Saint Maria and the Swamp Monster -4-
While Mari, Dena, and Masa were holding off an army of thirty thousand monsters,
"We're close now."
I'd successfully approached the spot the old priest had mentioned, where the remains of the saint lay. For reference, aside from the trio handling the main army, Nero and Kangjang had split off from me on the way here to deal with what seemed like elite demon soldiers blocking our path. I could still see Nero and Kangjang fighting a short distance away.
"Nyaang~"
-Whoooosh!!
-Crunch!!
In Nero's case, she deformed her body into a terrifying shadow form while spreading shadows in all directions toward the enemies, activating the Nightmare Larva skill [Embodiment of Nightmares].
-Crunch!!
-Crackle!!
From the shadows spreading out around Nero, shapes of monsters straight out of nightmares began to rise.
"Eek!?"
"W-what is that!?"
And in fact, those shadow forms embodied the deepest fears of the demons Nero was facing—the things they dreaded most.
The Nightmare Larva belonged to the undead category, but its true nature was an abomination crafted from the dreams of the dead by gods of darkness, nightmares, and shadows, who used them as weapons.
"Hiiiik!?"
"Aah... Aaaaah!!"
Demons with even the slightest mental vulnerability went mad from the mere sight of them, or in severe cases, dropped dead on the spot from sheer terror.
"Grroooaaar!!"
"Graaaaaah!!!"
"R-retreat..."
-Crackle!!
"Uwaaak!!"
"Damn it all!!"
-Crunch!!
Even the surviving demons were soon devoured by the shadow forms of the monsters they feared most.
-Whoooong!!!
"Die, you worthless scum who dared raise weapons against Master!!"
-Slash!!
Kangjang, meanwhile, had somehow mastered a technique similar to my Heart Sword, channeling the power of intent around her hands. Having earned a spot in Princess Zhan's hero party back in her original life as Princess Langfang, she possessed talent rivaling Zhan's own—and that gift persisted now in her undead form, making her incredibly strong.
-Whoooong!!
I'd call this power something like Heart Realm.
-KABOOOM!!
Thus empowered, Kangjang tore through the three strongest demons among the monster horde that called themselves Archfiends, using her jiangshi claws or fists—sharp, elongated blades among her arsenal.
Since jiangshi excelled more at one-on-one than one-against-many, I'd left them to her.
"Kraaaak!!"
"Guhk!!"
-Whoosh!!
From the stumps where Kangjang had sliced them, black flames akin to my own but slightly different erupted, incinerating the Archfiends. Mahayagma River was the pinnacle evolution of a jiangshi, approaching the underworld god Yama—and now she wielded the underworld's power. Those black flames were Hell Fire, infused with netherworld might.
Compared to the four battling the monster horde with their wide-area devastation, hers lacked splash damage or shockwaves—but she dispatched her targets with precise, clean efficiency. Just like when I'd used my Heart Sword to carve only the shadow monsters.
"Nice work."
I nodded approvingly at how well my Living Death servants were handling things. No need to assist—they had it covered.
With that thought, I turned my gaze forward.
-Whoooosh
The spot the old priest had indicated held nothing—at least at first glance. It was the edge of a massive lake in the swamp's center, deeper and with less land than surrounding areas, but otherwise just as damp and gloomy as the rest.
Was the priest lying? No.
-Whoooong!!
"I see it."
My eyes pierced the illusion. A barrier enveloped the space ahead, distorting perception to cloak the interior in a landscape indistinguishable from the surroundings.
-Whoooong!!
I stepped through the barrier into the interior. What emerged before me was a similar swamp vista—and atop it, a small building.
'Church of the Goddess...!!'
It was unmistakably a temple of the Goddess faith, judging by the motifs embedded throughout. Small, yes—but far from shabby. Some exteriors flaunted ostentatious opulence, but
-Whoooong!!
"Disgusting."
A torrent of holy power unlike any I'd sensed before poured from within the temple. Naturally, to an undead like me, it felt like wading through a cesspool of shit.
"A.gree."
"Yeah, anytime."
As I grumbled my assessment, someone suddenly echoed it. I'd sensed their presence the moment I entered, so no surprise.
"Tru.ly. Re.pug.nant. The. Pow.er. Of. The. One. Called. God.dess."
A staccato, unnatural voice—choppy, somehow off-kilter. Not words, but shards of fractured emotion.
I turned to see
-Shlurp!!
a demon resembling an octopus, with eight tentacle-like legs. No eyes or mouth on its head; its white skin evoked not slick, moist octopus flesh but taut, flexible synthetic rubber, artificial in sheen.
The tentacles stretched and contracted rhythmically, wriggling furiously.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Park Seokgil, a dog."
"Wel.come. E.nem.y. Of. Us. I. Ser.ve. The. De.mon. King. As. One. Of. The. Four. Hea.ven.ly..."
"Yeah, don't care."
-Fwoosh!!
Before it finished, I unleashed Flame Demon Eye. Before the demon could react, a speck of black flame sparked on its pristine white, rubbery skin—like a black dot on white paper.
And then
"!!?!?!"
-KABOOOOOM!!!!!
The black speck erupted in an instant cataclysm, engulfing the demon's body. True to its station here, it was a formidable foe; unlike lesser demons, it seemed to perceive the blaze. In the split second before it fully consumed it, the thing shuddered in panic.
And in that instant
-Whoooong!!
In my slowed senses, magic circles formed on its eight legs as it tried to cast something—but
-Clang!!
"!?!?!?!?"
The circles shattered, its spell fizzling.
-Fwoosh!!
"Kraaaak!! Why...!?! Fla.m.ma...!! Fi.re.!!! De.mon.King...!! Sa.ve...!!"
The inferno—packing ultra-high heat to consume all—devoured it utterly as its final death cry echoed.
"Time stop magic, huh?"
I realized what it'd tried: a time-stop spell. But
"Kid, time-interference resistance is a must."
In games, every scrub past level 60 picked up time stop as their gimmick—resistance was essential. One of my pre-buffs, [Singularity of Time], granted immunity to time-based attacks.
'Normally part of my max-level full gear, but...'
Without max level, those items were level-locked, so buffs had to suffice. Still, its time stop seemed low-tier anyway—easily blocked.
'A Four Heavenly King, though?'
I mulled its interrupted introduction. From info extracted from Phantom possessing Kotono, the Flamma I'd mistaken for an Archfiend was also one. And this peer-level Heavenly King dropped to one hit.
'Maybe the demons aren't as tough as I thought?'
The notion hit me. Back on the northern frontlines, the naga monster I'd killed for Masa's materials—which actually was a true Archfiend—had been fodder.
"Tch...?"
For a second, I wondered if I could take on the Demon King and his goons right now.
'Still, better fill out all fifteen Living Death slots before tackling him.'
Demons were born from shards of gods, right? Powerful stuff.
"Yeah, no changes to the necro hero party plan. Policy stands. Not motivated by pervy undead babe fantasies. Anyway. This'll make a good Living Death material later. Gotta grab it."
I stowed one of the nameless Heavenly King's tentacles in my corpse vault, then headed for the temple.
As I neared, traces of a sinister ritual—likely its doing—appeared.
-Whoooong!!
Human corpses, apparent sacrifices, littered a glowing black magic circle.
"May you attain paradise."
-Fwoosh!!
None worth noting, so I cremated them with black flame.
And the moment I stepped inside the temple