Gate Exploration (4)
Demons are broadly classified into three categories. First, the commonly known low-ranking demons that are most familiar to humans. Next, the high-ranking demons who command those lesser ones and wield significant influence across the demon world. And finally, the 72 demons who rule over the demon realm itself.
Starting with the lowest rank—the low-ranking demons—they’re basically the overworked laborers that humans summon most often. They’re the ones who show some glaring weaknesses and get easily overpowered and killed. Of course, an average person still couldn’t stand against even a low-ranking demon… but anyone with the strength of an Academy student could probably handle one.
Things change once you reach high-ranking demons. When one manifests, low-ranking demons are automatically summoned as a bonus. Their power is on a completely different level. Even Garein, who ranks among the top combat instructors at the Academy, would have to go all out to defeat one. They’re absolute monsters.
And then there are the 72 demons—the ones everyone’s been waiting for. The seventy-two rulers of the demon realm. Beings whose mere traces can bring catastrophic disasters upon the world. Some of Chaos’s executives, along with a few others, have formed contracts with these 72 demons and can wield their power. Their strength is incomparable to any other demon.
Strangely enough, there’s no price to pay for that power. Your soul doesn’t get bound after death, and you don’t suffer endless temptation from the demon. There’s simply no need for any of that. Why bother with the hassle of contracting with good-hearted people just to tempt them? It’s much easier to contract with trash that doesn’t even require temptation in the first place. Since those kinds of people can draw out even a little more power when the demon manifests, there’s no reason to waste time with decent folk.
That’s why every Chaos executive who’s contracted with one of the 72 demons can be safely labeled as pure evil. There’s no reason to hesitate when it’s time to kill them.
“Gaaah! What the hell is this pain right after I come out?!”
For reference, the demon contracted with Bell Artos was the 38th demon—Halpas.
The moment Halpas descended into Bell Artos’s body, he let out a scream. His form was even more battered and wounded than before.
“Looks like it hit the spot.”
I’d struck before the main body could fully manifest, so the physical vessel was still Bell Artos’s. A voice echoed in my head.
That noisy crow, right?
I've seen plenty of demons, but this is my first time seeing one of the 72.
Whatever bomb you set off earlier, it clearly worked. Look at him—he can barely even stand straight, lol.
“The weakest moment is always right in the middle of a transformation, after all.”
If he had finished descending and fully manifested his true body, I wouldn’t have been able to deal this much damage.
“Kuhk. Kehk! Gaaah!”
Hssss. The aftershock still hadn’t faded. The holy power packed into the bomb continued to gnaw away at Bell Artos’s flesh and burn his blood.
“This great Halpas, toyed with by a mere human’s trickery! Don’t make me laugh!!”
Whoosh!
“Even in that state, he still had enough strength left to bring out his wings. Impressive.”
I almost wanted to clap for the black wings sprouting from Bell Artos’s back. Manifesting one’s true form without properly pulling the body through the cocoon was supposed to consume a massive amount of stamina and carry enormous risk.
“But what can you do?”
Still, Halpas’s choice was nothing short of the worst possible move. If he had been at full strength, maybe. But to reveal his true body while covered in wounds and gasping for breath?
“You really shouldn’t have brought those wings out.”
I picked up one of Halpas’s fallen feathers from the ground and pulled out a book from my coat. This was my final card.
“Th-that item—!”
“Yeah, I figured you’d recognize it.”
“How does a human possess that?! It should have been destroyed!”
“It was. So I made a new one.”
Making this thing had been an absolute pain.
I opened the pitch-black book. Every page I flipped through was pure white. I took the feather I’d just picked up and pressed it against the 38th page.
“Page 38.”
“Gaaah! Don’t you dare!”
“Halpas.”
Crack.
The moment I spoke, Halpas’s feather shattered. The fragments were absorbed into the book, and black letters began filling the once-blank page.
<38th Demon Halpas>
It was just a single line—nothing but a name. Yet the terror that flooded Halpas’s eyes was unmistakable. He must have been desperately hoping the book was fake. Having that belief shattered right in front of him explained the look on his face perfectly.
“There was another human after that guy who could create this book? Th-this is impossible. I have to tell the others—!”
The aura radiating from the book made Halpas tremble. He must have instinctively realized it. This wasn’t some cheap imitation—it was the real thing.
He seemed desperate to relay this information to the other 72 demons, but I spoke faster.
“38th Demon Halpas. Engrave your seal.”
“Gaaah!”
Hssss.
At my command, the name written in the book began to glow. Halpas screamed in agony. The wings sprouting from Bell Artos’s back slowly started getting sucked into the book.
“You’re the first one to be engraved in this book. Allow me to offer my sincere congratulations.”
“You bastard!!”
Hssss.
“Don’t make me laugh! Do you really think you can control us like Solomon?! You will never—”
“I can’t control you.”
Halpas froze at my words. He clearly hadn’t expected that answer. Was it because his main body was still Bell Artos? The way he stared at me blankly felt incredibly unsettling.
“I’m not using this book to control you. I don’t have Solomon’s wisdom to command you in the first place.”
“Then why…?”
“I’m using you to gain power.”
“…What?”
Could a human even receive a demon’s power? And not just any demon—one of the 72 rulers of the demon realm?
“I’m going to seal demons like you here and convert their power into my own.”
“Foolish human. No matter how much water you pour into a vessel beyond its capacity, it will only overflow.”
Halpas’s voice had grown calm. Because my actions seemed reckless, he had judged me as nothing more than a greedy, power-hungry brat who didn’t even know his own limits.
“Do you really think it’s impossible?”
“Kuhuhu. Yes. There have been humans like you in the past. But humans cannot withstand our power. If you realize your sin now and swear to serve me, I shall specially grant you my blessing and authority.”
“I asked if you really think it’s impossible.”
I clicked my tongue.
Of course it's impossible, right?
That's the established theory. Humans cannot fully withstand a demon's power.
Right? So why is he acting so confident?
Still, if it's Zeon, I'm sure he's prepared something.
Both Cheonhwa Yuseol and Hoya shared Halpas’s opinion. They believed humans could never fully withstand a demon’s power.
“Then I’ll show you.”
“…Show me what?”
“The sight of me devouring every single one of the 72 demons.”
Using the item I had created—Lemegeton.
Grimoire - Lemegeton
Type: Item
Description: A magical tome said to have been created by Solomon. Only its creator knows what is written within.
— 1% chance to seal the name of a 72nd-rank demon.
— 0.1% chance to seal the seal of a 72nd-rank demon.
— 0.01% chance to seal the power of a 72nd-rank demon.
— 0.001% chance to seal the authority of a 72nd-rank demon.
— 0.0001% chance to seal the soul of a 72nd-rank demon.
— 0.00001% chance that the first use of the item will create one skill related to the 72 demons.
The final effect of Lemegeton was ridiculously simple to trigger, yet no one had ever activated it before. For the sake of what I desired, I had to use this final effect now.
It was essentially a troll ability designed to say “don’t even try”—a literal probability gauntlet you had to clear from top to bottom.
Crackle.
Due to the effect of your trait, all probabilities for Lemegeton have been fixed at 100%.
But probability battles were meaningless to me.
“Solomon only sealed your names and seals.”
That was why he could never fully dominate the 72 demons. All he could do was summon them from the demon realm using the power of their names and seals.
“Activating Lemegeton special effect.”
But I was different. I would take something more—something greater.
Please enter the effect of the skill to be created.
The very first chapter of Lemegeton—one that would devour the names, seals, powers, authorities, and souls of all 72 demons.
Please set the name of the skill to be created.
“Goetia.”
Ding.
Goetia
Type: Skill
Description: The first chapter of Lemegeton. It contains everything related to the 72 demons.
— Can only be used while possessing Lemegeton.
— Possesses the names of all sealed 72nd-rank demons.
— Possesses the seals of all sealed 72nd-rank demons.
— Possesses the power of all sealed 72nd-rank demons.
— Possesses the authorities of all sealed 72nd-rank demons.
— Possesses the souls of all sealed 72nd-rank demons.
“Ah…”
It was something even Solomon had failed to accomplish. And yet a mere Academy student had done it?
Only then did Halpas finally realize it—the terror of the human standing before him. That this being was an even greater calamity than Solomon, who had once sealed them away.
“Still, it won’t be so bad. I’ll devour the rest of them soon enough.”
“Are you… an angel descended to judge demons?”
“I came to devour you. What judgment?”
If I devoured demons and took everything they had… wouldn’t that make me the Demon God who rules over all demons?
“Are you… a god wearing human skin?”
Without receiving an answer to his question, Halpas was completely absorbed into Lemegeton.
“God? Please. I’m just an Academy student who dreams of reaching the apex.”