Chapter 287: The Death of Michael (2) |
‘If it must be done, then I’ll do it—even if it costs me my life.’
Baal tried to convince himself.
‘There is no greater honor than sacrificing myself for the future of the demon race.’
With that thought, he felt slightly more at ease.
But only for a moment.
Twitch—
The moment he locked eyes with the predator, a shiver ran down his spine.
‘W-Why does it feel like he’s looking right at me…?’
There was no way Ryu Min could sense him from over 30 meters away.
‘It must be a coincidence. A coincidence.’
Baal held his breath, convincing himself it was paranoia.
Then, without warning, the Black Scythe launched toward him.
—Swish!
The blade cut through the air as Ryu Min spoke in a chilling tone.
“I know you’re there, Baal. Show yourself.”
[…!]
“Hurry up before I get angry.”
As if responding to the threat, Baal’s invisibility slowly dissipated.
—Fwoosh…
His figure was now visible, and he stammered in shock.
[H-How… how did you find me?]
“Come closer.”
Ryu Min gestured with a curled finger.
Baal, his face now a shriveled mess of fear, hesitantly stepped forward.
[W-What do you want, human?]
“You were planning to kill me once all of this was over, weren’t you?”
Baal’s heart nearly stopped at the accusation.
[N-Nonsense! W-What a ridiculous claim…!]
“You’re really bad at lying, huh? Doesn’t suit your face.”
[Th-That’s not—]
“I’m not here to listen to excuses. I want an honest conversation.”
Ryu Min’s eyes narrowed, his tone growing serious.
“The Demon Grand Duke ordered you, didn’t he? Told you to stab me in the back once everything was finished?”
[…]
“Why aren’t you answering? Oh… I see.”
Ryu Min smirked knowingly.
“The Grand Duke is watching through your eyes, isn’t he?”
[H-How do you…?]
“Since you can’t talk freely, I’ll just send a message myself.”
Without hesitation, Ryu Min raised his scythe.
“Demon Grand Duke, watch closely.”
“This is what happens to those who try to betray me.”
[W-Wait! Hold on—!]
Baal raised his hands desperately, but it was too late.
—SLASH!
His body was cleaved in two.
Like Michael, Baal didn’t even have a chance to resist before he died.
But there was one key difference.
“No reward?”
Ryu Min frowned.
He had expected some kind of loot drop, but unlike the archangels, the demons gave nothing upon death.
“Well, not like I needed a reason to kill him.”
Currently, there were about 4,000 demons remaining, while the angels were down to 2,000.
At this rate, the demon army would win the war.
And that was not something Ryu Min intended to allow.
It was time to switch sides.
With that, he activated a temporary skill.
[You have used the Temporary Skill: Faction Change Token.]
[Player ‘Black Scythe’ has switched factions from ‘Demon’ to ‘Angel’.]
[The demons now recognize you as an enemy.]
[Your victory conditions have been updated accordingly.]
***
“M-Michael… is dead?”
Agaros, the second-ranked demon, stared at the sky in disbelief.
There, he saw the black-cloaked human who had effortlessly decapitated Michael.
“Kihihihi! At this rate, the demons are guaranteed to win this round!”
Agaros laughed in amusement, reveling in the angel’s defeat.
But his laughter didn’t last long.
Because that very same black-cloaked human just killed Baal in an instant.
“W-What? Baal too?”
Baal had no reason to be here in the first place.
And yet, he was now dead.
“Well… I guess if Michael fell, Baal was no exception.”
Agaros wasn’t particularly upset about the loss.
Instead, he grinned.
“Kihihihi… That means I’m the new Number One!”
Now that Baal was gone, he would be the closest demon to the Demon Grand Duke.
His excitement was short-lived.
“Hey.”
A deep, ominous voice called out.
When Agaros turned, his grin froze in place.
Because right in front of him stood the Black Scythe.
“Are you the commander?”
[Y-Yes, I am…]
Agaros nodded stiffly, his entire body tensed.
The Black Scythe’s dark aura faded, revealing his true face.
And when their eyes met, Agaros instinctively knew.
‘This human… is on a completely different level.’
“You saw it, right? How I killed Ba’al?”
[Y-Yes…]
Agaros forced himself to respond politely.
He wasn’t stupid enough to provoke this monster.
“So tell me… do you want to die too?”
Agaros panicked.
[N-No! Absolutely not! And to be clear—Baal wasn’t my friend! He wasn’t even my superior, haha…]
“Coward.”
Ryu Min scoffed but didn’t press the matter.
Instead, he smirked and asked,
“If you don’t want to die, can you do me a favor?”
[Y-Yes, of course! Anything! Whatever you need!]
“Gather all your soldiers. As many as possible.”
[Y-Yes, right away!]
Agaros was confused but didn’t dare question the order.
He immediately rallied his troops.
[All units! Assemble before me!]
The demons rushed to their commander’s call.
Soon, nearly 2,000 demons stood in formation.
[Any more, and it’ll get too crowded… Should I call for more?]
“No, this is plenty.”
Ryu Min smirked in satisfaction.
“You did well.”
Agaros felt relieved at the praise—until he saw the scythe being raised.
—WOOOOSH!
A heavy, ominous sound filled the air.
When the flash of a blade passed, Agaros instinctively shut his eyes.
And when he reopened them…
His entire army had been wiped out.
Every single one of the 2,000 demons he had gathered…
Gone.
I'm currently Translating the following novels: Pick Me Up! | A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War! | The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player. If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!
Comments 1