Demon King

“The castle is over there…”

[Our secret is there.]

The monsters that filled the battlefield were shouting at the voice that echoed through the underground. Regardless of power level, everyone rushed in the same direction with the same purpose. It was a magnificent sight. I slipped into the fog, feeling it reinforce Reaper.

“Run faster!”

“It’ll be me who reaches there first!”

I swung my sword, cleaving through the neck of a creature that looked like a goat standing on two legs.

“Huh?!”

Flames sprouted out from its body, consuming it whole along with its mana.

[You gained 910 experience.]

[You received 49 gold.]

Although each demon was different, it was common for them to have at least one regeneration-type skill. That was why it was necessary to finish them off in a single blow, even if it meant getting hit.

“There’s an enemy.”

“Krghk!”

[You gained 1,209 experience.]

[You received 92 gold.]

But it was a different story now that I had Reaper. It didn’t have anything to do with my physical power, but it attracted the opponent to death. Skills that needed to be activated didn’t; armor that was meant to block was pierced instead. It interfered with the very concept of life.

[You gained 908 experience.]

[You gained 793 experience.]

“The screaming never stops.”

“You have a target right in front of you!”

“Just run!”

Most of the demons just ran forward, but there were a few who were cautious and kept watching their backs. They shared one great purpose but didn’t want to give their lives for it. They hesitated, the ranks starting to split just a little. I went through the gaps in the formation and picked them off.

“Kyaaaahhhh!”

[You gained 910 experience.]

[You received 43 gold.]

[New Magic has increased by 1.]

The energy of Predation was mixing with the mist, greedily consuming the blood and flesh that sprang from everywhere. The bodies of these higher entities that brought me strength were sweet. Their blood was more exhilarating than coffee, and their flesh softer than the most tender meat. My body was filled to the brim with mana from engorging myself. So much so, that it began to overflow from me and form the Wings of Jinma. It increased my strength and speed even more, but at the same time, it made my presence more noticeable.

[You gained 1,193 experience.]

“He’s here!”

“It was just for a moment, but I felt it clearly…!”

A countless number of demons reacted to me as I was revealed in the short gap before I could activate Reaper. Those blindly rushing towards the castle turned, targeting me.

“There’s an enemy!”

“He’s related to that castle!”

“He’s blocking us from entering.”

However, if I had been afraid of being spotted, I wouldn’t have pulled out the Wings of Jinma. Part of my plan was to reveal my presence here to keep the main forces from reaching the castle. I transformed more than half of my mana into a blackmine instantly, several black lighting spheres scattering in all directions to attack the demons. It wasn’t to kill them, however. Instead, I used them to create a connected mobile prison that would move alongside me.

“Kahak!”

“Ahhhh!”

Strings of lightning connected the spheres, shocking and hindering all of the demons between them. It was like the lightning net I used before. But more than that…

“Now!”

“Huh?! My mana is being absorbed!”

Now, I could imbue all of my attacks with Predation. Though, certain skills like Black Rose particularly worked well with it. The lightning that attacked my enemies robbed them of their mana. I used that mana to create more spheres to send out, expanding the realm of my prison.

[Blackmine became Lv2.]

It was the Devil’s Night that created the battlefield, but within it, I built my own domain. They couldn’t break through my electric field, and more enemies gradually kept getting caught up in it.

“So annoying!”

“Where are you?!”

“He’s here!”

The demons who had enough magical power to destroy my prison were ambushed one by one, and I cut their necks. I couldn’t leave any threats to me alive. I pulled all of them into my range and devoured them. There was no one on this battlefield that could survive after being taken into my stomach as food.

[Level up!]

[New Magic has increased by 1.]

I activated Lunatic Trickster, using the dark shards I acquired by killing the demons. They were crystals of underground mana, generously donated to me to serve as a foundation for my abilities. The prison I constructed expanded to cover hundreds of meters in an instant.

“Ahhhhhhhhh!”

[You gained 293 experience.]

[You gained 501 experience.]

[You gained 1,092 experience.]

[You gained…]

The screams from the monsters deafened me, but it didn’t matter. The mana of every demon trapped in my prison of lightning was sucked out. It was still difficult to control it with my current abilities, but the mana helped me manage it.

“He’s here.”

“You can’t reach the castle until we kill this guy!”

“There’s a Jinma over here?”

“The one who kills him will grow stronger!”

The prison grew wider and stronger, but the mana in my body was fast enough to make my body feel as if it were tearing itself apart. I opened my eyes wide, controlling the mana and magic around me. It was a daring use of Reaper, and it was miraculous that it was able to equalize the different skills I was using.

“Belkena’s blood still flows!”

“His abilities are restraining us!”

“Kihahahaha!”

The number of demons that reached me was gradually increasing alongside the trail of magic being burned by the lightning. But the prison that covered me threw lightning at them, blocking their approach and slaying countless monsters.

[Level up!]

[You gained 1,295 experience.]

[You received 95 gold.]

[You obtained a Devil Fragment.]

“Kill him!”

A huge rock floated in the air for a brief moment before dropping towards me. However, it was being hit by my mana from all directions as it sailed toward me. By the time it actually reached me, it was a little larger than a tablet. I cut it apart and expanded the range of my prison even further.

[Level up!]

The experience accumulated at a speed incomparable to when I fought on the wall. It served to elevate me even higher, and I thought it was possible to achieve an evolution even though I had yet to receive a quest.

[You must return!]

I heard the voice of Rain call out to me and mentally stopped myself. If I had to trust only one person in the world, it was Rain. If he was calling out to me, then something must be happening. Using Ubiquitous, I stepped into the air and reduced the range of my prison. I shifted it to be in front of me, burning through the demons in my path. Even if it didn’t kill them, it was enough to push them out of the way.

At the moment, my vision blurred, and I felt a pain like I was being burned alive. The vision I saw from my left, and right eye was slightly different, filling me with confusion. However, I soon realized it was due to feeling an enormous amount of mana. The mana that made up my body rushed up to my heart and brain, cutting off my physical form. I let it go, leaping forward.

[Isn’t this an interesting sight.]

Shortly after, I heard a voice that I remembered hearing before. It wasn’t from my life as a human or after I had reincarnated. Perhaps it was a memory from before…

[Sir, why are you doing such a shabby thing? I’m about to cry.]

Once again, the front of my right eye was darkened as I was struck by terrible pain. I had formed half of my body, but it was struck down again.

Only

[Oh, my. I thought I had ruined everything and escaped death by myself, but now you’ve appeared in front of my eyes like this.]

[Get inside the castle! I can’t fight back like this!]

The voices of the man and Rain came to me, one after the other. One was a voice full of laughter, and the other was urgent. All the mana that was reconstructing my body was pulled back into my heart and brain. The energy was immediately recycled to reform my body again, and I lifted my head up as it formed. A single thing was caught in my vision, and I was glad that my heart and brain hadn’t been hit. It was an angel riding on the back of a giant black wolf.

[Now, time to die and disappear.]

The angel lifted up a flaming sword, burning through my prison with flames.

[Fate!]

As I heard the voice of Rain, I stood firmly in place. My mana was scattered hundreds of meters around me by the flaming sword, but only one thought remained in me.

If I ate it, I would evolve.