After Ten Millennia in Hell

It was unfair. He couldn't handle the emotions he was feeling at the moment.

'Why…'

Why had Balrog, who thoroughly reported every little thing, not report to him that one time?

"Why… why…?"

He felt a mix of resentment, rage, and confusion regarding Balrog.

"You think that appearance is hideous?"

[Of course. There is no demonic beast more hideous than that,] Balrog answered without hesitation.

Kang-Woo fell into chaos.

He activated the Authority of Resistance and Authority of Insight simultaneously in case he was under an illusion, but no matter how closely he looked at Halcyon, she was eye-poppingly beautiful.

'Fucking hell.'

He remembered what Lilith had said. She'd said she couldn't understand human beauty standards, but she didn't find them disgusting.

'But…'

He looked at Halcyon. She had the perfect balance of human and demon. It was the seductive appearance of a succubus that often appeared in anime.

'Though she's as flat as a wall.'

That did not matter.

Even Echidna was as flat as a wasteland stretched out over the horizon.

"Have you… found humans disgusting all this time?"

If Balrog found Halcyon disgusting, he would also find Kang-Woo and every other human disgusting as well.

[No, not at all. I cannot differentiate beauty among humans, but I do not find them disgusting.]

"That makes no sense." Kang-Woo became even more confused. "Then why do you think Halcyon is—"

[Because that hideous lifeform is 'mixed.']

"…"

The lightbulb in Kang-Woo's mind finally lit up.

"Oh."

He finally understood.

'If how a demon looks at human beings is like how we look at fish…'

From a demon's point of view, Halcyon was as if a demon had merged with a fish.

Imagine if there was a creature with the head of a fish and the body of a human.

It was obvious that from a human's point of view, whatever part of the human's body was replaced with that of a fish, it wouldn't be as hideous as a demon. However, demons were not human; their values and notions were different to the very core.

'No.'

Kang-Woo more or less understood why.

He could understand that from a demon's point of view, that mixed lifeform might be more hideous than tentacles spewing yellow pus.

But… even still… even if he understood…

"For fuck's sake…"

His frustration did not vanish. It was like getting out of prison after serving a thirty-year sentence and then being told out of the blue that he had been innocent all along.

The only difference was that, instead of thirty years, he'd spent ten millennia in prison.

'Fine. I can let go of my first nine thousand years.'

If only Balrog had made the proper report, he could've spent at least 900 years with a knockout beauty like Halcyon.

"Urgh, sniff."

He couldn't help but cry in sorrow. It was unfair. It was miserable.

He recalled all the nightmarish nights he'd struggled with Lilith.

'If only I knew there were demonic beasts as beautiful as this…'

Of course, he wouldn't have forced himself on her. Ancient demonic beasts were far too strong for him to force himself onto in the first place, and he wouldn't do something as vulgar as use his powers to satiate his lust.

But… even still…

'I could've at least tried to make her an ally.'

He honestly would've been perfectly fine with it at the time, even if she refused. Just seeing her from a distance would've been enough to make him shed tears of happiness.

[You seem to also be having a difficult time enduring its hideous appearance as well, my king.]

"No…"

[I will…! Kuh! F-For the demon king…!]

"I said no, you motherfucker…"

[Urpp, bleeeeegh!!]

Balrog puked while clenching the ground. Since he did not need sustenance, he puked a sticky fluid instead of stomach acid.

"Ah…"

Kang-Woo grabbed his hair.

"Fuck my life."

It was already in the past. Even if he found it unfair, he couldn't turn back time or change the past.

"Sniff… Sniff."

He turned to look at Halcyon, who was crouched down and crying.

It wasn't the time to think about whether Halcyon was beautiful or not.

'Why is she crying?'

He couldn't understand it.

Kang-Woo slowly walked toward her. He heard her mumbling something.

"Sniff… Wh-Who…" She looked at Kang-Woo. "Wh-Who are you?"

"…"

She shrank in fear. There were tears in her eyes, and her body was trembling.

'The hell?'

She was completely different from his image of an ancient demonic beast.

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes. He wasn't sure of how to react.

"Ah, I-I see. Y-You're also h-here to h-harass me, a-aren't you?" Halcyon stuttered. She slowly got up, exuding dark-red demonic energy.

'What's up with her?'

He frowned. He couldn't understand why Halcyon was reacting this way.

"Sniff, sniff. Wh-Why are you trying to h-harass me? Y-You're scaring me."

'You're the one scaring me, for fuck's sake.'

"I-I don't know wh-where I am, and e-everyone is trying to h-harass me. Y-You're all so mean."

'Does she really have intelligence?'

He heard that ancient demonic beasts had intelligence, but it was hard to say that of Halcyon.

'I should at least see if I can talk to her.'

Kang-Woo opened his mouth and said in a low voice, "Are you Halcyon?"

"… Huh? Y-You know me?"

"I've heard a lot about you."

It seemed he could talk with her.

"Y-You're here to harass me, j-just like them, aren't you? E-Everyone hates me, s-so I'm sure of it. I-I'm sure you're here to harass me."

'I can't seem to get through to her.'

Kang-Woo feigned laughter and looked at Halcyon.

She was acting as if she were a mental patient with a victim mentality. Her reaction made him think that the fact that ancient demonic beasts possessing intelligence was a lie.

"Sniff. E-Everyone's so mean to m-me. I-I've done nothing wrong." She shed tears. Crouching, she stuttered, "I-I didn't w-want to l-look like this e-either."

The whites of her eyes turned red, and her irises turned white. Hideous tendons sprouted out from the areas around her eyes.

Her white hair messily soared in the air, and…

Slam!!

The ground was distorted just from a single stomp of her foot.

Halcyon shot toward Kang-Woo in the blink of an eye.

"Why does everyone…!!!"

She raised her arm. Extremely sharp dark-red fingernails extended out, and she aimed for Kang-Woo's neck.

"Tsk."

Bash!

He raised his leg and kicked Halcyon in the stomach.

Rumble!!

She rolled a hundred meters and then stood back up. She swung her claw upward, shooting a wave of dark-red demonic energy at Kang-Woo.

'Authority of Invulnerability.'

He raised a wall of demonic energy to block the attack, but her dark-red demonic energy tore the wall down. He crouched and dodged the attack.

"… H-Hate me so much?!!"

Smash!!

Halcyon flew a hundred meters in less than a second and kicked Kang-Woo.

He rolled on the ground while being blown away. He felt as if he'd been struck by a wrecking ball weighing dozens of tons.

"…"

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes as black blood spurted from his mouth.

'I guess even if she looks like this…'

She was still an ancient demonic beast, and even the physical capabilities of a prince of Hell couldn't compare to her physical prowess.

"Nice."

The tips of his mouth went up. It would've been a killjoy if Halcyon had been a frail girl like her appearance implied.

'She finally feels like a monster.'

Kang-Woo lowered his body.

Halcyon charged toward him and swung her claws downward.

"Skybreaker."

Kang-Woo pulled his right arm back, took a step forward with his left leg, and swung his fist.

Enormous amounts of demonic energy clashed.

A huge, 30-meter crater formed as dirt and stone went flying.

It was as if the Titans of mythology were fighting; just the clash of their powers was enough to level the surroundings.

Wham!

The dense forest was nowhere to be seen anymore. All that was left was a distorted, desolate land, as if an earthquake had occurred.

"Haaa, haaa, haaa!"

Halcyon flew up while panting heavily.

Kang-Woo chased after her and reached out to grab her leg as she was trying to fly away. He smashed her into the ground.

"Kurgh!" Halcyon exclaimed as the enormous thud rang out.

Step, step.

Kang-Woo walked toward her.

"H-How?"

Halcyon's face was dyed with fear.

Kang-Woo walked toward her expressionlessly.

The physical capabilities of an ancient demonic beast were clearly superior to those of a prince of Hell, but… it was a completely different story if she were compared to Kang-Woo.

She was likely above him in terms of raw physical strength, but he had an incredible number of Authorities and overwhelmingly more demonic energy than her.

"Well, you weren't all that bad."

Kang-Woo looked down at the wound he'd received from Halcyon. This wound from her claws was not regenerating.

'Is it poison?'

There was no way to know.

Kang-Woo clicked his tongue while looking at the wound bleeding out black blood.

'What a pain.'

Tear.

He ripped out the portion of flesh wounded by Halcyon's claws. Black blood poured out like a fountain, but only for a moment. As if rewinding a video, his injury regenerated.

"Wh-Who are y-you?" Halcyon asked in a fearful voice. Tears were trickling down her cheeks.

"Who knows?"

He had no reason to tell her. Kang-Woo slowly raised his hand.

'Authority of Blaze.'

Karmic fire, burning as if it would devour the entire world, enveloped his hand.

"Eek! S-Sniff. I-I'm sorry. I-I'm so sorry. P-Please don't hurt me. I'm sorry. I'm sorry…"

"…"

He had no intention of killing her—there were many things he wanted to ask her.

'Seeing her current state…'

He wasn't sure if it would be worth asking her anything.

"Tsk, though you've got a pretty face…"

Kang-Woo had never expected Halcyon to be this insane.

'But at least it's better this way.'

He was able to console himself, at least a little, that he had dodged a bullet from not meeting Halcyon in the past.

"… Pardon?" Halcyon raised her head. "D-Did you just say that I'm p-pretty?"

Tears poured out of her eyes.

"A-A-Aaaahh."

Halcyon trembled while touching her face.

"H-He said I'm pretty."

She stared at Kang-Woo with eyes filled with madness.

"I-I've finally heard that I'm prettyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!"

Her white hair soared into the air.

"Kyahahahahahahaha!!!"

The tips of her mouth went up to their absolute limit, and a burst of mad laughter came out of her mouth.

'What the fuck?'

Kang-Woo looked at her in absurdity.

'What's up with this bitch?'

An unsettling feeling crept down his spine.