Karah, the next head of the Levian family, contemplated those who needed to be killed.
No matter how much she agonized over it, there was no thought of sparing the members of the Berzette family entangled with the “Death Pact.”
Every consideration concluded with the judgment that they must be eliminated.
The ten awakened bearers of the Levian bloodline had endured physical and mental torment for over a century, and the death of their perpetrator was not light enough to merit mercy.
Karah was sure that the other nine members shared the same sentiment.
Still, it needed confirmation. She bowed deeply to Yuma.
“I’ll be back shortly.”
“Got it.”
Karah hurriedly dashed away to consult with the other awakened bloodline members. Yuma nodded.
Yuma then glanced at the Great Demon King Lilith, who stood beside him.
“Not the demons. Are there any other races that could influence the Intermediate World? Similar to the invasions conducted from the Demon Realm.”
Lilith responded quicker than expected.
“Heavenly Realm.”
Lilith continued speaking.
“The Heavenly Realm certainly exists. It has not made its presence known to the world for thousands of years, but it does exist. Even in the Demon Realm, there are few who know the truth about those known as Celestial Beings.”
The Heavenly Realm.
That was a place Yuma had never heard of in “Loop Blood.” He listened intently to Lilith’s words.
“The Apostles. The Heavenly Realm is where Apostles are created. They say Apostles are beings created to kill gods.”
Yuma immediately questioned this.
“…Beings meant to kill gods? Aren’t Apostles those who serve the gods?”
“In the Heavenly Realm, there is the Celestial Sovereign instead of a god. And the reason the Celestial Sovereign governs the Heavenly Realm isn’t for its prosperity. Its purpose is solely to oversee the Intermediate World and the Divine Realm. An angel I met during my time as the Demon King said so. Despite the name ‘angel,’ it came to the Demon Realm and brutally beat up demons, which left quite an impression on me.”
With Lilith’s words, Yuma understood the roles of the Heavenly Realm and the angels.
‘Maybe there’s a reason they’re keeping a low profile right now.’
Yuma realized there was still much he didn’t know about this world.
As he processed the information about the Heavenly Realm in his mind, Karah quickly approached him with a stern expression.
“All nine awakened bearers of the engraved bloodline… have come to a consensus.”
Yuma slowly nodded in response to Karah’s statement.
“Speak.”
“Everyone agreed to kill the nine direct descendants of Berzette.”
The opinions of the Levian family’s engraved bloodline had united into one. To annihilate all the direct descendants of Berzette.
*
A fifteen-year-old sorceress with black hair and golden eyes, Cloney, was in the Scarlet Magic Tower. To be precise, she was training her magic at the “Pillar of Magic” inside the tower.
To be precise, Cloney was practicing magic at the [Magic Pillar] inside the Scarlet Magic Tower.
She was training within the magical spire, [Katakeo], which contained the concept of a similar [Akashic Record] developed by the Scarlet Tower Master, Freyle.
Katakeo was a staircase. A staircase that slowly advanced as it grew.
The Scarlet Tower Master, Eldrie Freyle, was closely watching Cloney, who was currently standing on the 8th step.
To be precise, he was looking at the image of Cloney projected on the projection window reflecting the inside of Katakeo.
‘Genius.’
Even he, who had been hailed as a genius since a very young age, could see that Cloney was undoubtedly a genius.
The girl, who confessed that she had surpassed two circles in nearly half a year, was trying to cross that rising line once again.
‘There has never been a wizard who climbed the stairs this quickly.’
Even he, who had consistently heard the term genius since the age of nine, took at least four days to climb one step of this Katakeo.
But Cloney took at least one step a day at her slowest and, at her fastest, shattered the ‘clone’ above her in a single leap.
The method of climbing the stairs was simple.
Visualize the ‘clone’ of oneself on the step above and defeat it to rise.
Not every single step of this long staircase meant a circle.
Small achievements. Tiny achievements. It was through the differences in such minor accomplishments that the tiers were divided. However, the meaning of ‘tiny knowledge’ for a wizard was never shallow. Even a tiny little trick or knack could twist the very fabric of magic.
Whether there was an additional circle or not, just realizing a single trick while using magic could exponentially increase casting speed and improve magic attack power or widen its range.
Crackle… Crackle—
As Cloney set foot on the ninth step, a girl stood on the tenth step. A girl who looked just like her.
Cloney gazed at the girl.
There was no avoiding the resemblance. It was herself, a Cloney that had grown even just a bit stronger than the current one.
The Cloney, with very calm eyes just like her original self, lifted her right hand, holding a dark magic wand.
Crackle—
The girl’s right hand moved swiftly. Lightning surged from the drawn magic. The conjured lightning distorted the air and struck down towards Cloney.
Cloney observed the lightning magic formula performed by the girl. And she penetrated it. She clearly interpreted the process of the magical formula drawn.
Also, she was struck directly by that lightning magic.
“…Ugh!”
Electricity flowed through her entire body. It poured throughout her body. Cloney savored the pain.
The challengers of this [Spire] could choose the difficulty they wished to experience. And among those options, there were choices that didn’t require suffering.
But Cloney chose a path where she would feel at least a touch of pain. She believed that if she experienced pain, her chances of gaining that much enlightenment would also increase.
He believed that the probability would go up.
Cloney looked at the girl on the tenth stair, someone she could call her avatar or possibly her future.
She ascended the ninth step. And she was grateful for all the avatars she had encountered on this step.
All the Cloney on the ninth step. They were casting an attack with the magical knowledge encoded in [Katakeo]‘s [Akashic Record] combined with Cloney’s innate genius.
Cloney could faintly guess how the Cloney on the tenth floor had doubled the density of her thunder magic.
Cloney trusted her insight. The insight that allowed her to visualize the magical circuits flowing through the magic.
‘─I just need to layer the magic spell.’
Currently, Cloney’s circle was at the 6th circle. She could definitely layer the spell of 3rd circle magic [Call of Thunder] used by the illusion of Cloney in front of her.
Cloney raised her dark staff. And she cast the spell. A blue aura of magical power flared up in Cloney’s golden eyes.
Originally, a one-dimensional magic spell that could be expressed as ‘one layer.’ Cloney layered that spell twice.
There was another magical spell on top of the blue-framed spell. ‘Layered Spell.’
It wasn’t using magic twice. It was a single magic with high density.
[Call of Thunder] fell like a clear lightning bolt above the head of Cloney who stood on the tenth floor.
Kwahrrrrrung!
The body of the tenth floor Cloney, who was staring expressionlessly at the real Cloney, was engulfed in the blue lightning and vanished without a trace.
Cloney moved forward.
To grow. There was no time to hesitate. The recollection of enlightenment was already rushing through her mind.
‘I’ve been left behind.’
The person Duke Yuma chose to enter the demon realm with wasn’t herself, but Sister Bell. Yuma said he chose Bell because he needed a guardian. And Bell didn’t think Yuma was lying. It was a literal need for a bodyguard. Among Yuma’s party, Bell was indeed the most optimized for that role.
But what if she had the ability to engage in close combat and possessed combat power equivalent to Bell? Would Bell still be chosen? Probably not. Even so, Yuma would have spent a bit more time pondering.
Next time, she didn’t want to easily give up her seat. Cloney’s golden eyes sparkled. And without hesitation, she took a step forward.
Pah!
Cloney ascended to the tenth step, and another girl who looked exactly like Cloney appeared on the eleventh step.
Cloney desired growth.
As fast of a growth as possible.
*
Yuma hurried his steps while listening to the words of the Great Demon King Lilith beside him.
It seemed Lilith recalled more about the Celestial Beings and the Celestial Realm, as she began to elaborate further.
“I’ve heard that among the angels, there are humans who have awakened to a level equivalent to Grandmaster in human terms… Anyway, some guys lure these humans to the Heavenly Realm to make them even stronger. Of course, it’s obvious they’d use some artificial methods to enhance them, so even if they’ve pierced through the peak of being human, they wouldn’t be normal humans.”
“I’ve heard there are those who drag humans who have achieved greatness to the celestial realm, only to make them stronger. Of course, it’s obvious they’ll use some artificial means, so even if they’ve pierced the pinnacle of humanity, they won’t be normal humans anymore.”
Duke Yuma tilted his head.
“What do you mean by not being a normal human? To what extent are we talking about?”
Lilith pondered for a moment before responding.
“Literally, there’s a high chance they won’t be human anymore. First off, the probability of losing their sense of self is high.”
Upon hearing this, Yuma immediately excluded the celestial realm from the places he could take Bell and Cloney for help.
‘The problem is time.’
Innate genius.
And endless effort.
Both Cloney and Bell possessed these two traits.
Yuma was convinced that if he had time, they could both break the limits of the human race and reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship and magic.
“We have arrived.”
Lilith’s subordinate spoke, bringing Yuma’s attention back to the present. A massive fortress appeared before Lilith, Yuma, and Bell.
Countless rib bones stretched out like a blossoming flower. The upper body of a gigantic magical dragon. The skin was gone, leaving only the strong bones. Magic was cast upon those bones to create a permanent fortress.
Yuma tightened his grip on Balmung.
Then he looked at Lilith.
“I’ll clear the way, so let Levian take them down with his own hands.”
Lilith nodded vigorously.
“Understood.”
Before Yuma could take a step forward, the dead Berzette’s hounds blocked his path.
“We must preserve the great bloodline!”
Without hesitation, Berzette’s hounds charged at Yuma.
Chains of black surged toward him. Yuma swung Balmung in his right hand and deflected the iron chains.
KAAAAAAANG!!!
A golden circular impact erupted.
SARGARGARGAAK—!
The chains, now reversed, stretched out like blades, mercilessly slicing through the upper bodies of the demons. The upper bodies of about ten demons toppled at an angle.
Yuma had cleared the way. The Great Demon King Lilith slammed her right foot down, igniting a fierce scarlet flame.
“…Is it true? Has the army of the Great Demon King Lilith reached us already?”
Zargos, the first son of Berzette, with his navy blue hair and golden eyes, trembled as he stared at the right hand of his dead father, Rohit. Rohit remained silent, adopting a combat stance.
WHAAAAAA!!!
The magical dragon fortress protecting Berzette’s direct descendants was burned by Lilith’s flame. The curtain was completely lifted.
Lilith surveyed her subordinates lined up on either side, then gestured toward Berzette’s direct line.
“Bring them all to their knees and subdue them.”
The battle was heading toward its final act.
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