The all-knowing Player (Solo Leveling)

Demonic hospitality (1)

Warning! Long chapter.

Corresponding episodes: 80, 81, 82, 83

Embers dance in the wind as smoke clouds build into the sky. The ravenous fire chips away at tall buildings, enveloping towers like an inescapable net of dry heat. In the sea of flames and destruction that has become the capital, monsters shuffle through blazing ruins for something to bite into. Torn remains of homes lie scattered on the road among shards of glass reflecting the blood-red sky. Cracked tar cuts through the city, desolate remains of once clean streets used by numerous pedestrians.

But the only ones making their way through the roads are the shadow and follower army, led by their generals. Demon corpses litter the ground, their purple blood slowly seeping into the cracks of the tar. Sharp cuts mar their skins, and pieces of rubble or ice are embedded into the bare flesh, a trace of our armies' work. The stench of death and bodies decaying in the heat hangs low in the air around this gory display of overwhelming power.

I nudge the leg of a demon crooked in a weird angle, earning an agonizing scream from the creature writhing on the ground. With a single slash, I cut its head off, and its body falls slack. Blue windows frizzle to life to announce the death of yet another monster. I discard the shimmering holograms with a flick of my hand.

"I think we're done here," I declare, turning to Jin-Woo. "Do you have the entry permit for the next floor?"

"Yeah." His gaze rises to the beam piercing through the thick clouds of smoke cluttering the sky to lead to the upper floor. He summons the worn parchment from his inventory, his fingers impatiently tapping its edge. "We spent too much time looking for it. Isn't there a way to go faster?"

"We could split into groups," I suggest as we make our way to the teleporting magic circle. "Our teams can cover more ground that way."

He nods. "Good idea. Traveling together just slows us down. How about teams made of both followers and shadows?"

"That sounds good. Then how about six groups? Igris and Orion can take some knights and dragons with them. Cepheus and Iron lead another team with high orcs. The bears form a group. Callisto can lead another group of high orcs, Tusk the remaining ones, and the hyakki team up with the wolves."

Jin-Woo hums. "Are you sure about putting Iron and Cepheus in the same group? I'm worried they might pull some crap."

My gaze drifts to the two tanks, who have sunken into a complicated handshake the moment I suggested they could team up. Their chestplates screech painfully as they bump their chests against one another before going into a fighting stance and letting out victorious roars. It's the end of the choreography they offer after each won battle—which means, overly often. Then, realizing they have fallen behind our armies, they speed forward to catch up to us with screams.

"It's true they'd be better off under Igris and Orion's supervision," I admit, bending closer to discreetly point at our knight generals, "but I'm tempted to leave them be."

The shadow and follower walk next to each other, letting their gazes sweep over our armies like parents watching over their children. They don't need to exchange any words to come to a mutual understanding—nothing different from their ordinary behavior, yet the atmosphere between them seems to have softened since they started relinquishing their enemies to gift them to the other. As puzzling as this habit might appear, it seems to hold a meaning only the two generals are aware of—something close to respect and appreciation.

"You have a specific idea in mind, don't you?" Jin-Woo asks, his voice low to prevent our knights from hearing.

I shrug, unable to fight against the grin pulling at the corners of my lips as I whisper back, "I just want to see how their dynamic can evolve."