Chapter 266: A War with the Demon Gods (9)
“……”
Muyoung stood. His charred, broken, brittle hands now had flesh, and he reached out to touch his face and head.
‘I live?’
Muyoung furrowed his brow. Diablo was still alive after having regenerated once more and killed Muyoung. Meyoung had recognized his death and closed his eyes for the final time.
“My husband! He is alive!”
Another strange thing was that Muyoung saw a fairy in front of him. Was this a dream? However, Muyoung disregarded this notion because he knew that this was reality, and a harsh one at that.
‘The Seven Trials.’
Muyoung thought he had seen those words when he opened his eyes. ‘The Seven Trials’ was the name of the power he had taken from the doppleganger. It was a mythical power that could be used to resurrect up to seven times. However, there was a penalty for each revival, and a reminder page in his status viewer popped up to refresh Muyoung’s memory.
Skill name: ‘The Seven Trials’ (None) The Immortal King overcame the impossible and perilous seven trials and earned seven lives. Lives left: Six. One loses something important for every revival.
What did Muyoung lose that was important to him? He turned back the dial on the status viewer. Everything was as Muyoung remembered in terms of statistics and skills. Muyoung confirmed that nothing was different.
“My husband! I was so worried. But don’t worry, I come with a way to crush that thing!”
“Who are you?”
Muyoung pinched his forehead. His head hurt worse than when his body had crumbled.
“Yes?”
The fairy stopped still as a statue by Muyoung’s question.
“I don’t know who you are but move aside. I have no time to play with you.”
Muyoung forced himself to stand up. He was in the middle of a battle, and while he was not fully healed, there was no time to rest. He still had six lives left. Diablo could not revive limitlessly if it had similar powers as Muyoung.
‘Let’s see who finishes first.’
Muyoung gripped Anguish, and it wailed in pain as his energies flowed. Muyoung ignored Anguish’s moans of disobedience. Crimson Balrog shouted not from agony, but to announce Muyoung’s revival.
“You did well.”
Crimson Balrog’s condition was gruesome, but his delight in seeing Muyoung’s revival was as if he was healed. With a thud, Crimson Balrog’s body crumbled. It was a miracle he had endured up to this time. Amon and Gremory had also gone down.
‘Am I the only one left?’
Muyoung still felt as if his head would burst. He saw the Hell Horse stand beside him as if to answer Muyoung’s question with a nay. (P/E: Or “neigh”. Lol!)
“You, you’re the Hell Horse.”
Muyoung barely managed to recognize him, and time seemed not to be the reason why his memory was so hazy. Was this a side effect of reviving, or a temporary phenomenon? Muyoung shook his head. It was not the time to contemplate such things.
Hundreds of unicorns gathered as the Hell Horse whinnied. They may buy Muyoung some time since unicorns had water and divine properties.
“You have no obligation to help me.”
However, Muyoung shook his head since he knew that the Hell Horse no longer needed to act on Muyoung’s behalf. Muyoung had already received help three times, and the Kingslayer was no more. The Hell Horse was free, but he also did not listen to Muyoung’s words.
Instead, the Hell Horse charged at Diablo before Muyoung did. The Hell Horse had always been like that and would act by his own whims rather than listen to Muyoung.
Muyoung spread his wings. ‘Once more.’ He was not yet down and had some strength left. Muyoung would fight, and as his sword cut through the void with a whirring noise, a massive shock wave crashed like a Tidal Wave of Sound on Diablo.
Diablo screamed again, and in a battle between monsters, a myth met another myth.
“My husband…”
Woohee was struck dumb for a moment and stared at Muyoung’s back. How could he ask who she was? Did he really forget her? It had been a long time since they had met, and Muyoung was always a bit impassive towards Woohee. But he had asked Woohee who she was.
While Woohee had been a most optimistic individual, she was so flabbergasted that she froze where she stood.
“This is not the time.”
Woohee came to her senses because she knew Muyoung could not defeat Diablo since it was an illusion, a God who did not exist!
‘Husband, you must believe in me.’
It did not matter if Muyoung had really forgotten her. Woohee was Woohee, and Muyoung was Muyoung. Woohee would be with Muyoung, and for her to do so, he had to be alive. So, Diablo had to be removed, and Muyoung had to trust Woohee completely to do so.
‘The summoner has to be somewhere nearby.’
Woohee quickly looked around. While everyone was down, they were not annihilated. She could find Muyoung’s subordinates hiding in the corner, including the high elves Ain and Snow.
‘It’s that woman!’
Woohee’s wings fluttered. Snow was Diablo’s summoner, or to be more exact, she built the ‘illusion’ that was Diablo. Snow was necessary to remove Diablo, and Diablo could be defeated.
“Little fairy, where are you going?”
However, Solomon appeared and held Woohee’s wings. While Solomon could not physically intervene, all fairies, including Woohee were under a contract with Solomon to create a trial and could gain a ‘house’ according to the profits of the said trial.
“You swindler! Let go of me now!”
“You say I’m a swindler?”
Solomon smirked because it was the first time he heard something like this. However, Woohee now knew about Solomon’s true intentions. The reason he had made the fairies create trials was to spread ‘disturbances’ in this world. He had said that fairies would be given houses, but it had been an empty promise. So, it was natural that Woohee called him a swindler.
“Let go of me! Holding the wings of a lady is a perverted act!”
Woohee tried to move her wings until her face grew red, but she could not move an inch. It was inevitable since a mere fairy was no match for Solomon.
“I know you’re the daughter of the Fairy King. Was your name Woohee?”
“Is not! So, let go of me!”
Time was of the essence, and at this moment, Muyoung was deeply wounded. Solomon stared at Woohee with some interest.
“I see that you have learned how to handle Diablo from the Fairy King, so I can’t let you go.”
“Stupid! Idiot! Fool!”
“Can you call those curses?”
They were all the ‘bad words’ Woohee knew, and Solomon’s smile deepened. At that moment, Muyoung broke through the ground with a crashing noise. He was beheaded and died instantly.
However, an astonishing phenomenon occurred right after Muyoung’s crash, as his body came together to revive him.
“He seems to possess the power of resurrection, but also loses some of his memories every time he revives.”
“Let go of me.”
“Which memory did he lose this time?”
Solomon looked like a child who found an amusing toy.
“Watch carefully. He will forget why he is fighting later on.”
Solomon found Muyoung intriguing. A half-god dragged into to the Darkness just before becoming a divine being was a rare scene. It would be a loss for Solomon not to see Muyoung’s pain and despair.
“Husband! Husband!”
Muyoung stood up every time he fell amidst Woohee’s shouts and charged towards Diablo. However, Muyoug’s attacks grew weaker as he lost power each time he came back. On the other hand, Diablo’s attacks became fiercer, and its flames spread like it would swallow the world whole.
“He will fall in vain, into the Darkness.”
Solomon thought that Muyoung would be forced to acknowledge the gap between him and Diablo. The end was near, as everyone was the same regardless of their willpower. Even Kingslayer and the Death Lord could not win against the whispers. They could not overcome themselves and fell into despair. Likewise, Muyoung will also fall into the Darkness and live with failure like the others.
“I’m sorry, please let me go.”
Woohee burst into tears. She knew how to defeat Diablo, and she had managed to reach the battlefield, but Solomon was in the way. Woohee had no way to get around this situation except to watch. The thought that she was useless to Muyoung pierced her heart.
“My husband, I was too late. I’m so sorry.”
With a thud, Muyoung fell, and with a snap, he rose. How many times had he done this? Muyoung could not remember. He could not remember why he was fighting this hopeless battle.
‘I have to fight.’
Muyoung only thought that he had to kill Diablo. Muyoung tried to spread his wings but found he had no strength left. He stood up using his hands and looked about his surroundings. There were mountains of burning corpses everywhere. Only death was here, as individuals died and killed each other.
‘I am the same.’
Muyoung raised the sword only by instinct. The enemy was too strong, big, fast, and regenerated endlessly. Diablo continued to revive no matter how many times Muyoung killed him. It was that moment someone whispered to Muyoung to give up. The voice told him to rest, and he had done enough. It also told him that it was a miracle that Muyoung came this far, and another death would end him.
‘Is it true?’
Was this the end? What would be the end? Muyoung felt something was wrong - he could not remember his name. Actually, he could not remember anything. Massive pillars made of flame soared with Diablo’s scream tas he devoured this world. Muyoung raised his sword and walked forward. He had to fight to defeat Diablo. Muyoung had never known despair and failure, but one thing was certain. They did not fit Muyoung, so he went forward without resting.
The whispers that asked Muyoung to give up stopped. ‘You are something’. The Darkness left Muyoung with that praise.
Diablo crushed Muyoung and pulverized his body. As Muyoung lay dying, his eyes met a small fairy who was staring at him.
‘Why is that fairy crying?’
Muyoung also did not know the answer to this question as the fairy continued to cry and said that she was sorry. What was she sorry about that she could not come earlier and could only watch? Come to think of it, Muyoung remembered a fairy who would cry every day. That fairy irritated and bothered him, but Muyoung felt something was missing when she was not around. She would cause accidents and would always pester him. There had been warmth that Muyoung had not felt for a long time. While fairies did not have a physical body, she had been warm.
Yes, her name had been… Muyoung’s eyes met the fairy again, and he smiled.
“Woohee.”
<The seven trials have been overcome.>
<The body of the immortal has been completed.>
<You have gained ‘the Divinity of the Immortal King.’>
Visit freewe𝑏(n)ovel.co(m) for the b𝘦st novel reading experience