Sung Yohan ground his teeth and gripped the chains.
“Kang Yeongwon! Snap out of it!”
But it was useless. Looking closely, thin threads of magic were connected to Kang Yeongwon’s arms, legs, and nape. He was being controlled like a puppet.
“It’s hiding behind there. The main body.”
Sung Yohan ground his teeth.
“I’ll create an opening, so you take the child—”
“Wait.”
Igyeol suddenly grabbed Sung Yohan by the collar.
“……What are you doing?”
Holy Power stung his skin with a tingle, but Igyeol smiled as if nothing was wrong. Igyeol whispered quickly into Sung Yohan’s ear.
“Save Kang Yeongwon.”
“What?”
“Act from now on. Act.”
“Wha…!”
Before Sung Yohan could retort, Igyeol gripped his collar even harder. Then he shouted ostentatiously toward the demon.
“Hey, lackey!”
The booming shout echoed through the boss room.
“What are you doing with that fresh young puppet? I brought you a new body. Play with this one.”
—Aah, Lord Beelzebub…!
Igyeol lightly threw Sung Yohan. Just like that. Into the door.
Vwoong—!
Sung Yohan’s body flew. He was looking at Igyeol with a blank face. Igyeol smiled brightly and waved his hand. Then without delay, he kicked off the floor. This was his chance.
Taaat—!
His goal was only one. Kang Yeongwon standing blankly.
“Snap out of it, kid…!”
Igyeol closed the distance in an instant and pulled out a dagger from his chest… except he didn’t have one, so he pulled out the hoe from his backpack.
It was time to cut the threads of magic.
***
It took Sung Yohan 0.5 seconds to recognize that he was flying.
Republic of Korea Ranking Number 1. Head of Sanctum Guild. A noble Paladin and SS-rank Exorcist—he was being thrown through the air like a bowling ball. Moreover, grabbed by the scruff of his neck and hurled.
If it were a normal person, they would have screamed or flailed in panic, but Sung Yohan was different. Even while flying, he very calmly analyzed the situation.
He threw me. That man.
Me.
As bait.
As soon as he reached that conclusion, an incredulous laugh squeezed out from his lips.
He’s got nerve. How dare he throw me? Is he in his right mind?
But rather than anger, absurdity came first, and rather than that absurdity, came a cold judgment of this situation’s efficiency.
‘Certainly… the aggro will be perfectly drawn.’
The demon’s main body hiding in the darkness came into his view. It was a grotesque demon with a giant spider’s lower body attached to a human’s upper body. The creature was opening its mouth wide, looking at the flying Sung Yohan with an expression filled with ecstasy.
—Aaah…!! Lord Beelzebub, thank you!
The demon spread its arms to embrace Sung Yohan. That demon, with something blinding its eyes, still didn’t know he was a lump of Holy Power. How delighted it must be that instead of a tiny kid, a giant nutritious body was walking into its mouth on its own.
Sung Yohan gracefully twisted his body once in midair. The fluttering hem of his cassock spread like wings. He landed right in front of the demon’s nose and said in a very gentle and calm voice.
“That’s right, it’s a gift.”
Sung Yohan’s eyes curved coldly.
“A very hot gift.”
—Kruaaaaang?!
It was the moment the demon tried to embrace him tightly.
Kwaaaaaa—!!!
The Holy Power that had been condensed in Sung Yohan’s body exploded out. It wasn’t a gift but a nuclear bomb. To a demon made of Demonic Energy, high-concentration Holy Power was no different from deadly poison that melted flesh just by touching it.
—Kieeeeeek!!! Hot! It’s hot!!
The demon screamed and tumbled backward. The arms that had tried to embrace Sung Yohan were burning pitch black.
—This…! What is this! What is thiiiiis!!
The demon roared in fury. Sung Yohan brushed off the ash on his gloves and replied indifferently.
“I’m sorry, but returns aren’t accepted. You already opened it.”
Dazzling chains of light shot out from Sung Yohan’s fingertips.
“So quietly, be purified.”
***
Igyeol moved toward Kang Yeongwon.
While Sung Yohan drew the demon’s attention with flashy effects, he had to cut the magical connection controlling Kang Yeongwon.
“Snap out of it, kid!”
Igyeol rushed right up to Kang Yeongwon’s nose. At that moment, Kang Yeongwon’s unfocused eyes flashed red.
—Kirik. Don’t interfere.
A mechanical voice flowed from Kang Yeongwon’s mouth. At the same time, the kid’s hand shot out sharply aiming for Igyeol’s neck. His fingernails had grown long like a beast’s claws.
Swoosh—!
Igyeol tilted his head back to dodge the attack. A chilling wind grazed past his nose.
‘Damn, he’s fast for a kid.’
His physical abilities had been forcibly inflated while being controlled by the demon. Igyeol re-gripped the hoe he’d taken from his inventory.
A mere hoe as a weapon against a B-rank demon. To others it would be nothing but comedy, but to Igyeol, it was his most familiar weapon.
Chaeng!
He blocked Kang Yeongwon’s flying fingernails with the hoe handle once more. It was a strong impact that made a metallic sound.
‘I can’t let his body get hurt though.’
Igyeol clicked his tongue and lowered his stance.
Thin threads of magic were connected to Kang Yeongwon’s limbs. Those things were controlling the kid like a puppet.
“Just stay still for a bit!”
Igyeol rolled on the floor while dodging Kang Yeongwon’s kick. While doing so, he slipped into the kid’s opening.
Sureok!
Igyeol’s hoe blade sliced through the air. The sharply edged hoe cut the transparent thread connected to Kang Yeongwon’s right ankle.
—Keurk!
Kang Yeongwon’s body staggered.
“That’s it.”
He got the hang of it. Igyeol pressed on relentlessly.
Sureok, tuk, ting!
Left wrist, right shoulder, thigh. Igyeol circled around Kang Yeongwon like dancing and cut the magic threads. It was the same dazzling hand movements from weeding in the fields.
Finally, the thickest thread connected to his nape remained.
“This is the main one.”
Igyeol gripped the hoe in a reverse grip and jumped up.
—No! It’s mine!
A scream-like shout from the demon came from the main body’s direction, but it seemed too busy getting beaten by Sung Yohan to pay attention here.
Igyeol struck down the hoe mercilessly.
Ttuk—!
The sound of the thick magic thread breaking rang out cheerfully. Then the strength drained completely from Kang Yeongwon’s taut body.
“Got you.”
Igyeol caught Kang Yeongwon as he collapsed forward. A heavy weight was transmitted to his arms. But it wasn’t over yet.
“Uuuuu……”
Kang Yeongwon, held in Igyeol’s arms, twisted his body as if in pain. The thread was cut, but the demon’s energy that had infiltrated the kid’s body was still remaining and struggling.
—Can’t leave! This body is mine! It smells so delicious!
The demon’s fragment screeched through Kang Yeongwon’s mouth. Igyeol’s brow furrowed.
“Where do you think you’re barging in to cause trouble? Won’t you vacate the room?”
—Don’t want to! Don’t want to! What are you!
Kang Yeongwon’s eyes rolled back again as he tried to bite Igyeol. It wasn’t a situation that could be resolved with physical restraint. To drag the bastard out, there was no choice but to press it down with a stronger force.
Igyeol looked around.
Over there, Sung Yohan was beating the demon’s main body like a sandbag. Because of the flashy spectacle of light, this side wouldn’t be visible.
‘Now’s the time.’
Igyeol grabbed Kang Yeongwon by the collar and brought his lips to the kid’s ear. Then, from deep in his chest, he opened the sealed ‘fragment’ just a little bit.
Woong—.
Igyeol’s pupils momentarily dyed pitch black then returned. The pressure exuded by a predator of the abyss, not human, flowed out.
‘Fragment of Beelzebub.’
Lord of Hell. One of the kings of all demons.
That overwhelming hierarchy commanded the lower-class demon hiding in Kang Yeongwon’s body.
“Come out.”
—……?!
Kang Yeongwon’s body trembled convulsively. The demon’s fragment inside his body had sensed the energy of a superior predator and was seized with fear.
—Hi, hiiek?! This energy is… re, really?!
“I’ll count to three. If you don’t come out, I’ll chew you up.”
A low, growling voice. It wasn’t a threat but a sentence.
“One.”
—I, I’ll come out! I’m coming out!
“Two.”
—Please! Spare me!
“Three.”
—Kueeeeeek—!
Black smoke gushed out from Kang Yeongwon’s mouth along with a scream. The smoke tried to flee into the air while watching Igyeol warily.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Igyeol waved his hand to scatter the fleeing smoke. The lower demon’s energy that touched his Demonic Energy dissipated without a trace.
“Uuuu……”
Only then did Kang Yeongwon’s expression become peaceful. Gasping breaths could be heard. He had completely fainted.
Igyeol let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew. Tiring, so tiring.”
He wiped the sweat beaded on his forehead and turned his head. It seemed the situation over there was also being resolved.
Kwaaaaang—!!!
Sung Yohan’s final strike exploded. A giant pillar of light swallowed the demon’s main body.
—Lord Beelzebub…! Why are you abandoning meee…! Kuaaaaaak!
The demon left a dying words filled with resentment and was incinerated in the light. It seemed to have mistaken Igyeol for Beelzebub until the very end. Well, it’s better not to clear up the misunderstanding.
As the dungeon boss fell, the entire space rumbled and shook.
[Dungeon Clear!]
[Boss ‘Delusional Spider Count’ defeated.]
[Dungeon is closing. Forced transfer to exit in 10 minutes.]
