I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 51

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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 51

 

“Originally, there were no gods in this world.”

 

The man wearing a white robe spoke.

 

“Endless famine and disasters, all manner of strange phenomena. Invasions by demons from the Demon Realm and monsters influenced by them. The lives of the Middle Realm starved, suffered, and died while crying out to the gods.”

 

His chanting voice spread widely.

 

“There were no gods in this world. The cries of our ancestors only echoed emptily. However.”

 

The man raised his head and looked up at the sky. The clouds parted, and a ray of light descended toward him.

 

“There was one who took pity on us from the lofty Heavenly Realm.”

 

The robe he had been wearing flowed down. The man with sculpture-like beautiful features paid no mind and continued speaking.

 

“She willingly chose to become the god of this godless world. She is none other than the Goddess, Aision.”

 

A single tear flowing down his face sparkled as it caught the light.

 

“We are her servants. Her tools. Her hands, her feet, and those who carry her voice.”

 

Beneath the completely fallen robe, pure white armor was revealed.

 

“To reject us is to reject the Goddess.”

 

For the first time, a voice that was not the man’s echoed forth.

 

“To oppose us is to oppose the Goddess.”

 

As the voice echoed, the clouds gradually receded, and beams of light pouring from the sky illuminated the surroundings.

 

“To harm us is to harm the Goddess.”

 

Hundreds… no, thousands of people, likewise armed in pure white armor, looked at the man and spoke in unison.

 

“To believe in evil, follow evil, and commit evil acts. This is heresy.”

 

The Religious Order’s forces gathered from across the continent raised their swords.

 

“Punish the heretics. Destroy the heretics.”

 

The sword tips pointed toward the kingdom in the south of the continent, Balaih.

 

“As long as the Goddess is with us, there is no defeat for us!”

 

It was the city of Andril that had been guarding that border for the past several hundred years.

 

* * *

 

Take the essence of the World Tree.

 

It was the Demon Lord’s voice, light yet serious as always, but it was not greatly different from what his Master had tried to accomplish.

 

Even Jude, who had resolved not to dwell on his Master any longer, could not help but be shaken.

 

“…Then what happens?”

 

The image of his Master’s horrific appearance after being devoured by the World Tree circled in his mind. He had no desire to end up the same way.

 

-There’s nothing to worry about what happens or doesn’t happen. It’s not much different from when you used Soul Magic before.

 

The effect of Soul Magic was to absorb others’ souls to increase one’s own essence. It was dark magic that allowed one to glimpse others’ memories and steal their talents to reach unreachable positions.

 

-That is not something complete, merely a fragment of spirituality. It won’t allow you to fully replace the World Tree’s role. However…

 

-It was once a pillar that supported the world. The effect you gain from absorbing it will be incomparable to before.

“Will be, you say?”

-You might even touch upon Divine Authority, albeit faintly.

 

It was a strange tone that didn’t seem like the words of the Demon Lord, who was always full of confidence. Jude felt a small doubt, but soon shook his head.

 

He couldn’t know exactly what Divine Authority meant, but absorbing the World Tree’s spirituality didn’t seem like it would be harmful.

 

“Let’s begin.”

-Right.

 

Jude sat down and closed his eyes. Without the slightest movement, several minutes passed quickly.

 

Jude opened his eyes and asked.

 

“…So how exactly do I do this?”

-First, we’ll have to try stimulating it.

 

Applying shock from the outside wouldn’t be bad, and injecting massive life force as his Master Sevian had done would also be one method.

 

But what must come before all of that was sensing the World Tree’s spirituality absorbed within his body.

 

“….”

-….

 

The Demon Lord sighed.

 

-You can’t sense it?

“….”

-I’ve thought this for a while, but your detection ability is always below expectations.

 

Since their encounter in the Demon Realm, the Demon Lord had been dwelling in Jude’s body, sharing his senses.

 

But why was it that time and again, the Demon Lord would sense and notice things that Jude couldn’t feel first?

 

When they were being pursued by the Holy Knights, when they were searching for the Eternal Ice…

 

Even now, the Demon Lord seemed to clearly sense the World Tree’s spirituality sleeping within Jude’s body.

 

“…Isn’t there a soul somewhere with gifted senses?”

-A soul born with exceptional senses? Well, they’re everywhere.

 

The Demon Lord said.

 

-This is the Great Forest. The domain of Elves, who are born with senses several times superior to humans. Just kill one nearby. Yes. What was her name… Birutta? How about that one from last time?

 

The voice filled with laughter seemed to be testing Jude.

 

-She didn’t keep her own promise and made you waste precious time. It’s no different from humiliating you. That’s crime enough to deserve death.

“…No, that’s a bit much.”

 

Jude shook his head with a grimace.

 

As the Demon Lord had said, this was the Elves’ domain anyway. The souls of Elves who had died over the past thousands of years wouldn’t remain intact, but if he gathered even small traces, wouldn’t it amount to a considerable quantity?

 

Unless it was an irreplaceable situation, he didn’t want to kill someone just because he found them annoying.

 

-An irreplaceable situation, you say. Kuk. Yes…

 

The Demon Lord laughed ominously. Naturally, Jude’s brow furrowed.

 

From past experience, he had learned that when the creature acted like this, it was a sign that something was about to happen.

 

“What exactly… No, whatever it is, getting out of here should be the priority.”

 

Being trapped in a tree was somewhat familiar to Jude, and it was quite comfortable too.

 

But he had already obtained everything he could from thinking alone over the past few days.

 

“Ice Spirit. Get ready.”

 

He would scratch it with the Ice Spirit’s attack, then completely break through with Explosion.

 

Though it was somewhat brute force, there was no choice. If even half of what Birutta had said was true, staying trapped here indefinitely was dangerous.

 

Moreover, to awaken the World Tree’s spirituality, escaping this place was urgent.

 

Getting down would be a problem, but if he used the Ice Spirit well, he could minimize the impact of hitting the ground.

 

After that, he could hide his appearance with Deception. He could sneak around appropriately, find souls he could absorb, and awaken the World Tree’s spirituality.

 

“Perfect.”

-Stay still.

 

As soon as the Demon Lord finished speaking, the tree wall moved and a gap opened.

 

At the sudden change, Jude maintained the hand seals he had been forming while glaring through the gap.

 

‘Is it Birutta? Why only now…’

 

But what peeked through the gap was an Elf he had never seen before.

 

She had brown hair and a youthful face, but considering the lifespan of Elves, she had surely lived several times longer than Jude.

 

“Who are you?”

“…Remal. I came to guide the guest visiting the Great Forest.”

 

The clear yet slow voice characteristic of Elves pierced his ears. Without answering, Jude approached her and looked down through the now fully widened gap.

 

“…”

“…”

“…Still better than falling.”

 

Though he found it strange that they were looking for him now after leaving him alone for days, it seemed better than making a fuss about going down alone and getting unnecessarily injured.

 

Since it was true that he had absorbed the World Tree branch, thinking about it, it wasn’t that strange.

 

Jude was carried down the tree in Remal’s arms. Just as the tree gap had opened to create an entrance, with each step, the tree moved to create stairs.

 

‘If I absorb the World Tree’s spirituality and take on that status, would I be able to do something like that too?’

-Well, you wouldn’t need to go that far. Just absorbing the souls of a few Elves… about a hundred years of effort should do it.

‘…’

 

This too must be a type of Spirit Magic that Elves handle. Jude observed carefully, but couldn’t figure out the principle.

 

‘If it’s called Spirit Magic, I naturally thought it would be related to souls…’

 

Even when he focused on his Spirit Sight, no particularly notable souls were visible. It just felt like the tree was moving with its own will.

 

‘As expected, it’s not related to souls?’

 

It might just be a magic system designed to look like it handles souls. Jude recalled what the Elves had said when they first saw the Ice Spirit.

 

‘A complete spirit…’

 

If it meant a real spirit, not an imitation, it would be an understandable statement. But if that was the case, what did fragments mean?

 

Jude frowned at the answer that wouldn’t come easily.

 

“Please follow me. The King is waiting.”

 

Jude, who had been watching Remal’s back as she led the way, asked.

 

“Remal.”

“….”

“What does the World Tree mean to you people that you treat me like this?”

 

Even Jude, who had lived his entire life in the Balaih Kingdom, had never seen the King. If he hadn’t saved Andril from his Master’s hands, he wouldn’t have even met Prince Ator. How could a king be such a leisurely existence?

 

In a world where even meeting an Elf was difficult, it would be even harder for a human to meet their King.

 

Remal stopped in place and spoke as if muttering.

 

“The World Tree is… the mother of infinite life that sustains the Middle Realm. A transcendent being that blocked interference from other dimensions. Now vanished…”

 

Thump.

 

“The god of this world.”

 

Jude looked at Remal’s back, unable to tell what she was thinking.

 

‘Take the position of the World Tree.’

 

The Demon Lord had certainly said that. If the World Tree was truly a god, then the meaning of taking its position was…

 

“Our Elves’ purpose is the resurrection of the World Tree that withered long ago. We can do anything for that.”

“….”

“You, sir… have brought us the Divine Fragment we’ve been searching for thousands of years. Naturally, we must treat you as an important guest.”

 

The meaning of taking the position of a god. No matter how small and broken the fragment, divinity was still divinity.

 

His Master’s memories that had seeped into his mind rose up like a seizure. Jude understood the Demon Lord’s mockery that the Elves’ Spirit Magic hadn’t reached the essence at all.

 

“We don’t have much farther now.”

“….”

“Let’s walk a bit faster.”

 

From then on, for a while, Jude followed the silent Remal and witnessed the rapidly changing scenery.

 

Blue Lake. Trees surrounding it.

 

Though it was certainly a scene of the Great Forest not much different from other places, somehow it felt like a space with a sense of life.

 

“This place is…”

 

Just a few minutes from the Tree Prison where he had been confined. Who would have thought such a space existed at a distance that could hardly be called far.

 

-Kekeke. As expected…

 

The sight of Elves around them, each laughing, chatting, and living their lives, looked much more human compared to those he had encountered when he first arrived at the Great Forest.

 

No, they looked artificial.

 

Was it because of the unusual forms of the trees? Or was it because of the seemingly small number of Elves?

 

“The King is waiting. Please hurry.”

“….”

 

Jude moved his steps without ever knowing the reason.

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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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