Chapter 235: Demon World (2)
The shout echoed and spread all over the world.
Now...after finishing, it was time to go to the Demon World.
‘The Hell Monarch.’
The dark spirits woke up the Hell Monarch sleeping in the deepest part of nothingness in order to kill the demons. Now he was devouring the forces in the Demon World.
If he did this alone then he would have great power.
But I didn’t know the limits of my strength. In this state, I wouldn’t be afraid of a god. I met Gustarte, experienced his strength and absorbed him. I was sure of it.
The Hell Monarch was just an unfortunate emperor frustrated by the gods and who died trying to become a god. In fact, I felt some degree of anticipation towards his skills. I reached this place with the help of the Heart of the Hell Monarch, so I couldn’t imagine how strong its owner would be.
'I won’t lose.’
I was sure of it.
Frankly, Camael wasn’t my opponent when it came to pure power.
Now I was even stronger than when I dealt with Camael.
I formed a fist. The door to the Demon World gradually neared the ground.
I took a short break. Cleaning everything up and reorganizing the creatures was exhausting. It wasn’t a good idea to open the door to the Demon World right away. Plus...
“It is finished.”
Oswen spoke to me in a pleased voice. Oswen held a necklace in his hands. A mysterious magic power could be felt from it. I couldn’t avert my eyes from it. I stared at it with God’s Eyes.
Soon, detailed information about the necklace surfaced.
-Name: Pharma's Necklace (10/10)
Description – A necklace that protects users from certain curses. It will be destroyed after blocking 10 curses.
List of curses that it defends against - Pain, Ice Crystal, Doll’s Expression, Golem’s Soul, Soul Destroyer, Destructive Humanity, Flames of the Soul, Curse of Thorns, Knight’s Curse...Divine Suffering.
The list included countless curses. There were many that I didn’t know.
“This is to protect me against the Hell Monarch?”
“That’s right. I designed it to stop all the curses that the Hell Monarch might use.”
He was full of pride.
I shook my head and asked.
"The Hell Monarch knows how to use these curses?”
“Yes! He immersed himself in it and studied curses very hard in his later years. His learning speed was at the level of the gods.”
“He isn’t a shaman.”
It was amazing. There were at least 100 curses on the list. It was almost impossible for one person to know how to use so many curses proficiently. The Hell Monarch wasn’t someone famous for using curses.
He was a genius of swordsmanship and a master of demonic magic. In short, he was a magic swordsman.
I was sure that he would be difficult to deal with even with the curses not affecting me.
"Your Majesty’s body can’t be affected by curses...most of the curses on the list won’t work. But you should wear it just in case.”
I had 174 points in intelligence. Curses couldn’t harm me. I had commanded Oswen to make it before I knew that.
But Oswen didn’t seem to care.
'He has a great grudge against the Hell Monarch.’
Oswen was originally a human. He was a good blacksmith who liked fire. Then one day, the Hell Monarch came and forced him to make the Seven Sins. But that wasn't the end. He was dragged to the Underground World and lost his original appearance.
It was natural for him to hold a grudge. The evidence was that Oswen’s eyes were burning with anger.
"Thank you.”
The advice of one’s subordinates. It wasn’t bad.
"It will clearly be helpful.”
"I hope so.”
I turned away after putting on the necklace.
I stood at the top of my dungeon and stared down at the ground.
I had almost fulfilled the promise with the gods.
They returned me to Earth in exchange for Earth and the lives of the humans. Although many humans died, they still survived and continued to grow together.
This was the strength of humans. It was similar to a cockroach, but I liked that persistence. It was similar to me. I wouldn’t have reached this position if I wasn’t greedy and hadn’t stopped until the end.
In any case, humans were strong. They would become stronger and stronger until the glory of the past was restored.
If I left this place then Earth would be safe. Even if there was a problem, it wouldn’t collapse easily due to the presence of the Awakened.
It had already been 50 days since I absorbed Camael.
There was nothing more I had to do on Earth.
Everything was finished so it was pointless to waste any more time. I still hadn’t received the message that the Demon World had been occupied. I couldn’t give him time to completely conquer the Demon World.
It was almost time so he wouldn’t have expected someone else to come from behind him.
I returned to the dungeon.
There were numerous creatures gathered near the core.
Chrisley and Ariel were at the forefront.
I opened my mouth without hesitation.
"We will travel to the Demon World.”
The Demon World. They were nostalgic words.
I raised my hands. An invisible line connected to the Demon World Door was always following me.
I tugged on the line.
Soon, the gigantic door in the sky opened and a huge crack appeared in front of me.
The crack turned into a magic circle.
I moved my feet first. Everyone started moving behind me.
A strong smell pierced my nose.
There were corpses scattered all over the place.
A purple sky and crows crying...
Three moons floated in the sky.
‘The Demon World.’
I immediately knew that I had arrived in the Demon World. There was no way I couldn’t know. This was the place where I was born and grew up. Everything was different from Earth.
‘I need to head to the centre.’
The surrounding terrain was familiar. The demon king’s castle wasn’t far from there. The four grand dukes occupied the north, south, east and west around the demon king’s castle.
But there was also a deep smell of death.
The Demon World was always at war and there was no day where blood didn’t flow.
The number of demons who died in battle couldn’t be counted.
Nevertheless, the smell of death had never been this severe. The loser usually died and the winner survived. This degree wasn’t normal...
In particular, it became stronger in the vicinity of the demon king’s castle. The centre was the place where the grand dukes were kept in check.
My senses spread far and wide. If I paid attention then I would be able to notice any presences within hundreds of kilometres. However, my senses didn’t notice anything.
There was another strange thing.
The smell of death was unbearable.
"There are no corpses.”
That’s right. There weren’t even any dead bodies. Both the living and the dead couldn’t be seen.
I didn’t know what this meant.
“Ariel Diablo. Whose forces are still remaining in the Demon World now?”
The Hell Monarch hadn’t conquered the Demon World yet. A message would have popped up if that had happened. In particular, Ariel would have noticed first.
Ariel and I respected each other. The power of Diablo dwelled inside me. I would leave her castle intact. Ariel knew how merciful I was being.
Ariel bowed her head thankfully and said.
"My forces are left. The rest of them have collapsed.”
Upa, Pandemonium and Okullos.
The forces of three grand dukes had already collapsed.
It was alarming.
"Let's go to your castle. The Hell Monarch might be nearby.”
The Hell Monarch would be forced to appear where there were still some opposing forces. His goal was to conquer the Demon World.
There was no need for a guide.
I knew exactly where Ariel’s castle was.
It was because I had visited that place to challenge her in my previous life.
'I would love to sit down right away.’
I moved my gaze in the direction of the demon king’s castle.
Only those recognized as the demon king could enter that place.
The throne of the demon king was left there. I wanted to sit on the throne, but there was still work to be done. I wouldn’t truly become the demon king until I took care of the Hell Monarch. The Demon World was the place where the demon ruled, but now the Hell Monarch was trying to conquer it.
It wasn’t right.
‘I will delay it until later.’
I couldn’t let greed move my feet.
It wouldn’t be too late after killing the Hell Monarch.
Ariel’s castle was located on the north side of the demon king’s castle. It was a place covered with snow. The reason why she stayed at the dungeon in Greenland was due to the familiar environment. It was a gigantic castle where snow fell all year long.
Castle...it was the size of a city. It might be a little exaggerated, but it wasn’t strange to call it the size of a small country.
This was the place where Ariel’s forces remained. It was the place where Ariel ruled directly.
However, even this great castle was quiet. Creatures could be sensed inside, but they were too nervous to even breathe.
Most of the demons were hiding and couldn’t be seen unless I looked closely. They all had a typical combat posture.
Demons were also protecting the gates.
‘They seem to have detected my troops from a distance.’
I led an army of 150,000 creatures.
I was able to bring this many due to the points I got from Camael. They were a little weaker than before, but they mainly consisted of intermediate and advanced creatures.
The demons in the castle detected my army from a distance and judged that we were enemies.
Ariel asked for my permission and headed to the gate.
"Open the door. I am Ariel Diablo.”
Her voice echoed around the gate. Mild magic power infused her voice so there was no way they couldn’t hear it. The ears of the demons were ten times better than humans’.
Someone appeared at the highest point of the gate.
It was an old demon with a short beard and wearing armour.
“Is it really Ariel?”
"Can’t you see the horns? If you don’t open the door right now then you won’t be able to avoid censure.”
Ariel raised her chin as she replied. She was the original owner of this place. Ariel’s subordinates followed her loyally so they should open the door right away. But it turned out differently than I thought.
"I'm sorry. I can’t open the door.”
“What...?”
As the old demon shook his head, Ariel’s expression turned chilly. She wasn’t allowed to enter her own castle. What did this mean? Despite being defeated in the game to become a demon king, Ariel was still a grand duke.
"This might be a ploy of the Hell Monarch. My choice might destroy this castle so I have to be careful.”
The old demon persevered.
“Sasun! You, don’t you even know your master? I will break down this gate and kill you all.”
Ariel’s long horns trembled. She took out an ivory sword and covered it with chaos. Ariel’s patented skill. It was a skill that only she could use. That should have been enough proof, but the old demon was stubborn.
"Then take off all your clothes and turn around. I will see if there is the Hell Monarch’s scar. If I use magical measures and my opinion is wrong then I am willing to offer my neck.”
“This cowardly bastard...”
Ariel growled. Her followers always acted like knights towards her. But this was the last straw. Besides, I was here. I didn’t give her permission to move. This was also her castle. She didn’t want to damage it.
Ariel’s eyes turned towards me.
I shook my head and said.
“Do it.”
Ariel had great ambitions so she promptly responded.
She respected me and obeyed without protest.