Chapter 139
Chapter 139
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 139
Chapter Title: Am I Right?
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"Am I right?"
"Huh?"
I froze in place, still cradling Levatein in my arms.
I'd clearly just taken down that vampire who'd turned into a demon.
The guy had been such a pain with all those authorities at his command, so I'd barely managed to finish him off by deploying [Simplified Dragon Lair].
What the hell was going on here?
The casual vibe where I'd been idly wondering what to grab for dinner at home had flipped on its head in an instant.
The vampire's head twitched.
I watched it intently, half-wondering if it was still alive somehow, but no.
Vital signs had ceased.
There was no trace of that distinctive presence you feel from any living creature.
Yet it was still moving.
And then instinct hit me.
I tried to put as much distance between myself and the corpse as possible, but...
It was impossible.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the cave where black liquid had been dripping.
The walls, stained pitch-black, began to tear apart.
At the same time, demonic energy seeped out from the corpse.
Mana Eye revealed it all.
Ominous mana and demonic energy clumped together, forming flesh.
Flesh took shape, and standing in its place was─
"It's been ages since the human realm."
A demon.
A man in a red suit, hair slicked back, sporting a single sharp horn.
A small pair of glasses perched on his nose.
Unlike his human-like appearance, his mere manifestation was enough to collapse the [Simplified Dragon Lair].
The mist from the slain vampire vanished, and the lair crumbled.
We were back at the original spot.
If that had been the end of it, I'd have counted myself lucky.
As I mentioned before, upper demons can kill people just by manifesting.
Even when lowly Lilith manifested, people passed out.
What do you think happens when a demon of even higher rank shows up?
I scowled at the blue window blanketing my vision.
Through the blue windows, I could make it out.
The man snapped his fingers, and ominous mana rippled outward in a wave.
The range was probably...
"All of Justitia."
And of course, that included me.
Cold sweat poured down as Levatein, nestled in my arms, reached out a hand.
I tried to warn her it was dangerous, but the blue window right in front of me held me back.
A wall of fire erupted, blocking the demonic energy.
The wave was so massive that even after it was blocked, my hair whipped wildly in the wind.
I had no choice but to squeeze my eyes shut with one hand and wait for the shockwave to pass.
The shockwave finally died down.
Levatein opened the eye she'd clenched shut.
I loosened my tight grip on her.
Part of me wanted to pat her head and tell her good job right away, but I couldn't.
As soon as the wall of fire vanished, there he was—the demon staring right at us.
Even though Levatein had blocked the Fear, my body trembled on its own.
This wasn't a status ailment.
It didn't take long to figure it out.
This was my body's instinctive self-defense against a vastly superior being radiating hostility.
"You withstood that?"
The voice rang out.
It was far too clear for the distance, drilling straight into my ears.
A man's voice, yet because it was a demon, it didn't feel creepy at all.
"Right. You've got to be this tough for it to make sense that you took down that vampire."
He muttered to himself and nodded.
I watched, sweat pouring off me in rivers.
What do I do?
No answers came to mind.
This wave's scale...
Demonic energy strong enough to shatter the [Simplified Dragon Lair] just by manifesting.
Red suit—the classic image of a male demon.
I knew who he was without asking.
"Botis."
"You know me?"
Of course I did.
The mid-to-late game culprit behind the story's balance collapse.
The original plot started going off the rails the moment this guy showed up.
He was that powerful.
Shouldn't have appeared at this point in the timeline, but the reason was probably...
"Damn vampire."
Trouble to the bitter end.
You lunatic.
This was why I'd wanted to eliminate the irregulars.
You never know where they'll pop up next.
"Indeed. The vampire summoned me."
The man adjusted his glasses.
Arm folded behind his back, he approached me slowly.
I backpedaled, trying to widen the distance.
"A progenitor's soul is a bit special, you see. It begged me to kill you."
With those words, he vanished.
The figure walking toward me right in front of my eyes—gone.
"So don't hold it against me. Emotions like resentment aren't really my taste."
The voice came from behind.
Only then did I sense it.
I looked down.
My body was there.
"I prefer emotions of despair. Not sure what it's like to die in more agony than anyone else, but."
It was in pieces.
Hadn't fallen apart yet, so I hadn't felt the cuts, but I knew.
Soon, I would—
"I'll give it my all."
Die.
"Hm."
Botis let out a groan in front of the black sphere formed of demonic energy.
Standing before a globe large enough to fit one person inside.
He stroked his chin and groaned.
Upper demon Botis.
Normally, his mere manifestation should have wiped out every human nearby.
Excepting a few special cases.
But that wave had ended after shattering the [Simplified Dragon Lair].
He'd had no choice but to unleash a direct pulse of demonic energy to slaughter every human on the island, but—
"Not a single one died."
It was baffling.
Had humans grown that strong while he was in hell?
No, he could answer that one easily.
He'd been watching the human realm constantly through his magi.
Humans were the same as ever.
"Have I gotten weaker?"
Not that either.
Of course, this wasn't some grand wish-granted feat—just a simple burst of condensed demonic energy.
It was weak by his standards, but more than enough to kill humans.
"Hm."
Unable to figure it out, he tilted his head, but soon learned the reason.
A presence from behind.
He turned, and there stood a monster.
A monster with golden hair whipping in the wind.
The moment it entered his sight, he knew.
"It's you."
That monster had blocked the attack.
No response came, but Botis grinned awkwardly anyway.
The human realm was always fun.
Unexpected things just kept popping up.
Humans deploying dragon lairs.
Humans taming demons.
Humans terrifying demons.
"This is why I can't quit the human realm."
With Botis's laugh, his vision flickered.
Naturally, he'd lunged at the golden hair.
And in response, pristine white wings unfurled from behind the golden-haired figure.
"Strong."
Raphael clicked her tongue at the voice.
Her current position left her no choice.
Herself, embedded in the wall.
The damn bastard in front of her, grinning ear-to-ear while gripping her throat.
His expression pissed her off most of all.
Mimicking a human, yet wearing an expression no human could manage.
It stirred an uncanny dissonance.
Made her skin crawl all over.
Mouth stretched beyond natural limits.
Eyes crinkled impossibly far.
Not a facial expression.
A mask.
Raphael thrashed in fury, but nothing changed.
'If only I had more wings.'
An opponent not worth a single proper punch.
But her wings numbered just two.
Two wings couldn't sustain the output needed to fight this demon.
It happened often.
Cases where specs were too good, overwhelming raw power.
That was Raphael.
Exactly two.
Two more wings, and their positions would be reversed.
"Sometimes humans like you pop up. Ones who transcend humanity. But what can you do? It's all luck. Accept it."
Accept what?
Raphael scowled.
"My nickname's the Moving Destroyer Tank."
"Figures."
His tearing grin widened as Raphael's wings glowed.
The demon flinched and dodged—but
Nothing happened.
Just the golden-haired bastard smirking smugly, as if he'd anticipated it.
It was just a feint to shake him off.
'Just buy time.'
The golden hair relaxed her stance.
Getting ready to fight.
'Anyway, she can only do fisticuffs.'
She recalled something Lee Seong-hoon had told her once.
Couldn't remember when exactly.
They'd chatted enough for half a day every day—who could keep track?
—Demons need human help to wield power in the real world. It's essential.
—Exactly. Demons without humans nearby are stuck with physical combat.
—The rule against demons is always take out the magi first.
No humans in sight, no matter how she looked.
Raphael charged.
Her two glowing wings of pure white obscured her vision.
But the demon didn't avert his gaze—he dodged her fist.
"You've never done fisticuffs before, have you?"
Of course not.
Raphael was a cherub with twelve wings.
An angel of a rank ordinary angels could never reach.
A single flick of her finger would burst a demon—why would she have?
"And yet just grazing me hurts this much. Quite the headache. Even saints aren't this bad."
The demon laughed.
It was instantaneous.
He slipped past her swinging fist and counterattacked.
"If pests like you are running around, even our kids will start dropping."
Raphael flew backward.
Straight back—no exaggeration.
She'd gone pretty far, yet his voice rang as if he were right in her face.
"Soon our kids'll launch the moon. The red moon."
And then it came.
Shoe leather striking, echoing in her ears.
"You'll die then anyway. Wouldn't it be more comfortable to die now than later?"
His expression tore wider once more.
Like a clown mask, head cocked as he approached.
Raphael let out a hollow chuckle.
"Let me make a recommendation."
"Hm. I'll hear it."
"If you're gonna run, now's the time. Soon something more demonic than any demon will—"
"You mean the black-haired man?"
How?
Raphael faltered, but the demon's grin only split further.
His already grotesque face grew more grotesque.
"That guy's dead. Chopped to bits. How many pieces was it? Can't even remember."
"Lies. You think that human goes down easy?"
She'd sooner believe Lee Seong-hoon had a girlfriend back in his original world than fall for a demon's tricks.
With that thought, Raphael shot to her feet—but the demon's expression didn't even twitch.
The black sphere behind him let out a bizarre, eerie wail.
Oso-sot...
Raphael couldn't fathom why goosebumps prickled her arms.
The demon advanced.
Shoes echoed.
Attacks flooded in.
And with the echoing cry, the demon's attack trajectory bent.
Straight-line assault veered sideways.
His stance crumbled, pitching him toward the ground.
She didn't miss the opening, kicking the demon, but Raphael understood immediately.
Even with her intellect, it was clear.
Why was that black cat here all alone?
The demon's tearing laugh answered for her.
"Am I right?"