After ending his conversation with Ludger, Salesin remained seated for a while, a low chuckle slipping from his lips.
“Fufufu. The Demon King, is it? How arrogant a title.”
The King of all Demons.
A grandiose term that even greater demons would bow before.
“Well, since my adorable little brother wants it, I suppose, as the elder, I’ll {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} gladly indulge him.”
To Salesin, Ludger’s warning was nothing more than childlike arrogance.
The difference in their power was simply overwhelming.
He possessed a force capable of moving the entire continent.
The divine power that had annihilated thousands, including Cardinal Patricio?
Indeed, it was threatening—but the cost Ludger had to pay to wield that power was immense.
With Lumenis’s gaze fixed upon him now, there was no way he could use it as before.
‘I should thank the Cardinal. Thanks to that bait, he conveniently drained my brother’s strength.’
With Ludger’s greatest variable sealed, little remained to him now—
just a handful of companions who had come to save him.
He might still have a few cards left, but at best, they were like fireflies before the sun.
“More than anything, you have many mountains left to climb. Who do you think remains inside Galaharad’s inner citadel?”
Salesin hadn’t left the Theocracy and its throne for no reason.
He had departed because he knew it would be fine even in his absence.
“After such a long-awaited reunion between brothers, I suppose it’s time for a reunion between siblings. Enjoy the fight, little brother.”
He only hoped Ludger wouldn’t collapse before Salesin himself even needed to lift a hand.
* * *
After finishing his talk with Salesin, Ludger silently gazed ahead.
Even under the moonlit night, the vast hall glimmered with solemn radiance.
Beyond the red carpet lay a massive white stone platform, and on it stood a grand gate framed in gold.
The only passage to the inner sanctum—
the Gate of Heaven.
But now, that gate was tightly shut.
The moment the outer defenses fell, rather than sending out troops to fight, the defenders had chosen to lock down and fortify.
Some might call it cowardice, but to Ludger, it was an excellent decision.
Which meant—someone with considerable command skill was stationed within.
‘For Salesin to sound that confident, there must be at least a cardinal-level figure in there.’
Choosing to hold their ground and stall for time—
that implied they were sure reinforcements would come.
‘To open that gate, we’ll have to expend a great deal of power.’
Then—
it was time to play one of his own cards.
“Suruna.”
At Ludger’s call, a man stepped out from the shadows behind a pillar in the hall.
Alex, Phantos, and the other Owens members who hadn’t sensed his presence instantly raised their guard.
“Stand down. He’s my guest.”
At Ludger’s calm order, the tension immediately dissipated.
Suruna whistled softly at the sight.
“Whiiw~. Such remarkable loyalty. If only my own people had been like that.”
“There was someone like that once.”
“Mm. A pity about Velkat and Nikolai. Velkat had his own agenda, and Nikolai got too full of himself.”
“I didn’t call you here for idle chatter. As you can see, I’ve come to the Theocracy of Bretus.”
“Yeah, I figured you’d end up here eventually. Honestly, I’d been expecting this for a while.”
“You can open the path to the inner sanctum, can’t you?”
“Of course.”
Suruna replied casually, as if it were no trouble at all.
“It’s not like I’ve been sitting idle all this time.”
“Is there a method?”
“The Gate of Heaven rejects any who attempt to enter without permission. No matter that you carry the Holy Sovereign’s blood—if the other side denies you, it won’t open.”
“That should apply to you as well.”
“True. I’m just as unwanted there. I’m the one they most wish to destroy, after all. But you know what? If someone who is authorized touches it, the gate opens easily.”
“Is there such a person among us?”
“One.”
Suruna stepped forward until he stood before Ludger.
“For this moment, I’ve prepared someone. Haven’t I, Setadel?”
At his words, a new presence stirred within the hall.
Ludger turned toward the newcomer, part of a memory surfacing in his mind.
“That person is...”
“You’ve seen him before, during the Order Synod, right? One of my lieutenants—Setadel.”
The figure threw back a black hood, revealing long flowing silver hair and a youthful face.
A man who appeared to be in his mid-twenties at most, handsome and refined.
“I thought he’d be older.”
“He only looks that way. In truth, he’s very old.”
To Ludger, Setadel was an unknown quantity.
Unlike the other First Orders or Suruna’s lieutenants, he had never once taken active part in anything.
And now that Ludger saw him up close, he couldn’t help but doubt whether this man truly served Suruna—
for in Setadel’s eyes burned raw hatred and anger directed at him.
“Is he really your subordinate?”
“Oh, he is. He’s served faithfully by my side for hundreds of years.”
“Shut your mouth. This will be the last time I entertain your filth, Suruna.”
Setadel spat his words like venom, glaring fiercely.
Suruna merely shrugged with a pleasant smile, unfazed by the hostility.
Ludger immediately sensed there was something deeply rooted between them.
“So, you didn’t call him just to introduce a hostile subordinate. He’s the key to opening that gate, isn’t he?”
“Exactly. Setadel—it’s your turn now.”
“Hmph.”
Setadel snorted irritably, but still turned and walked toward the Gate of Heaven without hesitation.
Watching his back, Ludger asked quietly,
“Can he really open it? Even I, with the Holy Sovereign’s blood, cannot.”
“You’re already marked as an enemy to them, remember? The gate itself rejects your existence.”
“And that man is different?”
“Yes. You wouldn’t know it, but he was once someone who could freely pass through that gate.”
“He could come and go freely...? What is he, exactly?”
Ludger had no recollection of any such person.
“Well, of course you wouldn’t. Setadel was recorded in history as dead long ago.”
“Dead? When exactly?”
“The day Saintess Arkenis vanished—and the day the Great Demon Suruna was slain.”
Ludger’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“That man was...?”
“Haha. A demon? Hardly. Setadel would be furious if he heard that. Quite the opposite, actually—he stood firmly against the demons.”
Suruna’s gaze lingered on Setadel as he pressed his palm against the Gate of Heaven.
“He was once the Saintess Arkenis’s attendant—and one of the highest-ranking priests in the Theocracy of Bretus. Not the false priests of today, but a true priest, as only those of that era could be.”
“But how could a human live that long?”
“He changed bodies only recently.”
“What?”
“Did you know? The old priests of Lumenis could console wandering souls, commune with them, and hear their voices. Among them, Setadel was unique—far beyond an ordinary necromancer. He could imprison the souls of sinners or release the souls of the innocent.”
“What are you talking about...”
“You’ve heard people say the mages of the ancient era were remarkable, right? It’s the same here. The old priests, paladins, and high priests of the Theocracy were all extraordinary—because back then, the miracles of Lumenis were real.”
“Saintess Arkenis.”
“Yeah.”
The moment Suruna nodded—
Kuuuuuuung!
The gate, which had seemed immovable no matter what they tried, began to rumble open.
Setadel had truly opened the Gate of Heaven by his own power.
“After Arkenis’s death, Setadel left the Theocracy and joined hands with me. For the sake of the future, he bound his own soul and continued replacing bodies, generation after generation.”
“The body... how... no, I think I can guess.”
Ludger recalled Victor Dreadpool’s human experimentations.
But if such experiments had existed since long ago...
“Sharp as ever. You’re right. Setadel transfers his soul into a new vessel each time, living on. He’s already changed bodies more than ten times. The reason he looks so young now is because he only switched recently.”
“A priest, of all people, rejecting the laws of the world and allying with a demon?”
“The first to reject the laws was Lumenis.”
It was Setadel himself who answered.
“I served Saintess Arkenis—not that false god, Lumenis.”
“And since our goals aligned,” Suruna added with a smirk, “we joined forces temporarily. Well—‘temporary’ turned out to last quite a while.”
“I’ve watched your vile, detestable acts all this time, just to fulfill this promise. But this is the end.”
“Yes, it’s about time we part ways.”
Setadel’s blazing eyes glared at Suruna.
“Keep the promise.”
With a voice like a growl tearing from his throat, he took a step back—as if to say, The rest is yours now.
“Well then. The Gate of Heaven is open. Shall we enter the inner citadel?”
The greatest obstacle, the Gate of Heaven, had opened absurdly easily.
Owens looked stunned, and beyond the now-open passage, countless presences could be felt.
“The hosts seem eager to greet their guests.”
“They’re nothing more than a rabble.”
Ludger signaled toward Phantos with his eyes.
“You’ve held back well until now.”
Pwaak!
From Phantos erupted an intense aura, so fierce that even his allies instinctively stepped back.
“Your prey’s right before you. Go ahead—run wild as you please.”
Phantos stepped forward.
His white hair rippled like heat waves as he walked.
From between his lips, fangs pushed out.
The beastly instinct he had long suppressed thrilled in anticipation of the hunt to come.
Phantos had no intention of holding it back any longer.
“How much restraint do you want?”
His voice was tense with barely contained bloodlust.
If it were before, he would’ve charged in without even asking—but the fact that he did now showed how much he’d grown.
Ludger smirked.
“Leave the inner citadel standing.”
“A tall order.”
“There’ll be a bigger battle after this one. We’ll be fighting the entire continent—we’ll at least need a place to receive our guests.”
“In that case...”
Phantos’s lips twisted into a savage grin.
“I suppose I’ve no choice.”
With that, Phantos vanished from his spot.
A thunderous boom followed, and cracks spread like spiderwebs from where he had been standing.
Then, in a flash of white light, Phantos shot toward the passage inside the Gate of Heaven.
In an instant, his figure disappeared beyond the corridor shrouded in shadow.
And then—
From within came earth-shattering noise, roars, and screams mingled together.
* * *
Uwooooooooh!
A giant man, face covered by a white executioner’s hood, swung twin axes in both hands.
Phantos wasn’t exactly small himself, but this executioner was at least three heads taller.
By sight alone, his height exceeded three meters.
It was impossible for a human body to grow so large naturally.
‘Did they inject him with something?’
Phantos could sense the unnaturalness of it—but he didn’t care.
At least a prey had shown up that looked somewhat entertaining.
The massive axe cut through the air like splitting firewood.
Phantos casually extended a palm toward it.
Chaaak!
Instead of being split in half as expected, his thumb and forefinger simply pinched the blade—
and stopped it dead in place.
The hulking executioner grunted and poured all his strength into pulling it back.
His bulging muscles swelled like overinflated balloons, veins popping out—
but the axe didn’t budge an inch.
Phantos stared at him with cold, indifferent eyes.
“You’re nothing but a hollow husk with a big frame.”
He pressed his fingers slightly, and the axe blade cracked like glass—then shattered completely.
Before the panicked executioner could react, Phantos’s fist smashed into his face.
With a dull thud, the body toppled backward, headless.
Phantos brushed his unstained hand as if shaking off dust.
Around him already lay piles of paladin corpses.
Not enough. It wasn’t enough.
He twitched his ears.
There were sounds—people deeper inside.
And a scent. A strong one.
The scent of the powerful—prey worth hunting.
Phantos charged in that direction immediately.
The corridors beyond the Gate of Heaven were winding and maze-like,
but to Phantos, they posed no obstacle.
Soon, he reached a heavy steel door, bolted shut.
“How annoying.”
Without slowing down, Phantos kicked it with full force.
The door tore free and bounced along the floor like a skipping stone.
It would have flown straight through to the other side—
if it hadn’t suddenly stopped midair.
“I wondered what heretic dared to intrude.”
The one who had caught the steel door with one hand tossed it aside.
Thud!
The door, several dozen centimeters thick and weighing tons, hit the ground with a quake.
The man had thrown it aside like trash.
“Not a heretic, but a beast. A filthy animal.”
He was smaller than Phantos—
but his thick neck and dense, muscular build made him seem like compressed stone.
“You’re one of the heretic’s followers—the one who killed Bentham.”
The paladin’s vicious gaze fixed on Phantos, then shifted as more Owens members arrived behind him.
His aura surged in response.
Following Phantos into the scene, Ludger’s eyes narrowed.
He looked past the unusual paladin to the figures gathered behind him.
And upon spotting one familiar face, his expression turned faintly exasperated.
“Tch. That bastard Salesin—so he left that behind.”