168. King of the Snakes (3)
*
The abyss of Sadarkelisa, the gate leading to the territory of the snakes, was opening. With great difficulty, a demon was forcing its way through the boundary of the world, tearing it apart.
-Kugugugung…
The mighty demon’s body was a magical phenomenon in itself. Beyond the level of a demon lord, a sovereign-class demon. The great demon of hell, who commands dozens or hundreds of generals with a single hand, was tearing through space and descending into the mortal world.
The atmosphere shook, and the world cowered. Fernandez felt the life of the rapidly drying earth. Even in this corrupted town, there was still a remnant of nature’s essence. But as the gates of hell opened and the demon’s aura arrived, all of that began to vanish.
-Kung, kung, kung.
It felt as if the surrounding magic was submitting to a single entity. The distortion of gravity was occurring due to the immense power. Magic swirled like a whirlwind, and at its end… within the crimson shadows of the abyss…
[I know you.]
A voice, as if dozens of venomous snakes were licking the air, flowed out. A hissing sound could be heard from within the crack leading to the abyss. A sickly yellow light flickered.
“I know you too. Ksharax. Duke Ksharax, one of Sadarkelisa’s three children, ruler of the five abysses. King of the Snakes…”
[So knowledge of me still remains in the material world.]
-Kwadddeuk.
A powerful hand crushed the ground as it advanced. From the boundary of the abyss, the demon’s head, neck, and shoulders wrapped in rope-like muscles emerged. The crack was too narrow, and he was almost shattering the boundary as he came through.
But even with only half his body, his very existence was a blasphemy to the entire world. His crimson scales shimmered, creating a strange mist. The mist, flickering in various colors, dispersed and corroded everything it touched.
-Chiiiik…
The demon’s foot stepped on the ground. The earth screamed as it burned, leaving blackened footprints. The land, the sky, the world itself rejected him.
“In the past thousand years, no sovereign-class demon has been summoned.”
For an ordinary person, merely seeing this would result in contamination by hellish magic and the madness of the demon. Yet, Fernandez raised his greatsword and laughed.
“If I kill you, I’ll be the first in a thousand years to hunt a great demon.”
[How absurd. Is it a craving for glory? Humans are still foolish. You, and this world, are no match for me. I am your embodied death. Flee. I enjoy the hunt more that way.]
“Perhaps you know? The level of one’s spirit rises with the accumulation of life’s deeds.”
An old friend. Fernandez felt a sense of familiarity as he looked at the demon. This sticky sense of kinship was likely a product of the demon’s madness, but his mind had already been lightly tainted the moment he faced the great demon.
In an era where madness is common, a mind accustomed to madness. This level of insanity actually helps accelerate thought. Fernandez laughed.
“I will kill you and accumulate my deeds.”
The process of refining one’s divinity is a long path of asceticism. The mortal’s great deeds are the steps leading to the heavenly Temple of the Gods. Fernandez had already stepped onto that path.
At this point, to gain greater power, one must slay a stronger adversary. Fernandez spun his greatsword with one hand and planted it behind his back. Then, he reached for another greatsword and drew it.
-Kung, kung, kung.
He felt the rough divinity coursing through his veins from the hilt to his palm. It was like fueling a mechanical device. In fact, that feeling was accurate. His body was akin to a mechanical device designed to trigger divinity.
And Fernandez’s attitude toward his own body was of that nature. A consumable item, to be used as long as it maintained minimal functionality.
[That’s the sword of Vaitas. Truly, its level is high. But you, a mere mortal, holding it—how do you expect to survive against me?]
“Legends and tales say that it is always humans who slay monsters.”
Closing his eyes, that moment still comes to mind. The moment he first met Abelesas in the underground waterways of Infermur.
*
Demons have always deceived and tempted humans. The heavens only harvest human faith, but in jungles, swamps, forests, wilderness, deserts, and mountains, humanity’s enemies were nature and monsters themselves. Their allies were only themselves.
Yet, despite that, humans are the conquerors of the continent. Despite their short lives and fragile bodies, they burn their souls and lives to move forward. Never stopping. Even if slow, even if weak, even if they fall. They rise again, step by step.
Thus, it is the era of flames. And thus, the era of humans.
*
The human guardian dragon laughed as it spoke. Let me tell you why this era is so unfavorable. The madness of demons, the overloading of divinity, made his head spin with heat. This sensation, this desperation felt by mortals, is the power of mortals.
Fernandez opened his eyes and looked at the demon towering over him. The demon’s massive frame was proof of its life. Demons grow larger as time passes and as they consume more spirits. Its bloated body was evidence of that.
He spun his greatsword with one hand and held it diagonally. In a stance aimed at the upper body, Fernandez stood firm against the demon’s aura. The era of humans is the era of flames.
“Thus, we shall burn the demons.”
[Inquisition Officer. Come. I am pleased by your spirit. I hope your arrogance remains until your very end. Human souls are sweeter when they shine.]
The demon laughed as it raised its arm. For a moment, their gazes clashed, and they charged at each other almost simultaneously.
*
Orion couldn’t believe his eyes. He had summoned beastmen to support the demon’s battle, but he couldn’t complete the magic knot.
-Boom! Kwaaaang!!
The greatsword swung wildly, cutting through the air. Step by step, Fernandez advanced, striking precisely in the direction of the demon’s assault. It was a storm of steel. The white greatsword, forged in the castle, shone on its own under the dark shadow of hellish magic, drawing its trajectory.
-Kwaaaang!
Strike after strike, capable of severing steel, continued relentlessly. It was an unbelievable ferocity, wielded with one hand. Despite his strength, his body’s durability was still that of a mortal. His body was withstanding the impact of the assault…
Every moment was twisting and distorting.
-*Crackle!*
A massive iron sword gripped by the demon clawed at the ground. Crimson curses trailed along the blade, burning alone, making his sword seem as if it were on fire. Thus, with each clash of swords with Fernandez, white and black, blue and red lights swirled and mixed together.
-*Boom!*
Another strike, a chillingly beautiful arc aimed at the demon’s forearm. But it was shallow. A few scales were shattered, and the greatsword bounced off weakly. The impact of the collision twisted Fernandez’s right arm in a grotesque direction.
-*Crunch!*
But Fernandez bent his waist to dodge the attack and roughly shook his shoulders. It was an extremely violent bone-setting technique, and the pain it would cause was beyond imagination. Yet, Fernandez instantly regained his combat ability and raised his sword again.
‘Minor injuries are being healed by divinity.’
Orion understood the man’s combat style and shuddered. It was the act of treating one’s own body as a piece of combat equipment. As long as functionality could be maintained, minor side effects were endured in battle.
Indeed, the divinity emanating from the holy sword was repairing his body. Roughly but surely, minor injuries healed in an instant. Thus, Fernandez’s combat style continued, taking minimal damage while unleashing maximum attacks.
This was a war of attrition. Fernandez’s spirit versus the demon’s flesh. It was a test to see which would break first. Orion, who hadn’t stopped for a moment, gazed at Fernandez’s blue eyes, leaving only long afterimages, and read the fragments of madness beyond his spirit.
It was the eyes of someone who could invest everything without hesitation for a purpose and goal, like a bullfighter. That man’s madness was rather a product of extreme rationality, and his rationality was rooted in a cold, ruthless judgment that even viewed himself as a utility value.
A madman. No human could act like that. Thus, Orion now watched their fierce battle with the feeling of facing an incomprehensible being.
*
The demonic aura emitted by the Great Demon was corroding Fernandez’s clothes. Though the divinity overflowing from his body lessened the corrosion, slowly and steadily, the demon’s energy gnawed at his clothes and flesh.
-*Crackle!*
Their blades clashed in mid-air, creating a stalemate between the demon’s power and his. The opposing forces intertwined, sparking. Feeling as if his soul was being torn apart, Fernandez clenched his teeth.
[Will you continue?]
“Seems like I’m not done yet.”
[You must know. Battles like this have a predetermined outcome. Your spirit and body are astonishing, but your power is not infinite. You are slowly perishing. Serve me instead.]
The Great Demon hissed, taking a step closer to him. *Thud.* The force made blood surge up his throat. The power of that single step twisted his insides, causing deep internal injuries.
[I value your talent and spirit highly. I will make you my right fang.]
“Oh, that’s nothing special.”
Ksharrak’s right fang. Tetragalan was the first demon he had slain. Fernandez laughed, glaring at the demon.
“But you’re right. This method doesn’t suit me yet.”
[This method?]
The demon tilted its head, looking down at him. Had the human world risen in rank? He hadn’t expected to face such a being on his first move, so he was somewhat surprised and amused. How sweet must the spirit of an era where such beings are common be?
“Then, let’s get back to business.”
Fernandez leaped back, putting distance between himself and the demon. Though the distance was such that they could reach each other in seconds if they charged. The demon didn’t pursue him. Instead, it curled its lips, baring its fangs as if to say, “Go ahead.”
-*Swoosh.*
Fernandez spun the greatsword behind his back, sheathing it, and raised his left hand, which he hadn’t used until now. Rolling up the half-melted sleeve, black bandages tightly wrapped around his arm were revealed.
“I obtained Malerun’s grimoire and made some improvements.”
Malerun of the Thousand Spire. That man had devoted himself to studying the rune glyph’s arcane magic, even abandoning his own magic. In the end, he became capable of hunting gods and absorbing their power, so it wasn’t a bad deal.
After defeating Malerun, Leia suggested he take whatever he wanted from the treasure vault. Fernandez chose only one book. The most valuable among the countless treasures the Malerun clan had collected over a millennium.
Malerun’s grimoire. A fusion of ancient northern rune glyphs and the unique arcane magic of elves, culminating in a magical system. A relic left by a great mage who had reached the pinnacle of his race, capable of forming its own school of magic.
It could be called the Malerun school. It was ironic that the one who killed its master became the sole inheritor of this magical system…
-*Crackle, crackle, crackle.*
Blue currents flowed down Fernandez’s arm. Simultaneously, the black cloth covering his arm burned away, revealing a muscular forearm.
[Rune glyphs…?]
“No. If anything, it should be called Malenglyphs.”
Patterns similar to ancient northern runes were densely engraved from his wrist to his shoulder. The divinity flowing through his veins made his entire left arm tingle.
-*Swoosh.*
Fernandez raised his hand and flicked his fingers. A character on his forearm burned away and disappeared—
“Come forth!”
-*Boom!!*
The moment Fernandez shouted, the surroundings turned blindingly white, tearing through the pale sky and dark clouds as three bolts of lightning struck down on the demon’s head. Fernandez’s left arm trembled violently, almost numb.
He suppressed his left arm, calming it, and laughed. A successful field test. A new magical system to fill the void left by the Bronze Throne, which couldn’t generate magic circuits and always had to worry about reserves.
A single stroke of Malenglyph could correspond to one spell. With enough time, effort, and materials, he could overlay and inscribe spells on his body.
It was the same method ancient mages used for their daily morning meditation. Like filling a quiver with arrows, he prepared spells on his forearm and used his body as a mechanism to fire them one by one.
It felt like a few nerves had snapped. Probably a side effect of this ability. He clenched his forearm as sensation slowly returned. Checking his fingers’ functionality, Fernandez reached back with his right arm and drew his greatsword.
-*Swoosh.*
Dain’s sword was drawn. The divinity that seeped into his body when using the Keyblade interfered with the delicate tuning of magic. It felt like becoming a mage again after a long time.
-A shortcut, but a very, very good one.
Faijashi laughed. Yes, he had missed this feeling. This sense of omnipotence.
-*Flick.*
Once again, his left index finger flicked, and lightning struck down on the kneeling Great Demon’s head.
-*Boom!!*
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