Chapter 239
The Sword of Evil Annihilation pierced straight through Maximus’s heart.
A brief silence followed—
“GRAAAAAAHHH!!!”
The sacred will imbued within the sword blazed like holy fire, burning Maximus’s body from within.
He had been defeated.
“He manifested holy flame? What…?”
Evan looked at Chris, stunned.
“It’s just a little trick, that’s all,” Chris replied nonchalantly.
He brushed it off, but Evan didn’t believe him.
No matter how much of a genius Chris was, such sacred purity wasn’t something one could fake with talent alone.
‘So it’s true. Christian possesses a sanctity that surpasses even that of a saint…’
Evan ended up drawing a completely different conclusion.
‘Maybe… the one destined to save the world isn’t me, but Christian.’
Evan had been chosen as the Hero meant to prevent the coming apocalypse, blessed by multiple constellations.
His rapid growth was thanks to the protection and blessings granted by those celestial beings.
Even so, he often found it hard to believe he was such a significant figure.
If anything, Christian seemed to embody the role of Hero more than he ever did.
‘Although… the constellations did say something I couldn’t quite understand.’
In the past, Evan had heard from them that Christian was destined to become the Great Darkness who would one day bring about the end of the world.
But that was absurd.
How could someone with such purity be the harbinger of destruction?
‘Just because they’re constellations doesn’t mean they’re always right. Sometimes they make faulty predictions too. This must be one of those cases.’
To be fair, if one looked only at the surface, Christian did appear to be a dangerous seed of darkness.
His growth was monstrous.
If left unchecked, Christian would likely become one of the most powerful Demon Kings in all of recorded history.
‘Still, there’s no way Christian would ever become a monstrous being like that. If anything, he’s more suited to be the world’s savior.’
The unwavering trust in Evan’s eyes was clear as he looked at Chris, and seeing it made Chris clear his throat awkwardly.
‘Ugh… Evan’s misunderstanding something again. Oh well, it doesn’t really matter.’
After all, he still needed Evan as his reliable pawn. If he was going to be blindly loyal, that wasn’t such a bad thing.
“Is there anything else I can do?”
“No, not anymore.”
“If you ever need my help again, just say the word. I’ll be your strength.”
At those words, Chris fell into brief thought.
‘Evan’s progressing smoothly.’
Perhaps it was due to his connection with Chris, but he was growing much faster than in his previous life.
‘The problem… is with the other one. I need to make sure Rania grows too.’
Rania the Archmage.
Just as important as Evan.
She, too, would become part of the Hero’s party—and like Evan, eventually ascend to the transcendent realm of 9-Star.
‘A genius in the field of magic. Especially in elemental spells—she’s second only to me.’
In fact, Rania’s talent surpassed even Evan’s.
Whereas Evan had only started to grow after receiving divine blessings and being chosen as a Hero, Rania had already achieved considerable mastery at this point purely through her own innate ability.
‘She’s already reached 6-Star. And that’s without receiving the blessing of a constellation. Her talent is remarkable.’
The problem was that after Rania reached the 6-Star level, she would fall into a slump for a long time, her growth stagnating.
It was only after the Age of Destruction began that she would awaken again.
‘But I can’t wait that long. I need her to grow stronger now.’
“Do you know someone named Rania from the Sky Tower?”
“Rania? You mean the next Tower Master? Of course I know her well.”
“You’ve met her personally?”
“We met quite a few times as children.”
As expected of someone from a renowned swordsmanship family—his network reached far and wide.
“Perfect. I want you to approach her and deliver a message.”
“A message?”
Chris nodded.
“If she wishes to tear through the Net of Delusion, tell her to challenge the Black Rock.”
It sounded like nonsense.
When Evan gave him a confused look, Chris just shrugged.
“Just pass it along. She’ll understand the rest.”
Evan gave him a curious glance.
He realized Chris was trying to help Rania in a way he couldn’t fully grasp.
“Why are you helping her?”
“Well, there’s no harm in making the next Tower Master of the Sky Tower owe me a favor. I might be able to use it someday.”
Chris gave a vague excuse, but Evan thought to himself:
‘It must be some noble reason again… Seriously, maybe I’m not the real Hero. Maybe it’s Christian after all.’
Evan nodded resolutely.
“I understand. Even if it costs me my life, I’ll make sure the message is delivered.”
“…No, don’t do that. You’re still my precious pawn. You dying would be a waste.”
With that, the matter of Rania was settled, and Ruina, who had been waiting nearby, asked:
“What now?”
“What do you think?”
Chris looked down at the corpse of Maximus and replied,
“We flip the Kingdom of Kalbern upside down.”
The next day, an unthinkable incident shook the royal capital of the Kalbern Kingdom.
The head of Maximus had been hung from the royal tower!
And beneath it, the following message was inscribed:
“One who fell to the temptation of demons and committed unforgivable wrongs. Judged and executed in the name of the Dark Demonic House.”
— Christian de Barren
It was a declaration: Christian of the Dark Demonic House had personally executed Maximus!
What stirred even more controversy was the phrase “temptation of demons.”
It clearly stated that Maximus had made a devil’s contract.
“That's nonsense!”
“There’s no way His Majesty, the Lion King, would do such a thing!”
But it was the truth.
The demonic aura left in Maximus’s corpse was irrefutable evidence.
Olivia, the High Priestess and direct descendant of a constellation, confirmed it beyond doubt—Maximus had indeed made a contract with a Devil.
The Kingdom of Kalbern was completely overturned.
Even more shockingly, Chris had used memories from his past life to expose the crimes committed by key figures within the Kalbern Kingdom—through Ruina, behind the scenes.
The upper echelon of Kalbern's leadership collapsed in an instant, and High Priestess Olivia took full control of the kingdom.
“…You truly are remarkable, Lord Christian,” Olivia exhaled softly.
She had been wracking her brain over how to deal with Kalbern for so long—yet he had resolved the issue in one swift move.
Ruina pouted and muttered,
“…That devil bastard is absurdly competent, I’ll give him that. Annoying, arrogant, and nasty, but still.”
But Olivia gave an unexpected reaction.
“Please don’t speak so poorly of Lord Christian.”
“…Huh? Wh-What?”
“I mean… Lord Christian is a benefactor of our Gold Cross. As the High Priestess, I cannot allow you to speak of him that way.”
Ruina’s eyes went wide.
Unlike her usual calm demeanor, Olivia’s expression was now visibly displeased.
‘What is this? That can’t just be about her sense of duty… wait a minute, could it be? Has Her Highness Olivia also fallen for that devil bastard like Sir Evan?’
That… actually seemed to be the case!
What’s more, Olivia even placed her hands on her hips and added with a prim tone,
“Apologize for what you said about Lord Christian.”
“A-Ah, I-I’m sorry! Long live Lord Christian!! Long live!!”
Olivia let out a quiet sigh.
She realized she’d overreacted emotionally, and her tone softened.
‘What’s wrong with me? It’s not like Lord Christian and I have any kind of relationship…’
In truth, this wasn’t the first time Olivia had responded this way.
Every time Christian’s name came up, she would have a similar reaction.
There was a reason.
‘Brother…’
Why was it that whenever she thought of Christian, her chest would ache and the face of one person would appear?
Her older brother—Chris.
Lately, those feelings had only grown stronger.
‘I had hoped I could meet him this time…’
But Christian had already left for the Venomous Demonic House.
“Anyway, Dame Ruina. Thank you for all your hard work in this matter.”
“Hehe, not at all! I merely followed the orders of the magnificent, dashing, and oh-so-graceful Lord Christian, after all!”
Ruina, reading Olivia’s mood, slyly switched to flattering Christian, her expression shifting to one of greedy anticipation for some form of reward.
“Of course, I did suffer just a tiny bit… but I trust Your Grace’s benevolence will repay me tenfold! Loyalty! Loyalty! Loyalty!!”
Apparently used to Ruina’s antics by now, Olivia calmly nodded—before unexpectedly adding:
“In return, there’s a condition.”
“Huh? What kind of condition?”
Olivia looked her straight in the eyes and spoke in a firm tone.
“From now on, please keep an eye on Lord Christian’s movements.”
“…Pardon?”
“Specifically, if he ever shows up in the Union again, report it to me immediately. I must meet him.”
Ruina's eyes widened in surprise, but Olivia stood firm in her request.
‘Absolutely.’
Olivia was determined to uncover the reason behind the ache that tugged at her chest whenever she thought of him.
Meanwhile, there were others talking about Christian as well.
“Hehe… as expected, he’s incredible. So utterly captivating. Ah, how I long to make him into a doll already.”
She was a woman of striking presence.
Märchen.
An Elder of the Four Kings’ Castle.
“Just how beautiful would Lord Christian be, turned into one of my dolls? Don’t you think so too?”
Her gaze fell on a girl at her side.
A cute-looking gumiho with pale sky-blue hair.
However, her eyes were lifeless, drained of all color—something was clearly wrong.
Märchen gave a chilling giggle and then gently stroked the girl's head with a hazy, dreamy look in her eyes.
“You’re quite my type too, you know… Once this is over, I’ll make you into a doll too—together with Lord Christian.”
Her gaze shifted.
Far off in the distance, the Jinrok Fortress, home of the Venomous Demonic House, was in sight.
Märchen licked her red lips and murmured:
“It’s almost time.”
Upon returning to the Venomous Demonic House, Christian was met with stares entirely different from before.
A mix of shock and reverence.
And rightfully so.
He had not only stopped a war single-handedly but had also beheaded the enemy kingdom’s ruler.
“Well then, how about that? Things went just as I said, didn’t they?”
Christian shrugged casually.
The members of the Venomous Demonic House, who had previously opposed his actions, were now rendered speechless.
Duke Huam stepped forward and spoke.
“Thank you. On behalf of the Venomous Demonic House, allow me to offer our gratitude. Once again—I say this sincerely—we are in your debt.”
In your debt.
It was an unusually heavy word to come from the head of a prestigious magical household.
But it wasn’t an exaggeration.
Had it not been for Christian, the Venomous Demonic House would have suffered tremendous loss.
“Oh, no need for thanks. After all, our Dark Demonic House and the Venomous Demonic House are like brothers. It’s only natural to help one another.”
Chris replied with a straight face.
‘And soon enough, we’ll be brothers for real. Though, of course, our Dark Demonic House will be the elder brother.’
Naturally, however, this didn’t mean the Venomous Demonic House would bend the knee to the Dark Demonic House just because of this.
‘They won’t come under our banner until the Jinrok Rebellion is resolved.’
This event would simply serve as groundwork for that eventual outcome.
“We shall surely repay the Dark Demonic House. Do you have any requests? Whatever it is, just name it.”
Of course, Christian had one.
‘I need to complete Thousand Venoms.’
Just as Chris was about to speak—
The doors to the office suddenly burst open, and a venom user rushed in.
“Lord Patriarch! Urgent report!!”
“What is it?”
“The Vice-Patriarch—Marquis Goras—has returned to the household!!”
“!!”
Everyone’s eyes widened.
His return was far earlier than scheduled.
‘The work of the Demon King of Azure-Flow…’
Chris narrowed his eyes in silence.