Chapter 207

Ｒｅ​ａｄ ｏｎ Ｋａｔ​ＲｅａｄｉｎｇＣａｆｅ

A brilliant light illuminated the darkness.

It pierced through the army of the dead, returning them to nothingness.

The Knight of Light advanced resolutely. He shattered skeletons, purified ghosts, stabbed dullahans, slashed vampires, and toppled death knights. 

As he returned the undead to their rightful place, Johan approached the master of the army.

Ereshkigal didn’t retreat or dodge. The holy sword and the demonic sword clashed. The Knight of Light and the Black Knight collided with all their might.

As a swordsman, Johan was undoubtedly superior. 

A disciple of the God of War, Johan had reached the realm of a Sword Saint. 

Able to unleash the radiance of the holy sword to its limit, he was undeniably the strongest swordsman.

But Ereshkigal was not just a swordsman—she was also a demonic beast. Even if she couldn’t surpass Johan as a swordsman, as a demonic beast, the story was different.

Every time the warm light enveloping the world clashed with the shadow of death that corrupted the earth and stole life, the ground shook. The earth split, and a fierce storm raged. 

Yet, their battle didn’t end. The torrent of life and the flood of golden light. 

Even as a black hole tore through the sky, they stubbornly refused to look away from each other. 

It was a duel that wouldn’t stop until one of them fell.

“Hmm?”

The end of the seemingly eternal battle came suddenly, without warning.

Ereshkigal narrowed her eyes at the beam of light descending from the sky. 

Her red fox mask had long since shattered. Blood streamed down her forehead, cut by the holy sword. 

She closed one eye and looked up at the sky with the other. It was a foolish move to take her eyes off the battle, but Ereshkigal instinctively realized that the fight was over.

“…I see.”

The presence of the Devil Gods was no longer felt.

No, it was still there, but it was too faint.

There was only one reality that fact conveyed.

“We lost.”

The Devil Gods had been defeated by humans.

The great ones had fallen to mortals.

Her lips trembled slightly in surprise, but Ereshkigal accepted it calmly.

Yes, it was possible. After all, she herself was a demonic beast who aimed to surpass the Devil Gods. 

She was someone filled with the ambition to one day surpass the great ones. The Devil Gods were the strongest, but they weren’t invincible. Ereshkigal was well aware of that. 

While the monsters worshipped the Devil Gods as absolute beings, the demonic beasts did not. 

If they truly believed the Devil Gods were invincible, they wouldn’t have set them as their goal.

The defeat of the Devil Gods brought a bitter shock.

But it wasn’t so shocking as to leave her stunned.

The only question swirling in her mind was how it had been possible.

“Johan, let’s postpone the conclusion to another time.”

Ereshkigal looked back at the Knight of Light.

Johan wore an uncomfortable expression.

He swung his holy sword at the beam of light descending from the sky, but it was useless. The overlapping of time that even the God of War couldn’t interfere with. 

Johan, too, had no way to deal with it. Even as a Sword Saint who could cut through anything with a single sword, there were limits. 

It felt like his grip would tear from the recoil. Johan sighed and lowered his holy sword.

“Sorry. Ending the duel like this isn’t what I wanted either.”

“Don’t worry about it. I can tell just by looking at your face.”

She had been fully immersed in the battle, genuinely enjoying it. Her heart raced with exhilaration and joy. 

Opportunities to cross swords with a Sword Saint were rare. His swordsmanship wasn’t flashy or beautiful, but it was upright and honest. 

The pinnacle of swordsmanship. Every time a flash of light filled her vision, Ereshkigal felt like she was gaining new insights. 

She wanted to fight more. She wanted to exchange swords more. She wanted to dig deep into this man’s depths and make everything her own.

But the situation didn’t allow it.

Accepting that there was nothing she could do, Ereshkigal forced a bitter smile.

“Let’s leave it for next time.”

She had gained inspiration.

She had also grasped a clue to the next realm.

It was truly a satisfying battle, with nothing but gains.

Ereshkigal didn’t know exactly what the beam of light descending from the sky was. She could only guess. 

In a situation where the Devil Gods had fallen, the one who could cast such a beam of light must be another Devil God. But it wasn’t her master. Astaroth didn’t have such authority. Then…

‘It must be the noble prince.’

The 2nd-ranked Devil God, Agares.

It seemed he had finally intervened directly after the Devil Gods’ defeat.

Her master had told her that he couldn’t interfere in the present world.

Yet, if he had forced his way in, it must mean the situation was that dire.

Ereshkigal gently closed her eyes. Every second was precious. She had to explore while the memories were still vivid. 

She needed to dissect the Knight of Light’s swordsmanship piece by piece, analyze it, and make it the foundation of her new self. 

At the same time, she had to devise a way to counter it.

This time, she had faced him as a demonic beast, but next time, she would face him as a swordsman.

With that resolve, Ereshkigal surrendered herself to the beam of light without resistance.

“…El!”

Before the voice could break her thoughts.

The sound of hurried footsteps grew closer.

Thud, thud, thud—someone was running toward her.

Her closed eyes opened. Her crimson eyes once again took in the world. The intense battle that had been replaying in her mind blurred. 

Reflexively, Ereshkigal turned her head toward the direction of the voice.

A girl was running toward her.

Her purple hair fluttered, unable to keep up with her speed.

Clutching a rabbit plushie, her small legs moved rapidly as she closed the distance.

Black eyes came into view. Their trembling gazes met.

“Sariel!”

The girl shouted again.

Her voice was desperate, urgent.

Thump.

Ereshkigal felt her heart sink.

The satisfaction that had filled her chest moments ago quickly dissipated.

In its place was an inexplicable emotion.

Ereshkigal unconsciously reached out her hand, then flinched and lowered it.

Her throat felt itchy. Ereshkigal muttered blankly.

“Sis… ter?”

At that moment, the beam of light disappeared.

Ereshkigal, who had been within its influence, also vanished.

The only thing left behind was her final, hollow words.

◈

“…Damn it.”

The 5th Division Captain, Azazel, irritably rolled her foot. She stomped the ground repeatedly. Each time, small footprints were etched into the earth.

“Damn it, damn it, damn it… FUCK!!!“

She screamed as if wailing. Her voice was slightly choked. Azazel threw the rabbit plushie aside and crouched down, sitting on her knees. 

She wrapped her arms around her head and bit her lip.

She had been right there. It wasn’t an illusion. It wasn’t a mistake. It was definitely her. 

Her missing younger sister. Hair as white as snow on the outside, as black as the night sky on the inside. 

Her face, her eyes, her voice—everything was familiar. It was her one and only younger sister, whom she had searched for so desperately.

“If only I’d been a little faster… just a little more…!”

Azazel’s words trailed off. Not because she had nothing to say, but because her throat tightened, and no sound came out. 

Still crouched, her head bowed and her face hidden by her hair, Azazel fumbled around the ground with her hands. 

She grabbed the rabbit plushie she had thrown aside and hugged it tightly. She squeezed it until it crumpled. The plushie began to tear, and white stuffing spilled out.

She had to stay like that for a while to calm her anger.

Azazel’s shoulders shook as she took deep, repeated breaths.

She was used to suppressing her rage because of that damn airheaded, cross-eyed idiot.

Her body trembled as she focused only on the soft texture of the plushie.

“El…”

Muttering her sister’s nickname, Azazel recalled the scene from moments ago.

The woman who had stared at her with wide eyes.

At that moment.

In that instant.

She had said it.

“Sister.”

“What the hell happened…?”

Even though she knew it was a question she couldn’t answer, she couldn’t help but ask.

Bleeding yet expressionless, as if she felt no pain.

Her sister, who had never even held a sword before, was wielding one.

“Are you alright?”

A large shadow fell over Azazel’s small frame.

The 6th Division Captain, Elijah, asked with concern.

No answer came. Elijah sighed and looked around. 

She could roughly guess the cause of Azazel’s sudden strange behavior. The woman who had disappeared into the beam of light. 

The extraordinary aura she had exuded must have been the reason. That’s why she turned to the person who had been facing her just moments ago.

“Johan, who was that woman?”

“She was a demonic beast, but…?”

Johan looked bewildered. He couldn’t make sense of the situation. The 5th Division Captain had rushed over desperately, and now she was crouched down, sniffling. 

Johan wasn’t clueless. He could guess that Ereshkigal was the cause. But he didn’t know the details.

“You fought El, didn’t you?!”

Azazel, who had finally noticed Johan’s presence, jerked her head up. Her slightly bloodshot eyes glared at Johan. 

Overwhelmed by her inexplicable intensity, Johan nodded. Azazel straightened her bent knees. 

Even so, her childlike stature only brought her up to Johan’s waist.

“Hey, Elijah.”

Azazel gestured to Elijah. Curious, Elijah approached, and Azazel crossed her arms and jerked her chin.

“Lift me up.”

“?”

Elijah tilted her head in confusion but did as she was told.

She carefully grabbed Azazel’s waist. Despite her childlike appearance, Azazel was still a captain, but the difference in their sizes made Elijah instinctively cautious. 

She lifted Azazel gently, making sure not to hurt her. As a result, Azazel dangled like a doll, now at eye level with Johan. She strained her neck and growled.

“Tell me everything that happened here. Anything, no matter how small.”

She had confirmed that Sariel was alive and well.

For now, that was enough.

Getting her sister back could wait.

Repeating that to herself, Azazel glared at the Knight of Light.

For now, he was the only clue.

◈

The Family extermination operation had concluded.

The results of the operation were an overwhelming success.

The scattered branches of the Family across the country were wiped out in one fell swoop. Even the remnants of the Family, who had survived the previous extermination operation led by the God of War himself, couldn’t escape this time. Countless Family members were arrested, and what little remained of the Family’s foundation was thoroughly destroyed.

In contrast, the Celestial Corps’ losses were minimal.

There were injuries, but not a single death.

The Family, caught off guard by the simultaneous assaults of the Celestial Corps, was swept away without being able to mount a proper resistance.

The Family had long since lost its former glory.

Once it lost its only weapon—secrecy—this outcome was inevitable.

It was a perfect victory.

At least, on the surface.

But it was a victory that left a bitter aftertaste.

The whereabouts of the victims kidnapped by the Family remained a mystery. 

Some civilians held captive were found, but they were only a fraction of the total. 

The Celestial Corps continued to search for the kidnapped victims even after the extermination operation ended. 

They spared no effort in interrogating the captured Family members for clues.

The rescued civilians were immediately transported to hospitals.

To check if their health had deteriorated during captivity or if they had sustained serious injuries.

It was also necessary to assess their mental health, as they had likely suffered significant psychological trauma.

Among the victims transported to hospitals under agreement with the Celestial Corps was one girl.

A first-year student of Class A at the academy.

Lucia.

She had gone missing during the incident in Sector 6 and was found during the Family extermination operation, now under the protection of the Celestial Corps.

Fortunately, no physical injuries were found.

Given her abilities, even if there had been any, they would have healed quickly.

What had she gone through during her captivity by the Family?

The only person who could explain that was the victim herself.

But that’s why no one could know what the girl had endured.

Lucia had not opened her eyes since her rescue.

She remained in a deep sleep, her eyes gently closed.

Like the sleeping beauty in the forest.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Lucia is a dreamy princess.

Though, she doesn’t want a kiss from a prince.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
I guess their parents just really love to name their daughters after myths.