Chapter 69
Chapter 69
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: Belial
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Belial.
One of the four great dukes ruling the Demon Realm.
He always maintained the same appearance—long platinum hair cascading down, more suited to a figure from mythology than a human.
He was the devil incarnate.
“Long time no see, Hero.”
I closed my eyes for a moment at his words, then opened them again.
This was indeed the Demon Realm I knew, and a being here recognized me from Tartarus.
Even if that being was a demon.
Strangely, confirming that put my mind at ease.
Belial watched me for a long while before curling the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“What in the world happened to you? To weaken like this. Did you perhaps commit some grave sin against the gods?”
I’d expected him to notice my lowered stats, so it didn’t surprise me.
When dealing with demons, you must never show emotional turmoil. Composing myself, I replied calmly.
“Gods? Don’t make me laugh. It’s just the System screwing me over.”
“Hmm, the System.”
Belial chuckled.
“Humans come up with the most novel ways to blaspheme the divine. You should learn from this.”
“The demons’ faith in the System is as strong as ever. That thing a god? Might as well be a demon.”
“Beautiful sophistry. Isn’t blaspheming the gods more demonic than we are?”
Belial cackled.
Some kind of humor on his part? I had no desire to understand.
“Still spouting nonsense, I see, Belial.”
“Ah, it’s been so long since I’ve spoken with an intelligent being. Time in the Demon Realm is dreadfully dull.”
He acted as if we were old friends.
Lazily brushing back his platinum hair, Belial flashed a seductively alluring smile.
“But what brings you to the Demon Realm? You wouldn’t come here without purpose.”
“If I had no business, I wouldn’t be here.”
“Hmm, but last time you visited, didn’t you—as the Hero—get offered up as a living sacrifice to the Demon Realm?”
Hah, I snorted.
“Living sacrifice? I came to twist your neck with my own hands.”
“Such adorable bravado.”
“Want me to snap it again?”
“Hahaha. Well, I can’t call it mere bravado. You actually did it, didn’t you? An unprecedented feat in Demon Realm history. That was fun.”
Even speaking of his own death, Belial gazed at me with ecstatic eyes.
That’s right.
I had already killed Belial once in the past.
So why was he still alive after I killed him?
It’s a complicated story.
The first time I killed Belial was when I encountered him in Tartarus.
Some lunatic—whose name I can’t even remember—had offered a living sacrifice to summon him.
Then kidnapped orphaned children to sustain the demon’s summoning.
In that grim atmosphere, who would care about missing orphans? But Ariadne and Lucas happened to hear the rumors and couldn’t ignore it.
We succeeded in killing Belial back then, or so we thought.
But it turned out, what I’d killed wasn’t Belial. The summoning had merely been released, forcing him back to the human world.
In other words, humans can’t truly kill ‘evil.’
Just like now, with no appearance message despite Belial showing up— he wasn’t a being players could kill according to the System.
I learned that when I ended up in the Demon Realm due to some incident.
Belial sensed my presence and came eagerly, grinning. Seeing his face, I was shocked.
He laughed so hard he clutched his stomach as he explained to my stunned face.
Evil doesn’t vanish as long as humans exist, he said. Did you think being the Hero meant you could eradicate it?
Reviving no matter how many times you kill them—ridiculous.
No, not funny at all. Just die for good.
“If it was that enjoyable, I’m glad. Now that I’m here, you get another chance to die.”
“Ahh, that sounds delightful.”
Even as I openly talked about killing him, Belial showed no tension whatsoever. He seemed genuinely thrilled.
“Lilith would tear me apart if she knew. She kept nagging that it was her turn next.”
Not just nagging—she literally meant frying him in oil piece by piece in a pan.
Why not just kill him outright, Lilith? I might have liked you a bit then.
“But you didn’t come to the Demon Realm just to break my neck, did you? Causing this much commotion means you have some goal involving me.”
His red tongue flicked across his lips.
Asking a demon for information didn’t sit well, but desperate times called for desperate measures. I needed any clue.
I took a deep breath and spoke.
This was the crucial part.
I couldn’t let the demon catch on to what information I wanted.
The moment he knew, he’d ruin it.
“Last time, you sent me back to Tartarus.”
Belial had promised—if I could kill him, he’d send me back—and we even made a contract.
The contract was fulfilled; he hurled me into the void.
When I came to, I was in Tartarus again.
“That’s right.”
Belial answered readily, ignoring my tension. I felt my nails digging into my palms.
Pretending calm, I asked,
“Then, can you send me back to Tartarus once more?”
I saw his pupils narrow as he heard my words.
“Last time it suited my amusement, but the Hero begging a demon for a wish? Quite amusing.”
“I asked if it’s possible.”
Tension stretched taut, ready to snap. I gripped my sword hilt tightly.
My heart pounded fiercely.
But Belial merely scratched his chin and replied offhandedly.
“Well, sending you to another world isn’t impossible in itself.”
“Really?!”
I nearly grabbed his collar in excitement.
But his next words doused my hopes.
“The world I send you to might not be Tartarus.”
“What?”
“Honestly, I’m more surprised you actually returned to a specific world. I figured you’d be shredded to bits the moment I tossed you into the dimensional rift.”
The demon’s mouth stretched to his ears in a grin.
His reptilian, narrowed eyes gleamed with delight and mockery, looking down on the human clinging to him.
“You didn’t seriously think I’d do something helpful for the Hero, did you? Recall the contract terms.”
“……I clearly said send me back to Tartarus.”
“Did you? I’ve lived so long, memory fails me.”
Belial mocked openly. Of course, I hadn’t fully trusted him, so no real surprise.
His taunts didn’t faze me. What shocked me was something else.
“But I…….”
I’d survived moving between worlds twice already—but I swallowed the words.
“You?”
Belial’s eyes lit up. His snake-like green pupils sparkled with amusement and something sinister.
Instinct told me sharing that would complicate things.
I changed the subject immediately.
“What exactly is this dimensional rift?”
“Hmm, not easy to explain to a human. To me, it looks like this…….”
Belial swiped at the empty air.
What had seemed empty space tore like paper under his long nails. Darkness peeked through the rip.
“The gap between worlds. When summoned, we pass through these rifts from the Demon Realm to other worlds. A privilege for demons only.”
For an instant, the darkness was disorienting, devoid of up or down.
Unconsciously, I stepped toward the rift, mesmerized.
A strange sense of déjà vu hit me. As I lingered on the abyss,
Like showing an oasis mirage to a desert wanderer, Belial sealed the rift.
Turning instinctively, I met his eyes blazing with joy.
He was clearly savoring his new toy—me.
The demon who loved human despair waited for my rage. But I had no reason to indulge him.
Feeling my mouth dry, I continued calmly.
“……Then how did I return to Tartarus? According to you, it should’ve been impossible.”
“Hmm, that was unexpected for me too.”
Belial’s face soured for the first time. Disgust crept into his gaze.
“Fate intervened.”
“Fate?”
A word from priests’ mouths sounded different from a demon’s.
“Yes, human fates are so tangled they can’t be tampered with easily, carrying a force to follow their predetermined path. That’s fate.”
“So I…… could return to Tartarus because it was my destined fate?”
“Probably.”
I fell silent at his answer.
From here, word choice had to be precise. I picked them carefully.
“You, a demon, believe in fate?”
“At least I know the gods are watching over you.”
“……Don’t make me laugh.”
Gods watching over me?
I knew the System moved with intent, but it couldn’t be divine.
If so, they wouldn’t show me that scene……
Rage blurred my vision black, but I gritted my teeth, regaining focus.
I wasn’t dumb enough to lose it against an enemy who could snap my neck anytime.
“……If I were watched over, would I be here? This isn’t fate.”
“Oh dear. I smell rage and despair in every word. Music to my ears.”
“You bastard…….”
“Hatred from the Hero is so sweet.”
Belial’s hand rested over my heart. Tilting his head mockingly, he still smiled.
“Humans defying fate is always entertaining. Everything flows as predestined; you can’t change a thing.”
“Bullshit.”
I gripped my sword.
“I don’t buy it.”
“Ah, a heretic. So the gods prepared trials for you.”
The demon’s smile deepened.
An ill omen.
“Then I’ll gladly embrace the honor of being your trial.”
“Elegantly putting it: you’ll interfere with what I plan to do.”
“Interfere? Surely not!”
Belial raised both hands in exaggerated surrender.
“You make me exist. As birth brings death, you give us meaning and prove our worth.”
As he spoke, Belial’s feet lifted slightly from the ground.
Then, ‘it’ began.
Thud thud thud.
The ground rumbled faintly. The tremors were distinct but irregular.
- Apex Holy Sword warns you.
“Ah, that damned holy sword. Nice to see it again.”
“Spare me the false pleasantries.”
“You seem awfully relaxed. You know the situation, right?”
Of course I did.
How could I miss that foul stench of demonic energy and malice wafting from the horizon?
I drew my sword and stared beyond the horizon.
“Pisses me off. I risked my life coming to the Demon Realm…… and like you said, destined fate can’t be changed.”
“So deals with demons require caution.”
Belial, convinced he’d cornered me to death, looked immensely satisfied.
“Lately so boring—perfect timing.”
Demon Realm monsters, summoned by their king, swarmed toward us in hordes.
- A-Rank Monster, Basilisk has appeared.
- B-Rank Monster, Vampire Bat has appeared.
- B-Rank Monster, Cockatrice has appeared.
System messages flooded in madly. Glancing over, the lineup was impressive.
Monsters surviving the Demon Realm naturally had high System ranks.
The black masses surging forth turned my stomach.
“Now, show us the Hero’s valor!”
Belial clapped gleefully at the sight.
Watching like it was a horse race, ecstatic.
From his view, I’d rolled into my own grave—hilarious.
Gripping my sword, I scowled at Belial.
Anyone would see a grand Hero facing his final battle.
“Since it might be the last, one question. Even demons have that much mercy, right?”
“Admitting defeat already? No fun.”
“That ‘predestined fate’ you mentioned earlier. Maybe…….”
I steadied my breath and continued carefully.
“Gathering the ‘Seeds of Fate’ can change it?”
This was do-or-die.
I watched Belial’s face intently upon hearing the term.
And I saw it.
All expression vanished from Belial’s face in an instant.
That was my answer.
Realizing his slip as I caught it, Belial gritted his teeth.
“……So that was your goal.”
I snorted, finally getting what I wanted.
“Why so upset? We were both waiting to screw each other over.”
Belial had stalled to gather monsters; I’d played along to extract info.
Demons are demons. Friendly facade, but bent on plunging humans into despair.
Directly demanding my true info? He’d never comply.
So I begged to be sent back.
I figured he’d list methods, then say ‘impossible’ and crush my hopes.
Then I’d just glean the info I needed.
Realizing he’d been played, Belial glared from midair, then snorted.
“Fine. No idea how a human learned that, but you’ll die here anyway.”
“No.”
He was the clueless one.
Smiling at the oncoming horde, I curled my lip.
No need to dance to a demon’s tune.
“This time, let’s say God’s on my side.”
- Dungeon Clear Condition met: Defeated 30 B-Rank Monsters.
The exit spot hovering by me hadn’t vanished once.
I flipped off Belial, still clueless.
“See ya, demon.”
White light enveloped me as my foot touched the exit.
“What’s this……!”
Belial flapped his wings frantically, shouting something and lunging, but the System’s light swallowed me first.
Gazing at the demon’s twisted face amid the glow, I smiled brightly.
At least in this round, screwing over the demon was a resounding success.