Chapter 34
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Shine Blade
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“This is bad.”
For once, Simon’s usual composure was replaced by a look of anxiety.
‘Even if I use Blood Art to its absolute limit, it’ll take at least five minutes to get there.’
Five minutes.
It wasn’t a long time, but would Christian last that long?
Considering the power gap, it was more than enough time for the demon to sever Christian’s head ten times over.
‘Please, just be alive.’
Even as Nordian’s trusted subordinate, Simon couldn’t afford to let a scion of a Dark Magic House die.
Hoping against hope that the audacious young master would somehow perform a miracle and survive the demon’s wrath, Simon unleashed his Blood Art.
His body dissolved into a mist of blood and vanished.
* * *
[A holy sword? A good idea, but you've miscalculated.]
The demon laughed leisurely.
[A holy sword without Radiant Mana can never inflict a fatal wound upon a being of evil like us.]
A holy sword was indeed a deadly weapon against the malevolent beings of Gehenna.
But without ‘Radiant Mana,’ it was, as the demon said, only half a weapon.
Magi was the essence of nature converted into the power of darkness, while Mana was its conversion into the power of light.
Magi and Mana were divided into various attributes, and Radiant Mana was the highest form of Mana, reigning supreme over all other attributes.
The power of the Hero.
Only when a holy sword was combined with that Radiant Mana could it unleash its true strength.
“You’re right. Without Radiant Mana, even a holy sword can’t defeat you.”
Chris conceded the demon’s point.
However.
“What makes you think I can’t use Radiant Mana?”
[…What?]
Chris briefly turned his focus inward.
He looked at the Mana Hall below his navel.
His Mana Hall was a dual structure.
Like an outer and inner core, the ‘Magi’ on the outside enveloped the ‘Mana’ within.
He moved the ‘Mana’ that rested deep inside.
‘It’s been a while, this feeling.’
Unlike the coarse and domineering Magi, a pure and clear Mana energy spread through his body.
As if changing clothes, Chris’s entire aura shifted.
Feeling refreshed, Chris took a step forward.
[Wh-What…?! Impossible…?!]
The demon, realizing what had just happened to Chris, cried out in shock.
[How can a Majin like you wield Radiant Mana?!]
“Because I’m a genius.”
Chris smirked.
The broken holy sword began to cry out softly.
*Vwooom.*
It was a sword-song, like a shout of joy.
A brilliant light gathered on the holy sword.
The power of the Constellation dwelling within the sword was being manifested through the Radiant Mana.
It was ‘Shine Blade.’
‘One chance.’
Chris suppressed the urge to cough up the blood that was surging in his throat.
With his current strength, it was a strain to manifest the Constellation’s blessing within the holy sword.
By forcing it to the absolute limit, he could manage it just once.
His mind grew faint from the forced manifestation of power that exceeded his vessel, but he barely held on.
It was only one chance, but that would be enough.
[Ugh… Im-Impossible….]
The demon stumbled backward, terrified.
It knew instinctively.
It knew what would happen the moment that power struck it.
“You promised not to dodge, didn’t you?”
Chris raised his sword.
*Thud.* He took a step.
With every step he took forward, the demon, astonishingly, took a step back.
An unbelievable sight.
It was useless.
A promise made with one’s soul on the line to a demon or devil carried absolute binding force.
It could neither counter nor evade.
Chris narrowed his eyes.
His right foot went back.
His left foot extended forward, assuming a ready stance.
A single, imaginary line connected his sword to the demon.
He moved the holy sword along that line.
This was not the swordsmanship of a Dark Magic House.
It was a secret technique used by the Hero.
A sword style passed down only to the direct descendants of the ‘prestigious sword families.’
One Flash that Cleaves the Dead Sea.
A single ray of light that parts the dead sea.
Blood gushed up his throat again from executing a sword technique that surpassed his limits, but he held it back and thrust the sword forward.
A magnificent beam of light from the sword surged toward the demon’s chest.
The brilliant radiance pierced through the evil.
*Fwaaaaaaah!*
A flash of light erupted from within the demon’s body.
Due to his lack of power, the amount of light was not vast. It was just enough that it didn’t leak outside the demon’s body.
But it was more brilliant than any other light.
More than enough to annihilate a low-level demon.
[Th… How… how….]
The demon raised a trembling hand.
That was its last act.
Starting from its fingertips, its body began to turn to dust and scatter, disappearing in an instant.
It had been annihilated.
“Cough!”
Chris vomited a mouthful of blood.
His body was a wreck.
‘Thankfully, it worked. It was half a gamble.’
In the Alliance’s terms, his skill level was 3-Star.
Using Shine Blade and executing One Flash that Cleaves the Dead Sea, an advanced technique of a prestigious sword family, were both beyond him, but he had somehow managed to succeed.
‘Exhausting.’
Chris’s vision began to blur.
His consciousness was fading due to the effects of the demon’s evil energy and his own overexertion.
‘I guess I can sleep a little.’
He could sense a presence approaching quickly from a distance.
It wasn’t an enemy.
It seemed to be someone who had noticed the disturbance and was coming to help.
He was about to close his eyes in relief.
Suddenly, a shiver ran down Chris’s entire body.
‘Someone’ was watching him.
From beyond the rift to Gehenna.
He couldn’t see it with his eyes. But he could feel it, clear as day.
An unfathomable presence, incomparable to the demon from before, was observing him.
[How… interesting.]
“!!”
Chris’s fingertips trembled.
It was not of his own will.
His body was reacting instinctively.
A deep, profound evil that pierced his skin.
No, this evil was so pure that it was no longer evil.
It was like a fundamental law that constituted one axis of the world.
[My name is Mephina. I am one of the seats of Gehenna's 7th Realm.]
A murky whisper echoed in his fading consciousness.
[From now on… I will be watching you.]
The voice was abyssal, as if sinking into a swamp, yet alluring, as if in temptation.
[I shall be waiting.]
* * *
The events of that day sent great shockwaves through the Tiramin County.
Karazov’s rampage!
Followed by the appearance of a demon!
Both were completely unexpected incidents.
It was a crisis that should have resulted in the massacre of all the young Majin participating in the Black Dan Hunt.
Yet, not a single person had died.
It was all thanks to Chris.
The one whom the Majin of Tiramin had scorned as a ruffian.
“Is there any news on Young Master Christian?”
“No, I heard he’s still unconscious.”
“…I’m worried.”
“…Me too.”
The Tiramin Majin spoke with heavy hearts.
“If it weren’t for Young Master Christian, we would have all been killed by Karazov, wouldn’t we?”
“It’s not just Karazov. Young Master Christian also confronted the demon. To protect us.”
They didn’t know how Christian had faced the demon.
By the time they arrived, the demon was already gone.
They assumed it had been reverse-summoned.
Speculating that it had returned to Gehenna.
After all, demons were constrained by time and had to return eventually.
Regardless, if Christian hadn’t confronted the demon, everyone there would have died.
Christian was the savior of the Tiramin County.
Remembering how they had dismissed Christian, the faces of the Tiramin Majin grew heavy with shame.
* * *
Sometime later.
Chris blinked his eyes open groggily.
He was in a bed in the mansion.
‘Where am I? The Tiramin estate?’
It seemed so.
The crest of the Tiramin family was engraved on the far side of the room.
It appeared he had been brought here while he was unconscious.
‘My head hurts a little from the evil energy, but my body is fine. The Black Dan is safe, too.’
Chris quickly checked his condition and breathed a sigh of relief.
Considering he’d had an unexpected encounter with a demon, things had wrapped up well.
‘Mephina, though. I’ve attracted some unwanted attention.’
The interest of a demon.
In truth, it wasn’t an uncommon occurrence.
Majin or members of the Alliance who showed rapid promise often attracted the attention of demons and Constellations.
Some would become a ‘Contractor’ and receive blessings, allowing for accelerated growth, but that was irrelevant to Chris.
‘There’s no way I’d ever make a contract with a demon.’
It was a matter of personal conviction; he had no intention of associating with demons.
More importantly, Chris didn’t need a demon’s blessing.
‘Only losers would accept something like that.’
Even without such things, he was confident he could reach the pinnacle of the Magitech Empire with his own talent alone.
‘Well, no need to worry too much about it. It’s not like a demon can affect me directly.’
At most, demons and Constellations could only try to entice him into a contract or bestow a blessing.
‘And a demon from the 7th Realm isn’t even that high-level.’
Chris casually dismissed the matter of the demon.
‘Is anyone coming? I’m hungry. How do I call a servant?’
Just then, the door opened.
It wasn’t a servant.
A massive, mountain-like figure.
Yet, his impression felt somewhat petty.
It was Count Tiramin!
Slightly surprised, Chris started to sit up in bed.
“Greetings, my Lord Count.”
“No, it’s all right. Stay down.”
Count Tiramin gently pressed Chris’s shoulder with a hand as large as a pot lid, making him lie back down.
Then, he blinked his large, tiger-like eyes and stared down at Chris.
“??”
Just as Chris was giving him a quizzical look, Count Tiramin did something completely unexpected.
He bowed his head to Chris!
“Thank you.”
“!!”
“I heard the story. They said you saved Allos and the other Majin of our Tiramin family. I am deeply indebted to you.”
Count Tiramin offered his apology and gratitude at the same time.
“We persecuted you, yet you helped us in return. I am truly ashamed, and grateful.”
Chris wore an awkward expression inwardly.
‘Saving them from Karazov was actually my own setup.’
Well, there was no need to tell him the truth.
In times like these, it was best to just take the profit.
“Please don’t mention it. I only did what was natural.”
“What was natural, you say?”
“Yes, are we not one family? It is only natural to help in a time of crisis.”
Count Tiramin looked as if he had been struck.
“Family? Yes, I suppose we are family.”
Though their connection was distant, the Cazar and Tiramin families shared the same bloodline.
Count Tiramin felt an even deeper sense of shame.
‘And I was so narrow-minded toward such a boy.’
“Is there anything you desire? If there is anything you want, I will grant it, as long as it is within my power.”
Chris considered the offer.
‘What would be a good reward?’
He already had something in mind.
The Ash Pill.
He had swapped the Black Dan for the Ash Pill, and he thought it would be good to get that pill as a reward.
But then, another reward came to Chris’s mind.
He gazed quietly at Count Tiramin’s face.
He had a petty, narrow-minded side, but seeing him bow his head so honestly suggested he wasn’t a completely terrible person.
In that case, it would be better to gain a different kind of advantage.
Something far more important than the Ash Pill.
‘I can always get another Ash Pill later anyway.’
Chris opened his mouth to speak.