32 – Chungwang’s Expedition (5)
Once upon a time, in a very distant past.
Long before an empire was truly an empire, in a time that didn’t even exist.
Somewhere in the future, rather than when the sun was still rising from the ground.
There was a great metropolis.
A golden city that loved beauty and cherished purity. Its streets were clean, and its people were kind.
It wasn’t just the citizens’ good civic sense at that time.
It was due to the revolutionary strategy of the lord who managed the place.
The lord, who pursued perfection, was planning to gather all the waste coming out of his city in one place.
He intended to dig a very large pit near his city and dump all the dirty things there. This way, his city would remain clean, and various garbage problems could be solved.
Of course, the pit would steadily accumulate trash, but since it wouldn’t be visible, it was all okay.
“Dig a large, deep pit on the side square.”
The lord who made the plan immediately put it into action.
He gathered earth sorcerers and laborers to dig a large pit, which was then covered with a massive iron lid.
And all the bugs, garbage, and monsters causing harm in the city were brought there.
All sorts of garbage dumped there were processed by the bugs and monsters.
At first, it seemed very perfect.
If only Glutton was not there.
A Hungry Spirit was born there.
As a small janitor handling the piles of corpses and filth in the pit. With no intelligence, he truly devoured a lot of things.
Perhaps it was because he often devoured the corpses of monsters, including magic, but it didn’t take long for him to become a monster himself.
For the first few years, the lord’s policy seemed to be working really well. There was nothing more convenient than gathering all the dirty things in the city in one place.
– Truly, it’s the lord!
– You are wise!
However, just like most things in the world, what is buried and stagnant tends to rot.
The innovative policy that was once revolutionary has decayed over time.
At first, the garbage bin only contained piles of filth, but at some point, it began to accumulate other things.
From bothersome corpses to heinous criminals, to beggars in the slums who disrupt the city’s splendor, to loyalists opposed to the Lord’s will.
The pit that was meant for the city transformed into an execution ground in an instant.
“My Lord, please show mercy!”
“No, no! I cannot die like this!”
“My Lord! Please, at least spare my daughter!”
From that moment, the Lord turned into a tyrant. Anyone who did not follow his will was thrown into the pit, leaving only those who worshipped him nearby.
If they didn’t want to die, they had no choice but to worship him.
“Of course, it’s the Lord.”
“He is wise…”
“Impressive…”
From then on, the city became more beautiful.
People painted smiles on their faces and adorned their appearances. Whether they had ears to hear or not, they always worshipped the Lord.
However, there was one thing they didn’t know.
The pit created by the Lord was essentially nothing more than a lonely vessel.
It collected all the filth and wickedness of the world in one place.
Creatures born within it would be more malevolent than anything else.
But to create a better creature, to truly disturb the world, it was not enough to just gather them.
One more thing was needed.
It was none other than Nen (念), encompassing emotions, thoughts, and will.
Whether it belonged to a human or an animal, it didn’t matter.
The more intense, the longer-lasting, the stronger its power became as it stayed in one place.
“Mother! Mommy!”
“Let’s go, let’s find a way to escape…”
The place where the kitchen knife lived was such a place.
For the first few years, it was limited to devouring corpses, growing bigger and stronger.
After spending a few more years, his body gradually began to grow bigger.
When he started to eat people, the efficiency of his body growth was different.
The calories he consumed directly turned into magnification.
Before he knew it, no matter how much he ate, he never felt full and constantly had the urge to eat.
For decades.
He became so big that he could even surpass that enormous pit.
Once he came out, there was an endless amount of things to eat. The trees that soared into the sky, the animals that passed through them, and even the people walking on the streets. He devoured everything without discrimination.
– Ahhh! It’s a monster!!
– Save us! Please save us!
– Your Highness, Your Highness! Damn bastard!!
That day, the metropolis was destroyed.
By a single organism born as a small garbage cleaner.
The gruesome cost of turning a blind eye to what had accumulated in the pit.
*
“Ah, Ahh…”
Ulysses looked up with fearful eyes.
A white, giant earthworm appeared, darkening the already dark night sky. It was the enormous calamity that had popped up in old legends.
His party members lying around in all directions came into view as well.
The roof of the summoning hall had collapsed, and except for Ulysses and Luke, the rest of the party members were all unconscious.
This happened simply because of a single summoning.
She asked herself with a confused mind.
“What is this?”
Something.
What on earth happened?
They were clearly winning, so why did they end up in this situation?
The plan was clearly perfect.
The preparations were thorough. The party members worked together in perfect harmony and fulfilled their roles faithfully.
They couldn’t have done any better. Yet the result turned out like this.
The plan had completely fallen apart.
The preparations had become a waste.
All the comrades who had been by her side lay on the ground.
She felt a sense of despair as if everything they had done until now had become meaningless.
She asked herself inwardly, “How on earth should we catch that thing?”
The opponent is a calamity of ancient times, a monster that destroyed a city in just a single day. No matter how much magic Lily uses, it will only burn a part of its body, and even if Camilla uses her Sword Aura, it won’t reach its vital organs.
It was uncertain whether they could block that monster’s attack from the beginning.
How do you block that distant weight?
She remained motionless for a while, unable to do anything.
Emotions of resignation, futility, and fear swirled within her for a while.
She couldn’t think of a way to remedy the situation at all.
“…”
Well, to be honest, she did have one thought.
“I, I could sacrifice myself…”
Still, she was a saint.
The most sacred being in this world, living with the blessing of the goddess.
And the opponent is the calamity of the world, hated by the goddess.
In a way, it’s an extreme contrast.
It will take quite some time, but if she consistently emits sacred power, she could eventually defeat such a colossal creature.
Of course, the key is how to buy that much time…
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“I just need to be devoured.”
Even that can be resolved quickly.
After all, it won’t immediately melt down as soon as it devours her.
Considering its massive size, it would undoubtedly take a long time to digest.
During that time, she would collect sacred power.
Of course, she decided not to think about her body gradually melting away inside it.
Resolute Ulysses spoke to the hero.
“Hero, please, escape.”
“What?”
Luke, who had been dazed for a while, turned his head.
“I will sacrifice myself to buy time… Please, take our comrades and escape. I’m sure I can catch that thing.”
“No, how on earth do you catch that guy?”
“Well…”
Ulris explained his plan to him.
At least, in her opinion, there was no other way.
Tears welled up in her eyes for a moment.
Although she didn’t have many good memories, the memories of the parties she had attended so far came to mind.
She had seen how noble a human could become.
She had seen the truth of the hero she had thought was a villain.
There was still much she couldn’t do for him, but unfortunately, it was time to leave now.
“Saint.”
After explaining everything, the hero called her.
His face was more serious than she had thought.
“Lean your head forward for a moment.”
“Huh, my head? Why all of a sudden?”
“Just do it quickly.”
She was bewildered, but she did as she was told.
With tears accumulating in her eyes, she bowed her head for a moment.
And…
Smack!
“Ouch!”
In that state, she received a blow.
Sincere concern was contained in the hero’s strike.
She looked up at him with an indignant expression.
Then she shouted.
*
“Why did you hit me?”
I hit her because I couldn’t believe it. Damn it.
Words should make sense when spoken.
I asked her.
“What did I say last time?”
“When?…”
“When I learned dark magic and fought with my teammates.”
She hesitated, thinking carefully.
Surprisingly, the answer came quickly.
“Don’t sacrifice your life recklessly…”
“Yes, that’s right. Did my words sound like mere nonsense to you? To give up so easily like this… That’s absolutely not an option. It’s resignation.”
I lightly tapped her head.
As if confirming the correctness, her temperature rose, and she let out a gasp.
“Then what should I do? There’s no way!!”
I could only pause for a moment.
“Do you know what determination I spoke with? Do you understand the sentiment behind my words? I don’t want to die either. I want to live, but there’s no way, so I have no choice… I’m willing to endure and sacrifice all these things, but you…”
Tears welled up in her eyes. While speaking, her trembling hands became visible. Fear and anger were evident in her sapphire eyes.
It must be terrifying and unjust. There shouldn’t be anyone who wants to die, as she said.
“Then, you have a 40% chance.”
I told her.
“If you want to live, then you have to live. Why do you want to die?”
Then, I glanced up for a moment.
To be precise, I looked at the status window above the cutlery demon’s head.
＜82＞
It had increased by a staggering 2 levels compared to the previous King Chung.
With this, the level difference between me and the cutlery demon was practically 5 levels.
As soon as I saw it, I couldn’t help but curse, but there was something that made me even angrier.
[WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!]
[Destiny Forced!]
This damn system message had been loudly blaring since a while ago.
There were a total of three ‘WARNING!’ messages.
The warning messages were divided into levels based on the number.
One was for temporary damage that might occur.
Two of them would suffer permanent damage.
Three of them came out when the entire party could be destroyed.
This time, it was three that came out.
Even fate said so. Even forcefully.
It seemed as if he was saying this.
Your fate is ultimately determined.
This is your final destiny.
If you look at the Four Pillars of Destiny, you are destined to die somewhere, and if you read the Celestial Orbit, you are destined to lose miserably someday.
That is your decree, so just struggle appropriately and endure torture for the rest of your life.
I want to tell him.
Please, I beg you, stop talking nonsense.
I muttered as I grabbed the sword tightly.
“I don’t f*cking believe in fate…”
For over 900 chapters, they endured endless pain.
Deaths they haven’t seen before such as dying of thirst, dying from disease, dying of hunger, dying in battle, dying by fire, and suicide were scarce.
I was tired of seeing them sacrifice themselves and suffer from defeat.
“I will save them.”
I will somehow save them.
That’s why I came here.
Even if my initial determination has been worn out, it still remained inside me.
Of course, the situation is the worst. The party is half incapacitated, and even the remaining members are completely exhausted.
Meanwhile, the enemy is completely vigorous, highlighting the difference in strength.
So what should I do?
The plan?
It all fell apart. But I can come up with a new one.
Comrades?
Most of them have passed out. But there is still a holy maiden left, is there not?
Even if injured, her limbs are intact.
She may be a little tired, but he has also exhausted most of his insects.
Then it’s settled.
“At least, as far as I know, [The Demon Lord and Hero Party] never presents an impossible problem. No matter how difficult the situation may be, if you contemplate it long enough, you’ll find a solution.”
“···No.”
I came up with the answer myself.
Obstacles that everyone else deemed impossible, I navigated through them all, meticulously planning and pondering until I found the right answers.
This time wouldn’t be much different.
“Ah.”
Suddenly, a new idea popped into my mind.
I called out to the Holy Maiden.
“Can’t I just withstand it with my body?”
“Yes?!”
The Holy Maiden exclaimed loudly.
