Chapter 257. Expedition (4)
“They resemble the existing demons, but they’re clearly different beings.”
Joo Minha spoke while intercepting the monsters that kept swarming toward them with magic.
“It looks like they’re being born from the plant-like entity covering the ground.”
“Born from that?”
“Yes. I just saw one emerge when something like a flower bud formed below.”
Kang Yujin frowned and looked down.
Sure enough, things resembling flower buds were appearing here and there.
But what looked like petals...
were actually the monsters’ wings.
“It may be absorbing demons and giving birth to a new species of demon.”
“Why would it do something like that?”
“I don’t know.”
Joo Minha answered in a stiff voice.
“Maybe it really is trying to turn this world into Hell.”
"...!"
Demons controlled a large part of the world, but they hadn’t literally turned it into Hell.
The war had certainly created terrible chaos, but within Pandemonium’s territory, a relatively stable society had still existed.
This place, however...
was a Hell where even the original demons could barely survive.
“We need to break into Pandemonium’s heartland as quickly as possible.”
Heracles frowned as he drew his bow.
At that moment, a massive shadow rose into the sky.
“What is that?”
“It’s enormous.”
A dragon with the heads of a dog, an eagle, and a human was flying toward them.
It screamed as it approached.
“A three-headed dragon...”
“That’s Duke Bune, one of Pandemonium’s Seventy-Two Demons.”
“A Demon God-class demon!”
Heracles immediately aimed his bow.
Alexandros also raised his bow, mirroring his Constellation.
The difference in power was enormous, but two laser-like arrows shot toward the three-headed dragon.
“SKREEEEE!”
But the arrows never struck Bune.
Twisting his body like an acrobatic aircraft, he narrowly avoided both shots.
And without slowing down at all...
he rushed straight toward the Roc carrying Kang Yujin’s group.
“No choice, then!”
Heracles pulled out his metal club, his Constellation Armament.
According to what Kang Yujin had heard before, it was a weapon forged by Hephaestus, the god of smithing.
“Hm!”
Heracles leaped.
Flying through the air, he swung the club and smashed one of Bune’s heads apart.
“SKREEEEE!”
But Bune had three heads.
Only the human head was destroyed.
The dog and eagle heads remained intact.
“You bastard...!”
Heracles tried to smash the remaining heads too.
But Bune twisted violently through the air once again.
Heracles momentarily lost his balance...
and missed his chance to attack.
“Waaah!”
Sinbad screamed.
Bune’s enormous body was about to collide with the Roc.
"...!"
Kang Yujin moved instinctively.
Alexandros moved at the same time.
They each jumped onto one of Bune’s wings and used their strength to interfere with his wingbeats.
“H-Hey! You two...!”
“Lord Sinbad, I think this is as far as you can take us.”
“J-Joo Minha, what are you planning to do?”
“You said the Roc is difficult to control precisely, didn’t you?”
“We’re almost there anyway. We’ll handle things ourselves from here.”
“A-Are you sure?”
“Don’t worry. Please withdraw.”
After saying that, Joo Minha jumped into the air as well.
Using magic, she created footholds in midair and began supporting Kang Yujin and the others.
“Good luck!”
With Sinbad’s shout, the Roc flew away.
In the end...
Kang Yujin, Joo Minha, Heracles, and Alexandros were left fighting Bune in midair.
“This thing seems to have lost its intelligence, unlike the other Demon God-class demons!”
“Could it have been newly born like those monsters from before?!”
“It may have been altered somehow!”
Bune thrashed violently.
He kept twisting his body, trying to shake off the enemies clinging to him.
But Kang Yujin, Alexandros, and Heracles possessed enough physical strength to hold on despite the aerial acrobatics.
“OOOOOOH!”
Heracles finally stabilized himself.
With a roar, he swung his club.
The eagle head exploded.
At last, Bune’s wingbeats became sluggish.
“He’s falling!”
“Everyone, be careful!”
With a thunderous crash, the enormous three-headed dragon fell into the ruined city below.
Kang Yujin barely managed to get back to his feet.
He pushed through the rubble and rushed toward Bune.
Just as he gathered internal energy into his fist to destroy the final dog head...
a voice came from it.
“You...”
The voice came from Bune’s remaining head.
“Are you... humans...?”
“Did you regain your senses?”
“Ah... I see.”
“You must be Kang Yujin... the savior who appeared among humanity.”
Bune looked at Kang Yujin.
“Then please... kill me, Kang Yujin...”
“What happened to you?”
“My spiritual energy was drained... my soul suffered severe damage... and I became a mindless beast...”
“I can barely speak to you now... but I’ll lose my mind again soon...”
“So while I still have some reason left... please...”
Kang Yujin looked troubled.
Joo Minha descended nearby and examined Bune’s condition.
“What exactly happened inside Pandemonium?”
“His Highness Bael... was doing something with His Majesty Lucifer’s corpse beneath the Assembly Hall...”
“Lucifer’s corpse...!”
“His Highness Bael’s goal... was the resurrection of His Majesty Lucifer...”
“These grotesque things now covering Pandemonium...”
“they are the resurrected body of His Majesty Lucifer...”
"...!"
Kang Yujin and Joo Minha both sucked in a breath.
“Everything here is... part of Lucifer?”
“The Lucifer of the past was never a plant-like existence like this.”
