Chapter 258 : Chapter 258
Side Story 17. Dejan Berger (3)
When the moon reached its zenith, Leviar let out a quiet exclamation.
“Woof.”
“Is it starting now?”
“Yes.”
The moment had come for the Demon King to reveal his identity for the first time.
It was remarkable.
Until now, he had drawn people into submission without ever revealing himself.
Some among them had even poured everything they had built over their entire lives into the fund for constructing a temple.
Things that were utterly incomprehensible by my standards had occurred through the Demon King’s authority.
“It is because none of them have trained mana. If they had possessed even the slightest trace of mana, the Demon King’s grasp could not have seeped into them.”
“Either way, it’s astonishing. To be in an entirely different dimension and still exert influence like this.”
“It is an authority exclusive to Demon Kings. Even we dragons cannot do such a thing.”
The villagers’ atmosphere gradually began to change.
It felt as though madness was slowly filling them.
Their eyes changed first.
Then strange voices began flowing from their mouths.
And then came their synchronized footsteps.
THUD.
THUD.
THUD.
THUD.
As though receiving someone’s commands, they moved in unison and let out the same voices simultaneously.
Before long, those voices became a single song.
The song grew louder and louder.
The sound filled the entire mountain peak, echoing as it spread outward.
When the man at the far left of the front row began the song, the other villagers began responding.
As though they had practiced together for a long time, their harmony continued without the slightest mistake.
“The leader has become aware of his position. This group will likely gather around that man.”
“And Dejan Berger is behind it.”
“That is right.”
When the song ended, I sensed a strange change within them.
“Demonic energy. They’ve developed demonic energy.”
It was similar to the aura I had felt from the demonfolk in the Demon Realm seven years ago.
It was still very faint, but its nature was unmistakable.
“You even know about demonic energy?”
“It’s an energy slightly different from ordinary mana.”
“What in the world were you doing, and where, Young Master?!”
“I told you. I learned all of this from my master.”
It was a convenient cover story.
Leviar let out a frustrated sigh.
“Woof!”
“Now anyone would say you’re a dog.”
“Someday, I will certainly uncover it! You and that person you call your master, Young Master!”
“Try if you can. By the way, does that mean that as of today, the Demon King of Silence can exert some influence over Kalia as well?”
“Something like that. The Demon King can now see and hear Kalia through those villagers.”
“Is there a way to heal the villagers’ corrupted minds?”
It was one thing if I had not known, but now that I did, I could not simply overlook it.
Leviar’s answer, however, was firm.
“No.”
“There isn’t?”
“Not unless the Demon King dies. Surely you have not changed your mind about preventing the Demon King’s Descent?”
The original plan had been to prevent the Demon King’s Descent.
But I hesitated for a moment.
Should I let the Demon King descend and then kill it?
“That method doesn’t seem right.”
The repercussions it would bring to Kalia were too great.
“You have made a wise decision.”
“Is there no way for me to go to the Demon Realm where the Demon King of Silence is?”
“W-well…….”
“What?”
“Nothing! As far as I know, there is no such method.”
Well, unless an Abyss Portal Map suddenly appeared, there probably was no way.
I had roughly learned what lay behind Dejan Berger’s connection to the Demon King, so there was no longer any reason to delay.
I intended to go to the Mage Tower of Wishes and cut off his head.
‘Sylvia will be disappointed.’
The two had been lifelong rivals without equal.
But Dejan Berger’s end was far too terrible.
Helping the Demon King’s Descent was no different from selling the entire world in order to overcome his own limits.
In truth, his crime was too great to be judged by simply killing him.
“Young Master, how about leaving him to me? They say that the greatest pain a human can feel is burning pain. Burning someone to death is the specialty of our Red Clan.”
He intended to make up for the contest with Sylvia that had never been decided.
“You’re outmatched.”
But my honest assessment lit a fire in his heart.
“What do you mean, outmatched?! I cannot stay still after hearing words that insult a dragon’s pride!”
“What will you do if you don’t stay still?”
When I put strength into my voice, he flinched slightly.
“If you give me a chance, I will not attempt to escape again.”
“I feel like I’ve heard that plenty of times already.”
“I swear on a dragon’s honor! Woof!”
Was that final bark meant to say it was all bullshit?
In any case, I nodded.
“But it’ll be a problem if you die. You’re bait for catching a Red Dragon.”
I had learned a great deal thanks to him, so I thought giving him a chance would not be a bad idea.
Besides, he would not be able to win anyway.
Dejan Berger.
I had met him only once when I was Johan Raven.
He had been a typically arrogant eccentric, but that was a common trait among mages, so it had not particularly bothered me.
Even the way he looked down on swordsmen compared to mages was something I could understand.
I did not wish to needlessly crush his pride in his work.
But there was one thing he had done in front of me that crossed the line.
Diorin.
He had insulted her.
‘If I had killed him then…….’
Of course, it was a meaningless assumption.
There were no ifs in history.
Still, was Diorin living well even now?
She was the only love of my life.
Unlike me, who had been the ruler of the world, she had been an utterly ordinary person.
A woman who could have been found anywhere, with neither talent nor family worth boasting about.
Even Cheonra had been unable to find any information about her.
There would have been no reason for them to deal in such information.
In any case, coming to the Mage Tower of Wishes brought old memories of her welling up anew.
“What are you thinking about so deeply?”
“It’s nothing.”
“No, it cannot be. Are you thinking that I will lose?”
“Stop talking nonsense and get inside.”
Contrary to my expectations, the main gate of the Mage Tower of Wishes stood wide open.
Because the mage tower master was so reclusive, I had expected that entering without an invitation would require breaking through traps far more vicious than Sylvia’s.
This was an unexpected development.
Even as we climbed the stairs, there was not the slightest resistance.
‘There’s no way he doesn’t know.’
Then he knew everything and was waiting for us.
Only after we reached the mage tower’s highest floor did Dejan Berger offer his first greeting.
BOOOOM!!
As expected, it was an attack reeking of demonic energy.
Leviar immediately created a Barrier and blocked the surprise attack.
But.
BOOOOM!
With only two arrows of darkness, Dejan Berger created cracks in Leviar’s Barrier.
CRACK!
CRACKLE!
BOOOOM!
In the end, the transparent barrier collapsed helplessly.
Even more surprising was that his attacks continued flying at us without pause.
Of course, Leviar did not simply stand still.
He instantly fired a fireball dozens of times larger than his own body.
Compared to when he had faced Sylvia, the degree of his boldness was entirely different.
‘Because he thinks it’s fine to kill him.’
BOOOOM!
Two powerful spells collided in midair and caused a violent explosion.
Dejan Berger was not surprised at all when he saw Leviar’s appearance.
His eyes looked as though he already knew Leviar was a dragon.
Perhaps it was an authority granted by the Demon King.
Leviar took a deep breath and raised the power of his attack a little further.
This time, it was Mini Hellfire.
ROOOOAR!
If this had not been a mage tower, the intense heat unleashed at Dejan Berger would have melted the place down at once.
But the Archmage’s response was swift and powerful.
WHOOOOSH!!
Ever Ice unfolded as though it would freeze the entire world, and cold instantly overwhelmed heat.
Even Hellfire was trapped in ice while suspended in the air.
It had only been a brief exchange, but I could gauge Dejan Berger’s true strength.
“You mere human!”
Leviar once again uttered the words as though they were a catchphrase.
Of course, he had not used his full power either.
He still had considerable strength left in reserve, but the same was true of his opponent.
It was easy to tell which one had more room to spare.
“That’s enough. You’re done there.”
“You say I’m done?! I have not used even ten percent of my strength!”
Leviar protested with his usual aggrieved expression.
And at last, Dejan Berger spoke as he watched him.
“As expected, you are a dragon.”
“You knew?”
“I had roughly guessed. An energy that does not exist in this world was approaching.”
“As expected! He saw it with the Demon Eye.”
“The Demon Eye?”
“Yes. It must be an authority granted by the Demon King.”
“Ho. You came here knowing even that? As expected, dragons are not beings to be taken lightly.”
The Demon Eye was a Demon King’s authority that allowed its user to see through an opponent.
The fact that he seemed to have known about us even before we arrived made it a truly astonishing ability.
‘But it seems the Demon Eye cannot see through me.’
That I was Johan Raven.
That I was Seo Ji-han, who had come from another world.
Dejan Berger did not seem to know either fact.
“Was it the Demon King of Silence that you sold your soul to?”
At my words, Dejan Berger’s eyes widened once more.
“Mysterious. I do not know what you are, but you are a truly mysterious person!”
“I’ll show you something even more mysterious.”
I raised Holy Sword Bastian.
Then.
BOOM!
I fired Sword Qi without delay.
It would have been too fast for him to respond with magic.
The sword energy split into two from a single streak and passed by both sides of Dejan Berger’s neck.
His eyes shook violently.
Perhaps he remembered.
Even then, I had threatened him by only this much.
“Y-you can’t be!”
As expected, he recognized me immediately.
He did not seem to be a fool.
STEP.
STEP.
I walked toward him one step at a time.
Dejan Berger fired Dark Arrows at me.
If a mage gave up distance to a swordsman, it would become a fatal situation, so he had no choice but to desperately stop me.
But my steps did not slow in the slightest.
SWISH!
SWISHH!
I broke through his magical attacks with Holy Sword Bastian and leisurely advanced.
The distance closed in an instant.
Black smoke rolled in thickly from every direction, but there was no chance I would lose track of his position.
I whispered quietly to Dejan Berger.
“It would have been better if I had killed you then.”
Beyond the black smoke, I could almost see his bewildered expression.