*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
Every time a shell landed, a demon died.
Whenever an Abyssal Claw moved, a demon’s head fell.
When a Walker’s jaws snapped shut, a demon’s torso was crushed.
They were helpless against the Apocalid World and Demonic Energy Suppression deployed by the Central Command Giant.
Soon, the demons began to flee.
The front lines collapsed as the Demons of Ruin turned their backs, even at the cost of losing Demonic Energy.
“Don’t let a single one escape.”
Choi Kangjoong had no intention of sparing any demon.
The Fighter Giants quickly flew out and fired their Chitin Cannons.
*Thump! Thump!*
Chitin Spikes, large as utility poles, embedded themselves into the demons’ bodies.
Parasites emerging from the spikes burrowed beneath the demons’ skin.
These large, powerful parasites instantly tore through muscle and gnawed on bone.
The demons howled in agony as Walkers grabbed their legs and dragged them away.
Long streaks of handprints were left on the ground by the struggling demons.
It didn’t take long for all the demons to be cleared out.
Not a single one of the bloodthirsty demons that had filled the land remained.
Choi Kangjoong stepped out of the Gate.
Elves, humans, and Metra waved their hands wildly at him.
Seeing them unharmed made Kangjoong feel a sense of pride.
Just then, the Fleet Review began.
It was an event showcasing every dimension ship owned by the Derael family.
First to appear were the Grass-class dimension ships, similar in size to the Titan-class Apocalids.
They were the most numerous, small, and agile, used for purposes similar to Light Titans.
Their appearance resembled wide blades of grass.
Next came the Sapling-class and Tree-class.
The Sapling-class was similar in size to a fully grown Titan, while the Tree-class was as large as a Super Titan.
After them were the Spirit Tree-class ships.
The *Divine Arrow*, a dimension ship comparable to a well-grown Super Titan, belonged to this class.
It was originally an Elemental-class, but Serad had passed that title down to the dimension ship he built.
Flagships from other families appeared alongside them.
Finally, there was the dimension ship Iselin had named *Life Spirit*.
It was her new flagship and Marsala’s largest, most powerful battleship, infused with Metra’s technological prowess.
A giant screen showed Iselin and Serad briefly introducing the *Life Spirit*.
Choi Kangjoong found it a bit cringeworthy and hurried down to the ground.
Hiding in a deserted area, he called for Arthil.
Hearing light footsteps, Arthil and the Elf knights approached him.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, Outer, we have captured everyone who escaped.”
“There’s no more danger, right?”
“Yes. I apologize for interrupting your trip.”
“Killing demons was the plan anyway.”
“The Queen was very pleased. She said everything ended well.”
Choi Kangjoong wasn’t used to Arthil calling her the Queen.
It felt strange.
Back when he was a shut-in, he never imagined he would get close to an Elf who was a member of the Great Council, a High Elf, and the head of a massive family.
“What about EEE?”
“We will capture them all and sentence them to life imprisonment or execution.”
Arthil displayed a rare flash of anger.
It was an expression she rarely showed in front of Kangjoong.
“While you enjoy your trip, Outer, we will proceed with the dissolution of EEE. May we ask for your help when we execute the plan?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you. I will take you to where your family is waiting.”
Kangjoong followed Arthil and soon reunited with his family.
“Is it all over?” Yoo Haein asked.
“It’s all done.”
“That’s a relief. I was shocked, thinking something big had happened again. If this keeps happening, we won’t even be able to go outside.”
“They’re going to catch all the ringleaders, so this won’t happen again.”
“I hope they’re all caught and punished soon. Why would they do such a thing? I don’t understand.”
“It’s only natural not to understand those whose heads have turned,” Choi Jooyoung said.
Yoo Haein nodded.
As they walked through the streets of Deraellan, Choi Yunseo whispered to him, away from their parents.
“Brother, you knew, didn’t you?”
“Knew what?”
“That the Gate was going to open.”
“I didn’t.”
“You clearly looked like you knew. You should have given me a heads-up. Then I could have helped, or Mom and Dad wouldn’t have been so anxious.”
“They said if I told you, every Hunter in South Korea would find out.”
“Who said that?” Yunseo reacted as if she were about to jump.
“Those people over there.”
Kangjoong pointed to the flying Elf knights.
The Derael emblem was prominently displayed on their chests.
“My lips are sealed! Wait. So that means you did know. Right?”
“Nope.”
Kangjoong teased Yunseo with a blunt lie.
—
The Coronation ended without incident, just as Arthil had promised.
The massacre that almost occurred during the demon invasion was framed as a show planned by Iselin.
It was halfway true.
She had known about it and left the demon extermination to Choi Kangjoong.
Immediately after the Coronation, an emergency meeting of the Elf Great Council was convened.
The agenda was the immediate arrest and unlimited tracking of all EEE participants.
Since not all Elves in the Great Council were integrationists like Iselin, it would normally have been difficult to pass.
However, this time, no one could object.
The justification was clear: they had tried to ruin the Coronation of a High Elf.
Opposing this meant facing the direct wrath of Iselin, the youngest High Elf, and potentially facing retaliation against their children and even grandchildren.
Furthermore, Enrique—the father of Denzil, the man who led the demon invasion—actively supported Iselin’s motion.
Even as an Elf supremacist, he could not tolerate bringing in demons.
Masa of Ardecon, Derael’s rival family, had no choice but to agree as well.
To keep Eleanor off the list of EEE participants, he had to concede many things in addition to his vote.
Iselin’s agenda passed unanimously, and a pursuit force was immediately formed.
The pursuit force, composed of knights from various families and backed by the Great Council’s resolution, wielded absolute power.
While it wasn’t never used to remove political rivals, they cooperatively focused on catching EEE members whenever Derael’s knights were watching.
Once the Great Council set their minds to it, the EEE members hiding in Marsala were eradicated in an instant.
Denzil, no longer under his family’s protection, fled in the middle of the night.
An enraged Enrique sent almost all of his family’s dimension ships and knights to capture him.
However, Denzil escaped to the Demon Realm through a secret gate network constructed by Disorder.
Several brave knights crossed the Gate, but none returned.
Enrique then asked Iselin to capture Denzil.
Out of all the families in Marsala, her power was currently the strongest, and above all, she had the Outer Mind by her side.
“You really are terrible at managing your child.”
Sitting in the reception room of Iselin’s mansion, Enrique’s face turned red at her sarcasm.
He could have made excuses for EEE’s terrorism, but opening a Gate full of demons was indefensible.
“You should have reined him in sooner. You watched him run wild in EEE, and now this happens.”
“…”
“Just how much of a delinquent was he to try and ruin my Coronation as a High Elf?”
“I’m sorry… It’s my fault for failing to manage him.”
Having heard what she wanted, Iselin got to the point.
“You need the Outer Mind’s strength.”
“He’s the only one who can capture the boy who fled to the Demon Realm.”
“I’ll ask him. But you don’t expect him to do it for free, do you?”
“I will provide all necessary support and a generous reward.”
“It’s better to move in a small group in the Demon Realm, so we don’t need support. Spend that money on increasing the Outer Mind’s reward instead.”
“Understood.”
Iselin finished the negotiations in a way that maximized the benefit for Choi Kangjoong.
The total reward was 50 billion won, with a down payment of 10 billion won.
Once Enrique left, Iselin asked Kangjoong to come to her office.
Kangjoong, who had been watching EEE fall while eating popcorn in his room, went to Iselin’s office.
“So the demon invasion was planned by an Elf named Denzil, and he’s fled to the Demon Realm?”
“Yes. So Councilor Enrique has requested Denzil’s capture. If he’s hard to capture alive, he wants the body brought back.”
“And I keep the 10 billion even if I fail?”
“Of course. Will you do it?”
“I have to. He’s the guy who tried to ruin the Queen’s Coronation.”
Iselin chuckled.
“I’ll give you the coordinates to the Gate Denzil crossed. I’m counting on you.”
“I’ll bring him back in no time.”
—
Choi Kangjoong opened a Gate to the coordinates Iselin provided and stepped through.
In a place with thick vegetation, knights from the Averil family, Enrique’s family, were gathered.
“Are you the Outer?” asked a middle-aged Elf knight.
“That’s right.”
“This is the Gate the traitor who conspired with the demons passed through.”
The Elf knight lifted a hanging branch.
There was a small Gate that required crawling to pass through.
“Thirty men went through, but none have returned.”
The Elf knight’s lips quivered.
Kangjoong sensed what he wanted to say.
“I’ll try to save them if I can.”
“Thank you…!”
The moved Elf knight bowed politely.
Kangjoong donned his Chitin Armor and activated Space Severance of the Origin.
The Elf knights were amazed as Kangjoong’s appearance and presence faded before their eyes.
Kangjoong crawled through the Gate.
The other side of the Gate was a dark, damp cave.
Once he stood up, he walked through while scanning his surroundings with Apocalid Vision.
The path was a straight line, so he soon reached the exit.
At the cave’s entrance, there was a faint smell of blood.
Demons and magic beasts were hidden everywhere in the vicinity.
They had erased their presence with powerful Chaos Magic, making them difficult to find for anyone who wasn’t a High Elf.
‘It’s a trap.’
The Elf knights who had crossed the Gate clearly hadn’t made it far from the cave entrance before they were all killed.
Kangjoong followed the scent of blood.
After walking for about 5 minutes, he came across a pile of armor.
All of it was damaged or bloodstained.
The emblem of the Averil family was drawn on the chest pieces.
Counting the torso pieces, there were thirty.
‘They’re all dead.’
Kangjoong told himself he would avenge them after finding Denzil, then floated into the air.
There was a city 10 kilometers away.
Since it was the nearest settlement to the cave, Denzil was likely there.
Kangjoong summoned a Central Stealth Scout.
The Central Stealth Scout activated its Active Camouflage, blending into the surroundings as it moved toward the city.
Kangjoong followed slowly.
The areas detected by the Central Stealth Scout brightened as if a fog were lifting.
‘Where would Denzil be?’
Arriving in the sky above the city, Kangjoong pondered.
The city looked large enough to house 300,000 people.
It would take quite some time to find the hidden Denzil.
‘But do I really need to stay hidden and search for him?’
Kangjoong, who had been thinking of a stealth action game, realized it wasn’t necessary.
In the Apocalid way, if he simply consumed everything, the Elf named Denzil would eventually pop out.
“This is all nutrients and Evolution Points anyway. I might as well eat it all while looking for Denzil.”
Kangjoong opened a Gate while summoning Giants and Warriors.
The Walkers that had been slumbering inside Kuongi and the Super Titans woke up and crossed the Gate.
From the Gate opened in the sky above the demon city, Walkers poured out like a waterfall.