Chapter 372: Crow Mask
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 372: Crow Mask
The banquet hall was a complete mess.
Kang Hyun-woo stepped over the wreckage of a shattered chandelier and looked down at Lancelot, in whom only a faint warmth remained.
The scales that had sprouted on his face were gone without a trace. Having returned to the form of an ordinary human, he lay with his eyes quietly closed.
Kang Hyun-woo offered no prayers for his soul.
He already knew what awaited those who made contracts with demons after death.
As a rule, for a human to contract with a demon, they had to offer their soul as collateral.
This was a fact Lucifer herself had once shared: when a human who contracted with a demon dies, their soul becomes the demon's property, doomed to suffer for all eternity.
Knowing this, a question arose in Kang Hyun-woo's mind.
He was the head of the Greymont family, one of the wealthiest in all of England, and a member of the Round Table, respected by all knights. Why would a man like him make a deal with a demon?
What could he have possibly desired?
Kang Hyun-woo pondered for a moment before dismissing the thought.
The one who could answer his question was no longer of this world, and more importantly, he still had work to do.
“Are you alright?”
“...As you can see, I'm barely hanging on.”
Gawain gave an awkward laugh.
When he had first greeted Kang Hyun-woo, he had used formal speech, but at some point, he had naturally started speaking casually.
It was probably from the moment Kang Hyun-woo had kicked open the banquet hall doors and cut down Tristan.
His refined presence, unbelievable for a mage, was incredibly sharp, and the single sword strike he had displayed at the end was so beautiful it could blind a man.
From that moment on, Gawain had subconsciously begun to see Kang Hyun-woo not as a mage, but as a 'knight'.
Of course, in terms of pure power, it wasn't much different from the blow Lancelot had shown.
But unlike Lancelot's rough and crude sword, which was merely the result of wringing out all his power, Kang Hyun-woo's sword was aimed toward a place infinitely higher.
Gawain had no doubt that the day was not far off when he would stand shoulder to shoulder with the two dukes who supported England.
Sword and magic.
He had always thought them to be incompatible paths.
But seeing the young man before him, he realized that too was just his own narrow-minded thinking.
“This is going to hurt.”
“...Hm?”
Of course, whatever a middle-aged noble thought of him was none of Kang Hyun-woo's concern.
Thump.
Kang Hyun-woo placed a hand on Gawain's shoulder and abruptly began to channel Black Flame into him.
“Gyaaaah!!!”
As a searing pain, like his skin was being burned away, washed over him, Gawain cast aside all his noble dignity and screamed at the top of his lungs.
Of course, he wasn't actually being burned.
This was, in every sense, a healing act.
Ting—
[Devil Slayer has detected the 'Authority of Disease' spreading through the air.]
[Accessing information on the demon.]
[Searching...]
[Search complete.]
Ting—
[True Name: Marbas
Title: Grand President
Authority: Disease and Healing]
Marbas. It was a name I'd never heard before.
But judging by the title of Grand President, this demon seemed to be of a higher rank than Gremory, the one I met last time.
Ting—
[The Blessing of the Demon Hunter resists the Authority of Disease.]
From this message, which had been popping up repeatedly, I could surmise one thing.
The reason the nobles and servants in the banquet hall had lost consciousness was that someone, presumably an apostle of Marbas, was using their authority.
I didn't know the exact nature of the ability yet.
Judging by the visible symptoms, it seemed to be a power that put its targets to sleep.
That alone wouldn't seem like a major problem, but the issue was that the sleep was far too deep.
If they couldn't wake up even with explosions and shockwaves right next to them, it was by no means a trivial symptom.
Even worse, Sir Gawain's symptoms were completely different from the others; an artificial, impure energy was continuously accumulating in his mana road.
At this rate, his wounds wouldn't heal. Instead, his magic was likely to run rampant, leaving him with a permanent disability.
It seemed the more mana a target possessed, the greater the effect of the demon's authority.
If even high-grade holy water had no effect, there was only one method left.
“Guuuh...!!!”
“It's almost done. Just hold on a little longer.”
Directly infusing Black Flame into his body to burn away the demon's authority.
It was a rather drastic method, but it was certainly effective.
Of course, a normal person would have fainted from the pain long ago, but Sir Gawain was enduring it quite well.
But that, too, was brief.
“It's done.”
Thud.
The moment I removed my hand, he collapsed to the floor.
Given time, he would fall under the influence of the demon's authority again, but he should be fine at least until his body recovered.
I stood up and stretched lightly.
Thanks to the Blessing of the Demon Hunter, my body was still overflowing with power.
“...What do you plan to do now?”
Sir Gawain, who had been sprawled out like a discarded banana peel, painfully lifted his head and looked at me with utterly exhausted eyes.
“I'm going to take care of the ones who are left.”
“...As an adult, I want to stop you, but in my current state, I doubt I'd be very persuasive.”
“I'm an adult too, you know.”
“That's true.”
Sir Gawain gave a self-deprecating smile.
He struggled to his feet and then bowed his head respectfully toward me.
“As Gawain, a Knight of the Round Table... and as the head of the Coventry family, I ask this of you. Please, stop my friend.”
I considered his words for a moment before continuing.
“It goes without saying, but I will kill Sir Tristan.”
He was a demon wearing human skin.
I had no intention of playing the apostle of justice, but the thought of such a creature breathing the same air as me was disgusting.
“I don't care. As long as you can stop him.”
Sir Gawain's voice was heavier than ever.
And beyond his eyes, a storm of complex emotions, impossible to put into words, was swirling.
“Huu... I don't feel right about placing such a heavy burden on someone so young.”
“If you really feel that way, then you can grant me a few requests.”
“Requests?”
Sir Gawain stared at me in silence for a while before nodding with a serious expression.
“If it means I can repay you for saving my life, I'll do anything.”
Hearing his confirmation, I smiled inwardly.
For reference, his family, the Coventry Viscounty, was known to have amassed enormous wealth through the wine business.
“Then, would it be alright if I made my first request right now?”
“...First request?”
I smiled without a word, walked over to Lancelot's corpse, and raised the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword.
“My first request is that you remain absolutely silent about what is about to happen.”
Plunge—
I drove the tip of the sword into Lancelot's heart.
“Devour.”
-Kigigigik!!!
The moment my permission was given, Tam revealed itself.
As always, Tam began to greedily suck up the remaining magic and demonic energy from Lancelot's corpse.
As it did, the body grew gaunt, like a mummy.
“Th-That's...”
A look of utter shock was plain on Sir Gawain's face.
I placed a finger to my lips and looked at him quietly.
“As you can see, I'm collecting my spoils of war. I hope you understand.”
“...”
Sir Gawain fell silent.
I knew he and Lancelot were close.
But I had no intention of showing courtesy to a corrupted one who had betrayed humanity and his country.
Besides, I knew Sir Gawain wasn't the type of person to hold a grudge against me over something like this.
So, I had no reason to hesitate.
-Buuurp!
With a loud belch, Tam spat out Lancelot's corpse.
His appearance was so ghastly it was hard to identify him by sight alone.
At the sight, Sir Gawain turned his head away with a complicated expression.
Ting—
[Tam has absorbed the residual demonic energy of Forneus.]
[Tam's growth rate has increased dramatically.]
“...What?”
The moment I saw the message pop up, I was at a loss for words.
The only reason I had absorbed Lancelot's energy was to see what changes would occur if I, not an artifact, directly absorbed a demon's demonic energy.
Of course, it wasn't without its risks.
But if successful, I might have been able to increase the absolute amount of demonic energy I always felt was lacking, or perhaps even copy the demon's authority. That's why I pushed ahead.
High risk, high return.
No, it was low risk, high return.
Even if a problem arose, I had the Black Flame and the Devil Slayer title, so the chances of it escalating into a major issue were low.
But the result was completely different from what I had expected.
I'd had a vague feeling that Tam was changing after absorbing the energy of magical beasts before, but this was the first time a direct message had appeared.
I had assumed that as the main body, the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword, grew, its ability, Tam, would naturally grow with it, so I hadn't paid it much attention.
'...Should I consider this a good thing?'
I examined the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword from all angles.
The flow of energy was stable, and I couldn't feel any foreign presence.
On the surface, there didn't seem to be anything wrong.
But I couldn't conclude that there were no problems based on that alone.
For now, the best course of action was to visit Baronet Sheffield later.
“Sir Gawain, I'll leave the others to you.”
“...Right.”
He was staring at Lancelot's skeletal remains with a complex gaze.
I didn't have the luxury of comforting him.
I rushed out of the banquet hall and headed straight for the garden.
*
Until now, I had thought the demon worshippers' goal was to kidnap Princess Ophelia.
But seeing Lancelot target the princess's life without a second thought, I realized that assumption was wrong.
Then what are they after?
At first, I thought of the high-grade artifacts piled up in the Winchester ducal estate's treasury.
But it didn't take long for me to realize there was something far more precious and valuable here.
Why hadn't I noticed it sooner?
The king's sword, which held a sacred light.
The wielder of the strongest holy sword, said to contain the most brilliant starlight, 'Excalibur', was here.
'...Delia.'
Only then did I understand the source of the anxiety that had been creeping into my heart.
With the Blessing of the Demon Hunter still active, I sprinted across the ducal estate at full speed.
The moment I finally reached the garden...
Fwing!!
“?!”
An arrow flew from somewhere.
I instinctively twisted my head, and the sharp arrowhead grazed my cheek.
Thud-
After rolling across the grass, I lowered my stance. Feeling a stinging sensation, I wiped my cheek with the back of my hand.
Blood was trickling from where the arrowhead had grazed me.
'That was...'
I hadn't been neglecting my mana detection.
And yet, I hadn't noticed the arrow until it was right in front of me.
It was a stealthy and precise shot, so much so that I couldn't even guess where it had come from.
Snap-
I picked up the arrow embedded in a nearby tree and broke it.
The arrowhead was made of Magic Steel Stone, a material boasting several times the hardness and mana conductivity of steel.
It had been shot with aura, too. If I had tried to block it instead of dodging, it would have pierced right through my protective aura and killed me.
'At this level... it has to be him.'
The face of Tristan, known as the greatest archer of the Round Table, flashed before my eyes.
I clicked my tongue inwardly and pushed all my senses to their absolute limit.
Of course, if things got truly dangerous, Thought Transcendence would activate automatically, but with no idea how many Lancelot-level opponents there were, I wanted to avoid a battle of attrition if possible.
Rustle-
Just then, I felt a faint demonic energy and presence from beyond the bushes.
There was no reason to hesitate.
[Chain Lightning]
[Mega Flare]
[Dark Ray]
[Lightning Strike]
[Pyroblast]
BOOOOM!!!
I immediately unleashed a barrage of magic.
Soon, a massive explosion and flames shot up, illuminating the night sky. I watched the flame-engulfed garden and quietly gripped the hilt of my sword.
“...That's quite a rough welcome.”
A moment later, someone walked calmly out from beyond the flames.
It was a man in a crow mask.