Chapter 308 : The Monster That Lives on the Dark Side of the Moon

The western part of the Maia Kingdom was a rather desolate region compared to the east.

It wasn't as if sand was mixed with the wind and scattered everywhere like in the sandy desert surrounding the demon realm, but it was still a very dry and desolate region.

This must all be thanks to the Evil God who had advanced, sucking up all the life.

The reason why the Maia Kingdom was such a barren land where magical beasts ran rampant and people had a hard time living was all because of that bastard.

It was infuriating to think about it again.

According to the prophecies of the gods who came and went between the past and the future, I was supposed to beat that bastard up...

I still didn't really feel it.

I had to know what the Evil God looked like to be able to stab him with a sword or whatever.

So the conclusion was...

'Let's just focus on the work in front of me.'

There was no point in glaring at a distant place, and it had the disadvantage of blurring what was right in front of me.

The future is reached by building up the present.

All I had to do was to live today faithfully.

[Right.]

The Heavenly Demon expressed his agreement.

[You've grown at least a little.]

"It's all thanks to my excellent master."

And so, if I were to apply the Heavenly Demon's teachings to my situation...

What I had to do now was to clean up the Dark Heaven Society guys.

Anyway, I had to catch and beat these guys up to be able to catch the Evil God, so.

For now, I decided to focus on exterminating these cockroach-like guys.

I ran and ran to the west...

And before long, I arrived at the western part of Maia, which was full of dry valleys and ravines.

Thump!

I climbed to the top of the highest rocky mountain nearby and looked down at the scenery of the wasteland, which was bathed in bright sunlight.

Cracked valleys and jagged rocky mountains.

It seemed like the perfect environment to hide.

It was as if if I just tapped it, they would all come pouring out in surprise.

"Everyone's busy... shall I lend a hand?"

Flap—

I took out one of the commission requests that I had been reading whenever I had a chance to rest on the way.

"I think this was around here..."

I took out a map as well and compared the two to gauge the exact location.

"Mmm... that's right, here."

Rustle.

I put the commission request and the map back in my bag and then loosened my shoulders, trying to guess where they would be.

I knew that they had set up a base around here, but it wasn't specified exactly where they were hiding.

Even at a glance, there seemed to be many places to hide.

There was no terrain as good for hiding as this.

I could guess why the commission had come all the way to the east instead of being handled by the western mercenary guild.

It seemed they were all hiding and diligently carrying on their cult activities, serving the Evil God.

It was a scene where if I just knocked down a nearby rocky mountain, they would all come pouring out like ants.

But it was difficult to exterminate them that way.

Because they would scatter and then dig another hole and hide.

You have to burn the entire anthill.

Fortunately, I was equipped with a very useful search function that could find guys who were hiding in rock crevices or caves.

That was the sense of ki.

"Hooo..."

I let out a long breath and closed my eyes.

And I focused.

I spread the inner energy that I had drawn from the huge lake, which looked like a sea at a glance, wide.

Plop—

With the sensation of a water droplet falling on the surface of the water and drawing a wide concentric circle.

My senses gradually expanded along the concentric circle.

A branch swaying in the dry wind.

A dung beetle crawling, rolling a ball of dung.

A lizard moving around somewhere.

Nameless small insects.

As the concentric circle spread wide, I could feel their breath vividly.

After absorbing the S-rank magic stone and reaching the state of Extreme Demon, I could feel that the area I could sense had increased dramatically.

I was watching the wave that was gradually spreading wide from me...

"Oho."

Before long, I found the guys who had gathered in the shade to avoid the sun.

An unclean and gloomy energy.

Unpleasant, corrupt blood.

"Found you."

A smile spread across my lips.

Flash!

I opened my eyes.

My gaze immediately went to the place where they were hiding.

There was a large, hidden cave at the bottom of a deep valley.

"Alright."

I loosened my body, cracking my knuckles, and muttered as the thought came to me.

"I've been feeling a little stuffy lately, so this is good. There's nothing better than beating up bad guys to relieve some stress."

The Heavenly Demon nodded in agreement.

[Yes. That's right.]

After roughly loosening my wrists and ankles, I bounced on the spot and made a plan.

'How can I deal with this quickly and cleanly?'

I looked through the new secret techniques I had come up with, and I found a suitable one.

Come to think of it, I don't think I had ever used it in a real battle.

"It'll be good for practice."

It was a rather rough and cruel secret technique, but there was nothing more suitable for these guys.

"Hmm."

Come to think of it, I think I've been a little too soft lately.

Like a fluttering feather.

To think that the great Ashuban was like a feather.

Did that make sense?

The bloody nightmare itself.

It was time to return to the Red-Eyed Devil.

I bounced up and down and examined their main base.

It seemed they were well-prepared for intruders, with an alarm system, traps, and so on, but it was no use.

Speed overcomes everything.

Thump!

Whoosh!

I shot my body toward the enemy's den, wrapped in the fierce gust of the Soaring Wind.

"The Red-Eyed Devil is coming!"

* * *

In the dark cave.

The deepest part.

—KUWAAAAAK!

A scream that made one's hair stand on end, whether it was from a magical beast or a person, echoed.

"Mmm..."

In front of it, a man in a gown was calmly recording the scene in a file.

Clatter, clatter!

—KYAAAAAK!

A bubbling, black potion.

Clattering chains.

A bloody knife and a syringe.

A crude and very illegal-looking laboratory.

There, a half-human, half-beast was struggling, its limbs bound by sturdy chains.

The man scribbled something in the file and said.

"Inject the tranquilizer."

"Yes."

Stab!

A large syringe was plunged into the arm of the rampaging half-human, half-beast, and the struggling creature soon went limp.

The black mage who had been directing the experiment threw the file he was holding to one side and said.

"This one's a failure too. Trash. Are there no such people among the believers who serve the Dark Heaven? Why is their faith so shallow?"

"...I am sorry."

At the man's scolding, the men who had been guarding his side bowed their heads.

Men who were twice the size of ordinary people.

They were the elite knights of the Dark Heaven Society.

Warriors who had not lost their faith in the Dark Heaven in the process of accepting the power of a magical beast, and had succeeded in maintaining their reason.

True half-human, half-beasts who had become able to handle the power of a magical beast freely through countless training, and who could wield a sword with that power.

The time and capital required to raise each one of them was beyond imagination.

The black mage clicked his tongue at them, who had bowed their heads.

"The great plan is not far off, but if we are so short of warriors to fight against evil..."

The black mage's gesture, as if he didn't even want to look at them.

At that, the warriors untied the bound, low-level half-human, half-beast from the chains and dragged it somewhere.

The black mage picked up the file again and said.

"Next. Bring him in."

At that, a warrior of the cult bowed his head.

"I am sorry, but it seems that is all for today."

"What, there are no more?"

"That is correct."

"Tsk... then go out and bring some now."

The warrior asked in a flustered voice.

"But there are no more believers of the Dark Heaven nearby..."

The black mage frowned and then hit his head with the file.

Thwack!

"You foolish bastard. Can't you understand what I'm saying? Has the black mana rotted your brain? Go out and grab anyone you see."

"You mean..."

"We don't have time to raise high-level ones like you anymore. We lack both time and capital for that. And if we take our time and end up mass-producing trash like today, there's no greater waste. In that case, we should just mass-produce low-level ones."

"Ah..."

The black mage tapped his head and said.

"We have to be efficient, efficient. Use your head."

"I understand."

"Then go out and sweep them all up. There are a few villages nearby, right?"

"Yes."

"The Sherwood guys don't come here often anyway, so you don't have to worry about them. It's okay if they're missing an arm or a leg, just bring them to me with their breath still in them. I'll give you an hour."

"I understand."

"Take the Kinolan believer with you. He'll guide you to the village."

Clank, clank—

Four of the Dark Heaven's warriors remained to guard and serve the black mage, and the rest left the room to carry out his instructions.

"Worthless things. They should be grateful and thank me for being chosen as a sacrifice for his descent. This is why ignorant things..."

Crack!

Before he could finish his words.

A strange sound was heard from outside.

"Hmm? What's that sound?

He listened again, but the outside was quiet.

Excessively. Strangely.

Not a single sound leaked in.

The black mage's eyes narrowed.

He immediately checked the black magic he had set up to prepare for intruders.

'...There's nothing wrong?'

Screech—

The warriors, who had sensed the change with their sharp senses, drew their swords and sent the black mage to the back.

"I will go and check."

One of the warriors, with his sword drawn, strode to the door and went outside.

And, he did not return.

"Number 7! Answer me!"

The black mage shouted, but there was no reply.

Outside the door he had opened, there was only black darkness.

The black mage glared at the darkness and instructed.

"You two. Go. If you see the enemy, send a signal immediately."

"Yes."

"I will allow you to transform into a magical beast."

The two warriors, with their swords drawn, went out the door with very cautious steps.

And, this time too.

They did not return.

"..."

Cold sweat flowed down the black mage's forehead, and his hair stood on end.

This couldn't be.

The warriors of the Dark Heaven were truly elite soldiers.

In the unlikely event that the enemy was stronger than them, there was also a last resort.

To cut the thread of reason and entrust their power entirely to the blood of the magical beast that flowed through their veins.

Transformation into a magical beast.

Although the broken reason could not be reconnected, in return, they could obtain explosive strength.

But, what was this?

Not even the sound of swords clashing, or even a small scream, was heard.

A creepy silence.

He, a black mage, had never been afraid of the darkness.

Rather, it was familiar and comfortable.

But for the first time, the darkness outside that door felt frightening.

He could see through the darkness to some extent, but that darkness was different.

He couldn't see inside it at all.

What on earth was happening out there?

...Gulp.

A dry swallow.

'Don't tell me, Sherwood is here?'

He had pride in the warriors of the Dark Heaven that he had created.

He had heard that the Sherwood guys were running rampant in the east.

But, he was confident that his warriors would never be pushed back by them.

Because they were warriors that he had created with his own hands, with all his heart and soul, for decades.

'That's what I thought...'

He couldn't guess whether the one outside the door was Sherwood or someone else.

One thing was for sure, if he just stood there, he would be eaten by that monster.

"P-protect me!"

Crash!

The black mage quickly grabbed several water bottles from the desk and began to draw a magic circle on the floor.

Swoosh—

In the meantime, darkness slowly flowed in from outside the door.

The room was already engulfed in darkness, but this was much thicker and denser.

"He's coming!"

"Hold your positions!"

The elite warriors, who were over 3 meters tall, watched the door with their swords and axes in hand.

They were ready to transform into magical beasts at any moment.

And, from the darkness beyond the door, a blood-red gaze flashed.

"Hello? Our Dark Heaven Society members."

A playful smile.

And in contrast, a voice that was so cruel that it was as if he had eaten the warriors outside alive.

"Y-you...! Half-Sword Ashuban!"

The black mage, who had been busy drawing the magic circle, was shocked.

"Ooh, you know me?"

"Of course I do! Aren't you the main character who ruined the northern monster wave that our society had put so much effort into! If it weren't for you, we would have completed the great plan long ago!"

Ashuban grinned.

"To be recognized by the enemy, this feels great. How about, as a return gift, I tear off your arms and legs?"

The black mage laughed.

"Ha, haha...! It's already too late, devil! The completion of the magic circle—"

Thump!

Ashuban stomped his foot.

Trrrk!

The cold that had instantly risen ran along the ground and reached the black mage's feet.

"Ugh..."

The black mage, who had been infected by the cold, stopped drawing the magic circle and froze.

"Master!"

The black mage barely managed to move his mouth and said.

"T-transform into a magical beast..."

At his single word, the warriors of the Dark Heaven immediately entrusted their bodies to the demonic nature.

—KUWAAAAAAK!

—KERRRRRK!

—GUWAAAAAK!

Their muscles burst, and their already large bodies grew two or three times in size.

Magical beasts, and among them, their danger level was beyond B-rank and close to A-rank.

"Wow... I'm glad I came. It's a jackpot from the start."

Ashuban, who saw that, grinned, showing his teeth.

"Then I should show some sincerity too, right?"

—KUWAAAAAAK!

The moment the magical beasts rushed in at a tremendous speed, the darkness that had been crawling at their feet rose up.

The room was instantly dyed in thick darkness.

The magical beasts fell into confusion.

Although they could instinctively sense the enemy's location even in the darkness where they couldn't see in front of them, in this darkness, they were no different from being blind.

Everything was eaten.

Sound, light, and smell.

—KUWAAAAAK?

—KYAAK! KYAAK!

—UWOOOO!

In the center of that chaos, a low voice echoed.

"Have you heard? There's a monster that lives on the dark side of the moon."

The magical beasts swung their claws toward the place where the voice had come from, but they only scratched the invisible darkness.

"That's me."

Crack!

Crack! Crack!

An eerie sound echoed.

"Ugh, ugh... ah!"

The black mage, who had been left alone, in the darkness where he couldn't see anything.

Frozen solid, unable to move a single finger.

He savored a kind of fear that he had never experienced before.

"Gasp... gasp...!"

Tears and snot flowed out.

He couldn't breathe properly.

After a while, the terrible noises disappeared.

And the room was engulfed in a suffocating silence.

Tremble, tremble, tremble, tremble!

"Ugh, ugh...! Ughhhh!"

It felt like he was going crazy.

The black mage tasted a fear that was even greater than when he had heard the creepy sounds.

How much time had passed like that?

A few seconds? A few minutes? A few hours?

From the darkness, blood-red eyes suddenly appeared.

"Now it's just you and me, right?"

"Gasp... gurgle..."

The black mage, who was foaming at the mouth, lost consciousness while standing.

(End of Chapter)