Bersha was awake even in the deep dawn.
It was because she hadn’t been able to carry out the task Count Karug had entrusted to her—gaining Choi Kangjoong’s favor.
But Bersha hadn’t even exchanged words with him a few times. She couldn’t bring herself to wake him while he slept.
Sierra approached her. Sierra was a cool-looking handsome man, so starting a conversation was easy. Even using his unique affability, he couldn’t find out the inside story.
Bersha didn’t know exactly what kind of power Choi Kangjoong possessed. She didn’t even guess that he could destroy an entire world. Since she came from a world on the opposite side of the Enterprise Union, getting proper information was like picking stars from the sky.
She only thought of Choi Kangjoong as a hero from a world that had fought fiercely against the Demon Realm. And that he would likely be defeated soon.
The Demon Realm Bersha had seen was an overwhelmingly powerful force that no world could defeat.
So Sierra’s subtle persuasion was useless. It only heightened Bersha’s vigilance, as she bore the lives of one million people.
He tried offering her alcohol, but it only made Bersha leave her seat.
‘What should I do?’
Even though he wanted to help, he didn’t know where to start or what to do.
Sierra returned with a frustrated heart.
“Any results?”
“None at all.”
“It’s only natural she doesn’t trust us. What now?”
“I’m going to ask the other servants.”
“Go ahead. I’ll keep an eye on Lady Dielka.”
“What about the others?”
“Lutal has them.”
Sierra bowed his head in thanks and wandered the mansion. From past dawn until before morning, he contacted several humans and elves, but had no significant results.
“Your feelings are ahead, but your ability falls short.”
Sierra had no choice but to agree with Arthil’s point.
“You stay here. I’ll find out.”
“How?”
“I have a way.”
Arthil left Sierra behind and disappeared.
Dielka was still asleep. She was snoring and even talking in her sleep.
Click.
Arthil returned.
“Did you find out?”
“As expected. They’re conscripts from worlds that became demon colonies.”
“How did you find out?”
“I have my ways.”
A faint smell of blood flowed into Sierra’s nose. He had a rough idea of what Arthil meant by “ways.”
After that, things went smoothly. When they approached as if they knew everything, most of the servants, pale-faced, spilled everything on their own. They were ordinary people being threatened, so they had no choice.
“Please let us contact our families…”
There was even an elf who said that while sobbing.
Thanks to that, Sierra learned the location of the worlds where they were born and raised, and waited for Choi Kangjoong to wake up.
Choi Kangjoong opened his eyes soon. Even while sleeping, he had been watching the two’s activities through the Central Stealth Scout.
When he came out of the room, Sierra and Arthil brightened.
“Lord Outer! Was there any discomfort while you slept?”
“It was fine. More importantly, those servants were captured, right?”
“You knew?”
“I watched you two figure it out.”
“So you saw them as the ones assigned to us.”
“Right. So where is the location?”
“It should be near here.”
Based on the servants’ memories, Sierra calculated the location of their home world using the coordinates the Enterprise Union used.
Choi Kangjoong opened a Gate and sent a Central Sky-Eye Giant. The entity, capable of observing a much wider range than a normal Sky-Eye Giant, surveyed the surroundings.
“There are a few dimensions.”
“Among them, it’s the second largest dimension.”
The Central Sky-Eye Giant turned its head toward the second largest dimension. The position wasn’t good, so only the lower part of the dimension was visible.
Choi Kangjoong first checked for life reactions with Wave Radar.
“Hmm?”
“What’s wrong?”
“There are animals, but no humans or elves.”
“Is it a different dimension?”
“No.”
Just by detecting the locations of life forms with Wave Radar, he could tell whether the upper part of the dimension was a forest, a sea, or full of artificial structures. That’s because the placement and behavior patterns of life forms are all different.
And on top of that dimension, there were considerable buildings constructed by humans or elves. Yet not a single human or elf was detected.
This meant only one thing.
The Central Sky-Eye Giant went up. It passed the dimensional boundary.
Past the horizon, buildings began to appear. Most were unmaintained, some destroyed.
What was once a home for humans and elves now housed only animals.
“As expected…”
“What happened?”
“They’re all dead.”
“Couldn’t they have been moved elsewhere?”
Choi Kangjoong shook his head.
There were pitch-black pits all over the dimension. They were dried pools of blood—evidence that hundreds of thousands had died.
The demons had conscripted the servants from this place, destroyed their homeland, and used them until now.
Choi Kangjoong suddenly didn’t want to stay here anymore. Even if Slein acted politely, his essence was a demon—the same species that had annihilated that dimension.
When the dimension’s destruction was announced, Sierra and Arthil’s expressions darkened. The hope of saving even the worlds of those captured by Choi Kangjoong’s power had been impossible from the start.
“You two tell them. I’ll wake Iselin and Dielka.”
“Yes, Lord Outer.”
Sierra and Arthil gathered the servants in the mansion and informed them of the dimension’s destruction. At first they didn’t believe it, but after crossing through the Gate Choi Kangjoong had left open and confirming it themselves, they wept.
Iselin and Dielka didn’t even need Choi Kangjoong to wake them; they got up from the commotion.
“So that happened.”
Iselin said to prepare to return. The servants could come along if they wished.
“Where is that bastard?!”
Dielka searched for Count Karug. But he was nowhere in the mansion. Realizing his plan had failed, he had slipped away during the night.
Dielka regretted not killing Count Karug earlier, then tended to the grieving servants. Some wanted to stay, but she decided to take them even if she had to beat them into coming. Staying here would only lead to a miserable death or becoming a demon.
Choi Kangjoong opened a Gate. The servants moved first, and Choi Kangjoong went through last.
He didn’t just leave. He left behind Kai and the Stealth Predator. They would carry out sabotage operations with the support of the Central Stealth Scouts already spread throughout the Demon Realm.
Iselin’s ladies soothed those who had lost their homes and led them elsewhere.
Only five people remained in the now-quiet office.
“To think they made those poor kids into servants. The moment I see that Count Karug bastard, I’ll stab him.”
“And what about what you got from Slein?”
“I left it behind. I didn’t feel like bringing it. I went all the way to the Demon Realm and got nothing.”
“You had the most fun.”
“That’s because Slein livened up the mood so I’d speak well.”
“You were all sulky when Slein was around.”
“I’m starving, and I bet Her Majesty is hungry too. Let’s eat quickly.”
Dielka finally changed the subject. At Iselin’s instruction, Arthil and Sierra brought a simple meal.
“If Slein knows that much, he must also know Salika’s purpose, right?”
“Probably.”
“But why doesn’t he try to stop it? If that kind of monster appears, even the demons won’t be fine.”
“He’s a demon. No matter what the Dimension System is, satisfying their own desires comes first. And since their origins are similar, he might think it’s possible to become that kind of monster.”
“That makes sense. After all, they both originated from waste. Then maybe he wants to break the Dimension System?”
“Slein probably worked under Salika with that kind of thinking.”
“I’m curious. What would happen to demons in a world left with only Crystals and monsters?”
“They’d become similar to demons but not demons. If waste is that concentrated, you can’t maintain a sense of self.”
“They’d become like the Devil of Devouring.”
“Probably.”
Choi Kangjoong suddenly became curious.
The more demonic energy demons have, the more their sense of self fades. You could say they’re consumed by their desires.
If so, if the Apocalid kept multiplying, would he, the Outer Mind, also change?
He didn’t think there would be any significant change. He hadn’t felt any change at all even now. He controlled his hunger well. If he hadn’t, Iselin and Dielka would have been dissolved in the Soil Pit first. Or he could have turned them into Apocalid using Root Magic.
“Regarding the information Slein gave, I’ll organize it and send it to you.”
“Thanks.”
Iselin’s words pulled him from his thoughts.
“Next time, let’s have a party at Lord Outer’s house! What do you think? Her Majesty, that’s good too, right?”
“Not bad.”
“I don’t like it.”
“What? Why!”
“If you can lock that mouth of yours, I’ll let you into my house.”
“Oh my. So Lord Outer likes that kind of thing!”
Dielka cackled.
Choi Kangjoong quickly said his goodbyes and returned home.
“Aah, comfortable.”
He lay down on the soft bed and enjoyed the feel of the blanket.
Not long after, a summary of information about the two Executors arrived in Choi Kangjoong’s email.
“Clytemnestra and Gunsmir…”
The document also included photos of the two Executors that Slein had handed over.
Clytemnestra was similar to a Crystal but thicker and spread out sideways. Gunsmir was a regular octahedron shape elongated vertically.
Both gave a strong feeling of being artificial constructs.
“I have Evolution Codes good for fighting the Golem Legion, so I just need to pick some Special Individuals.”
Combining Mineral Accumulation and Digging gave the Mineral Crushing Evolution Code. With this, it wouldn’t stop at absorbing inorganic matter in the Soil Pit and accumulating it in the Chitin Gauntlet; Apocalid individuals could directly eat minerals and gather them in their bodies.
“How should I deal with Artificial Spirits?”
Several useful Evolution Codes came to mind for fighting Spirits: Psychic Emission, Mental Chain, Soul Absorption, etc.
But since he had Psionic Specialization, he didn’t need any of them. Still, Mental Chain, which bound mental entities, was useful as a supplementary tool.
“I don’t need to get Evolution Codes. Maybe I’ll make more Energy-type Apocalid.”
The Wide Sentry had produced a Central Suction Giant, but it was insufficient for a full-scale fight.
Besides the Central Suction Giant, he felt he needed a new Apocalid that could deal with Spirits more easily.
“The problem with Spirits is they have no body and fly fast. It’s hard for any Apocalid to catch up.”
Choi Kangjoong recalled Iselin’s Spirit Storm. How many Walkers would he need to capture Iselin inside that? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand? Maybe even a million wouldn’t be enough. Because she could just run away when at a disadvantage.
Sending Fighter Giants would be similar, and bombardment didn’t affect Spirits much. The best was to cut them with the Scythe Claw, which had the Psychic Blade.
Should he modify the Walker? The Energy-type Apocalid might not just absorb energy like the Apo Air…
“Something feels off.”
Choi Kangjoong went to the Evolution Chamber.
He summoned the body of an Air Walker.
A translucent Air Walker floated above a table made of solid flesh.
“Can’t I change this to be more like a Spirit?”
Choi Kangjoong concentrated his consciousness. As time passed, there was no change.
“Not even halfway?”
As he thought that, the Air Walker’s body became soft and mushy.
“Huh?”
Choi Kangjoong increased the energy ratio. The body became so soft that its head, legs, and tail disappeared, turning into a ball-like shape.
He tried to save it as a new Apocalid and produce it, but the new Apocalid application didn’t work. It might be possible with more concentration, but Choi Kangjoong didn’t bother.
Apocalid couldn’t be produced just by haphazardly making them. If efficiency was too low or life activity impossible, he couldn’t even set it as a new Apocalid. Of course, if he forced it now, it might be possible.
“So it can’t be maintained in reality?”
Choi Kangjoong felt a surge of interest for the first time in a while. How much time had he spent figuring out the limits of Apocalid settings in Dimension War? It was an inefficient task that didn’t follow Dimension War’s convenient settings, but it was very fun.
Choi Kangjoong smiled just like back then and fiddled with the Apocalid’s body.