Chapter 175
Chapter 175
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 175
Chapter Title: Various Kinds (4)
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Kardak was an incredibly dangerous opponent.
Even just his status as a Grand Black Mage was extraordinary, but what was truly terrifying was Kardak's genius.
The hope of the Myriad Poisons School.
A genius who had nearly shouldered the future of the Myriad Poisons School.
This evaluation was no exaggeration. Among the black mages of the Myriad Poisons School, Kardak's poison crafting was unrivaled.
When Kardak devoted his genius fully to black magic, he created new poisons almost daily.
Most knights perished without even swinging their weapons once against him.
*Good thing my opponent is Kardak.*
Of course, none of this applied to Demian.
Demian didn't consider Kardak the least bit threatening.
*Poison is ultimately useless if you don't get poisoned.*
During his time as a Death Knight, Demian had never once used poison.
But his mind contained all the knowledge related to the Myriad Poisons School, thanks to what Dorgo had implanted.
Thanks to that, he could identify any poison at a glance and knew every method they used to neutralize them.
"It's a poison that incinerates the nerves and brain. Even a tiny inhalation lets you taste hell."
When Kardak vaporized the poison to create a toxic mist, Demian not only held his breath but also enveloped his body in a barrier of mana.
He knew full well that this poison infiltrated not just the respiratory system but the skin as well.
"It's a scattering poison that disrupts mana. No high-class technique can cut through it."
When Kardak formed a net of poison liquid, Demian enhanced his Aura output with the Harmony of Infinite Extremes, compressing it to its limit.
He knew the scattering poison only broke down the surface of Aura. By compressing his Aura densely, he tore the net apart.
"......To force even this method out of a mere high-class!"
Demian wasn't particularly surprised even when Kardak detonated a barrage of needles at point-blank range.
He knew the black mages of the Myriad Poisons School always prepared traps for when knights closed in.
So Demian had already reinforced his protective aura. Using a master-class realm, no less.
*Seamless Heavenly Robe.*
The realm mastered by Pacheonhui, known in his previous life as Heaven-Breaker.
Pacheonhui could weave his Aurablade like fabric through the Seamless Heavenly Robe.
The fabric created this way was far sturdier and sharper than a normal Aurablade. Above all, it moved according to the user's will.
Pacheonhui freely manipulated it to slice enemies or crush them. Or he wrapped it around his body to block attacks.
Thanks to the Seamless Heavenly Robe, Pacheonhui wielded an attack-and-defense-integrated combat style.
Demian wasn't a master class yet, so he couldn't handle the Seamless Heavenly Robe as freely as Pacheonhui.
But weaving Aura to wrap around his body was within his capabilities. He used it to deflect every needle Kardak fired.
"What nonsense is this......!"
Demian immediately swung Dawnstrike, severing Kardak's head. It flew through the air before thudding to the ground.
Demian shook the blood from Dawnstrike. The droplets hit the earth and blackened the soil.
Kardak's entire body was poison incarnate, so to speak. That was why Demian had tried to avoid getting covered in blood during this fight.
"......Kraaaagh!"
At that moment, Kardak's head on the ground let out a scream.
"You, you made me like this! I-I won't forgive you!"
Even with only his head left, Kardak was alive. Not only that—he was speaking.
Demian wasn't surprised. A Grand Black Mage having multiple ways to cling to life was nothing unusual.
"A Gr-Grand Black Mage, beaten by a mere h-high-class...... If, if this gets out, Rubia will be d-disappointed......!"
Even in this situation, Kardak fretted only about losing Rubia's favor.
"Ru-Rubia will cast me out...... Sh-She might even k-kill me......"
Kardak trembled. Fear of abandonment by Rubia mixed with pure terror of being slain by her.
"At the very least, you...... I'll k-kill you right here......!"
Kardak's corpse on the ground swelled up like a balloon.
It burst, black smoke billowing in all directions. Demian was engulfed before he could dodge.
"Ha, haha...... Kehahahaha......"
Kardak rasped a laugh.
"I-It worked. I killed him. Now Rubia will forgive me!"
Wuuung.
Then, a resonance hummed from within the smoke.
The moment Kardak heard it, he grimaced. It was the exact same sound that had emanated from Demian's body during the fight.
"Why this sound again......"
The resonance grew fiercer. Moments later, the black smoke vanished in an instant.
No—it was being sucked in. Drawn somewhere.
Once the black smoke was gone, Demian reappeared.
He held one palm open. Floating above it was a ring made of mana.
"......What is that?"
Kardak stared at the ring with blank eyes.
It was beyond his knowledge.
He couldn't comprehend what the ring was or how it had sucked in the toxic mist.
Harmony of Infinite Extremes.
A mana circulation method created by some imperial greatest swordsman from generations ago—Demian wasn't sure how many.
Demian had not only perfectly mastered this mana circulation method but also advanced it one step further.
He had devised a way to create a ring externally and imbue it with properties.
The ring Demian had just made contained the properties of the Tyrant's Power Accumulation Technique.
The Tyrant's Power Accumulation Technique excelled at drawing in external mana.
Demian had applied that principle to the ring, absorbing all the toxic mist.
"You sneaky bastard. If you're gonna die, die quietly—don't pull this crap."
The Myriad Poisons School always prepared mutual destruction techniques for their deaths.
In the early stages of the War of Ruin, countless knights fell to these methods.
Knowing this, Demian had anticipated Kardak's trick.
Demian approached Kardak. As the distance closed, Kardak's expression hardened.
"......Damn you. Don't get cocky just because you killed me. Rubia will avenge me."
Demian grabbed Kardak's hair and lifted his head. It dangled limply in the air.
"Rubia isn't just some beautiful woman! She's a black mage several times superior to me! To Rubia, trash like you is nothing......"
Demian extended his other hand. He yanked Kardak's soul right out of the head.
-Wha-what the hell?
Kardak's soul alone shrieked in shock.
-A mere knight manipulating souls? I-Impossible! What the hell are you......?
Demian ignored Kardak's question. He saw no need to answer.
Instead, he used black mana to scramble the soul, forcibly digging through memories and extracting everything about the Mercenary King.
-Gaaah...... Grrraaah......
Every time the black mana tore at his soul, Kardak endured excruciating agony.
After rummaging through Kardak's memories for a while, Demian finally obtained the memory he wanted.
"Found it. So this is where it was."
The moment he got what he sought, Demian destroyed Kardak's soul.
-Gaaah! Aaaagh!
The Myriad Poisons School tested their poisons directly on humans.
It was obvious how many lives Kardak had sacrificed to reach his position.
To offer some consolation to their grudges, Demian utterly annihilated Kardak's soul.
He shredded it to pieces, then injected black mana to disintegrate it.
Demian clapped his hands clean. Kardak's soul scattered as dust.
"I'd like to hurry, but...... cleanup first."
Kardak's body had exploded, splattering chunks of flesh and blood everywhere.
All of it was lethally toxic, so he couldn't just leave it.
Demian gathered and incinerated it all, then discovered something.
A belt packed with poison vials.
Even tightly sealed to prevent leaks, it radiated a chilling malice. That meant the poisons inside were horrific.
These were too dangerous to leave behind. Demian prepared to burn the vials.
"Hm."
Then, another thought struck him.
It was too ominous and repulsive to carry around. But there might be one perfect occasion to use it.
Demian pocketed the poison vials into his subspace.
After that, he focused on cleanup. Only when it was all done could he move again.
* * *
Demian headed to the location from Kardak's memories.
According to the intel from Kardak, the Mercenary King was currently holed up in a hideout near the border.
They had stashed him there temporarily, planning to hand him over when Sla's errand runner arrived.
The one who had transported the Mercenary King to the hideout was none other than a Dark Knight.
Though the Dark Knight was high-class, Demian wasn't too worried.
Unless it was a Grand Black Mage, a high-class was no match for him.
He planned to slay the Dark Knight in one blow and free the Mercenary King.
But upon arriving at the hideout, the figure Demian faced wasn't a Dark Knight.
"Good thing I arrived just in time."
Rubia.
Disciple of the great evil Sla.
"You'll pay dearly for killing Kardak, you filthy con artist."
She blocked Demian's path.