Surviving as a Barbarian in a Fantasy World

Chapter 142: Advent of the Great Evil (2)

Shadrenes clasped her hands and closed her eyes in the church.

She was praying to Kalosia, hoping that Ketal and Rakza would succeed in stopping the ritual.

“…What?”

Shadrenes suddenly opened her eyes while praying.

She turned her gaze in alarm.

A powerful demonic energy was emanating from a distance.

“No, it can’t be.”

Did they fail to stop the ritual?

Was this land going to be engulfed in darkness?

Such thoughts crossed her mind for a moment, but she soon realized that wasn’t the case.

“…”

Shadrenes’ face turned pale.

She understood.

Another worst-case scenario was unfolding.

“…Unbelievable!”

She shouted in denial, but there was no stopping what had already occurred.

The great evil had descended upon this world.

* * *

CRASH!

The space shattered like glass, and a figure appeared.

With skin as pale as a vampire’s and a horn growing from the center of his head, the figure exhaled while dressed in ornate, noble attire.

“Ah, the smell of the surface after so long.”

With his breath, the air was polluted.

The land trampled by the demon rotted away.

Just by existing, he defiled the surface.

The holy knights realized that the dark wizards had sacrificed their lives to summon a demon to the surface.

“So, this is the place.”

The demon gazed languidly at the holy ground.

“The nauseating holy land of the gods. It seems the prophecy is flowing well.”

The demon took a step forward.

The holy knights snapped to attention.

“E-Everyone, prepare for battle!”

SHRING!

They drew their weapons and blocked the demon’s path.

They didn’t know how the demon had descended here, but their task was clear.

“Do not let that demon attack the holy land!”

“For Kalosia!”

The holy knights steeled themselves and charged.

The light of holiness enveloped them.

The holy knights were strong.

Having accumulated countless experiences defending against evil invasions, each one of them was akin to a veteran.

Many were of the highest caliber.

“Ah, the dogs of the gods. Impressive.”

The demon extended his hand with a gentle smile.

Dark energy began to gather there, forming into thin lines.

The demon swung his hand.

The barrier of the holy ground shuddered violently.

KAAAANG!

“Kyaaa!”

The devotees inside the holy ground, startled, lowered their bodies.

They hurriedly looked at the barrier.

A thin, straight crack had formed in it.

“…What?”

“Aah?”

The bodies of the holy knights fell, sliced in half simultaneously.

The veterans, who had survived numerous evil invasions, were annihilated without even a chance to react.

“Hmm. The scent of falling flesh. It’s been a while.”

The demon extended his hand with a satisfied expression.

Thin lines of dark energy flowed from it, striking the barrier of the holy ground like a whip.

KWAAANG!

Despite their extremely thin, thread-like form, the destructive power was unimaginable.

The barrier of the holy ground, which the dark wizards had previously struggled to even touch, began to crack rapidly.

The devotees screamed in terror.

Just as the barrier was about to crumble with a cracking sound, a pillar of light descended.

“Hmm.”

For the first time, the demon’s expression changed.

He retracted his lines and looked up at the sky.

The lines of dark energy collided with the pillar of light, neutralizing each other.

“You!”

“Ah, the saintess.”

The demon smiled gently.

“Nice to meet you. The first slave of Kalosia.”

“Demon…!”

Shadrenes gritted her teeth.

She looked sorrowfully at the corpses of the holy knights.

She had felt the demon’s descent and rushed over, but she was too late.

She bit her lip and glared at the demon.

With skin as white as a vampire’s, contrasting with the black horn in the center of his head, and wielding thread-like dark energy.

Shadrenes groaned.

“The demon of Demonic Lines. Rubitra.”

“Is it because you’re a slave of the gods? You know well.”

“…It’s impossible not to know.”

Two hundred years ago, there was a religious church dedicated to a god.

Though the number of its followers was not large, their faith was strong and there were several superhumanly powerful individuals within the church, making it renowned across the continent.

Led by these superhuman warriors, the church gradually grew, earning evaluations that it would one day rival the church of the Sun God.

However, contrary to those evaluations, the church was destroyed by a single demon that descended nearby.

That demon was none other than the Demon of Demonic Lines, Rubitra, who now stood before her eyes.

‘Why?’

Rubitra was one of the highest-ranking demons that could be summoned to the surface.

Summoning him usually required the sacrifice of hundreds of pure children, yet he appeared here so easily.

Shadrenes’ mouth went dry.

Rubitra, who had been quietly observing her, raised his hand.

Dark energy began to form in his hand.

Shivers ran down Shadrenes’ spine.

She urgently shouted,

“Kalosia!”

BZZZZ!

A holy shield materialized, and the dark energy struck the shield.

CRACK!

The shield began to crack and shatter almost instantly.

The saintess’ eyes widened.

Holiness held absolute superiority over evil, yet how could this be?

She reinforced the shield, but it seemed like it could break at any moment under the relentless attack.

Her face turned pale as she realized she was on the verge of being ensnared by the dark lines.

At that moment, a sword of light flew towards Rubitra.

“How annoying.”

Rubitra frowned and blocked the sword of light.

Shadrenes, barely escaping the crisis, exhaled heavily.

“Saintess!”

“Rakza!”

Shadrenes brightened up.

The strongest holy knight had arrived at her side.

She struggled to hold back tears that threatened to spill over.

“That demon is…”

“It’s the Demon of Demonic Lines, Rubitra.”

“What?”

Rakza’s eyes widened.

“How is that possible?”

“I don’t know either. It seems the dark wizards used themselves as sacrifices to summon him… but that should not have been enough. What happened to the ritual?”

“I left it to Ketal. But it might take some time.”

Rakza’s voice lacked confidence.

He, too, was not sure if Ketal would succeed.

Shadrenes noticed his hesitation but did not point it out.

There was no need to verbally confirm the worst-case scenario.

“I see.”

Shadrenes gritted her teeth and tore her skirt.

“Alright, let’s do this.”

All the holy knights had fallen to the demon.

They were the last shield protecting the holy land.

“We’ll make him regret targeting our holy land.”

Rubitra smiled silently.

* * *

“Rakza! Buy us some time!”

“Yes!”

Rakza stomped his foot and charged at Rubitra, his entire body enveloped in holy energy.

Rubitra lightly flicked his fingers.

Threads of dark energy poured out, racing towards Rakza to pierce him.

Rakza quickly dodged, but the lines were too fast to avoid completely.

Some of the threads grazed his armor.

CRASH!

The armor, filled with holy energy, shattered and broke instantly.

“Ugh!”

Rakza moved swiftly, but the lines tracked him as if they could read his every move. He could do nothing but evade continuously, unable to launch a proper counterattack.

‘He’s strong!’

Even these light probing attacks required him to respond with full power.

Rubitra was at least two tiers above them, possessing top-tier superhuman strength.

In a normal fight, they would have been utterly defeated without doing anything.

‘But!’

The opponent was a demon, and they were priests serving a god.

Holiness exerted absolute superiority over evil.

“Lavin, Chapter 4, Verse 2! To your followers, I grant the unwavering strength against falsehood!”

Using the time Rakza desperately bought, Shadrenes chanted.

Golden holy energy enveloped Rakza.

RUMBLE!

Rakza’s speed increased significantly.

Rubitra murmured,

“A scripture.”

A collection of passages detailing the journey of the gods.

Those who can read the holy scriptures can directly wield the great power of the gods.

This power allowed Aquaz, a top-tier believer, to stand against Ashetiar.

Moreover, Shadrenes was not just a simple believer; she was a saintess, capable of wielding the scriptures even more powerfully.

Rakza, suddenly empowered, began to counter Rubitra’s attacks.

Shadrenes did not miss the opportunity.

“Kudun, Chapter 1, Verse 14! The vile hypocrites dared not open their mouths at Your word!”

The scripture activated.

Chains of holiness flew and wrapped around Rubitra.

“Hmm.”

Dark energy lines flowed from Rubitra and intertwined with the chains, causing them to crack and break.

Shadrenes quickly continued.

“Kudun, Chapter 12, Verse 1! There was a man who claimed only he spoke the truth in this world! Kalosia made him take an oath of falsehood and deceit for proof. And that oath was unbroken until the man’s death!”

BUZZ!

A golden cross embedded itself in Rubitra’s chest, restricting his movements.

“Lavin, Chapter 15, Verse 58! When evil descended upon the world, Kalosia bestowed his holy relics, which were used to drive evil out of this world!”

THUD!

A sword of light appeared in Rakza’s hand.

“Huff!”

Shadrenes collapsed to her knees, cold sweat streaming down her face.

The scriptures couldn’t be wielded without restriction.

Using the power of a god required an extraordinary level of mental fortitude.

Moreover, the higher the chapter of the scripture, the greater the power.

Using chapters in the double digits consecutively was a significant strain, even for a saintess.

But thanks to this, the demon was restrained.

Shadrenes, exhausted, spoke.

“Finish it, Rakza.”

“Yes.”

Rakza raised the sword of light.

“Demon! Leave this world!”

Rakza charged with determination.

A superhuman holy knight, aided by the scriptures, launched his attack.

With Rubitra bound by the scriptures, defense was impossible.

If the blow landed, even a top-tier demon wouldn’t survive unscathed.

CRACK!

Rakza’s swift charge drove the sword into Rubitra.

Shadrenes’ face brightened from where she had collapsed.

It seemed clear to anyone that a fatal blow had been struck.

But Rakza’s expression was stiff.

The sword of light Rakza thrust hadn’t even touched Rubitra’s body.

At the tip of the blade, threads of dark energy were woven like a net, blocking the sword.

Rubitra had created a net to stop Rakza’s sword.

“…How?”

Surely the cross had sealed Rubitra’s dark energy.

“Impressive.”

Rubitra murmured calmly.

Threads of dark energy wove around the golden cross embedded in his chest.

The cross made a sinister sound and shattered unsightly.

“You, you…”

“I commend you.”

With those words, dark energy exploded.

Rakza’s body was instantly engulfed in darkness.