Chapter 112
A space filled to the brim with dense demonic energy.
There, six thrones were positioned.
Those seated upon the thrones were engaged in heated debate with one another.
“Things aren’t flowing badly. Public opinion is moving quite favorably.”
“Bullshit. We lost every single Academy spy we painstakingly planted. If the Academy tightens its security even further because of this, how do you propose we find the ‘Gate’?”
“Wasn’t it Berid who found the ‘Gate’? He even turned part of the Academy into hell and eventually revived a demon.”
“So what? In the end, that bastard failed.”
“This is for the best. Let’s just gather our forces and wipe out the Academy as it is!”
Those seated on the thrones each voiced their own opinions.
I knelt on one knee and listened to their words.
To be precise, I couldn’t even raise my body under the pressure of the aura they were emitting.
That was only natural, as those thrones symbolized the absolute beings of this world who controlled Pandemonium.
In a world governed by the law of survival of the strongest, occupying the highest seat was not merely symbolic.
Absolute power.
That alone filled this space to the brim.
The topic they were discussing was the hell manifestation and demon revival that had occurred at the Academy a few days ago.
After I left the Academy.
That incident had been regarded as Pandemonium’s large-scale assault on the Academy.
Rather than an operation carried out by the individual demon Berid, it was seen as a full-fledged invasion orchestrated by Pandemonium.
As a result, tensions between demons and heroes were gradually escalating.
It was an atmosphere where it wouldn’t have been strange for a war to break out at any moment.
In truth, Pandemonium’s side seemed somewhat flustered.
That was because Berid had offered up all the demons who had infiltrated the Academy as sacrifices, leaving only Joo Sarang and me as the sole survivors.
However, the Academy was currently on heightened alert against external infiltration, making it difficult to contact Joo Sarang.
In the end, I was the only one left who could provide detailed information about what had happened at the Academy.
That was why they summoned me here to hear about the Academy’s situation.
I suitably embellished the story, claiming part of Berid’s achievements as my own while further emphasizing Berid’s failure in the mission.
Upon hearing this, the high-ranking executives fell silent for a moment.
“So the hell manifestation at the Academy wasn’t because Berid found the Gate. Instead, he forcibly overlaid hell’s information through a fragment of the Gate, and when the operation failed, he even coveted the Heart of the Demon?”
I nodded while acting out the most grief-stricken expression I could muster.
“Yes. When all his operations failed, Berid recklessly used the Power of Usurpation on the Heart of the Demon, and as a result, he went berserk…….”
“He had become such an idiot that even I could barely recognize him.”
The Heavenly Demon supported my words, adding credibility.
At that moment, one of those seated on the thrones asked,
“So what happened to that Heart of the Demon?”
Wearing the most guilt-ridden expression I could manage, I took something out from my chest.
A gem that looked as though all its color had completely faded.
Seeing it, a voice from the throne asked,
“Don’t tell me that’s the Heart of the Demon?”
“I killed Berid and immediately retrieved the heart from him, but it was already in this state. We believe it was due to Berid’s authority.”
A sigh escaped among the high-ranking executives.
The Heart of the Demon was a precious treasure even within Pandemonium.
It was exceedingly rare for a high-ranking being from another dimension, such as a demon, to cross into this world.
I lowered my head even further to hide my expression as best as I could in front of their disappointment.
Because it was a lie.
Up until the moment the Heavenly Demon struck Berid down in a single blow and retrieved the Heart of the Demon, the heart had still retained its power.
No, perhaps it would be more accurate to say it had been refined into an even better state.
That bizarre, ominous power I had felt when I first stole the Heart of the Demon had completely vanished.
Thanks to that, I was able to gulp down this power whole.
I recalled the moment when I received the Heart of the Demon from the Heavenly Demon.
【The SS-rank skill Lamb detects the Heart of the Demon.】
【The power contained within the Heart of the Demon has weakened, making its origin easy to identify.】
【The SS-rank skill Lamb begins greedily devouring the power of the origin.】
【The Heart of the Demon cannot resist the Lamb skill.】
【The origin of the demon is annihilated by the Lamb.】
【Power of Severance has been added to the list of usable authorities.】
【The incomplete Power of Restoration has been completed.】
【Stats increase.】
【Corrosion rate increases by 3%.】
【Congratulations! You have granted a demon true death.】
【The trait ‘Devil Slayer’ is created.】
【You gain resistance to demons’ mental attacks.】
【Attack power against demons increases.】
【Corrosion rate decreases by 1%.】
The moment I touched the Heart of the Demon, a message window appeared before my eyes and absorbed the demon’s power.
Of course, there was nothing bad about it for me.
I obtained a new weapon, while at the same time handing Pandemonium nothing more than a meaningless shell of the Heart of the Demon.
Killing two birds with one stone.
What I hadn’t anticipated was that the reward for claiming the Heart of the Demon was far greater than I had expected.
I had only thought I’d gain the Power of Severance at best, but on top of that, the Power of Restoration was further strengthened and my stats increased drastically.
The most immediate change I could feel was my mana pool, which had nearly doubled compared to before.
There had been many techniques I couldn’t properly use due to my lack of mana.
On top of that, Lamb absorbing the demon’s power was treated as killing a demon, granting me various additional effects.
Resistance that freed me from the pressure the demon had once exerted toward me, and increased attack power against demons.
It seemed this didn’t apply solely to demons either.
According to the inherited memories, even opening one’s mouth in front of the Six Thrones of Pandemonium had been difficult.
Yet here I was, calmly spouting lies in the face of such intense auras.
Perhaps it was because demons gained their power through contracts with demons.
Still, there was one thing that kept bothering me—the word ‘corrosion rate’ that kept catching my eye whenever I used demonic power.
What exactly did this corrosion rate signify?
The first time I saw this term was when I created the Giant’s Spear.
Since then, every time I acquired a new demonic authority, the corrosion rate increased little by little.
So far, I hadn’t felt any major changes, but judging by the way my gamer instincts were warning me, it didn’t look like a good thing.
It seemed I’d need to look into this further.
“By the way, Devil Knight. How did you know that the hell manifestation was fake?”
Of course, I had already thought through an answer to that as well.
“I was the one who told Berid the method for manifesting hell. At the time, I was searching the Academy in order to find the location of the Gate.”
“Come to think of it, we did assign you that mission.”
“Still, if you managed to manifest hell within the Academy, it seems like you gained something worthwhile.”
“Yes.”
The Gate was a secret the Academy had protected for a long time.
However, it couldn’t be hidden forever.
There were two reasons for that.
The first was the need to appease the anger of the high-ranking executives.
We lost the Heart of the Demon, and the operation failed as well.
In a situation like that, reporting nothing but failure could very well cost me my life.
My future movements would also be heavily restricted.
I couldn’t rely solely on the sturdy shelter called the Heavenly Demon.
So I needed to mix in some plausible information here and there to redirect their attention.
The second reason was the expiration date of information and, ironically, to prevent Pandemonium’s intrusion.
Pandemonium was bound to keep invading this place endlessly in order to seize the Gate anyway.
In that process, the Gate’s location would eventually be revealed.
If that was the case, it would actually be easier to prepare for and block them by feeding information in advance and concentrating Pandemonium’s invasion routes and objectives into a single point.
That was why I took out the refined information I had prepared.
“I’ve figured out a way to reach the Gate.”
At my words, the beings on the thrones cast interested gazes my way.
“Oh? Go on.”
“To approach the Gate, a key is required.”
“A key?”
“Yes. After investigating countless fragments, I managed to learn the method of reaching the Gate itself. However, a powerful barrier was erected there, blocking access.”
“Then are you saying that this key is meant to open that barrier?”
When I nodded, the high-ranking executives let out sounds of satisfaction.
“So what exactly is this key?”
“The power of the star.”
That’s right.
What was required to approach the Gate was none other than the power of Park Siwoo, a playable character.
According to the <Become a Hero> setting, there existed a certain relationship between the ‘Gate,’ a point where dimensions intersect, and the ‘power of the star.’
Park Siwoo, going strictly by the setting, was the playable character closest to being the protagonist among the three.
At that moment, one of the high-ranking executives asked,
“But can’t that barrier be destroyed with sheer force?”
“It will likely be difficult. Since it’s a barrier protecting the Gate, it feels as though it blocks interference with space itself.”
“Then that means we have no choice but to bring in the one who possesses the power of the star.”
Just as the conversation was settling toward abducting Park Siwoo, I cautiously raised my hand and cut them off.
If this continued, Park Siwoo would become Pandemonium’s target.
Considering Park Siwoo, who was still weak, and the other companions, an attack by demons would be quite a burden.
Of course, it wasn’t as though I hadn’t thought this through before speaking up.
Park Siwoo was merely an excuse.
“There is one problem.”
“And what now?”
Irritation seeped into their voices.
The executives were probably starting to get tired of this meeting.
From the start, they weren’t exactly the type well-suited to using their heads.
“The key’s power is too weak to open the barrier. Therefore, we should wait for a while until the key bearing the power of the star grows……”
This was exactly what I was aiming for.
Temporarily blocking the Academy’s intrusion in order to nurture Park Siwoo.
A kind of hostage situation.
However, one of the high-ranking executives seemed displeased with my opinion and pressed down on me while releasing a rough aura.
“And how long are we supposed to wait, knowing how long that will take?”
“It won’t take that long. The power of the star is special, after all.”
Here, I needed to give a definite time frame.
“Three months. That should be sufficient.”
“Three months…….”
“That’s shorter than I expected. I think that’s more than worth the investment. Especially since we lost a considerable number of demons in this incident.”
“I don’t think it’s a bad idea either.”
One by one, the executives expressed their stances.
Most of them seemed satisfied with the relatively short time frame and were inclined to agree.
A short time, huh.
That won’t be the case.
I’ve played the game.
And I know just how explosively playable characters and their companions can grow in a short period of time.
More importantly, within these three months.
The final, third playable character appears.
In <Become a Hero>, the appearance of the third playable character marks the point where the story shifts as demons and players begin to clash in earnest.
Since I came all the way to Pandemonium anyway, I planned to help facilitate the appearance of the third playable character and the growth of the characters.
As for the characters’ growth, I could contact Seo Da-hee through Lia, and I’d need to pay a bit more attention to the playable characters.
And in the meantime.
I needed to grow stronger as well.
At the very least, strong enough to wipe out all six bastards right in front of my eyes.