Lee Shin engaged in mock battles with Gremory to prepare for the Ranking Battle.

Joachim Murat.

In his lifetime, he had been a cavalry commander under Napoleon, renowned for his bravery.

However, after becoming the King of Naples, he betrayed Napoleon to secure his own position, greatly contributing to Napoleon’s downfall—only to fall alongside him.

In truth, even Gremory had never faced Belial in a Ranking Battle, so she had little to say about his style.

However…

“You must never underestimate him. As soon as he became a Contractor, he won consecutive battles, rapidly elevating Belial’s rank.”

“But he’s in the lowest ranks now.”

“Because he kept winning without a single loss, both Belial and Joachim Murat became overly arrogant. They wagered the maximum 50,000 magic power and lost, plummeting in an instant.”

“I see.”

“After that, they won one battle and lost another. They gained 10,000 magic power from their victory but lost 30,000 in defeat.”

Despite having far more victories than losses, their poor betting choices had led to their current rank.

They were unlucky, but it also meant they didn’t properly assess their opponents when betting.

‘Just from that, he does seem to lack judgment.’

And yet, someone like him had such a high win rate. There had to be something more to it.

Lee Shin became particularly cautious.

He spoke up.

“If they challenge us, we should only wager 10,000 magic power.”

“To prepare for the risk of losing?”

“Yes. I still don’t have a clear grasp of our opponent. For the battlefield, I think the second battlefield, Blue Rain, where I fought Amdusias, would be best.”

Since Joachim Murat had been a cavalry commander, fighting in the complex pathways of Blue Rain seemed to be the more advantageous choice.

“Understood.”

Lee Shin made various speculations about Joachim Murat’s style and formulated his strategy accordingly.

Then, a few days later.

While reviewing strategies once more in Gremory’s palace, a deafening roar suddenly echoed in the distance.

Thudududududu…!

Lee Shin was startled and jumped up from his seat.

The ruckus sounded like an earthquake.

‘Is it Belial’s side?’

When he stepped out into the first-floor hall, he saw Gremory standing with a rigid expression.

She spoke.

“Brace yourself. Belial has arrived.”

“Understood.”

Gremory approached Lee Shin and grasped his right hand.

He flinched at first but soon realized she was protecting him from Belial’s energy.

Moments later, a shocking sight unfolded.

A chariot, pulled by two black horses, with its wheels ablaze in flames.

Standing atop the chariot were two figures.

One was a demon with blackened wings, dark skin, and an ominous gaze—without a doubt, Demon Lord Belial.

The other was a tall, handsome Western man, likely around 185 cm in height.

This man must be Belial’s Contractor, Joachim Murat.

“Is this the first time we meet in a Ranking Battle, Gremory?”

“It is, Belial.”

The two stared at each other with rigid expressions.

Gremory had fallen endlessly, only to start rising again after meeting Lee Shin.

Belial, on the other hand, had soared without restraint, only to plummet due to reckless betting and arrogance.

Due to their diverging ranks, these two Demon Lords had never faced each other in a Ranking Battle—until now.

Gremory was wary of Belial, who, despite his losses, had an exceptionally high win rate. Likewise, Belial did not underestimate Lee Shin, the Contractor who had begun lifting Gremory from the depths.

Especially after his recent devastating loss, Belial’s once-overwhelming arrogance had been slightly tempered.

Gremory spoke.

“You’ve come to challenge me, haven’t you?”

“Of course.”

“Since you are qualified, avoiding this challenge is impossible. However, before the Ranking Battle, I have an interesting proposal. Have you heard about the Ranking Battle I recently fought against Amdusias?”

“You’re suggesting a system where we fight three rounds, and the first to win two is the victor?”

“Quick to understand. That’s right.”

Belial sneered.

“I refuse.”

In truth, this was a proposal Lee Shin had suggested to Gremory beforehand.

But since it was rejected, there was no helping it.

“Fine. Then let’s proceed with the Ranking Battle. The battlefield will be the second battlefield, Blue Rain, and the wager will be 10,000 magic power.”

“Why not wager a bit more?”

“I refuse.”

“Hah, you’re scared.”

“I am not as foolish as you, Belial.”

At her words, Belial’s brow twitched. Being reminded of his downfall due to reckless betting irritated him.

Belial spoke in a voice filled with suppressed rage to Joachim Murat beside him.

“Make sure to win, Murat.”

“Of course.”

Joachim Murat nodded confidently before glancing at Lee Shin.

Then, he grinned.

“You look weak. Let me guess—people always told you that you were smart, didn’t they?”

“That’s right.”

Lee Shin was far from humble.

“Ahahahaha!”

Joachim Murat laughed loudly.

“I love guys like you. Always acting smart, yet they always lose to me!”

“I heard how you fell.”

“……!”

Joachim Murat was struck speechless.

“You were a fool.”

Then, Lee Shin simply looked away from him.

Joachim Murat’s face flushed red, but soon he scoffed.

“Hmph, enough talk. I’ll crush you soon anyway.”

Turning around sharply, Joachim Murat placed his hand on Belial’s body.

“See you on the battlefield.”

Flash!

With those words, Belial and Joachim Murat disappeared.

“Shall we go as well?”

“Yes.”

The two of them also headed toward the second battlefield, Blue Rain.

[Demon Lord Gremory and Contractor Lee Shin have arrived at the second battlefield, Blue Rain.]

The two sides faced each other.

Joachim Murat, even with the Ranking Battle ahead, was grinning as if he were going on a leisurely outing.

In contrast, Lee Shin was calming his mind.

[This is a Ranking Battle between Demon Lord Gremory and Demon Lord Belial. The outcome will affect their ranks and magic power. A total of 20,000 magic power will be wagered.]

[The 20,000 magic power will be converted into magic stones and distributed across the battlefield.]

[Please select your race.]

“Human.”

“Orc.”

Lee Shin and Joachim Murat chose their respective races.

[The Ranking Battle begins.]

[Contractor Lee Shin of Demon Lord Gremory and Contractor Joachim Murat of Demon Lord Belial will participate.]

The battle began.

“Work.”

At Lee Shin’s command, the slaves roared in response and dashed toward the magic stones.

Summoning new slaves from the command center, Lee Shin fell into thought.

‘It’s best to play safely with a defense-focused strategy.’

From what he observed, Joachim Murat was a man who relied more on instinct than rational judgment.

Surprisingly, even in professional e-sports, there were players like that.

‘Those types have a keen intuition and are good at combat.’

They excelled at unpredictable, animalistic tactics—striking at unexpected moments to achieve impressive results.

The perfect example of such a player was Hwang Byeong-cheol.

Like Lee Shin, Hwang Byeong-cheol had an extremely aggressive playstyle.

However, there was a fundamental difference between them.

Lee Shin’s attacks were like jabs—repeatedly harassing the opponent, chipping away at their resources and forces, as part of a larger strategy.

In other words, his attacks were calculated to tilt the overall situation in his favor.

But Hwang Byeong-cheol was far more extreme.

His attack timing was incredibly fast, and every single strike was a decisive move meant to end the opponent.

One might mistake it for an all-or-nothing gamble.

However, Hwang Byeong-cheol had an exceptional sense of timing in battle.

If he felt he would lose, he withdrew. But if he sensed victory, he would strike fiercely.

That was why, despite his extreme style, he remained top-tier and was one of the few who could rival the once-invincible Lee Shin.

‘If he has a similar style to Hwang Byeong-cheol, I should invest in defense even if it means taking some resource losses.’

Investing in defense too early could sometimes be a waste.

However, humans in the Ranking Battle were even weaker in the early stages compared to humanity in Space Craft.

Even if he suffered some losses, Lee Shin judged that as time passed and both sides grew in scale, his superior strategic management would give him a decisive advantage.

When the eighth slave was summoned, he constructed a barracks at the entrance of his base.

Then, he ordered the ninth summoned slave to scout.

“Leave it to me! I shall repay the grace of being appointed an Apostle!”

The ninth slave assigned to scouting was Columbus.

Columbus immediately dashed toward the 1 o’clock position.

Thanks to his leather boots, which increased movement speed by 5%, he was moving even faster than usual.

The second battlefield, Blue Rain, had only two starting locations—1 o’clock and 7 o’clock.

This meant that the opponent's base location was already predetermined.

However, remembering what happened during the Casanova match, Lee Shin suspected that Joachim Murat might try to hide buildings in the 3 o’clock or 9 o’clock corners.

Because of that, Columbus made a detour to thoroughly check the 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock positions before heading to 1 o’clock.

‘The increased movement speed is definitely helpful.’

After confirming that there were no hidden buildings, Columbus resumed his journey to 1 o’clock.

On the way, he encountered an orc slave coming from the 1 o’clock direction.

‘Murat has started scouting as well.’

Around that time, the barracks was completed.

In an instant, Lee Shin made a decision and gave Columbus an order.

‘Fight.’

Columbus did as instructed and threw a punch at the orc slave he encountered.

“Chwiik!”

The orc slave, struck once, hissed in irritation but ignored Columbus and continued on its path, as if following a set command.

‘Stall for a moment.’

“Yes, sir!”

Following the order, Columbus persistently attacked the orc slave.

Thanks to his boots, which increased movement speed by 5%, he was able to keep up and continue his assault.

With sharp instincts, Columbus tripped the orc slave by hooking its leg.

“Chwiik!”

The enraged orc slave attempted to retaliate, but Columbus mischievously stepped back.

‘That’s enough. Now, continue scouting at 1 o’clock.’

“Understood!”

Enough time had been stalled.

By the time that orc slave reached his base, an archer would have already been summoned from the barracks.

The archer would then block the entrance, preventing the orc slave from entering.

It was a precise, second-by-second calculation that only a professional gamer like Lee Shin could make.

Just as predicted, when the orc slave neared the entrance, an archer was summoned.

“Thank you for calling me!”

Robin Hood shouted cheerfully. He was nothing more than the leader of a bandit group pretending to be Robin Hood, but he was still the best archer Lee Shin had seen.

Robin Hood fired an arrow at the orc slave.

Whoosh!

The arrow struck the orc slave’s left shoulder.

“Chwiik!”

The orc slave let out a scream.

But at that moment, its eyes turned red.

With a demonic, ominous glare, the orc slave charged toward Robin Hood.

Another arrow was fired, but the orc slave rolled to the side, evading it with agility completely different from before.

Remaining low to the ground, the orc slave lunged toward Robin Hood.

“Kuh!”

Robin Hood hastily nocked another arrow and fired, but the orc slave blocked it with its left arm.

Then, closing the distance, the orc slave grabbed Robin Hood and slammed him down with force.

The orc slave grinned.

“I told you, didn’t I? I’ll crush you.”