Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Great Demon King
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It's irrational.
Unreasonable.
Irrational.
Words to describe his power, words to represent his existence-no matter how deeply you delved into all myths and histories up to now, they were nothing but such terms.
"Dawn, arise all from death."
At the words of the Great Demon King, Lucifer van Ivelhac, every corpse slain in the invasion until now rose up.
Between his horns burned karmic flames the color of pitch black, and he rolled up the long sleeves of his robe, snapping his fingers here and there. It looked just like a mad conductor leading a concert unfolding straight out of hell.
In time with his gestures, the fallen corpses stood.
"Arise. Suppress the light."
With a single wave of his hand, a hundred knight corpses rose; with another, a hundred demons rose. They all awakened as immortals bearing the demons' mark, each one wreathed in pitch-black karmic flames flickering like dying embers-every last one a subordinate of the Great Demon King.
All those slain until now were his subordinates.
And all those killed until now but not truly dead were his subordinates as well.
The dawns until now had all been dark purple.
"N-No way. What kind of catastrophe is this?"
"We can't win."
"We're all gonna die! They won't even find our bodies!"
"Guide us, Miplas."
"Run! Gather the civilians who couldn't evacuate!"
Of course, those so mangled their corpses were gone couldn't heed his command, but even so, the numbers he'd raised already seemed to outnumber the living knights by tenfold.
"Where are my most loyal horns?"
At Lucifer's words, Iveldra clasped her hands as if in prayer, and black portals appeared in the air.
"I hope you had a pleasant journey, my lord."
Hyeon emerged first from the portal and promptly used the corpses to fashion a throne in midair for the Great Demon King to sit upon. With a thud, he dropped into that cursed seat and asked Hyeon,
"My horn, I shall ask once more. Where are the other horns?"
"Ah? Regrettably, it seems I arrived first. The kings of the Red Blood Savages are likely still locked in battle with the dwarf king, my brother is blocking the Hero as ordered, the Night Goblin Queen is down there-barely clinging to life after being torn apart by that unusual knight's sword-and as you can see, the Mountain Giant King has fallen. However, for some reason, I can't sense the presence of the Blue Moon Wolf King."
Kneeling submissively as he spoke, Hyeon glanced toward the market.
"Annoying."
Lucifer let his hand droop like a tentacle into the portal and dragged out Gilumin Jay.
"My lord of horns. Ah, a-ah, I-I can still fight! I didn't rise by the Great Demon King's hand. I was fighting in my original spot solely for you."
"Indeed, the living can't be revived. But..."
Lucifer casually rested one hand in the empty air and ignited karmic flames. Like sticky burning oil dripping down, a single drop-invisible to the knights on the ground-fell onto the head of the dead Mountain Giant King with a plop.
"All that die properly belong to me, by Neshef's decree."
That tiny drop of karmic flames surged like a torrent, incinerating the collapsed mountain in an instant. Nephil let out a scream beyond any words of this world, drawing in everything around it before merging with the giant colossus and rising again in an even larger, grotesque form.
"Rise once more. Rise and kill, my horn."
Boom!
The Mountain Giant King, revived and heaving its massive body upright, crushed Sonain anew with hands crumbling away in roaring flames. It burned them.
Killed them.
"How delightful. Ravaging the land built by my archenemy."
It looked just like waves of dark purple fire crashing in like a tsunami. The demons were literally consuming Helred.
"Then, my lord, I'll go search for the Blue Moon Wolf King. Enjoy the feast I've prepared to your heart's content until the saintess falls. Ah! Of course, the Night Goblin Queen-who seems useless for now-I'll send to Tehom. This is an unexpected loss. Well then, Lady Iveldra?"
As Hyeon bowed his head and made his request, Iveldra clasped her hands once more. Though Gilumin Jay had insisted with his own mouth that he could still fight, he picked up on Hyeon's cue and entered the portal without complaint to save his skin.
"Tch! I'll never forget this day. You knights-no, you bastard scum of who-knows-what!"
With that, Gilumin Jay and Hyeon vanished beyond the portal, but the Great Demon King didn't even glance their way as he spoke in rapture.
"Ah, so this is how beautiful dawn can be. My dark karmic flames filling this land where the light has died. This false harmony burning away... it's mesmerizing, just like the sun before Orga perished."
The revived demons burned the knights, and each time, they rose again at the Great Demon King's hand.
Both the slain and the slayers screamed.
"Behold. Now dawn shall come."
No-all were dead.
***
"I... lost?"
"Yes. Now you must feel a bit pathetic, too."
Iven looked down at Bulki, his old friend. He had no idea if Bulki even remembered him anymore, but his expression showed neither sorrow nor joy, as if this were all part of his plan.
"You've only ever lost again."
As the Demon King kept needling the Hero, he turned toward the portal that had opened behind him.
"Wait! I'll bring you down, you corpse feeder! And I'll use those pathetic demon eyes to wipe out the war with demons from its very roots!"
"Still spouting such idealism? The Great Demon King was the first to raise immortals in this world. Without the Mir of Purification, the Empire is finished. How pathetic, relying on the likes of you for the Empire's end. Unless you grow stronger than you are now, you can't avert the apocalypse."
"What do you mean? Answer me!"
"I'm going to shatter this twisted world as it is."
Iven stepped into the portal, like a black well, and said,
"One last thing: the pathetic eyes are held by the Great Demon King himself."
With those incomprehensible words, the Demon King vanished.
"You okay, Bulki?"
Confirming the Demon King gone, Gil approached and asked.
"Yeah. But we gotta hurry. I'll ride Cheret ahead to Sonain. Can't be late. Hurry... we have to hurry."
"P-Please wait a moment, Hero."
"What?"
Rondnel dropped his shield to the ground and continued gravely.
"That Demon King who mocked us until moments ago is something strange. I don't know if it's overconfidence, but he spoke as if teaching us-even as an overwhelming rage poured out. Twisted, perhaps? If we go now, can we really save Sonain from him?"
Bulki felt his own anger rising at Rondnel's words.
"Elis is dead! More people are dying right now! Even if we can't, we have to go!"
"But like with Tehom's seers-if they're immortals, we might save them but not really?"
This time Gil stepped forward to ask. Bulki mounted his Mir without a moment to waste on a reply.
"Hero! Going to Sun Forest might be the better choice right now. The gap in power between the demons and us is beyond clear-it's hopeless. Pulling back the front lines to regroup would be wiser."
As everyone blocked his path, Bulki finally hesitated. Chase the Demon King who killed his friend and head to Sonain, now trampled by the Great Demon King? Or lead the allied other races to hold the line once more?
But,
"Even if we can't save everyone, the Princess is in danger. If we lose the Holy Brazier, it's truly over. No choice."
Hardening his resolve to follow fate, Bulki called out from atop Cheret.
"If the Princess dies and they take the Holy Brazier now, it's all over! This war hinges on who commits the greater sin first! Rondnel, go request aid from the dwarf king. Shainelius, build a rear defensive line with the sun forest fairies. Gil, sorry, but recover Elis's body and follow me to Sonain."
All nodded at Bulki's desperation.
"Understood. I'll help recover Elis's body, then head to Lord Sherpandnel."
"Got it, Hero. Move out! Don't die!"
"Right, Bulki. If it's inevitable, my justice will stand with you!"
Bulki, drawing his companions' hearts once more toward greater good, said to Cheret,
"I... might not be the Hero you recognize yet. But innocent lives are at stake right now. Help me. We need to get to Sonain as fast as possible!"
Cheret whipped around to look at Bulki, then bit its own reins in its mouth and handed them to him.
"Thanks, Cheret. Let's go!"
With a kick that sparked the ground, it bolted forward at a speed incomparable to before-like lightning itself.
He didn't think about how this could be happening, how the situation had unfolded, or even what he should do when he arrived. His body burned hot as if it might melt, and Bulki steeled himself once more not to yield to the abyss.
"Save them. That's what my sword demands!"