NOVPUB
Chapter 236
The mysterious magic beasts chittered as they covered the crumbling walls and ceiling of the ruined subway station. It was like something out of a twisted nightmare.
Jiwoo clenched her teeth in frustration.
I should’ve at least brought my gauntlets from the car!
She was an S-rank hunter, and yet all she could do was stay behind and accept protection. Her hurt pride stung.
“Why are you going so far to protect me, anyway?” she demanded.
“Shut up,” Harmakan said. He wasn’t letting her fight, but it wasn’t simply to protect her.
“You can help my master by staying put and doing nothing,” he said bluntly.
“How would doing nothing be of any help? Does Suho have some kind of other goal here?” Jiwoo asked, her frustration growing.
“Hehe. Another goal, you say?”
Instead of giving a real answer, Harmakan simply laughed.
What other goal would there be? It’s leveling, of course.
The demonic spirit chuckled under his breath.
Normally, these soulless dimensional scraps of monsters wouldn’t offer much experience to Suho—but here, things were different.
An instance dungeon was a magical construct developed by Kandiaru, the great sorcerer of the arcane world, to aid in a player’s leveling. Inside this space, it didn’t matter what the creatures originally were. They were all treated equally as monsters that existed only to give experience when killed.
As such, my role is to prevent anyone from taking even the slightest amount of experience points from Suho.
With that duty in mind, Harmakan took great care to prevent Jiwoo from stepping out of line and trying to help.
Jiwoo, on the other hand, was a little touched by the attention she seemed to be receiving.
“Nobody has protected me so carefully since my reawakening...”
Somehow she was reminded of the strong, protective arms of her late grandfather.
The emotion didn’t last long, however. This “protector” wasn’t her grandfather—he was the Supreme Chief of demonic spirits, a wicked and thoroughly untrustworthy figure.
“Well, if you’re so eager to fight, I shall give you an opportunity,” Harmakan said.
Before she could react, a vile spell unfolded from his wizened fingertips, and an ominous-looking set of armor formed around her.
“This is Evil Spirit Armor. If you’re willing to wear this, then I’ll let you fight.”
“It looks a bit... creepy,” Jiwoo said hesitantly. “This armor isn’t cursed, is it?”
Her doubtful gaze only made Harmakan chuckle as he summoned two more magic circles in the air.
“Don’t worry. It was originally made for demonic spirits, but I’ve modified it for human use.”
“D-demonic spirits?!”
Jiwoo was even more disturbed, and Harmakan attempted to comfort her.
“Haha! A bit of a coward, aren’t you? But fear not. An ordinary human might experience side effects, but an S-rank hunter like you will be perfectly fine.”
Probably, he thought, grinning to himself.
Jiwoo considered this, then sighed. “All right. Suho accompanied me at my request, so I can’t just stand back while he does all the work.” She nodded, feeling as though she might be making a deal with the devil.
The “devil” in question grinned at her. “Wise choice. I’ve always wanted to see how this armor works on a human. This is great.”
“Wh-what do you mean by that? Hey, wait—”
Jiwoo protested, but it was too late. As her eyes widened with dismay at his final words, the Evil Spirit Armor locked into place around her with a series of sharp metallic clicks, swallowing her up entirely.
Harmakan immediately added on a few spells.
[Seo Jiwoo has equipped the item: “Evil Spirit Armor.”]
“Huh?”
Suho, still fighting up ahead, turned and looked back with a puzzled expression at the sudden system notification.
[Harmakan uses the skill: “Thorns of Pain” on Seo Jiwoo.]
[All the pain and damage Jiwoo receives is shared with the attackers.]
[Harmakan uses the skill: “Exploitation” on Seo Jiwoo.]
[Jiwoo recovers 2% of damage dealt as health.]
Jiwoo, armed like a death knight, was barely standing upright. Her face had gone pale, and she was swaying on her feet like she was about to vomit.
“Ugh. I feel sick.”
“Oh, is that all? A weaker human would have died or fainted,” Harmakan said.
“You liar!” she cried, balling her fists in rage.
The demonic spirit stood aside and nodded in satisfaction. “Now go and fight. This armor reflects damage back on your enemies, and every attack you land will heal you.”
“What?” Jiwoo’s eyes grew wide as she glanced down at the armor.
“See for yourself.”
With a sudden shove from Harmakan, she stumbled forward.
Her body acted on instinct. Her fist shot out like a cannonball, driving straight into the skull of a nearby clump of purple vines. There was a whimpering sound as she hit her mark.
[?? has been defeated.]
[Jiwoo offers 100% of her experience points as a tribute.]
Messages appeared in front of Suho. Thanks to the Evil Spirit Armor, all the experience Jiwoo earned was transferred directly to him.
Jiwoo still looked sick, but Harmakan’s experiment had been a success.
“For the glory of my master,” he murmured, bowing with a great show of reverence toward Suho in the distance.
Suho couldn’t help but snicker. These demonic spirits...
Suho had actually been the one to instruct Harmakan to try modifying the armor. Only a few days prior, he had suggested finding a way for non-spirits to wear the cursed armor that enhanced the power of an evil spirit by squeezing the wearer dry.
He hadn’t expected that Harmakan’s first test subject would be Jiwoo. However, she was living up to her reputation.
“This armor... It’s amazing!” she exclaimed.
Jiwoo had been turned into a death knight without knowing what she was walking into, but she was now doing an incredible amount of damage, even surprising herself with the level of her power.
Ever since her reawakening, controlling her newfound strength had been a struggle. One had to know how to handle their power depending on the situation and the enemy, but since her strength had changed so suddenly, that hadn’t been easy to learn.
Because of this, Jiwoo would use excessive force whenever she fought, unable to control her overflowing power. The gauntlets and armor she wore would inevitably become unnecessarily damaged.
But this armor was sturdier than anything she’d worn before. In addition, it was buffed by Harmakan to restore her health proportional to the damage she dealt.
“I still feel queasy, but I can’t stop!”
For the first time since her reawakening, Jiwoo was able to fight at full strength.
“Looks like I better step it up too,” Suho said, a powerful gleam appearing in his eyes.
[Skill: “Giant’s Armor” has been activated.]
The dark flames from the Heart of the King of Dragons mixed with the power of the shadows, enveloping his body and covering him in black, fiery armor.
The purple vines that had been about to attack him quickly retreated from the heat, but it was already too late. The flames stuck to them like tar, incinerating them in moments.
[?? has been defeated.]
[?? has been defeated.]
[...]
Jiwoo could only stare in awe.
So he is a tanker after all. And a fire-element tanker, to boot! That’s the strongest combination!
Suho, who had been surrounded by the weeds, had instantly turned into a living natural disaster.
Even Beru clapped in delight at the overwhelming display of power. “Kieeek! How magnificent! You’ve become a walking meat shield!”
“That’s a compliment, right?” Suho asked.
“Of course it is! But do not forget our true objective.”
“I know.”
Their goal wasn’t to wipe out the creatures but to find the breach from which they were pouring in.
“Time to clear a path,” Suho said. With a glint of determination in his eyes, Vulcan’s Horns appeared in his hands.
[Skill: “Dark Flame Storm” has activated.]
He used the new skill that had evolved from Storm Slash after he had gained the Heart of the King of Dragons.
Black flames surged like a violent storm along the two swords, sweeping through everything in their paths.
[?? has been defeated.]
[?? has been defeated.]
[?? has been defeated.]
[...]
[Level up!] 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝒑𝙪𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝙢
And just like that, a path was opened.
“Unbelievable...” Jiwoo whispered, her mouth hanging open.
The line of fire that Suho had unleashed had reduced the countless writhing vines to ashes, leaving only drifting embers in its wake. At the end of the newly opened path, new vines were hesitantly crawling forward again.
“That direction it is, then,” Suho remarked, dashing forward.
Jiwoo followed close behind, deflecting the monsters attacking from the sides with both fists.
“Found it. The double dungeon’s right here,” Suho finally declared.
The air ahead shimmered with an ominous ripple. It was a dimensional breach.
“So this is where the dregs were coming from,” he muttered.
Antares watched the purple vines creeping out of the dimensional breach and clicked his tongue.
“The Residents of the Rift are always like this. They don’t usually show themselves at all, but like weeds, they will spread and sprout whenever they have the opportunity. This hole was probably created by the nightmare bulbs. The other creatures simply made use of it to cross over.”
Hearing Antares’ explanation, Suho’s eyes burned with a fierce light. He gazed into the depths of the rift.
“What are the odds that the other side of this rift leads to the Sea of the Afterlife?” he asked.
“Extremely low. But it should serve as a shortcut, at the very least.”
“Young Monarch, do you intend to go in right away?” Beru chimed in.
“Yes. My grandfather’s life depends on it,” Suho replied firmly.
He turned to Jiwoo beside him, his gaze steady but cautious. “It may be a bit dangerous, but would you be willing to join me?”
“Of course. I never dreamed I’d be doing it like this, but... I want to save my companions from Eternal Slumber.” She met his eyes and gave a firm nod, her expression resolute.
“Then let’s go.”
Without hesitation, they stepped into the dimensional rift.
In their wake, the Residents of the Rift crawling out behind them were engulfed in flames.
***
Meanwhile, the sky above the demon realm twisted with ominous energy, the clouds undulating like restless waves.
“It’s finally time.”
On top of a high hill, Esil, the only noble of this realm, stared at the turbulent sky. Her eyes flashed.
Truth be told, not even she fully understood what it took to become the King of Demons. All she remembered was what her father had told her when she was young, but even back then, she suspected he wasn’t being specific.
After all, when Father was born, Baran was still the King of Demons.
Baran, the Monarch of White Flames, had ruled the demon realm for a very long time.
But nothing lasted forever. After all, even the Absolute Being had eventually fallen to one of his creations.
Long, long ago, a demon other than Baran had ruled as king. When that king died in the war against the Rulers, Baran, who was a demon noble at the time, had proudly proven himself that he was worthy of becoming king and had taken the throne. The method he had used then to prove himself was a trial, one that Esil was aware of.
She heard thunder rumble in the distance.
It didn’t matter if she didn’t know every detail. Her instincts as a noble demon whispered to her the one truth she needed to know.
“Demons! Heed my words!”
Rising to her feet, Esil raised her voice in a commanding roar.
“I, Esil Radiru, the only demon noble and the master of this land, command you!”
Her voice echoed, sharp and clear, across the vast landscape.
In response, the demons across the land raised their heads, gazing toward the sky.
They were greeted by the sight of white flames. The brilliant flames split apart the sky, making it into a shattered canvas, then descending in blazing streaks. It was like watching weeds send their roots into barren, unoccupied soil.
Gripping her spear firmly, Esil pointed it forward.
“Rise and fight! The trial has begun!”
From the cracks in the demon realm, clumps of violet roots began to push their way through. The skulls on the heads of the creatures radiated obsession from their hollow eye sockets.
Even the ignorant demons who had no knowledge of the king’s trial recognized the threat these invaders posed.
“The trial has begun!”
“It’s the trial!”
“The demon realm is being polluted!”
If they didn’t fight now and hold their ground, they would be devoured. No, not just them—the entire demon realm could be consumed. To avoid that fate, there was only one solution.
“We need a king.”
Someone muttered the words aloud.
A world without a ruler was dangerous. Land with no one to tend it was always overrun by weeds.
The moment they saw the weeds, the demons instinctively realized what they were.
“The Residents of the Rift...”
“The Residents of the Rift are after us!”
The murmuring and unease spread like wildfire, transforming into fear.
The demons turned their gazes to one figure—the only one qualified to lead them, the pure-blooded noble. This demon readily accepted the desire in their gazes.
“I am Esil, the eldest daughter of the Radiru family.”
Standing firm against the onslaught of violet waves, she declared her name with pride.
For a brief moment, a flicker of regret crossed her mind. Of all times, it had to be while Suho was away...
But she dismissed the thought. She was never supposed to accept help in this. If she couldn’t overcome this trial on her own, she would never be worthy of becoming king.
With that conviction, Esil stomped out her fear and declared loudly, “I shall become your king!”
Raising her spear to the sky, she shouted with unwavering confidence, “Arise, death knights!”
At her command, countless death knights wearing Evil Spirit Armor rose into view behind her. She was certain this much help didn’t count as cheating.
