Saint Country (3)
“Danger!”
Sung-tae quickly thrust his hand toward the beam shooting at the saintess.
Fortunately, the beam couldn’t pierce his hand, but his left gauntlet crumbled into powder. The beam that struck it directly ricocheted sideways, revealing its true nature.
“A spear?”
It was a spear. A spear that looked like a work of art made of silver, something better suited for display in a museum or church than as a weapon.
“Kyaa!”
Damn it!
He’d blocked the direct attack and shockwave, but a faint ripple that slipped through his fingers sent the saintess flying backward. The gathered crowd caught her. However, the shockwave tore part of her clothes and left a light scratch.
Hmm. Nice figure… No, wait, why the sudden change!
Sung-tae thought as he eyed Rubert, who had the sun at his back. Just moments ago, he’d been a loyal knight serving the saintess. Had he suddenly turned traitor? Human hearts were unpredictable, after all. Friends one day could betray you the next, and loyal soldiers could stage coups. But this abrupt shift made Sung-tae suspect it wasn’t Rubert at all.
“Are you alright?!”
“I’m… fine.”
“To dare attack the saintess! That’s no angel! It’s a demon!”
“You demon! Lord Bryunak is here! Begone!”
The sun’s glare high in the sky prevented the residents from discerning Rubert’s identity. Every voice reached his ears, fueling his rage.
“That woman isn’t the saintess! She’s just a wicked bitch corrupted by power and authority! How dare you speak blasphemy to me, the true priest chosen by God!”
It was all the saintess’s fault. And beyond her, that repulsive demon king masquerading as a god.
His face twisted into a demonic visage, mirroring the residents’ cries.
“Begone, demon!”
“Maybe it’s the demon king. Where’s Sir Rubert?”
“I am Rubert!”
His white wings unfurled, blocking the sunlight. Only then could the residents confirm it was him.
He was the true servant of God, yet these fools deceived by the vile saintess needed to see the truth. As God’s servant, he shouldn’t expect too much.
His heart pounded as he awaited their reactions. He envisioned a future where the enlightened masses revered him.
“Sir Rubert?”
“Is that really Sir Rubert?”
“Yes, it’s me. Don’t fall for that wicked woman’s deceptions. The true servant of God is…”
But reality was cruel. No one praised Rubert.
“Sir Rubert has fallen!”
“Sir Rubert’s become a demon!”
“He’s become the demon king’s minion!”
Faced with the harsh reality, Rubert denied it and deluded himself with a mental victory.
It’s too late. They’ve all fallen. Now I see why she went out so often. Pretending to heal and bless, she corrupted them all.
The residents’ souls were surely corrupted too. Salvation was impossible. There was only one way to purify fallen souls: death.
“I shall purify you all.”
Light poured from his body. But it wasn’t pure white. Thorny beams extended in all directions, stained black in patches like smeared filth.
As the light enveloped the people, the saintess stepped forward.
“Stop! Sir Rubert! I sense an evil aura from you. Please, open your eyes!”
“Silence!”
The saintess activated her holy power to block Rubert’s light. It formed a sturdy wall between him and the people, halting his assault. Unlike the darkening power of the fallen holy knight, her force was purity incarnate.
How can a corrupt one wield such power? It’s all deception!
To fall despite such strength. To corrupt others and revel in privilege. You should have been the one loved and revered, not me.
Jealousy toward the saintess boiled within Rubert. His light turned completely black.
This is getting serious.
Sung-tae, who had been observing, quietly watched the saintess’s power cleaving heaven and earth.
Cracks formed the moment Rubert’s power blackened fully; it wouldn’t hold much longer.
“It’s dangerous. I can’t break through.”
“Really?”
Garba, who had been pounding at the saintess’s barrier, looked up at the sky. Even she, who could match a hero, couldn’t pierce it.
Sung-tae inwardly admired her. As expected of a saintess.
“Wait, why are you even hitting it?!”
“Don’t we need to fight that guy?”
“Not by smashing the shield!”
Crack!
The cracks in the saintess’s power widened. It was a wall even hero-level Garba couldn’t breach, yet Rubert was shattering it.
I’m the only one who can resolve this.
With that thought, Sung-tae finally moved. The saintess made one request as he did.
“O Incarnation. Please show mercy…”
“…I’ll try.”
Worrying about Rubert even now. Was she naive, or just innocent of the world?
Sung-tae figured ignoring a woman he liked wasn’t manly.
“Alright. Garba, protect the saintess. Stay by her side.”
“Understood, my lord.”
Sung-tae kicked off the ground lightly, launching like a cannonball. Shattering both powers, he grabbed the fallen holy knight and flew out of the city.
“Urk!? You filthy demon king!”
“Let’s change venues.”
“Let go, you wicked thing!”
“I’m not that nice a guy, but right now, you look wickeder.”
Sung-tae, holding Rubert, landed in a deserted forest. As soon as they touched down, Rubert soared into the sky—no trace of an angel remained. Could an angel have such a malevolent expression and blackened wings? Like a ferocious demon god.
“Just a demon now.”
“Shut up! You’re the demon!”
“Stop yelling. It’s getting annoying.”
Who’d like someone screaming every word? Sung-tae’s blood pressure rose at Rubert’s self-debasing shouts. He clenched his fist.
Why the sudden change?
He’d been normal at the temple. Yet in less than half a day, he’d turned demonic. Had he been hiding it all along?
With the saintess there, no. So a change of heart? Enough to become a demon?
“Die, demon king!”
Sung-tae dodged Rubert’s black beams effortlessly amid his thoughts. They pierced the ground without exploding, burrowing deep underground.
Should I just beat him senseless?
But the saintess’s plea surfaced. Please show mercy.
“Ugh, annoying. Hey, let’s talk.”
If it was a change of heart, talking might fix it.
Sung-tae tried dialogue.
“The demon king’s whispers are evil temptations. You think I don’t see your plot to corrupt me?!”
“You’re already corrupted. More and you’ll be trash.”
“Shut up! I’ll kill you and purify the saint country!”
Purification was needed. They were all steeped in evil. As the true apostle of God, it was his duty. Only he could do it. Then the continent would praise him—true praise, not the saintess’s lies.
“Purification… PURIFICATION!!!”
“Still room to fall, huh.”
Darkness dyed the blue sky. Clouds blotted the sun instantly. Rubert’s form blurred in the gloom, merging with it.
And then…
I am the true servant of God. All must praise me—no, only I can serve God. No one can follow my faith. All are false!
“Really turned demon now.”
He became a giant. A giant of storm clouds. A demon fresh from hell.
[This proves I’m closest to God!]
The black demon drew a spear. A tiny silver spear barely gripped by fingers: the divine spear.
[Grow!]
The petite spear, unfit for the demon, wrapped in darkness. Absorbing it, it grew massive, fitting the demon’s grasp. Blackened by the shadows, perfect for him.
Sung-tae eyed the transformed divine spear and tried talking again.
“So, your tantrum’s that you’re closest to God. Closer than the saintess, anyone—you understand Him best, right?”
[…Yes!]
Rubert halted, hostility fading. No one acknowledged him, yet the demon king—God’s antithesis—did. His heart opened. He wanted to share his revelation, his grievances.
[The saintess has been loved by all. But it’s false. How can one who doesn’t truly believe in God earn love through hypocrisy? I, who believes more than any, gets no such respect. Why only her?!]
“Hmm.”
[That’s not all. She corrupted everyone. But God loves even the fallen, right? I hate that.]
Darkness boiling in his heart twisted his thoughts. Just earlier, he’d raged to purify all—now he flipped like a pancake.
[Why show mercy to the corrupt? Why love the ungrateful? Only the faithful deserve God’s love. Not the fallen. I’ll kill them all. Cast them to hell. Even in death, they won’t reach God.]
“…”
[Do you understand? Of course not—a demon king knows nothing of love or mercy.]
“Nah, I get it. You mean…?”
Sung-tae pondered, then raised a finger.
“Jealousy?”
[Jealousy…?]
“Yeah. You want God to love only you. Doesn’t matter if others fell or not. God’s the one showing mercy and love, not you. But you hate Him doing it for others, so you wanna kill them.”
[Not kill—purify!]
“You said kill earlier. Stop flip-flopping. Honestly, you don’t even know what you’re saying, do you?”
[…Foolish to expect a demon king to understand. Twisting words to corrupt me.]
How could a demon grasp a servant of God’s will? Rubert raised the divine spear skyward. Lightning—his symbol of divine punishment—gathered at its tip.
“Mental gymnastics, huh. Perfect medicine for guys like you.”
Sung-tae uncrossed his arms.
“A good beating.”
[A beating? How crude, like a demon king!]
“Let’s test it.”
[First, I’ll purify you!]
Rubert’s spear tip aimed at Sung-tae. Lightning fired with ear-shattering noise.
A roar as blue bolts charged to reduce the black armor to ash.
Sung-tae clenched his fist nonchalantly.
“Said I’d take a hit first, right?”
His fist met the lightning. It scattered like hitting an impenetrable wall, upheaving earth and igniting the forest.
The shockwave didn’t stop, blasting off the demon’s cloud-made head.
[Dare touch an apostle’s body?!]
“Apostle, sure. The bad kind.”
The demon’s head regenerated instantly. It attacked again, blue lightning wriggling like eels through the clouds.
Lightning swelled, covering its body, raining down like a storm. Each bolt rivaled a hero’s strike.
Sung-tae weaved through leisurely, eyes flashing for weakness.
Not the head—heart?
A punch to the chest bored a hole. No effect. Peering in, Sung-tae hypothesized.
No organs. Gaseous, huh. How to kill it?
[Receive God’s judgment!]
Blue lightning surged again. One bolt grew into a massive dragon, lunging at Sung-tae.
“That’s dangerous.”
For the armor. It felt like a direct hit could destroy it. Sung-tae punched the dragon’s maw. The shockwave pierced from mouth to tail, shattering the living bolt.
“Screw it. Beat till it dies. Here I go!”
[How dare you!]
As Sung-tae leaped, the demon amassed power. Clouds turned thunderous, blue-tinged. Body-wide storm of lightning, each a hero’s blow.
[The impure cannot approach!]
“Lightning armor, huh. Too bad—I’m not approaching.”
Sung-tae relaxed his fist, palm extended.
“Palm strikes till you’re gone.”
[Urk?]
A palm-shaped hole in the blue demon’s chest. Sung-tae alternated hands relentlessly.
“Thunder Palm! Buddha’s Divine Fist! Big Palm! Whatever—palm strikes!”
[Sto… p… I… bod… y…]
“Huh? What? No mouth, can’t hear.”
The blue demon vanished. Only the spear-holding hand remained. He’d hit everywhere else—no damage.
[I am the apostle and angel of the one true god, Bryunak! Cease! Fear not divine punishment?!]
“That’s getting old. Let’s end it.”
[Just what I wanted!]
If hell had thunderclouds, this was it. The demon’s lightning turned red. The divine spear glowed, amplifying his power. Air howled, earth quaked. Far-off saint country folk knelt, praying for the demon’s end.
[Receive God’s judgment!]
“Bit more power, then…”
The red-lightning demon opened wide, revealing hellish depths. Condensed crimson bolts formed a red sea within, surging at Sung-tae.
And Sung-tae…
“If this doesn’t end it, no hope. Gotta ask Mukkebi to eat it.”
Splitting the red sea, he punched toward the divine spear.
[No!]
“Yes!”
Rubert’s scream as a demon echoed across the sky.