Chapter 220
[What… did you say?]
“Oh yes, I did intercept the soul contract Your Majesty made—without any official justification. But do you know something interesting?”
Chris continued with a mocking tone.
“There’s a clause in Gehenna’s laws that says: ‘A higher-ranked being can usurp a soul contract made by a lower-ranked being.’
A convenient loophole, really—meant to allow higher devils to steal the souls owned by lesser devils at will.”
[…What?]
“In other words…”
Sssshhhk.
The black crescent sigil flared once more on Chris’s temple.
The mark of a Half-Demon.
“It means I’m a being of higher soul rank than Your Majesty.
You, who are a mere inferior Demon King—still at 9-star, yet not even close to reaching Half-Demon status.”
[!!]
That’s right.
Incredibly, Chris’s soul rank was higher than that of the Demon King of Azure Flow.
Though she was a 9-star Transcendent, she had never reached the level of a Half-Demon.
Chris turned to where her presence could still faintly be felt.
He looked in that direction as if gazing down at something inferior—with utter arrogance in his eyes.
“So kindly, get lost now.”
As Chris motioned toward the blade of causality, it reversed course and launched itself in the direction of the Demon King of Azure Flow.
[!!]
Because she had tampered with causality unjustly, the backlash now targeted her instead.
‘Even if it’s not a serious wound, she’ll take a hit.
No one—not even a Demon King—can escape the recoil from mishandling causality.’
In the end, she fell victim to her own manipulation.
As the Demon King’s presence vanished, Chris returned his focus to the contract.
Fwoooosh!!
The black crescent sigil fully surfaced on the back of Yulian—no, Rear’s—neck…
then slowly sank back beneath her skin.
It was the sign that her soul had been successfully bound to Chris.
At that moment, the world around them began to tremble.
[You bastard…!!]
The Devil of the 3rd Realm, whose contract had just been nullified, roared in fury.
FWWOOOOOSH!!!
A torrent of malicious energy from Gehenna erupted forth.
Stripped of its causal link to the middle realm, the devil couldn’t strike directly—
so it instead unleashed a flood of Gehenna’s Malice in a desperate attempt to kill Christian.
‘I have to block this!’
FWAAAASH!!
Chris summoned forth the power of Radiance, shielding both himself and Yulian.
A towering, solid spire began to melt under the assault of the demonic energy—
its destructive force was like molten lava engulfing everything in its path.
But thanks to Radiant Mana, the natural counter to evil energy, he managed to endure it—just barely.
‘Still alive…’
Chris let out a low sigh of relief.
‘The Demon King of Azure Flow is probably going to take a serious hit from all this. That Devil of the 3rd Realm is bound to retaliate.’
After all, it was the Demon King of Azure Flow who directly brokered the contract with that Devil.
She would be held accountable.
Chris didn’t know exactly what price she’d have to pay—but it would be significant.
‘Either way, it’s finally over.’
Chris let out a long sigh.
With Yulian’s contract nullified, the summoned hell lost its power, and the corrupted, encroached land began to revert to normal.
From a distance, he could vaguely see that the damage wasn’t as bad as he feared.
He thought he could faintly hear voices cheering somewhere far off—
“Glory to Archduke Christian!”
‘Right. First, I need to treat Yulian.’
Now that the Devil was gone, Yulian—whose form had been clinging to demonic transformation—collapsed helplessly to the ground.
Chris immediately channeled Divine Medical Energy for emergency treatment.
The injury to her heart had to be treated before the Devil’s curse of undeath fully faded.
Her condition was so severe that he had to pour in every last bit of his strength just to stabilize her.
Once her breathing evened out, Chris finally let out a shaky breath of relief.
‘Damn… this one really pushed me to the limit. Just how much hell did I go through this time?’
Chris shivered.
The encroached realm…
Macfield…
Marquis Langham…
the Devil of the 3rd Realm…
and finally, the Demon King of Azure Flow.
It had been one unending chain of disasters.
‘On a day like this, I should be kicking back with a strong drink and passing out. Damn this body—why do I have to be so weak to alcohol?’
Maybe it was because he finally had a moment to relax,
but a new wave of frustration welled up inside him.
‘Seriously. Why the hell do I have to go through all this crap? And even after everything, I still can’t drink? That’s just too cruel!’
Still, there was one silver lining.
‘I’ll be heading to the Venomous Demonic House soon. When I get there, I swear I’ll invent a formula to increase my alcohol tolerance.’
The time to visit the Venomous Demonic House was fast approaching.
He planned to stay there briefly and accomplish his goals:
Spread his name.
Acquire the Poison Well.
Prevent the transformation of Jinrok.
‘And in the end, I’ll make the Venomous Demonic House kneel before me.’
To that list, Chris added one more personal goal:
‘While I’m there, I’m absolutely going to create an alcohol-tolerance potion using their poisons!’
He shivered in delight at the image of himself downing bottles without passing out.
Even the thought made him feel happy.
‘Though… there’s still one thing I have to settle before heading out.’
Right then, he heard a faint voice.
“…Thank… you…”
It was Yulian.
Chris responded casually, “It’s fine. But just know—since I’ve avenged you, I’m gonna work you like a slave for the rest of your life. Be ready.”
Yulian gave a faint smile.
It was a transparent, honest smile—very different from the scheming expressions she used to wear.
“I won’t sit back and let you do all the work for revenge. I’ll fight too. So use me however you want… Master.”
Chris looked a little embarrassed.
Though they had officially formed a master-servant contract, hearing her say it out loud still made things feel a little awkward for Chris.
‘Still… Yulian’s going to be a major asset going forward.’
Now that they were bound by soul, Chris could clearly sense the extent of her abilities.
Her Dark Magic Energy wasn't anything particularly noteworthy.
But the spirit arts she possessed from her original soul…
She was a 6-star, and not just barely—solidly in the middle tier.
She would be a tremendous force.
And with their bond as soulmaster and servant, there was no risk of betrayal either.
‘I’m absolutely going to milk her for all she’s worth.’
Chris opened his mouth.
“Lear—”
“No, treat me as you always did. Hearing my true name just reminds me of my old family…”
Yulian said bitterly.
Chris gave a small nod.
“I’ve got your first command ready.”
“What is it?”
Yulian looked puzzled.
“I’m not exactly in any shape to carry out orders right now.”
Chris had only performed emergency healing, and she’d still be bedridden for some time.
“That’s exactly why you’re perfect for this one.”
“??”
Yulian tilted her head, confused—but after hearing Chris’s plan, her eyes flew wide open.
Chris flashed a sly grin.
“Don’t you think it’s time we really stick it to that bastard Langham?”
Before heading off to the Venomous Demonic House, there was one last thing to settle—
Drag Marquis Langham’s name through the mud.
Using this recent incident as a foothold, Chris planned to utterly destroy Langham’s standing within the Dark Demonic House and see him completely ruined.
He already had a great plan.
* * *
From this event forward, Christian’s standing within the Dark Demonic House underwent a complete reversal.
Until now, despite gaining the general support of many darkkin, his position had remained precarious—
Because Marquis Langham, the great pillar of the house, was still firmly entrenched in power.
Most of the vassals had kept their distance, cautiously watching Langham’s reaction.
But now? That all changed.
“Marquis Langham fled from the battlefield against Gehenna’s Devils!”
Everyone who had been on-site witnessed Langham’s absence.
The family was in its greatest crisis—yet he disappeared?
Even as a Marquis, that was absolutely inexcusable.
‘Of course, if things had gone as Langham intended, no one would have blamed him.’
According to Langham’s original plan, Nordian would’ve been critically wounded, and the core members of the house would’ve taken severe damage.
In that scenario, who would dare rebuke Langham?
But thanks to Christian, everything went in the complete opposite direction.
Nordian remained completely unharmed, and so did the rest of the vassals.
He couldn’t avoid the wave of criticism.
From common darkkin to high-ranking vassals, everyone voiced the same opinion:
“He’s nothing compared to Lord Christian.”
The only reason the Dark Demonic House survived unscathed was because of Christian.
Thanks to his training, the vassals’ combat power had increased drastically, and their brilliant performance meant far fewer casualties among the common darkkin.
Not only that, Christian had assisted Nordian in taking down high-ranking demons. While most people didn’t know the details of Nordian’s strange vitality, it was common knowledge that Christian had done something to help him at the time.
And above all else, Christian had gone alone into the erosion zone to close the rift leading to Gehenna.
From beginning to end, everything had been thanks to him.
So of course, the darkkin of the Demonic House were cheering his name with fervor.
“Who knows how many would have died if not for Lord Christian.”
“He’s the pride and hope of the Dark Demonic House.”
“Only Lord Christian is fit to lead us now!”
And it wasn’t just the common folk saying this.
Even vassals who had once distanced themselves from him—some of whom had once belonged to Marquis Langham’s faction—began to say the same.
“From now on, I’ll follow Lord Christian.”
“He’s the true master the Dark Demonic House deserves.”
This shift in loyalty stemmed largely from what Christian had said in the heat of battle:
“Let’s forget the past. From now on, we fight only for the Dark Demonic House.”
Their disappointment in Langham and admiration for Christian had stacked together, tipping the balance.
In the end, they were still darkkin.
Of course, not everyone had changed sides.
Many still supported Marquis Langham, especially those who lacked any real pride as darkkin and were driven solely by greed.
“The Marquis may be wavering now, but it’s just temporary.”
“Besides, Lord Nordian doesn’t have much longer to live anyway.”
But there was one thing they were overlooking—
Christian had no intention of letting Langham off the hook.
He planned to use this entire incident as justification to deal Langham a crippling blow.
He would drag him through the dirt and eventually ruin him completely.
After the situation settled, Nordian gathered all the vassals, and it was there that Christian dropped a bombshell announcement.
“…Since the Archduke has rendered great service, I shall reward him. Is there something you desire?”
Nordian asked what reward Christian wished for, and he nodded without hesitation.
“Yes, there is.”
“Speak it.”
“With your authority as House Lord, grant me control over the family’s personnel and judiciary.”
A stir passed through the room.
These were core powers—on par with military and diplomatic authority.
But Nordian, without a moment’s hesitation, nodded.
“So be it.”
The vassals shot glances at Marquis Langham.
Until now, he had been the one wielding those powers as acting head of the house—but now, they had been stripped away from him in an instant.
Yet this was only the beginning of Langham’s downfall.
“There is something else I would like.”
“Name it. Whatever it is, I will grant it.”
Nordian’s words were absolute—he was prepared to give Christian whatever he asked.
Christian gave a slow, wicked smile… and followed it up with another thunderous demand.