Chapter 200
Chapter 200
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 200
Chapter Title: The First Descent War
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Chapter 200.
There were hardly any records left from that time.
Neither the Demon King's name nor the hero's.
No trace of them could be found anywhere.
But there was one common figure that appeared in the surviving records.
It was the Divine Beast.
A rarer and more powerful existence than dragons, the supreme transcendent beings on earth.
They were said to possess strength that could overwhelm even those who had reached the ultimate realm.
In the Descent War, they racked up countless feats and played a pivotal role in driving back the Demon King.
But perhaps because they were too exceptional?
The Divine Beasts, who always fought at the forefront against the enemy, became almost impossible to find by the war's end.
They had all met their deaths.
Some were surrounded and killed by demonic beasts, while others had their bodies torn apart directly by the Demon King.
In the end, after the First Descent War concluded, the Divine Beasts went extinct.
For over two thousand years, not a single one had been discovered, so they began to be regarded as mythical creatures of legend.
However...
Sewoojin wore a complicated expression as he gazed at the fuzzy ball perched obediently on his hand.
He had heard Martes's words, but no matter how he looked at it, he couldn't imagine this little thing being such a powerful being.
'It does seem like it could help relieve a lot of stress, though.'
Beyond that, it didn't appear to have any practical value.
He wanted to return it to Martes, but...
"For your sake, and for the world's."
Remembering her resolute expression as she said those words, Sewoojin couldn't bring himself to do it.
It was Martes, who was practically a prophet.
Her words couldn't be empty ones.
In the end, with lingering unease, Sewoojin accepted this Divine Beast named Huirateon.
"Hey, move around a bit."
He shook his hand lightly as he spoke.
But Huirateon merely wriggled faintly, showing none of the movement Sewoojin hoped for.
"Is it meant to be handed over to the enemy in a pinch?"
He thought that maybe its soft texture would disarm any hostility.
Sewoojin chuckled softly.
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
Shaking off the stray thought, he recalled what Martes had said before he left.
'She told me to infuse it with my energy.'
That way, the Divine Beast would absorb it and grow.
Sewoojin slowly drew up his chaos energy.
'A little at a time...'
Huirateon looked so fragile that even a tiny bit of force might make it burst.
If he infused the chaos energy too hastily, it surely wouldn't hold up.
He began injecting it as carefully as possible, controlling the chaos energy with utmost precision.
'...Huh?'
Sewoojin tilted his head.
Chaos energy was the first of its kind in the world, something he had created himself.
It differed from both mana and demonic energy.
He had been a bit worried whether Huirateon could accept this energy properly, but it was far too easy.
"What, is it a sponge or something?"
Like a sponge soaking up water, Huirateon absorbed Sewoojin's chaos energy effortlessly.
'No, it's not just that level.'
This wasn't mere absorption; it was sucking it in like a vacuum cleaner.
He could clearly feel his chaos energy depleting rapidly.
Sewoojin let out a hollow laugh inwardly.
"No wonder it's a Divine Beast from legends."
Less than a minute had passed since he started infusing it.
In that short time, more chaos energy had been consumed than during his fight with Strain.
At this rate, it would be fully depleted soon.
Sewoojin hurriedly circulated his chaos energy through his mana circuits.
The chaos energy began swirling rapidly through his body, swelling in volume.
'This has no end in sight?'
Even so, Sewoojin looked shocked.
The rate at which Huirateon was absorbing the chaos energy was accelerating.
"This is insane...?"
No more.
If it kept sucking it in, he really would collapse from exhaustion.
It was then, as Sewoojin tried to cut off the chaos energy being drawn into Huirateon.
Poof-!
A pair of ears sprouted from the plain, fuzzy ball.
Cute, pointed ears like a cat's.
Sewoojin flinched and severed the chaos energy.
He was curious what would happen if he kept going, but it was truly too much.
As the chaos energy cut off, Huirateon shuddered.
As if begging for more.
"Hey, eat in moderation."
Sewoojin laughed in disbelief and stroked the newly grown ears.
"...It's warm."
Just like when he first touched the egg.
A cozy energy emanated from it.
"So, what exactly is it turning into?"
The ears suggested a cat.
But considering its round body, it didn't seem like it would become one.
"Do I have to keep feeding it chaos energy to find out?"
Martes had said that sharing his energy would make Huirateon grow.
He didn't know the limits, but now he wanted to raise it properly.
'She said it would help.'
He wasn't sure yet, but following Martes's advice couldn't hurt.
"Still, don't eat too much. It's tough on me too."
It wasn't whining.
Just a few minutes of infusing chaos energy into Huirateon had left Sewoojin sweating beads on his forehead from exhaustion.
'I shouldn't do it too often.'
The situation around him was turning precarious.
If he wasted chaos energy feeding Huirateon and couldn't respond to an emergency, it would be a laughable blunder.
Sewoojin stroked Huirateon once more and placed it on his shoulder.
It stuck there like glutinous rice cake.
"At least I won't worry about losing it."
Chuckling, Sewoojin stood up.
"I wonder where the Grand Duke is..."
He needed to tell her about Huirateon, and hear what she had learned in the meantime.
Sewoojin moved toward where he thought Briana might be.
* * *
"I can't believe it."
The Emperor, always brimming with composure, now wore a grave expression.
"That you were defeated?"
"...I apologize."
The shadow bowed his head.
"Was that child truly that strong?"
He already knew the hero was unparalleled among his peers.
But he never imagined it would defeat Dark Duke, one of the guardians.
He had estimated it would need at least another year of growth to even match...
"Agna's predictions have been wrong once again."
Crusiel's forecasts had missed the mark.
And by a wide margin.
More than Strain's defeat by Sewoojin, the Emperor was troubled by Agna's repeated failures.
"So? What did the child say?"
At the Emperor's question, Strain hesitated to speak.
The wounds all over his body throbbed needlessly.
But he couldn't very well stay silent before the Emperor.
"He hoped we would leave him be."
Strain relayed Sewoojin's words as mildly as possible.
"...Hah."
The Emperor laughed.
"You dare spout such nonsense to me?"
The Emperor's anger turned toward Strain.
It meant that Strain should have ensured Sewoojin never uttered such words, even at the cost of his life.
Strain bowed even lower.
"I apologize, but with my power, I could not handle him."
Even as he made excuses, self-loathing welled up.
"Is that so..."
Silence fell after the Emperor's quiet voice.
Strain swallowed dryly amid the suffocating pressure.
He had lost to Sewoojin and failed to stop his insolence toward the Emperor.
For that alone, Strain deserved severe punishment.
He might even be stripped of his guardian position.
He didn't care about the post itself, but losing the Emperor's trust terrified him.
For Strain was more loyal to the imperial family than anyone.
After a long wait for the Emperor to speak...
The Emperor's mouth opened again.
"Bring the child to me."
Thankfully, it wasn't what he feared.
But neither was it what he hoped.
"Please retract your words!"
Strain's head snapped up as he shouted.
The Emperor meeting Sewoojin personally.
Given that one's temperament, disaster was sure to follow—and on a grand scale.
Strain could not stand by and watch.
"I have my reasons, so worry not, Dark Duke."
But the Emperor did not withdraw his command.
"That child can never harm me."
"I must humbly object—Sewoojin's power has already surpassed mine. If he harbors irreverent intent, no one in the Celestial Palace can stop him."
At minimum, they needed another guardian-level fighter.
Grand Duke and Magic Duke were favorable to Sewoojin, so excluding them, Sword Sage or Fist Sage would need to join...
Regrettably, both were away from the Empire on some mission.
Thus, Strain could only oppose desperately.
"Luden Gardo."
Then, the Emperor uttered the cursed armored suit's name.
"As long as that exists, the child cannot harm me in any way."
The effects of "Luden Gardo" weren't limited to devouring the wearer's mind and turning them into a puppet.
The Emperor believed that with "Luden Gardo" permeating Sewoojin's body, he could never act against him.
"So summon him. I shall meet the child face-to-face."
Strain realized that with the Emperor like this, he could no longer dissuade him.
"I obey your imperial command."
Strain knelt and bowed deeply.
Leaving the audience chamber, Strain sighed and created a Shadow Gate.
A technique unique to him, allowing travel via shadows.
Using it, he could head straight to Sewoojin.
But Strain did not move immediately.
'I need to call the Magic Duke at least.'
Whether she would help was uncertain, but he had to set up minimal safeguards.
It was then, as Strain pondered and decided to visit the Sky Tower first.
Tadadak-!
The sound of someone running this way reached him.
'Who in the Celestial Palace dares act so rashly!'
This was the Emperor's residence.
Even utmost caution fell short—yet someone was sprinting!
Strain waited with an angry expression for the approaching figure.
But...
It was familiar.
A man in pure white armor with resplendent golden hair.
"Ronain?"
It was Ronain, captain of the Order of the White Silver Knights.
The man who upheld imperial etiquette above all others was rushing toward the audience chamber with an urgent look.
Seeing this, Strain sensed something grave had occurred.
"Dark Duke!"
Ronain shouted upon spotting him.
This too violated imperial protocol severely, but Strain couldn't care.
Ronain's next words were too shocking.
"Ayer has declared war on the Empire!"
A war no one had foreseen had broken out.