I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 140

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 140

 

Kaella and Shtidy instantly left their positions. From a distance, tremendous levels of mana and magical power collided.

 

“This is absurd.”

 

It was something difficult to understand.

 

Shtidy’s mana, supported by hundreds of thousands of humans, naturally seemed endless. Even if all the Mages of the Three Great Magic Towers combined their strength, they wouldn’t reach even his toes.

 

However, Kaela Rowan was a different story.

 

The time when she received fate’s support as the Hero’s companion had passed, and unlike Shtidy, she had no one to supplement her magical power. It didn’t seem like the Dark Mages of the Black Tower, who were slowly creeping out of the Tower, would have helped her either.

 

In battles between Mages, mana or the amount of magical power wasn’t absolute, but everyone knew it occupied a considerable portion.

 

Yet she wasn’t being pushed back at all.

 

That meant either the gap between Kaella and Shtidy was overwhelmingly in her favor… or Kaella also had means to replenish her magical power.

 

“So, do we just wait now?”

 

Cain asked, shrugging his shoulders.

 

The subjugation force gathered from across the entire Continent. They had set the goal of conquering the Black Tower, but the Black Tower could essentially be seen as Kaela Rowan.

 

Time and again, if they respected Shtidy’s opinion that he would defeat her alone, there might be nothing left for them to do.

 

But no one agreed with Cain’s words.

 

Everyone just watched ahead with tense faces.

 

“Well, I didn’t expect much anyway.”

 

Kaella wasn’t everything.

 

Defeating her wasn’t everything. It was judged that a demon, and among them, certainly an existence believed to be the Demon Lord, was hiding behind Kaela Rowan.

 

Frowning at the strong wind and looking ahead, they could see a single man walking out from the distance.

 

Fluttering hair. Billowing robes. Yet seemingly not caring at all, with a peaceful face.

 

His grayish-white hair, close to silver, gave off an elegance as if he were a descendant of some royal family.

 

“I see. So that was the Demon Lord.”

 

The Emperor, who had kept his mouth shut all along, spoke as if finding it interesting.

 

“Do you recognize that face?”

 

“Well.”

 

The Emperor, wearing a meaningful smile, extended his hand.

 

“Attack.”

 

The soldiers charged.

 

Smoke rose, and the ground trembled. The flustered Dark Mages seemed like they would be swept away at any moment.

 

But surprisingly, they fought quite well.

 

Every time they extended their trembling hands and chanted spells, the magic circles carved into the Floor exploded. Although many had been damaged in the earlier collision between Kaella and Shtidy, there were quite a few that still functioned properly.

 

Thanks to this, a considerable number of the charging soldiers were sacrificed.

 

The soldiers had their vision blocked by the soldiers ahead, charging without knowing what was happening in front.

 

It was a simple and crude method.

 

“The deployment of the Knight Order is.”

 

“Not yet.”

 

None of the commanders seemed to care. The number of soldiers gathered from various parts of the Continent was so vast that counting them was meaningless. Without the Golden Star Trading Company’s massive capital, they would have struggled with supplies.

 

Even if a few hundred or few thousand died, it wouldn’t be noticeable.

 

The magic circles the Dark Mages had prepared were quickly exhausted. They tried to launch attacks again using the blood and souls of the dead soldiers as sacrifices, but naturally, it wasn’t enough.

 

They didn’t possess infinite magical power.

 

“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere…”

 

Cain muttered with a frown.

 

“You must not approach.”

 

“Move aside!”

 

Pushing through the Royal Guard Knights, Hero Johnny approached.

 

“Your Imperial Majesty.”

 

“….”

 

He bowed his head toward the Emperor who gave no response and said.

 

“We must stop any more meaningless sacrifices. Please deploy the Knight Order.”

 

The Emperor did not answer. The Emperor’s gaze was fixed on the demon who was leisurely surveying the surroundings.

 

“Your Majesty…!”

 

Hero Johnny bowed his head once more and shouted, but nothing changed.

 

Gritting his teeth in frustration, Johnny kicked his chair and left.

 

The place he headed to was the battlefield. As he instantly dove between the soldiers, a path naturally formed as if they had been pushed aside.

 

The knights who admired the Hero ignored orders and chased after him.

 

“Hero!”

 

“Haha…! Running off like that without a word, when do you plan to arrive!”

 

In an instant, the knights overtook the Hero.

 

Avoiding the magic bombardment, sharp swords and pointed spears aimed toward the demons. The aura contained in their weapons blazed powerfully.

 

It blazed.

 

The fire spread, burning the knight’s body.

 

Armor melted away, and horses collapsed. Terrible screams echoed along with the smell of burning flesh.

 

The battlefield, which had been filled with all sorts of shouts and screams, fell into a brief lull.

 

“That’s…”

 

“It’s fire.”

 

The Emperor, watching from afar, lit up his eyes as if finding it interesting.

 

The Fire Giant that had recently attacked the Imperial Capital. Which would be hotter – the fire that had just melted the knight’s body, or the Giant’s hellfire?

 

The answer came instantly.

 

The Giant’s hellfire was hotter.

 

While those blue flames were certainly not lacking in heat, if it had been the Giant’s hellfire, there wouldn’t have been time for screams to echo.

 

“It won’t be too difficult then.”

 

The Emperor said so.

 

He was the one who had brought down even the Giant that breathed hellfire. Moreover, he had absorbed the Giant’s fire, the divinity contained within it. He was truly like the sun.

 

* * *

 

It had been quite a long time since I lost my sense of reality.

 

I had forgotten who I was, even what I was doing. It was a continuous cycle of mechanically activating magic circles, checking the returning reactions, improving weaknesses, and deploying them again.

 

Mana flowed in endlessly from somewhere. Whether it was mana maintaining this space or components of the illusion, I couldn’t tell. All I needed was my mental strength.

 

Thanks to that, I could cast magic to my heart’s content.

 

When did I realize that the illusion had changed partway through? Instead of the cold, suffocating scenery of the research laboratory, there was a vast land before my eyes.

 

The déjà vu tickling my mind gradually stimulated my consciousness.

 

That Demon Lord bastard, it seems he finally changed his approach.

 

He must have realized that unless he wore down my mind, I wouldn’t give up. Whatever it might have been at first, the cold research laboratory no longer gave me any stimulation. So what he chose would be the scene before my eyes.

 

I saw endlessly stretched, unrealistically numbered enemies. I saw knights contorting their faces and shouting something. I felt hostility touching my skin.

 

Here and there, I saw faces that seemed familiar from somewhere.

 

“…!”

 

“… …”

 

“…!”

 

Who could it be? Who were they to cry out so desperately?

 

I couldn’t recall at all. My overworked mind… that is, the mind that would have been overworked if I weren’t trapped with only my soul remaining, rejected the act of retracing memories.

 

This wasn’t the first time. It was similar when I received a name at the research laboratory and had my memories bleached. If I continued living without trying to recall memories in this state, I would eventually forget everything.

 

That didn’t seem too bad either.

 

Even while feeling a faint sense of reality, my body continued to move. I dodged attacks and counterattacked.

 

I felt anew that this was an illusion. Attacks that should have been tremendously powerful didn’t seem like they would threaten me. They were dodged and blocked too easily.

 

I briefly entrusted my body to the sensation of dreaming.

 

When I reached out my hand, blue flames followed the movement, and on the opposite side, pillars of ice rose up. It felt like dancing. When I thought it would be nice if music flowed from somewhere, it did.

 

“Haha, quite atmospheric indeed.”

 

My mouth opened and laughter burst out. Had I intended to speak? The question didn’t last long.

 

Whether the echoing melody was bothersome or my laughter was unpleasant, the enemies contorted their already twisted faces even more and rushed at me.

 

Flames melted swords. Burned bodies. The terrible screams of knights created discord.

 

“Is it almost time now?”

 

It was difficult to understand the meaning of the words I had uttered.

 

The enemies didn’t stop even while watching their comrades die in agony. As if something was so hateful, as if resentful. Endlessly, endlessly they rushed at me.

 

They couldn’t pierce through the solid ice pillars, couldn’t cross the blue flames.

 

What could it be.

 

Why was it showing me such a scene. A question arose.

 

I could clearly feel their hostility. However, that alone didn’t stir any particular emotion. The illusion of being trapped in the research laboratory was far more painful.

 

Did it mean that if I submitted to the Demon Lord, if I obediently became one with it, I could obtain such power?

 

I didn’t know.

 

“Jude.”

 

Someone approached and spoke to me.

 

In his hand, he gripped a sword emitting light, in a stance as if he would charge at any moment.

 

The enemies that had been rushing at me like flies stopped according to his movement.

 

“There’s something I want to ask you.”

 

It was a face I’d seen somewhere before.

 

Since it bothered me quite a bit, I traced through my memories despite the headache. Among the faces of the couple Mike and Amy, and the guard members, a face quite similar to this one flashed by.

 

“…Johnny?”

 

On a face that would suit a playful expression better, numerous scars that hadn’t been there before were now present. Because of them, he gave off a rather fierce yet reliable feeling.

 

He seemed to resemble Mike a little too.

 

“That’s right.”

 

Johnny, the illusion resembling Johnny’s face, nodded like that.

 

His already threatening face was contorting hideously. Finding it somewhat amusing, I couldn’t help but laugh.

 

That Demon Lord fellow has quite unique taste.

 

Even when I last saw him, Johnny’s face wasn’t like that. Though he had changed from before, he still retained quite a naive feeling. How much time could have passed for him to change like that?

 

I couldn’t understand the reason for showing me such a strange illusion. Still, I decided to play along.

 

“Ask away. I’ll answer you.”

 

I felt something awkward about the words I spoke, but quickly forgot about it.

 

Johnny stared at me intently for a moment before asking.

 

“Are you really… the Demon Lord?”

 

The Demon Lord? It was absurd. I tried to immediately answer no.

 

However, my mouth wouldn’t open.

 

Johnny’s face contorted even more. Well, it would be natural to feel bad if I didn’t answer. There was no need to worry much about it. It was an illusion, and even if it wasn’t, it was Johnny.

 

Rather, what concerned me was that my body wasn’t moving as I wanted.

 

“What is it that you desire?”

 

While I was trying to regain control of my body by moving my mana, such a question was heard.

 

His thoughts had become quite deep.

 

What I desired. The time spent with Master was enjoyable. The moments with Mike and Amy were warm. The time working at the Golden Star Trading Company was rewarding.

 

As I recalled them one by one, my memories quickly returned to their proper place. I had saved someone, and lost someone too. In all those moments, what was it that I wanted?

 

Survival.

 

I had to survive. For that, I endured by saving the little money Master left behind, and even went to the Demon Realm looking for something profitable. I made a contract with the Demon Lord and learned magic to avoid being discovered as a Dark Mage.

 

Why? What was I trying to do by surviving?

 

It hurt.

 

Even though I hadn’t been attacked yet, it did.

 

Well, it must be a hallucination.

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