“…Do! Dowd! Are you okay!”

I heard a voice calling me so amidst my faint consciousness.

Then I could feel a hand pulling me out from the rubble of the collapsed building.

Dust and broken debris tumbled down from my body.

“…Eleanor?”

As I was dragged out, I met eyes with Eleanor, who was looking at me with a worried gaze.

“You…!”

Eleanor's eyes shook as she fully confirmed my condition.

I was probably pretty injured right now.

Well, I was helplessly crushed by a collapsed building after all.

“…”

This was what would happen if my skill didn’t activate.

As I confirmed before in the mock dungeon, the skill would only react to attacks that held hostility within them.

If it was simply a building collapsing due to the aftermath of the impact, then Dowd Campbell's F stats would remain the same.

‘Fractures, concussion, dislocated joints…’

My vision was trembling all over as I felt warm liquid flow down my face. I was dizzy and uncomfortable.

“…Huu.”

Right. This was how it should go.

An insect-like existence's life, whose stats were all F, was as fragile as a candle in the midst of tumultuous wind. There was simply no other way around it.

〚…This is amazing.〛

With quivering eyes, I stared up at the sky where a mutated Marquis Riverback floated.

The Devil's Essence that he swallowed earlier was now lodged in the middle of his chest, pulsating like a heart.

With demonic energy wrapping around his body like armor, he was already too far gone from being human.

An abomination.

There was no other way to put it.

〚When the Prophet gave me this, I wondered if there would even be a situation where I would have to use it.〛

He grinned as he looked down at me and Eleanor.

〚I’ll have to admit it. You were more troublesome than I thought. 〛

Then, he flew up to a higher altitude.

〚However, will you be able to handle this?〛

Yeah.

I wonder about that too, you biatch.

‘…Straight from the first chapter.’

I couldn't believe this fucking bullshit.

Looking at Marquis Riverback swiftly flying away, I inwardly sighed. It was a speed that I didn't even try to think of catching up to.

Originally, the corrupted power that Marquis Riverback would have used was generally like a devil by-product.

It was a power that humans had researched and crudely mimicked over the centuries.

On the other hand, the Devil's Essence...

They were items that contained the remnants of a devil. Using it would turn one into a demonic human, able to wield a very small portion of the original devils’ powers.

For example—

-!

-!!!

Eleanor’s expression hardened upon seeing some abominable existences suddenly rising from the fallen debris.

Without a semblance of their human form, abomination couldn't be more apt in describing their grotesque shapes. They were but amalgamations of melted flesh.

Their screeches, like scraping metals, clearly indicated their hostility to every living being nearby.

“Hii, hiik!”

“What is that…!”

Curious about the sudden collapse of the building, people naturally started to gather to get a whiff of the large-scale incident. However, they immediately bolted away after seeing these freaks of nature.

‘…This isn't good.’

The spread of demonic energy would eventually spawn creatures similar to those in Pandemonium — the devil's home.

And these abominations? These were the same devil worshipers that Eleanor had cut down earlier.

Under the influence of Marquis Riverback, who turned into a demon, they transformed into Man Eaters, the bottom dwellers of Pandemonium.

Other than their threatening combat power, what was more troublesome was that any human they killed would also turn into a Man Eater like them.

It was a chain reaction, akin to a zombie apocalypse.

To make matters worse, they were in the middle of a busy shopping district, and the area was packed with people who had come for the Full Moon Festival.

It was the worst place at the worst time.

[ Main Quest ]

〖 Chapter 1: Purifier 〗

[ Defeat the Purifier! ]

[ It's game over if there are too many casualties!! ]

[ Reward: 1 Evil Essence ]

[ Reward: 1 Hero Fragment ]

[ Reward: 5,000pts ]

And once again, the system did not disappoint, as a damned quest appeared right in front of my eyes.

Reducing the number of casualties here was not a joke.

-!

-!!

Right after the Man Eaters mutated, a lightning-like blow suddenly shut their mouths.

It was a textbook strike using a spear. Several Man Eaters who tried to stand up were pierced and sent flying in the air.

“Senior Brother! What the hell is this…!?”

Wiping the blood on my forehead, I saw Talion running toward me from the distance.

Did this guy make that strike?

"I heard a commotion and came to see what was going on! What are those monsters, and Marquis Riverback...!"

This was nice to see.

Originally, at this point, this guy should have become corrupted and turned into something similar to those Man Eaters.

“If you were still wearing the necklace, you would have turned into something like that.”

“…Yes?”

Instead of answering, I simply pointed my finger at one of the Man Eaters.

The evil energy emanating from the House of Purification's necklace, which was still hanging around its neck, was clearly visible to anyone.

Normally, it would just end with them losing a bit of their sanity. But now, they've completely crossed a river of no return as they've transformed into Man Eaters.

Seeing this, Talion’s eyes widened.

“…This.”

His expression rapidly changed by the second.

He was probably quickly organizing the current situation in his head.

"I just want to confirm one thing."

"What is it?"

"...Did Riverback lead this incident?"

He had dropped the honorifics. He might be asking a question, but he already seemed half-convinced of the answer.

He was probably told to make sure to regularly wear that necklace several times.

I smiled at the anger in Talion's eyes.

Well, he wasn’t your run-of-the-mill NPC.

As someone designed to be Iliya’s rival, his ability to judge and act in an emergency could not be compared to ordinary students.

“We can discuss responsibility and mistakes later. For now, if we don’t deal with that, this place will become hell.”

He somehow stabilized his trembling gaze and aptly nodded.

I had gained his trust by making him take off the necklace.

And now, it was time to reap this advantage.

“Listen to me carefully. If you make even one mistake, it's over for us.”

I proceeded to give him instructions.

At first, he was listening to me with a serious expression, then it changed to absurdity, and in the end, he was looking at me like he was looking at a madman.

“…That, is that even possible?”

“Yes.”

It had to be.

I didn't run around everywhere for nothing.

'If you can’t do that much, it'll be over for us. '

“Then, what about Senior Brother…?”

“I’m going to take care of something else.”

‘I have two goals.’

The first was to prevent civilian casualties in the area.

The Man Eaters were still sluggish right now, but as time passed and the demonic energy grew thicker, they would become faster and stronger.

Most of the instructions I just gave to Talion were just to block them.

And the second goal was...

“We need to cut the root.”

We needed to eliminate Marquis Riverback, the source of the demonic energy.

That was what I was going to do.

“Do you know where he went?”

Eleanor asked in a low voice.

She was probably asking how we could chase after someone flying that fast.

“Yes, well. I have my guesses.”

Should I say that I had an idea?

Actually, there was only one destination he would go to right now.

I couldn’t make mistakes.

Merchants were quick-witted after all.

•  

If one asked why Marquis Galdier Riverback became a devil worshiper, that would be the most fundamental answer.

He had risen from a mere black market merchant to the position of a Marquis, enjoying wealth and honor that he could never have imagined before. And all that was just by joining the winning side.

‘Their power reaches every corner of the continent.’

A devil worshipper's power was unquestionably formidable.

Among them, the power of the Chosen Ones, who were the closest to the Prophet, could literally boil the sea, crack the earth, and even split the heavens.

Compared to them, he was but an insect crawling under their soles. The reason he survived for so long was because he always reminded himself of that fact.

Thus, after confirming it himself, he decided to stand on their side without hesitation.

It was probably because of the quick thinking unique to merchants, but he could infer that no one on the continent could dare stand against them.

At this very moment, Marquis Riverback could never be more confident that he had picked the right side.

〚Huuu…〛

An almighty sigh escaped his mouth.

An overwhelming amount of demonic energy coursed through his body.

So much so that he could crush weak beings just by his pressure alone.

This was the power he gained just by accepting a little of the new gods' grace.

〚At this level…〛

Carrying out the mission would be a breeze.

To resurrect the devils, he needed to bring despair and confusion everywhere.

Kill a man, kill a couple, and then, simply continue piling up the corpses.

He could start with that.

He happened to be just in the right place to enact that phenomenon.

〚Go.〛

He muttered as he reached his hand out to the barrier in front of him.

It was the one near the Void Zone, said to have been set up by a Seraphim.

Normally, this place would be heavily guarded. Let alone, breaking through it, he wouldn’t even be able to damage it.

But since it was the Full Moon Festival, it was pretty easy to infiltrate. Not to mention that he now possessed the devil’s power within him.

Even if he still couldn't break it, he could put a dent in it.

Considering the special nature of the Void Zone, this alone would lead to unimaginable disasters.

‘…This is ultimately the key.’

The riots going on in the city right now were nothing more than a smoke screen.

Probably all available armed forces were concentrated there.

Meanwhile, his real goal was here.

“Hey, stop moving.”

Unfortunately.

Not everyone was as stupid as he thought.

•  

〚...How did you know?〛

Marquis Riverback, who was trying to damage the barrier, stiffly asked.

“Like I said earlier. It’s obvious.”

Marquis Riverback, should I say...?

He was a single-celled organism who thought that he was smart.

The type who wanted to feel superior above others, and wormed his way with deceit.

‘…Is he an idiot?’

To be honest, I didn't think there was anything more inefficient than this.

If he just controlled the Man Eaters to push through here, the barrier would've been damaged in itself.

“…”

However, thanks to his ego of going himself, an opportunity like this arose.

I would pierce through that vanity and conceit.

So I started organizing a plan.

If Man Eaters were standing in my way, I wouldn't even dream of a situation like this, but now he was all alone.

“So, Dear.”

I've realized that one of Eleanor's greatest strengths was her endless physical abilities.

She carried me and moved through the streets while still being so fast, especially since I was so badly injured that even moving became difficult.

“What's the plan?”

Eleanor asked, after accepting my request to bring me here without hesitation.

I could see unwavering trust reflected in her eyes.

“There must be a reason why we decided to drop all support and come here with just us two.”

“Well, yes?”

It was because we were hard-pressed for time.

There was no time to call for others. If that guy made even a slight crack in the barrier, it was game over for everyone.

People would die, Eleanor would be kidnapped, and the Grey Devil would be unleashed onto the world.

It was a one-way ticket to a bad ending.

Rather than that, it was better if we came here first to put a pause on everything, then we could come to a decision.

“Okay, so how do we beat him…”

“We can’t.”

Eleanor’s eyes narrowed at those words.

“…What?”

“We can't win against him. Never.”

This was the unconditional truth.

To confront a demonic human, Iliya needed a Holy Sword to stand on equal ground.

But that was something that would come, at least, only after Chapter 4. She was still in her growth stage.

In other words, her counterpart in the novel would be no different.

Even as the final boss, a budding Eleanor and a severely injured me simply couldn't match the transformed Marquis Riverback.

“…”

However.

It was not the end of the world just yet.

– You've been touched by something terrible. I can’t see its full form yet, but I can tell it’s really bad. It seems to have stuck because of your abilities

I suddenly remember those words. The angel had warned me this before.

Yeah. I know.

I was aware of what being stuck to me meant to some extent.

System Message

[ Target '???' is interested in you. ]

I smirked as I read the system log.

And this too...

< Gift-Related Character Alert >

♥ Eleanor Elinalise La Tristan[ Love Level 1 ][ Skill Copy Ticket is available! ]

The last reason was this.

Love Level 1 and Skill Copy Ticket.

With this, even against an enemy that we could never beat at our current level, we'd have a fighting chance.

While I was in my thoughts, Marquis Riverback sighed and raised his demonic energy.

〚…Well, no matter. 〛

A reverberation of demonic energy began to brew like a storm around him.

It was so potent and dense that if someone let their mind slip for even a little, they would surely faint.

What was absurd was that this wasn’t even the full release of his demonic energy— it was but a prelude to the attack.

〚 I just need to kill you and secure Lady Tristan. This is actually better. Since you've served yourselves up at your own accord, you've saved me the trouble of searching for you. 〛

From this point on, we will fight this guy.

Taking a deep breath, I said to Eleanor.

“Eleanor, promise me one thing.”

“Yes?”

“It's going to be painful. It'll be excruciating. You might even hate me…”

“What are you talking about?”

At first glance, it might sound like an impatient request to get to the point, but...

If someone were to meet that straightforward gaze, they would give a slightly different response.

Whatever you say is fine.

 

I've already accepted it, so don't worry and tell me.

That was what her gaze meant.

“…”

I couldn't help but laugh at myself.

It was always like this.

The level of trust this person placed in me was simply unbelievable.

That was exactly why, I must live up to that trust.

“No matter what happens. Without fail…”

I replied while gazing directly at her eyes.

“...I will get us out of here alive, okay?”

“Hmm, okay.”

“So.”

I looked away from Eleanor and turned to Marquis Riverback.

“Whatever happens, please trust me.”

Uh. Really.

What I was about to do was insane.

As I thought so, Marquis Riverback rushed towards us like a raging tsunami.