HBWnovel Chapter 253: Demon Realm (2)
Chapter 253: Demon Realm (2)
Chapter 253: Demon Realm (2)
“Uh......”
Her long, semi-wavy hair, grown down to her waist, swayed.
Her eyes moved around restlessly, unable to find their path.
Anetsha had grown slightly more since Taesan’s last memory of her.
Not much time had passed, but perhaps due to the numerous events, she appeared oddly mature.
“The one the Demon God mentioned...... was you, Taesan?”
“Hey, do you two know each other?”
Quaned asked in surprise. Anetsha nodded, flustered.
“Oh ho. How did you find out? Did the Demon God give you a trial or something?”
“Quaned, you know Taesan too?”
“Yes.”
Quaned affirmed.
“I told you before, remember? The one who saved me in the labyrinth. That was Taesan.”
“Ah......”
Anetsha realized how they were connected. Quaned was also amazed.
“So Taesan is the person the princess mentioned. Oh, then......”
“Qu-Quaned. Please be quiet.”
Anetsha hastily stopped Quaned’s words.
She took a deep breath and calmed herself.
“Taesan...... it’s been a long time.”
“Yeah.”
“Nice to see you.”
She bowed respectfully.
Amidst the confusion in her eyes, there was visible joy.
Anetsha seemed to have a lot to say to Taesan.
But she restrained herself. Suppressing her desires, she sat down across from him and spoke.
“First, shall we exchange information? You came to the demon world on the Demon God’s request, right?”
Taesan nodded.
“And that request is to deal with those who believe in the old Demon God?”
“You know?”
“The Demon God appeared in our dreams yesterday and informed us as well.”
“Yesterday?”
Anetsha confirmed.
“Yes, yesterday.”
If it was yesterday, it was before Taesan received the Demon God’s quest.
This meant the Demon God had no doubt that Taesan would accept the quest.
“Continue.”
“The Demon God said a helper would come for you. We are that helper.”
She pointed to Quaned. Quaned smiled and raised his hand.
“Nice to meet you.”
Taesan looked at Quaned.
“You. You’ve gotten weaker.”
It was evident from the first glance. Quaned was once a strong adventurer who had surpassed the 50th floor.
But now, Quaned’s strength was only at the 20th-floor level. Outwardly, he appeared immensely strong, but compared to the strength he once had, it was pitifully weak.
“I can’t help it. You helped me break Patricia’s contract, but I lost some power in the process. The Demon God said there was nothing she could do since it was stolen.”
Taesan could guess the reason.
Breaking Patricia’s contract involved Soul Ascension.
In other words, Taesan had taken some of Quaned’s power.
It seemed he lost his strength as a result.
‘I feel somewhat sorry.’
The strength of someone on the 50th floor had diminished to the 20th-floor level. It must have been mentally exhausting.
But Quaned leisurely sipped his tea.
“It’s disappointing, but not bad. Living peacefully like this is also nice.”
Thinking about it, Quaned had been looking for someone to acknowledge him. That’s why he got caught in the ridiculous contract of the guide.
In such a situation, the Demon God personally took care of him, and he met Anetsha. Considering Anetsha’s personality, she wouldn’t treat him badly.
Since he didn’t desire power, he seemed satisfied with the current situation.
“Even though I’m weaker, I can still hold my own in the demon world. Don’t worry. I can survive on my own.”
“Anetsha, what about you?”
“You don’t need to worry about me either.”
Anetsha spoke calmly.
“I painfully felt my helplessness back then and have since gained strength. I won’t have any problems without your help, Taesan.”
In fact, the aura emanating from Anetsha was significantly stronger than the last time he saw her.
Although making meaningful progress in the labyrinth was difficult, she seemed capable of taking care of herself.
“Those who believe in the old Demon God... there’s been talk about them for a long time.”Upstodatee from
Anetsha continued as if reciting a fairy tale.
“A long time ago, there was a tyrannical Demon God. Unable to tolerate his tyranny, a girl led the demons and drove the Demon God away, becoming the Demon God herself.
They were thus banished from the Demon World. However, those who believe in the old Demon God have not disappeared. They reside in the abandoned land, waiting for their master to return.“
“The abandoned land?”
“There is a place in the Demon World where demons cannot live.”
In the midst of this, Quaned appeared. She treated and cared for him as he was dying.
Once he regained consciousness, Quaned helped Anetsha cultivate the village.
“While living like that, the Demon God gave us an order. He said that soon, a being would descend and that we should help him remove those who believe in the old Demon God.”
“This makes me feel sorry.”
In a way, it was because of Taesan that Anetsha’s small peace was broken. But Anetsha shook her head.
“No, I’m actually happy now.”
She smiled brightly.
“Just the fact that I can see you again, Taesan, is a joy.”
It was a pure and clear smile. Quaned whistled.
“The atmosphere is good, but there seems to be something we need to take care of first, Princess.”
The carriage, moving with Quaned’s magic, stopped.
Looking outside, they saw black beasts approaching the carriage.
“They’re monsters.”
Anetsha said.
Monsters were beings similar to animals. They lived in the Demon World and attacked passing demons like beasts.
“I’ll take care of it. Taesan, you can stay put.”
Anetsha stood up energetically.
“Princess, should I stay still too?”
“Yes, I’ll handle it alone.”
She stepped outside the carriage.
The monsters were similar in shape to tigers. They approached Anetsha slowly, baring their sharp teeth.
Anetsha waved her hand.
A black wind gathered there.
Crack!
The wind swirled and shot out in all directions. The monsters leaped to dodge the blades.
Anetsha calmly controlled the wind.
Boom!
The wind condensed and spread out, pushing the monsters away. Then, it grabbed and subdued them like a hand.
Taesan watched with interest.
The black wind Anetsha controlled was Seir’s Black Wind, a black magic that Taesan also possessed.
However, Taesan couldn’t control that black magic as well. Anetsha was using the black wind to manage both offense and defense simultaneously.
In terms of pure skill, her proficiency in black magic seemed higher than Taesan’s.
Crunch.
The wind split the monsters apart.
Having dealt with them all, she took a small breath and turned around with a smile.
“Are you alright?”
She looked like a child wanting to show off her growth.
Taesan nodded.
The carriage moved on.
There was night in the Demon World too. Soon, it became dark. Quaned stopped the carriage.
“It’s getting dark, so let’s rest for the night.”
“Okay.”
They started preparing for a meal.
As Anetsha took out a pot, she chuckled.
“It reminds me of old times. Back then, we had meals like this with you, Taesan.”
“The situation is a bit different now.”
“Although they were terrible and painful memories, I still enjoyed being with you, Taesan.”
She smiled.
Suddenly, Anetsha clapped her hands.
“Oh right. Taesan, can you use black magic?”
“I can now.”
After clearing the quest on Vekveta, he could use black magic properly.
“Then, to what extent can you control it?”
“I can use many types of black magic, but my proficiency isn’t very high.”
[You activated Seir’s Black Wind.]
A wind gathered above Taesan’s hand.
Unlike magic, black magic’s power varied with the amount of magical energy consumed.
But he couldn’t do more than that. He couldn’t control the black wind as freely as Anetsha had just shown.
His proficiency in black magic had reached a bottleneck. It seemed that only by becoming more skilled in its use could he increase his proficiency.
“As expected... Black magic is originally for demons. It’s hard for a human like you, Taesan, to master it.”
She brightened as if it were a good thing.
“In that case, if you don’t mind, would you like to learn from me? The way you handle black magic can make a big difference.”
“I’m okay with it, but are you?”
“Of course, I am. You saved me, Taesan. Think of it as my way of repaying you.”
“I’ve already received a reward from the Demon God.”
“No.”
Anetsha shook her head and smiled gently.
“This is a personal repayment from me.”