Chapter 168

Chapter 166 – Behemoth – 3

“Kehuk! Cough, cough!”

The Behemoth, having expelled a torrent of blood-stained coughs, used teleportation to widen the distance. Yet, as it stumbled in an attempt to escape, it collapsed after just a few steps. Its body was covered in wounds.

I slowly walked forward. Thud as my shoes struck the shredded red carpet. My injured body flinched and trembled.

The Behemoth looked up at me with a face half filled with fear and desperation.

“Wh-what are you?! Are you an Inquisitor? What are you doing to me…?”

“There are actual Inquisitors, you know? I’m not even from the Holy Kingdom; if anything, I’m from the Empire.”

I took another step. Eek! The Behemoth let out a shrill scream as it hurriedly got to its feet. Its right hand, holding a whip, trembled uncontrollably.

This made me feel like a total villain. If you removed this specific scene from context, I would definitely appear as a black-clad fiend torturing an innocent woman.

“Because of that disgusting divine power scent, my head is about to explode! And you say you’re not from the Holy Kingdom? Are you mocking me?”

The “disgusting divine power scent,” huh? I can’t pinpoint what that means, but it probably refers to the blessings the Pope had previously bestowed upon me.

That blessing didn’t appear in the game, so I had no idea what it actually did. However, it’s definitely something good. No way would the Popes place a debuff on me.

The Behemoth looked incredibly wronged. In its position, I could understand that feeling. After all, it encountered me the moment it resurrected. What a truly unlucky guy.

Of course, if I left it like that, it would have done something truly villainous. So I didn’t feel the slightest bit of pity. If I wasn’t here, this city would’ve been done for.

“Yeeek! Die! Just die!”

With those gritted teeth, the whip came flying at me. I closely inspected the movement and quickly rolled away just before the whip could make contact.

The whip lashed out where I had been standing just moments before. I straightened myself and awaited the next pattern. I could deflect the combos, dodge the grabs, and if it wasn’t either, it was deal time.

The Behemoth retracted the whip. It seemed to have been a simple ranged control attack. This meant I had ample opportunity to strike back.

I closed the distance in an instant, grabbing the Wingless Nightmare with both hands and raising it above my head. The sword began to radiate light on its own.

This was a special ability possessed by the Wingless Nightmare in its divine attribute state.

After the Behemoth used its ranged attack, if timed correctly, I had enough time to use this special ability. This fact was verified by countless users.

Moreover, since the Behemoth was only slightly larger than a human, it had no super armor pattern to contend with, allowing me to strike while it was stunned.

A radiant brilliance erupted from the Wingless Nightmare. The light, comparable to a small sun, illuminated every corner of the boss room.

Within the radiant sunlight, a subtle moonlight intertwined. The white and silver lights swirled chaotically. The entire sword turned pure white.

Despite the intense light mass hovering directly above my head, covering even my elbows, strangely, my eyes were not blinded at all.

In contrast, the Behemoth let out a pained moan and covered its face. In the game, it never acted like that even when using its special abilities.

I set aside my questions and swung my arm.

—KWA-BOOM!

With a tremendous explosion, a divine light descended from the sky.

The Behemoth’s head crashed into the ground. The instantaneous burst of white light bathed the surroundings in whiteness. Despite not being blinding at all, it was such an intense light that I reflexively covered my eyes.

The light mass disappeared in less than a second. The Behemoth’s form was revealed, its head buried in the ground without a sound.

‘…Huh?’

I blinked in confusion, looking back and forth between the Wingless Nightmare in my hand, the Behemoth headfirst in the ground, and the mansion ceiling that gaped above us.

The ceiling was almost demolished, allowing the blue sky to come clearly into view. The clouds, seemingly having been surprise attacked, were visibly missing chunks.

Bright sunlight poured into the room, shining down on both of us.

‘What the heck is this? Why is it so strong?’

The power was so astonishing that even I, as the user, was bewildered.

When viewed on the monitor, it merely seemed like a white beam of light descending from outside the screen, a simple effect. In all my indoor experiences, the ceiling had never broken.

But not this time. The light genuinely seemed to start from the sky, with clouds torn asunder, and the mansion ceiling had been wrecked.

‘No way, what kind of weapon did that woman create?’

I wondered how someone not even connected to the Holy Kingdom could make a weapon like this. There were probably very few weapons with such power even in the Holy Kingdom.

Maybe she received a revelation directly from a deity.

“Guh… gah…”

Desperate hack noises escaped the Behemoth’s lips. Its hair had burned down to shoulder length, and the remaining parts had turned black and charred, completely altered in color.

Its entire body appeared gray. It bore severe burns that covered all the self-inflicted wounds I had made. It was utterly ridiculous.

I swung the Wingless Nightmare in the air a few times for no reason. Even though I was the one who did this, I was a bit confused. I had only expected to inflict some moderate pain.

I had never anticipated to burn the Behemoth alive, demolish the mansion ceiling, and summon a pillar of light that punctured the sky.

“You… this… this…”

After squirming headfirst in the ground for a while, the Behemoth finally lifted its head. Its features began to droop slowly.

‘Ah.’

That sight snapped me back to reality.

It would be better to think about what kind of situation we were in after completely disposing of the Behemoth. This needed to be prioritized for now.

Clutching the Wingless Nightmare, the Behemoth attempted to wriggle away as it saw me approaching, but with its body so severely damaged, it was a futile effort.

“No! Don’t come! I don’t want this!”

A feeble scream escaped its lips. Its voice cracked with each passing moment. A sickening echo, reminiscent of dragging metal, mixed with a delicate soprano lilt.

I ignored it and continued forward. As its drooping skin covered its mouth, the words became sparse.

“How… how… it’s the human world…”

The speed at which its face disintegrated increased. Its once lightly pink skin started to turn darker and darker.

“Now, it’s time for you to show your true form.”

“……”

I aimed for the Behemoth’s neck and raised the Wingless Nightmare. The blade, half gold and half silver, shone brilliantly under the sunlight.

Seeing that, the Behemoth made a last-ditch effort. Its grotesque fangs were visible as its lips parted. Blood oozing from its body began to gradually turn black.

I swung the Wingless Nightmare down. Swoosh, and its neck was severed far too easily. I was left dumbfounded.

Even a human’s neck couldn’t be cut in one go without immense difficulty, let alone a demon’s neck, which was typically dozens or hundreds of times sturdier than a human’s.

Yet, I had sliced it off as easily as cutting through a cake.

‘Is it because of the divine power?’

Perhaps it was due to the divine power inherent in the Wingless Nightmare. I wasn’t entirely sure.

Thud, the head rolled toward me, and I kicked it away. It landed back next to the torso, its eyes wide open.

Suddenly, its form began to change.

Its absurdly large breasts, an unnaturally tiny waist, and plump thighs disappeared, while its body bloated all over.

The skin tore into a hideous appearance. It looked reminiscent of crocodile skin but far more grotesque.

Even its physique was no exception. The body that had boasted unrealistic curves was now transformed into a different kind of unrealistic shape.

The alluring appearance, worthy of being called beautiful even in this world where women’s appearances had been raised to new heights, vanished, replaced by a strange-colored goat head.

“Ugh.”

I grimaced sharply. It was even worse than I had expected. In the game, it was just ugly, but seeing it here, it was downright unsettling.

‘Helga’s enchantment must have worn off, right?’

I redirected my thoughts. Since the Behemoth was dead, Helga’s enchantment must have broken as well.

What remained was to verify purity from the Inquisitors and Inquisitors arriving with a 100% chance after hearing that a demon had descended.

I would be fine, but for Helga or the other regular members, if luck was abysmally low, their souls might be captured by demons and ‘saved.’

I couldn’t stop that, no matter what.

Creak…

Suddenly, the door opened very cautiously. A presence could be felt from beyond the door.

‘Is that Helga?’

It appeared that the enchantment had indeed worn off. If she had regained her senses, the knot would have easily loosened.

“Helga, are you… huh?”

I turned to look for Helga but froze as I spotted an unexpected figure. The person who had come through the door, just like me, looked utterly shocked as they realized I was here.

We stood frozen, staring at each other for a long moment. Finally, the other person managed to speak up first.

“…Distinguished Guest?”

The person who had entered through the door was Stella, and she looked utterly flabbergasted.