Game of Divine Thrones

Chapter 163: Othello 2

“It’s the Demon King ranked 63rd.”

63 was just one rank below Volak’s rank.

Woohyuk nodded at Amii’s words.

"I'm going to capture him first."

If the 72 Demon Kings were sealed in Lemegeton, they would become his vassals.

Therefore, it was better to capture Andras first, as he was weaker than the other two, and use him during the battles against the other demon kings.

In other words, it was kind of like a game of Othello.

In order to win, he had to flip as many black discs as possible.

'In Othello, the larger the board, the more discs one could flip.'

Although it would be difficult to seal the demon kings at first, in the future, he wouldn’t have to step up personally to deal with the demon kings of lower ranks to capture them.

Therefore, this crisis could be called a blessing in a certain way.

After taking measures to prevent Andras from starting the game himself, Woohyuk added his name on the waiting list for the tournament matches.

Amii’s jaw dropped in amazement when she saw that.

“D-did you gain control of these ruins?”

She had been waiting outside the pyramid in the Golden Desert all this time, so she wasn’t aware of Woohyuk’s conversations with the White Ghost King.

She merely thought this place was the surveillance room for a torture facility.

“It’s just a temporary authority. Anyways, let's begin now.”

The second stage was a tournament match.

While he fought Andras, the other demon kings would also be dueling.

If Woohyuk spent too much time on Andras, the others would advance and transfer to the third stage.

When Woohyuk pressed the ‘initiate’ button, his name was connected to Andras’.

A message appeared before his eyes saying that his match was ready.

Before long, the surrounding space turned white and he found himself in the second stage, the Colosseum.

'I should duel the other demon kings using this method as well.'

The interface was pretty intuitive, so even if it was his first time manipulating the stage, he could handle the system without much difficulty.

After swiping away the message, Woohyuk stared at Andras.

“I have been waiting for you, Andras.”

“You, aren’t you…?!”

Andras was evidently flabbergasted by Woohyuk’s appearance.

The owner of Lemegeton’s appearance was already known to all the 72 Demon Kings thanks to the demon world’s information network.

And Andras was well aware that he couldn't deal with Woohyuk in a one-on-one battle.

Volak and Amii, who were higher ranked than him, were defeated by Woohyuk even though they had a detailed masterplan.

“I will not treat you badly if you allow yourself to be sealed in Lemegeton obediently.”

“D-don’t make me laugh! I won't be your slave!”

Andras cursed and summoned Nezark, his exclusive weapon.

He would not go down without a fight.

Woohyuk clicked his tongue and read Andras’ status window.

[Andras, Demon King Ranked 63rd]

-Class: Demon King (Baron)

-Traits: Leadership (20,000), Nezark (exclusive weapon, rapidly freezes the target when pierced and imprints an ice crystal stigma on the target. When the opponent is incapacitated, you can control his body as you wish), Imaginary Lake (Finds the target’s trauma by reading through his memory, and shows it to the target. If that destroys the opponent's mind, you can control them at will), Mobilization (opens an abyssal portal and summons the monster in your territory), Demon King’s Dignity (Immune against B-grade or lower weapons, as well as low or intermediate magic. Increases immunity to debuffs by 35%), Master/Slave Contract (As a demon king, can accept vassals)

-Stats

Strength 368

Vitality 372

Agility 354

Intelligence 297

Spirit 376

'His characteristics are exactly as I remember.'

He had already battled Andras in the past.

The things to beware of when fighting him were his one-handed spear Nezark that inflicted a freezing debuff, and the Imaginary Lake that trapped opponents in an imaginary world.

The Imaginary Lake could inflict fatal damage if one did not properly understand his own weaknesses.

'I've already experienced enough imaginary worlds back in the Memory Garden.’

At that time, his unconscious fear of the Demon God's power was the cause of the problem.

But now, he was fully prepared. He had nothing to fear even if Andras activated his imaginary world and made a mental attack.

"I understand now. You're the kind of person who needs to be beaten to a pulp to understand your position.”

Woohyuk moved his finger to give himself the best possible buff in the system.

[You have received the White Ghost King's Fury buff. It will be effective for 10 minutes.]

[All stats increased by 150.]

[Immunity against abnormal conditions increased by 150%.]

[Damage to hostile targets increased by 150%.]

[Health recovery speed increased by 150%.]

[Magic recovery speed increased by 150%.]

Since he was not the White Ghost King, it seemed like there was a limit to the increase in stats he could give himself.

And maybe it was because the stage was low-levelled.

However, this buff alone was more than enough to achieve his purpose, so Woohyuk wasn’t very dissatisfied.

“Hah...!”

Andras realized that the situation was terrible for him and stabbed Nezark into the sandy floor.

Then, the surrounding landscape instantly crumbled and turned into a gorgeous bedroom.

'I haven’t seen this imaginary world before.'

He could see a naked Helena lying in the bed with him.

She whispered in his ear with a mesmerizing smile.

“If you keep working so hard, you will eventually be devoured by the Demon God’s power. So, forget everything for tonight and enjoy the night with me.”

“…”

Woohyuk stared at Helena silently.

Then, he reached out to the transparent container on the table and took out a lemon jelly.

“Oh, are you going to feed me one?”

“Yes, put it in your mouth and stay quiet, Ms. Witch of Profanity.”

When Woohyuk put the lemon jelly in her mouth, Helena struggled in confusion.

“Y-you…!”

“I’m bored of arguing with you now. Just teach me Rosa Eterna.”

In the first place, he didn't like the idea of her controlling him because of the prophetic book she had read.

Woohyuk summoned Verserios and slashed Helena in half vertically.

Then, a black rift appeared along the blade’s trajectory and the surrounding landscape crumbled.

As he exited through the rift, he saw Andras with a deep cut on his side, dripping black blood.

“Kuk…! Damn it...!”

"Did you think I'd be affected by a psychological attack this weak?

For the past 40 years, he had seen the deaths of his loved ones in numerous imaginary worlds.

He kept encountering undesirable futures.

However, he was able to overcome all his fears because he had the conviction that he would not be shaken under any circumstances.

As Woohyuk glared at him with his cold eyes, Andras shivered.

'I’m not his match...’

However, he didn’t want to be sealed within Lemegeton no matter what. Even death sounded like a better choice.

It hadn't even been long since he had opened my eyes after his long hibernation period, but this time he would be trapped in a magic book.

Andras hated being bound by someone more than anything, and decided to struggle to the end.

Stab!

The ice-attribute spear buried itself into the ground again.

Then the surroundings quickly froze and a strong blizzard began to blow.

“You still haven’t realized your position here.”

Woohyuk clenched his left fist.

Afterwards, he suddenly disappeared and his fist immediately popped up before Andras’ eyes.

Thump!

Woohyuk's left fist flew out and struck Andras in the face.

His movements were so fast that Andras couldn't respond at all.

He could only fly back and fall to the ground due to the impact.

“Urgh…!!!”

“That’s going to hurt for a while. My fist was infused with the former Demon God’s energy.”

Woohyuk was now able to manipulate demonic energy like internal energy to some extent.

As he looked down at the pathetic demon crawling on the ground, Andras cried out in tears.

“Save me, Astaroth…!!”

Thud!

Thump thump!

Wham thwack boom!

Woohyuk's ruthless kicks continuously struck Andras.

His power was beyond imagination, so Andras passed out as foam formed in his mouth.

“If you act in a stupid manner, your body will suffer…”

Woohyuk clicked his tongue and opened Lemegeton.

Then, Andras turned into black energy and was sucked into it.

“One down. Two to go.”

Next was Orobas' turn.

While looking at the waiting list, Woohyuk summoned the three demon kings of the Ars Nova circle.

“A remarkable victory, Lord Asura.”

“What are you talking about, Amii?”

“This place looks like the arena where we fought Ivanov earlier.”

Volak and Dantalion were guarding the entrance to the 5th floor’s pyramid while Amii was watching Woohyuk from the control room on the 2nd floor.

Woohyuk briefly explained his plan and told them to get ready to battle Orobas.

“Orobas ranks 55th, so don’t look down on him too much. Attack him together and don’t let your guard down.”

He was strong enough to face Orobas on his own, but he had summoned the three Demon Kings to get them used to battles against other demon kings.

In Andras’ case, his rank was too low, so he didn’t bother having them fight him.

Before long, the three demon kings took their battle stances in their positions, and Orobas’ name appeared on the waiting list.

Woohyuk matched Orobas with himself, and soon enough...

Swoosh!

A black magic circle spread on the ground on the other side of the arena, and a young man with purple hair appeared from thin air .

"Hm…? You are…?!”

Orobas reacted like Andras.

He had never imagined he would meet Woohyuk in a place like this.

“Nice to meet you, Orobas.”

“…Did you come here to get the Sangreal Chronicles?”

"Indeed. And while I'm here, I plan to capture you as well.”

Woohyuk was suggesting to surrender before fighting.

He was trying to save time, as he also had to seal Astaroth.

But Orobas snickered.

“Don’t make me laugh. Do you think the demon world will become yours just because you defeated a few low-ranking demon kings?”

“Amii is not particularly different from you in terms of rank.”

“…It’s because she’s a bitch. Women should be managing monsters in dungeons. That’s where they belong. Even if her rank is quite high, she must’ve acted emotionally and probably couldn’t use her full strength.”

It was quite a sexist remark.

Amii was fuming with fury and stared at Orobas.

“What did you just say? That’s funny, coming from someone who was almost killed by an ordinary high-ranking demon!”

“…I was injured from a battle against a Paladin back then. Loengreen was lucky.”

It was quite famous that Loengreen fought against Orobas in resentment over the death of Trinity Knights Commander Roland.

As Orobas made an excuse, the silent Dantalion coughed and intervened in the conversation.

“Hmm... Let's not lie to ourselves, Lord Orobas. Loengreen wasn’t the one who was lucky, it was you. Didn’t you summon your vassals back then because you were about to lose the battle against him?”

“Tha, that’s nonsense!”

Orobas' face was a hot reminder.

Volak watched him and shook his head.

“A Demon King was pushed back in a battle against a high-ranking demon and had to mobilize his vassals. You are the disgrace of the demon world.”

“Shut up! I don't want to hear that from you two!

Orobas screamed, denying the truth.

At that time, a black portal appeared in the air, and a silver-haired man with golden eyes appeared before everyone.

The demon kings were astonished as they recognized him.

“A-Astaroth!”