Chapter 111: The Trial 3
“Tsk!”
Priscilla retreated with a troubled look.
It was unreasonable for her to confront Sieg, a dragon slayer, in a head-to-head battle.
Swoosh!
Another purple monster appeared above Priscilla and fell onto Sieg's head.
The speed was so fast that it is difficult to follow with the naked eye.
However, Sieg simply avoided the blow and climbed onto the monster.
Swish.
He then stepped forward and quickly reached Priscilla's position.
When Sieg tried to swing Gram at Priscilla’s neck,
“That’s about it.”
A blond young man with red eyes appeared through a portal and blocked Sieg’s advance.
“Aleister Crowley…”
“I see. So you’ve betrayed us. To think that you tried to destroy the sin of Sloth even though you should be preaching Lady Lilith’s Gospel.”
Aleister shook his head as he gave Sieg a sermon.
The dragon slayer paused, stared at Aleister for a moment, and opened his mouth.
“At that time, I was just fighting the invaders of the forest to protect Kriemhild. I didn't really believe in your doctrine.”
“What a pity. You’re refusing to be saved. Oh well, that’s fine. After all, you are just a supporting actor on the stage.”
Aleister waved his index finger side to side as he stared at Sieg.
Afterwards, he turned and looked down at Woohyuk.
“I received a revelation before coming here. I felt like my heart would stop since it was the first one for a thousand years. I have learned why. The reason why the Witch of Envy had to die, and why the plans for the future have suddenly been accelerated.”
Aleister began praying as he gathered both his hands together with a thrilled expression.
Sieg raised the holy sword Gram again since he didn’t want to continue listening to his nonsense.
“I don’t care about that. My Lord has commanded me to defeat Priscilla and her monsters, so if you stand in my say, I will consider you an enemy as well.”
In truth, Sieg knew from the very beginning that he had come with hostile intentions.
Nevertheless, the reason why he had yet to move was to buy time, as Woohyuk had not given instructions yet.
'I didn’t think we'd cross paths this quickly.'
Woohyuk was listening to the conversation from a distance as the situation became troublesome.
He did somehow expect Aleister to intervene, but still had hopeful expectations that he wouldn’t.
In any case, the power balance on this battlefield had completely collapsed.
‘A desperate situation.’
Currently, if the demon kings were to appear and launch a total offensive, it would literally be the worst case scenario. Their chances at victory would be near to nil.
The story will be different if allies came to support, but it will be difficult for them to arrive in time due to the distance.
When Woohyuk was struggling to decide his next move, Leifina came to his side.
“My Lord, shouldn’t we send more troops over there? The ones on this side look like they can handle themselves...”
The battle between the monsters and the undead army in the Corcas Mountains was one-sided.
Agnes covered the ground with demonic energy like a swamp and tied the monsters’ feet. The undead army followed up by ending their breaths.
On the other side, Medusa's petrification magic and Agatha's ice magic were on a frenzy.
The enemies’ elite monsters were also using their own characteristic skills and abilities to fight back.
“You’re right. However, we should keep in mind that there are reinforcements hiding somewhere.”
The allied force of the demon kings should be larger than this.
Seeing that they hadn't revealed themselves so far, they may have joined the battle at the Doria Castle.
‘It’ll be inconvenient if the Doria Castle gets taken.’
It was the foremost base, the walls were solid, and siege weapons were positioned in various locations of the castle.
If they were aiming for the castle, now would be a great opportunity to attack, since Marquis Nelson's troops had left to support the battle here.
Woohyuk urgently sent a messenger to the Eastern Guard Camp.
“Tell Marquis Nelson to defend the fortress.”
The citizens of the central region of the Nelson march would be evacuated to the fortress.
Even if the enemies were to successfully pass through the castle, there would be no problem since the security of the other regions were strict.
As Woohyuk watched over the kingdom’s army and the guards in the rear, Aleister's voice resounded from the air.
“I’ve been wanting to meet you in person, Asura.”
They were close enough to enter each other's range.
Aleister had somehow reached above Woohyuk within a short span of time.
“Are you going to preach to me as well?”
“I hope you don't hate me for it. It is my duty to preach Lady Lilith’s Gospel. Besides, ever since we received a revelation thousands of years ago, our sense of duty has been burning with energy unlike anything before.”
“… Let's just keep it short and get to the point.”
Woo-hyuk released his demonic energy and brandished Verserios.
Seeing his appearance, Aleister’s eyes brightened as he spoke.
“Ho, is that the abyss? You are truly a blessed existence, just like the four apostles of the apocalypse.”
“So, do you covet my abilities?”
“No way, I have no intention to fight you right now. I just want to give a suitable trial to the one who wishes to challenge the realm of god.”
Aleister was aware of Woohyuk's objective. He had been watching over him secretly from behind
“A trial?”
“The divine throne system. You will set foot in that realm earlier than what the future had in wait for you through Lady Lilith’s trial.”
“Then what are the four apostles?”
Woohyuk continued to ask questions to buy time for Sieg and the Spiritual Society to defeat the enemies.
Aleister also responded to the questions and continued the conversation as if he had just come to talk from the very beginning.
“The Four Apostles are believers who will help the Demon God’s advent on the Day of Judgment. It's also my job to find and manage them in advance.”
“Are you saying that I’m one of the four apostles?”
"I do not know. We will have to keep watching you. I have decided not to confuse myself trying to figure out your identity, since Lady Lilith said that you are an important key.”
While he kept talking about this subject, Aleister avoided mentioning any important information.
Watching his wicked look, Woohyuk sorted out the information.
'There is a high possibility that he manipulated the overlords from the past behind the scenes.'
In particular, people like Logan, Alice, and Ivanov were famous for working with the demon faction.
Marcus could be excluded since he was on hostile terms with the Witch Cult, but he may have been the one to manipulate him into becoming a lunatic.
'I will have to change a lot of things in my overall plan.'
After ending the current war, he had been thinking of erasing the overlords of the past who were part of the demon faction one by one.
However, the situation has significantly changed since the Golden Rose Society and the Witch Cult could be looking after them.
When Woohyuk was about to ask his next question, purple lightning struck, creating a black hole-like vortex in the dark night sky.
[Abyssal Gate].
It was an ominous sign that appeared when one of the 72 Demon Kings descended.
“Ah, I guess it’s about to start. Then I wish you a good fight. If you truly wish to challenge your limits, overcome the trial before your eyes and protect the people dear to you.”
Aleister laughed like a madman before disappearing through a portal.
He wasn’t planning on helping Priscilla out.
Woohyuk calmly gave orders to the kingdom’s army and guards that were on stand-by.
“We need to move to the location where the Abyssal Gate has opened before the demon king’s army arrives.”
The undead army was still fighting the monsters in the Corcas Mountains.
Each commander took the lead of his troops with a humble expression.
As they approached their destination, a purple flash sparked the night for an instant, and three demon kings appeared through the abyssal gate.
“Prepare yourself, Asura! I am the 58th ranked Demon King, Amii! I have come personally to chop off your head!”
“…”
“…”
Amongst the three of them, Amii was the only one to make a loud speech.
Dantalion stayed silent in case he would draw attention to him, and Volak was hesitant to speak as he was beginning to feel pressure.
Seeing their passive attitudes, Amii spoke in fury.
“Are you going to stay quiet like a dumb baby after coming all this way? Come on, say a word to them!”
“…I'm Dantalion, the 72nd demon king! I shall make you taste the pain of hell! However, if you surrender now, I will spare your life!”
“I'm the 62nd ranked demon kin, Volak! Back then, I was humiliated as I wasn’t in my own body. But this time, it’ll be different! I will tear you apart as you scream for mercy!”
Dantalion and Volak belatedly bluffed their way out.
They were acting sloppy, unlike the demon kings they were.
Amii sighed, then raised the flaming whip in her hand high up in the air.
“Charge, Army of Darkness! Go and obliterate all of Asura's soldiers!”
Through the abyssal gate, demonic energy struck down one after another like lightning.
Afterwards, a bunch of distasteful monsters appeared on the ground, and engaged in a fierce battle against the kingdom’s army and the guard.
“Die, you monsters!”
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
The sound of metal hitting metal sound, and the shouts of soldiers filled the dark night sky.
Amii was looking around the battlefield with a satisfied expression, when a jet-black wave of energy instantly flew to her.
Booom!
The flaming whip was swung once and the jet black wave was extinguished with a deafening sound.
Amii focused her eyes and looked beneath her feet.
“What a cheeky bastard. If he had stayed silent for a bit longer, I would’ve let him live a few more minutes. But it seems like he’s asking for death himself.”
Woohyuk was flying toward her, with abyssal wings flapping on his back.
Aris was the only vassal following him.
Most of the battles between the commanders of each army were taking place in the air, so Leifina, who was poor in aerial combat, had to stay on the ground.
‘It would be inconvenient to drag her along.’
Fortunately, Aleister was missing and the odds at victory were decent.
Volak was already panicking, so the battle would mostly happen against the other two demon kings.
He believed that Aris could endure the fight as long as he kept Amii busy.
Eventually, the distance between him and Amii narrowed, and Woohyuk swung Verserios aiming for her neck.
Swooosh!
A flaming whip stuck Verserios with a crackling sound.
At the same time, the dark red flame of the whip exploded and swallowed up Woohyuk.
Booom!
An explosion strong enough to cover its surroundings in ashen dust.
However, Woohyuk did not suffer any damage as he had protected his body using his demonic energy.
“Impressive skills. Though it’s obvious you should be able to do that much as a demon king.”
“You don’t seem very different to Volak in terms of strength. You just shout louder, that’s it.”
“Hmph, let’s see how long that confidence of yours lasts.”
Amii smiled coldly and dived towards Woohyuk.
Her weapon was blocked but she immediately followed up by attacking with her fists.
'As I expected.'
Woohyuk laughed to himself as he watched Amii stretch her arms toward his abdomen.
He already knew her battle style from his past life.
The attempt to close the gap between them and fight in close-quarters was good, but Woohyuk wasn't at a disadvantage just because it was hand-to-hand combat.
He was a martial arts master who could handle himself even without weapons.
Thump!
Amii's pretty face was crushed by Woohyuk’s fist.
He had used demonic energy instead of internal energy.
The power was slightly weaker compared to his previous life, but it was enough to deal with the 58th Demon King.
“Cough!”
Amii’s eyes widened as she spat out black blood.
Woohyuk tried to follow up his attack, but...
“You shouldn’t forget about us!”
“I will make you pay for my previous humiliations thousandfold!”
Dantalion and Volak leaped at him from behind.