The faint light of dawn preceded the rising sun. A chilling morning breeze swept across the stark landscape where Holy Knights clad in silver plate and Priests draped in azure ritual vestments stood in strict rows. With heavy, rhythmic steps, Holy King Hoppen moved toward a dais upheld by ivory pillars resembling an ancient shrine, carrying the collective weight of every soldier’s and cleric's gaze.
Silent and resolute, he stood atop the platform, scanning the masses gathered below.
With a sudden, resonant boom, Hoppen unsheathed the blade at his hip and drove it deep into the stone. The steel, pulsing with his inner energy, sent a tremor through the stage and the very soil beneath it.
"..."
Even as the earth shuddered, not a single Holy Knight or Priest faltered or made a sound; their attention remained locked solely on Hoppen, their sovereign.
"The hour is upon us."
Hoppen’s grim eyes swept over the ranks of the faithful positioned beneath him.
"The moment has arrived to turn our steel in vengeance against the sorceress who materialized from nowhere, seized our provinces, and clouded the minds of our brothers!"
At his freezing, regal proclamation, the spirits of his subordinates caught fire with sudden intensity.
"Though her malice was so potent we endured the shame of erecting barriers of Holy Power and weaving illusions to mask ourselves from the world, that era of hiding is over!"
Hoppen hoisted the dagger he had received from Saintess Olga, thrusting it toward the heavens.
"The Creator has granted us the edge and the resolve to strike down the witch; therefore, the Suphren Kingdom shall know only triumph!"
As he bellowed the word "triumph," a delicate glow began to bleed across the shadowy sky over Suphren. With a sudden surge, the golden orb of the sun crested the jagged eastern peaks. Bathed in the growing heat of that radiant light, the eyes of the gathered army burned with a fanatic zeal.
"To triumph!"
Saintess Olga, who had been positioned behind Hoppen, moved to the front and pressed her palms together. Her sacred energy erupted like a lightning strike, painting the firmament with a dazzling, fractured brilliance.
The Holy Knights unsheathed their silver blades, bathing in that celestial radiance. Upon their shoulders, holy energy grew so dense and vibrant it manifested as visible, flickering flames.
With a low, vibrating hum, the Priests joined their hands in prayer. From the soil beneath their boots, sacred energy shaped like ancient script rose up, weaving a protective web of magic around the entire host.
"To triumph!"
Having finalized their preparations for slaughter, the Holy Knights and Priests echoed Saintess Olga, their roars nearly tearing their lungs.
"Commence!"
Satisfied by the fervor of his people, Hoppen gave a firm nod and gestured toward the rear. With a low, powerful thrum, the clerics behind him unified their prayers. The shimmering haze that had been flickering before them dissolved, revealing a wall of holy energy that reached higher than the ramparts. The barrier pulsed with a blinding, white intensity.
Within that sacred perimeter, currents of pink mist swirled like rising clouds. To a casual observer, the mist seemed almost soft, carrying a strange, melancholic beauty.
"Ngh!"
"What an incredible pressure..."
"Does such strength still remain?"
The Holy Knights and Priests swallowed nervously, their confidence wavering as they observed the pink tides pressing against the interior of the holy wall.
"L-look there!"
At a signal from the knights on the right flank, everyone turned their attention inside the barrier. Through the swirling pink vapor, the outlines of armored knights and robed priests became visible. They were shambling with vacant expressions and slack jaws, clearly under a deep enchantment.
"La, Lafen..."
"Sirean? Is that you, Sirean!"
"My brother-in-arms is trapped in there!"
A shudder ran through the ranks as men called out to their friends and comrades lost within the pink haze.
"If your goal is to reclaim your companions, your beloveds, and your countrymen—then you must strike."
Olga stepped forward, her foot hitting the ground with finality as she approached the shimmering wall.
"I shall provide your strength from the rear."
She declared that the time for hesitation had ended and drove her fist into the holy barrier. With a bone-rattling crack, a web of fractures raced outward from her point of contact before the wall shattered with a deafening blast. A violent gale tore through the breach.
The moment the seal broke, the pink currents—previously contained—surged forward like a tidal wave, threatening to drown the entirety of the Suphren Holy Kingdom.
"You presume too much!"
Olga remained unshaken by the encroaching pink tide. She clasped her hands together once more.
"Be bound!"
Her command manifested as a piercing white light. The fragments of the broken holy wall reformed in the air, instantly chilling the pink currents into a substance as solid as stone.
"Go!"
Holding back the vast pink ocean single-handedly—a force that seemed capable of burying the kingdom—Olga commanded the army to charge.
"Uooooooh!"
As the Holy Knights let out their war cries and moved to penetrate the pink fog, a harsh, grinding sound echoed. The vacant-eyed knights and priests emerged from the depths of the mist, blocking the path. A chaotic collision followed.
The enthralled legions of Suphren, despite their clouded vision, moved with unnatural agility. They lunged forward, their blades flashing as they intercepted the charging knights.
The air filled with the sound of clashing steel. With masterful technique and hauntingly fluid movement, the knights claimed by the pink mist turned upon their allies with skill that surpassed their former abilities.
"Get back!"
"Billiel! Look at me! I am your brother!"
"I beg of you! Stop this!"
The attackers pleaded with the friends who stood in their way, but their cries fell on deaf ears; the pink haze had completely overwritten the minds of the brainwashed.
"This man... his strength is not what it was."
"He has become terrifyingly powerful..."
"We can't hold them back like this..."
Slowly, the rescue party began to falter, pushed back by the overwhelming physical might of their bewitched kin.
"How can we possibly..."
"Stand your ground!"
Holy King Hoppen strode to the front. As he lifted his dagger, a brilliant blue radiance erupted from the slender blade, driving back the pink mist. The magnificent blue light resonated through the air, and rather than simply dissolving the vapor, it sapped the vitality from the enthralled soldiers. One by one, they collapsed into a deep, forced slumber.
"Ugh..."
"Aah..."
The men who had been puppets of the pink currents dropped their weapons and fell where they stood, groaning softly as they succumbed to sleep.
"Now!"
Following Olga’s command to proceed with the primary objective, the Holy Knights and Priests encircled the remaining pink mist. As they raised their voices in a unified prayer, a massive column of celestial light plummeted from the sky. The impact was earth-shaking.
That divine pillar, amplified by the power of Hoppen’s dagger, flared with increasing intensity until it utterly vaporized the pink currents that had dominated the northern sector.
As the air cleared, only a single figure remained in the void where the mist had been. It was the sorceress, draped in a tattered black mantle. Even with her defenses stripped away, she seemed oblivious to the army surrounding her. Instead, she stood frozen, staring intensely at a small stand that sold bead ice cream.
"He was here. The scent is unmistakable..."
The cloaked woman paced around the stall, whispering to herself about the necessity of finding someone.
"Strike now while she is distracted! Unleash everything!"
At Hoppen’s signal, the Holy Knights projected beams of holy energy from their blades, while the Priests summoned the Hammer of Repentance to crash down from above. The resulting explosion was cataclysmic. Through their combined formation, the amplified holy strike pulverized the very foundation where the witch stood.
"Is the deed done?"
Olga swept her hand to create a gust of wind, clearing the smoke to reveal the devastated crater. Despite the total annihilation of the surrounding buildings and the scorched earth, the bead ice cream stand remained perfectly untouched—as did the woman in the black robe.
"I..."
The sorceress slowly shifted her gaze toward Olga.
"I believe I told you not to bother me until I found him!"
From beneath the shadows of her hood, her eyes ignited with a terrifying, predatory light.
"To hell with 'him'! Don't bring your search into my domain; get out and look elsewhere!"
Olga sprinted toward the witch, her teeth bared in a snarl.
"Support the Saintess! Take the witch down!"
Hoppen, wielding both his sacred longsword and the blue dagger, followed close behind. The Priests rained down blessings upon their shoulders, and a brilliant white light filled the world.
"Haah..."
The witch in the black robe sighed in annoyance and lifted a single hand. The energy blooming from her fingertips smashed into the oncoming holy power with the force of a mountain. The collision resulted in a deafening thunderclap.
"Haah."
Raon couldn't help but let out a dry, incredulous laugh as he watched the woman—the Monarch of Lust.
'So that's why she's lurking here...'
She was hunting for the remnants of Wrath. This was the exact spot where Wrath had shared bead ice cream with Gluttony after the confrontation with Greed. Lust had apparently occupied the Suphren Holy Kingdom because she had picked up on the microscopic traces of Wrath’s presence.
-She is a truly terrifying obsessive...
Wrath’s shoulders shook with visible discomfort, muttering that Lust’s stalking skills were on par with Evelyn’s.
'It's bizarre.'
Raon narrowed his vision, observing Lust as she danced around Olga’s strikes and effortlessly parried Hoppen’s blade.
-Wh-what do you mean by that?
Wrath asked, pointedly looking away as if trying to ignore Lust’s existence entirely.
'She can pick up a scent of you that even I can barely detect, yet she can't find where you actually are right now?'
It made no sense to him. She could find traces so ancient they were practically nonexistent, yet she couldn't pinpoint Zieghart, where Wrath’s aura was active and clear.
-I've explained this! She has zero sense of direction!
Wrath shook his head, exasperated.
-You could give her a map and point her North, and she’d somehow end up drowning in the Southern sea! She is a complete disaster!
He scowled, wondering aloud how such a person could ever ascend to the rank of a demon king.
'Fair point.'
Reflecting on it, Raon realized the depth of the problem—Lust was so directionally challenged that even with someone like Evelyn guiding her, she’d wander off. If you walked beside her and blinked, she’d be halfway to the opposite horizon.
-Enough of this, we need to leave before she sees us!
Wrath gestured frantically toward the exit.
-If that woman spots you, your life is over!
He tapped his shoulder urgently, insisting that one stalker like Evelyn was more than any man should have to endure.
-Look, she's even restraining herself!
Wrath noted with surprise as Lust continued to hold off Olga and Hoppen using only her natural strength, without tapping into her true demonic reserves.
-She hasn't killed a single person!
'You're right, she’s not using any lethal intent or demonic mana.'
Raon observed carefully. Lust was strictly defending herself using only the pink currents.
'Is she actually following my instructions?'
Lust was prioritizing defense and her specific authority. During their previous encounter, Raon had asked her to avoid killing humans unless her own life was at stake. It appeared she had taken those words to heart and was intentionally holding back.
'That explains the brainwashing.'
With her actual power, Lust could have shattered that holy barrier with a flick of her wrist. Instead, she had allowed herself to be contained, choosing to search for Wrath’s trail peacefully rather than slaughtering the kingdom's defenders.
"Uaaaaah!"
"Keep the pressure on!"
"Her magic is failing!"
Hoppen, Olga, and the knights poured every ounce of their remaining strength into their assault. But Lust remained passive, protecting only herself and that specific ice cream stand. She was being remarkably faithful to Raon's request.
'Lust...'
He had made the request in passing, never expecting a demon king to actually listen. He felt a strange mixture of gratitude and guilt seeing her follow his lead so diligently.
"Raon. Why are you just watching?"
Evelyn tilted her head, confused by his inaction.
-Don't even think about it! Just run!
Wrath gripped his sleeve, pulling him toward the shadows.
"The timing isn't right yet."
Knowing that Lust wouldn't start a massacre, he stayed low, masking his presence perfectly.
"The window of opportunity is coming."
To get exactly what he wanted from this situation, he needed to wait for the perfect moment.
"You miserable hag!"
Olga, furious that her strongest blows were hitting nothing but air, lunged forward shrouded in a massive aura of sacred light. With a deafening boom, Lust swiveled her hand to parry the strike.
Her defense was flawless, but the sheer force of the deflected holy energy slammed into the ground, obliterating the floor of the ice cream stand where Wrath had once sat.
"Ah..."
Lust’s expression crumbled as she realized the final physical trace of Wrath had been destroyed.
"I was... I was just trying to cherish his memory, and you..."
In an instant, her promise was forgotten. A murderous intent erupted from her, and the true, dark energy of a demon king boiled over from her soul. A thunderous roar shook the sky. As Lust unleashed her full power, a pink cyclone tore upward, and the sun was blotted out by unnatural shadows.
"R-retreat!"
"Get back, now!"
Terrified by a presence that could reshape the very climate, the knights and even the leaders scrambled backward.
"I miscalculated..."
Olga bit her lip, staring at her dagger. It hadn't just turned black; it had rotted away into useless dust.
"That isn't a mere witch. That is one of the Five Kings or Three Demons. A true monarch of the abyss!"
She realized the gravity of their doom.
"Everyone, fall back! Rebuild the barriers! Clear the city!"
While barking orders, Hoppen moved to the front to buy them time.
"I will end you."
Just as Lust reached out to strike Olga, her face twisted in rage, a flash of gold intervened. Searing flames erupted between the two women, forcing a wide gap between them.
"Stand down."
Raon landed on the pink-stained earth, his eyes meeting Olga’s, then Hoppen’s, and finally Lust’s.
"Raon Zieghart?"
"It’s him! The Sword Emperor is here!"
The panicked ranks of the Suphren Kingdom froze in shock.
"Wrath! It's really Wrath!"
The moment Lust saw Raon, her murderous fury vanished, replaced by a radiant, joyful beam.
"From this point on..."
Raon tilted his head back with cold confidence, looking at both the Saintess and the Demon King, both of whom expected his support.
"I’ll be taking over."
-Wait, who are you handling?
Wrath sounded utterly bewildered.
-They’re both on your side! What are you doing?!
'Exactly. I'm being reckless.'
Raon allowed a thin, calculated smile to cross his lips.
'If you want to put on a legendary performance, you have to be a little bit crazy.'
