Confronting the Past
Right after contracting with him, I could no longer see his form.
To be precise, I could see Pandemonium, but this place wasn't Pandemonium.
His voice came faintly.
Above all, the landscape before my eyes grew even redder. I could feel the demonic energy.
I had become a demon.
I naturally realized why he was no longer visible. His true body was the land I stood upon—the same world, but his soul resided in another realm, in Pandemonium.
To behold his true form, I had to eliminate what suppressed him. The repulsive fragments of the gods. The pillars emanating holy power. Shards of the holy sword were restraining him.
The King of Corruption, Lucifer. That was the name of my savior, who had granted me this opportunity and power.
The Demon King himself had bestowed power upon me. I was strong even now, but consuming souls would make me stronger still.
My magic spear laughed in delight at the thought.
"...Impressive."
"Thank you."
"Kuhuhu, you're the first human in ages who can see me. Talent! You were born for this moment!"
"For this moment...!"
Though Lucifer was invisible, I could clearly sense his presence beside me. A bond of souls. His demonic energy dominated my heart.
It felt as if we had become one body. My breathing quickened, my body trembled, and my cheeks flushed red.
...I was simply overjoyed.
The Lua Church. Those wretched fools who condemned the emotion of corruption. What was so special about the God of Fate? If there truly was a god who governed destiny, then this was fated as well.
Their god had made me this way. I both hated and thanked him for it.
"...Well then."
"Yes."
The head of my father in my hand dripped blood.
No emotions stirred within me. The anticlimactic end only fueled my anger instead.
Even as vicious demonic energy surged, no one fretted or inquired. There were no living souls here anymore.
Only the dead and the overseer of death.
The moment of vengeance was sweet yet hollow. Well, it didn't matter anymore.
I had made a pact with the devil; I had no choice but to uphold it. Now it was time to offer my body. No—my body already belonged to him.
"Ahh...! Lucifer, command me in anything!"
"Your vibe's completely changed. Did the seed's blooming alter your personality too?"
His contemplative voice echoed in my ear.
"Tesiah. Then, this is my command."
"Yes!"
"Corrupt humans."
"...Pardon?"
"Build my forces and free me from this wretched land. You want to see me too, don't you? My true form."
Lucifer's true form! My surging emotions left no room for doubt. I was now his servant. Obedience was all that remained.
"Hehe... As you command!"
And so, for several years, I wandered, planting seeds in humans. Each time a seed of corruption bloomed, the throbbing rush was pure ecstasy. My mind cleared, and my demonic energy amplified.
I learned something too. I wasn't the only one contracted with a Demon King.
Thus, five 'prophets' gathered. Devotees offering their bodies for them, the five leaders of the demon cult.
I recalled it. Lucifer's wish would soon come true!
The atmosphere shifted dramatically.
Meteor vanished in the blink of an eye. Mio could only panic amid the suspicious circumstances that made one doubt if it had truly disappeared.
She had done some research on the demon cult. A group composed entirely of demons who masqueraded as humans normally but sowed seeds of corruption out of sight—vicious bastards. They were said to follow entities called prophets.
The little demon girl before her, whose presence had suddenly intensified, was no ordinary follower.
"Damn it!"
Mio activated her Eye of Essence.
A complex web of demonic energy, intricate enough to perfectly obscure her true nature, blocked her view. Yet the presence emanating from her was beyond what a mere demon could produce.
An executive. No—a presence rivaling the Four Heavenly Kings.
Her third eye opened wide.
Her somewhat short blue hair lengthened into flowing locks, and the demonic armor covering her body sharpened further. She unleashed all the demonic energy she had concealed until now.
Gate Open.
The suppressed power burst through her meridians.
How many humans had she absorbed over eight years? How many followers had she corrupted? How many had she killed?
Impossible to know. Do people remember the number of grains of rice they've eaten in eight years? Count them? Recall them? No. Utterly impossible.
It was the same. Tesiah had merely devoured the prey before her. Nothing wrong with that.
That's why the terror gripped them. A number too vast to remember had accumulated in her spear and body, enough to annihilate Mio's Meteor.
Arahan swallowed hard. The transformed demon was utterly different from before.
"Lady Mio."
"Yeah. I'm watching."
"Have you fought beings like that in the past too?"
"Yep. Plenty stronger ones too. Hmm... She's on par with the Four Heavenly Kings, I'd say?"
"Four Heavenly Kings?"
Mio placed her hands on her hips and explained, her face brimming with pride.
"You know there were legion commanders under the Demon King, right?"
"Yes, I heard from Master. That you grabbed the head of the Legion Commander of Greed and tore it in half..."
"Haha... Ignore that idiot's words. Not wrong, but..."
"So what are the Four Heavenly Kings?"
"The four minions under the legion commanders—in short, demons who received the Demon King's demonic energy."
"Ah... Then this one is."
Mio nodded. She didn't want to admit it, but she had to. The thick aura of corruption was no ordinary demon's output.
"...A minion of the King of Corruption."
"Has the King of Corruption's seal been broken?"
"Not sure. But with the demon cult surging and people corrupting left and right, it's plausible."
"For a Demon King's revival, it's awfully quiet."
"Exactly. No solid proof he's revived. No, the seal probably hasn't broken yet."
The reason was simple.
"I sensed his mental body in Pandemonium. That's proof enough."
"Then that's a relief, but..."
Rowen clicked his tongue at the sight. The balance was off. Mio and Arahan were fighting while guarding the Magic Tower where he and Yuria were.
On the other hand, that demon had nothing to lose. At least not here.
"Kuh..."
"Don't move."
"Yuria. Heal."
"No external wounds!"
"Do I need wounds to heal? I'm asking you to erase my fatigue."
"Master and Arahan will get mad!"
"Not my problem. At least make myself useful."
Powerlessness. He, who boasted overwhelming strength in his past life, exhausted after just one fight.
Of course, back-to-back battles and mental strain were the main culprits.
Mio fighting with the tower at her center was painfully spot-on. That wasn't her usual style.
...Or so he remembered. If something was his, she'd smash it if it hindered battle or revenge. Otherwise, drag it into the fray.
But now was different. Because it was the tower her disciples built? He could feel her protectiveness from afar.
Yuria shielded the tower with an energy barrier, but whether it could withstand that demon's attacks—which had erased Meteor—was uncertain.
Well... As the tower master, she'd manage. But...
"Stop."
"What?"
"Beating yourself up again for being useless?"
"That's..."
"I begged you when I entered your abyss. To rest."
"I've rested plenty."
"Not just physically. Mentally. Even if you joined the fight now, what could we do? Don't forget—you're not the great knight Rian Rose anymore. You're just the Valenos bastard. Rowen."
He knew. His reincarnated body had forgotten all past achievements, weakened.
If it were the same body, it'd be different. But this entirely new one would take time to master.
Yuria sighed deeply. Then, as if resolved, she chanted something and showed her palm.
"Hm?"
For a moment.
"Knifehand strike!"
Thwack!
Rowen's pupils shook. The forceful chop to his neck nape knocked him out.
Her face mixed satisfaction and worry.
"...You!"
"Think it over in your dreams. I'll cast time magic on you."
So.
"Rest for what might feel like a long time."
"What the hell is... this bullshit..."
"Tsk."
As Yuria gestured, his eyes slowly closed. He resisted to endure as long as possible, but his eyelids grew heavy.
No strength left even for curses. His vision darkened...
Thud.
In the end, Rowen collapsed.
Darkness. A space devoid of any light.
Yet a mirror reflected his form without light—truly bizarre.
A massive mirror reflected Rowen. It moved. As if disassembling and reassembling him, tormenting him relentlessly.
For a moment, another figure rippled in the reflective glass.
Tens, hundreds, thousands. No... tens of thousands of swords pierced the demon's corpse.
The inverted swords evoked a cross, like the devil's grave.
Demon Slayer. Rowen's epithet echoed deep in his mind, taking root.
An arm sprayed arterial blood as it flew.
The abdomen burst in a round spray.
A magic sword pierced deep into the skull.
It didn't stop. Once pierced, wounds regenerated only to be pierced again.
It didn't hurt. Mere hallucinations in memory and vision.
Repeating scenes. Not fleeting glimpses, nor a rapid montage like a life flashing before one's eyes.
What, then? The answer was Rowen's memories.
No montage, no video. Rowen naturally gazed upon the 'existence' before him and recalled.
His grim past and tragic end.
Rowen sensed it. This long-unseen figure wasn't an illusion. It stared straight at him, eyes shifting—not an illusion.
"Been a while since I last saw that look."
"Pathetic?"
"Yeah. Fucking pathetic."
The hero shrouded in black chains of fate. The great one who took countless swords upon himself. The strongest hero in history.
Belzebub, who slew his father in one stroke.
The powerhouse who cornered him alone, right up to the sealing.
The great knight and sword hero. Tales abounded, but Great Knight suited him best.
Mosaic blurred the many wounds. Even staring deeply, they remained unseen. The closer he approached, the wall of fate blocked him.
He knew who this was. Impossible not to.
Rowen wasn't a fool. No idiot, no moron.
At least, he remembered his former self.
"...Hey."
"Yeah. You moron."
Rowen faced his past self.