Episode 268: Weapon Master (3)
The moment his body turned gray, the Weapon Master felt an overwhelming heaviness engulf him.
It was as if a massive serpent had coiled around him, squeezing with a suffocating grip.
Soon, his entire being began to disintegrate, his mass rapidly diminishing.
-…!
A tidal wave of agony crashed over him.
It was like swimming in molten lava, an indescribable pain exploding in his mind.
-Arrrgh!
Desperately, the Weapon Master tried to shield himself with dark magic.
But it was futile. No matter how much power he summoned, he couldn’t resist Erebus’s might.
-Aaagh! No!
He couldn’t die like this!
Clinging to his sanity, he unleashed his ultimate power.
The Love of All Weapons.
A power that drew out the hidden strength of weapons.
As both a human and a demon sword, the Weapon Master could tap into his full potential through this ability.
A crimson glow began to emanate from the center of his chest, spreading throughout his body.
He felt his physical strength surge, the output of his dark magic increasing.
The rate of his body’s disintegration slowed dramatically, and the excruciating pain vanished.
-It’s working…!
But there was no time to relax. He had to kill Damian Haxen and cancel Erebus’s power as quickly as possible.
The Weapon Master brought his hands together in front of his chest, activating the power of distortion as the Demon Sword of Annihilation.
Distortion—a twisting of reality.
He twisted the space between his hands, creating a void of darkness that began to absorb everything, even the surrounding light.
This was the secret technique of the Demon Sword of Annihilation, the Dark Vortex.
Instinctively, without anyone teaching him, the Weapon Master had mastered this skill.
-I’ll erase you from this world right now!
Just as he was about to unleash the Dark Vortex, Damian Haxen spoke.
“I guess I’ll have to increase the output.”
Before he finished speaking, a second wave of power erupted.
The wave struck the Weapon Master, and his body began to disintegrate again, faster than before.
-…!
The pain was even more intense than before, almost unbearable.
-Arrrgh!
Not only the Weapon Master, but the Dark Vortex he had painstakingly created vanished in an instant.
His fingers crumbled from the tips, and his weakened legs snapped under his weight.
The Weapon Master fell to the ground, his face hitting the dirt as he screamed.
-Stop! Please, stop!
His pleas changed nothing. His body continued to shrink in real-time.
Damian Haxen approached, holding Erebus.
-Ugh… Huff…
With only his head and upper body remaining, the Weapon Master gasped for breath.
-Damian… Haxen…!
He gritted his teeth, shouting with hatred.
-To be humiliated by a brat like you…! I’ll never forgive you! Not even in death!
Damian Haxen looked down at him with a calm expression.
That look wounded the Weapon Master’s pride.
-What are those arrogant eyes for? Don’t tell me you think you’ve won? Without that sword, you’d be dead by my hand!
The Weapon Master shouted in defiance.
-Without that sword, you’re nothing!
“Would you like to try wielding it?”
-…What?
The Weapon Master was so stunned he forgot his pain.
As if to prove he wasn’t lying, Damian Haxen placed Erebus in front of him.
-Ugh, ugh!
The Weapon Master reached for Erebus with what little remained of his fingers.
-You fool! You’re really giving this to me?
With the Love of All Weapons, there was no sword the Weapon Master couldn’t control.
-Now it’s your turn to suffer! You’ll feel the same pain I did…
He tried to dominate Erebus with his power.
The crimson energy from his hand flowed into Erebus.
But then, his expression changed. The energy couldn’t control Erebus and dissipated.
-Why… Why is this happening…? Why is it rejecting me…?
Suddenly, Erebus’s wailing grew louder, a sound that seemed to tear the air apart.
-Kaaagh!
Simultaneously, the Weapon Master’s body began to vanish even faster.
His arms disappeared completely, his torso shrank rapidly, and only half of his face remained.
-Save me… Please… I don’t want to die like this…
He cried out to Damian in desperation.
-I’ll do anything! I’ll even be your servant if you want! I’ll give you all my power!
Damian watched him silently.
-P-Please…!
The last remnants of the Weapon Master vanished completely.
With his body gone, only his soul remained.
But even his soul was quickly scattered, denied the chance to ascend.
-Kiaaaagh!
Erebus’s power consumed even his soul.
Only after witnessing this did Damian pick up Erebus.
In his hands, Erebus became as docile as a lamb, a stark contrast to its previous rejection of the Weapon Master.
Damian withdrew Erebus’s power.
The world, once painted gray, returned to its original state. The relentless wailing ceased.
Damian transformed Erebus back into a tattoo.
He stood silently over the spot where the Weapon Master had perished.
”…Father.”
He looked up at the sky and murmured.
“This unworthy son has finally avenged you.”
His voice was filled with sorrow.
Damian returned to Kilo, who looked at him in shock.
“Damian Haxen… What was that sword? What kind of power is this? Everything vanished, yet I’m unharmed?”
“I controlled the target. I can manage that much.”
The more pieces of Erebus he gathered, the stronger and more controllable its power became.
Now, Damian could choose not only the range but also the target of Erebus’s power.
Kilo wasn’t the only one spared from Erebus’s power.
“This can’t be happening!”
From the place where the Weapon Master had died, Akilo screamed.
“The Demon Sword of Annihilation! My greatest masterpiece can’t be destroyed so easily!”
Akilo pounded the ground in despair.
Kilo pointed at Akilo and asked.
“Why did you let that trash live?”
“Revenge should be dealt with personally.”
Kilo fell silent at Damian’s words, his eyes trembling.
”…Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“While you’re at it, could you do me one more favor? Destroy that furnace. I can’t do it in my condition.”
Kilo’s abdomen was soaked with blood from a wound inflicted by the demon sword.
”…”
Damian drew his sword and swung it at the furnace.
The aura blade sliced the furnace in half, spilling the molten contents onto the ground.
Blood flowed from the severed edges, and the once-pulsing furnace came to a halt.
“No! My furnace!”
Akilo clutched his head in despair, glaring at Damian.
“You idiot! Do you realize how stupid you are?”
Foaming at the mouth, Akilo charged at Damian.
But Kilo stepped in his way.
“Get lost…”
Kilo swung his fist at Akilo.
His rock-like fist shattered Akilo’s face, slamming him into the ground.
The impact broke Akilo’s neck, ending his life.
“Spit.”
Kilo spat on Akilo’s corpse.
At that moment, black smoke billowed from the destroyed furnace.
Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t smoke. It was the souls of the dwarves being freed.
-At last… we’re free!
-Ancestors! We are coming!
Unlike when they were bound to the furnace, the dwarves’ souls seemed overjoyed.
Kilo watched them quietly, then sank to the ground.
“Huff… Huff…”
He was drenched in cold sweat, his complexion as pale as a sick man’s.
Damian opened a pocket dimension and took out a potion, but Kilo shook his head.
“No, it’s fine.”
Kilo looked up at his kin, as if eager to join them.
“Damian Haxen, thank you. We, the Hammer Dwarves, owe you a great debt. Without you, we would have been nothing but tools for Akilo, unable to exact our revenge.”
Kilo’s words were true.
In his past life, Akilo was infamous as a fearsome warlord.
The source of his power was undoubtedly the forge he had crafted using the Dwarves of the Ridge Hammer clan.
“Can you feel it? They’re all thanking you. Every single one of them…”
Kilo’s head bowed slowly.
Soon, Kilo’s spirit began to drift from his body. Without hesitation, his soul soared toward his kin.
Even in spirit form, Demian could sense it. He could feel just how happy Kilo was.
Of course, not every Dwarf shared in that happiness.
“Leave me alone! I said, leave me alone!”
Akilo.
The traitor’s soul was surrounded by other Dwarves, screaming in terror.
The Dwarves would never forgive a traitor. They swarmed Akilo, tearing his soul apart.
“Aaaah!”
Akilo’s screams echoed, then abruptly ceased.
Only then did the souls of the Ridge Hammer Dwarves ascend to the heavens.