Chapter 230: Episode 72. The Dark Lord (2)
Ariel was an expert in weapons. She could skillfully use any weapon. No one was comparable to her when it came to swordsmanship. She had mastered various swordplay techniques that anyone would lose to her in a fight.
Even if I had made a lot of progress by learning the swordsmanship of Highendall, I was still far below Ariel’s caliber—probably two or three levels beneath her. The difference was like a pawn to a knight.
However, I wasn’t going to use my physical strength in this fight. I would use all that I had, launching an all-out war. Ariel had swordsmanship, but I was far ahead of her in other areas.
Crack!
The ground began to crack. The earth shook. From the start, Ariel had covered her sword with chaos. It was her patented skill, Abyss Sword.
In order to counter this, I used the Dark Sword. It was originally of lower rank compared to the Abyss Sword, but since I had enormous mana, I could make it way more powerful than its current state.
‘I can see…,’ I thought.
I could see all of Ariel’s flashy movements, even when she trembled. Her next movements were expected, and I had the opportunity to dominate every situation.
If it were before, I would have been caught off guard by Ariel’s fighting techniques. Her moves were calculated and elaborate. She had been attacking the best way possible.
Slash! Slash! Clang!
Our swords clashed. Ariel Diablo pushed me violently. Even though I had used double swordsmanship, I was surprised by her attack frequency. She was pouring everything she got from the beginning.
She was employing very difficult swordsmanship. It seemed pretty reckless. If she made one mistake, she would lose immediately. I guess her mantra was, “The best defense is attacking.”
Whoosh!
The Flame of Pride burned. It was the eternal flames that could burn everything. Because of my high mana, the Flame of Pride became a real hellfire. It soared for dozens of meters, consuming everything around it. The ground melted. Ariel could not move.
Boom!
But Ariel didn’t remain still. She kept on moving, as if stopping would increase her chances of losing. As she raised her swords high and hit the ground, the earth shook.
“Tornado.”
It was one of her skills as well. The land turned into a tsunami, which tried to swallow me.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The tsunami occurred dozens of times. As if that wasn’t enough, Ariel raised her sword again and employed an attacking skill.
Slash! Slash!
Her Ivory Sword increased in numbers. They were not replicas—they were the same sword. Each of them had a surprising destructive power. A total of 512 swords floated in the air, one after the other.
This skill was called ‘Weapon Cheat (Ex Epic)’. Originally, it was a skill to replicate one weapon that she had touched before. But since the level of the skill was increased, she could make hundreds of the same weapons. The Ivory Sword was one of the best swords. It was made of a Balrog’s bone. But if she could use a higher-grade sword, that would be very dangerous.
A total of 512 swords were buried on the ground that was already messed up by the tornado. It literally rained with swords.
“Swamp of Giant,” she muttered.
That wasn’t the end. Ariel held her sword tight and closed her eyes. Then, the buried swords on the ground began to shine. Soon, the lights from the 512 swords were connected like a magic barrier.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
All of the swords sank into the ground at the same time.
Swish!
Shortly after, a loud noise was heard from the underground. It hurt my ears. The sound became louder. When it finally reached its climax, it turned surprisingly quiet.
Boom!
But that was just the calm before the storm. An overwhelming light emerged from a deep hole. Soon, the light reached the sky and swept everything that it touched.
It was a combination skill. A combination skill could increase several times up to 10 times of power depending on what skills were combined.
The hole she created was several kilometers in diameter. The demons and monsters were warned earlier, so they kept their distance. Otherwise, they would have been swept away and killed. There were no exceptions.
It was so powerful. The huge pillar of light went on, wreaking havoc. It could actually destroy a god.
Ariel Diablo had entered the realm of transcendence. I could tell that she used everything she had in this attack. Had she became a transcendent and employed this skill at the Royal Observatory of Greenwich, she would have been victorious—she would have survived until the end. Luck would have been on her side. But…
Whoosh! Whoosh!
My flame was still there. I rode the light and slowly climbed the hole. The Flame of Pride protected me. My Infinity Armor also changed into a red-dragon-like shape to reflect my growth and the use of mana.
Thud!
After finally reaching the ground, I stood firm. Ariel Diablo’s attack was undoubtedly intense. If I had just been hit with my bare body, I would have suffered a serious injury. However, I came here prepared. It was a fight for our lives. Losing was not an option.
Krr!
The Attacking Spirit and the Lightning God cried out. They had also been protecting my body like the Flame of Pride to reduce the damage that I would sustain. But since Ariel’s attack was over, they changed from defense to strike mode.
The Lightning God got bigger as well. Skills were affected by mana, so it was true that all my skills had become stronger.
I lifted a finger. Then, the Lightning God swallowed Ariel Diablo.
Kuang!
The Lightning God roared. Ariel calmly geared for the defense mode. She wrapped her sword with chaos and blocked the attack of the Lightning God.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
Ariel’s sword split the Lightning God into two. The electric power that fell to the ground squirmed, causing a power outage. After a while, they merged again, and the Lightning God recovered its original form.
The Lightning God was like a shield and a spear. It struck Ariel, but it was not good enough to penetrate her. However, it managed to regenerate and constantly torment Ariel. The fight got more exciting, and it seemed it would not end soon, so began to move.
I covered the Dark Sword with Rage and the Sword of the Emperor. Then, I covered them again with the Flame of Pride. That was not it. I called the Lightning God back and mixed it with the Flame of Pride.
It could be called a combination skill as well. It was a risky move because I had never done this before. But I felt confident about using it—I was sure that I wouldn’t fail.
As my mana increased, the level of understanding of magic also increased. Besides, I had 135 points in intelligence. It would help me use the skill safely.
Krr! Krr!
There was a slight rebound, but that was it. Stronger chaos appeared on my sword. Ariel’s eyes widened when she saw it. Her turn to strike was over. Now, it was my turn. I was prepared for this.
We both knew how this fight was going to end. She had failed to get rid of me with her full-scale attack. She only had one more chance left.
Clang!
The Ivory Sword was split into half. She covered her sword with chaos, but it was now ripped.
Finally, Ariel looked at me. I could tell that she was pissed and embarrassed. “You monster!”
Clank!
She dropped her sword. I stopped striking her. Then she raised both hands.
“Okay, Randalf Bruciel. I lost,” she surrendered.
It was now up to me whether to kill Ariel or to spare her life. That was why demons fight. The loser lost everything to the winner. It was a fair rule. I had spent my whole life abiding by that rule.
Soon, her troops arrived. My monsters came closer, too. Ariel Diablo’s demons bit their lips. My monsters cheered.
Ariel knelt in submission to my authority. I walked towards her and said, “Ariel Diablo, take the lead in killing Camael. Strike enemies at the front and bring their heads to me.”
I decided not to kill Ariel. It would be a waste if I did. She was a great fighter. The victor might have been decided, but the war was not over yet. On top of the list was Camael. He was a very tricky angel to kill by myself.
“I need to kill 1.14 million angels first. Until that happens, he is virtually immortal.”
Tashumal had informed me about this.
The seraph, Camael, was a mighty angel who shared the lives of 1.14 million angels. It was similar to Ariel’s skill that she had used for the silver knights. The difference was that I could only kill Camael only after I eliminated 1.14 million angels.
I saved Ariel to get rid of Camael. If she led the monsters and got rid of the angels, things would go easier for me. Camael was almost an almighty. Thus, it was important to kill all his forces. I needed to do that as soon as possible.
I put my foot out. Ariel had to kiss my foot as part of the ceremony between master and slave. If she refused, then she wouldn’t be able to keep her life.
I did her a favor by not stamping her with the seal of slaves so she could keep her honor. After all, she was never hostile to me from the beginning, and that was a consideration on my part.
Her choice applied to her demons as well. I waited patiently. Shortly after, Ariel opened her mouth to say, “I, Ariel Diablo, admit defeat, and I swear to be Randalf Bruciel’s slave from now on.”
Ariel bent lower to kiss my feet. I was surprised. I never thought she would comply easily.
It was a different Ariel Diablo that I knew in my previous life. Have I not understood Ariel’s personality because I was too weak?
Smack.
Ariel kissed my foot. That moment clearly identified the victor and the defeated. I had mixed emotions. But most of all, I was deeply moved. I had been striking and defending without rest. There was a time when I had despaired, but now, I finally achieved my goal.
I succeeded in climbing from the bottom to the top.
If someone heard my story, they wouldn’t believe it—they would refuse to believe it—even if there were witnesses. But it was all true. I was now on the verge of grasping the truth.
As the ceremony was finished, messages popped in front of me.
[You have defeated all demons on Earth.]
[You are qualified to become the Dark Lord.]
[It is an incredible achievement. You have gained the title ‘Dark Lord’.]
[Your occupation has changed from ‘Archduke’ to ‘Dark Lord’.]
[The Dark Lord is the king of Devildom. It is the name only given to the one who has conquered Devildom.]
[It is now possible to open the door to Devildom. However, it is impossible at the moment due to Camael’s appearance. The Celestial Door and Devildom cannot be accessed at the same time.]
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