Episode 474

It’s a common misconception that demons, being a race bound by contracts, are incapable of lying.

But that’s not entirely true.

Demons do honor their contracts.

The catch is, the contract itself might be flawed from the start, and that’s something one must always consider.

This was precisely one of those situations.

Anastasia smiled as she noticed the hardening expression on Zeke’s face.

“Hmm? Why the long face? I haven’t said anything untrue.”

“I’m not here for word games. If you truly are the princess of the demon realm, then keep your promise.”

Anastasia burst into laughter, clutching her sides.

“Ha! Zeke Draker, perhaps I’ve been too kind to you. That’s why a lowly human dares speak to me this way.”

In an instant, her eyes flared a deep crimson.

Rumble―

The energy she unleashed cracked the arena floor beneath Zeke and sent tremors throughout the entire fortress.

The demons in the stands shrieked in panic.

“Lady Anastasia is upset!”

“We need to get out of here!”

Her mood was notoriously fickle, changing dozens of times a day, so anyone who valued their life knew to tread carefully around her.

Yet Zeke stood his ground, unperturbed by Anastasia’s display of power.

Seeing this, Anastasia laughed even louder.

“Lowly human knight, what makes you so confident to defy me?”

With a sharp gesture, she raised her hand, and the entire arena lifted to match her height on the stage.

Zeke met her gaze with steely eyes, and Anastasia shook her head.

“From the moment you stepped into this domain, resistance was futile. Here, in this fortress, I am absolute.”

Crack―

Around Zeke, a legion of chess golems—knights on horseback, rooks with massive shields, and bishops wielding long spears—encircled him.

These formidable golems were a fusion of the fortress’s power and Anastasia’s puppeteering abilities.

Anastasia grinned at Zeke.

“If you kneel now and offer me your soul, I’ll keep you and Nigel as my cherished pets.”

Zeke, without a word, drew the holy sword Ascalon.

Vroom!

The sword radiated a brilliant light, causing Anastasia to frown.

“Even knowing it’s hopeless, you struggle… If you wish to punish yourself, so be it.”

With a snap of her fingers, the chess golems charged at Zeke.

Boom―

Knights, bishops, and rooks attacked from all sides, their weapons poised to strike Zeke down.

Despite the imminent threat, Zeke stood still, sword in hand, seemingly about to be crushed by the golems.

But then, the charging golems suddenly froze in place.

Anastasia, who controlled the golems with her puppeteering, was taken aback when her commands failed.

‘What… what is this?’

She quickly tried to reassert control, but the golems wouldn’t budge.

At that moment, Zeke raised his hand.

Snap!

The golems began to move in unison, following his command.

Anastasia’s jaw dropped.

“How… how is this possible?”

Zeke extended his hand, ordering the golems to attack Anastasia.

The chess golems turned and charged towards the stage where Anastasia stood.

Boom―

Anastasia’s eyes widened in shock, but she quickly gestured at the golems.

Crackle―

The golems disintegrated into dust at her command.

Through the dissipating debris, Anastasia glared at Zeke.

“A mere human…”

Zeke had used the power of control he absorbed from one of the Four Fiends, Docheol, to manipulate Anastasia’s golems.

Pointing Ascalon at her, Zeke spoke.

“Release my master. Or you’ll regret it.”

Anastasia looked down at Zeke and replied.

“Is that so?”

With another snap of her fingers, the barrier separating the stands from the arena vanished.

The demons who had been watching from the stands screamed and leaped into the arena.

Roar!

Hundreds of demons charged at Zeke.

Anastasia smirked at him.

“I won’t kill you. I’ll keep you alive as a trophy by my side.”

As the demons rushed towards him, Zeke slowly raised Ascalon.

Roar!

Just as the demons were about to tear him apart, Zeke lifted the holy sword high above his head, unleashing a radiant light into the sky.

The demons, expecting a deadly strike, hesitated and retreated, but nothing happened.

Anastasia shouted at them.

“He’s just stalling! Tear him apart now!”

Growl!

At her command, the demons surged forward again.

Zeke faced them and spoke.

“Come on, then!”

Vroom!

This time, Zeke swung Ascalon towards the demons.

Boom!

The sword’s radiant energy spread out, igniting the demons it touched.

“Aaaargh!”

The demons screamed in agony beyond imagination.

After the initial attack, Zeke wielded Ascalon, spreading the will of light.

Vroom!

A vast curtain of light enveloped the area, causing the demons within to tremble in pain.

“Ugh!”

For beings of darkness, exposure to the light’s will was lethal.

Only those directly empowered by celestial forces could withstand its destructive power.

They gritted their teeth, raising sharp claws as they charged at Zeke.

Screech!

The powerful aura-infused claws aimed to shred Zeke to pieces.

But before they could reach him, Zeke’s shadow rippled, and black blades emerged, piercing the demons.

Shing―

The charging demons were swiftly dismantled, their bodies falling to the ground.

Anastasia gritted her teeth and shouted.

“Damn it! Kill that wretched human now!”

From above, a flock of crow demons spread their wings and descended upon the arena.

Caw!

With their ominous cries, spears infused with dark energy rained down from the sky.

Whoosh!

Zeke crouched, raising a shadow armor to deflect the falling spears.

Then, he aimed Ascalon skyward, unleashing another burst of radiant light.

Crackle!

The light’s energy spread, scorching the crow demons and sending them plummeting to the ground.

Thud!

Despite being surrounded by countless enemies, Zeke held his ground, unyielding.

Anastasia clenched her teeth in frustration.

‘That cursed man…’

She realized that even hundreds of mid and low-level demons couldn’t stop Zeke.

Reluctantly, she decided to call in her elite forces from the front lines.

But then, unexpected news reached her.

[A vampire legion has suddenly appeared here! The leader is a royal vampire!]

[Beastmen! They’ve suddenly attacked from the west!]

Receiving the reports via telepathy, Anastasia’s expression turned incredulous.

‘Vampires and beastmen attacking from the rear? How…’

Then, a realization struck her.

Anastasia glared at Zeke, who was still battling the demons, and shouted.

“Did you… plan this to buy time?”

Zeke grinned at her reaction.

‘Looks like she figured it out.’

He never expected Anastasia to honor the wager’s outcome.

Having faced demons many times, he knew those with mental abilities were deceitful and could change their minds at any moment.

Knowing this, Zeke’s true purpose in confronting Anastasia alone was to buy time for Redeye and the Western Alliance to arrive.

Realizing she’d been outmaneuvered, Anastasia couldn’t contain her rage.

Her expression shifted dramatically.

Gone was the madness and fury, replaced by a calm demeanor.

As her expression changed, so did her eyes.

The whites vanished, and her entire eyes turned pitch black.

She looked down at Zeke and spoke.

“Zeke Draker. I admit I underestimated you.”

Crackle―

Her attire began to transform.

In the end, she transformed from a lavish, flowing gown into a form-fitting leather outfit, and the entire atmosphere shifted dramatically.

Anastasia raised a finger, pointing directly at Zeke.

Then, she slowly began to speak.

“Kneel.”

The command wasn’t spoken aloud but was a force of will that flowed from Anastasia’s lips.

Even without understanding its meaning, Zeke’s body moved on its own.

Thud!

Zeke dropped to one knee.

He struggled to rise, but it was futile.

‘Is this the power of a demon lord? It seems to be some kind of mental domination…’

To break free from such power, one needed to counter it with power of their own.

Zeke attempted to use his own abilities to escape Anastasia’s control.

But it wasn’t easy.

Seeing his resistance, Anastasia pointed at him again and spoke.

“Stop breathing.”

With those words, Zeke found himself unable to draw breath.

‘Damn it…’

As his breathing was cut off, Zeke’s breaths became increasingly labored.

He needed to find a way out of this situation, but no clear solution came to mind.

He had to figure it out before he ran out of air completely.

A flurry of thoughts raced through his mind.

‘A power that compels obedience. If this is some form of word magic… wait, if it’s word magic, then the command itself is key.’

In an instant, Zeke’s shadow flickered and wrapped around him.

Ssshhh—

Seeing the shadow armor envelop Zeke, Anastasia shook her head.

“If you think that will free you from my curse, you’re gravely mistaken. This curse will cling to you until your last breath.”

Anastasia calmly awaited Zeke’s demise.

She had wanted to torment him alive, but given the circumstances, killing him seemed more practical.

‘No choice, I’ll have to be content with Nigel as my puppet…’

As her thoughts trailed off, Anastasia suddenly turned around, startled.

Nigel, who had been sitting just moments ago, was nowhere to be seen.

‘Where did he go?’

Anastasia looked around in confusion, searching for Nigel.

Vroooom!

Sensing an unusual energy, she looked up.

Nigel, now in a dress, was forming a hand seal, aiming directly at Anastasia.

Startled, Anastasia raised her finger towards her.

But it was too late. A surge of energy burst forth from Nigel’s hand.

Soul Force

Solo Spell

Will of Destruction

Boom!

Nigel’s unleashed power obliterated the stage where Anastasia stood.

Rumble!

Amidst the debris of the collapsed stage, Anastasia rose, gritting her teeth.

She looked at Nigel standing before her, disbelief etched on her face.

“How did you break the ‘sleep’ curse?”

Nigel clicked his tongue and replied.

“My foolish student woke me up.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

Ssshhh—

Behind her, Zeke emerged from the shadow armor.

Amazingly, he had fashioned the shadow armor into a makeshift respirator, using a tube to force air into his lungs.

Since the command was only to stop breathing, he realized that if air was provided externally, he could still breathe.

Immediately after, Zeke concealed his presence with shadows and used his power to delve into Nigel’s mind, awakening him.

Now, Nigel and Zeke stood side by side, pressuring Anastasia.

Facing them, Anastasia gritted her teeth and shouted.

“Even so, you won’t escape this realm! You’re trapped like rats in a cage…!”

Crack—

Before she could finish, the barrier of the fortress began to fracture, revealing the sky.

Rumble—

Simultaneously, a mystical creature, radiating a spectrum of colors, appeared.