Interlude - Lightbringer (1)

Balor unfurled his wings of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠black ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠flame to oppose the holy sword’s radiance. But within Riankal’s holy sword dwelled the very first paladin. He was the Hammer of the Sun God, the one who had once struck terror into the hearts of demons.

Balor staggered in confusion. Riankal flashed a thrilling smile. It had been worth abandoning his soul to obtain this power after all.

“The Holy King says there are too many bastards like you, so he can’t even retire to heaven. He’s stuck in the material plane suffering because of it.”

Slash!

The brilliant light tore open Balor’s chest.

Had Balor been in perfect condition, he would have treated this battle as mere entertainment. No matter how powerful the Paladin class was, Riankal was still only a level 50 human. He could fight a great demon with the holy sword, but victory remained far beyond his reach.

“Call me a clown again, I dare you!”

Yet the Lore Master’s trap that had ensnared the great demon was flawless. His Authority had been sealed by the orc ancestors, his magic power exhausted by the hero, and even his physical might had been worn down by the fierce battle.

“Don’t let your guard down. Finish him immediately, Lucifeles.”

“…You really don’t understand people’s hearts, do you?”

Air magic wrapped around Riankal and lightened his body. Thanks to it, he could now strike twice in the time it once took to strike once.

At that moment, Belkan—who had cleared the debris and returned to the battlefield—thrust a gale totem into the ground. Riankal’s holy sword was granted the speed of a tempest.

The blood-soaked silver snake also squeezed out its holy power to bestow a blessing. With that, Riankal kicked off the ground like a bullet and leapt high. Balor, poisoned by the silver snake’s deadly venom, could not react in time.

Holy smiting was the miracle that impure beings feared most. It was a power granted only to those who had sworn to devote their lives to judging evil.

And moreover—

Riankal possessed a legendary holy sword.

The holy sword dramatically amplified Riankal’s divine power. Thanks to it, Lightbringer maximized the righteous fury burning within him.

“Haa!”

Crunch!

Lightbringer, thrust forward with all his strength, pierced straight through Balor’s heart. The great demon’s heart—already weakened by the fierce battle—ruptured. A vast surge of holy power raced through the devil’s veins and spread throughout his entire body.

Balor let out a final scream and exploded, soul and all. Even an immortal’s eternal nature could not save him from death. Balor had been restrained by divinity, and his soul core had been struck by a power that was the exact opposite of his own essence.

Black flames erupted from Balor’s collapsing body. It was the phenomenon of a great demon of Hell perishing, his hellish Authority shattering into pieces.

“We did it!”

The Grey Sage burst into laughter loud enough to shake the heavens and activated his mana shield. The storm of black flames raged across the interior of the Holy Mountain, burning everything in its path, but eventually lost momentum and scattered into the atmosphere.

“Victory!”

With this, the Authority Balor had held was returned to the material plane. As a result, Pandemonium—the fourth layer of Hell ruled by the Lord of Destruction—was forcibly dragged up to the surface according to the laws of the universe. The Sun God, watching from above, swung his right arm downward. Countless devils who had followed Balor melted away without even understanding why.

Thus, the Seven Hells were reduced to Six. This loss was semi-permanent damage. Only the annihilation of a powerful deity like Balor within Hell could possibly restore it.

The Hell Emperor upon the infernal throne realized his territory had been lost and screamed in fury. A destroyed legion could be rebuilt. A ruined plan could be redrawn. But the Authority that had leaked out when a great demon died in the material plane could never be reclaimed.

The Queen of the Abyss, who had overheard the Hell Emperor’s wail, clutched her belly and laughed uproariously. She immediately ordered her sons to invade Hell. She simply wanted to see the Hell Emperor’s enraged face.

No matter what schemes the great deities who ruled the afterlife might be plotting, the work of the mortals who had achieved this hard-fought victory remained the same. They gathered their fallen comrades and rested. The remnants of the enemy army were allowed to flee. They had no strength left to pursue them anyway.

And then—

An urgent discussion took place.

“I heard you called for me, Sage.”

“You performed quite the spectacular feat, Hero.”

“You’re not the type to enjoy empty compliments, are you?”

“Since you already know that, I’ll get straight to the point. I intend to split today’s victory equally between you and Belkan. Will you accept?”

Splitting the victory.

It meant giving up the fame.

“You’re saying I will be the one who defeated the great demon?”

“Correct. The detailed plan was drawn up by Belkan.”

Belkan and the hero were the perfect actors to portray this achievement. The far-sighted Elder Shaman and the hero who carried the potential of a demigod. It would not seem strange at all for either of them to have slain a great demon.

“What benefit do I gain from this lie?”

“You will receive the respect of the entire continent.”

Respect.

His value would skyrocket.

“And the women will go absolutely crazy for you.”

“Oho!”

“I’ll keep it a secret from my wife.”

“You truly are a wise man! Tellorian!”

The hero gave a respectful thumbs-up and accepted the proposal. Meanwhile, Belkan turned to Tellorian with a question.

“How long do you intend to hide your true self from the world?”

“Until I reach the rank of Archmage.”

Only after surpassing level 51 could one fight on equal footing with Transcendents. It was the realm where a mortal transcended their innate limits and reached the domain of superhumans.

“A fair assessment.”

Belkan, who had already reached level 55, understood Tellorian’s words perfectly. Life before and after level 50 were completely different. The concerns typical of mortals gradually faded from one’s existence.

“Compared to the goal you seek to achieve, even becoming an Archmage is merely the minimum qualification. Today you destroyed a great demon of Destruction and dealt a meaningful blow to the Hell Emperor. Yet the power of the demons remains formidable.”

He was right. They had won this time by taking advantage of the information gap while the Hell Emperor remained unaware of his identity. But the moment that being learned who he truly was, the real confrontation would begin.

That doesn’t mean today’s victory was meaningless. At the very least, we’ve delayed the time until Hell and the Abyss can make their move by ten years. That’s more than enough time for me to grow into an Archmage.

At that moment, the silver snake appeared in its avatar form.

Carrying a massive load of round barrels on its back.

“Anyway, we won today, didn’t we?”

The silver snake raised a drinking horn shaped like its own horns. It looked as antique as an artifact freshly excavated from a ruin.

“Let’s drink and celebrate, warriors!”

“Grak-Tor!”

“For the beauty of the Eternal Queen!”

“Glory to the Harrington Dynasty!”

The key figures who had led the victory held a feast at the spot where Balor’s corpse remained. The silver snake, now quite drunk, performed a beautiful sword dance, while Glorimmar sang a majestic victory hymn. Belkan tried to maintain his dignity but received scoldings from the high elf and the ancient god.

“How dare a whelp like you act so boldly!”

“For a leader, heavy drinking is a virtue!”

Rodrick and Blacktusk sat side by side, drinking heavily together. Through this battle, they had washed away their long-held grudge. Hatred built with blood could only be resolved through bonds forged in blood.

“…”

“…”

While Tellorian observed the celebration and recorded entries in his observation log, he was beckoned by Elenstra and slipped away to a secluded spot. The two of them shared many words while reminiscing about a childhood that would never return.

“Are you leaving?”

“…You found me quickly.”

Tellorian left Elenstra in a light slumber and arrived at the outskirts of the Holy Mountain. There stood Riankal, carrying a light traveling pack. Even though he had become human, he was still an incredibly handsome man. It must have been thanks to his mother’s blood.

“The Holy King says that if I wish to complete my revenge, I must embark on a journey of training.”

“…”

“Only after I have corrected every single evil deed I committed in the past will I finally be qualified to wield the full power of heaven.”

Lucifeles was only five hundred years old, yet he had been an existence equal to Balor. It meant he had committed an enormous number of atrocities in a very short time.

“Honestly, it’s a ridiculous story.”

“…”

“Did I ever break a contract like the demons? I simply made deals. I still don’t understand what the problem is…”

He grumbled.

As if he truly could not comprehend the restrictions placed upon him.

“But if the Sun God says so, what can I do?”

“Since when did you willingly become the Sun God’s servant?”

“Because he promised me the power to save my mother.”

…

“And the power ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to exact my revenge as well.”

“I see.”

“I swore I would give anything to save my mother. And whether in Hell or in Heaven, a superior being always keeps their oaths.”

…A smile formed on Tellorian’s face at Lucifeles’s unchanged nature. His calculating personality that always weighed gains and losses was exactly the same as before. The only difference was that he had cast off his innate malevolence and changed from a demon into a human.

“Besides, the Sun God turned out to be far more powerful.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Even if the Queen of the Abyss and the Hell Emperor joined forces, they would still ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fall short against the Sun God. That must be why the world hasn’t been destroyed yet.”

It was information he already knew.

But hearing it from a native gave it a different flavor.

“What name do you wish to be called by when we meet again?”

“That is for you to decide.”

The young man answered calmly.

As if he had already organized his thoughts in advance.

“Those who met me as a demon will call me Lucifeles. Those who meet me as a paladin will call me Riankal. At this moment, you are the only one who has encountered both sides. Therefore, which version of me you choose to focus on is entirely up to you.”

The young paladin neither regretted his past nor glorified it. He simply accepted the past as the past and moved forward.

“Then I’ll see you later.”

“May the Sun God’s protection be with you.”

At the courteous farewell, Riankal left with a perfectly serious expression. In the young paladin’s dignified back, one could glimpse the image of the saintess who had shown mercy to all.

With this, those who must leave have left.

The fierce battle was over.

It was time for the exciting part—claiming the spoils of war.

＊＊＊

The allied forces that had crushed the devil army obtained an enormous amount of loot. However, a disagreement arose regarding how to distribute it.

“It should be divided according to individual merit.”

“Instead of that, let’s just roll the dice.”

It was the hero’s suggestion.

“Wouldn’t that be the fairest?”

“…”

At that, the Sage gave a subtle smile.

Lucky me.

An opportunity to monopolize the spoils had presented itself.