The Temple of the Demon Realm (1)
Pitch-black smoke surged in.
As if darkness itself had been given form, it evoked different memories depending on one’s perspective.
The ceiling one looked up at before falling asleep, the secret fort made by bundling up blankets as a child, the warm embrace of a mother’s arms, and so on.
Darkness is rest.
The impulse to throw himself into it and obtain eternal peace welled up.
The writhing shapes flickering within the smoke also looked like the beckoning gestures of familiar faces welcoming him.
Thus, Ken—who had been happily welcoming the darkness slowly approaching him—
“Hey! Get a hold of yourself!”
“Kek!”
He couldn’t even properly resist the crude force grabbing him by the back of his neck.
His body flapped about like a paper doll caught in the wind, dragged along helplessly.
Kwaang—!
At the same time, a tentacle made of pitch-black smoke slammed down into the spot where he had been just moments before.
Though it looked like nothing more than a clump of smoke, it clearly possessed physical force, as a loud explosion echoed out.
“This mister seems to have lost his mind, huh?”
“So that guy really is the cause, right?”
Voices mixed in with the wind sounds created by rapid movement.
Ken was still being dragged along limply by the force gripping his nape.
He grimaced lightly and turned his head with difficulty to check, only to find that one of Davidson’s heads had bitten his collar and was running busily.
“Damn, my head’s foggy…”
His headache worsened as his body was shaken roughly, and he clenched his teeth.
He was suppressing his body’s impulse to embrace that darkness at any moment, to the point where he couldn’t even properly control himself.
“Hey, you okay?”
“Not at all… Damn, I think I finally get it. Was this why he gave up his body? I feel like I need to become one with him right now… Kuk!”
The true identity of that black fog was the original owner of the body Ken was occupying.
For now, he was resisting the other’s claim of ownership with the right of occupation he had maintained for over twenty years, but that was only temporary—he couldn’t guarantee how long he could hold out.
‘This is bad.’
Busily moving his legs at Ken’s reaction, Davidson furrowed his brow.
[————!]
Even now, the black fog was relentlessly chasing after them.
Though it was a massive temple with a ceiling reaching dozens of meters high, the black fog surging from behind approached like a tidal wave, swallowing one side of the vast corridor whole.
Krrrr— Kwaang!
Of course, it wasn’t that they hadn’t tried fighting.
No matter how formless it was, his abilities, 「Gluttony」 and 「Authority of Voracity」, were powerful enough to devour even concepts without form.
However, there were certain restrictions to utilizing them…
Namely, in order to use the abilities, he had to put things in his mouth and eat them.
‘It’s not completely ineffective, but it’s way too inefficient.’
The amorphous shape, much like smoke, was incredibly low in density due to its large volume.
Meaning there was a limit to how much he could eat in one bite.
Moreover, since that wasn’t real smoke either, it was impossible to use tricks like inhaling the air all at once.
‘And yet I can’t just recklessly bulk up and face it head-on. The opponent isn’t that easy. The fact that its curse penetrates magic resistance just by touching it, too…’
Just as he devoured the thing, the smoke also absorbed his energy.
And that wasn’t the only problem.
Wasn’t the bastard’s true target Ken, not himself?
‘I absolutely can’t hand this guy over.’
Possessing instincts beyond those of a beast, he could feel it intuitively.
If he left the bastard to absorb Ken, something very bad would happen to him.
That was why he was fleeing like this instead of facing it head-on.
“Mister. Do you know why that thing is in a place like this?”
“Hoo, well. Looks like he got backstabbed by Count Devil Dragon or something. I don’t know the details either.”
“Tch! You’re no help at all, are you?”
“…Ngh, sorry about that. Right now, just controlling my body is my limit. If I let my guard down, I’ll be overcome in no time.”
He had already guessed what the bastard’s true identity was.
The decisive culprit who had suddenly vanished and thrown the entire demon realm into prolonged chaos.
The 15th Demon King elected after Lerei—Tanuin.
‘The fact that he’s trapped in a place like this… It must be connected to that apostle bastard who went to find Count Devil Dragon, right?’
Having checked the prayers engraved throughout the temple through 「Xenoglossy」, Davidson was quickly able to determine whose place this was.
‘They’re quite industrious. To think they’d brazenly set up a base like this.’
A temple that was now exiled to the abyss—one that had once served the human god.
Of course, strictly speaking, they hadn’t built a new temple in the demon realm.
They had merely sneakily connected the entrance of this existing space to a part of the demon realm.
The pillar door seen before entering this place was precisely that link.
‘Though that was probably only possible because Count Devil Dragon cooperated… it’s still impressive. Besides, they actually laid hands on a Demon King and turned him into that state.’
At this point, one had to wonder what the Demon God who supposedly governed the demon realm was doing and where.
Unlike that guy who was now going all out without regard for methods or means, as a complete deity, there must be much to protect and many restrictions binding him, so it was understandable, but still.
“Hup!”
Just then, as a black tentacle stretched toward them again, Ken, who had been hanging limply, swallowed a hollow breath.
Davidson immediately twisted his body to evade the attack and bit it away in reverse, but the black fog scattering as the smoke tentacle broke had no small effect on the two of them just from that.
Crack!
“Ngh—! Damn it!”
Ken’s whole body writhed as the sound of twisting bones rang out, as if he was reaching his limit in suppressing his body.
Davidson turned his head to scan his own body and couldn’t help but furrow his brow.
The severe curse erosion was making his smooth fur wither, and beyond that, it was starting to fall out in clumps.
‘This won’t do after all. I need some kind of countermeasure.’
A formless opponent had very poor compatibility with him.
Of course, he was regenerating in real-time, so he could endure if he put his mind to it, but the problem was Ken, who looked like he was nearing his limit even now.
It was a situation where he had to do something before Ken completely collapsed.
But how was he supposed to deal with a former Demon King whose existence itself had become a mass of curse, beyond the level of a mere spiritual body?
‘So it’s gotta be Hans, after all? If it’s Hans, the Undead King, it might be possible…’
Of course, there were some concerning factors.
The fact that this place happened to be inside the human god’s temple.
No matter how fallen it was, this space would be special to him too.
He’d probably be able to grasp what was happening here as easily as looking at his own palm.
‘Maybe he’s not just watching, but scanning everything in detail with analyzer-level precision.’
Having restricted his power in various ways and deeply suppressed the 「Seed of Madness」 as well, being observed in his current ‘Davidson Mode’ wasn’t too big of a deal.
However, revealing the abilities of Hans—who could be called his greatest combat strength—to Aurterica’s greatest nemesis was inevitably uncomfortable.
‘Hans’s 「Heart of Immortality」 is also a power derived from that guy’s divinity, which was exiled to the abyss. Though I’ve completely wrested ownership of it now, I should avoid giving him any opening if possible.’
It was a moment where worries deepened on many fronts.
Then suddenly, a possibility flashed through his mind.
‘…Wait? A mass of curse?’
The 15th Demon King Tanuin, who had lost his physical body and whose soul had even been corrupted, becoming a curse itself.
Though the power and rank he possessed remained immeasurably high, it was a clear fact that his identity was now limited to being a ‘Demon King-class curse’ rather than a ‘Demon King’.
‘This might just be…’
His head spun dizzyingly as he calculated various possibilities.
Not just Davidson’s brain—of which he had three, though their performance wasn’t all that great—but also mobilizing all the fresh minds of his other avatars.
The conclusion reached through that was…
‘This is worth doing.’
High probability.
The plan was put into immediate action.
***
Tanuin, who had passed through all manner of battlefields and been elected as the 15th Demon King.
But even after becoming the Demon King he had longed for, he couldn’t simply rejoice.
Because he knew of the schemes Count Devil Dragon Crushier—his strongest rival and a leading candidate for Demon King—had carried out to eliminate the previous generation’s Lerei.
Tanuin, who had also been a Count at the time, had lent a hand in that plan, so there was no way he didn’t know.
However, it was also true that eliminating someone who had already admitted defeat and submitted to him for the mere reason that they were a ‘threat’ would reflect very poorly on him.
Wouldn’t it give the impression that the new Demon King, who had just reached the pinnacle of the demon realm, feared his former rival?
So he had been waiting for an opportunity, itching to somehow fabricate an excuse…
Perhaps Count Devil Dragon had sensed his intentions, because the latter came in first, prostrating himself completely.
And even offered a very precious tribute.
“A fragment of a god, you say?”
It was an utterly irresistible temptation.
A piece that had fallen from a god!
Tanuin, who had obtained quasi-divinity upon ascending to the throne of Demon King, could tell at a glance how tremendous it was.
Divinity fallen from a being equal to, or perhaps greater than, the Demon God.
If he could fully absorb this, achieving his long-held ambition would be no mere dream.
Since long ago, every time he looked up at the sky of the demon realm, he had harbored—
That desire to cut down the heavens himself.
Of course, he didn’t attempt to absorb it without any precautions.
Because it was a gift from Count Devil Dragon, who had been his top-priority target for vigilance no matter what anyone said.
Using his authority as Demon King, he had verified the danger several times, assumed various possibilities, and prepared diverse countermeasures.
So that if the bastard recklessly pulled any tricks, he could cut him down completely this time.
And finally, the moment he became convinced that he, having achieved quasi-divinity, could absorb this ownerless divinity without difficulty.
He immediately accepted that divinity fragment into his body and—
[Kehehe— Greed has brought disaster upon you, Tanuin!]
An unforeseen situation erupted and everything went wrong.
It should have been ownerless divinity, yet by some ill chance, an apostle serving the owner of that fragment had appeared.
“Crushier! Enoum!”
Through the apostle’s prayer, the fragment and an unidentified god were connected as one.
Tanuin, who had wholly devoured that divinity, was caught up together.
He too had been building his own divinity since ascending to the position of Demon King, but unfortunately, having been too greedy, he was swept away by a far more powerful divinity before he could even grow accustomed to it.
“Do you think I’ll just let this happen to me!”
But he too was someone who had passed through all manner of battlefields to stand at the pinnacle of the demon realm.
The 15th Demon King Tanuin didn’t simply collapse as they wished.
To ensure they could gain nothing through him, he tore his own body apart and scattered it across the demon realm, and corrupted his soul into a curse aimed at them so they couldn’t use it as they pleased.
[…Tanuin. You are no help to the very end.]
Though he had thrown a massive wrench in their plans at the last moment, neither the apostle nor Count Devil Dragon gave up easily.
Having gone so far as to use a precious fragment of divinity, how could they simply give up just because things had gone awry?
He carried out another plan while also gathering the scattered remains as much as possible, devising a plan to extract the Demon King’s power from them.
To transplant the Demon King’s power into his own body, just as he had previously become one of the demon race.
[It matters not even if the Demon God does not acknowledge me now! I shall rise above the Demon King on my own!]
If he possessed the Demon King’s body and practically ruled the demon realm, wielding influence.
Then no matter what anyone said, he would be the Demon King.
Regardless of the Demon God’s will!
Hundreds of years passed like that.
As planned, the demon realm fell into chaos, and Count Devil Dragon also spent busy days gathering the Demon King’s remains and preparing the ritual.
Then one day, Count Devil Dragon heard a rather intriguing story.
About the existence of an otherworlder who ignored the laws established in the world.
It was not long after that Ken and the other Earthlings began to be abducted to the Demon Realm.
***
Countless warning messages appeared across his field of vision.
Clad from head to toe in a metal suit, fully armed in Titan, Hesperon, who had been waiting on standby, glanced over the detailed information.
-Measured Energy: 326,711,730
-Threat Level: SS
-Energy reaction equivalent to a Terra-class ship reactor detected. Initiate emergency escape sequence immediately.
“Wow.”
An exclamation escaped him despite himself.
A Terra-class ship was a massive spacecraft at least one kilometer in total length.
A crystallization of future scientific civilization, capable not only of space warfare using main cannons and barriers, but even warp navigation.
‘A single entity is holding that much energy?’
Even though it must already have fallen as far as it could fall, it was still at this level.
Even taking into account that this was the Demon Realm, it was absurd.
Rummmble— Thud!
The vibrations rumbling in the distance gradually drew closer.
Tension on his face, Hesperon loosened up his body here and there, then slowly took a deep breath and completed his final preparations.
With a metallic clank, the Titan parts covering his right arm disengaged and vanished into the air.
All that remained was his bare arm, wrapped in bandages engraved with mysterious patterns.
He stared down at his right hand, which looked frail compared to the rest of his body in the suit.
[————!]
Just then, a hollow cry surged all the way to where he stood.
When he slightly raised his gaze, he saw that the three-headed hound—and the demon dangling from its jaws—had drawn close.
“Well then, shall we get started?”
Sssrk—
The bandages unraveled on their own, rolling up above his shoulder.
Revealed plainly outside was the shape of a black dragon coiling around his entire arm like a tattoo.
But it was no ordinary tattoo.
Fwoosh!
As if to prove that, the dragon, which had been moving along his skin of its own accord, burst out in a blaze of pitch-black flame.
The “Right Arm of Craving,” which had remained sealed all this time without being able to play much of a role.
The black flame dragon slumbering within it lit its eyes and slowly grew in size.
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Now then…”
Of course, with his current level, there was nothing he could do about that “Demon King-class curse.”
The gap in their ranks was far too great. If he clashed with it head-on, he would not last long before being absorbed in reverse and disappearing.
Along with Hesperon, its host.
However, if one more ability was added to the equation, the situation would change.
“Go on. Eat until you burst.”
It was hardly worth mentioning at this point, but—
“Curse Predator.”
Hesperon’s body was immune to all curses.