Chapter 69 - Legiones Ketratus

After Mammon was driven out of the mental world, Asmodeus hurriedly approached Amael's fallen soul.

[Oh dear.]

Perhaps because it was a fragile human soul, even though it had received her protection.

The state was quite unstable.

[It'll take some time to stabilize.]

But it wasn't a problem.

She had just absorbed numerous powerful divinitie—more than enough to treat Amael's soul.

Just as she slowly reached out to pick up Amael and started treatment.

Amael opened his eyes in a daze and looked at Asmodeus.

[Don't open your eyes. Just rest quietly.]

Although Asmodeus said that with a gentle smile, Amael didn't close his eyes.

He forcibly kept his eyes open and looked up at the Demon King of Lust.

"Goddess... Lilia?"

Asmodeus realized at those words that she was in her original form, not the muscular male appearance she had always taken until now.

For some reason, Amael seemed to gain courage from that muscular male appearance. Amael strongly grabbed the collar of Asmodeus, who was carefully trying to change his appearance.

With a drowsy voice that seemed about to go out at any moment, he asked in a sobbing, screaming-like voice, "Don't send me to hell."

At those words, Asmodeus smiled.

[Is that what you want?]

"People were suffering... suffering so much. A whole family almost committed suicide if it weren't for me. Good people who did nothing wrong and even tried to give me black bread were trying to die because they couldn't overcome reality. I had no choice but to use my abilities to save them."

[I know. I saw it all.]

"I'll take responsibility and be martyred... I'll definitely be martyred before my power goes berserk... Please don't send me to hell."

Seeing Amael crying like a child, Asmodeus burst into laughter.

He was truly a foolish being.

To fear hell so much without even knowing exactly what was inside him.

[Don't worry. I'm by your side. Amael. Now, relax and rest comfortably.]

Asmodeus patted Amael's head.

Amael's hand gripping the collar loosened a little.

But he was still trying not to faint while forcibly keeping his eyes open.

"This city... Mammon is here. Mammon is in Scrap Yard."

[Yes, that's right.]

"Save this city. Peter and Anna, Jim and Amy are still in this city. And there are many poor and suffering people in this city too."

Asmodeus gently caressed Amael's cheek at those words.

[Is that what you want?]

"Yes. Lilia is a god of the Pantheon, right? Somehow... protect them. I don't want to see the people of this city suffering."

[It will be as you wish.]

At Asmodeus' words, Amael finally let go of the hand gripping the collar.

[Sleep, Amael. When you wake up, everything will be better.]

Before Amael fell asleep.

He mumbled while sobbing one last time.

"Why do I have to... suffer like this. If you could just make me happy...

"Why is Asmodeus in my body…? I never wanted this..."

Amael fell completely asleep.

Asmodeus hugged such an Amael tightly and stood up.

She looked up at the sky.

She could feel the gods of the Pantheon above that sky looking down at her.

Due to the passage between the celestial realm and human realm being severely damaged by Lucifer, the gods' divinities were barely felt on earth.

Asmodeus slowly summoned her divinity and power.

[I'll be busy treating Amael from now on. It seems I'll have to leave the cleanup of Mammon's remaining forces to you.]

Slowly.

Intense divine power that felt like it was being raised for the first time in a very long time bursts from her body.

The powerful power gained from sucking up Mammon's divinity slowly began to burst out into the human realm in the form of a pillar of light beyond Amael's body.

[Anathema!! Anathema!!]

[It's the sun!! It's fire!! Aaaagh!!]

The screams of numerous demon followers and hell's minions in Scrap Yard can be heard from all directions.

[I've made the passage.]

Asmodeus said that.

[I leave the cleanup to you.]

She hugged Amael's body tightly and began to treat Amael's soul with her power.

***

[Awaken.]

At the majestic voice that seemed to be heard for the first time, Iomene's eyes snapped open.

Looking up, a huge man with his face wrapped in light was looking down at her.

Although she couldn't see his face, Iomene could recognize who was in front of her.

"Lord Dullaneer?"

Dullaneer silently pointed to one side.

There, a city familiar to Iomene could be seen.

A city of steel and steam made of huge factories.

Scrap Yard.

And the sight of Mammon's minions and followers rampaging in such a Scrap Yard can be seen.

[Run away!!]

[To the mines where light doesn't enter! Go underground!! Aaaagh!!!]

Seeing them screaming and fleeing in a panic, unable to even disguise themselves anymore due to the huge pillar of light enveloping the entire city, Iomene felt an instinctive disgust rising.

"Hell's worms...!!"

But as she was bursting with anger, the next moment she had to jump up from her seat with a pale face.

"A-Amael!!"

The sight of Saint Amael collapsed on the ground could be seen.

There was a large hole near his heart, and seeing him collapsed covered in blood, she felt her heart drop to who knows where.

"No... No!! Amael!!"

While she was shouting.

Dullaneer removed the vision and looked straight down at her.

[Go and protect. Protect the humans of the city and protect your loved one. This is an order I give to you, so do not refuse.]

"I will!! I've been training for this moment for the past few months! Use me!!"

At those words, Dullaneer grabbed Iomene and lifted her up.

[Show my anger to the ugly powers of hell, Chosen One.]

Brilliant light enveloped Iomene. And the next moment.

Iomene realized she had moved to a completely different place from the imperial palace where she had been resting.

The smell of iron.

The smell of oil.

And the smell of hot steam.

And in those smells, she saw the man she loved lying powerlessly on the ground with a hole in his heart.

"Amael!!"

She ran frantically to hug Amael, but the pillar of light surrounding his body repelled her with strong elasticity.

As she stumbled back, Karl Renaro, who had been watching this, quickly pulled her away.

"You mustn't approach the pillar of light carelessly! If you try to forcibly enter, you could be seriously injured!"

Only then did Iomene come to her senses at those words.

She turned her gaze from Amael and looked around.

A few laborists in shabby clothes armed with machine guns, pistols, and explosives were staring at her with blank expressions.

Karl Renaro separated from her and carefully bowed his head.

"I greet the Imperial Princess."

"Explain. Right now. In detail what happened."

At those words, Karl Renaro quickly explained the essentials of what he saw.

"While I was talking with the Saint, suddenly a melting lump of flesh appeared before my eyes, screamed and disappeared, and then the Saint collapsed. And about 5 minutes later, the Princess suddenly appeared."

Although his expression was confused even as he explained, Iomene wasn't particularly surprised.

She looked at the melted lump of Mammon's flesh on the ground and then went outside.

Her soul, which had suffered from the Evil God's fragment for over 16 years, could sense the powers of the abyss and hell more sensitively than anyone else.

Moreover, now the minions of hell couldn't disguise themselves at all due to the pillar of light.

Following the instinctively felt stench of hell, Iomene could easily witness a group of monsters screaming.

[The mines! We must go underground!! Underground!!]

[Anathema!! It's fire!! It's the sun!!]

[It's burning!! It hurts!! It hurts!!]

Huge twisted beings with dozens of eyeballs blinking on their bodies were running away, smashing everything in sight.

Behind them, humans screaming and fleeing could be seen.

Seeing Karl Renaro who had followed the princess out, a few of the fleeing humans quickly ran up to him to report.

"Comrade Renaro!! There were demon followers and black mages hidden among our comrades!!"

"They suddenly mutated into monsters and are rampaging like that, destroying everything around them!!"

"Bullets don't work!! We can't handle them with pistols and machine guns, comrade!!"

At those words, Iomene smiled and nodded.

"Ordinary weapons cannot kill those monstrosities."

She began to approach the monsters that were rampaging and running towards them, slowly pushing through the people.

"Princess!! It's danger..."

The laborists tried to stop her, but people had to flinch and step back because of the divine power that burst from her body for a moment.

The emblem of Dullaneer engraved on the back of her hand began to emit light.

And the approaching monsters seemed to notice her presence too.

[Dullaneer!!]

[Mad god!!]

[How are the Pantheon's dogs already!!]

[It's one person!]

[This is the fastest way to get down to the underground mines!]

[There's no time to detour!]

[Break through! Bite and kill!!]

[For Mammon!!]

The demon followers spat out words simultaneously and then rushed towards Iomene.

She didn't hold any weapons

Nor did she take any defensive stance.

Instead, she slowly raised her hand with her stigmata drawn to the sky.

And opened her mouth, "Legiones Ketratus."

Dozens of beams of light fall from the sky to the ground.

"Assemble."

As Iomene clenched her fist, the beams of light disappeared and beings never before seen by the people of Scrap Yard were standing in their place.

Huge bodies over 2 meters tall.

Enormous firearms that looked closer to heavy machine guns than guns held in one hand.

And huge swords and hammers held in the other hand that made one wonder if it was possible for humans to wield them.

Pauldrons of transcendent size.

Breastplates made of adamantium and mithril.

And helmets painted in cold white.

And the phrases of the Codex Prorilium engraved all over the armor.

The strongest holy knights of the White Order.

And at the same time, the most experienced battle priests slowly turn to look at Iomene who summoned them.

"The 1st Company has responded to your call, Holy Woman. Give us your orders."

Iomene pointed at Mammon's followers rushing towards them.

"Kill."

A simple and intense order was given.

And the response to that order didn't come in words.

The 1st Company members raise the pistols held in one hand.

"Cover your ears."

After giving the warning, the huge pistols about the size of an average adult male's upper body spew fire.

It w as the sound of artillery.

Not gunfire, but the sound of artillery erupts.

And along with that.

The bodies of the demon followers begin to simply explode.