Chapter 12. Demon Realm. Death Knights.
Death Knights. Once demons themselves, they had sworn absolute loyalty to the demons and gained immense power in return. But the price was the loss of all sensation. These fools, ensnared by a fleeting moment of pleasure and sacrificing everything for it, were hilariously robbed even of regret. All that remained was infinite loyalty to the demon Shaiya.
One of the knights approached Ji-hyuk. He strode toward it without hesitation. A chilling killing intent hung between them.
Even for Ji-hyuk, these bastards demanded full vigilance. They couldn't use magic at all anymore, but their bodies had been physically enhanced in compensation. Drawing this out wouldn't end well. Ji-hyuk resolved to go on the offensive.
He cracked his neck to the side and gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. He'd faced Death Knights countless times anyway. Of course, never in such a weakened state, but he could cover any deficiencies with experience.
The Death Knight struck first. Despite the name, it had no knightly honor whatsoever—it swung its scythe with lethal intent from the opening blow. This one must have wielded a scythe even before becoming a demon's minion.
Whoosh— The scythe grazed past his chest at an insane speed. This one was particularly fast. It was a stroke of luck that Ji-hyuk was the one facing it. If his teammates had drawn the scythe-wielder, a few would surely have died.
Shaiya, that bitch, watched from afar, cackling away. The demon was utterly confident in her victory. And why not? The odds were overwhelmingly in her favor. If anything, her misfortune was running into Ji-hyuk.
Yeah, get that pussy ready. I'm gonna ram this holy sword right up in there, you fucking whore.
Ji-hyuk clashed with the enemy before him, steeling himself for it. To those ignorant of combat, his fighting style would look like a death-defying tightrope walk. But to a master of the rope, it posed no danger at all.
...Of course, that didn't mean he could afford to get cocky. Even monkeys fall from trees sometimes.
What made the Death Knight tricky was its utter lack of emotion. It never faltered in any situation, making it hard to find an opening. Overwhelming it with superior stamina and skill would work, but in his current condition, Ji-hyuk couldn't manage that. He'd need at least two or three more years for it.
Still, facing a Death Knight just a year and a half after the tutorial's end was insane progress. These things made even decent C-rank heroes struggle. His growth was definitely faster than in the 14th loop. Sure, there was a physical limit to reaching S-rank hero status, but maybe he could shave off a bit more time compared to last time. Succeed in this mission, and he'd already be a C-rank hero.
The scythe whistled past the tip of his nose. Now—
Ji-hyuk shot forward like lightning. He slashed with the holy sword in a flash. The knight reacted, but the blade had already bitten deep into its armor.
—! But it didn't panic, countering calmly. Ji-hyuk twisted away just in time to dodge the scythe.
...Definitely no pushover. These things kept moving until they were truly dead. No time to celebrate a successful hit.
Shaiya's cackling had died down considerably. The demon eyed Ji-hyuk suspiciously. The guy she'd expected to drop dead any second was not only holding out but landing hits.
The cowardly bitch spread her demonic energy in a burst. Illusions and auditory hallucinations began tormenting Ji-hyuk.
—Kiyaaaaaaaah—
But he'd endured far worse. No way something like this would shake him. This was a life that had died fourteen times over. Emotions like fear and terror were long since numbed to oblivion.
...Maybe even more than a demon's.
Demon Shaiya was quite rattled. This can't be happening—
Humans, as she knew them, should've crumbled. They were so sensitive to emotional shifts. But Ji-hyuk hadn't wavered from start to finish. Like a Death Knight.
Ah—
Shaiya sensed something was wrong. That guy was off. Nothing like the humans she'd seen countless times.
...No way.
What if he's a demon? One sent from above to kill me? A wicked demon disguised as a human?
Ah, aaaah—
Shaiya's limbs began to tremble. No. No. I can't die. I don't want to die—
She backed away unsteadily.
"Kill him! Kill thaaaat guuuuyyyy—!!"
The Death Knight battling Ji-hyuk's group suddenly whipped around. Gid, who had nearly been turned into jerky by its hammer, finally caught his breath. A split second later, and he'd have been done for.
"Heal, heeeal—!"
Kayak, one arm crushed, yelled at Gorsh to hurry and heal Gid. Two knights were already smashed flat by the hammer. Gid had nearly joined them.
Ji-hyuk noticed another Death Knight approaching. That fucking bitch... Even she's too scared of one human to send just one? I knew she was nuts, but this is ridiculous.
He kept landing hits on the scythe-wielder. Each sword strike expelled chunks of demonic energy. Just a bit more pressure, and—then the hammer knight joined in.
Whoosh— The massive hammer swung for his skull. He ducked low, then twisted to evade the follow-up scythe swipe from below.
Lucky for him, the hammer guy was a tad slower. Otherwise, he might've actually gotten hit.
...Then I'd die chasing this mission and start the 16th loop? A wry chuckle escaped him. How pathetic would it be for a guy who'd reached the Great Demon King's doorstep to get done in by two Death Knights?
Death itself didn't scare him. But dying pathetically? No thanks.
Then, a brilliant light poured down from afar. Yael's magic. Anxious that two of her powerhouses were gunning for the boss, she'd poured extra mana into her orb of light, making it blaze brighter. The low-level fire spells from before had proven useless anyway.
—!!
The Death Knight hesitated for a moment. Shaiya shrieked and vanished into the shadows.
Well done, Yael—
An expert like Ji-hyuk wouldn't miss the opening. He darted like a beam of light, slashing the hammer knight repeatedly with the holy sword. Once, twice, thrice, four times, five. In that split second, five strikes.
The split body tried to knit back together. But with so much demonic energy drained, it shuddered and faltered.
Of course, the scythe knight didn't sit idle. It swung to bisect him. But Ji-hyuk, having predicted it all, slipped away with agile footwork.
Even to clueless Yael, it was mesmerizing swordplay. Ah— The boss dodged every attack by a hair. Like a rehearsed circus act.
Kayak, watching powerlessly, recognized the skill at a glance. His respect was evolving into loyalty.
Ji-hyuk evaded the whistling scythe and finally cleaved the hammer knight clean in two. This time, the halves didn't rejoin. The Death Knight crumpled, dissolving into dust.
Aaah, aaaAAAAHHH—!!
Demon Shaiya bolted, abandoning the last knight. To save her own skin.
But the knight dutifully fulfilled its orders. While Ji-hyuk handled it, the team regrouped.
Gid, still on the ground, cursed nonstop as he slowly rotated his throbbing arm. His shield was wrecked beyond use.
Kayak got a belated heal, his crushed arm mending. Yael kept fueling the light orb. It was all she could do right now. But she'd give it her all. For the boss.
...For the man she adored.
Mahushu stirred, having been knocked out by a punch from the hammer knight. Her ribs were shattered—fatal for a human—but her half-beastkin blood kept her alive, slowly healing.
Ji-hyuk could see the fight's end in sight. It had dragged longer than expected, but it wasn't brutally tough. The blitz strategy to push this far had paid off. One more day of delay, and it'd have been twice as hard.
The knight's movements slowed. Proof of heavy demonic energy loss. Ji-hyuk carved it up more easily. Finally, the last Death Knight dissolved into black smoke.
Catching his breath, Ji-hyuk checked his team. Everyone intact, luckily. But the fight wasn't over. He still had to hunt that damned demon bitch.
"I'm going after the demon."
He grabbed a torch and dashed in the direction she'd fled. Faint traces of demonic energy made tracking easy.
...Straight to that stele, obviously.
Ah, aaaah, aaaah—
Sobbing echoed, growing louder. Ji-hyuk reached the stele. Visibility was low, but he made out the demon clutching it, weeping.
"Found you, you fucking whore."
He grinned cruelly. The demon clawed at the stele, babbling ancient words skyward. Begging the Demon King for mercy, probably.
"Save me. Save me. I'll do anything. Anything. I don't want to die. Not yet—"
Now she begged Ji-hyuk directly.
"Who sent you? Whatever they want, I'll top it. Anything. Yes, I'll be your concubine. Just spare me. Please."
"If you kill me, she'll kill you too. For sure. His Highness will be furious. You won't survive either."
She crawled toward him like a dog.
"Do whatever you want. Take me. Enjoy me however. Just let me live."
Shaiya started seducing him outright. Seeing him watch silently, she thought it was working and sprawled on her back, kneading her breasts. Then her goat legs slowly parted, revealing a plump, blue hole. She spread it with her fingers.
"Come on. Hurry inside. It'll feel amazing. Even His Highness praised this hole. It's yours now. Use it freely."
Honestly, he was purely curious. How good would it feel to stick it in there...?
The Succubus Queen's pussy had been exquisite. Hilariously, she was a virgin. The first to deflower that long-guarded purity wasn't some Demon King or demon lord, but a mere human. The lewd succubus had her chastity brutally ravaged by a puny human, then wailed a serenade in ecstasy. That was succubus law—a song for the one who took her virginity.
Recalling it made Ji-hyuk's groin twitch. Not because of this wretched bitch, of course.
"Guys always gotta stick their dick in first and regret later. Regretting not sticking it in is way dumber."
An old saying popped into his head. He chuckled wryly. Tempting, but he'd probably regret plunging in this time.
He wasn't naive enough to trust a demon slut like her. Who knew what tricks she'd pull? He hadn't endured all this hell just to fuck some demon pussy once.
He'd been planning to shove something else in there instead.
"Hurry, hurry."
Ji-hyuk squatted before her. Aah— Thinking her seduction had worked, the black markings on her bald, glossy face writhed more violently.
"Yes, yes, hurry, that's it. Yeah."
Staring at her plump hole, Ji-hyuk thrust the holy sword he held straight into it.
———!!!!
"AaaaaaaaAAAAAAAHHHH—!!"
The cursed holy sword pierced the demon's body. She thrashed wildly.
"Why why why WHYYYYYYYYY AAAAAAAAHHHH—!!"
Shaiya flailed, desperate not to die. With the sword impaled in her hole, she crawled toward the stele.
"Aaaaaah aaaAAAAHHH—!"
Ji-hyuk watched impassively. Her body began turning to smoke.
"Don't wanna die don't wanna die hate it aaah scared scared aaah Your Highness Your Highneeeesss—"
Too late. The shadow of death crept over her.
"Your High...ness... Your Highness..."
Her voice faded. The twitching stopped. Her writhing hair hung limp like a dead snake. The demon crumbled to dust.
Only the holy sword remained on the ground.