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Chapter 144: Advent of the Great Evil (4)

“Ke, Ketal.”

Rakza, who was lying on the ground, groaned and barely managed to lift his head to look at Ketal.

Ketal, looking apologetic, grabbed his shoulder.

“Sorry. It took some time to break the altar.”

“No, no. You did it….”

“Fortunately, yes. Unfortunately, it seems things didn’t go well for you guys.”

Traces of fierce battle were evident.

Rakza and Shadrenes were lying on the ground, and the demon stood there without a scratch.

The victor was clear.

Rakza bowed his head in despair.

“I’m sorry….”

“No need to apologize. It looks like you did your best. That’s enough. I’m just sad I didn’t get to see the desperate struggle with my own eyes.”

“Thank you….”

Rakza thought Ketal’s words of praise were just a formality.

But Ketal was genuinely regretful.

‘It would have been interesting.’

“Well. Rest now. Leave this to me.”

“Ke, Ketal. Be careful. That demon… is strong.”

“Hmm.”

Ketal chuckled.

“Is that so?”

Ketal stepped in front of the demon.

The demon narrowed his eyes and glared at Ketal.

“Let’s greet each other once more.”

Ketal greeted cheerfully, his mood as pleasant as his voice.

It was a demon.

And this was the third one he encountered.

He was eager to see what this one had to offer.

“What is your name?”

“Demon of Demonic Lines. Rubitra.”

“Rubitra. I am Ketal. Pleased to meet you.”

As Ketal grinned and looked at him, Rubitra spoke in a low voice.

“You’re the barbarian Ashetiar and Butler mentioned. You were not in our prophecy….”

Rubitra nodded to himself.

“They were right. You’re an anomaly outside the prophecy. I mocked them, but now I owe them an apology.”

“So demons don’t always get along poorly.”

“We even have tea parties often. Though some are bad, we are not.”

“Ho.”

Ketal laughed joyfully as if learning something new.

“You seem quite strong.”

He had just blocked the attack.

It was the first time since he came outside.

The fact that the saintess Shadrenes and Rakza had been defeated so miserably proved the opponent’s strength.

“How do you compare to Ashetiar or Butler?”

“Comparing me to them is an insult. Even if ten of them came at me, they couldn’t touch me.”

He didn’t say this out of arrogance or overconfidence.

It was a tone of stating an undeniable truth, like a shadow forming in the light.

“Is that so? I’m really looking forward to this.”

Ketal’s voice had a tinge of excitement.

Rubitra glared at Ketal silently.

‘…I can’t feel it.’

He couldn’t sense any significant power from Ketal.

On closer inspection, there was a hint of mystery, but it was very slight.

It was at a third-rate level.

If the stories from Ashetiar and Butler were true, the barbarian before him was very strong.

He broke Ashetiar’s thorns with his bare hands and endured the power of severance.

But that was impossible.

When he first heard the story, Rubitra dismissed it, thinking they were mistaken.

‘But the first strike.’

That was an attack no one without knowledge of mystery could have executed.

“Hmm. Well, never mind.”

Rubitra emptied his mind of doubts and extended his hand.

“We’ll see once I kill you.”

Lines of demonic energy started to rise from his hand.

Ketal’s eyes gleamed with interest.

“You manipulate demonic energy like threads. Hence, the demon of Demonic Lines.”

Ketal smiled and stepped forward.

“Then, let me move first.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Ketal was standing in front of Rubitra.

Rubitra’s eyes widened.

He momentarily lost sight of the movement.

Ketal reached out to grab Rubitra’s arm.

“You!”

Rubitra reacted quickly, pulling back and launching demonic threads.

Several lines of demonic energy surged toward Ketal, who dodged them lightly.

“You avoided them.”

Ketal murmured with a fascinated expression.

It was the first time anyone had reacted to his speed outside.

Ketal didn’t know, but Adamanth had only reacted automatically with response magic, so this was essentially the first time.

Rubitra, who barely dodged, looked shocked.

‘What speed!’

He momentarily lost track of the movement.

His eyes turned serious.

Rubitra decided to respond with full sincerity.

He gathered demonic energy.

His sensing range expanded.

The great mystery of the world began to unfold.

Threads of demonic energy poured towards Ketal.

He leaped, narrowly avoiding them.

*Boom!*

The threads that struck the ground pierced and shook the earth.

The threads that penetrated the ground curved and aimed at Ketal again, targeting his arms, legs, and head simultaneously.

Ketal dodged by twisting his arms, lifting his legs, and leaning his head back.

‘Fast.’

The speed was unparalleled compared to any attack he’d faced outside.

Ketal was certain: the demon before him was the strongest opponent he’d encountered so far.

Ketal’s face lit up with interest and joy.

Rubitra, on the other hand, was bewildered.

The threads of demonic energy he wielded were his power.

Each one carried a lethal force, moving incredibly fast.

When Shadrenes and Rakza had countered Rubitra’s attacks, they hadn’t done so by sight alone.

They sensed the signs through their divine powers and reacted accordingly.

Even then, they had to exert all their effort to avoid each thread.

It was typically challenging for anyone to counter them.

Yet this man, unable to wield any mystery, was simply dodging them with his physical movements?

Recognizing the attacks purely with his naked eyes?

Rubitra couldn’t comprehend it.

‘But.’

“How long do you think you can dodge?”

*Rumble!*

More threads of demonic energy surged forward.

The threads Ketal had dodged curved back, aiming at him again, while Rubitra summoned additional threads.

The threads filled the space like rain pouring from all directions.

Ketal was dodging all these attacks with near-supernatural movements.

However, there was a limit.

“Endless, aren’t they?”

Ketal murmured.

From Rubitra’s hand, dozens of threads continuously emerged, like an unending spring.

The thin threads of energy began to fill the entire space, obscuring Ketal’s view.

No matter how agile his movements, he was using the space to dodge.

Once the space itself was taken over, dodging became impossible.

The space for evasion shrank.

Finally, the area excluding Ketal’s body was filled with threads.

“Got you.”

Rubitra clenched his fist.

The threads controlling the space all rushed at Ketal simultaneously, hundreds of threads striking at once.

*Boom!*

The impact alone caused the ground to collapse, with sand and dust obscuring the view.

Rakza, who had been watching the battle with difficulty, screamed.

“Ketal!”

*Rumble…*

As the dust slowly settled, Rubitra’s victorious smile froze.

Shadrenes and Rakza’s eyes widened.

“…What?”

Threads of demonic energy were embedded all over Ketal’s body.

Yet, the threads hadn’t even pierced his skin.

“Heavier than I thought.”

Ketal murmured.

The weight in each thread was substantial.

This demon’s power surpassed that of Ashetiar.

‘Similar to Nano?’

It was akin to the mass that Nano wielded.

Could one thread hold such weight?

Was this the power of mystery?

“Indeed, you are strong.”

Ketal was genuinely impressed.

Rubitra, however, was in disbelief.

“No way. This…?”

His power can’t even penetrate human flesh?

It was impossible to accept, but the sight before him was undeniable.

“Are you done? Then it’s my turn.”

Ketal stepped forward, exerting his strength.

*Crack!*

The threads pressing against Ketal’s body all snapped and shattered.

In an instant, Ketal was in front of Rubitra, who couldn’t react.

Ketal’s fist struck Rubitra’s chest.

*Crash!*

Rubitra’s body rolled on the ground.

Ketal casually dusted off his fist.

* * *

“Huh, huh?”

Rakza, who had been watching the battle, was full of confusion.

Hundreds of threads had pierced Ketal’s body.

Given that each thread had the power to destroy a sacred object, Ketal should have been skewered.

Yet the threads hadn’t pierced his skin.

“What, what is this?”

He couldn’t comprehend the scene before him.

Rubitra felt the same.

“You.”

“You still won’t die, huh.”

Ketal’s fist had indeed pierced through Rubitra’s chest.

However, Rubitra appeared unscathed.

Without handling the mystery, one couldn’t send a demon back.

Ketal frowned.

“What an annoying restriction.”

Rubitra stared blankly at Ketal.

‘…Why couldn’t my power penetrate that body?’

He had heard that Butler’s power of severance had no effect on Ketal, but he thought Butler had misunderstood something.

It was inconceivable that a mere physical body, without even handling mystery, could ignore a demon’s power.

However, even Rubitra’s threads had no effect.

“…I see.”

After thinking for a moment, Rubitra nodded.

“You are a mystery in yourself.”

How could he withstand the power of severance with his bare body?

How could he withstand the power of the threads with his bare body?

The answer was simple.

Ketal’s physical existence itself was a mystery.

Their powers were part of the world’s mysteries, and if Ketal’s body was also a mystery, it wasn’t surprising that he could withstand them.

However, accepting this was difficult.

Rubitra frowned and asked in a puzzled tone.

“What have you built up and what have you achieved?”

For a body and soul to become a mystery, what was needed was life itself.

Achieving countless accomplishments and realizing great value could allow an individual to attain a certain level.

However, this alone couldn’t explain the uniqueness of the barbarian before him.

‘…Can an individual, by achieving great feats, truly attain the level to withstand mysteries with their physical body?’

What had this barbarian done to possess such a level in his body?

And why had they been unaware of someone who had achieved such great feats?

How could a mere human body endure such a level?

In Rubitra’s long memory, there was no precedent.

Even with the answer, the mystery remained.

Ketal, intrigued by Rubitra’s words, smiled.

“It seems you have some idea about me. I would love it if you could share it with me too.”