Chapter 277
Chapter 277
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 277
Chapter Title: Demon (3)
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Annihilation Strike was a realm that concentrated power into a single point to shatter structures.
There were no limits to what could be destroyed with Annihilation Strike. Not only objects, but living beings and even magic could be smashed.
In his previous life, Cyan had once used Annihilation Strike to instantly demolish a massive magic circle that Dorgo had prepared over several months.
Such a killing blow now struck Bael's chest.
Dawn pierced through the sturdy flesh that hadn't even been scratched by an Aurablade.
Spiderweb-like cracks spread out from that spot. As his body shattered, shards like broken glass scattered into the air.
"Guh...!"
Bael's face twisted in agony. The impact sent his body reeling backward.
"Kuhk... Guh!"
Bael dropped to one knee right there. Even that wasn't enough to support himself, so he planted both hands on the ground.
Something black oozed out from his shattered body like a stream. It was as if darkness itself was pouring forth.
"Ha..."
Bael straightened his spine with great effort. He lifted his head to gaze up at the sky.
A smile had already crept onto his pain-contorted face. With his eyes wide open, Bael burst into loud laughter.
"Hahaha! Even for an avatar, to shatter this body of mine! Impressive! Truly impressive!"
From a demon's perspective, humans were less than insects.
Not only had he allowed an attack from such a bug, but even after his body was destroyed, Bael felt no anger whatsoever.
"Among all the fates I've seen, there was no one like you! I couldn't have missed it! There's no way I wouldn't have noticed someone with such tremendous power!"
Muttering incomprehensible words, Bael rose to his feet.
"I get it now! It's you! You're the culprit who twisted all the fates! Thanks to you, we were able to escape our predetermined destinies!"
The darkness pouring down like a waterfall from the cracks suddenly stopped. But the cracks remained unrepaired.
"Human! What is your name? I must hear it!"
"Demian Haksen."
Demian answered curtly. Bael rejoiced greatly.
"Yes! Demian Haksen! Let's enjoy this properly from now on! Share this joy with me!"
The aura emanating from Bael amplified.
Seeing this, Demian clicked his tongue. A wounded beast was dangerous, but there were limits.
The presence Bael was emitting now was far stronger than before. It seemed he had quite a lot of hidden power.
'I've stirred his competitive spirit. This is going to be a hassle.'
Demian glanced toward the outside of the fortress. A massive summoning circle was etched into the field.
If he could just destroy that summoning circle, Bael would have no choice but to return to hell...
"I know exactly what you're thinking. You want to destroy the summoning circle, right?"
As if reading Demian's mind, Bael spoke up.
"That won't do! I can't let anything interrupt this fun!"
Bael extended his hand toward the summoning circle. A hemispherical barrier enveloped its center.
Demian clicked his tongue.
Relative to its size, the summoning circle's core functions were concentrated in the center. Without destroying that, he couldn't send Bael back to hell.
"Demian Haksen! Clear your mind of distractions! Focus on me from now on!"
Bael reached toward Demian. In that instant, Demian reflexively leaped high into the sky.
A square pillar erupted from the ground. The structure created by Bael's 'Isolation' tried to impale Demian.
Demian kicked off the pillar to retreat. This time, he sensed an ominous presence from above.
Demian rolled to the side. A square pillar extending from the sky slammed into the ground.
'Generation speed this fast, and no distance limit. It's an insane authority.'
Even with Demian's skill, he had to stay sharply focused or risk danger.
"Hahat! Nice dodge!"
Bael continuously generated square pillars to attack Demian.
Demian busily dodged them while issuing a command.
"Hemera. Cover my body."
A full-body suit of armor appeared from somewhere and enveloped Demian. Seeing it, Bael spoke in surprise.
"Oh? Could that be...? A masterpiece! I thought I'd killed it, but it survived and fled to the surface!"
Hemera contained the soul of a duke-class demon that had been slain.
It seemed that the one who killed that duke-class demon was none other than Bael.
-Ba... el...! Traitor...!
That explained why Hemera reacted so violently the moment she emerged.
"Shut up. You're being noisy."
Of course, Demian had no intention of considering Hemera's circumstances.
He had no such luxury with a monster like Bael right in front of him.
"Hemera, assist my movements."
In his battle with the Weapon Master, Demian had fed a large number of demon swords to Hemera.
Thanks to that, he had unlocked new powers in Hemera. Now, wearing her greatly boosted his physical abilities and mana capacity.
"Fourth Ring."
The resonance amplified. Demian kicked off the ground. Hemera lent her power.
Demian's body shot forward. A wall of air blocked him. Demian smashed through it effortlessly.
"Impressive! To handle that prideful one so freely! Truly impressive!"
Bael surrounded himself with five barriers. He was preparing in advance in case Demian aimed for a blind spot again.
But Demian had no intention of avoiding the barriers. He slammed Dawn into them, carrying all his weight and momentum.
A second Annihilation Strike erupted.
Bael's barriers shattered easily. Bael's eyes widened as if they might pop out.
Demian tried to thrust Dawn back into the cracks etched across Bael's torso.
At that moment, Bael clenched his fist. An opaque sword extended from his hand.
The sword Bael created blocked Dawn. As the two weapons clashed, a burst of energy exploded outward.
"Fun, isn't it? It's a sword made with Isolation. Being smaller makes it much sturdier."
Bael boasted. Of course, Demian didn't find it particularly impressive.
"You're being annoying."
Demian poured strength into both arms. Hemera assisted his movements.
Demian pushed Bael back as is. Then he pressed the attack again.
"Hahaha! This is fun!"
Bael swung the translucent sword. Demian countered with Dawn.
Their attacks clashed repeatedly in midair. Each time, bursts of energy sent surrounding objects flying.
"Demian Haksen! You've got some real skill!"
Bael shouted in delight. Meanwhile, Demian was quite surprised.
Demons typically relied on their authorities and rarely learned swordsmanship.
But Bael was different. He possessed swordsmanship surpassing Master Class.
"As expected of a duke-class demon."
"Is that praise? Thank you!"
Demian smirked.
Swordsmanship was Demian's domain, regardless of other fields.
Up until now, many powerful foes had surpassed him in mana capacity or physical prowess.
But not a single one had bested him in swordsmanship.
Demian's eyes moved rapidly. He read every one of Bael's movements. Once he had gathered enough information, he acted.
Dawn's trajectories multiplied. Each one deflected Bael's sword and pierced toward his weaknesses.
"Huh?"
Bael was instantly pushed into a defensive position. He was too busy blocking Demian's attacks.
"Me, who's trained for centuries... losing to a human who hasn't even lived decades? Something's off..."
At that moment, Demian brought Dawn down hard. He pinned Bael's sword to the ground.
This opened the path straight to Bael's chest.
Dawn rode along Bael's blade and climbed upward. Demian swung it widely.
From below to above.
A blue trajectory sliced through Bael's torso.
It was different from striking the neck. Bael's body was already shattered by Annihilation Strike.
Dawn dug into Bael's flesh. It slashed diagonally from abdomen to chest.
"Kraaak!"
Bael screamed and retreated. He clutched the wound on his body with his palm.
Sticky darkness oozed from the long gash. Bael stared at it silently for a moment.
"...I was mistaken."
The laughter had vanished from his tone. His jovial face had hardened.
"I thought you were just an amusing human... but no. You're a dangerous one."
Bael's atmosphere shifted abruptly. At the same time, the surrounding air froze chillingly.
"Can't let you live. Better to kill you right here."
Overwhelming killing intent poured toward Demian. Demian twisted his lips.
"For an avatar that crawled up from hell, you've got plenty of hidden tricks."
Demian calmly gauged Bael's level.
'If I use Fifth Ring and Berserk Enhancement? Still tough to handle.'
Ruler of hell.
A duke-class demon was an opponent even his previous life hadn't encountered. It was time for Demian to pull out his hidden card.
"If I can't win as a human... I'll have to bring out something else."
Demian activated the Authority of Envy. He converted his mana into black magic and absorbed it.
"...Huh?"
The moment Bael saw it, his eyes widened.
"Wait... How do you have that authority? No, more than that, how are you using it?"
Demian couldn't help but be taken aback by Bael's reaction.
Until now, he'd met many people, but no one had recognized his authority.
"Demian Haksen...! Tell me right now! How do you have that authority...?"
It was then.
Tremendous holy power was felt from afar. Demian and Bael turned their gazes almost simultaneously.
Light flashed in the sky, and something crashed down between the two.
An enormous explosion cratered the ground deeply. The fortress wall was blown away, replaced by a massive pit.
"Oh my, I didn't expect Sir Demian to arrive first."
A familiar voice echoed from the pit. Sure enough, Radiance walked out of it.
"But it's a relief. I made it before you got hurt, Sir Demian."
Seeing Radiance, Bael's eyes gleamed.
"Quite the beautiful human."
"Oh my, thank you for the compliment. You're a demon summoned by Pandemonium... or something like that..."
Radiance scanned the man up and down. Her expression soon hardened.
"...Sir Demian Haksen, what is that? It doesn't seem like a marquis-class demon."
"You saw correctly. It's the duke-class demon, Bael."
Radiance looked at Demian in disbelief. But it was only for a moment.
"...Perfect. Absolutely perfect."
Bael tilted his head at the unexpected response.
"Human woman, what's perfect about it?"
"A duke-class demon is the filthy, ugly leader of demons, right? Killing you will greatly honor the name of the Great One in heaven."
Bael made an absurd face.
"Human woman, shouldn't you be thinking about surviving me first?"
"How could I think of safety with evil right before my eyes? Even if I die, He'll embrace me, so it doesn't matter."
Bael looked at Radiance with disgust.
"Turns out she's completely insane?"
Even after being called insane by a demon, Radiance didn't care in the slightest.
"Doesn't it bother you that there's a stone stuck in your hair?"
Instead, she pointed at Bael and asked. As Radiance said, fragments from the pit clung thickly to Bael's head.
"I don't sweat the small stuff."
"You should."
Radiance drew upon her holy power. The sect's dazzling Authority of Pain, 'Reinforcement,' activated.
On the stone fragments that had fallen on Bael's head, that is.
"It'll be quite heavy now."
The stone fragments glowed brightly.
At the same time, Bael's head slammed into the ground.