Chapter 280
Chapter 280
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 280
Chapter Title: Countless Secrets (1)
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As Babel completely vanished, Cyan Flame gathered his holy power.
“Whew.”
Cyan Flame caught his breath and turned to Demian. In that instant, his face, which had been filled with murderous intent like a vengeful spirit, broke into a wide smile.
“Sir Demian! Thank you so much for your help!”
Cyan Flame rushed toward Demian. It looked like a light jog, but he was right in front of Demian in an instant.
“I was trapped in that barrier and about to burst from frustration, but thanks to you, I got to smash that bastard! It feels like a ten-year grudge has been washed away!”
Cyan Flame grabbed Demian’s hand and shook it vigorously up and down. His grip strength was no joke, staggering even Demian.
“Elder, you don’t see us, do you?”
“Exactly. We came to rescue you too.”
Radiance and Green Wind spoke with a hint of grievance.
“Of course I’m grateful to you as well! For two of the Five Great Saints to come rescue me! No one else could dream of such luxury!”
Cyan Flame burst into hearty laughter. Only then did Radiance’s aggrieved expression soften.
“Now that I think about it, that demon was already a mess before we even fought! I feel bad for butting in. You two could’ve handled it yourselves.”
“Ah… If you’re talking about the wounds on its torso, we didn’t make those.”
“Then who half-destroyed that ridiculously tough bastard?”
Radiance shifted his gaze to Demian.
“It was Sir Demian’s doing.”
“…What?”
Shock appeared on Cyan Flame’s face.
“You did that alone? How on earth?”
“I just beat it to death with everything I had.”
Demian brushed it off vaguely. He couldn’t exactly admit to using Obliteration Strike in front of Cyan Flame.
But Cyan Flame didn’t accept it easily. He still wore an expression of disbelief.
“But the marks left on its body…”
“Elder, you heard it back at headquarters. Sir Demian tracked down and killed Sla all by himself. He must have some hidden trump card.”
At Radiance’s explanation, Cyan Flame looked dubious but didn’t press further.
“Then, Sir Demian, how did you destroy the barrier? Even with all my power, I couldn’t scratch it.”
With Cyan Flame’s question, Radiance and Green Wind’s gazes also focused on Demian. They seemed inwardly curious as well.
“I used a treasure from the Empire.”
Demian lied without batting an eye.
“The moment His Majesty learned of my grudge against Pandemonium, he gave it to me to prepare for any contingency.”
“Such a precious item to you? Mind if I take a look?”
“It was single-use. Nothing left after I activated it.”
Demian said with a regretful expression.
“Oh my… To use something so valuable for my sake! Don’t worry! I’ll speak to His Holiness and get you something just as good!”
“I’ll trust in you, Cyan Flame.”
In truth, Demian hadn’t lost anything, but he graciously accepted the gesture.
“More importantly, Sir Demian, you’re incredible. To hold your own so well against a duke-class demon.”
In that moment, as his demeanor shifted, Demian felt a chill run down his spine. His blood turned ice-cold, just like when facing a formidable foe.
“You’ve become a truly remarkable powerhouse. Honestly, when I heard Sla was dead, I had my doubts. Not that I doubt your talent, Sir Demian, but Sla was no ordinary foe.”
At first, he thought it was his imagination. But seeing Cyan Flame’s eyes gleam, he realized he wasn’t wrong.
“It’s truly impressive. So, how about it? Shall we have a spar?”
Killing intent emanated from Cyan Flame’s entire body.
It was obvious from his face. Cyan Flame was itching all over to fight Demian right now.
But Demian’s mind was a mess from what Babel had said.
Moreover, from his past life experience, he knew full well how persistent and annoying Cyan Flame could be once his competitive spirit was roused.
“Elder, I’d love to, truly.”
“I knew you’d say that! Then grab your sword!”
“But the fight with the demon left me utterly exhausted. I don’t think I can fight anymore.”
“Hahaha, Sir Demian, enemies won’t wait for us. We can’t always fight at full strength. There’s a thrill in battling while weary, isn’t there? Come on, pick up your weapon.”
*You’re not the enemy—you’re an ally.*
The words rose to the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them.
“The battle with the demon caused severe internal injuries…”
“Don’t lie. You look fine.”
“It only looks that way.”
“Come on, just for a moment—a very brief exchange.”
Cyan Flame wouldn’t give up easily. Demian wore a tired expression.
“Honestly, Elder.”
Just then, Radiance extended a helping hand.
“His Holiness was worried.”
“His Holiness was? It’s all my fault for being inadequate. I’ll go see him the moment we return to headquarters…”
“And he was furious.”
At those words, Cyan Flame’s face hardened.
“He specifically asked me to relay this: ‘You should’ve gone out with the other Five Great Saints as I advised, instead of charging off alone and making a fool of yourself.’”
“Ah, no… Th-that was… It was urgent…”
“He said to prepare yourself when you return. He’ll assign you to paperwork for three months straight—no fieldwork at all.”
“W-wait! P-please, have mercy… Anything but paperwork…!”
“Tell it to His Holiness, not me.”
“Urk.”
Cyan Flame pounded the ground with both fists in agony. He clearly hated work.
“…By the way, did you not see the others?”
Everyone could only look baffled at Cyan Flame’s question.
Demian had a hunch, so he asked.
“Others? Who do you mean?”
“When I arrived here, there was a lich in skeleton form next to the demon. I was trapped in the barrier right away, so I couldn’t examine it closely.”
“…!”
A lich in skeleton form.
It was Dorgo.
No doubt about it. The only lich with that appearance was Dorgo.
Demian felt his blood turn cold.
“It was concealed, so I couldn’t identify it. But it felt ominous somehow. As much as the demon beside it.”
It was the moment he’d finally caught a trace of Dorgo, whom he’d searched for so long.
Yet Demian felt more regret than joy.
If he’d arrived just a bit sooner, he might have killed Dorgo—but he’d missed the chance.
“Oh, and it wasn’t just the lich.”
Cyan Flame spoke as if it had just come to mind.
“There was a man with bat wings on his back. His limbs were grotesquely long, and his skin color was off. No matter how I looked at him, he wasn’t a normal human—he seemed like a chimera.”
A man with bat wings.
Demian immediately thought of one being that fit the description.
But he quickly dismissed the possibility. That one wasn’t due to appear yet.
Iota.
One of the Four Great Demon Kings created by Dorgo, an undead specialized in aerial combat.
The Four Great Demon Kings were the pinnacle and strongest masterpieces among Dorgo’s undead creations.
All four were tremendous powerhouses, playing pivotal roles in the War of Annihilation.
Of course, their feats and acclaim came from everyone except Demian.
At the time, Demian was regarded as a being in a league of his own among Dorgo’s subordinates.
The Four Great Demon Kings had only been possible because of Demian in the first place.
‘The Four Great Demon Kings were born from the knowledge Dorgo gained by analyzing my soul.’
Dorgo had long ago perfected the bodies of the Four Great Demon Kings but couldn’t create souls worthy of them.
Then, by analyzing Demian’s soul, he acquired the necessary knowledge.
Thus, Dorgo split his own soul to forge the souls of the Four Great Demon Kings.
Even so, they ultimately fell short of even reaching Demian’s heels.
‘Dorgo hasn’t captured me yet. So the Four Great Demon Kings can’t be complete. Then what was the one the Elder saw?’
As Demian pondered deeply,
“Sir Demian, let’s head back to headquarters now. I’ll report your merits to His Holiness in detail when we return.”
Cyan Flame said, rising from the ground.
At that moment, Demian remembered a face he’d forgotten.
“Ah!”
Demian raised his voice, startling the other three into gathering around.
“Sir Demian, what’s wrong?”
“Is something the matter?”
Demian said, sweating profusely.
“It’s not that… I left her behind.”
“What did you leave behind?”
Demian sighed toward the puzzled Cyan Flame.
“…I left Lady Agnes behind.”
* * *
The group hurriedly headed to the spot where Demian had left Agnes.
Fortunately, Agnes was unharmed. No, more than unharmed.
“You filthy heretics! The time has come to pay for tormenting the innocent weak!”
Agnes was single-handedly wiping out the demon worshippers who had occupied the area.
Having reached high-class, no demon worshipper could stand against her.
“Master! You’ve returned safely!”
Spotting Cyan Flame, Agnes rejoiced greatly.
“Lady Agnes, I’m sorry. I left you alone in enemy territory and…”
“No. You were caught in the demon’s technique—it couldn’t be helped. More importantly, I’m just glad you returned safely.”
Agnes didn’t blame Demian in the slightest.
Her attitude made Demian feel pangs of conscience.
In truth, Demian had deliberately let himself get caught in the demon’s technique to meet Babel.
“Sir Demian, you and the two of them go ahead. Radiance and I will stay with the holy knights to clean up the trash left in this area.”
Cyan Flame, Radiance, and the holy knights Cyan Flame had brought decided to remain and exterminate the demon worshippers.
Thus, only Demian, Agnes, and Green Wind headed back to headquarters.
* * *
“Elder, what do you think?”
After the three left, Radiance asked Cyan Flame.
“About what?”
“I wonder if you believe Sir Demian. He says he broke the barrier with a treasure from the Empire… but honestly, I don’t buy it.”
There was no way the Empire would hand over something capable of dispelling a duke-class demon’s power so easily.
Even if they did, it was suspicious. As far as Radiance knew, no item could neutralize a duke-class demon’s power with just a touch.
“Demian Haksen is hiding something from us.”
“So what do you propose?”
“We need to find out. By any means necessary.”
Radiance’s eyes gleamed dangerously.
He looked ready to capture and torture someone who’d just been an ally.
Cyan Flame wasn’t surprised or disapproving. He’d already anticipated Radiance’s reaction.
“I don’t want to do that.”
“Elder.”
“It’s true Sir Demian is hiding something from us, but he’s never acted against our interests. On the contrary, he’s helped us.”
Cyan Flame stated firmly.
“If he hadn’t used that ‘secret,’ we’d all be dead at the hands of that demon.”
Cyan Flame had been isolated by the demon’s power, while Radiance and Green Wind had been on the brink of death from it.
Only Demian had been able to confront the demon, and freeing Cyan Flame had turned the tide.
“If we force that ‘secret’ out of him and he turns against us… Let’s not speak of this again.”
“…If that’s your will, Elder, I’ll stand down.”
Radiance reluctantly acquiesced and left to eliminate the demon worshippers.
Left alone, Cyan Flame murmured while gazing at the distant sky.
“…Radiance, His Holiness said he trusts Demian Haksen.”
His Holiness possessed a strange divine insight that pierced to the essence of people.
The Demian Haksen His Holiness saw was a horrific, terrifying monster. Yet His Holiness didn’t view Demian as a threat.
He merely called him tragic.
Cyan Flame trusted His Holiness’s judgment. She was wise beyond compare.
“By the way, next time we meet, I must ask about that.”
Cyan Flame recalled the wounds carved into Babel’s torso.
At first glance, he’d doubted his own eyes. He’d thought it a mistake.
But the more he battered Babel’s body, the more certain he became.
That single strike that shattered Babel’s body.
It was unmistakably “Obliteration Strike.”
Why was Demian Haksen using his own realm?
No matter how he thought about it, no answer came. Cyan Flame forcibly suppressed his maddening curiosity, stuffing it into a box.
“Sir Demian, next time we meet, I’ll uncover that secret no matter what.”
A smile crept onto Cyan Flame’s lips.
He looked like a beast that had encountered a worthy rival.