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Chapter 123: Extreme Situation (3)

After defeating the attacking demonic beasts, we arrived on the third floor.

Despite descending deeper underground, the third floor was filled with even brighter light than the floors above.

The entire area was bathed in a deep orange glow, as if we had stepped outside at the peak of a sunset.

"...This place is unpleasant."

Professor Elisha frowned as she looked at the orange-tinged landscape around her.

It wasn’t the picturesque sunset one might see on a resort beach.

The sky looked more like the scene after a massive wildfire.

The dark storm clouds mixing with the flickering flames in the sky made it seem like we were witnessing the end of the world, just like in the scriptures of the Church of the Seven Stars.

"Candidate Dale, have you been here in a past life?"

"Yes."

I nodded quietly before continuing.

"This is where I fought my final battle against the Demon God."

"......"

"Well, technically, it was a bit lower."

Professor Elisha stared at me with a hardened expression.

"What kind of being was the Demon God?"

"I don’t know."

"You don’t know?"

Professor Elisha furrowed her brows.

"But didn’t you say you fought your final battle against the Demon God?"

"Yes, I did. But... calling it a ‘final battle’ sounds grand, though in truth, it was a rather one-sided fight."

I smiled bitterly as I recalled that battle.

My memory of it was foggy, as if looking through a misted window.

Still, I tried my best to picture the Demon God in my mind.

A black figure.

A body so massive, it seemed to have no end.

Eyes burning with a crimson flame.

"Professor Elisha, if you were to fight a typhoon, a tsunami, or an earthquake, would you be able to understand ‘what kind of being’ your opponent is?"

"That’s..."

"The Demon God was like that."

I wasn’t even sure if it could be called a sentient being.

I never spoke to the Demon God, nor did I even exchange glances with it.

It was more like a machine, carrying out its orders.

The Demon God existed solely to destroy, spreading endless ruin to annihilate the world.

"I don’t know about other gods, but the Demon God I faced wasn’t a ‘god’ at all—more like a natural disaster."

"...I see."

Professor Elisha nodded, her eyes weighed down by heavy thoughts as she gazed at Dale.

Imagining the desperate battles he must have faced in his previous life made her feel as though she had swallowed a stone.

"A backseat hero, wasn’t that what you called yourself?"

She remembered Dale\'s self-deprecating expression when he spoke of his past life.

He said he was always a backseat hero.

Always running, trying to catch up.

‘Could that really be the case?’

Professor Elisha squinted as she looked at Dale.

It was probably true that he had graduated at the bottom of his class in his previous life.

It was hard to believe looking at him now, but it seemed likely that he had fallen short in many ways compared to other heroes in his past life.

‘But still.’

If what Dale said was true, that he really had been a ‘backseat hero’...

If he had always been late, always behind...

‘How did he become one of the final five heroes?’

The more she thought about it, the more questions arose.

As Professor Elisha\'s gaze deepened, she continued to watch Dale.

‘Dale.’

What kind of person were you in your past life?

"Professor?"

"Oh, my apologies. I got lost in thought for a moment."

Shaking off the thoughts swirling in her head, Professor Elisha followed behind me.

"What’s down here on the third floor that you came for?"

"You’ve already experienced how the demonic beasts living in the Abyss are much more violent and powerful than those outside, haven’t you?"

"I’ve had more than enough of that."

Professor Elisha shook her head as she recalled the demonic beasts we had fought on the way here.

If the demonic beasts outside were still within the realm of ‘living creatures,’ the ones here were nothing but demonic beasts that lived solely for blood and slaughter.

"Among them, there are certain creatures that the Demon God has heavily influenced. These demonic beasts rule over their kind, devouring others like kings."

"...Are you saying there’s a king of the demonic beasts?"

"To be precise, it’s the king of this third floor. The seals also affect them, so they can’t leave their designated area."

"Hmm."

As she listened to my explanation, Professor Elisha narrowed her eyes.

"Then does that mean there are kings on the fourth and fifth floors as well?"

"Well... probably. But I’ve never actually seen them."

"You’ve never seen them?"

"Yeah. The Demon God killed them before they could crawl out of the Abyss."

"...The Demon God killed them? Aren’t the demonic beasts the Demon God’s underlings?"

Why would the Demon God bother killing its own minions instead of heroes?

"Didn’t I tell you? It’s more like a natural disaster than a god."

I shrugged as I continued walking.

"Anyway. The demonic beast king ruling over this third floor is my target. It’s called ‘Behemoth.’"

"Behemoth... just how strong is it?"

"It killed 557 heroes and 12,000 soldiers armed with magic tools all by itself."

"......"

"Unless it’s someone on the level of the Archbishops of Madness, no one would stand a chance."

"W-wait! Are you saying we’re going to fight that kind of demonic beast right now?!"

Professor Elisha exclaimed, her face frozen in shock.

I chuckled quietly and nodded.

"Only when it\'s something like that can it be called an ‘extreme situation.’"

"Dale... you..."

"Don’t worry. I’ll be the only one fighting."

With the blessing of resurrection, even in the worst-case scenario, I wouldn’t die.

"With that in mind, I have a favor to ask, Professor Elisha."

"A favor?"

"If I don’t come out within three days, could you pull me out from outside its domain?"

With her ability to use the ‘spider thread,’ she could safely pull me out of the demonic beast’s territory.

"...You want me to pull you out?"

"Yes. In about three days, his stamina should be significantly depleted. Ah, I\'ll give you a rescue signal separately. Until then, don\'t enter the area under any circumstances."

Even Professor Elisha might get caught up in this if things go wrong.

"Are you planning to fight him for three days straight until you die?"

The fact that he was making this request clearly indicated that \'not dying\' wasn\'t even a consideration in his mind.

"I\'ll be fine."

"Fine? What part of this sounds fine to you?!"

With a fierce scowl, Professor Elisha grabbed my shoulders and shook me.

"Three days! For three days, you’ll keep dying without rest!"

Although physical wounds might heal thanks to the Blessing of Revival, the mental trauma of repeatedly dying wouldn\'t disappear.

"If you experience a pain that ordinary humans can barely endure once, how do you think you\'ll handle it for three continuous days? Your mind will break before your body does!"

"327,821 times."

"...What?"

"The number of times I\'ve died consecutively."

I smiled lightly, tapping my temple.

"I endured it back then; surely I can handle three days."

Even if I died continuously for three days, it would only amount to a few hundred times.

"Cadet Dale... you..."

Professor Elisha stared at me with trembling eyes.

"What kind of life did you live in your past?"

"What kind of life, huh..."

I smiled faintly and turned around.

"A life that never ends."

Leaving the bewildered Professor Elisha behind, I stepped into Behemoth\'s domain.

* * *

The body was about 15 meters tall.

Its face resembled that of a bull, with two horns jutting from its forehead, reminiscent of a demon.

Its entire body was covered in black skin, harder than steel, and its muscles bulged so violently that they seemed ready to tear through its flesh.

"Krrr."

Black flames mixed with its breath.

Twelve glowing red eyes turned toward me.

"It\'s been a while."

I slowly waved my hand toward Behemoth.

Responding to the gesture, Behemoth’s long tail scraped the ground and stood on end.

"RAAAAAAWR!"

A roar shook the very soul.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The king of demonic beasts that ruled over the abyss stomped the ground as it charged.

Whooosh!

A fist larger than an average person’s body hurtled toward me with terrifying speed, splitting the air.

I didn\'t resist.

I let the fist strike me directly.

Crack!

My body shattered.

My limbs twisted at grotesque angles, my belly tore open, spilling my organs, and my head rolled across the ground, severed.

"Krrr."

Behemoth snorted out a black flame-laden breath, having crushed the intruder in an instant.

Then.

"You’ve still got that nasty temper, I see."

A voice came from behind.

When Behemoth turned its head, the bug it had just crushed stood there, perfectly unharmed.

"Krrrr?"

Behemoth narrowed its eyes in confusion at the incomprehensible sight.

But only for a moment.

"RAAAAAAWR!"

If it came back to life, it could just be killed again.

Behemoth roared furiously and charged toward the intruding bug once more.

"Hoo."

I watched Behemoth charging at me as I exhaled lightly.

With a sword in hand, I assumed my stance.

The primordial flame, awakened by the previous \'death,\' surged fiercely through my body.

"Blaze."

Whoosh!

The ash-colored flames engulfed my sword.

I kicked off the ground hard, launching myself toward Behemoth.

Boom! Thud! Crack!

At first, it was an even fight.

Fueled by the \'Ignition,\' I continuously poured out mana into my sword, fists, and magic, maintaining the battle against Behemoth.

But that didn’t last long.

Once the \'Ignition\' wore off, the primordial flames that had wrapped around my body faded, and the battle turned one-sided.

"RAAAAAWR!"

Behemoth charged at me with a furious roar.

Crack!

My limbs were torn off and rolled across the ground.

Squelch!

My crushed organs splattered on the ground.

Crunch!

My caved-in head spilled brain matter everywhere.

But.

Even so.

Despite all that.

"...Haa."

I stood up.

I stood up.

I stood up again.

"...It’s been a while, this feeling."

The sensation of struggling desperately against an overwhelmingly superior opponent.

After reincarnating, I hadn’t felt this much, but in my previous life, I’d experienced it countless times.

"Hah."

A thrilling chill ran down my spine.

The forgotten sensation awakened every cell in my body.

\'Yes.\'

This was the life I lived.

The path walked by Dale Han.

"Krrrr!"

Behemoth grabbed me and ripped me apart.

Even with the lower half of my body completely torn off—

Thud.

I drove my sword into Behemoth\'s arm.

The ash-covered blade pierced through the tough black hide, digging into Behemoth\'s flesh.

"RAAAAAWR!"

It was little more than a scratch.

But that was fine.

This was only the beginning.

‘If once isn’t enough, I’ll stab ten times. If ten times isn’t enough, I’ll stab a hundred. If a hundred isn’t enough, then a thousand times it is.’

There’s always more death, and life never ends.

"Krrr, krrrr."

"What\'s wrong? Why are you backing off?"

I grinned as I watched Behemoth retreating, step by step.

I grasped my sword tightly and staggered to my feet.

Ashes scattered, and in the gray smoke, green eyes gleamed.

The hero who had once struck terror into countless demons and demonic beasts in his previous life.

"Then I’ll come to you."

The Immortal Demon bared his teeth with a savage grin.