Chapter 195: Power

< Chapter 195: Power (3) >

"A half angel, half demon??"

The Demon God looked at me with a shocked expression, furrowing his brows.

"How can such a being exist..."

It's already hard to believe that a new life was conceived between the Angel Race and the Demon Race, who are sworn enemies. Not to mention one that possesses both of their incompatible powers at the same time.

From the perspective of the Demon God who has ruled over the Demon Race for a long time, it was unbelievable.

"If you can't believe it, then don't. Whether you believe it or not has nothing to do with me."

I met the Demon God's gaze squarely, a mocking smile playing on my lips.

"..."

The Demon God's expression turned cold. He seemed to be quickly regaining his composure.

'Damn it.'

Watching him, I inwardly cursed.

'He's recovering his composure faster than I thought.'

Externally he maintained his calm, but internally he was still flustered.

'How much time is left for the magic registration?'

The reason I risked intervening here was that this was the only way to save Heavenly God.

'Why didn't he register his magic in the ring...!'

The Apellateni Ring's [Emergency Return] function works by rapidly reading pre-registered magic and simultaneously teleporting back. Once activated, it's designed to allow all allies to retreat at once, a special artifact. The problem is that Heavenly God's magic is not registered in the ring.

'Well, there's no need to register your own magic in a ring you'll use.'

If I tried to use the Apellateni Ring in its current state, the outcome, Heavenly God's death, wouldn't change. That's why I wore a disguise and parachuted here: to save Heavenly God.

'Luckily, I appeared as a mix of the Angel and Demon Races, and I thought I'd quickly finish the registration while the Demon God was flustered...'

Unexpectedly, the registration for the Apellateni Ring is being delayed. To make matters worse, the Demon God is recovering faster than anticipated.

'Please register quickly!'

If the Demon God drops his guard and starts attacking, I won't last a minute before facing death. Even though I have both angel and demonic powers, he's too much for me.

Combining the power of a mid-level angel and a mid-level demon still won't be enough against the Demon God.

'If the two powers reached the transcendent level, maybe...'

If we fight now, I will definitely lose.

Gently-

Heavenly God, held in my arms, lightly tugged at my clothes. It was a fragile, weak force, weaker than a baby bird's. It looked like she wanted to say something, but was too weak to even move her lips.

"..."

But even without words, I could tell what she wanted to say. Heavenly God's resolute eyes pleaded with me.

'Run away.'

As if she understood the situation, she urged me to flee. I shook my head slightly.

"Just watch quietly."

I hugged Heavenly God tighter. Perhaps because of that, it felt like the speed of the magic registration on the Apellateni Ring increased slightly.

"... No matter how much I think about it, I can't understand. Angel-Demon hybrid... Such a being..."

The shock seemed to have completely faded as the Demon God's cold expression returned, and he began to speak again. It felt like not even 30 seconds had passed, but he seemed to have collected his thoughts.

"A product of coincidence... or a product of a miracle?"

The Demon God strokes his chin and stares intently at me.

"Interesting."

Then he gave a faint smile.

He seemed intrigued by the inexplicable irregularity in front of him.

Seeing this, I heaved a sigh of relief inside.

'I've avoided the worst.'

The fact that the Demon God is interested in me means he doesn't have immediate plans for me. In other words, I might have a better chance to buy time.

"Curious about who gave birth to me?"

I baited him with a topic I hoped he'd find interesting. Once he's accepted that I'm a mix of Angel and Demon, he'd surely be curious about who my parents were. That was the topic I gambled on.

"I couldn't care less."

However, the Demon God approached me, showing no interest whatsoever.

"No matter who your parents are or how you grew up, I have no interest."

He takes steps towards me as if walking on air.

I felt a pressure as if a massive tidal wave was approaching. Desperately, I tried to keep a calm facade.

"What's important is what kind of being you are... and,"

The Demon God's magic energy flared menacingly.

"...the power you possess! Those are the only two things that matter!"

"...!"

A magical attack imbued with clear intent to harm flew at me.

However, its power was weaker than I expected. Was the Demon God holding back to test me? Or was it because I had transformed into something beyond the Angel-demon hybrid?

'I can dodge it...!'

I felt sure of it.

Swiftly, I neutralized the magic using the power of the Angel Race and dodged.

'The demonic magic is stronger...!'

I simultaneously summoned the magic of the Demon Race, creating a sword of darkness in my hand.

Whooosh!

The collision of magics resonated with a deafening noise.

"Ugh!"

I was thrown back about 10 meters from the impact.

'Did I really block it? How?'

I had fended off the Demon God's attack. The hand that deflected the attack felt numb, but nonetheless, I had blocked his onslaught.

A strange sense of awe rose within me.

'If just using two mid-tier powers is this effective...'

What if I simultaneously use two... no, three transcendent powers?

'I can win.'

If it came to that, I'm confident I could defeat the Demon God. Such was the exhilaration I felt.

"Is that all you've got?"

However, the Demon God looked disappointed in my power, frowning and clicking his tongue.

Seeing this, I realized that he had probably been holding back during his earlier attack.

"If that's all you've got, then there's nothing more to see."

He raised his hand at the same time.

"Die. You're an eyesore."

In that moment.

The Demon God's magic enveloped the heavens and earth.

The sky lost its original blue hue and radiated a pitch-black light.

'...Dark Rain?'

That technique had appeared several times in the original work.

A large-scale killing technique that condenses the magic enveloping the sky into tiny needle-like forms and drops them like rain. Its appearance, similar to a rain of darkness, is why it was named 'Dark Rain'.

'Dangerous!'

The power of that technique is beyond imagination.

Given its range, evasion is impossible.

Moreover, due to the Demon God's 'destruction' magic attribute, defending against it is nearly impossible as well. Even if I neutralize it with my holy power, there's bound to be a limit.

'...What do I do?'

Gazing at the sky, which seemed ready to rain darkness at any moment, I thought at the speed of light.

'Based on my feeling, it will take at least 30 more seconds for the magic to be registered in the Apellateni Ring.'

30 seconds.

Can I withstand it?

Alone, it's impossible.

What about reinforcements?

Ini has fleed.

Others are blocked by the Seven Sins and can't approach me.

Even if someone comes to help, no one can withstand the 'Dark Rain'.

'What to do? How to...'

In a strange perspective where a second feels like a minute, I see the dark sky begin to condense like droplets, as if in slow motion.

Watching this, I gritted my teeth.

'...I'll withstand it, somehow!'

This was the only option I had.

Lowering my center of gravity, I wrapped both my and Angel's bodies with my four pairs of wings.

And in the next moment...

"Die, hybrid."

The Demon God thrust his hand downward.

The sky turned into a jagged spear, revealing its sharp teeth to me.

A spear of darkness.

Thousands, tens of thousands of darkness descended with an intent to destroy everything.

"...!"

I crouched down and, using my holy power, erected a circular barrier around me.

At the same time, I strengthened my body with magic.

Holy power exhibits great external force, making it highly efficient for creating barriers like this.

Magic exerts significant internal force, thus it greatly enhances physical fortification.

This is the best defensive measure I can take.

I bowed my head in this state.

Ting ting ting ting ting!

Sounds rang out hundreds of times per second, reminiscent of hailstones hitting reinforced glass.

Whooosh, whooosh!

"Ugh!"

Among the barrage, several spears managed to penetrate the holy barrier and pierce my body.

'It's... bearable...!'

The pain was intense, but not intolerable.

'This is nothing compared to the pain when the marks of both the Angel and Demon Races are simultaneously activated!'

I endured, and endured some more.

Until the barrier formed by the holy power became ragged, and the four pairs of wings protecting my body, along with the fortified body, were nearly torn to shreds.

I continuously persevered.

"Kuh-choke, kuh-choke!"

About 10 seconds later, I neared my limit.

The barrier of holy power seemed on the verge of shattering. I couldn't withstand even one more second.

Ting, ting, ting!

I tried to reform the barrier somehow, but it was futile. The rate of destruction far exceeded the regeneration speed. At this rate, I'd soon be riddled with holes, resembling a porcupine.

'Isn't there any way? Just a bit longer...'

Think.

I have to come up with something.

I bit my lip hard, hard enough to draw blood.

At that moment, an idea flashed across my mind.

'If I could... mix the properties of holy power and magic...?'

Holy power, efficient in external acts, and magic, efficient in internal acts. Can't I merge the two?

'If I utilize these two features and reinforce the holy power barrier with magic...!'

It's do or die.

Immediately, I drew forth my magic.

I retrieved all the magic that was fortifying my body and tried to coat the torn and hole-riddled holy power barrier with this 'magic'.

"Ugh!"

The moment my physical enhancement was lifted, dozens of spears stabbed into my back.

Enduring the pain, I desperately controlled both the magic and holy power.

'Hurry... hurry...! Move according to my will, you damn powers!'

At that moment...

Ka-a-a-a-a-a-ang!

A miracle occurred.

"...What?"

Along with the roar, the Demon God's astounded voice reached my ears.

And then, silence enveloped the world.

"What... is this?"

With a blood-stained view, I surveyed the surroundings.

The sounds of the Dark Rain clashing with the barrier, which were ringing just moments ago, had completely vanished.

And there was more.

'The wounds... are they healing?'

Injuries that should be hard to heal due to the Demon God's 'destruction' magic were healing in an instant.

"Seo-yul... sir?"

It seemed the residual healing energy was flowing into the Heavenly God as well.

The Heavenly God, looking a shade healthier, called my name.

"That... power..."

the Heavenly God, still looking weak, gently raised a hand to touch my face.

"Ah..."

Tears welled up in her eyes.

It looked as if she would burst into tears at any moment. What could she possibly be thinking?

I wanted to ask, but couldn't.

"...!"

For some reason, I could see the Demon God, who looked more immense than ever, mouthing words behind the barrier, compelling me to prioritize him first.

'The sound... is completely blocked off?'

The Demon God kept tapping my barrier with his hand.

'And its strength...'

Yet it didn't even budge.

The corners of the Demon God's mouth turned upwards even more.

What could be making him so happy?

He looked up to the sky and seemed to be laughing.

I couldn't hear him, but he might be laughing at the heavens to depart.

"..."

In an instant, the Demon God reverted to his cold expressionless state. He gathered all the released magic back into himself and immediately released it again.

Then, a magic sword emerged, piercing the clouds, even bigger than the 'Mark of Execution'... no, even bigger than that.

"...The Sin of Destruction."

This too was a main technique of the Demon God that I'd seen in the original work.

If 'Dark Rain' is a large-scale annihilation technique, this technique is specialized for 1:1 combat.

'The remaining time... is 4 seconds!'

In roughly 4 seconds, the magic certification for the Apellateni Ring will be completed.

If that happens, everyone can safely return.

'Just need to withstand that attack.'

I'm not sure how this situation came about, but perhaps with this reinforced barrier, I could block the "Sin of Destruction." Even if not entirely, maybe it could hold for around 4 seconds.

'It's possible.'

I was confident in that thought.

At that moment, the giant magic sword began to descend toward me. And precisely 0.1 seconds later...

Ka-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gak-!

The magic sword collided with my barrier. Perhaps because of the shock that exceeded my imagination, the sound was resonating inside the barrier.

Fizz, fizzing!

Not even a second had passed, and the barrier began to crack. If it continued like this, it wouldn't be long before the barrier would shatter with me inside.

'...I can't let that happen.'

Gathering all my strength, I concentrated my power on the barrier. Unlike before, the range of the attack wasn't that wide.

'Focus on the point where it's clashing with the Sin of Destruction.'

The roaring noise of the barrier began to amplify as I started to slowly compress it.

Ki-gi-gi-gi-gik-!

Little by little.

Very slowly.

Ki-gi-gi...

At the same time, the noise began to gradually fade, and concurrently, the barrier began to darken.

'Time left... 1 second!'

While desperately holding back the magic sword, in no time, there was less than one second left for the magic certification.

'I held on!'

And then, in a fleeting moment, I let my guard down.

Kwaang!

Unnoticed, the Demon God targeted the relatively uncompressed rear part of the barrier and swung his sword.

Clang!

And at that moment, the sound of glass shattering echoed.

Zzz-eeek!

From above, I heard the Sin of Destruction rapidly descending.

Whooom-!

From below, the Demon God was swinging his sword upwards.

'...'

In this critical moment, my mind became remarkably clear. Was it due to the Angel trait which provides significant mental enhancement? Everything in the world seemed calm and moved in slow motion.

'I can block it.'

My mind, which had turned cold, strangely came to that decision. And even stranger, my body immediately accepted this peculiar judgment.

'Twist my body.'

Hugging the Heavenly God, I dodged the range of the Sin of Destruction's attack by the hair's breadth.

'With my current state, I can do it.'

Light and darkness, accompanied by red blood, poured down, grazing my skin like tiny particles.

'Next.'

If the Sin of Destruction had fully accelerated, I could never have avoided it. However, since it was restrained moments ago and couldn't unleash its full power, I could dodge it sufficiently.

'Coalesce the shattered remnants of the barrier.'

Feeling the touch of the Sin of Destruction grazing my skin and free-falling to the ground, I drew forth my power.

Woo-woooong-!

A peculiar force, seemingly a fusion of light and darkness, wavered. Centered on this power, the scattered remnants of energy came together.

'I'll... suppress the Demon God.'

The unified force emitted an unbelievably immense power,

"...!"

and pressed down on the Demon God. He tried his best to resist, but soon he was unceremoniously slammed into the ground.

"Heu-ack, Heu-ack."

Watching the retreating Demon God, I activated the Apellateni ring I wore on my middle finger.

"Emergency transfer!"

In the next instant, my vision went bright white,

"Seo-, Seoyul sir! Seoyul sir!"

and I heard the familiar voice of a woman.

"..."

And I lost consciousness.

* * *

"Ma, Master!"

Lucifer hastily flew towards the Demon God, who was embedded in the ground and looking up at the sky. His face displayed undeniable signs of shock.

Following behind him, Balrog and Behemoth seemed equally perturbed, with their pupils faintly quivering.

They seemed to be contemplating how best to address the failure of their plan.

The Demon God, seemingly indifferent to the trio's state, looked up at the sky and laughed.

'Angels. And the fusion of holy power and magic... It's intriguing and fascinating.'

His smile resembled that of a child who received a long-desired gaming console as a birthday gift.

"Lucifer."

With that smile, the Demon God called out to Lucifer.

"We'll have to revise the plan."

"Revise... the plan, you say?"

"Yes. I've discovered quite an entertaining toy."

A glint flashed in the Demon God's eyes.

"I've become interested in dissecting that toy."

< Chapter 195: Power (3) > End