Episode 567: Return to the Demonic Cult
Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep!
Tiny projectiles shot out in all directions, dancing through the air.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud…!
“Aaaargh!”
“Ugh!”
The demons, pierced by the projectiles, screamed and fell helplessly.
There was no time to react.
The projectiles were incredibly fast.
Swish swish swish swish swish swish swish!
After slicing through the air, the projectiles returned to Jo Muntak’s waist, embedding themselves neatly.
These black projectiles were none other than Jo Muntak’s deadly swarm.
Arriving late to the scene, Selmos ground his teeth at the sight of his fallen subordinates.
“What in the world…!”
He glared at Jo Muntak with eyes blazing with fury.
“Was this your doing?”
“Indeed.”
Jo Muntak replied with a haughty tilt of his chin, deliberately provoking the demons who looked down on humans.
As expected, Selmos was infuriated by Jo Muntak’s insolent expression.
“You arrogant fool…!”
Whoosh!
Selmos vanished in an instant, reappearing behind Jo Muntak.
“Die!”
Just as he swung his sword,
Fwoosh! Boom!
A fireball suddenly flew in from behind.
If he hadn’t deployed a shield at the last moment, he would have been incinerated.
“Who dares…!”
Selmos turned, frowning,
Whoosh!
A sharp blade of energy aimed for his neck, speeding towards him.
“Not so fast!”
Selmos quickly raised his sword to block.
Clang!
Sparks flew with a clear metallic ring.
The attacker was none other than Yeon Woo-kyung.
But the human assault didn’t end there.
Swish swish swish swish swish!
The sound of chains sliding was heard, and a scythe imbued with energy tore through the air.
“Damn…!”
Selmos twisted his body to dodge the chain scythe.
Yet, he felt a chill run down his spine.
It was an inexplicable phenomenon.
How could humans push him into such a corner?
These humans were different from any he had faced before.
Even the fireball earlier was something unheard of among the people of this land.
Before Selmos could gather his wits,
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
A shadow darted across the chains like a streak of light.
“Haaah!”
With a fierce battle cry, the shadow leaped into the air.
Selmos braced himself with a shield against the descending shadow.
The shadow was none other than Yoo Song-ryeong.
Whoosh!
A blue blade aimed to cleave Selmos’s head in two.
Crash!
Sizzle!
Selmos, taking the blow head-on, slid back, retreating.
‘How is this possible…!’
His arms tingled with numbness.
His legs trembled.
What was more surprising was the subtle fear creeping into a corner of his mind.
He knew there were occasionally humans who could surprise demons.
But such occurrences were as rare as a drought.
He thought it was either the human was abnormally strong, or the demon was abnormally weak.
He was certainly not the latter.
Yet, he was being pushed back by humans to this extent?
Though it wasn’t a one-on-one fight, could they really corner him like this?
It felt as if they were an organization formed to hunt demons.
“Who… who are you people?”
Selmos ground his teeth and asked.
Jo Muntak, Yeon Woo-kyung, Yoo Song-ryeong, and Seok Tan-gang stood side by side, smirking.
“We’re humans who hunt vermin like you. Disciples of the master of Sabigang.”
“Sabigang…?”
The name rang a bell.
Come to think of it, wasn’t the human who appeared before Count Jakart from Sabigang?
“Whatever you are, you’re reckless bugs. I’ll tear you apart alive.”
With that, Selmos cracked his neck and began to swell from the shoulders.
Crack. Crackle…!
His body grotesquely transformed as it expanded.
Jo Muntak frowned and whispered to Yeon Woo-kyung.
“He’s getting uglier.”
“Looks like he’s getting stronger.”
“Is the real fight about to begin?”
Yoo Song-ryeong gripped his large sword, slowly raising his energy.
Finally, Seok Tan-gang spoke in his usual blunt manner.
“Get ready.”
“Don’t worry.”
The four of them slowly took their stances.
They planned to attack the moment Selmos’s transformation was complete.
Selmos’s transformation was nearly finished.
His size had almost doubled, and his hands had become large, hard weapons like lobster claws.
He raised his head to the sky and let out a roar.
“Roooar!”
The roar was so powerful it shook the heavens and the earth.
It was imbued with such energy that the four had to raise their inner strength to defend against it.
“He’s become quite grotesque.”
“Well, bugs are supposed to be grotesque.”
As Yeon Woo-kyung and Yoo Song-ryeong exchanged words, Selmos twisted his lips and spoke in a hoarse voice.
“You’ve pushed me this far. Now you’ll regret…!”
In that instant,
Whoosh!
“Gah!”
A sharp force flew in from behind, instantly severing Selmos’s neck.
The four, who had been preparing for battle, watched in shock as Selmos’s head soared into the air.
Thud, roll…!
Splat! Boom!
Selmos’s massive body, now headless, spewed blood like a fountain and collapsed to the ground.
Standing behind him was none other than Helmut, holding a sword radiating blue energy.
Jo Muntak, feeling deflated, pouted.
“He was ours to kill!”
“Then why didn’t you finish him off?”
Helmut’s words were met with a calm response from Yeon Woo-kyung.
“It was part of our training. To gain diverse experiences.”
“Training?”
Helmut scoffed coldly and turned away.
“Don’t underestimate demons. It’s best not to let them transform if you can help it. Otherwise…”
At that moment,
Rumble rumble rumble…!
The ground began to shake as if an earthquake had struck,
Boom!
A distant pavilion shattered, and a massive creature emerged.
It resembled a giant caterpillar, with countless faces screaming from its body and thousands of tentacles writhing all over.
The four were stunned by the sight of the monstrous creature, and Helmut continued in a calm voice.
“As you can see, things like this can happen.”
Helmut’s expression turned icy.
‘Count Jakart…! This is dangerous…’
He looked at the four and spoke in a commanding tone.
“Don’t go near that thing. Unless you want to die from foolish bravado.”
**
Whoosh!
Hundreds of tentacles shot towards Sabigang.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Sabigang deftly swung Berthas, deflecting the incoming tentacles.
Clang clang clang!
The tentacles, despite their appearance, rang with a metallic sound as they bounced off.
Each tentacle was imbued with magic.
The tentacles reaching for Sabigang seemed endless.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Sabigang moved like a kite with its string cut, darting around unpredictably.
There was no pattern.
It was almost instinctual.
He wasn’t dodging after seeing the tentacles; he was moving, and the tentacles happened to miss.
He wasn’t moving by will, but letting his body guide his will.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Crash!
The tentacles burrowed into the ground, sending debris flying everywhere.
“You little pest! Jumping around like a grasshopper!”
Jakart, transformed into a giant caterpillar, roared and swung his tentacles wildly.
Crash! Boom!
As a massive tentacle crashed down, a pavilion was instantly shattered into pieces.
Jakart, having devoured the demonic energy, was a true monster.
Sabigang changed his defensive strategy.
Until now, he alternated between using Blink and Heavenly Step, but now he relied solely on Heavenly Step.
Every time the thousands of tentacles charged at him, Sabigang skillfully evaded with his ghostly movement technique.
Occasionally, he would swing Berthas or unleash energy to deflect the tentacles.
He tried mixing in magic, but it wasn’t very effective.
How long had he been dodging and deflecting the tentacles?
Finally, the thousands of tentacles became entangled, trapping themselves.
It was the moment he had been waiting for.
Sabigang’s demeanor shifted completely.
Until now, he had been on the defensive, but now he focused solely on attacking.
Whoosh!
He dashed forward, swinging Berthas.
Whoosh!
The energy-infused Berthas sliced through the air, heading straight for Jakart’s body.
It looked like a caterpillar, but its skin was as tough as a reptile’s.
Finally, Vertas sliced through the belly of the creature, Jakart.
Sssshhh!
As Jakart’s belly split open, it quickly lashed out with its tentacles, striking Vertas.
Crash!
Boom!
Vertas was sent flying, crashing through the pillars.
Seizing the opportunity, Sabigang drove his fist into Jakart’s gaping wound.
Boom!
The impact echoed like an explosion.
But then…
“Is that the best you can do? Pathetic humans!”
Jakart, seemingly unfazed by pain, let out a mocking laugh from its many faces. The torn wound opened like a mouth, spewing a web-like saliva.
Ssssss!
“Gah!”
Sabigang quickly retreated using his martial arts skills, but the saliva was faster, ensnaring him.
Snap…!
He tried to channel his inner strength to break free from the sticky web, but it was no easy task.
“Delicious,” Jakart’s many faces taunted in a chorus of voices, as a massive mouth formed in the center of its body.
Sluuuurp…!
Just as the gaping maw was about to swallow Sabigang whole,
Sssshhh!
Vertas swooped in, slicing through the saliva binding Sabigang.
“You slippery eel!”
In a flash, Sabigang leaped back, grabbing Vertas and shooting away like an arrow.
A fierce blue energy surged forth, slicing through Jakart’s belly once more.
Sssshhh!
Yet again, Jakart’s many faces only sneered.
“Futile.”
As if to prove its point, the torn flesh wriggled and sealed itself, returning to its original form.
Sabigang furrowed his brow.
“Indeed, it seems futile. Then I’ll just have to make it worthwhile.”
“And how do you plan to do that, little human?”
“Simple. I’ll make you vomit it all out.”
A wicked grin twisted Sabigang’s lips as he began to send a telepathic message to someone.