I Became an Illegal Cheat User

137 – Demon Slayer (1)

The monsters emerging from the darkness were endless.

It was a relentless onslaught that would tire even the most battle-hardened superhuman.

But fortunately, and sadly for the monsters,

Bang, bang, bang! Bang!

Crack, crackle!

I wasn’t getting tired.

‘In a long-term battle like this, having infinite stamina is truly overpowered.’

My stamina wasn’t depleting.

No, to be precise, it felt like it was depleting, but it was instantly replenished the moment it was used.

And thanks to the cheat of having unlimited resources—mana and divine power—that should normally be limited, I had no fear of running out.

I felt anew the absurdity and value of this cheat as I moved my body vigorously.

I swung the shield. I thrust. I sent them flying.

I unleashed my fists, wrapped in holy fire and telekinesis. I shattered them.

And I fire the muzzle of the missile port attached to my shoulder.

Boom—Kwahwahwah!

A lightning storm struck.

Sixteen flashes of white and blue adorned the sky. Continuously, over and over.

Those flashes that decorated the sky changed direction and poured down to the ground.

And just like that.

Pervabervabervabervabervaboom—!

I blew the head of the target captured in my sight.

Without a hint of error, a perfect hit.

Monsters collapse from all around.

At the same time, a sound of melting fills the air.

But even so.

“Kieeeeeek!”

“Kiaaak!”

The number of monsters is still vast.

No, to be precise, they are replenishing as quickly as they are falling.

Yet, among such bad things, there is a good one.

That is.

“Kieek! Kieeeeeek!”

The monsters no longer mimic humans. Not their appearance, nor their voices.

Now, they are true monsters.

Letting out chilling howls.

They leap not on two legs, but on four.

And they try to kill me by any means necessary.

Running.

Jumping.

Using the monsters that were running alongside as shields.

Unlike before, when they merely tried to touch me with their bodies.

Well, in truth.

They die off without even touching me at all.

No matter how much of a monster it is, it would be strange if there were no changes in its mood.

‘But I should start moving soon.’

Dealing with monsters can be done infinitely.

But I’m not the only one in this area; my friends are here too.

And above all, time is not infinite.

‘Since the fog of death doesn’t linger in one place, I need to hurry.’

The fog, slow yet steadily expanding.

There had been no changes until we entered this place, but who knows?

By entering with my friends, who have received the power of the holy sword, there might be a change.

Still, despite such anxious thoughts, I wasn’t overly worried.

‘Tera, is everything alright outside?’

[Yes, there are no problems.]

Just in case, I had left behind the battle maid from the first unit.

Thanks to Tera, who controls that battle maid, I could keep calm by receiving updates from outside.

Still, it would be better to hurry.

As soon as I thought that, I took a deep breath.

Then, I raised the hand holding the shield and extended it forward.

And when I felt a certain level of breathlessness.

“Ha!”

Boom! I kicked off the ground with all my might and dashed forward.

Bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang─!!

I felt a heavy impact on my shield repeatedly.

Each time, the monster charging at me was sent flying to the sides.

Of course, it wasn’t just those running; some were jumping and flying at me too.

But there’s no need to worry much.

Those foolish ones will all—

Boom, crash, bang!

With each step I took, a heavy sound echoed, leaving footprints on the ground.

Monsters roared behind me, chasing me relentlessly.

“I can’t stop now.”

I must keep running. No breaks, just keep going.

The moment I pause, I’ll be surrounded by the monsters.

“With no explosives available, if I get cornered, there’s no way out.”

The number of monsters pursuing me is staggering—so many I can’t even begin to count.

So I keep running.

Until I find the Four Heavenly Kings, the Demon King, and the World Tree.

How long have I been running like this?

Like a beam of light piercing through the darkness, I suddenly felt a gaze upon me.

“This feeling…”

A chill crept down my neck.

It was the same sensation I felt earlier, the one that had put me on edge.

I immediately expanded my senses and moved my eyes to scan the surroundings.

Of course, I didn’t stop running, nor did I cease deflecting the monsters charging at me with my shield.

“Where are you? Who’s watching me?”

I searched through the throng of monsters, peering into the darkness.

And it wasn’t long before I found it.

“I found you.”

Above my head.

In the shadows, a pair of red eyes was fixed on me.

As I gazed at the owner of those eyes, the watcher, I thought:

That creature is different from the monsters chasing me.

It possesses reason, like a human.

In its observing gaze, I sensed a meticulousness, searching for my weaknesses.

That insidiousness left me pondering what to do.

“No, there’s no need to ponder.”

In this situation, there’s only one course of action available to me.

And that is.

“Now is the chance while it’s off guard.”

Dealing with that sinister creature.

The moment I made that decision, I reverted Astra’s form back to what it was earlier.

Click.

The electrifying grip of the Thunderbolt surged through my hand.

Feeling that grip, I raised the gun high. And just as I aimed the muzzle at the crimson eyes.

“Kiee…, eeeeh…, eeeek……”

“Kie…, aaah…, aaah…, aah……”

Talent, a derived skill of the sniper’s sharp senses (A+).

I activated Live Focus.

In the slowed perception of everything around me.

I took a slow, deep breath and activated a cheat I had turned off.

Ding.

Speed Limit Release [ON / OFF]

The cheat was activated.

A double-edged sword glimmered within the muzzle, deadly to both the enemy and me.

But there was no need to worry.

The double-edged sword would only spill the enemy’s blood.

Tightening my grip.

I moved my finger.

I pulled the trigger.

At that very moment.

Flash!

The space I occupied was filled with a bluish-white light.

It was but a moment, yet the darkness that had enveloped me was pushed away by the light.

In that light, I, who had not closed my eyes, saw it.

The red eyes that had been observing me widened in shock.

A mix of confusion and urgency, a myriad of emotions filled those eyes.

Seeing that gaze, I ended Live Focus.

Consequently, my perception, which had been moving slowly, returned to its original state.

And in that instant, the light that filled the space became a single flash.

Dusty─, rumbling KWAANG─!

As one of the ten Aegises vanished, the sound of thunder echoed throughout the space.

And then.

“KHaaahhh!”

A scream, different from the monster’s roar, pierced my ears.

‘Scream?’

What? It’s not dead?

The fact that I could hear a scream was proof that it was still alive.

I tensed my body, ready to react at any moment to that evidence.

The bullet I had just fired was a one-shot kill, infused with the power of cheat speed limit release, capable of snatching away the life of a top-tier Fallen, Grid, in an instant.

And yet, it hadn’t died from that?

‘That means it has some trick up its sleeve.’

It implied that it was stronger than I was now.

As soon as that thought crossed my mind, I stopped running.

At the same time, I reverted Astra’s form back to an armor-centric configuration, with the barrels on both shoulders aimed forward.

Rumbling KWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA─!

Then, I unleashed a storm of lightning towards the monsters encircling me.

‘I have to eliminate it here and now.’

Originally, I had no intention of stopping my run.

But my instincts screamed loud enough to make me abandon that thought.

Crimson eyes.

I had to eliminate the owner of those eyes right now.

The intuition of a superhuman.

It was a mysterious power that couldn’t be explained in words.

A power that could not always be wielded.

It manifested only on rare occasions, in crucial moments.

That’s what made it mysterious.

That’s why I trusted it.

I decided to trust that instinct.

And that intuition did not betray my faith.

“…How dare a mere human──!!”

A cry filled with pain and rage mixed with the sound of thunder.

As soon as I heard that sound, I turned my gaze toward its source.

And I discovered it.

“…I will never, ever let you be─!”

Red eyes.

A form resembling a human.

Skin the color of a mud monster.

Long ears visible among the flowing hair.

The moment I saw that figure, a certain race came to mind.

“…Elf?”

And the instant I uttered the name of that race.

I felt a surge of power.

No, it would be more accurate to say it was returning.

And rightly so.

“Ah, insane.”

The world within my sight was changing.

The violet sky turned to a blood-red sky.

The parched earth transformed into a land flowing with lava.

‘…Of all times.’

A talent unbound, a demon slayer.

Under normal circumstances, I would have welcomed it.

But now, it was anything but.

‘When there is no indomitable will…!’

I currently lacked the talent to protect my mind.

In other words, I was exposed to the mental erosion of a demon slayer.

Rage surged within me.

Killing intent filled my entire being.

In response to that emotion, I immediately activated the injector.

Whoosh!

I felt the liquid, a mixture of golden apples and the essence of the Spirit Realm, flowing into my body.

As a result, my mind, which had been eroded by violent emotions, began to recover rapidly…

‘…not quite?’

No, it was recovering.

However, the speed of that recovery was slower than the rate of erosion. And the erosion was accelerating.

Why?

I let the question slip from my lips.

And then I realized the reason.

Death energy.

The negative aura that filled this area.

Because of that negative energy, the erosion of the Demon Slayer had intensified. It was beyond what any elixir could quell.

I was doomed.

That’s what I thought.

As soon as that thought crossed my mind, the smell of sulfur filled my nostrils.

I let out a hollow laugh and cursed.

“Ah, damn it.”

And as if in response to my curse.

Tear apart and slay the evil.

A whisper echoed in my ears.