Chapter 33.1
Sephiro
Demon merchants are beings who exchange valuable things.
However, approaching them without caution could end in disaster.
âAll demon merchants are swindlers.â
From the start, thereâs no standard pricing.
They donât lay out goods with price tags on a stall.
While they vaguely explain that they âassess valueâ to make a deal, the worth of the same item can vary depending on the person and the situation.
In other words, theyâre con artists.
Sometimes demon merchants even set up scenarios to corner humans, trying to rob them of life and flesh for a pittanceâviolent thieves masquerading as merchants.
Under the guise of âtransactionsâ, they were monsters committing murder.
Making a fair deal with them?
Only someone completely out of their mind would think of that.
And Park Chan-woo was certainly not that type.
âIâve been surviving in the Abyss for 20 years. In all that time, Iâve never seen an ethical demon merchant.â
There was never a straightforward trade from the start.
Demon merchants always tried to secure the upper hand in any deal.
If they felt they were at a disadvantage, theyâd vanish without a second thought.
However, it wasnât impossible to strike a deal of equal value.
One could leverage power, exploit weaknesses, or present something enticing to make a fair exchange.
But there was an even more foolproof way.
âYou can also bankrupt a demon merchant.â
Thatâs right.
Bankruptcy.
Killing demons of the Abyss wasnât easy.
How could a mere human hunt beings born and raised in the Abyss?
But there were ways, given the right circumstancesâthrough bankruptcy or binding oaths.
Especially if one knows a demonâs name, thereâs no escape for them.
Just before bankruptcy, a demon will resort to âbeggingâ under the guise of a transaction.
Theyâll plead for their life, offering anything and everything to avoid financial ruin.
“W-What is⊠going onâŠ?”
Dagonâs gaze trembled, unable to hide his shock.
It was only naturalâhe hadnât expected that name to surface.
“I did mention this was valuable information from the start.”
Park Chan-woo clicked his tongue softly.
Every bit of this had been orchestrated by him, anticipating Dagonâs reaction perfectly.
âHe must have assumed Iâd bought the rules from another demon merchant.â
With demon merchants appearing throughout the dungeon, Dagon likely thought Park had traded with one of them for knowledge of the âmerchantâs rulesâ.
If so, he wouldâve expected Park to be under a ânon-disclosureâ contract and intended to force him to name his informant to trigger a breach penalty.
Then he would have demanded compensation in exchange for waiving the penalty.
But it was unfortunate for DagonâPark Chan-woo understood the rules of the merchants better than anyone.
“No human should know that name⊠itâs impossible⊔
Dagon was still in denial, but denial wouldnât alter reality.
The message and the contract written in demon script before him made it clear.
Griiiit!
Dagon clenched his teeth.
“How⊠how could you know that name, forbidden to speak?”
A forbidden name.
Indeed, demons often referred to the âDragon God Sephiroâ in such terms, as if speaking of an eternal nemesis.
There was a storyâan almost unbelievable oneâthat long ago, Sephiro had slain one of the âTen Supreme Monarchsâ, thus reducing them to the âNine Supremesâ.
âI didnât believe it either, not until I saw Sephiroâs true form.â
Even Park Chan-woo had doubted it at first.
The Nine were at the pinnacle of the Abyssal Lords, feared even by the Twelve Sovereigns.
But upon seeing Sephiro, the transcendent dragon himself, Park had finally understood.
Sephiro truly had turned the âTen Supremesâ into the âNine Supremesâ.
And just as demons hated Sephiro, Sephiro detested demons.
Once, Sephiro had even distributed a âDemon Compendiumâ.
Because of that, Park Chan-woo had come to know all too well about the demon merchants and their ways.
âAnd to think just mentioning Sephiroâs name would incur such a massive debt.â
The debt for speaking that name alone amounted to 20 million.
Perhaps the âforbiddenâ status of the name created a premium.
Even creators who kept their names hidden didnât hold this much value.
Having sorted through his thoughts, Park Chan-woo spoke again.
“You can make sense of how I know Sephiroâs name on your own.”
“âŠâŠ”
Dagonâs agitation finally subsided.
This was no ordinary human.
Earth hadnât yet connected with the other realms, so it was impossible for anyone to know of the âTwelve Racesâ here.
And yet, this man knew. He knew of the Dragon Clanâs chief, that terrifying name!
âA human close enough to Sephiro to learn the merchantsâ rulesâŠâ
It seemed implausible.
âCould he have a contract with Sephiro? As the leader of the Dragons, Sephiro would have the ability to forge contracts across realms.â
Dagon entertained the idea for a momentâbut he had no way to confirm it.
Maybe if he raised his rank, he could get an answer from the higher-ups. For now, it was simply impossible.
One thing was clear: this human was toying with him, coming in fully prepared.
âA human more devilish than a demon.â
It was far too late for regrets.
The one ensnared wasnât this human. It was Dagon himself.
Then, Park Chan-woo spoke calmly.
It was time to collect that 20 million in value.
“Itâs time to pay up, Dagon.”
“âŠâŠ”
“Or are you planning to go bankrupt right here?”
For someone like Dagon, bankruptcy meant death.
That was the price of Park Chan-woo knowing his name.
Dagon opened his mouth, struggling to speak.
“âŠWhat do you want from me?”
“The World Treeâs Fruit.”
“That⊠thatâs beyond what my rank permits.”
“Then go bankrupt.”
“W-Wait! Now that I think about it, it may be possible. With a value of twenty million, it could be a decent trade.”
Merely uttering the name Sephiro carried a value of twenty million.
Considering that a high-grade elixir could be bought for only half a million, it was an absurd amount.
Unable to pay in full, Dagon offered the World Treeâs Fruit as an alternative, treating it as an equivalent exchange for twenty million in value.
Swoosh!
The World Treeâs Fruit materialized in Dagonâs hand, shining with a radiant glow.
Aside from its luminescent quality, it looked like an ordinary apple.
“What do you say? Accept my offer, and itâs yours.”
