A deserted mountain region.
Bzzzt—
In the very middle of it, the sound of something tearing rang out.
At the same time, a long fissure began to form in empty space.
Accompanied by a continuous crackling noise, it rapidly widened its domain—.
Crack-crack-crack—!
With a final, violent rupture, it formed a massive hole.
Then, from that gap like the bottomless pit of hell, a pair of hands abruptly emerged, gripping both sides of the torn space and slowly pulling it apart, expanding it even further.
“...At last.”
When the fissure finally surpassed a certain size, someone’s calm voice flowed out from beyond it.
Aside from the fact that it belonged to a man, nothing else could be gleaned from it... an utterly strange voice, impossible to pin down.
“It took longer than I expected.”
Soon, the owner of that voice slowly revealed himself from beyond the space.
A man of unknown identity, who seemed at once like an ordinary young man and an extraordinary old man.
It was the moment when the Beoncheon Society Leader, who had struggled for so long at the bottom of the abyss to reach the surface, finally set foot upon the earth.
‘So this is the Auterica dimension.’
He quietly looked around and slowly nodded.
Several pieces of information he had learned in advance passed through his mind.
The most basic kind of fantasy otherworld, with an ability system based on mana, an energy useful for manifesting phenomena.
It was also an intervention-type dimension, where the gods who managed the world not only bestowed divine power, but occasionally performed direct miracles as well.
‘A laissez-faire type would be more convenient... Still, the more troublesome it is, the more there should be to gain.’
Hadn’t he already managed to obtain something not long after arriving here?
Though the party he had dealt with was a fallen and imprisoned god, and thus not quite what he had hoped for, it had still been a being with a legitimate divine status in this dimension. As such, it had been enough to offset a significant portion of the world’s restrictions placed upon the Beoncheon Society Leader.
Without that, he might still have been trapped in that prison called the abyss.
‘For now, I should be grateful for that much. I also learned how to move efficiently in this place. I don’t like the fact that I made a deal with something calling itself a god, but if it helps me, there’s no need to be needlessly hostile.’
Hadn’t he already resolved to do whatever it took to achieve his goal?
He had already compromised on all sorts of things for that very purpose. It would be laughable to start being picky about his methods now.
“Then now... Hm...”
Then, suddenly, just as he took a large step forward while thinking of the next stage, he staggered heavily.
Without realizing it, he frowned, placed one hand against his head, and squeezed his eyes shut.
Wooooong—
—I shall become the great ... and...
Wooooong—
—No matter how many times I ... I will surely...
Ziiing—
—Only I can this world...
A ringing in his ears sounded alongside vibrations that shook his head.
Shock after shock, enough to twist the ego that maintained his reason, stormed through his inner self. Yet he merely kept his eyes closed, recalled his mission, and silently endured it all.
How much time had passed like that?
After a fierce torrent, so violent it seemed it might sweep even his self away, passed through him once, the thing that had been raging within him finally began to calm, and he was able to gradually regain stability.
“Hoo.”
With a short sigh, he removed the hand from his head and frowned as he checked the cold sweat covering his palm.
He had expected it, but it was a sensation he disliked no matter how many times he experienced it.
‘...How much did I lose this time?’
Even so, he calmly checked his condition at once.
The more divine status he obtained, the more his personality and ego blurred. But there was still much left for him to do, so he could not afford to collapse already.
‘Still, this much is within the safe range. No need to worry too much. I can fill myself a little more yet.’
From the beginning, gods were beings of that sort, so the reaction occurring within him now was only natural.
If anything, trying to obtain complete divine authority for the sake of his goal while still maintaining human thought was surely the greedy part.
‘There is no real problem.’
But having worked until now for that alone, he would simply walk his own path, no matter what anyone said.
Having steadied his resolve once more, he—
Stopped dead just as he was about to move again.
“......”
His gaze turned to one side.
His sense of time had temporarily collapsed, so he could not be exact, but it was true that the moment he had lost himself had not been very brief.
Still, surely it had not exceeded about an hour.
‘They reacted this quickly, even though they couldn’t have prepared in advance?’
He detected a group that had already surrounded the area and was approaching him.
The hostility emanating from them told him that they had by no means come here by coincidence.
However, even taking that into account, there was one thing that bothered him.
The aura he sensed from each and every one of them was...
“...What? Why are you...?”
Then.
Before he could resolve his question, a familiar being appeared at the head of the group.
[Kekeke, it seems I found you first.]
“...Hahoe Mask. How are you here?”
Hahoe Mask.
A being he had clashed with not long ago, and whom he had even made remain on Earth for some time afterward in preparation for his reappearance.
Unlike when they had faced each other with an intact mask, now only fragments of a broken mask were attached to him, leaving his vicious skeletal form exposed. But it was unmistakably him.
The Beoncheon Society Leader’s expression twisted subtly as he unexpectedly faced an adversary in a place he had never anticipated.
[Who knows? Why don’t you try guessing?]
“...I see. So you too could cross dimensions? Have you been moving back and forth between this place and Earth all this time?”
[Krrh— Is that what you think?]
“I never imagined there would be another who could do that besides me. This is quite unexpected. I did not anticipate it at all.”
[Oho? Arrogant as ever, I see. Still, it is good that you have learned, even now, that the world is vast. That is something worth congratulating.]
“Then are those vermin the forces you gathered in this world?”
Even as they engaged in what was ostensibly conversation, but was in truth a battle of nerves, the undead who had come with Hans, the officers of the Immortal Army, were moving in perfect order.
Death Knight Lord Karam led the elite death knights and formed a battle formation.
Dread Phantom Pagos floated in midair with the ghost-type undead.
Archlich Kelipha constructed an enormous magic circle in the rear alongside high-ranking liches.
A number of Abyss Revenants, including Salma, a former Transcendent-class Awakener.
And beyond them, Ghoul Lord Fiona, Doom Knight Drexler, General Spartoi Trev, Death Wizard Malcolm, and others fiercely raised their momentum—.
As they occupied every direction at once and took their positions, the pitch-black energy flowing from their bodies resonated with “death,” enveloping the surroundings in an instant and beginning to contaminate the space around them.
[Kuooooooo——!]
[Kyaaaaa——!]
On top of that were the bone dragons Entracio and Heratos, swimming through the sky as they glared down below.
Since only the top-ranking elites of the Immortal Army had been brought in a hurry, their numbers amounted to merely a few hundred. However, with the realms each of them had reached, and the power of death Hans had bestowed upon them filling their bodies, their momentum was not something that could be easily dismissed.
‘...No wonder I felt a sense of déjà vu from the moment I was thrown into the abyss. It was exactly the same power Hahoe Mask used.’
Sensing the aura within their fighting spirit, the Beoncheon Society Leader clicked his tongue and furrowed his brow.
Back then, he had thought it couldn’t be and had paid it little mind, assuming all the dregs of the world were similar.
“Yes, Hahoe Mask. I’ll admit, I’m surprised. To think you, who fled from Earth, were hiding in a place like this. But if you’ve appeared before me instead of continuing to hide... that must mean you are confident this time, yes?”
After finishing his mocking words, a heavy pressure erupted from his body.
Goooooooo—
A presence truly befitting his infamy.
It was only that, and yet the connection between the officers surrounding him wavered, forcing them to take a step back one by one.
[Kekeke, you are getting rather talkative. You will find out by experiencing it yourself.]
At that, Hans, who had been quietly watching, once again released black magic mixed with abyssal death from his body, encroaching upon the space.
And that power struggled back and forth against the Beoncheon Society Leader’s presence, then seeped into the bodies of the undead officers and awakened their scattered momentum all at once.
‘There is no need to explain the compatibility between abyssal death and the undead. I do not know how useful the officers I brought for support will be, but if they can help even a little, that is enough.’
Amid the escalating tension, Hans roused his mind to the utmost and prepared for battle.
He had faced his opponent before, so he knew his abilities well.
In truth, if it came to a one-on-one fight, he still wasn’t particularly confident.
‘But the situation here is different from Earth.’
Back then, he had not even had “Dimensional Barrier Mitigation,” so the abyss had been unable to properly exert its power. But that was not the case here.
In addition, not only the top-ranking officers of the Immortal Army, but also the Abyss Revenants he had been creating from Earth’s Awakeners all this time, could enjoy its effects.
Conversely, the divine power handled by the Beoncheon Society Leader could not be fully unleashed in Auterica, a different dimension.
On Earth, that would have been of little concern to him, since he could draw out power on his own. But in this place, where there was clearly a main god, there was no way he could freely use the power of an outer god!
‘Yes, this place... Auterica is my domain.’
Crack—
A sharp sound rang from the joints of his bony fist, but that small noise was quickly buried beneath the surrounding uproar like a raging storm.
‘...Did you think I would let you bastards take it from me again?’
A blue blaze erupted from the eyes of the Immortal King Hans as he faced the invader who had trespassed into his territory.
To be honest, at this moment, he had no attention to spare for home-theater broadcasts or anything of the sort.
He only wanted to smash the enemy with all his might.
‘Even if I cannot defeat him here, it does not matter. Since I cannot know what he will do, I cannot let him roam freely through this world as he pleases.’
He forcibly suppressed the urge to use “Individual Assembly” right away.
For the time being, he needed to have the various forces connected to him prepare in many ways in case of an emergency.
Hans’s goal was to buy as much time as possible until all the other avatars finished their work.
‘It paid off to stay constantly on alert.’
The reason he had been able to find the Beoncheon Society Leader first was simple.
This was the northeastern part of the Ion Continent, the northern mountain range above the Zephia Republic.
Not only was it a place where information could be acquired faster than through any other organization, it was also an advanced surveillance zone literally staffed by hundreds of sentries capable of responding twenty-four hours a day.
Of course, in the process, Banshee Queen Olivia, who was in charge of the Immortal Army’s intelligence, had recently suffered without even being able to sleep. But since she didn’t sleep anyway, it probably wasn’t a big problem.
“...Very well. Before I begin my work, I suppose I must deal with you first.”
At that moment, the Beoncheon Society Leader, who had been quietly looking around, uttered a heavy statement as if making a declaration.
Flutter—
With the rough sound of wings beating, a brilliant twilight glow erupted from his body and covered the surroundings.
A mighty divine power that, despite undoubtedly having weakened in output, far surpassed Heinrich the saint.
At that, the death energy filling the surroundings began to melt away in places, vanishing as holes opened all through it.
“If I can lessen the work to be done on Earth, this may actually be preferable. Then go on. Try resisting.”
[Krrhahaha! Aah— Yes. Let us see what you can do!]
And so, in a remote mountain region where human footsteps had long since ceased—
Kwaaaaang—!
The second round between an angel from another world and the local Demon King began.
***
“Bricky.”
“Ah— Heinz, it’s been a really long time since you came— Ngh?”
Bricky, who had turned around with her usual carefree expression at the familiar voice, stiffened for an instant.
Gulp—
Then came the faint sound of her swallowing.
But her hesitation lasted only a moment.
Soon regaining her composure, she subtly lowered her gaze and opened her mouth again.
“Um, well... H-High Lord, you’ve arrived? It looks like you went somewhere far away... You must have eaten something good for the body. Your face is practically shining...”
“Prepare for battle immediately.”
But Heinz, who had no leisure to play along, cut her off firmly and issued an order.
At the same time, he sent word to the True Blood-class high-ranking combatants through the telepathy shared between vampires.
“Yes, High Lord!”
“Ah, and.”
After Bricky’s instinctive response, her military discipline snapping taut, his words continued.
“Before that, take this first.”
At those words, from the fingertip of Heinz II bloomed a ruby-like “Refined Blood Crystal” of divine blood.
Gulp—
Together with the sound of her swallowing once more, her gaze became fixed upon the fragrant liquid.