The demonic beasts were madly racing toward the perimeter of the city. Iron arrows were pouring over their heads shot from bowstrings pulled to the limit, flying so hard with the sound of tearing wind.
Wooden arrows were useless against demonic beasts, as their hides were different from that of an ordinary beast, it was difficult to pierce with wooden arrows.
After being hit by arrows, several demonic beasts collapsed after losing their balance. And yet, the crazed demonic beasts did not stop running. They trampled over each other and ended up killing those obstructing the path. Their blood splattered and their bones shattered. The screams of the demonic beasts turned into weepings and had spread across the battlefield. Of the 2,000 or so demonic beasts, hundreds of them died just like that.
Next was the trap. The Imperial Army was well aware that they had to listen to the Barbarians unconditionally when dealing with demonic beasts. Following Oscar’s opinion, they dug a deep hole in the wilderness in front of the defense line.
Hundreds of demonic beasts running at the front fell into the trap and let out a wild cry. Then, the rest of them filled the pit with their own kindred bodies before running over it.
The number of demonic beasts had been halved. Their running speed had also decreased. There were also many demonic beasts that had turned around, they ran to places straying from the path.
“Now!”
The Emperor shouted.
The flag of the Empire fluttered greatly. The flag bearer waved the flag to the sound of the drum behind him. The sound of horse hoofs that shook the earth resonated with the drumming that heaved the heart. After waiting behind the barricade, the city troops poured out from both sides of the city at the same time.
The Barbarians were in the lead. With Isadora’s funding the best warhorses on the continent, the troops raced like surging waves and rushed toward the bewildered demonic beasts.
“Break through and go up to the hills”
Oscar shouted to Lampion, who had pierced the demonic beast’s neck with a large halberd.
“Break through! Aim for their backline!”
The Barbarians did not plan to annihilate the demonic beasts. Rather, they passed through the herds of demonic beasts and targeted the demon worshippers on the enemy’s backline. The Imperial Army ran after the Barbarians immediately behind them, their well-trained soldiers did not back down even while dealing with the crazy demonic beasts. Several soldiers rushed at a single demonic beast and would somehow defeat them.
With thumping sounds everywhere, the demonic beasts were seen toppling over or staggering without being able to control their large bodies.
“The Emperor is with us!”
“Hurray for Tarragon!”
The knights encouraged the soldiers and rushed at the demonic beasts. Along the path that the Barbarians had made, the cavalry smashed into the battlefield.
The demon lord was far away. Observing the battlefield from a high place, the once-saintess demon lord appeared on a giant demonic beast. Her long cloak of fur fluttered in the wind.
At a distance so far away from the demonic beasts and demon worshippers, no one could see her face nor hear her voice. But it was clear that the demon lord’s eyes were following the Barbarians.
As the owners of the battlefield, the Barbarians were like warriors of God who fell on human land. They went straight through the herds of demonic beasts and ran wild in the main camp of the demon worshippers.
Despite their overwhelming number, the demon worshippers were unable to defeat the raging Barbarians, who had skillfully changed positions among them. And since the wounded demonic beasts could not tell allies from enemies and just ran rampant, the demon worshippers were unable to ignore the Barbarians and advance to face the Imperial Army.
The herd of demonic beasts, the heralds to the beginning of war, had been struck close to annihilation. Unable to do this or that, the demon worshippers eventually began to retreat.
“Out, demon lord!”
“The Barbarians have won!”
Unlike their fancy appearance, their exit was vain.
<ol start="37">
Heartache
After one fierce battle, Lara stood in front of the demon worshippers who were anxiously looking for her.
“O demon lord…”
The worshippers led by the black sorcerers believed that Lara, the demon lord, would somehow help them in the war. And so, they rushed to find Lara, intending to ask her to summon the Hell Corps or to ask her to perform powerful large-scale magic.
Lara jumped from the back of the giant demonic beast and said coldly.
“You lowly lives.”
Her cold voice rang out in the bleak wind. The noisy worshippers became quiet.
Lara ordered Vassago.
“Disgusting. Get rid of them.”
“Yes, Master.”
Vassago smiled from ear to ear. He was satisfied that the owner of his body was a black sorcerer who was quite notorious among the demon worshippers.
“Who wants to go first?”
Vassago took out a long whip. It was a whip made of the skin of a python. Every time he swung the whip, there was a ripping sound. The demon worshippers looked at Vassago, shivering.
“How dare you make the Master angry? You shall pay back with pain and screams.”
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
After such a vain defeat, the black sorcerers moved steadily for the next attack. The death of the demonic beasts was nothing for them. The more blood flowed, the better.
The black sorcerers planned to summon the Hell Corps directly to the battlefield after enough blood had flowed, regardless if it was of allies or of enemies. Unlike the demon worshippers, some of the black sorcerers did not acknowledge Lara as the demon lord and would always watch her from a distance away.
With the black sorcerers moving so fast, Oscar also became busy. Every night he climbed the mountain and heard from Lara about everything the demon lord troops had planned. While going up and down the mountain path, Oscar lamented how much of a tragedy it was that he had to hide the fact that the demon lord was on the side of man.
Konny was busy too. From food and clothes specially prepared by Isadora, to fluffy blankets and snacks that the giant of fire usually liked, the number of deliveries had increased.
Lara felt like she had a house in the mountains. Paimon and Vassago joked that they wanted to hire Konny to work as a butler at their castle in hell.
A few days after the war had officially begun, a man appeared in front of the log house where Lara was sleeping.
His long black hair fluttered in the wind. It was very cold in the winter mountains, but the man was wearing a very thin shirt. His pale face, blue eyes, and red lips stood out.
He was Demian.
Even though there were demon worshippers scattered around, no one noticed Demian being right in front of them. The same went for Valac. The only ones who had noticed something to be amiss were Paimon and Vassago. And despite looking around the area with sharp eyes, they still could not find Demian.
Demian naturally walked into the house where Lara was sleeping. It was cozy and nice for a hastily constructed house, and the fragrance of trees filled the inside. Lara laid a thick quilt on a large log bed and slept with the giant of fire in her arms.
Demian stood there and looked at Lara’s face for a long time. Brown hair that looked moist as if it had been wet, skin with a sweet addictive scent, and twilight eyes hidden under eyelashes that fluttered like petals. Even her breath seemed to be crazily precious. He swept Lara’s cheek with his fingertips.
The giant of fire, thought to be asleep, opened its eyes. As soon as it found Demian, it showed its teeth like a fierce dog. But as soon as Demian gestured to it, it scattered away, leaving only a small spark.
Demian did not want to be disturbed by anyone or anything, nor did he hesitate for even a slither of a moment when using the power of God. For him, everything in the world except Lara was just an afterimage.
Abraxas was also like him. An uncontrollable pain came to God’s face. Being both Demian and Abraxas, he still could not let go of his lost love and lived in the pain of that day. The pain had accumulated without flowing with grief.
The first saintess died while Abraxas was away for a while. Not even her body could be recovered. Her last words, saying that she would wait for him, had remained in his heart. Abraxas cried as he dug up his chest with his hands.
Even for a God, Abraxas only had one love. Nothing could replace her, not infinite power, not authority, not even the whole world—everything had lost meaning. The mad God came to hate everything that lived and breathed. He could have become an evil God and destroyed the world.
If Lara had not kissed him in her first life, Abraxas would have never come to his senses.
Was that also destiny? Can a God have a predetermined fate? Abraxas remembered the moment exactly as if it had been carved with a knife. A woman leaned lightly on the cold statue and kissed his lips. Lara did it on a whim at the spur of the moment, and yet, it was a miracle for God.
When Abraxas saw Lara with the same face as the saintess he loved, he suspected that he had returned to the past. She had the same habits, the same way of speaking, and even the same smile from time to time. She was that similar. So, Abraxas watched her closely. He has been by Lara’s side ever since that day.
Abraxas saw Lara pretending to be the fake saintess wielding wickedness, he also saw her love for Demian and her disregard for her own feelings. He also watched when she became the sacrifice and when the world was destroyed.
God realized it was because of him. All this was because Abraxas was crazy about love and had abandoned his duty.
Demian was his other self. He should have expected that Demian would love Lara. After Lara’s death, Demian’s appearance was not much different from Abraxas's after he had lost his lover.
“I will make it right.”
God said.
“For you…”
Abraxas wanted to apologize. Maybe he wanted to be forgiven. If he were loved and forgiven by Lara, by the one who had the same face as the first saintess, then maybe, this pain just might get numb.
Am I Abraxas or Demian? Maybe I’m pretending to be Demian to feel you. These maddening hot feelings belong to Demian, so why am I in joy? You are his lover, but why are you so desperate for me?
I want to touch you just once, even if I have to borrow Demian’s body. I feel a cruel joy in the fact that he and I are one. Watching you decide to defy fate for Demian, I feel a disgustingly heart-warming euphoria.
Lara, I wished that you were the reincarnation of my lover. I had hoped that your soul would be the same, and not just your face. I comfort myself, thinking that, if you love Demian, then I am the one being loved. I know, it is a shameful and wicked feeling. But it is only when I think about that when this excruciating pain gets numb. That is the only moment I can count on. And yet, you are not even mine.
Humans are so great. How can such a painful feeling be wrapped into a beautiful thing called love? How can they heal the pain and fall in love with another after going through this kind of love? I am completely broken, and I can never go back.
“Lara.”
Even your name is pretty. Every time I call your name, I feel like I am singing. You make me jealous of everything you look at. Even a single breath of yours is precious, I want to keep it. Why do you look so much like her? Why are you making me feel confused?
“‘You’…”
Abraxas, gently sweeping Lara’s cheek, slowly leaned toward her. His lips touched Lara’s cheek and lips. It was a kiss that sank lightly like a bird’s feather. It was a stealthy and impudent kiss, as Lara once did to him in her first life.
God was still broken. His wound was one that would never recover. So he decided.
“I have to die.”
The Hell Troops that would invade the land would not be so bad as God’s fellow travel companions. The will of the world defined this war as a sure and inevitable occurrence, it had to be fought anyway. Even at the cost of God’s death, he should at least be able to save the woman he loved. Whatever that woman loved, he would not take it, even if it was a stone or a single blade of grass.
So Lara, don’t worry.
“We will protect you.”
Abraxas and Demian whispered.
