vncnus Chapter 151
Chapter 151
Chapter 151
Baphomet.
A demon of heresy.
One that seized the ankles of the diligent,
And cast the faithful into the abyss.
Though it did not belong to the 72 Lords of the Demonic Realm, it was an ancient being possessing strength enough to stand against them through its own power alone.
All sorts of thoughts stormed through my head. Countless stories about the origin of that thing—and I couldn’t understand why such a being was standing before me now.
But I couldn’t just stand there thinking forever.
Right before my eyes, a bluish inferno had opened its maw as if it would swallow me whole.
‘Fuck.’
Even though my entire body was wrapped in Prometheus’s Flame and protected by the holy power of Excalibur, the aura of the inferno that had closed to point-blank range made my skin sting.
Since it was a flame used by an ancient demon, it was certainly no ordinary fire. If I messed up, I could be reduced to a handful of ash before I even had the chance to respond.
I had to decide.
Should I withdraw my attack and fall back even now, or endure the damage and push forward as I was?
Baphomet had been summoned at the cost of the lives of nearly twenty Sword Masters. Yet even that seemed insufficient, as only one of its arms had descended into this world.
But even with just that, it blocked the Sword Saint’s attack and emitted a pressure that overwhelmed me. If more of its body emerged, then aside from the Sword Saint, no one here would survive.
‘Let’s die once.’
In the end, I chose to press the attack.
On my side, I had the Blessing of Invisibility. It hadn’t been long since it was restored to its original state in the Holy Kingdom, but in this situation, I had no choice but to rely on it.
Paaaat-!
A dazzling light ignited over Excalibur. It pierced through the haze of demonic energy and struck directly at Baphomet’s body that was trying to cross over from within, causing its massive form to lurch backward.
“…Damn it.”
My full-powered strike had done nothing more than force it to take a single step back.
Right after, I desperately twisted my body. But despite that effort, the blazing inferno swallowed my entire body.
Wooooong-.
At the same time, the Necklace of Achilles, which I always wore around my neck, began to shine.
Having reached the level of Sword Master, I no longer had any need for it and had forgotten about it—but perhaps sensing its master’s crisis, it activated on its own, layering my body with a bluish golden armor.
Chiiiiik.
But only for a moment—the Armor of Achilles melted away in an instant, as if paper had been set ablaze. Along with sharp warning beeps ringing in my ears, several messages appeared in the [Status Window].
Just as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished, and the flames of hell clung to my body.
“…Kuaaaaaaaah—!”
Soon, Prometheus’s Flame and the holy power of Excalibur were pierced through, and a horrific pain settled onto my flesh.
As I fell toward the ground, I couldn’t land properly and instead rolled across the floor with flames engulfing my entire body.
Tears flowed on their own. My flesh burned and melted in an instant, my bones crumbling. I bit down on my tongue, but the pain of my body being incinerated was so overwhelming that it was the only thing I could feel.
“Leios—!”
Petra, who had been nearby, rushed toward me with a scream, almost like a seizure.
Seeing how she looked ready to grab me regardless of the flames, I forced out the last of my sanity, stopped my scream, and shouted in a strained voice.
“Don’t—come—!”
At those words, even Silvia, who had been following behind her, came to a halt. The holy power of Excalibur did not fall short of that of the Saintess.
Moreover, the Prometheus’s Flame blazing over it was none other than the Sacred Flame that had cornered Demonic Realm Dukes several times before.
But even that had failed to block the hellfire Baphomet emitted. That meant there was no way to extinguish these flames here.
“Fuuuck—!”
Lying face down, I screamed, wishing instead that I would just die quickly.
[Master…….]
Reading my thoughts, River let out a desperate cry and withdrew the holy power that had been protecting me.
But the body of a Sword Master, when sensing a life-threatening danger, dragged its resistance to the extreme. The pain I felt doubled.
Muttering curses under my breath, I groped along the ground in my shaking vision, trying to find my sword so I could end my own life.
Thud.
At that moment, something mushy dropped. At the same time, the right side of my vision darkened—my eyeball must have melted and slipped out.
KWA-AAAAANG-!
However, seeing the scene on the opposite side, I felt a faint sense of relief.
In the brief opening I had created, the Sword Saint launched into a full offensive.
The haze of demonic energy had grown larger, and the hole connecting to the inside had widened further—but under the Sword Saint’s fierce assault, it couldn’t advance even a single step.
Thud.
Meanwhile, my body had become so horrific that I couldn’t even move. The one remaining eye wouldn’t open anymore, and the dreadful pain I had felt at the ends of my limbs had now turned numb.
I waited for the Blessing of Invisibility to activate as I awaited death.
Srrrkk.
But before that, I felt something cold wrap around my body.
“……?”
My sight had long since been lost. All that remained were faint hearing and pain.
That cold sensation cooled the flames burning my body. Then, at the faint voice that followed, I grasped at a thread of hope.
“What a miserable state. I was planning to just show up on the last day and take a quick look before leaving, but I didn’t expect things to turn out like this.”
I tried to open my mouth and say her name. But my burned tongue curled inward, failing to perform its role. At that, Chris let out a sigh and continued.
“You have an Elixir, right? This is my last drop—so you’ll pay me back with that later.”
Soon, a single drop of something so cold it was almost freezing fell onto my back. It had to be the Elixir Chris possessed.
Fortunately, I hadn’t brought my Subspace Pouch.
It was truly fortunate that I had stored those items in the safe at the estate for the banquet.
If it had been caught in the hellfire with me, the Elixir would have evaporated uselessly.
Gradually, sensation returned to my limbs along with my vision. At that moment, I heard the sound of something like a glass vial falling and shattering on the ground, and she turned and walked toward where the Sword Saint and Baphomet were fighting.
[Master, from now on I’ll focus on restoring you as well.]
River spoke seriously in a tearful voice. Soon, a gentle holy power settled over my body, and atop the cool energy of the Elixir, something warm began to spread.
“Leios, Leios! Get a hold of yourself!”
Someone embraced me and began to sob in a cracked voice.
I tried to raise my hand, but it seemed that part hadn’t recovered yet, as I couldn’t muster any strength.
Before long, as my eyes recovered even slightly and my blurry vision returned, I saw Petra—her face a mess, her makeup completely smeared from crying so much, leaving her looking almost comical.
“…I want to tell you your face is a mess, but even that looks pretty.”
My recovering vocal cords forced out words in a voice that sounded like phlegm bubbling. As I flinched slightly at the grotesque sound, Petra stroked my head with a face that was half-smiling, half-crying.
“Honestly, even after it’s come to this.”
Wooooong.
Beside her, Silvia placed both hands on me and began treatment without saying a word. Still, perhaps she was worried too—her eyes were red, even if not as much as Petra’s.
Bang-! KWA-AAAAANG-!
At the shock that made my body jolt, I moved my one functioning eye and saw ahead—where the Sword Saint and Chris were unleashing a fierce assault together against Baphomet.
No matter that it was the manifestation of an ancient demon—against two beings at the pinnacle of the human world, it would be difficult to withstand.
‘Thank god.’
I had planned to die once, recover enough to move again, and then return to the fight.
But seeing the current state, I realized just how arrogant that judgment had been.
“…I’m going to sleep for a bit.”
As the tension faded, exhaustion beyond my limits dragged me into drowsiness. At my words, Petra nodded quietly while still stroking my head, and I slowly closed my eyes.
---
Swaeaeaeak-!
The Sword Saint’s blade shone. It was a sword that had slaughtered dozens of Sword Masters with a single strike, yet it managed to leave only a mere scratch on Baphomet’s bluish arm.
“Tch.”
The Sword Saint, who had slowly descended to the ground, clicked his tongue.
He wanted to pour out his full power, but there were people nearby who would get caught in it, and Baphomet’s body remained inside the haze, making it impossible to land a decisive blow.
To fight properly, its body would have to fully manifest here. But if that happened, nearly everyone except himself would die—so it wasn’t an option he could choose.
‘The best option would be to eliminate that passage.’
But whenever the Sword Saint tried to cut it down, Baphomet fiercely interfered. And so they continued exchanging meaningless blows, locked in a war of attrition.
“…….”
During a brief lull, the Sword Saint’s gaze turned toward Leios behind him.
Thanks to his disciple’s all-out strike, Baphomet had been prevented from crossing over. But the price had been horrific.
Clench.
The voice of his disciple screaming as his entire body burned was still vivid. Those were injuries that would be difficult to treat even now.
Such wounds, if not treated quickly, usually left aftereffects. That was why the Sword Saint tightened his grip on his sword again, deciding to defeat Baphomet before him as quickly as possible—even if it meant taking some losses.
“……!”
At that moment, a powerful presence unlike anything before was felt from behind him. At the same time, the disciple’s screams ceased, and the flames consuming his body subsided.
“…How unsightly, to think you couldn’t even handle something like this.”
At the familiar voice from behind, the Sword Saint let out a low sigh and spoke.
“I have nothing to say.”
He truly had no excuse. It had been a plan devised with even the worst-case scenario in mind, yet mistakes had occurred twice.
“…Baphomet, huh. I’ve read about it in ancient records, but I never thought it was a demon that truly existed.”
Chris, having confirmed the figure within the haze of demonic energy, shook her head with a disgusted expression. At that, the Sword Saint asked with hope.
“Is there a way to defeat it?”
“No.”
But at the immediate answer, he couldn’t help but be stunned.
“Of course, if you and I both go all out, we could defeat it. But we’d both suffer serious injuries.”
At those words, the Sword Saint realized why she had said there was no way.
Chris had a long-cherished wish—to take revenge on the Demon Dragon that had annihilated her race.
But if something went wrong here and interfered with that wish—
“Then……”
“But.”
Before the Sword Saint could ask her to support him without jeopardizing that goal, Chris smiled faintly and spoke.
“Even if we can’t defeat it, there is a way to drive it away.”
“…Then.”
“Yeah, so.”
Her finger pointed toward Baphomet. Then, without the slightest hesitation, she said,
“Offer your body.”