Chapter 111

〈 Chapter 112 〉 The Third Trial (7)

*

Overload

Category: Consumable

Type: Pill

Description: A potion with mysterious powers. It must be completely ingested for effects to take place. It boosts all stats by three levels (Overload) for 30 minutes but causes side effects that lower all stats by two levels (Overload) for 24 hours. If ingested multiple times, the effects are halved and the side effects are doubled.

Originally, the effect that increased base stats by two levels became one that increases them by three levels.

The side effects also amplified, becoming two levels, but since the battles had to be concluded within 30 minutes, it didn’t really matter.

“Elsie.”

I handed two remaining pills to Elsie.

Since any pills taken after three would have no effect due to the halving effect, I figured it was best to give the remaining two to Elsie, who played a crucial role like myself.

“These aren’t some suspicious drugs, right?”

The pills swirling with dark aura did look a bit shady, even to me.

However, Elsie proved her question was a joke by confidently popping the two pills into her mouth.

I also wasted no time and placed three pills in my mouth.

“Oh, this definitely feels intense.”

Elsie said, her eyes wide open.

She must be feeling her physical abilities surge rapidly.

I felt the same after swallowing three pills.

‘What does it mean to feel intense?’

But to be honest, it did feel quite accurate.

The sensation in my body shifted dramatically in an instant.

I opened my status menu to check my stats.

2. Stats

Health: B (Overload)

Strength: A (Overload)

Agility: A (Overload)

Magic Power: D (Overload)

‘One thing’s for sure: this performance is solid.’

My current stats were on par with Gwen’s from our previous encounter.

With only agility being one level lower, all my other stats exceeded those of Gwen at that time.

Though since Gwen had the benefit of being precocious, that may not hold true now.

“Then, let’s get started.”

Elsie nagged as I was momentarily distracted by checking my stats.

Though I had intended to start, it was true that I got a bit lost in my status.

I asked Elsie for confirmation.

“Can you handle that now?”

Elsie confidently nodded.

“Of course. I’m feeling brimming with magic power.”

The Awakening Pill raised stats for physical abilities as well as magic power.

Of course, magic power wasn’t particularly useful for Yusera or me, but it was different for Elsie.

I checked Elsie’s status as well.

2. Stats

Health: A (Overload)

Strength: A (Overload)

Agility: S+ (Overload)

Magic Power: A (Overload)

…That’s some absurd stats.

Suddenly, I recalled this pill was a reward for passing the trial.

With all stats above A, this was an ability level that could challenge not just high-level foes but saint-level ones as well.

‘Though you can’t achieve saint-level just with stats.’

Moreover, the effect of the Awakening Pill was only temporary.

There wasn’t a single item that could permanently boost stats to this level.

Reaching such stats without items was nearly impossible.

Anyway, it was more important to utilize these temporary stats to the fullest right now.

Elsie’s magic power was at a level that would give even most magicians a run for their money.

Furthermore, Elsie had skillfully trained to effectively utilize that power.

However…

“Then, I’ll begin.”

Perhaps because I was somewhat of a mentor myself, I still felt anxious.

“I didn’t ask if you had enough magic power. I meant to ask if you remember everything I taught you properly.”

Just having enough magic power didn’t guarantee success.

Yet Elsie nodded seriously.

“I have to do it, regardless of whether I can or not. Plus, I’ve succeeded a few times while practicing.”

She had succeeded a few times.

Which implied she had failed dozens of times.

But it was true we had to do this now regardless of ability.

“From point to line, and from line to space. I just need to do that much, right?”

At her words, I nodded.

During the break, I taught Elsie Libero’s swordsmanship.

Elsie, unlike a playable character, showed quite a talent for swordsmanship, and since she was already using the Reedval family’s style, it was easy to teach her.

Despite how well she absorbed the training, it made me think that Elsie’s Sakh route was truly powerful.

However, the extent of what Elsie could achieve was limited to the realm of space.

In fact, reaching that level in such a short time was impressive.

I had gone through the trial a hundred times before barely reaching the realm of space, and only after facing Libero head-on did I manage to grasp the realm of time.

‘That doesn’t mean Elsie could easily reach the realm of time too.’

Perhaps it was forever impossible for Elsie to enter the realm of time.

In my case, I relied on Wind’s Power and could only imitate entering the time realm; I had no idea how the genius swordsman Libero achieved it with just his bare body.

That skill had completely vanished except for Libero.

Thus, without abilities related to acceleration, it was practically impossible for Elsie to enter the realm of time.

‘That means I have to take on that role.’

Certainly, Elsie’s agility stats were high at the moment.

To even enter the realm of time against the current Elsie, I’d need to significantly use Wind’s Power to accelerate.

But as long as I was limited by stats, I couldn’t guarantee I would be able to cut through the body of the 31st Demon King lurking inside the tentacles.

So, Elsie’s role was…

“I can definitely just open the way.”

It was opening the path for me to reach the Demon King Form.

“You always emphasized that the most important thing in swordsmanship is conviction.”

Without hesitation, she raised her sword.

At that moment, light began to shine from the tip of her sword.

Perhaps because of the increase in magic power, it was glowing more intensely than ever.

“From point to line.”

The light shining from the tip of Elsie’s sword began to stretch longer.

And soon, the light reached up to the sky.

She exchanged one last look with me.

“Then, from line to space.”

Simultaneously, her sword swung.

To the Demon King, it would simply look like she was swinging at nothing.

But from my perspective, that strike looked entirely different.

‘It’s a path.’

The elongated light distorted the surrounding area, creating a pathway.

Now all I had to do was take advantage of the space she created.

‘Wind’s Power.’

Without confirming the path, I was already dashing forward as she swung her sword.

Her swordsmanship fundamentally aligned with my style.

A connection like this was well within my capability.

‘The space created by Elsie’s sword is now my space.’

Time felt as though it was flowing slowly.

Elsie’s light tinted the surrounding space, and I dashed right behind it.

Though it was a high magic power value labeled A, running alongside it felt pleasantly warm.

Thus, the light eventually reached the Demon King’s outer skin.

An invisible attack launched from afar by Elsie.

The Demon King did not notice it until it created a hole in his outer shield weakened by Yusera’s attack.

That small hole, which could have been quickly replenished, was different this time.

‘From space to space.’

From the invisible edge of that sword stroke, I suddenly appeared.

An extraordinary technique created by two users of Libero’s swordsmanship.

To the Demon King, it must have felt as though I had teleported off Elsie’s strike.

‘Success.’

Feeling the Demon King’s surprise, I continued to move without stopping the Wind’s Power.

And I hurriedly entered before the small hole created by Elsie’s strike could regenerate.

But the next moment…

Inside the Demon King’s body, I couldn’t help but feel bewildered.

‘What in the world…?’

What lay before my eyes was an unexpected scenery.

And no wonder—I hadn’t heard from Stella about what was inside.

‘This is…’

Initially, the reason one couldn’t strike the main body from the outside was evident.

This place’s space was astonishingly vast.

‘Is this even the universe?’

An endlessly expanding dark space.

It felt as if I was observing the cosmos.

But the difference was that there were no stars or dust here.

My gaze eventually settled on one location.

In fact, I had no choice but to look at it.

In this vast space, only that thing hung solitary.

‘Is that the 31st Demon King’s true form?’

A hovering object that appeared to be the 31st Demon King’s real body.

It looked somewhat unappealing.

‘A fetus?’

A translucent red cocoon floating in mid-air, pulsating like a heartbeat.

Inside, there certainly appeared to be the shape of a fetus.

However, I couldn’t hesitate after coming this far.

‘If I stop here, I’ll be bounced back to the realm of time.’

The way I entered the realm of time was through acceleration using Wind’s Power.

If I stop accelerating now, I wouldn’t be able to re-enter the time realm.

Now that the cocoon was moving slowly…

I had to dive into the realm of time.

With Wind’s Power, I accelerated and approached the cocoon rapidly.

When I got close enough to the cocoon, I entered the realm of time, and controlling my body became increasingly difficult.

‘Overload.’

I applied Overload to the holy relic I was holding.

And relying on the sensations coming from Wind’s Power, I struck out with my sword.

Simultaneously, a feeling was conveyed through the blade.

Thud.

The sword pierced deep into the cocoon.

The blade penetrated the fetus within.

At that moment, the cocoon’s pulse stopped.

‘Did I take it out?’

Just as that thought passed through my mind, a voice echoed from somewhere.

­Is this the end?

It was a voice devoid of gender or age.

I couldn’t even tell from which direction it came.

Yet, somehow, I knew without a doubt that it was the voice of the fetus.

“Not dead yet?”

­Dead? It merely returns to chaos.

That statement caught my attention.

“Returning to chaos?”

At this, it replied as if it were obvious.

­It’s only logical. Every human comes from chaos.

“What does that mean…”

­You’ll find out soon enough. All causality will ultimately lead to the end of the world.

While I was confused by its unfathomable words…

­Ha…

It suddenly sighed.

­But was this place a shard of a chain? How amusing.

“The chain? What is that…”

Just as I was trying to grasp information as that familiar word appeared out of nowhere…

The moment the universe began to collapse.

Simultaneously, through the collapsing gaps in the universe, the scenery outside became visible.

“Hey!”

I called out into the void, but received no response.

Instead, the only sight was the disintegrating massive outer skin of the 31st Demon King, along with Elsie and Yusera standing around it.

Seeing the outer skin of the 31st Demon King crumble, Elsie and Yusera rushed over.

Yusera shouted triumphantly.

“I did it!”

“You make it sound like you did that all by yourself!”

As Elsie and Yusera sprinted over with great enthusiasm…

I felt something strange.

The 31st Demon King hadn’t died.

‘He definitely was dead.’

As proof, the true body had stopped pulsating, and soon the outer skin too had disintegrated into particles.

Yet, for some reason, the death of the 31st Demon King wasn’t registering as an achievement.

‘Something’s off.’

Not just that, the air flowing around us felt strangely ominous.

I quickly turned to look around.

Noticing my unease, Elsie halted in place.

“Allen? What’s going on?”

I had felt that unsettling vibe since meeting Gineus.

That unsettling feeling had never subsided and had continued until now.

And just now, a harrowing thought crossed my mind.

‘Is this place…?’

Earlier, it had mentioned the shard of a chain.

A shard, disconnected and separate.

What if that were what it intended to communicate…

In that instant.

With a colossal noise, the ground shook.

The tremor was so significant that I barely managed to maintain my balance and turned to see where the sound originated.

There, a massive shadow loomed.

‘That’s…!’

I had only seen it in Yusera’s memories but never directly.

Nevertheless, I had no way to mistake it.

The gigantic body, scales as if made of steel, and the monumental wings on its back.

‘72nd Demon King.’

Resembling a gigantic dragon, it was the form it took after having fully awakened.

That creature was rising from the devastated Church Headquarters.

“Allen, what exactly is that…”

I had overlooked something crucial.

If the Demon King had targeted this location instead of Leim Kingdom, then it was likely the 72nd Demon King was also here instead of the Leim Kingdom.

If the 72nd Demon King managed to invade Saint City Hailen, then there would be no better place than the Church Headquarters for it to awaken.

“That it still exists means…”

Of course, I couldn’t prove it without testing.

But sometimes, it’s clear without the need for evidence.

Like simple addition or the laws of physics.

This was one of those cases.

‘It’s the end.’

Regardless, soon 30 minutes would pass, and the penalty would begin.

Moreover, I had already consumed all my Awakening Pills for this raid.

Then stopping that creature was simply impossible.

‘Most world-ending scenarios are brought about by that creature.’

I could only watch vacantly as it ascended into the sky.

Energy began to gather in the monster’s maw.

That energy gradually shrank, forming a sphere, and began to descend toward the earth.

There was no way to stop it.

While watching the small sphere descend, I called out into the void.

“Hey, God of Watching.”

The sphere touched down.

And the next moment, nothing remained around us.

The annihilation of Hailen.

“Is this another trial?”

­Thank you for your hard work. But that is not my name.

*

Once again, I returned to the Great Tree.

I was slumped against it, my legs losing strength.

“Can I ask just one question?”

­If it’s something I can answer, feel free to proceed.

“Is there a rule that trials have to always be this horrific?”

­That’s simply what ‘trials’ are, you see.

I almost nodded involuntarily.

But no matter how much this was a trial, the difficulty of this one had exceeded all limits.

I had suspected this would happen somewhat when it warned me of the difficulty, but this level far surpassed my expectations.

Yeah, I could somewhat handle up to the 31st Demon King.

But the last one was truly out of line.

“Concealing the 72nd Demon King until the end is practically setting me up for failure.”

That was an opponent I couldn’t defeat no matter what I did.

Thus, I had to defeat it before the 72nd Demon King awakened at Leim Kingdom.

Yet they had set things up where I had to face such a foe alongside the 31st Demon King…

­I’m not quite sure what you’re talking about. You completed my trial perfectly.

*