After Ten Millennia in Hell

'I'm sinking.'

He could suddenly feel himself sinking into the bottomless darkness.

'This is…'

He narrowed his eyes.

The first thought that crossed his mind was that he was in the deepest layer of the Ten Thousand Demon Core—the world that was full of demonic energy from the Abyss.

"…"

He remained silent and shook his head.

'No.'

It wasn't a grandiose world like that—it was a simple dream, a fleeting illusion.

'Could it be… a lucid dream?'

He wasn't sure. He often had short dreams when he slept, but for some reason, this dream felt quite real.

'Ah…'

Something became visible amidst the darkness—a memory of the past. The memories of what he'd gone through in Hell went past his eyes like a panorama.

Squelch.

He heard the wriggling of something dripping in mucus.

'What was that?'

He turned his head. Something sloppy stretched out from the darkness and wrapped around his body.

'Kuh.'

He twisted around and drew out his demonic energy to use an Authority, but…

'Kurgh!'

It wasn't the real world. It was simply a dream. He had no demonic energy or Authority, and the place was really just a pure dream.

Squish.

Something viscous bound his body.

'This is…'

It was a familiar texture—the source of his deep trauma.

'Why… is this…'

He couldn't think straight. The tentacles slithered into every single one of his orifices as if they were trying to cut off his consciousness.

It was a horrible nightmare—a fragment of the past he didn't want to remember.

The darkness split, and eighteen red eyes appeared.

A woman's laugh filled the entire space.

'A-Aaaahh.'

He struggled and frantically swung his arms and legs. He screamed like a madman, but no sound left his mouth. The light was exterminated from the darkness.

Crush.

Something broke.

Deeper and deeper he went.

"Aaaaaaaaaahhh!!!"

He threw aside the blanket and stood up. His entire body was covered in cold sweat. His clothes were unpleasantly stuck to his skin.

"Huff, huff."

He panted heavily, raised his head, and looked around. He saw a familiar room.

"Wh-What the hell?" Kang-Woo mumbled while wiping off the sweat trickling down to his chin.

It was a crazily realistic dream.

He had been forced to recall the memories of Hell that he had been forgetting after returning to his life on Earth.

'Shit.'

He closed his eyes and tried to erase the unsettling memory from his head.

"Haaa…"

He couldn't help but sigh. For some reason, he really wanted to see Han Seol-Ah.

'If only there had been a woman like Seol-Ah in Hell.'

No, if Lilith had looked like how people imagined a succubus…

'It would have been a bit better.'

Appearance was important, and it wasn't a matter of being beautiful or not. At least, one shouldn't have eighteen eyes and a body covered by tentacles that oozed pus.

Both humans and demons primarily relied on sight to sense the world around them.

'If there had been at least one beautiful woman, maybe life in Hell wouldn't have been so bad.'

He laughed in disbelief at the thought that crossed his mind.

To be honest, it was an unsightly and vulgar thought, even for him.

But what could he do?

Although it was a vulgar thought, he had needed something that could act as a way to give him peace of mind.

'Only people who don't watch porn can throw stones at me.'

Desiring someone of the opposite sex was a natural human instinct. He wasn't trying to deny that.

"Well… Hell is just that kind of place."

He had no reason to blame Lilith. All demons in Hell looked like that, so there was nothing she could've done about it.

'Besides, it's all in the past.'

Still, remembering his life in Hell made him tremble as if he were about to have a seizure.

Kang-Woo shook his head and raised his blanket.

"Fufufu."

As soon as he raised his blanket, there was…

"You will be going to hunt Halcyon today, correct? I sneaked into your room at night to give you strength, my king."

Hehe.

Lilith cutely stuck out her tongue while smiling brightly. Nine of her eighteen eyes winked at him. The green tentacles that he had seen in his dream were wrapped around him.

"A-Aaaahh."

Kang-Woo lowered his head while covering his face with his two hands.

A desperate cry leaked from his mouth.

The nightmare… wasn't over yet.

* * *

[You seem tired, my king.]

"… Be quiet," Kang-Woo replied to Balrog wearily.

He did not have the mental capacity to give a proper answer due to the horrible act that he had suffered early in the morning.

"That aside, are you ready?" Kang-Woo said while shaking his head as if trying to brush off the nightmare.

Balrog smiled.

[There is nothing to get ready for in particular.]

Balrog flexed his arm as if he were bragging about his bulging muscles. Kang-Woo smirked.

'It's being restricted.'

Thanks to Lilith's speedy measures, not a single person was in sight near the Gate located in Florida, USA.

[Halcyon…]

Balrog's expression hardened while he thought about what was beyond the Gate. He was exuding a sense of anxiety.

"What? Are you nervous about fighting an ancient demonic beast?"

Kang-Woo tilted his head while looking at Balrog, who was not acting like himself. Although they'd never fought against an ancient demonic beast, seeing Balrog so nervous was rare.

[Haaa.]

Balrog sighed.

[It is because of Halcyon's hideous looks… I am not afraid of fighting it, but I would rather not see that disgusting appearance again.]

"…"

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes at what Balrog had said.

"You've seen Halcyon before?"

If that weren't the case, Balrog saying he would rather not see it again would make no sense.

[… Yes.]

Balrog nodded while making a heavy expression.

[It was… about nine hundred years ago. We happened across Halcyon's territory while I was surveying the area with my subordinates. I was able to see it back then.]

"Wait, nine hundred years ago?"

If it was nine hundred years ago, it was after Kang-Woo had met Balrog and begun working together. He flipped through his memories but didn't recall Balrog ever reporting that he had encountered Halcyon.

"Why didn't you report it?"

[Ah…] he mumbled in a low voice.

Reporting to your superior was one of the musts of a subordinate; purposefully omitting something in a report on purpose was serious enough to call for execution.

[M-My apologies, my king!]

Balrog noticed he'd made a mistake. He quickly lowered his head.

Kang-Woo scratched his head while looking at Balrog, who seemed like he was about to disembowel himself at any second.

"No, I'm not trying to blame you or anything. I was just curious."

Although omitting to report was a grave crime, it was nine hundred years ago.

There was no need to punish him at that point.

'But why did he do it?'

There was no way Balrog would omit to report for no reason. Considering his personality, there was a chance it was for a very important reason.

[Well…] Balrog sighed. [It was because of how hideous it was.]

"…"

[You had been swamped with work back then, so I did not want to bother you with such a hideous being…]

Kang-Woo frowned.

It was too weak of an excuse.

'Well, I guess it makes sense considering the situation back then.'

If it occurred nine hundred years ago, it was when the conflict with the princes of Hell was gradually rising. Ancient demonic beasts didn't leave their territory, so Kang-Woo didn't have the leeway to bother with them at the time.

'It's making me even more curious now.'

Just how hideous was Halcyon for Balrog to react this way?

Kang-Woo looked at the gate with great interest.

"Let's go."

[I-I will pay for this crime with my li—]

"Enough of that."

He gave Balrog's leg a light kick and began walking. As he crossed the Gate, an immense jungle appeared before him.

"…"

The thick scent of blood wafted into his nose.

"It sure has been going on a rampage."

He saw the mangled corpses of monsters throughout the dense forest.

'Looks about right.'

It was an ancient demonic beast. Since a monster that could face a prince of Hell had appeared in a Gate, it would be nothing short of a disaster for the Gate's monsters.

One of the characteristics of a demonic beast was building a territory, so it had likely killed every single monster that it could see in the area.

[My king.]

"I know."

Kang-Woo drew out his demonic energy, preparing himself so that he could use an Authority at any moment.

Balrog also raised his fists and drew out his demonic energy.

Clack.

Black armor formed around his fists. It looked as if a western knight was wearing gauntlets.

This was the Overlord Armor that Balrog had newly acquired.

"… Come to think of it, are you not using your whip?"

[It does not suit the Overlord Armor very well, so I have mostly been using my fists recently.]

"Hmm."

Kang-Woo nodded.

It was true that Balrog's main weapon was the whip, but that didn't mean he wasn't good at bare-handed combat.

'I'm sure he'll take care of it on his own.'

Just like he couldn't give martial arts advice to Kim Si-Hun, the same applied to Balrog.

Balrog was already a perfect warrior. If he had made a decision as important as abandoning his main weapon, it was likely the correct decision.

Sniff… Sniff.

At that moment, Kang-Woo heard the sound of someone crying in the forest. He created a sword with the Authority of Blades.

"Over there."

He felt powerful demonic energy in the direction of the crying. He slowly walked toward the voice.

'Halcyon.'

The demon that looked so hideous that it made even demons convulse in shock…

Kang-Woo hacked away at the thickets while thinking about what it could look like.

'It doesn't matter.'

It didn't matter how disgusting it looked. There were no hopes or dreams in Hell. He'd already seen the worst of the worst in Hell in terms of hideous beings.

Even if it looked like it had been made by attaching many different corpses, he was sure he could eat it with the Authority of Predation while smiling.

'Now, then… show yourself.'

Kang-Woo extended the blade and slashed apart the vines obstructing his vision.

There, he saw…

"…"

[Kuh! As hideous as always!]

Balrog clenched his fists while grimacing. Kang-Woo stared at Halcyon with his mouth agape.

"Sniff, sniff."

A white-haired woman was crying. There were bat wings on her back, two horns on her forehead, and a long wiggling tail coming out of the area near her buttocks.

And she was blindingly… chillingly… beautiful.

"Balrog…"

Kang-Woo trembled.

Halcyon was so beautiful that she sent chills through Kang-Woo's body. Honestly, Han Seol-Ah and Echidna were no match for her.

If he had to make a comparison… she looked exactly how people would often imagine a succubus.

"Motherfucker."

All those years he'd spent in Hell passed through his mind like a panorama. Forget a woman, he couldn't even see a real person. The wife he got was Lilith. He cried every night while tentacles harassed him. The place was so barren and empty with absolutely no form of entertainment.

He had endured through all that, but… but…

"A-Aaaahh."

He grabbed his head.

"You've seen Halcyon before?"

"Yes."

"A-Arrgghh."

"Why didn't you report it?"

"You…"

"It was because of how hideous it was."

"Motherfuckeeeeeeeeeer!!!!!"

Tears poured down Kang-Woo's cheeks.

"Why didn't you report it, motherfuckeeeeeeeeeer?!!!!"