The Black Cocoon
The mighty undead legion built through Death Terraforming.
The dark forces assembled using Indexer and the like.
Once all that was in place to some degree, the "Demon King's Polymorph" was a skill meant to proclaim far and wide to Earth's humans and the demon world's legions alike that a foothold in the demon realm had been secured.
A declaration of war: I'm taking over this world now!
The dark ritual of shedding the last vestiges of my humanity amid the thrill of murderous intent, as people screamed in horror at the sight of me manifesting as the Demon King.
Having lost my mind to complete corruption, I was ultimately dragged away by Choi Joo-bong…
Of course, in this loop, I had no intention of making such a declaration on Earth.
There was no corruption, and Choi Joo-bong was gone now anyway.
Once I dealt with that bastard Barbatoss, there'd be no one left to stop me in this loop.
Just snatch the key he had, and neither Balpador nor Baldr would have any way to cross into the human world.
Suddenly, the words of the precog awakener came to mind.
"One of the three keyholes is a fake."
The key I knew was the gate opener linking the demon world and the human world.
But three? I only knew of two keys, so three keyholes probably meant three keys.
"But one of them is fake…"
So there was a chance one of the keys was fake too.
As I glared at Barbatoss with those thoughts in mind, Baldr—who'd been standing between us—stepped in front of me, blocking my path.
"You filthy cur! Who the hell do you think you're eyeing?! Get that rotten mug out of here, now!"
Even Baldr's furious roar couldn't seal the bastard's torn-up grin.
"I've long admired Legion Commander Baldr's unwavering loyalty, so step aside already. I must pay my respects to His Majesty. It's been a full 300 years since we last beheld his visage!"
"Quit yapping and shut your trap, you filthy ghoul!"
"!!"
Barbatoss froze as if doused with cold water at Baldr's bellow calling him a ghoul.
"You dare… call me a ghoul?!"
His eyes tore open wider, matching the savage rip of his mouth.
"If you're not a ghoul, then what the hell are you?! You gonna deny it even looking at yourself now?!"
"……?"
Sensing something had gone wrong from Baldr's sneer, Barbatoss glanced down at his own body—and finally realized the skin he'd been wearing was peeling off and sliding away.
"!!"
As he slowly raised his head and scanned the surroundings, the eyes of the demon legion stared back at him in horrified shock.
"Ah… No… This is some kind of mistake…!"
"S-Stay back!"
The subordinate who'd seemed ready to lay down his life in loyal defense just moments ago recoiled in terror from Barbatoss.
"What? You're saying that's not Count Barbatoss?"
"He got eaten by a ghoul?!"
"We've been fooled by that filthy ghoul this whole time?!"
"Kgh! And here I thought I'd finally get a promotion… What a shit demon life…!"
The revelation of Barbatoss's true nature hit harder than the Demon King's return after 300 years, leaving the demon soldiers muttering in despair and regret.
"Filthy ghoul… Filthy…"
Mumbling in a daze, Barbatoss clutched at the sliding skin with trembling hands, desperately trying to stick it back onto his body.
His own troops, witnessing the pathetic sight, turned their rage on him instead, redirecting the attacks they'd been pouring at Baldr's side.
"Die! Die, you ghoul bastard!"
"Grrr… GRAAAAAH!"
How much time passed? The demon soldiers, who had been mercilessly pounding the seemingly defenseless Barbatoss, suddenly flinched and pulled back.
Despite the onslaught from tens of thousands of troops, only the outer skin he'd used as a disguise was tattered—the true ghoul body beneath was utterly unscathed.
The gate's about to open soon.
As my polymorph timer ticked down, I gripped Galette Derua tightly, masking my growing impatience.
Rumble!
Groooar!
"Hm?"
"?!"
As everyone puzzled over the ominous vibrations, the ground beneath the fortress shook violently and split apart, collapsing entirely.
KRAKABOOM!
BOOM!
"Whoa! Dodge it!"
"Aaaah!"
Winged demons tried to fly away, while ground troops kicked off to leap—but the horrifying suction from the widening cracks dragged them in helplessly.
"Your Majesty! Get back!"
Baldr rushed to shield me but couldn't take flight, flailing and waving his arms.
Behind him loomed a massive, sinister black shadow swelling like a mountain.
Grooooar…
"Hiiik! What the hell is that?!"
Even in the demon world, a cesspool of every evil and grotesque thing imaginable, this berserk giant ghoul was an unprecedented horror that chilled them to the bone.
Baldr stared at it in the same stunned revulsion, purple flames endlessly surging from his lava-streaked eyes.
"To think I've trusted a freak like that as my subordinate all this time…"
Nearly 60,000 demon cavalry from the legion were being sucked powerlessly into the ghoul's maw.
WHOOOOSH!
Baldr was yanked from the ground like a towering pine swallowed by a hurricane.
"Uwaaaah…"
I rolled swiftly, leaping toward him.
For a split second, emotion welled in Baldr's eyes, mistaking it for a rescue attempt.
But I lightly stepped on him and hurled myself straight into the ghoul's mouth.
"?!"
Baldr's eyes bulged as he thrust out a hand to grab me.
"Y-Your Majesty!"
"Nooooo!"
The ghoul's jaws snapped shut, swallowing me whole.
The earth-shaking tremors eventually ceased, leaving the fortress grounds eerily silent.
A profound hush fell; no one could speak.
No one could accept that a rampaging giant ghoul had devoured the Demon King, awakened after 300 years.
Like a nest cradling an egg, the ghoul had turned into a massive black cocoon, hunkered down in a hard shell.
Swallowing or regurgitating nothing more, it simply… solidified. Like a fossil.
"You insane ghoul bastard…"
Baldr swelled his body, wrapping his arms in lava.
"Give him back."
BAM!
"Give him back!"
KABOOM!
"Hand over our Demon King, you hear meeeee?!"
He hammered the cocoon repeatedly. Unidentifiable splatters—blood? Lava?—flew everywhere.
He definitely jumped in to save me. His Majesty, sacrificing himself to rescue this worthless subordinate…!
The master he'd reunited with after 300 years had once again abandoned his servant, trapping himself inside the ghoul to save him.
"This can't happen! It can't…!"
The Demon King's reincarnation, whom he'd dragged back from the distant human world.
At first, he'd only needed someone—a proxy, be it the Demon King's seed or another king—to prop up the crumbling demon world. As long as it wasn't bound by the old pact, he wouldn't have cared.
But the more he saw, the more it matched the previous Demon King, impossible to deny.
So he'd rejoiced sincerely, vowing utter loyalty.
Then out of nowhere, a ghoul rampages and gobbles up his lord.
His lord, who dove in to save him!
"Kuh-huk!"
Exhausted from pummeling the cocoon's shell, Baldr slumped, dripping lava like tears.
Eons ago, on his first day in the demon world—exiled here as a heavenly god, shunned by the other deities despite his long life—he'd stormed the Demon King Castle in rage and grief, only to kneel before overwhelming power.
Moved by the Demon King's magnanimous forgiveness and understanding of his injustice, he'd sworn the Existence Oath - Conclave.
And now that Demon King saves him again, only to become ghoul chow!
How was Baldr supposed to go on living without his king?!
How was the demon world supposed to survive without its king, crumbling away?!
"Your Majesty, Demon King!"
In the demon world's ancient fortress, now dominated by the colossal cocoon, the aged dragon's mournful wail echoed long into the void.
The endless dark abyss.
Having fallen somewhere within it, I scanned my surroundings, seeking a spot to use Galette Derua.
Barbatoss probably never saw his true form getting exposed this early.
Recalling his unsealable grin and lost gaze, some of the bitter betrayal from past loops eased a bit.
I knew his brazen nature well enough. Unlike Baldr, who trusted my every word, convincing the entire demon legion would take time and justification I didn't have.
And using a hero's skill smack in the middle of the demon world? Even with Baldr's protection, I'd be picking my bones clean.
It'd be like putting on a dark energy show right in the heart of Gaon of Light Main Temple.
A headache either way—exactly what I hated.
So while activating "Demon King's Polymorph," I'd paired it with the Demon King's skill "Demon King's Insight" and the pre-demon world acquisition "Table Turn"—both usable during polymorph.
Specially designed for handling treacherous demon subordinates, "Demon King's Insight" let me see their true faces in polymorph form during past loops.
Yet it had never exposed Barbatoss as a ghoul back then.
Come to think of it… whenever I polymorphed, that guy always stayed holed up in his county, never budging.
True to his cautious, meticulous nature, he'd never bared his ambitions like in this loop.
That's why I needed "Table Turn" to flip his skin and guts inside out.
The plan was a resounding success.
For him, this loop's just plain bad luck.
My early awakening weakened the Demon King prematurely; Baldr's absence let Balpador and Barbatoss expose their greed early, becoming this loop's big variable.
The ghoul—Barbatoss—hadn't fully absorbed the demon world's power yet, so peeling off his disguise was effortless.
Heh.
Chuckling in satisfaction, I glanced around—and something odd caught my eye.
Demon soldier corpses stretched in a long trail, as if fleeing in panic without paths or signs.
Something scared them off and killed them…
What in this abyss could terrify them to death like that?
Groooar.
Thud. Thud.
The answer came soon enough: a lone presence vibrating through this disorienting void where up and down meant nothing.
Trapped in the abyss after blacking out inside the ghoul, he'd chosen survival by becoming the gatekeeper himself.
Even with the demon world's gates at the Demon King Castle, his unyielding loyalty forced him into that role.
No wonder the demon cavalry couldn't stand against him.
"…Do you seek oblivion now?"
A being who'd forsaken his own existence yet clung to lingering attachments.
His face, proof of identity, had burned away into unrecognizable purple soulfire.
Purple flames seeped endlessly from his charred black flesh.
Without the massive demon horns sprouting from his head, you couldn't tell if he was a specter or demon.
Level unknown—marked "????"—but clearly stronger than my current Level 100.
Going head-on would be suicide.
Still, as a demon, he had an innate weakness.
Unlike spirit-wielders like the illusionist, Red Fur King, or dragon Baldr, for a born demon like Barbatoss, one power was crueler than poison.
The infinite resource granted to me now, equal to my dark energy.
"Let's see you rampage."
I channeled Divine Power, illuminating the ghoul's belly in radiant light.