Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Purifier
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“...Dawood! Are you okay?!”
From beyond my hazy consciousness, I hear someone calling my name like that.
Then, I feel hands pulling me out from the rubble of the collapsed building.
Dust and chunks of broken stone tumble down around my body.
“...Elnor?”
As I cough and get dragged out, my eyes meet Elnor’s, filled with worry.
“You...!”
Once she fully takes in my state, Elnor’s gaze wavers.
Oh. I must be pretty banged up.
It’s only natural after getting buried under a collapsing building without any resistance.
“...”
This is what happens the moment Desperate Situation doesn’t trigger.
As I confirmed in the mock dungeon before, the skill only reacts to attacks meant to kill me with clear “hostility.”
If it’s just the aftermath of an impact causing a building to crumble, then the one thrown into that situation is Dawood Campbell— all stats F, with zero stat buffs.
‘Fractures, contusions on the head, several joints dislocated...’
My vision shakes. Warm liquid trickles down from my forehead, my limbs move awkwardly, and intense vertigo hits me all at once.
“...Hoo.”
Yeah. This is what’s normal.
All-stats F is the kind of bug-like human ability that can die this easily. That’s all it’s worth by nature.
〚...This is something else.〛
As I gaze at the sky through my blurry vision, the Riverback Marquis—his entire body already mutating—hovers in the air.
The demon’s essence he swallowed earlier is lodged right in the center of his chest, pulsing like a heart in its place.
The demonic energy writhing out from there coats his whole body like armor, a sight far removed from anything human.
A monstrosity.
There’s no other way to put it.
〚Even the Forerunner told the Enlightened Ones to take it just in case, but I never thought I’d actually use it.〛
The guy grins and looks down at me and Elnor.
〚I’ll admit it. You were more trouble than expected.〛
With those words, he floats even higher.
〚But I wonder if you can handle this?〛
Yeah.
I’m curious too, you bastard.
‘...A demon from chapter 1.’
This world is such bullshit.
I let out a mental sigh and glance at the Riverback Marquis zooming off into the distance. His speed makes pursuit impossible.
The “corrupted power” the Riverback Marquis was originally supposed to use consists of demon byproducts in general.
It’s something humans researched to crudely mimic that kind of power.
In contrast, the “demon’s essence”...
Is an item containing the demon’s “remnants” intact. Consuming it to become a demon lord allows using a fraction of that power directly.
For example.
-!
-!!!
Elnor’s expression hardens as grotesque forms suddenly burst from the collapsed building rubble.
They’ve lost even their human shapes, reduced to melted lumps of flesh.
But their screeches—like nails on steel—make it clear they’re hostile to every living thing in sight.
“Eek, eek!”
“What the hell is...!”
The civilians who had gathered, confused by the sudden building collapse, turn pale and flee at the sight.
‘...This is bad.’
A demon’s power has the tendency to corrupt any life it touches with mere exposure to its demonic energy, turning them into creatures akin to those from the demon homeworld, “Pandemonium.”
And these are the demon worshippers Elnor cut down earlier.
Under the influence of the now-demon-lord Riverback Marquis, they’re transforming into Pandemonium’s lowest scavengers: “man-eaters.”
True to their origins in a demonic realm rivaling the Backworld, they’re threatening in combat, but the real headache is that humans killed by them resurrect as man-eaters too.
A chain reaction. Like a zombie outbreak.
On top of that, our current spot is in the bustling downtown. Already crowded with foot traffic, and with the Full Moon Festival, civilians are swarming the area.
The worst place at the worst time.
[ Main Quest ]〖 Chapter 1 – Purifier 〗
[ Defeat the ‘Purifier’! ]
[ Too many casualties means game over! ]
[ Reward: 1 Essence of Malice ]
[ Reward: 1 Fragment of a Hero ]
[ Reward: 5,000pt ]
And in that situation, the damn quest pops up right on cue, never failing to disappoint.
Minimizing casualties here? That’s an absurd demand.
-!
-!!
The man-eaters finish mutating and let out roars when a flash of light strikes them out of nowhere.
A textbook thrust with a longspear. Several rising man-eaters get impaled and sent flying.
“Brother! What the hell is...!”
I wipe the blood trickling from my forehead, and that’s when I spot Talion rushing toward me from afar.
Was that strike just now his doing?
“I heard a huge boom and came running—what the hell is going on?! What are those monsters, and Marquis Riverback...!”
Yeah. In this mess, it’s a welcome face.
Normally, around now, this guy would’ve corrupted too and ended up like that.
“If you’d been wearing that necklace, you’d be the same.”
“...Pardon?”
Instead of answering, I point at one of the man-eaters.
Black demonic energy pours from the still-hanging necklace of the Purification House Foundation.
Normally, it’d just cause some loss of reason, but with a demon lord appearing, they’ve crossed the point of no return.
Talion’s eyes widen at the sight.
“...This is.”
His expression shifts rapidly.
He’s probably piecing together the situation coldly in an instant.
“Just one thing to confirm.”
“What.”
“...Is Marquis Riverback behind this?”
No honorifics. It’s phrased as a question, but he seems mostly convinced already.
He’d emphasized “wear it at all times” countless times while distributing those necklaces.
I smirk and meet Talion’s fury-filled gaze.
This guy isn’t an idiot.
He was designed as Eliya’s rival, after all. His judgment and action in emergencies are beyond student level.
“We can sort blame later. Right now, if we don’t contain those, hell opens up here.”
I steady my shaking gaze and relay that.
And by deliberately removing his necklace, I’d bought “trust.”
Time to make full use of that.
“Listen carefully. One mistake and it’s over.”
I lay out the instructions.
His expression starts serious, turns baffled, then looks at me like I’m insane.
“...Is that even possible?”
“Yeah.”
It has to be.
I didn’t run my ass off everywhere for nothing.
If he can’t handle that much, he’s useless.
“Then, what about you this whole time...?”
“I’ve got other things to handle.”
‘Two objectives.’
First: Prevent civilian casualties in the area.
The man-eaters are sluggish now, but as demonic energy thickens, they’ll get faster and stronger.
Most of the instructions I gave Talion are to plug that.
Second objective:
“We have to eliminate the source.”
Take out the Riverback Marquis himself, who’s spreading the demonic energy.
That’s my job from here.
“Do you know where he went?”
Elnor asks in a quiet voice.
Wondering how to chase a guy who flew off at that speed.
“Yeah, more or less. I’ve got a guess.”
A guess you could say.
Actually, there’s only one place it could be.
●
Merchants are always quick with calculations.
If you trace why Galdier Riverback became a demon worshipper, the root answer boils down to that.
Even after rising from a mere black market trader to marquis, enjoying unimaginable wealth and honor—it was all secondary to becoming a demon worshipper.
‘Their power reaches every corner of the continent.’
No need to go as far as the unseen, unheard Forerunner; every “follower” of the demons he met wielded terrifying power.
Among them, the power of the Forerunner’s closest aides, the “Enlightened Ones,” was on the level of boiling seas, shattering earth, and cleaving heavens.
Compared to them, he was a bug. His survival this long was thanks to constantly reminding himself of that.
He joined them without hesitation after confirming it.
No one on the continent could oppose them—a merchant’s swift calculus at work.
And now, Riverback Marquis.
Felt utter certainty that his choice was right.
〚Hoo...〛
A sigh filled with omnipotence escapes him.
The massive demonic energy boiling through his body.
Just venting it could crush weak lifeforms with pressure alone—an overwhelming force.
And this is from merely accepting a sliver of grace from the “new god” called demon.
〚With this much...〛
The mission should be easy.
To revive the demon, first sow despair and chaos everywhere.
Kill people, kill more people, pile corpses atop.
Start with that right away.
The place he’s reached now is for exactly that purpose.
〚Descend.〛
He mutters and reaches toward the “barrier” before him.
The guardian barrier near the Seraphim-guarded Void Zone.
Normally, heavily guarded, and even breaching it would make damage unthinkable.
But with the Full Moon Festival, breaching was easy, and now he wields demon authority directly.
He can’t shatter it entirely, but scratching a tiny flaw is possible.
Considering the Void Zone’s nature...
That alone would unleash an unimaginable catastrophe.
‘...This is the real key, after all.’
The riot in the city is just a smokescreen.
All available armed forces are probably tied up there.
The true goal is right here.
“Okay. Hold it right there.”
Unfortunately.
Not everyone’s a fool.
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〚...How did you know?〛
The Riverback Marquis, about to damage the barrier, speaks in a stiff voice.
“Know? I already told you. It was obvious.”
Riverback Marquis—what can you call him?
A single-celled type who thinks he’s clever.
The kind who craves superiority over others, always trying to “deceive” first.
‘...Isn’t he an idiot?’
Honestly, from my view, nothing’s more inefficient.
If he’d just controlled the man-eaters and pushed here fast, the barrier would’ve broken eventually.
“...”
But thanks to that, I get this chance.
The weakness I’m stabbing at is his vanity and arrogance.
I sort the plan in my head.
Man-eaters interfering would’ve been impossible, but now it’s just him—one-on-one.
“So, you.”
It hits me again, but one of Elnor’s biggest strengths is her bottomless physical prowess.
Carrying me—barely able to move from severe injuries—and crossing the district in seconds proves it.
“What’s the plan.”
She sets me down and says it, having brought me here without a word at my single request.
Her eyes brim with steadfast trust.
“There’s a reason I pulled all support and had just us come here.”
“Well, yeah?”
Time’s tight.
No leeway to call others. The moment he nicks the barrier, it’s game over.
People die, Elnor gets kidnapped immediately after, Gray Devil unleashed.
Straight to bad end.
Better to come with just me and Elnor and settle it.
“Right. So how do we beat him...”
“We can’t.”
Elnor’s eyes narrow.
“...What?”
“We can’t win. The two of us. No way.”
Yeah, for real.
To stably handle a demon lord, you need Eliya equipped with the “holy sword.”
That’s content from chapter 4 at earliest. Expecting it now is shameless.
Put another way, the enemy’s that shameless too.
Even the final boss—Elnor half-grown, me critically injured and wheezing—we can’t even touch him.
“...”
But.
I’ve got something to rely on.
-Got bit by something nasty. Can’t see the shape, but it’s fucking horrific, I get that. Seems stuck to you because of your ability.
I recall those words suddenly. The angel guys warned me before.
Yeah. I know.
I’ve got a rough idea what’s “stuck” to me.
[ Target ‘???’ takes interest in you. ]
I smirk at the system log.
This too.
[Gift-Related Character Alert]
♥ Elnor Erinarije la Tristan
[ Cherished Stage 1 ]
[ ‘Skill Copy Ticket’ can be used! ]
And the final basis: this.
‘Cherished’ stage favorability. And the Skill Copy Ticket.
With this, I can.
Turn an unwinnable foe at our level into something we can handle.
As I think that, the Riverback Marquis sighs and stirs his demonic energy.
〚...Whatever.〛
Then, a storm-like residue of demonic energy leaks from him.
A physically rippling aura so dense you can almost see it—lose focus for a second, and you’d pass out.
The absurd part? This isn’t full demonic release—just the “prelude” to an attack.
〚Kill you, secure the Tristan Duchess, and done. Better this way. Saves me the trip later.〛
From now, we fight this guy.
I take a deep breath and speak to Elnor.
“Elnor. Promise me one thing.”
“What.”
“It’ll really hurt. Be painful. You might even resent me...”
“I asked what.”
At a glance, it sounds like irritation to hurry up.
But anyone seeing that steadfast gaze would answer differently.
Whatever you say is fine.
I’ve already accepted, so speak without worry.
That’s what it means.
“...”
I give a wry internal smile.
As always.
The level of trust she gives me is hard to get used to.
So, I have to live up to it.
“No matter what happens. I promise.”
I meet her gaze directly.
“I’ll get us both out of here alive. Got it?”
“Yeah. Got it.”
“So.”
I look away from Elnor, turning to the Riverback Marquis.
“No matter what happens, trust me.”
Yeah. Really.
What I’m about to do is pretty insane.
The moment I think that.
Like a tidal wave of presence, the Riverback Marquis charges at us.
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