Chapter 258 : “Ragnarok (4)
Chapter 258: “Ragnarok (4)
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A slaughter was unfolding inside the arena.
Among the mixture of demons and humans, only one person displayed overwhelming martial prowess.
“Carlos, was it? He was presumed to be a human hero, but to think he’s an Apostle of a Demigod. The information was completely wrong.”
“...My apologies. Since it came from the Imperial Palace, I thought it was a credible source.”
All the demons seated within the Demon Realm’s camp had their eyes fixed on Carl.
They had already suspected he might be a hero meant to oppose them, but his unexpected appearance at Ragnarok had caught them off guard.
Even more unexpected was the fact that he turned out to be an Apostle of the Demigod Kylos.
It was quite different from what their collaborators in the Middle Realm had reported, so they were visibly displeased.
“Sending out Zaken was a mistake. He ended up as a chunk of meat before we could even gauge his true skill.”
Archduke of Hell Aloken twisted his lips as he looked toward the inner arena.
The other humans in the human camp stood rooted in place, merely watching Carl's performance.
Every time Kylos’ divinity flashed, the demons sent into the field were cut down—it was not a pleasant sight.
Clatter.
Carl paused his sword and looked up toward the interior of the arena.
In just about three minutes, he had massacred all the players from the Demon Realm’s side.
The knights and paladins had already agreed to surrender if they were the only ones left.
All that remained was the Apostle from the Demigod Prometheus' faction.
Step.
As Carl pointed his sword, the man pulled back his robe and smiled faintly.
“Did you know? Ragnarok is a ritual isolated from reality. Even if one dies during the trial, they don’t truly die.”
He was a man with green hair.
With clear eyes, he looked at the torn and slain demons and continued.
“As soon as this trial ends, they’ll be resurrected. That’s how the system was built in the first place.”
“Resurrect?”
Carl lifted his head and looked at the Fairy King Mabel, who was watching from high in the sky.
This was a detail he had not been informed of.
Just as he was about to voice his doubt, the Apostle shrugged and spoke.
“This is a basic rule. Surely even the Fairy King didn’t expect someone to enter Ragnarok without knowing something this fundamental.”
“Are you saying the fault lies with me as well?”
“I wouldn’t nitpick, but perhaps. It seems the Demigod you serve didn’t offer much in the way of advice.”
Carl let out a quiet chuckle.
Was he trying to provoke him in order to gauge his abilities?
He had nothing to hide, so he nodded and replied.
“Prometheus has poor judgment.”
“...?”
“The Demigod himself didn’t dare to underestimate me, yet here you are, just an Apostle.”
Swish!
Carl folded space in an instant and charged toward the Apostle, reaching out with his hand.
The man seemed to have anticipated this and spread his arms wide, unleashing divine power.
It seemed he had been casting divine magic beneath his robe.
A chain, long and gleaming, shot out to bind Carl’s limbs.
Clang!
Instead, Carl reached out and grabbed the pure-white chain.
The Apostle, thinking they were about to engage in a battle of divinity, grinned confidently—only to widen his eyes as a black flame surged along the chain.
Fwoooosh!
Demonic Flame erupted.
Like oil poured on the chain, the fire spread in an instant, and the Apostle recoiled in shock and dropped it.
“Ghhk?!”
But he was a second too late—the black flame that devoured divinity had already begun to burn him.
Only after activating a barrier could he stop the surging inferno.
“...What the.”
The Apostle stepped back and glared at Carl with a twisted expression.
Gone was his former composure; he flung away his tattered robe and gripped a short wand in his hand.
“Demonic Energy? How can an Apostle of a Demigod wield that? Don’t tell me—you’ve fallen?”
“It is Demonic Energy, but not the kind you're thinking of.”
Carl grinned softly as he clutched the Heavenly Demon Divine Art’s Demonic Energy in his hand.
To them, the Demonic Energy of his martial art must have looked identical to that of the demons.
In fact, the other demons were also focusing their gazes on him.
‘Looks like it's working well.’
Black flames flared.
Carl did not use the Heavenly Demon Divine Art as just a martial technique.
Unlike other arts, this was the pinnacle of demonic martial arts.
Given that, there was every reason it could evolve in another direction in this world.
Originally, he had converted the martial art’s Demonic Energy to counter Kylos.
But since it wasn’t needed for that battle, he had kept it hidden.
However, now that another entity—Demigod Prometheus—had appeared.
Kylos’ divinity would counter the demons, while Prometheus’ divinity would be crushed by the Heavenly Demon Divine Art’s Demonic Energy.
If the counters aligned, he could subdue them more efficiently.
Fwoooosh!
He expanded the Demonic Energy and molded it into a new form with his Intent Thought.
It stretched out like a long snake, slithering along the ground before digging into the earth.
“...!”
The Apostle flinched and retreated, just as the flame serpent shot up from the ground and coiled around his leg.
Fwoooosh!
A brilliant divine barrier shielded the Apostle’s body, blocking the serpent’s advance.
Carl curled his finger mockingly at him.
“You said you can’t die here—so why the desperation?”
“Even if we don’t die! That doesn’t mean it’s painless!”
Pop!
A complex spell was instantly cast from his wand, forming spheres of light around the Apostle.
They orbited him like satellites around a planet, and then struck the serpent coiled around his leg.
Crack! Crack!
Each time, the flames wavered and black shards shattered in the air, but the serpent did not release its grip and instead tightened further.
“...Tch.”
Realizing it couldn’t be shaken off by normal means, the Apostle clicked his tongue and brought his hands together as if in prayer.
“This humble servant begs for your aid...”
The Apostle’s lips moved swiftly, reciting a prayer.
Carl, who had been watching with interest, suddenly sensed something strange and narrowed his eyes.
‘Divine Power...’
It was pouring out like mad.
It wasn’t his original power, but looked like he was forcibly increasing the output to the point of overload.
Was he trying to fight in a temporarily boosted berserker state?
‘...No.’
Carl shook his head.
It was too crude a method for an Apostle of a Demigod.
Would a worshiper of a god really need to resort to such a rough method?
That meant it was more reasonable to assume it was an overclock meant to temporarily reach a threshold.
Spurt—
As expected, the soaring Divine Power stabilized the moment it reached a certain point, and began to take shape.
The serpent made of Demonic Energy that had coiled around his legs had already long since been torn apart and vanished.
The Apostle took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes.
“I didn’t think I’d have to reveal my Apostolization first.”
“Apostolization?”
“This is absurd. Didn’t your Demigod even tell you about Apostolization?”
Carl shifted his gaze inward toward Kylos.
Then she replied to Carl in a sulky voice.
—You’re not my Apostle, so I had no reason to tell you.
‘Fair point.’
Strictly speaking, Carl wasn’t Kylos’ Apostle, but more like someone who had inherited her divinity.
To be more precise, he was a usurper who had devoured and stolen it.
Therefore, he neither needed nor was capable of undergoing Apostolization.
Clatter.
The Apostle, now clad in radiant full-body armor, raised the lance in his hand and gave a slight flick of its tip.
“I am curious. Kylos was a Demigod who dueled Lord Prometheus since ancient times. Then between their followers, which side would be superior...”
“That’s enough. I’ve lost interest.”
Spurt—
Carl’s movements changed entirely.
If until now he could at least be tracked with the eyes, now even sensing his presence was impossible.
The Apostle, now many times stronger through Apostolization, did not panic and spread his divine wings wide.
‘I know he’s not an ordinary existence. But with Apostolization...’
He should be able to endure until the time limit expired.
Carl might take first place overwhelmingly, but he couldn’t afford to rank lower than the other human participants.
So he had planned to raise his score by fighting Carl and accumulating achievements.
Crash—
But the massive impact that struck his chest made him realize something had gone terribly wrong.
“...Kuhhk.”
A stream of blood spurted through the pure white Divine Aura.
Rolling across the floor with fragments of shattered armor, the Apostle lifted his head with an expression of disbelief.
“What...?”
What had done this to him?
Soon, he discovered the torn front of his armor and the crushed chest as if struck by a flail.
“Urgh.”
Just as he vomited bright red blood again from the shock that shook his insides, Carl, who had been rotating his wrist, approached the Apostle.
“You're tough. Well, Divine Power is supposed to be more suited for defense than offense anyway.”
“Y-You...”
“There must be someone stronger than you on Prometheus’ side. I wonder how much stronger.”
Carl, looking down at the Apostle, reached out without hesitation.
He could have instantly killed him, but he spared him—because there was information to be extracted.
Flash!
Heavenly Demon Divine Art — Soul-Seizing Technique.
A technique that digs into the target’s mind, reads their memories, and steals information unfolded.
Crackle, zzzzt—
Perhaps there was a divine protection over his mind, as white sparks flared and resisted Carl’s attempt.
But Carl’s Soul-Seizing Technique had already reached mastery.
If it worked even on demons, reading the mind of an Apostle wasn’t that difficult.
Rustle.
He traced the memories backward from this very moment to examine the Apostle’s actions.
What he had prepared for Walpurgis Night, whom he had joined hands with, and even where the traitors were hiding.
—...You’re quite rough.
‘You are...’
Carl curled his lips at the voice that reached him through the Apostle’s mind.
It was the owner of the body once borrowed for conversation—the avatar of Prometheus.
Lifting his head and looking to the stands, he saw the robed man mouthing words toward Carl.
—Seems we both have much to say, but for now, let’s stop here.
Pop.
At that moment, the Apostle’s head exploded on its own.
“Hah.”
Carl let out a dry laugh.
To think someone claiming to be a priest had implanted a Forbidden Seal in his subordinate's body?
And it was quite the powerful seal.
So powerful, in fact, that even the Soul-Seizing Technique hadn’t noticed it.
“Absurd. No wonder others curse them as heretics.”
So was that why Cardinal Nadram had a fit when he said they should all be executed?
Carl gave the corpse one final glance, scoffed, and turned away.