Chapter 167
“Oh, of course. You must be a 6th-tier devil. A 5th-tier devil of marquis or higher rank wouldn’t be able to descend into such a measly vessel. Do you even hold a title? Or are you just a nameless common devil without one?”
Common devil.
It referred to the lowest rank among 6th-tier devils.
They possessed power not much different from the demonic beasts that devils usually command.
At Chris’s words, the devil let out a voice full of rage.
[How dare you. Do you have a death wish, mortal? I am Baron Sandie, servant of the ferocious Greed of the 4th tier—Lord Mistrot.]
Baron-tier.
5th- and 6th-tier devils were categorized by noble ranks.
A baron was still on the lower end of the 6th tier.
‘Of course, that’s still only among devils.’
As shown earlier through Patera, even a baron-tier devil was far beyond the reach of mere mortals.
It was an utterly desperate situation—yet Chris’s face showed no trace of fear.
Unsettled by that reaction, the devil's brow twitched.
[You really don’t understand what’s about to happen to you, do you?]
The devil pulled its grotesque lips, torn far to each side, into a hideous grin.
[This place is not the real world. It’s the realm of dreams. Anything is possible here. I’ll trap your mind, neither dead nor alive, and torment you through endless time with eternal agony.]
The dream world was a realm of pure imagination, where anything was possible.
Just as the devil said, it was entirely possible to imprison Chris’s spirit and subject him to agony for an eternity.
[I’ve already received permission from Lady Mefina, who has her eye on you. She said I just couldn’t kill you. So now, you'll scream forever in unbearable torment.]
Chris immediately saw through Mefina’s scheme.
She was using this devil to plunge him into eternal suffering, planning to force a contract afterward.
It was exactly the kind of vile trick you'd expect from a devil.
“You sure talk a lot.”
[…What?]
“Don’t have any friends or something? You just keep going on and on.”
Chris wagged his middle finger at the devil.
“Shut that filthy mouth and bring it on.”
The devil froze for a moment, stunned.
Had a mere human just uttered such blasphemy to him?
[You lunatic… Fine then. I’ll enjoy listening to the screams that come out of that arrogant mouth of yours.]
Fwoooosh!!
The devil’s power flared.
The same devastating energy that had been manifested earlier through Patera was now hurled at Chris.
Even a seasoned figure like Marquis Shupen, who had reached the level of 8-star, had struggled against that destructive might.
But then, something unbelievable happened.
Flaaash!!
A radiant light burst forth from Chris.
That dazzling, brilliant light rapidly expanded, swallowing the entire surrounding space.
The devil’s destructive energy was engulfed by the radiant light—and like fire meeting water, it fizzled out powerlessly.
The Devil shouted in panic: [W-What is this?!]
It saw the domain of light engulfing the surroundings.
“Ah, but you’re the one who said it—this is the world of dreams.”
Chris gestured toward the light.
“A dream world… is an infinite realm where anything is possible.”
The light that had seized the space flickered and began taking shape.
Countless swords of light rose into the air.
It was the Veil of Swords—a domain once wielded by the Hero Evan.
“So naturally, something like this is possible for me too, don’t you think?”
Chris smiled slyly and declared,
“Die.”
The baptism of light surged toward the devil.
* * *
The reason the chatterbox of darkness had shared this method was simple:
Because the devil parasitizing Patera was rooted in the unconscious world of dreams.
And since anything was possible in the dream world, it was theoretically feasible to unleash power beyond one’s normal limits and overwhelm a devil.
‘Of course, that doesn’t mean everything is truly possible without limits.’
Chris lowered his gaze slightly.
The devil was engulfed in the downpour of radiant swords, shredded to pieces—literally torn apart into uncountable fragments, its body annihilated beyond recognition.
But naturally, it wasn’t over yet.
And sure enough—
[…Foolish creature.]
The devil’s scattered soul reassembled itself.
Not even a scratch remained.
If anything, the infernal aura now swirling around it had grown even stronger than before.
[A mere mortal dares to stand against a devil within a dream?]
The devil glared coldly at Chris.
[You don’t actually believe this world allows everything, do you? That anything is infinitely possible?]
The dream world did allow for limitless possibilities—but with a catch.
Only within the limits of one’s mental strength.
For example, one could use magic they’d never learned in this world of dreams.
By skipping the process entirely and simply invoking the effect.
Because that’s the nature of dreams.
However, for that dream to have actual impact on another being, the user’s mind had to be strong enough to sustain that influence.
‘There’s a vast difference between merely dreaming and turning a dream into real influence. You need the mental strength to bear the burden of that impact.’
That was the key.
In the world of dreams, combat was a battle of willpower.
In other words, Chris had to overpower the devil mentally.
That was why the Hero’s party had ultimately abandoned the method the chatterbox of darkness had taught them.
Even they, with all their strength, couldn’t outmatch a devil in mental fortitude.
[It’s too late to regret. Writhe in the agony of eternity, and weep for your foolish arrogance.]
The infernal force surged again.
This time, with a power that couldn’t even be compared to before.
As if it sought to annihilate everything in existence.
No mortal should have been able to withstand such terrifying power.
At that moment of life-or-death crisis—
A voice whispered at Chris’s ear.
—Offer me your soul. I’ll save you.
It was Mefina.
Chris let out a dry chuckle.
He couldn’t help but think—how predictable she was.
‘No need.’
[What? If you stay like this, you’ll—]
‘You’re after my soul, yet you don’t even know what I truly am?’
At that moment, light once again erupted from Chris’s body.
But it wasn’t like the earlier Veil of Swords that mimicked Hero Evan.
It was different.
Countless flickering lights shimmered in brilliance, like stars twinkling across the night sky.
It was Blessing of the Stars—the domain once wielded by Clessis, Saintess of the Holy Empire and a comrade of the Hero’s party.
A miracle descended, nullifying the power of evil in the surrounding space.
But astonishingly, the devil’s aura endured even Blessing of the Stars.
The devil sneered.
[You think this is enough…?!!]
“Who said this was the end?”
Chris spoke lightly.
And then—another unbelievable miracle occurred.
This time, it was an aura of darkness.
Drip. Drip.
Droplets of blood floated in the air, and the radiant stars shimmering overhead were suddenly stained red.
The stars, soaked in blood, darkened to a deep black—emitting a sinister, corrupted energy, like desecrated constellations.
It was Scream of Madness—one of the unique domains once wielded by the Blood-Drenched Demon King.
A horrifying power that could drive any being into madness and corruption had tainted the sacred stars with sin.
The frenzied energy radiating from the fallen stars completely overwhelmed the devil’s aura—then wiped it out entirely.
[W-What… This is absurd!!]
The devil screamed in disbelief.
Chris had tainted the light with darkness and turned it into something far more powerful.
An impossible feat in reality—made real here.
“Normally, this would be impossible. But since this is a dream world… anything can happen, right?”
[Don’t spout nonsense! What you just did—your mind can’t possibly endure that!]
The more impossible something is in reality—
The more it defies the laws of nature—
The more mental strength it requires in the dream world.
So the feat Chris had just performed would have consumed a truly incomprehensible amount of willpower.
And yet—
“What part of my words did you not understand?”
“I told you—here, I can do anything.”
Just then—
Crack!
One of the devil’s knees twisted grotesquely and buckled forward.
[!!!]
The devil’s eyes widened.
As if something—or someone—was forcibly twisting its very spirit.
It was ‘Absolute Dominion’—a power belonging to those who had reached the 9-Star Transcendence Realm.
A state where one could control all things in existence according to their will.
Chris, who had unleashed such a level of power as if it were nothing, gave a carefree smile and explained:
“My willpower is limitless.”
That was it.
That was why the chatterbox of darkness had said only Chris could pull this off.
In the realm of the mind, Chris was invincible.
* * *
What followed was an intense and grueling battle.
A devil was still a devil.
It wouldn't go down so easily.
[Y-You insolent…!!]
Power erupted with enough force to overturn heaven and earth.
If this had happened in the real world instead of a dream, it would have triggered a cataclysm of unimaginable scale.
But Chris didn’t even flinch.
“I already told you.”
He flicked his hand—and the devil’s spiritual form was torn into countless fragments, scattered in all directions.
Then the shredded remnants of its soul were engulfed in radiant flames.
It was Purgatorial Karma Flame—a divine fire once wielded by the Guardian of the Holy Prison, one of the Seven Pillars of the Alliance.
And yet, Chris's assault didn’t stop.
As if he intended to erase the devil’s soul from existence completely.
Of course, the devil didn’t go down without a fight.
No matter how many times it was torn and scattered, it reformed again and again, launching eerie counterattacks.
But as this repeated endlessly, the signs of exhaustion began to show.
Its mental strength was wearing thin.
‘Th-This is impossible…! That a mere mortal’s willpower could surpass that of a devil like me?!’
The devil stared at Chris with disbelief in its eyes.
But Chris remained perfectly fine.
Despite unleashing miracles upon miracles in this dream world, where each act should’ve consumed an enormous amount of willpower, he showed no signs of strain.
[…What… are you?]
“Me? I’m human.”
[Don’t lie! No mere human could possibly have this kind of willpower!!]
The devil exploded in rage, but Chris just shrugged and added nonchalantly:
“I am human. Just not an ordinary one. I’m a genius.”
[W-What?!]
“Isn’t it only natural that a genius like me would have stronger willpower than some worm-tier low-grade devil like you?”
Riiip!!
Once more, the devil’s soul was shredded apart.
“And besides, this dream world happens to be quite fond of me too.”
Yes.
Chris’s overwhelming dominance wasn’t just because of his mental strength.
The dream world itself was empowering him.
‘More precisely, it's thanks to Patera.’
From Patera’s perspective, the devil was the one who had taken everything from her.
Chris, on the other hand, was her savior—her ally.
So the entire dream world was siding with Chris.
[Kuaaaargh!!]
The devil shrieked.
It was clearly at its breaking point now.
“Let’s wrap this up.”
Just as Chris prepared to end it all—
Something unexpected happened.
The devil looked up at the sky and cried out:
[O my great master!! Please, have mercy on your lowly servant and lend me your power!!]
“!!”
Chris’s face hardened.
It was trying to summon its master—a 4th-tier devil.
‘If a 4th-tier devil descends… it’s over.’
Even if Chris’s willpower was limitless, a 4th-tier devil was on another level entirely.
The 3rd and 4th-tier devils were true transcendent beings.
‘I have to stop it!’
But he was too late.
Darkness surged and flickered—
The snowy mountain landscape that once made up the dream world was completely overturned.