to look more vigilant, and the Beastfolk King’s expression turned heavy.

The Heavenly Giant Lord had already been defeated handily once, and he looked visibly uneasy. Unable to bear the anxiety any longer, he nervously asked, “What are we forgetting?”

However, Kim Jin-Woo looked leisurely at the Highlords, as if he had no intention of answering them right away. It was truly a pleasure for him to see the same people who had been boasting arrogantly about his falling for their trap just moments before now behaving so anxiously. In the end, he couldn’t stand it anymore and burst out laughing again.

“I think it’s best we stick to our original plan and not waste any more time. I have a bad feeling about this,” the Beastfolk King muttered.

Kim Jin-Woo’s eyes lit up. He realized that, based on the Beastfolk King’s impatience, he could deduce that Catherine was the de facto leader of the trio of Highlords.

“Wait. Hold on,” Catherine said.

It was exactly as Kim Jin-Woo expected. As soon as Catherine uttered those words, the Beastfolk King nodded with a dissatisfied expression and took a step back. The only thing that was different than expected was that her leadership was stronger than he had anticipated.

“Tell me. What are we forgetting?” Catherine asked.

Kim Jin-Woo remained silent for a long time before answering, “If deceiving others and striking them in the back of the head is your specialty…”

His gaze suddenly turned toward somewhere in the distance as he continued, “Then you shouldn’t forget that I’m a Highlord too, right?

As soon as he finished speaking, the sounds of fierce roars and thumping footsteps began coming from a distance. No one could see where they were originating from, but it was already so loud that it was deafening to the ears.

“T-this is!” The Beastfolk King sniffed the air with his long wolf’s snout and screamed. “The Reaper clan is approaching—”

Before he could finish speaking, a dark and unclean energy began to emanate from afar. That ominous energy, which stood out even in the Underworld, came from the Reaper clan, who were the natural enemies of the Highlords.

Kaaaaaargh!

Before the Highlords could even analyze the situation, the elite soldiers they had left behind in the rear lines started to scream. Their solid ranks cracked wide open in an instant, and the Reapers’ black army flowed in through the cracks like water seeping through a dam.

At first, only small monsters appeared, but what followed were monsters that were so huge that the Highlords had to wonder how they had noticed them only now.

“You! No way!” Catherine exclaimed, turning toward Kim Jin-Woo upon seeing the monsters.

“If your specialty is striking someone when they least expect it, then my specialty is to overturn the entire battlefield,” Kim Jin-Woo remarked smugly.

The battlefield had turned into chaos itself, and the Highlords’ troops, unable to defend themselves against the monsters suddenly attacking from behind them, were swept away in an instant.

Kim Jin-Woo continued mockingly, “Shouldn’t you help out? No matter how elite your soldiers are, without the help of their Lords, they’re no match for the Reapers.”

The situation had completely reversed. It was Catherine and the Highlords who were now in danger. They ground their teeth in frustration as they watched the Reapers rush forward in black waves of death, trampling their elite summons with ease.

“To drag the Reapers into this battle… You’re truly mad!” the Beastfolk King roared angrily.

Kim Jin-Woo pretended to pick at one of his ears in annoyance, casually remarking, “Just as you guys dragged the Nobles into this, I found myself some useful help of my own.”

Catherine responded, her expression stiff, “The Nobles and the Reapers are different kinds of beings! Nobles are driven by profit and gain, and they can be controlled. But the Reapers only know how to destroy and consume everything in their path. If they sweep through the Underworld, there will be nothing left!”

The Beastfolk King and the Heavenly Giant Lord looked at each other warily before making their move, running quickly toward where the summons were and joining them in combat. However, the Wailing Lord remained where she was.

“So?” Kim Jin-Woo responded flippantly.

“What do you mean, ‘so’?” Catherine snapped back, beating her chest in frustration. “Do you even know what the hell you’ve done!?”

However, Kim Jin-Woo continued to remain stoic. Catherine continued, “It’s as if you don’t understand. If we don’t stop the Reapers, the Underworld will dry out and…”

“No, I think you don’t understand.” Kim Jin-Woo cut her off. He retorted, “Whether the Underworld dies or not, what does that have to do with me?”

“Are you trying to say it doesn’t matter what happens to the Nagas or the Grand Labyrinth that you cherish so much?” Catherine shot back.

Kim Jin-Woo started to clap, as if to praise Catherine for realizing a seemingly incredible fact. However, his response was the complete opposite of what his actions indicated.

“Now I know what you got wrong,” he said.

“What?” Catherine exclaimed. It seemed she thought Kim Jin-Woo had ‘lured’ the Reapers to the battlefield to get out of this immediate crisis.

“I didn’t lure the Reapers here just to create chaos,” Kim Jin-Woo explained. “They aren’t uninvited guests who came here on their own.”

The chaos created by the Reapers that had rushed in like a horde showed no signs of being subdued any time soon, and as time went on, the losses on the Highlords’ side began to pile up.

The Beastfolk King and the Heavenly Giant Lord desperately tried to stop them, but due to the Reapers’ sheer numbers, it was like trying to block a failing dam with their hands alone.

Kim Jin-Woo concluded, “They’re guests, who were invited here by me.”

Catherine had completely lost her composure, given the dire situation. She gritted her teeth and muttered, “That makes no sense…”

“What doesn’t make sense? They struck a deal with me, and they came looking for me as promised,” Kim Jin-Woo replied.

The Abominations were truly tough opponents. But the Reapers were many times more tenacious than they were. Whenever the gigantic Abominations regenerated their bodies, the Reapers tore them up and shredded their flesh once more.

In fact, the Reapers seemed even more excited as time went on, as they ran rampant like hungry wolves that had found lumps of flesh that didn’t shrink no matter how much they tore away at them.

“They aren’t beings that can be negotiated with! All they want is complete destruction. It’s not too late now. Let’s stop them together. It’s not too late to resolve our differences again after that,” Catherine begged. She had to be incredibly desperate to suggest a proposal of that magnitude.

“Why should I? They answered my call as promised. Now, it’s my turn to keep my promise to them,” Kim Jin-Woo said as he raised his hand. His fingertips were superimposed over the Heavenly Giant Lord, who had been defending himself against the onslaught of Reapers.

“N-NO!” Catherine screamed at the top of her lungs.

But Kim Jin-Woo simply smirked and waved his hands. At that moment, the spires of Valhǫll began to shine in unison.

Crack!

A roar followed, and Mjöllnir, which had been silent, cried out once more.

“Kaaaaargh!” The Heavenly Giant Lord was suddenly hit by dozens of lightning bolts and screamed loudly in pain. Even though the giant king’s tough body was able to withstand the lightning bolts, just as it had before, his body couldn’t help but be paralyzed for a moment.

The Reapers didn’t miss the brief opening that was made available to them.

“Eat him up, you bastards,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

As soon as he finished speaking, a red giant appeared from nowhere and pressed down on the Heavenly Giant Lord while dozens of Hydras rushed in, biting down on his limbs and gnawing away.

“He’s the first sacrifice I promised you.”