The Mage Emperor

Revisit

--- 25 years later ---

"Did you hear it? Leviathan is opening its gates tomorrow! I can't wait to take the test and get in!" A black-haired boy yelled, slapping his table. Although some people nearby gave him a displeased look, most of them were equally excited by the news of Leviathan and didn’t even notice it.

"Hah! Do you think you can get in with your meager skills?" A handsome, blonde-haired young man snorted from the neighboring table.

“What do you know? I was lucky enough to meet one of their members two years ago, and he told me that anyone who could pass their entrance test could become a citizen,” the boy waved his finger.

"Who are you trying to fool with your nonsense? Have you ever seen a weakling who came from Leviathan? What do you think? Why is that the case? Even if passing their entrance test can make you become a citizen, they are most likely testing our magical capabilities. Do you think you are good enough to pass it?”

Realizing that it was pointless to continue barking at each other, the black-haired boy stood up from the table and looked at his friend, "Let’s go, there are too many assholes running free here."

“He is just another stupid brat,” his friend snorted as he looked at the blonde-haired guy and stood up to leave.

“Go away, losers,” the blonde-haired guy laughed at them for their stupidity.

As the black-haired boy turned towards the door, he spotted a couple sitting in the corner. The woman was in the middle of hand-feeding the bulky man with a piece of cake.

“Dave? What are you staring at?” His friend waved his hand in front of his face, noticing that he was staring forward blankly.

Following his line of sight, his friend’s eyes glinted as he threw his arm around his shoulders, “She is an eye-candy. Did you fall for her or what?”

“What? No, I was just a bit surprised,” the boy grumbled.

“Maybe you still have a chance. She is looking at you.”

As their eyes met, his face became flushed red and he rushed towards the door with large steps.

“He is too shy,” his friend shook his head, quickly following him.

“Look at you, you are causing a commotion wherever you go,” the man in the corner laughed, seeing the woman staring at the back of the boy who just left.

“Are you one to talk? You have made a mess of your face,” she rolled her eyes, wiping off the remnants of food from the side of his mouth. “I just looked at them because I think that they are going to pass the test.“

“That’s not what I meant. My wife is just too beautiful,” he mused as he kissed her face.

“And just so you know, my face got messy because the texture of this cake is a bit sticky,” he added.

“Oh? Is it? Let me try it then,” the woman replied, opening her lips.

“It seems now it’s my turn to feed you,” he chortled as he gave her a bite.

"Mh- what you said is true. It's sticky and delicious. It seems like there are still cuisines and cakes we have yet to taste," she replied, covering her mouth.

"Haven’t you tasted enough these past years? I’ll cook some for you later, alright?" The man shook his head.

“What are you talking about? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?” The woman frowned.

“Who cares? I would cook for my love anytime,” he shrugged his shoulders.

“That’s sweet of you,” the woman replied, following up with a short kiss on his lips.

"Anyway, it seems our home has become even more mysterious over the years," she added, smiling in satisfaction.

"Why do you pretend to be surprised? Aren’t you the person who spent years dealing with the various leaders and spread our coins? It’s all thanks to you,” the man shook his head.

"Thank you," she mused, patting his head.

"I'm not a dog," he grumbled as he continued eating.

Although they were chatting carefreely and voiced some outrageous things, for some reason, nobody noticed them except for the two young men who had just left. If anyone heard what they said, they'd be laughing at them for imagining things. 

Once they finished eating, they went to the counter and put an envelope in front of the cashier. Seeing that they turned around and left in a hurry, the cashier thought that they were trying to trick him, so he quickly opened the envelope, and his eyes almost popped out upon seeing its contents.

Looking at the customers’ back as they left through the door, he took out his purse and paid their bill in their place.

The reason was simple.

There was only one coin in it, which was the strongest currency at present, the currency of Leviathan. Considering that Leviathan was the most powerful organization on the planet, the exchange rate of their coins was incredibly high.

The coins also contained a portion of their creator’s mana, making it impossible to create counterfeits. Some even collected coins to train with the mana contained inside. And most importantly, it was the only currency that was accepted anywhere in the world. Two to three coins were enough to buy a mansion even in the most beautiful places.

There were many hearsays about Leviathan, but one thing was obvious. Whoever managed to join would rise high above any city or clan leader in status. The members of Leviathan were a rare sight in public, but whenever they appeared, a commotion would break out for sure. They also used local currency most of the time, making it even harder to spot them.

Placing the coin into his purse, the cashier looked around once more before he continued his work. Luckily for him, the restaurant was filled to the brim, and everyone was busy dealing with the visitors who came to the city to take the test of Leviathan. Once his shift ended, he went to the bank and exchanged the coin for local currency. He knew that keeping it was too dangerous with his meager powers, so he passed it on as soon as he could.

As the most powerful and mysterious organization in the world, many wanted to join or curry favor with it, but very few people had accurate information about it. When the higher-ups in the bank caught wind of his exchange, they called him over to a special room and questioned him about how he got it.

Fearing that he would offend a large company if he tried to hide things, he told them everything, even describing the customers’ looks. Shortly after, he was free to leave, but he was told to keep what happened a secret if he wanted to stay alive.

---

 

*Ring* *Ring*

Noticing the bell on the door ringing, the cashier looked up from his book and peeked at the couple who entered. One of them was a beautiful young woman with long brown hair and green eyes. There was a thick braid on the left side of her head, disappearing in her rich hair, which hung down on her right shoulder. She had a small diamond earring in her ears and wore pink lipsticks. Her silk dress fit tightly around her body, revealing her womanly curves to the man.

The man behind her was about two meters tall and had a muscular body, making him look quite intimidating at a glance. Upon taking a closer look at him, the cashier noticed that he had a pair of amiable brown eyes and wore a gentle expression, which quickly made him change his opinion about him.

“Welcome to the Sparring Hall”, the cashier nodded slightly. Seeing their clothes and bearing, he was sure that they weren’t average in any way.

“Hello, could you help us by answering a few questions?” The woman asked as she walked up to the counter, the man following her closely.

“Of course, what can I help you with?"

"Is it true that people need to take part in a competition to be eligible to attempt Leviathan's test?” She asked with a smile, though there was a trace of dissatisfaction on her face.

“Yes, the Lord said that weaklings shouldn’t waste the precious time of the great Leviathan, so he ordered that nobody can attempt the test without getting into the top one hundred in the competition he organized. He also assembled a group of guards to protect the gate from intruders.”

“Why would he do that?” The woman asked with a frown.

“The Lord believes that Leviathan is the realm of gods, and the chosen ones are selected to become their apostles. He made this law to prevent the commoners from angering the gods,” the cashier replied with a wry smile, clearly not sharing the local ruler’s ideals.

He was a successful and handsome young man, which made him proud enough to not believe in such fairytales.

“And do you agree with this bullshit?”

Hearing her tone, he knew she wasn't happy with it either, so he replied honestly, “Well, I’m not supposed to say this, but I don’t think it’s necessary.”

“I’m not saying that I doubt the power of the leader of Leviathan. It’s just that there have been cases when weaker people became members and returned with great power to get revenge or fix the lives of their families. I believe that becoming a member has little to do with power,” he shook his head.

“I imagine the locals aren’t too happy about this either,” she raised a brow, leaning on the counter that reached up to her chest.

Glancing at her breasts that got sprawled out in front of him, he couldn’t help but stare at them for a moment before realizing that she was staring at his face.

Looking at her apologetically, he said, “Many people complained to me when they signed up for the competition, but the Lord is powerful, and nobody dares to go against his will.”

“I wish I could do something about it,” he shook his head, sighing loudly.

“Are you saying that he is forcing his ideas on people?” She asked, raising her brows.

Not daring to say it aloud, he looked around and nodded slightly.

I’m lucky that Darcy isn’t here, or she would claw my eyes out for staring at this chick’s breasts, he shuddered.

“Do you wish to register for the competition? I’ll have to check your ID card and then see your rank in the Sparring Hall. Only people above A rank can register,” he said, quickly changing the topic.

Sparring Hall was a well-known business all around the world because the members could find matching sparring partners through the company. Most of the time, it was hard to find the right opponent, but with the help of the Sparring Hall, the members just had to wait for the appointed time and fight their opponent.

Glancing at the bulky man beside her, the woman asked, “Should we give it to him?”

“I don’t think it matters,” the man replied, shrugging his shoulders.

Nodding her head, she placed two black cards on the counter and looked into the receptionist’s eyes. Noticing that there were other people in the store, she snapped her fingers and said, “Don’t freak out and continue behaving normally.”

“Why would I freak out?” The man chortled as he looked at the cards, freezing upon seeing the tiny levitating island icons on them.

He could be considered a successful young man since he was working for the largest company on the planet, but he wasn't a powerful magician. As the son of an average family, he didn't have access to powerful spells, and all he could learn was common magic that was used in everyday life.

That was the fate of all commoners without an inheritance, a seemingly endless circle of weakness and servitude through generations. There were only two ways out of their situation in this city. The first was to create their spell by researching, and the second was to work their way up on the social ladder and get access to spell-related information.

There was one more option for the commoners like him when the test of Leviathan arrived, which was to become a member and rise above everyone.

This was one of the main reasons everyone was trying to become a member after so many years have passed. It was the 'easiest' way to rise, except for the fact that nobody knew what were the requirements. The situation was very similar in other cities, clans, and countries as well. The only difference was that clans accepted only powerful magicians, and their members wanted to join to become even more powerful.

They are members of Leviathan… this is my chance! Maybe I can ask them to teach me something simple. I'm willing to give them all my hidden money as well.

Clenching his fists excitedly, his hands trembled as he picked up their ID cards and looked at them, finally realizing why the woman told her to behave normally.

“You’re from… there. I see. You won’t have to take the assessment in this case,” he said in a low voice, seeing the word Leviathan imprinted on their cards. As he continued reading the data on the ID card, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

Seth Clearfall, his rank is Creator, and the member ID is one.

The other one is called Lien Clearfall, her rank is Vice-President, and her member ID is two.

Raising his head, he looked into the woman’s eyes who just smiled back at him and raised her finger in front of her lips, showing him to stay quiet. Nodding his head, his hands shook as he gave back the ID cards and pulled out a few drawers until he finally found the paper he was looking for.

Am I seriously standing in front of the creators of Leviathan, the most powerful magicians in the world? Damn it, and I even went as far as to stare at her breasts!

Why did I make such a mistake now of all times? I hope that she didn't notice it, though she could be considered blind if she didn't.

But what should I do? This is my best chance. Should I ask them directly whether they would allow me to become a resident or not?

No, that's stupid, he thought to himself as he turned a few times in his confusion, finally realizing what he wanted to do.

Seeing him being so nervous, Lien just laughed and said, “Boy, how about you stop spinning around and listen to me for a moment? We didn’t come here to participate in the competition. I want you to hand this over to the Lord of this city.”

Following her words, she put a seemingly normal letter on the counter.

“Yes, Miss Lien,” he replied, taking a deep breath. “I’ll go and request a meeting with him right away.”

“Alright. If everything goes well, we won’t have to make a move, and everyone will be able to participate in the upcoming test,” she said with a smile.

"I would love to do that, but I'm afraid I'm not strong enough," he sighed loudly, glancing at her with questioning eyes.

"Why are you trying to make me reveal test-related information by playing this facade? You should just ask what you want to know," she laughed, instantly seeing through his attempt to make her pity him.

"Would Miss Lien care to sate my curiosity?" He asked, bowing deeply.

"I said that you should just ask if you want something, but I didn't tell you that I would answer," she chortled, shaking her head.

Seeing him staring back at her with a wry smile, she added, "The contents of the test are kept a secret for a good reason."

"But I can tell you that you have a chance," she continued, gazing deep into his eyes.

"I have a chance!?" He cried out in his surprise, quickly covering his mouth.

"Yes, but it will depend on you," she nodded.

"Miss Lien…" he said as he fell on his knees in front of her and gazed into her eyes.

"I know I'm being greedy, but would it be possible for you to teach me anything about elemental magic? I could fulfill my dreams."

"For a moment I thought that he wanted to marry you," Seth laughed as he put his arm around Lien's waist.

"He couldn't be that silly," she replied, glancing at the person in question. Meeting her gaze, he couldn’t help but flinch as he felt a mountain-like presence pressing down on him.

Oh shit, did I screw up? Why is he reaching towards me? Does he want to kill me? He trembled as he looked at Seth’s hand moving towards him.

"I guess you are still weak to sincerity,” Lien shook her head.

His hand stopping mid-way, he turned to look at Lien and said, "I can't help it. I respect those who can be as sincere as him. Would you prefer it if I didn’t help him?"

“No, why would I? Am I that kind of person?” She shook her head.

“Haha, I know you aren’t,” he mused, placing his index finger on the young man's forehead.

His finger is so hot- wait. What is this? There is knowledge flooding my mind!

As his eyes shot open, he stared at the man in front of him in wonder.

"This- I know all the elements?" He cried out in his surprise.

"Just a small gift, but I'll take it back if you use it for bad, along with your life. You can be selfish, but don't use your power to hurt innocent people."

"I would never do that!"

"I know, but it's always nice to get a reminder," he said, nodding slightly.

"Thank you, Sir Seth!"

"Can you drop the honorifics? It's making me die inside."

Taken aback by his reaction, he looked at him awkwardly as he said, "Oh- uhm, I apologize Si- Seth," he cleared his throat, almost messing it up right after being asked.

"Let's move on. I still need you to help me do something,” Seth waved his hand.

“It seems that one of our members is residing in the city, and as far as I know, she is training here. You will find her among the S-ranked members by the name of Natasha.”

“Please tell her that she has a challenger.”

“Also, you shouldn‘t reveal our identities," he added.

"Alright, but which one should I do first? Should I call her over, or should I take your letter to the Lord?"

"You should notify her first, and you can take care of the letter afterward," he said.

"I've got it. Let me do it right away. You may take a seat in the lobby in the meantime," the cashier replied, pointing at a door nearby.

“Alright, but could you stand up already? It hurts me to see you that way,” he shook his head, covering his face with his hand.

“As you wish,” the young man nodded as he stood up.

Looking back and forth between the cashier and Seth, Lien laughed as she said, “My husband is quite shy. Please don’t make him feel embarrassed.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know he doesn’t like it when people kneel in front of him. Most people would be happy about it,” the man bowed slightly, glancing at Seth.

“It’s enough about me. Are you going to send Natasha to that room when she arrives?" He asked.

"Yes," the cashier nodded.

"Okay, then don't bother us with anything in the meantime," he smirked, glancing at Lien, who started blushing.

They couldn't be planning to do that? The cashier thought as he looked at the couple, but the more he looked, the more suspicious he became.

"I'll do as you wish," he nodded, smiling at them awkwardly.

As the couple turned around, he could see Seth's hand moving to Lien's bottom and squeeze it tightly.

I guess they are also just people with needs and not some holy gods, even if they are capable of almost anything, he shook his head.

But I sure am lucky!

Looking at their distancing backs, he wiped his forehead and looked at the bustling crowd in the other corner of the room, who were waiting for their sparring partners. The building had three separate sections, the first being the receptionist booth in front of the entrance within the spacious hall. The second part was the lobby where people could take it easy and drink after a tiring session, and finally, the last section was the waiting rooms where people could wait for their opponents to arrive.

Just as they were about to reach the door, a muscular bald man took the corner, right in front of Lien’s face. As they were about to bump into each other, Seth pulled her into his embrace and let go of her when the guy passed.

Seeing her beauty, the bald man turned around with a lecherous expression on his face.

What is that idiot doing? Does he plan to start another quarrel like two days ago? This fucking pig. He will get what he deserves if he picks a fight with them! The cashier jeered from a distance.

“Hey, cutie! You almost bumped into me! How do you plan to-” before the bald man could finish his sentence, Seth gripped his throat and raised him into the air. Although he was a burly man with a muscular build, he was a head shorter than Seth and could only flail his legs helplessly.

“I didn’t intend to judge you for your crimes, but since you have decided to offer up yourself, I might as well take care of you now,” he mumbled as he let go of the bald man who fell on the floor and started snoring loudly.

He could have killed you just as easily, you idiot, the receptionist shook his head, looking at the bald man’s sleeping figure.

Seeing that the corridor was empty, the cashier raised his voice and said, “Thank you for taking care of him. He is a powerful magician who harassed many women in the past. There had been many incidents.”

Turning towards him, Seth replied, “He will no longer find the ability to rape women, much less use offensive magic.”

Huh? I thought he just knocked him out.

How can he take away all his accomplishments in such a short time?

The leader of Leviathan, huh.

I wonder if I can become a member. It would be so cool!

Getting excited just by the thought of it, he clenched his fists as he punched the air, and then opened his computer to look for Natasha's contact information.

“Work hard,” Seth mused as he looked at the cheerful young man and then entered their room with Lien.

---

“That fucking pig wanted to hit on you. I almost killed him instead of putting him to sleep,” Seth grumbled as he closed the door behind Lien.

“He reminds me of the nobles in Balan, but killing him for something like this would have been too much," she shook her head, taking a seat on one of the sofas.

There was one on both sides of the table that was placed in the middle of the room.

As Seth sat on the table and faced Lien, he asked, "Did you not check his soul?"

"I didn't bother."

"He was the kind that would come after you even if you refused him," Seth replied with a slight frown.

"Is that why you called him a rapist?” She raised her brows. Seeing him nodding and remembering what the cashier said, she nodded, “Oh, then it's no wonder you are so upset. Did you destroy his balls?"

"Just the usual treatment for these kinds of pigs," he laughed, waving his hand.

"You are cruel. Even killing him would have been nicer," she said, sighing loudly. "Well, he is better off with his mana veins and dick destroyed. He surely won't be able to harass anyone in his lifetime."

"I think so," he nodded, placing his hands on Lien's knees.

Glancing at his hands, she then looked into his eyes and leaned against the backrest with a slight smile.

"Are you not against it?" He asked, slowly opening her legs.

"Why would I lie to myself? I'm excited," she replied.

Leaning closer to her, he looked into her cleavage as he said, "That receptionist guy was staring so hard at your tits that I thought his eyes would fall out."

“I know, and I don’t think that he was trying to hide it either, even though he has a girlfriend. Even you keep staring at other women,” she shook her head.

“Maybe his girlfriend has small breasts, and he likes big ones, like yours,” he replied. “Also, I’m not looking at other women with hungry eyes like him. I’m just comparing your beauty to theirs, but you always win,” he mused, pushing his hand forward.

“Stop being so corny,” she rolled her eyes.

Seeing his hand sliding under her dress and brushing past her thighs, she couldn’t help but grit her teeth and hiss loudly, "Mh- your cursed touch is making me go crazy every time," she bit her lower lip as she stared at her husband fervently. She could feel every inch of her body heating up in anticipation of the coming pleasure.

“Do you like my hand that much? It exists solely to please my wife.”

“While I must admit that your hands are skillful, it’s your stupid spell that I can’t withstand without cumming,” she hissed, feeling his finger wandering around her clitoris.

Leaning over, he shoved his tongue into her mouth and started fondling her breast. Realizing that they would run out of time if he kept playing around with her, she grabbed his arms and pushed him onto the table, landing atop his belly.

“Oh~ I like this pose as well,” he smiled at her.

Unzipping his pants, she looked at him with a perverted grin, seeing his member.

“Well, Bon Appetite, for me!” She said.

Placing his hands under his head, Seth smiled at his greedy wife as he replied, “You’re welcome.”

---

*Knock* *Knock*

"Come in!" Lien said loudly as she pushed away Seth's hand from her thighs and rolled down her dress.

The door opened shortly after, and the receptionist appeared, followed by a blonde-haired tall beauty who was wearing a black cape.

"I apologize for the long wait," the young man said as he entered.

"It was a bit too short even," Seth winked at him.

As the receptionist looked at Lien, she didn't even dare to look him in the eyes and just kept staring into the corner with a red face.

She may be more powerful than any other person I've met before, but she sure as hell is cute as fuck…

"I- I see. I'll take my leave then," he turned around and left in a hurry.

"Hi, I heard that I have a challenger. Could you tell me which one of you wishes to fight me?" The blonde woman said as she sat down on the other sofa, facing them.

“I would like to challenge you,” Seth replied.

“No, it’s me,” Lien followed shortly after, elbowing his side.

Seeing their bicker, Natasha smiled at them, “Please, there is no need to fight. We can take turns as well.”

“Ah, that’s a great idea. I didn’t want to say it because I wasn’t sure if you would be up for it,” Seth clapped his hands, jumping up from his seat.

He seems to be all fired up. Well, I’m ready for the battle anytime, so we should hurry up.

“It seems you are ready to leave right away. Would you care to follow me to one of the training rooms? I’ve booked a large one for a whole month,” she said.

“How extravagant. Let’s hurry up then,” Seth replied.

Shortly after, they arrived at a long corridor where a muscular man stood guard, almost matching Seth’s towering figure. He never had to look up to someone before, so he was quite baffled when Seth stopped in front of him.

“Miss Natasha,” he greeted the blonde woman, followed by a slight nod towards Seth and Lien.

“Hello, could you open the door?”

“Of course, please follow me,” he replied as he turned around and led them to a door at the end of the long corridor. As he put his palm on the door, a bunch of intricate patterns lit up in blue light and the door opened by itself, revealing a spacious field. Once all three of them entered, the guard closed the door behind them and went back to his post.

“Interesting. These rooms were most likely made by a god incarnation or someone who came across some space-related research. They are a bit crudely made, so I reckon that it should be the latter,” Seth remarked through Link as he looked around.

“Is this your first time in the Sparring Hall?” Natasha asked.

“Why?” Seth raised his brows.

“You seem to be surprised by the spaciousness of this room,” she said, thinking inwardly, It’s always fun to see people getting amazed over something like this. I wonder what face he would make if he could see Leviathan. It’s much larger than any country on the planet right now, and it can move, all the while the entrance is just the size of a person.

“Pff-” Lien quickly drowned her laughter as she turned around.

After looking at Lien’s back for a few seconds, Seth turned to look at Natasha as he said, “It’s my first time here. This place is quite mysterious.”

Shaking her head, she put her hands on her hips and asked, “So who is going to be my opponent? Or are we all going to fight at the same time?”

“While a three-way battle would be quite interesting, I know here abilities well enough, and there is no need for us to fight. We will go for a one versus one, and I’ll be your first opponent,” Seth replied before Lien could utter a single word.

“That was quite underhanded,” Lien frowned, pinching his arm before going to one of the corners of the room. Grabbing her arm from behind, he pulled her back and embraced her as he kissed the back of her head.

“I’ll make it up to you,” he muttered.

“Oh? You better,” she mused, getting further away in a hurry.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes, and sorry for having to watch us bicker,” Seth replied with a nod.

Waving her hand, she laughed as she said, “It’s alright. You look cute together.”

“Well, thank you~ Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Seth, and she is my wife, Lien.”

Her eyes opened wide for a moment, but she shook her head and replied shortly after, “My name is Natasha, but feel free to call me Nat.”

As she finished her introduction, she pulled off her dark hoodie, revealing her long blonde hair that was tied up into a bum, leaving only a few locks of unruly hair that were left hanging next to her beautiful face. Combined with her spotless white skin and slim body, her beauty was comparable to Lien’s.

“She modified her body with magic, enchantment runes, and her magic power is at the level of Warlords. Doesn’t it make you wonder what she is doing here?” Seth asked through Link.

“I have no idea, my love. I’ve been reading her thoughts for a while, but she never thought about the reason. You can just ask her once I’m also done with her,” Lien replied.

“That’s what I planned,” he said.

"It’s nice to meet you. Now that we are done with introductions, are you ready to start?" Natasha asked.

“Of course,” Seth nodded.

“I hope that you can entertain me and show me something new,” she said with a smile, not even understanding her situation.

“I‘ll try my best,” he replied, forcing a smile on his face.

Since Seth had perfect control over his mana and his body was made of mana cells, he could fight without fear of hurting his opponent seriously.

Natasha had two swords strapped to her left side, and while the upper one had a beautiful pale blue sheath and handle, the second was a poorly-made, cheap sword. Grasping the handle of the poorly-made sword, she took a stance and waved her finger, showing Seth to attack her.

“I’m fine with attacking, but could you take out your other weapon?” He asked as he raised his right hand, and weird patterns started rushing up to the tips of his fingers, covering his whole arm.

“This- I don’t think you want me to do that,” she said with a surprised face, seemingly concerned about something.

“I do,” he said with a frown, quickly adding, “And if you fight somebody and respect them enough, you should put your all into it.”

“I hope that you won’t regret it,” she sighed as she shook her head and sheathed her plain iron sword, pulling out the other one.

“Are you the one who made this sword?” Seth asked, raising his brow.

“Yes, but the master I tried to copy is much better at it than me,” she replied, sighing loudly.

“I see. It has a powerful aura,” he said.

“You don’t seem to be affected. I’m glad to see that,” Natasha remarked, seeing that Seth was standing there as if nothing happened. Although there have been cases where her opponents asked her to use her primary sword, most of them ended up regretting it and told her to use the normal one instead.

“I won’t use the enchantments else you’d die right away, but you better prepare yourself because it’s very sharp!” She yelled, lunging towards Seth without using body enhancements.

When she got in his reach, she swung her sword diagonally as a warning, but much to her surprise, Seth simply leaned to the side to dodge it and punched her in the stomach with incredible speed, not even leaving her enough time to react.

She gasped for air as the force crossed her body, forcing even the contents of her stomach upwards. With the help of some magic, she quickly held it back and stopped her assault to restabilize her body, wiping the sides of her mouth at the same time.

“That was quite lame,” Seth remarked.

“Kuh- I’m sorry. I wasn’t going for the kill, and I thought that you weren’t ready for my attack since you were standing there like that. I’ll attack seriously this time,” she replied as she took a stance and steeled her will.

“Ah, fine then, I apologize for my misleading stance,” he replied, waving his hand.

“What stance? You have no stances,” Lien laughed from the side.

Once he finished talking, she attacked in the same manner, but this time she leaned forward a little and cast a small barrier in front of her belly. Seeing her slash, he ducked down and kicked upwards.

Natasha was once again caught unprepared by his nimble movements, but she reacted quickly enough and raised her knee to intercept the kick. Although she should have fallen after receiving such a powerful kick while standing on one leg, she used gravity magic to balance herself right away and push herself towards the defenseless man squatting on the ground.

Laying on his back, Seth sunk into the ground with the help of earth magic and then propelled himself upwards with his feet facing Natasha’s wrists. She could only stare with wide-opened eyes upon seeing where the kick was aimed at and wonder how he turned so quickly. Seeing that the impact was inevitable, she created a small barrier around her wrists to prevent the sword from getting knocked out of her hands.

As if he could sense that she was trying to cast a barrier, Seth opened his legs and locked her head between his ankles instead of kicking her wrists. Since his arms were still deep in the ground, he could use it as a handrail of the sort and pull her towards the ground. Realizing that she would fall face-first if this continued, she once again resorted to gravity magic to stop herself from falling.

Knowing that he would be in danger if he continued holding her head with his upper body still in the ground, he let go of her and jumped out while Natasha was trying to rebalance herself. His right leg shot towards her wrist once again, its speed akin to lightning.

As his leg connected, there was a loud cracking sound, and the sword got stuck in the wall of the room a moment later. Flinching, Natasha used telekinesis to pull it back to her side.

A little annoyed to see that she was constantly using magic to protect herself, Seth also used a bit of his magic and made the ground blow up beneath their feet, smashing Natasha straight into the ceiling. Afraid to fall straight into his arms, she used wind magic to propel herself forward and land a few meters away. Much to her dismay, Seth was already waiting for her on the ground, right where she was about to land.

Opening his hands, he thrust towards her face and stopped only when he was about to hit her, knowing that it’d go straight through her head. Shocked to see that she not only lost but even had to be spared in such a short amount of time, she dropped her sword when she landed, picking it up only afterward.

“That was my loss,” she said with a wry smile, slightly bowing in front of Seth. “I’m sorry for not being your opponent at all,” she added. Although she was making a straight face, her eyes were slightly moist.

“Just tell her, I don’t want to fight her. It wouldn’t be fun,” Lien chimed in.

“Are you sure?”

“Can’t you see how sad she became? After such a defeat, who would want to fight another battle? I’m grateful it wasn’t me who fought her,” Lien replied.

“Well, now I feel bad, so I get your point,” Seth replied.

Looking at Natasha, he said, “Considering that you were utilizing magic in small areas and used it only to protect yourself, I’m quite pleased. I know you’re holding back your magic, but then again, you could have dealt with my attacks physically.”

“There is no need to console me. I was a terrible partner- Wait. How do you know that I’m holding back my magic?” She shook her head, realizing what he said.

“Come on, you can’t get the S rank with this kind of skill, can you?” He rolled his eyes.

Blushing slightly in her shame, she said, “I’m sorry, and you are right. My main way of fighting is to combine large-scale magic with sword attacks, but whenever I go on missions that are in closed spaces or cities, I find it hard to fight efficiently. That’s why I decided to train here against experienced people in close combat, and I’ve been doing well up till now.”

“I didn’t think that today, I’d be beaten so quickly,” she sighed loudly.

“Anyway, it’s clear as daylight that I’m not your opponent, and since I’m not here to train my magic, I don’t wish to challenge you for another round. I’m also willing to compensate you for the wasted time if you see it necessary because you clearly couldn’t practice your skills against me,” Natasha replied.

“Oh! So that’s why! You’ve just started learning close combat!” Seth clapped his hands.

“You were okay for a beginner, even if you fight daily. As for the money, don’t worry about it.”

Sure enough, other people wouldn’t have his speed and physical strength without enchantments so he was quite satisfied with Natasha’s skills, even more so after learning that her battle style was different.

Raising his hand, he created a chocolate pastry and started munching on it as Lien walked closer. 

“What? How did you do that?”

“Do you mean this?” Seth asked, raising the pastry in his hand.

“Yes.”

“I can transform things into different things at the cost of mana. The greater the difference, the more mana it costs me. For example, if I just want to re-shape some plastic, it won’t cost me much, but if I want to transform it into iron, it would cost me a lot. Of course, I must know the chemical components of the material if I want to create it,” Seth replied.

Sizing him up, she squinted as she asked, “Do you want to join Leviathan?”

Raising a brow, he stared back at her with suspicion as he asked, “Do you mean the test tomorrow?”

“Of course, there are no other ways,” she nodded.

“I’m not interested in the test,” he replied shortly, waving his hand as he took a bite.

Seeing his dismissive response, she couldn’t help but raise her brows and ask loudly, “How come? Don’t you want to join?”

“No way, why would I want to join? I’ve been a member for a long time,” he laughed as he waved his hand.

Her eyes and mouth turned into circles as she stared at him in disbelief and took out her ID card, “Do you mean you have this?”

Smiling at her, Seth waved his finger and his ID card flew out of a tiny portal.

"Oh, so you are also from Leviathan," her eyes lit up as she looked at the couple in a new light.

“Yes,” Seth nodded, wrapping his arm around Lien’s waist.

"I didn't expect that I would meet my seniors here," she nodded slightly, glancing at their ID cards at the same time. Noticing their ranks, she froze on the spot.

How is this possible?! The creator of Leviathan disappeared ten years ago, and only his children can meet him!

None of those who joined the last ten years could see him! Is this seriously him? But the mana in this ID card is so powerful, I’m afraid I would die if I tried to suck it into my body.

Raising her head, she looked at him questioningly.

“Haha, it was fun to see your change of facial expressions," Seth laughed cheerfully.

“My lord!” She fell on her knees, lowering her head as she yelled.

“Oh, come on. What is this, the medieval age?” Seth grumbled as he waved his finger and forcefully raised her to her feet with telekinesis. Although he found it outdated and displeasing, those who came from normal cities and countries were taught to kneel in front of their king, which made them believe that they had to do the same in front of Seth.

Most of the kings and city leaders loved when they could boss around others and make others kneel before them, so seeing the way he reacted made Natasha quite surprised.

“I apologize if I offended-”

“Hush, hush, don't worry about that,” he waved his hand dismissively, following with a question, “Anyway, when did you join?"

"Ninety-seven days ago," she replied.

“That short? I expected a few years. Your progress is impressive,” he nodded in appreciation.

“By the way, could you ease up? You are so tense that I’m starting to feel awkward,” he said, scratching his face.

“Eh? I’m sorry. I’m just still shocked,” she replied.

“Well, you don’t have to be shocked anymore,” Lien laughed.

“Also, before you become suspicious, we aren’t here to test you or anything of the sort. We’ve just returned from a faraway planet and heard that the leader of this city wanted to hold a competition to prevent ‘weaklings’ from participating and ‘bothering’ us. We just happened to meet you since you were in the city anyway,” she added.

“I’m sorry for my shameful display in battle,” she apologized once again.

Taking hold of her hand, Lien laughed as she said, “Come on, you don’t have to feel bad. You said it yourself that close-combat isn’t your forte, and you fought my husband. With the little training you had, I would be amazed if you could put up a fight against him. But how come you aren’t fighting against the other members? Isn’t our training hall much better than this place?”

“Well, the truth is that I’m in love with magic, though I never had the chance to learn it when I was younger. I was a waitress before I took the test and became a member, and once I got the chance to learn magic in Leviathan, I spent most of my time either in class or at home, practicing.”

“I reached the warlord rank in just two months, but I realized after a single sparring session that I was useless in combat because I couldn’t use my magic efficiently. I lost in just a few seconds,” she cried out, covering her face.

“Hahaha, it’s alright. Both of us love learning magic, so you can rest assured, we know what you are talking about,” Lien replied, patting her shoulder.

“But what happened afterward?” Seth asked, intrigued by her story.

“I worked hard on my combat techniques for a whole month, no longer afraid to challenge others. It was all nice until I came across a young man in the training grounds who wanted to fight me in a small place. I’ve also realized during some of the missions that I wasn’t of much help, so I accepted his challenge happily, only to lose again in a few seconds. I tried challenging others with similar conditions a few times, but I ended up disgracing myself every time.”

“I realized I could only fight children at this point, but I’m too ashamed to challenge children. That’s why I came outside to train against normal people, and once I’m good enough to fight the experts, I’ll try to challenge others in Leviathan again,” she replied.

“That makes sense, though the point exchange exists for this reason. Why did you not use a few points to request guidance from someone well-versed in close combat?” Seth asked.

“If I had to guess, I would say that she doesn’t have enough points, right?” Lien replied, laughing upon seeing Natasha’s face turn red.

“I spent all of it on rune lessons because I wanted to learn enchanting as well,” Natasha replied, shaking her head helplessly. Her head was akin to a tomato at this point.

“Well, at least you had success in it,” Seth chortled as he pointed at the sword on her waist.

“Yes, though I’m still far away from your level of skill,” she said, glancing at Seth.

“You will surely get there eventually,” he said. “Anyway, do you plan to train out here until you have enough points to hire a teacher?”

“Do I have a better option?” She shrugged helplessly.

“What if I told you that you have?” He laughed, winking at her.

Looking back and forth between Seth and Lien, her eyes glinted as she asked, "Do you mean to tell me that you are willing to train me?"

"You are quite cheeky," Seth laughed.

"Why? I don't remember the rules book stating that you can't be requested for guidance," she waved her finger.

“Haha, you are right about that, and that’s what I meant anyway. You see, I’m in a good mood today, so you get two hours, not even a second more,” Seth replied, waving his finger similarly.

"Or are you willing to play the teacher?" He asked, glancing at Lien.

Those perverted eyes, he is asking for a role-play, Lien thought as she shook her head.

Looking at him, she said, “This is physical training. You won’t have to explain anything, and you are better in physical combat anyway.” Seeing Natasha looking at her with a confused expression, she added, “Don’t be confused. I’m not saying that I’m stronger than him in magic. I’m just better suited for teaching others.”

“I didn’t know that,” Natasha replied.

“I could tell you an even more interesting thing about him if you are willing to listen to it,” Lien replied.

“Please do.”

“Haha, alright. I’ve learned many things by myself, but he was the one who taught me everything that served as my foundation. He always formulated well thought out explanations, but he was lazy to do the same when he tried to teach other people. I think that he is a great teacher. He is just too lazy to pass on his knowledge to others!”

“Hello, I’m still here,” Seth chimed in, waving his hand in front of Lien.

“So? Am I not allowed to tell her about your cute side?”

“What cute side? I’m just caring for my love, so I put in more effort,” he said.

“That’s exactly what makes it cute, for me,” she replied, laughing at him.

“I must side with her,” Natasha said in a low voice.

“Of course! Both of you are women. You must side with each other!” He raised his hands in surrender.

“Let’s stop talking about this and return to Leviathan. There is a group of bankers waiting outside to meet us,” Seth urged them as he opened a portal to their house.

“Shouldn’t we at least tell the guard that we are leaving?” Natasha asked.

“There is no need. I’ve notified the receptionist already.”

“Go ahead,” Lien smiled at her as she pointed at the portal.

Nodding her head, she left the room, followed by Lien and Seth.

“Is this your home?” She asked as she looked around in the living room.

“Yes. Do you want to look around?” Lien asked.

“I’ve come here when I became a member, but I could only stare at it from outside. I didn’t think that one day I would be able to enter,” she said, adding with a nod, “I’d be glad to look around.”

“Haha, alright then, though I must warn you that it’s nothing special.”

As they entered the corridor and took a few steps, she pointed towards the kitchen, “This is where we cook and eat every day.”

“It is also where I put you on the table and screw you,” Seth remarked through Link.

“Shut up!”

Moving on, she showed her the bathroom, receiving another similar remark from Seth, followed by the guest room and the children’s room, finally reaching their bedroom.

“And this is the last place, our bedroom,” Lien said as she opened the door.

“Magic is born here,” Seth added as he left the house through the back door, laughing from the bottom of his heart.

“Shut up!” Lien shouted at him, throwing a pillow after him with telekinesis. A sonic boom echoed in the house as the pillow punched a hole into the door and smashed against Seth’s head.

Catching the pillow, he turned around and sent a kiss to Lien as the hole in the door closed.

“This perverted bastard,” Lien gritted her teeth as she muttered under her breath.

Looking at Natasha with her face reddened, she said, “Let’s go out.”

“Thank you for showing me around,” she laughed, seeing them bickering.

“Miss Lien-”

“Just Lien,” she corrected her as she turned around, her hand on the handle of the door.

“Alright. Please take no offense as I don’t have any intentions. I’m asking this out of curiosity, but is Seth’s commandment really as I heard from other members?”

“Well, it depends. What did you hear?” She asked, raising a brow.

“I’ve heard that in the past, many god incarnations were running amok, doing bad things without repercussions. They also killed those with great potential, which is especially true in the case of sex god incarnations. Although nobody can confirm it for sure, most of the older members are a hundred percent sure that he is one of them.”

Smirking, she winked at her as she said, “Let’s just say that I’m having a great time. You can interpret that in whatever way you want.”

“But keep this a secret,” she added.

“I’ll take it to the grave,” Natasha said with a nod.

“It’s not such a serious secret,” she laughed as she opened the door, only to see Seth staring at her with a smirk on his face.

“Having a great time, don’t you?” He asked.

“As you can see, he is a lost cause,” Lien said as she pointed at his face.

Eyeing her carefully, Seth just smiled upon hearing her.

Although she was trying to hold it back, even Natasha started laughing after seeing all this.

She was about to say something when two people appeared in front of her. One of them was a young man with a height of about 180 centimeters, while the other one was a beautiful girl, matching Lien's height. Both of them seemed to be around twenty years old, though they were certainly older.

The handsome young man had dark brown hair and a pair of green eyes, matching the blonde haired girl's eyes beside him.

As the young man turned around, Natasha instantly realized who she was facing.

"Lord Reiner," she nodded lightly, quickly doing the same towards the young girl, "Miss Felice."

Slightly surprised by her presence, both of them turned around with their brows raised, giving a questioning glance to their parents as they greeted her back.

"Hi."

"Welcome," Reiner smiled at her, and then turned towards his mother, slightly raising his hand as he said, "Hi, Mom."

While he was trying to keep some distance from his parents, Felice hugged both of them, followed by a light kiss on their faces.

Frowning at her son, Lien said, "You should follow your sister's example."

Scratching the back of his head, he rolled his eyes as he looked at Lien, and then secretly glanced at Natasha.

Should I play nice and leave him be? Lien laughed inwardly upon seeing his reaction.

No way.

Smirking at him, she said, "Do you not want to do it in front of her?"

Taking a deep breath, he sighed as he said, "I see you are determined to embarrass me, but I'm not some kid anymore."

"It's nice to see you again," he stepped forward with a smile and hugged Lien, followed by a kiss on her face.

"That's more like it," she chortled.

"We met yesterday and you were cuddling us for half an hour," he grumbled as he stepped back.

"Am I not allowed to love and cuddle my children?"

"I didn't say that," he rolled his eyes.

"Brother, can you stop complaining about something so pointless? It's getting on my nerves," Felice chimed in, seeing that Reiner had no intention of stopping.

"I'm not complaining, I just-" seeing her raising her brows, he sighed loudly as he said, "Whatever."

"I thought so," Felice nodded, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"Aw- look at how cute my baby has turned over the years," throwing her arms around Felice, Lien pulled her into her embrace like a tiger would its prey.

"Mom, you are going to strangle me," she said, shaking her head helplessly.

While those three were arguing and hugging each other, Seth couldn't help but compare their faces and looks.

Lien had somewhat sharper features, making her look more voluptuous and hot, while Felice's face turned slightly rounder over the years, making her look much cuter.

Although she fell more on the cute side, she inherited plenty of her mother's features, making her look similarly sexy and hot from specific angles.

"Why are you staring at us like that?" Felice asked, noticing her father's gaze.

"I was just wondering how could we make such a cute daughter," he laughed heartily as he went closer and hugged her along with Lien, pulling Reiner over with his other hand.

"What the- did you grow even stronger, Dad?" Reiner asked, trying to break free from his arms.

"Hehe, I've reached a whole new level during our last trip. I've practically become immortal," he winked at him.

Pulling back his arm, he asked, "Anyway, did anything noteworthy happen while we were away?"

"Not really. There are a few problematic leaders in the outside world, but I've submitted a mission for each of them. The city you visited for their new food is also one of them. Their leader is restricting who can participate in the upcoming test," Reiner replied, waving his hand dismissively.

Raising his brows, Seth shook his head, "You should cancel that mission because we took care of it while we were there."

"Oh. Then let me do it right away," Reiner said with a bright smile before quickly disappearing.

Seeing that everyone turned quiet, Felice tugged on Seth's arm and pointed at Natasha, "What are you planning to do with her?"

"Some physical training. Do you want to join us?"

"No, I'm not a masochist," she said, shaking her head vehemently.

"And what's the occasion? Did you hold some secret commotion or is it just another whimsical day?"

"He's being whimsical as usual," Lien replied.

"Um- I'm sorry for interrupting you, but if anyone feels that I'm undeserving of this chance, please tell me and I'll leave," Natasha chimed in.

"Oh my, don't be silly. My father can train whoever he wants. I have nothing against your lesson!" Felice waved her hands vehemently.

"I was just curious," she added.

Smiling back at her, Natasha said, "I apologize for misunderstanding your intentions."

"It's alright. Anyway, when do you plan to start? It won't be easy, so I hope that you are rested."

Ruffling Felice's hair, Seth said, "Don't scare her away. It's not the kind of training that will tire her out."

"Hey! Don't mess up my hair," she cried out.

"Alright, stop holding them up. I'll help you comb your hair," Lien stepped in, seeing the poor Natasha who could only wait silently.

"Uh- you are right. I'm sorry for making you wait so much," Felice shook her head, ashamed of herself.

"Eh? I waited for about a minute at most. It's no big deal. Not to mention that I would gladly wait a whole week for this chance if that's what it took, much less a minute," Natasha said, waving her hands.

"Well, it's still rude of us," Felice shook her head.

Turning towards her mother, she asked, "Would it be alright if I changed the weather? I was planning to sunbathe with you when you returned."

"Mom will gladly accompany you," she replied.

Turning around, they made their way towards the small glass table, while Seth brought Natasha further away from the terrace.

At the same time, the weather started turning hotter and hotter in the backyard as another artificial sun appeared in the sky. A moment later, the whole yard trembled for a moment as the other sun disappeared, cutting off all senses from the rest of the world.

“What is happening?” Natasha asked, startled as she realized that she could no longer sense mana.

“I’ve cut off our backyard from Leviathan and moved it to a separate space where mana doesn’t exist in any form, other than my body and that artificial sun. This way you won’t be able to use your spells and think that ‘I could do this or that in a real situation.’ You’ll be forced to use nothing but your physical strength and wits,” Seth replied.

Noticing a pair of arms flailing around on the terrace, he glanced at the figure and noticed Lien as she took off her clothes, revealing her white bikini.

“What a banging body,” he said through Link, winking at her from a distance.

“You can have it later,” she replied, waving at him with a smile before she laid down on the sunbed. 

Turning back towards Natasha, he cracked his fingers and said, “Let’s get started!”

With no more enemies and opponents present, they could live their lives in peace.

 

 

------------ AUTHOR NOTE -------------

It was a tough ride for me... especially towards the end. I had many plans for the last few chapters, but by the time I got here, I've lost all my inspiration and interest. I'm pretty sure this 'ending' is complete garbage, which is why I wrote 'for now'.

One thing I realized over the last three years of writing novels is that I can't finish a novel well in one go because I lose interest under all the release schedules and pressure to write. Taking a rest seems to revitalize that lost energy, which would have been great for this novel... but it won't happen so soon.

On the other hand, I am now once again 'energized' by the idea of continuing and editing Queen of Devouring and What is it like to be Eternal?, which is cool because those need some serious fixes as well.

I'll tell you my plans for the time being in case you are interested:

• Edit the existing chapters of QoD.
• Finish the novel (Related to this, I think that through the edits, I'll separate the two novels (QoD and WIILTBE). They may exist in the same multi-verse, but won't crossover in the way I originally planned.)
• Edit What is it like to be Eternal?
• Start my fourth and most planned out novel in the future (but it will be released only when it's finished completely). I no longer want to release books in this day-to-day way. It doesn't do good for anyone. :( I have lots and lots of plot points and a complete power system, which I haven't seen anywhere else before. I'm quite excited about this myself. Documenting and explaining the whole thing took over ten pages. Naturally, that's the raw explanation with examples (for myself), so it won't be introduced in a bothersome way. I have big hopes for it, but we will see. It's in the far future anyway.

Read this!

I have also started writing a one-shot romance novel titled (Lust), which will probably end up with around 40k words, but I'll see. It's some free-time fun story. I don't plan to release it anywhere for now other than on Patreon (FREE!). Anyone can read it by clicking the following link, in case you are interested in it:  https://www.patreon.com/CorpseDead?filters[tag]=Lust (Note that it's only PART 1. You will be able to find the following parts later when I finish/upload them. You'll find it by the Lust tag, obviously.

Well, that's all I had to say for now. Although I'm dissatisfied with how this novel slowly died towards the end with my terrible release speed and lack of interest, I still hope that you guys had fun reading it and enjoyed the slice of life. My only hope is that I'll be able to regain my lost energy and fix this one as well.

Have a nice day.