ALL NOVEL Chapter 428
Chapter 429
“Yawn…”
Lucrecia let out a long, drawn-out yawn. As always, standing watch was an extremely dull job, especially while waiting indefinitely for an event to unfold.
She had settled herself in a corner by the Blindfolded Lake. It was a precaution to keep in contact with the Earth Serpent and to be prepared for the Demon King’s sudden appearance.
Thus, a master-level force was camping out in such a place.
Still, from the perspective of the person involved, it wasn’t half bad.
‘The tent is high-quality, the food is tasty, and aside from the scary character next to me, everything’s pretty great.’
Especially the tranquility and the beautiful scenery were considerable perks.
Lucrecia preferred bustling crowds and noise, but with such lovely scenery, even a quiet place didn’t seem too shabby.
Recently, though it felt a bit out of character, Lucrecia had been spending her days casting her fishing line into the lake.
For some unknown reason, the fish in the Blindfolded Lake were a delicious catch, so much so that simply salting and grilling them brought out their excellent flavor. It made for a rather agreeable pastime.
‘Well, after staying here too long, I’m starting to get a bit tired of it.’
This stakeout had already dragged on for months.
At first, Lucrecia had been tense, not wanting to let her guard down, but soon enough, she found herself relaxing in the situation.
‘That said, it feels a bit strange to hope the Demon King shows up sooner rather than later…’
While she was lost in thought, her fishing line twitched. Tap, tap—a fish was nibbling at the bait.
She patiently waited until the fish took the bait completely, like a master waiting for the perfect moment.
If the experts of the world could see this master-level technique being applied to fishing, they’d probably shed a tear, but Lucrecia couldn’t care less.
Just as she reeled in a fish, a strange and unsettling feeling washed over her.
“…Huh, did I just set off a flag?”
Muttering to herself, Lucrecia scratched the back of her head, folding up her fishing gear and slipping her hands into the gauntlets hanging at her waist.
It seemed she would finally need to flex some muscles after quite a while.
*
“An Demon appeared in the Earth Hammer Gorge.”
[Yeah, that’s right. They aren’t particularly strong, just a bit annoying.]
That evening, upon hearing Lucrecia’s report, Choi Yeon-woo’s expression turned grave.
Humanity’s preparations were nearing completion. One could even consider it fortunate that they had arrived in time.
If they’d come even a bit later, they might have had to fight in a rushed situation.
‘Four months… I imagined it would take about half a year, but did the other Demon Kings hurry due to fear of interference?’
It was one thing to claim a 1:1:1:1 scenario, but it didn’t mean all four forces would cling together and start fighting at the Earth Hammer Gorge as if they had some sort of agreement.
The situation suggested that the Demon King of Supply would arrive first, showing a tactical advantage over the Earth Serpent, while Humanity would fight back.
Then the remaining Demon Kings would appear at their own preferred timings. A direct confrontation with the Demon Kings was likely to unfold in that manner.
From Humanity’s standpoint, the best strategy for conserving strength was to wait until the other Demon Kings restrained the Supply Demon from seizing the Earth Serpent.
However, that carried a high risk of losing Harmony City as a base, so they couldn’t afford to make that selection recklessly.
In the end, it was clear that they would be the ones to keep the Supply Demon in check.
Well, once they proposed cooperation to the Earth Serpent, it would likely collapse the carefully laid premise of using it as bait, so they had to choose a safe option.
“So, what was it like?”
[Hmm, the last one I faced was something like a slime. A gelatinous type, if you will. Without wrapping it in an Aura Blade, my fists wouldn’t have stood a chance.]
Hmm, so it was definitely the kind of creature that even an upper-tier expert couldn’t face alone.
It was truly rewarding to have gathered only the best of the best.
Under the command of the Supply Demon, the Violence Cult. Though the abilities of Demons showed variation, the Violence Cult consistently exhibited the least extremes in their power level.
The average strength of the Violence Cult was high, while the greatest prowess belonged to the Heavenly Demon’s cult, and the lowest point rested with the Supply Demon.
In the past, information about the Violence Cult was sparse. Naturally, they couldn’t gather info from those who perished when facing Demons affiliated with the cult.
However, thanks to the recent upsurge in the activities of the Violence Cult and the return of many Hunters enhanced by mana amplifiers, they managed to consolidate this much information.
Known for its lack of information, the Demon Lords were remarkably meddlesome.
“Got it. Please wait there until I arrive. Once I’m at the lake, we’ll switch.”
[Understood. I’ll wait.]
With a simple exchange, the communication was cut off. Lucrecia had taken on the lookout role for quite some time, and it was necessary to let her take a break, even if for a moment.
Especially since Lucrecia was the type who was influenced by her motivation considerably, a little management was warranted.
“So, it’s really coming right up, huh?”
She was so tense that her palms were sweaty.
Just hearing the report had her this worked up; she wondered how she’d manage when it was time to actually fight. She needed to relax quickly.
But this would be the last time. After this, all that remained was a life with her beloved family.
As she thought that, Yeon-woo brought her clasped hands to her forehead. She then prayed to all the gods, known and unknown, without any distinction.
She simply wished for the divine favor to be upon humanity.
*
The air in the Earth Hammer Gorge was, as always, dry.
Thinking back, it was quite strange. Even with a river flowing through the gorge, the terrain remained dry.
Anyway, the atmosphere was the same as usual, dry and devoid of anything particular, but an inexplicable tension hung in the air.
The creatures living in the Earth Hammer Gorge were affected by the Earth Serpent.
Yeon-woo set off towards the Blindfolded Lake without hesitation.
“Ah, you’re here?”
“Thank you for your hard work, senior.”
“Not a big deal. I’ll take a little break in the city. Don’t worry; I’ll properly participate in the decisive battle.”
Without further conversation, Lucrecia waved her hand and went on her way towards the direction Yeon-woo came from.
There was really no reason to hold her back, as all the necessary discussions had taken place yesterday.
Yeon-woo surveyed the area where Lucrecia had been staying. Just how bored had she been to dabble in fishing?
Yeon-woo expanded her perception across the area. She was unbothered about what was going on beneath the water. The depths were under the control of the Earth Serpent.
“…Hah.”
“Looks like Lucrecia was super bored.”
“Yeah. She probably couldn’t even drive, so she must have been restless.”
Seeing the various electronic devices sprawled inside the tent, Shar and Tae-oh expressed a sort of amazed admiration.
After all this effort by her, they definitely needed to achieve some results.
Regardless, it was highly likely that this lake would be the final battlefield. Despite the Earth Serpent being a manifestation of the river winding through the Earth Hammer Gorge, its consciousness resided in the Blindfolded Lake.
In the end, even the Supply Demon would have to come to the lake to seize the Earth Serpent.
While they wished to deploy as many forces as possible, doing so might risk offending the Earth Serpent’s mood.
Thus, it had to be the elite members like Yeon-woo, Lucrecia, and Yuri guarding the lake.
Yeon-woo adjusted the fishing chair discarded in front of the lake and plopped down on it, letting out a quiet sigh.
“What’s going on right after sitting down?”
Something began to crawl slowly from outside the gorge.
She wasn’t so dim that she couldn’t recognize the appearance of Demons from the Violence Cult upon hearing their sound.
Shapes with formless bodies were converging from all directions.
With this many, it seemed unnecessary to call for reinforcements, but hunting them down one by one might quickly turn into a bothersome task.
“Guys, it looks like we have a lot of guests arriving. We’ll have to wait for them to show up before we act.”
“Got it!”
“Tae-oh will be at Dad’s side first.”
As Tae-oh returned to Yeon-woo’s shadow, the perception that Yeon-woo had established sharpened even further. It was practically like GPS.
This sensation felt strangely unfamiliar now.
*
Swoosh, swoosh…
Like a snail inching forward, they left traces along the ground as they slowly made their way toward a particular point. At a pace slower than human walking, they moved deliberately.
In their… non-existent minds, only one thought thrummed—a speculative notion at best.
Instinct… perhaps a simple command someone had implanted.
Their only mission was to consume everything in sight and to move in that direction.
They were entities for whom even the term “Demon” felt awkward. They were practically artifacts belonging to the Demon King.
Whether they wished for it or not, all life placed before the Supply Demon would transform into the same shape.
Such a phenomenon was ongoing at that very moment. A Lizardman swung his spear at a Demon.
It was a strike aimed to eliminate the formless entity that had attacked their village.
However, the blow, devoid of mana enhancement, was nothing more than a signal indicating new prey had arrived.
With a nasty noise, the formless body halted. Then, in an instant, it surged forward, swallowing the Lizardman in a wave-like motion.
Despite the Lizardman screaming in intense agony, only bubbles rose in response.
As the Lizardman’s body completely melted away, the mass of Attacker enlarged further.
Then, it slowly resumed its path toward the lake.
They were a decision of Laziness. Those who found both living and dying bothersome. Those who even found it tedious to determine the purpose of their existence.
If someone would live their life for them, they would joyfully accept it.
The Supply Demon extended that very offer to them. Claiming to define the purpose of life on their behalf. So, they were asked to surrender themselves.
Thus the contract was made. And those who experienced such comfort in life began to feel an urge to share this pleasure and happiness with others.
“What the hell is this disgusting thing?”
Before it could be completely torn apart beyond recovery, the voice of a man, filled with disgust, must have harbored such a mission.
(To be continued in the next episode)