Chapter 154: Dragonlord Ivanov 5
Woohyuk was already aware of Amii’s strength and abilities.
However, knowing it theoretically and watching her battle were completely different things.
Woohyuk realized he had to prepare more thoroughly to fight against other demon kings in the future, especially in battles where the demon kings would outnumber him.
He felt the need to train using the three demon kings under his command.
During the current battle, he had summoned Amii instead of Volak and Dantalion because of her trait: Eternal Hell.
Eternal Hell granted Amii immunity against fire attacks, as well as the power to give shape to flames and make them explode.
'It's a trait that matches well with the Hound of the Baskervilles.’
The area within the flame magic circle was the best environment for the Hound of the Baskervilles to run wild.
The hound was an ancient monster of the flame-attribute.
Its synergy with its master's flame magic was high, and in some cases it could be assimilated with the flame magic to be enhanced.
In other words, at this point of the battle against Ivanov and Carnelian, the Hound of the Baskervilles and the flame magic circle were a single entity.
The same could be said for all the flame magic spells that Amii would cast from now on.
Rumble!
When Amii finished casting the spell, a fierce and flaming vortex grew from the magic circle and began to spin faster and faster, creating a tornado of flame.
It was a dizzying sight that would shock and astonish ordinary people!
However, without giving in to the pressure, Ivanov stabbed his frosty greatsword into the floor.
Immediately, his surroundings rapidly froze, and the cold energy began to clash against the spreading flames.
The two opposite attributes were fighting over territory domination.
“Grrrrrr!”
Within this chaos, the Hound of the Baskervilles jumped out of the side of the spiraling flames and rushed behind Ivanov.
After noticing it, Carnelian returned to her red dragon form and blocked its advance.
“Get lost, you ugly monster!”
As she growled with hostility, the Hound stopped in its tracks and slowly stepped backwards.
It had been ordered by Amii to capture Carnelian without hurting her.
As the two stood facing each other, Amii jumped out of the flames and swung Ignis at Ivanov.
Swooosh!
With the crack of a whip, Ignis spun itself around the greatsword and tightened itself.
Instantly, a fiery flame erupted from Ignis, and the flames ran down the greatsword towards Ivanov, trying to burn the man.
“Argh!”
Ivanov made a short groan and activated the accessory he was wearing.
A transparent shield emerged out of thin air to protect him from Ignis' flames.
“Is that the most you can do after using the pill? You’re quite pathetic, aren’t you?”
Amii mocked Ivanov provoked him.
She was naturally aggressive but excellent in combat.
She liked people who were exciting, lively, and full of passion, just like the flames she wielded.
“Dammit!”
Ivanov cried out resentfully and rushed toward Amii with a fist cocked back, ready to swing forward.
His greatsword was tied up by Ignis, and he was constantly receiving flame damage, so he would not last long even with the shield protecting him.
Seeing his desperate attempt, Amii snorted.
“You seem to be underestimating me due to my delicate appearance…”
But she was still the 58th ranked Demon King. She was Demon King Amii.
Although she was part of the lower ranks, she was still a lord of the demon world who governed a viscounty.
Her basic stats were high.
In addition, due to the Dignity of the Demon King, all debuffs had 35% less effect on her, and she didn’t take damage from B-grade or lower weapons and from low or intermediate magic.
Moreover, since she had lived for thousands of years, she was also skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
'I can’t rival Lord Asura in terms of close combat, but it’s more than enough to deal with this pathetic man.'
Amii dodged to the side showing unwavering confidence.
Ivanov's fist missed its mark and flew beside her face.
'Now!'
She grabbed his forearm and performed a knee kick.
Despite her slender leg, Ivanov felt excruciating pain and spat out blood as he received the hit in his abdomen.
“Urgh!”
Her knee was so robust that he couldn’t accept the fact that it was a young girl’s knee.
As Ivanov fell to the floor, Amii untangled Ignis from the greatsword and scorned him.
“Just die already, you pathetic human.”
Even if he consumed the Clipport’s fruit, he was merely a human without any talents except for having a red dragon.
He could not beat the Demon King.
As Amii tried to finish him off,
“Kekekeke...”
Ivanov began to chuckle.
Amii's movements momentarily stopped due to this unexpected yet unpleasant laugh.
“Why are you laughing? You do realize that you’re about to be butchered, right?”
"I’ve finally realized. I’ve realized the fact that I can’t get anything without risking everything I have.”
He was spouting sophistry.
Amii frowned and tried to kick Ivanov away, but...
Gulp!
Two more Clipport’s fruits went in his mouth.
Afterwards, the surroundings began to get covered in a purple fog, and Amii slapped herself in the forehead after realizing his intentions.
“I was wondering what you were saying, but you’re just trying to become an Awakener using Clipport’s fruit.”
However, in most cases, the attempts to become an awakener were met with failure.
It was because only those with innate talents could overcome death and sow the seeds of the devil.
In addition, he wasn’t trying to naturally approach his limits by taking the Clipport’s Fruit over a long period of time, but instead was using an ignorant and reckless method of ingesting three in a short span of time.
His chances at success were nearly nil.
“Kueeeeek! Kuaaaargh!”
Ivanov screamed painfully with bloodshot eyes, shaking and having a seizure.
His internal organs and nerve cells were being taken over by demonic energy, which caused terrible pain.
Since he had eaten three pills in a short span of time, it wouldn't be surprising for his entire body to melt and disappear completely.
“He’s just going to die at this rate, without even getting the slightest chance of becoming an awakener.”
"No, don't underestimate him too much."
Woohyuk had approached the two of them while Amii stood with crossed arms, waiting for the results of Ivanov’s reckless decision.
He, too, was not taking any action.
Someone who was going through the process of becoming an awakener was like a time bomb, so it was better to observe the development instead of recklessly touching him.
“Are you familiar with him?”
"I do. We’ve clashed many times in the past.”
Ivanov was currently slightly weak because it had only been a year since they were summoned to this world. In his past life, Ivanov was someone with considerable strength and power.
He was one of the six overlords who divided and ruled the western continent.
Amii looked down at Ivanov in surprise at Woohyuk’s explanation.
“Are you saying this stupid mutt was that strong?”
“Well, luck was a big part of his strength gain.”
At that time, Logan and Alice were going on a frenzy in the north, so the Holy Aperian Empire could not afford to pay attention to Ivanov.
Meanwhile, the Theresian Empire in the East continent couldn't even invade the west as Marcus raged in the south, and frost giants came down south from the north.
However, it was clear that without Ivanov's outstanding qualities, he would not have taken advantage of the opportunity properly.
That is why Woohyuk thought he had a high probability of becoming an awakener.
“You should prepare yourself. Awakeners are difficult to deal with.”
In the past, the Devil’s seeds inherent in the Clipport’s Fruit sprouted within some individuals, who ended up becoming troublesome to deal with.
Woohyuk unfolded Lemegeton as he recalled the situation back then.
A black fog spread around, and demon kings Volak and Dantalion emerged from the darkness.
“H-have you called, Lord Asura?”
“Your orders…?”
They were terrified of Woohyuk, and shivered like dogs hiding their tails between their legs.
The pain and fear they felt back in the Nelson march was deeply ingrained in their brains.
“That guy will become an awakener soon. The three of you are to work together when the moment arrives and deal with him.”
“A human opponent? Please leave it to us.”
“As long as we stop him from self-destructing himself, it will be a piece of cake.”
There was no way the three demon kings would not be able to stop one human awakener.
Leaving them behind, Woohyuk walked toward Carnelian.
The remaining time was now 15 minutes.
Woohyuk had to obtain her now since it would take a while to subdue the awakened Ivanov.
“D-don’t approach me!”
Carnelian stopped attacking the hound of the Baskervilles one-sidedly and shouted at Woohyuk.
As he reduced the distance, she grew wary of him.
She believed Woohyuk was trying to take her heart.
“How long do you plan to live as Ivanov's livestock? Do you enjoy being tortured by him every day?”
“Better than being eaten by a demon king! And even if I run away, there’s nowhere for me to go!”
“If you follow me obediently, I will guarantee your safety. I promise. I will also find someone your age who can be your friend.”
"Lies…! I know you'll use me and kill me eventually!”
Carnelian had been brainwashed by Ivanov and did not even consider Woohyuk's proposal.
Woohyuk sighed and summoned Verserios.
Afterwards, he stabbed Verserios into the floor, and the whole area was stained with pitch-black darkness.
“Wha, what’s happening?!”
“This is my absolute space. In this place, all the boundaries are blurred.”
The abyss was an essential attribute of the demons. Disorganized and chaotic darkness.
The system classified it as evil, which naturally led to the conflict between gods and demons.
Recalling some of the contents of the nameless tome he heard from Helena, Woohyuk spoke up again.
“You are the daughter of Arcana, the Red Dragon King. During the War of Gods and Demons, Arcana was killed by Demon King Baal who ranks first.”
The dragon tribe had fought alongside the gods during the war.
They preferred order over disorder and had a long hostile relationship with the demons.
However, the war was costly, and the dragon tribes suffered great damage, some beyond repair.
Their populations reduced significantly, and an unidentified epidemic that polluted their minds began to spread among them.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, the remaining heads of the dragon tribes decided to move to another dimension after long discussions.
As soon as the War of Gods and Demons ended, the dragons disappeared from the Eeth Continent.
Carnelian blinked vacantly at Woohyuk’s explanation.
“Are you telling me to believe those words?”
“You can check whether I’m lying or not, can’t you?”
Within Asura's absolute space, all beings were connected to him.
It meant that all mental processes such as thoughts, emotions, and memories could be shared among each other.
After Woohyuk finished talking, Carnelian stared at him for a moment as he stood still.
And…
“The cliff of trials… Golden Dragon King Adakar's test... A dragon egg... Everything is consistent with what Lord Ivanov told me...”
Her jaw dropped as she made an expression of disbelief.
Ivanov hadn’t told anyone how he had obtained the egg and kept it a thorough secret. Except to Carnelian.
So she was the only one who knew about it.
“Ivanov crossed a river that he can no longer return. He will become so ferocious and violent that he won’t be able to control himself anymore. You won’t be able to depend on ho,.”
Ivanov, who was awakening, would try to eat Carnelian's heart in order to gain more power.
He wouldn’t be able to keep a rational mind anymore, and wouldn’t need her as the symbol of his power or as a transportation vehicle anymore.
Carnelian trembled in fear at Woohyuk’s words.
“N-no… I don’t... want to be discarded… I don’t want to be eaten…!”