Ch.307EP.65 – The Knight Remember and Repay (2)

“—God?”

With a whoosh, sensing the sudden drop in temperature, Ninshubur wore an expression of shock.

CRASH!

However, losing focus while facing two knights—of all opponents—was equivalent to allowing a direct hit.

Ninshubur’s body tumbled pathetically and was sent flying, leaving the opponent feeling rather awkward.

“What kind of trick is this?”

They even grew suspicious.

Wondering if there was a reason for deliberately allowing the hit.

But…

Drip.

“M-My God…”

Despite suffering a fatal wound, Ninshubur called for their god.

Like a lost lamb.

“……”

“Oh my….”

The knights’ expressions hardened as an ominous feeling rose within them at this reaction.

And for good reason, as they were just a step behind Ninshubur…

Whoosh!

“…What is that?”

A dark, cold air chilled their feet.

* * *

Neigh!

The horses were the first to sense danger and turn around.

The war horses, which had been brave even when facing hundreds of thousands of monsters, turned and fled desperately, leaving their riders perplexed at their partners’ sudden behavior.

But soon the knights felt the cold air and looked back, and then…

“W-What is that?!”

“Everyone evacuate! Evacuate!”

They urged their partners with a bewilderment no less—no, even more intense—than that of their horses.

Neigh?!

In some cases, the Black Iron Lions were even carrying their horses as they ran.

“Hang in there! How can you be slower than us!”

“I told you to lose weight! Why are you so heavy?!”

The valiant northern warriors, known for their courage, were all fleeing in fear, taking care of their horses.

An unbelievable scene, but the Black Iron Lions were brave, not senseless humans who had lost all fear, nor were they people without common sense.

Therefore.

“I thought the capital was peaceful! Why is something like THAT here?!”

Fleeing from the massive “anomaly” that had appeared on the ground was clearly the sensible thing to do.

A giant [Vortex] that should only exist in the sea suddenly descended upon the land, creating an enormous air current.

Whoooosh…!

“This is insane! That’s a real vortex!!”

A knight from Galahad, who had frequent sea voyages, cried out in despair before the massive vortex.

Seafarers say that encountering a vortex means the end of your life.

Why?

Because you can’t escape it.

It’s an irresistible disaster that no human can fight against, and because it swallows ships whole, it’s counted among the worst disasters for seafarers.

Fortunately, this wasn’t the sea but land made of soil and rock.

They weren’t being pulled in irresistibly like in the sea, but even so…

CRACK!

“The suction power is tremendous…”

The suction power was indeed incredible.

If their judgment had been even slightly delayed and their escape slower, they would have had no complaints about dying.

The air resistance, in place of water current, was no less intense than the flow of water.

The knights couldn’t help but break into a cold sweat.

However, unlike the knights who barely escaped the vortex…

[[[Shudder!?]]]

…the monsters that couldn’t escape in time began to be sucked into the vortex.

Small monsters were instantly sucked in, and even medium and large ones were frequently absorbed without being able to put up proper resistance.

No, it was as if resistance wasn’t even allowed?

There was something uncanny about the scene.

But the strangeness was just beginning.

-Crunch.

-Crunch, crunch.

-Chomp, chomp…!

Some kind of sound came from inside the vortex.

It was a somewhat familiar sound, but not one that should be heard at a moment like this, and while people were trying to place it, someone muttered quietly.

“…Chewing sounds?”

Ah, an empathetic exclamation escaped, and people nodded in agreement.

Yes, it was precisely the sound of chewing.

Can a vortex naturally chew and eat things?

Such a question naturally arose, but with a vortex already appearing on land, there was no time to question common sense.

Sure enough.

Crunch! CRUNCH!

“……”

“…The royal capital is not a place to be underestimated. It’s even crazier than the north.”

Things continued to happen that defied common sense.

As the vortex chewed and ate the monsters, “wings” and “mouths” began to sprout from the ground.

But wings and mouths were just the beginning.

CRACK! CRUNCH!

The vortex began to take shape.

The more monsters it absorbed, the more it swelled, transforming into a spherical mass of flesh.

Still…

-CRUNCH!

It continued to devour monsters like snacks.

“Ugh!”

A knight who had never considered himself weak-stomached retched, but no one mocked him.

Honestly, it would be strange not to feel nauseated at the sight.

“…I think I’m going to be sick.”

Thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands…

Not only were over 100,000 living monsters devoured at once, but the corpses of monsters they had slain were also chewed up, spreading the sticky smell of blood and rotting flesh everywhere.

Regardless of one’s constitution, it was enough to turn anyone’s stomach, but…

[——Haa, tasteless.]

“!!!”

…the horrifying voice that mass of flesh emitted was simply unbearable.

Wriggle, wriggle…

The unstable spherical form slowly lifted itself into the air, revealing its true appearance.

BOOM!

Just once, just stretching itself into the air like someone stretching their limbs, and everything around trembled.

Even from this distance, its enormous size was visible, estimated to be approximately…

“About 66 feet (20m), I’d say.”

“Like a sperm whale?”

“That would be fortunate. It might be Kraken-sized…”

“……”

In that moment, people felt the Kraken comparison was apt.

The great sea monster Kraken.

A massive monster resembling a combination of octopus and squid, with steel-like skin and countless whip-like tentacles—a devil of the sea.

A legendary monster capable of swallowing an entire ship, with an appearance so repulsive that it instills terror in those who see it.

…However, according to a Galahad knight who had encountered a Kraken before, this thing was several times more dangerous than a Kraken.

Because of its enormous size?

Or because of the hundreds of mouths still munching and devouring monsters?

…Both would be correct, but what made it even more terrifying was none other than.

Flash!

[-You may be proud. It’s been nearly 5,000 years since I took this form.]

The enormous, ominous glow that occupied about a third of that massive body was the worst part…

“…………”

Not even the sound of swallowing could be heard.

That was natural. Probably any human—no, any living creature—would freeze and feel their blood run cold upon encountering such a being.

Indeed, even the horses were trembling…

[Modred, you said I was banished? Hehe, that’s not wrong. Just to clarify, you left out the part where I was banished AFTER destroying ‘two’ kingdoms.]

WHOOSH!

Its eight wings resembled those of an angel, but it was certainly no angel.

It was neither holy nor beneficial to any living being.

Rustle…

Look, wasn’t everything beneath it withering and dying?

It’s a demon! Surely a demon born when doom arrives!

[Tsk, that’s why I dislike this form. I am a god, yet whenever I take this form, everyone calls me a demon. This is a beautiful form in its own way.]

A dissatisfied voice echoed.

No one had called it a demon aloud, yet it seemed to be reciting their inner thoughts.

“…Don’t look at it for too long.”

“C-C-Captain?”

“…Madness will rise within you. Damn it, this is why we need priests.”

The captain of Galahad, who had faced demons in the past, warned that this was serious trouble.

It claimed not to be a demon, but it definitely was one.

Just meeting its gaze made one feel as if thousands of ants were crawling all over their body, entering through the mouth, nose, and ears, creating a disgusting sensation that eventually made one want to stab oneself.

Those encountering a demon for the first time might be somewhat okay, but those who had faced demons multiple times would experience increasingly violent seizures.

Unlike poisons or germs, which create resistance the more one overcomes them, the aura emitted by demons corrupts and drives people mad the more they are exposed to it.

As evidence…

“Kuhak!”

“Captain!”

“D-Damn it! K-Keep my sword away from me! As far as possible!!”

“Master!”

The old knights who had frequently encountered demons during the Age of Gods and Demons were all having seizures.

This was dangerous. They might end up fighting among themselves and being annihilated.

‘I’ve grown careless with age. In the past, it was common sense to be accompanied by priests…’

It might be due to changing times.

In the past, demons were common, but not anymore.

But who could have expected a demon, and a high demon at that, to exist in a place like this?

No one could have predicted this.

That’s why they were in crisis now.

As long as this high demon claiming to be a god continued to emit demonic energy, the knights had no way to resist.

…They were in an utterly bleak situation.

[Hehe, it seems there are no servants who worship other divine beings instead of believing in me? How pitiful, really. Perhaps I should have taken this form from the beginning? Then I wouldn’t have had to deal with all this stress.]

The demon smiled with a sneer.

As if to say they should have just died from the start, rather than resisting and souring its taste.

[Don’t start regretting already. You still have to pay…]

Dong, dong.

[…for your sins…]

Dong, dong.

[……?]

…The demon’s words were cut off mid-sentence, and people’s trembling stopped.

To be more precise…

“The demonic energy is… dispersing?”

The demonic energy emitted by the demon became hazy.

The old knights who were on the verge of madness began to clear their heads as they heard irregular bell sounds.

And so they-.

“-Maha prajna paramita heart sutra, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva practicing the profound prajna paramita-.”

…found peace of mind before a prayer they had never heard before.

– Any prayer from any doctrine will work, so please recite a prayer you know. The effect will be stronger.

‘So I just recited something I knew…’

So this works too?

Ihan rang the bell while reciting the Heart Sutra.

To maximize the power of the bell, the [Holy Relic].

On one hand, he felt fortunate.

‘Good thing I chose Buddhism during military religious activities.’

It was worth learning.

-Ding.

[The power of Vajrayana (Lv8) is activated.]

[The power of Parma is activated through the Heart Sutra.]

[The minds of those nearby are purified.]

[Damage from demons is reduced due to the holy object.]

[Mental attacks from demons are nullified.]

[The power of Evil-attribute beings is halved.]