Chapter 172 - What?

After the appearance of Lucifer's retainers and the incident with the Demon Cult and Balrog, the Korean group's time in South America came to an end.

Once the Demon Cultists confirmed that Balrog had lost, they quickly escaped, and the monsters returned to normal soon after. The US soldiers helped the indigenous people emigrate and then began building a restoration base in Venezuela, the only area in South America they could manage.

Oh Kang-Woo's group left the remaining tasks to the US soldiers and Grace McCubbin and returned to Korea. On the way back, there were hardly any conversations between Kang-Woo and the rest.

One of the reasons was that there was a demon, who was over five meters tall, standing by his side constantly. However, the biggest reason was that Kang-Woo had revealed his hellish past.

Even though they'd said that they trusted Kang-Woo, it was hard for them to treat him the same as before.

'I guess it's similar to hearing that your friend used to be a violent criminal in the past.'

It might be different with Kang-Woo though since he'd become a demon to survive after falling into Hell alone.

'To them, I'm probably like someone who ate human flesh to survive on a deserted island.'

That was probably the best comparison. They could understand Kang-Woo's circumstances, but they had a hard time truly accepting it because of their preconceived notions.

'Well, I'm sure it'll be resolved over time.'

Time didn't solve everything, but Kang-Woo thought that, in his case, it would make things better. What they needed wasn't time to trust Kang-Woo again but time to sort out their thoughts and accept a demon as a comrade.

'In any case, the situation itself has improved.'

The saying 'A blessing in disguise' was the best way to describe the situation.

When his identity, which he'd done his best to conceal, had been exposed because of Balrog, Kang-Woo had racked his brain to figure out how to overcome the situation. Nevertheless, everything ended up working out well. He would be able to move more freely from now onward.

'The biggest advantage is that I'll be able to use Balrog without restraint.'

If Kang-Woo had to keep hiding the fact he was a demon, he'd have trouble using Balrog as an ally. Moreover, even if Kang-Woo were to use Balrog, he would have had to put on all kinds of ridiculous facades just like he'd done with Vaal Zahak.

Being able to use Balrog freely as an ally had made the gamble much more worthwhile.

'Although it might look like a small matter, it isn't.'

Balrog's power was comparable to that of the Guardians as an entire group. Kim Si-Hun might have the potential to surpass Balrog, but that wasn't the case yet.

Leaving everything aside, Balrog's value could be summarized in Kang-Woo's next thought.

'Balrog can face the princes of Hell.'

It was unlikely that Balrog would be able to defeat a prince of Hell though. Everyone praised Balrog for being as powerful as a prince of Hell, but it was an undeniable fact that he was inferior to them in actual combat. However, if Kang-Woo were added to the equation, the pair would be a match for the princes.

So, it was a huge gain for Kang-Woo that he could use Balrog without worrying about what the others would think.

'The same can't be said for Vaal Zahak though.'

Vaal Zahak had pretty much been labeled as Satan's subordinate. If Kang-Woo were to use him openly, there was a chance that he'd be accused of being the actual person who had killed Reynald.

'That can't happen.'

Kang-Woo had only been accepted as a warrior of light thanks to the existence of Satan. If it were revealed that he and Satan were the same being, everything would be over for real. All of humanity would take out their weapons and fight against him.

For Kang-Woo, who dreamed of a comfortable life, that was something he had to avoid no matter what.

[I'm sorry, my king. I had no idea of your circumstances…]

"Well, you had no way of knowing, so it's okay."

They were in a building that was near the apartment building where Kang-Woo lived.

Balrog was easily five meters tall, so Kang-Woo couldn't let him into his home. That's why Kang-Woo had bought a building and remodeled it so that Balrog could stay there.

Kang-Woo was currently sitting in that very building. It had a ceiling that was three stories tall.

Balrog lowered his head as he knelt before Kang-Woo.

[I never expected the demon king would be deceiving the humans.]

"Deceive? What are you talking about?"

[Hm? Are you not assuming yourself as a warrior of light to stab the humans in the back when the time comes?]

"That's nonsense, man."

Kang-Woo sighed and shook his head.

What kind of nonsense was Balrog saying? Kang-Woo was trying really hard to protect Earth.

He proceeded to explain his objective to Balrog.

After listening to Kang-Woo's explanation, Balrog said, [The princes of Hell have revived…? N-No, more importantly, my king! Why would someone as grand as you protect weaklings like humans?! You must conquer this world and make it bow down to you!]

"I'm not interested," Kang-Woo replied with a bored voice. "I've fought for more than long enough. I want to rest now."

[Ngh…]

"Well, you're a demon, so you probably won't understand."

Demons didn't understand the concept of peace and security. They were immortal, so such a thought process had been made impossible for them.

'If they could think that way, they would grow infinitely in number.'

Like humans, demons reproduced and left descendants. Among them, there were even some who were capable of asexual reproduction. If they were a race that wanted peace and security, there would probably be almost a hundred billion demons in Hell.

'I'm not sure how angels do it, but demons maintain a population balance by killing each other.'

Kang-Woo wasn't sure who had made demons, but he couldn't help but think they'd done a meticulous job. Of course, even among demons, there were a few who wanted to live a peaceful life, but they were the minority. The majority loved to battle and trample on their opponents, and Balrog was among the majority.

"You're not thinking of going against my will, are you?"

[Of course not.]

Balrog bowed his head.

He instinctively yearned for destruction and conquest, but there was something that took priority over such instincts—the commands of his master, Kang-Woo. Balrog wouldn't hesitate to risk his life if it were for Kang-Woo.

[If the demon king wishes for peace, then I will kill all of your enemies so that they cannot interrupt your rest.]

"Uhh… Well, sure. Anyway, since I finished explaining my situation, let me ask you a few things."

[Please ask me anything.]

"Have there been any changes in Hell while I was gone?"

Kang-Woo wasn't worrying about his army that he'd left behind.

'The ancient demonic beasts.'

It was the abnormality that he had heard about from Doomguard that had his concern. Apparently, the ancient demonic beasts, creatures that never left their territory, had been expanding their territory.

Since the Demon Cult had begun summoning demons from the Ninth hell, Kang-Woo thought that it would be better if he heard more about that.

[I actually had something to report to you in regards to that.] Balrog's expression crumpled. [I believe Amon is planning something.]

"Amon?" Kang-Woo uttered with a frown.

Amon had been in Satan's faction. However, he'd ultimately deserted it and joined Kang-Woo instead. Amon had low physical combat capabilities, but he possessed exceptional knowledge in regards to magic. He was also the one who had helped Kang-Woo use the Hell Armaments to create a dimensional rift that led to Earth.

"What do you mean by that exactly?"

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes as he exuded a thick bloodlust.

Balrog trembled a bit. He raised his head and looked into Kang-Woo's eyes. They were still white with black irises.

[I am not exactly sure either. I do not have any evidence, but… he has been fully immersed in his research ever since you left for Earth and hasn't come out since.]

"But he's always been like that."

[But this time is quite serious. I haven't seen his face at all since you left for Earth. I even tried to force myself in, but he'd blocked the door with a powerful barrier.]

"He even blocked the door?"

Kang-Woo furrowed his brows. Amon's behavior was indeed odd.

'Well, I never really trusted him from the start.'

After all, the reason why he'd accepted Amon as a subordinate was that he had been the only one who knew how to use the Hell Armaments to create a Rift.

"...Has he betrayed us?"

[I am not entirely sure, but it is a fact that, the ancient demonic beasts started moving after he locked himself up. We even detected Behemoth making a move.]

“Behemoth made a move?”

Behemoth was the strongest of the ancient demonic beasts and was also the father of Leviathan, one of the seven princes of Hell.

'Leviathan was a crossbreed of an ancient demonic beast and a demon, if I remember correctly.'

There was not much known about Behemoth besides the fact that he was Leviathan's father. He had never made a move during the ten millennia that Kang-Woo had been in Hell.

"Damn."

Kang-Woo felt uneasy.

However, what was even more unpleasant than the uneasy feeling was that he couldn't do anything about it.

'It's not like I can go back to Hell.'

He couldn't summon them to Earth to get rid of them, but it was also impossible for him to return to Hell.

'I don't even want to fucking go back.'

Kang-Woo had gone through all sorts of hardships to return to Earth. He had no intention of going back to Hell.

"What about the others? I heard from Doomguard that he was investigating it."

[Doomguard and Argus are investigating but haven't been able to find the exact reason.]

"Damn."

Kang-Woo never thought he would have to worry about the Nine Hells after returning to Earth.

'If I knew things would turn out like this, I would've killed Amon before coming here.'

Despite thinking that, he knew it didn't make sense.

He'd thought that once he was back on Earth, he would have nothing to do with Hell from that point onward. He'd never thought of the possibility of there being Gates or a Demon Cult.

'The only thing I can do at the moment is to grow stronger.'

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes.

There was nothing else he could do to deal with the situation.

'I wasn't able to reach 130 in Demonic Energy either.'

Additionally, the Demon Cult was probably going to back off for a while after failing with Balrog's summon.

'Do I have to wait until Lucifer's forces attack the Demon Cult?'

The only thing he could think of doing was to wait until Lucifer's forces crossed to Earth from the continent of Aernor. Then he would attack them.

"Haaa," Kang-Woo sighed deeply.

His head was hurting.

'I can only hope nothing more complicated happens.'

His brain capacity was already reaching its limit.

[More importantly, my king.]

"Yeah?"

Balrog looked around before asking, [Where is Lilith?]

"What do you mean? Lilith is in Hell."

Kang-Woo shook his head as if he didn't even want to hear anything about Lilith.

[Pardon?] Balrog tilted his head in confusion. [But Lilith came to Earth before me…]

"What?" Kang-Woo's eyes widened. "What the fuck?"

Lilith was already on Earth?