The Demon's Last Stand
A fierce blaze swirled violently around Zakturus.
Kim Hwang-je clicked his tongue.
Horrible memories flooded back.
The memory of burning hellhounds racing down Gangnam Boulevard.
People had burned to death before they could even be bitten.
Those monsters could incinerate anyone sitting in a first-floor café with nothing but their scorching heat.
“...Damn it. Bad memories again.”
What Kim Hwang-je didn’t know was that the flames on the demon’s whip were fueled by the souls of its victims.
Whoosh—!
The whip, engraved with dense curse runes, lashed out.
It barely grazed an AN-2, yet the aircraft crumpled inward and exploded in every direction.
“Can’t just sit back and watch.”
But the moment Kim Hwang-je connected to his clone’s body, the Calamity covering him spoke.
Master…
“Hm?”
That demon’s weapon destroys souls. With your current power, Master… I won’t survive… Please save me…
“Save you?”
If I bite Your Majesty… you’ll kill me, won’t you…?
Not necessarily.
But what was this about?
Kim Hwang-je checked the Calamity’s status window.
A summon exclusive to the Emperor, created by thinly preserving and binding the many calamities that threaten the empire.
Its power increases or decreases depending on the wearer’s magic power, intelligence, and dignity stats.
This type of summon will devour its master and flee if the owner is too weak or suffers severe damage.
Therefore, the user must remain vigilant to prevent the Calamity from breaking free.
* Ancient Magic [Resident Summon] is in effect. Devouring ability temporarily restricted.
Ah. Only then did Kim Hwang-je understand.
It was a magical weapon that would eat its wearer if things went south.
“I see. Then I can’t fight directly.”
Kim Hwang-je glanced at the potions piled high inside the container.
“No choice. Time to begin Phase Two of Raising Dave.”
Of course, Dave wouldn’t be fighting alone this time.
All the great imperial residents would mobilize!
“Everyone, come out! My people!”
But the first message that arrived was this.
“Aaaagh! Hit! Pain! Machine too slow! Critical! I am tin can! No more!”
The imperial resident who carried all of Kim Hwang-je’s hopes—the clone of the Tin Golem Farmer-23—screamed as it plummeted.
The crimson whips resembling squid tentacles whipped through the dark red clouds, slicing the biplanes clean in half.
“I got hit too! Pain! Waist severed!”
“I wish to return!”
“Too late! Submitting repair request! Emperor!”
“Oppose war! Demand love and peace!”
Clone-4. Clone-11. Clone-36 also screamed as they fell like flies.
Wait a second. Weren’t you guys bombing China just the other day?
I thought you were strong…
Strangely, while the tin golem who even piloted planes was screaming, the knights remained composed.
Even as they fell from the sky, they calmly stepped through the air (Kim Hwang-je couldn’t even guess how that was possible. Could royal guards walk on air?) and landed on the ground.
Inside World Observation, he could hear the knights’ shouts.
“Confirm and finish off the stunned demons! Cut their throats and retreat!”
“Yes!”
Many knights dashed about, stabbing the throats of demons lying on the ground.
Hisss—!
Gas erupted like steam from the pierced necks.
They really were demons. For a human, surviving such wounds would have been impossible long ago.
Demon Continuous Kill!
131, 132, 133…
All stats rising!
Overwhelming!
Imperial Majesty!
You are currently plundering the demon’s item fields.
Excellent.
If tribute is hard to obtain, it is only proper to seize it instead.
Either subjugate the demons and claim tribute, or destroy them and take everything.
Conquest is the future!
Clatter, clatter, clatter!
Items poured down around Kim Hwang-je.
Unlike gold coins, the items didn’t automatically go into storage.
“They’re giving items?!”
As expected, these weren’t like regular trash mobs!
The monsters created by Rifts only had what was on their bodies.
But these demons seemed to have stockpiled plenty thanks to all the plundering they’d done over the years.
Kim Hwang-je scanned the items piling up neatly around him.
A horrifying butcher’s cleaver. A steel hammer embossed with a horned goat’s face. An iron mace covered in spikes.
Chain armor caked with flesh and bone. A helmet with massive holes for horns on both sides.
A necklace clearly made from collected human skulls, demon clothing, and all sorts of junk poured out in a chaotic heap.
“Bahu would love this.”
After all, that skeleton would sell his own ribs if it reduced his taxes.
Kim Hwang-je stacked the items neatly in the trade window.
Come to think of it, he still hadn’t sold the previous Demon’s Time to Jung Da-yeon either.
Though how exactly did one sell “time” for money?
“Ugh, what should I even call it? Maybe if I bundle it with these, she’ll just let it slide?”
At that moment, Gemini’s voice came from inside World Observation.
“I’ll cast a large-scale slow.”
Only then did Kim Hwang-je snap back to attention and focus on the swirling whips.
“I shall assist.”
The Leather Artisan answered.
Gemini stepped forward, raised her staff high, and began chanting.
The Artisan stood beside her, holding a staff—no, a towel?—twisted like a pretzel in yellow and black fabric.
The two combined their power to cast a wide-area slow spell.
It worked.
The incredibly fast whips slowed down enough for Kim Hwang-je to see them clearly.
“Run away!”
The tin golems gunned the rattling engines of the biplanes and fled the area.
Dave finished preparing to jump from the tail of the formation.
“Let’s go. I will cast protective spells on you.”
Gemini told Dave.
“I will remain and continue weakening the enemy’s whips. Good luck.”
The Artisan said.
Dave looked out the door.
Ash, dust, sparks, and thick clouds of dirt had merged into a dark reddish-brown storm covering the sky.
The roar of explosions mixed with the bold engine noise of the AN-2s. Lightning crashed everywhere like an orchestra conducting war.
Dave also had memories of riding a dragon across battlefields.
But he had never seen such relentless bombing or mountains being poured down like this.
Everything about this battlefield was different.
Yet one thing would always remain the same.
The eyes of the enemy.
Down below in the dust crater, two pairs of red eyes flickered.
The demonic gaze that promised to burn him and everything he held dear invaded his soul.
Even from a distance, the damp killing intent and the fishy stench of the demon stung his nose.
Yet the sulfur smell that had always terrified him now felt strangely exhilarating.
Because within that stench, Dave clearly sensed panic.
And that was the scent of victory.
“Interesting. Are you the only ones allowed to show off?”
Nax, who had been watching Dave with interest, spoke.
“Get on. I shall specially grant you the qualifications of a dragon knight.”
“Unexpected.”
Dave was surprised.
He hadn’t expected this arrogant dragon to offer her back.
“That doesn’t matter.”
Nax smirked, then leaped into the dark reddish-brown clouds.
Her body transformed into a dragon as she roared.
“Kuuuoooooooh!”
The massive roar blasted the clouds apart.
The clouds split open, revealing a clear night sky.
Moonlight illuminated the battlefield.
A burning head rose from the dust crater and looked at Nax.
“Kahahahaha! Greedy reptile. I was wondering when you would dare challenge me.”
“Foolish demon. Stealing a dragon’s treasure was a foolish act indeed!”
Nax shouted.
Immediately, massive whips rained down from all directions.
Each whip was as thick as an ancient tree and moved so fast it was nearly invisible.
Dave leaped upward and struck the falling whips with his holy sword.
It looked like an ant trying to flick away a person’s chopsticks, yet—
Boom—! Boom—!
“It’s fine! I deflected them! At this level, I can block it!”
“Good. Human king, after I breathe, fly with all your strength!”
Nax took a deep breath and unleashed a green beam.
It instantly melted the thick dust clouds and flying debris blocking its path.
Kuuuuuuu!
The breath struck Zakturus directly.
The multiple layers of hexagonal shields he had prepared shattered.
The breath then split into six branches across his entire body, sweeping through buildings and the ground in every direction.
“Sour! Khehehehehahaha!”
The demon endured the breath with his body, yanked his whips back, and formed hand seals to cast a spell.
“Sulfur giants, seize and drag them down! Giant Strike!”
The sky tore open, and three massive sulfur giants appeared.
They fell toward Nax curled up like fetuses.
It was a spell that summoned and hurled giants instead of meteors!
“Eek!”
Nax screamed in a most undignified manner.
If those giants grabbed her in midair, she would crash headfirst into the ground!
A giant trying to body-slam a dragon?
Having recently experienced a Giant Swing, Nax knew exactly how painful that would be.
She frantically scanned for an escape route, but—
The cunning Zakturus had summoned them from three directions at once.
There was no gap left to slip through.
The three sulfur giants grew larger and larger in Nax’s wide reptilian eyes.
A tragic future of cervical disc herniation loomed.
Thud, thud, thud—!
At that moment, iron arrows flew in from somewhere and intercepted the three sulfur giants.
The giants bounced off in midair and flew off in three different directions.
When Dave looked back, a shirtless hunter aboard an AN-2 gave him a thumbs-up.
“Your Majesty, go finish him off quickly!”
The hunter shouted cheerfully and fired more iron arrows at the falling sulfur giants.
“Thank you! Let’s go!”
Dave nodded and spurred Nax’s neck.
In other words, he lifted his leg and kicked her in the nape.
“Kyaaaaack! You human bastard! You could have just said it! Do you think I’m a horse?!”
“Ah. Sorry. It’s an old habit from when I rode with a friend…”
“Damn it! Fine, I’ll still charge! But after the fight, you’re dead!”
Nax spread her wings wide, then folded them and shot forward like an arrow.
Above her, Dave’s holy sword radiated powerful magic.
“Emperor! Lend me more power! Nax, prepare yourself. Use the strongest spell you know without holding back!”
“...You’re giving me power too?!”
“That’s right! Even if you collapse from exhaustion! An incredible amount of power is coming!”
Dave poured every last drop of strength he had into the holy sword.
As the burning holy sword blazed with tremendous radiance, Nax clicked her tongue.
“You’re insane, but I’ll trust you…! I’ll stack acceleration spells to the absolute limit!”
Nax prepared her ultimate technique as well.
Repeating the same spell exponentially increased mana consumption.
Repeated buffs were the ultimate romantic finishing move.
Romance had to be anachronistic.
But there were moments when even such romance became perfectly appropriate.
“Trust me and charge! Cash injection incoming!”
Exactly when overwhelming support arrived!
Kim Hwang-je looked around and shouted.
“Receiving now! Prepare the next container as soon as I receive it!”
“Yes, boss!”
Kim Hwang-je took a deep breath and looked at the container box placed beneath the diving platform.
A 40ft container over 12 meters long was filled to the brim with sloshing blue liquid.
The lid of the container was slowly opening.
This was the mana potion swimming pool they had spent all morning creating!
The pinnacle of capitalism.
“Ready!”
Seo Jun-seo’s sweat-drenched forehead glistened.
“Good. Diving in!”
Kim Hwang-je leaped with a splash into the 40ft container filled with deep blue mana potions.
Sluuuuuuuuuuurp!
Kim Hwang-je absorbed an enormous amount of mana potions through his entire body.
Those potions were then Bestowed and poured down like a waterfall over Dave’s head.
“Ooh, fresh mana flavor!”
Nax cheered.
In reality, scrolls unfurled and a mana potion waterfall cascaded down.
Blue potions poured over Dave’s head in torrents.
They soaked his sideburns and beard, drenched his entire body, and flowed down Nax’s back in every direction.
Within the blue mist spreading everywhere, acceleration spells stacked layer upon layer.
“Th-this is impossible! How can one human and one dragon possess such power?!”
Zakturus screamed in shock.
This was completely outside his calculations!
“Burn, holy sword—!!”
Dave’s thunderous shout rang out.
The holy sword surged several meters high.
Was this not a falling star?
In the dark night, the vast light of the holy sword that pushed away all darkness above the fortress illuminated the corrupted land in pure white.
“Die! Die!”
The panicked Zakturus frantically cast every spell he knew.
Massive sulfur giants flew in from all sides, whips lashed out, the ground split open, and pillars of flame erupted.
Lightning rained down targeting Nax and Dave atop her, while spears of darkness flew in from every direction.
But Nax dodged it all with astonishing speed.
“N-no! How—!!”
“Explosive Demon-Slaying Divine Sword!”
A sword technique worth 11.4 trillion won that could never be used on Earth,
struck the demon Zakturus directly alongside the dragon’s charge.
KWAAAAAAAAAAAANG!
Krrrrrrrrumble!
Dave and the dragon sliced straight through Zakturus, pierced the fortress, and finally broke through the mountain range behind it.
The force of the sword, carried by the landslide it swept away, caused a massive explosion.
The mountains crumbled as if racing toward the sea…
And a mushroom cloud rose behind the dragon!
As the dragon and Dave soared into the distant sky, the cloud stretched long and billowed upward.
While Kim Hwang-je stood with his mouth agape at the sight—
Imperial Majesty!
Rejoice.
You have now become the death of demons and the destroyer of the demon realm!