Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: Demonic Sky
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"That wench who summoned me wasn't just screeching and trying to hold me back for no reason. Even I didn't expect total annihilation, no matter how you slice it. She's not called this world's demon king for nothing."
'Demon king...?'
I wondered what that meant for a second, but I quickly pieced it together.
How many people in this world could be called the king of demons?
Ask anyone with even a shred of common sense, and they'd all think of the same person.
'Did the Blood Cult poke the Demonic Cult?'
One figure naturally came to mind for me too.
And coincidentally, it was someone my master had mentioned now and then.
[If the Blood Cult hadn't poked the Demonic Cult and brought about their own destruction... the Central Plains might already be in their grasp by now. Of course, I wasn't part of this world back then either.]
Living here, I knew the Blood Cult from twenty years ago and the one now were practically different organizations despite sharing a name.
Remnants of the old Blood Cult had stumbled across dimensions and summoned Barshutain, who then took over the hollow shell and filled it with her own minions.
If it were truly the Blood Cult of back then, they never would've been crazy enough to poke the Demonic Cult, get wiped out, and then do it again.
"Speaking of which, do you know about her? They call her the Heavenly Demon in this world."
"...Just that she's insanely strong."
"If even you know that much, she must be really famous. Not that a mere human could compare to His Greatness's splendor, of course."
I saw no need to mention that my master had been on that battlefield back then and spent her entire life preparing for the day the Heavenly Demon invaded the Central Plains.
It was truly unnecessary.
"...But are you okay? Didn't you lose your minions?"
She didn't look all that bad despite talking about losing her subordinates, so I spoke up.
I also wanted to change the subject.
This woman had nothing to do with Yuseong anyway.
Whether she conquered the Central Plains or rotted away and died in the Demonic Cult, it wasn't my problem.
"Ha, are you asking if I'm okay?"
Barshutain curled her lip as she spoke.
"This is a war to devour a whole world. Losing ten in a skirmish is a bargain. In war, an individual soldier's life is just a number. They're not people or sentient beings. Just swords, guns, bullets to fight the enemy with. Nothing more, nothing less."
"..."
"Ah, right. You wouldn't know what guns or bullets are. Think bows and arrows instead; that should make sense."
Someone who couldn't care less about other lives if it served her goals, putting her purpose above all else in the world.
Looking at her, I couldn't help thinking she resembled me right now.
Though considering our pasts, she seemed far more ruthless.
"I don't care how many allies survive victory. My lifelong mission—my very reason for existing—is to prepare for His Greatness to descend upon this land. I'd be content even if my body and soul wore out and shattered in the process."
"...Can I ask one thing?"
"What?"
"To you... what is that 'Great One'?"
I'd spent enough time with her to see this side often.
She treated me kindly enough since I amused her, but her vampires—whom she called her possessions—were truly treated as such.
If she took a dislike to you, she'd punish even loyal subordinates doing the right thing without hesitation. Ruthless.
It was worth learning from.
"My creator. My everything. Need I say more?"
All the more if it stemmed from devotion to one person.
.
.
.
"By the way, I've been wondering—how did you cross into this world?"
"Hm?"
"I heard the Blood Cult summoned you, but crossing dimensions that easily?"
"As if. Crossing dimensions is one of the highest-difficulty magics, demanding insane resources even back home. You have to punch a hole in the dimensional barrier that keeps insiders in and outsiders out. No way it's easy. Honestly, I'm stumped how these primitives pulled it off with their crude spells. I chalk it up to a miracle. But why ask?"
"...Just curious. I wondered if I could take Yuseong and live alone in another world."
"Hm?"
"This world's... too dangerous."
Stealing Yuseong from my master's clutches was priority one, but it wouldn't end there.
I had so much I wanted to do with him.
Eat delicious food together... see amazing sights... have kids and raise them right.
But this world was too perilous for all that.
Especially for my fragile-bodied, fragile-hearted Yuseong.
So when I learned other worlds existed, the thought crossed my mind.
If we crossed to another world together, no need to worry about the Murim Alliance chasing us.
And as the only other person from his world, I might make Yuseong feel a bond with me.
"Pfft... I keep noticing this, but you're no saint yourself. Thinking of crossing dimensions for one guy?"
"..."
"Heh... Even calling it bravery born of ignorance doesn't stop the laughs. Anyway, it's not as easy as you think, so drop it. Know why goddesses in my world pick heroes from within? Summoning from another dimension is beyond insane. Even gods don't dare lightly."
'A miracle, in the end...'
I sighed inwardly and let go of the fleeting hope.
Regaining Yuseong came first, not daydreams like this.
The Blood Cult miraculously summoned Barshutain, letting her spawn flood in and revive them in a new form—which led to my own revival.
The result of one miracle.
I didn't know who allowed it, but I was truly grateful.
Thanks to that, I learned Yuseong was toying in my master's web.
I couldn't save him just yet, but...
-Grip
'Just wait a little longer.'
I pictured Yuseong in my mind and gripped my sword again.
I'm not like my master.
-Splash
"Good work, Black Wind Division Leader."
"Just doing my duty."
The Divine Cult soldier packed the heads the man called Black Wind Division Leader had brought into a bundle.
Not long ago, he'd been summoned by their leader and heard these words.
[Seems like some mosquitoes buzzing around outside the cult. Couldn't stand the boredom, so I had a little fun. Clean it up.]
He knew she didn't mean literal mosquitoes.
Vermin. Bloodsucking pests. Obviously spies from another faction.
[...My failure to detect them sooner. Please execute me...]
[Who'd handle cult affairs if I killed you? Get out.]
After withdrawing from her chambers, he rushed to find the heads.
But he couldn't hide his awe at the discovery site.
It was the base of a mountain hundreds of li from the Divine Cult.
Unless she'd suddenly wandered there on a whim—unlikely, given her reclusive boredom—she'd sensed non-cult intruders from afar and eliminated them without escape.
'If she marched to conquer the Central Plains with that power, the whole world would kneel to the Divine Cult...'
Feeling her strength anew, he sighed at her inaction.
And though improper for a Divine Cult soldier, their leader was ill-suited as a group's head.
He handled all cult matters alone due to her negligence, plus her occasional errands.
Previous leaders focused on cultivation too, delegating much—but not to this extent.
And hiding her whims as "closed-door training for martial growth," managing fallout with the Black Wind Division Leader—that was on them.
She showed zero interest beyond her obsessions.
Her hobby was the Way of Wine, but who could converse normally over drinks with the Heavenly Demon Cult's leader?
The pitiful cultists dragged there under pretense of "praising the table" always looked lost, tugging at his heartstrings.
But what could he do?
In this demonic path where might made right, she was justice and law.
Clutching faith that the Absolute One would one day stride toward the Central Plains, he took up his brush today too.
To record reports on Central Plains news for her.