'What is that?'
I stared at the unfolding scene in confusion.
An unknown energy continued to emanate from the dead body of the tower master.
Magic? It was indeed magical power, but it had a subtle sense of difference.
It was a sinister and disgusting energy that made me feel uncomfortable just by looking at it.
I thought it might be the tower master’s last trick, but he was clearly dead.
The energy seemed to be wriggling and gathering in the air as if it had its own will.
Reflexively, I looked back at the mages from the magic tower.
But they, too, seemed clueless about what was happening.
What was even more surprising was what happened next.
Whoosh!
The gathered huge energy extended like tentacles and pierced through the body of the tower master.
The red energy engulfed the body like a vine and was absorbed into the center of the energy.
Then the body of the tower master began to dry up and wither away, as if it had sucked every last bit of life out of it.
“...”
Did it just absorb the life force?
As I watched this eerie sight, I suddenly realized what the unknown energy was.
Those who made a contract with demons would pay for it in various ways.
It could be power, soul, life force, or just everything.
Because demons greedily took everything they could from a contractor the moment their life was cut off, it was easy to see that the source of the power in front of me was the power of demons.
Therefore, I realized that the tower master had already made a contract.
At the same time, I felt a slight chill down my spine.
Because I knew exactly which demon had made a contract with the Flaveros’ tower master.
'......Ditrodemian.'
One of the leaders of the demons, one with a very high authority, the seventh-ranking demon in the demon hierarchy, and the seventh-strongest demon in the entire demon force.
It was the identity of the demon who made a contract with Flaveros’ tower master.
Zzaaack!
The power spread in all directions this time, even towards me and Asher.
I unfolded the [Floating Veil] to block the contact, and Asher drew her sword and slashed it right away.
However, the mages on the opposite side could not escape the power’s attack.
The power easily pierced their defense barrier and pierced through their bodies.
“Ugh......!”
The mages who were enveloped in the power, like the tower master just before, withered and died like a mirage in an instant.
The power that absorbed all their life forces even writhed, originally a mixture of black and red.
I just watched the spectacle, alert and unsure of what to do in this situation.
'Do I just need to turn a blind eye and escape?'
I had killed the target, the tower master, and didn’t care what the demon who made a contract with him would say. There was nothing I could do from the start.
The energy rising high into the sky soon began to fly in a certain direction.
For a moment, the thought crossed my mind that if I followed that energy, I might be able to encounter Ditrodemian. It would be possible enough if I followed on Ti-Yong’s back.
However, it was an extremely risky thought, so I immediately abandoned it.
'...It’s still too early.'
The demons were beings more dangerous than any other race.
Although the source of their power was magic, their unique abilities were disorderly and unpredictable, like mysteries.
The demons, especially the ones at the top, the archdemons, would someday all have to fall. But it was not yet time.
Although I knew all of Ditrodemian’s abilities, there was no need to take the risk and face him with incomplete preparations.
“Let’s retreat.”
I spoke to Asher, who stood still, waiting for orders, as I watched the energy move away.
And then, it was the moment when I tried to approach where Ti-Yong was...
“...!”
A sudden surge of enormous magic power.
I quickly spread out the [Floating Veil].
From far away in the direction where the energy had flown, it seemed as if darkness was writhing, and the next moment, a fierce flame engulfed the entire area like a tidal wave.
Ssssh.
The place where the flame had passed was completely ruined, with nothing left.
“Um, what is this...”
Asher and the spy looked around with shocked eyes.
An attack that suddenly flew without any warning.
It was a powerful and overwhelming force that couldn’t even be compared to the magic that the tower master had unleashed a little while ago.
The two of them were protected by a barrier, and Ti-Yong was fortunately out of the range of the attack as it was far away from where I was standing.
Thud!
The guy flew over here in a panic and landed next to me.
I looked at it with a stern face.
'This is completely unexpected.'
After the emergency call from last time, the sense of tension and danger rose in my mind for the first time in a while.
I never thought that he would be around here...why?
Soon, I saw a man walking slowly from the darkness on the other side.
He was a giant with a head bigger than an ordinary person’s and had an ashy skin that looked pale.
[Lv. 96]
Archdemon, Ditrodemian.
The guy who appeared calmly in front of me looked in this direction with a gloomy gaze.
The powerful and fiery energy emanating from him was more than that of a Lord. I could tell just by looking at his level.
The guy’s gaze, which had been staring at me, moved to the corpse of the dead tower master.
Soon, his mouth opened.
“You are the Seventh Lord of Calderic.”
“...”
“I need to hear why my contractor was killed. Is it the will of the Overlord?”
I stared at him, or rather, observed him, without answering his question.
Around him, there were black flames that had just swept through the area, and I knew what that ability was.
The flames of annihilation - one of the unique abilities that he possessed, which could destroy anything that it touched.
“If you don’t answer, I’ll kill you.”
I laughed in response to his dry voice.
“If I answer, will you just let me go?”
He slowly raised the corners of his mouth.
“Of course not. You will die here.”
It was the expected response.
The unpleasant energy emanating from him, mixed with hostility, became even stronger.
I silently cursed and prepared for battle.
“Step back.”
At my words, Asher, who had been standing there with a slightly pale face, turned to look at me and nodded immediately.
She put away her drawn sword and obediently stepped back. She realized that it was not her place to intervene.
No matter how much she had grown, she was now only a hindrance, not a help. After all, the opponent was an archdemon.
'Why is that guy here in the first place?'
Did he come to see the tower master? But why did the timing have to be so coincidental?
Whatever the case, I couldn’t avoid the battle since the situation had turned out like this. The guy seemed to be filled with a strong will to kill me already.
I shifted my gaze to Ti-Yong.
Normally, as per Wyvern’s nature, it would never let anyone ride on his back other than me, but now was not the time to argue about that.
“Take these two and fly away as far as possible.”
As an intelligent being, it seemed to realize the gravity of the situation and nodded without any resistance.
Asher took the spy and immediately jumped onto Ti-Yong’s back.
I remained cautious of incoming attacks from Ditrodemian, but he just stood there, seemingly not interested in blocking them from leaving.
Ti-Yong, carrying the two of them, flew up with great force and disappeared to the other side of the night sky in an instant.
“You can fight all you want. In any case, you will still die.”
I used a surprise [Blood Art] to shoot blood droplets at him.
However, the blood droplets were useless as the surrounding flames immediately burned them up.
“Tsk.”
It was impossible to activate [Instant Kill] as long as he had the flames surrounding him like a defensive shield.
The guy waved his hand and shot out a giant flame like a wave, just as before.
I spread out the [Floating Veil] to block the attack again. Then I teleported behind him.
It was to create more distance since it was difficult to defend against attacks that were too fast to react to.
“Is it not magic, but a Mystery?”
He muttered like that and then spread his hand before clenching it tightly.
At the same time, a sudden purple energy appeared around me and rippled like a gust of wind.
I felt a sense of danger as I once again performed a risky [Space Leap].
Thunk!
At the moment after teleporting, a compressed burst of purple energy twisted and engulfed the space where I had been standing.
Part of the ground and bushes within the range of the purple energy vanished, leaving a smooth cut along the perimeter, as if space itself had been sliced apart.
'...Spatial severing.'
This was another ability possessed by Ditrodemian, along with his flame of annihilation.
As it literally involved cutting through space itself, if I had been a little slower to react and gotten caught in the burst, I would have been instantly annihilated. It was an attack that was almost a guaranteed instant death even in the game.
Without giving me a moment to rest, the next attack came flying in.
Ditrodemian stood still, only flicking his hand to launch the attack. But for me, there was no room for any hesitation.
I frantically blocked and dodged the surging flames and sudden bursts of purple energy.
Even now, barely managing to hold on, I knew that he was not using his full power.
I knew that in addition to the flames of annihilation and spatial severing, Ditrodemian had several more abilities up his sleeve.
'What should I do?'
The problem was that I had no means of counterattacking him.
Just one touch was all it would take, and even he would be susceptible to instant death.
But that touch was impossible. Since the flames completely blocked my [Blood Art], there was no way to make contact with him.
If the only way I could think of was to directly contact him using [Space Leap] instead of [Blood Art]...
'But that’s not ideal either.'
In that case, I would have to expose my entire body to his flames.
In other words, it was a method that would require risking my life.
But delaying the situation like this would inevitably lead to a predetermined outcome where I would eventually be defeated before he could even use his other abilities to their full potential...
'What else can I do?'
I had no choice but to try something, relying on my [Super Regeneration] ability.
After making up my mind, I blocked the raging flames and immediately activated [Space Leap].
In the next moment, I teleported directly beside him, right into the midst of the searing flames.
“...”
An unfamiliar sensation of intense pain surged through my entire body like never before.
What I saw before me was an arm that had been burned to a crisp by the searing flames, so badly damaged that even the white bones were visible.
But I still couldn’t let down my guard.
My vision immediately became blurry as darkness engulfed me, but I desperately reached out my hand towards my target.
In the next moment, his eyes widened in shock as my hand finally made contact with his body.
