God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 264: Episode _Sixth Awakening (1)

1.

With a brilliant flash of light, the +13 enhancement succeeded.

“Whew.”

The moment he took off his armor, the biting wind of the Demon World rushed in, wrapping around Han Simin as if to swallow him whole. Even so, he was so drained that he sprawled out on his back, unable to move.

That was how exhausting it had been.

“Damn. I have to do this five more times?”

He even felt a twinge of self-loathing.

Honestly, if he had also been the one to go out and gather all the materials himself, he might have just given up.

The ritual required for the enhancement was one thing, but the psychological burden was enormous.

Eighty-nine percent.

Even after raising hell, stripping naked, enduring the humiliation of showing his bare body to others, and pouring every last drop of his mana into it, that was the probability he had ended up with.

It was definitely a rate where failure was unlikely.

Especially considering this was a level 200 weapon on the path to +13, it was a number that made failure seem practically impossible.

And yet, failure was still very much a possibility.

Eleven percent.

That was by no means a low chance.

If your luck was bad, it could hit once in three tries, or even on the very first attempt.

Among people who did nothing but enhance, it was a number they would gladly stake their lives on.

If you failed at that rate, the enhancement level would drop.

If your luck was really rotten, the weapon would explode.

If it only dropped a level, you could somehow grind your way back up, but if it was destroyed, that would be the end of Han Simin’s fate right then and there.

No matter how tangled up he was in the former Enhancer’s story, Epia still wasn’t completely convinced that he was that man reborn. He couldn’t just say, “You know, twin swords don’t really suit you. How about you switch to using just one from now on?”

That was why he had been so tense. Thankfully, it had succeeded.

Of course, this was no time to relax.

This was only the beginning.

He still had to get the other sword to +13, and going from +13 to +14 would be even harder than this.

Above all, the real problem was mana.

Even though Simin wasn’t relaxing, even though he could see his HP being shaved away by the cold, he still couldn’t move.

His mana was completely drained.

Not just drained.

It felt like even the “primordial qi” they talked about in wuxia novels had been sucked dry.

His mind was hazy, and on top of that, he was dizzy.

He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt like this in his entire life as an Enhancer.

His survival instincts screamed at him to lie still and rest.

The situation brought back memories of the time he had pulled crazy stunts in reality, making repeated trips to the hospital just to punch through impossible odds.

Kang Yeseul draped a blanket over him.

Her gaze remained fixed on a certain part of his anatomy the entire time.

She made no effort to hide her astonished expression; in fact, the corners of her mouth were even turned up.

“Simin.”

“Shut up.”

“Seriously, marry me. I’ll find a way to inherit my dad’s company and hand it over to you.”

He didn’t answer.

It was an aggressive advance, an attempt to snatch him up before another woman could.

Han Simin shook his head.

It wasn’t like this was the first or second time Kang Yeseul had acted like this.

“Unbelievable. You make tons of money, you’re great at scamming people, and you’re so masculine on top of that... Honestly, I wasn’t expecting that last part. I love you.”

“Shut up, seriously. Before I leave you here in the Demon World.”

As he pried Kang Yeseul off him, his depleted mana slowly began to refill.

He got to his feet, hurriedly gathered up his armor, and put it back on, then looked over at Epia.

She was lifting the newly +13 sword off the anvil, her gaze full of tenderness.

He watched her in silence.

Han Simin had absolutely no intention of emotionally investing in some in-game Story Quest and sharing in her sorrow, but he had to admit that BetaGo’s story design and the NPCs’ AI were so perfect and vivid that they deserved genuine praise.

’She really did love him a lot.’

Her eyes were so sweet that even he could feel it.

Just then, she turned, and their gazes met.

Epia’s eyes were completely different from anything he had seen before.

For a Demon King to look at someone with such pure, fragile affection was enough to make your chest ache.

If a stranger saw this, if this weren’t the Demon World, they would have mistaken her without question for a girl who had just fallen in love for the first time.

Epia smiled.

“If you really manage to get it to +15, I swear on my name.”

He looked at her quizzically.

“I will take you as my consort.”

“...Huh?”

And with that, she made her offer.

It was the true beginning of the Story Quest.

*

[Epia’s Memories]

[Grade: Story]

[Content: Epia has finally met the reincarnation of the consort she has waited for over hundreds of years. Soothe her memories and help her let go of the regrets she buried deep in her heart.]

[Reward: Epia’s trust, Sixth Awakening]

The Story Quest he had only seen through videos finally appeared as a hologram.

It meant that Han Simin had at last earned the right to proceed with the Story Quest for the Sixth Awakening of his Legendary-grade class, the Legendary Legend Enhancer.

He had watched countless videos and talked big, but in the end, it was only after he enhanced the twin swords—the token of the promise between her and the former Enhancer—that things had reached this point.

In the end, no matter how much you flapped your lips, it was worth less than proving yourself once.

“Well, how generous of you.”

And Han Simin gladly accepted the reward Epia had offered on top of the Awakening.

A consort?

He already had a wife in the game, the Imperial Princess, but he wasn’t stupid enough to turn down the position of consort out of some misguided sense of loyalty.

Becoming her consort wouldn’t change anything anyway.

Even if it happened, Epia wouldn’t be loving Han Simin himself; she would be projecting the long-dead former Enhancer from the story onto him. In a relationship like that, he wouldn’t have to offer any genuine affection.

He just had to use her.

The Demon King’s consort.

He was already the Emperor’s son-in-law and the Imperial Princess’s husband, so what was there to hesitate over?

Even if he returned to the continent and the demons crossed over, starting another continental war, it would only ever be to his advantage, never a loss.

The only question was whether Han Simin could actually pull off a +15.

“No way! A consort? He’s mine!”

“Cut the drama, you idiot.”

Kang Yeseul protested fiercely, but her whining didn’t last long.

Han Simin had recovered enough mana to move again.

He headed toward another auspicious site for +13.

“If we’re going to do it, wouldn’t it be nice if we could use the same twin-sword lucky spot and put them side by side like a happy couple?”

It took several more days just to move to a different auspicious site.

He grumbled, but there was no real resentment in it.

Because he had felt it while getting the first sword to +13.

He should be grateful that he could even attempt these enhancements at all.

In his heart, he wanted to take the sword he had already brought to +13 and push it straight to +15 first, then deal with the other one afterward, but he was certain he wouldn’t have enough mana for the enhancement to +14, so he couldn’t.

So once he matched the twin swords at +13, he would inevitably be forced into a hunting phase.

His face twisted into a frown, and he worried about how he would endure that hellish stretch of time.

“I’m calling out the materials.”

He decided to save the worrying for later.

As always, the world never went the way you wanted it to.

Sometimes luck was on your side, and sometimes you achieved your goals because of something completely unexpected.

2.

Intelligence reached the top-tier demon Kaini.

“What? The Demon King left the Demon King’s castle?”

“Yes, Lord Kaini. She is currently traveling in the Demon World with the humans who arrived, one upper-rank Celestial, and one upper-rank demon.”

“And without an escort?”

“I cannot say what she is plotting, but it is definitely an opportunity.”

“Could it be a trap?”

“That is possible, but we can at least be certain that there are no guards around the Demon King. As long as we prepare for her personal guards, I believe our chances of victory are sufficient.”

“Oh? Is that so? If possible, I’d like to know more about her personal defenses too.”

“The Demon King is too quick to catch on. If we get any closer, we risk being discovered.”

“Hm. True enough. Succubus bitches are sharp as hell when it comes to reading the room.”

Inside a castle that was shabby compared to the Demon King’s fortress but still large by Demon World standards, Kaini, seated on a towering throne, drew his weapon.

“Mobilize every demon we can muster. Inform the top-tier demons who promised to side with us, and send a warning to the top-tier demons who declared neutrality. If they stand with the Demon King or block our path, they should be prepared for their entire lineage to be wiped out.”

“Yes, Lord Kaini.”

At the same time, he donned the set of pitch-black armor hanging beside him.

It didn’t have the overwhelming presence of the Demon King’s gear, but it was more than enough to flaunt the dignity of a top-tier demon who ranked among the top twenty in the Demon World.

The instant he received the intel, Kaini strode out without a moment’s hesitation, his steps brimming with confidence, a wide grin plastered across his face.

And how could he not?

“Heh. I don’t know what possessed that woman to leave her castle after hiding for hundreds of years, but it’s time to show her the Demon World has changed.”

This was an age of turmoil, after all.

The push to invade the continent had waned somewhat, but demons didn’t believe the world would end just because that invasion failed.

They could invade whenever they wanted.

But the Demon King’s throne was not something you could claim whenever you pleased.

You needed the strength, and you needed the luck.

Kaini was confident that he already possessed more than enough strength.

That was a belief shared by every top-tier demon in the Demon World.

In that situation, those who shared that belief had even joined forces.

On top of that, the Demon King herself had walked out of her fortress without an escort and traveled far afield. Fortune had practically thrown itself at their feet.

How could they hesitate?

They had waited hundreds of years; who would hesitate now?

Across the vast Demon World, the scent of war began to stir.

*

Though it was progressing off-camera, those in the know were well aware that Dino’s Story Quest for his Legendary-grade class was steadily moving forward.

It was only natural. Unlike Han Simin, who had to meet the Demon King in the Demon World, Dino only needed to track down the remnants of the Story Quest that existed on the continent.

Of course, that was still extremely difficult, but with Kenji’s full support and a streak of overlapping good fortune, he had managed to make considerable progress.

To put it in perspective, he had advanced far beyond the two videos Han Simin had seen.

He, too, had watched several scenes through the eyes of the former Archmage, and among them, he had also seen overlapping episodes involving Epia and the former Enhancer.

The problem began from there.

At the end of a gloomy cave.

A video appeared before Dino as he picked up a crimson gem that shone proudly in the pitch-black darkness where not even a sliver of light could seep in.

“I love you.”

The Archmage watched from a distance as the Enhancer and Epia whispered words of love.

He calmed his violently pounding heart and turned away, for the sake of his friend, for the sake of his comrade.

As he refined the crimson ruby, he muttered to himself.

“In the next life...”

At that moment, the video ended.

And the ruby was absorbed into Dino.

Along with it, the former Archmage’s final message flowed into his ear.

—"You must never let the Enhancer’s successor take anything from you. That damned bastard. I admit defeat this time... but if you ever meet the succubus, Epia, tell her you are my heir. You must convey my feelings to her."

Thus, the path toward the endpoint of the Story Quest was laid out before Dino.

—"As for your reward... I’ll consider the magic tome I gave you to be sufficient."

A one-sided path with no reward of any kind.