Yet he was.
Helpless!
This situation continued until he broke through to become a Midgod, only then did it improve slightly.
But it was only slightly better.
He did not know if it was fortunate or unfortunate.
Roland, who had grown accustomed to tribal life and being exploited, was just looking forward to increasing his strength a little more and saving enough Inkstone to take the Fiend assessment and live a life of freedom, when his tribe was suddenly raided by bandits.
He became a captive of the bandits.
Seeing that he was a Midgod, the bandits did not kill him outright.
Instead, they gave him a chance to join them.
If you can't beat them, join them.
This was very common in Hell.
However, the condition for joining was to hand over all the Inkstone on his person.
Fate had toyed with him once again.
And he was just as helpless.
Forced to drift along with the torrent called fate.
Just like that, Roland, who had only just saved up a little, became a pauper once again.
Other than a battle blade that no one cared for, he had nothing else of value on him.
Even this battle blade was left behind only because they needed him to fight.
After the bandits looted all his possessions, they did not forget to dangle a carrot in front of him.
"Kid Roland, right? Now that you've joined us, you'll get a share of the loot from future raids. Don't be discouraged, work hard, your future is looking bright."
"Hahaha!"
Then, a chorus of laughter erupted from the bandits.
At that time, the young Roland clenched his fists, secretly swearing that he would train hard and make a name for himself!
He planned to leave the bandits once he had enough strength and become a free and respected Fiend.
The ideal was plump.
The reality of Hell was very lean.
Fate continued to mock the poor man that was Roland.
Mixing in with the crowd of bandits, Roland was gradually changed by his environment.
Especially after they successfully raided a large caravan.
He received one hundred thousand Inkstone in a single share!
The moment he held the Inkstone.
The persistence in Roland's heart suddenly shattered.
Perhaps it had already shattered long ago.
It was just that Roland only realized it now.
Clutching the Inkstone, Roland swore once again.
"Working for others is impossible, it's impossible to work for others in this life!"
"So what if I become a Fiend? Isn't that just working for an employer all the same?"
"What kind of future is there in working for others?"
Just like that, the once simple and upward-striving Roland completely transformed into one of the countless bandits in Hell.
Over millions of years, his hands had long been stained with the blood of countless innocents.
As for the bandit group Roland had originally stayed with, it had long since been wiped out.
Relying on his wits, he successfully escaped.
Subsequently, relying on his exceptional strength, he successfully raised his own bandit group.
Time passed, and the talented Roland did not take long to successfully break through to Highgod.
His Earth Bandit Group expanded along with him.
And then came the life of raiding that he repeated over and over.
His talent was indeed very strong.
In just a few million years, he had successfully fused the Four Profundities of Earth, possessing the strength of a Seven-Star Fiend!
He, who had not personally participated in a raid for a long time.
With his strength having greatly increased, he couldn't help but want to test his skills.
In this test, he ran into Simon...
Initially, Roland hadn't been interested in attacking when he saw that Kenchi's caravan was small.
But thinking it would be a hassle to go find another caravan to rob, he reluctantly decided to make a move.
Then, he casually struck and shattered the Metal Lifeform that Simon and the others were in.
And that led to the scene at the beginning, where a group of Fiends were pointing at him and making bets.
Roland's messy yellow hair was flying about in his rage as he shouted angrily at Simon and his group.
"Remember that the ones who killed you are the Earth Bandit Group, led by Roland!"
The dozen or so Highgods and thousands of Midgods behind him knew their boss was beyond furious.
They all knew that Roland's current strength was astonishing; even the second-in-command, a Five-Star Fiend, couldn't withstand a casual blow from him.
So, these bandits were happy to watch the show, thinking that once Roland made his move, those few dozen nobodies on the other side would be finished in minutes.
But the progression of events refreshed their understanding once again.
Just then, Simon stepped forward.
"So you're the one called Roland, huh? Move aside now and pay ten million Inkstone in compensation, and I won't hold this against you."
"Hm???"
"A Midgod???"
Roland and the bandits behind him were filled with question marks.
At first, he had assumed Simon was a Highgod hiding his true strength.
But after his soul power swept over him.
Discovering that Simon was indeed a genuine Midgod, he became even more furious!
"You brat, talking big like that—I'll make you regret it."
As he spoke, Roland unleashed his Gravity Space to cover Simon, while simultaneously wielding his battle blade, surging with earth-yellow divine power, and swinging it fiercely toward him.
Instantly, an earth-yellow blade aura tore through the air, streaking toward Simon at Extreme Speed.
"Oh? Seems like he has some strength."
Seeing the opponent's powerful material attack, Simon grew serious.
The Fiends behind him also noticed something was wrong and began to focus on their defense.
But the opposing bandits seemed very calm.
They just watched their boss fight quietly.
This was something Roland had agreed upon beforehand: if they encountered a fat sheep, he would handle it alone, as he hadn't had a good workout in a long time.
The earth-yellow Gravity Space was like ordinary gravitational pull; Simon's fused divine power vibrated, and he broke free from its influence.
He then unleashed his speed, easily dodging the incoming blade aura.
"Fanny, you all step back. This opponent is unusual; I might have to use my full strength."
Simon sent a cautious telepathic message to Fanny and the others behind him.
The group of Fiends was shocked upon hearing this.
"He didn't even use his full strength when killing a Six-Star Fiend level powerhouse?"
"Simon's strength is actually this terrifying..."
Then, they saw Simon wave his right hand, and an Ice Wind Space formed by 365 threads of cyan-blue divine power appeared before everyone's eyes for the first time.
They watched as Roland, who was charging at Extreme Speed, saw his speed drop instantly, his movements becoming distorted.
Only then did everyone understand what Simon meant by "full strength."
So he had such a powerful domain technique that he hadn't used yet.
"Such strong compression and binding; could this brat really be a Highgod?"
Feeling his speed significantly hampered, Roland couldn't help but doubt whether Simon was truly a Midgod.
After all, his own attainments in soul power were mediocre, and he couldn't confirm Simon's identity for certain.
"Forget it, it's not like I haven't encountered opponents with strong domain bindings before. I'll just charge through and smash him."
Roland's divine power surged once more; having fused the Profundity of Strength, he gave his body a jolt and restored his speed to half of what it had been.
"Hiss..."
"This binding force is ridiculously strong, and the divine power he's using is so unique? It seems to be..."
"That's right, this brat is a Soul Mutator!"
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