Ch.66The Apostate (2)

“I feel embarrassed about all my big talk earlier.”

Ludmila couldn’t help but laugh wryly.

If this had been in the past, she would have considered such antics a waste of troops, but now she felt that the Demon Lord’s Castle had truly grown. Still, she shook her head at Durin’s extreme methods.

“So much for angels and all that nonsense?”

Those who couldn’t survive wouldn’t be worthy of serving as commanders.

That angel probably imagined a scene where they would have a private audience with the Regent to discuss their ambitions, but this was the demon realm.

Demons didn’t bother with such grandiose gestures.

If you wanted to solve a problem, you simply killed your opponent.

That had always been Durin’s approach.

He killed all the southern rebels and raised new seedlings in their place.

He purged the greedy Senate and infused it with younger forces.

He resolved the unrest in the north with a single war.

He wasn’t afraid of sacrifice.

He focused solely on nurturing one deeply loyal legion while cutting off all divergent branches.

This was just another part of that process.

“Still, it’s a waste to let it all go. You there, sorcerers.”

“Yes, Lady Ludmila.”

“Prepare to gather all the dead souls later and convert them into Durahans. It would be a waste to just let such souls go.”

“We’ll do as you command.”

While Durin maintained tradition and established discipline in the castle, Ludmila took care of practical matters.

For this purpose, the Regent had delegated various authorities to the Chief Sorcerer.

She was happy to work, as it meant she could make the gifts presented to His Majesty the Demon King even more abundant.

“So now I just watch, I suppose.”

Having given all her instructions, Ludmila looked around.

The test would likely take quite a while, so she thought about pulling up a chair rather than standing the whole time.

“Huh?”

But Durin was nowhere to be seen. She had thought they might sit side by side and chat, but he had disappeared somewhere.

“What? Where did he go?”

“Ah, Lady Ludmila.”

Just then, Spranches, who had been at the training ground, came up to the royal platform. Ludmila asked the secretary about his master’s whereabouts.

“Where did the man who said he was conducting the test go?”

“The Regent went to personally oversee the test.”

“Yes, I know that. So…”

Suddenly, Durin’s words came to mind.

-I will be the one to assess the angel.

No way.

“He should be in the middle of a fight by now.”

Spranches smiled innocently. Beyond him, a great disturbance erupted in the training ground.

“Arghhhh!”

“Aaaaah!”

Durin, who had somehow jumped into the chaos, was enthusiastically swinging his fists.

Demons who had been frantically trying to kill each other were now rolling on the ground after taking hits from him.

However, despite dealing with those in his way, his gaze was fixed on only one target—the angel.

#

“L-Lord Regent!”

“Stand aside.”

Durin strode across the battlefield. He stepped over the dying bodies without hesitation.

Those who had closed their eyes, trying to survive through cowardice, were unfortunate. They met their end crushed under Durin’s heavy military boots.

Only warriors with courage could survive before him.

“U-Uaaaah!”

He knocked away a warrior who charged at him, having lost all reason. As the body rolled on the ground like a puppet with cut strings, two more rushed at him.

“I’m sorry!”

“Lord Regent!!!”

Those seeking recognition turned their attention toward him.

He grabbed the tip of a spear aimed at his chest, pulled it, and seized the throat of one who still retained his sanity. Then he swung that demon toward another warrior who was charging like a beast.

The two bodies collided with a loud crash.

Clang!!

Before their screams could be heard, a sword was swung directly at Durin’s head.

The attack was blocked by his battle aura and rendered ineffective, but it was immediately followed by a series of strikes. They rushed at him desperately, putting all their might into making even a single scratch on Durin’s armor.

But only passion remained.

Durin swept away the warriors with his own fists. The Regent struck them as if casually brushing them off, but each one howled and clutched their faces.

“Huff… huff…”

The number of dropouts increased, and their breathing grew ragged.

Durin advanced leisurely through the chaos. Dead bodies covered the ground, and the surviving strong ones were barely standing, covered in wounds.

They were so absorbed in fighting that they hardly noticed the Regent’s arrival.

“How wonderful.”

The passion felt in this sea of blood stirred the demonic instincts. Even Durin felt the urge to draw his sword. However, he had a task to complete.

His target was the angel swinging a sword against three demons in the distance.

“Get away! Just get away, I said!”

It was closer to a scream than a battle cry.

The angel was fighting so fiercely that their once-neat armor and hair were in tatters.

Each swing of the sword cut down demons, but the opponents were relentless. Those excited by their wounds rushed at the angel, overwhelming them.

“Uaaaaargh!”

Finally, unable to endure any longer, the angel charged forward. With a dagger firmly gripped in both hands, they stabbed the demon at the front. The other two attacked, seemingly trying to tear off the white wings, but the angel ignored them.

Disregarding the wounds being carved into their body, the angel completely killed one of them.

The others couldn’t properly respond to the angel’s intense movements. That decided life and death.

Thunk!

After spinning around to shake off a demon attacking their wings, they became defenseless targets. The angel pinned the two sprawled demons to the ground, repeatedly stabbing them with the dagger until their hearts were pulverized.

“Huff… huff…”

The angel rose, staggering. Their blood-covered face stared directly at Durin. If not for the halo floating above their head, they could have been mistaken for a demon.

“How is it? The demons’ test.”

Durin slowly approached her. Though it was just a simple step, the pressure was intense. The angel faltered, unable to withstand it.

“You said you wanted to become a commander. Then it would be good to make an impression on me here.”

“……”

“Of course, if you fail, you’ll end up like those sprawled over there.”

The path the Regent had walked was littered with corpses. They had barely survived the greater demon’s hand, but the moment they made eye contact with each other, they fought again and all died. Not a single body was intact.

The angel trembled.

“This is…”

“Are you afraid?”

“No, I…”

Her cracked voice couldn’t continue properly.

Instead, she pointed her sword at the approaching Durin. Only her blazing eyes remained intense.

“I will… become… a commander… of the demon realm…”

Her will was admirable, but that was all. Eventually, the angel collapsed to the ground.

She lost consciousness, her face in a puddle of blood. Her pink hair slowly soaked through.

“How bland.”

Durin relaxed his blood-dripping fist.

He had expected her to come at him with great momentum, but it seemed she hadn’t reached that level yet.

“Spranches!”

The Regent called for his secretary in a loud voice. The lizard, who had been far away, hurriedly came down the stairs and ran to Durin, who was standing in the middle of the training ground.

“You called, sir.”

“Escort the angel to the punishment room. I will continue our unfinished conversation there.”

“I’ll do as you command.”

The lizard bowed his head. At the same time, he gestured to the Golden Guard who were standing by.

They collected the fallen angel and quietly left the training ground.

“……”

The crowd fell into silence.

The demons looked at each other. This was because they had focused on the Regent’s actions immediately after his appearance. Instead of harsh metallic sounds, only breathing filled the castle.

“What are you all doing?”

Durin urged them on.

“There are still many enemies left. Are you just going to watch?”

Compared to those standing, there were still few command batons.

It was time to return to the fight.

“Raaaaargh!”

Once again, roars filled the battlefield.

However, no warrior rushed at Durin. They had all tucked their tails after seeing everyone else fall. Though the Regent felt some regret, he proceeded to where the collapsed angel had been.

Instinct had gone far enough; now it was time to regain reason.

#

Darkness.

Pain that threatened to drive her mad washed over her.

Why had she ended up like this?

‘There’s no hope in Heaven. How long will you live like this?’

She hated her wretched life.

What value was there in a life treated as a lower class?

‘Do you enjoy living day to day in this godforsaken jungle?’

Born a warrior, one should live as a warrior.

How could one maintain faith in a land untouched by Heaven’s light?

It was just a hymn to a sky that offered no answers.

‘I can’t live like this. No, I won’t!’

“Gasp!”

Consciousness returned to the surface.

The angel, Ursael, opened her eyes wide. She took rough, labored breaths.

“Ugh.”

At the same time, intense pain surged through her.

It wasn’t something she could endure. Her entire body screamed in agony, making it impossible to move even a finger. Only her trembling lips released weak moans.

What a state to be in.

Ursael wanted to cry. She had submitted an official letter expressing her desire to become a commander in the demon realm, but she never imagined she would be treated like this.

She had expected at least to be treated as a prisoner.

She had planned to have a private audience with the so-called Regent to explain why she had made this choice. But as soon as she arrived at the castle, she was thrown alone into a demonic slaughter party.

It was a miracle she had survived.

“You’re awake.”

No, the miracle would be needed from now on.

Ursael painfully turned her head to see a demon sitting right next to her bed.

“Your courage was admirable.”

The voice, like metal scraping against metal, tormented her.

At the same time, Ursael felt terror. A battle aura that seemed to rise from the depths of the abyss was permeating the room.

“We’ll begin the interrogation soon, so rest for now. This will be your only respite.”

Despite the sudden turn of events, she didn’t object.

Ursael quietly accepted the demon’s command.

Her body was in too much pain to do anything else.

The initiation at the Demon Lord’s Castle had been far too harsh.