Side Story Chapter 185 - The World Without Law (5)

Rumble—!!

The ground shook. A radiant golden sun rose to light up the paradise drowning in darkness.

“HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!” Akart roared as he clenched his spear.

He blazed so brightly that he was barely visible.

Crack, crack!

His body, filled with the true power he had drawn out, began to fall apart. Golden radiance seeped from the cracks on his body. It wouldn’t be strange for him to break into pieces any second. However, he did not stop. He drew out as much power as possible and raised his scale spear.

“I AM NOT ALONE—!!!”

He was shouldering the souls desperately begging for his help, waiting for salvation.

“You could never understand.”

The king of demons could never understand fighting for others or sacrificing oneself for another.

“That is why... you will lose.” Akart gritted his teeth and stomped his foot. “O Light—”

The golden dishes of the scale rattled and thousands of spears formed in the sky. The spears of light began to spin with Akart at its epicenter.

“Gather in my path to grant me the power to light up the darkness.”

It was closer to a prayer than a chant. The thousands of light particles spinning around him gathered at the end of his spear as if answering his prayer.

Whoooom!!!

The scale spear lit up blindingly as if the sun had been placed at the end of the spear.

“Huuu.”

Akart lowered his stance and stabilized the spear by hugging the shaft close to his waist like a lance held by a knight on a horse during a joust. He stomped his foot and charged forward.

Rumble—!!

The black mucus covering the ground of Paradise turned to ash and scattered. Light shone as if piercing the darkness. Akart and the spear were shining so brightly that it looked like he and his weapon had become one.

“Sheesh.” Oh Kang-Woo chuckled as he stared at Akart charging at him. “Is this a 90’s shonen manga?”

‘ “Citizens of the universe, lend me your energy!” or something like that?’

“If it is, then I’m afraid I have bad news for you.” Kang-Woo smiled as he looked at the golden light charging at him. “I’m not alone either.”

He spread out his arms and jumped backward toward the menacingly burning black sun.

“Where do you think you’re running to?!!”

Akart, thinking Kang-Woo was fleeing into the black sun, charged even faster to close the distance. Kang-Woo cackled as he watched Akart getting closer to him.

“What makes you think I’m running away? Didn’t you hear me? I said I’m not alone, just like you.”

Wriggle.

The blazing black sun shook like a candlelight wavering in the wind.

“What do you mean by th—”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!”

Kang-Woo opened his mouth wide and screamed from the bottom of his lungs before Akart could finish his sentence.

Wriggle—!!!

The black sun shook even more intensely and expanded exponentially as if something colossal was about to come out of it.

“FATHEEEEEEEEEEEEEER—!!!”

‘If you can see me, tell me what to do!’

Rumble—!!!

“Wh-What the—?!”

Akart’s eyes widened after seeing the Titan who came out of the black sun.

[A-Arghh. Wh-Why... am I...]

He was Demon God Bauli, the creator who had been usurped of everything he had by his creation. He had manifested into Luceo Pure at Kang-Woo’s summon after being devoured by the Abyss.

“Kurgh!!” Akart grunted.

Bauli, the Titan who came out of the black sun, swung down his fist at Akart. He needed to stop his charge and change directions to dodge it.

‘But... I can’t.’

He couldn’t change directions after coming this far.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!”

Akart charged even more aggressively as the golden light enveloping him grew brighter.

[I-I-I am... the Master of... the Demonic Sea.]

Pierce—!!!

[A-Aaaahh...]

The golden spear went through the Titan made of black mucus— an entity born from the Primordial like Akart.

Sizzle—!!!

An enormous amount of black smoke rose. The Titan with a hole in his chest collapsed.

“Haaa, haaa, haaa!” Akart panted heavily as he clenched his chest.

He glanced at the Demon King beyond the collapsed Titan, standing tall.

‘I... failed to reach him.’

He could see cracked flesh falling from the torn areas of his white uniform.

“FATHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER!!!” Kang-Woo screamed. He widened his eyes and pulled on his hair crazily. “Y-You son of a bitch!!! How dare you do this to my father...?!!”

There was nothing more agonizing for a child than to watch their parents die before their eyes.

[A-Arghh. P-Please... Pl...ea...]

Bauli was begging Akart who pierced his chest instead of Kang-Woo; he seemed to have lost his mind after getting his chest bore open.

[S-Set me... free... from here...]

Splat, splat, splat.

The Titan’s tears wet the ground. He begged desperately as he clenched his pierced chest.

“A-Aaaahh,” Kang-Woo groaned at the miserable sight. Rage and resentment blazed inside him. “Akart...”

He said the name of his mortal enemy who killed his father.

“Bring him back...”

Kang-Woo’s father was in bad enough condition that he was having hallucinations.

“BRING MY FATHER BACK!!!”

He screamed desperately as he kicked Akart.

“Kurgh!!!”

Bash!!!

Akart was blown several kilometers back as he tumbled across the ground.

Fwoosh! Fwoosh!!

He barely deflected the Flames of Voracity flying at him without giving him a chance to compose himself but they were fortunately much weaker than in the beginning.

‘The Demon King is also exhausted.’

His silly behavior and bursts of rage were only to hide that fact.

‘Just a little more.’

Crack.

Akart ignored his crumbling body and stood up as he staggered. He could defeat the Demon King if he drove him further into a corner— he could save the souls from the ending world.

“Kurgh, argh!”

Fragments of his body fell to the ground as inexplicable pain coursed throughout his body. It was not his body but his soul that was in pain— his soul was withering from using too much of the Primordial Light.

“Why don’t you just stop?” whispered the demon.

“...”

It would be easy to do as those sweet whispers said. He would be at peace if he gave everything up. He would no longer feel this inexplicable pain— he could rebuild the joyful paradise and live happily.

‘Besides...’

There were countless other ending words than the Triad. Akart might be able to save more of their souls instead of the humans on Earth. Such sweet thoughts filled his head.

“I...” Akart slurred as he used his spear like a cane to stand up. “Will not... stop.”

He gazed at Kang-Woo with his pure-white eyes; his gaze was more pure, noble, and righteous than anything.

“...” Kang-Woo remained silent.

Akart’s eyes showed no sign of hesitation. His blazing conviction showed no signs of faltering.

“Yeah... I knew you’d say that.”

Kang-Woo sighed and raised his head. Kang-Woo and Akart were complete opposites. They were like two arrows shot by archers with their backs against each other. They could never interact with each other, but those two arrows also had something in common— they wouldn’t stop. They would never veer away and always fly forward.

“Alright, let’s end this,” Kang-Woo remarked.

“Haaa, haaa. Yes, let’s.” Akart clenched his scale spear tightly and stood tall. “Besides, you are... also at your limit, are you not?”

“...” Kang-Woo remained silent after Akart hit the mark.

As Akart mentioned, Kang-Woo was also in terrible condition. He had used too much of the Demonic Sea. The bottom of the sea of demonic energy he had thought was boundless began to show.

“Allow me to say what you said to me back at you. Why don’t we stop this?” asked Akart as he narrowed his eyes.

“Stop?”

“I am sure you know that not even you, who has become one with the Demonic Sea, will not be okay if you continue to use its power.”

Akart was right. Kang-Woo’s body was made of the Demonic Sea. If he used up the Demonic Sea, he would die. He would disappear without a trace.

“Hehehe. That’s pretty damn funny.” Kang-Woo cackled. “Why should I stop?”

The Demonic Sea was indeed almost empty. However...

“I just have to fill it, don’t I?”

“...?”

Akart’s eyes filled with confusion.

“Let’s see... They should be here soon.”

Kang-Woo turned around, thinking about the trump card he had prepared.

BOOM—!!!

A thunderous sound similar to a massive rebar hitting the ground rang. The dust cleared and revealed a demon covered in red muscles. It was Kang-Woo’s loyal subordinate who had followed the tracks Kang-Woo had made on their way here.

Balrog got on one knee and lowered his head. “I apologize for being late, my king.”

“Hehehe, you seriously kept me waiting, man.”

Kang-Woo had unleashed the Abyss after noticing Balrog’s presence but Akart had attacked more aggressively than expected. It would have been bad if Balrog had been a little later.

“Where’s Amon?” he asked.

“Right here.”

Balrog threw the sac he was holding on the ground.

“E-Eek!!”

A hunchback demon crawled out of the sac. Amon flinched and trembled after noticing Kang-Woo.

“O-O Great Demon King!!! P-Please have mercy on—”

“Shut the fuck up.” Kang-Woo smacked the back of Amon’s head and smiled. “I need you to do something for me.”

“Wh-What...?”

Amon looked up at Kang-Woo tremblingly.

“Open it,” Kang-Woo remarked.

“Pardon...?”

Amon was left wide-eyed, unable to understand. Kang-Woo smacked Amon again.

“I know you know, motherfucker.”

It was Kang-Woo’s trump card— a method to refill the bottoming Demonic Sea.

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

“Open a Gate that leads to the Nine Hells.’

The Nine Hells would be summoned into a world filled only with laughs and joy.