MDPS 38

Chapter 38

My Dark History is Too Strong

Tower of Fierce Battle (3)

The King of Afterimages, Azath.

A being of darkness that consumed the ruins of the Periad Kingdom.

His race wasn’t precisely identified, but from all evidence, he was deemed a demon.

As long as you weren’t greedy and faithfully handled the mechanics, he wasn’t that difficult to defeat.

When one enters the Land of Endless Distortion, Azath is usually asleep in hiding.

He slumbers to recover his lost strength.

Normally, he would never awaken… unless the “Stones of Power” that sustain him were destroyed.

And yet, the moment I entered… he was already awake.

Even though I hadn’t touched a single Stone of Power.

That could only mean one thing.

Those bastards… they pulled some kind of trick.

Intruders normally start at the entrance to each floor.

There’s no way they could have gotten ahead of me and reached this place first.

Which meant they had done something abnormal.

And sure enough, an unusual system message appeared.

《A warp has opened in the Land of Endless Distortion.》
《A sickening stench of blood flows out of the warp.》

Rage surged up inside me.

That foul temper from my hidden past, the one I had buried so deep, began to surface.

But I was no longer the immature teenager Oh Hyun-woo had been.

I had learned to control my emotions as I grew older, and to master social maneuvering while working at a company.

Annoyance doesn’t solve problems.

I knew that.

So this is how it is…

From the warp, twisted vampire spawn poured into the room.

I didn’t know how they had managed to open such a gaudy warp, but one thing was clear:

They wanted me dead.

Carmaar, Deathside… you won’t be forgiven.

I’ll crush you, completely.

But that revenge could wait. For now, survival came first.

The situation: the boss was awake, and monsters were pouring from the warp.

The longer this dragged on, the worse it would get for me.

There was only one answer: strike Azath down immediately in a swift assault.

The problem?

Normally, you destroy all four Stones of Power first, then fight a weakened Azath.

But with him already awake, if I started smashing the stones one by one, the enemy numbers would just keep swelling.

Defeat Azath at full strength, in one strike…

Something even “Lucifer” had never managed.

The variables were too great. I didn’t have the advantage in raw power.

But…

This is going to be fun.

The situation itself was forcing me to fight a stronger opponent.

The difference from the game? Now my life was truly at stake.

Standing at the cliff’s edge, that icy chill against my back…

Yet in my chest, there was no fear—only exhilaration.

At 28, after years of being ground down by society, I thought I hated dangerous situations like this.

Or so I thought.

I must be crazy, huh?

Because my heart was racing with excitement.

“Master.”
“Sage!”
“My lord.”

Three villains watched me closely. I had only one thing to say.

“There’s no change of plan. We’re cutting off Azath’s head—directly.”

“Yes, sir!”

I charged straight into the boss room.

《The Stones of Power are still intact. Entering now will make defeating Azath much more difficult. Do you still wish to proceed?》

YES.

《The King of Afterimages, Azath, appears.》

What Lucifer could not do, I will surpass.

* * *

The moment Oh Hyun-woo entered the map, his sharp eyes scanned the terrain.

Azath was the King of Afterimages.

This “Distorted Afterimage” was his illusion, his personal domain.

He left behind afterimages—and could even teleport into them.

But when he created those afterimages, faint distortions appeared.

If you tracked them carefully, you could predict his movements.

Not even the smallest crack, not even a groove in the floor can be overlooked.

And with the Stones of Power intact, his strength was far greater than usual.

Finally, the “king” revealed himself.

“Foolish ones. To face me without breaking the stones—are you not afraid of death?”

The Azath in my memories was a fool, weakened after losing his Stones, staggering under repeated blows, panicking into a berserk frenzy.

But this…

…is magnificent.

With the Stones intact, Azath was no longer a mere boss.

His form was humanoid, but his silhouette flickered like shadow.

Through his shifting afterimages, glimpses of his blackened flesh showed.

Veins ran with streams of darkness like tangled lightning. His eyes, bottomless abysses, reflected the night sky’s void.

His movements were calm, yet filled with murderous intent so thick one could hardly breathe.

The very presence of a king who would brook no challenge.

Yes. A villain should have this kind of majesty.

Oh Hyun-woo loved villains.

Especially ones who carried both narrative and power, like the Seven Deadly Sins.

But villains like Azath, who radiated raw, instinctive strength—those were also his taste.

To put it simply—

I want him.

It had been a long time since his collector’s urge stirred so strongly.

“…Why do you look at me with those eyes?”

Azath’s expression soured at the strange reaction.

Staring at him directly, Hyun-woo spoke.

“Hertia. Caligo. Theo.”
“Yes!”
“The plan has changed.”
“…What?”

Ignoring the summons’ confusion, Hyun-woo commanded:

“Don’t kill him. Capture him. He’ll be mine.”

* * *

Azath was stunned at the man’s arrogance.

To claim he would make him a subordinate? Had the fool gone mad in the face of death?

But the reason for that confidence soon became clear.

“Theo!”

Theo, wielding his dark scepter, shot forward—past Azath.

Then—

Boom!

He struck the ground instead.

“…Are you truly insane? Or so fearful you’re striking at phantoms?”

Hyun-woo gave no reply.

He only continued ordering more strange attacks.

“Herr!”

A sphere of magic formed in Hertia’s hand—and she hurled it, not at Azath, but at the stone floor.

Caligo spread poison across the ground.

Meryl struck away rotten branches.

All they did was destroy the terrain around Azath.

“What are you trying to—!”

After their attacks finished, Azath, evading Herrtia’s spell, drew his Mist Blade.

With it, he slashed at Theo’s exposed back.

“Theo, right side!”

Clang!

《Prince of Darkness Theo parries the King of Afterimages Azath’s strike.》
《Azath leaves his First Afterimage on Theo.》

Azath reeled. His attack had been parried?

Now he understood why this man was so arrogant—

He could read Azath’s movements precisely and command his minions accordingly.

But so what?

Three afterimages left, and the boy with the scepter would be dead—

《Witch of the End Hertia erases Azath’s afterimage.》

“?!!”

Azath snapped his head around.

Where he had left his afterimage… now stood Hertia instead.

“How… how do you know the counter to my power…?”

Hertia smiled coldly.

“My master desires you. Surrender and swear loyalty. Resistance is futile.”

“What?! You dare suggest I bow my head to a mere human?!”

“You don’t know how to grasp an offered chance. Then you’ll simply face a harsher reality.”

Azath ignored her.

His power was intact.

The Stones weren’t fully charged, but he had more than enough strength to reduce them to ashes.

His afterimage attack had failed, but he’d already spotted the weakest link.

The priestess… you’re the hole in their defenses.

Target acquired, Azath lunged for the Black Priestess, Meryl.

But—

“Meryl, now! Confess your sins and accept judgment!”

As Azath entered her range, a crimson magic circle flared at her feet.

《Black Priestess Meryl uses Sacrifice of Sin.》

“I confess my sins!”

“You think such a petty trick can bind me?!”

Azath split into an afterimage to avoid the spell.

《Sacrifice of Sin forces Taunt onto Azath’s afterimage.》

The taunt locked onto his double.

Azath smirked, as if he’d been waiting for this.

But then—

A chime rang behind him.

Jingle.

Theo, scepter in hand, passed beside him.

The moment the scepter touched Azath’s double—

“Checkmate.”

《Theo’s Absolute Monarchy skill activates: King’s Command.》
《The target’s mind is reconstructed!》
《Prince of Darkness Theo seizes control of Azath’s afterimage.》

A black, abyssal force erupted from Theo’s scepter, consuming the duplicate entirely.

“Ha… hahaha! Hahahahahaha!”

Oh Hyun-woo burst into manic laughter.

His villains shivered.

That laugh… it was the same insane laughter he used to let out on the battlefield with Lucifer.

“Rejoice, Azath. This is only the beginning.”

At that moment, Azath finally realized—

Just how dangerous the man standing before him truly was.