The Martial God who Regressed Back to Level 2 Novel

"Really?!"

Yoon Sae-ah's eyes sparkled.

She didn't have high expectations, but she found hope in Ariel, a being from another realm.

"Enchantment is ultimately a type of abnormal state in BattleNet. You just need to unlock the abnormal state."

"But isn't it a problem if the abnormal state can't be recovered through normal means...?"

"And, the World Tree has the ability to release all abnormal states."

"The World Tree...?"

"It's a tree that exists on the Elf planet, the foundation of the world."

"To release the abnormal state, how much of the World Tree do we need?"

"Not much. You can eat the leaves of the World Tree, or even be hit by its branches, and it will be released."

Ariel answered so casually that it was unbelievable.

"Really? If it's that easy to obtain..."

"Not really. The World Tree is the only god and the world itself to the Elves. They treasure every piece of it. Even for a single leaf, you have to pay a huge price to trade. Especially during this tutorial period, you won't be able to obtain it at all."

"...Is that so?"

"However, I don't know how the situation will change once the Space League begins. But still, cunning Elves won't just hand it over willingly."

Ariel, who was herself a type of Elf, gave a harsh evaluation of the Elves.

"Are Elves cunning?"

"Is there a reason for them not to be?"

"Well... According to the fantasy common sense I know, they reside in the forest and prefer peace over battle, right?"

Elves.

Based on the fantasy common sense that ordinary people have, they were a race that combined concepts such as 'big ears', 'long lifespan', 'beautiful', and 'kind'.

Of course, Yoon Sae-ah also only knew Elves to that extent.

She had never actually seen an Elf.

"Hmm. The World Tree Union's propaganda... Yes, that's right. It seems to have worked well."

"P-Propaganda...?!"

"Yes. Why should Elves be kind?"

"Well... I don't know. Because they are that kind of race?"

"First of all, what is the concept of being kind? Is it being kind to this race? Or is it being kind by dedicating oneself to one's own race?"

When Ariel raised the corner of her mouth and asked, Yoon Sae-ah hesitated to answer.

When the subject was replaced with humans, the answer didn't come immediately.

"Elves are kind. To their own race."

"Yeah..."

"And at the same time, they are evil. To other races. And... to heretics."

"R-Really?"

Yoon Sae-ah, who had never seen Elves in person, was just bewildered by Ariel's words and nodded her head.

Sung JiHan's expression hardened.

The Elf Federation, the World Tree Union.

He remembered how much they dominated the Space League in his previous life.

"In the end, the five Elf planets included in the World Tree Union took the top five spots..."

The Elves were fierce.

And strong.

They were a perfect match for humans.

In terms of aesthetics, as well as lifespan.

And not to mention physical abilities, magical power, and mental strength.

They surpassed humans in every aspect.

"Come to think of it...."

Sung JiHan remembered the time when the King of Swords, Yoon Sejin, disappeared in his previous life.

Even after Yoon Se-ah committed suicide, even after Korea was destroyed.

The King of Swords continued to actively operate in Japan without any hesitation.

He was selected as the representative warrior of Earth in the Space League and faced off against the Elf planet.

He was fiercely attacked by the top warrior of the Elf race with a sword.

- This, this can't be.

- No. This can't be. It can't be...!

At that time, Yoon Sejin's appearance was a panicked face that he had never seen before.

At the time, Sung JiHan thought that the King of Swords had lost so miserably that he made such a sound out of self-loathing.

"The sword that the Elf warrior held at that time...."

Listening silently to Ariel's words, Sung JiHan decided to verify his guess.

"Ariel."

"Yeah?"

"You said that even if it hits the branches of the World Tree, the abnormal state is lifted. Then, if it is hit by a sword made from the World Tree, will it be lifted?"

"Of course. If it's a sword made from the branches of the World Tree, it's not usually infused with divine power. It will be much more effective than eating a few leaves."

"Is that so...."

"But it's better to give up on obtaining the sword. If it's a sword made from the branches of the World Tree, it's an item that is only bestowed upon the most outstanding warrior of the Elf planet."

The World Tree's sword bestowed upon the greatest warrior of the Elves.

Yoon Sejin, who was hit by that, shouted that it couldn't be true....

"Since then, he has never shown himself in the national representative matches in Japan...."

After he disappeared.

Sung JiHan, who sought refuge in the United States, was able to rise to 7th place in the world rankings and secure a position as the strongest warrior.

If the King of Swords had been active.

Sung JiHan would not have been able to establish himself as the unrivaled strongest among the warriors.

"And the rankings in Japan were also unstable."

Just before the world was destroyed.

Japan's world ranking was in the 8th-9th place.

Among the final ten countries, it was almost at the very bottom.

If the King of Swords had been active, in fact, they should have been ranked in the top 5.

"But reality was not like that."

At the final moment, Japan defended its ranking with the points it had accumulated in the past, but it was a country that was gradually falling in the rankings.

"At that time, was it because the enchantment was lifted when hit by the World Tree's sword?"

I don't know what happened after the enchantment was lifted, but it seemed certain that something strange happened since the King of Swords stopped being active.

"...I honestly don't care about my brother-in-law's life or death."

Sung JiHan looked at Yoon Se-ah.

Until she was driven to the point of suicide, the King of Swords enjoyed himself in Japan, leading the world's most beautiful woman and indulging in worldly pleasures.

In Sung JiHan's life, there were many enemies.

But more than anyone else, the King of Swords was the one who could be killed without feeling any guilt and refreshing his heart.

However.

"Jihan, please take care of Se-ah...."

Before sacrificing herself, Sister Sung Ji-ah asked Sung JiHan to take care of her daughter, Yoon Se-ah.

Even so, Sung JiHan fell into gambling and disregarded Yoon Se-ah's unhappiness.

Ironically, it was Yoon Se-ah who took care of Sung JiHan.

Their relationship went completely opposite to what Sister Sung Ji-ah had expected.

"If it's Se-ah's request, I'll listen to it first."

Yoon Se-ah was Sung JiHan's closest sister and the only person she cared about more than anyone else.

She was the one who took care of her like trash, her wounded finger.

If Se-ah wanted to give her father a chance.

"Alright. I'll do it once."

Only once.

"Well then, Ariel. If what you say is true, we need to obtain leaves or branches of the World Tree. And we have to use them on Ito."

"That's right."

"Then, at our current level of Silver and Bronze, there is no possibility at all."

"That's right."

However, all the stories that have come out so far.

There was no such thing for the two who were only Silver or Bronze.

"Se-ah, what should we do then?"

When Sung JiHan asked with a smile, Yoon Se-ah sighed deeply.

In the end, the conclusion of the story was reached.

"...Train?"

"I know."

"Haah... Uncle is a training ghost."

"If you want to rise as a latecomer, there's no other way."

"Huuaaa..."

"Don't do it if it's too hard. Can't Uncle feed you?"

Training is tough, Sung JiHan knows it better.

Although Sung JiHan secretly advised her niece to take an easier path.

"It's fine!"

Yoon Se-ah immediately raised her head.

"I'll feed Uncle later, so be prepared."

"Huhu... That's impossible, what can you do? Well, yeah. You might be able to beat Balan. But I'm a bit tired."

Balan had become a power gauge in Sung JiHan's head without realizing it.

"Ugh. How can I compare myself to Balan?"

"He's Balcon. Se-ah, if you have the skills, he'll just trample you."

"Really... When he doesn't compare himself, he lifts me up."

Yoon Se-ah sighed as if it was ridiculous.

But there was a slight smile on her lips.

Even so, before Sung JiHan got excited like this, she felt good because she said she could beat Balan, who was running alone as the world's top promising talent.

At that moment.

Buzz...

Yoon Se-ah's phone vibrated.

She checked the message sent to her and looked at Sung JiHan.

"Uncle. Ha-yeon unni says she apologizes to you. What should we do?"

Sung JiHan raised her head.

What does Ha-yeon have to apologize to me for?

"Well, tell her to come. I'll go out and see."

* * *

The reception room of the penthouse.

Ha-yeon bowed deeply to Sung JiHan, as if she would even kneel down.

"Owner-nim!! I'm really sorry...!"

"No, what are you sorry for?"

"I misjudged someone! I didn't know Joo Eunji was that kind of person, and I almost...!"

"Ah."

Sung JiHan finally understood why Lee Ha-yeon came to apologize.

She was the one who hired the employee, so she must have felt responsible.

"I deliberately infiltrated from the other side, how did you find out?"

"Considering the importance of the Guild and Owner-nim, we should have thoroughly investigated everyone entering our Guild... I was too careless."

It's not like we were recruiting a secret society, it was just a background check for hiring an editor.

Sung JiHan felt bewildered, but seeing how serious Lee Ha-yeon and Yoon Se-ah looked, she nodded quietly.

"What's done is done. We can start from now."

"Yes. I also promised to actively cooperate with the National Intelligence Service from now on."

"...The National Intelligence Service?"

Sung JiHan was taken aback.

"Yes. They went on full alert after watching the broadcast yesterday."

As Lee Ha-yeon added further explanation, Sung JiHan also understood the government's perspective.

Although they had already declined significantly, they were still in power alongside the powerful Geomwang Clan.

The newly established Sung JiHan fan club, 'The First', had started flooding the government with various complaints and grievances.

What is the government even doing?

They were even accusing the government of letting Japan steal players with their eyes wide open.

Moreover, since the light fans of The First were originally pure nationalistic fans who belonged to the Geomwang Clan, they were leading public opinion blaming the government for not responding appropriately to spies.

"So. Joo Eunji... No, I decided to fill in Ito Shizuru's vacant position myself during that time."

"...You, Ha-yeon?"

"Yes! I will work hard as the Guild Master and editor! I, well... I have to pay the price!"

Was there really a need for that?

After all, the Waiting Guild was being maintained because of Lee Ha-yeon's Gift.

Unlike Sung JiHan, who didn't care, Lee Ha-yeon was passionate.

"Um, speaking of which. Owner-nim, how should we handle the achievement of reaching 1 million subscribers?"

"1 million subscribers... Right. It suddenly became like that."

"It seems like a special event that attracts attention from all over the world. As soon as the news spread that Silver defeated Diamond, the number of subscribers surpassed 1 million in an instant."

When she participated in the World's Top 100 Promotion Battle to be promoted to Silver.

And this time, defeating the Diamond, Ninja Akari, became the second leap forward.

"Owner-nim. If you don't plan to reveal the status window... I will cut it appropriately as an editor. It's my duty!"

"It's fine if I show it, right?"

"Really? I have prepared various excuses. Like, it's a special status window that can't be revealed in order to exert my abilities... Yes?"

"It's fine. You can reveal it."

Sung JiHan's status window.

It was a completely unique and distinctive status window that was different from ordinary players.

But Sung JiHan had no hesitation in revealing it.

"Because public attention is a strength for players."

Moreover, in this chaotic world on the verge of a disaster, hiding one's strength more than necessary was a foolish act.

On the contrary, appropriately revealing it would be more helpful for future actions.

"Uh, then..."

"It's good. Since we've surpassed 1 million, let's take care of it now. Reveal the status window."

Although the calculations were already done in her mind, it seemed light on the surface.

Sung JiHan smiled and said so.