Azriel raised his head.
A strange energy had suddenly begun to pour down.
How had he failed to notice it when it was right in front of him?
"I suppose my senses are dulled from just waking up."
A faint smile crept across his face.
Though he said that, he had actually hidden it.
Using the combination of the talisman and scale he had received from Carmela.
He flicked his finger, summoning the scales.
A silent whirlpool of scales swirled behind his back.
Above, through the dark clouds, the god Carmela had summoned was revealing itself.
"I've heard there was once a kingdom that prospered under the blessing of a god. Divine energy flowed through the palace twenty-four hours a day, and newborn children were born wrapped in light. The people of that kingdom served and revered this light as their god, their hope, and their future. Thanks to that, they enjoyed a long era of peace and prosperity."
He pointed a finger at the dark clouds.
"But one day, without warning, dark clouds appeared. And within them dwelled a being with hundreds, thousands of mouths. Its name was the Light-Eating Great God. Despite its menacing appearance, the Light-Eating Great God did not destroy the kingdom or steal its treasures. It simply... ate."
Azriel, who had been listening, twitched the corner of his mouth.
And then, not long after.
"Kuhahahaha!!"
He burst into wild laughter.
I'll admit, the ominous energy made me flinch for a moment.
But that was all.
"The Light-Eating Great God? You think a nameless lesser god like that can do anything to me? How arrogant and ignorant."
"How amusing."
"Amusing?"
"Because the god that kingdom served said the exact same thing. Right up until the last light of the palace was swallowed."
"Then that god was nothing special either."
The Light-Eating Great God, having descended through the dark clouds, shot toward Azriel.
Yet Azriel remained unfazed.
Instead, he spread both arms wide toward the Light-Eating Great God.
"Go ahead, eat your fill! I am the brilliant and infinite light of tyranny! Do you think a mere lesser god can digest this light?!"
As I listened to his roar-like shout, I smiled faintly.
He would have been right.
If this were an ordinary Light-Eating Great God.
Crunch!!
The Light-Eating Great God's gaping mouth bit down on Azriel's shoulder.
"!!!"
The reaction was immediate.
Azriel, who had confidently spread his arms, reflexively pulled his upper body back.
The moment he was bitten, he realized it.
Forget digesting—the light in the bitten area was being completely extinguished.
Azriel's pupils shook violently.
'That can't be.'
Though brief, he had felt it clearly.
A sensation he could never forget, even after so many years.
'Impossible.'
He had felt it, but he couldn't accept it.
That thing had fallen into a dimension from which there was no return.
So why was he sensing that power here?
He glared down at Jinhyeok.
'A remnant.'
Before being sealed, Azriel had left traces of his light in various places to prepare for the future.
There was no rule saying the Devourer of Darkness couldn't do the same.
That human must have picked up a fragment somewhere and infused it into this lesser god.
'A meaningless struggle.'
He felt relieved.
The Devourer hadn't returned.
Only a tiny fragment remained.
'Of course.'
As a being called a divine entity, he could be certain.
That was a dimension even a god dared not touch.
No matter what was done, it could never be retrieved.
Grit!
Rage surged.
He was ashamed of himself for being startled, even for a moment, by something so obvious.
Boom!!
He slammed his fist into the gathered pool of light.
Unforgivable.
He would kill that human without fail.
The one who had humiliated him like this.
"Legion. Arise."
Ding!
[The divine entity Azriel awakens the sleeping army!]
The pool of light erupted like an explosion, scattering in all directions.
One by one, massive monsters rose to their feet.
Among them was Belia Blackwell, who had fallen earlier.
She was no longer human.
Radiating dazzling light, Belia created axes with both hands.
"Your servant heeds the sacred com—"
Crunch!
'Whoa.'
Jinhyeok narrowed his eyes.
Once again, Belia didn't finish her sentence.
The Light-Eating Great God descended at incredible speed and devoured her.
What a brutal scene.
"Kill that lesser god."
All the soldiers turned toward the Light-Eating Great God in unison.
Azriel also created a spear with one arm and aimed it at the god.
"And."
[The being hidden deep within the earth opens its eyes!]
[Those who had become part of the light regain their form!]
"Follow that trail and kill the one who summoned this."
He turned his head at the vibration beneath his feet.
Though far away, they were large enough to see clearly.
A lion with a mane of light and a basilisk resembling Teharam.
"Haaah."
Taking a deep breath, he drew the Millennium Cold Iron and his sword.
No need to worry about that side.
Azriel was constantly emitting blinding light in real-time.
I just needed to focus on this side.
"We heed the god's command!"
"In the god's name!"
The divine legion charged toward the Light-Eating Great God, shouting loudly.
I moved my fingers, positioning the swirling scales above their heads.
Then, after speeding up the rotation even more.
Swoosh.
I lowered my hand.
The Light-Eating Great God was imbued with the Inverse Cross of Judas Iscariot.
Because of that, they were no longer protected by divinity.
Which meant the attack of the scales, harder than anything else, was effective.
Crash!!!
The divine legion began to be torn apart.
The legion shattered loudly, matching their enormous size.
I extended the Millennium Cold Iron toward the flashing light, hooking Azriel's wrist.
Azriel, who had been about to throw his spear, faltered.
"Do you dare think a mere human can stop me?!"
Azriel emitted light.
I suppose that's what it means to be a divine entity.
Even with my strength stat amplified by the unique effect of Ganjiang Moye, my body was being pulled.
[Skill Borrowing – Dark Castro]
The Collector's unique skill that borrows skills, traits, or Noble Phantasms from hero cards that haven't been engraved on a blank card yet.
Ding!
[Borrowing the unique skill of the Immortal Dark Castro – Frost Rain!]
[Skill level 130. Player Eugene Jinhyeok's level 139]
[Usable without power reduction!]
I had secretly hoped the Noble Phantasm Frost Storm would appear like last time.
Guess that was too greedy.
Without delay, I activated it, and hundreds of ice spears fell where the Millennium Cold Iron was bound.
Crash!!
The ice spears struck down, severing Azriel's arm.
As the pierced area slowly became tainted with the curse of extreme cold.
'Oh shit.'
Azriel used his other hand to cut off his own arm.
He had a more macho side than I expected.
Crunch! Crack! Crunch!
Meanwhile, the Light-Eating Great God continued to devour Azriel and the divine legion without pause.
Azriel regenerated immediately after being eaten, so it wasn't noticeable, but the Light-Eating Great God's stomach was definitely being filled.
Proof of that was the increase in the number of mouths compared to when it first appeared, and each tooth had become sharper.
Moreover.
'It's working.'
Regeneration wasn't free.
Azriel's descent had stopped at some point.
Thanks to that, the bastard was continuing the fight with only his upper body revealed up to his waist.
Of course, even that was disgustingly huge, making it hard to meet his eyes.
"I'll crush you all!!"
[The divine entity Azriel prepares to release countless beams of light!]
He seemed quite angry from being nibbled on from all sides.
An enormous amount of light gathered toward Azriel's core.
I changed direction and leaped toward the Light-Eating Great God.
Then, using the scales, I created a massive wall in front.
Just in case, let's make it three layers.
Boom!!!
Soon, sharp arrows of light began to pour down.
As expected of the Black Dragon Drakkan's scales.
They didn't break.
But the force of the light was immense, slowly pushing me back.
With one hand maintaining the scales, I held the Soul Reaper in the other.
It wasn't wise to engage in a power struggle with a divine entity.
I would use Resonance Divine Extreme to escape the range of light and find an opening…?
I narrowed my eyes.
For some reason, the arrows of light were weakening.
After a moment, they stopped completely.
I cautiously moved the scales aside and poked my head out.
"Kuhahack!!"
Azriel spat something out.
Soot-like particles poured down from high in the sky.
Even as they fell, they consumed the nearby light.
It seemed the effect had finally kicked in.
Of course, aside from this good news.
"Ugh."
My face twisted.
Because I knew better than anyone.
How disgustingly bad the potions made by the Star Alchemist Elia tasted.
"Kyaaaa!!"
He looked angrier than ever.
Azriel swung both arms wildly.
Whether he liked it or not, the Light-Eating Great God charged in, biting at every part of his body.
When Azriel tried to tear it off, I blocked his path with the scales and the Millennium Cold Iron.
"Foolish human!!"
As we engaged in a brief struggle, Azriel spoke.
"What changes that you struggle like this?! You cannot destroy me! With such a fragment, you cannot fully devour me!! That means you cannot win! Never!!"
"You'll see."
"And even if you desperately hold out here, what's the use!?"
Azriel looked down at Jinhyeok and curled his lips.
"Soon, your comrades who created this lesser god will all meet their deaths."
What he had unleashed outside were ancient lifeforms he had long ago harvested.
Powerful weapons that even the divine legion couldn't handle, forcing him to act personally.
He had sent every single one of them to the cliff where this dark cloud began.
Because he had known from the start.
That the human before him lacked the power to harm him.
Which meant the moment this lesser god was destroyed, all obstacles blocking his full descent would vanish.
"Soon, you will hear it. The sound of your approaching defeat."
Azriel sneered, even leaning forward.
Jinhyeok stared blankly at Azriel for a moment.
Then.
"Pfft... Puhahahaha!!"
He couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing.
It was the first time since Momo had let out a missile-grade fart in the swimming pool.
That he had cracked up this badly.
"What's so funny?"
Jinhyeok finally stopped laughing and spoke.
"Those things outside, you caught them yourself, didn't you? That means they're weaker than you."
Shaking his head, Jinhyeok stretched his lips into a grin, mimicking Azriel.
"And you can't even handle me alone. All bluster."
Azriel's eyes widened as he tried to say something.
Just then, Jinhyeok held up one finger.
"By now, they should have arrived, right? Your pets. Now then, one."
"What…?"
"Two."
A moment of silence.
"Three."
The moment the voice reached his ears.
"!!!"
Azriel's eyes turned toward the cliff.
* * *
"Kuhuhack…!!!"
"Kuuuh…!!!"
Momo and Kancho opened their mouths.
"Huh."
Carmela, drenched in sweat, also let out a hollow laugh.
It was a sight that left them no choice.
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T/N:
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