“You’re insane! You’ve lost your mind wanting to die!”
Gripping the reins, Transylvania headed deeper into the mountains, away from the suburbs.
She had to go as far as possible within the barrier’s range.
Somewhere that wouldn’t catch their eye.
Killing all sounds and scents.
She would wait until that foolish human died and the barrier lifted.
“It was clear they were out of their mind even roaming with a Blood Ghoul… But to think they had gone that far.”
It was unbelievable.
Carrying a Mana Stone soaked with the scent of the Great Druid Kali so openly.
The scent was so strong that it even raised suspicion it might have come from within the Great Druid’s body.
The way that human obtained the Great Druid’s Mana Stone could be speculated in two ways.
First, they might have accidentally entered the Great Druid’s barrier, found the Mana Stone, and stolen it.
Second, they might have received it as a gift from the Great Druid, but…
‘That can’t be!’
With the Great Demon’s Perfect Barrier covering all of Basel at this moment, the chances of the second scenario were extremely low.
They must have come to retrieve something they had stolen.
One question remains: Why did the Great Demon spread the barrier instead of the Great Druid?
The Great Druid Kali’s barrier technique was no slouch either.
She wouldn’t be so prideful as to need someone else’s help to reclaim her own belongings.
‘That doesn’t matter now. What matters is that the Four Heavenly Kings moved personally.’
Those chosen subordinates.
The Four Heavenly Kings are tasked with preparations to terraform this world.
They needed to work quietly beneath the surface until ‘that day’ arrives.
That they revealed themselves so overtly means they’re extremely angry.
That human probably has no idea.
What kind of hornet’s nest they have stirred.
What kind of end they will meet.
Clueless, they will foolishly accept their death.
The death of a few stupid beings like that doesn’t concern me.
The problem is that bystanders suffer.
If by some stroke of arrogance, the Blood Ghoul girl who was with them dies, then it would mean losing yet another precious kin.
“What a disgrace, acting like this because of one deranged human being…”
On top of that, here I am, Transylvania, acting as if I’m scared.
In reality, she just didn’t want to make too much noise.
This humiliation was all caused by that foolish human.
As Transylvania thought this and clicked her tongue,
“Hm? What’s that scent…?”
She noticed a strange odor filling the surrounding area.
A scent so intense it pierced her nose.
This scent must be…
Bang!
“?!”
At that moment, a black beam shot up.
As Transylvania instinctively fell back, the explosion occurred.
It all happened in an instant.
When she came to her senses, a massive crater had formed where she had stood, emitting black smoke.
The horse lay shattered, only its lower body rolling on the ground.
Within the endlessly rising black smoke, a figure slowly began to manifest.
Transylvania’s pupils shook violently.
|From the abyss of the Demon World, where hellfire burns, I, the Great Demon|
She thought she would never see this again.
His loyal confidant, his right arm.
And Transylvania’s successor.
|Belphegor shall manifest in this world|
The Great Demon, Belphegor, stepped forward.
The black demonic energy gathered around her, gradually forming limbs that draped a black dress.
Though her entire body was filled with demonic energy and her appearance was indistinct,
The regal horns that soared above her head and the pitch-black pupils were evident in the darkness.
And only the eerie smile revealed itself from the gloom.
Transylvania had to accept this.
The Great Demon’s true form had completely manifested in this world.
|I followed the scent of Kali. It’s good to see a familiar face.|
“Belphegor… This is just coincidence.”
|Coincidence?|
The Great Demon tilted her head strangely.
She reached into the shattered saddlebag of the horse.
Then, a black sphere was pulled out between her long fingers.
A Mana Stone, intensely exuding the scent of the Great Druid.
“Why is that… How did it get there…?”
Transylvania’s mouth fell open.
She had to explain somehow.
Even a nonsensical excuse would do, she had to speak up anyway.
Unfortunately, Transylvania’s vocal cords seemed frozen as she struggled to make a sound.
Even now, she could easily slice through a Great Demon if she drew her sword.
‘My life is ruined.’
Yet, Transylvania’s hand did not move.
She couldn’t muster the courage to raise her hand to the hilt.
Familiar fear and familiar powerlessness surrounded Transylvania.
Before it even began, she had lost the will to fight.
The situation did not allow for combat in the first place.
To them, I was nothing but a toy or a tiny ant wandering by.
If they feel like it, they could either let her go or crush her without hesitation.
Just a worthless being.
“Ah…”
All she could do now was beg.
Kneeling, she prayed for mercy.
Suppressing her trembling neck muscles, she squeezed out the paltry amount of courage she had left and spoke.
“I-I have nothing to do with that Mana Stone! You know? For old times’ sake-”
“Oh, there you are?”
“…?!”
The sound of crunching branches as someone climbed the mountain path.
It was a familiar voice.
As expected, there was that daft human, grinning brightly and running over with the pale-skinned girl.
Transylvania bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut.
“Why are you all the way out here? It’s good that the citizens weren’t harmed, but it was hard to find you-”
“Dammit, please don’t act like you know me!!!”
A scream filled with frustration erupted, coloring the entire mountain.
But the human paid no heed.
They were just casually drawing their sword, approaching Transylvania’s side.
|Hmm…|
Whoosh.
The Mana Stone in the Great Demon’s hand flew through the air toward the human.
The human caught it and stowed it in their pocket.
Then, they walked over casually, standing shoulder to shoulder with Transylvania.
“Don’t pretend to be friendly!!!”
“Oh, why are you like this? When you were happy to call me kin?”
If I chop off the human’s head here, won’t they recognize my innocence?
Such thoughts crossed her mind, but she could not muster the courage to grasp the hilt.
Under Belphegor’s chill gaze, Transylvania was paralyzed.
Tears threatened to spill.
“Is it you, the true form? I’ve waited solely for you. You’re the first to make me wait this long since a crush who promised they’d like me and then went abroad without returning.”
|How arrogant. Poor thing, unaware of your future…|
The human raised their sword and prepared to attack.
The Blood Ghoul girl gathered mana, and several spells began to be cast simultaneously.
Yet, the Great Demon merely sneezed, holding a relaxed smile.
It seemed there was a familiarity there.
Apparently, the human had met the Great Demon’s contractor before.
Yet the human could not imagine.
What kind of destructive power would be wielded when the Great Demon manifests in her true form.
“If you want to live, quickly return that Mana Stone! You foolish human!”
|I have no need for it. That worthless dead soul means nothing. Kali was the weakest among us.|
“Wow, here it is. The classic line. Even if you die, other guys will say the same line. Doesn’t that feel embarrassing? Can you handle that?”
|…|
The faint smile on the Great Demon’s lips twisted for an instant.
She showed signs of agitation.
With a hint of displeasure on her face, the Great Demon slowly raised her hand.
|This is boring now|
“Oh no!”
A familiar motion.
A familiar gesture.
Transylvania collapsed in shock and screamed.
The human burst forth, trying to strike the Great Demon’s wrist with their sword, but
“…?!”
A black hole erupted from the Great Demon’s palm.
It then began to suck in wind, light, and everything.
Unable to resist,
The human, the Blood Ghoul girl, and even Transylvania, who had been squatting, were all drawn into the Great Demon’s palm.
|The rest shall be left to Lord Draken|
“…”
“…”
Silence settled in.
Before the Great Demon, only the desolate ground remained.
.
.
.
What just happened?
I remember being sucked into somewhere as if my body was being crumpled.
But everything after that is hazy.
“Ah! Aaaah! Aaaah! It’s happened! It’s happened again! It’s happened again!!!”
The muffled scream like someone drowning reached my ears.
Only then did I open my eyes.
What came into view was a Blood Ghoul in full armor, crying with vacant eyes.
My body feels heavy somehow.
It’s like I entered a dream.
Struggling as if swimming in a tank filled with illusions, my body moves a beat slower.
“Mi Jeong, Mi Jeong…”
I barely turn my head, waving my arms to find the unseen presence.
The being that had been right beside me just a moment ago.
A familiar sensation brushes against my hand.
“…Yoo Jin.”
“Glad to see you.”
I confirm that Mi Jeong is safe.
That’s all that matters.
Now, the problem is where we are…
“Eh?”
Shudder.
The ground trembles once.
Shudder.
After shaking again, I realize.
What I’m standing on is not ground.
The thing towering around us is not foliage.
As soon as I grasp that fact, a chill runs down my spine.
I begin to feel someone’s gaze upon me.
“I don’t want to do this a second time! I don’t want to! It’s scary! I’m afraid!”
“…”
I can’t bring myself to look up.
Someone is watching me.
The weight of that gaze leaves me with no courage to meet.
My body trembles.
I remain still.
Transylvania had been mocking me not long ago; now I find myself in the same situation.
‘What is that?’
I am now standing atop something enormous.
And that enormous something is watching me.
Just the realization of that leaves me so overwhelmed that I can’t move a finger.
Not because of being crushed under potent demonic energy,
Simply because.
My very existence is being diminished under the weight of that giant entity.
The only thing I can suspect it to be is one.
[Achievement Unlocked]
[First Encounter with Draken!]
Final Boss.
The true form of Draken.
I have now been dragged right up to the final boss.
The moment I realized that, the course of action became clear.
It’s terrifying, but still, I have to find out.
‘Weak Point.’
As I quietly chant it in my heart,
“Ah!”
My entire field of vision turns red.
Everything becomes red, except for myself and Mi Jeong.
Everywhere, the whole world turns crimson until nothing is visible.
‘Something like this. There’s no way I can grab it.’
Now I understand why Draken had been sleeping in this other-dimensional underworld.
Why just his descent brings about the world’s ruin.
Finally, that question is answered.
When facing the final boss, what will I do, I had once imagined that.
Even if I fled, I’d first gauge the situation and understand the patterns during the early stage, thinking such silly things.
But ultimately, that was just fantasy, rendered null by reality.
It’s impossible.
There’s no way to face this being.
It’s not a matter of will.
Let alone level.
It’s not that impossibility doesn’t exist, yet here stands the undeniable truth.
An absolute entity, now gazing down upon me.
|법민때발두렉걍걍벨댕겨깃뒷뢍뮌꽥뜰봤렌뱍궉례늪꽥랭룀뤠랜궉뢍뮌걍벨곗땍궉둠뢍뭐걍벨덱냈깬뙨령놔걍베멋됐근룐렷깃걍벨득냈긔력뢍뮌꽥띰밂뤠벅|
The horrific noise that seemed to shatter my skull enveloped me all around.
|베걺둡꽥뙤뀨뭏늚궉렷륑꽥램밌겨깖럴뢍뤽꽹뜰눈겡받랙령놓걍벨덱냈깬뙨령놔걍벨둡굶금렀례건뷕딤냥겨긴룐뢍벗꽹뜰봤멋및베껌갑꽤룻밞뤼궁베깆뀄꽹또묀멓귄벴녀많꽹똥맙렌뱍베듕많꽹뜰묀렌벰법밸몄깃됩뒝뭔늑베돼몃방랙뢍닛꽹뚠간겨긔등렷럽꽤룀됩흐흐|
“I can’t take this!”
My body can’t withstand it anymore.
Before my body shatters, my mind can’t take it.
Already, my vision blurs, and my thoughts become hazy.
If this continues, I feel like I’m walking a path worse than death.
I want to pluck my eyes out, bow to the magnificent being, offer my loyalty, and comply.
If I don’t want to go mad, there’s no other choice but to submit to that greatness.
[As a reward for achieving an achievement, the trait ‘Mental Strength Enhancement’ has been granted.]
[Trait: Mental Strength Enhancement]
[A strong body houses a strong mind. Mental strength is bolstered in proportion to overall stats.]
“Hah?!”
At that moment.
My vision cleared, and the muffled sound in my ears burst open.
The dizzying, painful headache dissipated, leaving clarity behind.
My hands were gripping my eyeballs as if to pluck them out.
I was startled and lowered my hands.
Unknowingly, I had almost harmed myself.
“Mental Strength Enhancement…”
An essential trait for the final battle.
It was obtained right at the perfect time.
In this underworld, where Draken’s influence is absolute, maintaining mental clarity without this trait is impossible.
“With this, it should be a fair fight.”
It’s still hard to lift my head.
Instinctively, I lower my eyes.
Though I can see the massive tentacles stretching out from all around, I cannot bear to face the visage itself.
If I were to meet its gaze, I feel like tears of blood would pour from my eyes, and I’d pluck my eyes out.
But now, resisting is possible.
According to the trait description, as my stats increase, so will this resistive power.
Though I can’t fight right now, I can prepare for what’s to come.
“Thanks for the trait.”
With everything I needed acquired,
It’s time to escape this place.
I reach into my pocket, and something metallic fits snugly into my hand.
The culmination of advanced techniques.
The masterpiece of a genius engineer.
A tool to tear a hole in space-time and send us back…
“See you next time.”
Longinus’ Spear.
