Chapter 324:

Chapter 324:

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HELHEIM SCANS

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The hero blinked his eyes open and closed.

Wooong—

The quiet flow of mana now poured out like a torrent.

The amount and density far exceeded expectations.

A tremendous force filled his body, as if it was about to burst.

??? muttered with a mix of admiration and concern in their voice.

[...It’s true that a human using this technique would inevitably die.]

The hero’s body no longer existed to maintain life; it was merely a conduit for mana.

The overwhelming power made it impossible to conceal his presence any longer.

The hero felt the chilling gaze of the Demon King upon him.

[He has noticed you.]

‘...Let’s go.’

The target was Avalon.

The black sludge that had flowed from the Demon King’s body had already engulfed most of the surroundings of the Demon King’s castle and was heading toward the location where Avalon was anchored.

The hero carefully avoided the sludge, moving as quickly as possible.

Chiiiiiik—

He tried to create a foothold with mana as a test, but it was of little use.

It only held off the erosion for a moment before dissolving and being swallowed.

Increasing the density might allow it to hold out a bit longer, but the limit was clear.

The hero chuckled wryly.

‘So, if I come into direct contact with that sludge, it will strip away my essence?’

[Correct.]

‘And the essence that’s taken becomes the Demon King’s power?’

[No.]

‘Why not? Isn’t it supposed to absorb everything it touches?’

[To be precise, it breaks down the target and rebirths it as demonic energy.]

The hero immediately understood the explanation.

‘So, it’s different if the essence is non-corporeal?’

[Yes. Only we can replicate and utilize the absorbed target as power. Not even the Demon King can understand or apply that principle. He can only... separate and take it.]

‘So he takes it without understanding....’

[And just as our level of understanding influences our replication, the same goes for him. You saw Malekia earlier, right?]

The hero nodded.

Malekia had a powerful essence, but since she shared the same attribute of "demon" with the Demon King, she was absorbed much faster.

‘So that’s why you were able to last longer.’

[Exactly, to him, a doppelganger was likely an entirely unknown existence.]

The hero suddenly had a thought and asked,

‘Wait, then what about beings like Maktania who have divine power...?’

[Logically, it would be harmful.]

However, the overwhelming difference in power meant it didn’t have much of an effect.

[Among my essences were some of the most revered priests from the First Era. Yet, he devoured them just the same.]

‘Alright, I understand.’

...His own divine power might be a little different.

It was a higher-dimensional power directly received from Maktania, and—

‘It’s been amplified several times by the Eclipse.’

The Eclipse greatly increased all energies within his body.

Naturally, his divine power as a champion had also increased significantly.

[...Well, it’s more effective than human divine power. But don’t face him head-on.]

‘Got it.’

[If your questions are answered, dodge now.]

Swooooosh—

Suddenly, a massive black wave surged from the side.

The height was over tens of meters, and it moved faster than an arrow.

The hero did his best to evade, but there was more than one wave.

Inevitably, the tips of his feet brushed against it.

“!”

In an instant, a bizarre sense of happiness surged, making his mind dizzy.

He wanted to become a part of that, to sleep forever without being disturbed.

The hero barely shook off that sticky feeling.

...But the demons weren’t so fortunate.

Some intangible force was binding them.

“Aah....”

Beneath him.

The terror-stricken faces of the demons slowly melted into joy, then soon vanished into nothingness, like a sandcastle swept away by the tide.

<Haa...>

A satisfied sigh echoed around him, though he couldn’t tell where it came from.

The Demon King.

Considering he bore the title of "King," one might expect him to be a bit refined.

However, he was a being most aligned with their essence of violence, plunder, fear, and hatred.

Tadak—

The hero continued to dash between the flooding waves and the melting demons.

Although quite a distance remained, the hero's current physical abilities surpassed even the peak of Ted Redymer.

Despite the countless obstacles, he soon reached the point just before Avalon.

...But the black sludge had also crept dangerously close.

The hero’s eyes fixed on the still, anchored Avalon.

Compared to the surging waves, the giant structure of the mobile fortress looked pitifully small.

‘...Why is it staying still?’

[They’re probably at their limit. Ordinary humans... just recognizing the Demon King... that ability... most of them would lose their minds.]

The Demon King appeared after the intense battles that raged from the 46th to the 50th sectors.

The slowly eroding mental strength must have been quickly exhausted.

The moment the hero accelerated even more,

Tsutsutsutsutsutsu—

From the side of Avalon, the surface of the sludge roiled violently, and gigantic tidal waves began to rise.

There wasn’t just one or two.

The hero slowly walked towards the bow, keeping his head straight.

[It's quite an apocalyptic sight.]

'...'

The black sludge had finally swallowed all 50 strongholds of the cursed land.

With a rumble, the black tide rushed in, tearing down the boundary between sky and earth.

The bottom of Avalon had long been consumed.

Though the propulsion devices kept the ship afloat, it wouldn't last much longer.

There really wasn't much time left.

[You only get one shot at this.]

'I know.'

After the recent skirmish, he was certain that the Demon King's state was far more unstable than expected.

[There's a reason he's in such a rush.]

Absorbing his subordinate demons indiscriminately was suspicious.

As a ruler of a dimension and a transcendent being, the Demon King was bound by the chains of causality.

In other words, without his subordinates functioning as extensions of his will, it would cause him significant problems.

[Yet he devoured all the elites in those 50 sectors, even his close aide Malekia.]

It was a clearly irrational move.

But they had reached a conclusion.

[He's that desperate for a complete summoning ritual. Think about it: the summoning ritual was incomplete, yet the "power" still crossed over. He's in a state as fragile as glass about to shatter.]

That's why he was so desperately gathering demonic energy and recklessly trying to wipe out the resistance.

If he didn't complete the summoning ritual soon, his very existence would be at risk of annihilation.

...And the hero had a way to amplify that instability further.

[Did you find where it is?]

'More or less.'

[Good. Do it!]

Even before ??? finished his encouragement, the hero focused his mind and drew out the cores of Felson and Ban.

The technique he was about to deploy was Celestial Net, a net from the heavens.

Woo-oo-oo-ooong—

In an instant, the intricately refined mana intertwined, creating a massive and tightly woven net.

Something got caught in the net immediately after.

'Found it.'

[Now give it a good hit.]

Speed would be more crucial than raw power this time.

Crack-crack-crack-crack—

The white lightning of Nova enveloped the hero's body, and in an instant, his silhouette vanished from the deck.

The Horizon's prow gleamed at the same moment.

“!”

Mana shrouded the Black Hope, and an explosion erupted from within the magical scabbard as the sword of black hope was swung at unbelievable speed.

Swaaaaaaak—

The giant sword, flashing like lightning, pierced the wrinkled neck of the hidden enemy before he could even react.

“Graaaargh!”

Theo, who had been hiding in the sky, plummeted to the ground.

He had cast the highest level of invisibility magic, but the hero's Celestial Net, infused with amplified mana, operated on a different level.

"Direct hit."

The hero added more force to the sword impaled in Theo’s neck.

There was a way to destabilize the Demon King's condition further.

That was to eliminate the sorcerer who had orchestrated and maintained the summoning ritual from start to finish.

Theo, with a distorted face, spat out a desperate curse.

“H-how?!”

“You were the one holding your kin in place, weren't you?”

On the way to Avalon, the hero had sensed some unseen force preventing the demons from escaping.

'It was Theo's magic.'

Given that Malekia had been absorbed while Theo was nowhere to be seen, it hadn’t taken long for the hero to figure out what was happening.

Theo had been frantically trying to manage the incomplete summoning ritual.

“Your complacency has given me this opportunity.”

“Graaaargh!”

“You'll atone for your treason with your body.”

The hero slammed the immobilized Theo into the black sludge... and the irrational Demon King eagerly devoured the loyal sorcerer who had been struggling to stabilize him.

[...Is it done?]

The once-calm surface of the sludge began to ripple violently.

[It's done! It worked!]

As ??? cheered, the hero leaned against the railing and looked down.

The flow of demonic energy, which had been stabilizing, now stretched out more erratically than before.

There was no sign of control.

Bang—!

Some parts of the sludge even began to splatter everywhere, like heated oil.

And right after that, the hero heard a terrifying wail.

It was not just an expression of anger, but a sound filled with deep pain and resentment.

"...Yes. It's done."

With that, the hero precariously climbed over the railing.

As the resistance fighters scattered across the deck cried out in shock at what they guessed he was about to do, the hero caught his breath, preparing to throw himself into the darkness ahead.

??? spoke softly.

[...Hang in there.]

And then, one step forward.

Just before his foot left Avalon's deck, his steel-blue eyes turned not to the threat before him but to what lay behind.

What had once been a means to an end had now become his goal.

The reason for this entire journey.

The last bit of fear that had gripped him vanished.

The hero felt a sense of weightlessness as he plummeted downward.

Nothing could stop him now.

Nothing at all.

[TL/N: I picked this up in the middle but damn... what a growth mc has had.]

[PR/N: BRO JUST LIKE TED WENT IT’S SO SIMILAR THEY’RE SO SAME.]

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HELHEIM SCANS

Join our Discord for release /invite/dbdMDhzWa2

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