Return of the Calamity-Class Death Knight

[Translator - Kie]

[Proofreader - Kawaii]

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Chapter 321: Another Round with Duke Class Demon (2)

***

When the seven combined combined, they could reverse the time.

Damien had no idea how such a thing was possible. He only knew how to use it.

"I can't believe I have to choose this with my own hands."

Damien muttered. His expression began to twist as he grasped the fate of the Death Knight.

During his time as a Death Knight, Damien was the slave of Dorugo. He also committed unspeakable atrocities.

He had killed his own family with his hands and massacred countless soldiers, causing the whole world to plunge into despair and screams.

Now, Damien was about to return to that time.

It was something unavoidable, yet utterly distasteful. It felt like diving headfirst into a decaying pit of filth.

No, it was even worse than that. The revulsion swelled within him.

But he had no choice. Vahel was a foe of that caliber.

"I’ll make sure you pay tenfold for how disgusted I feel."

Damien swore and activated all the authorities.

The seven authorities connected and became one.

---

"Damien, why are you just standing there? That's no fun."

Vahel said, clearly expressing his disappointment at Damien’s sudden silence.

"I don’t know what's going on, but one punch should snap you out of it."

Vahel was eager to resume their exhilarating battle, certain that a good hit would bring Damien back to his senses. He took a step forward.

In that instant, a sense of foreboding brushed the back of Vahel’s neck.

It was fleeting but intense—enough to erase the smile from Vahel’s face.

He suddenly stopped and his eyes were fixed on Damien.

Nothing seemed to have changed. Yet Vahel's instincts screamed a warning: don’t act recklessly.

It could have been a mere illusion, but Vahel never ignored his instincts.

"I need to check this out."

Suddenly, Vahel’s eyes shifted.

The red pupils split apart, transforming into compound eyes like those of a dragonfly.

Vahel’s view of the world changed in his new vision.

He no longer saw reality but something else. A black background illuminated by countless orbs of light, as beautiful as the Milky Way.

But Vahel wasn’t captivated by that beauty. Instead, he glared at it with the ferocity of encountering a sworn enemy.

"Come on, show me what you’ve got."

As a Duke class demon, Vahel possessed the power to glimpse fate.

But fate’s flow had long since become tangled, reaching a point where no one could see it clearly anymore.

That wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

The fact that fate had become entangled meant that no one knew what might happen.

Thanks to this, Vahel had been able to deceive Dorugo and emerge into the human world.

Originally, this was never a destiny permitted to Vahel.

After peering into fate for a long while, Vahel muttered in a stiff tone.

"...I can't see my own fate."

Usually, Vahel could clearly observe his destiny.

Though fate's flow had been tangled, his own fate had always stood out and continuously shone brightly.

No matter what occurred in the future, Vahel knew he would remain alive. That certainty was why he had always lived with confidence.

But now, it was different. Even his own fate was invisible.

That could only mean one thing. Vahel might die.

All types of expressions vanished from Vahel's face. There was no trace of a smile.

The excitement of battle that had heated his heart moments ago had completely cooled. Vahel no longer found being here enjoyable.

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"This is dangerous."

Just because fate couldn't be seen didn’t mean death was certain. His actions could still change the outcome.

Especially since Vahel was a Duke class demon. In both Inferno and the mortal realm, there were few who could challenge him.

But Vahel had no intention of gambling with his life.

Not even if the odds of winning were extremely high.

His eyes reverted to normal. He caught the sight of Damien.

"I don’t know how a mere human could affect my destiny..."

Vahel reached out towards Damien.

With his life on the line, the game was over. Vahel intended to crush Damien's throat immediately.

But as he prepared to unleash his power, a sudden sense of dread intensified.

Vahel couldn’t bring himself to activate his abilities. He wasn’t sure what effect this choice would have on his fate.

At that moment, something transmitted itself into Vahel's mind.

"Your Excellency, we have a problem."

It was Laria, who had been left behind in the Phantasmal Realm. She was speaking to him from afar.

"What is it?"

"Dorugo has escaped."

Vahel's expression twisted into a scowl at those words.

"How did that happen? Dorugo shouldn't have the power to escape."

"Her offspring helped her break free."

Vahel ground his teeth in frustration.

Dorugo was no trivial opponent. They had only been fortunate enough to capture her with ease.

"Laria, didn’t I tell you to guard her properly?"

"I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry, you’d better fix it! I told you not to let Dorugo escape under any circumstances!"

"I have no excuse."

"Damn it. I’m coming right now."

Vahel cut off the communication with Laria and stared at Damien with conflicted expressions.

Considering the danger Damien posed, he couldn’t just leave him alone. But there were too many unsettling uncertainties about engaging him.

Moreover, Dorugo was the more pressing concern right now. Leaving her unchecked could lead to unimaginable consequences.

"...There’s no need to touch something so dangerous with my own hands."

Vahel activated his power. A barrier formed around Damien, creating a rectangular enclosure.

It was a secluded space Vahel had crafted with all his strength. No demon would be able to break through it.

"Damien, I’ll deal with you next time."

With that, Vahel turned his back and ran toward the Phantasmal Realm.

* * *

Damien could only stare in bewilderment as Vahel fled into the distance.

"Did you really think I’d let you go?"

Damien had already finished preparing to activate time reversal. He unleashed all seven authorities simultaneously.

Immediately, wounds opened all over Damien’s body.

His torso, arms, legs, and face—no part was spared. His flesh split open, and blood gushed from the wounds.

"…!"

The pain was so excruciating that he couldn’t even scream. Damien collapsed to his knees.

But the agony didn’t stop.

The wounds kept increasing, and the existing ones deepened. They even reached his internal organs.

Damien quickly ceased the activation of time reversal. Only then did the wounds stop multiplying.

"Cough, cough."

Damien was on his knees and spat out blood.

Fragments of internal organs came out with the blood, a sign that the injuries had penetrated deep inside.

Damien opened a subspace and pulled out the Dawn and some healing potions.

Dawn sensed his critical condition and immediately began to channel divine power. But the wounds were so severe that they weren’t healing easily.

Damien gulped down the healing potions one after another. He also used a sapling of the World Tree to boost his recovery.

"...I see."

As his wounds began to heal, Damien realized something. The meaning behind these injuries became clear.

"These are the places where Dorugo performed the surgeries."

Dorugo had subjected Damien to countless procedures to transform him into a Death Knight.

She had carved out his muscles and replaced them with others, removed his organs and substituted them with different ones, implanted various magical artifacts, and injected bizarre concoctions into his body.

"Just activating the time reversal isn’t enough."

To recreate the Death Knight’s body…

Damien would have to endure the same surgeries he had once undergone.

In other words, he had to withstand the same agony and despair he had experienced back then.

"This is one hell of a price to pay."

Damien let out a bitter laugh.

But despite the smile on his lips, his eyes were filled with deep darkness.

***

In the blink of an eye, Vahel returned to the Phantasmal Realm.

The first thing he noticed upon entering was the ruined fortress. At its center stood Laria.

"Laria, you've really made a mess here."

"Apologies my lord."

Anger flared within him. Vahel instinctively kicked Laria.

Her massive frame crashed into the wall. Vahel spoke.

"Back to your position."

Laria immediately returned to where she had originally been standing. Vahel clenched his teeth as he questioned her.

"Did Dorugo’s offspring cause this chaos?"

"Yes."

"What exactly were you doing? Don’t tell me you lost to those pathetic undeads!"

"I have no excuse."

Just as Vahel was about to strike Laria again, a dimensional gate that had been wide open and Migmag emerged from it.

Behind Migmag floated the unconscious Alter and Asthar.

"Your Excellency, what happened?"

"Dorugo escaped. Track down where She has gone, immediately."

Migmag’s eyes widened in shock.

Migmag was clearly dumbfounded but he quickly obeyed Vahel’s command.

He tapped the ground with the tip of his iron staff, sending an invisible wave rippling outwards.

"Your Excellency, I’ve found them."

"Where did they go?"

Vahel asked with a sharp tone. Migmag promptly answered.

"They’ve headed for the Imperial Capital."

Vahel couldn’t help but scoff at Migmag’s words.

"The Empire? The Empire, really?"

It was a choice he couldn’t begin to comprehend.

That only made Vahel more wary.

The Dorugo he knew would never make such a careless decision.

"Could they be planning to pit us against the Empire?"

"Your Excellency, what are your orders?"

A deep thought filled Vahel's mind, which caused him to become silent.

Originally, Vahel had no intention of revealing himself just yet. He wasn’t afraid of humans, but unexpected things could always happen.

Who knew what might occur if he ended up fighting all of humanity? To ensure caution, he had stayed hidden for as long as possible.

"We’ll head to the Empire."

But Dorugo was too dangerous. He couldn’t allow her to roam freely.

"Migmag, open a dimensional portal. We’re going to the Empire."

***

[Translator - Kie]

[Proofreader - Kawaii]