The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player

Creak, thud.

Jake and Pierce pushed open the massive gate.

Whoosh.

As the gate opened, a sinister dark energy spiraled out to greet them.

“Whew, this is nasty.”

Jake waved his hand to clear the suffocatingly thick, toxic air. Such a level of dark energy could instantly disrupt the mana flow of anyone who had not reached the Master level.

“Let’s go.”

However, the group had long surpassed the level at which they would be affected by mere thick dark energy. The five knights, gathered around Raul, confidently walked through the temple’s corridor.

‘This… feels familiar…’

Raul felt a sense of déjà vu. Pools of blood collected in various spots along the vast temple corridor. Thick streams of blood trickled everywhere, their sight eerily familiar.

‘No way, it can’t be.’

Raul tilted his head in doubt as he continued walking. But as the saying goes, ‘the unexpected often happens’.

When Raul reached the end of the long temple corridor, he couldn’t help but chuckle. At the far end of the temple. On a pedestal designed to be looked up at, a familiar silhouette awaited him.

“You foolish humans. Accept your fate quietly… tsk tsk.”

Blood was gushing from the fountain below the pedestal, and the demon sitting on the throne was sipping from a wine glass filled with that blood.

‘Wasn’t he the Demon Count Forsis?’

The demon Raul had faced at the Demon God’s Temple that appeared at the barrier. He vividly remembered when he, Caldenas, and Rabel had teamed up to hold him down, allowing the hero Asher to split him in half with his sword.

For that same demon to reappear…

‘It seems true that demons manifest through avatars.’

And this reminded him of players connecting through avatars in a game. It meant they could rampage with impunity since their lives were not at stake. From the perspective of those being invaded, nothing could be more unfair, but there was no way to complain.

「Raul, look at his horns. Don’t they seem smaller than before?」

Upon hearing Rabel’s message and looking closely, Raul noticed that the horns were indeed slightly shorter than before. The horns, symbolizing the demon’s power, being damaged indicated a loss of that power.

It seemed the battle a few years ago had not been in vain.

「We still can’t let our guard down. The energy I feel is on a different level than back then.」

Raul stopped smiling and fully tensed his body. The dark energy wasn’t as strong when they faced him back then. The stronger the dark energy, the more it resembled the energy of the Demon Realm, allowing him to exert his true power.

It was clear he would show a level of strength far beyond what they had seen before. Moreover, Forsis wasn’t alone here.

There were about twenty demons standing at attention below his throne. The energy emanating from them was formidable as well.

“You are the first guests, so I permit a blood festival. Leave one alive and enjoy yourselves.”

“Thank you, Count!”

“Grr, how long has it been since we tasted fresh blood!”

When Forsis gestured without even looking at Raul’s group, the demons started drooling as they rushed forward. But none of Raul’s team was intimidated.

“I’ll handle the leader. Leave the rest to me.”

“Yes, master.”

Philip drew two long swords and licked his lips.

‘It’s been a while since I got a good fight.’

“Ha! I’ve been curious about the skills of these demons. Let’s find out!”

Jake swung his nearly 3-meter-long greatsword and charged forward. Pierce had already drawn a massive bow and notched three arrows, and Kane was climbing up a pillar to gain a vantage point above the enemies.

Bababang!

Smash!

Inside the temple, yellow aura blades clashed with the red demonic energy, shaking the entire place.

“Master, I leave this to you.”

“Don’t worry about the small fry.”

Three armored figures suddenly appeared behind Raul. The three blue-tinged power armors, each holding identical long swords, took the same stance.

The armored knights, rushing in different directions, wielded their swords with the unmistakable style of Raul’s master, Caldenas.

Slash! Shwik!

The concise yet sharp sword trajectories easily sliced through the demons charging at them.

‘No need to worry.’

Thanks to the touch of Tar’o, the chieftain of the Black Anvil Dwarf Clan, ragnarator had its seal partially lifted. As a result, not only were its existing special functions upgraded, but new features were added.

This allowed Caldenas to control three power armors simultaneously, a significant source of despair for Raul’s enemies. With his hands behind his back, Raul casually walked towards the pedestal.

Despite the fierce battle raging inside the temple, no attack touched Raul as he strolled forward as if taking a walk. It felt as if he alone was walking in a different dimension.

His psychokinetic control over space now protected him instinctively, even without conscious effort. Even as Raul approached, Forsis showed no intention of moving.

Despite his subordinates, who seemed to be baron-level or higher demons, being pushed back, Forsis remained indifferent. Now that he could exhibit power close to his true form, his arrogance suggested he believed no one in the human realm could challenge him.

‘Ridiculous.’

Despite being defeated once, it seemed arrogance was a trait of his race. Raul felt he owed him a greeting after all this time. So, he drew his weapon.

Swoosh.

Countless weapons, numbering in the tens, hundreds, and thousands, poured out and rushed toward Forsis.

Boom!

A massive impact swept over the throne. When the avalanche of weapons descended, Forsis was completely obscured.

Snap.

When Raul snapped his fingers, the weapon legion retreated, filling the temple ceiling.

“Long time no see.”

“…Who are you?”

Even though Forsis hadn’t changed his posture despite the intense attack from the weapon legion, his eyebrows twitched.

“Kek, Kekekeke, Khaahahahaha!”

Clang.

Forsis threw aside the glass he was holding and stood up, laughing maniacally.

“What a twist of fate! You must be deeply loathed by the Demon God himself, Khaaha!”

Although he was laughing, a vortex of red blood swirled around him, emitting a terrifying aura.

‘Even if the barrier shattered, I was planning to find you and tear you apart!’

The humiliation of that day resurfaced in Forsis’s mind. He had been defeated by a mere mid-Master-level human. Even if the human used strange powers, he was an unripe novice who couldn’t even attain a rank above baron in the Demon Realm.

Being defeated by such a novice, even with allies, was enough to make him a laughingstock. It wasn’t just ridicule; losing his avatar also caused a significant power loss.

Forsis, who had been aiming to climb to rank 33, was demoted to rank 40. How much had he gritted his teeth over the past four years while recovering from his injuries?

However, meeting that human again as soon as he returned to the human realm made Forsis laugh.

“You wretch, I’ll break each and every one of your bones and suck out every last drop of your blood!”

He felt confident. Back then, various restrictions had prevented him from exhibiting even half of his true power.

But now?

The overflowing dark energy was enough for him to unleash his strength. Of course, it wouldn’t be as potent as in the Demon Realm.

‘Eighty percent of my power should be more than enough to handle you!’

It seemed like the human had improved his skills somewhat, but it was negligible. How much could he possibly have improved in just four years?

Forsis made a slight gesture with the expression of a satiated predator watching its caught prey.

“Die.”

Crack, whoosh!

The torrents of blood swirling around him turned into hundreds of sharp spears and shot towards Raul.

Bang! Rattatatat!

The weapon legion formed a barrier in front of Raul to block the spears.

‘Hmph. Pointless effort.’

When Forsis clenched his palm and added more force, the spears explosively multiplied, rapidly pushing against the weapon barrier. As soon as an opening appeared in the barrier, the spears shot out like lightning and struck Raul’s heart directly.

“It’s over… huh?”

Forsis tilted his head in confusion. His blood spears were sharp and unique attacks capable of piercing through aura blades of the same rank.

Although they looked like spears, the blood particles inside spun like saw blades, gnawing away at the opponent’s aura in an instant.

Even among other count-rank demons in the Demon Realm, none could withstand his spears head-on. So why did his spears feel like they were hitting nothing when they touched the human’s body?

“Well, I suppose I should thank you for that.”

Raul spoke calmly. Even with the blood spears touching his chest, Raul seemed completely unbothered.

“What do you mean?”

Forsis asked, baffled, as Raul smirked.

“I got a lot of inspiration from watching your techniques. And I realized something.”

Whirr!

As soon as Raul finished speaking, the blood spear touching his chest began to be ground away from the tip.

‘How… is that possible?’

Forsis’s eyes widened in shock. And that wasn’t the end of it.

Slice, shing!

Swoosh.

Five ordinary-looking swords sliced through the blood spears that were pushing against the weapon legion, cutting them into pieces. The severed spears reverted to blood and spilled onto the floor.

“Wh-what is this?”

Forsis hurriedly tried to reclaim the fallen blood, but for some reason, the blood didn’t move. Raul smiled as he saw the panic on Forsis’s face.

‘Whether it’s a power or a skill, the principle is always simple. It’s about imbuing an object with your own power to control it.’

In Forsis’s case, he imbued his dark energy into blood, controlling it as if it were his limbs. Blood was likely a more suitable vessel for his dark energy than other materials.

But what if someone else could also imbue power into blood?

‘Ultimately, it’s about who exhibits stronger dominance.’

Forsis hadn’t realized it, but Raul had used psychokinesis to push away the dark energy surrounding the blood. Then, he severed the connection using weapons imbued with holy power, and created a thin barrier over the blood to prevent more dark energy from seeping in.

In the end, such battles boiled down to who could more precisely and powerfully dominate their territory.

‘And that’s exactly what I’ve been focusing on training for the past few years.’

When Raul realized this, he was able to break through yet another barrier.

“If this is all you’ve got, it’s disappointing. Show me more of what you’ve got.”

“What!? How dare you, you insolent human, flap your mouth at me!”

Swoosh!

Bloody wings spread from Forsis’s back, and a whip made of blood appeared in his hand.

‘Now you’re serious about fighting. You’ll make a good test opponent.’

Forsis must have figured it out. That Raul had completely dominated the surrounding space. That’s why he resorted to using blood he had complete control over.

Swish.

Raul recalled all the weapons floating in midair. Only five long swords remained. But Forsis felt a chill run down his spine. Rather, as the number decreased, Forsis realized the immense power condensed within each of the long swords.

“Alright, let’s have some fun!”

At Raul’s gesture, the five swords emitted brilliant golden aura blades and attacked Forsis.

“Don’t make me laugh! I am Forsis, a Count of the Demon Realm! Do you think I’d fall to such trivial swords?”

Clang!

The golden aura melted the red blood in mid-air.

*

One of the red beams streaking across the void of the Connect dissipated.

‘Fourteen more to go.’

Raul gazed at the Mirage-like fading Demon God’s Temple and opened the guild communication channel.

「Report the status of each Demon God’s Temple. Especially detailed reports from the Pioneer Alliance and Earth Union Government!」

It seemed they needed to move more swiftly.

(To be continued)