NOVPUB
Chapter 241
Perhaps feeding on Suho’s flesh and blood had triggered Baran’s ancient memories, as he began recalling a time long buried in his past.
“I’ll let you in on something.”
This memory came from long before he had ever become King of Demons—before he was a demon at all.
“I, too, was a Resident of the Rift once.”
He had also been discarded waste, abandoned by the Absolute Being.
“As all demons were.”
Muttering the words, Baran looked up at the vast expanse of sky above. A blue storm raged there.
At the storm’s eye, Baran rambled on, seemingly indifferent to whether Suho heard him. He reflected on his distant past.
“And here’s another thing you may not have known: Residents of the Rift do not have souls. They cannot die. Having never been truly born, even death is a privilege denied to them. If you wish to kill one, you must simply tear, burn, and destroy it until nothing remains.”
That was all he had been—a discarded remnant of the universe, denied both life and death.
Such was what it meant to be a Resident of the Rift, and before becoming a demon, this was Baran’s identity. As such, he was painfully aware of his current state.
“Speaking of which, perhaps I have returned to that state of being,” he murmured.
His spirit had dissolved into nothingness after his death, tainted so not even the World Tree would accept it. It seemed no different from his former existence as waste.
“And that means...”
Baran’s gaze fell on Suho once more, and the blue sparks in his eyes flashed with fierce intensity.
Hunger consumed him—a raw and unrelenting desire. With that desire, he took in the hunter’s form.
“Perhaps with enough to feed on, even now, I have a chance at being reborn as a Demon of the Rift.”
Baran couldn’t help but gulp in anticipation, making no effort to hide his gluttony.
An ecstatic smile spread across his face as he stared at Suho. His mind had already returned to the state it had been when he’d been a Resident of the Rift.
“Therefore, you shall be my food. I will chew you up and swallow you, and then I will become you.”
At that moment, the flesh and blood that he had swallowed was finally digested inside him.
Something changed, and a notification sounded.
[Baran used the skill “Doppelganger.”]
Ugh... Goddamn it!
Suho couldn’t help but utter a pained groan.
Baran’s grin contorted more and more grotesquely as his form began to change. His face, shockingly, started to resemble Suho’s.
A lightning bolt struck behind him, illuminating his regal armor. He was still grinning broadly, and half of his face was now identical to Suho’s.
“This is my heart’s desire. I will become you,” he declared, reiterating his wish.
Suho felt a chill. Even Baran’s voice had begun to mimic his own.
The Monarch once again transformed into a bolt of lightning, hurtling toward Suho. His shark-like teeth snapped toward the hunter, intent on tearing him apart.
Baran was like a predator hunting its prey, or perhaps simply feeding on prey it had already captured. All he needed to do was open his maw wide and chew.
However, Suho reacted differently this time. Unlike before, he saw the attack coming and dodged by no more than a hair.
“Graaaah!”
Baran let out a roar, bringing forth a storm of blue lightning around him.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Suho stood firm, unfazed by the flurry of attacks.
Baran flinched at his reaction speed, clearly unnerved.
“What? Surprised, are you?” Suho thought mockingly. “Did you think I was taking your attacks for no reason?”
He had undoubtedly taken heavy damage, but he hadn’t endured it without reason.
After surviving Antares’ trial, Suho had gained more than just the Heart of the King of Dragons. When he had first faced the Monarch of Destruction and just barely withstood his overwhelming power, his father had praised him by giving him a title.
[Title: Overcomer of Tribulation]
[A title given to those who have overcome extreme hardships.
Increases stats based on the percentage of health lost.
(1% attribute boost for every 1% of health lost)]
The buff boosted Suho’s abilities depending on how much health he had lost—and the boost was across every stat, in fact. Just like Beru always said, progress was proportional to pain.
And I’m confident I can take a few blows, Suho thought to himself. If you want to eat me, bring it on... We’ll see who becomes the prey. I’m not holding back anymore!
A massive storm gathered around Suho and Baran.
“It’s no use resisting!” the demon growled.
He raised his hand in the air, looking even more frenzied by hunger now that his food was struggling.
“You are already within my domain!”
This was indeed Baran’s realm. If he so wished, he could flood the entire space with his energy, just as the other Monarchs could.
He pointed at Suho, summoning dozens of lightning bolts to strike him at the same time.
“Got you!” Baran exclaimed, his face lighting up with triumphant glee.
The lightning was devastating, with lethal strength and the power to stun. However...
“Is that all you’ve got?”
Suho was perfectly fine.
[Buff: “Immunity” allows you to resist status effects.]
[Buff: “Immunity” allows you to resist status effects.]
[Buff: “Immunity” allows you to resist status effects.]
Baran’s expression contorted with anger.
“Kandiaru, you asshole! You even imbued him with these petty tricks?”
[Blessing: Grand Spellcaster Kandiaru’s Blessing
- Passive Effect “Blissful Longevity”: Immunity to all diseases, toxins, and abnormal effects, with a significant increase in regenerative abilities during sleep.]
The stun effect of the lightning had been completely countered by the buff.
Baran, however, was well-versed in Kandiaru’s methods.
“That won’t save you from the pain!” he thundered.
The damage had clearly taken its toll. No matter how resilient Suho seemed, he would eventually succumb.
Baran, a former Resident of the Rift, was once able to become the King of Demons—and that was a testament to his greed and perseverance. He never gave up.
“I’ll sink my teeth into you again, just like before, and drain you dry!”
This time, he redirected all the lightning toward himself, absorbing its energy to accelerate his movements as he attacked Suho.
At that moment, Suho glimpsed the pure, unyielding determination in his eyes.
All right, I have to admit it... The level-ups recently have made me take Monarchs too lightly.
He reflected on his mistake.
He had gained confidence after earning the Qualification of the King of Dragons and defeating a follower of the Itarim single-handedly, but that was not enough when it came to fighting a Monarch.
In hindsight, the only Monarch he had truly defeated on his own was Querehsha. With Antares, he’d had the aid of his father’s apparition, so he couldn’t truly take credit for it. The other Monarchs had all been willing to talk rather than fight, each for their own reasons.
Perhaps Querehsha was the weakest of the Monarchs. I mean, she was a colony of bugs.
[Querehsha seems upset and clenches her fists.]
Suho acknowledged that he’d been arrogant.
I still have a long way to go. I thought I’d be able to handle him at my level.
But after noticing the look in Baran’s eyes, he had realized that relying on his level alone was an insult to his opponent.
“I apologize. I see I was rude. From this point on, I’ll use everything I have.”
The look in Suho’s eyes had changed.
“So please understand if things get a little messy.”
Baran barked an incredulous laugh as he noticed the gazes around him.
[Rakan is watching you.]
[Querehsha is watching you.]
[Sillad is watching you.]
[Antares is watching you.]
“Ha! You have managed to entice the other Monarchs! But this changes nothing. I dominate this space! Even if the other dead Monarchs get involved—”
A notification interrupted him.
[The spiritual body of “Pet: Gray” has bound to the Shaman.]
A sacred wind blew, swirling around Suho’s body. His hair turned white, fluttering in the fierce gust.
[Skill: “Meadow Wind” has activated.]
[Movement speed is temporarily increased by 30%.]
[Attack speed is temporarily increased by 30%.]
Finally, Suho was able to match Baran’s speed.
The demon remained unimpressed. “So you have the blessing of the Monarch of Fangs. That’s not enough speed to make a difference—”
“It is.”
[Skill: “Blistering Blizzard” has been activated.]
A sudden blast of frost engulfed Baran’s body, centering all its force on him.
[Sillad grins.]
“Sillad, you bastard!” Baran shouted.
The demon exploded in rage as he was encased in an icy tundra. But by the time he broke free, Suho’s blades were already poised at his throat.
“Got you.”
Baran barely managed to block the swords with his forearms. The two blades slashed viciously into them.
However, that wasn’t the end of it. He realized that every attack was laced with lethal poison.
“This ability... Querehsha?!”
[Debuff: “Paralysis Poison” has activated.]
[Debuff: “Kasaka’s Venom” has activated.]
[Querehsha scoffs primly at Baran.]
Suho thought mockingly, “I told you it would get messy. You might think it’s cowardly, but I’m afraid I’m as desperate as you are.”
Baran was desperate to live, but Suho also had a goal that he could never abandon.
“I need to save my grandfather and help my father. That means I can’t lose to the likes of you.”
Baran, too, refused to yield. The desire to live, a fundamental instinct, was what drove the Monarch who had once been a Resident of the Rift.
With a roar of pain and fury, the demon’s eyes burned as he opened his jaws wide.
Suho’s eyes widened as Baran’s teeth sunk into his blades, and the Vulcan’s Horns that had been tearing at him shattered into pieces.
As it happened, Baran came to a shocking realization.
“These are demon horns!”
Unfortunately for Suho, the Vulcan’s Horns contained countless devoured demon souls, and Baran was still their king.
“Imprisoned souls! Gather before me!”
[Baran used the skill “Hell’s Army.”]
This skill was capable of summoning a demon army to the King of Demons’ location.
As the shards of the Vulcan’s Horns scattered, a flood of demon souls burst out, flying in all directions. They were dead, of course, but this world was meant for the deceased.
Baran guffawed.
[A demon soul has been summoned.]
[A demon soul has been summoned.]
[A demon soul has been summoned.]
[...]
The demons that now stood before him were too numerous to count, each appearing in the forms they had in life.
“Hehehe. Thank you. Now the real war begins,” Baran said, laughing.
No...
Suho’s gaze grew more intense. Not only had he lost his weapons, but he had inadvertently provided Baran with new soldiers.
Still, the moment had taught him something.
“Now I see it.”
Instead of reacting with fear, Suho smirked at Baran’s newfound army.
“You betrayed Ashborn in the past, didn’t you? Antares may have encouraged you, but even so, you jumped at the chance right away. And now I know why.”
It hadn’t made sense before. Even if demons with their polluted souls were the only effective counter to the shadow army, they were undeniably weaker soldiers. Yet Baran had thrown himself into the fight against Ashborn without a second thought.
“It was because you felt inferior.”
“What...?”
At those words, Baran’s eyebrow twitched.
“Now I understand. The power of the King of Demons is nothing but an inferior imitation of the Shadow Monarch. Your army is the cheap knock-off version of the shadow army,” Suho thought coldly.
“Shut your mouth!” Baran screamed, launching his army’s attack.
Suho was not afraid.
“I really should thank you. Now I know there is no way for me to lose.”
With that, he unleashed his own power.
[Skill: “Monarch’s Domain” has activated.]
Suho’s shadow expanded, spreading across the land.
Though he couldn’t summon his shadow soldiers here, he had another option. He was the successor of the Monarch of Destruction, after all.
Burn, fires of hell.
In the white expanse, the flames of the fire dragon erupted from Suho’s shadow, and every demon that leaped at him with intent to kill met their end in a flickering blaze of red.
Localization Credits
Kiwi Vine
Translator Gom
Editor Heather Powers
Linguist Sara Liddell
Head Linguist Hannah Shin
Kakao Entertainment
Head of Language Quality Letitia Wells
Head of Localization Jaewon Lee
