‘When on earth did he become able to wield a sword…? No, how did he break the curse?’
In the rattling carriage, Haley became deeply engrossed in thought.
Though she was stuck working on the weekend due to participating in a preliminary investigation of the training site, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for her, who was lost in her worries.
After all, the only tasks awaiting her at home were the endless paperwork flooding in from the Miler family.
It would be far better to work through the mountain of paperwork than to sit idle at home.
“Just when…?”
Unlike others who slept to conserve their energy, Haley stayed awake because the thoughts swirling in her mind left her no room to rest.
She could still vividly picture Ian fainting in the enemy’s magic tower.
‘I’m curious how he managed to evade our eyes and breach the entrance sealed by the barrier… but that’s not the main issue right now.’
Although she worried about him approaching covered in blood, the real problem was the sword in her hand.
‘The Hatred of the Blade is a curse that burns the hand once you wield a sword…’
Initially, it would only result in superficial burns, but if he continued to grasp the sword, it could turn his hand to ashes and ultimately consume his body in flames.
Among the curses possessed by the shaman family, Mailrus, this one had the highest level of difficulty to cast, and currently, there was no known method to lift it.
Thus, it was impossible for Ian to wield a sword while under this curse.
“Of course, I’ve also been looking for a way to break the Hatred of the Blade…”
When the curse was cast, she was genuinely enraged, thinking that her once-promising disciple had betrayed her by siding with the demons instead of standing by his sister, the Hero.
However, as Ian’s demeanor began to change, she wondered if she had misunderstood him.
Ultimately, the moment Ian began defeating the Demon Kings, Haley realized she had been wrong.
‘I know that I almost ruined the future of my former disciple by casting the curse…’
She wished she could have gone to him earlier to apologize.
To express her regret for not trusting him as a mentor and for committing the unforgivable act of cursing him.
‘I had been sifting through documents in search of a way to lift the curse for that reason.’
However, Haley believed that while apologizing was important, the first priority was to lift the curse he bore.
That was why…
‘I’ve just started to find a clue…’
She resolved to break the curse first and then offer him a sincere apology.
Of course, since it was a curse for which no method was documented, she needed to figure it out herself. But as a direct descendant of a prominent shaman family, she had managed to uncover some answers.
If only she had a little more time… she was confident she could lift the curse hanging over Ian.
But when she found the solution… it was already too late.
‘Wielding a sword means the curse has been lifted…’
This would mean Ian would no longer need her help.
In a situation where she could not assist him, he would surely rely on Haley’s help in any way possible… but there was no reason for him to seek her out now.
‘What should I do…? Even if I apologize, would Ian even want to meet with me?’
Wouldn’t it be saying, “I don’t need your help anymore, so stay out of sight”?
Imagining a bleak future, Haley felt her heart tighten.
Thud! Creak!
“Gah… what on earth?!”
The moment the carriage, which had been moving smoothly, jolted violently and came to a halt, she couldn’t hide her shock at the sudden situation.
But she quickly regained her composure and drew her sword.
A carriage doesn’t simply stop abruptly. If there were issues with the horses, the driver would have given a warning.
‘And… even if there were a real problem, there wouldn’t be such a reckless way to halt it.’
Unless one was completely inexperienced with the job of a coachman, it was unthinkable that someone responsible for transporting key figures from the Ark to the Empire would be a novice.
‘Something must have happened.’
Haley concluded this as she prepared to step outside with her sword in hand.
“Stay seated. I’ll check it out.”
“3rd Platoon Commander…”
Unfortunately, Kyan beat her to it.
He looked as though he had been sleeping, yet his eyes were now sharp and alert.
He must have woken up the moment the carriage stopped, sensing the emergency situation.
Of course, considering experience, it made sense for the relatively young Haley to step aside.
“I understand. Then I’ll check on the others.”
“Thank you.”
It was better to leave the emergency response to Kyan, who had more experience in such situations.
Nodding at Haley’s words, Kyan opened the carriage door and quickly jumped out, beginning to assess the situation outside.
‘It doesn’t seem like the path is blocked by any obstacles… and it doesn’t look like a band of thieves either.’
His brow furrowed as he pondered the usual reasons why a carriage would come to a halt.
While even the most inexperienced thieves wouldn’t target a carriage marked with the Ark insignia, he was well aware that those who had nothing to lose feared nothing.
For that reason, he considered the possibility of an attack but quickly dismissed it; the bandits didn’t seem to be involved.
‘If it were a bandit ambush, there would usually be signs of resistance from the coachmen.’
Indeed, the surroundings were eerily silent.
Even when the carriage stopped, he hadn’t heard any screams from the coachman.
This meant they likely hadn’t encountered any bandits after all.
As he surveyed the area, considering every possible scenario, he suddenly heard a sound.
“Gah! Guhh!”
‘What the hell is going on…?’
Kyan realized that this was no ordinary situation that could be dismissed as a simple bandit attack when he saw the coachman, pale and grasping his throat, sputtering blood.
“Cough… Gah!”
“Hey! Get a grip!”
“Cough, cough!”
The coachman seemed to be struggling against something choking him, his hands clawing at his own throat as his bloodshot eyes darted around, then he collapsed, vomiting blood.
And it wasn’t just the coachman.
“Eek!”
Thud!
“The horses too… What the hell is happening?”
The horses pulling the carriage were exhibiting the same symptoms, rolling on the ground in distress.
Frozen in shock at the incomprehensible situation, Kyan knew he couldn’t remain still. This wasn’t a problem limited to just his carriage.
What was even more troubling was that this wasn’t happening only to the carriage he was in.
“K-Kyan! What in the world is going on?”
“Evan… Is it the same for you?”
“Yes! I checked the other side… it was the same there too…”
Kyan was certain that the carriages carrying the high-ranking members of the Ark were under attack by an unknown entity.
Just as he began to gather mana to prepare for a defense, he heard a sudden sound.
Swish!
“Magic? Damn it! Evan, get down!”
“Ah…”
At that moment, he saw a mass of magic approaching at a speed impossible to track with his eyes.
Before he knew it, the mass had reached the front of the carriage and began to expand rapidly.
“… Am I too late?”
Boom!
The expanding sphere erupted with a deafening explosion.
In that instant…
“Guhh!”
“Evans! Focus and look below!”
“Yes. Understood!”
The explosion that shattered the magic barrier Kyan had conjured sent the carriage, occupied by the professors, plummeting over the edge of a cliff.
As they fell toward certain doom, Kyan tilted his gaze downward and saw…
“That creature…”
An entity exuding a dark, unsettling energy, grinning as it awaited their descent.
‘What the hell is it doing here?!’
He hadn’t been mistaken.
After all, he had never forgotten the identity of that creature.
‘Satan? Why the hell is he here?!’
The leader of the demons who had taken away his precious people, one of the seven demon kings, the enemy of humanity.
The Demon King of Wrath, Satan, revealed himself at that moment.
***
“… Just as I expected.”
As Satan watched those plummeting over the cliff, he bared his sharp fangs.
Seeing this, memories of his conversations with Lucifer in Astelzia began to resurface.
“I’ll take care of the humans… All that’s left is to wait for Lucifer to kill the Demon God, Azidahaka.”
It was fortunate that the plan was proceeding smoothly; in truth, the situation between Lucifer and Satan was far from ideal.
Due to Leviathan’s blunders, the Demon Sword Rebrion had fallen into the hands of Ian Volkanov, and they had also lost the divine key left behind by Florian’s head of household, meant to solve its seal.
‘Ian Volkanov has grown faster than I anticipated… I considered redirecting my targets to others, but…’
Continuing to pursue Ian might lead to an even greater misstep.
With this thought, Satan decided to alter his plans, shifting his focus to the original target of their desires: to kill the hero, Ariel.
‘It’s a significant risk, but… if I succeed, the rewards could be beyond measure.’
However, Ian’s tenacity was far worse than Satan had imagined.
Driven by the singular desire to protect his sister, Ian had swung his sword tirelessly for twelve hours, ultimately succeeding in defending the hero.
At that moment, Satan felt cornered.
‘Even the bait I used has all been dealt with by the imperial knights… Now, my remaining forces are almost nonexistent.’
The price of defeat is always bitter.
Not only had he lost most of his demon subordinates due to reckless planning, but he also failed to stifle Ian Volkanov’s growth.
That was why…
“Lucifer… I think we need to advance our plans.”
“…What do you mean?”
The death of the Demon God, which was supposed to happen later, had been hastened.
Lucifer couldn’t hide his confusion at Satan’s words, but for him, it was a necessary decision.
“Our original plan was straightforward: to either kill Ian Volkanov, the key figure of the Hero Party, or inflict serious injuries on him, buying time to reinforce our forces.”
“Right. While that force buys us time, our goal was for both of us to kill Azidahaka and acquire the Demon God’s powers.”
But had they not realized that this plan was no longer feasible?
No matter how much they increased their forces, it wouldn’t be enough to stop Ian or the Hero.
In the end, Satan instinctively knew he had to take matters into his own hands.
“Exactly. So I’ll be taking action myself.”
“…You’re going to do it personally?”
“Planning to kill Ian or the hero is pointless. Instead, it’s better to delay them as much as possible.”
The plan was simple.
While Lucifer faced Azidahaka alone, Satan would descend to the mortal realm to buy time.
Of course, he wasn’t planning to confront Ian and Ariel.
His true targets were different.
“It will take time, but killing the weakened Demon God is something you can handle on your own. Killing Ian or Ariel can wait until you’ve ascended to the position of Demon God and acquired their powers.”
“That’s true… But how do you plan to buy time?”
“You once said that once you gain power, the Hero Party will resume their activities, and at the same time, humans will gather and come after us.”
If Lucifer began killing the Demon God and acquiring their powers, even Eris would not be able to remain idle.
She would once again issue revelations, and those who believe in her faith would gather and march towards Astelgia.
These were the very individuals that Satan planned to deal with.
“I intend to target those who will hinder us and annoy us, excluding Ian and the Hero… powerful beings outside the norm.”
“So you plan to deal with formidable opponents aside from the Hero Party…”
Of course, finding a way to deal with both groups was not easy.
However, there was indeed a perfect opportunity.
“According to the remaining scouts’ reports… the professors of Ark are soon expected to go out for preliminary investigations…”
Ark was a training ground for those who would become pillars of the empire… a place known for gathering the strongest individuals on the continent.
If they wiped out all the professors there… they could inflict massive harm on the human side.
“…You don’t mean what I think you do, do you?”
“Exactly. We will annihilate all the professors of Ark. So while you buy time, you should focus on Azidahaka.”
The end of humanity was near… and with that thought, Satan couldn’t hide his exhilaration.
