The Cruel Playground

Cruelty.

"Ha, hahahaha…."

Takashi wondered if he was dreaming. He could see the dead. He could see their souls.

The souls of his clan members, who should have been dead, were standing there, dazed.

This phenomenon was caused by a single existence. By his alias, the Granter of Death. In the Demon Realm, he was officially known as Josa, the Demon King of the Spirit Realm.

He was a Demon King who managed and manipulated souls, capable of controlling them at will as long as they had been dead for less than three days. The range of his control depended on the vessel of the soul. Since the Gold Taeyang clan members were mostly focused on sexual prowess—and could hardly be called impressive in either soul or body—Josa could manipulate them with ease.

The dead Gold Taeyang members were fully conscious. Jang-woong, who had died first, was trembling, cold sweat pouring down his spectral form. As users, they realized exactly what situation they were in. Now, even death was not an escape.

It was a scene sufficient to thrill and despair the Gold Taeyang clan, who had already been pushed past the point of ruin by pain so intense they had wished for death.

Moreover, Josa had been completely defeated by Drae and forced into a contract. This meant the Demon King had to exert his power even at a loss to himself. Even for a Demon King, forcing souls to act like zombies was one thing, but reviving their memories and emotions from life was a significant burden. The fact that Josa had to bear such a burden meant he was completely subservient to Drae. There was no way out of this situation.

How did this start so lightly, only to end like this? The members of the Gold Taeyang clan, who had underestimated such a vicious man, were now filled with a pathetic, unbearable terror.

"Good. You guys."

Drae activated his Share skill. Originally, it was a skill he had received to restore Malakia's soul, but Drae used it in an entirely unexpected way.

He shared his own 'sexual prowess' with the male victims.

Normally, this was impossible. Share was meant to share the sensations Drae felt—tactile or olfactory—not his abilities. However, Drae had twisted the skill using his innate sense for handling 'power'—an 'incomprehensible sense'—to suit his whims.

The male victims, who had received even a portion of the talent and technique that Inris had described as the power of lust or justice, saw their sexual capabilities skyrocket.

"So this works."

Drae smiled with satisfaction and gestured, and the male victims approached the women. Among them were women who had lost their minds after being ravaged, and others who had just arrived following the Gold Taeyang clan's orders, trembling in fear. The men rushed at all the women the Gold Taeyang clan had defiled, and a frantic party began.

"Hiyah!"

"Hraah!"

Sounds of exertion in the act echoed from everywhere, mixed with the screams of the Gold Taeyang members as they suffered. On the ceiling, the entrails of the Gold Taeyang members and their female accomplices hung like strings of sausages.

There were countless other 'contents' as well.

Drae called them 'artworks.' Bizarre sculptures made by weaving together Gold Taeyang members of various appearances—middle-aged men, young-looking boys, handsome men, ugly men, old men, monsters, powerful figures, muscular men, and Black men.

Drae named it the 'Water Park.'

Occasionally, a torture device filled with long needles would descend from the ceiling with a clatter, piercing the Gold Taeyang members, and a rain of blood would spray from their riddled bodies.

He said it was imitating the water pouring down like a waterfall in a giant pool.

Every time their bodies were pierced, the Gold Taeyang members were regenerated back to their original state. It wasn't because of Rikka's spell. Josa's mana was vast. He was well-versed in super-regeneration, and even without Rikka's spell, regeneration was possible. That was why Drae could enjoy his games—'The Train,' 'The Centipede,' 'The Spinning Top,' 'The Tug-of-War'—to his heart's content.

Terrible scenes were unfolding all over the large hall.

The mana of Josa, who was originally the Demon King of the 1st Purgatory, was truly immense; even when using super-regeneration on these pathetic underlings, it showed no signs of drying up, and their screams and pain became the Demon King's power, converted into mana. Like a treadmill, the pain continued infinitely. It was a scene that made one wonder if this was what hell looked like.

Ughhh.

Kuaaah.

Screams rang out from everywhere, and in contrast, the voices of women filled with pleasure echoed. They shouted that this was better than those idiot thugs, or that they had hated those bastards from the start. Such mind-eroding remarks tormented the Gold Taeyang members. For the women they had once held some affection for to be pinned under the very men they had trampled, while simultaneously cursing them and whispering all sorts of lewd things, was a maddeningly painful experience.

So, this was what it felt like to be f*cked over.

The Gold Taeyang members were being tortured in both body and mind.

Takashi let out a hollow laugh, tears streaming from his eyes. Ah, damn it. I should have listened to Shin Jin-pae. I should never have gotten involved with Drae. A massive wave of regret washed over him, but the water had already been spilled. There was no way out of here. Because of that Demon King, even death was no longer free.

An eternal festival of madness. Could there be a hell worse than this?

For the Gold Taeyang members, the only salvation was to go insane, but the mental protection granted to the bodies of Outsiders functioned ambiguously—it didn't erase their fear, yet it prevented them from losing their minds.

'No, the mental skills are working fine. Drae is just abnormal.'

Takashi thought, weeping. This place was hell. A true hell where the pain was changed in real-time by Drae. And the master of that hell, the master of that terror, was Drae. All the Gold Taeyang members were in despair, and their thoughts of resistance, let alone escape, were fading away.

Drae was standing in the center, arms crossed beside the black vault where Inris was holed up, nodding in satisfaction. While watching their 'artwork,' he was recalling Josa's words.

'Exert your power recklessly. Act as if your Ryunar and mana are bottoming out.'

'Then he'll jump me?'

'Inris has no other choice. If he stays like that, he'll only maintain the status quo. If Drae's companions happen to arrive here after some time, that prison might be lifted...'

A defensive barrier that was nothing more than a stopgap. Josa had said that if Drae stood defenselessly around that prison, Inris would surely seize the moment of Drae's weakness to make contact.

'But you, sir, would easily counter such a surprise attack and cut him down.'

Drae, whom he had come to know a little through the contract, was truly abnormal. In terms of specs alone, he was an existence that couldn't even reach his own toes, let alone Inris, yet with all sorts of bizarre powers and senses, he possessed the strength to kill even Josa, a Demon King, if he got too close. He would easily defeat a weakened Inris.

However, Drae's goal was not to kill him. He wanted to make contact with Inris and force him into submission. Only then could the final plan he had devised be realized.

Drae had asked Josa if he could use Inris's power to his heart's content once he submitted him. Josa had replied that Inris would never help of his own volition even if he were submitted.

"However, if you make a contract, your plan will be achievable."

Even if it was a power gained through a forced contract rather than a standard one, it was possible to make the Gold Taeyang members have light dreams if they were at their level.

That was right. Drae intended to make the Gold Taeyang members dream. A beautiful dream mixed with hope and despair...

The Gold Taeyang members hadn't lost everything yet. They had only lost what they possessed for the moment; they hadn't tasted true despair deep in their bones yet. To return exactly what they had done to others, he had to make them dream. They would create precious lovers and families in their dreams. And they would suffer exactly what they had inflicted on innocent people until now...

Josa, who was sweating profusely at this revenge beyond human comprehension, thought that the moment Drae made contact with Inris might be his last chance to escape from this mad existence. Of course, as he was bound by the contract, Josa could not give Inris any help. Instead, because of the contract, he gave Drae advice mixed with genuine concern.

Even if you are a Demon King. I know your mental strength is strong, but your soul's vessel is fundamentally different from a human's; you won't submit Inris, you'll be the one who gets consumed.

But Drae only tilted his head as if he understood, without withdrawing his will. He simply burned with intensity in his eyes.

Josa had seen and managed countless souls under the 'Demon King of Death.' He had never seen a human as emotionally twisted and insane as Drae, but having seen countless lives and souls, his eye for discerning a person's emotions was considerable. To him, Drae was currently furious. A black flame that didn't know how it would evolve. Josa, debating whether to offer advice to his master, Drae, due to the protective instinct stimulated by the contract, finally opened his mouth.

"Master."

"?"

"If you are filled only with rage, you are bound to ruin even good things."

Josa regretted it immediately. Because Drae had made a serious expression for the first time.

"...What?"

"...I apologize. I will never say such insolent things again."

Drae asked Josa, who was bowing his head with his hand on his chest, sweating profusely.

"Hey."

"...Yes."

Josa had lived for thousands of years. He should have felt resentful being scolded by a young creature, but since the opponent was Drae, strangely, he didn't feel that way. However, Drae wasn't trying to scold him either.

"Do I look angry to you?"

"...Pardon?"

"Not that I look like I'm having fun?"

"..."

What was his intention? How should he answer this? Just as he was truly flustered, astonishment appeared on Josa's face.

'No way, at this timing?!'

The moment Drae turned around, having noticed his gaze.

"Kuaaaah!"

Inris, who was left only as a face, was transforming his face like a human-faced fish, revealing sharp teeth. And, he swallowed Drae just like that. Just before being swallowed, Drae smiled. It was an action as if everything had gone according to plan. Clearly, Inris was the one attacking, but Inris was the one flustered, sweating...

Kuak.

The moment he closed his jaws, black light surged.

'You underestimate me too much.'

Inris was not a fool. He knew Drae was intentionally inducing him to come out, and he knew that no matter how much Drae consumed the power felt on the surface, he wouldn't lose the power that was his true essence. Nevertheless, he had come out of the vault spread by Arvedia because he thought this was the best timing to gamble. Time would only make the situation the same. No, it would worsen.

Charging his magic power while holed up in the barrier Arvedia had created could have been a method, but if he recovered his power beyond a certain point, Drae, thinking, 'He's recovered this much, so he won't die,' would surely have cut him down with his sword. Inris knew well that Drae wasn't just standing still because he couldn't break the barrier. Inris was always confident and possessed the corresponding ability, but he had no confidence in enduring that attack.

So now was the right time. Now that he had recovered appropriately and Drae had expended his power appropriately... he intended to strike at the suspicious parts.

He didn't think he would win just by fighting. Inris's combat method was to attack the mind, and in his currently weakened state, he couldn't use anything other than his specialty, mental attacks.

But the opponent was a madman who treated even hundreds of years of death as nothing. No, an existence with a soul so twisted it was sorry to call him human. Fighting this man by devouring each other's minds was not a wise thing to do.

'However... a mere human couldn't possibly have such powerful mental strength.'

There must be some secret to his abnormal soul.

Drae was extremely strange. He seemed sad about strange things, yet he was cruel; he faced generally terrifying events without any emotion, yet he felt intense emotional changes at Josa's remark just now. And yet, there was one consistent emotion. That was endless rage. And, what could be more suspicious than this, 'a human body that is not an Outsider.'

How did he come to Elynar in his own body, not a body made by a god? It was impossible. Drae was clearly not an Outsider, but an existence made by a god, disguised as an Outsider.

He didn't know why such an existence was created, but he considered it something that the absolute beings who enjoyed all sorts of games would be capable of. Or perhaps there was a transcendental meaning Inris didn't know about. If there really was a transcendental meaning, he could win against Drae and obtain that information, so it was killing two birds with one stone.

'Perhaps the gods might know the victory conditions for this proxy war.'

As he had made a contract with the Gold Taeyang members, he knew roughly why the gods, who were absolute beings in their own dimensions, had come to this dimension to fight a proxy war, but even Inris, a renowned Demon King, didn't know about the victory conditions. If he could just know those conditions, he could make up for today's losses.

"Phew."

Inris exhaled deeply. The place where he stood was a pitch-black space where even the darkness looked white. This was Drae's interior. To be precise, his mental space.

Intrusion into a mental space was a special power unique to the royal family of succubi. Ordinary succubi could only enter superficial dreams, but if the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lineage was noble, they could pierce through the deep psychology and delve into the inner self that the person themselves didn't even know.

Inris had met the Demon Kings before. The reason he had been able to survive after seeing the Black Sea Emperor Dairagon, the War Ghost Ak-hon, and the Holy Dragon, one of the Five Great Divine Beasts, whom he would have died meeting otherwise, was because he had peeked into their inner selves with this power and slipped away while they were distracted.

In the case of Prostia, he couldn't even attempt it and only saw the manifestation of her past memories...

His thoughts were wandering. He shook his head vigorously to focus on the situation.

In this era, everyone and their dog had mental barriers, so even Inris couldn't know all the information. But it wasn't that he couldn't know everything; it was easy to figure out the weaknesses of abilities or what kind of powers they possessed by intruding into the mental space.

'However, the goal now is not such information.'

The goal was to find the source of Drae's strong soul. If he was a created existence, the divinities must have inputted something into his mind.

He wasn't trying to dig up information to gain an advantage in battle, but to grasp something that formed the basis of Drae's powerful mind, break it, and then activate the Declaration of the Mental World once more to trigger a 'Nightmare of Illusion.' That was Inris's goal.

The guy, who had reached the mental level of an ordinary, average person, wouldn't be able to hold out for even a moment. Then he would thoroughly ruin and ravage him. He would never let that guy who had insulted him like this go.

'That said.'

Where on earth did this space lead to? It was a mental space, but wasn't it too wide?

'What on earth is this black space?'

A mental image usually showed this and that which made up the person... This was an exceptional case. Therefore, Inris was convinced once again that something forming the basis of Drae's mental strength was here.

He closed his eyes. He would expend considerable power, but there was no time. There was a time limit to peeking into a mental space, and someone like Drae would soon find him and kick him out. So he searched for the source even if he had to use his power recklessly. And.

"......"

He fell silent and broke into a cold sweat.

It was narrow.

This space wasn't particularly wide. He had just been wandering around the same place like an idiot. A succubus getting lost in a dream was the same as a person forgetting how to move their own body.

He could guess the reason. Cases like this were rare in the long history. It was a case Inris had experienced only once.

It was when an absolute existence that even the succubus royal lineage couldn't grasp was nearby. Inris was a powerful Demon King whom even the gods, who were absolute beings in other dimensions, could have searched. The only one he couldn't search was a god of the highest rank... Nanar, the sponsor of the current applicant.

...This makes no sense. Could it be that there is a god of Nanar's level inside here? That can't be. If such a powerful existence had been inside here, there was no way he wouldn't have known. Even if they weren't confronting each other, he would have known immediately just by walking around.

'In the first place, what kind of insane god would nest inside a mere human while fighting for the position of the absolute god and 'Pryunar'?'

Was there a god in such a desperate situation that they had to do that?

'...Desperate?'

If it was a god whose existence was already difficult, wouldn't the story be different? He had heard that the incident caused by the 'Outsider Killer' Almiraj on the floating island was to resurrect a forgotten god. If Drae had made contact with them, with the 'forgotten god' back then...

"That's an interesting imagination."

Inris raised his head. It should have been pitch black, but that man was clearly visible to his eyes.

Human...? Man...? No. This was just an image he had created on his own. A man who looked like he was observing everything, sitting in a bizarre chair, wearing something like shabby mourning clothes, with his chin resting on his cheek.

He was definitely a god. ...And one of an impossibly high rank.

"...Huk, huck. Huck..."

Just looking at him made his breathing heavy and his mind go blank. Just like the powerful existences from myths filled with tentacles, as if humans had witnessed outer gods.

'This can't be...!'

As he said many times, the gods who came to the Ryunar dimension were all those who were once absolute gods. The outer gods of myths filled with tentacles were just cute.

'Is there really a god of Nanar's level inside here...?!'

The reason he was still maintaining his sanity and his existence wasn't being erased while confronting a soul of the main god level was not because Inris was an absurdly powerful Demon King. It was because that nameless god was maintaining him. Out of mercy? Or out of a whim? He didn't know. What he didn't know was scary. Inris let out a pathetic groan that didn't befit a succubus royal family member or a Demon King.

"Your head is high."

"...?"

When he came to his senses, his knees were gone. Inris couldn't even let out a scream.

"Show some respect. You lowly little devil."

He couldn't come to his senses, crushed by overwhelming terror and rank. What is this. Inris was by no means a weak person. No, he was strong. 'I maintained my ego even in front of that fanatic Nanar. And yet...!'

A god of the highest rank. Also, the backing of the divinity who was his sponsor. A god of the 'Progressive Faction.' And that special god who had another identity. He was the one who had remained sane even when facing his, Nanar's, true body to make a contract with him.

'How happy was I when I found out that my 'stage' and Elynar's 'stage' were of a high grade?'

And yet. Inris's mind, which had been able to maintain his ego even after seeing Nanar, was now about to collapse. What on earth is this god?

Inris, as he said repeatedly, was a powerful Demon King. He was also a diligent Demon King. He had collected information on the forgotten gods just in case, and even if he didn't know their authority, he had grasped their presence or names. But. He couldn't figure out what the existence in front of him was at all.

Was Drae able ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to be so relaxed because such an existence was here? Was he able to have such powerful mental strength because such an existence was here? This was a bad move. This was a place he shouldn't have entered... a dead zone...

"Disgrace."

Now. What is this. Drae's, voice? He barely turned his head. Like the nameless god in front of him, Drae was also getting up from a bizarre chair and coming down toward Inris.

"If you were going to watch and enjoy it in silence until now, you should have stayed quiet until the end. You idiot."

What is that verbal abuse. Could it be that Drae maintains that tone even while recognizing that existence?

'No, right now... that guy...! He's not just maintaining his ego, he's acting as if nothing happened? That can't be possible...! Could it be that he contracted with this god?'

That wasn't it either. Even if he had contracted with that god, even the contractor wouldn't be able to maintain his sanity if he faced his true body.

"Since that guy flowed in on his own, don't be too hard on him."

"Funny talk. If you're going to do useless things, get out."

"You're a petty guy."

"Were you a man, by the way?"

"No. That lowly guy over there just imagined it on his own."

"So you were an old man."

"Tsk."

What is this. On earth. Inris felt his mind fading. How can he joke around with such an existence? And Inris. Felt it. From Drae, who had approached him. A power he couldn't feel in the real world. His true essence that was only felt after coming to the mental space. The difference in rank and 'stage' as distant as what was felt from that god.

"...Huk. Hick. Hiiick. Hick. Hiiiick."

It was true that something was inside. But to think it was thanks to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that, what an arrogant and foolish thought it was. Drae. Was purely powerful. This guy... is on the same level as the nameless god right in front of him. No, something endless that could grow further, something that could dismiss the succubus royal family as nothing. The gods made him? No.

The gods discovered him, who had no equal, and invited him to this world.

Inris just let out a pathetic groan, overwhelmed.

"Hiiick. Hick... hiiick...!"

Disgrace and Drae looked at each other with faces that said, 'Why is this guy like this?', then raised the corners of their mouths. And.

"Kuhup."

"Puhah."

Kehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe.

The absurd laughter of a god and a human rang out. Drae was rolling on the floor, laughing at the top of his lungs. "You were acting all high and mighty, and in the end, you're in that state!!"

A roar of pouring contempt and ridicule. Now, a god laughing crazily with his mouth wide open just like Drae. And a human... Drae, who was reaching out to him while laughing...

Are these two devils? No. They are gods.

Drae is not a simple user. There's no way he's a simple user. He contracted with one Love Heart? No way! To say that even the gods couldn't handle a vessel of this size...

'...Hmm?'

What is this. His thoughts are being erased. Inris felt it. And, he thought while looking at the nameless god laughing crazily for a moment.

Could this god in front of him be...

Ah. If so. Then. How much is the name 'Disgrace'—.

Crackle. Crackle.

A while later. Inris's body crumbled without remaining anywhere in the mental space. His body in reality was also collapsing in the same way.

"......"

"Now."

Drae pointed to the Demon King at his feet as if to ask if this was enough. At the tip of his finger, Inris was twitching with his eyes rolled back and foam at his mouth. That thing, whose soul had become extremely weak and whose appearance had turned into a mummy, could no longer be called Inris. That miserable appearance signified his perfect decline and submission. Josa was speechless at the miserable appearance of a Demon King who would be several times, or dozens of times, stronger than himself... a Demon King literally capable of destroying one planet.

"This means a forced contract is possible in this state, right?"

"......No."

Josa swallowed hard.

"His soul is completely submitted. Right now, it's possible to take this person's power at will, not just a contract."

What on earth had happened. Inris must have forced his way into the mental space, the succubus royal family's authority.

'Inside there, what on earth... what on earth did he see to become in a state of submission where he would give up his soul, body, and power?'

Drae asked as if he were puzzled.

"Take his power at will? What are you talking about?"

"It means you can take the power of this powerful Demon King intact. In other words. Not only the bizarre techniques the master currently possesses, but in addition to that, vivid power... a massive amount of power will be added to your current power. For example, the cutting power of your Severing Sword might become dozens of times stronger than it is now."

"......"

"It means you can rise to the same rank as existences like the highest-ranking Demon Kings, or War Kings, or Divine Beasts."

Even as he said it, he couldn't believe it. That such a feat could be achieved with a human body. 'No. Let's not judge by my level. He defeated that Destruction Dragon, even if he said it was only 30% in the past and he was just canceling the summoning.'

No matter how special a power he possessed, winning against a War King was originally impossible. Inris was specialized in the mental realm, so that was that, but if he had been a Demon King who crushed with power, the current Drae would have been no match for him.

Either way, it was a miracle-like feat that Josa's level couldn't understand. '...No, for some reason, even if Inris had been at his full potential, I can't imagine my master losing.'

Clearly, his total power wouldn't reach Inris's... but the reality was clear. Inris was defeated, and Drae won. He was a true monster who had defeated the Demon King of Lust. If such a monster absorbed Inris, how powerful would he become?

'Perhaps, it might be possible to catch the Kings of Beasts, which were impossible to hunt whether human or demon.'

Josa thought he might be at the historical scene of the first beginning where he rises to the same rank as the monsters of myth with human power. But Drae said indifferently.

"So, can I use this guy's authority or not."

"...Authority is something that is bound to the mental image. If you take it by force, Inris's authority cannot be used."

"Then that's fine. How do I use his power instead of authority?"

He was dumbfounded for a moment at that answer. Did he even realize what a great opportunity this was? But Josa bowed his head.

"If you contract and offer this person's very existence, you will be able to achieve what you intend. If it's someone with this level of rank, you will be able to trap him in a dream for thousands of years like a 'Nightmare of Illusion,' not just for a day, and realize your plan. Or, you will be able to subjugate and control him."

"Okay."

Only then did Drae smile as if he liked it.

Now.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Let's give the Gold Taeyang members an eternal nightmare.

Drae laughed happily. At the same time, the black flame in his eyes showed no signs of going out.