Chapter 175
Chapter 175
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 175
Chapter Title: What Exactly is a Demon King?
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If you think about it simply, it's easy.
It's something that appeared in countless novels and anime before being summoned to this world.
Even so, Seo Woo-jin asked.
“What exactly is a Demon King?”
Martes paused with the teacup at her lips, then set it down on the table.
“Demon King...”
A bitter smile tugged at her lips.
“They are the rulers of Pandemonium.”
A short explanation.
Seo Woo-jin nodded.
“I’ve heard that a few times already, but Pandemonium itself is hard for me to wrap my head around.”
What on earth was Pandemonium?
Was it just the demon world that showed up in so many stories?
And the Demon Kings were the kings who ruled it?
Based on the facts laid out, that seemed like a reasonable assumption.
But something nagged at Seo Woo-jin.
Before, he hadn’t noticed, but after acquiring Chaos Energy and ascending to the Transcendent Realm, a strange sense of dissonance had crept in.
“What do you think it is?”
Martes tossed the question back at him.
He couldn’t exactly say, ‘I asked first,’ so Seo Woo-jin pondered for a moment before speaking.
“Is it from another world?”
There was one reason he answered that way.
*The Otherworld Demon King Chronicle*.
It was because of that mysterious book he’d seen in the consciousness space filled with pitch-black darkness.
He hadn’t opened it yet, but Seo Woo-jin was convinced the term ‘Otherworld Demon King’ referred to him.
If so, what about the other Demon Kings who had descended before?
Were they summoned beings from somewhere else, just like him?
‘It might be a wild leap, but if it really is...?’
This was no small matter.
“Why do you think that?”
Martes’s eyes curved into a smile.
Her expression seemed to say, *Go on, keep talking.*
But Seo Woo-jin couldn’t elaborate.
To mention seeing *The Otherworld Demon King Chronicle*, he’d have to reveal parts he was keeping hidden.
He’d learned early on to watch his words around Martes, so he shrugged.
“It’s just a hunch.”
As Seo Woo-jin brushed it off, Martes’s smile deepened.
She nodded.
“You’re right. Or more precisely, we believe you are. We don’t fully grasp it ourselves.”
“Then, could it be...?”
“What you’re thinking is probably spot on too.”
Seo Woo-jin’s eyes widened.
The thought he’d just had was that Pandemonium—the place the Apostles talked about—might actually be Earth.
“Then you’re saying Demon Kings and heroes are summoned from the same place?”
That made no sense.
If it were true, then they were just...
“It’s only a hypothesis. The children of the Sky Tower are burning the midnight oil even now to uncover the truth.”
Martes’s voice snapped Seo Woo-jin out of his reverie.
“So don’t jump to conclusions.”
“...Understood.”
Faced with Martes’s firm expression, Seo Woo-jin had no choice but to lower his head.
Even though he’d reached the Transcendent Realm as well, the Sword Sage was still a cut above him.
But his mind remained a tangled mess.
Heroes and Demon Kings.
Earth and Pandemonium.
And himself with the Demon Kings.
The unclear threads of connection were knotted together, and untangling them would take quite some time.
“Don’t be impatient. Everything will come to light in due time.”
Martes soothed him with a gentle voice.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
She and Grand Duke Briana were guardians who held affection for him.
They had helped him greatly.
Because of that, Seo Woo-jin decided to heed her advice.
At least on the surface.
“There’s one more thing I must tell you.”
As Seo Woo-jin rose to bow and leave, Martes stopped him.
Her abyss-like eyes stared straight at him.
“The important thing is your heart. Good and evil ultimately depend on the mind within you, so I hope you hold fast to it, straight and true.”
*What does that mean?*
Leaving the Sky Tower, Seo Woo-jin pondered Martes’s final words.
*Did she somehow hear that I’m connected to a ‘black entity’?*
Even she probably hadn’t figured out that he was a ‘Demon King.’
“I went to ask one thing and came back with even more questions.”
Seo Woo-jin chuckled wryly.
Still, he’d confirmed once more that Martes was favorable toward him.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have said those last words.
“Then the issue is checking out *The Otherworld Demon King Chronicle*...”
He needed to level up.
Now that he’d reached the Transcendent Realm and could freely unleash Demon King Transformation, he should meet the book’s qualifications.
If he entered the black space and examined the book directly, he could alleviate some of his doubts.
“But I need to level up outside of Demon King Transformation state.”
Seo Woo-jin glanced at the leather pouch in his hand.
It was stuffed full of summon stones.
*This won’t be enough, will it?*
Upon reaching the Transcendent Realm, his level had surpassed 100.
No matter how many summon stones he had, it wouldn’t be enough to level up.
Besides, didn’t they already have a designated use?
“...Guess I have to head out again after all?”
To level up, he needed to hunt monsters or demonic beasts.
But the Academy’s handouts alone weren’t enough for someone at his level.
“I was planning to stay put for a while.”
To properly grasp the situation, it seemed he had no choice but to move.
“Still, let’s rest a few days. I’ve been running nonstop.”
Seo Woo-jin turned his steps back toward the Academy.
* * *
“The seed?”
Mardetain asked.
“It seems to have taken root properly.”
“Good.”
He smiled in satisfaction at the Dark Elf’s response.
“How soon until it ignites?”
“She was already mentally exhausted. Even a light trigger should provoke a strong reaction.”
“I asked for the timing.”
Mardetain’s voice grew cold.
The Dark Elf flinched and bowed his head.
“It won’t take long. At most a month. It will bloom within that time. No, I’ll make sure it does.”
His voice trembled.
Mardetain gazed silently at the Dark Elf for a moment, then waved him off.
“Get out.”
“Th-thank you.”
The Dark Elf scurried away with the look of a man who’d escaped death.
Mardetain watched his retreating figure with an irritated glare, then suddenly smiled.
The report he’d just heard came back to mind.
“‘Saintess,’ huh...”
Mardetain recalled the seed he had personally planted.
A precious seed that would bloom into a beautiful flower called discord.
“God’s proxy? Don’t make me laugh.”
An arrogant, narrow-minded face floated into his thoughts.
Someone with that mindset as a ‘Saintess’?
It’d be better to knight a stray dog.
At least it wouldn’t betray its master.
“Either way, it’s good for us.”
He had seized control of the mind of one of the top heroes.
He’d thought it wouldn’t be easy, but it turned out laughably simple.
The ‘Saintess’ already had mental issues, and manipulating them was easier than flipping his palm.
Now all that remained was waiting for her mind to fully collapse.
“When that time comes...”
It would deal a massive blow to the now 99 heroes.
“I look forward to it.”
Mardetain rose from his seat with a cruel smile.
Step by step—
He walked through the empty dark space, opened the door, and stepped outside.
Bright light greeted him.
“Fine weather today as well.”
The warm sunlight was dazzling.
Mardetain basked in the gentle light, walking slowly.
And then,
“We see Your Highness.”
“May God’s grace be upon you.”
The priests he encountered bowed deeply in utmost reverence.
“May God’s mercy fill you all.”
He blessed the priests greeting him with a benevolent expression.
He was the ruler of the Holy Kingdom of Iyer and a faithful servant of God.
The Holy King Mardetain.
* * *
“The Grand Duke?”
Yorn asked Seo Woo-jin with a strange look.
“I have some business with her.”
“...You only just got back.”
“There’s nothing much to do here at the Academy anyway, right?”
Yorn knew Seo Woo-jin had reached the Transcendent Realm.
Who could teach such a being?
No one, unless the Guardians came.
If anything, they should be seeking his guidance.
“Do you know the Grand Duke is currently in the capital?”
“I even know where she’s staying.”
Briana was in the capital, not Mernotain, due to the Guardian summons.
“Then you don’t need to take leave.”
“It might take a while.”
“...Very well.”
Faced with Seo Woo-jin’s confident demeanor, Yorn reluctantly nodded.
“But this time, we can’t provide travel expenses.”
It was just a personal vacation, not an official mission, so that was natural.
Seo Woo-jin shrugged indifferently.
He wasn’t taking a train or anything that required money.
“Fine by me.”
Yorn stamped the leave form.
Frankly, from his position, he was grateful Seo Woo-jin hadn’t just slipped out without a word.
“Oh, and do you remember that kid we brought from Jinhan before?”
At Seo Woo-jin’s question, Yorn smiled.
“Haven’t you heard about elven memory?”
“...It’s that good?”
“We don’t forget what we see and hear even once, barring extreme cases.”
Yorn said proudly.
Seo Woo-jin hadn’t realized elven memory was that exceptional.
“Anyway, thanks to that, I remember. Are you ready to bring the boy in?”
When Yorn asked, Seo Woo-jin nodded.
“Can’t keep him outside forever. Luckily, I found someone to look after him.”
“Oh? Mind if I ask who?”
“Count van Slaine.”
Yorn’s eyes widened at the mention of the Northern Sword Ghost’s name from Seo Woo-jin’s lips.
“He’ll personally look after him?”
“He’s injured, so he needs a squire to tend to him, apparently.”
Yorn let out a hollow laugh.
“That boy must have some luck. Not just you, but he caught that one’s eye too.”
“It’s just as a squire.”
Seo Woo-jin joked as he rose from his seat.
“Then I’ll be off and back soon.”
“Yes, take care.”
Yorn saw Seo Woo-jin out of the office and closed the door.
“The Grand Duke...”
His eyes narrowed.
“What do you think?”
He suddenly addressed the empty air.
Surprisingly, the space split open, and someone stepped out.
A woman with a lit cigarette in her mouth, frowning.
It was Agna.
“After the Sword Sage, now the Grand Duke. It can’t be meaningless action.”
“That’s what I think too.”
Yorn agreed with Agna.
“He’s left the Academy, so hand him over to Crusiel from here. Focus on running the Academy.”
“Got it. Lately, watching the heroes grow has been quite satisfying.”
Especially the ones training with Seo Woo-jin—they were progressing at an astonishing rate, so Yorn had his eye on them.
“We’ll start culling soon, so prepare thoroughly.”
With that, Agna vanished back into the split space.
All that remained where she’d stood was a haze of cigarette smoke.
“You’re always so busy.”
Yorn waved the smoke away with a laugh.