Chapter 371
Chapter 371
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 372
Chapter Title: Elina's Demise
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Sunhwa and Elina, having pulled themselves up from where they had tumbled, stared at me with eyes filled with tension.
I gazed at them calmly before quietly drawing up my mana in preparation for battle.
[Activating the 'Victory Herald' effect.]
[The target is 'Elina Kim.']
With this, all battle preparations were complete.
［Thanks to the effect of Moonlight, my condition is also excellent.
Even though they were two S-Rank demons possessing top-tier strength within the Ten Demon Society, I was confident I wouldn't lose.
Just as I was about to slowly begin the fight, a voice came from somewhere.
—Hey…… isn't that Elina Kim?
—……Yeah, looks like it? Hey, but what's with Elina Kim's arm regenerating? No way, is Elina actually a demon?!
—Crazy.
When I turned my head, I saw that the city's citizens had gathered and were watching us.
Since we were in the middle of a densely populated downtown area, a small commotion had quickly drawn a crowd.
—But who is that guy? Can't see his face because of the mask and hat.
—……No idea. Doesn't seem like Special Forces.
—Isn't he a demon hunter? You know, those mysterious demon assassination cases that started a year ago.
From the conversations drifting over, it seemed they had some grasp of my identity.
I wondered if revealing myself in front of so many people had been a mistake, but it was a choice I had no control over.
If I let Elina escape today, she would go into hiding, derailing my 'Ten Demon Society annihilation plan.'
So while my actions had been somewhat impulsive, it didn't matter much.
After all, this was a golden opportunity to take down two S-Rank demons at once: Elina and Sunhwa.
At that moment, Sunhwa, standing opposite me, opened her mouth.
“……Elina. Tell me straight. Is this guy really the Child of Prophecy?”
“Definitely. No regeneration could be suppressed like this without Demon-Slaying Power.”
“……Child of Prophecy.”
Sunhwa murmured softly while looking at me.
I wasn't sure if it was my imagination, but her gaze toward me carried a complex, subtle emotion.
What could it be? I felt a momentary doubt before quickly manifesting light attribute magic and rapid-firing it at her.
Pang!
Sunhwa leaped away quickly, dodging my attack.
As expected of someone with top-tier skill even among the Ten Demon Society, her movements were impressive.
Next, Elina, her wounds nearly healed by the power of Rampage Transformation, summoned a massive hump snake and attacked me.
Chiiiiiik!
A giant black snake charged at me with its enormous maw open, moving at tremendous speed.
I immediately manifested a light attribute orb and fired it straight into the snake's mouth.
At the same time, the snake's head exploded and dissipated into smoke.
—Kyaaack!
As the battle suddenly erupted, screams burst out from the surroundings.
The citizens, trained to evacuate when magic battles broke out, began fleeing swiftly.
Confirming that the nearby citizens were gone, I pressed the attack even more aggressively.
First, I charged straight at Elina.
Elina responded to my movement by summoning two more giant snakes and one hump leopard.
The follow-up attacks came, but my body, enhanced by the moonlight effect, easily evaded them.
Then, I manifested orbs to burst the snakes' necks and waist, and the hump leopard's head, one by one.
“……You monster!”
As her attacks failed to land, anxiety trembled in Elina's eyes.
With all the obstacles in front cleared, I closed in right up to Elina's face.
Several black demonic energy spikes then shot toward me in spear form.
It was Sunhwa's attack to protect Elina.
But once again, I dodged leisurely and shoved a light attribute orb into Elina's abdomen.
“Kuaaaak!”
Elina rolled on the ground, suffering a major wound.
I wanted to infuse Demon-Slaying Power as well, but I wasn't yet accustomed to using light attribute and Demon-Slaying simultaneously, so I lacked the manifestation time.
If I'd had enough time to manifest, that last attack could have ended her completely.
“......Cough!”
Elina spat up black blood.
However, without Demon-Slaying Power, the wound was already healing rapidly.
Even light attribute power had its limits in suppressing an S-Rank demon's Rampage-enhanced regeneration.
But it didn't matter.
If I kept punching holes in her body like this, even her regeneration would reach its limit eventually.
I charged forward again, rapid-firing light orbs.
The four orbs floating above my head shot toward Elina at high speed.
Elina gritted her teeth and summoned ten black leopards, squeezing out all her power.
The summoned beasts then rushed at me in a torrent.
This is annoying.
Maybe because I lacked experience fighting summoner-type mages, it was trickier than expected.
It was a 1v1 or 1v2 situation, but it felt like facing dozens of strong opponents alone.
If I could use ［Mana Downpour］ here, things would go much smoother, but with all these eyes watching, it was regrettable that I couldn't.
In the end, I fired orbs while eliminating the demonic beasts one by one.
Reducing their numbers like this would eventually bring her to her limit.
As I kept dodging Sunhwa's support attacks from the side and firing magic, a gap opened in Elina.
I didn't miss the timing.
I rapid-fired at Elina at my fastest possible rate.
“Kuaaaak!”
The orbs struck her shoulder and abdomen, exploding once more.
Kwaaaaang!
Another gap created.
I activated ［Instant Acceleration］ and charged at Elina.
Sunhwa's attacks continued from the side, but I endured with the [Pain Resistance] effect and pressed toward Elina.
Then, I manifested an orb infused with both light attribute and Demon-Slaying Power, firing it straight at her head.
Kwaang!
[S-Rank Villain 'Elina Kim' has been eliminated.]
[Karma increases by 1.]
[Victory achieved against the target!]
[Due to Victory Herald's effect, all stats of the summon, 'Immortal Hell Demon Beast Gretel,' increase by 0.5, and Demon-Slaying proficiency rises by 20%.]
“……Hoo.”
Seeing the message pop up made me realize Elina was truly dead.
Just as I began to feel a small sense of relief,
Intense pain shot through my shoulder and thigh.
I let out a short breath and looked down to see black demonic energy spikes deeply embedded in my shoulder and thigh.
Even with the 'Moonlight' effect, my opponent was an S-Rank demon.
Facing two of the Ten Demon Society's top elites at once, a clean victory wasn't easy.
Well, trading some flesh with Sunhwa to definitively kill Elina wasn't a bad exchange.
I gritted my teeth, pulled out the spikes, and tossed them aside.
The demonic spikes that hit the ground soon turned to smoke and vanished.
“……One down, for now.”
Now it was a 1v1.
I glanced up at Sunhwa, and she stood still, watching me.
Surprisingly, there was no hostility in her eyes toward me.
Then, in a small voice too quiet to hear properly, she murmured.
“That magic just now…… definite Demon-Slaying Power…… as expected, you are……”
Ignoring her words, I checked my wounds.
The injuries were quite deep.
Especially my thigh—the muscle and bone were shattered.
Of course, with my ［Super Regeneration］, it wouldn't greatly affect the battle.
To finish off the remaining opponent, Sunhwa, I manifested light attribute orbs again.
That was when it happened.
Black demonic energy flowed out around Sunhwa's body, beginning to envelop the surroundings in a spherical barrier.
A black demon barrier.
A supreme barrier like the 'Great Demon Realm Barrier,' one that even most support-type mages wouldn't dare touch.
I knew Sunhwa had considerable skill in support magic, but I hadn't expected her to wield top-tier barrier magic like this.
The moment I realized my vision and hearing were cut off, only the two of us remained in the area.
Sunhwa, staring at me intently, opened her mouth.
“Wait. I don't want to fight you. We have no reason to fight.”
Sunhwa's sudden declaration that she didn't want to fight me.
It seemed she had deployed this curtain because she had something to say to me alone.
I felt puzzled by her words.
Her statement that she didn't want to clash with me didn't feel like mere begging for her life—it carried a seriousness driven by some purpose.
“You're the Child of Prophecy, right?”
I didn't bother answering.
As I kept silent, she continued.
“The power you have, the natural enemy of demons…… You might think all demons fear you, but it's not entirely true.”
“...”
What was she suddenly talking about?
“There are demons friendly toward you. And I belong to that side.”
Only then did I understand her meaning.
As she said, not all demons harbored hostility toward the 'Child of Prophecy.'
In fact, there were those who hoped I would kill the current king sitting on the throne.
Most notably, Haryeong, the previous king's S-Rank demon loyalist and a devotee of the 'Prophetic Demon King.'
And Sunhwa was close to Haryeong and one of the Prophetic Demon King's loyalists.
I'd momentarily forgotten amid the urgent situation.
“I'll give you information on the king. It might be tough now, but with your power, you can kill the king someday. In exchange, let me live.”
“What information?”
“……The king's weakness. And identity.”
“I already know that.”
Her eyes trembled briefly at my words.
“Well, considering the demons you've assassinated so far, it makes sense.”
Sunhwa murmured softly. I asked her.
“Then answer another question. About your relationship with Jaun. Swear to tell the truth with a blood oath.”
It was something I'd always wondered.
Why was Sunhwa protecting Jaun's subordinate organization, Silvers, during the purge?
According to her, it was at Haryeong's request, but that raised many questions about the person named Haryeong.
Haryeong was close to the Prophetic King and knew many things.
Also, according to Choi Il-hyun, she might know the whereabouts of Jin Cheon-woo's 'fourth journal.'
At my words, Sunhwa's eyes trembled again.
“Wait, how do you know that?”
No need to answer, so I stayed silent.
Sunhwa bit her lip, looking frustrated at me.
“Fine. I don't know how you found out, but I'll tell you. If you want, I'll even do a blood oath. But promise to let me live.”
“Deal.”
Soon, she performed the blood oath.
Unlike humans, the demons' unique black blood ritual felt somewhat different.
She took a moment to breathe deeply before speaking to me.
“Haryeong is searching for the fourth journal left by Jin Cheon-woo.”
As expected, Haryeong was looking for Jin Cheon-woo's journal.
“What's in the fourth journal?”
“I don't know. But he left many questions for us in the past. So she believes the clues are in the fourth journal and has been searching for it.”
Many questions left by the Prophetic Demon King.
What could they be?
“……What did the Prophetic King say?”
At my question, she spoke.
“Soon, the laws and concepts that have upheld the world until now will all crumble, bringing chaos.”
Then, after catching her breath, she continued.
“By a god from outside.”