Chapter 174 - In Search of Her

"Kang-Woo?" Ito Shinji asked.

"Haaa. Haaa."

Oh Kang-Woo panted heavily. He looked at Ito Shinji with bloodshot eyes.

Shinji was frightened by Kang-Woo's sudden change in attitude.

"Wh-What is the matter? Just what was written in that lett—"

"CCTV."

"I'm sorry?"

"Please show me all of the CCTV footage around the area when Princess Kurosaki Yurie disappeared."

"But we've already investigated—"

"Please show me."

Rumble.

The entire building shook. A strong bloodlust poured out of Kang-Woo.

"Kuh!"

Shinji's expression hardened after he felt a huge pressure weighing down on his entire body. It was a huge energy that he wouldn't even fathom the idea of resisting.

"U-Urghh."

His hands trembled. He couldn't breathe properly. Shinji looked up at Kang-Woo in disbelief.

'This is…'

The power of a hero who'd received the power of Tirion, God of Heroes.

He'd heard the rumors, but actually seeing the power of a god with his own eyes made him tremble.

"J-Just a moment, please."

Shinji moved quickly, and Kang-Woo followed him. Shinji guided him into a room with dozens of monitors. It was probably the room from where they watched over the emperor and Kurosaki Yurie.

Shinji pointed to one side.

"The videos over there are the ones that were recorded when Princess Kurosaki Yurie disappeared."

"Thank you."

Kang-Woo sat down. The Kurosaki Yurie of one month before could be seen on the screen.

'She's fortunately still in her human appearance at the time of the video.'

Going back to her original form couldn't be that easy, so he still had some hope.

'I have to find clues.'

It was something he had to do, even at the expense of his life.

Kang-Woo looked through the footage and found a video of Kurosaki Yurie sneaking somewhere in the middle of the night. He watched her easily jump over the castle's walls and meet up with a man.

"Pause it."

Kang-Woo looked at the man she'd met.

'I can't see his face.'

He wasn't sure what magic had been used, but only his face was blurry. It didn't matter how much they zoomed in; they couldn't see the man's face.

"We've tried to search for the man's identity, but as you can see, his face is completely covered."

"Is it the same for the footage after this?"

"Well…" Shinji slurred the end of his sentence. Then, he sighed and resumed the footage. "You should watch to the very end."

The man grabbed Kurosaki Yurie's hand, and then…

"Ah."

She and the man disappeared as if they'd teleported.

Shinji said, "After this, we weren't able to find traces of Princess Kurosaki Yurie."

"Shit."

Kang-Woo let out a short curse, pulled at his hair, and sighed.

'I have to find her.'

It wasn't just to stop Lilith from returning to her original horrifying appearance.

'I mean, I want to stop that from happening too.'

His mind was in jumbles. A portion of the letter popped up in his head. She had written that she would spread his name throughout the Demon Cult.

'Fuuuuuuuck.'

That was the biggest problem. She wanted to spread his identity throughout the Demon Cult.

'That could seriously mess things up.'

He had somehow managed to resolve the situation back when Balrog had worshiped him in front of his comrades, but what if the Demon Cult began worshiping him as the demon king on top of that?

'If that happens, it will really be the end.'

He would no longer be able to use Satan's name as the one leading the Demon Cult.

Kang-Woo anxiously bit his lip.

'But chances of that happening should be low.'

He wasn't sure who the Aspects of Evil leading the Demon Cult were, but they'd probably nurtured the forces of the Demon Cult for more than a thousand years.

There was no way they would offer Kang-Woo their forces just because of Lilith's words, which lacked credibility.

'The problem is…'

Lilith was far more capable than anyone could imagine.

He couldn't relax. After all, it was Lilith who had created a solid force for him when he had become the public enemy of the seven princes of Hell. She had outstanding skills when it came to controlling people.

Kang-Woo looked at the footage of Lilith and the unknown man disappearing a couple times.

"Is there nothing you've discovered about this man?"

"He's around 170–175 cm tall and probably weighs around 60kg. As you can see, he doesn't have any wrinkles on his hand, so he can't be more than forty years old."

"…"

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes. What Shinji said were things one could guess by looking at the footage, so it was as if they hadn't learned anything at all.

'Shit.'

Around 170–175 cm tall, weighing about 60kg, and in his twenties to thirties… These were the physical characteristics of most young Japanese men.

'I can't make any conclusions based on this.'

Even though the Japanese population had decreased after the Day of Calamity, they couldn't point out who the man Kurosaki Yurie had met up with was just based on these specifications.

'First, based on the letter…'

The man was likely the Demon Cultist whom Lilith had made contact with.

Shinji continued, "There is one clue we managed to acquire from the footage that could identify the man."

"What is it?"

"Pay attention to this part here."

Ito Shinji replayed the video in slow motion, focusing on when the man, who had been waiting for Kurosaki Yurie atop a building, jumped down from the rooftop.

Considering a Player's superhuman physical capabilities, it wasn't impressive.

"Here."

Shinji pointed to the falling man's stomach. Although it was just for a short moment, the man's stomach was visible through his fluttering clothes.

On the stomach was…

"A scar."

"Yes. It seems like his stomach was pierced with a sword."

"…"

"Therefore, we've searched through hospital records, but… we haven't been able to figure out that man's identity yet."

Shinji's explanation ended.

Kang-Woo fell into thought while looking at the man's scar.

'Wait…'

A Demon Cultist, a scar on his stomach, and someone Kurosaki Yurie would contact…

Those three facts were entwined in Kang-Woo's head. His eyes shone.

'Akiyama.'

The man who'd summoned Lilith in the past.

He'd summoned her for an absurd reason, and the other Demon Cultists worshiped her to the point that they actually seemed crazy.

And…

'He's a fucking pervert.'

He'd summoned Lilith because she was supposedly the dream of all men.

Kang-Woo frowned.

'The Demon Cultist Lilith contacted was Akiyama.'

He couldn't think of anyone else who fulfilled these three conditions.

"... Mr. Ito."

"Yes?"

"If you knew this man's face, could you find his location?"

"Huh? Y-Yes, but how will you—"

"This is him."

Kang-Woo infused his energy into the Key of the Demonic Sea, which was on his right middle finger. The Key of the Demonic Sea could be turned into things other than weapons, and he could transform it into anything he imagined. That's how useful this Transcendent-grade weapon, the Key of the Demonic Sea, was.

Gurgle.

The Key of the Demonic Sea turned into a black liquid and transformed in the air, creating Akiyama's face based on Kang-Woo's memory.

"This is…"

"There are a few things that make me suspect this man is the culprit. Please start investigating by using this man's face."

"J-Just a moment, please."

Shinji took a picture of the face created with the Key of the Demonic Sea and ran off somewhere.

"Fuuu," Kang-Woo sighed and clenched his fist.

'I managed to find a clue.'

He had managed to find something through the fact that Lilith had made contact with Akiyama. He just had to wait for Shinji to find out more about him.

'Please.'

His legs trembled anxiously, and he looked at the ceiling with a desperate expression.

'I hope I'm not too late.'

* * *

The remains of destroyed buildings filled a dark, empty tunnel. It was the place where the Demon Cult had tried to summon Lilith in the past. It was under Sapporo Station, which had been destroyed after Kang-Woo and Fujimoto Ryoma had become involved in the ritual.

A woman was walking down the tunnel filled with heaps of rubble.

"It seems the preparations are finally complete."

A man with freckles quickly nodded. "Yes, they are!"

"Fufu. Well done, Cardinal Akiyama."

"N-Not at all! I am willing to do anything as long as it will help you recover your true form!" Akiyama said, smiling widely as he looked at her.

"How is it going to work exactly?"

"We are going to create a massive Rift that connects to the Nine Hells. We will then drag demonic energy out of it to recreate your body based on the information engraved in your soul."

"Hmmm. Is something like that possible?"

"Huhu. This is all thanks to the knowledge given to us by the Aspects," Akiyama proudly said. "Now that the Gaia System has weakened considerably, we can do much more than before."

"Is Satan among the Aspects you speak of?"

"Mm. I'm sorry. That's something not even I know. Information about the Aspects is highly classified even within the Demon Cult…"

"I see."

"B-But once you regain your true form, I am sure you will be able to meet with them, Lady Lilith!" Akiyama said in a fuss.

Lilith nodded while smiling. A colossal amount of sexiness emitted from her.

Akiyama was beaming with his mouth wide open.

Lilith said, "I'm glad. I've wanted to meet with them. Oh, and have you finished what I asked you to?"

"Oh, we are still in the middle of it."

Akiyama nodded.

What Lilith asked of him was… to spread the existence of the true demon king.

Akiyama secretly distributed the Book of Hell, which Lilith had written herself, throughout the Demon Cult.

"But does the demon king really exist? From what I've learned from the Demon Cult, the seven princes of Hell maintain the balance of the Nine Hells."

"Fufu. You will learn soon enough." A wide smile appeared on her face. "If the preparations are complete, let us begin right away."

"H-Hehe. You will regain your true form at last, Lady Lilith."

"Hoho. You can look forward to… the reward that I will be giving you," Lilith sexily said while stroking Akiyama's chin.

But that was only for a short while. After turning away from Akiyama, she took out her handkerchief and scrubbed her hand clean as if she'd touched something filthy.

"H-Hehe."

Having not seen Lilith wipe her hand, Akiyama smiled like an idiot while staring at her back.

'Finally!'

He clenched his fists. Soon, he'd be able to meet the Succubus Queen.

'She's already this beautiful, so…'

He couldn't even imagine how beautiful she'd be once she recovered her true form.

Akiyama excitedly put his hands on top of the magic circle. The dozens of Demon Cultists who were there to help him began chanting.

"Guys! This is the moment when our long-cherished dream becomes reality!"

A single tear dripped down Akiyama's cheek.

"Pull up Hitomi, guys!!"

A black Rift started to form.