The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Chapter 134

Though they had overcome the immediate crisis, the life of Tiried Sedus was still in danger.

Elise was currently suppressing it periodically with her Holy Power, but this could not continue indefinitely.

Likewise, Tiried Sedus had his limits in suppressing the power of authority with his aura.

A person’s body could not produce infinite aura, after all.

“He’s already reached his limit.”

Aden thought as he organized his thoughts alone in the guest room of the lord’s castle.

As a master, Aden could tell.

Outwardly, Tiried Sedus laughed cheerfully, as if nothing was wrong, but he had almost exhausted his aura.

He had spent several months without any major activity, focusing solely on managing his aura, so it was only natural.

At this point, what Tiried Sedus desperately needed was rest and recuperation.

‘Ultimately, it’s just a matter of time.’

Unless the cursed demonic sword Lavolas was destroyed, he would die.

And the contractor of Lavolas was Spica Runius. She would have it.

Just a short while ago, it would have been incomprehensible how someone like her, not even a warlock but a saint, could become a contractor of one of the 72 demonic swords.

‘This must be similar to the case with Unknown.’

It was not that she chose to contract the demonic sword, but rather that the demonic sword chose her.

A contractor chosen by a demonic sword could establish a contract without the procedures involving dark magic.

“I have one more reason to oppose Spica.”

Aden had not yet used the Pledge Token of the Sedus family.

The value of a Sword Master like Tiried Sedus was immeasurable, and he couldn’t afford to lose such a valuable asset so easily.

To save Tiried’s life, the only way was to eliminate Spica, the contractor of Lavolas.

-So, what will you do now? Will you change your plan, Dragon Slayer King?

“No, I will proceed as originally planned.”

The demonic sword Lavolas had emerged as a variable.

However, since he knew about its existence and capabilities, it was not a major threat.

The key to resolving this incident still lay in the underground labyrinth of the Slaughter Tower.

‘According to Priestess Lunia, the Slaughter Cult should already be marching against the Troll Legion. It has been quite some time.’

In the central region, between the eastern territory of the Trolls in the Wasteland of Death and the western area managed by the Slaughter Tower, lived the Death Worms.

‘A buffer zone between the Troll Legion and the Slaughter Tower.’

Until now, both forces had tacitly left the Death Worms’ habitat as a buffer to prevent conflict.

But now, the Slaughter Cult was eliminating that buffer themselves.

He had tasked Niketa with regularly reporting on the situation, and she had reported that the Slaughter Cult had already penetrated over 80% of the Death Worms’ habitat.

They were slaughtering the Death Worms as they advanced.

So far, the Slaughter Cult’s losses were minimal.

‘In a few days, they will clash with the Trolls’ territory.’

There was little time left.

Aden, having finished his thoughts, muttered briefly.

“It’s time to move.”

It was now time to head to the Slaughter Tower.

* * *

Central Wasteland of Death.

There, lived the Death Worms, also known as the “Hell Holes of the Wasteland.”

Giant monstrous worms nearly 10 meters long.

-Kieeeeeek…!

-Krrrrr!

The Death Worms screamed terribly as they oozed bodily fluids.

Despite their moniker, “Hell Holes of the Wasteland,” the gigantic worms fell one after another.

“Hahaha!”

“I have long awaited the day to face these squirming creatures!”

Amidst the dying screams of the Death Worms, joyous laughter and exuberant cheers echoed.

“O God of Slaughter and Death…!”

“Grant us the strength to wield power before your name!”

“It’s a massacre!”

The hundreds of priests of the Slaughter Cult, their bodies overflowing with crimson Holy Power, continued their battle.

“Holy Enhancement, Slash!”

A priest of the Slaughter Cult, holding a sword, chanted a Holy spell and decapitated a Death Worm with a single strike.

The Slaughter Cult was a religious group entirely composed of combat priests.

Their Holy spells were short and to the point, suited for combat.

With bodies not even two meters tall, they brutally slaughtered the gigantic Death Worms, cutting through tendons and bursting flesh.

It was a one-sided massacre.

“Haha! Oh?”

Gulp!

One Death Worm swallowed a young female priest of the Slaughter Cult whole as she wielded her sword.

-Kieeeeeek!

At the moment the Death Worm roared in triumph for successfully devouring the priest…

Slash!

The Death Worm’s body split open from the inside, its body cleaving in two.

From within the bisected Death Worm, the priest, covered in green stomach acid, emerged.

“Haha! This is sticky!”

“You were careless and got eaten, Sister Shairen!”

“I was just too excited thinking about judging these wriggling creatures, Brother Minoa!”

The Holy Power of the Slaughter Cult priests was rough and specialized for combat.

The Death Worms, with their large bodies but lacking significant offensive capabilities, were no match for the Slaughter Cult priests.

They were only troublesome because of their numbers.

The habitat of the Death Worms had served as a natural ceasefire line between the grey lands of the Trolls and the Slaughter Cult.

There had been no need to break this ceasefire line until now, so it had been left alone.

The Death Worms were no match for the Slaughter Cult.

“Haha! Where are you going, wrigglers? Come here! I’ll kindly behead you!”

“Offer sacrifices to the God of Slaughter!”

“That’s not blood but bodily fluid, idiot! Haha!”

“What does it matter whether it’s blood or bodily fluid? Kyaa!”

The priests of the Slaughter Cult, who had only occasionally suppressed small tribes trying to leave the wasteland and imprisoned their leaders for torture, were now overjoyed at this large-scale extermination.

However, in this scene of mass slaughter, there was one person standing aloof, not participating in the massacre.

A woman wearing a pure white robe, unlike the black robes of the other Slaughter Cult priests, with her face covered by a veil.

Her hair was as black and shiny as ebony.

She exuded an indescribable, overwhelming presence.

She was Spica, the Iron-Blooded Saint and the proxy of the God of Slaughter.

An eerie, familiar voice echoed in her mind.

-You really handle things inconveniently, contractor.

Spica remained silent and unresponsive as if she hadn’t heard the voice.

The voice continued nonchalantly, as if it were used to such treatment.

-I have given you power. With that power, you could easily destroy them with your own hands. You have the strength and ability to do so. That is what you desire, after all.

“…”

The voice, unpleasant like the whispering of hundreds of split female tongues, continued.

-But why is it? You don’t dirty your hands and instead let them destroy themselves. Like euthanizing a sick wild dog, you let them meet a happy death as they wish. I simply cannot understand.

Spica had become the sole strong figure of the Slaughter Cult by killing her master, earning herself the moniker of the Usurping Saint.

There were no priests within the Slaughter Cult who could defeat her, and it was well within her power to single-handedly destroy the cult.

The demonic sword was aware of the saint’s wish.

The downfall of the Slaughter Cult.

This was Saint Spica’s fervent desire.

However, for some reason, instead of eliminating the priests with her own hands, she aimed to cause mutual destruction through a war with monsters.

From the perspective of ‘Carnage,’ who preferred to kill directly and get blood on its hands, this was an unsatisfactory approach.

Nevertheless, it did not intervene because Lavolas sought to restore its spirituality.

Achievements that could enhance its power included slaughter and war.

Rather than simply exterminating the priests, instigating a large-scale war would result in far more deaths and slaughter, making it more efficient.

It asked out of mere curiosity.

But, as always, Spica remained silent and unresponsive.

-Are you hesitating?

“……”

Lavolas’s spirit asked mockingly, as if entertained.

-Despite being a child of the mad goddess of slaughter, are you feeling affection for your kin? Have you forgotten your purpose for entering the tower, your wish?

“……”

-Or could it be that you are scared and giving up now, even after killing your own master…?

“Nonsense.”

She broke her long silence and cut off the spirit’s voice sharply.

At that very moment.

Rumble, rumble, rumble.

An earthquake of a different magnitude from when the Death Worms had previously emerged shook the ground violently.

“Huh? What’s this?”

“Ah! It’s a massive tremor!”

“Looks like something huuuge is coming!”

The priests, who had been engrossed in slaughtering the Death Worms, hesitated due to the earthquake.

The saint clenched her fists slowly and took a battle stance.

The tremors grew closer and faster.

She murmured briefly.

“The cult will meet its end.”

At that moment, the source of the earthquake broke through the ground and appeared before the saint.

-Kiaaaaaa…!

It had a body three times thicker than the other Death Worms and a notably darker red skin.

Its body, protruding above the ground, was at least 30 meters tall.

Hundreds of teeth gleamed inside its massive maw, which was studded with spikes and tentacles, marking its fearsome appearance.

The Queen Death Worm.

The mother of all Death Worms and the ruler of the central Wasteland of Death revealed itself.

Nevertheless, Saint Spica spoke to Lavolas’s spirit without a hint of disturbance.

“The traces of the Slaughter Tower will be buried before the sands of the Wasteland. I will be the cult’s last saint, its final saint. That will not change.”

Fwoosh.

Around her body, a fierce crimson Holy Power surged.

Holy energy of blood gathered in her clenched fists.

Due to the intense murderous Holy Power, the Queen Death Worm instantly recognized who the leader of the humans slaughtering its offspring was.

-Kiaaaaaak…!

The enraged Queen Death Worm opened its massive maw.

As it lowered its head to swallow the saint.

“So, do not interfere in my affairs any longer, ancient wraith.”

The Usurping Saint’s crimson fist collided with the falling Queen Death Worm’s head.

Boom!

The impact created a storm.

Dust enveloped the entire battlefield for hundreds of meters.

-Kieeeeeee…!

Only the distant echo of the Queen of Worms’ final scream resounded across the Wasteland.

And it signaled the end of a cold war that had lasted for centuries.

* * *

Eastern Wasteland of Death, grey lands.

This was the land where numerous Trolls lived under the rule of the High Trolls.

Originally, this place consisted of dozens of tribes centered around the High Trolls, competing for food and survival.

Trolls had no hesitation in eating their own kind when food was scarce.

To the trolls, their kin were nothing more than competitors vying for food.

However, a rare occurrence took place where such a group of trolls united as one.

The forty-eight great troll tribes of the grey land.

Their leaders and rulers, the High Troll Shamans, gathered around a large rock.

The reason for these normally hostile trolls to come together was just one.

– The demons of the west… finally… killed the Queen of Worms…

– The barrier… has fallen… grrr…

– The demons of the west… are coming…

The demons of the west.

This was how the trolls referred to the priests of the Slaughter Cult.

They were the descendants of the god-slaying beings who had crucified the ancient god once worshipped by the trolls.

The arch-enemies responsible for the downfall and ruin of their species.

For hundreds of years, these self-proclaimed wardens had bound the trolls to this barren land, watching over them to ensure they did not escape.

To the trolls, the Slaughter Cult was a target of hatred and an unforgivable foe, as well as an immense source of fear and terror.

The Slaughter Tower was like a massive stake tethering their species to this wasteland.

And now, the priests of the Slaughter Cult, the demons of the west, were approaching.

By killing the Queen of Worms, the mother of the Death Worms, who had been the barrier between the two powers in the wasteland.

– Grrrr… this is, an opportunity…

– This land is ours…

– The demons of the west… have come out… on their own…

It was a golden opportunity as the priests of the Slaughter Cult were leaving their safe fortress, the Slaughter Tower, and coming here on their own.

An opportunity to annihilate the demons of the west and escape the wasteland.

An opportunity to leave this barren land and feast on the flesh of all kinds of beasts and humans living in fertile lands!

– Kurtila, Seir Ashak.

Kill the demons of the west.

As one High Troll Shaman spoke those words.

– Kurtila, Seir Ashak.

– Kurtila, Seir Ashak…

– Kurtila, Seir Ashak!

The other High Troll leaders shouted in unison.

Their frenzy spread rapidly.

Dozens of High Trolls roared simultaneously.

– Kurtila!

– Seir…

– Ashak!

The forty-eight great troll tribes of the grey land.

They united with a single goal: war against the Slaughter Cult.

The clash between the Slaughter Cult and the troll army.

The day of that decisive battle was not far off.

* * *

And at that moment, near the Slaughter Tower, where the priests had departed…

“Slaughter Tower, it’s been a really long time since I’ve seen this place.”

“Eek! Th-those, could they all be skeletons? S-skeletons piled like mountains!”

“Kya-haha! It feels really good to be back home after so long!”

Aden appeared with the Unknown and Priestess Lunia.