Episode 648. Extermination of the Demon Cult (6)

Maestro could not understand the phenomenon that occurred before his eyes.

No, more accurately, he couldn’t process it mentally.

Why.

Why Lee Hoyeon was right in front of him.

What the source of the burning pain in his abdomen was.

Why his body was embedded in the wall.

‘…This is fate, too.’

Maestro finally accepted the reality he saw.

He had been defeated.

The man named Lee Hoyeon had been like that from the start.

He’d ignored his mind control as if it were natural and completely thwarted Pandemic’s plan.

Perhaps being defeated like this was also fate.

Thinking that way, his mind felt at ease.

He was destined to exit like this.

If he had been even a little helpful to the Demon King-nim, he could conclude his life with that.

However, a small lingering attachment postponed his death.

‘What help have I been to the Demon King-nim?’

Maestro thought.

He hadn’t been helpful at all.

The black pillars that appeared in this world had changed Earth’s environment, and the monsters and demons emerging from the gates of the Underworld had paralyzed human society.

He had done nothing in that process.

He had created Pandemic and gathered sacrifices for the Demon King-nim, but did the Demon King-nim truly need them?

If the sacrifices he gathered had been helpful for the Demon King’s descent, why were his prayers not being answered?

A sense of injustice welled up in Maestro’s chest.

He had accepted the fate of living a life for the Demon King.

If so, he wanted to be helpful to the Demon King at least.

If the Demon King was fated to descend even without Maestro,

then what purpose had his life served?

“Kuh, hha….”

Maestro slowly pushed himself up.

His abdomen felt like it had a hole in it, but he ignored it.

Whether he had truly been helpful to you.

He had to ask the Demon King-nim directly.

‘I cannot die like this.’

He felt no pain at all.

His body was completely unharmed.

Strong self-hypnosis, denying reality.

Maestro looked straight ahead, forgetting the pain.

‘What is that now?’

Lee Hoyeon looked at Maestro, gathering his magic power.

Using Eraser, he removed the barrier and made a hole in the bastard’s solar plexus.

Since he had used it properly at the most crucial moment, the one he had saved was worth it.

Actually, he thought it ended there.

Lee Hoyeon knew best the power contained in his attack.

The rune barrier wrapped around his body, Machcheon-gung, and furthermore, with spatial acceleration, he had hammered in physical force at immense speed.

In reality, a large hole had appeared in the bastard’s abdomen.

But then, Maestro in that state slowly pushed himself up.

As if that weren’t enough, his body was slowly regenerating.

‘There’s no healing magic, yet the wounds are healing?’

The sight perceived with his Clairvoyance, Mind’s Eye, was astonishing.

The magic of mind control filling Maestro’s body was regenerating him.

Lee Hoyeon, having reached the Divine Realm through the Hall of the Moon’s Reflection, could tell.

Right now, Maestro had stepped into the Divine Realm, even if only briefly.

“To the very end, there’s no bastard who dies decently….”

“It’s not over yet. Until the Demon King-nim’s descent, I must stay alive!”

Ku-woong-

Maestro moved his magic, veins bulging.

In truth, his body had already reached its limit.

Unlike implanting the magic of mind control into living beings, using mind control on non-living things was inefficient.

That was the reason Maestro hadn’t moved directly until now.

However, the mind control, which had deceived even his own body, squeezed Maestro’s body to its very end.

K-kwang. K-kwang. K-kwang.

Numerous building debris fell around Maestro.

Each piece became an obstacle blocking Lee Hoyeon’s movements.

Lee Hoyeon clicked his tongue and looked at Maestro.

“So you’re going to hold out?”

His movement, intending to hold out without launching an offense.

The objective was obvious.

They would attack together after Amon and Malpis defeated the subjugation team, that must be it.

‘I must break through.’

Turning back to join the subjugation team is an option, but Maestro’s compatibility with other humans is the worst.

It’s rather better now that the guy is fixated on him.

One. Two. Three. Four….

With Future Sight and Clairvoyance, he finds a gap among the countless obstacles.

‘Found it.’

Acceleration.

The combination of the rune barrier wrapped around Lee Hoyeon’s body and Machcheon-gung further increased the efficiency of acceleration.

Arriving faster than sound, Lee Hoyeon’s body again targeted Maestro’s bulk.

Ku-woong-!

However, this time the result did not occur as before.

Maestro’s body reacted much faster due to strong self-hypnosis, and numerous barriers were erected before his eyes.

Dozens of small-sized barriers had been created so they couldn’t be erased by Eraser.

‘…This has become troublesome.’

It would take time, but the winner of this fight is decided to be Lee Hoyeon.

Since he found a way to block Maestro’s only weapon, mind control, that is a natural progression.

However, only the two of them were not present in this place.

If he focuses only on holding out like this, the demons might annihilate the subjugation team first.

If that happens, the loser of the fight will be Lee Hoyeon.

“The flow of fate has changed. Do you see your defeat deepening?”

“Fate this, Demon King that. You only choose to speak foolish talk. The Demon King isn’t even interested in you.”

“You will die here. And I will confirm the Demon King-nim’s descent with my own eyes. Proving my existence. That is my destiny!”

The magic of mind control seeped out in Maestro’s cry.

Even this conversation was a part of his self-hypnosis.

The bastard was truly hypnotizing himself.

‘Compared to what I thought, the negative emotions he feels are large.’

His agitated expression and growing voice.

Only now did it seem he had found a way out, even if just a little.

‘Emotion Amplification.’

The crack in Maestro’s heart.

He digs into it.

“You realized you were abandoned by the Demon King?”

“….”

Amplifying negative emotions were anxiety and fear.

By saying he had to prove his existence, he could tell.

Maestro was abandoned by the Demon King.

He had actually thought it was strange.

In the original work, Maestro sacrifices himself, making himself the final sacrifice to cause the Demon King to descend.

But now it is different.

The black pillars, absent in the original work, and the gates of the Underworld opening early had accelerated Earth and the Underworld’s assimilation.

As Earth assimilated with the Underworld and demons emerged, the Demon King too would soon descend on his own power.

The Underworld assimilation phenomenon, occurring much earlier than originally scheduled, rendered Maestro’s actions meaningless.

The god of this world inhabiting the Demon King’s body has the objective to kill me, Lee Hoyeon.

This god, solely focused on that, is trying to descend to Earth as quickly as possible.

Such a being wouldn’t possibly care about Maestro.

“What do you know to open your mouth like that? The weight of fate I carry is heavier than anyone’s.”

“Bullshit. You’re just an abandoned lackey.”

Lee Hoyeon looked at Maestro, whose eyes were twitching, and slightly raised the corner of his mouth.

The ‘villain’ of this world, created for the Demon King’s descent, had lost life’s purpose.

What he wanted was for his own existence to be acknowledged.

Because he desired the acknowledgment of his existence so intensely, he had awakened enough to step into the Divine Realm.

However, just as intensely he desired it, it becomes a weakness.

Stimulating that part was not difficult.

“Your intentions are obvious. You’ll just hold out, and then attack together with the subjugation team and demons, right?”

“So what about it? Can you stop that?”

“Well. But even if you kill me like this… will the Demon King continue to need you?”

Maestro’s eyes widened.

Lee Hoyeon’s words were correct.

Demons were ultimately the Demon King’s subordinates.

Borrowing their power to kill Lee Hoyeon would not make the Demon King-nim acknowledge his existence.

Of course, killing Lee Hoyeon would not unconditionally result in acknowledgment.

However, Maestro, with amplified fear and anxiety, fell into confusion.

‘My existence is for the Demon King-nim’s descent. But borrowing the demons’ power is the same as receiving the Demon King-nim’s help….’

If he, acting alone to achieve the Demon King’s descent, can achieve nothing, then who will acknowledge him?

Sseu-uk-

Maestro fixed his gaze straight ahead.

However, he did not intend to charge recklessly.

He mostly maintains the building debris scattered all around.

Only if he could kill Lee Hoyeon, he wouldn’t miss that chance.

It was merely that level of a change in thinking.

‘His eyes have changed.’

Lee Hoyeon confirmed the surrounding magic power with Clairvoyance.

The barriers blocking his approach remained, but the magic of mind control spread all around had slightly decreased.

Meaning, that much magic power had returned to Maestro.

Ku-woong-

A storm of magic power surged through the barriers blocking movement.

Lee Hoyeon accelerated his body, evaded Maestro’s attack, and charged towards Maestro.

Pa-a-a-ang-!

Momentarily faltering from the wind so strong he couldn’t open his eyes, a heavy pressure struck his arm at the same time.

“This guy is really unbelievable, isn’t he.”

Lee Hoyeon scowled, looking at Maestro.

Just now, the bastard not only defended against his attack but had counterattacked.

‘With self-hypnosis, physical abilities increasing beyond the limit doesn’t make sense.’

A pure child has the belief that they won’t get hurt even if they fall from a high place.

However, merely trusting oneself cannot overcome the laws of physics.

‘He has surpassed the realm of living beings.’

Lee Hoyeon, who had personally created the Hall of the Moon’s Reflection, could tell.

Maestro’s self-hypnosis had already transcended the realm of humans or demons.

‘The Divine Realm.’

Maestro had fully ascended into the Divine Realm, which he had briefly stepped into.

At that fact, Lee Hoyeon unconsciously let out a short laugh.

“… Kk.”

Seeing Lee Hoyeon’s smile, Maestro furrowed his brow.

“How can you smile in this situation? There’s no need to wait for the demons. With my current strength, I can finish you off alone.”

“If you can, try it, bastard.”

Blue magic power enveloped Lee Hoyeon’s body.

His golden shining eyes became a flash and charged.

However, the result was the same.

Maestro blocked Lee Hoyeon with tremendous physical ability and overwhelming magic power.

Even without the magic of mind control, he had become overwhelming to Lee Hoyeon.

After a few exchanges.

Stepping back, Lee Hoyeon shook his left hand and scowled.

Even using spatial acceleration to land a blow, he was ultimately grazed by the storm.

Just being grazed for a moment caused the bones in his fist to be shattered.

“It would be best for you to give up now. The fight over there will soon end. You too should accept fate….”

“In this world, there are something called the laws of the world.”

“… What are you suddenly talking about?”

“If you transcend the limits of your species, this world stops you. That is the law of the world.”

Lee Hoyeon faintly smiled.

Visible through Clairvoyance, Maestro’s magic power had completely faded.

It was just as he had confirmed.

“Where you’re standing is the Divine Realm. Someone like you cannot step there recklessly.”

“What does that mean…?”

Ttuduk-

With a strange sound of the joints in his body forcibly breaking, Maestro’s body stopped abruptly.

Until just a moment ago, his limbs, moving freely, did not obey the brain’s commands.

“Kuh, keu-eup…?”

“That’s why you should have just defended.”

Lee Hoyeon ended Future Sight, looking at Maestro frozen like a statue.

From the moment Maestro assumed an offensive stance, only one future was visible in Lee Hoyeon’s eyes.

Without preparation, entering the Divine Realm, Maestro’s body could not endure and collapsed.

If he had instead firmly focused solely on defense, a different outcome might have occurred.

However, by assuming an offensive stance, the burden imposed on Maestro’s body increased exponentially.

He could not control his emotions.

“Th-this is… What did you do!?”

On Maestro’s face, bewilderment bloomed.

“It happens because you’re forcing your body.”

His passion for his own purpose is commendable, but the Divine Realm, luckily reached, ultimately has its limits.

Maestro’s body had already long surpassed its limits.

Seeing that state, an idea suddenly occurs.

If the God of Betting hadn’t intervened, would Lee Hoyeon too have ended up in such a state?

‘I don’t think so.’

There’s no basis for it, but that’s how it felt.

Unlike Maestro, Lee Hoyeon had solid preparation.

Tuk- Tuk-

Floating in the air, the building debris acting as barriers slowly fell and brushed Lee Hoyeon’s shoulder.

Maestro’s magic power had lost its strength.

“Th-this is unbelievable….”

Hwi-i-ing-

Confirmed Maestro was completely incapacitated, Lee Hoyeon focused his magic power in his hand.

Blooming on his palm was a spiral-shaped magic storm.

It was Spiral.

“This can’t be happening. I, how have I endured…!”

Jeo-beok. Jeo-beok.

Maestro contorted his face, looking at the approaching Lee Hoyeon.

“If only I, too, had been born with a fate like yours……!”

Maestro cursed his fate.

His fate, having no choice but to aid the world’s destruction, tormented Maestro until his mind broke.

Ultimately, Maestro had no choice but to accept his fate.

However, now it is different; he refuses death and wants to leave his own existence behind.

Dying by the antithesis of his fate, this situation was infuriating.

“Do you perhaps want to live?”

“….”

“Nothing will change even if you live. Ultimately, your fate of trying to destroy humanity will repeat, and I will have to stop you again.”

Lee Hoyeon met eyes with Maestro.

And instead of persuasion, he raised his magic power.

“So, I’ll let you escape that dog-like fate. It will only be for a moment.”

“Ha, haha… So that’s it. There was such an easy way, why did I succumb to fate?”

Maestro slowly closed his eyes, and Lee Hoyeon thrust Spiral down from his hand.

His end, having lived for the destruction of humanity and the Demon King’s descent alone, was surprisingly hollow.

“… Tsk.”

Somehow, the aftertaste is bitter.

If it were the original Lee Hoyeon, he would have killed him, saying, ‘So what, bastard.’

Perhaps because of the word ‘fate’, he had become sentimental.

“Eclipse.”

Gathering Maestro’s magic power dispersed in the air, he creates a small sun.

Lee Hoyeon, without a word, burned away all of Maestro’s traces remaining in the world.

As a side effect of activating Future Sight, Clairvoyance, and Mind’s Eye simultaneously, he had a headache, but it was still bearable.

“My head hurts… but this much is not as bad as I thought.”

Lee Hoyeon turned his head.

Even though Maestro died, the Demon Cult extermination was not over.