NOVEL NEXT Chapter 174
Chapter 174-64: The Final War!
“The Demon King has squeezed out every bit of power, unleashing a force unlike anything seen before.”
It was as if a deity from the Mythical Era had returned, showcasing overwhelming strength. However, Odin was different.
“Is this the remnant of the God of Demons?”
Muttering to himself, the Demon King glanced at the one-eyed old man. Even at the peak of his powers, through mysterious spear techniques, Odin deflected the Demon King’s attacks, keeping him in check.
As the Rune Symbols, said to be the origin of all magic, manifested, they suppressed the Demon King’s strength.
“The God of Magic.”
“The God of Thunder.”
“The God of Storm.”
“The God of Wisdom.”
Despite the tremendous gap in power, Odin held his ground against the Demon King, a testament to his numerous titles. Odin was undoubtedly multifaceted, but it wasn’t just his variety of powers that enabled him to withstand the overwhelming might.
Every title symbolizing Odin was reflected in his power.
[Kwaaaang!]
The Demon King’s fist was blocked by a shield made of Rune Symbols. The difference in power was evident.
Despite successfully absorbing the Demon King’s strength with multiple layers of defense, the shield held firm against the force that should have shattered it.
Something unknown was holding back the Demon King’s power.
“Is it this?”
As the Demon King gazed at the power obstructing him, he looked at his own fist. The strength that originated from him transformed into opposing force the moment it made contact with the Rune Symbols.
“The God of Demons.”
Odin, known as the creator of the Demons, truly was not a false title. He manipulated the essence of magic, the source of the Demons, like a child’s plaything.
The magic, akin to an ancient proverb saying that it was fundamentally subordinate to Odin, displayed movements that seemed to obey him.
Thus, Odin, who had even taken a part of the Demon King’s magic, laughed at the Demon King.
As if mocking him, “You will never escape from this!”
Observing this, the Demon King chuckled.
He was not a true god.
Just an existence, merely the remnant of the past, attempting to mock him.
“Are you done laughing?”
With those words, the Demon King unleashed all his magic, and a singular form began to emerge.
His own unique shape made by a master-class martial artist.
It was no ordinary form; it enveloped the entire body of the Demon King.
From the enormous horns to wings and tails, it was the ultimate evolutionary form of a demon that the Demon King had dreamed of since childhood, created through magic.
At that moment, Odin’s Rune Magic could no longer exert its power against the Demon King.
[Pakaang!]
Odin’s magic shattered in an instant.
Simultaneously, the spear techniques he was proud of could not withstand the might of the Demon King.
As the Demon King’s strength, based on magic, completely slipped away from his control, Odin was taken aback.
“Is this what divine strength amounts to?”
Muttering, the Demon King swung his fist.
As Odin’s powers were systematically destroyed, the freedom of the Demon King grew.
Though he pretended otherwise, the burden of facing the “God of Demons” weighing in on his heart dissipated.
His respect for the “God of Demons,” who had created him, disappeared too.
The more this happened, the more an unknown power began to dwell within the Demon King.
Then, the remnants of the past were horrified and charged at the Demon King.
They knew that if this continued, they would face extinction.
This time, they would leave no relics behind and completely vanish.
That is why they all sought to confront the Demon King.
“Come on, then!”
The Demon King roared, ready to crush every being, including the Gods whom they revered.
“All traces of the past shall be erased, and the Demons shall be reborn!”
With that shout, fierce rage gleamed in the Demon King’s eyes.
A universal truth known to all Demons.
The logic of power that states the strong are supreme.
Yet, there existed beings who slipped through this logic, which naturally overshadowed all laws within the Demon Realm.
The creator of the Demon Realm, the God of Demons!
The Demon Realm, created not through the World Tree but directly by Odin upon barren land.
The beings birthed from those who lived there were the Demons themselves.
Thus, the priests who served him and the priests who cherished the remnants of the God of Demons still held tremendous authority.
In the name of the God of Demons, who would one day be resurrected.
That alone allowed them to cling to power within the Demon Realm like parasites.
Even having become the mightiest Demon King with extraordinary talent, they remained like bugs that wouldn’t bow.
Even eradicating them would only allow for new ones to emerge somewhere.
So the Demon King made his plans.
“I shall become a god!”
To sweep away the filth that had rotted away the Demon Realm while reminiscing about past entities, he had to become a god.
An even stronger existence.
To create a world where strength and ability reigned supreme, he had to become a god.
That is why he sought greater strength.
Was it because he had chased after power all his life?
In the battlefield where life and death intertwined, it became a game for him.
The more he lost himself in power, the more intense stimulation he craved.
However, at the point he had dominated the Demon Realm, there was no one left to give him that stimulation.
Thus, he crossed over to the continent.
“Ah…”
Odin, with one arm missing, looked at the enormous fist of magic and wore an expression of despair.
The other remnants of the past felt the same way.
The Demon King, aiming to rise to divine rank.
In the heat of battle, his will read was simply to extinguish all remnants of the past.
To usher in a new world where only power and ability mattered, the past was no longer of any use.
Thus, the ones who had barely been revived would vanish without a trace upon the moment the Demon King became a god.
“I will kill you all and become a god!”
As he said this, he shattered all of the remnants of the past.
The more he killed those that were remnants of what were once revered as gods, the more the Demon King’s power began to transition into something akin to their past.
And just as he was about to completely transform that power by bringing down Odin as well, a massive storm of fire emerged, enveloping the Demon King.
At the same time, a single, powerful strike that sliced through the air headed straight for the Demon King.
[Kwadek!]
A powerful blow crushed a part of the Demon King’s magic.
But that was all.
The strike from Glen, known as the strongest of humanity, only managed to wipe out a fragment of the Demon King’s magic.
However, at this moment, that was enough.
“You’ve arrived just in time.”
Despite being interrupted at the moment he could rise to divine rank, the Demon King smiled.
“Yes, this is how it should be in the end.”
As the two humans he had marked—Kariel and Glen—stood before him, he flashed a beaming smile.
The now-empowered Glen and Kariel, who opened up all his cherished powers to soar into the sky, were sufficiently powerful to please the Demon King.
He preferred them over the remnants of the past who had wielded divine powers.
Could they stop him from becoming a god?
Or would they be left in despair?
Watching this unfold was enjoyable for him.
“Not bad.”
As he blocked the punch thrown by the Giant Fire Giant with a smile, the flames shot by the gigantic wolf and the fire spirit approached, but he repelled them with magic radiating from his body.
With Kariel’s summoned beings initiating the true battle, Asgard, already crumbling, fell apart rapidly.
Even amidst the fractures appearing all over, the fierce battle between the Demon King and the two humans raged on.
However, the difference between the Demon King and Kariel and Glen began to swell at this point.
“Is this all you have? You captured the Goddess of Hell with this power?”
Disappointment echoed in the Demon King’s voice.
At that moment, from above, a gray aura shimmered as an enormous canine bit at the Demon King.
“Growl!”
“So, you are the Gatekeeper of Hell!”
The colossal dog finally revealed itself.
Garum, having crossed directly from Hell.
Unlike the remnants of the past, he could use a fair amount of his former strength, but he, too, was a body that had once died.
Moreover, enough time had passed that he could no longer expect the boldness he once had while biting gods.
As such, even Garum was overwhelmed by the Demon King.
“Is this all there was?”
Howling madly, the Demon King proclaimed.
Yet Kariel and Glen could only sweat profusely without responding.
Though they rebounded from the Demon King’s force, all they could do was rush back in.
Glen, who had grown during their climb, and Kariel, who had surged and grown while killing beings from Hell.
Even with both of them at their full power, merely enduring was all they could manage.
If this continued, they ultimately would be unable to stop the Demon King.
Though they had interrupted his ascent to divine rank, should they lose here, humanity would face doom.
Thus, they struggled fiercely to hold on, yet their limits were catching up to them.
“Cough!”
“Glen!”
Glen, spitting blood, flew backward.
But now was not the time to worry about others.
With a pathetic sound, Garum began to collapse, and one by one, Kariel’s summoned beings began to fall as well.
In an effort to buy time, they poured all their strength into conjuring a storm of flames, but the mere detonation of the magic from the Demon King caused the storm to dissipate instantly.
“Huff… huff…”
Kariel gazed at the Demon King with exhausted eyes.
Meanwhile, the Demon King was still exuding overwhelming power.
Yet within Kariel’s eyes was regret.
‘It’s definitely different from the beginning.’
Was the Demon King weary as well?
The slightest distortion could be seen in the magic enveloping him, different from how it once was.
If only there were Masters to call upon to help fend off the Demon King, but the energy emanating around Asgard could not be withstood by anyone below the Grand Master class.
“….That’s unfortunate.”
The Demon King gazed at those who would no longer pose a challenge soon with a disheartened expression.
But it was now time to end it.
By killing them, he would rise to divine rank and create a world governed by the strong.
He concentrated all his power into his fist, intending to conclude the momentary entertainment that had been too dull.
The moment the magic compressed to its utmost would see Kariel and Glen vanish along with Asgard without a trace.
Just then, black shadows poured down from the sky toward the Demon King.
“Was there one more?”
With a look of surprise, the Demon King glanced at the man standing before him.
An unexpected presence.
Yet, because of him, Kariel and Glen were able to survive.
Recovering in haste, they rose to their feet.
“I’m sorry for being late.”
“No, thanks to you, we’re alive.”
The Marquis Sicario, bowing his head, was met with gratitude from Kariel and Glen for granting them yet another precious opportunity.
“Let us use the invaluable chance that you have provided to stop him.”
“Yes.”
Bowing his head, Marquis Sicario began to act.
He moved first, having sustained no injuries while Glen and Kariel were battered.
Proving his ascendance to Grand Master, shadows moved like people, producing an innumerable amount of black strikes that pressured the Demon King.
Though it lacked the decisive blow Glen had, it was sufficient to gnaw away at the Demon King’s power.
Especially now, with the Demon King beginning to feel a sense of instability.
“Round two.”
As Kariel murmured, flames ignited as they charged ahead again, followed closely by Glen, gripping his sword tightly and swinging it through the air.
With their actions, Asgard lost its remnants entirely as the remnants of the past perished, unable to sustain their existence, thus completely collapsing.
The Demon King and the three humans plummeted from the once lofty land that had been above clouds.
Yet their fight continued, unfaltering even as they fell and reached the peak of a mountain.
Flames hot enough to melt all the snowfields and sword strokes that could cleave through mountains, thousands of strikes slicing through the landscape.
And powerful attacks blasting away parts of the Giant Mountain Range.
As all this converged, the towering mountains fashioned by the remnants of the past began to collapse.
Thus, the terrain of the Giant Mountain Range changed after several days of relentless fighting.
A battle so fierce it could be inscribed in the Mythical Era.
And finally, the clash that shook the very earth came to an end.
“….Stubborn, aren’t you?”
The formidable magic disappeared without a trace as the Demon King stood, staring at Kariel with nothing but his own body.
But he was still composed.
Glen and Marquis Sicario had fallen, spitting blood.
And there stood Kariel, bleeding all over, despite having dispelled all summoned beings.
“…Just hurry up and fall if you’ve lost.”
It was unimaginable to think such words would come from Kariel, whose body had become a complete wreck while staring at the seemingly unharmed Demon King.
Yet upon hearing the words, the Demon King let out a faint smirk and slowly began to collapse.
“….Yes. You have won.”
He was on the cusp of achieving the divinity he so desperately sought.
Even just before reaching his goal, the Demon King smiled.
It had been the most intense battle of his life, and above all, concluded by the law of strength.
Ultimately, the Demon King, weakened, dropped to the ground as Kariel conjured flames.
With everything left to prevent the worst-case scenario, he launched a massive fireball toward the Demon King.
Just then.
[Kwadek!]
“….You.”
A Dark Mage stood in opposition to the Demon King.
“You cannot die like this!”
“….”
“Did we not promise to create a world of fairness for the strong and talented?”
Amidst a furious expression, the words of the Dark Mage caused the Demon King to recall their first meeting.
It was the Dark Mage who had bravely called out to him through an ancient magic circle, now gone from the Demon Realm.
The promise made all seemed to align with his long-held aspirations.
“Keep your promise!”
The leader of the Dark Mages spoke while blocking Kariel’s power, spitting out blood.
Seeing him, the Demon King couldn’t help but laugh.
“If you… survive… then so be it.”
With those words, the Demon King closed his eyes.
His breath was almost at its last.
Even if it weren’t for Kariel’s final blow, he was on the brink of death.
Yet the Dark Mage, gritting his teeth in determination to save him, managed to endure the fire conjured by Kariel.
“Cough! Cough!”
Kariel gazed at the leader of the Dark Mages, who had blocked his power while risking his life, with a bitter expression.
He could only wonder what past circumstances had caused such hatred for humanity.
However, Kariel couldn’t question him.
Having exhausted all his remaining strength, he was left with no energy left to speak.
As his eyelids grew heavy and consciousness faded, a familiar voice echoed from afar.
“Your Majesty! Your… Majesty! P…”
After giving everything he had, Kariel’s consciousness succumbed.
To defend against him surged the army of Ignit.
And to carry off the Demon King’s body, which was barely clinging to life, the Demon King’s army rushed in.
The two forces collided once more, leading to the climactic battle that would later be known as the ‘Final War.’