episode_0159

“Maintain formation as much as possible!”

“Watch out for the guys falling from the trees!”

The battle in the forest was fierce.

Just by listening from afar, dozens… no, hundreds of urgent cries could be heard, including harsh groans and screams.

“I think it’s time to go now.”

A little further away from the battlefield, a complex magic circle was drawn on the floor.

And above it all, there were three of us standing side by side: me, Melissa, and Leia.

“If you teleport, we’ll buy you some time, so use that time to head straight to the Demon King’s Castle.”

“I will also try to cause as much trouble as possible in my original form.”

There was tension on both their faces.

A gamble where you put yourself in a situation where you might die.

They were my most trustworthy colleagues at this moment, showing me trust and expectations, entrusting me with everything.

“Please.”

My heart feels crushed by the pressure and burden.

A greater sense of tension than when facing death.

The sensations I felt throughout my body were so unfamiliar and strange that I felt like I had become a different person.

‘In the end, I’m going to have to go through this hardship.’

As I held the sword’s handle to steady my mind, a familiar texture was felt through my palm.

The light yet firm handle quickly brought me back to my senses.

As always, since I’ve come this far, I have no choice but to do it.

As I thought about it, I began to feel a little more relaxed in my heart as usual.

‘Well… it’s not like there’s no compensation.’

Although I have come to this expedition because of many entanglements, I have no intention of returning empty-handed.

For me, who doesn’t really care about fame or money, the warrior who defeated the Demon King and Nabal are all unnecessary.

The reward I wanted was, as always, a lump of desire.

Since I’ve suffered so much because of the Demon King, I should capture him alive and enjoy his body to my heart’s content.

The Demon King, a great danger to humanity.

The pleasure of subduing her would be reward enough.

‘I’ll torture you as much as I’ve tormented you.’

The anticipation was already spreading in my head to the point where I almost let out a dark laugh.

Because of this, the tension of the battle gradually subsided.

Instead, a strange sense of anticipation flowed through my veins.

Leia and Melissa unconsciously tightened their grip on the handle as they casted teleportation.

“Then let’s begin.”

Immediately afterwards, the pure white light characteristic of teleportation completely covered my vision.

The heartbeat I felt in that short moment had suddenly become very fast.

Normally, teleportation would have taken place with a brief blink of vision and then immediately move to that location, but it felt like time was passing slowly.

But that didn’t last long, and the green forest and numerous monsters filled the view again.

“Kiiik···! This··· is a human! ”

“Kueeek―!”

“An enemy has appeared behind you!”

The various screams, each with a distinct personality that is far more intense than that of humans, scratch unpleasantly in the ears.

As expected, the monsters that discovered us immediately rushed at us.

But those who were relatively close by were killed by the intense flames.

Whoosh whoosh!

“Keuuuugh···!!!”

“Bu··· It’s a fire···!”

“Get away!”

The monsters had no choice but to step back and watch the situation unfold as the hot heat spread around them.

But Leia didn’t pay any attention and immediately turned back into her dragon form.

“D··· It’s a dragon!”

“Don’t be afraid!”

Glossy red scales and huge wings that exude majesty.

The monsters were momentarily taken aback by the large, powerful creature that appeared in the middle of the battlefield, but then rushed toward her.

“You’re so cheeky!”

Leia’s intimidating voice, heard for the first time in a long time, shook the forest.

She slammed the rushing men with her huge legs, and various corpses flew into the air along with uprooted trees.

“Don’t panic, surround and attack!”

The monsters’ attacks were so fierce that it could almost be described as pouring down.

On the outside, it looked like Leia was slaughtering her enemies, but her body was also slowly showing signs of injury.

“I’ll cause confusion, so take advantage of the gap.”

To help her, Melissa chanted a spell and pure white chains rose from the floor.

Dozens of chains continued to pierce the monsters’ bodies like skewers.

Indiscriminate attacks by Leia and Melissa.

Naturally, the monsters’ attention was focused on them.

“Then··· shall we go see the Demon King’s face?”

thud-!

Blows away the body by pouring mana into the legs.

There was no monster that could respond to explosive movements in the midst of chaos.

Occasionally, there were those who tried to attack in their own way, but they were turned into chunks of meat just by swinging their swords past them.

“A suspicious guy is heading to the Demon King’s Castle!”

“Catch the dragon and that woman first!”

As expected, heading to the Demon King’s Castle was relatively easy.

Most of the troops were currently engaged in fierce battles with the Allied Forces, and even those who were in the rear were tied down.

Just by running and cutting down the guys who occasionally got in my way, I was able to reach the entrance of the Demon King’s Castle in no time.

“You look so dirty and ominous.”

Even from afar, there was an ominous atmosphere, but up close it was even more so.

The colors are so dark and gloomy that anyone who sees it for the first time would think it is a cursed castle.

The presence of a powerful and gloomy force flowing from within strongly stimulated the survival instinct.

But I couldn’t stop my moving legs.

“Intrusion···! Ugh···! ‘

As soon as he thrust his sword into the neck of the monster that had been placed as a gatekeeper, he threw himself inside.

Outside, the sun was already high in the sky, but inside the Demon King’s castle, it was strangely dark.

Fortunately, however, thanks to the aura of power flowing out, it wasn’t too difficult to guess where the Demon King was.

‘It was easy up to this point, but the next part is the problem.’

A sense of oppression so intense that it can be felt vividly despite being so far away.

The sensation of feeling firsthand how powerful the Demon King is made any optimistic thoughts disappear.

Although there were far fewer monsters to encounter than outside, the tingling skin was tightening the tension that had loosened.

“Is it finally time to face each other?”

The Demon King’s castle was huge, but it didn’t take long to find it as long as you knew where your target was.

As evidence, a stronger force than before was leaking out from inside the door.

An ominous door with a black glow.

There was no need to even ask who was behind this.

I kicked it with all my might and the door flew open with a loud noise.

Kwaaang―!

“You’re here.”

As soon as I entered, a small but clear voice pierced my ears.

Despite the somewhat violent appearance, the calm voice seemed to scratch the survival instinct.

The confidence that no matter what happens, you will never be defeated.

The calmness that only a being with such power can possess.

A chill ran down my spine and my alertness rose.

“There’s no need to ask who it is.”

Black armor sitting on a throne.

The person wearing it confidently revealed his or her presence without needing any explanation.

The red light streaming from between the intimidating helmets was looking down at me arrogantly.

“I never thought a headache would come to me like this.”

“What a coincidence. I was thinking you were a pain in the ass too.”

He approaches her with a sword in his hand.

The sound of footsteps echoing around felt like a signal before a typhoon arrived.

Step, step.

As the distance narrowed, the tingling sensation on my skin became more intense.

Accordingly, the sense of alertness and tension was also rising without end.

“I never thought I’d make such a stupid choice at the end.”

Even though the distance had narrowed to a point where he could immediately rush in, the Demon King sitting on the throne was relaxed.

She just looked at me intently, as if observing me, and showed no sign of getting up.

“Stupid choice? Seeing you two here like this, I think my plan worked.”

“That’s a stupid choice. All the soldiers I gathered were used as bait, and you, the biggest saboteur, will die by my hand.”

“You’ll know when you see it.”

He grips his sword tightly and runs forward, kicking the ground.

When the distance had narrowed to just in front of me, I swung my sword, but all I could hear was the sharp sound of swords clashing against swords.

visor-!

“You’re stupid and you’re hastening death.”

Before she knew it, she was holding an ominous red sword in her hand.

She was sitting there, arrogantly accepting the sword.

“It’s time to get up, so get up now.”