Chapter 295
Chapter 295
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP.63 – A Knight's Valor Knows No Recklessness (5)
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Humanoid god.
The so-called Human God, among all the gods, was an existence one must absolutely never worship.
Natural-born gods took forms like trees or rocks, generally harmless to humans. Even animalistic wild gods had a feral edge, but that wildness only flared if you provoked them—and otherwise, they were either benevolent toward humanity or utterly indifferent.
But Human Gods were entirely different from natural gods or wild gods.
What did that mean?
They craved excessive interference in human society. They yearned to lord over it.
That was why Human Gods were deemed horrific beings.
And rightly so. A Human God was a 'god in human likeness'. How terrifying was that...?
Still confused?
Simple.
They sprang from humans, so they were endlessly greedy.
They harbored pointless cravings like lust for power, carnal desire, and the need to flaunt—things no true god would want. Worship alone never satisfied them. They wanted to stand above humans like a nation's [king].
...Someone might object.
If a god with absolute power became king, wouldn't that nation be free of corruption—an eternal paradise of bliss on earth? Why see it in a negative light?
...Or so the argument goes.
Fair enough. But that earthly paradise had one fatal flaw.
None other than:
It was a paradise shaped not by human ideals, but solely by the god's whims.
What if the god decreed a utopia built on violence alone?
What if the god demanded death for any who lacked beauty?
What if the god...
...issued some childish command like that?
It might sound like exaggeration or fabrication, but these were bowdlerized snippets from actual Human God atrocities. Ancient records left historians in no doubt: nations under Human God rule were nightmarish horrors.
Hence the verdict:
No one called that assessment extreme.
Picture a being who, with a bomb in hand, hurls it at people for laughs—giggling all the while—never maturing no matter the centuries. That was a Human God.
Humanity must never tangle with them.
They'd do anything for their own amusement or goals.
A stark warning from the scholars...
Great Evil Spirit.
No warrior of Modred lacked hatred for the Great Evil Spirit.
It was the monster—the true culprit—forcing them into this hell.
Undeniably loathsome. Someone they desperately wanted dead...
"Hu, human...?"
Those facing it for the first time doubted their eyes.
The Great Evil Spirit resembled a human—and not just any, but a stunningly beautiful woman.
"Precisely, a [Human God]. It's merely wearing a female form; it has no true gender. Don't let the appearance fool you. Even that's stolen from another."
"!?"
"Word is, every few generations, it devours the human hailed as most beautiful and claims their looks. Beauty alone dooms them... Male, female—it doesn't discriminate. Stay sharp."
"......"
Gulp...
The lord's warning rang like a death knell. They swallowed dryly.
The shocking intel spun their heads, but one truth stood clear: this thing benefited no human.
Proof came swiftly.
Whiiiiiing—!
A foul, muddy aura swirled around the Great Evil Spirit like sludge—ghost qi, invisible to normal eyes. But so thick here, even untrained gazes caught it.
And toward that ominous presence:
"Die, you monster!"
Garok swung without hesitation.
Vmmm!
His blade rang with fierce sword resonance.
At his level, it was as natural as breathing. Yet this resonance carried an extra edge.
[Vooooom!]
A wail of damned souls amplified it into unprecedented power.
Fwaaah!
Purple sword aura—no, sword beam thick enough to call it—lanced out, bisecting over a hundred beasts around him in unison.
A display of Modred's strongest knight unleashing full might.
But:
Thud!
[How dangerous. Even in your old age, still so strong, eh?]
"......"
...When had it appeared?
Blocking Garok's all-out strike: ten grotesque undead.
"D-De-Death Knigh-, ts?"
They vaguely evoked 'Fallen Knights', Death Knights—but over five meters tall, with hulking, brutish muscle? What were these?
[I modded Fallen Knights. Picked ones strong in life to counter you, stuffed a thousand ghouls into each. Even you'd struggle, right?]
"...You've prepared a nuisance."
Arrogant, yes—but no fool, the Great Evil Spirit.
It clearly remembered Garok: the man who'd wounded it decades ago and escaped its curse unaided.
To avoid a repeat.
Death Knights alone qualified as high-grade monsters. Infuse them with a thousand ghouls each?
"Chimera Knights..."
A knight's murmur—aptly named. And from this day, a nightmare etched in despair.
Swoosh—!
"Hup!"
The air screamed as a Chimera Knight swung a massive spear from nowhere.
Not brute force, but refined martial artistry. Undeniably famed knights in life, as the Evil Spirit claimed.
Krunch!
Skill fused with overwhelming power transcended mere deflection.
Quite literally:
Booom!
A blow that shook the earth.
"...No easy feat."
One alone? Manageable. But ten Chimera Knights.
And not just any ten...
Whoosh!Whip!
"They even coordinate!?"
Strategic maneuvers proving their knightly past. Garok broke into cold sweat, incredulous.
It felt like facing a full order alone. Overcoming it? He'd need serious time.
And in that span...
[Kill that old human. No use now that he's old and ugly. Ah, even if you can't kill him, pin him down. Until I've slaughtered every last one.]
Clank.
[Good, good. Succeed, and I'll grant you living flesh. Heh heh.]
Clank!
Murderous red eyes blazed; the Chimeras surged with unholy vigor.
Living flesh.
Resurrection. Irresistible temptation for the undead.
Honor forgotten—unthinkable for knights of old.
This explained the 'Fallen' in Death Knight. Garok ground his teeth.
"You lot disgrace all knighthood!"
Roaring fury, he charged anew—as if to break through in one go.
But:
Bang!
Clank.
"!"
The Chimera flesh-wall allowed no breach.
Rumble...
"......"
It approached slowly.
With leisurely smugness, grinning ear to ear.
Three hundred meters from the fortress.
[Surrender. Kneel and bow your heads. Do that, and I'll forgive you even now.]
The Great Evil Spirit spoke.
Screeech...!
Though three hundred meters off, its chilling voice pierced every ear. Faces hardened.
Not from the voice, but:
"For-give?"
[Yes, forgive. I'll pardon your offenses against me. Am I not merciful?]
"......"
Grind!
The absurd drivel ignited rage on its own.
Their glares turned murderous.
Daring to utter 'forgiveness' before them?
"You squat in our lands uninvited, play god, toy with the living—and spout 'forgiveness'? From your mouth, worm?!"
[Not a worm, a god. Why won't you listen?]
Hummm—.
Irked at 'worm', it vented ghost qi; beasts echoed with fierce pressure.
Halted for now—but one command, and they'd charge without pause.
[Think twice before flapping your gums. But I'm merciful, so: Surrender. Pledge loyalty, offer tribute. I don't need much—a million living souls and bodies. Bring your child personally; rip out its heart. Do that, and I'll make you a king. Eternal life guaranteed.]
"......"
[Merciful offer, right?]
"...Bullshit, worm."
The proposal alone boiled blood. Even the soldiers seethed.
Greedy mercenaries might balk too.
Listen close: eternal [slavery] to a obedient master.
Their fury was justified.
[Worm, I said no!]
Fwaaah!
Oblivious to its own lunacy, it swept a contemptuous hand.
[Kek, keekeegik...!]
[Keeik.]
[Keee!]
Wraiths emerged as it raged.
Nearly twenty thousand...
"Wh-what, so many wraiths...!"
"Gods..."
"D-don't tell me—using the souls of the monsters we killed?!"
The horde swelled endlessly. A staff officer guessed: the Evil Spirit forcibly spawned them from slain beasts' souls.
Matching the twenty thousand they'd killed...
'Killing monsters solves nothing!'
The officer paled blue.
If true, each kill birthed a new foe.
Slay beasts, spawn wraiths. Only fear-dead humans wouldn't shudder.
[Haha, great! Love those faces!]
It laughed in delight.
Humans' despair was pure comedy.
It craved more. Deeper regret for defying its 'mercy'.
[Regret more... Suffer more... Please...!]
Eyes gleaming with ecstatic thrill, the Great Evil Spirit...
"—You're full of it. Why the solo pity party?"
[...?]
...blinked.
"Think about it—it's weird. Acting like the victim when you've suffered zilch. Playing victim anyway? Classic unrepentant criminal."
[Oh my?]
Despite the insolence, it cooed admiration.
Beauty topped its loves.
Paintings, sculptures, gems—or so-called handsome stunners.
This impudent human? Perfectly satisfied its aesthetic.
'Spiritual energy' aside, vessel-worthy beauty.
[Prime collectible. No—be my slave? If so...]
It moved to renew its 'mercy'—a fatal error.
Because:
BOOM!
He'd kicked off instantly, soaring skyward straight for it.
[!!]
It panicked at the human closing in midair—but rotten god or not, still a god.
[Keekekegege!]
Shwaaaa!
Twenty thousand wraiths swarmed to shield it, burying him—promising crushing death.
In theory.
"—Finally, I can cut loose."
Crackcacklecrunch—!
[!!!?!!]
—Next instant, a massive sonic boom erupted. The shockwave mercilessly shredded the Great Evil Spirit and its twenty thousand wraiths.