Chapter 45
Chapter 45 . 1 – The Devil King’s Name (2)
Translator: HH Editor: ShaSha
One stroke .
Since I was holding a single sword,
Two extremes .
There was something that only I could cut .
-Gong-ja!
Blink .
-Now!
I looked in front of me .
No .
What was in front of me showed me .
-The head’s empty!
In front of me, there was someone with a black body .
Wastewater endlessly flowed from their body .
Even if I cut water, it was still water, so there was a lot to cut .
One sword, two extremes . [TN: korean idiom]
I cut what I had to cut .
-Keaaahhhhhh!
As they were cut, wastewater flowed from the King of Black .
It might not have been wastewater .
If it was, why was it red?
Blood .
Vibrantly red blood flowed from the Devil King’s body .
-Uk……keuk… . !
The Devil wavered and stepped back . One step . Two steps . When he took his third step, wastewater didn’t flow from the Devil King’s right arm .
The footsteps of the Devil King were puddled with wastewater, but the puddle shrank with every step he took .
And eventually .
-Keuk, heuk……uekk… . .
The wastewater was completely parting off from the Devil King’s body .
Drip . Drip .
Wastewater couldn’t flow anymore, so instead, blood flowed down .
The color of life was red .
[The being of the Devil King of Fall Rain is becoming even fainter . ]
And the all-powerful was no more .
-No……this can’t, uek… . !
The Devil King covered his left arm with his right hand . Blood was flowing from his left hand . The Devil King pressed tightly against his left arm like he forbade even a single drop of blood from dripping out .
-My child……not like this… . my hate… .
“Retreat . ”
I spoke in a low voice .
The Devil King paused like he had been cut by my voice .
“Fall back to the 20th floor . You can’t win against me anyway . Return to your base, to the Devil King’s Castle . ”
Even without looking at the ‘world map,’ it was clear what was happening .
Blue territory . The territory of humans covered the continent again . It passed the hills . It passed the area called the goddess’s shield . The temple with the one-eyed giant, the fields where the fairies were dancing, the waterfalls where the mermaids were playing, the mountains where dragons flew… . . there wasn’t a single place that wasn’t blue on the continent .
Meanwhile, the red territory was,
“Go back to where you started from . ”
One point .
It was only a single point .
Just as how a fire died down afters burning everything in its path, there was only a tiny red point on the world map .
That place was,
“Your final stop . Devil King . ”
The Devil King groaned .
-You… .
The Devil King lifted his head . Wastewater had stopped and blood was pouring down, but half of the Devil King’s body had been burned black . So was his face . His red eyes flashed violently, but that was it . The Devil King glared at me with an ash-covered face .
“Hmm . ”
The Sword Saint wordlessly gripped his sword .
“I’ll leave the last attack to the Death King . ”
The Witch slowly pulled her mirrors back .
-······ .
There wasn’t a chance to turn the tables . They didn’t have any weakness . Was it because I saw the Devil King’s trauma? I felt like this was the situation where they were surrounded by the soldiers in the village .
-Keuk!
There wasn’t anything else for the Devil King to do other than escape . But the reason why the Devil King couldn’t easily decide was because he knew as well . It was the same .
Like how avoiding a fire only extended your life for a minute, even if the Devil King retreated to the 20th floor, his defeat was just pushed back .
-Shit… . ! Shit!
Blood dripped from his mouth .
[The Devil King has decided to retreat . ]
[The Devil King of Fall rain is falling back to the 20th floor!]
Yes .
Running away even though you knew you would burn to death was something a human would do .
The further the Devil King was running away, the closer he was to becoming a human .
[Confirming the Devil King’s retreat . ]
[Historical change . ]
[The 19th floor stage is being revised . ]
The world was covered by raindrops of light again .
After I checked that the Devil King was gone, I turned to look behind me .
“Sword Saint . ”
“Mm . ”
“Black Dragon Master . ”
“Yeah . ”
“Sorry . I want to clear the 20th floor by myself . ”
I hung my head .
“Thank you for helping me so far . But I want to finish it with the Devil King . Please let me go alone . ”
“······ . ”
The Witch shrugged her shoulders .
“Okay . I’m fine with that . You contributed the most coming on our way here…and I promised not to move for 5 days as you said . I broke that promise and helped you, so I’ll honestly stay still this time . ”
“Hmm . ”
The Sword Saint put his sword back in its sheath .
“After today, it’ll already have been 5 days . Meet me after you’re done with the 20th floor . We have a lot of things to talk about . ”
“Yes, sir . Understood . ”
I hung my head again .
“Thank you . ”
And I moved on .
“Transmit . ”
To the 20th floor stage .
[Welcome, Death King . ]
Devil King .
To the village that Estelle was born in .
2 .
[You have entered the boss stage . ]
The second time .
This was the second time that I entered the boss stage .
Compared to that time… . there were a lot of similarities and a lot of differences .
[The challenger(s) is Death King . 1 person . ]
[May luck be with you . ]
First, the notifications .
Like on the ‘Hellfire Residence,’ there was only 1 challenger . It was solo playing . The tower, like always, wished me luck .
However .
There was something definitely different from last time .
[The clear rewards are being given . ]
[The rewards from the 11th floor to the 19th floor are all being calculated . ]
Now, I wasn’t a simple challenger .
I was a conqueror who had cleared the 11th floor up to here .
The tower greeted me, a conqueror, with 9 different trumpet sounds .
[Calculating the 11th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 12th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 13th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 14th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 15th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 16th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 17th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 18th floor clear rewards . ]
[Calculating the 19th floor clear rewards…]
Plod .
I took a step forward .
[Calculation complete . ]
Listening to the melody that greeted my footsteps .
[The tower acknowledges your accomplishments . ]
[The power to change any skill is given to you!]
[As long as it is not an EX Class, you can strengthen any skill . ]
It was like an anthem that was blessing me .
The tower had made a stage in advance . The direction of the quests was decided as well . But I didn’t walk the path that was already paved for me . I made a completely new stage and cleared the stage using my methods .
The tower had acknowledged my methods .
As if it was trying to say ‘that’s also fine . ’
[The powers of the Death King are being readjusted!]
It also happened during this time .
[The limited powers of an apostle are given to you . ]
[With this reward, you are given a limited authority,]
[The skill that you want to strengthen is up to you!]
A stage that wasn’t chosen in advance .
A method that wasn’t chosen in advance .
Just like that, the rewards weren’t chosen in advance either .
‘…Hm . ’
I nodded my head inwardly .
‘They’re leaving the choice to me I see . ’
I didn’t know why the tower was built . I didn’t know who did it either . I didn’t know if the tower was filled with life from other worlds .
There was still a lot that I didn’t know .
But I faintly knew what kind of being the tower was now .
‘A being that watches over our decisions . ’
And it was a being that remembered my decision .
‘Fine . ’
Kashing!
I lifted my sword .
‘I’ll show you my decision this time too . ’
An artifact that an ancestor of the empire had used .
[Lefanta Aegim’s Holy Protection Sword] reflected my Aura, shining white .
I pointed my sword at the [Enemy] in front of me .
“Alright . ”
The entrance of the 20th floor stage .
It was standing on a path that led into a small village .
“It’s time to meet your end, Devil King . ”
-······ .
It growled quietly .
It looked like a beast that had been irrevocably injured .
The beast that had been chased by the fire of the world was only able to have a small shelter like this . It was the path that led to the village .
-It’s my… .
In the middle of the road with white flowers, the beast was standing all alone by itself .
-It’s my village!
It cried out .
-Don’t you dare destroy my paradise!
And its voice rang out .
[The boss stage is being opened . ]
The curtains of the stage had opened .
The stage of defeating the world’s weakest boss .
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“······ . ”
I looked at the sky for a moment .
It was clear . It was blue .
The sky had originally been blue territory .
Looking at the cloudless sky, I was sure .
Today .
The rain didn’t pour .
Translator: HH Editor: Shasha
3 .
Acacia flowers drifted in the air .
The path was soundlessly covered with white flowers, and above, only the sound of people breathing filled the air .
-I can’t forgive you .
The breaths sounded rough .
-I can’t ever forgive you! In my eyes, the trace of burns is still left! The scent of burning is carved into my head! That fire! You! Did you think I would forget all your evil!
It screamed while it flung its sword around .
Every time someone screamed, the world became that much smaller .
The 20th floor stage was especially smaller .
Looking at the world map, this floor wasn’t even a hundredth of the other floors . It was just a red point on the map .
This was the 20th floor boss stage .
-Going back! You’re trying to go back!
It was an ordinary rural village .
-And burn my paradise again!
It was the world’s smallest stage .
And the world’s weakest boss monster .
-Again! You bastards always! Like that!
On the path with Acacia flowers, it was crying . It was a single scream . A frail voice . But the world was so small that it was filled with the screams of just one person .
A small world .
A tiny village .
“Our situations have been completely reversed . ”
I blocked the Devil King’s sword .
Blade clashed against blade .
“Do you remember? On the 12th floor, you were the Devil King and I was the warrior . You attacked, and I defended . Hey, the world is pretty fair . Right? Now, you’re defending . ”
-Die!
“Sorry, Devil King . ”
I twisted my sword .
“That phrase doesn’t have any meaning to me . ”
My sword pushed the Devil King’s away without too much trouble . The amount of strength itself was different . The Devil King’s physical strength was already insignificant . The Devil King couldn’t endure against it, and he ended up exposing his waist .
A blind spot .
My sword cut the Devil King’s upper body .
-Keahhhhhhh!
Red blood burst out .
[The being of the Devil King of Fall Rain is becoming faint . ]
Blood poured out .
The white Acacia flowers on the path .
Red blood had dripped down onto them .
“You’ve become weak . Devil King . ”
I took a step forward .
The red flowers were crushed under my feet .
“You’ve become really weak . ”
-Ueh, keup… . uek… . , keukkkkk!
“But it’s still not enough . ”
I swung my sword .
“Become even weaker . ”
-You… .
“A lot more than now . ”
My blade split the Devil King .
The white flowers became even redder .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
A step .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
Another step .
Every time the Devil King stepped back, the white flowers faded away .
Every time I took a step forward, the Acacia flowers became redder .
That wasn’t just it .
-Keuk… . uek… . .
The Devil King’s body was revealed little by little .
Hate . Regret . Resentment .
His wastewater was skinned away .
-No… .
The top of his feet was revealed .
-No…! No, no more than that…
His two legs on the path were shown .
-Uek… . .
His left and right arm were completely revealed .
Above and below parts of his waist were revealed .
His long neck was revealed .
-Tower, no… . . no……!
And .
Finally, his face had stripped off .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
Chin .
His upper and lower lip .
The tip of his nose, and his cheeks .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
His red eyes .
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Pale forehead .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
And finally .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming fainter . ]
His hair, which was like a lion’s mane .
Each strand had lost its black color .
The last of the wastewater flowed down .
-Ah……
It groaned . His long arms were trembling . It wasn’t able to endure the weight of the sword .
-Ueh, euh……
The thing under the Acacia tree was no longer the Devil King . You didn’t call something that couldn’t even properly lift their sword a Devil King .
And .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s being is becoming more faint . ]
[The Devil King of Fall Rain cannot maintain his authority . ]
The tower no longer called it a Devil King either .
[The readjustment of the class is beginning . ]
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s nickname has been taken away . ]
The thing that used to be the Devil King trembled .
-No……!
White light wrapped around it .
It shook like it was being attacked by bees .
-No……! No! No, no!
But it didn’t matter . The white light wrapped around it without fading away .
[Letting you know again . ]
It began .
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s nickname is being taken away . ]
[The Devil King of Fall Rain’s authority is being taken away . ]
It screamed .
-Ahhh… . . !
The throne of absolute power had fallen .
-Ahhh, ahhhh! Ahhhh!
It extended its hand like it was trying to catch the sprinkles of light . But it couldn’t . It just escaped its fingers .
It faded and scattered away .
-Ah,
And in its place .
“Ahh,”
There was a small weak beast .
“Ah, euh… . no, uek…ahhhh . ”
It wasn’t the Devil King of Fall Rain .
Nor was it the Owner of Nightmares .
It wasn’t the saintess of the rural lands .
Just a frail being .
“Yes . ”
I gripped my sword .
“You’re weak enough now . ”
“Don’t come… . . don’t come any closer . ”
“Then stop me . ”
Plod .
I took a step closer .
“What will you stop me with, your words? Your sword? Try anything . If not,”
A step closer .
“I’ll stand in front of you . ”
It took a step back .
It spoke up with much effort .
“You… . all of you, to me, to my children… . . you don’t even deserve to do this,”
“You’re wrong . ”
I took another step forward .
“Like what you said, I’m an outsider who came from another world . Yeah . Everyone allied themselves to burn you and your village-the Emperor, the military, everything . Let’s say that no one on this continent is free from that responsibility . But not me . I’m a complete outsider . Hunters like us have the freedom of choosing . ”
“Ut… . ”
“You don’t deserve to hold me responsible . And of course,”
I took another step forward towards what stepped away from me .
“You don’t have the strength to stop me . ”
It trembled . The trembling escaped from its mouth .
“I… . I didn’t do… . . ”
“Are you trying to say you didn’t do anything wrong?”
“I! I just healed…”
“[Estelle] was probably as scared as you . ”
It flinched .
“She probably had screamed to live more . She probably shouted that she didn’t want to die . She looked for her father . But what did you do?”
I spoke nonchalantly of what it did because it became Estelle, and had the memory of humans .
“You dug your teeth into a human’s flesh . You ate what you wanted, and became it . And is that all? You swallowed the newborn baby that the mother entrusted to you . And you acted like you were the best, saying that you saved people . You betrayed the mother that entrusted you with her child . ”
“I…, that’s not it . I didn’t do that . I just… . . ”
“You hid the truth . Even though you knew that people would misunderstand, you stayed quiet because you thought you would be treated as a monster . You tricked people . ”
I took another step forward .
“Even if you make excuses, it doesn’t matter . There’s no one who knows you as much as I do in this world . What you went through, what you felt, and how you changed . I know everything . ”
“······ . ”
“You’re not a flawless saintess . You’re not an innocent victim . We don’t even have to talk about the mother and her child . As I said, the moment you swallowed Estelle, you lost your innocence and,”
“I!!”
And it shouted in response .
“I didn’t know!”
I paused .
With its teeth clenched, trembling, it covered its face . Cries escaped through its fingers .
“I didn’t know . I didn’t have the memory of humans…the knowledge, I didn’t know…”
The meaning of pleading to be saved .
The begging .
“Then… . then, I didn’t know what it meant…I,”
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“Are you saying you did it because you didn’t know?”
“Yeah! So I, if only I knew, I never would’ve,”
It tried to say it wouldn’t have eaten her, and I cut it off .
“That’s what humans do . ”
It became speechless .
“The kings that you killed will be able to say the same thing . No, they definitely will . And they probably did, right? What did they say to you before you covered their world with blood/’
I didn’t know,
I didn’t know that you didn’t have evil intentions towards us .
I just thought you were a twisted witch .
They explained themselves,
“Ut… . . ”
Eventually, it became completely silent .
“Sorry, I’m not that well-educated . I’m stupid . All I know is the justice of the world . ”
A step more .
“More than retributive justice . ”
Its shoulders trembled .
“An eye for an eye . A tooth for a tooth . If you believed what you swallowed became humans, fine . You should go through the same thing . Then wouldn’t that be fair?”
“What… . what are you talking… . ?”
“Tower!”
I looked up at the sky .
“I want to use my clear reward!”
I pulled out a golden card . It was the clear reward that I earned after crushing through the 11th to the 19th floor . I had decided to use it on a skill .
[Hundred Ghosts Summon]
Rank: SS
Effects: What you killed will be summoned as monsters . The dead cannot use their abilities from when they were living . They can’t remember it either . They’ll be summoned as goblins, orcs, zombies, skeletons, etc .
※ However, you can only summon them once a week .
Hundred Ghosts Summons .
An SS Class skill .
I lifted the card high up in the air .
“You said I could adjust a skill to however I wanted!”
[The tower agrees to what you’re saying . ]
There was a voice that responded to what I was saying .
[But you cannot do too much . ]
[To help you understand, the tower is giving you an example . ]
[Evolving an SS Class to SSS Class is possible . ]
I nodded my head .
From the beginning, there was only one thing I wanted anyway .
“I request to adjust the skill Hundred Ghosts Summons!”
[The tower is questioning your intention . ]
“You don’t have to touch anything else! Just, memory . I hope you change the part about ‘they can’t remember it either!’ So if under my control, the summoned ones can remember their life!’
Flinch .
It paused .
“You… . what are you trying to do… . ?”
“How’s that?! Doesn’t that seem logical!”
I ignored Estelle and shouted .
“I’m not even asking for their ability to be kept! I’m not even asking for the cool time to be decreased . Memory! Just the memory . I hope the people I killed can remember their life!”
It was quiet .
The sky was silent .
[Your request is being calculated . ]
[Calculating…]
A moment later .
[The tower acknowledges that it is within reason . ]
Permission came .
[Checking the conditions . ]
[Will you use the rewards from the 11th to the 19th floor on the skill ‘Hundred Ghosts Summon?’]
“Yeah . ”
[The condition of the skill you want is the following . ]
[If you want, the dead will keep their memory of when they were alive . ]
[Do you confirm this is it?]
“Yeah . ”
[Confirmation complete . ]
And .
[The request of the Death King has been approved . ]
White light surrounded my skill card .
A storm of light lashed around .
When the light completely settled, I slowly observed my card .
[Hundred Ghosts Reincarnation]
Rank: SSS
Effects: What you killed will be summoned as monsters . The dead cannot use their abilities from when they were living . But if you want, the dead will be able to keep their memories and their looks from when they were alive . If you don’t want to, they’ll just be summoned as monsters .
※ However, you can only summon them once a week .
Hundred Ghosts Reincarnation .
It was the name of the first SSS Class skill that I had .
‘Nice . ’
Everything that I wanted, happened .
I turned my head to look at it .
Our eyes met .
“From now on, I’m going to kill you . ”
“If you don’t like the phrase of me killing you, think of it as [Swallowing] like what you did . Estelle, the sick people, the children . Like how you swallowed them into your shadow . I’ll kill you in that same method—”
Steadily .
I lifted my sword .
“And I’ll save you in that same way . ”
It trembled in fear .