*
Things are starting to not match the information I knew.
In a world I only knew from a game, increasingly surreal events are unfolding.
And it’s been bothering me about my past all this time.
All the Demon Kings I knew were definitely all male.
“…You’re from the Hero Church too, right? Just by the way you’re acting, it’s clear.”
I threaten the woman in front of me with a sword. If Kainel and Ariel are struggling, she’s definitely not an ordinary person.
She must be the new Demon King. I’ve encountered the other apostles while playing previous games.
“I, I’m the Demon King of Might, Intinium.”
She immediately introduces herself. You wouldn’t do that if you weren’t a fool.
“..I came to catch the one wearing the Black Knight’s helmet, as Magic Hat said.”
The target is obviously me.
I’ve only got involved with Magic Hat just once for the initial clear. I wonder if there’s some kind of grudge, as she keeps dragging me into this.
Calling me ‘my lord’ and all. But I’ve never set up a two-household with a crazy girl like her.
“It’s you, isn’t it?”
She points at me with her finger and smirks.
It’s as if she’s found her target. There’s a frightening glint returning to her otherwise vacant eyes.
“Come with me to the Demon King’s Castle.”
“..What if I don’t want to?”
“Then.. I hear I just have to keep you alive to take you with me.”
My eyebrows furrowed. What on earth is in the Demon King’s Castle that she keeps proposing this to me?
Trying to turn me into a doll that Magic Hat likes?
“Just as Magic Hat said.. you’re someone with.. a different way of thinking than us..”
Intinium shyly huddles as she chats away.
“Same goes for the crazy bastards.”
They’re the ones who drive you insane by foretelling an unfortunate future and scamming people with lies.
On top of that, they completely wrecked the life of someone I love.
“….”
The puzzle pieces fit together.
Visions of horrible things that would have happened if I were not there flood my mind like a thick fog.
She lost her family and friends, her name disappeared, and even her unique powers were gone.
The title of ‘Saintess’ seems worthless, and her Divine Power was sloppy. What on earth happened?
“And you are, in essence, poison to our Pina.”
The pure white wolf who longed for pure love. Perhaps this world was trying to erase her altogether.
Kainel’s shape is a joke too. I have to deal with that guy to heal her.
I aimed my sword at the Demon King. The sharp tip of the blade was directed at Intinium’s neck.
“..You’ve turned my friend into this, so you should be prepared.”
Crack, like every muscle in my body bursts, I stomped the ground. Judging by the surroundings, the opponent’s attack range is wide and powerful.
The basic strategy is to learn the patterns.
‘One strong hit type. I must be careful.’
First, I dive into a diagonal line to gauge the opponent’s movements. It’s just about matching their capabilities with my Mind Sword.
“If this continues… it’ll be troublesome.”
The blue-haired Demon King moves slowly even as I approach. She raises her foot deliberately.
It’s slow enough to make me wonder why the Light Warrior fell. There’s definitely some hidden trick…
‘What’s that…?’
Something appears behind Intinium. Something looks like a white wall fills my view.
Unfathomably high. Even when I look up, I can’t see the end.
An ominous feeling hits me instinctively. It feels like dozens of spiders crawling up my spine.
[Licht… that’s a leg.]
At that moment, Pina’s voice echoed in my head. Though she was flat on the ground, she still tried to help me.
Upon closer inspection, it resembles a human calf and foot with attached muscles. Only one thing has legs like this.
‘Cyclops.’
A one-eyed monster from mythology, known as the Giant.
It is said to be as massive as a hundred mountains stacked on top of each other, and as vast as ten seas combined.
But why is this monster here? I thought it was a discarded monster only seen in the settings.
Even when I bought chocolate for Pina at the bakery, it was about that size.
“Too late.”
Intinium throws a kick. The giant white foot is coming toward me, overwhelming me. I feel as small as an ant.
If I got hit by that, everyone here would die. Think! Is there really no way to counter this?
“Old thought, recollection…!”
Clank, goes the sound of turning gears.
Like a pilot pressing the emergency escape device, I frantically pulled the lever of the black Mind Sword.
Boom—!! The ground shook as it erupted. The sword reshaped the surrounding terrain.
“Gyaak! Wait, this is…”
I pinned Intinium against a dirt wall, shifting her position. The kick veered off at an angle.
What was aimed straight ahead now directed upwards.
I attempted to mix Wing Flow with Clear Flow and redirect. Gruugoo— I pushed her foot back.
I hit my limit. The force is too strong to use it against her. The balance we were colliding with tilted to one side.
Bang—! The surrounding air burst, as if a bomb went off.
“..Cough.”
Resultedly, I managed to protect my team behind me. But I slammed into the wall far behind.
I took a hard hit from the giant’s white body. Although I had defended my upper body, the shock still resonated. My shoulder blade shattered.
‘If I hadn’t had my helmet on, I would’ve died.’
My brain swirled, and I felt dizzy. My back throbbed with a warm sensation, and my body refused to respond.
Like a bug grabbed by a palm, my body weakly fell from the wall and crashed to the ground.
‘What on earth is the way to defeat that thing…?’
My hands scraped the dirt. I tried to vent my frustration by banging the ground, but it was useless.
Even if it rains, it won’t help. The wind would just blow it away.
Old thoughts and concepts are already in use. They don’t offer a way out for reapplication.
Not this, not that. What could I do to effectively deal with that Demon King?
..Only one thing remained.
“Kainel… let me borrow the Holy Sword.”
I slammed the sword into the ground, using it like a staff to rise.
Corruption Route glitch.
I knew that when it comes to the Head, you have to drag on the battle long enough due to knowing the strategy, which is why I couldn’t use this method.
It’s infamous among players as a crazy act, a last resort that could cost your life.
How much longer could I last? I feel like one more hit would kill me.
The floor of the shrine is a mess like a typhoon just swept through.
Kainel is remarkable for still being alive. Is it because he’s the Light Hero that he managed to endure?
“Hey, you… are you doing that again?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t deactivate the barrier on Ariel.”
I have to prepare before the Demon King breaks free from the seal and strikes again. The dirt wall I set is already crumbling.
I must hurry.
‘The loss of a loved one… and the Hero.’
The conditions should be sufficient. It is quite contradictory regarding the Demon King’s parameters.
If I lose this battle, for us, Pina would effectively be dead. I have to win.
I can sacrifice my miserable life to save three people here.
“Licht… don’t!”
The Glass Knight screams in concern for me. He might not even have the strength to talk because of the Might.
“Don’t worry. This is different from before.”
I attempted it before, not knowing it was Pina. But now it’s different.
“I won’t die before you, Pina.”
I gripped the Light’s Holy Sword tightly, letting my blood flow. Bright red stains carved into the blade. It looked almost like I’m stamping a blood seal.
Blood flowed from my eyes and mouth as well.
This is indeed a method that ruins the body in a single sweep. Maybe it’s not my sword that’s causing this.
“…Sleep in darkness.”
The moment I finished the incantation, black smoke like shadows swirled around me.
“Now let’s talk, Demon King. Intinium.”
A Demon King clad in black armor appeared.
*
Intinium was stunned. She had gotten hit by the Giant’s attack, though not directly.
‘These people… are all strange…’
The power of Might.
The ability to gradually steal the opponent’s strength into negatives (-) and turn it into one’s own.
In fact, it is the power possessed by Intinium’s brother, Finn. He transferred it to protect his sister.
Even if we consider it took time for the blonder-haired Kainel’s power of Might to fully activate.
“How…?!”
The Black Knight before her defied logic. Just moments ago, he seemed on the verge of death, and now he’s a Demon King.
Moreover, possessing two Holy Swords. She’s never heard of such a case. Normally, only one weapon can be used by the Hero.
Just like how Finn uses knuckles, while wearing an invisible bracelet.
“I didn’t hear anything about this from the Demon King of Truth…!”
Magic Hat had not given precise information regarding Licht.
They only instructed to bring back the guy wearing the Black Knight helmet and to prevent anyone from approaching Tardun’s shrine.
“Shine Advance.”
The opponent before her was about to use a skill with the Holy Sword.
A skill that rushes at light speed. She had seen it before. If they crushed her with the Giant, it would be over.
‘I was surprised but… seems like nothing special.’
Intinium planned to stomp Licht down just as she had done to Kainel moments before.
A normal human wouldn’t find a way to escape the Giant’s attack range.
“Decision of Icarus.”
The moment her vision clouded, the Black Knight disappeared into thin air. An invisible enemy seemingly evaporating.
“..Huh?”
She shook her head left and right, scanning her surroundings, but couldn’t see anything.
Intinium thought. Had they abandoned their fallen comrades and fled? Humans can be so fickle.
When the going gets tough, they give up, and when they see an insurmountable wall, they despair.
But Licht didn’t do that.
The moment Intinium sensed something strange, she looked up into the sky, where the Black Knight was blocking the giant’s foot cloud head-on.
“This… can’t be?!”
The Demon Knight with demonic wings completed the basic technique of Demon King Kill (魔王殺). She finished chanting Wing Flow.
Then followed up with a series of attacks. Soaring higher to strike at the central area of the Giant’s groin with a Reverse Scale Stab.
A half-formed attack descending from above that targeted the Cyclops’ head. The Void Slash with whirlwind-like winds sliced through the Giant’s lower half.
“Gyaaaak—!!”
The slash completed its descent, connecting to the shadow under Intinium.
