I Became the 1st Floor Boss of the Tower

The two devils’ gazes were solely fixed on Lee Shin. Recently, Astaroth, the Great Devil of Negligence, had shown tremendous growth and in fact he had been planning to get to the fifth district. It was that human wizard named Lee Shin, who managed to kill that Great Devil.

Normally, the devils would exercise some caution, but now they were somewhat certain that Lee Shin’s strength would have been drained by the battle with Astaroth. Therefore, they thought that they would kill the human wizard and consume Astaroth’s demon power to rise to a higher district.

This was what Naberius and Berith were thinking. However, this thought did not last long as they would soon face an attack they did not see coming.

Clank!

Laurent, who had finished reloading, peered through the scope and locked onto the target. The two Great Devils were visible through the scope. Naberius had three heads—one of an old man, another of a woman, and yet another a crow. Underneath the heads, one could see faces of several corpses which protruded from the skin, their eyes rolling aimlessly.

As Laurent gazed upon this grotesque sight, he furrowed his eyebrows and turned the barrel to the side. Berith, sitting on a red horse, was next to Naberius. His entire body was covered in black fur, and he wore a magnificent golden crown.

‘It might be better for me to deal with Berith than Naberius.’

Laurent only had one Demonbreaker bullet left. Therefore, he thought that he would have a higher chance of a successful attack on Berith, who was of a lower rank. Laurent thought that it would be good for him to at least quickly bring one of the opponents to death’s door with his shot to reduce the number of the Great Devils around.

‘Die.’

Laurent's unique ability was attribute conversion. The next moment, the bullet was infused with the demonbreaker power, which destroyed demon power, and the barrel started to glow red.

Bang—!

The gray bullet flew toward Berith’s head, creating a loud sonic wave. Berith, who had been calmly dealing with the sudden attacks so far with his demon power, opened his eyes wide when he saw his demon power being countered by the bullet.

"Huh? This can’t be happening...!" Berith muttered.

Crack—!

The bullet, which had been spinning crazily, pierced through Berith’s head and came to a halt. Naberius, who saw what happened to Berith from the side, furrowed his eyebrows and created a black fog around him. He had just grasped how threatening Laurent's Demonbreaker Bullet was.

"Ugh… You have an annoying ability…” Naberius muttered.

As soon as Naberius opened his mouth, the demon souls inside him screaming in agony emerged from his mouth and headed toward Laurent.

"No way… I won't let that happen,” Lee Shin said.

The next moment, Lee Shin spread his mana like a net in the air and captured all the wandering souls.

"What is going on...?" Puzzled, Naberius mumbled.

"Demon souls won’t work on me," Lee Shin replied.

With both necromancy and black mana, it was not difficult for Lee Shin to combine these two powers to suppress the demon souls. At the moment, Laurent was not in a state where he could counterattack properly due to the recoil from the Demonbreaker Bullet that he had shot a moment ago. He needed some time before he could start making other moves.

‘Well, I guess it won’t be a problem if I can finish this early.’

More demon souls that emerged from Naberius’ mouth roamed in the air for a while and entered the bodies of the devils surrounding them.

"Fight. And kill the enemies," Naberius ordered his demon souls. 𝗯𝗲𝐝𝐧𝗼𝘃𝗲𝐥．𝗰𝗼𝐦

In an instant, the atmosphere on the battlefield changed. As soon as the demon souls entered the devils’ bodies, they became noticeably more aggressive than before.

"Ugh...! Why did they become so powerful all of a sudden?" Thrown back by the sudden surge of power from the devils, Zephyr muttered in confusion with a startled expression.

It seemed like Zephyr could not gather his thoughts properly in such a rapidly changing situation. He thought that they had successfully managed to deal with Astaroth, but now there were Naberius and Berith in front of them. It was one unfortunate event after another.

However, he had confidence in Lee Shin and Laurent, as he believed that they would be able to handle these two Great Devils as well.

‘Does this even make sense, though…?’

Zephyr wondered how mere humans could defeat three Great Devils.

“Hrah!” Jack leaped out from behind Zephyr, who had narrowly evaded the sword of one of the surrounding devils.

He then pushed the Great Devil away.

"Get out of the way. Just go hide in the back,” Jack said to Zephyr.

"What nonsense is this?" Zephyr asked back.

"Lee Shin told me to protect you. So stop trying to get yourself killed by wandering around and stay put in the back,” Jack said.

"Huh? Lee Shin told you to protect me? Why would he say that?” Zephyr asked.

"Don't ask me. Go ask him yourself..." Jack replied.

After saying that, Jack, who had jumped off the ground, faced off with the devils who were possessed by demon souls. Astaroth, who had turned into a zombie, rode a dragon that had also become a zombie and flew toward Berith, who was motionless after getting hit by Laurent's bullet.

Berith, who had tilted his head back, made squeaky noises as if he were a rusty robot. He struggled, but finally managed to lift up his head.

"Human... I’m going to kill you…” Berith muttered.

Baaang—!

Berith’s golden club clashed with Astaroth’s spear. Lee Shin, amidst the chaos on the battlefield, gathered the Grand Spirits and consolidated their power.

‘If we fail to deal with Naberius, things will get more complicated.’

The Great Devil Naberius was a master of black magic and necromancy. However, many of the individuals on the battlefield did not know how to counter such black magic well. Therefore, Lee Shin thought that it was necessary to quickly clean up this place before he could use strange tricks.

[Elemental Field]

In an instant, the power of seven different elements filled the surroundings. A brilliantly radiant mana that looked like a rainbow spread out, enveloping both devils and allies. With the help of the Grand Spirits, the power of the Elemental Field was stronger than before.

"Attack," Lee Shin ordered.

At Lee Shin’s command, the seven different powers swayed and shot forward all at once. Although these were slightly less powerful compared to what Lee Shin had experienced during the test of the Grand Spirits in the Underworld, it was still more than enough to deal with these devils.

‘Feel the power of the Grand Spirits.’

Babababam—!

With a deafening roar that could nearly rupture eardrums, the wind rushed backward. Lee Shin, furrowing his eyebrows at the swirling dust and wind, looked at the flash that shot up into the sky above.

‘We need to show more.’

Lee Shin did not just stand by and watch. Instead, he extended a strand of black mana and mixed it with the attacks of the Grand Spirits.

Kigigigik...!

There was a black barrier that blocked the attacks of the Grand Spirits. This barrier was like a black curtain covering and defending Naberius. Lee Shin positioned his mana close to this barrier.

‘In the end, it's the same black magic, but in my head is the knowledge of Gene Ebrium, the Great Dark Wizard.’

His unique ability, black magic, was enough to dispel Naberius’ barrier. The intricate and tangled web of structures within the demon power, the clear arrangement and composition of demon power, and Naberius’ intentions for forming the barrier were all engraving themselves inside his mind. Having glimpsed the essence of black magic, Lee Shin could activate his intuition.

In this brief moment, it was impossible to meticulously unravel Naberius’ barrier, but it seemed possible to destroy it. Like inserting a key into a lock, the black magic penetrated further and further into the barrier. And with a simple twist of this key...

‘...There we go.’

Bababam—!

The attacks of the Grand Spirits, which had been unable to advance due to the obstacle, pierced through Naberius, sending him disappearing into the sky.

"Khaaaah...!" Naberius’ desperate scream echoed.

The individuals on Lee Shin’s side who sensed the end of the tiresome battle with the Great Devils, all looked up into the sky.

"Man… it was crazy…”

"Is it... finally over?"

Watching Naberius fly away spraying blood, Zephyr turned his head and looked at Lee Shin. Lee Shin was like a monster to him. He could not have imagined witnessing such a scene in his entire life, yet the human before him had made it happen. It was only now that Zephyr realized he had truly found the most important person who would bring him luck, someone he must not let go of.

"Oh my... Mr. Lee Shin! Thank you for your hard work." Bowing at a 90-degree angle, Zephyr approached Lee Shin.

Seeing Zephyr in this state, Lee Shin furrowed his eyebrows and smacked the back of his head.

"Ack! Why, why are you doing this to me?" Zephyr asked with a confused look.

"What are you doing right now? You have no time! Hurry up and devour those demon powers before the others try to devour them!" Lee Shin shouted at Zephyr.

Berith had been beaten up by Astaroth and Naberius could not withstand the attacks of the Grand Spirits. The two, who were bleeding heavily, lay on the ground with their great demon power up for grabs. Seeing this demon power, Zephyr’s eyes were wide open in astonishment.

"Get lost, you damn bastards! Those are mine!" Zephyr shouted and approached the demon power to devour them.

Slurp—!

Zephyr, lifting Naberius’ head with one hand, greedily sucked in the demon power that was flowing from his mouth.

"Kahaha! I can feel it! I can feel the power! It feels great to feel the power!" Zephyr continued to laugh out loud maniacally.

His dilated pupils and stumbling steps were akin to a human under the influence of a powerful drug. Lee Shin wondered if devouring demon power would provide such an extreme pleasure. He had seen Zephyr do this several times in the past, but every time he saw it, it served as a stark reminder of the danger of demons.

Humans could regulate their use of drugs, but for demons, it was a necessary step in becoming stronger. Therefore, it seemed like it was their way of life. For the sake of demon power, they would do anything.

"Zephyr, finish it up quickly." Lee Shin ordered.

"Alright sir! Understood!" Zephyr replied.

After devouring Berith’s demon power as well, Zephyr’s demon power had grown exponentially, far surpassing what it was like before. Now, he had enough demon power to be called a Great Devil.

"You pathetic lot, if you don't want to die, bow your heads before me." Zephyr's previously light voice now carried a weight of authority.

As his demon power grew stronger, it seemed that he had even gained charisma. Lee Shin nodded in satisfaction when he saw the change in aura that instantly had those around him subdued.

"This should be enough, right?” Zephyr asked Lee Shin.

The Great Devils seated on the twenty-fourth, twenty-eighth, and twenty-ninth thrones had all fallen at the hands of humans. Not only the low-ranking Great Devils, but the high-ranking Great Devils would now find it difficult to invade Earth. Moreover, with the emergence of a new Great Devil named Zephyr, those Great Devils could be kept in check the moment they attempt to invade Earth.

"What are you going to do now?” Laurent, who had somewhat recovered his strength, approached Lee Shin and asked.

It seemed that he was tense, possibly due to the recent battle against three Great Devils.

"Are we going to move on to the fifth district?” Laurent asked Lee Shin again.

‘So is that why he asked me…?’

The fifth district was a part of the hierarchical Demon World, where the top twelve Great Devils, seated on the first to the twelfth throne, existed. Those who were seated on the thirteenth to twenty-fourth throne could also freely move to the fifth district if they wished. Also, they could challenge the ones seated on the first to the twelfth throne.

With Naberius now dead and Zephyr having absorbed his demon power, Zephyr was to become the Great Devil, who would be seated on the twenty-fourth throne. This meant that he had obtained the qualifications to go to the fifth district.

"Yes, we are going to go to the fifth district. As soon as we finish getting ready, we’ll head over to the fifth district,” Lee Shin replied.

Lee Shin thought that going over to the fifth district might provide them with insights into some of the Demon World’s secrets, such as the relationships between Baal, who was seated on the first throne, and other Gods. Lee Shin had to know more about that.

"Understood," Laurent replied.

Although Laurent seemed a bit uneasy, he did not say anything any further. Also, Jack said he would follow Lee Shin’s orders regardless of where they were going.

"Eeeeh? What? D-do I have to go there too?" Zephyr asked.

"Yes, of course you have to. We need you for us to return," Lee Shin replied.

Zephyr was shocked by Lee Shin’s command, but since he had already entered into a contract with Lee Shin, he could not simply defy Lee Shin’s words.

"Alright then..." Zephyr muttered in disappointment.

***

Having obtained everyone's consent, Lee Shin briefly stepped outside the territory. High above in the sky, the glaring eye of the Cecil Ravager was focused on Lee Shin.

‘This is not an illusion.’

Lee Shin was sure that the eye, which monitored the entire Demon World, was directed at him.

‘Could that be the Demon God, or was it Baal…?’

Lee Shin was aware that only two beings in the Demon World could control Cecil Ravager. One was the Demon God and the other one was Baal. He wondered which of them was watching him and what they were thinking about.

Woong—

A black portal appeared in the sky out of nowhere. From the enormous portal emerged a creature with rough, leathery skin and long, snake-like, slit eyes.

‘Huh…?’

A yellow-scaled dragon, who flapped his massive wings, came out from the portal and flew above Lee Shin. Then, he directed his gaze downward to Lee Shin.

Pizz— Pizz—!

Thunderbolts crackled around the dragon’s body.

"At last, we meet," the dragon said, looking at Lee Shin.

‘Did he just say, at last…?’

Lee Shin wondered if this dragon had been searching for him. He tilted his head in response to the unexpected appearance of the dragon and his words. However, he soon recognized his voice and his eyes opened wide.

"I, Endo Di Verrier Maltaria Forskerianta, a child of the Dream-Eating Dragon, will defeat a human wizard named Lee Shin, who is causing chaos in the Tower and disturbing the order right now,” Endo said, looking at Lee Shin.

The thundermancer of divine blood named Endo, whom Lee Shin had encountered on the 20th floor, suddenly reappeared and said that he would defeat Lee Shin.

"Ha… This is ridiculous,” Lee Shin muttered and chuckled.

Lee Shin smirked and stared at Endo.

"But… Didn’t you lose to me already? I thought I spared your life, didn’t I?” Lee Shin provoked Endo.

In response to Lee Shin’s provocation, Endo's face became distorted.