“This can’t be happening! This is absolutely unacceptable!”

The Emperor shouted, his voice echoing with fury. Yet, unlike before, there was neither hatred nor anger directed at me. It felt as if he couldn’t even bear to look at me.

The fierce glimmer in his eyes had vanished.

Gone was his dignified tone, the pompous gestures laden with a sense of superiority, and the trademark arrogance of the old man.

‘…Something is working too well here.’

It was certainly a good sign that my carefully crafted plan was unfolding smoothly. Given all my effort until now, it only made sense that things would start to align.

The fall of a man who once looked down on me as if he were a god was almost satisfying.

But, how should I put this?

There was something gnawing at me.

Even though it was a similar situation, people’s perceptions had shifted while I remained fine and the Emperor was so easily swayed. There had to be some other factors at play.

That thought kept circling around in my mind.

“You… how can I… to someone like you…!”

But that was only a fleeting moment.

With the enemy right before me, I couldn’t afford to get lost in deep thoughts.

His eyes were bloodshot. The Emperor, half insane, charged at me with a terrifying speed.

That sight was grotesque, yet his power was formidable.

Determined to abandon any thought of restraint, or perhaps completely losing his sanity to the moment, he barreled toward me at an overwhelming speed.

In his hand was a sword, seemingly condensed by his own mana.

No time to dodge… no, that phrase would be misleading.

Despite the huge mistake he made, the barrier was at a grand magic level. There was no escape route from either side or in front or behind.

‘But whatever, I don’t care!’

This journey has led me to this moment.

The strength I’ve built has led me here.

If I don’t use it now, when on earth will I?

Mana flows through me. Basic mana enhancement. In fact, even a low-ranking knight from the Empire could manage such a simple technique.

But for me, that’s more than enough.

I accelerate. For an ordinary person, the mana circuits would have long overheated and burned out.

Yet even that wasn’t enough to satisfy me.

The cursed power from the Cursed Sword and Johann, the energy of the World Tree, and the enormous divine power bestowed upon me from the God of Light, made from their faith in me.

I disregard all the side effects and circulate all of that within my body.

Overflowing power.

Eight pairs of wings unfold.

Light so dazzling it could hurt one’s eyes.

With this, I was ready. I drew the Holy Sword from my waist and assumed my stance.

-CLANG!

The metallic sound rang out as the Emperor’s sword collided with mine, charging at me.

Even in this dire situation, a final boss remains a final boss. The balance of power remained taut, unwavering. Yet, that was still enough for me.

‘I am not alone.’

As if to prove that, swords flew in from all directions.

It seems he wasn’t completely out of his mind yet, as the Emperor spread his left hand, trying to block them. But it was ultimately useless.

What had to be Lien and Aria’s strikes came at terrifying speeds.

With Siel’s shadowy passages lending a hand, the Emperor fought to gauge the sword’s position, trying to intercept it. But before he could, Siel would change position again.

There was no way he could defend against such an onslaught.

The attacks inevitably reached the Emperor.

Dozens of swords pierced his back. Of course, thanks to his innate regeneration, the swords were knocked back and his body returned to its original state.

‘There’s no way that doesn’t weigh on him.’

The balance of power shattered.

The Emperor’s sword, which had remained unmoved, started to tremble.

Seizing that opportunity, I gritted my teeth… and that decided the outcome.

The Emperor, beaten in the struggle of power, staggered and fell.

He braced himself against the ground with his sword.

I took a deep breath while watching him.

Now’s my chance. Such opportunities won’t come knocking again.

“…I’m counting on you, Siel.”

I murmured towards her.

I would stay alive. So when I came back, I couldn’t afford to repeat the same mistakes. This time, I would protect them, no matter what.

With that conviction, I summoned the black talismans Siel had gathered.

They were certainly not inferior in quantity or quality to the ones I used in the past at the Black Market. They represented the energy that Siel could now harness freely.

All of that was to be unleashed with this attack.

I immediately got into position, pouring energy into the Holy Sword to its limit.

The Emperor, who seemed to still possess enough intellect to discern the situation, frantically tried to dismantle the barrier to escape my sight. But it was all in vain.

The mana formula was engraved.

A formation I didn’t even know constructed itself.

The strength of the First Prince I received from Asmodeus, the unique formula that had once thrust me into despair now worked for me.

Causality twisted.

Reality was torn apart, mocked and played with.

Thus, the Emperor could not dismantle the barrier he had created.

Only the fixed outcome of standing there, doing nothing, was laid before him.

“Holy Sword…”

He gazed at me.

He saw the end he was about to meet.

But there was no escape for him. All he could do was stare helplessly at me.

Draw!

Then a brilliant light was unleashed, violently engulfing the Emperor.

-BOOM!

The earth-shaking roar echoed.

But this time, it wasn’t over.

Behind the Emperor, a portal of black shadows opened. It completely swallowed the light of the Holy Sword and shot it back out again.

A loophole using Siel.

Recycling the full power of my strike as if it were a glitch. The light from the Holy Sword engulfed the Emperor again and again.

No matter how powerful the Emperor was, he couldn’t withstand such an assault.

The brilliant light shook the ground countless times, leaving behind a corpse so ghastly it made one’s eyes squint. A fitting end for a dictator who treated people as tools.

And so, the long journey reached its conclusion.

Finally, after resolving all the problems, what awaited was a joyous epilogue. I would celebrate victory and rekindle ties with my comrades.

That future should have been waiting for us…

A laugh echoed.

A very unpleasant laugh.

“Ah, you’ve done quite well.”

The Emperor emerged unscathed.

His body instantaneously regained its youth. The mana that should have been depleted was overflowing. And more strange still was the…

“Thanks to this, I should say my thanks to you.”

That bizarre demeanor and speech.

A wave of dissonance swept over me.

This was strangely different from the Emperor I knew.

Of course, that alone could be dismissed as my misinterpretation, but the signs of this bizarre phenomenon were overwhelming.

The Emperor’s voice, once layered, had now unified into one. His eyes were stained blood-red.

Cold sweat cascaded down my back.

‘Thinking about it, it was odd from the start.’

The Demon King of Control had fused with the Emperor.

But how on earth did that fusion occur? What conditions led to such a contract?

The Emperor I encountered shared the same personality as the one from thirteen years ago. No matter how you looked at it, the dominance of personality lay firmly with the Empire’s Emperor.

But did “Control” truly hand over dominance so easily? The one who stubbornly acted up in the previous work?

No, that could never be the case.

He was certainly up to something, scheming behind the scenes. Maybe he had plotted to take over the body the moment he became a Demon King.

While I can’t rule out the possibility that the Emperor was simply more competent than expected, ultimately, the outcome remains unchanged.

An old, senile man. A deranged old fool.

That perception cloaked the Emperor’s mind as it unraveled.

‘Control’ likely aided this deception from the shadows. As a result, the Emperor’s personality was completely obliterated.

And thus the outcome shifted back to the restoration of identity.

The hidden “Control” resurrecting once more.

“However, it seems a thank you should be postponed for the time being. It’s best to handle what needs to be done first.”

He said that and laughed.

I immediately readied myself for battle, but the response wasn’t a harsh counterattack.

Instead, it was an eerily familiar magic.

A large-scale transmission spell that I had used countless times before.

“Listen up, people of the Empire.”

No matter his intentions, leaving something like that unchecked could only lead to trouble. I charged at him immediately.

But no matter how I focused mana into my legs, I couldn’t reach him. Watching me, he smirked and continued his speech.

“From this moment onwards, your Emperor’s body is wholly mine. The Empire will now operate under the principles of ‘Control.’”

This is peculiar.

No matter how different the personality, there’s no way he could easily fend me off while I’m at full power. And this tells me one thing only.

“Yet, let it not be misunderstood, I have no intention of killing you all. After all, a ‘Control’ only exists because there is something to control.”

“Control” was presently carelessly overusing power.

It should have been essential to save energy for fighting me, yet here he was, frivolously consuming mana with a relaxed expression.

Then what on earth was the reason?

How could he maintain such composure?

“What I intend to kill… is none other than Ian, the Commander of Black Fangs.”

It didn’t take long to uncover the reason behind it.

It was unavoidable.

“I vow on my existence: if I sacrifice only Ian, you will be guaranteed safety.”

This was no longer a battle between a madman who sought to kill everyone and a savior trying to stop him.

The demon promised peace. Claiming that my death would revert all to its original state—that life would continue as it always had.

Now, I was no longer even a nuisance.

Not a savior striving to protect them, but rather, the very fact of my existence made me a liability threatening their lives.

No one values their life less than anyone else does. Naturally, no one would be willing to sacrifice that life for a stranger.

If I were to die alone—

If I were the only one to be sacrificed, everything would be resolved.

They could continue the same life they always had, even if it wasn’t better. Is there such a selfless person who would resist such temptation?

No longer did the people’s faith side with me.

Everyone desires my death.

Everyone will wish for my defeat.

The power that once empowered me was now in the hands of my enemy, threatening my life.

“Humans are ultimately selfish creatures, easily forgetting favors; once you forget that, your defeat was basically a given.”

“Control” gave me a sickening grin as he gazed at me.

“Farewell, Ian. Watching you was quite enjoyable.”

With that, he bowed his head and extended his hand.

He seemed to crush me with overwhelming power, playfully tightening his fist…

But nothing happened.

As I attempted the same several times, the same fruitless outcome painted confusion across “Control’s” face.

And I was equally perplexed.

Surely, there must be no one left desiring my victory, yet the power didn’t drain away. The people’s wishes didn’t enhance “Control” either.

So…

Something unexpected was happening.