Episode 183

“What did you just say?”

Arataso’s voice was filled with disbelief as he responded to Zeke’s words.

“Why don’t you want to tell me?”

This was absurd, even for Zeke, who had resorted to threatening a demon to steal their techniques.

“Who does this guy think he is?”

In all his demonic life, Arataso had never encountered a human like this.

Arataso shouted at Zeke, “Why should I tell you anything? And how could a human possibly learn the demon clan’s barrier techniques?”

Zeke chuckled at Arataso’s outburst. “I’ve mastered the swordsmanship of the Hero King. Why wouldn’t I be able to learn demon techniques?”

Arataso’s voice trembled. “The Hero King? Don’t lie!”

“It’s true. You demons really have a hard time trusting people, don’t you?”

Arataso muttered to himself, unable to believe it. “The Hero King’s swordsmanship? That’s impossible…”

“Stop mumbling to yourself. Are you going to tell me or not? If not, enjoy being sealed in this sword forever.”

Zeke was about to release his grip on the sword when Arataso called out urgently, “Wait!”

Zeke paused, his hand hovering over the sword, waiting for Arataso to speak.

“If I teach you the barrier technique, will you release me?”

“Depends on how well you cooperate.”

“You coward! Give me a straight answer! Will you release me or not?”

Zeke ignited a flame, causing Arataso to scream in agony. “You dare raise your voice at me? I was going to keep you sealed forever, but I felt sorry for you and gave you a chance.”

When Zeke extinguished the flame, Arataso quickly changed his tone. “Fine, fine. I’ll teach you the barrier technique. But promise me you won’t use that cursed fire again.”

“You mean the sacred flame?”

“Yes, swear you won’t use that sacred flame.”

After a moment’s thought, Zeke agreed to Arataso’s condition.

Arataso spoke with irritation. “But if you can’t learn it, that’s not my fault.”

“If you teach me wrong, the deal’s off. You’ll be sealed with the sacred flame.”

Arataso gritted his teeth at Zeke’s threat. “This guy is more of a demon than a demon.”

Once he calmed down, Arataso asked Zeke, “For a human, you already possess great power. If you’ve truly mastered the Hero King’s swordsmanship, what more do you need to learn?”

“I’ll use anything to become stronger.”

“You’re a peculiar human.”

“And earlier, you mentioned that aura is a demon technique. What did you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said. The technique you humans call ‘aura’ was stolen from our combat techniques.”

“Who stole it?”

“How should we know? Perhaps some foolish demon who made a pact with humans shared it.”

Human magic was known to have been passed down by dragons. However, the origins of aura were shrouded in mystery. Zeke, having gained insight, knew that Shaton Draker had developed the aura technique to slay dragons, but the exact process remained unknown.

“Did Shaton Draker make a pact with demons to create the aura technique?”

It was hard to imagine that the successor of the Hero King Kaisir, known as the Noble Knight, would have made a pact with demons.

Zeke said to Arataso, “If what you say is true, I’ll find out by learning it myself.”

Arataso, grinding his teeth, began to explain the barrier technique he knew. “I am the first knight of the ‘Clear Green Wish,’ wielding the greatest power. Thanks to that, I could use this power…”

“Skip the preamble and get to the point.”

“I’m starting to wonder if you’re really human. Anyway… fine. Let’s get to it. The barrier technique I used originates from the combat technique called ’????????????????.’”

The name didn’t translate, likely due to its demonic language. Zeke asked the system for the closest translation.

“The term ‘강파공진’ (Strong Wave Resonance) is the closest in meaning.”

“Strong Wave Resonance, huh.”

Zeke named the technique Strong Wave Resonance and told Arataso to continue.

“Strong Wave Resonance is about securing a domain. You establish your domain using energy and then drain the power of any enemies within it.”

“Is that the barrier you created by stabbing the sword into the ground?”

“Yes. In the physical realm, I had to use a medium to create the barrier since I was using a projection instead of my true form. Normally, I’d use my own energy to establish it.”

“Hmm, just hearing about it doesn’t make it clear.”

“Whether a human can do this, I don’t know. But a promise is a promise, so I’ll teach you.”

Suddenly, the sword began to vibrate faintly.

“Remember this vibration.”

“What is it?”

“You use the vibration to create resonance and turn your domain into a barrier.”

Zeke focused on the subtle vibration Arataso created. “Is it about creating vibrations by clashing mana against mana?”

As a natural prodigy, Zeke could replicate anything he saw once. He immediately drew Bahamut and attempted to recreate the vibration Arataso had shown.

A low hum resonated as Zeke used mana, not elemental power or aura, to create the vibration. Arataso was taken aback by Zeke’s quick mastery.

“No way! How can a human perform Strong Wave Resonance?”

“Didn’t think I could do it? Stop talking and tell me the next step.”

“The… the next step is…”

Through Arataso’s continued explanation, Zeke began to grasp the principles of the demon realm’s combat techniques.

In the physical realm, natural mana couldn’t be used directly, so power was converted into magic or aura. However, demons had a different method of handling power. Just as mana existed in the physical realm, the demon realm had the power of constellations, which followers could use.

The stronger the constellation’s power, the wider the domain and the denser the power. Arataso’s master, the ‘Clear Green Wish,’ was a powerful demon ranked within the top 50, so his domain was quite extensive.

Zeke also learned that followers could only use the power of the constellation they served, making betrayal impossible. The only exception was during a constellation war. If a demon lost a constellation war, they could become a follower of the victor, gaining new power.

The power of demons came from strong followers and domains, making constellation wars crucial for rising in rank.

Zeke asked Arataso, “Why do demons make pacts to take human souls?”

“Human souls are excellent materials for strengthening forces. They can enhance a follower’s power or expand a constellation’s domain.”

“Human souls have that kind of power?”

“The souls of all beings with free will contain strong energy. We prefer humans because they have the strongest desires among all races. Desires make it easy to set the terms of a pact.”

Zeke nodded, understanding that no race was as susceptible to temptation as humans.

“Wait, if followers use the power of constellations, what is demonic energy?”

“That’s corrupted power. It’s the unholy energy created by souls that have completely fallen into the abyss, losing their reason.”

“I didn’t know demons viewed demonic energy that way.”

“It’s a low-grade power used by lesser demons or beasts with little intelligence. High-ranking demons like me don’t even look at it.”

“The followers of the ‘Blood and Madness’ use extremely rough and negative power. Is that different from demonic energy?”

“I don’t even want to think about those savages. The constellations worshipped by orcs in the past mostly used such barbaric power. It’s strong, but the power is rough and quickly drives its users mad.”

Arataso’s voice trembled with genuine distaste.

“Seems like demons have a variety of powers too.”

As Zeke listened to more stories, he continued to learn the combat techniques from Arataso. Fortunately, the techniques could be adapted using mana, making it easy for Zeke to learn.

Following Arataso’s instructions, Zeke vibrated his mana to create waves.

The resonance expanded, but the power of the waves gradually weakened.

“Ugh!”

Zeke stopped the resonance and took a deep breath.

“It’s harder to maintain than I thought.”

The demon realm’s combat techniques relied on domain power. Arataso explained that the density of mana in the physical realm was lower than domain power, making it difficult to maintain resonance.

Zeke planned to apply Strong Wave Resonance to Pav’s Infinite Chain Formation. By restricting enemy movement with resonance and launching continuous attacks within the domain, he could defeat many foes with minimal damage.

While Zeke was slightly disappointed, Arataso was impressed by Zeke’s resonance.

“Wow, a human actually succeeded in Strong Wave Resonance. Impressive.”

“Do all demons know this technique?”

Arataso shouted in response.

[What nonsense! There are only a handful of demons, myself included, who can properly execute the Resonance of Destruction. Maybe the Tumaz tribe could manage it, but it’s not something you can easily learn.]

“But when I tried learning it, the principles of the Resonance of Destruction and aura cultivation were completely different.”

Arataso clicked his tongue in response.

[The technique you humans call ‘aura’ is a pitifully basic form of energy manipulation to us demons. For a high-ranking demon like me, shaping power is as easy as breathing. Yet humans struggle to even store mana in their bodies and barely manage to channel it into their weapons. It’s proof of your inherently inferior nature.]

“Quite the talker for someone who got captured and sealed by those same humans.”

[Hmph.]

Zeke generated a faint resonance and spoke to Arataso.

“So, what you’re saying is that this Resonance of Destruction is a superior technique compared to aura.”

[Exactly. Resonance can’t be achieved just by accumulating power. Brutes like the followers of the Blood and Madness can’t use it even if they were reborn a thousand times.]

Though it was a demon’s word, and thus not entirely trustworthy, it was undeniably a new perspective on the technique.

Zeke addressed Arataso again.

“You’ve been quite helpful, so I’ll reward you. Aside from not using the sacred fire, is there anything you want?”

[Release me with honor.]

“That’s not happening.”

[Then at least don’t keep me locked in that strange subspace. Let me see the real world.]

“Alright, I can do that much. I can’t promise to keep you out all the time, but I’ll let you out often enough.”

Zeke agreed readily and returned to his training.

While he was practicing the Resonance of Destruction and Infinite Chain Technique in the castle’s training room, Decker approached him.

“My lord, there’s news from the Four Seasons Castle.”

“Decker, I’ve told you to just call me by my name.”

“Titles create respect.”

Knowing Decker’s stubbornness, Zeke just shook his head and let it go.

“Why the sudden message from the Four Seasons Castle?”

“They want to assign you a special mission.”

“A special mission?”

Special missions were usually given to experienced knights because they were often complex and challenging.

Zeke pondered for a moment before standing up.

“Whatever it is, I should head to the Four Seasons Castle.”

“Shall I prepare a carriage?”

“No, that’s alright. I’ll go alone.”

Given the uncertainty of when the Nostra family might attack, it was safer for him to move discreetly on his own.

Zeke entrusted Decker with the care of Zion in the underground prison and prepared to leave.

Until Arina returned from her mission, it seemed safest to keep things as they were.

The next day, Zeke rode Bucephalus and made his way to Atlas in a single stretch. Although using a portal would have been convenient, it would have drawn too much attention, so he avoided it.

Even though the journey would have taken a regular horse about two weeks, riding Bucephalus reduced it to just two days.

Zeke entered the Four Seasons Castle directly.

When he went to the assignment office to receive his special mission, he was met with unexpected news.

“Are you saying the head of the house personally assigned this mission?”

The clerk nodded.

“Yes, Sir Zeke. He instructed us to send you to his office upon your arrival.”

A mission personally assigned by the head of the house was unlikely to be ordinary.

Curious, Zeke made his way to the head’s office.

As he entered, Arthur Draker, the head of the house, greeted him warmly.

“Zeke, you’re here. We were just talking about you. Come, have a seat.”

Inside the office, someone Zeke recognized was already seated.