Chapter 668: A Little Trick
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 668: A Little Trick
Three hundred miles west of the Dolonslei Fortress battlefield, a massive volcano stood tall.
Rolling lava surged and churned within the crater, while thick smoke blotted out the sky, plunging the surrounding hundred miles into a dim, oppressive gloom.
Amidst the vast, desolate wilderness of yellow sand, the volcano’s presence seemed somewhat abrupt. However, the demon army stationed around its base felt no abnormality. On the contrary, as they moved to and fro, they frequently cast looks of profound reverence toward the mountain.
"Demon Mountain."
Suddenly, a ghostly light descended.
It was a fluttering black robe, empty inside save for a few flickering sparks of green spectral light.
As the wind-blown robe arrived, the thick smoke permeating the sky instantly dissipated. As if dissatisfied with the foul, sulfurous stench, the newcomer casually replaced all the air within a hundred-mile radius.
"How are your injuries?" the black robe asked indifferently.
"Dark Abyss?"
From beneath the earth, a sound like rolling thunder erupted.
The entire volcano shook violently. Searing lava erupted from the crater, only to solidify upon the mountain rocks, turning into what looked like black bloodstains.
A massive fissure split open on the side of the volcano. Then, a crimson eye filled with infinite ferocity opened within that deep, dark crack.
The Grand Duke of Demon Mountain was, in fact, the mountain itself.
"Why have you come?" the Grand Duke of Demon Mountain’s voice boomed. As he spoke, the low-level demons stationed nearby were forced to desperately seal off their senses to prevent themselves from exploding under the sheer pressure.
"To see you, of course. Did you think I came for a fight?"
The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss let out a mocking chuckle. Unfortunately, since he was merely an empty black robe, it was impossible to tell what kind of expression he wore.
"Heh, you? Coming here out of the goodness of your heart? That sounds wrong no matter how I hear it."
"Well, the great Grand Duke of Demon Mountain is the most heavily injured among the five of us, isn't he? Naturally, I had to come and show some concern."
"That was because that bastard Campbell was targeting me!"
The volcano erupted with a roar, and countless rocks ground against each other, manifesting Demon Mountain’s irrepressible rage.
"Three of us were besieging him, yet he focused all his attacks on me alone! That petty, narrow-minded bastard... even in that situation, he didn't forget to settle the score for me insulting his son."
"Haha, don't be angry, don't be angry. Everyone knows you've fought the Lion King the most and have the deepest grievances with him. No one blames you. See? Didn't I come specifically to visit you?" the Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss consoled him, his black robe swirling in the wind to once again disperse the foul smoke he so loathed.
"Hmph. Who knows what you're really up to? You probably wish Lorne Campbell and I would just kill each other."
The Grand Duke of Demon Mountain sneered.
He might look like he lacked a brain, but he wasn't actually stupid. Did they really think a mountain of his size was filled with nothing but rocks? He knew exactly what these other demon dukes were plotting.
"That's truly hurtful to hear."
"Speak. What did you really come here for?"
Demon Mountain snorted coldly. "Calculating the time, news from the Kingdom should have arrived by now, right?"
"Smart. Indeed, news from the Kingdom has arrived."
"And the result?"
"Since it's just me here and not the others coming for a council, it's obviously good news."
The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss smiled. "The Kingdom has deployed its troops. At this moment, they are likely locked in a fierce battle with the Empire along their border."
"Heh, humans truly are despicable by nature."
Demon Mountain let out a disdainful sneer.
"A little provocation and they walk right into a trap. Utterly ridiculous. And yet they always mock us demons for being stupid."
"That is because, in their eyes, the neighbor right next door is the greatest enemy. As for the Abyss... it is too far away. Everything has its priorities, and they naturally have to deal with the enemy in front of them first."
"So, the Empire won't be able to spare any hands to reinforce this place for the time being?"
"Most likely."
"Ha! This is truly a god-given opportunity. Without reinforcements from the Empire, how can those hundred thousand men inside that turtle shell withstand my army of a million?" Blood-light flared within the massive crimson eye, and searing magma surged once more.
"Yes, this may indeed be our best—and perhaps only—chance. Everything is proceeding as that person predicted. Only..." The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss suddenly changed his tone.
"Only what?"
"According to the intelligence sent from the Kingdom, even if they have no spare troops to mobilize, the Empire seems to have sent someone to provide support."
"Who?"
"The Lion King's son."
"Who?" Demon Mountain paused, asking again.
"The son of Lion King Lorne Campbell—Muen Campbell."
"..."
A silence followed, then the sound of grinding stone echoed as the mountain visibly displayed an expression of confusion.
"That idiot son Campbell bragged about for a whole year just because the kid scored an eighty? Has the Emperor finally lost patience with the foolish Campbell family and sent their precious heir to the Abyss to die?"
"You shouldn't put it that way. You haven't seen the intelligence yet. That Muen Campbell isn't actually an idiot; he's a genuine genius." The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss clicked his tongue. "To have that kind of strength at his age... even I have to admit his talent is extraordinary."
"A genius? Has he reached the Crowned boundary?"
"Well, no."
"Has his magic reached the Truth-Tier?"
"Are you joking? With the Campbell family's world-renowned reputation for being magic-illiterate? It's said the only magic Muen Campbell can use is a single Illumination Spell, and even that took him half a year to learn."
"Then what is there to talk about?"
Demon Mountain sneered. "A genius? So what? Can a single genius change the current situation in the Abyss?"
"Of course... not."
The Dark Abyss smiled as well.
In truth, the only reason he cared about a mere human boy wasn't because of how much of a genius he was, but simply because... he was the Lion King's son.
But if even the Lion King was powerless to change the outcome of this war, what could his son do?
He was likely just sent here to provide those pathetic humans with a bit of tragic psychological comfort.
In the end, he was merely a fragile genius, not a powerhouse capable of shifting the tides.
Between the two, there was a world of difference.
"Alright, I'll stop wasting my breath. Heal your wounds as quickly as possible. We will launch another joint attack on Dolonslei Fortress soon. I expect we'll be able to crack that turtle shell then."
"Hmph, understood. To be safe, I have a few hundred thousand pieces of cannon fodder here. You want them?"
"How rare of you to be so generous."
Amidst their banter, the black robe billowed again. An invisible ghostly light spread out, enveloping the entire demon army stationed around Demon Mountain.
Since Demon Mountain had offered, he wouldn't be polite. He intended to send these worthless pawns straight to the battlefield.
"I'm leaving... Hm?"
The black robe fluttered as he prepared to depart, but at that moment, both the Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss and the Grand Duke of Demon Mountain seemed to sense something. They simultaneously looked up at the sky.
"This is..."
The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss froze, his expression gradually turning solemn.
Beside him, Demon Mountain fared no better; even the lava in his crater seemed to solidify.
The two of them stared for a moment, and then, almost in unison, they uttered a word that was far too foreign to their tongues.
"Is that... the sun?"
*
"Quick! Quick! Attack! Attack!"
On the battlefield, a supervising One-Eyed Demon held a long blade, roaring at the demons in front of him, urging them to scale the walls.
Blinding torrents of mana erupted beside him. Blood splattered and flesh flew as countless demons were harvested in an instant by this meat grinder called a "battlefield."
But the One-Eyed Demon felt no fear; instead, he grew increasingly excited.
He continued to urge them on ferociously. Any demon who moved even a step too slow would have their head lopped off by his blade.
He relished this madness, this thrill, this sense of reckless frenzy.
But he wasn't entirely without reason.
The closer those demons got to the wall, the more he remembered what his leader had told him.
As long as they crossed this fortress, they could leave this sunless Abyss and go to the world occupied by those loathsome humans.
There, they would find lush vegetation, fertile soil, sweet fruits, and... stars and moons they had never seen, as well as the su...
"The... the sun!"
"That's right, the sun. Wait... you're talking out of your ass! I haven't even gotten that far in my dreams yet!"
The One-Eyed Demon flew into a rage, raising his blade to kill the useless trash beside him who dared to daze off on the battlefield.
But before the blade could fall, the One-Eyed Demon froze as well.
Because even with only one eye, he could clearly feel...
The sky was getting brighter.
He looked up blankly. Almost instantly, tears began to stream from the corners of his eye due to the piercing light.
At that moment, in the center of that blinding radiance, a massive orb of light hung in the sky, selflessly shedding a brilliance sufficient to illuminate the entire battlefield.
That scorching light was something they had never seen before, but almost every demon who had heard the legends couldn't help but have two words pop into their minds.
The Sun.
The warm, bright sun that brought life to all things—the sun that could only be seen outside the Abyss!
"Ah, Great Deity, have you finally returned?" Suddenly, demons began to kneel, praying and wailing.
In the Abyss, there was a parable: the demons were cast into this desolate wasteland because they had committed a great sin and were abandoned by the God who once blessed them.
And now, had the God who abandoned them finally returned to grant them His blessing once more?
"No, that's not right."
The One-Eyed Demon was relatively sober and was the first to react.
"Magic can do that too! That's no sun, and it's no miracle! Don't be fooled!"
"Pick up your weapons and keep charging!"
He roared at the foolish low-level demons around him.
Some demons snapped out of it and stood up numbly, once again staggering toward the wall already painted red with blood.
But others were still praying.
The One-Eyed Demon was infuriated. He stepped beside one of the fools and raised his blade, aiming for the neck that was completely exposed due to the demon's prayerful posture.
"Everyone, keep—"
The blade was about to fall, intended to use this lowly life as an example...
"Hmph."
Suddenly.
A cold snort echoed in the One-Eyed Demon's mind.
The One-Eyed Demon froze instantly, and the blade slipped from his hand, clattering to the ground. After a few seconds of daze, a look of irrepressible terror appeared on his face, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
Because he realized.
That snort didn't come from anyone nearby, nor from anyone of the demon race... it came from an existence higher, further, and far more terrifying.
He looked up again. Because his movements were so stiff, the joints in his neck made a strained, rasping sound.
What met his eyes was still that "sun."
But now, black tears suddenly began to flow from the edges of the sun.
No, no, those weren't tears. That was... black fire!
The black flames burned more and more fiercely, eventually "igniting" the sun completely!
From this, a deep, terrifying darkness that seemed ready to swallow souls opened like an invisible, gaping maw, completely devouring the original "sun."
The "sun" vanished.
A pitch-black sun rose, hanging in the firmament. In this world where all light had been erased, a holy white corona swirled around it, exuding an indescribable eeriness and majesty as it looked down coldly upon the millions of demons on the battlefield.
Yes.
Looking down.
The One-Eyed Demon clearly felt a terrifying gaze projected from that black sun, as if it were staring at him, and at the many demons on the field who had defied the gods.
Had a god truly descended?
The One-Eyed Demon thought in disbelief.
However, the god wasn't here to grant them blessings, but to bring them total destruction?
But if destruction was the goal, why not just...
"It's him!"
While the One-Eyed Demon was thinking, the low-level demon he had been about to kill suddenly stood up and pointed at him in rage:
"It's this guy! This guy's disrespect angered the god!"
"Wha—"
The One-Eyed Demon's face paled.
"Are you kidding me? I'm just an ordinary demon. How could I possibly have the ability to anger a go—"
Before he could finish, the One-Eyed Demon's face filled with despair.
No one was listening to him. The low-level demons, their minds overwhelmed by fear, swarmed forward in unison, hacking their blades at him without hesitation.
Hands rose.
Blades fell.
Just as he usually did to others.
Blood splattered.
Flesh and bone flew.
Some wailed, some laughed maniacally.
But this was merely a microscopic corner of this vast battlefield.
*
High in the sky, the wide black robe suddenly manifested.
The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss first glanced at the demon army, which had now fallen into complete chaos. He didn't pay them much mind, focusing his attention on the sky above.
That pitch-black sun was staring right back at him.
"Is it truly the projection of some Evil God?"
The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss forced down the shock in his heart and pondered.
The aura emanating from that black sun, no matter how he looked at it, came from a genuine Evil God.
But no matter how he searched his memory, he couldn't recall an Evil God who used a black sun as their symbol.
Was it the persona of some ancient being?
But why would an Evil God suddenly send down a projection? Was He also interested in this battlefield between humans and demons?
Or perhaps...
His black robe billowed and ghostly light flickered. The Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss couldn't help but feel the urge to test it out.
But...
The motive of this Evil God projection was unknown. Striking rashly might instead provoke the other party.
Furthermore, although he couldn't confirm the identity or authenticity of this Evil God, the Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss could clearly feel a powerful aura hidden behind that solar wheel.
It was at least a powerful Crown Bearer!
Who was that? A retainer of the Evil God?
It made sense. The descent of an Evil God's projection required coordinates. It was plausible for a retainer to appear specifically to provide those coordinates.
"An unfamiliar Evil God projection, a mysterious Crown Bearer... it seems this war won't be as simple as we predicted."
His black robe snapped in the wind, and the Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss's tone turned grave.
He hadn't expected that this war, which was a guaranteed victory for the demons, would encounter such a variable.
"It seems I must return and reconsider things carefully."
With his mind racing, the Grand Duke of the Dark Abyss finally made a decision.
"Pass down the order. The situation has changed. The entire army is to retreat a hundred miles!"