C268. To break a hero (3)
The demons frowned and turned around.
‘Is the school’s gym teacher…?’
He was easily over two meters tall, and the mere sight of his muscular frame was intimidating.
“But most people with that body type are useless.”
The Vice Captain’s snake eyes quickly sized up his enemy. His body was not fully trained.
‘If I had a bit more muscle, it might be a different story…’
However, reaching that level was a matter of natural talent and genetics, not effort. In his current state of him, the man could not meet his standards of him.
Turning the dagger around, the demon muttered, “Looks like we have another volunteer.”
“Um, are you planning on stealing all the fun?”
“Are you saying that you will kill them all and leave us with the miserable students, Vice Captain?”
“You guys have a good point, for once.” Lust casually intervened when the demons began to complain. “Just leave that bag of meat to me. And then, well…”
It would be in order of arrival. After all, they didn’t come here to have fair one-on-one duels.
Lust crossed her arms, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at the soon-to-be-dead man.
‘I’ve definitely seen that face somewhere…’
He looked extremely familiar, and just seeing him made Lust feel repulsed, but she couldn’t figure out why.
Lust waved her hand. “Let’s not drag this out. Kill them quickly. We still have a lot to do.”
He didn’t think to stop after killing the Nest teachers and students. The Heavenly Demon himself had broken through the Dimensional Elevators, so no help would come from above for the time being.
‘The Big 6, other big guilds, and Player Associations probably have their own personal elevators…’
But even then, the elite members of the Big 6 were too busy with the Floor Master of the third floor. They could not go down immediately.
Thus, they could kill as many people as they wanted without worrying for a while.
“It will be over shortly.” The Vice Captain nodded. Ironically, they had the same sentiment as Lust.
‘Something about this bastard bothers me.’
Honestly, it could be that the demon just didn’t like him.
For that reason, the vice-captain attacked with more force than usual, even though he normally treats killing like a game. They swung the dagger unconsciously and frowned. It was a clean, snappy strike that even the demons themselves appreciated.
‘All things considered… This guy is much weaker than I thought.’
The bulky man hadn’t been able to react even when the demon stabbed him. He just stood there with a goofy look on his face and looked down at where he’d been injured.
“Yeah, people like you are never good,” said the vice-captain. If a body were as big as a mountain, it would inevitably be slower. And as someone who used a speed-based fighting style, the demon hated being slow.
Hn. The muscular man let out a heavy sigh. Most people screamed when he bled, but he just smiled. “It feels good to feel the wind there for once.”
“Then let me poke another hole in you, lunatic…”
bam!
“…?!” The Vice Captain’s words were interrupted when his face contorted in pain. The mad butcher had been headbutted with his hard skull.
“Aaaack! Crazy bastard! The demon had never met someone of such a high level who fought so unsophisticated. The Vice Captain wiped the blood from his nose as his eyes glowed red. After being humiliated in front of his subordinates, his bloodlust was so powerful that even normal people could feel it.
“Captain. I’m sorry, but this may take some time.
“…Do what you want.”
In other words, they would not give this man a quick death. The students turned pale as an overwhelming amount of demonic energy poured out from the Vice Captain’s body. The mere presence of him made them tremble with fear.
His eyes first!
People were helpless when they lost their sight. It would make them lose their sense of direction and their fear of the dark would make them wither. They would also look pathetic while flailing around in the dark. For those reasons, the demon had developed the habit of attacking the eyes first when he wanted to ridicule an opponent and kill them slowly.
Whistle!
The dagger drew a straight line as it stabbed into the man’s eyes.
“Huh. Is this some kind of fashionable fighting style?” The giant stroked his chin after remaining motionless the entire time. “With such a thirst for blood, you must have killed two hundred…or not, maybe about three hundred?”
The Vice Captain carried the strong stench of blood. It wasn’t the kind of stench someone would emit after killing a few people.
“Are you crazy? You’re about to die, and that’s what makes you curious?”
“I’m not that curious.” The flesh began to bubble around where the beast’s eyes had been. And his flesh and her eyes regenerated as if time had turned back.
“What the hell…?” The Vice Captain was about to curse unconsciously, but the giant man cut him off.
“Once you meet Yama, the God of Death.[1] tell him this.
“…What?”
“Tell him that Rahmadat Khali sent you.” As soon as he finished speaking, his fist flew out. Despite his size, he was extremely fast.
‘Dammit!’
Sensing the danger, the Vice Captain quickly used his ability, spitting out Rahmadat.
“Ptoo!”
It was a deadly poison that burned flesh and melted bone on contact. There was a sizzling sound, like meat on a grill.
‘Is it poison?’
Rahmadat looked at her melted arm.
And that was his only reaction.
‘It doesn’t matter.’
He was confident in his own regeneration abilities. He trusted his body, which was stronger than diamond and more durable than rubber. His fist was half melted to the point that the bone had become visible, but it still punched like a rhino’s horn.
baaam!
The demon’s skull cracked open and its body convulsed once before collapsing. The floor of the auditorium was instantly soaked with blood.
“Hmm”. At that time, Rahmadat’s arm had returned to its original state.
After witnessing what just happened, the demons began to falter.
“That bastard definitely said it was Rahmadat Khali, right?”
“Looking closely… I think it is.”
“So that means it’s Super Regeneration…”
The demons licked their dry lips and drew their weapons. Rahmadat Khali was much bigger than they remembered. But since he had lost a considerable amount of muscle, the impression he gave was different.
“Ah, ahh…” Elliot Nelson let out a small moan. She was lying on the floor, receiving treatment. She somehow managed to sit up.
“R-Rahmadat-nim…” he muttered. Among the 5 Heroes, he remembered him as the most energetic and fearless member. He would never dodge any attack, because he would take them with confidence. It was the strongest iron wall on Earth.
He had returned.
It’s been a while, Elliot Nelson. When he called her name, Elliot couldn’t believe it.
“Y-do you remember me?” she asked.
“Of course.” She said it like it was natural. “I remember you carrying a huge sword and following behind us. You have grown old.
“…Ahem.” He knew he was ridiculous at his age, but his eyes couldn’t help but sparkle with hope.
Everyone regarded those glory days as just another page in history. But now, he felt like he was back.
Just like in the old days, the Hero she had longed for was standing in front of her.
“We’ll talk later.” That was it for her reunion. Rahmadat turned to face his enemies. There were still closer to twenty demons left.
‘This is too much.’
It hadn’t even been a day, no, half a day since he’d woken up. She clearly was messed up.
I am also a little worried about the penalty.
Thanks to Super Regeneration, his penalty was much lower than what others would receive. But after being trapped in ice for 26 years, there was no getting around it. He needed at least two weeks of intense rehab, but since he was fighting instead of rehabbing, his whole body was screaming.
‘And that Captain… He’s definitely stronger than the current me.’
Although he was facing the demons head on, his attention was still caught up in his thoughts. How could she fight so many demons while she was protecting so many people?
Since he had just woken up, it was impossible for him to do that.
“…If I were alone, that is.” Rahmadat smiled. As he did so, magic erupted from the floor of the auditorium and covered the people.
“W-woah! Is this an attack?
“No, this is… Defensive—Defensive Shield!”
“This technique was definitely in Skaya-nim’s Introduction to Magic… But how does it protect hundreds of people?”
“Impossible!”
It covered students and even teachers. The magic shield was so big that she made them wary. Protecting so many people not only required a large amount of magic, but also required precise control over magical energy, as well as additional technical skills.
“I always tell you. You’re good at breaking things, but you don’t have very good defensive skills. Skaya appeared in the air and lightly stepped on the floor of the auditorium. He looked at the Defensive Shield that he had made with a happy expression. “Hehehe, isn’t that pretty? Want to know what kind of cute little techniques were included?
“No,” Rahmadat said flatly. He loosened his fists. “Focus on the enemies in front of you. They are not weak.
“I don’t know about you, but I’ve already fought the Devil Association twice since I came back. And last time…” Skaya’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Lust. “Someone stole my squad leader. So, it’s alright if I kill him this time, right?
“…Do what you want,” Rahmadat said bluntly. The current self of him couldn’t defeat Lust, by no means. If she insisted on facing him and they beat him, Skaya would taunt him for the rest of her life. I go first.
He clenched his hands into fists and charged at the demons.
***
“Go dead! I said die!”
“This bastard… how many times has he regenerated…?!”
“Die! Die! Just die!”
The demons were panting and dripping with sweat after attacking him countless times. Rahmadat’s entire body was pierced with spears, knives and other weapons, but he laughed out loud.
“Ahahaha! Is that all you have? Come on, hit me harder! More difficult!”
“What a pervert…”
Demons clench their teeth. They had always thought that the records about Rahmadat had been mostly lies or exaggerated. Logically, there was no way a human could have better regeneration abilities than trolls.
But he did…
“Hehe, the demons these days don’t have as much vigor as in the past,” Rahmadat smiled and turned her head. He silently began to swing his fists at him, killing the demons one by one. By now, the demons had an idea of the kind of person he was.
‘This bastard, he’s pretending to be a stupid idiot… But he’s not.’
Your vital points. He always blocks or dodges attacks that target his brain or heart.
‘Every move is carefully calculated.’
He played dumb, but he was actually a wise soldier. That was how he was once remembered among the demons. But by the time they realized it, they had already lost all chances of winning.
“Autumn! Shooting Star!”
The demons might have had a chance to kill Rahmadat if they resolved and launched a pincer attack, but every time they tried, Skaya knocked them down with a spell they had never seen before. They were powerful attacks, and one or two of them died with each hit.
‘These bastards, it seems they are attacking separately on the surface…’
‘But they have fought together countless times. They never step on each other’s toes.
‘They know exactly what the other wants and what they have to do to help.’
They were comrades.
The synergy these two players displayed was stronger than the combined amount of over twenty demons.
“Oh my.” Skaya’s eyes curved into half moons. He waved his hand as he watched a spear fly in front of his nose. “Oh, so close~”
“Shit!” Cursed lust. When his attack missed, he stepped back, creating distance between them.
. ‘Dammit, what are we supposed to do?’
He had fought countless battles before, but this was the first time he had experienced anything like this. One bastard laughed every time he was attacked, while the other couldn’t even be attacked.
‘Not. To be precise, the attacks land.
The problem was their shields. There were at least seven defensive shields covering his body. In other words, she wouldn’t die unless they could launch seven attacks at the same time.
‘…A genius who has surpassed the limits of a magician.’
This was how the history books referred to Skaya Killiland. Lust had scoffed at the nonsense once, but she was no longer laughing.
‘What are we supposed to do?’
No matter how much he pondered on it, no answer came. There was no decision that would allow them to win against those two.
“That’s a familiar face,” Rahmadat said after ripping off the last member of the Squad’s spine. “That’s the face that says you have no idea how to beat us.”
“…” Lust swallowed. Actually, if Skaya wasn’t there, she was confident that he could at least kill this guy.
‘But because those two bastards are working together…’
There was no answer.
For the first time since becoming a squad leader, Lust began to chicken out.
“That’s a no-no! If a man pulls out a knife, he should at least do something with it.” Skaya completely cut off his escape route.
Lust grabbed her spear in her dire straits. “Disgusting players. Just remember this. You will be defeated. He…
Slice!
Skaya slashed straight through his torso, and Rahmadat kicked his upper body down like a ball. The two of them looked at the unidentifiable body that had once belonged to the Envy squad leader as they spoke.
“Oh, should I have let him finish what he wanted to say?”
“Not well. It was probably all crap anyway~”
The students finally began to breathe after holding their breath for the entire battle. As the auditorium began to fill with the sound of crying, the two players smiled blandly.
“They are still children.”
“…I am very glad that no one died.”
When they saw them shed tears of relief, they were fulfilled. They had never asked for any kind of reward or glory.
That was why they had become the most beloved heroes in the world.
***
And while everyone in Nest was laughing and crying and hugging each other, the Heavenly Demon had finally set foot in Seoul.
—-
1. Hindu god of death?