Chapter 469
‘The Immortal Puppeteer.’
The ability to freely control countless clones and sweep across the battlefield.
Each clone could replicate up to 70% of the original’s power, making this undoubtedly the strongest ability a Homunculus could possess.
“What… what the hell is this absurd Unique Trait?”
Pellod stared blankly at the puppets filling his surroundings.
It wasn’t just their overwhelming numbers—the mana possessed by each individual puppet was beyond belief.
‘Being able to sustain this kind of power without any external medium… I’ve never heard of such a thing.’
…A strategic weapon capable of reshaping the hierarchy of the Tower.
Was that statement really just an exaggerated sales pitch?
Either way, staying here was dangerous.
His instincts, sharpened through countless battles, were screaming at him.
‘I have to get out of here.’
No matter how powerful an ability was, it couldn’t last forever.
For now, his priority was to escape and buy time.
Boom!
His mind raced with thoughts, but his decision was swift.
The Dark Horse instantly widened the distance and retreated.
However.
Creak—!
The puppets’ eyes all turned toward the direction Pellod had fled.
At the same time.
Whoosh!
The spears held by the leading puppets pierced the air.
Five spears soared in a high arc, cutting through the clouds before plummeting toward the ground.
“Damn it.”
Even as he ran, Pellod changed his horse’s course multiple times. Yet, the spears seemed to anticipate every possibility, tracking him relentlessly.
There was no escaping them.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
“Aaargh!”
“Neigh!”
Pellod and his Dark Horse were riddled with holes. His wounds immediately began regenerating, but an unbearable pain shot through his skull.
Tremble!
His hands and feet quivered uncontrollably.
“What… did you do to these spears?”
Having survived the harshest battles in the Demon Realm, he was used to enduring pain.
But this—this was on another level.
It was as if his veins were being seared by flames of varying intensities.
“The moment you’re pierced, the pain receptors in your body are maximized. It’s at least ten times worse than normal. The next spear will be twice as painful as this one.”
Frey explained in a calm, indifferent tone.
“If you want a painless death, it’s simple—just stop running. I’ll make it quick.”
That composed certainty in Frey’s voice only fueled Pellod’s rage.
“You damn puppet… I’ll kill you!”
[Pellod activates ‘Howling Serpent’ – the Spear of Cursed Bullets!]
The spear coiled like a serpent.
As the spiraling trajectory reached its peak—
Bang!
A slashing attack, impossible to predict, shot straight for Frey’s left chest.
Even if one could anticipate its speed, dodging was another matter entirely.
Thud!
The spear struck precisely, piercing the heart.
Droplets of blood dripped from the crimson spearhead.
It was a perfect strike—an undeniable killing blow.
But.
“Unit No. 7. Damage level: 53%. Acknowledged.”
The problem was that his finishing move hadn’t even reached the real body.
Eleven Homunculi were dedicated to guarding Frey.
“Remaining ten units, follow.”
Step.
Swoosh.
The rotating spears locked onto their prey.
Having already unleashed his strongest attack, Pellod had no means of escape.
From the beginning, he had intended to end this fight in a single decisive blow. That plan had now collapsed into despair.
Two spears accelerated.
Stab! Stab!
His left arm and right leg were skewered.
But that was only a prelude to the real attack.
“Mobility disabled.”
“Yes, this is enough.”
Rumble!
Two Homunculi standing at the rear interlocked their spears and began spinning them.
[Frey activates ‘Twin Spear Wave’!]
A rapid rotation infused with two different types of mana.
An attack carrying that much force was impossible to block.
Dodging from this range was just as unrealistic.
Death.
The word flashed through Pellod’s mind.
But.
“How dare you… how dare you look down on me, Pellod!”
He wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Dying without achieving anything? That was never an option.
Thud…!
Pellod leaped off his Dark Horse, hurling himself forward.
Throwing himself into the path of spinning spear blades was suicide.
It only made him an easier target.
But if he wasn’t planning to survive…
Then at the very least, he could land one final strike.
[Pellod activates ‘Biting Serpent’ – the Spear of Cursed Bullets!]
Among the decoys, he locked onto the real Frey.
This time, not even a shield could save him.
He wasn’t foolish enough to fall for the same trick twice.
“Die!”
Pellod took the incoming spears head-on and hurled his own.
At the same moment, Frey unleashed the fully charged Twin Spear Wave.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
A massive storm collided with thin but razor-sharp gales.
⁕ ⁕ ⁕
Thud!
Stab!
A gruesome, fleshy squelch echoed.
Both attacks had landed.
Drip… Drip.
Blood dripped from Pellod’s lips.
His heart had been destroyed—he wouldn’t last much longer.
“At least… I won’t be dying alone… Hah. Serves you right…”
A twisted smile formed on Pellod’s face as he looked at Frey.
Frey had also been pierced through the heart by the spear.
Or so he thought.
“Sorry, but… you’re the only one dying.”
Unscathed, Frey stepped forward from within the formation of Homunculi.
“How…? There’s no way I mistook your mana…”
He was certain he had locked onto the real one.
Even at the very moment of impact, the target had been the true body, not a clone.
Unless…
A single terrifying possibility flashed through Pellod’s fading consciousness.
“You can… transfer your consciousness… between them?”
Not just controlling eleven Homunculi—but the ability to shift his consciousness between the original and his clones.
If that was true, then everything suddenly made sense.
It had been a desperate, all-or-nothing gamble.
Yet, even that had failed.
“Even the gods… can’t destroy this being?”
A hollow laugh escaped Pellod’s lips.
Even if he were given another chance…
He had no idea where to even begin countering this monster.
Thud!
Pellod collapsed on the spot.
‘At least… I slowed him down a little… right…?’
Frey gazed toward the distant fortress.
At the heart of the stronghold, where violent torrents of mana clashed.
A place where the one person he wished happiness for resided.
⁕ ⁕ ⁕
‘This is unbelievably sweet.’
Jinhyuk smacked his lips as he checked his latest gains.
Marking Behemoth with the Brand of Fiery Loyalty and copying her Unique Ability had been a major success.
However, the real prize might have been something else entirely—the mana stones consumed by Goguma and the spirit beasts during the recent Devour battle.
Goguma’s potential had always surpassed that of other ancient species.
Even compared to Behemoth, one of the Apocalypse, Goguma’s growth potential was on a completely different level.
—
[Goguma]
Level: 166 → 206
Strength: 110 → 130
Agility: 145 → 165
Stamina: 125 → 145
Mana: 205 → 265
Draconic Power: 140 → 250
—
A staggering 40-level increase.
On top of that, the additional stats gained from devouring the mana stones far exceeded the standard level-up boosts.
Draconic Power, a unique stat for dragonkind, was independent of level-ups.
Even Fried had achieved an increase of over 30 levels in this battle.
Next…
Jinhyuk activated the Coin Exchange.
Ding!
A vast list of items and goods filled his interface.
There were a few things he needed to buy.
Using the search function, he quickly filtered out the most efficient options.
—
[Purchased Items]
– ‘Shylock’s Proposal (A)’ – 5,300,000 Coins
– ‘Jewel of Blood (A)’ – 2,500,000 Coins
– ‘Tattered Glass of a Low-Rank Administrator (D)’ × 100 – 1,500 Coins each
– ‘Fog of Beltman Harbor – 5-Minute Duration (C)’ – 57,500 Coins
—
He swept through the marketplace like a storm.
The prices were steep, but now wasn’t the time to be stingy with coins.
‘This is exactly why I saved up all this time.’
Jinhyuk carefully stored his newly acquired items in his Subspace Inventory.
By now, they should be arriving soon…
The moment the thought crossed his mind—
BOOM!
With a deafening crash, a winged angel descended before him.
“I finally found you.”
Gabriel greeted him with a gentle smile.
And in her arms—
“Put me down! This is disgraceful in front of my contractor!”
Alice struggled furiously.
Beside them, a certain succubus hummed a cheerful tune.
“I shook things up just like you asked. It wasn’t that hard since Gabriel was so cooperative.”
“Hmm. For an angel, you weren’t half bad.”
“Fufu. Right? Our goals aligned quite well. And the conversation was interesting, too.”
That… was unexpected.
There should have been zero common ground between them.
How in the world did a vampire, a succubus, and an angel end up on the same page?
Honestly, he had expected their meeting to be a complete disaster.
“There are things men just don’t need to understand.”
“Exactly! The Contractor doesn’t need to know!”
“More importantly, we should hurry. You might not realize it, but somewhere in this fortress lies the Sealing Stone imprisoning the Demon King. If Guntafer activates it…”
“I already know. And I know exactly where it is.”
“What…?”
Gabriel’s eyes widened.
It was no surprise—Eden itself hadn’t been able to pinpoint its exact location.
But by now, Frey should have already stopped the activation.
There was no way the remnants inside the fortress could stop a Homunculus.
‘Master and Pudalak’s side seems to be holding up as well…’
Jinhyuk’s gaze shifted.
From afar, he could sense two familiar mana signatures wreaking havoc.
For what had merely been bait, they were doing a hell of a lot better than expected.
As expected—The Dark Emperor of the Heavenly Demon Cult and the barbarian king drenched in sweat weren’t the kind to go down easily.
Gabriel’s accompanying archangels were also skillfully engaging in a war of attrition.
Overall, the battle was turning into something quite manageable.
‘If I push straight into his main base, wipe out the sacred relics and supplies… Berial’s domain will collapse on its own.’
After that, he just needed to slowly chip away at Guntafer’s key strongholds.
The stairway to victory was finally beginning to take shape.
Clank.
Jinhyuk gripped a pair of daggers.
“Let’s go.”
It was time to drive the final nail into this fight.
But at that very moment—
From high above in the distant sky—
A single silent flash of light descended.
—
[The Demon King of Predation has manifested.]
—
A crimson status window flickered, signaling an event that could overturn everything.