Chapter 102
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: The Answer to the Problem Isn't Always Good (3)
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It's dangerous.
Both instinct and reason.
All my senses are telling me so.
That thing is dangerous.
Demon possession.
A demon burrows into the darkness of a human's heart, possesses their soul,
and ultimately tries to descend into the mortal realm.
One of the demons' methods.
Miss Lin has fallen victim to it before.
And in truth, there are quite a few cases across the entire continent.
But why at this exact timing?
Why Marco, of all people?
I don't know the exact situation.
But suddenly, the darkness in his heart must have deepened.
No, that's not the important part.
I have to stop it somehow.
If demon possession happens right in the middle of a city like this... it'll be a massive disaster.
If the demon has already fully possessed him, only Miss Lin can resolve it.
But who knows when she'll arrive.
And if it's not fully possessed yet... I might be able to stop it.
Pa-bat!
No hesitation.
Even if I'm just a bookworm holed up in the library reading all day,
I'm not such a coward that I'd stand by when I have a chance to prevent many sacrifices.
If Marco resists the demon just a little.
If he delays the possession even slightly...!
Suaak!
Marco's life is beyond saving.
I have no way to save his life while exorcising the demon.
He was going to be executed anyway.
My dagger approaches his neck.
The moment it pierces his skin and digs into his flesh.
Kwaak!
"...!"
My wrist... was grabbed.
"What is this, you little shit."
It came from Marco's mouth, but it wasn't Marco's voice.
His eyes had turned red too.
...The demon.
Bwoong—!
"Kuhk?!"
The demon lightly swung the arm gripping my wrist, and in an instant, I was sent flying and slammed into the ground.
A level of power completely different from before.
Is this the power of a demon?
No, it's not even fully descended, so it can't be even half its original strength.
But even so, it's strong enough to toss someone like me aside effortlessly.
Well, considering it's a being powerful enough to be called a calamity,
I should count myself lucky that I wasn't quartered in an instant.
Jjeok!
"Hm?"
But then, suddenly, the skin on Marco's arm burst open, blood spraying out.
The very arm that had grabbed me moments ago.
"Tch. Bursting like this already. This human is far too frail. Did I pick the wrong vessel?"
The demon possessing Marco looked down at it and frowned.
Normally, demon possession boosts physical abilities dramatically due to the demonic energy.
Throwing me aside wasn't much of a strain.
Which means that wasn't recoil from throwing me.
It's just that the demon inside Marco is far too powerful,
and Marco's body can't handle that strength.
...Marco had trained his body decently.
In terms of physical ability, swordsmanship, and real combat skill, he was on par with an A-rank adventurer.
Yet if even he suffers backlash the moment possession happens, then this demon...
"Hm... Kraksus, you're up to something interesting."
The demon possessing Marco muttered as it looked around.
...Kraksus?
Is it referring to the Curse Demon King Kraksus, who invaded the mortal realm 300 years ago?
So the Meran Federation was connected to him after all.
Looks like what Marco said was true.
Did they do something to Marco after realizing he figured it out?
Causing this sudden demon possession...
No, maybe not.
Its tone suggests no connection... This demon isn't one of Kraksus's subordinates.
No need for a demon to put on an act in front of a puny human it could kill instantly, so my guess is probably right.
What... what the hell is going on here?
"Whatever. His orders were to disrupt him as much as possible anyway."
Saying that, it tested Marco's body with slight movements.
"Tch, won't last long. Guess I'll have to rampage while I can. Ah well... Would've been nice if it could fully descend. That woman from before was pretty good."
Muttering something incomprehensible, it raised one arm high.
And then.
"Obsidian."
Guwoong...
It created a black sphere the size of a human head.
...That's dangerous.
I'm not great at sensing mana or presence.
But even I can tell.
How terrifyingly destructive that black sphere is.
What will happen the moment it touches the ground.
I have to stop it...!
The moment I thought that.
"Instructor Kane!? What the hell is going on..."
A welcome voice came from behind.
"Miss Lin...!"
She's here.
The one person who might be able to handle this situation!
"I get the gist of it."
Miss Lin grasped the situation immediately upon arrival.
She must have sensed that the thing inside Marco was no ordinary demon.
As expected of her sharp detection aptitude.
"...Huh?"
But then.
Her expression started to harden.
"Huh? Ah! You!"
And the demon possessing Marco also widened its eyes at Miss Lin, pointing at her as if it recognized her.
What? They act like they know each other... Ah, no way.
"...This is interesting. My first demon hunting target turns out to be... you."
Miss Lin's expression shifted to something subtly aggressive, like a belligerent smile or simmering anger.
#
In the demon realm, there are six absolute rulers.
The Demon Kings, rulers of the demons.
Curse Demon King Kraksus.
Beast Demon King Tel.
Seduction Demon King Lilith.
Weapon Demon King Geral.
Magic Demon King Wells.
Disease Demon King Bolbphabrin.
They waged wars against each other to claim the entire demon realm.
Yet the forces of the Demon Kings always maintained a balance.
That balance broke about 300 years ago.
When Curse Demon King Kraksus reached into the mortal realm.
To devour the demon realm completely, Kraksus devised a plan to swallow the mortal realm.
Dominate the mortal realm, connect it to the demon realm,
and raise his army there.
That would surely create a force vast enough to consume the demon realm and more.
Of course, demons often burrowed into the darkness of mortal souls to show off their power,
or sought weak points in the boundaries to descend and claim something from the mortal realm.
However, most were stopped by beings called 'heroes' in the mortal realm,
or subjugated after descending.
But this was on a completely different scale.
He, a Demon King, and his top lieutenants would go to the mortal realm and wipe them out.
No 'heroes' could stand against that.
At best, they'd need ten to take down a single high demon.
Kraksus put the plan into action immediately.
Of course, they couldn't all go at once.
To cross over, a Demon King like him needed a massive rift to the mortal realm.
But it wasn't difficult.
Ridiculously, there were idiots in the mortal realm who worshipped the demons that would destroy their world.
With their help, progress was swift.
The key was not getting caught by the other Demon Kings midway.
If they found out, the plan was ruined.
They'd invade his territory while he was gone and devour it all.
"Proceed in secret. But quickly."
Fortunately, with Kraksus staying quiet, the other five Demon Kings were busy fighting among themselves.
No time to glance his way.
Thus, Kraksus descended into the mortal realm.
A horrific being that spread curses to slaughter enemies.
A 10-meter monster resembling a melted old man cloaked in pitch-black robes.
It descended into the mortal realm.
Thus began the great incident of 300 years ago.
The Demon King invasion.
What he hadn't anticipated was the heroes' resistance being stronger than expected.
And... there were a few heroes with power incomparable to the others,
strong enough to stand against even the Demon King Kraksus himself.
He was repelled.
Fortunately, he managed to wipe out the heroes opposing him just before death,
but the aftermath left him on the brink of annihilation, his power spent.
Of his 10 elite subordinates, all but 3 were destroyed.
He had to hastily halt the invasion and retreat to the demon realm.
Any more attacks from other heroes here, and he'd be gone for good.
Before leaving, he gathered his last strength and bestowed power upon his mortal followers.
A curse that could recover his strength through sacrifices.
He ordered them to curse the heroes and let him drain their lifespans.
Fortunately, the followers accomplished it easily.
Seated as rulers of nations, they prepared many sacrifices,
and spread the curse across the continent with them.
For heroes resistant enough to withstand it, they directly infused the curse's power.
As a result.
Kraksus recovered his strength swiftly.
But.
Things didn't go perfectly.
In the end, his mortal invasion, defeat,
and the fact that he'd lost nearly all his power and was slowly recovering was discovered by the other Demon Kings.
He ended up abandoning his territory, hiding here and there with his closest aides, waiting only to return to the mortal realm.
'If I can go to the mortal realm and rebuild my forces, those five Demon Kings are nothing.'
In the midst of that.
One Demon King had seen through his plan
and was preparing to crush it recently.
A weapon master proficient in all arms,
praised as the strongest in close combat among all Demon Kings.
A great demon in the form of a 5-meter burly giant man,
wielding 10 pitch-black weapons shrouded in demonic energy with 10 arms.
Weapon Demon King Geral.
"Craig. I'm leaving it to you."
Locked in fierce struggles with the other Demon Kings, he couldn't go to the mortal realm himself.
It would take time to tear a large enough dimensional rift.
So he entrusted the task to one of his trusted high demons, Craig.
Go to the mortal realm, ruin Kraksus's plans, and if possible, destroy all his sources.
"As you command, great Weapon Master Geral."
The demon Craig, with goat-headed form and massive torn wings, decided first to possess a mortal soul
to act quickly in the mortal realm.
'Oh ho, that one's good.'
The first he found was a single girl.
Though she appeared a fragile girl on the outside,
astonishingly, she had the hero's quality and a body strong enough to withstand a high demon's demonic energy.
The darkness she harbored was pitch black,
deep enough for even the high demon Craig to burrow into.
"Perfect. Great for rampaging."
Thus, he burrowed into the girl's soul.