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[Translator - Night]
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Chapter 282: War (6)
Step, step.
Violently flickering black flames.
With heavy footsteps echoing through the air, a man stepped through the black inferno.
“…Amon.”
Though his appearance was hard to distinguish from his other clones, the moment you laid eyes on him, it was clear.
This wasn’t a clone.
This was the real Amon.
"The Archbishop of Destruction."
The peak of the demon race that humanity could never defeat in their past life stood before them.
“To call me a ‘brat’ before the Master of Destruction….”
Sigh.
“You ought to learn the proper etiquette when standing before your master, heir of destruction.”
“You keep calling me your heir, like we’re somehow connected. But if there is any relationship between us, it’s just that of a victim and their assailant.”
And naturally, the one trampled by unjust violence would be Amon.
“…Hmph. You sure do talk a lot.”
“Well, maybe that’s not the only thing I’m better at.”
Gripping my sword tightly, I began walking toward Amon.
Fwoosh!
Clones assembled behind Amon flared menacingly, surrounding the area.
I glanced at the circle of Amon’s clones and smirked.
“Are your clones the only friends you’ve got? You should’ve tried making some actual friends while you had the chance.”
Like I did.
Wooooong!
The warp gate, through which the trainees had all escaped, began to ripple.
And emerging from it were the elite units from every nation.
And then—
“Kehehe! Finally, the day we’ve been waiting for—the funeral of these damned demons!”
The first to appear was Khalid Han, the Falling Blossom Blade..
“And what’s a funeral without a good drink?”
Pulling out a bottle from his waist, Khalid Han began chugging it down.
“Ha… even now, with alcohol?”
Shaking his head disapprovingly, the Sword of the Holy Kingdom followed behind.
“Don’t scold him too harshly, Johann. Drinking is Khalid’s way of honoring the moment.”
The Pope followed after the Sword of the Holy Kingdom.
And finally—
“It’s been a while, Amon.”
The Empress appeared through the warp gate.
“……”
Amon frowned as he gazed at the masters now assembled in the auditorium.
“Five… no, six masters, huh.”
Clicking his tongue, he glanced at me.
“You’ve prepared quite a lot.”
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the entirety of the heroes' current forces had gathered in this hall.
Even for Amon, the apex of the demon race, this lineup would be difficult to face.
“But still.”
Amon’s lips twisted into a sneer.
What did it matter how many had shown up?
“It’s all in vain.”
Amon hadn’t come here to fight the heroes.
He had only one goal.
To awaken the flame slumbering in the deepest abyss and be reborn as the true Master of Destruction.
Fwoooosh!
As Amon stomped the ground, the black flames throughout the auditorium flared violently.
The heroes quickly activated protective spells and braced for impact.
But the black flames weren’t targeting the heroes.
“Huh?”
“M-My body…?”
“L-Lord Amon! What is this…?!”
The flames engulfed the demons lined up behind Amon—his own Apostles of Destruction.
“AAAAARGHH!”
“HOT! IT BURNS!!!”
“MY BODY!!!”
“W-Why… us…?”
Even the heroes were visibly shaken by Amon’s sudden betrayal of his own forces.
“W-Watch out!”
Iris, who had been tending to the wounded in the back, screamed, her face pale.
At the same time—
KRROOOOM!!!
The black fire, now swollen with the lives of Amon’s followers, exploded violently.
In an instant, the entire auditorium began to collapse as the flames consumed everything.
“O, Holy Seven!”
“Protect Your child!”
Iris and Marianne’s sacred chants echoed through the crumbling hall.
A radiant, circular barrier enveloped the gathered heroes.
RUMBLE!!!
“AAARGHH!”
“I-It’s collapsing!”
“Get inside the barrier, quick!”
Smoke billowed thickly.
The explosion was powerful enough to obliterate a hall that could house thousands.
But thanks to the swift action of the Saintess and the Pope, there were no casualties.
Of course—
Cough!
Pant, pant!
“S-Saintess! Your Holiness! A-Are you alright?!”
Iris and Marianne had taken the full brunt of the explosion and were in no condition to be considered okay.
“Amon…”
Frowning, I surveyed the wreckage of the auditorium.
Something was off.
If Amon’s goal was to resurrect the demon god, he wouldn’t waste his own followers' lives like that.
Reaching the bottom of the abyss required immense time, effort, and manpower.
For that, he needed to occupy the hero academy built atop it.
Occupation.
Not annihilation.
To maintain and manage the conquered ground, he would absolutely need a foundational force.
So why was his first move turning his followers into living bombs?
Even if Amon won the war, the only future left would be one of mutual destruction between heroes and demons.
Surely, Amon knew this.
And yet, he played such a dangerous card.
‘What if… his goal was never occupation to begin with?’
No way—
“Damn it!”
Cursing, I dashed through the thick smoke.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one thinking this.
Camellia, Khalid Han, and Principal Lionel also charged toward Amon’s location.
“You're quick to catch on.”
Amon looked at the approaching masters and smirked.
“But…”
It was already too late.
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Fwoooosh!
Beneath Amon’s feet, a fissure formed—made entirely of black flame.
"The main building of the Hero Academy was built with the center of the Abyss as its axis. In other words, if you keep going straight down from here..."
You could reach the deepest part of the Abyss.
Of course, as he said, it wasn’t actually possible to get there by simply drilling straight down like a brute.
From the beginning, the deepest part of the Abyss was protected by countless barriers that made it inaccessible by physical means.
But then—
Whoooosh!
Beyond the crack made of black flames—
A land of endless fire could be glimpsed through the rift.
It looked just like hell, reminiscent of the "deepest part of the Abyss" described in the records of the Five Great Heroes.
“How... how is this even possible?!”
Principal Lionel bit his lip in disbelief.
As the head of the Hero Academy built directly above the Abyss, he knew better than anyone how many protective barriers covered the Abyss.
If those barriers hadn’t existed, the seal of the Demon God wouldn’t have lasted these 500 years against the hands of the demonkin.
And yet—
The seal that had stood guard over the Abyss's entrance for the past 500 years—
The legacy of the Five Great Heroes—
Could it really be broken so effortlessly with a mere gesture from Amon?
“The answer’s simple.”
Amon let out a sly chuckle as he stood before the black rift.
“The very person who made this seal personally told me how to undo it.”
“What are you talking abou—”
“Lionel! This isn’t the time to argue! We must stop him before he enters the Abyss!”
Khalid Han rushed toward the rift.
Whooosh!
The surging black flames repelled Khalid Han.
“Grrgh!”
Khalid Han was pushed back, groaning in pain.
“Well then, I’ll be seeing you.”
With a cruel sneer, Amon threw himself into the rift.
“Stop!”
Camellia, cloaked in a shimmering rainbow aura, tried to follow him into the rift.
“Ugh...!”
Bang!
She was thrown back as if bounced off a wall.
“It’s no use. This rift is a gate that only those chosen by ‘Destruction’ can pass through.”
A mocking voice echoed from beyond the crack.
As the rift hanging in the air began to close—
“Oh, really?”
I kicked off the ground and hurled myself into the rift.
Unlike when Khalid Han and Camellia had approached it, the black rift showed no resistance whatsoever.
“So that means I can enter too, right?”
“You...”
Amon’s eyes widened in shock as he stared at me.
“What? Didn’t you call me a heir of Destruction just a while ago?”
“Damn it!”
Amon hurriedly unleashed his demonic energy to push me out, but it was too late—I was already inside.
Whoosh.
The black rift closed completely, swallowing both Amon and me.
‘This place is...’
Following Amon into the rift, I looked around.
What I saw was a land engulfed in endlessly burning flames.
It was similar to the place where I had seen the Primordial Fire in the mental world.
“You really are a persistent bastard.”
Maybe he hadn’t expected me to follow him all the way into the Abyss.
Amon looked at me with an expression of disgust.
“But... now that we’re here, the outcome won’t change.”
Unless you stopped him before reaching the deepest part of the Abyss—
Once here, there was no one who could stop him.
This place was filled with the flames of Destruction.
In other words, it was the perfect place for Amon to unleash his full power.
“……”
Of course, I knew that better than anyone.
In my past life, the moment Amon reached the deepest part of the Abyss, the Demon God's seal had been broken, and he had been resurrected.
‘Damn it.’
I had managed to follow Amon into the deepest part of the Abyss, but now came the real problem.
From my past life’s bitter experience, I knew that no one could defeat Amon in this place.
‘I should have stopped him from getting here in the first place.’
But how could I have known?
Who would have thought Amon would suddenly open a direct path to the Abyss's core?
“Well then, shall we finish this?”
Amon slowly raised his hand.
This was the moment he had long awaited, ever since engraving the Demon God’s stigmata onto his chest.
“Come—Destruction.”
Whoooosh!
The flames burning through the Abyss surged toward him.
With a face full of ecstasy, Amon spread his arms wide.
“Now I shall be reborn as the true master of Destruction!!!”
With a scream that seemed to shake the heavens—
The flames of the Abyss surged forth.
But they weren’t heading toward Amon.
They were heading toward me.
“…Huh?”
What is this?
Why are they coming to me?
“?”
“?”
In the midst of the raging flames—
Two puzzled gazes crossed paths in the air.
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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