Episode 319: The Altar (3)
In an instant, the sky, once teeming with demons, was empty.
All that remained were the shattered ground and scattered remnants, the aftermath of a brutal assault.
Valhard stood there, mouth agape in disbelief. It was a wonder his jaw hadn’t dropped to the floor.
He understood.
The sheer power Damian had unleashed was thanks to his own magic.
The dragon’s magic had been consumed in vast quantities to produce such an effect.
But magic was merely fuel.
How that fuel was used, how efficiently it was wielded, depended entirely on the user.
Even Valhard, the original owner of the magic, couldn’t have achieved such a feat with the same amount of power.
“How long are you going to stand there in shock?”
Damian’s voice snapped Valhard back to reality.
“Get a grip. The real fight’s just beginning.”
Valhard’s words came out more formal than intended, his tone respectful.
“There are still some left.”
No sooner had Damian spoken than more demons descended from the sky.
Only three.
Yet, as Valhard faced them, a chill ran down his spine.
They were strong.
Even as a dragon, he couldn’t help but feel the ominous aura they exuded.
Despite the devastating blow they had just endured, they appeared unscathed. Not a scratch on them.
A bull-headed demon roared, its voice filled with rage. Damian tilted his head, puzzled.
“Have we met before?”
The bull-headed demon’s fury was palpable, its menacing energy swirling around them.
“Humiliation? Oh, now I remember. You’re the one who fainted from a single hit, right?”
Damian chuckled, adding with a smirk, “What nerve you have to show up again. Or do you just not know shame?”
A murderous intent radiated from Asta. Valhard, pale-faced, voiced his concern.
Valhard shouted in alarm.
Damian had expended a significant amount of magic and energy with his previous attack.
Facing a demon like Asta in such a state was akin to suicide.
“Now’s not the time to worry about me.”
Before Valhard could react, a massive demon, as large as himself, swung a fist at him.
Valhard steadied himself, then immediately countered with a punch to the demon’s abdomen.
The demon’s body rippled, but it showed no sign of pain. Instead, it grinned.
Valhard swallowed hard.
This power, this resilience.
It was undoubtedly a marquis-level demon. Even for a full-grown dragon like Valhard, it was a perilous foe.
I am Bas. What’s your name?
Valhard. Red Dragon.
But retreating wasn’t an option.
The arrogance ingrained in him since birth as a dragon propelled him forward.
His dragon heart pulsed, generating magic. The energy he had just expended was quickly replenished.
It’s been a while since I’ve tasted dragon meat.
Arrogant worm crawling out of hell.
Valhard charged at the demon.
The two colossal figures clashed.
“Shall we get started, then?”
Damian said, eyeing the two demons before him.
Both were far stronger than the demon Latissia he had fought before.
Unless he summoned the power of the Death Knight with his nameless technique, he couldn’t afford to underestimate either of them in his human form.
Asta, wielding an axe, moved to attack, but the demon beside him held him back.
Asta, calm down. What if you charge in recklessly and faint like last time?
What? How dare you say that! Should I kill you first, Alter?
Calm down, friend.
The demon with bird-like wings raised his hands, trying to pacify Asta.
Our orders were to attack together, remember?
I can handle him alone!
Are you defying orders?
Alter’s words silenced Asta.
And even if you win, it’s a problem. If you fight alone, I’ll be the one in trouble with the boss.
Fine, do as you please! But if you hold me back, I’ll kill you first!
I’ll be careful not to die, then.
With their argument settled, the two demons turned their attention to Damian.
In response to the menacing aura emanating from the demons, Damian smirked.
“Are you done chatting? Come on, then.”
Damian taunted, beckoning with his fingers. Asta’s face flushed with anger.
Asta swung his massive axe at Damian. As expected of a marquis-level demon, the speed and power were formidable.
Damian focused on dodging Asta’s attacks, all the while analyzing his movements.
Asta taunted, mocking Damian.
“I’m not foolish enough to use a sledgehammer to kill a chicken.”
But as soon as Damian spoke, Asta’s expression changed. His face turned crimson with rage.
At that moment, Damian’s eyes sharpened.
He had spotted the brief opening caused by Asta’s emotional outburst.
Damian swung his sword, aiming for Asta’s neck.
The aura blade from his sword expanded into a massive blade.
Enlargement.
The realm of the first Holy Emperor, Bartoleo, unfolded. A sword large enough to cleave a mountain struck Asta’s neck.
The massive sword pinned Asta to the ground, the impact splitting the earth.
Yet Asta’s neck remained intact. In fact, it was completely unharmed.
Fragments of light shielded Asta’s neck.
As Asta rose, the massive sword was pushed back. It hadn’t even scratched the armor.
“Is that your power?”
Asta gripped the massive sword with both hands. Fragments of light gathered in his hands.
With a squeeze, Asta shattered the massive sword. Despite being condensed from an aura blade, it couldn’t withstand the force.
The armor that had protected his neck began to expand, eventually enveloping Asta’s entire body.
Asta discarded his axe and charged at Damian, fists cloaked in his power.
Blocking was too dangerous. Damian retreated, evading the attack.
Asta’s fist slammed into the ground, turning it to dust with a thunderous crash.
Asta shouted, pursuing Damian. Damian twisted his lips into a grin.
“Don’t worry. I’m not planning to run.”
He had long since memorized Asta’s movements.
Damian narrowly dodged Asta’s attacks, countering with his sword.
Countless slashes targeted Asta’s joints, but only the sound of metal scraping filled the air. Asta remained unscathed.
Asta laughed loudly, growing more frenzied.
‘This is troublesome.’
A demon with such speed and destructive power, clad in invincible armor, focused solely on attacking.
‘But his movements are predictable. I can dodge this…’
Suddenly, Damian’s vision shifted. The sky and ground flipped.
Even Damian was caught off guard. He couldn’t evade Asta’s attack in time.
Asta’s fist, imbued with the power of ‘Invulnerability,’ hurtled toward Damian.
It was too late to dodge. Damian tried to deflect the attack.
But his body moved differently than he intended. Instead of his right hand, his left arm moved.
Asta’s fist struck Damian’s abdomen, sending him flying backward.
Asta remarked, almost disappointed.
Somehow, armor had enveloped Damian’s body.
Hemeira.
The magical armor Damian had acquired had moved on its own to protect its master.
“Ugh.”
Damian spat out the blood rising in his throat. Thanks to Hemeira, his body wasn’t crushed, but the internal damage was severe.
‘What’s happening to me?’
Damian tried moving his body.
He intended to move his head, but his eyes closed. When he tried to move his arm, his waist bent.
His senses and body were completely out of sync.
Damian struggled to lift his head. In the distance, the winged demon laughed eerily.
Only then did Damian realize what had happened to him.
“Just so you know, with my power, I can do things like this.”
Alter, the demon with new wings, reached out into the air, and his hand vanished. In the blink of an eye, the edge of his hand appeared beneath Damian’s throat. Damian twisted his head to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack.
“I’ve distorted space. Fascinating, isn’t it… Wait a second.”
Alter’s expression shifted to one of confusion. “How did you dodge that?”
Damian stood up, casually rolling his shoulders as if warming up. Alter couldn’t help but be taken aback by his nonchalance.
“Don’t tell me you nullified my power…”
“Thanks to your little monologue, I managed to figure it out,” Damian replied, his tone almost dismissive.
Alter’s power was still affecting Damian, yet he moved with surprising agility despite his scrambled senses.
“That’s impossible! There’s no way you could do that!” Alter shouted, incredulous. In such a short time, Damian had unraveled the complex distortions and moved with precision. Alter had wielded the power of ‘distortion’ for ages, but never had he encountered anything like this.
“I’m a bit of a genius,” Damian said with a shrug, leaving Alter speechless.
“Alter! Are you just going to stand there chatting?” Asta yelled, charging at Damian with both fists raised. Damian reacted instantly, pushing off the ground to evade Asta’s attack.
“This can’t be happening…” Alter was even more shocked as Damian not only stood but also dodged the assault.
“Alter! Stop gawking and attack him!” Asta’s shout snapped Alter back to reality.
“Right, let’s finish this,” Alter said, spreading his wings. Feathers shot out in all directions, and with a twist of his power, they vanished, reappearing to rain down on Damian.
Damian swung his sword, cutting through the feathers, which exploded upon being severed.
“Damian Haxen!” Asta emerged from the explosion, his fists aimed at Damian, who barely managed to dodge.
‘This can’t go on much longer,’ Damian thought. His situation was far from ideal; with his senses in disarray, dodging was all he could manage.
‘I’m not strong enough yet,’ he admitted to himself. Facing a marquis-level demon, a being as powerful as a grandmaster, was beyond his current capabilities.
‘No choice but to use it again,’ he resolved, unleashing the power of envy. The energy within him turned into dark magic, and he immediately channeled his nameless technique. His eyes glowed red, and shadows began to rise at his feet.
“Ha! So you’re finally using it!” Asta exclaimed with glee. “Good! Now I’ll crush you head-on!”
But as the darkness spread from Damian, it enveloped both Asta and Alter. Damian stepped into the shadows, and spears erupted from the ground, piercing through them.
“Aaargh!” Alter screamed, his body impaled by countless spears, his head slumping forward.
“Alter!” Asta remained unscathed, protected by his power of invulnerability. “Damian Haxen! I’ll kill you now!” he roared, breaking the spears as he charged.
As the forest of spears shattered, Damian stood ready, a blade formed from aura in his hand, poised to strike Asta.
“I told you, it’s useless!” Asta didn’t flinch, trusting in his invulnerability. But Damian wasn’t swinging blindly.
Sword God.
A level he had reached during his time as a death knight, crafted solely to defeat Dorogo. Damian brought his sword down, the aura blade cleaving through Asta’s crown. The strike cut through everything, severing both Asta’s power and his body.
Asta couldn’t even scream. By the time he realized his death, his body was already split in two.
Despite defeating two formidable foes, Damian showed no sign of satisfaction. The real challenge still awaited.
“Vahel,” Damian called out, his gaze fixed on the dimensional gate hovering above. “It’s your turn now. Come out and face me.”