Chapter 214
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 214
Chapter Title: The Demon King's True Face
From his days as the Sword Demon, Yong-un had always hated adventures.
Especially gambles that put his life on the line.
But amid the countless dangers that arose in a world where every day was a war...
There was one situation where Yong-un would take on adventure and risk it all.
His one true weapon.
'It's different when my intuition kicks in.'
When his intuition promised victory, no matter how loudly his head and heart screamed no, he charged ahead boldly.
That was why he called his intuition his true weapon.
Even in impossible situations where every ounce of judgment said to back off, trusting that hard-to-describe gut feeling and summoning the courage—no matter how slim the odds—always brought results.
Hwuaaaaaak.
The battle Sheiks was so confident in.
Right at the moment the Soul Domination Technique was underway.
The reason Yong-un didn't stop was the same.
His intuition... had stirred.
Sarararak.
The memories severed by the Mercenary King's physical assault began unfolding once more in Yong-un's mind.
A fierce headache hit him at the same time.
He clenched his jaw, enduring the pain just like back in his days as a lowly demon soldier undergoing torture training.
And so the war began—to take in everything about this unseen foe.
Kyaaaaaaaak!
Marquis-level Demon Tamatoon.
The instant his head was severed and the mana stone at its center—the source of a demon's power—shattered...
"Waaaaaaaaah!!"
"Sheiks! Sheiks! Sheiks!"
His name echoed throughout the entire Demon King's castle.
It was a historic moment: the final puppet master behind the Shadow Clan massacre, a gift presented to Sheiks upon his entry into the castle, had vanished.
"Sheiks! Sheiks!"
The cheers of the ranked demons from all directions, and Tamatoon's body slowly crumbling to ash...
Kwak.
Sheiks gripped his blood-soaked hand tightly, his heart pumping fiercely, flooding him with exhilaration.
From the lowliest baron-level demon to marquis-level—it had taken 150 years.
By slaying Tamatoon, Sheiks ascended to marquis-level demon and caught the eye of the Second Demon King.
Before the thrill could even fade, something else set Sheiks' heart racing again.
Sasasak.
A crushing pressure enveloped his body, and a massive eye appeared before him.
As the eye exuding immense majesty materialized, the cheers of the ranked demons cut off in an instant.
From within, a massive hand extended toward Sheiks.
"The Demon King summons you. Consider it an honor. You've earned a chance to meet him in person."
Those words from the giant eye were the dream and ideal of every demon.
Thump. Thump.
The admiring gasps of the demons filled the silence left by the vanished cheers.
Sheiks' heart pounded as if it might burst.
He didn't hesitate.
For a demon living in the Demon King's castle, such an opportunity might never come again, even in a thousand years.
Thub.
Grabbing the giant hand, Sheiks was drawn in like he was being sucked away, slipping into the eye.
Kugung.
The scenery changed in an instant, stunning Sheiks.
It had been 150 years since he escaped the frog-in-the-well life upon arriving at the Demon King's castle.
Yet this place, for an audience with the Demon King, was different.
Even the newest rising stars would seem like frogs in a well compared to this realm.
Kwadududuk.
The gate that had appeared as a giant eye sealed shut.
A new world opened.
Kugugugung.
The indescribable pressure from this dwelling shook the ground like an earthquake.
Thud.
Sheiks dropped to both knees.
Not because of the trembling earth.
'What is this?'
He tried to stand, pouring strength into his legs, but it was useless.
His knees were glued to the ground. The muscles in his legs screamed as he clenched them hard enough to grind his teeth.
But they refused to straighten.
Kugugugung.
The ground rose up.
The towering stone reshaped the terrain freely, forming a circular ceiling around Sheiks.
Dozens of stone steps materialized before his eyes.
"Kuh..."
His eyes, following the rising steps, landed on a massive throne that seemed to have always been there.
Atop it sat a being, perfectly fitted as if it were his own seat.
'That's... the Demon King?'
Blood-black and red eyes, two long purple horns extending from his forehead.
The cold majesty of one who bowed to no one.
And finally, a voice devoid of all emotion.
"What's your name?"
The king of the dimension's apex predators shook the entire space with his small yet immense voice.
"Cough!"
Sheiks spat up blood the moment he heard it.
Then, without warning, another presence appeared behind him—no aura detected.
"The Demon King asks. Answer without thinking."
A small-winged demon with flashing green eyes stared at Sheiks.
How? When? The thought barely formed.
As Sheiks focused for a proper audience, he spotted three more beings around the throne.
"He asked your name."
"It's Sheiks."
Sheiks' eyes trembled.
An irresistible majesty filled the voice booming out, yet the Demon King's mouth hadn't moved.
Did that mean this voice wasn't the Demon King's?
"Sheiks."
It wasn't the Demon King's.
For such a powerful, absolute voice to belong to someone else...
The massive demon who owned that voice bowed toward the Demon King, astonishing Sheiks.
The Demon King nodded and rose from the throne.
For the first time, he spoke.
"You possess an interesting ability."
"...?!"
Kubung!
The Demon King's voice rang out.
But why...?
The emotions Yong-un felt during the Soul Domination Technique were etched into Sheiks' soul.
'This voice!'
Is this truly the Demon King's voice?
Then what is the Demon King's true nature...?
"It's not you I'm after. It's the one behind you."
The cold gaze of the Demon King, seen through Sheiks' eyes, shifted away.
As if staring straight at Yong-un within those eyes.
"Definitely different."
The Demon King smiled.
A chilling, eerie smile laced with an inexplicable warmth and kindness.
A strange dissonance, mixed with odd emotions—that was when it happened.
Kubung!
A sharp pain stabbed Yong-un's chest as he scanned Sheiks' soul.
His heart throbbed wildly.
This was Sheiks' memory.
A space where he couldn't feel physical pain directly.
So what was this needle-like prick in his heart?
He immediately glared at the Demon King through Sheiks' eyes.
'Not the Demon King's doing.'
The Demon King hadn't done anything.
Then this must be...!
The inviolable domain of the Soul Domination Technique.
Sheiks' voice echoed from within.
Sheiks, of the Shadow Clan, possessed abilities that sowed great confusion as a spirit form.
But this voice wasn't some Shadow Clan skill.
The stabbing pain in his chest.
'He was faster.'
True to being the last survivor of the Shadow Clan, Sheiks' power was exceptional.
The spirit fused from demon blood and Shadow Clan blood was incomparable to any foe Yong-un had faced.
This battle had indeed been reckless.
Starting a fight with Soul Domination against a Shadow Clan member.
Having already read all of Yong-un's memories, Sheiks moved to end it.
The crushing, stabbing pain in his chest grew heavier.
Like his heart had been ripped out, suspended in midair, and stabbed with a knife.
Yong-un bit his lip, enduring this unfamiliar agony.
But then...
The pressure on his chest vanished in a snap.
A cool chill replaced the pain.
Stunned by the sudden shift, Yong-un pushed through the agony and looked up.
The Demon King had approached unnoticed in the memory, placing a hand on Sheiks' head right before his eyes.
"You won. Last of the demons, perhaps."
The Demon King's voice boomed.
Sheiks' sharp scream followed.
What in the world was happening?
Sheiks had been racing toward the end of this war.
So why this sudden...?
"You already know who I am. And what I can do."
Hwaak.
With the Demon King's final words, the soul memories seen through Sheiks' eyes began to darken.
And then...
Hwuaaaaaak.
Yong-un's hand lifted from Sheiks' head.
Pure energy surged through his hand, spreading across his body.
Sheiks collapsed limply at the same moment.
Thud.
A dazed expression, empty pupils.
"Regret...ful..."
Yong-un had won the battle against Sheiks.
To think that was Sheiks' final memory etched in his soul.
As life faded from Sheiks' eyes and mouth, on the brink of death, he quietly spoke.
"It's fine now. Knowing you were the Demon King's arrangement... I can die without regrets."
Sheiks' outstretched hand fell limply.
A satisfied smile spread across his face, contrasting his vacant expression.
"With this, my arrangement vanishes too. I pray the one I sealed in eternal servitude delivers well... And so... I fade."
The smile vanished from Sheiks' lips.
His body then crumbled to ash and scattered.
Sheiks' memories fully seeped into Yong-un's mind.
The runic script blocked by the Mercenary King—and all the runes Sheiks wielded freely—along with their meanings and origins, naturally surfaced.
Huuuuuung.
At the same time, the final memory of Sheiks, veiled by the Demon King, echoed through the void like a reverberation.
That explained it.
Yong-un had thought he'd lost to Sheiks.
Sheiks had read everything but his final memory, while Yong-un still had much left—or so he'd judged.
But no.
Sheiks had died from his first and last audience with the Demon King, putting Yong-un ahead in the Soul Domination Technique.
'Then who are you?'
A natural question arose.
Who was the Sheiks trying to summon Viscount Rataren into reality? And who was this intelligent spirit conversing with him now?
But the doubt was quickly swallowed.
'Here it begins.'
Yong-un finished Sheiks' final words for him.
Having fully read and imprinted Sheiks' entire soul via Soul Domination.
Now he knew exactly what Sheiks intended, his thoughts, his feelings—as if they were his own.
Thus, he understood how Sheiks, dead long ago, could duel him like this.
The voice echoing in his head faded completely.
Then, the complete memories even Soul Domination couldn't read began flooding into Yong-un's mind one after another.
Emotions, thoughts—all of it...
Thus, Yong-un closed his eyes quietly to the bizarre voice where the Demon King's and Sheiks' overlapped.
He knew the Demon King's true identity now.
The Demon King was...