"Woah."
KangWoo let out a short exclamation after reading the message that appeared in front of him.
"Impressive."
He'd pushed him into a corner, and not only that, but he'd also restricted his options.
He'd revealed some of the truth to him and dragged him to the floor.
'But…'
Even in that desperate situation, he'd rejected his proposal and caused the Authority of Subordination to fail.
'Amazing.'
He couldn't help but be impressed by Ludwig’s pure and firm ideals.
"But…"
He shrugged.
He’d thought the chances of him refusing were low, but on the other hand, that also meant that, although low, he thought there was a chance he might refuse, so obviously…
He'd already made the necessary preparations for such a situation.
"That's it."
The demon laughed.
* * *
"I would never make a deal with a demon," he said as if even the thought of it was disgusting.
Ludwig used his holy sword to prop himself up.
He knew it wasn’t the correct decision to make in his situation.
For the future, for Raphael, and for Ernor, the correct thing would be to bend his ideals.
'But…'
Ludwig's eyes shone sharply.
He knew demons very well—he knew how evil and clever they were.
'A deal?'
He laughed in disbelief.
Satan hadn't mentioned the price he would need to pay.
He didn't need to.
'It’s obvious.'
He was planning to take everything from him.
If the price to pay was everything he had, his decision didn’t matter—it wouldn't change the fact that he'd die.
He wasn't stupid enough to not realize that.
Even if he managed to walk out of that place, the situation wouldn't be over.
He'd become Satan's puppet before he could convey what he discovered to Raphael, and he would end up dying at the hands of his allies that also served the light.
'I cannot let that happen.'
Ludwig's eyes shone.
It was true that he had to tell Raphael what he'd just learned, but borrowing the strength of a demon to do that would be counterproductive—that would just make him receive a more tragic ending.
'Then…'
Ludwig gulped and closed his eyes.
He focused his attention on Holy Sword Ludwig—the sword he’d even thrown away his name for.
"I'll offer my life," he said to the sword.
Whir-.
The holy sword vibrated and emitted a white light.
Ludwig tried to get hold of his breath and raised his head.
His body began shining with intense light, and he spoke the name of the technique that he needed to give his life to use.
"Hope."
Whir-!!!
The vibration became more intense, and an explosive amount of light covered his body from the sword.
Crack.
The skin on his back tore, and four wings appeared.
They weren't fake wings like the ones he had before—they were 'real' angel wings.
An intense light filled their surroundings.
"Cough, Coff!"
His body went taught as a huge amount of divine energy flowed through it.
It had already gone beyond the amount of divine energy a human's body could accept.
"Ugh, AAHH!!"
He swung the holy sword while such intense light illuminated the cave.
Slash-!!
He split the darkness.
* * *
[Demon King…]
Balrog’s voice sounded through the black sphere.
His voice was stiff.
[It seems like our plans have gone a bit awry.]
"I can see that."
Their first plan was to make Ludwig fall and simultaneously gain control of him through the Authority of Subordination—the plan to turn an apostle of an angel into his puppet.
"That's too bad."
KangWoo lay his back on the chair.
It was a plan he had thought of over the past week while making the dungeon with Lilith.
It was the plan that had the best possible outcome.
'It seems like it has failed.'
Making Ludwig unable to use the holy sword was simple—he had to kill him. That was it.
If someone was dead, they couldn’t use the holy sword, but KangWoo wanted more than that.
If he wanted to free himself from the repetitive pattern he was stuck in, he had to obtain an even greater return than the effort it cost to make Ludwig fall.
'That's why I was planning to use the Authority of Subordination.'
Ludwig would have been useful in all sorts of ways if he could have obtained him at the height of his power, but at that point, it would be hard to use him.
[Are you going to kill him?] Balrog said with intense killing intent.
"Hmm…"
He fell into thought.
KangWoo lay his back on the chair and recalled his conversation with Balzac.
- Hmm. That person, Ludwig… What a shame.
'A shame?'
- Yes. Other than Master's little brother, I've never seen a human with such a wonderful body… He seems to be better than Reinald.
* * *
'So?'
- Hahaha. If I could turn him into a death knight… An incredible piece of art would probably be born. A death knight of the highest… no, maybe something beyond a simple death knight. I might be able to turn him into an abyss knight.
'What's up with that strong-sounding name?'
- They're beings of a higher plane than death knights. It's a being you can only make with someone who has suffered an unfair death. The strength of such a being… Hahaha, even Mr. Balrog wouldn't have an easy time facing one.
'Hmm… It won't be late if we turn him into one after using the Authority of Subordination, so let's wait for the moment.'
The short conversation went on in his head.
While thinking about it for a while, KangWoo opened his mouth.
"No, don't kill him."
[But if this goes on…]
"It's okay."
[He knows too much,] he said in a worried voice.
KangWoo smiled.
"Balrog…"
[Yes, My King?]
"What do you think is the best way to make a saint fall?"
[Well, there are many ways…]
"What if, no matter what strategy we used, it was impossible to make him fall?"
[…]
Balrog remained silent.
What was the best way to make an infallible saint fall?
There was a contradiction in that sentence that made it impossible to answer.
"Look carefully."
KangWoo smiled.
"I'm going to teach you how."
* * *
Slash-!!
The darkness split, and the cave’s wall was torn apart.
Light flowed in.
'This is…'
He saw the ruined grasslands and recognized the familiar place.
'This is where we first arrived.'
Ludwig's eyes shone.
He turned and looked at Yogsaron.
For some reason, he wasn't moving at all.
'This is my chance.'
He wasn't sure why he wasn't moving, but that didn't change the fact that it was the perfect opportunity.
Ludwig clenched his jaw, stomped on the ground, and flapped his four wings.
His body shot forward at incredible speed.
'I must tell him…'
He had to tell Raphael everything he'd heard there.
Tentacles followed after him, but he was faster.
Crack-!!
He escaped from the dungeon, and his body rolled over the dirt.
“Haa… Haaa…”
He let out labored breaths.
The side effects from pushing the holy sword to its limits were taking their toll on his body
He felt that he didn’t have much time left.
'Quickly…'
He had to return to Ernor.
Then…
"Mr. Ludwig!!"
"Are you okay?!!"
Kim ShiHoon, KangWoo, Gaia, Chae YeonJoom, Grace, and other important Guardian members were running toward him.
It seemed like the support he'd asked for had arrived.
"Ugh…"
Ludwig looked at them cautiously.
The Demon of Prophecy was currently deceiving them.
He had to tell them the truth.
"You're currently being d—"
"Wait…"
The young man with sharp eyes at the front raised his hands.
He kept talking with a hard expression on his face.
"Everyone, stop."
"Wh-what's wrong? Hyeongnim?!" Kim ShiHoon anxiously asked.
"…"
KangWoo frowned and opened his mouth.
"It's too late."
"Yes? What does that—"
"Ludwig is already being controlled by a demon."
"What…?"
"Is… is that true, Mr. KangWoo?!" Gaia hurriedly asked.
KangWoo nodded with a heavy expression.
"Yes. It's already too late…"
He clenched his fists aggressively and stomped on the ground.
"Damn it! Damn it! If only we'd arrived faster…!"
Ludwig looked at him in confusion.
'What's he talking about?'
He wasn't being controlled by a demon.
He'd refused Satan's proposal, but…
It was too late?
"H-Hyeongnim! What do you mean?! Ludwig is—"
"No."
KangWoo shook his head.
He took a communication crystal from his pocket.
"To be honest, I thought it was already too late from the moment I heard this message…"
A voice sounded from the crystal.
[It’s… Lud… Wig. Gate… someone… demon's trap… I… already… lost… everyone… escape… if this… controlled by demon…]
It was Ludwig’s voice mixed with a lot of interference, and it seemed like he had expected to die soon. If anything, the message was closer to a last testament.
It wasn't hard to imagine that it was already too late for Ludwig just from hearing the message.
KangWoo grabbed Kim ShiHoon's shoulders.
"ShiHoon, I'm sorry. I couldn't bear to show you this message earlier."
"Ah…"
"Mr. Ludwig… has already fallen."
KangWoo lowered his head as if he couldn't get himself to look at the Ludwig in front of them.
Ludwig looked at him with his mouth wide open.
'What the…?'
His thoughts tumbled around in his head.
What he heard through the communication crystal was definitely his voice, but…
He'd never said that.
'What's going on?'
Ludwig's expression paled.
He remembered the conversation he had as soon as he entered the dungeon.
- Who… what's… going… on?
"It’s Ludwig. It seems like someone has interfered with the gate. I think we've fallen into a demon’s trap."
- What's… situat…?
"I'm okay, but my subordinate died. If this goes on, it could be dangerous. I'm requesting support from Guardian. We're going to try to figure things out as we escape."
- Can… Come outs… ide?
"If this continues, we won't be able to leave. It seems like a demon is controlling this entire space."
- Where… are you?
"I'm not sure. It seems like we're inside a dungeon."
- We're g… ZZZT!!
Those words…
'How did they…'
[It’s… Lud… Wig. Gate… someone… demon's trap… I… already… lost… everyone… escape… if this… controlled by demon…]
‘Change like this?’
"Ah…"
Ludwig's body trembled.
He looked at KangWoo with a pale expression on his face.
"Ludwig has already fallen," he said in a firm voice.
"I must… kill him with my hands."
What was the best way to make an infallible saint fall?
It was actually rather simple.
'The truth doesn't matter.'
—All that mattered was that it sounded like the truth.
