Episode 15. Defending the Underworld (4)
“Why didn’t you go straight to the south where Orient is, and come to such an obscure place?”
Ariel, who wrote the teleport, looks at me dubiously. Phoenix, perhaps dissatisfied with my decision, openly expressed his dissatisfaction with his arms crossed.
“I should have told you already. Our purpose is not to go to fight, but to rescue Orient. If we engage Peremus in an all-out war, our odds are not very high.”
Even though the warriors have become stronger, I have no intention of being conceited. I had to be careful because my opponent was my opponent.
A city could be razed in half with one punch of that bastard. If you put demonic energy in it and launch it, it could have destroyed the city itself.
He is such a monster. The fact that Phasma single-handedly attacked and wounded Peremus was proof that Phasma was strong enough to rival that of a hero.
“If the signal came from the Orient, there is a high probability that you have already encountered Peremus. Even if you haven’t encountered it yet, there’s nothing wrong with being careful.”
“If Orient gets hurt or dies, you will be killed by me.”
“…… It is better for one spirit king to die than to move hastily and annihilate our party.”
“What?!”
When I indifferently refuted Phoenix’s warning, he grabbed me by the collar. I was out of breath.
“To put it bluntly, even if there is no Spirit King, as long as the hero is alive, this world can be defended. However, if the spirit king lives and the hero dies, this world will have no answers. I bet you understand that too?”
She gritted her teeth, gnashing her face fiercely, but couldn’t retort. I finally let go of my collar. And then you ask me
“…… Do you have a strategy to save Orient?”
“Do you know what an auxiliary demon looks like, Ariel?”
“They say he’s wearing a clown mask.”
If you go to clown…….
That’s the worst. Did that psychopath demon come along?
Cutting people into pieces is basic, and he was a typical sadist who felt pleasure by inflicting pain on others through torture under the guise of magic.
It was quite surprising that such a fellow was in charge of the 1st Corps’ deputy commander led by Peremus.
And he was a troublesome guy with a very strong and tricky pattern as his personality.
Originally, they were beings that had to be dealt with separately, but since they came together, it would be unreasonable to expect that.
So please don’t get stuck until you save Orient.
“Rescuing Orient should be your top priority, but if you need to fight, deploy—”
Kooung!
I could feel the painful trembling of the earth, accompanied by a distant roar.
Then I see something shooting towards the sky, and then the calmly floating clouds disappear.
“…… Let’s hurry I will explain the operation as we go.”
I pretended I didn’t see the tension and anxiety floating on the faces of the party and hurried my steps.
“High-speed movement.”
* * *
“The flow of mana has changed.”
Peremus’ pupils reciprocate from side to side and then head to the ground. Clearly seeing that the mana spread in the air had begun to swirl, he sighed.
“I see. This is the reaction when Peremus-nim came. It seems that the spirit king has something against Peremus.”
“Huh. I have no interest in those weaker than me.”
He clenched his fists again. He has a different power than when he lightly swings his fist.
“Don’t hide slyly, come out right now!!”
Kwawang! Kwak Kwak!!
The fist that hit the floor completely shattered the earth. Craters with a radius of several kilometers formed, and grass and trees floated in the air. Even the border castle, which is quite far away, is shocked and collapses.
Coo goo goo.
As if a major earthquake had occurred, the forest area where the earth’s crust had changed was devastated with two fists.
Seeing that, Orient widened his eyes and lifted the shattered fragments high. Fragments that have broken through the atmosphere are shot down at a speed as fast as light.
“I’ll bury you alive. 「Stone tomb」.”
Looking up at it falling like a meteorite, Peremus snorted and clenched his fist as if it were insignificant. Magi begins to engulf his fist.
“「Ruin—Volume」.”
All falling fragments are split into molecules. Looking at the fragments that had almost disappeared, Orient prepared another attack.
“「Ant Hell」.”
The ground cracked apart, and a figure resembling a beast’s jaw rose up.
“Hey!”
Quang!
As Pheremus struck down with his foot, the mouth of the earth crumbled.
“Are you going to keep hiding and making small attacks? You, the Spirit King, would know better that you couldn’t defeat me with something like this?!”
He clasps his hands and raises them high into the sky. Orient hurriedly installs a barrier to the ground as it seems to foretell a much stronger impact than before.
“Destroy!”
Kwaaang!!
The moment the interlocked hands strike the ground, everything on the ground is pulled out. All animals and plants that lived in the forest zone could not withstand the shock and became extinct.
It was truly a catastrophe.
With the complete destruction of the forest area, sea water began to seep in at high speed over the lowered land. It was the artificial disappearance of the Physis continent.
As the sound of slapping reached their ears, Peremus spoke.
“If you want to play hide and seek with me, you have chosen the wrong tag. Pero, figure out where the Spirit King’s mana is connected.”
“…… How about going inside like this? If the Spirit King wants to stop Peremus-sama, he’ll have to use all his strength. So, can you figure out where it is? Even if he doesn’t come out, he can kill humans, so it’s judged to be efficient in many ways.”
“That makes sense. Then we go to the nearest city from here.”
Hearing the words of Peremus and Pero through the birds still alive and flying around, Orient began to fret.
It was expected from the beginning that attacking them indirectly while hiding would not do much damage to them. But she was the one who never thought that she would be one-sided like this.
Afraid of not knowing how many more lives would be lost, Orient hesitated whether to go all out.
Unlike other spirit kings, Orient was in charge of connecting the roots of the World Tree to the human world. He had no choice but to hesitate because he knew that if his location was discovered, the location of one of the roots of the World Tree planted throughout the Physis continent would also be discovered, putting the spirit world at risk.
“I can’t stop these damn demons by myself. But I can’t let humans enter the city…….”
Thump! Thud! Thud!
At the sound of Peremus’ heavy footsteps, Orient closed and opened his eyes and made a decision.
“First of all, let’s buy some time. I can’t stop them right now. Since we sent a signal to the other spirit kings, if we made a contract with the heroes, we should be able to deal with them.”
Deciding to walk on her odds, she absorbed some of the power of the World Tree planted in the human realm. The concentration of mana spread across the Physis continent has decreased.
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“Then let’s go.”
“You don’t have to.”
Orient descended as the ground split in front of Peremus, who was trying to strengthen his legs. Peremus’ mouth parted open at the sight of her holding mana in both her hands. Seeing her smirking face, Orient felt her goosebumps but maintained her composure.
“I’ll do it in earnest, whatever you want. Damn demons.”
“Ha, I guess you finally made up your mind?”
“Nature is on my side. I will do my best.”
“Don’t let me down. If I admit it, I’ll ask for your name before I kill you. Perro, you must be dented in a corner somewhere. If you intervene, you die.”
Perro took off her hat and hunched her back slightly. He had no interest in the King of Spirits from the beginning. The only thing he was interested in was the warriors who would come to this situation.
Seeing Pero step back, Peremus looks at Orient again.
“Come on in. Because that guy won’t come out.”
“Your pride will now strangle you.”
The mana gathered in Orient’s hands glows like an explosion.
“Creation of nature”.”
“…… ?”
The moment her magic was cast, the devastated forest area was recreated.
Ninth tier magic, natural creation.
It was a skill that changed the environment within a designated radius according to the caster’s will. And the ruler of the changed environment is designated as the caster, and the environment moves organically like a creature.
The earth holds his feet as if melting, and the surrounding grass and trees move flexibly and wrap around his arms.
“Ha… hahahaha! Okay. This is it! Fun! It’s fun! You have to be at this level to be the King of Spirits!”
He was amused when he noticed that all his demonic energy had drained out.
“But!”
Wooddeuk!
Grabs the tree that holds itself. In an instant, it crumples lightly like paper. Eventually, it broke and one of the trees died.
“I can kill you even without Magi.”
As he clenches his fists, his blood vessels swell and his muscles enlarge. The grass he was holding on to was ripped away helplessly.
“You are reckless. “Thorn Hell”.”
At her cry, thorns came out of the ground and pierced Peremus’ body. As the demonic energy disappeared, the steel-like skin had cracks due to the lowered defense. In the end, the beast’s jaws made of earth attacked him.
Quang!
Without a chance to resist, buried in the ground, Peremus just laughed.
“Not yet.”
With that said, as he swung his arm in the ground, his earth exploded. Leisurely up to the ground, he laughed meanly.
“It’s great…… !”
If it was an ordinary demon, he would have lost his resilience and suffered considerable damage at the point he lost his demonic energy, but Pheremus tore off the thorns stuck in his body as if he was just having fun. Blue blood oozes from all over his body, but he doesn’t stop moving.
Even though the magic is sealed, Orient, feeling a sense of fear at not being pushed back, distances himself. Her psychologically exhausted body took a deep breath and let go of her fear.
“As much as you, I will definitely kill you!”
Concentrating her vast amount of mana, she puts her hand on her land. She then absorbs mana into her land and she becomes a link to those who stand on the ground.
“「Earth of Death」.”
The moment she recites her skill, mana penetrates inside Peremus, contorting her blood vessels and tearing through her organs.
“Keah!”
He coughs up blood. Blue blood poured out of his mouth and soaked the earth.
“Is it to twist the mana flow of those who are stepping on the ground? It’s fresh.”
Peremus calmly expressed his feelings despite such an attack. He looked at his trembling hands and wiped his lips.
“Just die!”
Orient intended to disintegrate Peremus’ body by excluding demonic energy from his body and filling his body with his own mana.
However.
“As expected, when you become the King of Spirits, you must exert your full strength.”
Peremus stabbed his index finger into his arm.
“「Mana absorption」.”
He absorbs mana in an instant and concentrates it on his index finger. Orient, whose mouth was wide open at the sight, hesitated.
“It was fresh, but it didn’t mean much to me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s not over yet!”
Seeing Orient trying to gather mana, Pheremus shook his head.
“I can turn mana into magic. If you were going to deal with me, you should have chosen a physical attack rather than magic. The moment your strength becomes mine, the outcome of this fight is decided.”
The vast amount of mana used to kill Peremus is gradually being consumed by demonic energy.
Natural creation tries to swallow the demonic energy, but the scale of mana held by Peremus is larger, so it cannot keep up with the demonic energy absorption.
“Let’s finish.”
The moment he clenches his fist, the demons hanging from the tip of his index finger are wrapped around his fist.
“「Collapse」!”
Pheremus throws his fist at Orient. Orient, who reacted belatedly, installed a barrier, but subconsciously realizes it.
This can’t be stopped.
‘Sorry, Ariel.’
Demonic energy pours down along with his fists toward Orient, whose eyes are tightly closed.
“「Absolute defense」!”
Kaang!
Just before Peremus’ fist struck Orient directly, a white fox girl came in between the two beings.
“Fortunately, it is not too late.”
Iris, who opened the water seal, growled low, baring her fangs.
“You…… ?”
“Block my skills…… ? Who are you?”
Peremus and Orient looked shocked when they saw Iris who had blocked the fist she swung with all her might without any impact. At that, Iris provoked her by twisting one corner of her mouth up.
“I don’t know. You will die by my hand.”
“No, I am the one who kills him.”
Just above Iris and Peremus.
Tina, holding both ends of her creature in the air, draws her sword and draws her trajectory.
‘The goal is the head.’
“”Among all things”!”
Invisible black air flies into Peremus’s head. Peremus intuitively recognized that appearance. If you don’t avoid it, you might die.
It quickly kicks off the ground and goes off track. However, the sword energy, which should have hit her head directly, reaches her toe and her toe is amputated.
‘My body was cut off in one shot?’
Peremus looked down blankly at the bleeding toe. He tried to recall the memory of the man who had wounded himself in the past.
‘It’s true that my body is weakened now because I don’t have demonic energy, but it’s strange to be cut all at once…… ?’
“You know Iris, right? That we have to kill this blue pig so we don’t owe our Master.”
Tina landed on a tree and looked down at Iris.
“Of course I know.”
“Honestly, I want to be praised alone. This time, I’m doing it because I specifically told you to join forces.”
“Is it okay for me to be alone?”
“Because I can do it by myself too? You only do what your master tells you to do?! That way, they will praise you for being more proud, so you’re just listening!!”
While Tina and Iris are arguing. Peremus asked, alternating between the two girls.
“Who are you?”
“You said you didn’t know anything?”
Iris said, pointing at Peremus to the end of her past glories.
“You’re too cruel, Iris. Yeah, who are we? Hmm… ….”
Tina tries to give her answer, but she hesitates. Because she wanted to describe herself in a little nicer word.
After thinking for a few seconds, Tina snapped her fingers.
“It’s like the grim reaper born to send you to hell.”
“Send me to Hell…… ?”
Taking Tina’s antics as her provocation, Peremus shudders. And Tina smiled as she looked down at Peremus.
“That idiot, I said he wasn’t an easy opponent.”
Iris shook her head and straightened her sword.
“Your opponent is here. Come in.”