episode_0145

The dragon Elm Northmund led his army and came to the center of the enemy camp.

The fog in Africa has lost its momentum, but the sun and moon in the sky are still invisible, and all that is visible is artificial light that relies on the luminescence of mana emitted by individuals.

And each weapon emitting that light lined up and formed a straight line, or swung around, scattering light in all directions.

“Stay in line! Don’t be scared! They are low-level monsters! Do exactly what you learned!”

The personnel move in a somewhat clumsy but well-disciplined manner in accordance with the shouts of the academy students who lead them.

In the midst of it, a light bullet flies out and hits the army of monsters, making a loud noise, and a guy with red energy all over his body slaughters the monsters like lightning.

‘You’re doing quite well. ‘I’m relieved.’

Looking at those figures, I nodded and also turned my head towards the enemies.

Although the number of monsters was formidable, it was not that difficult.

Occasionally, middle-level or upper-level players, also known as devils, would pop out, but despite my worries, I quietly expressed my admiration for the fact that the ones I raised were not easy.

“Hmm.”

And I snorted as I felt the gloomy gaze that had been looking at me from earlier.

This is because I could feel the group of monsters charging, and ominous gazes towards me emanating from them.

A human-shaped being made of black material that I have already seen several times.

I’ll throw a slash at them with all my might.

『… !』

In addition to their startled reactions, the red glowing eyes between the distorted, grotesque figures seemed to be visible even in the pitch black without the moon.

“Ahyeon Jang, Gray.”

“Yes, Professor, I will deal with them.”

“No. Stay in your position and protect your ranks. Ramirez seems unstable, so please pay a little more attention. I have some business to attend to those guys who have been voyeurizing here since a while ago.”

“Yes? Yes, I understand, Professor.”

After comforting them once, I said words of approval and, leaving behind them running to protect their positions, I slowly approached them at a speed that was neither too fast nor too slow.

As I slowly approached them, I started to get reactions from them.

Maybe they didn’t think it would come towards them, or maybe they thought it would just check them from a distance like the slash they fired earlier.

That’s because there were so many monsters charging at me.

Although they are weak by the standards of those with special abilities, their large number has served as a sufficient weapon. Because it has been that way until now.

『&#$&#!!!』

At that moment, a guy came running towards me, making a noise like a phlegm-like noise, which I thought was probably a combination of spirit and energy.

No, it would be more correct to say that I flew rather than running. It really tore through the space and popped out from this side.

The howling porosity of the air resounds in the torn space.

“… .”

But there was no particular inspiration. The guy must have unconsciously rushed in out of embarrassment and fear, or he must have been forced out of the way by the guys behind him due to low level.

I don’t know if it was the former or the latter, but it was highly likely the latter.

It is said that demons have lived for too long and their emotions have been worn away. But this guy seemed quite impatient.

『!!!!』

It seems like he’s trying to be insensitive, but it’s just that he’s being so insensitive inside.

He was definitely a guy who hadn’t quite grasped the concept of insensitivity yet.

Quad deuk.

And then there was the sound of a balloon filled with some kind of sticky substance popping, and what I thought was the head of the thing burst out of my grasp.

I wasn’t even impressed. There was nothing strange about it. What kind of inspiration would there be in cutting a slit in silken tofu with a sharp knife?

『… That’s amazing, Northmund.』

And then a voice echoed in my head, so I raised my head and looked in that direction.

It was a surprisingly calm voice.

This time, rather than a humanoid, it was something that looked more like a mollusk or an octopus, looking in my direction.

“You know how to say the right things.”

“It is true. My name is… town?!”

bang! With a sound like that, a huge sword was thrust into the spot where the guy was, and an explosion rang out.

I thought it was quite a contradictory sight. The guys surrounding me right now are at least ten.

And their dented monsters are wreaking havoc on the humans living inside.

But instead, they were embarrassed, a situation that seemed like a horror movie cliche turned on its head.

Rather, the voices coming from the guys surrounding this red dragon are far from intimidating, and are tinged with absolute bewilderment.

『@#%&$%&^%$』

When a loud noise is heard, the other guys standing next to them immediately react and start pouring in on me.

There are eight devils, and there are about ten of them in a form I have never seen before that looks more like a monster than a devil.

─Queee!

The monster that was running towards me with great energy probably thought I had no weapon because I threw away the great sword, but when I hit it with my fist, it oxidized.

Its fuselage was literally shattered. It looked as if it had been crushed by a racking ball used when demolishing a building, and it was so miserable that it was unrecognizable.

But my eyes were already on someone else, so it was a meaningless death with no one watching.

『Gigeek! Nonsense—!』

There was no need for weapons. Yongin’s strong body was simply his weapon. The great sword is actually just a piece of cake. I didn’t need anything like that in the first place.

As the blade of the giant hand, which makes a person’s head look like the size of an apple, splits the air, the spear piercing my heart, the tentacle piercing my side, and the energy bullet aimed at my back are all cut off and destroyed in one go.

“what! What is this?』

A voice is heard questioning why one’s vision is sinking to the ground like a ship sinking in water.

I don’t know if it was because the feeling in my body didn’t return, or if they just refused to understand it because it was so sudden, but they seemed to sense that something was foreign.

You may be wondering if someone has tied your body with a piece of crude string or something and why your body is not moving.

Of course, I have no intention of releasing it.

I cut off their tentacles with my hand blades, and with my fingers, I flicked away the sharp, cutter-like claws that swung towards me, changed their trajectory, and drove them into another guy’s body.

The guy who lashed out like that tears apart his comrade’s body, and before the embarrassment spreads through his eyes, the part where the eye was attached bursts into my hand.

“Don’t waste time. Anyway, I came here to ask you to end your boring life.”

The guys who were about to rush towards me stopped, perhaps embarrassed by my inaction, and I lightly taunted them.

Their faces don’t have mouths, but if they did, their mouths would be wide open.

Quagwang!

My feet hit the floor and a shock wave pushed them away.

And when I bent my palm upward as if grasping something, sharp nails sprouted from there.

It feels similar to Li Jiyuan’s special ability, Dragon Tide.

And the claws glowed red, and flames flickered at the tips.

“The most popular way to deal with demons is to burn them with fire.”

『U-We are not that kind of devil-』

It seemed like one of the guys was trying to appeal his opinion, but he didn’t listen and just waved his hand at the three guys standing in front of me.

Crunchy, crunchy!

My hand, which had an extremely high temperature that could melt the atmosphere into plasma, cut the guy into pieces with a sound like an electric current.

『!@#%!%』

And when I kicked the guy who managed to avoid it, he bounced far away, making a sound like a deflated soccer ball.

─Cougargeogeokeuk!

One monster melted in an instant due to the heat generated from the swinging claw, and the magic stone inside burned, turning into powder and disappearing.

It wasn’t much of a source of entertainment.

Isn’t this a situation no different from a kindergartener just playing with dirt on the playground?

About demons and their skills. That’s all.

『As expected, Northmund. Is this inaction worthy of Master Alexstras showing interest?』

“What, he was alive.”

As I was laughing out loud because it was so meaningless, the octopus-shaped guy who had initially thrown away the great sword appeared in front of me again.

Since it was only thrown to stop the conversation from getting longer, it didn’t seem to be a particularly fatal injury.

But that’s not all. This guy will be the same anyway.

I laughed at him and stretched out my hand, creating a large crater in the ground, and the great sword stuck in the center came out as if it had a will and flew towards me.

As I was fixing the great sword that was returned to me and laughing at the octopus guy who was somehow in a bit of a mood, he got into a fighting stance.

I looked at it with a dull look.

The guy suddenly looked up at the sky. There’s no way you can see the sky because it’s covered in fog.

It was as if I was watching clouds passing by in the blue sky.

At that moment, for some reason, the octopus legs and the octopus-like body seemed to be slightly red.

Although it was a strange-looking guy, it felt like a hologram that continued to support itself endlessly, like watching a TV screen with gray noise after a broadcast.

To get a closer look at its appearance, I snapped my fingers to create a flame, and its appearance began to come into my eyes in more detail.

It was an octopus with seven eyes, and its eyes were as bizarre as a cat’s.

In fact, it was described as an octopus, but it was even more disgusting because it had hundreds of thin octopus legs writhing under its large head.

“You look dirty. Other demons still had human-shaped bodies.”

『Anyway, our essence is the etheric body. The shape of the shell that surrounds it is not important.』

“Is it just your preference? He is a dirty guy from the beginning.”

『It looks efficient. Rather, it is a form that is much better for balance because there are many parts that support the floor.』

hmm. I didn’t expect that kind of answer.

I tried to provoke him a little, but as expected, the devil’s emotions dried up. It didn’t seem to have touched any nerves.

Tsk, I clicked my tongue and looked at the guy.

‘This guy is something different from the scum from before.’

Now that I think about it, the energy I felt from him was unusual. Probably a top level demon. When it occurred to me that he might have a deep connection with that petty devil Archduke, I immediately moved on to asking more questions.

“Now that I think about it, there’s something different about you. Are you close to Alexstras?”

『This is Blonemaisk, one of the five who assist him. After refusing the introduction, are you now curious about the name?』

“Did you keep it in your mind? That boss and that subordinate have a small heart.”

『?』

When I responded that I really didn’t know what was going on, I said, “Damn,” and swallowed my anger inside.

It didn’t seem like the trivial sarcasm would work at all.

Strange eyes filled with hostility were turned in this direction, but the provocation did not add any additional hostility.

So, let me ask you a question.

“If you are close to me, you will understand. Why are you putting Alexstras through this trouble? Obviously, he told me to come find him. Why are you bothering me like this when I come to see you?”

『—The day I met you in Romania, you must have understood the meaning. Are you being unreasonable? If not, you are more foolish than you think, Northmund.』

“… What the heck.”

Something was going off in the conversation again, so I clicked my tongue and scratched my head.

“The guy came to see me and, as if he were an expert, told me to settle the matter with him. But isn’t the treatment different?”

『… Right. I think he overestimated your ability to understand than I thought.』

After hearing my voice being asked back, he let out a voice that seemed like he couldn’t understand it properly.

A thousand dollars boiled in my heart at the sound of that guy’s voice.

In fact, I almost gave up my fist for a moment when I heard the guy’s voice change to a more alien and dull tone than before.

I don’t know what the movements of the guy I just saw mean because they are closer to an octopus rather than a human, but I think he probably just shrugged his shoulders.

He answered my question in an unnaturally dry voice.

『Don’t you understand that you are also leading the organization? A person who leads numerous subordinates must also take into account the wishes of those subordinates.』

“What do you mean? Are you saying that you guys are going against Alexstras’ will?”

『You are strong, but you are not mentally mature, Northmund. In fact, wasn’t it wrong from the beginning to compare it to our years of experience?

The guy’s explanation continued for a while, as if he was looking at me a bit pathetically.

After hearing that, I even wondered if I really needed the time right now. I felt like I was wasting my time by opening my mouth for no reason.

No, he’s the one who needs to be taken down in the first place. I don’t think there’s any need to hear any additional comments.

“… So in the end, this is how you guys are treated?”

『It’s a little different, but if you look at it from a larger perspective, it’s right. Northmund』

“For the same reason.”

I sighed, tapping my forehead with my finger, and looked at him.

To roughly summarize, the story was like this.

There were many twists and turns, but Alexstras chose to give up her plan to me.

However, in the process, all of his subordinates end up being sacrificed. If this plan fails, his race, the demons, will all be extinct as a result.

So the last thing I want to say is that you can confront me if you want. He was feeling my strength and justifying his decision.

In other words, it was ultimately a meaningless story to me.

Because from my perspective, at the end of the plan, who died and who lived. There was no need to think about what the purpose was or what the result would be.

All the demons are going to die anyway, so take them all into my hands.

This world is the story of a novel.

And wouldn’t it be right for all the demons in the novel to be exterminated?

『So we… 』

“I don’t want to talk about this all night long. My disciples are waiting.”

『… Right. I understand.”

And I raised my sword towards him.