Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 261

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Blacksmith’s Game
The Party of the Supremes (1)
“Babylon is a weapon that threatens demons.”
The definition given by the Arch-Demon Baal.
One who stands above all demons.
At that time, Gremory could not comprehend why such a Baal would fear a mere blade.
Baal commanded Gremory to retrieve Babylon.
Thus, some 150 years ago, I was able to retrieve Babylon, which contained 100 grams of a certain god’s ore.
Having retrieved Babylon, Gremory defined it thus:
‘Garbage among garbage.’
She could not fathom Baal’s intention.
Annihilation of Evil certainly inflicted damage upon all evil by 40%.
Yet by any measure, Babylon was a weapon that could not even be wielded.
When she faced Baal again after casting it into Hellfire, the Arch-Demon perceived what she could not.
“Babylon—the reason that sword is dangerous is not Annihilation of Evil.”
Baal’s expression grew grave.
“Even cast into Hellfire, Babylon did not perish.”
Hellfire was known as the hottest flame that melted all things, and it burned eternally without extinguishing.
“The craftsman who forged that sword lacked the skill, and the god who provided the ore to aid them knew this—that they could not complete Babylon with their own power.”
“Then why would Babylon be called….”
“Because they wait.”
“…!?”
Gremory understood.
“Babylon is not a finished product but merely a blueprint. Through that blueprint, they left it in this world—for someone who would craft the true Babylon.”
Yet Gremory still did not comprehend.
“Even if it were to claim 40%, 50%, or 60% of their lifeforce, the fact remains that they cannot stand against us.”
Baal regarded Gremory with hollow eyes.
“Humans are weak, yet they achieve growth faster than we do.”
A suggestion that these humans might one day grow to become a threat to them.
“The greatest problem is who will forge Babylon anew. Of course, as you say, it is merely needless worry.”
The needless worry of the Arch-Demon Baal.
That was the end of it.
And so Babylon faded into obscurity.
Yet not long ago, the entire Demon Realm was turned upside down.
[A power that annihilates all evil is felt.]
It was a presence so threatening and potent that all demons reacted to it.
And Gremory made a conjecture from that immense power.
‘It is not 40%… 50%? 60%?’
She could not help but harbor fear at that moment.
Toward whoever had recreated Babylon, which had been little more than a blueprint.
Yet that aura vanished in an instant.
As though deliberately concealed.
Gremory understood.
‘Whoever crafted one Babylon could forge a second, third, and fourth.’
She had glimpsed Baal’s true fear.
The Archfiend had not feared Babylon itself.
He feared the craftsman capable of recreating it, and the extent to which this master could elevate the power of Annihilation Evil.
*
*
*
Gremory’s reason paralyzed.
Baal had feared two things.
How far the one who recreated Babylon—mere blueprint though it was—had elevated the destructive power of Annihilation Evil.
And how rapidly these humans, already swift in their ascension, continued to grow.
Demons were transcendent from birth and could advance no further.
Moreover, Gremory had regarded the man before her as an insect.
Her measure of that ‘insect’ lay solely in his martial prowess.
But a Blacksmith—and one who had recreated Babylon anew—changed everything.
‘How does a Blacksmith wield such power?’
From him emanated fighting spirit, pride, audacity, and obstinacy.
Through these qualities flowed an aura of unmistakable presence.
A mere human, facing a demon without wavering, draped in a brown coat and regarding her with eyes that blazed with superiority.
Annihilation Evil, drawn back across his shoulders, erupts from the craftsman’s fingertips.
[All evil shall be annihilated!]
Screeeeeech—!
Without even making contact, the moment the blade passed, Gremory was engulfed in overwhelming terror.
Born a demon, she had never suffered such a shock.
Cut yet not cut—so sharp and keen it defied comprehension.
Only when emerald blood erupted forth did she truly grasp the reality.
[Gremory’s HP has fallen below 20%!]
Annihilation Evil was not merely a 10 or 20 percent increase.
Compared to the mere blueprint it once was, its efficacy had doubled.
She succumbed to multiple status abnormalities.
Every conviction she held—that only those walking the Path of the Sword God warranted caution—shattered into overwhelming dread.
The man before her reflected in her widening eyes.
As she watched him prepare his attack, the demon’s gaze expanded in horror.
*
*
*
‘Please, just leave.’
Watching multiple status abnormalities activate, Hyeon-su clung to a sliver of hope.
But this hope was never about capturing Gremory outright.
Gremory’s HP pool was roughly twice that of Lesser Demon Luxiu.
Even with Bahala and myself combining our strength, we’d barely managed to scrape away 20% of Lesser Demon Luxiu’s health.
This was the only opening.
If she succumbed to fear and fell for my act, fleeing in panic.
And I was watching—observing carefully.
Though not quite at the level of Graut, Blood Demon, Gremory’s HP was refilling at an alarming rate.
“The Demon’s Urn.”
My face twisted.
Gremory, true to her nature as a lord of those known as combat-born, chose aggression over retreat when faced with fear.
I had deliberately advanced toward her in a threatening manner.
With her instinctive cry, an inverted black urn materialized in the sky.
[The Demon’s Urn]
[Robbs Legion, led by Legion Commander Robbs, begins to descend.]
The small urn expanded rapidly, consuming the heavens.
I had no choice but to decide.
[Hyeon-su: Bahala.]
I looked toward Bahala.
From restraining Gremory just moments ago, his HP had plummeted below 10%.
And none of his skill cooldowns had reset.
As for me, I could still access most of my skills.
[Hyeon-su: I’ll draw their attention. In the meantime, kill Luxiu, carry him in human form, and escape the Dungeon.]
[Bahala: What…!? You’re telling me to run now?]
[Hyeon-su: If I kill Luxiu, I might gain him as a Retainer. And the moment Luxiu dies, you’ll awaken—you’ll have more than enough time to escape. You know as well as I do; even awakened, you can’t catch me.]
Bahala and I felt the limits of Users.
What was more humiliating was that this Gremory wasn’t the real Gremory.
This Gremory was in a state of Vessel Descent.
Awakened through a medium, most of her power remained sealed.
Though actually level 700s, she was currently downgraded to the early 600s.
Summoning twenty-two Legion Commanders of Robbs’ caliber and hundreds of thousands of troops—lords of that magnitude—seemed impossible in this state.
Even in such circumstances.
‘We cannot even seal her.’
[Hyeon-su: You know the percentage.]
I could feel it.
Because Bahala was the Users’ idol, I could gauge our odds just by observing the situation.
And Bahala, though his thoughts aligned with mine in some ways, had a notification showing him the percentage differently.
Even after using Annihilation Evil, it still displayed 0%.
[Bahala: …I understand.]
[Hyeon-su: You must succeed.]
Hyeon-su is no fool.
He simply has conviction that this order is correct.
If he fled and Bahala blocked, the probability of escape itself would vanish.
But if the awakened Bahala fled with Lucifer, it becomes possible.
Zzzt—
In that instant, Hyeon-su could see roughly a hundred Demon Race creatures pouring from the jar.
One demon launches itself, targeting Hyeon-su’s head.
Screeeech—
Light flows from Hyeon-su’s body as he cleaves it in two with the Twin Dragon Sword.
[The Saint’s aura flows through you.]
Whoooosh—
“Gaaahhh!”
Smoke rises as the severed demon burns away, charring at the wound.
Hyeon-su loosens his body with sharp movements.
He ignites as he watches the creatures fall.
[Flame]
[A small spark ignites.]
[All stats increase by 20%.]
[All skill levels rise by 2.]
[Your HP decreases while Flame is active.]
[The small spark engulfs the world.]
A small flame ignites from Hyeon-su’s body.
[Hyeon-su: Run!]
With that, Hyeon-su activates his skill as he watches the creatures descend.
[Chain Link]
[The Twin Dragon Sword maximizes the wearer’s inherent power, and the speed of successive strikes accelerates more than twofold.]
[Robbs Legion Soldier Lv.413]
[Robbs Legion Creature Lv.398]
“Gather.”
The Legion itself, and even Gremory, are drawn within.
Bewilderment flashes across Gremory’s eyes.
[One Stroke, Two Severings]
[Cutting power maximizes at 641%, cleaving horizontally across a 5-meter radius.]
Screeeeeech—!
The hundred-strong Legion creatures are all scattered by the strike.
Gremory’s HP is shaved by 2%.
The problem is that her HP has recovered to 22% in the meantime.
Hyeon-su treads through mid-air.
Watching Bahala dash toward Lucifer, he murmurs.
“Ghost step….”
Merely a single second.
In that fleeting moment, I could have freed Bahala from this place.
I believed it was possible within that one second.
“Madness.”
Before her lips could fully open.
[You have been afflicted with Madness.]
[Your skills are nullified.]
Hyeon-su’s face contorted.
Merely thirty seconds. Gremory’s eyes, which had been consumed by terror, shifted dramatically.
[Gremory resists all status abnormalities.]
What she had truly feared was not the Eradication that had carved away eighty percent of her HP, but the fact that it had been forged by Hyeon-su’s own hands.
The moment she organized her thoughts within that awareness of fear and dread, she became a true demon.
A stigma is branded upon Hyeon-su’s body as the ghost step releases him mid-air.
[Gremory’s Stigma]
[Gremory will pursue you wherever you are, and she will read the traces of your presence.]
Whoooosh—!
With merely a sweep of her arm, Bahala was slammed against the wall.
“So you were the lord of a place called Atlas?”
Through the stigma, she peers into Atlas.
She smiles faintly and waves her hand through mid-air.
Screeeech—
Then space tears open.
“I cannot summon my legion from this place. But I can summon those who wish to serve a demon.”
[Worshipper Summoning begins.]
“I think I shall return to the Demon Realm and then visit this place called Atlas.”
Hyeon-su’s body trembles.
“There, twenty-two legions will stand with me, and you, known as the Outsider, will craft weapons for me for the rest of your life.”
Hyeon-su’s face goes ashen.
Everything he had built in an instant was crumbling away.
Thud—
Hyeon-su, his abdomen pierced, falls to the ground and collapses to his knees.
Boom—
[Absolute Control]
[You cannot move your body.]
She spreads her wings.
“The rest will be finished by my worshipper. My worshipper is quite formidable—I was planning to appoint him as the commander of the First Legion.”
Whoooosh—!
Gremory takes flight.
Even as he sits collapsed, Hyeon-su’s mind races, desperately searching for any possible way out.
But the gate that Gremory has opened.
Within that gateway, a colossal presence began its descent.
[The Hellking Emerges!]
A humanoid form standing five meters tall.
Six arms, each wielding a greatsword.
Crimson skin. A being with three heads crossed the threshold of that mysterious gateway and descended into this realm.
It was at that very moment.
Tap, tap—
An unidentified man burst forth from behind the gateway in pursuit of the creature.
High above.
The Hellking revealed itself.
A being so formidable that even Gremory had considered entrusting it with command of the First Legion.
That creature—a mysterious man leaped skyward and cleaved it in two with a single dagger.
Krraaaaaaagh—!
Like light itself, it vanished in an instant, arriving at a single point.
Shhhhwoooosh—!!!!
“…?”
Gremory, who had soared into the heavens, plummeted with the dagger piercing through the space between its brows.
Crash—
Gremory could not comprehend the current situation, and neither could I.
I watched the man with unfocused eyes as he took his place before me.
“…Get up.”
Rising to my feet at his command, I gazed upon his broad back as a voice echoed across the entire world.
[A World Message resonates.]
[A Second Legend is being written.]
He—the friend of Nameless—now turned his dagger toward the demon.
“I shall take the vanguard.”
[Asura Kabel has joined your party.]
Nameless’s friend had returned.
As the Second Legend.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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