NOVEL WEB Chapter 439: From 12 to 24 Guilds
In the farthest corner of the Divine Assembly Hall, behind gold pillars and the light of the Sky Mirror sat Zyraena. She held a slim wine glass in one hand as she watched the ships below.
Her eyes flicked across each vessel, counting the guild flags one by one. Her expression remained calm, though her grip on the glass tightened.
"I can't see Seojun," she muttered under her breath, her voice low and cautious. "Did he back out?"
She let out a long, slow sigh and leaned back slightly, the tension in her shoulders easing. "Good… that means there's no trouble for today…"
But just as she was about to take another sip, a sharp alert trembled in her mind—Her eyes widened, and her hand lowered the glass slowly onto the table, careful not to make a sound.
Without drawing attention, she stood and walked gracefully out of the assembly, her movements silent, like mist in the night.
She made her way through the divine corridors, reaching her private chamber hidden far from the main halls. Once inside, she shut the door quietly behind her, locking it with a flick of her fingers.
From the other side of the room, a faint flickering light was leaking through the cracks of another door—a door she never left open.
Her calm face twisted with worry.
She approached the glowing door and opened it gently, stepping into a hidden chamber made of smooth white stone, glowing faintly with divine light.
It was a narrow room with a single long path stretching forward, suspended above an endless drop. The path was lined with trap marks, magical runes carved into the floor that could unleash bursts of divine punishment if triggered by the wrong step.
Zyraena waved her hand and disabled the traps with a series of precise gestures, just like she had done for centuries.
She carefully walked down the path until she reached the center of the chamber, where a crystal floated midair, glowing faintly like a flame the size of a fingertip.
Her brows furrowed.
"What's happening now…?"
She reached out to touch it, but as her fingers got closer, a sharp surge of divine energy sparked out, like lightning flickering on her skin. She pulled back, her eyes widening in surprise.
"It's getting bigger…?" she whispered. "Typhon?!"
Wasting no time, she raised her hands and summoned a mirror of water on the floor. The surface shimmered, forming into a round portal, and she moved her hand again to find the source.
The water cleared, showing a strange scene—a lonely floating island high in the sky, one not marked on any divine map.
There, standing at the edge of a stone altar carved with markings of Seojun's name, was a small white squirrel with glowing red eyes.
All around the altar, monster corpses were being thrown from thin rifts in the air, their bodies dissolving into pure mana and being absorbed into the altar itself.
Zyraena's eyes narrowed as she called out sharply, "Typhon!"
The squirrel jumped in shock, spinning around and looking up into the water mirror. "Zyraena?! What are you doing peeking at me? Don't you know that's rude for a goddess?"
"Typhon," Zyraena snapped, frowning hard, "what in the heavens are you doing?! Seojun's crystal heart—it's getting bigger--"
Typhon crossed his tiny arms and puffed his cheeks. "You worry too much. Some day, he'll thank me."
"You're going to get him exposed!"
Typhon shrugged. "Then make sure they don't find it. Do your part, Goddess."
Then with a flick of his tiny paw, the water mirror snapped shut, rippling away like a popped bubble.
Zyraena stood frozen for a moment, fists clenched. She stomped her foot once on the white floor, a sharp clang echoing in the narrow space.
"I want to interfere—but I still have my duties…" she muttered bitterly. "I worked so hard to keep their eyes away from him. Just one slip, and they'll descend on him like wolves."
She turned back toward the entrance, reactivating the divine traps with a wave of her hand. As she sealed the secret chamber and stepped out into her private quarters again, she frowned.
"Did I leave this open?" she murmured, glancing around.
There was no sign of anyone, no hint of intrusion. Still uneasy, she quickly composed herself and made her way back toward the Divine Assembly, her steps faster now, her robe trailing behind her like smoke.
She had to return before anyone noticed she was gone after she had rushed off to return to the great divine hall, the shadows on the far wall began to shift.
At first, they moved like mist, curling slowly, then darkening until the outline of a man appeared from within—a tall figure cloaked in black. He stepped out of the shadows silently, his bare feet not making a sound on the divine stone floor.
The man's appearance was wild yet composed—his long, untamed hair was black with streaks of gray, and his skin was marked with ancient monster runes that pulsed faintly with divine power. A single black claw decorated his right hand, the mark of his domain.
It was Zarion, The current God of Monsters, and once, the postion of Zyraena and Typhon.
His eyes locked on the sealed door—the door Zyraena had just come from. He slowly walked to it, placing one hand on its surface, feeling the soft vibration of power within.
"Seojun's Crystal Heart?"
His eyes narrowed. Then, with a soft chuckle, he turned and faded back into the shadows—his form melting away as if it was never there at all.
Meanwhile, back on Earth…
Suddenly, a loud global notification echoed in the sky, accompanied by a screen.
[Global Quest Notice]
Due to overwhelming participation and high-ranking guilds across multiple nations, the maximum entry limit for guilds has now been increased from 12 to 24.
You have 30 minutes to finalize and confirm all participating guilds.
As the screen appeared from the sky and the sea breeze rustled the sails of nearby ships, a wave of quiet tension began spreading across the fleet of anchored guild vessels.