Well, most of Korean stories are centered in revenge plot, that's why whether it's by print or media, the main character always hits super rock bottom, then rise up and get their satisfying revenge. There's also an explanation why Gjord was not with him during the past 2 years and why he only shows up now and why his actions are also limited. Idk how much will be told in this manhwa but I fear I might spoil you if I explain further
It's just that, to me personally, Sylas has hit rock bottom... And then went lower and lower and lower and lower. There's a thin line between a well written tragedy and just finding new ways to torment a character for shock value, and I'm not sure the author here has managed to stay on the better side of that line. I get your points, both about "the revenge is better if the character has gone through a lot" and "Gjord has his reasons not to be here", but if it comes to the point where Sylas' latest misfortune makes me snort in disbelief instead of grieving with him, it cheapens his tragedy.
Just my opinion tho. I've really liked the writing until now and I'm going to keep reading.
I think the story is great and the character fantastic, but this arc is so hard to get through. It feels like the author is trying to see how much misery they can pile up onto Sylas until it becomes ridiculous, and for me they crossed the line quite a while ago. I'm a big fan of tragic characters, but when literally NOTHING goes their way despite their struggles it really feels like torture porn. It isn't even about Gjord showing up, if anything it's the opposite: Sylas did so much on his own, you're telling me he'll have a reprieve ONLY when the ml shows up??? It kinda leaves a bad taste in my mouth