Chapter 90
I don’t know how long I’d been sprinting, following the direction Kon had pointed out.
But eventually—
In the distance…
Inside a dark magic circle, I saw a demon follower in black standing over a collapsed, hunchbacked woman. A dagger was buried in her heart.
Damn it.
Was I… too late?
I poured even more force into my legs, accelerating—
And in the same breath that I leapt into the circle, I unfastened my belt, gripped it tight, and swung.
With a thunderous crack, the force traveled through my arm—confirming a solid hit.
The follower’s mask shattered into pieces, exploding off his face as his body slammed violently into the ground, crumpling like trash.
But of course…
He wasn’t some ordinary human.
The demon follower wasn’t dead.
Far from it—his crushed jaw began to mend itself in seconds, shrouded in a dark aura that regenerated it at terrifying speed.
Honestly? That made things easier for me.
“Y-You… who the hell are you…?”
As the follower struggled to rise, I activated Absolute Hypnosis on him.
His eyes, filled with confusion and panic, glazed over briefly—then snapped back to focus. The skill had landed cleanly.
I jumped straight into questioning.
“From now on, answer everything I ask with the truth. This woman—what the hell happened to her?”
“There is a dagger embedded in her heart, inscribed with Lord Belphegor’s Words of Subjugation.”
Didn’t sound like anything good.
“How do I remove it?”
“That dagger contains Lord Belphegor’s very authority. Unless you’re a demon king of equal standing, it cannot be removed.”
“Is that so?”
Then there’s no problem.
I immediately rushed to the hunchbacked woman and gripped the dagger sticking out of her chest.
As I pulled, the black energy that had been slithering across her body like a serpent let out a horrific scream—and began to retract, slowly but surely, into the blade.
Even with my body reinforced far beyond human limits, it took immense strength.
“You! Help me pull this out!”
I couldn’t do it alone—so I turned to the confused demon follower, who was already spitting out truths beyond his will, and gave him a direct command.
“L-Like I’d help y—huh?”
Despite the mix of fury and disbelief on his face, the follower stepped forward and placed his hands on the dagger—helping me pull.
“Wh-What the hell… Who are you?! What did you do to me?! Why am I—?!”
“Shut up and pull!!”
With two of us working together, the pace quickened.
The black energy, howling like a living creature, resisted—but it couldn’t hold on for long.
The aura completely retracted into the dagger… and with one last tug, it came free from the woman’s chest.
I immediately dropped the cursed blade to the ground and placed my hands on her body, activating Body Reconstruction.
Her shattered wrists and pulverized face began to heal instantly.
But that… was all I could do.
[Target’s physical state is currently fixed in place.]
[Recovery is possible, but alterations are not allowed at this skill level.]
[Please level up the skill before attempting again.]
A system notification I’d never seen before appeared in front of me.
It seemed I couldn’t push the reconstruction any further.
“What the hell…”
I tried several more times, but no matter how hard I focused, I couldn’t heal her withered limbs or the grotesquely deformed hump on her back.
I needed answers.
Luckily, I had someone nearby who could provide them.
“You.”
I turned to the follower.
“Explain. Who is this woman? Why does she look like this? And what’s her connection to that demon lord—Belphegor? I want everything.”
This wasn’t going to be a short story.
But it needed to be understood—clearly and thoroughly.
And just as I gave that order—
[The expected time to fulfill the given command is deemed excessively long.]
[Skill evolution has unlocked extended capabilities.]
[You may now selectively extract relevant memories directly from the target’s mind and upload them instantly to your brain.]
[Proceed?]
Another new window popped up.
And the moment I read it, a chill ran down my spine.
So my skills had evolved—without me realizing it.
That could only mean one thing: Asmodeus was actively absorbing faith from believers… and growing stronger by the second.
Yeah…
For the sake of this world, I need my soul to be shattered as soon as possible.
And to get there, I had to use this upgraded—albeit horrifying—form of Absolute Hypnosis.
“Do it.”
As soon as I gave the command, the light faded from the follower’s eyes.
[Command accepted. Extracting relevant memories for requested topic…]
[Selection complete. Uploading now.]
And then—
A massive torrent of memories surged into my brain.
[Upload complete.]
What felt like an eternity passed in a heartbeat.
When it ended, I lifted my head slowly and stared at the follower.
I stood in silence for a while, then let out a breathless, bitter laugh.
“You call yourself human?”
They had searched the entire continent for a vessel capable of containing the Goddess of War.
Once found, they had tortured the vessel—mind and body—until it was utterly broken.
Then, with curses and black magic, they fixed that broken state in place.
Once the goddess was forced into her body, they sealed her further with the Words of Subjugation.
And if the goddess resisted?
They would torture the vessel—emotionally, mentally, physically—until the goddess gave in.
The girl cradled in my arms…
Kanya.
The man before me was the one who had made her into a sacrifice.
He’d kidnapped her parents before she was born.
After Kanya was born, he let her live with them—just long enough to taste happiness—
Then, at four years old, made her watch them die right in front of her.
He’d shattered her limbs with magic—just enough to leave them permanently withered.
He cursed her spine, leaving her hunched and broken.
All of it.
Every last bit—was his doing.
Even after forcing Belia into her body, he’d used engraved spells to torment her whenever the goddess resisted.
He dredged up her worst traumas, forced her to relive them.
Pain. Despair. Horror. All engineered by this man.
I should’ve never looked.
After experiencing years of that cruelty, as vividly as if I’d lived it myself… I didn’t just feel disgusted.
I wanted to vomit.
I held Kanya tighter in my arms.
“Pick up the dagger.”
My voice was calm. Cold.
The follower reached down with trembling hands and picked up the blade.
There was no hatred. No rage.
Just a single thought.
This man needed to be erased.
“Kill yourself with it.”
His eyes widened in horror.
“N-No… Please… don’t… No!! K-Khh… Lord Sloth… please save me…!!”
He tried to resist. Tried to force his other hand to push the dagger away.
But it was useless.
“Gkhh… kuh…!!”
The last thing I saw was the blade piercing into his neck.
Then I turned away.
Among the memories I’d seen, there was one about the Rocky Mountains of Talahaim.
They said Belia’s lost divinity was sealed there.
And if Kanya reached it, she could reclaim her godhood—and be freed from Belphegor forever.
I held her closer.
“I’ll save you. I swear it.”
No matter what it took, I would bring her to Talahaim.
Even if it meant fighting three demon kings to do it.
Good.
Because I wanted them to destroy my soul.
She wanted salvation.
Sounds like a perfect match to me.
***
At the very moment one of Belphegor’s followers—razor-sharp and relentlessly searching for the Goddess of War, Belia—crossed paths with Amael, everything changed.
Belphegor immediately summoned Satan and Leviathan.
[That dumb saint found us?! Came here to die?! Get over here—now!!]
[Wait, your little collectible is with the saint? Ha! Makes things easy for once!]
At first, things were looking good.
But then…
The moment the colossal entity hidden within Amael’s soul revealed itself in the spiritual plane, all three demon lords realized—
They had gravely miscalculated.
[It’s been a while.]
Eight pairs of wings unfurled behind her, each one radiating quiet menace.
As her overwhelming presence flooded the entire spirit realm, Belphegor, Satan, and Leviathan couldn’t help but tremble as they faced Asmodeus.
[The three of you, together? That’s new. What’s the occasion?]
Asmodeus smiled, as always—soft, serene, and unsettling.
But what stood before them now was no longer the Demon of Lust they’d once known 300 years ago.
This was something far beyond what any of them had prepared for.
Inwardly, the demon lords cursed Lucifer.
Even with three of them combined… they weren’t sure they could win.
[Satan. Leviathan. Do you think we can handle her?]
Belphegor asked cautiously—but silence was the only reply.
Her voice, usually dripping with sloth and indifference, grew rare urgency.
[I asked if we can handle her!!]
Satan answered first.
[We probably can… but we’ll take massive damage.]
[You were right, Sloth. Three of us aren’t enough. We need the Goddess of War.]
Their eyes turned toward the fragmented divine essence of Belia, standing near Asmodeus.
Still reeling from the Words of Subjugation, the already fragile Belia looked like she could shatter at the slightest touch.
Belphegor clenched her jaw.
If only that damned saint had arrived after the subjugation spell had fully anchored, they could have forced Belia into submission and launched a 4-on-1 assault against Asmodeus.
But what’s done is done.
[Forget it. Let’s just take her down now. Even if we suffer, it’s better than letting this drag on. Lucifer was right. Look at her. If we let her keep draining faith from the mortal realm, it’ll all fall into her hands. Better to crush her now.]
For once, even pride and envy had no complaints.
[Agreed.]
[If we’re going to strike, now’s the time.]
The two demon lords expanded their divine forms without hesitation.
The spirit realm stretched tight with tension.
Belphegor clenched her fists and locked eyes on Asmodeus.
All they needed was for Satan and Leviathan to restrain her—
Then she would move in to corrupt Amael’s soul under Asmodeus’s protection.
Corrupting a mere human soul? That was easier than breathing.
But then…
[Hmm. So Amael is your target after all?]
Asmodeus gently picked up the shattered remnants of Belia’s divine essence.
The three demon lords froze.
[I’d rather not consume a fellow goddess’s divinity. Doesn’t seem like something Amael would appreciate. But if the three of you come at me now—well, then I’ll have no choice. I’ll do what I have to do to protect him.]
[You son of a…!!]
Satan cursed through gritted teeth.
Their chances of victory—already hovering around 50%—would plunge to zero the moment Asmodeus absorbed Belia’s divinity.
Even a desperate, bloodied victory would still be a win. But if she became stronger now?
It was over.
Lucifer wouldn’t show—he was busy keeping the Pantheon in check.
Beelzebub was locked in a standoff with a rogue god.
If they lost here, their shattered divine fragments would become Asmodeus’s meal.
And that would be the end of everything.
[…We retreat.]
Belphegor nearly choked on her own words.
Without hesitation, the other two demon lords turned away as well.
Still smiling faintly, Asmodeus gently set down the fragments of Belia’s divinity.
Belphegor stared at them for a long, bitter moment—then finally turned away, teeth grinding.
The situation was crystal clear now.
They had to separate Belia’s divinity from Asmodeus—no matter what it took.
Because otherwise…
The demon lords had no chance of winning.
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