[An emergency quest has occurred!]
[Survive the being of the abyss.]
[On success: Some hidden secrets / On failure: Eternal death]
[Reward upon success: Partial reveal of hidden secrets / Failure: Eternal death]
The situation was urgent.
Vanished comrades enveloped in a blue light. And suddenly, a quest appeared out of nowhere.
With a hint of uncertainty, Ian checked the survival status of the members of the 3rd Platoon using his device. However, there was no response at all.
The meaning behind that was simple.
“Am I the only one left?”
Of course, it wasn’t uncommon for perfectly alive individuals to be expelled from the illusion.
There were times when the war game was temporarily suspended due to issues, and novices were summoned to the assembly hall for inspection.
‘But it doesn’t seem to be the case now.’
However, if that were true, there was no reason to exclude everyone else. There was no reason for only himself to remain.
In other words, someone had expelled the others from this space to kill him.
The culprit was obvious even without looking.
‘Even during Dullahan incident, there was a notification that a being from the abyss was staring. So, the culprits are demons?’
Those who tried to kill Ariel were probably demons as well.
However, the demon targeting him this time seemed to be somewhat different from before.
Ian looked at his own body.
His arms covered in goosebumps.
It wasn’t fear that made him like this; his body reacted to the magic filling the space.
If someone emitted this level of magic, they couldn’t be ordinary.
‘How…’
– Something is definitely off, Ian. The atmosphere is unsettling.
‘I feel the same way. It seems like someone significant holds a grudge against me.’
Even Neltalion seemed to share the same feeling.
Though immature, Neltalion was an ancient god. Its senses never lied.
Ian was certain that the enemy targeting him was anything but ordinary.
As if confirming Ian’s speculation, changes began to occur in an instant.
Kurur!
As magic engulfed the space, the scenery before them gradually distorted.
Whaaa!
The lush greenery turned into blazing columns of fire. The once vibrant earth floor suddenly turned dry and barren.
When the space completely flipped, a woman walking from afar came into view.
The woman approached, dragging two corpses using her demonic energy.
Ian knew who she was.
‘Lilith. A minion of Asmodeus, if not a direct manifestation.’
It was the moment when he confronted the closest aide of one of the Seven Demon Kings, Asmodeus.
***
Returning to reality after receiving a death sentence, Ariel continued to bow her head deeply.
Not only did she fix her gaze on the ground, but she also covered her head with a towel to completely block out the gazes of others.
She couldn’t bear to look at the faces of others.
With a pale expression, Ariel continued to tremble.
‘Ah… Ah…’
The goal of this war game was simple.
Even though she couldn’t defeat the Demon God, she wanted to prove that she wasn’t someone who would crumble like this.
Furthermore, she wanted to make it known to the nobles gathered here that she was the person who suited the position of the head of the family.
Because of this, she gathered exceptional squad members for a party, but the results were disastrous.
‘What do I do now… What should I do?’
All of her colleagues were killed by Ian Volkanov.
That alone was a huge problem, but there was a bigger issue.
All the words she had spoken and all the scenes where she had acted immaturely were now exposed to the nobles present.
Contrary to what she wanted to convey about being exceptional, the situation made her appear clumsy and foolish.
Ariel couldn’t bear it.
That was why she blocked her vision and covered her ears with her hands.
She even felt like she was hearing voices from somewhere.
– It’s because of you we lost!
‘No…’
– If you hadn’t planned recklessly, we wouldn’t have been wiped out by Volkanov…
‘I wanted to do well. It wasn’t intentional.’
-Is she even a hero?
‘Ah… Ahhh!’
It felt like the platoon members following her and the nobles present were whispering.
Although no one actually said those words to Ariel, she felt that way.
Eventually, Ariel completely collapsed.
Seeing her daughter slump down in despair, Leticia sighed.
“Ariel…”
Watching her daughter losing all will and collapsing seemed to crush her heart.
Of course, Ariel didn’t do well. She made plans that were too ambitious and couldn’t make proper judgments.
That was a clear fact.
Since she had taken to the battlefield before marrying Killain Volkanov, it was not unknown to her.
However… even knowing that, how could one possibly say anything to a daughter lying lifeless like that?
What Ariel needed right now was warm support, not cold criticism.
‘What if…’
She wanted to hug Ariel right away, tell her that it’s okay, that everyone makes mistakes at some point in their lives.
She wanted to shield her trembling daughter from the eyes of the people.
However, it was Ian Volkanov who had allowed Ariel to escape from the people’s gazes.
Whaaa!
“What… what’s happening? Why me?”
“I’m not dead! Why…”
Suddenly, numerous students returned.
The sudden return of those who had been declared dead without any explanation made the executives of Ark busy.
But the nobles didn’t pay attention to them.
To be precise, they couldn’t pay attention.
“What… what in the world!”
“What… a demon?”
Unbelievable events were happening right before their eyes.
The nobles were stunned by the appearance of the mysterious woman in front of Ian.
Duke Bernogia, the King of Fists, trembled in horror.
‘That’s… could it be!’
He wanted to believe otherwise. Why would that woman reveal herself in this illusion?
The Duke didn’t want to believe what he was seeing, but unfortunately, it was reality.
As the intense magic emanated from the scene, the kind face of Duke Bernogia contorted.
He wasn’t the only one unable to comprehend the current situation.
Even Leticia, Ian’s mother, trembled.
“Duke… what in the world is that?”
“Lilith…”
“What? What did you say?”
“If what I’m seeing is true, then that would undoubtedly be a demon named Lilith. A high-ranking demon.”
High-ranking demon. When those words came from the Duke’s mouth, Leticia was taken aback.
She knew very well how terrifying demons were.
The magic emanating from their bodies made it difficult to even breathe.
The disparity in strength rendered their skills useless.
That enemy, the situation before Ian, even though she had always treated Ian as if he were invisible, she couldn’t afford to be so calm this time.
“Why is a high-ranking demon here?”
“I can’t answer that. But one thing’s for sure, Lilith is a manifestation of Asmodeus.”
“Asmodeus… if that’s the case…”
“Ian is not capable of facing her. He might even die.”
“Die…”
Of course, Ian possessed exceptional combat skills.
However, there was a wall he couldn’t overcome.
Duke Bernogia had fought on countless battlefields, facing opponents known as high-ranking demons.
Therefore, he was certain….
If Ian were to fight Lilith, he would definitely lose.
‘The magic of high-ranking demons… even I find it hard to endure.’
Just being near them would burn flesh from the magic emanating from their bodies.
If he could attack from a distance using a weapon, it might be different. But inevitably, Ian, who had to approach, would be exposed to the demonic energy.
It was a hopeless situation for Ian.
He couldn’t just stand by and watch.
Therefore, Duke Bernogia approached the executive in charge of managing the war game with the intention of intervening.
But the response he received frustrated him.
“You can’t infiltrate the illusion. What does that even mean?”
“I-I apologize. The barrier made of demonic magic is interfering.”
“So, you’re just sitting idly because you can’t? Isn’t breaking through the barrier your job?”
“W-we’ll do our best!”
“It’s not the time to try your best. If you don’t enter right away, don’t you realize that child will die?”
Even though it was an illusion… it didn’t mean there was no harm in reality.
Even if the body was unharmed, the mind could collapse, turning one into a vegetable.
Moreover, wasn’t Lilith a dream demon? If he were to receive an attack from Lilith, who manipulated illusions as her own, Ian’s mind wouldn’t be safe.
Although the Duke tried to persuade the executives in any way he could.
Unfortunately, Lilith had already approached Ian.
Whirr!
Lilith’s magic began to envelop Ian. In the end, Duke Bernogia closed his eyes tightly.
“Haa…”
He couldn’t bear to watch Ian being consumed by magic like that.
It was at that moment when he thought so and closed his eyes.
Crash!
A loud noise from the screen echoed through the assembly hall.
Duke Bernogia slowly opened his eyes.
“W-What!”
He opened his eyes wide, unable to believe what he was seeing.
***
Lilith never launched an attack recklessly.
Thud!
She tossed the two corpses onto the ground and floated in the air, looking down at Ian.
“To see me and not be surprised as an inferior mortal… that’s something to commend.”
“Did you plan this?”
“You catch on quickly… almost enough to make me hesitate to kill you.”
Lilith smiled as she drew a circle in the air, seeming satisfied.
“Normally, I would’ve taken your insignificant life immediately… but still, I’ll grant you a small mercy.”
“…”
“Speak. schemes are you plotting with Sloth?”
Ian didn’t bother to respond to Lilith’s words. Nonchalantly nodding as if nothing was wrong, she asked him once again.
“My patience is not limitless, so you’d better open that mouth soon. Oh, if you’re worried that this conversation might be overheard by others, don’t be concerned. The veil of twilight will obscure our conversation.”
Despite urging him to speak immediately, Ian didn’t comply.
Nor could he.
‘I don’t know, so what can I say?’
What did he say to the Demon King of Sloth? Wouldn’t Ian himself want to know the answer?
With no knowledge of the situation, there was nothing he could say.
Furthermore, even if he knew, why would he have any reason to reveal the truth to her?
‘Following the whims of a demon is madness.’
And Lilith wasn’t just any demon. She was a high-ranking demon, practically a manifestation of a Demon King.
There was no fool who would spill their secrets to such a woman.
In fact, there was no value in conversing at all. Negotiating with a t*rrorist was out of the question.
That’s why.
“If you’re so curious… find out for yourself.”
The reason Ian spat out such harsh words in front of Lilith.
At his words, Lilith’s expression began to sour.
She wasn’t a demon overflowing with patience to tolerate offensive words from mere mortals.
“Huh… an insignificant mortal. Babbling without knowing the subject.”
In the end, Lilith gave up continuing the conversation.
With a furrowed brow, she reached out towards the corpses beside her.
Crunch! Crunch!
The bodies beside Lilith began to twist unnaturally. The contorted bodies gradually fused together.
The clumps of flesh gradually took shape and eventually formed a giant scythe.
With the ominous scythe lightly held in her hand, Lilith looked at Ian with a seductive smile.
“Perhaps I intended to let you close your eyes without pain if you had confessed immediately. But you choose to endure pain yourself.”
There was only one thing to offer to insignificant beings like mortals.
“Burn in demonic magic. Realize your stupidity.”
With those words, Lilith snapped her fingers.
Whoosh!
The wildly raging flames rose up as if to engulf Ian’s body.
“Ugh…!”
The flames of magic began to wrap around Ian’s body. Watching Ian being engulfed by flames, Lilith, wielding her scythe, slowly approached him.
“A pathetic human like you.”
Defying her words. Lilith felt that the human in front of her was truly foolish.
Of course, she didn’t know what he believed and why he acted that way.
He might not have known anything at all, or he might have believed that Belphegor would rescue him from the crisis.
However, he had been given a chance, yet he ultimately didn’t reveal the truth.
‘If you’re so curious, find out for yourself….’
Thinking back on it, it was beyond ridiculous.
It didn’t matter now. He would understand how heavy the price of lightly mocking her was.
As his soul burned in the flames of hell, even his tightly closed mouth would open on its own.
Thinking so, Lilith slowly approached Ian, reaching him at last.
When she was about to ask again.
“Are you ready to speak now, mortal?”
“Yeah… I’m ready.”
“Then speak.”
Looking up at Lilith, who was matching his eye level and leaning in, Ian spoke.
“Bite hard. If you don’t want to live on water alone.”
“You!”
Mocking her with such ease, Lilith tried to swing her scythe, but…
Quaaaang!
“Ke-keh!”
Unfortunately, Ian was one step ahead.
His uppercut struck her chin squarely.
Floating away into the air and then crashing down, Lilith realized one thing.
“… How… in the flames of demonic energy. Unharmed.”
Ian Volkanov, even in the midst of demonic flames that consumed the souls of the dead, seemed to endure it as if it were nothing.
