Your Commander-in-Chief – Chapter 67

“Then I’m off to complete a quest?”

“Yeees~”

After giving me some basic information about this village, Priscilla dashed off to hunt alone.

I heard various stories, but none about the Demon Fortress.

It seemed I would have to venture into uncharted territory.

As I wandered around the village, I stumbled upon a user who resembled a Demon Clan NPC.

The tall warlock had pale skin and a pair of large horns jutting from his head.

He also had wings sprouting from his back, and a tail that swung about haphazardly from underneath his robe.

“Hey there!”

“Uh, me?”

“Yes!”

The warlock user took a step back in surprise as I approached him.

He seemed to have a very timid personality, contrary to his appearance.

“Did you reincarnate as a Demon Clan member?”

“Ah… yes, that’s right. You can do that in this village.”

“What are the benefits of reincarnation?”

“You get a 3% boost to strength and intelligence, and you gain the [Magic Liberation] skill.”

“Magic Liberation?”

“I hear it can be used once a day, but the specific effects aren’t mentioned. I have no idea what it does.”

The warlock user said that while he seemed to be looking around in empty air as if manipulating his skill window.

“I’m thinking of trying it out now. Want to watch?”

“Sure!”

I nodded and looked up at him.

What a kind guy to show me a skill that can only be used once a day.

He seemed to need the right posture to use the skill, as he stood a little way back, arms spread wide and slightly bent at the waist.

At that moment, black magic erupted from his entire body.

Kwaaaah-!

“Oh…”

That was cool. Really cool.

There was no other way to express it. His body was enveloped in black magic like the red vigor that flowed from mine.

He looked completely different from how he usually appeared. He was the very embodiment of a wicked warlock.

The warlock glanced at his hands and started moving his body around.

It seemed he was pleased with the black magic pouring out of him.

“What’s the effect?”

“Oh, it’s a buff that increases all stats by 30%. The duration is very short, just one minute.”

“30% increase?”

“Yes…”

“Wow…”

I kept marveling as I circled around him.

The moment the one-minute duration ended, the black magic that had enveloped him vanished in an instant.

“Are there any penalties? Like a penalty?”

“Except for a 10% increase in damage taken from holy attributes, there’s nothing else.”

“Wow…”

That definitely meant it was a gain to reincarnate as a Demon Clan member.

“So when you reincarnate, do you get horns, wings, and a tail?”

“No, that’s a customization feature you can set during reincarnation. Are you going to reincarnate as a Demon Clan member, Yeo?”

“Yes!”

The warlock user smiled slightly and pointed to a large monument at the center of the village.

Around it, unknown skeletons were adorned, creating a very eerie atmosphere.

“Go over there and place your hand on the monument, and it’ll ask if you want to reincarnate.”

“Is that all?”

The warlock user nodded.

Then, perhaps planning to hunt right away, he said goodbye and left the village.

Reincarnating as a Demon Clan member, huh…

If I used this reincarnation system, I could wear the wings I received as an arena prize without worry.

I normally didn’t wear them out of fear of how other users would perceive me, but as a Demon Clan member, I could use that as an excuse and nobody would give me strange looks.

I approached the massive monument in the center of the village as the warlock user directed.

It looked suspicious, standing out as something quite extraordinary.

Following the warlock user’s instructions, I placed my hand on the monument.

[Will you reincarnate as a Demon Clan member?]

※You may receive penalties from NPCs that worship a benevolent deity.

A message popped up without any particular conditions.

Without hesitation, I clicked the YES button.

As soon as I did, black magic began to spread from the monument, enveloping my body.

“Oh…”

There wasn’t really any special sensation. It felt more like a flashy show.

At that moment, a translucent window appeared in front of me.

It was a customization system for setting features like wings and horns as a privilege of reincarnating as a Demon Clan member.

The settings were pretty basic; I couldn’t adjust much.

I attempted to change my arm and leg lengths, but that was out of the question.

I chose a small horn on my head.

If I chose large horns, it might hinder me in narrow spaces later on.

I also deemed a tail unnecessary. It was better to minimize any unnecessary hitbox.

There was no need to set wings either; I already had a pair of very cool and large wings that couldn’t be customized.

I finished my reincarnation settings.

In that moment, the magic that had enveloped me spread in all directions.

With the stat boosts to strength and intelligence, my overall stats increased slightly.

As I moved my body around, I could feel the slight difference.

Next was my head.

As I raised my hand to touch my head, I felt the small horn.

Next, I checked the skill [Magic Liberation].

As the warlock user said, the specific effects weren’t mentioned.

[Magic Liberation]

Releases the magic embedded in your body to enhance your physical abilities.

Can be used only once a day.

※Cannot be used outside of Hell.

The changes didn’t stop there. Perhaps because I had just finished reincarnating as a Demon Clan member?

The names of the Demon Clan NPCs walking around me turned green.

It indicated a complete friendly status.

In Deron, there was a sub-quest opening system based on friendliness.

Demon Clan NPCs were also wandering around with exclamation mark icons above their heads, signifying new sub-quests had opened.

I roamed the village, trying to talk to all the Demon Clan NPCs.

I was looking to find the main quest that led to the Demon Fortress.

However, in this village, I couldn’t find any quest details relating to the Demon Fortress.

As I stood in the middle of the village, pondering the sub-quests, a message arrived from Hwarang.

Hwarang: [Did you find the Demon Fortress quest?]

Yeo: [No, not yet.]

Hwarang: [Look at this. [Invitation to the Demon Fortress]]

Hwarang linked an item called the Invitation to the Demon Fortress in the message.

Where on earth did he get this invitation?

Yeo: [Where did you get it?]

Hwarang: [It drops at a low rate in the Hell Elite Zone hunting ground. We’re currently at war with the opposing alliance because of this.]

“Ah…”

I finally opened the guild chat.

Even in that brief moment, the guild chat was buzzing with activity.

It seemed I needed to make my move.

I spread my arms. As always, I was bringing out the adorable creature that handled my movement.

A large magical formation began to spread in the air. From within it, a fiery steed jumped out.

“Neigh!”

I quickly mounted the hellfire horse.

I was off to the coordinates sent by Hwarang.

Clop clop clop clop—

The hellfire horse galloped at a blistering speed.

It was a level of speed that was on a different scale from the sluggish players passing by.

Yeo: [What’s the situation like?]

Hwarang: [Similar. We’re pushing and pulling at each other.]

As soon as I checked Hwarang’s message, I downed various doping potions.

The moment I arrived, the likelihood of fighting was very high.

I dashed swiftly over the tainted land.

There was nothing blocking my path, allowing the steed to reach maximum speed.

The wind whipped back my cloak and tousled my hair with each gust.

How long had I run? The moment I approached the coordinates Hwarang marked, a dazzling effect burst forth from a high hill.

That was the place.

“Let’s go!”

Clop clop clop!

The hellfire horse faithfully obeyed my command, beginning to ascend the hill.

Even while running up the slope, its speed didn’t decrease.

It was a flaw in the game system.

Neigh-!

The moment I reached the top of the hill, I kicked off the horse and leaped.

As chaos unfolded in all directions came into view, I quickly assessed the positions of the enemy.

Hwarang and Helena were also present.

The two of them were making an overwhelming display, but the opposing team was no slouch either.

Boom!

I landed right in the center of the battlefield.

Thud—my heart raced.

I immediately plunged my sword into the ground.

[Fallen Sun God’s Domain Declaration]

A wide black sanctuary spread out in accordance with the Demon Sword.

The stats of my guild members and allied members within the range sharply increased, while the opposing alliance’s defense significantly decreased.

“Gah…”

“Guild Master?”

“Blood Demon!”

“Kill him!”

Voices from my guild members mingled with those from the opposing alliance.

As I deflected magic attacks coming from all directions, I shouted.

“Magic!!!”

This was something I had envisioned from the moment I laid eyes on the Magic Liberation skill.

I dropped right in the middle of the battlefield, proclaiming Magic Liberation as I used the skill.

The information about reincarnating as a Demon Clan member hadn’t been revealed yet.

Everyone would surely admire my splendid figure.

I deliberately shouted loudly.

It was to draw everyone’s attention.

Before using Magic Liberation, I would employ every skill at my disposal.

Golden rays began to shine from the tip of my sword, and I activated the [Berserk] skill to boost all my speeds.

“Liberation!!!”

[Magic Liberation]

Kwaaaah-!

A rough explosion erupted from my body.

Black magic spread out, filling the area.

The more dramatic the display, the better. I quickly equipped the [Wings of Phronos, the Demon Sword Owner] that had been nestled away in the corner of my costume window.

In that moment, massive demon wings unfolded from my back along with the black magic.

I had used everything at my disposal.

Thanks to the dramatically increased stats, my hand holding the sword started to tremble.

“What the heck is that…”

The enemy alliance member facing me stepped back in shock.

I aimed my sword at him.

Everyone was watching. Every single person here was looking at me.

The expansive wings spread wide, and small horns sprouted from my head.

The black magic and red vigor pouring from my body added to the spectacle.

The corners of my mouth curled up. I couldn’t contain my smile.

This overwhelming appearance was surely that of a Demon Lord.

I am the Demon Lord.

But I didn’t say it aloud.

Because I didn’t want to repeat that dark history again.

Crackle-!

The moment the black lightning spread out from the tip of my sword, my body shot forward.

Using the [Charge] skill. With the boosted stats, my speed was vastly beyond what it had been before.

Swhack-!

I felt a sharp sensation at the edge of my sword.

The head of the opposing player I sped past flew off cleanly.

It was the same technique I had used in the arena finals, but this time the name was different.

-Demon Lord’s Strike-

I thought of the technique’s name in my heart and flicked the blood off my sword.

The crimson energy oozing from my body left a faint afterimage in the air.

It was immensely satisfying to create such a spectacle.

Both enemies and allies alike had their mouths agape, seemingly awed by my magnificent display.