Chapter 196
Chapter 196
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 196
Chapter Title: David and Goliath
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Ever since I got isekai'd into this game, one thing had always bugged me.
The most crucial feature was missing: an inventory.
You know, that handy space for stashing weapons, potions, items—whatever you needed on the go.
It made surviving here a real hassle.
Normally, you'd pull out items when you needed them and store them away again without a second thought.
Well, even then, it would've been smaller than a warehouse and always bursting at the seams anyway.
...I heard stories about the tree roots where the elves lived.
A structure flipped upside down like a baobab tree, with the gaps between roots that gripped space serving as inventory storage—that was the lore.
Maybe that's why the Demon King of Might burned down the World Tree.
Subspace. The cracks between spaces.
If loading screens represented time, the black screen was jokingly called the World Tree.
"...Ugh."
Right now, I was clutched in the giant's fist, dragged off to some bizarre place.
The moment it grabbed me, the warping space made me black out.
Looking up, there was nothing but pitch-black darkness. An endless void with no discernible end.
In stark contrast, the floor gleamed white like polished marble.
"What’s this? Already done? I figured you'd at least try fighting back."
My bones were already ground to dust. Cracked ribs made breathing a chore.
And that smug bastard sneering down at me? Talk about twisted.
He'd tried to shove Pine into a place like this, and I blocked it for her.
"No way... that's...!"
I twisted open the crimson potion I'd snagged earlier and barely managed to pour it down my throat.
Regeneration Elixir.
No matter the wound, it restored the user over a set time.
The bone jutting out from my arm snapped back into place.
My shredded rags of a body knit itself whole again.
My blurry vision sharpened, and I could finally stand on unsteady legs.
"L-Licht...? Is that you?"
Just as I drew my spirit sword to face him, I spotted a blond hero beside me.
Kainel got dragged here too, huh. Looks like he's cherry-picking the dangerous heroes.
"Kainel, you okay?"
"Hanging... in there."
Luckily, he'd blocked with the Light Holy Sword or something—his condition looked better than mine had moments ago.
The guy putting on a tough front despite being a mess. Probably rolled around this space and took a beating; his whole body was wrecked.
"...The professors, the students—they all vanished at once."
"..."
"I should've protected Ariel..."
Watching the Demon King of Might strut around so casually, Kainel's eyes were growing cold.
Seems like he's planning to toy with us. Maybe venting about me taking out his sister Intinium.
'If he wanted us dead, he'd have done it already. And Kainel...
...hasn't become the Light Demon King yet. So at least Ariel's safe.'
"Ariel's fine, Kainel."
"What? How would you...?"
As far as I knew, this guy was Kainel's mortal enemy.
In the original Knight Heart, he was just described as the Hero Cult's Demon King who died.
Canonically, he had to take down the Demon King before the sequel.
But we're meeting way too early. Kainel's not strong enough yet.
"So snap out of it and grab your sword."
The culprit who killed his imperial knight brother and torched Ariel's hometown—that's Finn, the Demon King of Might.
"Hey, chatting without me? That's rude."
Boom!! A fist came flying straight at us. Kainel's light-form movement bent around it.
Raw strength that could twist space itself.
That's how Kainel got hurt. And why I couldn't dodge—the power was overwhelming.
Not powerlessness, but martial might. The Demon King's attack hit like a pun, but it was deadly serious.
I barely parried with Resolve, but consecutive punches rained down on us relentlessly.
"What's wrong with you two?! You're so damn feeble!"
It was indiscriminate, like a kid wrecking a sandcastle.
No time to read patterns—the white giant was bearing down on us.
Even slashing wildly with my white sword did nothing. Guess puny attacks won't faze it.
...Damn it, no way out...!
Kainel kept firing sword beams, but they weren't landing either.
Aiming for the main body, Finn? But it blocked with its arm.
Think. There has to be a weakness. A cyclops that mimics the user's actions.
Wait a sec—this feels familiar.
"Kainel!! It's just like the Shadow Wolf!! Aim there!!"
The Shadow Wolf was all illusion except its eyes. Maybe the same here.
One-eyed giant. That single eyeball's gotta be the weak point.
Earlier, when Kainel used Shine Strike, Finn desperately shielded just the eye area.
"Got it, Licht!!"
After passing Tarden's trial, his technique shifted from straight-line blasts to reflecting sword energy.
The random light beams bouncing everywhere gave me the hint. I signaled, and the hero immediately scaled the giant's arm.
"...So what if the eye's the weak point?"
Then Finn donned sunglasses. The cyclops' eye snapped shut like it was closed.
Kainel tried jamming his holy sword into the giant's eye, but it fizzled.
That's why the getup? Even for a Demon King with weird fashion, sunglasses at night? Makes sense now.
"Nice try, but not enough power, boys."
He swatted us away like flies. The blond hero sailed off into the distance.
His nonchalant moves screamed he saw us as annoying pests.
"Kainel!!"
I bolted into motion. Time crawled as I raced to catch Kainel plummeting from the air.
"...Keep struggling. If you can."
Then shadows fell. The floor darkened in an instant. Spotting the gap, the giant lunged at me, jaws wide.
"No way you can beat a Demon King contracted to a titan anyway."
Snowy concrete-building teeth loomed. A few seconds, and it'd chomp me alive—throat and all in view.
...Can't let it eat me and Kainel together.
I summoned Dew at once, unleashing glass rain. Jewel-like droplets began shattering down from above.
Normally, no rain in subspace.
But my spirit sword had powered up since fighting Emperor Locke.
Rumble!!
I barely saved Kainel and set him down.
"...Thanks, Licht."
He'd thrown up a barrier before Finn's hit landed—didn't look too bad.
How tough is this guy's lifeline? Makes sense; he's a sequel character, so he won't die easy like me.
"No hero you bring measures up to me!"
The Demon King of Might, oblivious I'd vanished, crowed triumphantly at the crater I'd left.
Tooth marks like a chunk bitten from a cake. Dodged being digested alive by a hair.
"Kainel, heal up with magic beforehand."
We had more fighting to do.
Resolve was finally kicking in—my fake holy sword copying the foe's stats.
Probably the same power as his sister Intinium. The delayed reaction confirmed it.
Powerlessness that steals strength, versus might that grows ever stronger.
Ironic duo. Heroes and Demon Kings share the same roots, after all.
'Pine's insane strength must've been nullified by this guy...'
I gripped my sword and teleported. Thud!—a deep footprint cratered the floor.
That's why he used an apostle first.
The longer it drags, the stronger it gets. Finally, one mystery solved.
Of course. No Demon King's invincible.
"...What're these glass shards? Only they can breach subspace...?"
The Demon King of Might finally noticed the falling glass rain, sensing something off.
"If sunglasses are the issue..."
Too late. I'd already nailed Emperor Locke's slashing pose.
"...Just smash 'em."
Screeech!! Air exploded as a sonic boom slammed Finn's shades.
Now fused with Resolve's stat copy.
"...You crazy bastard."
My sword sliced into the Demon King's unprepared face.
Pine Granasia, left alone, thought to herself.
'...Licht saved me again.'
It was always like this. The Black Knight taking the hits meant for her.
He knew she was a princess yet let her act freely, eyes only for her true self.
If she hadn't equipped the Masterpiece, the Demon King of Might would've targeted her.
Being the Empire's princess and Locke Granasia's daughter was a crushing weight dragging her down.
'Compared to that, I'm...
...useless. Couldn't lift a finger while the Demon King attacked.
Her chest tightened. Guilt crashed over her for failing to save someone precious from the Demon King.
"...Huh? Someone's still here?"
Then a blue-haired girl approached Pine, beaming innocently.
'...How'd Intinium come back to life?'
She recognized her from before—the Demon King Licht had killed.
Sliced to bits by card stacks, or so she'd thought.
What was her game? As Pine pondered, the Demon King of Powerlessness tilted her head at her.
"Whatever. To help big bro Finn..."
The Demon King acted like it was their first meeting. Pine seized the lapse, swinging her sword at Intinium's neck.
"You can play in subspace with me too..."
A massive pale foot dropped from the sky, smashing Pine deep underground.