Chapter 246: Episode 246_Thug of Light and Darkness (3)
4.
The second day dawned.
The millions gathered here hadn’t co to put on a show and go ho; they were here to fight. Preparations began before dawn. The Continental Army devised new strategies while the warlocks replenished their ranks of monsters.
More warlocks stread in from all directions, and the Continental Army’s forces swelled with countless users and royal reinforcents who had heard the news, more than enough to fill the gaps left by the previous day’s casualties.
It all pointed to a second round—a proper rematch, where the tentative probing of the first battle would be forgotten.
Of course, the Continental Army was not free from psychological pressure. Even if both sides could reset their losses and clash with the sa forces as yesterday, they still had no answer for Grokile, the high-rank demon who had rampaged across the battlefield.
If every knight and mage on the Continent had joined forces to raid Grokile, it wouldn’t have been so daunting. No matter how strong a high-rank demon was, the Continent was vast, and there were plenty of heroes who had inherited legacies built over millennia.
But this was a war zone. They weren’t raiding a single boss monster; they had to raid a boss monster surrounded by an army of nearly equal strength. That small difference changed everything.
Even so, the Continental Army rallied. What else could they do?
“If we break, our families die!”
It was a cliché used in reality and gas alike, but its weight was felt by all. The users were here for fun, levels, and money, but the NPCs were not. The land that would be trampled by demons and warlocks was their ho.
They could not retreat. They would die to hold the line for their families and for future generations.
“Today will not be like yesterday! n! Fight and win!”
“Waaaaaa!”
“Long live His Majesty the Emperor!”
The Emperor’s firm declaration was like a drug to the Continental Army. The myth of the undefeated emperor. Back when he was their enemy, he had been a far more terrifying foe than any warlock or high-rank demon. Now, he was their leader. His presence made them feel they could win any war, no matter the odds.
With their morale restored, they charged.
Fortunately, they were not ard with blind hope alone. They knew they could die. They knew another hell like yesterday could unfold. That tension went with them, but tension wasn’t always a bad thing, especially in a situation so intense it made your head ring.
“Waaaaa!”
With a roar, they clashed with the monsters.
Their morale was high, but unfortunately, the warlocks’ montum was simply too strong. Besides, the monsters they commanded had no need for morale. They were simply delighted to see prey appear before them.
Curses and plagues spread just as they had the day before, and the monsters rampaged.
“Ku-ha-ha! Foolish humans! You’ve co again! Die, all of you!”
And then, yesterday’s nightmare returned.
Grokile descended upon the battlefield without the slightest sign of fatigue and began his slaughter anew. His overwhelming power was nauseating to behold.
No matter how much they fought for their families, the soldiers couldn’t even bring themselves to approach him. He was that terrifying, that overwhelming.
What good were numbers when every group that tried to get close was torn to shreds?
It felt impossible to kill him. The mont that absolute terror took hold, the battle was already lost.
Even so, the Continental Army did not retreat.
They believed.
In the countless people behind them. In the battle-hardened veterans on the front lines and the many masters who had co to fight for the peace of the Continent.
If they could just wear him down, even a little, there might be a chance.
And then, a voice of hope reached them.
“Let’s go! Hang in there, team!”
It was a bright, cheerful voice that was completely out of place on the bloody battlefield. It was the kind of voice that made you want to find out which bastard was giving such a half-assed cheer in the middle of a war, while also making you resentful of soone who sounded like they’d never suffered a day in their life.
But the clear, refreshing divine power that followed the voice was more than enough to serve as real encouragent for the Continental Army.
[All status ailnts are removed by the effect of ‘Sanctuary.’]
[Holy-attribute effects are increased by 30% by the effect of ‘Sanctuary.’]
[Dark-attribute effects are reduced by 30% by the effect of ‘Sanctuary.’]
[HP is restored.]
[MP is restored.]
A refreshing sensation washed away their exhaustion. The sudden disappearance of their fatigue was a godsend.
On top of that, holy-attribute effects were increased by 30%, while dark-attribute effects were reduced by 30%.
Ordinary soldiers might not have felt the difference strongly, but for the monsters caught within the Sanctuary, there could be no more hellish debuff. Surrounded by countless soldiers, even a small reduction in mobility was a death sentence.
Most importantly:
“The curses are gone!”
“The plague is gone, too!”
It was the highest-tier holy magic circle, capable of removing and preventing all unclean effects. That alone was an enormous boon to the millions of troops on the vast battlefield.
Of course, this still didn’t create an environnt where they could take down Grokile. Most of those who had charged out were ordinary soldiers.
But this was the spark.
“Advance!”
“Waaaaaa!”
The second round had begun. The war had truly started.
The elite troops began to join the fray.
*
Grokile frowned.
“Damn it.”
Even a high-rank demon like him could not remain completely unaffected inside the Sanctuary. All his stats, including his attack power, were reduced by 30%.
Thirty percent might just be a number, but for a being of his level, it was an enormous penalty. He was still strong, but for soone who needed to rampage freely, it was as if an annoying obstacle had been thrown in his path.
On top of that, this Sanctuary was spreading divine power so widely that it affected nearly the entire battlefield.
It was powerful enough to be the work of the Pope, one of the Five Heroes recorded in history from centuries ago. In fact, compared to the Sanctuary he had seen back then, this one seed far more effective and its scope far wider.
For soone like him, who had crossed over without any restrictions, it was slashing his combat power by a full 30%.
Grokile, who had been massacring every human in sight, shifted his gaze, searching for the source of the holy power.
He had to destroy that first.
Even with this penalty, the power he’d brought over was beyond imagination, but he couldn’t afford any surprises. To put it bluntly, if a Celestial showed up now, things would get truly dangerous.
As always, the world demanded you risk danger to gain any reward.
And for him, death ant annihilation.
Which was precisely why he had to be careful.
He focused his mind and searched for the origin of the divine power.
It wasn’t difficult to find. All he had to do was locate the place where the disgusting energy was most densely concentrated.
Flash.
Grokile’s body vanished.
A mont later, he reappeared at the location where the Sanctuary had been activated.
“What bastard of a human dares...?”
He unleashed a reckless torrent of dark magic, openly displaying his displeasure with the holy power.
Whoever it was, he would tear them to pieces.
Then, a single human ca into view, glaring at him with open disgust while wielding the very source of the Sanctuary.
No, it wasn’t just one.
There were clearly many humans around, each of them possessing trendous combat power.
Considering Grokile had just leaped alone into the middle of the enemy lines, they were strong enough to make even him feel a faint sense of alarm. Things might actually get a little dangerous.
It was only natural. A Sanctuary like this would obviously be the highest-priority target.
However, Grokile was so flustered by a single person that he barely registered the others.
“Yo, long ti no see.”
The demon-like bastard curled his lips into a smile and raised a hand in greeting.
“W-why are you here...?”
’Why would he be here? That demon.’
Grokile wanted to ask, but he couldn’t bring himself to.
“Why? You need sothing from ?”
He remained silent.
“What, is it because of this? Hey, punk. I went out of my way to let you cross over without penalties, so you should be grateful and just fight. But this bastard’s gotten so spoiled he doesn’t even want to put up with a little inconvenience. Fine. Go ahead and smash it. Smash it all. Hell, why don’t you kill
too while you’re at it and send
straight to heaven?”
“No. I will simply go back.”
The dark magic that had been pouring out in thick streams as he raged suddenly vanished.
Then, without a backward glance, Grokile disappeared.
The special strike force, whose nerves had been stretched taut at the sudden appearance of a high-rank demon, stared at Han Simin with utter incomprehension.
’What was that just now? Did we really see what we think we saw?’
They were just as unable to understand what had happened as he was.
*
Grokile’s expression was thunderous when he returned.
“What is wrong, Lord Kile?”
“Damn it. Bloody hell. Why did he co?”
“Pardon?”
“He clearly told
to focus on my role. So now he sets up sothing like that and tries to shackle my power? Is he planning to kill ?”
The demons looked at him in confusion.
It was an anxiety unbecoming of a high-rank demon.
The other demons looked at his trembling figure in puzzlent, but Grokile didn’t stop.
“This won’t do. I should ask him again.”
He agonized over it, and the more he worried, the more stressed he beca.
Even if a human caused trouble right in front of him, he couldn’t just kill them. If he killed one for no reason, who knew what pretext that man would seize on to tornt him again.
Of course, the contract had only been made with Han Simin, so technically it didn’t matter what he did to other humans. But the terms themselves were so absurdly disadvantageous to the subordinate party that, in practice, Han Simin, the dominant party, could latch onto any excuse he wanted and order Grokile to die, and Grokile would have no choice but to obey.
He wanted to protest that it violated any notion of a fair contract, but what could he do? He knew better than anyone why demon contracts were called “devil’s contracts.” Once both sides agreed and the contract was sealed, not even a god could interfere.
That was the biggest problem.
And the very reason Grokile was so terrified.
“What do I do... I can’t kill him, and there’s no way out.”
As Grokile was sinking deeper into his worries, Han Simin walked up to him.
He had appeared out of nowhere.
“Gah!”
“What are you gasping for, idiot? Relax, I ca alone.”
Grokile shut his mouth.
’Whether you co alone or bring an army, I still hate you, you bastard.’
He swallowed the words and simply nodded.
“Guide . To Yeseul.”
“Very well.”
Grokile obediently took the lead.
“Don’t be too resentful. You have a friend now. I’ll introduce you soon.”
The ultimate wild card, moving freely between both armies!
Grokile clamped his hands over his eyes and ears.
He didn’t want to see or hear any of it.
“Hey, punk. Get down a bit. My arm’s getting tired.”
Even so, he couldn’t bring himself to brush off the hand resting on his shoulder.
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