Chapter 254
The Death Sovereign
"Awaken, army of the dead… and follow my command."
The moment the words left Arthur's mouth, the corpses of the demons trembled violently and rose from the ground one after another. They rose once more without a trace of their injuries, as though death had not passed through them only moments ago at his hands.
"Attack."
Arthur said it in a calm voice, devoid of any emotion, and they immediately charged forward without hesitation.
That sense of danger…
That heavy feeling he had grown accustomed to had not yet left his heart.
Arthur looked at his new soldiers and narrowed his eyes.
They were strong… unbelievably strong.
A single one of them could contend with an S-Rank hunter without difficulty, while the strongest ten among them surpassed that by far.
Arthur summoned one hundred demons from his new army and ordered them to face two hundred demons from the enemy side.
Once he was certain that his soldiers had a genuine chance of survival, he left the matter to them.
He leaped into the air and headed directly toward the location of the egg.
Sometimes… ignorance was a blessing.
In a place drenched in blood, where dark-red pools covered the ground, nearly three hundred blood-red demon corpses lay scattered about.
The enormous cauldron, filled to its brim, was overflowing with blood, some of which had spilled onto the ground.
And in the middle of that cauldron…
Bubbles slowly rose to the surface.
One of the scientists says:
Caution is a feeling, but it is not like other emotions.
It does not originate from the heart alone, nor from the mind alone, nor from mere instinct… but from the entire body.
The surge of caution—or what is known as the XZ hormone—is released from the brain, passes through the heart, and then spreads to every sensory receptor in the body, telling it:
Either flee because the danger exceeds one's ability,
or advance and eliminate the threat before it grows.
Now…
Inside Arthur's body, the XZ hormone exploded to an unprecedented degree.
It boiled through his veins and rose to its absolute limit.
"I must destroy this thing."
He said it with terrifying calmness, then raised his sword high toward the sky.
Magical energy began gathering around his sword with unbelievable force, as though this very world were responding to him.
The air around the blade compressed, and the sky trembled violently with overwhelming might.
"Divider of All!"
Arthur shouted and swung his sword at incredible speed toward the enormous cauldron.
The air shook, and the wails of mysterious ghosts rose around the sword.
Then a devastating strike erupted, sharp and merciless.
But—
Before the attack could reach its target, an immense force exploded from within the blood, completely repelling Arthur's attack.
At that moment, the heavens shook with absolute might.
Then…
A scream rose from behind Arthur.
{The King has arrived!}
It was the voice of the last demon, blood boiling from his mouth after Arthur's soldiers had torn him apart.
{My King… please… avenge us…}
His voice gradually faded until he fell dead,
and in his eyes… immense hope had gathered for the one he called his king.
For the first time in his life—
No…
For the first time in millions of years.
In truth…
It was only the second time.
Arthur's body trembled.
Fear.
Once, millions of years ago, Arthur—who was still young at the time—fought a monster who had mastered every art of combat and training.
That monster was a boy around the same age as him, or perhaps a year older.
He pressed his foot hard against Arthur's neck, with blood flowing from his mouth and eyes.
"How dare you, you bastard."
Einver said in a low voice, yet one that carried overwhelming authority,
then moved his foot away from Arthur's bloodied neck.
When Einver turned around, Arthur pressed against the ground and leaped toward him,
his heart filled with anger and pain.
But—
In that brief moment…
Arthur's body trembled violently beyond belief.
Fear.
He looked into Einver's black eyes,
and felt as though he were staring into the deepest point of hell.
Even its deepest layers were not that dark.
With a single glance,
Arthur's body froze in the middle of his attack.
"I told you, Arthur… I really will kill you."
Einver said it with absolute calmness as he raised his hand toward Arthur's neck.
Move… move… move!
Arthur screamed inwardly,
but his body refused to respond.
Einver drew closer.
"Stop, brother… please."
Einver suddenly stopped and turned toward the voice.
"Are you alright?"
"You idiot, I was the one who asked Arthur to teach me. Why are you hitting him?"
"Ah… and I didn't—"
"Stupid idiot!
You don't want to teach me anything, and neither does Father,
so I asked Arthur.
It was only a misunderstanding, and he hit me lightly, which only scratched my cheek a little."
"But—"
"But what?
Just because he scratched my face, you want to kill him?"
"Yes."
His sister stared at him in silence, then raised her hand and struck him on the head.
"That hurts!"
"Stop whining. You know my strike didn't hurt you.
Go now and apologize to Arthur."
"Yes… Mother."
"What did you say?"
"Nothing… nothing. Damn."
Because Einver's sister had asked Arthur to train her—since neither her brother nor her father had done so—he agreed after much insistence.
But when Einver saw that her cheek was injured, he did not ask about the reason.
He immediately charged toward Arthur.
He fought him.
And Arthur… had no choice but to fight back.
But what could one do against a monster who had mastered every martial art known on Earth and was at the height of his rage?
Arthur tried…
Once, twice, and countless times.
But it was useless.
In the end, Einver slammed him to the ground with tremendous force.
Einver's sister intervened at the last moment and stopped him from killing Arthur.
Arthur regained consciousness at that exact moment and grabbed Einver's hand,
then—in a foolish impulse—leaped up to attack him.
Perhaps his mind, his heart, or his very being…
could not accept such a crushing defeat.
And at that moment,
a terrifying killing aura exploded from Einver's body.
His eyes trembled, and he slowly looked toward Arthur standing behind him.
Then…
Arthur felt as though he were looking at a Death Sovereign,
ready to swallow his soul whole.
---
Now…
For the second time in his long life.
After all the wars,
after all the enemies and allies,
Arthur stood…
feeling a deep fear trembling within his body,
before the thing standing in front of him.
---
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