NOVEL WEB Chapter 570: Soon
570. Soon
I won. After nearly dying to the same [Hellabomination] twice now, I finally defeated it.
Well, I wasn’t actually sure if it was the same [Hellabomination] I had fought beforehand. However, I was going to assume it was. After all, they pretty much looked identical. And I was somewhat decent at differentiating a wild Demon from another of the same Subspecies.
Anyway, all it took was my [Claw of Corruption]. It was my newest Grand Skill— I hadn’t even used it before. But it completely crushed the [Hellabomination], surpassing all my expectations for it. Even though the wild Primeval Demon was both incredibly durable and over 20 levels above me, it was helpless against the attack.
I looked down at the palm of my hand, flexing my claw.
“Huh. I’m stronger than I thought.”
I wondered what were the limits of my [Claw of Corruption]— if it could actually harm… maybe a Primordial Demon? I could go back down to the Remnants of the First Demon Kingdom and try out this Skill against the [Basilisk] below. But if it failed, I would most definitely die before I could escape.
And if it successfully killed the imprisoned Primordial Demon… well, that meant there was no one left guarding the first layer against the endless slew of corruption.
So that wasn’t a good idea. In fact, it was a terrible idea. That was why I decided against it.
I just shook my head and looked back at the dead [Hellabomination]. The only downside to using my [Claw of Corruption] was that it was incredibly slow to activate— the reason why it succeeded in killing the wild Primeval Demon was because I had trapped it here in [The World Of My Mind], so it had nowhere to escape.
I stared at the crushed and twisted body. I saw the distortion. A smile slipped onto my face knowing that all it took to defeat a Level 185 Primeval Demon with a Grand Skill was two of my own Grand Skills. And the fact that when neither of us were using Grand Skills, I was winning… somewhat.
I snapped my finger as I let my pocket space vanish. The fractal panels fell apart, cascading to reveal the crimson sky of the Netherworld around me. I was back where I had been just before I encased myself and the [Hellabomination] in [The World Of My Mind].
I stared at the devastated landscape below. I swept my gaze over the destroyed crevices and ravines— the blue flames of the [Hellabomination] still burning in the distance, and a pillar of smoke rising to the sky. Then I looked back towards the floating corpse of the wild Primeval Demon.
The twisted body was still hovering in place— trapped in stasis. Corruption wisped off its body, and a layer of distortion covered its crumpled figure. I pursed my lips, eyeing this scene.
“Huh.”
The corruption that had destroyed the [Hellabomination] didn’t just vanish. It continued to linger, even though my veil of corruption had receded. I scratched the back of my head.
“How am I supposed to…?”
My brows snapped together, and I pointed at it.
“Corruption begone!”
I yelled, trying to focus on the corruption. But it didn’t dissipate. It held the corpse of the [Hellabomination] in place as the distortion flaked off it. I stared for a moment. Then I flew back in a panic.
“Oh no, what do I do? I’m spreading the corruption into the Netherworld!”
I zipped around the corpse of the [Hellabomination], trying to find a way to destroy the corruption. It took me a few minutes, but eventually I figured out that the only way to purge it was with divinity.
So I blasted it with [The Holy Flames] for about an hour, and then I went off on my way.
Sal hadn’t followed his daughter down to his old kingdom. He couldn’t bear to see her explore the remnants of his past— he couldn’t see his failures once more. He would be far too stricken with grief to be able to survive the dangers of the end of the world.
He knew that there was a very real chance that Salvos would encounter his old subjects. He also knew that there was a very high possibility that she would have died there. But he didn’t follow her— he couldn't have saved her even if he was down there by her side
So when Salvos returned from his old kingdom, he let out a sigh of relief. He was glad to see his daughter was safe. He was actually quite happy to see that she was still alive. Even if it wasn’t because of any actual familial affection, but because he was glad she could entertain him with her antics for a little longer.
However, then the question remained— did Salvos actually encounter any of Sal’s old subjects? Did she delve far enough into the Dungeon to reach the Gate of the Netherworld? Did she even see the corruption created by the end of the world?
He didn’t know. He couldn’t tell. He dared not check with his [God’s Eye]. For the answer scared him. The consequences of what it meant made him afraid. If she knew the truth, she would question him. She would pester him about it the next time they met.
But now, the question had been answered. The Devil closed his eyes and sighed. He saw the corruption forming an aura around her— he watched as she stared in panic at the [Hellabomination]’s corrupted corpse. And he shook his head.
“I see.”
Sal turned away from his daughter. She didn’t notice him watching her from above— hiding in his little pocket space. He was glad to see that Salvos now had mastered her space magic and could create her own little sliver of reality too. However, she chose not to hide in it. She destroyed the corruption before flying on, searching for her long lost brother.
And the Devil asked a question to himself.
“What will you do now, my dear daughter?”
Once again, he didn’t know the answer.
“What now?”
It was a simple question. But it was a question no one knew the answer to. Not Betrugil. Not Aemula. Not Taburas. And certainly not Haec.
However, the other three Archdemons looked to him for advice— for guidance. Because he was Haec. He was the Heir of the Netherworld. He had been chosen by the Demon King Regnorex to be the successor of the Demon Kingdom’s throne.
And for Taburas, she looked at Haec as her companion. She had always followed him wherever he went. Even now, she would listen to him and trust every single word he said. And that was because he had saved her. Long ago.
But Haec had no answer for her. He had no answer for either Aemula or Betrugil. Even though it was his plan to leave the Demon Kingdom, he didn’t know what to do next. He didn’t know how they were going to avoid the Deathsquad Hunters of the Demon King, and he didn’t even know how he was going to find Salvos.
He just knew that right now, there was only one thing important to the four Archdemons—
“Survive.”
Haec whispered as he stared at the mouth of the crevice above. He clung close to the walls of the ravine, staying as far away from the river of lava that cut across the bottom of the crevice. But that was not what he was worried about. A little bit of lava didn’t scare any of the Archdemons gathered here.
Instead, they looked up in terror as the ground shook. They saw a shadow passing over, and they felt the rumbling of an earthquake. But this was no natural tremor. Instead, what they saw was a hulking figure
A giant creature with many eyes. Four legs, and dozens of tendrils that fell from its face. It had a bloated body with a pair of tiny wings that couldn’t possibly carry its weight. It had to have been at least the size of the Demon King’s castle. But it could move. And it ravaged the world above.
Fortunately, none of its eyes spotted any of the four Archdemons hiding beneath it.
[The Great Agarus - Lvl. 225]
Haec continued.
“That’s all we need to do—”
He turned to face Taburas, Betrugil, and Aemula.
“We need to survive.”