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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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Chapter 51
2.
Seonghyun, who was causing a stir in the world, was unaware of this fact.
Or rather, he didn't care.
As he used the Overlord's Compass,
He was transported to a dark and vast stone chamber.
Strange magical lights, not quite torches, illuminated the surroundings.
Although those lights were scattered throughout the chamber, they weren't very effective.
The dark atmosphere of the stone chamber remained.
Before him, Seonghyun saw a massive door, large enough for a giant to pass through, befitting the size of the chamber.
The massive stone door was engraved with various carvings, depicting countless undead and demons seemingly worshipping a woman floating high above.
'That's quite the atmosphere.'
Judging from the shape and back view of the statue,
It was definitely Helena, the former Overlord.
It seemed like the perfect place to undergo his second class advancement.
As Seonghyun approached the door,
The countless undead and demons carved on the massive door began to gleam with red eyes.
The undead and demons with red eyes slowly emerged from the door,
And soon filled the vast stone chamber.
Hundreds of undead and demons filled the chamber, exuding a ferocious aura and preparing to charge at Seonghyun.
However, they were ordinary undead and demons, unlike Seonghyun's Death Legion.
He had wondered if they were related to the Death Legion since this was the Overlord's second class advancement location, but...
It seemed that wasn't the case.
A message appeared at the same time.
[Prove that you are a Monarch.]
Seonghyun nodded at the system message that only he could see.
It wasn't a gesture of confidence or assurance.
Simply,
It was just the test he needed.
He had two new skills to try out.
As if it were only natural, he opened the teal gate to the Netherworld, and his Death Legion emerged from it.
In the midst of this, Balthar, who was trying to walk out with a triumphant air, bumped into an invisible barrier and made a bewildered expression.
-Huh? Uh?
Seeing Balthar's confusion, Seonghyun said,
"Don't come out."
-What!?
"It'll end too quickly if you come out."
-S-successor! N-no, my Lord...!
With that, Seonghyun closed the gate to the Netherworld,
And Balthar's words were cut off.
He was trying to test out his new skills, and if Balthar joined the fray, the battle might end before he could even try them.
He had excluded Balthar from the summoning from the start.
Now then,
'Shall I check out my new skills?'
About 50 soldiers of the Death Legion faced off against the legion of undead and demons that crawled out of the door.
In this situation, Seonghyun first reached out his hand and used the new skill he had acquired.
Creeping Darkness.
As he cast the skill,
Darkness squirmed in Seonghyun's grasp, then shot out like arrows.
The darkness spread out in all directions, piercing the shadows of the Death Legion like embedded thorns, and then diffused like a dense fog.
The eerie darkness settled on the floor, spreading until it enveloped the entire Death Legion.
An extraordinary darkness then surged forth, wrapping around the Death Legion like a protective shroud.
The Death Legion, already emanating a dark, teal aura, absorbed the darkness, and their bodies began to harden.
-K giggle! K giggle! K giggle!
-Ki ki ki ki!
-Keureukhu! Keureuha!
-Kekekekeke!
-Clatter! Clatter!
The entire Death Legion let out a boisterous roar.
It wasn't their usual speech or praise.
It was simply a roar, unable to contain their power, that made the enemy legion, which had crawled out of the door, flinch and momentarily retreat.
However, the Death Legion didn't stay idle.
They charged towards the enemy and ravaged them.
The Death Legion, empowered by the Creeping Darkness buff, was truly unstoppable.
Crunch! Crack!
-Kyaaaaaaaaaa!
-Kieeeeeeeeee!
-Clatter! Clatter!
Every time the Wraith of Barpur swung its arm, several enemies, be it undead or demons, were swept away indiscriminately.
The Imp Kaishaks also swept away at least two enemies with each swing of their sharp tails.
The Goblin Undead and Skeleton Mercenaries weren't fighting systematically as before, but were individually defeating each enemy with ease.
The more enemies they defeated, the darker and more turbulent the darkness that enveloped their bodies became.
As if fog was rising, their darkness deepened and spread eerily around them, and Seonghyun smiled in satisfaction.
It was a tremendous buff.
As Seonghyun was marveling at it,
Surprisingly, sharp hands of darkness began to emerge from the ground and cling to the enemies who managed to withstand the attacks.
Was this a debuff effect of Creeping Darkness?
No, it wasn't.
'The spreading darkness is supposed to be the debuff effect, so what are those hands?'
As the number of hands increased from four to five,
An unknown dark being appeared behind the enemy covered in hands, and all the hands simultaneously began to strangle it.
Despite being undead, it struggled as if in pain when strangled.
-Gasp!
Even the undead, already dead, trembled in fear and tried to struggle, but...
They couldn't escape or even break free from the grasp.
The being approaching from behind quickly reached out towards the enemy.
As the five hands that were strangling the enemy's neck gradually transformed into scythes, the being grabbed the scythes and pulled.
Slash.
The sound of death echoed, and fear began to spread.
The number of enemies with hands clinging to them gradually increased, and Seonghyun nodded as he watched.
'This is incredible.'
Those clinging hands were the Mark of Death.
He had wondered how the passive skill would manifest, and...
So this was how it worked.
It was tremendously powerful.
Moreover,
'This effect applies not only to the Death Legion but also to me, right?'
It seemed like it inflicted unavoidable damage.
If he utilized it well, it could become an incredible follow-up attack.
With that thought, Seonghyun envisioned various ways to utilize it and...
surveyed the battlefield with satisfaction.
Although the enemy had outnumbered them by several times,
They were dealt with in an instant.
By the time there were no more enemies in sight, the effect of Creeping Darkness hadn't even ended.
They had dealt with several times their number in less than 5 minutes.
Then,
[Praise be to the one who has proven himself a Sovereign.]
[Open the door to the one who has proven himself.]
A message appeared, and...
The massive door in the stone chamber opened on its own.
As the enormous and heavy stone door slowly opened,
It created a huge vibration in the surroundings.
Rumble.
With the vibration of the door opening, Seonghyun sent the entire Death Legion back to the Netherworld and was about to walk towards the door.
Or rather, he only thought about it and didn't even take a step.
But suddenly, the scenery around Seonghyun changed in an instant.
From the vast stone chamber to a place where everything was dark.
Although he was abruptly transported,
He wasn't particularly surprised.
It was a common occurrence.
First, he looked around.
He could see his surroundings, although it was dark.
Should he call it gloomy?
Or eerie?
Although it was hard to see clearly because it was dark all around,
There was one thing
He could clearly see the altar placed before him.
'What is this place?'
He knew it was the place for his second class advancement, but...
What was it originally used for?
He couldn't quite grasp it.
Was it a place for rituals since there was an altar?
It seemed like a place related to Helena, but he didn't think Helena would have performed rituals.
As Seonghyun was making those speculations,
Several lights began to ignite on the dim altar.
Woosh! Woosh! Woosh! Woosh!
Beautiful teal lights, like torches.
Thanks to those lights, floating like will-o'-the-wisps, he could now make out his surroundings.
They weren't illuminating the place where he originally was.
As the lights ignited,
The surroundings gradually brightened as if they were being created.
And finally, the scenery was revealed.
Everything was stained crimson, and except for the area around the altar, there was a bottomless abyss stretching in all directions.
And countless waterfalls cascading into the abyss from all sides.
However, unlike ordinary waterfalls, these poured down streams of red blood, scattering blood droplets everywhere.
Even the pale moonlight that shone on the altar seemed to be dyed red.
Whoosh!
The refreshing sound of the waterfall was made eerie by the ominous crimson, but...
Seonghyun, with a calm expression, looked around and marveled, making a guess.
'Is this because of Balthar?'
Before reaching level 50,
At level 40, he had obtained the Demon Knight Summon skill and summoned the Blood-Red Demon Knight Balthar.
The scenery seemed fitting for the name Blood-Red Demon Knight.
At first, he thought it might be Helena's altar, but...
This seemed to be the altar of the Blood-Red Demon Knight, Balthar.
As Seonghyun was making this speculation,
The teal flames that had ignited on the altar piled up, forming a single massive flame.
The teal flame surged, and facial features emerged on it.
As if the fire itself had come to life, eyes, a nose, and a mouth appeared, and the shimmering flame opened its mouth.
-Greetings to the descendant of the Mother of All, the one who governs all that is black.
"Oh."
To think the flame would speak to him...
Seonghyun was surprised, as he hadn't expected it.
The teal flame chuckled with delight.
-With such a glorious one as her descendant, she must be overjoyed.
As the flame's eyes flickered with a hint of sorrow, reminiscing about Helena,
Seonghyun agreed and said,
"Hmm, she does seem happy."
-...
As Seonghyun agreed matter-of-factly,
The flame looked at him with a puzzled expression.
'What's this? Is he a bit arrogant for a descendant?'
For the descendant, who had never even met Helena, to speak so casually...
From the flame's perspective, it was naturally a bit disconcerting, but...
Since it had spoken first,
It couldn't object.
Above all, it couldn't speak rudely to the sole successor.
He might seem arrogant, but...
Since he was a descendant of Helena, he was worthy.
The flame coughed lightly and continued.
-Ahem, welcome, descendant.
As it spoke, it shot out teal flames, and they burst like fireworks, scattering sparks in all directions.
A truly splendid sight.
Did it want to hold a welcoming ceremony?
Seonghyun was slightly surprised by the splendor.
He hadn't expected such a welcome.
Was it because he had proven his qualifications?
It was quite friendly.
"It's nice to meet you too. My name is Seonghyun."
The flame continued its welcome and bowed its head as if impressed by Seonghyun's greeting.
Although it looked like just a head floating in the air,
It did seem like it was bowing its head.
Seonghyun wondered how he should react, but...
He decided to just stay still for now.
Then,
-Oh! The Altar of Blood! You have summoned the Blood-Red Demon Knight, Balthar!!
Seeing the flame exclaim in admiration, Seonghyun nodded.
As he had guessed, it was indeed Balthar's altar.
Seeing Seonghyun nod, the flame, while still impressed, made a slightly regretful expression and approached Seonghyun to say,
-Oh my, you must have been through a lot. It's the same for other Demon Knights, but Balthar is particularly difficult.
"...?"
Balthar was difficult?
Did it have another meaning?
Like, he was picky about underwear or something.
It didn't seem to be that kind of meaning, so he just stayed quiet.
-You must have suffered a lot.
"Hmm?"
-But it's alright now. At this Altar of Blood, even Balthar will swear allegiance to the descendant!
Seonghyun finally understood the flame's explanation.
He hadn't expected it, but...
Seonghyun didn't say anything to the flame.
He simply opened the gate to the Netherworld and summoned Balthar.
-M-my Lord. H-have you finally summoned me!? This Balthar is deeply moved!
-Gasp! I-I'm not ready yet!!! S-stop summoning Balthar... Huh?
-Huh? Aren't you Azlaphame? Oh? Then this place is...
As Balthar was making those speculations,
Seonghyun, as if he had already subdued Balthar, showed him to Azlaphame, the flame, and said,
"He has already sworn allegiance, so are you going to give me something else?"
-Uh..., uh... what should we do?
Seonghyun looked at Azlaphame with an expression that said, "Why are you asking me that?"
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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