Chapter 415
Chapter 415
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 416
Chapter Title: Partial Berserk Transformation
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The incident involving Kim Seon-woo that shocked the entire world gradually faded from memory as time passed.
Seoul, which had been reduced to rubble, was fully restored to its former state, and the media outlets that had been intensely investigating Kim Seon-woo shifted their focus to the immediate threat of the Black Beasts rather than the demons.
The Black Beasts had already swallowed nearly half of the Mongolian continent and were rapidly expanding their territory.
The International Wizard Association, recognizing the severity of the situation, began assembling subjugation teams. As a result, they achieved a great victory by destroying nine Black Beast colonies in just two weeks.
“...Phew. We’ve finally arrived.”
Late one night somewhere on the Mongolian steppe.
Logan, an S-Rank wizard affiliated with the American Wizard Association, led his team to a newly formed Black Beast colony that had appeared at dawn the previous day.
“Is it just me, or does this colony have fewer Black Beasts than the others?”
One of the agents muttered as he looked around the eerily empty surroundings.
Logan nodded in agreement.
He had destroyed four colonies so far, but this one had fewer Black Beast individuals than any of the others.
“...The Black Beasts’ proliferation must have reached its limit. It’s been unnaturally rapid up until now.”
Logan muttered as he headed toward the cave-like colony, from which black energy wafted faintly.
At that moment.
A chilling aura erupted from inside the cave.
Simultaneously, a massive Black Beast let out a screech and was flung out of the cave entrance.
The subjugation team’s eyes widened at the sudden turn of events.
“...The Colony Lord?”
Surprisingly, the Black Beast that had been ejected from the cave was the boss monster ruling the colony—the Colony Lord.
As the Colony Lord burst out unexpectedly, the agents tensed and prepared for battle.
Right then, something black shot out from the cave depths and pierced straight through the Colony Lord’s body.
—Kraaaang!
The black entity possessed astonishingly powerful energy.
It effortlessly tore through the tough hide of the Colony Lord and, like a serpent, twisted around to stab into various spots, inflicting fresh wounds.
Logan stared at the scene in bewilderment.
That black energy was...
“...Demonic energy?”
It was demonic energy.
Not ordinary demonic energy, but the kind wielded by a high-ranking demon with normal-level abilities.
The demonic energy surging from the cave soon tightly constricted the Colony Lord’s entire body.
—Krrk, krrrk.
The Colony Lord let out groans of agony before collapsing lifelessly.
The agents, who had been staring blankly at the sight, were dealt a massive shock.
For the Colony Lord to die so pathetically.
What on earth had happened inside the cave?
Step by step.
The sound of human footsteps began echoing from within the cave.
Soon, someone slowly emerged.
A single man, his entire body emanating ominous black demonic energy.
His features were obscured by the billowing black aura and the darkness, but it was unmistakably a berserk-transformed demon.
And then, one pitch-black eye visible through the shadows turned toward them.
As their eyes met, chills raced up the agents’ spines.
The demon gazed at the agents and extended a grayish palm toward them.
Woooong!
At the same time, black demonic energy began condensing in front of his palm.
“...Everyone, battle stations!”
Caught off guard by the demon’s appearance, the agents hurriedly prepared for combat.
The tension hung thick in the air.
Just as the demonic energy was about to unleash—
A flesh-toned hand shot out from the darkness and gripped the demon’s gray hand.
The agents looked at the demon in confusion at this sudden action.
Simultaneously, the black demonic energy rising around the demon began to dissipate, and his hidden form gradually revealed itself.
A deeply pulled-down hat and a mask covering his face.
And between them, a pitch-black eye.
Outwardly, he appeared to be a berserk-transformed demon, but there was something unusual.
Only half of his body showed signs of berserk transformation.
His right eye alone was blackened, and only his right palm was grayish.
“...What the hell.”
At that moment, black demonic energy began rising like mist around the demon.
And shortly after.
The demon vanished without a trace.
At the top floor of the Seoul Wizard Association, in the executive conference room.
“According to Logan’s report, the colony was destroyed by a demon who had undergone partial berserk transformation.”
“Destroyed by a demon... This makes the third time, right?”
“No. The fourth.”
To address the Black Beasts invading the Asian continent, top-tier wizards from around the world had gathered.
“It seems to be the work of the same demon. The one who appeared this time also showed only half berserk transformation.”
The Hegemon, Michael, said in a soft voice.
The elder known as the Flame Emperor, Kwak Jin-hyuk, frowned uncomfortably.
“What’s the goal? There’s no benefit for him in doing that. It’s not like he can loot the colonies for spoils.”
“No benefit... Then it’s one of two things.”
Everyone’s gazes turned to Michael.
“Simple grudge... or a sense of justice.”
“Demons don’t have justice, so it must be the former.”
The Flame Emperor sneered.
“We don’t know that. The new Demon King once drew the world’s attention with his sense of justice, didn’t he?”
“You mean Kim Seon-woo?”
The Flame Emperor continued.
“I agree that the demon destroying the colonies is Kim Seon-woo. But his motives aren’t justice.”
All eyes turned to him.
“Demons are evil and enemies of humanity.”
“...Since Kim Seon-woo became king, demon incidents have noticeably decreased. Especially this week—it’s the lowest in nearly 20 years.”
“What of it? The only good demon is a dead demon.”
The Flame Emperor’s convictions were ironclad.
And since his views were worthy of respect, arguing further was pointless.
From the mood in the room, most seemed to agree with him.
Michael let out a short sigh and turned to the elderly man at the center, Kim Jin-cheol.
“...If I recall, Chairman, you took the stance that Kim Seon-woo isn’t a demon. Has that changed?”
All eyes shifted to Kim Jin-cheol, who stroked his beard thoughtfully.
“Regardless of whether he’s a demon or not, I still believe Kim Seon-woo is no enemy of humanity.”
Two weeks had passed since the Black Beasts began overtaking the Asian continent.
Using information from Haryeong, I started destroying Black Beast colonies.
Part of it was to curb the situation worsening faster than in the original story, but I also wanted to test the abilities I’d gained from the ‘Ancient Demon Tome’ found in the hideout’s treasure vault.
[You have achieved the ‘Black Beast Slayer’ accomplishment.]
[You have obtained 3,000 points as a reward.]
[You have successfully used ancient demon magic.]
[Demonic energy is gradually corrupting your body.]
“...Phew.”
After destroying a Black Beast colony, I sat resting on a nearby rock on the steppe.
Cold sweat dripped down, and my heart pounded.
The chaos from the berserk transformation dominating half my body slowly faded.
“...Almost lost control again.”
[Success in maintaining reason during partial berserk transformation!]
[Proficiency of ‘Partial Berserk Transformation (A)’ increases by 5%.]
Partial Berserk Transformation.
It was an ancient demon magic I’d acquired from the tome in the hideout’s treasure vault, via the ‘Inheritance’ sub-effect of [King’s Authority (SSS)].
As the name implied, it berserk-transformed only parts of the body rather than fully, allowing me to retain my reason and control demonic energy effectively.
For someone like me who couldn’t normally use demonic energy, it served as a trigger to enable it.
It seemed all upsides at first glance, but not quite.
“...Ten seconds is the limit, huh.”
There was a time limit to maintaining reason while using partial berserk transformation.
Currently, about ten seconds for me.
Exceed that, and the demonic energy overtakes my body, severing my reason.
In fact, during prior practice, I’d completely lost it and nearly killed Haryeong and Seonhwa.
“...Limits of a human body, I suppose.”
A pure demon could probably hold on much longer.
“No helping it.”
Still, this experiment yielded satisfying results.
[You have fully mastered the ancient magic, ‘Black Grasp (S)’!]
I’d completely made one ancient demon magic from the tome my own.
Of course, I’d used the shortcut of spending points for quick acquisition.
[Black Grasp (S) [Unique Grade: 1 (0%)]
Category: Trait
Description: Ancient demon magic usable only by qualified demons.
► Black Grasp
Freely manipulate demonic energy at will.
Black Grasp.
A ability frequently used by the Second Demon King, allowing control of demonic energy through sheer will.
Normally, magic requires forming specific shapes like spheres, blades, spears, or arrows, but with Black Grasp, demonic energy could be wielded freely without fixed forms.
Of course, my low proficiency made speed and handling tricky, but time would fix that.
[‘Black Grasp (S)’ influences ‘Mana Control Technique (A)’!]
[You can now effectively control demonic energy proportional to ‘Mana Control Technique (A)’ proficiency.]
“Nice.”
It felt unsettling that my demon-side abilities were growing stronger than my human ones, but this wasn’t the time to be picky about methods.
My goal was to see the story through to its end...
I had to play the best hand in the given situation.
“My king. You’ve worked hard.”
At that moment, Haryeong emerged from the shadows.
I nodded as I looked at her.
“You’ve had it tougher.”
Haryeong had been through a lot lately.
She was gathering starving demons scattered worldwide using ‘Blood Crystals’ and securing their loyalty to me under the banner of the king’s grace.
“Loyalty is stabilizing quickly. There are some clan members dissatisfied with blood lacking mana, but they’re still a minority.”
“Good to hear.”
But the number voicing discontent would grow.
To prevent demon hunts of humans, I’d need a new approach.
Haryeong glanced at the destroyed colony and said,
“There are now nine Black Beast colonies left on the continent.”
“...Hold on, didn’t you say eight this morning? I just took out one, so it should be seven.”
I narrowed my eyes, and Haryeong replied,
“Two more appeared in the interim.”
“...What the.”
I was so flabbergasted I couldn’t speak.
I’d barely destroyed one, and two more had popped up.
The proliferation speed was impossible to keep up with, sapping my motivation instantly.
“At this rate, it’ll never end. Maybe I should target the main body...”
“You’ve been pushing too hard lately. It might be best to rest.”
“I’m fine. Stamina recovery is my strong suit.”
I might lag in vitality or regeneration, but in physical and mental endurance, I wouldn’t lose to any demon.
Unyielding will.
I stood up, stretching.
“Ugh! Let’s smash one more colony while we’re at it. Got time? Come with.”
Haryeong stared at me blankly before bowing her head.
“...As you command.”