The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 284: Power inflation (4)

Belial.

'The worthless one'. The Sixth. The sixth of the ten demons who descended to destroy mankind.

An ambitious man who teamed up with 9th Corpse Dantalian to consume both the Quovadis and the Bourgeois.

At last he showed his true colors.

'The most beautiful being among those expelled from heaven.'

He decorate the outside with extravagant decorations and flashy wealth, but in reality, the appearance behind it is extremely ugly.

The horns of a mountain goat on the head of a giant pig, teeth as sharp as swords beneath gums exposed by the absence of lips.

Eyes glowing with fire, eyes that billow like the smoke of a beacon, and breath that reeks of disgust.

His mouth gaped like a crevasse on an arctic ice wall, and his horns and wings spread out to either side, large enough to cover the entire battlefield.

This gigantic and hideous figure, floating like a white mist above the puppet-like body of Bartolomeo, was the true form of Belial.

...Czssss!

Vikir lifted his magic sword, Beelzebub.

'I'm glad I met him before he formed an army.'

Deception, distraction, incitement, disorientation. Belial's talents are especially valuable in large-scale battles.

As such, the best way to hunt him down is to fight him one-on-one.

Meanwhile, on Vikir's chest, Decarabia continues to offer advice.

[It's been a while since I've seen you, that guy. The name 'Belial' means 'worthless' in the dead language of an old magic monarchy that is now extinct.]

[hack-hack-hack-]

The cub stood upright, fur all over her body, and clung to Vikir's shoulder.

Judging by the way her bushy eyebrows were arched upward, she seemed to regard her master's enemy as her own enemy.

"Saint, come here."

Vikir motioned Dolores to stand behind him.

Dolores cautiously moved toward Vikir.

Then. Belial's mouth opened.

He looked straight at Dolores.

[When the priests renounced God and turned into a group of blasphemers, no one was worshiped as often as this body in temples and altars.]

A mocking tone.

True to his word, Belial had already absorbed nearly half of the Faithful Quovadis.

'...Humbert.'

Dolores gritted her teeth.

Did Cardinal Humbert of the Quovadis know that Bartolomeo was actually Belial?

Even though he knew that, did he conspire with Belial and make the family fall into disrepute?

Dolores shuddered, remembering her stepfather's unpleasant glance.

Humbert was human, sure, but he was more terrifying to her than a demon.

Just then.

"You have nothing to fear."

A voice said in a nonchalant tone.

Dolores turned her head to see Night Hound standing steadfastly by her side.

For a moment, Dolores remembered the time before Dantalian.

'...Yes, I was like that then.'

When Dantalian had turned over the grotesque sack and pulled the vision of Humbert from within, Dolores had been momentarily overwhelmed with a sense of suffocating fear and pressure.

And then.

'Nothing to be afraid of.'

Even then, Night Hound's words of encouragement were enough to put all her fears to rest and give her peace of mind.

"Thank you, Night Hound!"

Dolores murmured in prayer, clinging to Vikir's back.

As Belial drew upon his demonic powers and prepared to attack, Dolores chanted as well.

"Lord Lun is a strong castle, a shield and weapons; he will save us from great trouble!"

Passs-

White light burst forth like flames and enveloped Vikir.

It burned with fierce intensity, but did not feel hot at all to Vikir.

"The old enemy, the demon, is using his strength even at this time, using plots and power as his weapons. Who in the world can stand against him? If I rely only on my own strength, I have no choice but to be defeated. A powerful general comes out and fights on my behalf. Who is this general? That holy name..."

For a moment, Dolores paused in her chanting.

After some hesitation, she continued.

"...'Night Hound'! Pilgrim of the Lun, Lord of hosts! Who will suffer? I will definitely win!"

When Dolores had finished, she placed her trembling hands on Vikir's back.

Then she spoke in a voice that trembled even more than her hands.

"I think the buff would work better if I knew the real name of Night Hound here...."

Names have power.

The mere act of being called affects cause and effect, generating strange energies that cross over into the negative and positive dimensions.

For this reason, demons do not reveal their true names lightly.

Nor do the demon hunters who hunt them.

"This is enough."

But Vikir interrupted Dolores.

It was partly to prevent her from becoming even more entangled with him by giving him a name, but it was more for another reason.

Swash swash swash swash!

Belial began to attack in earnest.

Belial's body, which was somewhere between intangible and tangible, was clearly giving off both spiritual and physical impacts at the same time.

[How dare you insignificant humans!]

Belial spat out arrogant lines, as demons are supposed to do.

But Vikir is a skilled hunter, having slain four demons so far.

"It's going to be a little shaky."

Vikir says to Dolores, who places a hand on his back.

Before Dolores could reply.

...a flash!

Vikir's sword began to emit a crimson aura.

Spinning at high speed, the aura formed seven large teeth and an eighth, slightly smaller tooth.

The teeth moved furiously, spinning like wagon wheels as they flew toward Belial's body and embedded themselves in it.

Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack!

Baskerville's Eighth Form.

A blow that turned the body of Bartolomeo, one of the strongest in the human world, into a rag in an instant.

It contained a level of power that even a full-bodied Belial would not dare to underestimate.

[Grrr! How could a human possess such power...!?]

Belial took a step back in bewilderment.

Vikir was not about to let this opportunity he had been forced to create slip away.

'If there's no gap, I'll twist it open with force.'

Eight teeth were tearing at Belial's entire body without releasing.

Furthermore, the buffs that Dolores unleashed with all her might made Vikir's 8th tooth grow even larger.

...Dzzzz!

Belial's teeth and horns shattered.

His armor, once so ornate and fleshy, cracked and shattered to pieces.

Worst of all, Bartolomeo's body didn't seem to be holding up.

'My eight tooth is incomplete. I must settle this in a short time!'

Vikir gritted his teeth and pushed forward.

In his mind, he replayed Hugo's slaying of Andromalius and CaneCorso's blow that had shaken the entire Grave of Swords.

And behind him, the power of Dolores's buffs washed over him like a tidal wave!

...Flash!

Vikir ignored the pressure on his body and pushed Beelzebub all the way down.

Ku-kung!

A massive tremor ripples through the air, shattering the mountains of gold coins around it.

[Grrrr... Kuaghhh!]

Belial staggered back, every inch of his body destroyed.

Vikir raised his sword once more, receiving a heal from Dolores.

It was then that Dolores spoke with a pitying tone.

"...The buff isn't as good as it was in the Dantalian battle."

She seemed deeply disappointed in her lack of power.

That's because the power of the buff has become incomparably weaker than when hunting Dantalian at the orphanage.

"I've been working on myself a lot since then... and I feel like I've degenerated."

But Vikir thought that was to be expected.

'Awakening doesn't come that easily.'

Dolores's demonstration of divinity before Dantalian was a "miracle," one that advanced her understanding of divine power by decades.

The exact cause and conditions of her awakening were unknown, but progress was never made by relying on such luck in the first place.

Vikir continued to swing his sword, pressuring Belial.

Just then.

[...Hohohoho. Indeed. Killing my colleagues wasn't just luck.]

Belial pushed himself up.

Surprisingly, while our eyes were apart for a moment, Belial had recovered from most of his wounds and damage.

"...!"

Vikir swung his strike once more.

Zzzzzzzzzz-

It once again carved a deep scar into Belial's chest armor.

[Hohohoho... It's no use, human, you lowly creature].

But Belial was not intimidated at all.

Soon, he stretched out his two large hands to both sides.

Then something unpleasant began to happen.

Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang.

A loud metallic clang could be heard everywhere.

When Dolores turns her head in surprise, she sees a golden stream flowing.

Clink-clink-clink-clink-clink...

The sound of money moving.

Countless gold coins rippled on the ground, crawling like giant snakes.

The gold coins, jewelry, and other treasures were then absorbed into Belial's body.

Druszt! Thud! Kwazizik!

Belial's broken horns grew back, and his cracked body was restored to its original form.

What's more, his already massive body grew even larger.

[All the riches in this vault are my life force! Money is power! Money is life! In a world dominated by mammonism, wealth is vitality!]

Dolores was stunned.

Such a vast amount of riches in such a vast vault.

Belial's plan to store all of these as extra vitality was truly meticulous and thorough.

Only then did Dolores understand why Belial always dragged outsiders into the vault.

It wasn't just to kill the spirit of his visitors.

Because this is his 'home ground' where he can exercise absolute authority, power, and vitality!

... But.

"I already knew that."

Vikir said in a nonchalant tone, causing Belial's face to crumple.

...Crunch!

The magic sword Beelzebub lengthened a bit more.

The crimson aura beneath the hem of his black coat began to flare once more.

Eventually, the light from the red eyes condenses on the black mask and glows dimly.

"If money is your life...."

A boiling voice breaks through the hound's sharp teeth.

"I'll bankrupt you completely."

It was a declaration of war to the ruler of the vast golden realm.