Chapter 114
Mikhail Archbishop surveyed the Banquet Hall, which was utterly consumed by battle, unable to hide his bewilderment.
*Where in the world did those Monsters come from?*
*Monsters shouldn't be appearing in a banquet hall like this,* he thought, finding their sudden emergence perplexing. Moreover, it wasn't just one or two; an uncountable number poured out, which was equally baffling. As he tried to ascertain their nature, he belatedly realized that the Monsters were, in essence, Demonkind.
*Demonkind... Demonkind,*
Demonkind are alien beings that arise from Negative Emotions. They typically only form when Humans are pushed to their absolute limits and then further overwhelmed by Negative Emotions, so their numbers shouldn't be this high. Yet, despite being significantly weaker than typical Demonkind, the sheer quantity emerging was quite puzzling.
*Weak and numerous,* he considered.
The moment he reached this conclusion, he could easily deduce their true identity.
*Monsters from Rifts.*
He didn't know why Rifts, which usually appeared only in The North or on the Front Line, were here. But one thing was certain: someone capable of creating Rifts was present. As he arrived at this conclusion, he hurried his steps to relay this information to the Cardinal.
Just then, a voice called out to him from afar, and Black Masses began raining down on him. It wasn't an exaggeration; massive Black Masses poured down on him as if it were raining.
A strange sensation, one he'd felt somewhere before. As he pondered where he had experienced such an intense, overwhelming, and even chilling feeling, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
*The North.*
An impossibly powerful explosion he had encountered in The North. Fortunately, he had managed to escape using a holy relic and his personal abilities, but the terror he felt then had become a profound trauma, often resurfacing at night to haunt him.
*Why is something like that here?*
He considered fleeing immediately, but then he remembered the numerous Troops present, including Inquisitors, and shook his head, regaining his composure.
*That would be an overreaction. Logically, with this many people, there's no chance they'd attack head-on.*
Even if they did attack head-on, the combined forces of the Order, the Imperial Family, and high-ranking Nobles were gathered here. There was no need to assume the worst and act accordingly.
*Besides, if all else fails, I can just use the holy relic.*
There wouldn't be any major problems. So, he decided to confront them and began channeling his divine power. Just then, events from the Order flashed through his mind, and the owner of those Black Masses came to him.
*Damian.*
The moment this realization spread through his mind, the Black Masses exploded violently, scattering *immense divine power*.
*...Divine power?*
The moment divine power, not mana, scattered, his mind went blank. Considering that divine power is an innate ability that cannot be used unless one is chosen, he concluded that the individual firing those Black Masses was *not* Damian.
*Then who is it? Is there someone else who can use such an ability?*
Impossible. He thought there couldn't be that many people with such power. Just then, the thrown bombs began to explode simultaneously, causing massive blasts all around.
"Aargh!"
"R-run...!"
"Help me!"
Though chaotic due to the countless Monsters, the situation had been somewhat stabilized by well-trained forces. But because of the Black Masses thrown by that Unknown Individual, everything began to collapse and crumble. Unable to leave things as they were, he urgently called for the elite forces waiting behind him.
"...Inquisitors!"
The Order's most powerful military group, responsible for unofficial matters. As long as they were present, no matter how skilled the opponent, they wouldn't easily break through. He thought this as he prepared to block the enemy, but then...
"...?"
His urgent cry was in vain; there was no one in front of him. To call it hallucinations or auditory delusions caused by excessive stress, there were too many victims. And indeed, immense divine power was spread everywhere, making it too difficult to dismiss everything as false, given the overwhelming evidence.
*What in the world was that?*
He couldn't understand why the attacker had left without a follow-up, so he stood frozen, staring blankly ahead.
*What was it? Why did they just throw bombs and disappear?*
For an assassination, the explosion's range was excessively wide. And to call it a simple mistake, he had clearly seen it thrown directly at him. Considering this, his mind became confused, unable to comprehend the attacker's intentions. As confusion and questions continued to arise, an Inquisitor nearby politely told him they needed to evacuate. He nodded and decided to leave the area for now.
*****
I watched Mikhail Archbishop depart into the distance, crossing my arms. I wanted to kill him right then and there, but if I did, the Imperial Family and other Nobles might notice and put pressure on the Karsaril family, so I was enduring it with superhuman patience.
*So, I'll just wait a little longer.*
After defeating the banquet's boss, once everything was over, I decided to secretly follow him and kill him, letting out a deep sigh.
*So, where might the boss be?*
Based on the energy I felt, it wasn't far from the center of the Banquet Hall. However, with so many Waves of Power occurring everywhere, it was difficult to pinpoint its exact location. So, I decided to casually look around, aiming only to land the final blow and absorb the Essence of Power, and began walking in that direction. Just then, I saw a massive Black Knight swinging a greatsword, attacking people in the distance.
*That must be the Final Boss of the Banquet Hall.*
I thought I had found it faster than expected, so I approached the area and observed the situation.
*More people are engaging it than I expected.*
It was natural for many to be fighting it since it was the final boss, but the problem was that there were so many people that I might accidentally reveal my identity.
*What's the best approach? Should I just cause terror with divine power like before?*
If I did that, all responsibility could be shifted to the Order, which seemed like a pretty good plan. I immediately scattered Shadow Bombs everywhere and unleashed a powerful burst of divine power.
BOOM! CRASH! BANG!
Explosions erupted everywhere, and black smoke began to fill the air. Of course, this alone wasn't enough to obscure vision. So, I enveloped my entire body in divine power, suppressing everything around me, and then...
*Now's my chance.*
Using Shadow, I immediately approached the boss Monster and plunged Shadow Thorns into it.
CRUNCH!
The moment the Shadow Thorns pierced the Knight's armor, a crushing sound echoed, and the Knight was slammed into the ceiling. Seeing this, I thought it would be best to go upstairs before all the smoke cleared. I poured more power into the Shadow Thorns, collapsing the ceiling and sending the Knight upwards simultaneously.
As I ascended, a dark space with no lighting greeted me. It was covered in dust, as if no one had entered for a long time. But there was no better place to kill this thing, so I pulled out my mace and struck the Knight directly.
THUD!
A massive tremor shook the entire area for a moment. I looked at the Knight's horribly shattered form, smiled with satisfaction, and decided to quickly extract the Essence of Power and then escape. I swiftly reached into its helmet and began rummaging around.
*Where could it be?*
Usually, it was near the head or heart, but no matter how much I searched, I couldn't find it. Thinking it might be a wasted effort, I clicked my tongue and was about to give up when I suddenly realized that its body itself was 'black' smoke.
*Could its entire body be the Essence of Power?*
It was a possibility. As I considered this, I inhaled the black smoke, and I felt a faint surge of power throughout my body.
*Ah, this feeling.*
However, perhaps because it was smoke, the absorption rate seemed low, and it wasn't as satisfying as I'd hoped. I thought this was quite disappointing and was about to make my escape when Daisy suddenly popped out from my pocket, urgently pointing in one direction and starting to say something.
"*Over there!*"
*Could she be telling me to go there?* Since following Daisy's words had never led to trouble, I decided to obey. As I moved forward, what I saw was an incredibly large door.
A massive door made of rusted iron and wood, the kind that would appear in a horror movie. The moment I saw it, a strong urge to open it welled up inside me, and I instinctively reached out and pulled it open.
The instant the door opened, a massive mana storm and immense demonic energy spread everywhere, twisting the entire space. Seeing this, I realized it was a gate leading to the Demon Realm. To prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, I sent Shadows inside the door to create entry and exit points everywhere, then assessed the situation.
*Why is something like this above a Banquet Hall?*
It didn't make sense. But that wasn't important right now. For now, I decided to quickly escape this place, hide my presence, and then go kill Mikhail Archbishop. The moment I turned to leave, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
*Speaking of which, the Demon Realm. If it's the Demon Realm, there must be a lot of beings with Essence of Power, right?*
It would be difficult now, but if I came here later, I wondered if I could reach the rank of Master by absorbing Demonkind there. With that thought, I turned around.