ALL NOVEL Chapter 206
Realm of Leberced.
Capital of the Arpe Empire.
The Absolute Barrier protected by the Holy Sword of the Earth.
The empire’s last bastion that has withstood breaches for the past 500 years.
Has fallen.
Kwoooonn!!!
An orange flame hurtles straight toward us.
The castle walls shone even brighter, trying to endure the flames, but the flames melted the walls away.
“Y-your Majesty!! Hang in there!!”
“Damn it, what has my tax money been for until now!!”
“Isn’t it an Absolute Barrier!!”
The screams of the citizens echoed from all directions.
To the Emperor, who was concentrating all his mind with the holy sword thrust into the ground atop the castle walls, the voices behind him were as irritating as the sounds of insects.
“Damn…!”
There is no one around the Emperor.
Those who could not withstand the Demon King’s flames fled, or they had already melted away under the Demon King’s attack, leaving nothing but bones.
Only one person remained on the wall—the Emperor, who was single-handedly staving off the Demon King.
“You bastard… Demon King!!”
“Weak.”
Flap.
The Demon King, wings of orange flame unfurled, calmly extended his hand forward.
“The empire was weak 500 years ago, and it is still weak now. Instead of using the power of the holy sword, they can only defend themselves and cannot harness humanity’s strongest power.”
“What… what did you say…?”
“My mentor told me why humanity is so strong. The Hero of the Holy Sword is merely a variable; the reason humans became the rulers of the continent lies within themselves.”
Flap.
The scythe of death began to rise high into the sky once again.
“Humans only become strong when they come together. A single twig can be easily broken, but if hundreds of twigs stick together, they become difficult to break.”
“That much I understand!”
“If you understand that, you would comprehend it even easier. Your empire… exists as merely an empire.”
Goooh.
A gigantic demon of orange flame appeared behind Satan, pushing Gehenna away significantly.
“That is the downfall of your empire. No matter how united the empire becomes, it cannot defeat me with just its own strength.”
“We haven’t lost yet!!”
“No. You have lost.”
Satan mocked the Emperor.
“You do not even comprehend my power.”
“What…!”
“It is time to conquer the empire.”
Goooh.
Black magical energy began to flow forth from the center of Satan.
The orange flame gradually darkened with black magic, and that murky flame could truly be called ‘the flames of hell.’
“Let me show you the wrath of the Demon World. The wrath of those demons who had to sacrifice because of your Intermediate Realm!!”
“What nonsense!”
“You don’t need to know! You just need to die!”
Satan’s voice was mixed with fury.
“For the one who had to sacrifice for you lot! You people, let your screams resonate as a dirge, the people of the Arpe Empire!”
Kroaaahhh!!!
The orange giant roared.
Black tears streamed from the giant’s eyes, and that tear spread throughout its body, beginning to shine like tattoos.
“Receive the wrath of the angry flame! Gehenna—”
Fwoosh.
The splendidly burning scythe disappeared, gathering in the giant’s right hand.
Straining his shoulder back, the orange giant declared.
“Satan—Punch!”
With all his might, he threw a punch toward the empire’s barrier.
“Grrk…!!”
The Emperor squeezed every ounce of power from the holy sword to strengthen the walls.
But why was that?
Surely the holy sword against the holy sword.
No matter how demonic the sword the Demon King wielded, it was still a holy sword.
“Ah, ugh…!!”
It’s as if I am fighting at a disadvantage 2:1, overwhelmed by the Demon King’s power.
“I, I, as the Emperor of the Empire…!”
But the Emperor gritted his teeth and endured.
As the holy sword crumbled, its shock had already rendered the walls ragged, but he clenched the hilt so tightly that blood began to flow, holding on through sheer determination.
“The demon race cannot bring down the history of this empire…!”
Suddenly.
“Ha! Your Majesty isn’t going to lose, is she…?”
“Damn it…! What if the Emperor loses! Why did we become the people of the empire…!”
“He is the Emperor! He must risk his life to defeat the Demon King!”
“……!!”
Thanks to the magic power of the holy sword, the murmurs from behind poked into the Emperor’s ears.
Ordinarily, no one dared to speak rudely to the Emperor, but now that their lives were in jeopardy, they began to express their distrust.
If only.
“Don’t give up, Your Majesty! We trust you!”
“Damn that dirty Demon King! You are risking your life for us! You, who have corrupted the holy sword, the weapon of humanity! Your Majesty, hang in there! We are with you!!”
“Your Majesty!!”
If just one word of encouragement existed.
Even if 30 among 100 cursed the Emperor, if 70 people voiced their support.
“Ao, damn it! Run away! The empire is doomed! This place is finished!”
…Denial of support would be seen in all citizens recognizing the Emperor’s disadvantage and trying to flee.
“Ha.”
The Emperor bowed his head in despair.
“Is this the true nature of the empire?”
“It is.”
Satan, who had descended before the Emperor, removed her hood.
“A woman…?”
“At least for now.”
“……Well, either way, gender isn’t particularly important.”
The Emperor sighed.
As he looked at Satan before him, he instinctively comprehended why he was bound to lose.
“Since when have you been deceiving the world?”
“From the very beginning.”
Satan twisted her lips with a smirk.
“The empire will be mine. And… the demon god within the empire as well.”
“…!! N-no…!”
“It is already too late.”
Crunch.
As Satan reached forward, black mist swiftly wrapped around the Emperor’s neck.
“O Emperor of the empire. And citizens of the empire! You shall be the nourishment to awaken the Demon God of the empire!”
“W-wait…!”
The Emperor resisted fiercely while still clutching the holy sword.
“Leave the citizens…! I will sacrifice myself…!”
“The spirit is indeed commendable.”
Satan approached the Emperor and caressed her cheek.
“But… don’t you hear it? Their voices over there.”
“What…?”
“The voices of your people.”
Beyond the devil’s tempting voice, their voices reached her ears.
“Your Majesty! Please sacrifice yourself for us!!”
“We don’t need to die too! It’s the Emperor who will sacrifice!”
Harrowing.
That voice lanced deeper into the Emperor’s heart than the devil’s voice.
It was undoubtedly the voices of the people she wished to protect.
“Are you trying to protect the empire, or the citizens of the empire? Hehe, you wouldn’t know.”
“I am…!”
“He said that the empire should fall. I will show you today that the Great Demon King made a mistake 500 years ago.”
Kwooong!!
The castle walls crumbled.
The Demon King’s army, waiting behind the Demon King, cheered loudly, eagerly grabbing their weapons and starting to rush toward the crumbled walls.
“The destruction of the empire. I will prove that this is indeed for the Intermediate Realm.”
“N-no…!”
“Stop? I cannot do that. Your empire… should have fallen 500 years ago. Because of you… that person sacrificed himself…!!”
Satan’s eyes blazed with fire.
“I said I will kill every last one of you to honor their spirit. Emperor, you shall witness the fall of your empire until the very end!”
“A-no…!”
“Be consumed by darkness.”
Fwoosh.
From behind the orange flames.
A chilling darkness began to flow out.
“Inferno.”
*
At that moment, the mobile fortress Mamon.
“…It ended faster than I expected!”
Endymion let out a cheer for the mobile fortress that was tidying up quicker than anticipated.
“Of course it’s me! A breakthrough!”
Rumble.
Something heavy fell to the ground.
A leg, half flesh of a demon stuck to it, dropped onto the floor, and Endymion mourned for that leg.
“Thank you… third leg! I won’t forget your sacrifice!”
Thud.
Mamon rose up.
Even though two out of its original eight legs were gone, it could still balance itself with the remaining six legs, enough to stand.
“Now that’s sufficient…!”
“Hey….”
“Ah! Mercenary King!!”
A haggard Bearnes awoke from her slumber.
Her hair had turned completely white, and her eyes had faded to a pale hue.
“Are you back to your senses? Do you know what situation you’re in?”
“…After losing the holy sword to the Demon King, my consciousness has been just hazy. And that person rescued me.”
“Hero of the Holy Sword Liriez Cesarcross.”
“……Yes. Though it was that person’s body, I understood.”
Bearnes fiddled with her lips, a blush creeping onto her face.
“That person. The one who granted me strength. That person pulled me from the darkness.”
“Hoho. The Witch is indeed skilled in mental magic.”
“…Yes. Were it not for that person, I would have continued to be consumed in darkness.”
Seeing Bearnes’ face, Endymion could only chuckle.
Ah.
Witch.
Even using another’s body, you still seduce many women.
It seems like the witch has a knack for gaining love from the Hero of the Holy Sword, as she could entice the heroes even being a mere clone.
“Where is the Witch currently?”
“She went to the system. Satan is there.”
“We must inform her…! There might be information she doesn’t know yet…!”
“Information she doesn’t know…?”
At that moment, Endymion suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
“What do you mean…?”
“The Demon King Satan carries ‘darkness’! He—”
Bang!
A gunshot echoed from somewhere.
Endymion reached out quickly, but the bullet had already—
“Grrk…!”
Bearnes threw a glass cup nearby, diverting the bullet aside as it grazed the cup.
The bullet had clearly been aimed right at Endymion.
“……!”
The bullet flew through Mamon’s partition.
It was undoubtedly a compressed bullet infused with magic.
“What…!”
“The Demon King’s Officer! Half-Dragon Electra!”
“Could it be that the information you wanted to share is…!”
“No! It’s Demon King Satan!”
Bearnes made a gloomy expression.
“The Demon King has another holy sword hidden beneath him!!”