This Isn’t an E*otic Game?

“Karim... had no descendants?”
The words finally left Ban’s mouth after a long, frozen silence.

His pupils trembled like mad, and his hands shook as if overtaken by palsy.
Karim gave a solemn nod.
“[All my life, I trained with the sword and hunted Demon Lords and the cultists of evil gods. I never even had time to meet a woman. I have no descendants. My life belonged entirely to humanity.]”

He looked as if he’d just been struck by something catastrophic.
Ban collapsed where he stood.
“So I spent my whole life believing a lie… My ancestors lied to their descendants…”

“Ban.”
The Guildmasters of the Hunters and Priest Mathieu approached him cautiously, understanding the weight of his grief.
But Ban rejected their gestures of comfort.
He stood up and met Karim’s gaze head-on.

“My ancestors were not fools. I don’t believe they lied. So I’ll rephrase my question.”
His face was sheer desperation.
Ban looked at Karim like he’d burst into tears if he were rejected one more time.

“Do I have the qualities of a Hero? Please, just answer me that.”
Karim rose to his feet.
His voice changed.

“[You do.]”
The one who spoke was Ponemkin.
A simple, calm declaration—neither grand nor exaggerated.

But the weight it carried was immeasurable.
Ban smiled.
And as he smiled, he began to cry.

“That’s enough for me. Whether or not I’m Karim’s descendant doesn’t matter. Just those words… are enough.”
The old man Ban quickly wiped away the tears clinging to his eyes and picked up the shotgun he had dropped.
“Descend into me. I’ll accept you into my body. I’ll get us off the 7th floor. No matter what happens, I’ll carry you to the surface.”

At those words, Ponemkin shook his head.
“[You are worthy of accepting my divinity. But tragically, your body is too old, human. If you take in my vast divinity… your body will collapse.]”
Ban flinched for a moment.

He seemed to recall just how much the Saint had suffered under the strain of divine power.
How unbearable it had been—the overwhelming pain caused by divine overload that no human could endure.
But there was no hesitation in him.
“I’ve lived more than long enough. If there’s one regret left in my life, it’s just this: that I couldn’t accomplish a great deed before I go. That I’d leave this world without proving to my grandson that the stories passed down in our family were true. That, more than death, is what terrifies me.”

Ban extended a hand to Ponemkin.
“Use me. Let the final chapter of my life be one of devotion to something great. Let me be the one to prevent humanity—my grandson included—from falling into ruin. I will gladly give my life for that.”
Ponemkin and Karim looked at Ban for a moment.

A faint smile formed on their lips.
“[If that is your resolve… then I accept.]”
Slowly—

The Crystal Forest began to tremble.
Ponemkin’s vast divinity, once spread thin and wide across the entire forest, began to converge on a single point.
Ban’s old body started to shake.

His towering frame—over two meters tall—quivered for a moment, and then began to disintegrate into dust.
“[…Karim. My old friend.]”
The Crystal Forest echoed.

Karim looked down at his slowly disintegrating body and smiled.
“Don’t apologize. And don’t mourn me as I disappear. Instead… just answer me one thing. My god.”
There was no divine speech in his voice anymore.

Karim answered softly, as a human.
“Did I fulfill the mission you entrusted to me?”
The last arm remaining turned to dust and crumbled away.

His armor shattered and collapsed.
Armor that had withstood three hundred years.
The legendary being now sought rest.

“[You did.]”
Karim gave a final nod.
“Then go. That’s all I need.”

As he crumbled, Karim turned his gaze gently toward Ban.
“You are the Hero now.”
That was his final will.

With a hollow clang, his massive helmet fell to the ground.
From within, what had once been a giant’s skull—long since weathered to powder—spilled forth in sorrowful silence.
None of the ten remaining expedition members could say a word.

Slowly—
The old man Ban stepped forward and grasped the greatsword that had been driven into the center of Karim’s armor.
A sword longer than two meters came free as if it weighed nothing.

Resting it across his shoulder, Ban turned to face the remaining members of the expedition.
“[Let’s go.]”
In the familiar voice of old Ban—

There now shimmered a trace of divine speech.
“[Let us go save the Saint. Let us finish the expedition’s mission.]”
A new Hero, born after three hundred years,

Had just declared his vow.
 
****

The moment I opened my eyes, I realized it was the worst possible situation.
The magic circle drawn in dragon blood had demon cores embedded throughout.
Lucifer himself was modifying the formation with his own spells—and I was stuck squarely at the center of it.

I tried to move my limbs, but they were tightly bound and refused to budge.
“Asmodeus!!”
I shouted, trying to activate a skill—but no skill responded.

Not even my status screen appeared before my eyes.
Lucifer smiled at my outburst.
“[Do you still not realize? I still hold partial command authority over Asmodeus. She will not answer your words.]”

Clenching my jaw, I tightened my fist in defiance at his taunt.
And then I felt it—that familiar sensation.
A white chain materialized in my right hand.

“Asmodeus!!”
When I gave the command, only then did I receive a reply.
[Skill activation denied.]

My eyes widened.
“What?… Why?”
Then Asmodeus’s voice echoed in my mind.

[You will die, Master. If not for Lucifer’s magic stabilizing you, your body would have already collapsed. My top priority is your safety. This is one of the few situations where I am allowed to disobey.]
“Please! I… I have to get out of here! I can’t be here!!”
[Request denied. Preserving your life takes precedence. That is how I was created.]

The white chain dissolved.
Strength left my hand.
Lucifer chuckled at the sight.

“[How foolish. Always so foolish, every time. To think you'd burn through your own body just to open a portal. No—you mustn’t die yet. Saint. You still need to live.]”
The demon cores embedded in the magic circle began to glow.
The crushing weight on my body eased slightly.

But I felt no relief.
“The expedition that returned to the Labyrinth will come back down. They’ll come for me. And when they do—they’ll destroy you.”
“[And I, who now possess Asmodeus, am supposed to fear some humans tossing hunks of metal with explosives?]”

Lucifer spread his arms wide, drunk on ecstasy.
“[The Grand Labyrinth. It’s perfect. The ideal place to push you beyond your limits. And that damned Abyssal insect won’t be able to interfere here. Before your team descends to the 6th floor again, I will corrupt you—and no one will be able to stop it.]”
The glow of the magic circle intensified.

I felt my broken body begin to recover.
For a long moment, I just stared down at the formation.
And then a thought crossed my mind.

“…Why do they keep trying to save me?”
The three Demon Lords I had met in the Talhaheim mountain ranges—
Leviathan. Satan. Belphegor.

They too had gone to extreme lengths to avoid killing me.
Even when things had taken the worst possible turn, none of them had tried to end my life.
And now Lucifer, too—

Was focusing everything on keeping me alive.
“Wasn’t it the kind of authority sweet enough to corrupt even you, the Archangel of Lilia? Don’t you want to make it yours already? If you do, why are you trying to keep me alive instead of just taking it?”
Lucifer didn’t ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ respond.

I figured he wouldn’t.
So I summoned the white chain into my right hand and gave it a small shake.
Asmodeus responded immediately.

[The moment you die, I will begin a campaign of destruction against every being responsible for your death. Either they’ll be gone, or I will. It will end with one or the other.]
I stood in silence for a moment—and then burst out laughing.
“Three hundred years ago, during the Celestial War… I heard there was a human who held the Authority of Asmodeus. That guy got drunk on the power and fell into corruption. Lucifer, you had no choice but to kill him, didn’t you? And then… Asmodeus must have gone berserk.”

Lucifer broke his silence.
[It was a disaster. Hell lost a tremendous power. And Asmodeus… was destroyed.]
“If she was destroyed, then what exactly is the thing currently dwelling in my soul?”

Lucifer growled low at my question.
He clearly didn’t want to speak any further.
So I asked Asmodeus again.

[A divinity does not vanish as long as there are humans who believe in it. They may have destroyed me, but as long as there were people who believed in Lilia, I did not disappear. I was rebuilt.]
As if he knew what Asmodeus had said—
Lucifer continued.

[That’s why Ponemkin’s divinity was sealed on the 7th floor instead of being destroyed. If we had killed him, his divinity would have vanished—but eventually, humanity would have birthed another god of courage.]
I see.
So that’s why they’re keeping me alive.

The magic circle continued to glow—until, at some point,
The light stabilized and dimmed.
Lucifer extended his hand toward me from beyond the edge of the circle.

[Amal. So I offer you this—there’s no need for more pain. Come to me. Whatever you want, I can give it to you.]
“Screw off. I’m never going to side with yo—”
Before I could finish, Lucifer whispered sweetly.

[I know Luphiel’s prophecy. He said you would be killed by the hands of those you love, didn’t he? That in the moment of your greatest happiness—you’d be murdered by the ones you love most. That’s what he told you, didn’t he, Amal? Isn’t it painful? Confusing? Doesn’t it hurt?]
Lucifer struck right where it hurt most.
Tempting me.

He waved his hand slowly.
[Why is it that everyone assumes aligning with Hell means the destruction of the human world? Amal, all I’m suggesting is that you use your Authority in a slightly different direction. You could reshape the world into what you want it to be. You don’t have to meet that gruesome fate Luphiel foretold. You could live a life where you stay with the women you love—grow old with them. That kind of life is within your grasp.]
His words were seductive.

His voice was calm, courteous, and sweet as honey.
I was exhausted. In pain.
My body was screaming from the toll of divine powers.

And now, hearing words like that—
I couldn’t help but waver.
“…Shut up.”

[Why let the Pantheon use you like a puppet? Just take it for yourself. The life you want—go seize it. Use the being inside your soul. Why walk the hardest path, when there’s an easier one in front of you? I can show you how to wield your power properly.]
It was the very essence of a devil’s temptation.
Lucifer extended his hand.

[Take my hand. And it’s all over, Amal. A peaceful, happy life awaits you. The life you dreamed of. Whatever you desire—will be yours. A life where you won’t lose the ones you tried to protect. That life is waiting for you.]
“…”
[Think about it. Are you really going to fight us and lose everything all over again?]

The three Demon Lords on the rock mountains of Talhaheim had said the same thing to me.
But back then, my body didn’t hurt like this.
I hadn’t watched people explode like bugs trying to protect me.

I wasn’t this powerless. I wasn’t in this much pain.
Hesitation began to take root inside me.
And that hesitation—

Quickly devoured my mind.
Yeah.
Why am I going through all this?

If I just take his hand…
It’s over, isn’t it?
If I just side with Lucifer—

Can’t I make people happy?
If I don’t fight—
Then people like the countless Hunters and Golden Company veterans who died in the Grand Labyrinth might not have to die again.

I want to take it.
I want to take Lucifer’s hand.
I just want to take it… and be at peace.

I didn’t want to lose anyone else because of my own uselessness.
Before I even realized it, the words “Maybe I should…” nearly left my lips.
[Enter through the narrow gate.]

The final thing Luphiel had said to me before he vanished—
Suddenly flashed through my mind.
“…I can’t. I will never take your hand. Never.”

Lucifer, as if he had expected it all along,
Nodded.
[Very well. Then so be it. Valram!!]

At Lucifer’s command, someone began walking toward us from the distance.
Valram.
And beside him—stood the Bicorn.

And between them, something hovered in the air—something painfully familiar to me.
The psychic amplifier.
“Corn.”

It was Corn.
[You’ve played with it enough, haven’t you?]
At Lucifer’s words, the Bicorn grinned.

“Hey, ponyboy.”
The Bicorn opened his mouth, stuck out his tongue, and slowly—
Licked the psychic amplifier.

Corn’s scream echoed inside my skull.
“Ever since I became a Bicorn… I’ve fucked countless mares. So many it’s not even funny. You know my type, right? Just one thrust in a virgin, one shot, and I’m done.”
[Ughhhhh!! S-Stop!! Please stop!!]

Corn’s scream overlapped with the Bicorn’s slow, revoltingly sensual voice.
“But after screwing so many mares, it all got kinda boring, you know? That’s when I realized… the real thrill isn’t with mares—it’s with stallions.”
[N-No, Kardak!! Don’t!! No!!]

“You were the only stallion who ever beat me. And now I get to pin you down again. Just the thought of it… gets me hard. Ponyboy. Even if you don’t have a body right now, I bet I could still screw you through psychic force. Wouldn’t that be something?”
The Bicorn licked his lips.
“Wanna get fucked by me, ponyboy?”

[N-No! Please! Don’t!! Don’t do this!!]
Corn’s scream rang out one more time—and then Lucifer took him into his hand.
[Miserable thing.]

[Ughhhh!! P-Please don’t… Please…]
[Escaping a horrible fate is simple.]
Lucifer extended Corn toward me.

[You’ve been with the Saint long enough, haven’t you? You know his mental state inside and out. Use the amplifier. Break his mind. Make him my puppet. If you do that… I’ll give you a body again.]
[…What?]
[Will you live again—copulating with mares in flesh? Or will you be raped by the Bicorn behind you? The choice is yours.]

[…]
[Nothing weakens the mind like betrayal by a friend. And you’re the only one who can do this. Miserable creature.]
Corn slowly turned to look at me.

And I looked right back at him.
Lucifer was terrifyingly sharp.
If Lucifer tried to break my mind with his own powers?

I could endure.
I might even be able to summon Asmodeus and fight back.
But…

But if Corn did it—
[A-Amal. I… I just…]
If betrayal were added to everything else—

To the pain, the despair—
I really might not survive.