‘Using the Holy Sword? That’s impossible! That b*stard!’
Leviathan couldn’t comprehend the current situation.
How could Ian be wielding the Holy Sword?
Even as a demon living in hiding, biding her time in Astelgia, she wasn’t ignorant of the Empire’s forces.
On the contrary, information was crucial in war, and the seven Demon Kings sent their followers to gather all possible intelligence from the human world, using their demonic powers to extract every bit of knowledge they could.
Among that information was plenty about Ian.
‘He couldn’t use a sword! I heard he was cursed when his master abandoned him!’
When he was active as a warrior party, he showed off his incredible skills to the point that he was deserving of his title as the next Sword Saint.
But the information was clear: he could no longer wield a sword.
She wouldn’t believe it if it were mere rumor, but this was verified through their agents.
‘I even heard the curse was placed by the head of the Miler family! And he overcame it?’
Leviathan’s eyes darted back and forth as she tried to make sense of it all. How had he overcome the curse from such a renowned mage family?
Her gaze fixed on Ian’s hand, gripping the sword.
Chiik!
‘Is it burning?’
She saw Ian’s hand paying the price for defying the curse.
It was a terrifying sight, but that wasn’t the end of his burden.
“Huu…”
“Do you even know what you’re doing?”
Blood seeped from Ian’s tightly closed lips, speaking volumes.
“You’re not worthy of the Holy Sword! Such foolishness!”
Ian was enduring the cost of using the Holy Sword.
Born with the Dark attribute, he was the opposite of Elysion, a holy weapon.
No matter how much closer his behavior was to a hero than Ariel’s, it didn’t change the fact that he was unworthy.
That’s why.
‘Doesn’t he know he has to endure the pain?’
Leviathan couldn’t understand Ian’s actions.
‘If he knows and still does it, how can he?’
She never imagined he would directly use the Holy Sword.
Once enamored and envious of its power, she had even tried to steal Elysion from the Empire.
If she succeeded… ending the long battle wouldn’t just be a dream.
The Empire, deprived of Elysion, would fall to the demons, and the residents of Astelgia could escape their shadowy existence to face the sun.
After making that resolution, she planned meticulously and challenged countless times.
She had real opportunities to kill the hero and seize the sword, coming close many times. But Elysion never ended up in her hands.
Why? It was simple.
‘Just touching it made my body twist and feel like it would burst.’
The holy sword rejected the unchosen.
Even the Demon King of Wrath, one of the strongest in the demon world, couldn’t hold it for ten seconds.
How could a human endure what even such a being couldn’t?
‘How can he be so foolish…’
Even as she closed her eyes in pain, Leviathan thought Ian was reckless.
What confidence made him hold on to something that overpowered even a Demon King?
She didn’t understand.
Why was he doing this… If he chose to save them both, he wouldn’t have to endure this pain.
Leviathan looked at Ian with questioning eyes and made her decision.
‘Pride. Maybe you’re right. Indeed, humans are unpredictable beings.’
At least she couldn’t understand Ian’s actions.
At that moment, Leviathan gave up trying to read his thoughts.
She only thought about the outcome.
‘Alright. Let’s see who wins. Will you, a lowly mortal, endure longer, or will I win? Let’s find out!’
She had lived her life under suspicion.
Even when her name was renowned in Astelgia, the label of insufficient strength haunted her.
It didn’t end even when she became a Demon King.
Among the seven Demon Kings, only Asmodeus was a comparable opponent; the rest were all monsters.
Yet Leviathan never gave up, despite her jealousy.
Strength alone wasn’t the measure of power.
Surviving to the end—that was strength!
She didn’t forget that belief. She wouldn’t change it and would prove it by rising to the position of Demon King.
For that, enduring this pain was reason enough.
“Kkrrr!”
“Hoo…”
A pained groan escaped her lips. The Holy Sword wouldn’t hurt her directly, but as long as Leviathan possessed someone, she felt all the pain.
She felt like she might lose consciousness at any moment, but she gritted her teeth and counted inwardly.
‘Just ten seconds. I only need to endure ten seconds!’
Endure until the moment even the Demon King of Wrath gave up, and victory is hers.
Even though she wanted to give up, she clung to that thought and endured.
Time felt eternal. She thought that when she opened her eyes, she would be free from this pain.
Finally, when the ten seconds ended and she opened her eyes, she saw it.
“Huff. Enduring is meaningless. Just die quickly.”
“What, how!”
Ian, steadfastly gripping the sword, enduring the pain!
Leviathan had expected to see Ian’s face pale and bleeding when she opened her eyes. She hadn’t imagined seeing this!
How was he enduring? Was he pretending to be okay?
But if that were the case…
‘His expression hasn’t changed at all…’
Thinking he might have some hidden ace, Leviathan scrutinized Ian closely.
And then she understood.
‘Now that I think about it, the aura surrounding him has vanished.’
The powerful aura that had matched her demonic energy had disappeared.
No, it hadn’t disappeared.
‘No way… did he use that to suppress the power of the Holy Sword?’
‘Impossible. To do something like that, he would need…’
Power comparable to a god’s! How could a mere human?
‘Wait. Could that power I saw earlier have been…’
Divine power? Was Ian Volkanov truly chosen by a god?
‘Damn it!’
In this unforeseen situation, Leviathan’s pupils trembled.
If he used divine power to suppress the Holy Sword’s backlash, enduring would be meaningless.
She couldn’t afford to stand idle. She needed to withdraw the blade immediately.
Leviathan tried to push the blade away.
“You understand now? But it’s too late.”
Slash!
Ian put more strength into the sword and sliced across.
The horrific sound of flesh being cut echoed, but Ariel’s body was unharmed. Only Leviathan suffered.
“Ah… Aaaah!”
Leviathan clutched her abdomen. In front of her, Ian planted the holy sword into the ground and looked at his right hand.
A hand burnt black, a result of the sword’s curse and the backlash of using the Holy Sword.
‘It’s worse than I expected.’
From Leviathan’s perspective, it might seem like he endured the sword’s power effortlessly. But that wasn’t the truth.
He had directed all his divine power to his hand gripping the sword’s hilt.
And he had been using rapid regeneration to heal continuously.
Even with his best efforts, the extent of the injury showed the significant backlash of Elysion.
Every movement of his hand sent waves of pain, but he couldn’t stop now.
He couldn’t let go of this hard-earned opportunity because of pain.
Click!
Ian gripped the Holy Sword again. With most of his divine power used up, it was his only weapon left to kill Leviathan.
“Huff.”
Ian took a calm breath, closed his eyes, and swung the sword.
He didn’t think about how to swing it. In his current state, contemplating the swing was useless.
‘I need to focus on my instincts.’
Instead, he relied on his innate talent. Before he had been possessed, Ian Volkanov had been called the next Sword Saint for a reason.
Even though he hadn’t used a sword in months, the efforts of his past wouldn’t disappear.
Moreover, he had sparred countless times with Alex Volkanov. The saying “seeing is believing” exists for a reason. Although he hadn’t used a sword then, the experience of facing a master’s swordsmanship would guide him.
Ian believed in that firmly.
Thanks to that.
Swish!
Slash!
“Gaaah!”
He was confident that the sword he wielded now wouldn’t miss.
The sensation of cutting through something transmitted from the hilt to his nerves.
Without opening his eyes, Ian continued to swing the sword.
Thud thud thud!
In a state of complete concentration, he continued swinging the sword.
The fierce windstorm ceased five minutes later.
When the screams stopped, Ian opened his eyes.
“I… I…”
The demonic energy dispersed into the air with a wailing sound.
Kneeling on the ground, Ariel’s body emitted the demonic energy that scattered into the air.
The meaning was simple.
[The Lord of the Abyss targeting you has vanished!]
[You have completed the emergency quest!]
This was the end of Leviathan, the Demon King blinded by jealousy.
***
“Ugh… Damn it.”
After Leviathan’s demise, Ian vomited the blood that had pooled inside him.
Though he had tried to minimize the side effects using divine power, it wasn’t as easy as he had hoped.
‘Well… what can you do.’
If he had just thrust the sword, it would have been different, but he had unleashed a relentless sword technique in a state of frenzy.
The ten seconds he spent with the sword embedded had already caused his hand to be severely burnt. He should be satisfied that it ended there.
‘Super Regeneration… I can’t use it.’
Neltalion, in slime form, was writhing on the floor.
Though she had grown into a child’s form, excessive use of divine power had caused her to revert to her previous state.
‘It’s just a temporary state due to overuse of power. It’s not permanent regression.’
His hand was severely burned, and that was not all. Even Neltalion had returned to her slime form.
It was a reckless act, but under the circumstances, it was the best option. He was confident he would make the same choice even if he went back in time.
‘If I failed, it’s my fault, but that’s not the case here.’
He had killed Leviathan and saved Ariel. That was enough, wasn’t it?
Seeing Ariel breathing, her health didn’t seem to have any significant issues. Whatever damage she sustained, she would recover and stand up after being stabbed and slashed by the Holy Sword.
Just as he was about to sit down and take a breather on the floor, he noticed something.
‘But… why isn’t the surrounding demonic energy disappearing?’
Leviathan should have been dead and gone, right?
He checked his status window to see if there was anything unusual, but nothing stood out.
‘The notification says the quest was completed normally.’
He succeeded in defeating the Abyssal Being. Doesn’t that mean Leviathan disappeared?
Then it would be normal for the magic to disappear.
Sometimes, if the opponent’s demonic energy is excessively vast, it takes time to disappear, but…
“Leviathan’s demonic energy shouldn’t be like this. She had consumed a lot of her own life force.”
The entity had depleted so much of its own energy.
What was even more surprising was that the surrounding demonic energy wasn’t fading; it was intensifying.
“What the hell is going on? Why isn’t it disappearing?”
Just as Ian was preparing for potential danger, a sudden announcement popped up.
Ding!
[Confirm the third secret as the reward!]
[You will meet a being that knows the truth!]
‘What?’
The status window was rapidly filling up.
Meeting someone? Was it not the same as viewing past situations as he had done before?
‘A being that knows the truth? Who could that be?’
Before he could ponder further, a grave voice echoed behind him.
“Mortal who has wandered through the eons….”
“What?”
A serious voice rang out from behind him.
Ian turned his head to confirm the identity of the voice and was able to see.
“You….”
“I knew you had reached your limits. In the end, you’ve closed your eyes and ears, excising your wounds. How truly regrettable.”
The being was of an entirely different caliber than anyone he had encountered before.
Just being in the same space felt suffocating, and Ian could feel the hairs on his body standing on end.
At that moment, he instinctively recognized the entity’s identity. Few beings possessed such an aura.
[The Being of the Abyss descends before you.]
“…Belphegor.”
The Demon King of Sloth, Belphegor. Even if his strength was comparable to that of the Demon God, it would not be an exaggeration to call him a monster. The moment he revealed himself was imminent.
