Chapter 83
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Hell Count Patametos (1)
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“Grrrrr.”
Patametos leaped back to dodge the incoming great scythe, letting out a strained groan from the blood still surging reverse through his body.
On top of that, he felt as if his bones were grinding against his muscles, trying to tear through his skin, and every time he laid eyes on that tiny vermin, chills ran down his spine while his body twitched under the overwhelming pressure. Cold sweat dripped from Patametos.
Just what the hell am I? And what’s happening in my mansion right now?
The current situation was utterly unacceptable and incomprehensible to Patametos.
Not only had this intruder bypassed the thorough security spells, but he’d also slipped past his knights stationed in the mansion’s rooms.
That wasn’t enough—he’d evaded the eyes of the maids and servants filling the mansion and made it all the way here. And somehow, he wielded one of Hell Duke Demadr’s favored weapons: the blood-drinking scythe.
To top it off, this puppet master— a rare ability unseen even in Pandemonium, now thought to be extinct or hidden from the world—had pierced Patametos’s formidable anti-magic resistance and cast spells directly on him.
Each event alone was shocking enough, but all at once? Patametos felt not just rage, but confusion and fear.
Whatever it is, I need to break this damned spell first.
Patametos wasn’t some foolish demon who’d reveal his panic or inner thoughts to an enemy.
He knew how to play it cool even when startled, to act unfazed despite serious wounds. But now, with his blood reversing, bones defying his will, and the enemy’s fear imprinted on him, he couldn’t steady his mind like usual.
“Graaaah—!”
His mind racing, Patametos bared his teeth and charged at Kang Sa-hu.
Even flustered, the power of Hell’s Count Patametos—third among the five great dukes of Hell—was immense.
In an instant, he closed the 20-meter gap and swung a fist. Black flames, the same ones that had scorched the orcs and apes, flickered and surged around it.
It happened in the blink of an eye, but Kang Sa-hu’s vastly enhanced body and dynamic vision caught the attack. He blocked the fist with his great scythe.
Bam!
“Kuhuk!”
The fist was perfectly stopped by the scythe’s blade, but the impact of the swing transferred straight through Kang Sa-hu’s arms.
He flew back in the same blocking stance, crashing into a distant wall. The apes’ eyes widened as they charged at Patametos.
-Kyaaak!
-Kieeak, kiyaa!
“Pathetic.”
Patametos sneered at the apes rushing toward him and stomped the floor.
Crack-crack-crack!
-Kieeeak!
Ripples of intense shockwaves spread from him like waves on water.
The powerful gust hurled the charging apes backward as if they’d been flung away.
Seeing his enemies scattered like leaves should have thrilled Patametos, but instead, he was stunned.
“...What the hell are you?”
He stared at Kang Sa-hu, who had landed on the ground, with a look of utter bewilderment and shock.
“These vermin... they’re still alive? You pierced my anti-magic resistance to cast spells, too. You’re no puppet master, are you?”
“I don’t know what a puppet master is, so it’s hard to say.”
Kang Sa-hu spat blood-mixed saliva to the side and assumed a stance.
Incredible speed.
Having taken the first hit head-on and abandoned preparing time-consuming spells, Kang Sa-hu pulled the war scythe form close to his body and charged at Patametos.
“Ha. What do you think you’re doing?”
Patametos, gradually diluting the spells afflicting his body, let out a hollow laugh at Kang Sa-hu’s approach.
The moment Kang Sa-hu thrust the war scythe like a spear, Patametos grabbed its long shaft as if he’d been waiting and kicked out at Kang Sa-hu’s arm with his foot.
But in that instant—
Sensing mana gathering beneath his feet, Patametos flinched, released the shaft, and leaped high into the air.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
Dodging the skill—Great Scythe Thorn—Patametos’s eyes went wide.
“H-How are you using that power?”
As a Hell Count, he’d witnessed Hell Duke Demadr in battle and knew the blood-drinking scythe’s details.
The sight of Kang Sa-hu using its skill shocked him deeply.
“D-Don’t tell me... Did Demadr fall? Y-You... did you assassinate Lord Demadr?!”
Patametos’s yellow eyes brimmed with murderous intent.
Kang Sa-hu met that gaze steadily and answered flatly.
“No. Nothing like that happened.”
“...!”
There was no hint of deceit—just pure honesty. Yet it only confused Patametos more.
“Then what the hell is this?! Why do you have that divine weapon, and how are you using its power?!”
Veins bulged across Patametos’s face like spiderwebs.
Black energy seeped from the horns on his temples, flowing down to envelop his body.
As the dark aura wrapped around him, Kang Sa-hu noticed the spells on his own body crumbling. He narrowed his eyes.
“Fine. Something’s seriously wrong here. I don’t need your answers. I’ll kill you and check myself.”
Shrouded in dark clouds, Patametos spread his hand, palm aimed at Kang Sa-hu.
It seemed inexplicable, but instinct screamed danger. Kang Sa-hu flung himself sideways.
Boom!
The instant he moved, an explosion erupted where he’d stood.
He’d barely dodged, but the blast in mid-air was massive.
Even moving fast, his foot got caught in the expanding wave. Excruciating pain made his eyes bulge.
“Keurgh—!”
Thud!
Kang Sa-hu tumbled across the floor, unable to plant his foot.
Biting back groans, he looked down. His shoe was obliterated, and from foot to mid-thigh, his flesh had turned blackened and dead, smoldering with embers.
“Kuugh!”
His mana barrier kept it from reaching muscle, but charred, twisted skin and flowing blood made him grit his teeth.
The heat wasn’t a fleeting burn—it clung like living maggots, relentlessly devouring flesh. It reminded him of white phosphorus, banned by international treaty for its cruelty.
“Hup, huup.”
His entire leg spasmed in agony. As he debated amputating it—
Patametos charged, refusing even a moment’s hesitation.
“Die, you pest!”
With apple-sized black fireballs orbiting him—the same ones that had scorched the apes and orcs—he closed in to finish the job. Kang Sa-hu gripped the war scythe form tightly.
Great Scythe Thorn
Mana spikes erupt from the ground
Kwa-kwa-kwa!
At Kang Sa-hu’s will, Great Scythe Thorn activated. Massive scythe blades erupted from the floor.
Unlike before, they rose densely and high around him. Patametos clicked his tongue.
“Pointless struggling!”
He bellowed bravely but lacked the guts to charge into what he saw as a divine weapon’s assault.
Instead, he retreated, launching new fireballs alongside the orbiting ones.
Kwa-kwa-kwa!
Bang-bang-bang!
Black flames rained down like arrows. The scythe thorns around Kang Sa-hu blocked them like an umbrella.
Great Scythe Thorn was meant for instant eruption, requiring extra mana to maintain. Holding it for defense drained his mana fast. Kang Sa-hu frowned.
Tensing for any breakthrough attacks, he watched Patametos—who was busy fending off charging apes but kept a wary eye here.
Time to cut—if I’m gonna do it, now’s the moment.
During the brief standoff, Kang Sa-hu exhaled deeply and carefully placed the scythe blade above his still-smoldering thigh.
Finding the precise line, preparing to sever only what was needed, he clenched his teeth in tension.
Just as he was about to—
“...!”
Kang Sa-hu sensed something odd from the scythe. He halted the pull and stared.
Shoooo—
Squirm, squirm, squirm.
The scythe blade touching his foot sucked in Patametos’s black flames.
As if the blade were a straw and the flames a liquid.
He didn’t understand why, but the effect was incredible.
Like ants climbing a tree, the embers that had been slowly consuming his foot up to the bone vanished.
The pain lingered, flesh charred to the brink, blood oozing—but he’d avoided amputation. Kang Sa-hu sighed in relief.
What just happened?
Puzzled by the vanished flames, he glanced at the scythe. Then he spotted a small system window he’d missed amid the chaos.
Quickly scanning with just his eyes—confirming Patametos still battling apes—he read it with his sharp dynamic vision.
A hidden boss has appeared.
Due to the hidden boss's superior abilities, the gate boss has been set to the hidden boss.
“Hidden boss.”
A new term, but with no time to dwell, Kang Sa-hu memorized it and scanned the rest.
Receiving continuous damage from the 'Inextinguishable Hellfire' effect.
Higher-grade dark mana detected than 'Inextinguishable Hellfire'.
Dark mana is absorbed by superior dark mana.
Finishing the last message, Kang Sa-hu grasped the situation, his eyes gleaming.
I don’t know what dark mana is, but once it got absorbed by something stronger, the fire on my foot vanished.
He looked at the great scythe in his hand.
By all indications, the “superior dark mana” could only be this weapon.
In that case...
Staring at the scythe, its detailed info soon appeared before him.
He reread the special effects atop the skills he’d just used—Great Scythe Thorn and the returning spinning death—his gaze sharpening intensely.
Even as Patametos fought the apes, his eyes never left Kang Sa-hu for a second.
These vermin’s attacks wouldn’t scratch him even if he took them barehanded.
The real threat was that insolent fool wielding the divine weapon.
Seeing Kang Sa-hu stand after placing the weapon on his leg as if to amputate, Patametos thickened the dark mana around himself.
That’s right. Come at me.
The moment the thought crossed his mind, Kang Sa-hu shot toward him like an arrow.
His full-powered leap was fast, but Patametos smirked confidently.
As expected. He’s no trained fighter.
Charging so openly, so defenselessly.
Ignoring even the apes clinging to him, Patametos pulled back a tightly clenched fist, ready to add his momentum to shatter Kang Sa-hu’s skull.
His calculated stance screamed he wouldn’t miss his prey.
But—
“...?!”
Kang Sa-hu vanished mid-leap. Patametos’s solid stance wavered, target lost.