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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Peptobismol]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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Chapter 109
Humans enchanted by Monma exhibit tremendous power beyond their usual abilities.
This is because the unconscious lock on the nerves, usually in place to protect the human body, is released.
Of course, significant aftereffects inevitably followed, but Monma wasn’t particularly concerned from his perspective.
The control center employees, who moved so quickly and fiercely that even Yussi was taken aback, were examples of this.
If an ordinary human were enchanted like this, what would happen if a martial arts expert was possessed by the Monma commander himself?
When Enoch possessed Lucas, not only did his physical abilities rapidly enhance, but he could also harness surrounding mana as a power source, similar to demons.
Considering the high concentration of mana near the evacuation center, the mana capacity had increased several times more than usual.
‘Becoming stronger than most demons.’
However, Ban managed to withstand against Enoch, who was in a near-death state.
It was due to Dietrich’s sword being exceptionally specialized in defense.
There was also the reason Enoch used mana to escape.
It was a moment beyond the reach of a prosecutor’s entire life, a moment of ‘enlightenment.’
“Ah….”
The boy, after completing his mission, slumped as he looked at the broad back blocking his way.
For a moment, he felt a heavy sense of responsibility mingled with relief on his expression.
The hero quickly realized that Ban’s condition was far from normal, even ignoring the wounds.
The insides were in a mess, completely torn apart due to using mana to the fullest without any resistance.
‘The others….’
Though better off than Ban, the situation wasn’t much different.
They were all breathing heavily with painful expressions.
‘There’s not much time.’
The hero looked at Enoch again.
He faced him with a mixture of vigilance and hatred in his appropriately blended expression.
▼
Lord of the Abyss, Enoch
– Monma who occupies a position among the seven commanders
– Specialized in planting minions, contributing significantly to collapsing the eastern continent
– Also a demon who has caused great harm
▲
…… Enoch, ten years ago, was expelled due to the pursuit of the enraged Felson immediately after the Nubes Salon incident.
Perhaps that’s why, unlike usual, there were no comments in the Iris of Laplace that seemed to be written by the ‘Original.’
Only a few comments seemed to have been written based on the knowledge of Zero Requiem.
…One of them came to the hero’s mind and disappeared in his eyes.
The comment that suggested a certain strategy was remarkably similar to his own thoughts.
“It’s better to just let me go.”
Enoch’s black eyes gleamed.
He pointed around with his long-nailed hand.
A nauseating twist lingered on his lips.
“Can’t you see that your disciples are being consumed by demonic energy and dying? It’s urgent. I’m surprised you can afford to waste time trying to punish me. A Hero who prioritizes annihilation over salvation… .”
Crafty and malicious, but not completely wrong.
If I was the ‘Original’.
At present, I couldn’t easily suppress Enoch with force alone.
‘Even in an incomplete state, he’s stronger than the guy I faced in Lonkers, he won’t be weak.’
It would take quite some time.
That was not all.
If he prepared for his death and attacked the children, the damage would be immense. …
…However.
Despite these negative calculations, the hero’s expression wasn’t particularly dark.
Instead, a similar twist to Enoch’s was spreading on his lips.
‘…?’
It was a moment when Enoch felt an inexplicable unease in the sarcasm.
The hero whispered into the communicator.
“Noubelmag. Deploy it.”
[All right, I was just waiting for those words!]
Boom!
An unusual explosion echoed in the sky.
It sounded like fireworks going off.
Enoch’s gaze reflexively turned upward.
‘…What’s this?’
…It was a highly unusual scene.
What started to fall with light movements looked like pollen.
Tiny glimmers.
Even in the ominous darkness, the light didn’t fade away.
On the contrary, it began to shine more intensely as it interacted with the demonic energy-filled atmosphere and friction.
Enoch realized the nature of the power it contained and muttered incredulously, with an expression of disbelief.
“…Holy power?”
No answer.
Instead of responding to that question, the hero ran towards Enoch, gripping the black hope.
Whoo-!
A fierce charge generated a strong wind, causing the ‘Powder of the Blessed Stone’ to flutter in all directions.
It was a considerable amount, enough to densely fill the airspace near the shelter.
What Noubelmag had dispersed in the air wasn’t just the Powder of the Blessed Stone that the hero possessed.
It also included some parts of the Blessed Stone kept in the academy.
Responding to the hero’s request, Noubelmag, who had been working tirelessly on the processing, succeeded in refining several pieces into powder imbued with the power of exorcism just a few days before the start of the test.
“That day. Regardless of the situation, we need a means to protect the children.”
The hero didn’t anticipate that the minion commander who had been subdued long ago was associated with Monma at the commandant level.
But he had prepared multiple safety devices to protect the children from any demonic presence that might appear.
It was the moment when that preparation emitted light.
‘To engage in such antics….’
From Enoch’s perspective, it was a staggering sight.
Divinity was one of the representative abilities that humans lost at the end of the first era.
The gods who had been watching over humans until then opened a ‘gate’ themselves and abandoned the humans who had brought beings from the demon realm into this world.
Of course, occasionally, ancient relics made from Blessed Stones, created by the divine power, appeared and caused trouble for them.
But this method was unprecedented.
‘…Powder, huh.’
Who would have thought that someone would casually scatter an ingredient much rarer and more precious than gold like this?
…One-time use of the Blessed Stone.
It was a concept that hadn’t existed until now.
But the effect was clear.
Partsutututu-!
Upon contact with mana, the Powder of the Blessed Stone emitted a dazzling light like a meteor breaking through the atmosphere.
It disappeared.
Of course, an equivalent amount of demonic energy also disappeared.
…In other words, Enoch’s power that bound the children was weakening.
However, Enoch had no time to thoroughly examine the situation.
It was because a huge lump of iron was about to crash down right in front of him.
‘…Insane!’
Enoch’s face twisted in confusion.
Honestly, he was somewhat relieved.
After all, the hero’s disciple was none other than his host.
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Peptobismol]
[Proofreader – Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
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No matter how much he harbored hatred for demons, as a professor, he wouldn’t tear apart his disciple’s body.
‘He’s also the descendant of a duke.’
He expected him to show some mercy, but… this was unexpected.
‘Doesn’t he care about his disciple’s life at all?’
That sword strike was real.
The pressure alone felt like it would tear the skin.
The momentum attached to the sword made it seemingly unstoppable.
Moreover, the indifferent gray eyes on the other side of the massive and imposing blade proved the severity of the attack.
Kwaaaang!
Enoch blocked the attack with his maximum power… and for a moment, his entire skeletal structure felt like it was dislocating, causing a shiver of horror.
‘…I need to escape.’
There was no chance of winning head-on.
In the first place, even when his main body was intact, facing the hero was an impossible task.
He was a man who hadn’t given up his position even once among the seven commanders, including three of the most terrifying ones, for centuries.
Even if he was presumed to be in a ‘less than perfect state,’ it was still impossible to confront him directly.
Kwaaaang!
With such thoughts in mind, Enoch barely managed to block the successive sword strikes.
Faint cracking sounds echoed from the sword he held in his hand.
Perhaps in the next strike, he would be bisected along with the sword.
‘No way!’
…If the host died while possessing, it would also be a significant blow.
It would be a decisive hit in an already unstable state.
Most likely, he would lose even the demonic energy required to transform his body into the form of a host.
There was also a high probability of complete annihilation.
That’s why the decision was quick.
Just like ten years ago when he escaped from the enraged Felson’s sword.
Enoch’s face twisted in anger.
‘…To experience this humiliation again.’
The way humans and demons viewed each other was fundamentally similar.
Even if the hero was an exceptional individual among them, the feeling of fleeing from the threat couldn’t help but be miserable.
He lowered his head with a bitter heart.
‘I will definitely. Definitely come back and make you pay for this.’
Wuuuuung!
That’s how Enoch tried to separate his spiritual entity from Lucas’s body.
“….?”
At the same time, the hero, who seemed about to attack him at any moment, suddenly halted the pouring sword strikes.
“….”
While Enoch looked at him with confusion, the hero’s mouth slowly opened.
“Do you plan to run away again without finishing the fight?”
“…What?”
“I guess the time of shameful evasion spent like a parasite was quite to your liking. You seem to want to repeat that.”
What followed was truly an unpleasant insult.
However, there was no eruption of boiling anger from Enoch.
Something astonishing was happening, almost to the point of doubting his own eyes.
The hero added with a sneer.
“Sure… there’s no need to run away. I’ll fight you on the battlefield you desire.”
…From Enoch’s perspective, it was an utterly incomprehensible situation.
The mental barrier that thickly enveloped the hero’s mind had disappeared.
As a being halfway between spirit and flesh, Enoch could feel it distinctly.
Voluntarily disarming while facing an opponent.
In the face of the hero’s unexpected action, Enoch couldn’t help but be somewhat perplexed.
‘What kind of scheme is this?’
The mental barrier is the sum of an individual’s innate willpower, mental strength, determination, and the like.
The barrier could be strengthened or weakened depending on the experiences one undergoes.
It was one reason why humans were challenging to manipulate as their mental barriers were not easily broken.
Therefore, weakening it through a medium, nightmares, or overwhelming demonic energy was a common method.
Once the barrier was breached, whether through enchantment or possession, it became easier to manipulate the individual.
The core inside the barrier was minuscule and insignificant.
The soul of a human who couldn’t live for even a century was like a speck of dust in the face of the immortal lives led by the demons.
However, right now, the hero had dismantled the barrier with his own hands.
It was an action almost equivalent to surrendering in front of a demon like Enoch.
Although he wondered if there might be a trap, he couldn’t think of any reason or validity for it.
If he could enter the mind, a ‘human’ could never be an opponent for a demon like him.
Sip-
Enoch swallowed his saliva.
As his thoughts organized, desires began to boil up.
The most tempting physique he had ever seen was right in front of him, completely unguarded.
In such a situation, thinking was meaningless.
A whirlwind of the greatest desire he had ever felt in his long life erupted.
‘If I could possess that body… that body!’
Escaping the immediate crisis was not a problem at all.
It was a powerful physique that even threatened the mighty demon king.
It was natural that it would become much stronger than when his main body was intact, and furthermore, he would gain the admiration of thousands of demons for defeating their most threatening adversary.
It was an achievement and power that could surpass being a commander and establish him as a new demon king.
‘…Ah!’
Despite having useful abilities, Monma had always been the one who never received admiration among the clan due to his low direct combat power.
A long-standing desire born out of prolonged deprivation.
The savage craving for those loathsome eyes…
The hero simply gazed at him in silence.
No, in fact, he wasn’t looking at Enoch.
The hero’s gaze was fixed on a translucent line that only he could see.
It was the comment that appeared earlier.
▼
The most surefire way to eliminate a high-ranking monma is to achieve complete suppression in the mind rather than reality.
▲
In fact, it was an almost impossible task for humans.
Considering the capacity of the mind, humans could never defeat demons.
The power accumulated over the long ages of their existence was reflected directly in their minds.
Confronting them would only result in being crushed by the overwhelming mass of the soul.
However, the hero thought, ‘I’m built different.’
As a doppelganger who had replicated and stored countless humans, he believed that he could probably stand against Monma.
Our gazes crossed for a brief moment while contemplating like that.
Enoch’s spiritual body, steeped in joy, seeped beyond the Hero’s mental barrier.
[TL/N: FOOL.]
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Peptobismol]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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