243
I Killed the Demon King. It Was a Mistake
Chapter 243
According to Raven, a genius refers to someone who quickly grasps the principles of the world. In Yan's case, just by watching an opponent swing their sword, he instinctively understands which muscles are being used and with what intensity.
In Mitchell's case, he instinctively knows how to escape from an opponent's line of sight. In Barre's case, it is said that he instinctively knows how to effectively block an opponent's attacks. These individuals, who simplify and understand complex principles of the world under the name of 'instinct' and apply them, are precisely the type of geniuses Raven had in mind.
However, Gloria had not demonstrated any such genius. While her combat capabilities were somewhat superior compared to others of her rank, she hadn't shown any uniquely brilliant genius that shone like the stars. Therefore, Raven had thought Gloria possessed no genius, but she was wrong. There simply hadn't been an opportunity for Gloria's genius to manifest.
Thump!
Gloria charged forward, deflecting all the bullets aimed at her with her thin sword. Then she mercilessly cut down the revived corpses. Was it simply because her reaction speed was fast? Fast reaction speed is related to physical capability and somewhat distant from 'instinct'. It would be more accurate to say that Gloria predicted when and where the bullets would come from. Despite plunging into the heart of enemy territory, Gloria remained free.
Of course, her freedom was far different from Caesar's. While Caesar felt freedom in knowing his axe wouldn't harm his allies, Gloria possessed a 'broad vision' that could find calm waves even in the midst of rough seas. Like a seasoned navigator finding gentle currents, Gloria secured advantageous positions within the chaotic battlefield.
Perhaps, right now, a map was unfolding in Gloria's mind. It would show which enemies surrounded her, their armament status, and even their intentions. All of this would be pictured in Gloria's mind.
That's why Gloria could position corpses with swords and spears between those with guns, and despite being surrounded, she could limit herself to facing only one or two enemies at a time.
'A typical guerrilla commander type.'
If Gloria had been assigned roles like infiltrating enemy lines to disrupt their rear or breaking through blockades, she would have made a name for herself long ago.
However, if Gloria lacks anything, it would be her pure martial power. Despite being called a classic knight, she neither wore proper armor, nor possessed particularly outstanding sword skills, nor had exceptional strength or speed. With overall low physical abilities, inadequate equipment, and no field command authority due to working as Caesar's adjutant.
From Gloria's perspective, she had been fighting with her hands and feet bound, with no opportunity to display her strengths. The reason Gloria suddenly began to stand out in this situation was none other than the madness that had possessed her. Agatha and Raven had worried about Gloria's obsession with Caesar.
They had predicted that if Caesar were to face even slight danger or disappear from sight, she would fall into panic from extreme anxiety. However, unlike Raven's prediction, Gloria was not consumed by anxiety and fear. Instead, Gloria used anxiety and fear as driving forces to eliminate enemies.
A world without Caesar held no meaning for Gloria, and this extreme goal of annihilating all enemies who might harm Caesar gave her superhuman strength, concentration, and judgment. While Raven had seen countless humans dominated by emotions, she had rarely seen anyone who used negative emotions as an energy source to advance toward a clear goal.
The problem was that this clear goal was pushing Gloria into an even more dangerous situation.
Keeeeee.....
The corpses Gloria had cut down began to rise again.
The Black Blood Devil, 'Adu', had the ability to revive any 'corpses' under his control as many times as he wished. To dispose of these corpses, they needed to either burn them completely or use holy oil. From Gloria's position, with her retreat blocked by corpses, the only direction was forward, but even that wasn't feasible.
Thump, Thump!
This was because approaching her were not the rotting cloth-wearing soldiers she had faced until now, but undead knights wearing worn but still intact armor. Gloria clashed with the undead knights.
Bang!
Gloria swung her sword with all her might at the undead knight. However, with Gloria's strength and technique, it was impossible to completely cut through the knight's armor. The undead knight ignored Gloria's attack and immediately swung its sword. Gloria sensed the danger and retreated. Gloria gave up fighting the undead knight and looked for another way out. But there was no space for Gloria to escape. Her surroundings were already filled with revived corpses.
The fierce light of madness in Gloria's eyes subsided, replaced by the light of confusion.
'Is this the end.'
The reason Raven left Gloria's impulsive behavior alone was simple.
Raven had been through countless battlefields and had seen many knights like Gloria who charged recklessly across battlefields with crazed eyes. And while those knights all shone brightly, they ultimately died. While Barre could be considered similar to Gloria, in his case, he knew how to maintain a very delicate balance.
Even when entering enemy lines, he never went beyond the distance where he could receive support from allies. However, Gloria neither knew where that appropriate line was, nor did she even try to recognize the position of her allies.
She simply charged toward Caesar like a hunting dog chasing its prey. What this type of knight needs is not support, but a harsh lesson. For someone who acts recklessly as if they're the protagonist of a novel, it was important to make them clearly recognize how powerless they truly are. Gloria flailed about in the middle of enemy territory like someone drowning. When that pitiful struggle began to subside... Raven was about to move.
At that moment, several bats flew over Raven's head.
"Stay where you are."
Following that, a familiar woman's voice brushed past Raven's ear. Raven blankly watched the last bat flying away. The piercing anger flowing from the last bat's body was directed toward Gloria. Raven lowered her wand. It seemed Gloria wouldn't need Raven's intervention.
***
Gloria felt like she was cutting through water with her sword. No matter how many times she cut them down, the corpses kept coming back to life.
"Ah..."
Gloria had been too intoxicated with herself. The devil corpses that had seemed as easy to cut down as harvest-ready wheat had become vines that entangled Gloria.
'Why am I in this state?'
Gloria just wanted to stand beside Caesar. She just wanted to be helpful to Caesar. That's why Gloria had been diligently fulfilling her duties as an aide and training even while cutting into her sleep time. But regardless of Gloria's wishes and efforts, the world was too high and heavy for her.
Gloria's right hand was caught by a corpse. She tried to pull it free, but its grip was stronger than expected, and Gloria's stamina was already depleted. The corpse's rotting teeth flew toward Gloria's nape.
Thud!
Thick blood splattered across Gloria's face. She felt no pain. Since Gloria wasn't the type to close her eyes in the face of death, she could clearly see what had happened. A red spear had pierced through the head of the corpse that was about to bite her.
"I originally wasn't going to intervene..."
A vampire gracefully landed on the spear that was stuck diagonally in the ground.
It was Borden.
Borden kicked the spear once, sending the head of a devil corpse that was charging at him flying. His skill in handling the spear with his foot rather than his hand was astonishing. Borden caught the bouncing spear with his hand and swung it.
Swoosh!
Borden's spear bent like a whip and sliced the corpses into pieces in one stroke. The corpses even caught fire. Following that, seven bats flew to Borden's side and transformed into vampires. They cut their wrists to draw blood. And they shaped that blood into swords and spears. Gloria was bewildered by the appearance of vampires protecting her.
"Why..."
"If it weren't for the Demon King's orders, I wouldn't have cared whether you lived or died."
"...Demon King?"
A bat landed on the palm-sized ground that Borden and the vampires had secured. That bat transformed into Agatha, with her white horns and flowing pink hair. Agatha glared at Gloria while wearing a white dress that seemed out of place on the battlefield.
"Hey."
Gloria flinched at Agatha's sharp voice.
"Are you really that desperate to die?"
Agatha's finger dug into Gloria's chest.
"Do you really not know how much Caesar suffered just to save you?"
"I..."
"I really don't understand why I'm caring about you like this. I also can't understand why I have to be angry at you."
Agatha both pitied and resented Gloria. While she felt sorry for Gloria knowing what torture she had endured from Raum, that was separate from the matter of her seducing Caesar. So for a very brief moment, she thought it might be okay to just let Gloria die like this… But since Caesar would surely be devastated if Gloria died, she couldn't possibly leave her alone. Agatha pulled out a small necklace from her chest.
"Take it."
"...Pardon?"
"I said take it."
Gloria hesitantly accepted the necklace Agatha handed her. The necklace appeared to be an ordinary ruby necklace at first glance.
"It's a vampire treasure that's far too good for you. Originally it would have been right to give it to Caesar, but they say he's not the type to wear armor."
"Armor?"
"Yes. It was originally magical armor worn by Moon Knights."
Gloria froze at the mention of Moon Knight. What kind of being is a Moon Knight? Aren't they the strongest vampire knights who protect the Demon King?
"...Is it alright for me to receive this?"
"Of course not. What makes you think you're pretty enough to receive something this precious?"
"Then why..."
"From the looks of it, I'm giving this to you because I'd be furious if I saw you die doing something foolish like you are now."
Agatha took the blood flowing from Gloria's forehead with her finger and applied it to the ruby necklace. Then the ruby necklace began to vibrate. Blood started seeping from the ruby necklace and began to envelop Gloria's body. Gloria's skin crawled as the unpleasantly lukewarm blood invaded her body.
"All the other Moon Knights' magical armors were taken by humans, and this is the only one we have left."
The red blood that spread throughout Gloria's body transformed into full body armor. The full body armor was extremely light. It was even very comfortable to move in as it was segmented down to each finger joint.
"So in exchange for lending it to you, you'll have to accept one of my requests."
"A request?"
"Yes. Retrieve all the Moon Knights' armors that the humans took and bring them back. They originally belonged to the demon race, so it's right to bring them back, isn't it?"
Gloria nodded her head.
"Yes, I understand."
"Don't think about dying until you bring back all the armor. If by any chance you do something foolish and lose that armor too..."
Agatha glanced at Caesar, who was fighting intensely at Luxhope, and said.
"I'll make sure to get everything back from Caesar somehow."
"...I absolutely won't lose it."
"Then my role as your caretaker ends here. Just try dying while running wild like you did earlier."
Agatha spoke to Borden, who was dealing with the reanimated corpses.
"I'm going to go to Caesar, so help them here."
Borden said while beheading a corpse knight.
"Understood."
At that moment, a loud explosion erupted from where the wizards were.
BOOM!
Agatha gestured with her chin toward where the explosion occurred.
"What are you doing? Go help them."
Gloria desperately wanted to go to Caesar like Agatha. However, now that Gloria had regained her senses, she could calmly think about where she would truly be helpful...
Thump! Thump!
Gloria ran toward the main force where the wizards were, turning her back on Caesar.
***
Raven glared at the devil that suddenly appeared while wiping the blood flowing from her forehead. The devil had 2 horns on its head. Originally, Raven was confident she could handle even a carriage-load of two-horned devils alone.
But this devil was different. The wizards launched fireballs at it.
Blink.
When the eye in the middle of its forehead blinked once, all the magic aimed at it turned into purple magic. And it absorbed that magic through its skin and nose, then immediately charged toward the wizards.
"Block it!"
The Blood Shield Knights who were protecting the wizards took the lead in blocking the devil's greatsword.
CRASH!
But the force behind its greatsword was stronger than expected. The Blood Shield Knights were knocked down like bowling pins. The devil charged toward the completely exposed wizards. Finally, Raven waved her wand. The magic Raven used wasn't attack magic or defense magic, but debuff magic. When the charging devil was hit by Raven's debuff magic, it immediately collapsed.
Crash!
And it began throwing up everything inside. The debuff magic Raven used was 'Confusion'. It was a debuff magic that had an effect similar to motion sickness. But it quickly regained its senses and charged toward Raven. Raven reflexively launched ice spears toward it.
Blink!
When its third eye blinked, the ice spears disappeared, and it accelerated even more as it charged toward Raven.
'This is the Spell Eater.'
When Raven heard from Caesar about a devil that devours magic, she honestly thought it would never be able to devour her magic. The claim that it could nullify all magic meant that it too could be explained magically, so Raven thought she could definitely break through it. But the Spell Eater's ability was impossible to interpret magically. It swung its greatsword toward Raven. Raven avoided the greatsword with blink magic. But its target wasn't Raven. It was the wizards Raven was protecting.
'Damn!'
The wizards were completely exposed to the Spell Eater, and it charged like a wolf that had discovered sheep. At that moment...
CLANG!
A knight wearing blood-red armor blocked the Spell Eater's greatsword. Raven's skin crawled as soon as she saw that armor. There was no way she wouldn't recognize whose blood-red armor this was. This was the armor of the Moon Knights who could all use sword energy and spear energy.
'Surely all the Moon Knights should be dead?'
As her thoughts became complicated, the helmet removed itself and Gloria emerged.
"Raven!"