I’m the Main Villain but the Heroines Are Obsessed With Me

27 – 12. The Abyssal Presence (3)

Though he had delivered a powerful blow to Lillis, Ian couldn’t be at ease.

She was a formidable adversary, even among the demons. As Asmodeus’s right-hand, she was easily within the top 15.

To let his guard down against someone like her? From Ian’s perspective, it was an incomprehensible action.

The reason he didn’t get excited about the successful uppercut was that.

Huu.

Taking advantage of the distance created by Lillis, Ian assessed his physical condition.

“The injuries are severe….”

From the moment she initiated her attack, Lillis had been relentless.

She used her overflowing magic to launch attacks and occasionally swung her scythe, aiming for his life.

Even now, the wounds caused by her persisted.

There were numerous wounds scattered throughout. Blood was seeping out continuously.

“Hoo.”

Ian, who was trying to adjust his posture, frowned.

Every time he clenched his fist, a stinging pain was felt.

‘The flames of magic are also a problem to expect rapid regeneration,’

Originally, injuries like this would have been regenerated in an instant. However, the endlessly burning flames of magic delayed the recovery.

In order to heal the wounds, a sufficient amount of time was needed.

However, Ian did not have the luxury of that time.

Ian looked at Releases. Despite suffering significant damage, she was preparing to attack again.

In the end, Ian came to a certain conclusion.

‘It is difficult to kill her in the fantasy.’

It’s an obvious thing. In the fantasy, one does not die.

Regardless of whether an arm or a leg is severed here, one will not die upon returning to reality, although they may experience mental shock.

‘Of course, in my case, if I receive damage close to death, I will be expelled from the fantasy…’

What about Releases, who is virtually an irregular?

‘Liliess does not get expelled no matter how much damage she takes.’

In other words, in the fantasy, she was practically invincible.

It may be possible to inflict damage, but it is impossible to kill.

That was the biggest problem Ian faced.

‘Of course, in this situation, there is a way to attack her psychologically rather than physically, and forcefully expel her from the fantasy…’

Ian, who was contemplating for a moment, lowered his head.

Upon reflection, it seemed like an absurd idea.

Wasn’t Releases not a mere fantasy?

Targeting the one who dominates the spirit with a mental attack was nothing but foolishness.

It was a difficult situation to guarantee victory, but giving up was not an option.

Swish!

“You foolish mortal!”

“Ether.”

Crash!

“Argh!”

As soon as the strengthened fist pierced her body, Ian was certain.

She was not in her pristine state right now.

“Ian, that guy is weaker than I thought! Did I see it wrong?”

“No, you saw it right. Normally, without the buff from the Holy Sword Elysion, she would be an unbeatable enemy. But the situation is sufficient for us to face her.”

Lilith’s original level, in human terms, was equivalent to a mana master.

It was absurd for someone like Ian, who was at best an expert of intermediate level, to face such an opponent.

However, at this moment, Ian was holding his ground against Lilith to some extent.

Did this mean he had grown strong enough to face a master-level adversary? Ian didn’t think so.

“I didn’t get stronger; it’s Lilith who got weaker. She had to consume a minimal amount of offerings to descend from the demon realm to the intermediate realm.”

To maintain their strength when crossing from the demon realm to the intermediate realm, one needed a significant amount of offerings.

However, could Lilith have obtained these offerings while playing the war game?

It was unlikely that she could have consumed the lives of dozens of people to descend while avoiding the Director’s scrutiny.

“So, the current Lilith must have descended with a ridiculous shortage of offerings.”

Judging by his experience in sparring with her, Lilith’s current level was around the high expert to top expert tier.

If that were the case, it might not be entirely impossible to fight her.

Ian didn’t want to miss this golden opportunity to defeat the Archdemon.

“But Ian, is there a way? Inside this illusion… Lilith won’t die.”

“It’s okay. We can just initiate an emergency pause.”

“Emergency pause? What’s that?”

Ian, who had distanced himself, took out a device.

Under Ian’s finger, the emergency pause button was active.

“With this, we can temporarily pause the training. Originally, I wouldn’t have the authority to use this feature, but 3rd Platoon got wiped out, so the authority was transferred to me.”

The original purpose of the “emergency pause” was simple: to prevent the expulsion of a survivor who had sustained severe injuries due to a system error or to create a gate that allowed professors to enter the illusion in case of unforeseen circumstances.

“Of course, even if I press this, it’s unlikely that we can expect professors to enter. After all, Lilith has probably sealed everything from the start.”

Ian was not unaware of this. In fact, he had another reason for using this feature.

“The moment I press this… a gate is created, breaking down the boundaries between illusion and reality for a short time.”

The breakdown of boundaries was the crucial point.

It meant that for a brief moment, they could kill Lilith, who was essentially immortal.

Of course, it wasn’t all advantageous.

Ian. But if that happens….

“Yeah. I won’t be able to take advantage of the fantasy benefits either. If I die here, I’ll suffer the same damage when I return to reality.”

The situation was in line with the phrase “high risk, high return.”

From the moment he pressed it, Ian’s injuries would be transmitted the same way in reality.

He had to take down Release while avoiding attacks as much as possible.

Ian checked the situation through the status window.

[Number of remaining shields: 2.]

“Only two chances….”

That was enough.

***

As Ian withstood the flames of magic emitted by Release, everyone in the auditorium swallowed their breath.

“H-How did Ian….?”

“I’ve heard that if the Holy Sword Elysion has a buff, the flames of magic don’t affect them. But Ariel is here, right? So Ian is just withstanding it? Is that possible?”

“If he had the Holy attribute, maybe. But I doubt that too.”

It was generally known that withstanding the flames of magic was impossible.

The magic flowing out from the demons’ bodies was the opposite for humans, and the longer they were exposed, the more severe the burns could be.

Moreover, Ian’s opponent was Release.

“To withstand the magic of a high-ranking demon so easily….”

Opinions varied among scholars, but there were those who evaluated Release as having enough skill to be within the top 10 among demons.

For Ian Volkanoft, who had no holy power, to withstand the magic of such a high-ranking demon was already unbelievable, but to the point of throwing punches?

That was the reason.

“What am I seeing?”

Ariel couldn’t believe her eyes. The one who had just bowed his head until now was now staring at the screen as if saying, “When did that happen?”

She continued to watch the screen, but her doubts were not resolved.

“Is that even possible?”

The reason why he and his party, including himself, who were still inexperienced, had targeted the Demon Lord in the form of a Hero Party was simple.

It was because they were individuals who had received the prophecy of the Holy Sword Elysion.

If the members of the prophecy gathered, they could exert at least two levels of power higher than their original abilities. That was why the Empire pushed him forward as a hero.

Without the power of the Holy Sword Elysion, they believed that it would be impossible to make any progress against the demons.

But…. Ian Volkanoft was completely shattering Ariel’s thoughts.

People held onto hope for a moment after Ian’s unexpected advancement, but… it didn’t last long.

– He’s dull!

– Quagagaga!

– Groan!

After Ian’s preemptive attack, Lilith continued her relentless assault, and Ian gradually started to fall behind.

Watching this, Igor clenched his fist.

“The situation isn’t good. Ian seems to be losing ground.”

“I see it too. It seems challenging to deal with it while under the influence of magi.”

“Damn… I can’t believe I’m just watching him getting hit.”

Seeing Igor, driven by anger, clench his teeth, Eri felt the same way.

This was the first time she had felt powerless in her life as a princess.

Currently, Ian was holding his own with his shield and regenerative abilities, but Eri thought it wouldn’t last permanently.

That was because, unlike the early stage where he blocked even ordinary attacks by manifesting the shield, he was now trying to avoid as much as possible and only using the shield when absolutely necessary.

“Either there’s a limit to the number of times he can use it, or it consumes a tremendous amount of mana to manifest.”

Regardless, it was clear that Ian couldn’t use mana consecutively.

Eri’s impatient gaze shifted to where the officers were gathered.

‘How much longer do we have to wait?’

It felt like she was going to suffocate.

If they didn’t help Ian right away, a disaster could happen, and it was frustrating that they were just standing there, unable to do anything.

However, what frustrated Eri even more was that she knew there was nothing they could do.

– Thud!

– Die now, Ian Volkanoth!

– Toquaaang!

– Haa…

Ian was gradually pushed back. His face turned pale, and his body was covered in wounds.

As his combat attire began to soak with blood, Igor stood up as if he couldn’t bear it any longer.

“Damn it. Do we have to just stand here and get hit like that? Why isn’t he fighting back?”

“It’s not that he’s just getting hit. He has no other choice.”

“What do you mean? What’s that supposed to be?”

Aeri bowed her head deeply in front of Igor, whose face was full of uncertainty.

She wanted to reassure him that Ian was in a dominant position and not to worry.

But she knew that comforting him with futile words would only be temporary.

Eventually, she had no choice but to be honest.

“What I mean is that Ian can’t kill her.”

“Can’t kill her? Are you saying that Ian can’t defeat that demon, Lilith or something?”

“No, that’s not it. What I mean to say is that it’s impossible to kill Lilith as long as she is in the illusion.”

Unlike Ian, who returns to reality after taking a certain level of damage, Lilith does not come back. So even if she gets injured, she will recover and attack again.

She can kill Ian, but Ian cannot kill her.

In this truly selfish situation, Igor spat out futile words.

“What nonsense! Then Ian is enduring against an opponent who cannot be killed?”

“That’s right…. I believe the officers are trying to break in. They don’t want to miss the perfect chance to kill Lilith….”

If Ian can endure, they can get one step closer to eliminating the vampire, their human enemy.

But… as if that would be an easy task.

Eri couldn’t even begin to think about how difficult it would be to fight alone while enduring the pain that is consuming her body.

She wanted to tell him that it’s okay to stop.

– Sigh…

“Please stop….”

Without knowing her feelings, Ian stood up again.

After maintaining a standoff for a while, Ian took out a device from his pocket.

At that moment, when everyone was confused by Ian’s sudden action instead of confronting the enemy.

Ariel stared blankly at Ian.

There was a thought that briefly crossed her mind.

‘Could it be… no… an emergency stop….’

She wondered if Ian was going to stop enduring and fight against Lilith.

If she used an emergency stop, the boundary between reality and illusion would collapse, and it could also inflict damage on her.

‘But Ian would be the same.’

In other words, when Ian activates the emergency stop.

Every ruthless attack from Lilith becomes a fatal blow.

Ariel couldn’t understand why Ian would make such a choice.

“Why.”

I couldn’t understand why he was going to such great lengths.

“You could have just escaped as you originally planned…”

At the time when they were about to conquer the Demon Lord of Sloth, Ian suddenly gave up on the conquest and disbanded the party.

Ariel had thought that Ian had run away because he was scared.

Facing a formidable enemy like the Demon Lord, it seemed like he had succumbed to fear and tried to destroy the party all by himself.

Thinking that way, Ariel couldn’t comprehend Ian’s actions.

If it were the Ian in her memories, the one who was absolutely ruthless, he would never make a choice to press the emergency stop button.

He seemed unlikely to give up without a fight.

In that moment, Ariel recalled a story Ian had told her just before he was about to kill her in a war game.

“He said that to me. He said I wouldn’t understand. Why he did such a thing.”

Could there be some secret that she didn’t know about? Perhaps she had misunderstood Ian?

Honestly, there were still parts that she couldn’t understand.

Why did Ian give up with the Demon Lord’s castle right in front of them?

She was curious, but the distance between them had already grown too far to have a conversation, and she hadn’t spoken to Ian since he closed off his heart.

But… if there was a reason she didn’t know…

“Then what should I do…?”

She was lost in thought at that moment.

– Kuooo

Next to Ian, space began to warp. Eventually, a portal appeared.

“Did he use the emergency stop…?”

At that moment, Ariel threw away the towel that had been shielding her from people’s view.

She didn’t care about the gazes of others.

The only thing in her sight was Ian.

Kwong!

With a blast of mana, Ian was launched out like a cannonball.

Ariel could only stare at his disappearing figure.

“…”

As the hero himself became pitiful… Ian was shining brighter than anyone else.