Chapter 107 – There is No Answer (7)
“Daughter.”
In a moment of immense shock, Lee Kyung-sik’s body finally couldn’t withstand it and shattered. He thought of something other than his own body.
A small body torn apart before his eyes by a drunk driving vehicle.
A voice he could never hear again.
And a perpetrator who received a light sentence and was released due to mental illness. Lee Kyung-sik learned too late that the perpetrator was the son of a prominent politician.
To him, who had been abandoned even by the deity he had trusted and followed all this time, a real miracle had arrived.
His daughter returned once more and the perpetrator, who had been found gruesomely as a corpse in prison. From that day forward, he pledged his loyalty not to anything, but to a Smalillian.
“Ah… Dad…”
“Ahh…”
With only half of his face caved in, he let out a hollow laugh as he watched a figure crawl over the shattered glass. Not yet. They could still fight.
“Is this the miracle you spoke of? Do you think it’s possible for the dead to return? Get a grip! That is nothing but a puppet corpse!”
Rene gritted her teeth and stared at ‘it’ with wavering eyes.
The final bastion entrusted to Smalillian was not Lee Kyung-sik. The true vessel that contained Smalillian’s power the most was his daughter, who had been reconstructed from her very flesh.
“What is that?”
“That, that’s grotesque…”
Others fighting the monsters were equally appalled and faltered. Lee Kyung-sik’s daughter, with only her girl’s face intact, began to grow larger than a massive dump truck, her body morphing in every direction.
Multiple hands sprouted from her body, crawling along the ground, and her neck extended like a giraffe, moving like a snake.
“You trashy monster…!”
Even Lee Min-hyung, who had researched Lee Kyung-sik’s situation, couldn’t contain his fury as he watched the girl’s remains being ruthlessly exploited and manipulated.
[Are you afraid?]
And finally, from the mouth of the faintly smiling girl, a deep masculine voice flowed out.
“Smalillian!”
[You have been so arrogant and foolish. The moment that girl, Takilas, warned you, you should have done everything to find me. You should have tended to the anger and despair of humanity no matter what.]
As he controlled the massive monster’s flesh, Smalillian’s mocking laughter distorted the girl’s face and echoed in the minds of the people.
[But you didn’t. And this is the result. Quality despair, quality hatred. Devouring all that, I evolve and will continue to do so.]
He laughed to his heart’s content. It was a disgusting voice, a mixture of the girl’s laughter and the man’s laughter.
[Keep fighting. Keep being trampled. I am undeniably a being born from human conflict. I know very well that humanity cannot avoid conflict. So… be trampled further.]
“Everyone, get back!”
Rene shouted as she sensed the movement of magical energy, but Smalillian was a step ahead.
The mouth of the face attached to the long neck opened wide and unleashed condensed energy in the form of a laser.
The laser erupted into a massive explosion, obliterating everything in its path.
Asphalt shattered and flew, and a ton of cars exploded like paper, soaring into the sky.
“R-Rene.”
“We must exact retribution.”
Jeon So-hyun, who had been slow to react, was startled when Rene pulled her close, wrapping her arms around her. The two survived the onslaught of explosions, huddled tightly within the protective barrier Rene had created.
“Huff.”
Nevertheless, the shock still reached them. The stunned Jeon So-hyun couldn’t hold back and spat out a mouthful of blood as she helped the staggering Rene.
“I’m fine. More importantly, I need your strength to bring down that monster. That force that pushed away magical energy, whatever it is.”
“Bring it down? Us…?”
Jeon So-hyun looked around at the devastation, where not a single thing remained unscathed. Amidst the chaos, agents of the Management Bureau and other magical girls were gravely injured or even dead at this moment.
[It is already too late. Does this body seem like my full power? I will continue to grow stronger and soon take over this land. I will! Become the Demon King who rules over darkness and chaos!]
“Looks like Chuunibyou hit hard. You little punk, pretending to be the master of sorcery.”
Smalillian, feeding off other monsters and crushing Lee Kyung-sik’s head, reveled in his boiling power with excitement. Rene sincerely despised him.
The reason was none other than this.
For daring to casually utter the name “Demon King.”
The Demon King she had seen could never be compared to this fundamental monster before her.
“Acting as if you’ve won everything.”
[Ugh?!]
At that moment, a chain slicing through the air struck his body hard.
SS-Class Magical Girl Karin. With no noticeable damage from the laser, she too had drawn her final weapon and was grinding her teeth in anger.
“This is doable. Enough.”
“But you said this isn’t the true body. Then what about the real one, stronger than this…”
“That’s not our concern. What’s important now is how to overcome the disaster before us.”
Seeing Jeon So-hyun still trembling, Rene spoke firmly. Though they were the same age, the density of their lives was different, and Jeon So-hyun saw faith in that demeanor.
“It feels like everything is unfolding as if it’s been intended from the start.”
Just as they were about to fortify their resolve for battle, Rene snuck a glance at Jeon So-hyun. Gabi, who had been hidden from view by a magician’s eye, met her gaze and twisted her mouth into a smirk.
[Arrogant little brats. I suppose I can have a little fun here. Three girls putting up their last resistance. Quite the picture.]
Already confident of victory, Smalillian looked down at the three who continued to resist as everyone else had fallen.
“Girls?”
“Um, let’s skip past that! More importantly, do you have a plan? You’re the smart one, Rene. Should we just smash it?”
The thirty-something Karin flinched at the surprised gazes from Jeon So-hyun and Rene, quickly changing the subject.
“…This girl’s power creates openings for him. It seems that power is also a type of magical energy. I’ll create a amplification formation, and you beam that light toward it.”
In a fleeting moment, Rene had planned a strike. The plan itself was simple—expel the enemy with a full-force attack.
“Okay. Let’s do it.”
“So you’re saying I’m supposed to block with my body, right?”
The other two eventually agreed to the plan as well.
If this is truly the end, then everything must be risked.
*
“Huh, huh ha ha…”
Smalillian laughed. In the air, he saw two scenes at once: his doppelganger and the three girls preparing for battle alongside the massive city crushed beneath his feet.
The dawn was slowly breaking. The sun rose, and the city began to awaken.
The people of the city, under the same sky, had no idea what struggle was about to unfold. They might not even realize what would soon dominate their lives.
“From now on, feel free to rage and despair. I… will make it possible.”
He grinned as he looked down at the city beneath his outstretched hand.
He had concealed his identity until the very end and moved meticulously. He kept everyone unaware of who he truly was, what his ultimate goal was, and what methods he would use.
Thanks to that, even at this moment, no one knew of his true power.
“Sleep now.”
He raised his hand and shot a black beam into the high heavens. Soon, that beam split and formed a single veil that gradually began to descend and envelop the city. His power had reached this far.
A massive dome capable of covering the entire city. The dome obscured sunlight with a black shadow, snuffing out the light from the ground.
People were seen and felt panicking.
He savored it. For an onlooker, it might be a cringeworthy display of bravado, but this was undeniably the process of becoming a ruler of the world. Moreover, he possessed the power to actually do it.
“What a farce.”
“You’ve caught on, huh? Magical Girl… Takilas!”
Behind him, a presence appeared that sliced through the sky.
Smalillian turned around with a grin, as if he had been waiting for this moment.
There stood a black-haired girl, narrowing her red eyes, arms crossed with a pouty face, looking at him.
“Reaction’s that of someone who knew?”
“Of course! According to my calculations, apart from you, there’s no one left on this land who can hinder me. And there… are no years left either.”
He grinned from beneath his hood, but Takilas showed no reaction.
“To say I am a hindrance? I appreciate the overestimation.”
“Don’t act so cocky, kid. But yes, I do have a favorable view of you.”
Smalillian chuckled as he shook his head. His words weren’t false. He was genuinely watching Takilas closely.
“I like your thoughts, your logic. You’re right; the strong embody order and law. Only those who have proven themselves worthy can possess everything.”
“So?”
“How about just accepting it? You’ve said to challenge and defeat you to assert my rights, but we really don’t need to fight and get hurt, do we?”
Before long, the entire city was trapped within the dome. This proved his power. He had gained control over this dome, bending it to his will.
And with a grin, Smalillian drew something out. Takilas’s brow furrowed slightly at the sight.
“I had initially intended to tear every magical girl apart while still alive, but I’ll give you a chance. How about working as an adorable and loyal pup in my world, by the side of a true strong one?”
What he presented was none other than a collar with chains attached.
After a long time, faced with such a low-level provocation, Takilas couldn’t help but let out a scoff.
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