Chapter 206
Word of Command (言靈) — or Word of Law (言令)
Hmph... ha!
The enormous beast of shadow inhaled deeply, then curled up one corner of what seemed to be its maw.
The air outside... isn’t bad.
Of course, it would have been far better if there weren’t any uninvited guests around.
As Hyul squinted his eyes — or where eyes should have been — and looked ahead—
BOOM!
The collapsed cavern exploded once more, and something surged upward from within.
Reda frowned, clearly displeased.
“It was one of my favorite outfits… a shame.”
He brushed the dust off his collar. Though his injuries seemed minimal, his once-fine garments were torn and frayed in several places.
Grrrr…!
Hyul didn’t like that attitude one bit.
Even with him standing right there, Reda acted as if he didn’t exist.
ROAARRR!
Hyul’s manifestation bellowed toward him. A savage killing intent burst in every direction, shaking the ground itself.
Lower-ranked demons convulsed violently, trembling as if gripped by seizures — some even foaming at the mouth before collapsing entirely.
Even Reda could no longer ignore the presence before him. He turned his head slightly, his eyes burning like twin ghost flames. Demonic energy spiraled along his wings, tracing the sigils engraved there.
“How dare you bark at me, you mutt shackled to a human?”
Reda could see it — the faint, invisible tether connecting Hyul’s manifestation to Elric.
To him, Hyul was a disgrace — a being who had lost the pride of a Demon King. His power might surpass that of most demons, but there was no trace of nobility or dignity left.
Lowly. Pathetic. A tyrant’s remnant.
He had certainly died once — and yet, here he was, clinging to a miserable half-life, chained to a human like some pet, wagging his tail for scraps. The sight disgusted Reda.
And now, look — in an effort to impress his so-called master, the creature was baring its fangs at him?
Pathetic.
To think that something born from the depths of the infernal abyss — an abomination, a mere beast — dared to behave this way. It was laughable.
But Hyul was furious in his own right.
All throughout Elric’s struggle, he had watched in frustration, unable to unleash his full strength. Compared to his prime, this current form was nothing but a shadow — a colt, feeble and incomplete.
And yet, he thought, if he could just act freely, tearing apart this so-called Demon King would be child’s play.
He was Hyul — the calamity that once drowned the Eastern Continent in fear. How could such a being tolerate being treated as lesser?
He wasn’t angry at Elric. He was angry at Reda — for daring to look down on him.
And now, given permission to manifest, Hyul intended to vent every ounce of his pent-up fury.
Only after ripping out Reda’s eyes and devouring them would his rage begin to subside.
[You remember what I said, right?]
At that moment, Elric’s telepathic voice reached him — heavy with caution and concern. Strangely, Hyul’s anger cooled at once. Rational thought returned, and a low chuckle escaped him.
Heh... he’s the disciple of that man who bound me, yet I don’t dislike him.
Perhaps it was because Elric’s desperate will to survive reminded him of his younger self — or maybe it was because the boy’s defiant grin, even in their first meeting, had been oddly endearing.
He didn’t know why. He simply didn’t hate him.
Kikikik. Don’t worry.
When Elric released Hyul, he’d made one condition — he was to attack only Reda. If even a single ally was harmed, Elric would instantly tighten the chains binding him again.
What Elric needed right now wasn’t chaos — it was time.
[....]
Yet even with Hyul’s confident reply, Elric remained silent for a moment, clearly unconvinced.
Hyul clicked his tongue inwardly. Had it been anyone else — human or demon — he’d have devoured them for such insolence. But this one? This human made him want to... protect him, somehow.
He couldn’t explain the feeling. Even after all these years, it was foreign — unsettling.
Someone once told me I was like a wolf. Do you know how wolves hunt? They don’t rush blindly — they wait. They watch for the right moment...
Like this.
WHOOSH!
Before his words had even faded, Hyul launched himself forward, slamming into the ground and charging at Reda.
CRAAASH!
“A mutt like you dares shove your filthy snout toward me? I’ll tear out those teeth one by one!”
Demonic energy erupted around Reda like a hurricane. His face and chest bulged with pulsing veins — the sheer madness in his expression enough to chill any who witnessed it.
In answer, Hyul’s shadow surged upward like a tidal wave, engulfing Reda, while Reda’s black aura crashed down like thunder, splitting the darkness apart.
RUMBLE!
Kukuku...
And so, the two titans clashed.
“Elric, what is that thing?”
“The big one? He’s under my command.”
Herman reined in his horse and drew alongside Elric, eyes fixed on the collision unfolding before them — Hyul’s shadowy form and Reda’s blazing demonic aura.
The impact of two seals — Wrath and Madness — was overwhelming. Humans and demons alike backed away in a panic, their gazes locked on the storm ahead.
Even from afar, the air itself felt heavy enough to crush the lungs — a suffocating echo of the Great Demon War, thirty years past.
“You know,” Herman murmured, narrowing his eyes, “I’ve heard stories.”
“Stories?”
“Of an ancient catastrophe — a calamity that once ravaged the Eastern Continent. One day it crossed the mountain ranges into our lands, and a single sorcerer followed it.”
Elric recognized the tale. It was the same one Augustine had once told him — the legend of the Green Night.
“They say the sorcerer couldn’t kill the calamity, so he left behind a vow — a curse passed from one generation to the next, until, a thousand years later... it was finally fulfilled.”
Elric wondered if there were stories even he didn’t know — stories tying Herman and Augustine together long before his time.
Herman finally turned back to him. “That calamity — it won’t turn on us, will it?”
“I still hold the leash. And... it won’t last long.”
Elric knew, deep down, how this would end. Between the two Demon Kings, Reda would win.
‘He’s just out of his league.’
Reda was a full Demon King, bearing the twin Seals of Fame and Frenzy — sigils that had evolved beyond High-class to the very threshold of Myth.
Hyul’s manifestation, by contrast, was still at the Rare-class level — formidable, yes, but incomplete. No matter his experience or ferocity, the gap was undeniable.
Even now, though Hyul’s tendrils were feeding on nearby corpses, he was barely holding on. Eventually, he would fall.
“So what do you need me to do?” Herman asked quietly.
Elric’s answer was simple. “See that smug one over there?”
“The one with the punchable face?”
“Yeah. Buy me some time.”
Asking one of the continent’s greatest warriors to *stall* someone might have been an insult — but Herman simply smirked.
‘He’s right. I can hold him off… but it’ll take time.’
Elric’s gut told him this fight wouldn’t end with Reda. The unease in his chest only grew stronger.
‘If he’s anything like Judas… then this could get bad.’
Back then, when Judas had been cornered, he’d unleashed a sliver of Azazel’s power. If Reda had reached that same level of completion... this would be far worse.
That was why Elric had to reach the dragon — to secure the Dragon Heart before Reda’s forces could. There was no way a group sent to hasten Azazel’s resurrection would come unprepared.
But now wasn’t the time to explain everything. He only gave the order, and Herman nodded.
“You heard him, old man?”
“Aye,” Sailor replied, grinning wide despite being covered in blood. “Hah! A Demon King hunt — been a while! This might actually be fun!”
“Hyah!”
He yanked on his reins and charged toward Reda. Herman followed, sword in hand, eyes sharp as steel.
The two Lions’ sudden intervention caught Reda completely off guard. He had planned to slaughter the beast, then crush Elric’s line — not face two of Gregory’s own warriors head-on.
CLANG! CLANG!
Blue and gray streaks tore through the air, slashing between Hyul and Reda — or at least, they tried to.
Until something massive fell in front of them.
BOOOM!
“Why... did it take you so long...”
The voice rumbled low — slow and heavy.
The creature towered over two meters tall — closer to two-twenty. Even Herman, the largest of the Lion Generals, was dwarfed by it.
Unlike Reda’s sharp movements, this one was sluggish, its eyes half-lidded with drowsy malice. Each breath it exhaled stank of rot — the stench of corpses.
And yet the pressure it emitted was monstrous — no weaker than Reda’s own.
In that instant, Herman and Sailor realized what they were facing.
A new Demon King had appeared.
[Can you hear me?]
Meanwhile, Elric was attempting contact with the dragon — deep within the darkness where the cavern had collapsed.
【Mel... ving... ger...】
The dragon’s voice echoed faintly through the void.