Multiverse: Becoming a Giant of Light, Godslayer from the Start

The hallmark authority of the Sword King Doni was the creation of demonic swords through [Ripping Silver Arm].

In truth, it was an incredibly versatile power—its true potential lay in creating a vast array of magical swords. He could even conjure a barrage of meteors to crash like swords from the heavens, dealing attacks powerful enough to reshape the very structure of a continent's tectonic plates.

But rather than unleash its full potential, Doni simply preferred one thing: wielding a sword that could cut through anything. Now, however, there was no doubt—his strongest divine authority had been sealed. And for a god-slayer as young as Doni, that was his only offensive authority worth mentioning.

In other words, he no longer had a way to attack. If his opponent were someone like Kusanagi Godou from the original story, his swordsmanship alone might've still been enough to be a threat. But when facing Su Mo—whose swordsmanship utterly surpassed his—Doni was left speechless and helpless.

"Still not planning to surrender?" Su Mo asked casually. He had no real interest in trampling a powerless opponent.

"I can still move. So how could I call it defeat?" Doni's reply was full of a warrior's resolve.

"Fair enough."

Su Mo nodded—not because he shared the sentiment, but because something else occurred to him. If Doni still had the strength to act, he wouldn't obediently serve as a summoning catalyst for the gods. So, his mobility had to be dealt with first.

And thus—

Even though it was high noon, with the blazing sun already overhead, a second sun began to rise in the east. A mythical sight—Two Suns Hanging in the Sky—unfolded before all present.

"For the sake of victory, come forth before me!" Su Mo chanted the invocation to summon solar fire. "O undying sun, I command you to bring forth your radiant steed!"

Assuming the identity of the Sun God, Su Mo issued his divine order. From the heavens, he summoned the white horse avatar of Verethragna. Originally a gift of the god Mithra, the steed's power had grown ever stronger since Su Mo obtained the Authority of the Sun God Mithra.

Bathed in white-hot solar flame, the divine horse galloped down from the sky. It collided with Doni in a blinding burst of light and fire. There was nothing [Man of Steel] feared more than the fires of the sun.

The scorching white flames vaporized everything nearby—sea, sand, and air alike. Even the residual heat scorched the shoreline into nothingness. Farther off, the sand had been melted into translucent glass. And at the heart of the solar conflagration stood Doni. His entire body glowed a searing crimson, like molten steel forged under extreme heat. And yet—he was still alive.

"Even if I'm shattered into pieces, the sword shall never perish! A broken blade reforged in the furnace is born anew. How could such fire destroy me?!"

Chanting the ultimate form of his [Man of Steel], Doni's body became enveloped in glowing runes—hundreds of them—swirling around him. Thanks to the immortality of steel, he endured even the assault of solar flame. And what's more, he shouted a bold challenge, still intent on fighting. Su Mo couldn't help but admire Doni's stubborn defiance.

"Well said!" He clapped lightly, then pointed toward the horizon. "Wanna take another one?" Doni followed the direction of Su Mo's finger. And the moment he did, his entire body stiffened. There, rising again from the eastern sky— Another sun began to rise in the sky.

"How is this possible?! A divine technique of that magnitude—and you can use it again?!" Doni stared at Su Mo, utterly dumbfounded.

A godslayer's magical power far surpassed even the strongest ley lines, rendering them almost invincible to conventional mages. However, when facing an opponent of equal standing, that power could not be used recklessly. The stronger the authority, the greater the magical energy it consumed.

An attack like the one Su Mo had unleashed earlier—especially one powered by the sun's flame—was almost impossible to fire off more than once. The drain on a godslayer's internal reserves would make a second use nearly unthinkable.

Yet Su Mo had just summoned another blazing sun as casually as if he were waving his hand. This was terrifying. Doni couldn't help but ask, but Su Mo simply shook his head with surprising honesty.

"No… this isn't the second time."

"…Hahh." Doni let out a long breath, finally relaxing.

That made more sense. Even a veteran godslayer couldn't consecutively cast such a powerful technique. Su Mo was strong, yes—but still a rookie. There was no way he could do something that absurd. So, this second one must just be for show, right?

As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Su Mo blinked and casually added—

"Actually, I could probably summon nine more of these without a problem."

"???"

Doni froze, question marks flooding his brain. He was about to say "are you out of your mind?"—but then his eyes caught something strange in the reflection of the ocean. He looked up. And what he saw left him reeling. Floating above the horizon were nine suns—nine blazing orbs burning with the very same solar flames. Including the real sun already in the sky, a total of ten suns now hung above the earth.

Ten Suns in the Sky—a legendary sight made real. Even Doni, a godslayer himself, had never witnessed such a mythical phenomenon.

"T-This is…" He could feel it—each of them radiated the genuine energy of solar fire. Su Mo smiled at him helpfully. "Wanna guess which one's real?"

Doni could hardly believe it.

Under normal circumstances, Su Mo absolutely could not have summoned all of them at once. But the secret lay in the nature of the summoning itself. The white horse avatars only consumed significant magic at the moment of summoning. Maintaining them cost very little. And with the Third Magic's nearly infinite mana regeneration, Su Mo had summoned them one by one in rapid succession.

In mere moments, he had created nine fully-realized, blazing white horses of solar fire—each with the power to incinerate a god. By the time he playfully asked Doni to pick one, the mana consumed to summon them had already fully recovered. The perpetual motion engine of the Third Magic was no empty boast.

Faced with this "friendly" question, Doni immediately crumbled. "My dear friend… if I die here, won't things be so much more boring for you next time you want a fight?" He was pleading now, desperately trying to appeal to sentiment.

To which Su Mo replied coldly, "Nope."

"In fact, you've been nothing but trouble."

"…Tch." Doni's lips twitched.

Even when he'd angered the Marquis Voban by stealing one of his prey, he hadn't felt pressure like this. After all, even Voban couldn't summon nine suns. Was this really where his journey ended? As he began to reflect on his life's sins and mischief—

Su Mo finally spoke.

"I can spare you. But on one condition."

The moment of truth.

"What condition?" Doni asked, his tone cautious despite the pain of the burns still searing his body. He wasn't the kind of man who would agree to just anything for the sake of survival. He was still a warrior.

"It's simple," Su Mo replied casually. "I just need your help to conduct a few magical rituals."

"Rituals?" Doni blinked. "I don't know the first thing about that stuff."

He wasn't lying. Aside from swordsmanship and divine authorities, Doni was absolutely useless when it came to magic. He couldn't even cast the most basic spell.

"That's fine. You just have to stand there," Su Mo said with a wave of his hand. "Other than that, all I ask is that you don't interfere while I perform the ritual." Even though Doni was basically immobilized right now, Su Mo wanted to be thorough. This guy had a nasty habit of hijacking situations at the last second. Whether it was his first godslaying or the time he stole the kill from Perseus in the original story—it always ended the same way: Doni stealing the win. Su Mo had no intention of letting history repeat itself.

"If you agree, we'll bind it with a contract."

"Fine, no problem," Doni replied after a moment's thought. It didn't seem like there was anything in the terms that went against his principles. The moment he accepted, he felt a powerful force settle over him—an unbreakable magical contract.

"That's your authority at work, huh? Pretty convenient," he commented, not seeming too bothered. But that peace didn't last long.

"Wait—my dear friend, shouldn't that sun be gone by now? If you don't stop it soon, I'm toast!"

"Help! HELP!"

The first sun was still burning, and Doni was now reaching his absolute limit. No matter how strong steel was, it couldn't endure such intense solar flame forever. Thankfully, Su Mo withdrew the divine energy just in time. The nine false suns vanished one by one, and the sky returned to normal. The sunfire around Doni receded at last. But his body still glowed faintly, like heated metal fresh from the forge. The effects of his Man of Steel hadn't worn off yet, and he was far too hot to handle.

Su Mo thought for a moment, then simply tossed him into the ocean to temper the steel. He followed up by summoning ice and snow to speed up the cooling process. After about half an hour, Doni was finally stable. Other than looking like someone who had been sunburned across every inch of his skin, his temperature was back to normal. He could even deactivate his Man of Steel.

Before that, though, members of the local magical society had arrived to pay their respects. They brought Su Mo the materials he needed, but their attention was instantly drawn to Doni's frozen, half-submerged form in the sea. Their expressions turned to awe and disbelief.

A newly risen godslayer had just defeated a veteran—and not just defeated, but burned, dunked, and flash-frozen him like a piece of junk metal. The myth of a new demon king became even more famous. No wonder they say the fastest way to rise in the world of magic… is to trample over your predecessors.

After defeating Doni, Su Mo was no longer just a rookie godslayer—he had officially stepped into the ranks of the demon kings.