It was none other than a wire and a dagger.
And not just any ordinary dagger.
'That object is…!'
Indeed.
What Igeon was bringing to the helmeted man was none other than the enemy's dagger.
The very dagger that had stabbed Igeon in the tower.
That was why Hyugo, watching, was startled.
'Why that?'
The helmeted man, upon seeing the dagger, flinched just the same.
The reason was unknown.
But the helmeted man, seeing the pattern on the blade, seemed utterly enraged.
[How dare something like you possess that! That bears the engraving of the Monarch-nim…!]
But instead of answering, Igeon pulled out a wire cord from a key ring shaped like a tape measure.
And just as everyone wondered what he intended to do with it—
Kwah-jik!
Igeon appeared from behind the helmeted man. With that lightning-fast movement, the helmeted man realized his mistake too late.
Igeon's wire cord had bound the greatsword the helmeted man was holding.
And that wasn't all.
[The wire cord constricts the enemy's arm]
[The wire cord begins to deal damage (laceration) to the greatsword]
And that wire—had it been back when he caught the Ru? It was a sister product, similar to the one he had used then.
[ SS-Class
- Hit rate increased by 90% even in extreme situations
- Will not snap under most circumstances (toughness level) SS-Class
- Jageulsa data]
And the object known as Jageulsa was made from the overflowing data of Hyugo, whom he had pummeled so much.
As flames ignited from the wire binding his own arm, the helmeted man panicked.
Because the kindled flames were no ordinary fire.
'This is unmistakably the Red Monarch's…!'
Ultimately, as the fire spread to his arm, the helmeted man looked at Igeon as if enraged.
[This fire! Where did you get it! How dare a bastard like you!]
At those words, Igeon smiled, as if disgusted.
Where did he get it, indeed.
'Heilli gave it to me.'
Had it been when he was at the smithy?
It was among the items that Heilli of Scorpio had packed for him, saying it would be helpful.
Of course, he hadn't known its true nature, but one thing was certain: it was a higher-grade power from an unknown civilization.
[Ember of the Never-Extinguishing Fire (SSS)]
And he had simply assembled it into the wire made from Taek-su's data.
Since he couldn't use magic himself, he intended to use it for mid-range containment.
But he had no reason at all to explain that.
And then.
'Shall I test the power of the sword that stabbed me?'
Because the Heavenly Sky's Punishment hadn't made him flinch in the slightest. But what about a sword said to contain the power of their king?
It was just as Igeon, grinning viciously, raised the dagger.
The helmeted man, writhing in the fire, gritted his teeth.
'Could it be the Red Monarch's daughter?'
Because this fire was not something even they could easily obtain.
'Could she have betrayed us?'
No, that couldn't be. That woman was colder and more disgusted by human men than anyone.
'Even if she gave it, there must be a reason.'
And what mattered right now wasn't Heilli's side.
'This measly fire, what of it!'
The helmeted man severed his own arm and turned.
Though he had lost his due to the Red Eye, he could simply steal that bastard's power again!
But it was then.
'!'
He had merely turned around, yet Igeon had leaped and put distance between them.
Since he appeared to be a close-combat type, there was no reason to create distance, so everyone watched with puzzlement.
But exactly one person.
The helmeted man alone glared at Igeon as if disgusted.
'That insolent little Holy Spirit brat.'
He had clearly instinctively learned that being close would cause him to lose power.
That was why, despite appearing to be a close-combat type, he was uncharacteristically keeping his distance.
'What a terrifying sense. In this short time.'
Moreover, his perception was quick.
In that brief moment, he had precisely grasped the safe distance.
But what good would that do?
'In the end, to stab me with that, he has to come close.'
Therefore, the helmeted man summoned demonic energy as if disgusted. The Monarch would surely be overjoyed if he captured a Holy Spirit of that caliber.
But it was then.
'!'
The helmeted man was shocked.
Because the dagger had vanished from Igeon's hand. Just as he wondered what had happened—
Puh-ook!
[?!]
The helmeted man vomited blood.
The sword was embedded in the helmeted man's torso.
He wondered what had transpired, but soon realized the reason.
'That brat…!'
It was Cheon Seongjae.
Cheon Seongjae, appearing beside Igeon, had teleported the sword.
And that was thanks to Igeon's command.
[Seongjae, ram this into his gut.]
Because the holy disciples of the Serpent Bearer could hear Igeon's voice.
As a result, the helmeted man, stabbed by the sword, collapsed, bleeding.
[Kugh!]
But it didn't end there.
Puh-ook!!
[Kugh!]
Cheon Yuha stabbed the helmeted man's neck from behind. The attack worked, perhaps because Hyugo had shattered the protective barrier.
Finally, suffering a double critical blow, the helmeted man screamed.
[You insignificant humans! Those who aren't even Saints dare lay hands on my body!]
With that fury, black demonic energy surged.
Cheon Yuha retreated from the force of that powerful demonic energy, and her clothes were slightly torn.
Consequently, Cheon Seongjae's eyes went wide, and Hyugo flew into a rage.
"That little bastard, how dare he touch our daughter's bare skin!"
Hyugo loosed an arrow filled with killing intent. The arrow of absolute accuracy detonated the helmeted man's leg.
The helmeted man ground his teeth and let out a battle cry.
Kung!!!
A battle cry from monsters surged forth alongside it. They were the tens of thousands of monsters the helmeted man had summoned.
As if responding to the helmeted man's commands, they began targeting the humans.
Of course, the Red Eye that had appeared now possessed the ability to command them, but that was utterly irrelevant.
'In any case, without demonic energy at the level of the Monarch-nim, the Red Eye cannot use it.'
Because the Red Eye, too, could ultimately exercise its full abilities only after receiving demonic energy from the Monarch.
And without that ability, even the Red Eye would struggle to handle such numbers!
But it was then.
Quang!!
The monsters suddenly began attacking their own comrades.
Kwah-jik!
"Kieeek!!"
"Kiek!"
It was a shocking spectacle.
The monsters were biting and killing their allies.
In fact, some packs were retreating back to where they came from, the Red Zone.
But there was something even more astonishing.
Whap! Whap!
Igeon was standing on top of the Red Eye's head.
Of course, not the handsome Igeon.
It was that Igeon from 20 years ago, the one with the gruesome appearance.
It was a slime.
The slime transformed into Igeon was issuing commands from atop the Red Eye's head.
And perhaps it judged that the Red Eye would listen to it if it looked like Igeon.
[Sa Heon issues a command to Yongyong.]
Of course, he wasn't issuing commands fearing the Red Eye might not distinguish friend from foe.
[Sa Heon instructs to eliminate the ones that look expensive first.]
[Sa Heon instructs that that one over there looks better.]
[Yongyong demands to know what this bastard is.]
The helmeted man was dumbfounded by the sight before him.
And no wonder, for that ability was unmistakably the Red Eye's ability, [Dominion].
One of the abilities the Monarch cherished greatly, it was the power to rally and command independent monsters.
That was why he was bewildered.
'That's an ability that can't even be used without demonic energy at the Monarch-nim's level…!'
Could it be.
The flustered helmeted man looked at Igeon.
As expected, a green light was surging from Igeon's body.
[!!]
Simultaneously, the helmeted man gritted his teeth.
There was no mistake.
It was Igeon who was supplying demonic energy to the Red Eye.
Of course, due to the sheer numbers, he couldn't command all the monsters, but to enable the use of the Dominion skill—!
'What kind of bastard…!'
But there was another problem.
"Kiek!!"
"Kieeek!"
The monsters, which humans should not have been able to handle, were dying.
It was Suteibeun and Hyugo.
Hyugo's arrows shattered enemies to pieces, and Suteibeun's prosthetic hand tore through the enemies' necks.
And at the sight of his subordinates collapsing miserably, the helmeted man could only feel astonished.
And no wonder—the Red Eye's Dominion skill, and even skills capable of killing them.
He glared at Igeon.
'This is insane. No matter how much they are mere foot soldiers, how can…!'
But there were others who were bewildered by this spectacle.
"What? How is this happening?"
"Why are their attacks working?"
Indeed.
It was the holy disciples on the human side who were bewildered.
For those fighting the monsters had no choice but to be perplexed, as their own attacks had utterly no effect on the monsters.
Because of this, Kebin could do nothing but fall into self-deprecation.
For even his ultimate technique, unleashing 100% of his Holy Spirit power, hadn't worked.
Even a technique he had thought could overwhelm even Igeon!
But what was this?
Cheon Yuha, Cheon Seongjae, Hyugo, Suteibeun. Only the attacks of those four worked against the enemies.
So Kebin couldn't help but find it strange.
'Why do their attacks work?'
And if one were to find a commonality among three of the four—Cheon Yuha, Cheon Seongjae, and Hyugo—there was exactly one thing: [Igeon's Holy Disciples].
Then what about Suteibeun?
'Could it be.'
Kebin, having reached a certain conclusion, snapped at Suteibeun.
"Gaeng!!! Where did you get that arm!"
"What? I got it from Igeon, why!"
At those words, the holy disciples were shocked.
Kebin, too, narrowed his brow.
With this, he knew for sure the commonality among those whose attacks worked.
However.
"Gaeng!! Why does a bastard like you get something like that from Igeon! When even I haven't received it!!"
Kebin, blinded by jealousy, swung his sword at Suteibeun as if to kill him.
"Hand it over right now! That arm is mine! You undeserving wretch!"
"Agh! Hey, what are you doing! You know this isn't the time!"
Even having lost his dominant arm, his opponent was humanity's strongest swordsman. His swordsmanship was no joke.
"Hand it over! How dare a muscle-brain who doesn't even know Igeon's value wear Igeon's possession!"
In the end, the two, who were on bad terms to begin with, clashed intermittently. But soon, as their demonic energies collided, Kebin's strikes also began to be affected by Igeon's demonic energy.
Thanks to this, Kebin's strikes, too, became capable of killing the monsters.
Just as the tide of victory began to appear, and the monsters were being somewhat thinned out—
[As compensation for lending demonic energy, a portion of experience points from three holy disciples is received.]
[The crafted item Sa Heon's Prosthetic Arm has sent the usage fee and experience points to the parents.]
Igeon smiled with satisfaction.
The experience point situation was good. Of course, his physical condition wasn't great.
[Warning. Power and demonic energy are being supplied to the holy disciples.]
[Demon energy consumption rate is increasing due to mixed Saint-level power.]
[Warning. Enormous demonic energy is being consumed for the captive 'Red Eye's' skill.]
[Divine might has also sharply decreased from the enemy's attack.]
[Current Divine Might Level 35% (Very Insufficient)]
[Divine Might is recovering through contributions sent by the holy disciples.]
[Demon energy consumption is extreme. It is advisable to expand the Divine Seat to increase demonic energy capacity.]
Indeed.
He was growing stronger through the activities of the holy disciples and the captive, but the downside of demonic energy consumption was the problem.
'Especially, the Red Eye's skill is no joke.'
The demonic energy drain was so severe that his fatigue was quite heavy.
Of course, his demonic energy reserves had always been small. The exhaustion was similar.
But normally, he replenished his demonic energy through food and the Jeoktoma he had left with Hyugo.
And right now, that Hyugo was his own holy disciple, so he couldn't forcibly take demonic energy from him.
Igeon narrowed his brow.
'It would be nice to have a demonic energy reserve large enough to fight alongside them.'
At those words, a voice came.
[We recommend methods such as obtaining a tribute or holy disciple that can increase demonic energy.]
Just as Igeon took interest in this—
[How impressive, for a mere lesser god.]
"!"
Igeon flinched at the unfamiliar voice.
To be precise, it was because of the aura felt alongside that voice.
'This aura is unmistakably from earlier.'
It was unmistakably the aura of the being that had struck and sent him flying.
And it was then.
[Monarch-nim!]
The helmeted man gestured with his one arm.
His form was as if a Saint from the human faction was offering prayers toward a Holy Spirit.
The helmeted man shouted loudly.
[Descend that power unto this place! Please release the restrictions!]
As if in response, the earth shook.
Kung!!
A tremor incomparable to when the monster had appeared.
At last, a black light surged from the helmeted man's body.
Kung!
Simultaneously, the helmet the man was wearing cracked, splitting apart.
'!'
There was no time to be surprised.
As the helmeted man activated his skill, a black circle expanded radially.
Doong!
And under that force, everyone collapsed.
"Kugh!"
It wasn't a level of pressure one could possibly remain standing against. If a feeling akin to one's soul being ripped out existed, perhaps it felt like this?
Under that immense power, Igeon, too, had no choice but to sink down.
[Danger. It is a Monarch-class power.]
[The Monarch-class has directly descended.]
[Humanity cannot survive the Monarch-class power.]
Along with it, both the holy disciples and the Saints fell into mental confusion.
But the bigger problem wasn't that.
Puh-ook!!
"Igeon!"
The helmeted man's hand pierced through Igeon's torso.
And the skill that was triggered!
[Nightmare]
Igeon vomited blood in agony. And with it, the demonic energy flowing toward the Cheon siblings and Hyugo was cut off completely.
"……!"
Simultaneously, Kebin was horrified.
"Hey!"
As Igeon collapsed, all of Igeon's holy disciples lost consciousness, as if trapped in a nightmare.
The prosthetic hand that had been heading for Suteibeun also lost power and drooped limply.
The helmeted man seized Igeon by the neck.
[Have you witnessed it?]
The voice had changed.
It must surely be someone the helmeted man had summoned.
[This is the power of a Monarch, standing above humanity.]
Yet the helmeted man looked at Igeon as if sick of him.
[Still, to think you enabled the use of the Red Eye's skill is truly surprising. An undergrown Holy Spirit rivaling Monarch-class power. To think a bastard like you existed among the Holy Spirits.]
But now, that was over.
The man looked at Igeon, the corners of his lips rising.
[Your ability is outstanding for a Holy Spirit, but today, humanity ends. Killing you, who seems the strongest, naturally ends humanity.]
But it was then.
Clench.
"!"
Igeon, who had seemed unconscious, grabbed the man's arm.
And then.
[Penalty: Physical Ability 50% Decrease]
[Remaining Time: 0 hours 0 minutes 11 seconds]
[8 seconds]
……
[5 seconds]
[1 second]
[Penalty is lifted.]
(Continues in the next episode)