Kind Demon King

Standing at the entrance of War God’s Battle Area was a weird sensation after all shit we endured to arrive here. The place was larger than any of us had imagined, with towering spires of marble that seemed to pierce the very clouds above. Gökbörü growled low beside me, his hackles raised. He sensed it too—this dungeon had more many than any dungeon we previously entered. It was also dense. It clung to the air like mist, swirling around us, thicker than any we had encountered before. Its entrance was different too. The swirling mana gate was crowned by a golden arch, its surface engraved with symbols that seemed to writhe and shift before my eyes.

The language of Stars, I thought to myself. I could read them but they disappeared from my mind the moment they shifted, like a dream fading when one woke up. I could feel their presence too but it wasn’t Aliera or Zephyrian.

“God of War…”

I muttered to myself. The only divine being of war I knew was Aliera and she was a Goddess. Was there a reason for this place was called War God’s and not War Goddess’s? I sighed. Maybe I was overthinking. Maybe the language of this world didn’t make the distinction between God and Goddess but I was hearing it due to translation stuff I had.

I shrugged my shoulders and unclenched my jaw. Alright, no use thinking about all that. I glanced towards my companions. Artemeni wore a determined expression, her eyebrows furrowed behind her helmet. Thalia looked rather peaceful as she muttered prayers under her breath. Aurora looked intrigued by the dungeon gate. Blanche’s face was calm and emotionless as before. All of them looked ready.

“Are we ready?” I asked, glancing at each of my companions, searching for any hint of hesitation. I saw none.

Artemeni stepped forward, her armor gleaming in the waning light. “Ready as we’ll ever be, Champion.”

“Just stick close to each other,” I advised, my eyes darting back to the swirling gate. “We’ve got to watch each other’s backs in there. If it’s anything like the others, we’ll face trials that will test us both physically and mentally.”

Thalia nodded, her expression serene despite the impending danger. “The power of the divine is with us. We must trust in our strength and our bond.” She clasped her hands, her fingers intertwined as she muttered another prayer, the words a soft melody that soothed my racing heart.

Aurora, her glasses reflecting the shimmering light from the gate, just nodded. Blanche remained silent, her eyes narrowed slightly as she regarded the swirling mana gate. Gökbörü let out an eager bark.

“Let’s do this,” I said, my voice steady and unwavering. With a deep breath, I stepped forward, the mana swirling around me like a tempest. The moment I crossed the threshold, a surge of energy coursed through my veins, electrifying my senses. We emerged into a road made out of marble. It was wide enough to allow us to walk side by side but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to come close to the edge. Nothing existed there. It was full of nothingness. I wasn’t sure if it was possible to fall into there and I really didn’t want to find out.

We walked forward, our steps echoing in the darkness. The marble road was somehow illuminated by an unknown light source but it didn’t extend to nothingness and I wasn’t sure if there was anything to see. My Night Vision didn’t allow me to see anything after all.

Before long, the marble road widened into a vast circular area, its boundaries marked by 5 alters.

“Those altars must be how we will reach the trials.”

I said as I got close to one of them, examining it carefully. This one had various monsters carved on it. I touched it lightly.

(Do you want to proceed with the Trial of Unrelenting Onslaught?)

I pulled my hand back as if I just touched something hot.

“Okay.”

I muttered to myself as I touched all of them, making sure that the trials were consistent with the information we had. Thankfully, they seemed to be more or less the same.

“Okay. We have 5 trials in front of us. We will need to retrieve 5 key items and place them in these alters. We can take trials in any order but we must complete all 5 in 24 hours otherwise it will reset.”

The marble platform beneath our feet seemed to hum with an otherworldly resonance as I finished inspecting the altars. Each one represented a trial that tested different aspects of a warrior’s strength, mind, or spirit. Or at least that’s what the people who conquered the dungeon before thought.

The engravings on the surfaces of the altars glimmered faintly, pulsating with mana, as if they were alive, waiting for us to make a choice.

"Five trials, five key items," I repeated, turning to the group. "We have 24 hours to complete them all before they reset."

Artemeni’s brow furrowed. "That's not a lot of time. If each trial is as hard as we expect, we can’t afford to waste a single moment."

“Will we split up?”

Asked Aurora, adjusting her glasses, the light from the mana gate reflecting off the lenses.

“If we have to we may consider it. But for now, we stay as one.”

I answered and turned to the Altar of Trial of Unrelenting Onslaught.

“This is the Trial of Unrelenting Onslaught. We will be going into this first. It is the most exhausting and most straightforward one so we will get this out of the way. If you are not at a hundred percent, we will rest. We won’t be able to take stamina or healing potions and all buffs related to that will be only half as effective there.”

I looked at them for any kind of questions.

“What is our strategy?”

Blanche asked.

“There will be 10 waves. The first 3 waves last 30 minutes each. You, me, and Gökbörü will create an ice barrier surrounding us while Aurora focuses on creating a cost-effective mana barrier. We don’t have to waste stamina by killing the monsters during the first three waves because they will spawn constantly. From 4 to 9 we will need to kill 100 monsters, each stronger with the wave. At the last wave, we will either need to survive against super strong boss monsters for 30 minutes or kill them in less. Oh, the terrain will also get rougher in each wave. Easy, right?”

Artemeni's eyes gleamed with a mix of excitement and apprehension, her grip tightening around her weapon. "Easy enough," she replied, her voice steady despite the intensity of the task ahead.

Aurora adjusted her glasses, eyes narrowing as she processed the strategy. "We'll need to be precise with mana management, especially during those early waves," she said, already calculating the best way to structure the barriers. "I'll focus on weaving the barrier so it absorbs most of the initial impacts. That should buy us enough time without draining too much mana."

Gökbörü gave a low growl of agreement, his massive form bristling with anticipation. He, too, sensed the weight of the task ahead, and though his form was ready to fight, his instincts told him this would be a grueling test of endurance.

Thalia, as always, remained serene. She closed her eyes, clasping her hands together as she quietly invoked a protective blessing over the group. "Divine power will guide us. If we act with faith and precision, we will prevail."

Blanche gave a curt nod, her cold, calculating demeanor never faltering. "Understood. I'll focus on controlling the battlefield, keeping our formation tight. We can't afford any gaps during the stronger waves."

"Let's begin," I said, stepping toward the altar of the Trial of Unrelenting Onslaught once again. My hand hovered over the engraved surface for a moment before I pressed it firmly, allowing the mana within to respond.

(Do you want to proceed with the Trial of Unrelenting Onslaught?)

“Yes.”

A deep rumble echoed through the marble chamber as the altar activated. The ground beneath our feet trembled, and a blinding light erupted from the engravings. The platform around us shifted, transforming into a new landscape—a barren battlefield littered with jagged rocks and deep craters. The sky above darkened, an ominous red glow settling over the horizon.

(The First Wave will start in 15 seconds.)

(Objective: Survive through all waves.)

(Healing and stamina potions will be unusable for this trial.)

(All healing and stamina abilities will be less effective.)

Good. Things weren’t different from our info.

“Gökbörü, Blanche.”

I stomped my feet to the ground, surrounding us with a wall of ice. I left one narrow passage open. I shook my head as the stunt took a lot of my mana. Gökbörü transferred some of his mana to me, stabilizing my condition.

“Why let an opening?”

Blanche asked.

“It is possible that they will try to take the path of least resistance. If I covered everywhere, they would try to break it but now they will try to reach us through that opening. We will see if it will work. Depends on their intelligence.”

(The First Wave has started.)

The ground trembled, and from the swirling mists ahead, the first horde emerged.

“To the position.”

Dozens of muscular, beastly shapes surged forward, the ground crying under their claws and hooves. The smallest ones were as big as a mid-sized dog and the biggest ones were the size of our horses which we left at the entrance of the dungeon.

I watched carefully, noting how they moved. They were relentless, yes, but not particularly intelligent nor disciplined. Mere wild beasts. As expected, most of them funneled toward the opening in the ice wall where Blanche and Gökbörü waited. Our strategy worked. The creatures surged toward the perceived weakness, only to be cut down or knocked back by Gökbörü’s powerful jaws and Blanche’s precision strikes. Even when they managed to get past them, I made quick work of them.

Aurora managed to create a small safe zone as Blanche and Gökbörü fell back and I and Artemeni took their places to allow them to rest. We kept this rhythm for the first few waves, saving our mana and stamina.

(The Third Wave has ended. The Fourth Wave will start in 60 seconds.)

I rolled my shoulders, the strain of mana use already tugging at my muscles. This was where things would get real.

“The next waves will require us to kill. 100 monsters per wave,” I reminded them, glancing around. “Stay focused.”

(10 seconds remaining.)

The battlefield was still as if holding its breath. Then, the platform beneath us trembled again, fissures cracking through the marble road as it transformed into uneven terrain—sharp rocks, sudden slopes, and jagged edges making movement difficult. The air thickened with a suffocating pressure.

(The Fourth Wave has started.)

From the mists, the creatures returned—but these were no longer simple beasts. Towering creatures, twice the size of the previous wave, came charging towards us. Their skin was thick, covered in armored scales, and their eyes gleamed with an almost malevolent intelligence.

I took a deep breath. “Let’s begin.”