NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 16
Chapter 16
“Aaron Raiders! You traitor who deserves to be killed!!”
Andromalius was filled with rage. The entire 70th floor was thrown into chaos and engulfed in flames due to the rebellion raised by Aaron Raiders.
As a result, the troops to counter Citri were far less than planned. The soldiers who had turned against him and the forces sent to combat them were stuck here.
The flames had now reached Andromalius’s throne room.
‘This wasn’t the war I wanted…!’
Although Aaron’s forces were strong, it was true that Andromalius’s might was greater. It was supposed to be a matter of quickly suppressing the rebels and dealing with Citri’s army, but even that wasn’t going according to plan.
Boom!!
As magic exploded, dozens of Andromalius’s soldiers perished. Immediately following the explosion, a silver blade struck down the soldiers. The one demonstrating overwhelming power was a woman with impressive cat ears.
“Was it you who summoned the 72nd floor!!”
It was Lin El Lazine, famous for her swordsmanship, the Seir’s Sword. Aaron confirmed Lin’s strength with his own eyes, mocking Andromalius with a confident expression.
“Well, you shouldn’t have insulted me.”
“You bastard!!”
Thud!
Andromalius stomped the ground with his massive foot and rose from his seat. The ruler of the 70th floor, Demon King Andromalius, had entered the fray himself. He shouted while holding a huge mace in one hand.
“Aaron Raiders, I will personally tear you apart!”
No matter how lowly his standing, he was still a Demon King. Fundamentally, he was a being of a different tier from ordinary demons. Under the overwhelming atmosphere, Aaron flinched momentarily, but Lin swung her sword without changing her expression.
The soldiers charging at Lin were split in half. Seeing this, Andromalius decided he needed to deal with her first.
“Lin El Lazine!! I will personally test your skills!”
“Since His Majesty wishes to face me himself, I have no reason to refuse.”
Lin adjusted her grip on the sword and charged at Andromalius. The Demon King swung his massive mace powerfully with one hand.
Crash!!
It was a powerful strike, but his mace only smashed the floor to pieces. Lin was swiftly moving toward Andromalius.
“You weasel of a woman!!”
Another time, the massive mace came crashing down, but it didn’t touch a hair on Lin. Each of Andromalius’s attacks was overwhelmingly powerful, but if they missed, that was the end.
“Don’t think you can keep running away!”
Andromalius’s magic spread outwards. In an instant, the spell was activated.
“Bite!”
『Hydra』
Nine snake heads appeared and lunged at Lin. It was the great magic of Andromalius, the Hydra. The moment one of the snakes that burst from the magic circle bit her, she would be injected with a deadly toxin, risking her life.
No matter how strong the opponent was, being bitten meant losing one’s life. This was Andromalius’s trump card. Its speed was also quite fast, and not many could dodge it.
But Lin intended to evade all of them. No matter how much of a Demon King’s great magic it was, it couldn’t catch her.
Snap!
One of the snake heads bit into an innocent wall. Lin had already moved from where she was just moments ago.
‘One.’
Crack!
‘Two.’
Crack! Snap!
‘Three and four.’
Lin quickly dodged even the fourth head. Watching her evade them one by one, Andromalius swung his mace. He intended to block her escape route.
However, did Lin somehow anticipate Andromalius’s actions? Instead of taking the exit blocked by the mace, she chose a completely different path and avoided the fifth head.
“You’re dodging so well!”
Aaron, observing the battle, was honestly impressed.
“To be able to fight on equal terms with a Demon King in the body of a demon…”
This was Lin’s skill, known as the Seir’s Sword. Because Lin was keeping Andromalius occupied, Aaron’s forces were maintaining the upper hand against what remained of his army.
‘It was a good decision to ally with her.’
Had he not allied with her, he might have found himself on the receiving end of that sword.
Just then.
“Hmm!?”
Aaron spotted something. Yujin Vermilion was stealthily approaching Lin, who was distracted by Andromalius.
“Wha…! El Lazine, watch out!”
At Aaron’s shout, Lin turned around. Yujin was now close enough to strike with his sword. He quickly thrust his weapon.
“Die!”
“Ugh!?”
Andromalius had intended to draw Lin’s attention from the start. She swiftly leaned back to avoid Yujin’s blade. However, that left her vulnerable.
“Got you now, Lin El Lazine!! I shall remove the last Seir’s Sword myself!”
The last head of the Hydra lunged at Lin. She hadn’t anticipated that the arrogant Demon King would resort to such a collaborative attack, and she bit her lip in frustration.
‘…A mistake.’
Had she become careless from being out of practice for so long, or was she simply too caught up in the thrill of battle? Either way, it was her error.
Lin lamented her oversight and closed her eyes, accepting her fate.
‘…It won’t hurt, right?’
However, nothing happened. She felt no sensation, nor the pain that would come from being injected with poisonous death. Instead, the ground trembled violently, and a tremendous sound echoed.
Boom―――!!!
Startled by the sudden noise, Lin opened her eyes slightly.
“What, what…!”
And she was taken aback by the scene before her.
Yujin was sprawled, unconscious, and Andromalius was on the ground. To be precise, he was pinned beneath the foot of a man. No wonder she was shocked.
‘Nahun!?”
The one who had crushed Andromalius was Nahun. In an instant, Nahun had stomped down on the enormous Demon King, looking down at Andromalius with cold eyes.
“You…!”
Andromalius was left speechless. A being capable of lightly wielding such a massive mace now quivered and couldn’t even move.
“Demon King Andromalius.”
Golden eyes bared their fangs at the Demon King prey. In that moment, Andromalius felt a surge of fear.
‘What, what is this….’
Behind Nahun, an unimaginably massive whale was visible. The gigantic figure of Andromalius paled in comparison to this enormous white whale, which opened its mouth wide.
It was truly overwhelming.
Andromalius was currently being dominated by this man.
“I suggest you surrender.”
#
Lin, Aaron, his soldiers, and Andromalius’s soldiers, including the newly arrived Baruna, were all in shock.
The sight of a Demon King being subdued in the blink of an eye and collapsing to the ground was astounding. Furthermore, Andromalius showed no sign of even attempting to get back up.
Nahun, with overwhelming might, pressed the Demon King down, demanding his surrender.
“If you surrender, I will spare your subordinates.”
“You….”
Andromalius quickly understood. He realized that the man before him was the master of the Demon King who had just entered the 72nd floor.
As Yujin had mentioned, he was an extraordinary individual. He was stronger than the Demon King himself, with a power that even Andromalius, who was formidable, could not resist.
“Why would a being like you enter such a trifling faction?”
He found himself unable to escape the situation. To overturn it, he would have to draw him into his faction. Andromalius reluctantly lifted his hand slightly and made an offer to Nahun.
“Join me. I’ll give you riches… and honor, everything you desire…!”
“Everything?”
Surprisingly, there was a response. With desperate earnestness, Andromalius pleaded his case, his eyes wide open as he started to appeal to him.
“W-What do you want?”
“The highest position.”
“…What?”
“Is it too much for you?”
Andromalius’s skin prickled with fear. He realized the area where those golden eyes were directed surpassed his imagination.
“You were aiming for…the peak?”
“It is impossible at your level, Andromalius.”
He could not deny it. The number one ranked Demon King, called the true Demon King, Beelzebub von Deus. Andromalius had met him face to face only once.
To describe the feeling he had at that time, it could only be expressed with the word ‘death.’ The moment Beelzebub made a move, he had felt with certainty that he would die.
Now he finally understood why the man before him had chosen Seere von Debata. She was the only offspring of Seir von Debata, the Demon King who had been closest to Beelzebub.
“I see… so you…”
Andromalius clearly realized he could not survive. He understood better than anyone else that he could never challenge that position. Therefore, he could not fulfill this man’s ambition.
Andromalius let his hand drop in resignation. He quietly accepted his fate.
“…Be satisfied with my head.”
“Very well.”
Nahun drew his previously sheathed sword and, with a clean and decisive stroke, beheaded him. He raised Andromalius’s severed head high and shouted to the soldiers still fighting outside.
“The war is over! Soldiers of Andromalius, lay down your weapons!! Your lord has already fallen! If you surrender now, your lives will be spared, but there will be no mercy for those who continue to resist!”
The amplified voice echoed throughout the entire 70th floor. The soldiers of Andromalius, who were clashing with Citri’s army, were shocked by the news and dropped their weapons.
“A-Andromalius…?”
“No way. His Majesty….”
Both Citri and the sage Baphomet were unable to hide their shock. How could the situation be resolved so quickly? It filled them with fear.
‘He is an individual we must never turn into an enemy.’
As everyone stared in astonishment and fear, Seere, nestled in Citri’s arms, heard Nahun’s voice and smiled brightly.
“It’s Teacher!”