Chapter 345: Great Existence (1)

On a winter day with stinging wind, there was a fierce battle the world didn't know about.

More than 50 powerful devils along with countless demons appeared. The city of Godara had also welcomed legendary heroes into its lands.

Would hell unfold in such a place?

After the battle, the appearances of the city was revealed, and the place looked so terrifying and dirty that ordinary humans wouldn't have a choice but to puke.

"Now I understand why the devils were so strong here. The whole city... is like the realm of the devils. No, wait... it would be more accurate to say that the Devildom had manifested itself into the human world."

"Right. Since we fought so much in a place so similar to Devildom... it is a miracle that it ended with just this much damage."

"Right."

The Chief High Priest, Ashrin spoke and the Holy King nodded. Several high priests and several sword masters had been wounded, and many people even lost their lives.

The orcs and the members of the Runtel Kingdom had taken damage as welll.

But it was a miracle that they were able to completely sweep away the roots of evil from this city. It wouldn't have been possible with the power of Avilius alone.

Recalling the heroes of the other nations who had given their lives here, the Holy King offered his prayers.

"May the heroes who gave their lives to save the world find rest in God's arms..."

All the priests present there bowed their heads. They couldn't celebrate the sacrifice of those heroes. All of them wished that the dead would find peace with a united heart.

Because this wasn't the end.

Knowing that an even greater threat was going to show itself, the Holy King went silent.

'The advent of the Demon King.'

Demon King.

It wasn't a term which was used to represent the being with the strongest darkness. But rather, it referred to the individual with the will, charisma and ability to take control of the devils and demons.

It was for this reason that the clown that had lived for so long couldn't be called a Demon King.

In terms of strength alone, he could fulfill the qualifications , but his character didn't have the dignity of a King.

Among the devils in history, the closest to the Demon King was the Demon Dragon King, who led his subordinates and laid siege to the entire Western continent.

And.

The only other one was this demon that had now appeared for the first time after 400 years.

The existence that took away the body of Khun. The creature that kidnapped the continent's future, Ignet.

None of this was for personal pleasure. And with what happened in Godara, the Holy King was able to understand the Demon King's intentions.

The demonization of the human realm. Their goal was to create another hell.

"... any solutions?"

"Right now, we don't have any."

Julius Hul answered the question. It was as he said. The reason Godara had been tainted so much by the devils was because this place gave power to them. But their real purpose was to create a rift in the dimensions.

Unbearable chaos that was occurring throughout the continent had destabilized the human world. It was very difficult to follow the Demon King who was creating gaps in dimensions.

"Of course, it won't be easy for the Demon King to enter the human world again..."

"It might not be easy, but he will surely come back. That is what history tells us."

"..."

"Besides when they come back, they will be in a much stronger state than now."

Julius Hul didn't deny it. The words of the King were right.

Through the Warrior's Festival, everyone came to know of Ignet Crescentia and the message she wanted to deliver.

The Black Knight wasn't just a single Master. She was truly a symbol of stability and hope for the continent. And that would make people hope for more. But as a result of that, when the expectations were not met, despair would begin to bloom.

He thought of the Demon King who made and executed this plan. During the 160 years of peace, if he had to write down when the human world was in risk the most, it would be now.

...it won't be easy.

The moment when Ignet's heart breaks. That would be the beginning of hell.

'I am sorry, but you need to hold on.'

This was the only message the White Knights Commander could give to his disciple. There was visible sadness on his face.

"It doesn't mean that there is no way at all."

Quincy Myers, who had been silent till then, spoke. And everyone looked at him.

In the current situation where nothing but despair could be felt, is there something that could help them?

It piqued everyone's interest; however, their expressions were all cold like Julius Hul. It was because the words which came from the Red Knight commander were absurd.

"Anya Marta, Georg Phoebe, Ilya Lindsay, Judith, Bratt Lloyd and... Airn Pareira."

"..."

"If only they could grow strong..."

"...Enough. Don't."

The king cut off his words. He sighed as he touched his forehead. He could understand this.

Problems related to dimensions that even the Runtel Kingdom couldn't handle were occurring. And that was the reason why they couldn't advance to the Demon King right away. They had no idea of knowing how long it would take for them to reach the Demon King who could potentially be hiding in any of the gaps of the dimensional gate between the human world and Devildom.

It wasn't impossible, but it felt like it would be a waste of effort and time going after him now. However, there were those who were completely free from such thoughts, the six people who had received the signal from Ignet.

For them, if they wanted, they could reach the Demon King's den right away. It was a strange thing that they couldn't comprehend, but with the power of sorcery it made sense.

In other words, if the young heroes could build enough strength and defeat the Demon King before they broke Ignet's will, then...

'It means that the current crisis can be resolved completely. But...'

Holy King sighed. He couldn't understand it.

Why did Ignet entrust the future of the continent into the hands of such young heroes and not to the strongest of the continent?

10 years.

20 years.

30 years.

She would have to endure this suffering maybe even longer. How could she decide that they had more potential to grow even beyond Julius Hul, Ian and Jia Runtel as they were now?

Did she just rely on anyone during the crisis without a thought?

He couldn't figure it out.

But, it was clear...

'Ignet, in that other dimension is going to have a much tougher time.'

The gambles she had made put her in a position where she had very low odds of her winning. And moreover, she was in an unknown world which even God didn't embrace, so for her to hold on to her sanity there...

And it wasn't easy for the young heroes to reach the level of Julius Hul in a few days.

They were running out of time. They were strong, but not strong enough.

No one spoke in the silence that was filled with anxiety and worry. And thus the season that was filled with hope, quickly turned into despair.

Woong!

After coming back from his journey where hell had spread into the world, Airn devoted himself to training every single day. He was someone who normally worked hard even before but now he was swinging his sword as if he was broken on the inside. 1

He didn't eat nor sleep for ten days straight.

He knew that it wasn't good, but he couldn't stop himself.

He had to become strong.

He had to get stronger quickly and advance into that dimension.

He had to free Carl Lindsay, slay the clown and defeat the Demon King. Only then could he save Ignet and the continent. 2

'I am becoming too impatient.'

With a sudden thought, Airn stopped everything he was doing and closed his eyes.

Ian had told him this a while ago and he was right.

The person he was now was completely wrong.

At the end of the Warrior's Festival, the five energies of the spirits created a balance within him. The energies of fire, earth, iron, water and wood that constantly coexisted with each other took him to a higher state.

But not anymore.

The reason for that was clear. The flame.

His anger because of his inability to save Ignet.

His anger towards the devils that were hurting this world.

Although he had set out to correct all of this, the fiery anger, hostility, jealousy and malice from the people he had met inflated the flame of Airn Pareira and he was losing control of it.

Right. This wasn't just impatience; this was much more than that. The world looked too different to him.

It was incomparable to the bright days he had when he was supported by people.

It was more painful than the dark days when he had confined himself to his room.

And he couldn't help but admit.

He was a flower in a well-kept garden. And he had only seen good things happen. But... there was no need to be ashamed of having grown as a tree in a warm environment.

Airn opened his eyes.

The world he saw through his eyes was red as blood, and all the trees in the world were also red... as if the fire was spreading more and more.

He had to manage it.

He had to calm down.

But it was impossible. He constantly came up with rational solutions in his head, but in the end, it was his heart that controlled him. And now his heart was burning.

There was no way out.

Neither his teacher, his friends or his lover could stop this fire.

Without a miracle, it would be impossible for Airn to overcome the Demon King in a short period of time.

Tuk.

"...!"

And.

A miracle happened

At the sudden sound, Airn turned his head and ran somewhere with a stiff face.

It was a mouse.

A glistening golden mouse that was smiling brightly like a human.

Picking it up, he raised his head.

"..."

A long line of light escaped from the mouse and pointed ahead.

Looking at it, it felt like it was a line guiding him somewhere, and Airn trudged down the path. He moved towards the place without a thought

"Hello?"

"..."

"Sorry. Did you wait for too long?"

As the person said, he had waited too long

But he couldn't hate or blame them.

Because it was his old friend.

Lulu, holding a colorful wand and had a much more livelier pose than before.

"The sorcery girl has arrived!"