"UGH, AHH!!"
He grabbed his head and twisted his body as he slowly turned into a demon.
An intense craving rose from his body, and an intense thirst governed his head.
A craving for strength…
An intense sense of desire devoured his body.
'What's this?'
He couldn't understand it.
A strength he had never felt before covered his body, an aggressive and destructive energy.
He instinctively knew it was different from 'Qi.'
"Haa."
He took a deep breath, and his head cleared.
Intense energy flowed inside his body.
He looked at his hands and saw they were no longer trembling.
He couldn't understand why he'd turned out like that. What had made him change so much?
But…
Clack-
He grabbed his sword. A thrilling sensation spread through his hand.
He knew his current status was weird, and he also knew he'd diverted from the correct route.
"I don't need it."
All that mattered was that he could grab his sword and save the woman he loved from the hands of the demon.
He had even thought that it would be okay even if he couldn't grab a sword anymore.
His body having turned into a demon’s? He could laugh that off.
He grabbed his sword and prepared to fight.
[Huh?]
A flustered voice left Yogsaron's mouth.
With his mouth agape, he looked at Kim ShiHoon slowly turning into a demon.
Boom-!
Kim ShiHoon stomped on the ground.
His body shot forward with an intense aura of demonic energy around it.
Black sword energy flowed from the sword in his hands.
He twisted his body and smashed the sword down.
Boom-!
[Ugh!]
Yogsaron was pushed back.
He was surprised. After hesitating for a bit, he put Gaia down carefully.
[I'm not sure what's going on…]
But it would be dangerous if things kept going on like that.
The human in front of him emitted an ominous energy that he sensed to be 'dangerous.'
He clenched his fists, planted his feet, and extended his hands.
The green tentacles spread out.
Slash-!
Five tentacles were cut by a single attack.
Kim ShiHoon twisted his body and dodged the remaining tentacles, which slammed into the ground.
He jumped onto and ran along the tentacles.
A black light cut Yogsaron's body.
[Ugh!]
He quickly moved his back. His collarbone was cracked, and black blood poured out.
Yogsaron frowned.
An intense fighting spirit flared up within him.
He ripped off the tentacles stuck to his body as if they bothered him, and his eyes shone like an experienced martial artist’s.
BOOM-!
The sword and fist clashed.
A huge impact that resembled a bomb going off shook their surroundings.
The trees were cut, the ground exploded, and dirt flew in all directions.
The tips of Yogsaron's mouth went up.
'Not bad.'
For him, fighting was his reason for living.
The sword that was being swung at him made him excited.
He covered both fists with demonic energy.
He pulled his foot back, lowered his body, and raised his fists upward.
The sword blocked the attack, and Kim ShiHoon was pushed back by an overwhelming difference in strength.
He twisted his body while being pushed back and extended his wings. It seemed like he was stepping in the air.
He turned his body around as if he were doing acrobatics and focused the entire weight of his body on the sword, swinging it down with the goal of splitting the demon’s head in two.
Crack-!
The demon raised his arms and blocked the attack, the sword crushed his demonic energy gauntlet, and black blood poured out of his split wrist.
Yogsaron pulled his body back, and his wrist regenerated almost instantly.
[Ha.]
He laughed in disbelief.
He could feel a sense of thrill crawling up his back. The beast's senses that told him he was facing a strong opponent stimulated him, and violent energy spread through his body.
Demonic Energy spread through their surroundings.
He extended his hands and tried to tear the tentacles off.
Stop-
He heard a voice in his ear.
His hands halted.
The intensifying lust for battle died off.
- Don't act on your own, Balrog.
The communication device he had in his ear transmitted the King’s voice.
* * *
"Damn."
KangWoo bit his fingernail.
Kim ShiHoon had taken the form of a demon.
His head hurt at the unexpected developments.
'Why did things become like this?'
In reality, it wasn't hard to figure out why, but he just wanted to deny reality.
'Did I push him too much?'
Based on Kim ShiHoon's Awakening patterns, he thought that he would Awaken again once pushed, but maybe he'd gone too far.
Instead of the Martial God's strength, he'd accepted KangWoo's demonic energy.
'This is bad.'
It was an unexpected development of events.
He knew that there was a chance Kim ShiHoon would become influenced by the demonic energy due to the Authority of Subordination, but Kim ShiHoon was different from Echidna or Balzac.
The main source of his strength wasn't demonic energy but a power called Qi.
The power he used was completely different, so using it like that should’ve been impossible.
'Damn.'
Kim ShiHoon didn't know that he'd been made a familiar spirit through the Authority of Subordination.
That was something that shouldn’t have ever been revealed, but from the way things turned out, he was going to suspect.
After all, he'd learned that there was demonic energy inside his body, an energy he shouldn’t have had.
'First, I must eliminate that doubt.'
Everything would be over if the fact he'd used the Authority of Subordination became known.
The relationship with Kim ShiHoon he'd built with so much effort would be completely ruined.
KangWoo picked up the communication device.
"Balrog, repeat what I say. You should make it sound as natural and dirty as possible."
He saw Balrog nodding.
'The best way to eliminate that doubt is…'
He'd just thought it up on the spot, but it seemed quite good
"Hahaha, as expected."
Kim ShiHoon had taken the unconscious Gaia to a safe place.
Balrog began to laugh out loud.
'Good.'
He saw Kim ShiHoon looking at Balrog.
What Balrog should say was already decided.
'Let's use the cheat once more.'
KangWoo gulped and kept talking.
"So the 'seed' Mr. Satan planted finally blossomed."
'I believe in you, Mr. Satan!!'
‘Please, solve this fucked-up situation!!!’
* * *
[So the 'seed' Mr. Satan planted finally blossomed.]
"What…?"
Yogsaron kept talking while making an evil smile.
That was enough to shock Kim ShiHoon.
"Seed?"
Was it because he'd taken Gaia to a safe place? Kim ShiHoon had recovered part of his reason.
The black skin and wings on his back, the long tail that resembled a reptile, and the horn on his forehead…
He clearly looked like a demon.
"Don't tell me, all of this…"
[Yes. It's something that was planned by Satan.]
Yogsaron smiled.
[Why did you think Mr. Satan became interested in a mere human? It's because he knew you had the soul of the Martial God inside of you.]
"…"
[He planted a seed inside of you—one that would turn you into a demon.]
"Why?"
He couldn't understand it.
The Demon of Prophecy, Satan…
Why did he want to make him fall and turn into a demon?
"Ah."
A short exclamation left his mouth as if he'd completed a puzzle.
Kim ShiHoon's body trembled.
He remembered what had happened a few months prior in South America, how KangWoo's underling, Balrog, was about to be controlled by a magic circle.
'The Demon Cult… have a way to control demons.'
Then there was only one reason why they would want to turn him into a demon.
"Were you… trying to control me?"
[Hahaha! Thankfully, you aren't dumb enough not to understand.]
Yogsaron began to laugh out loud.
His green tentacles wiggled.
[Yes. This was all to make you into a loyal puppet of Mr. Satan.]
"…"
[A human that has the soul of the Martial God… Hahaha. Although you're weak now, it's certainly interesting.]
Yogsaron's eyes shone.
[How desperate will Gaia become if she sees how you've fallen? Huh?]
Tap-
Kim ShiHoon took a step backward and grabbed his head as if he didn't want to believe what was happening.
"No."
That wasn't what he wanted.
He didn't want to become a demon, and turning into Satan’s puppet wasn’t his intention.
The frail woman that looked as if she were going to break if he wasn't careful enough…
He just wanted to protect her.
[Hahaha!! Nice! Once you become a puppet, I'm going to make sure you kill her with your own hands!!!]
"Ah…"
Just thinking about it horrified him.
Fear spread through his body, and he imagined himself killing Gaia. Just the thought made him want to vomit.
'I… I must return to normal.'
It wasn't too late yet.
He could still push the demonic energy out of his body.
He only hesitated for a short while.
Kim ShiHoon concentrated on pushing out the darkness that had spread through his body.
'Wait…'
He looked at his hands that were still gripping his sword.
'If I give up this strength now…'
He might return to not being able to hold a sword again.
He started to hesitate.
'No.'
He didn't think for much longer.
He couldn't become Satan's puppet.
Even if it were for those important to him, he had to give up on that strength.
"Cough!"
A horrible thirst shook his body.
The desire for strength controlled his body.
"No…"
He felt his consciousness starting to fade.
He felt that his mind was about to be eaten by desires.
"Ah…"
Tears dripped from his eyes.
He couldn't resist the desires of a demon's body.
His field of vision became blurry, and he began thinking that becoming a demon wouldn't be that bad of an idea.
"Shi…Hoon?"
At that moment, he heard a familiar voice.
It was as if lightning had struck his head.
Kim ShiHoon turned around while trembling.
"KangWoo… hyeong…?"
The person he trusted the most in the world was behind him.
