<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Episode 99>
Sometimes Lim Mi-ryung imagines.
If I could go back in time, if I could return to that moment when I had lost everything, would my life have been different?
“Mom, I love you.”
“I’ll be back, dear.”
Now, those faces are blurred.
Just thinking about them hurts so much, it feels like my heart is about to break. The faces I forcibly deleted come back unbidden.
“…Unfortunately, both your parents have passed away.”
What went wrong? I blamed the world…
What sin did I commit? I blamed myself.
Pretending to be insane, I pack my bag and take out the notice.
Preparing breakfast, preparing lunch, preparing dinner… I waited endlessly for those who would never return.
“Pull yourself together, Mi-ryung! The living must go on!”
Living wasn’t really living.
“Big sister, you can start again.”
Again? Go through this pain again?
I wanted to d*e. I tried to d*e.
I had to d*e to end this pain.
If only, when everything was cast away and I was on the threshold of d*ath…
He was there.
“For what do you grieve so?”
“Since this life is already forsaken, would you use it for you?”
This was the day Lim Mi-ryung first saw Him.
That day, she became His loyal servant.
A handful of rest extracted from the abyss of hell.
The price of faith was oblivion, and this ‘oblivion’ was the rest that saved Lim Mi-ryung.
By His will.
Upon opening her eyes, she prays, and ends the day with a prayer before sleep.
By His will.
She preaches to people, tames beasts, and moves forward.
By His will.
She punishes heresies and offers them to Him.
Every day, stained in bl**d.
She committed countless evils. She abandoned her humanity and committed wicked deeds.
So what? I am not human. I am His servant.
Human Lim Mi-ryung has been dead for a long time due to the drug called ‘oblivion.’ What remains is the High Priest Lim Mi-ryung, the faithful servant of Celutis.
High Priest Lim Mi-ryung walks in her white priest robes towards the altar.
The bl**d streaming down from the altar welcomes her like a red carpet, likely His consideration.
She makes the Sign of the Cross and carefully steps onto the carpet of bl**d with her bare feet.
The hem of her robe drags and turns red with bl**d.
White footprints are imprinted onto the bl**d-drenched stairs.
Step, step.
The priests standing beside the stairway collectively recite prayers.
In accordance with His will.
That phrase she had repeated infinitely.
Yes, according to His will. This dirty world must be His.
At the top of the altar, High Priest Lim Mi-ryung lies down.
As the bl**d turns her white priest robe red, she doesn’t blink an eye.
“Begin.”
The priests waiting nearby open her arms.
The right arm is stretched out and placed in shackles, the left arm stretched and placed in shackles.
Her legs are also tied.
And she is stood.
An inverted cross.
With her head on the ground and her legs stretched towards the sky, it symbolizes the absurdity of the world, a symbol of Celutis, recreated through Lim Mi-ryung.
“High Priestess, we will infuse the ‘Divine bl**d.'”
A needle plunges into Lim Mi-ryung’s body, the drug of bloodline inheritance, ‘Divine bl**d.’
Suddenly, an image of a ‘child’ crosses her mind. A child left to d*e by her parents that she saved.
Lady, Lady. That child followed her closely, and she even gave the child the baptismal name ‘Emil.’
‘Thinking about it, I did leave something behind.’
‘Divine bl**d’ infused with ‘Ice Shift’ enters her body.
She can feel her life span diminishing in real-time. She can feel her soul being carved away.
Slowly, her fingers and toes freeze.
The pain of a statue. The pain of freezing while still alive, yet Lim Mi-ryung seeks Him.
“By His will…”
I am His servant.
An existence created solely to serve Him.
This life was given to me by Him, so naturally, it should be returned to Him.
Smiling, Lim Mi-ryung closes her eyes.
Archangels descended. The Archangels, with their pure white wings flapping, landed on the altar.
Agrh…
They ate.
They ate Lim Mi-ryung.
“…To become His… fertilizer…”
The false belief’s conclusion.
Thus, Lim Mi-ryung became a living offering, torn to pieces.
Attack Day 2.
I learned an interesting fact while talking with my brother and sister.
“Does Red Gate not have a name?”
“…What did you learn at the academy?”
“Min-ji, teach him if he doesn’t know instead of scolding him. I’ll explain it. Listen closely.”
Red Gates appear suddenly. You can’t predict what’s inside, so how can the gate be named?
By the way, the gate level is assigned after the conquest by considering various factors like the type and difficulty of the monsters, not judged while attacking.
“Then names are given after the conquest?”
“Mostly, yes.”
“Also, in case of failed clearance attempts, names are given sometimes as a warning.”
“Hmm.”
It was fascinating.
This Red Gate.
……
…
Attack Day 5.
I realized anew that the people in my family use their bodies more than their minds.
It doesn’t quench my intellectual curiosity much, hence I went to seek answers from my sister’s smart friend, Eunbi-娜.
“Hmm? You’re curious about the Red Gate conquest, right? Good thing you came. This sister is an expert in that field. Ahem!”
The Red Gate immediately disgorges monsters upon appearing. In technical terms, this process is called ‘Resurgence,’ and it seems that these resurged monsters instinctively k*ll any surrounding life forms.
“Doesn’t matter whether they are proactively aggressive monsters or not?”
“Yep, they’ll try to k*ll no matter what. Hmm, how to express this… yeah. Think of it as a group experiencing a frenzied state.”
So the Red Gate constantly regurgitates monsters for 24 hours.
“Getting back to the subject, how do we conquer the Red Gate? Same with any ordinary gate. Go in and defeat the boss. Except! You need defending forces outside.”
Even as we talk right now, monsters are surging out.
That is why we need a ‘Defense Team.’
Their job is to block the monsters flowing out while the ‘Conquest Team’ clears the gate.
So it needs to be cleared as quickly as possible to minimize the damage.
……
…
Attack Day 8.
Commander Eunbi-娜 and the strategists have categorized this gate level as ‘Level 6’ based on the information gathered thus far.
It was not as high as expected.
Based on the power of arrows shot by Dark Elves, the power of spirits, the number of individuals, and the size of the field, along with various tricks.
However, there was one odd point.
“The battlefield and monsters indicate Level 5, but the number of individuals seems excessive.”
“Yeah…”
“Looks like it was artificially triggered by some means.”
“But isn’t that impossible? We were taught that gates cannot be interfered with by humans?”
“I thought so too, so I asked Dad.”
Jin Yu-ri drew closer.
“There’s a way to increase ‘pollution’ using artifacts or offerings.”
“…Ah, they didn’t teach this to prevent misuse.”
“That’s right.”
“Anyway, thanks…”
Suddenly, a feeling of déjà vu.
A fundamental question popped up.
“Hold on. Hey, you’re not allowed in the command room. How do you know this information?”
“Park Ki-hyuk, stop acting so amateur.”
Jin Yu-ri stood up straight and declared confidently.
“Of course, I overheard. Since you seemed curious. Did I do well?”
“… Jeez, Jin Yu-ri. What an idiot.”
“Hehe.”
……
…
Attack Day 11.
While vigorous physical discussions with the family are enjoyable, deep intellectual exchanges about magical knowledge with Jin Do-ha were also very gratifying.
“Hmm, this Meteor formula, isn’t it a bit heavy? Uncle can use it because he is unconstrained by mana consumption, but it wouldn’t be suitable for a normal mage.”
“Then what do you think, Ki-hyuk?”
“If it’s lightened in this way… ”
“Wow, it really has become much lighter.”
“He lightened it. Around the 8.5 class level.”
“The 8.5 class?”
“Truthfully, neither Uncle nor I should still be constrained by class levels.”
“Indeed true words. Fire is fire, and water is water.”
“Whether it’s Flare or Flame Buster or Aqua Ball or Aqua Buster, they are the same fire and water.”
“Brilliant. You have completely understood what I mean!”
“What?”
Hahaha!
As we laugh, recognizing each other, the voice of Eunbi-娜, my sister, and Jin Yu-ri reached us.
“Did you understand?”
“Huh… I think I get it?”
“Brother! Ask me too!”
“…Did you understand?”
“No!”
… Well, she’s a warrior, it’s fine.
But Yu-ri, shouldn’t you intervene if you’re involved?
I worried deeply.
……
…
Attack Day 17.
The conquest of the gate is progressing smoothly, but the Archangels and Fanatic guys that had been quiet for a while have appeared.
However, it’s strange. Why are they over there?
“… Min-ji, I’m not mistaken, right?”
“…If they’re with the Dark Elves, yes. It looks that way to me too.”
“Hmm… X d*mn…”
Clearly, Dark Elves are proactive monsters, yet these guys are calmly standing next to them.
A ominous feeling creeps in.
Something is wrong.
……
…
Attack Day 23.
Why must bad omens always come true?
Somehow, it seems this gate was ‘consumed’ by Archangels.
When I conveyed this fact, the command personnel were in a state of shock.
“Does the Archangel consuming the boss mean that it becomes the boss?”
“I saw it directly. People in Optimum would know. I reported this to mother.”
“Yes, I also witnessed it before. Judging from the circumstances, it seems the boss of this gate has already been eaten. What do you plan to do, both of you?”
Eunbi-娜 sought opinions from two people: Dad and Jin Do-ha.
“Haha! What’s the problem? Just break through it. Young fellows, have some spirit! The rear will be handled by the adults. Puha!”
“…You shouldn’t laugh so rashly. Hmm… Let things unfold as they will. I too shall follow your path.”
After pondering for a moment, Eunbi-娜 seems to have made a decision and nodded her head.
“Because a variable appeared, let’s discard the previous plan. We’ll increase speed. Also, Ki-hyuk.”
Eunbi-나 says to increase speed while looking at me.
“White Tiger and Mountain Lord will be assigned to you. Can you destroy all ‘Objects’ within three days?”
“….”
Three days?
Smiling, I responded.
“Two days will suffice.”
As darkness descends over the forest.
Through the storm of arrows, Park Ki-hyuk dashes, his sword slicing downward. The moonlight pierces the darkness, dividing his enemies in front.
Following closely is Park Min-ji.
Next, she transforms into a white flash, sweeping through the area. Her speed is beyond the reach of the eye, transcending recognition. Park Min-ji cuts through her enemies at incredible speed.
The Dark Elves attempt to create distance.
However, blocking their escape route is Park Su-hyeok.
His sword ‘Heaven’ is momentarily tinted gold…
Space shatters.
Not a single one can escape. The Dark Elves are shredded to pieces.
“Brother, Sister.”
“Go ahead.”
“We’ll take care of the clean-up.”
With a kick, Park Ki-hyuk rockets into the sky.
By his side, Jin Yu-ri equipped with the Dragoonian follows.
“Is the magic formation ready?”
“Perfect.”
The formation Jin Yu-ri installed is.
‘Interception Barrier Magic.’
Recently, during the ‘Kingmaker Operation’ at Queen Mantis’ Palace, it was revealed that once Jin Yu-ri saw a magic, she could replicate it fairly well, and it was sufficient to block around the ‘Objects.’
The groundwork is flawless.
The two exchange glances and increase their speed.
Bang-!
A sonic boom erupts as the two pierce through the air.
After an unknown amount of time…
Their target comes into view. Amid the guard of a hundred Dark Elves lies a slumbering Wood Golem.
This Wood Golem, the size of a building, is the ‘Object’ we seek.
Each of these objects holds various attributes and grants buffs corresponding to its attribute to the boss.
The attribute of this sleeping Wood Golem is ‘Regeneration.’
Real-time healing, and this ‘Regeneration’ attribute must be eradicated.
First, the Dark Elves.
“Should I handle it?”
“I’ll do it.”
Wings sprout from Jin Yu-ri’s back.
Wings made of red mana complete the process.
War Armor, the gloves of the Dragoonian open.
The hidden magic gems beneath the gloves emit light.
Inferno (Revised)
Inferno
The Inferno shot through the Dragoonian.
Four strands of fiery red beams pierced the ground.
Explosions of fire, scattering corpses.
The ground boils with flame. All living beings are reduced to ashes.
When the last Dark Elf dissipates in flame,
Finally, the Object, the Wood Golem wakes,
And rises.
In sync with this, behind Park Ki-hyuk, ‘Beings’ appear.
Baphomet, Asura, Fenril, Chimera.
The Great Demon’s face cuts through the dark, emitting dark light,
A hexagram appears in the sky.
“Anything learned must be applied.”
Formula Expansion.
Meteor (Revised)
Meteor
Roar-!
Clouds split as meteors descend.
If its attribute is ‘Regeneration’, then dying before regeneration occurs is sufficient.
The Meteor spell, while slightly scaled down, poses no problem against a Wood Golem of this size.
The dazzling meteor streaking down adorned in fiery flames crashes onto the head of the Wood Golem.
It collides.
Explosion.
Kaaaaa!!
“One down.”
