Chapter 28 : Capital (1)

The torments of Hell are determined by the tastes of the archdemons who rule each district.

A prime example is Lucifer, the ruler of the Pride Hell, who preferred to restrain and display prisoners.

Extracting knowledge from prisoners was no different from selling souvenirs at a museum.

As such, each Hell fully reflects the tastes of its archdemon…

“Today, without fail, I will start the long-awaited Hell’s Greatest Martial Arts Tournament!”

“Waaaaaaaah!”

“Win if you fight, die if you lose!”

“Show us some prisoners getting released today!”

The torments of the Wrath Hell also faithfully reflected the tastes of its archdemon.

A colossal colosseum carved entirely from the largest obsidian in Hell.

Various demons filled the stands, and prisoners poured into the 16 divided arenas.

A giant with something resembling a siren for a head announced the start of the match with a loud noise.

“Die!”

“Drop dead, drop dead, drop deaaaaad!”

“I’m getting out of here. I’m going to escape this hell!”

From cavemen wielding bone clubs to cyborgs with half their bodies replaced by machines.

Tens of thousands of prisoners from all ages began to brawl, scattering blood, flesh, and oil.

Dantalion watched the match while tearing apart a Cockatrice Chicken, a famous specialty of the Wrath Hell.

“Why are you eating chicken with bones when you don’t even have teeth…”

“Isn’t it better because I can eat it whole, bones and all?”

To be precise, it was closer to absorbing the chicken, but wasn’t enjoying the chicken what mattered?

Sitri, wearing a bizarre hat with canned cola on both sides, naturally took a chicken leg.

Munch, munch, munch.

Dantalion stared at Sitri as if to bore a hole through him, at the sight of him devouring the chicken leg as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

He didn’t have a mouth, so he couldn’t enjoy the chewing, but still, wasn’t taking the chicken leg too much?

“Your superior really didn’t teach you any manners.”

“Isn’t that a little late for self-reflection?”

“He was such a well-mannered child when he was young, tsk… Get me another chicken here.’

“Cockatrice Chicken that firmly takes responsibility for your five viscera and six entrails! Thank you for ordering again!”

Dantalion, who bought additional chicken from a succubus-type demon with a full professional spirit, picked up a chicken leg and watched the match.

Why on earth was he spending time in the Wrath Hell eating chicken?

‘I came to someone else’s workplace, so I should at least wait for them to finish work.’

Of course, it wasn’t to hang out, but because of the person he was meeting.

Most of the guys in charge of the Wrath Hell enjoyed carrying out the torments themselves.

“Finally, the final 16 have been decided! Everyone, please give a round of applause for these morons who keep repeating this futile act!”

The prisoners who climbed onto the corpses forming a small hill were all in terrible condition.

At least one limb was missing, and the severely injured were just gasping for breath, on the verge of collapsing at any moment.

As thunderous applause continued, the demons of the Wrath Hell cast spells on the prisoners.

New arms sprouted from severed shoulders, and shattered armor plates proliferated, returning to their original form.

The prisoners, restored to their best condition, raised the corners of their mouths as they examined their bodies.

“Fools. They all must think they can do it if it’s me, right?”

“It’s not impossible… but well, you don’t seem that strong.”

At least Dantalion had seen one person who had overcome the trials of the Wrath Hell.

However, they had not succeeded in escaping Hell by overcoming the trials…

“Now, shall we all call out to that person together!”

“Heaven above, earth below, I alone am the honored one!”

“A woman who wants to die because she’s bored!”

“The best in the world alive! The best in Hell dead!”

As the audience’s cheers echoed, the air split open and a woman appeared.

A beauty with black hair tied in a ponytail and smiling eyes that suited her well.

She fluttered the dopo robe embroidered with gold thread and took a light step forward.

“Who do you think you are, raising your heads high in front of me?”

Thud!

Is this what they mean by, you can’t jump out of the Buddha’s palm no matter how hard you try?

Her foot, kicking the air, began to crush the prisoners’ bodies like a mountain.

The dignity of a monarch who can make people kneel just by walking…

“A, aieeeeeee?!!”

Crack!

Correction, a woman who exudes the aura of a tyrant who can crush people’s bodies just by walking.

“Well then, let’s see if there’s anyone who can defeat me and inherit the title of Heavenly Demon.”

One who walked the path of demons and reached the realm of Buddha.

Cheon Soyeol, the Heavenly Demon, descended into the arena with a cool and beautiful smile like the moon in the night sky.

She was the first prisoner to overcome the trials of the Wrath Hell, and one of the archdemons in charge of the Wrath Hell.

‘I hope she finishes quickly.’

She was the person Dantalion was supposed to meet today.

As natural as it could be.

The sixteen, no, fifteen survivors who reached the final stage failed to overcome the trials.

That’s because the way to escape the Wrath Hell is to defeat the archdemon.

“Tsk… When will I ever meet a prisoner as full of spirit as I am?”

“Speaking as an archdemon of Hell, I’d rather not have another one of those guys, it’s a pain in the ass.”

Dantalion sipped the tea that Cheon Soyeol’s maid had brought.

The archdemons of the Wrath Hell were famous for being the strongest in Hell, but one day, Cheon Soyeol suddenly appeared and won after fighting one of them for a month.

Because something that was thought to be absolutely impossible had happened, the archdemons hurriedly gathered to face Cheon Soyeol…

“I’d rather continue the fight I couldn’t finish back then.”

“I refuse. You looked so crazy back then that even the demons were terrified.”

Just thinking about Cheon Soyeol smiling brightly with one arm torn off gave him goosebumps.

Above all, from the perspective of someone who had faced her directly, he absolutely refused to fight Cheon Soyeol again.

Frankly, he was also uncomfortable because the karma of the Heavenly Demon was ambiguously balanced.

“Still, I quite enjoyed fighting you.”

Cheon Soyeol sipped her tea, reminiscing about the blood-stained memories.

Dantalion changed the subject, fearing that she would get lost in her memories and start swinging her sword.

“Did you check the email Sitri sent?”

“Do you take me for an old woman? I checked the message sent through Sitri through my servant.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“What are you talking about? I wasn’t looking at you, I was savoring the tea. Your subordinate makes good tea.”

Dantalion felt anew that she was from a much older era than himself.

Dantalion, who lightly emptied his tea, threw out the main point in earnest.

“Recently, I’ve been receiving support from Heaven and starting various projects.”

“I know. You’re raising something like a martial artist, right?”

“I guess you

could

say that.”

What else would you call someone with special powers hiding their identity and doing good deeds if not a martial artist?

Magical girls could also be called martial artists in a broad sense. Cheon Soyeol also developed some kind of death beam or something strange. Cheon Soyeol, who had emptied her teacup, murmured as she ran her finger over the cup.

“Martial artist…”

“A guy who never usually asks for favors asked me if I could help the people who follow him.”

“Wouldn’t it be similar in any world? Those who know how to shine alone are always followed by followers.”

She also looked down at the teacup with wistful eyes, as if she had experienced something similar.

And naturally, she took out clear rice wine hidden in her sleeve and poured it into the teacup—

“Trying to drink alcohol while pretending to be lost in memories.”

“Ah!? That’s my clear rice wine! Give it back!”

When he snatched the bottle containing the clear rice wine, Cheon Soyeol looked like she had lost her lover.

At that moment, the servant who had been waiting outside peeked his head through the door and smiled.

“Madam, you’re not trying to drink again, are you?”

“Ha, hahaha! Me, drinking alcohol? What nonsense are you talking about?”

“Right? You wouldn’t be trying to drink alcohol when you have a child.”

Living Point, Cheon Soyeol, who died a virgin, became a married woman in Hell. Of course, her husband wasn’t an ordinary guy, but the former archdemon of the Wrath Hell.

That guy Shaitan, he was so happy because she was the woman who gave him his first defeat…….

Cheon Soyeol, who failed to drink alcohol in secret, threw away the formalities as if she didn’t need them anymore.

She put one leg up and sat down roughly, grumbling as she poured herself new tea.

“It’s not like my baby would have a problem with just alcohol, everyone is just being too overprotective.”

“Well… I know you’re not that strong with alcohol either.”

“It’s because of the alcohol in Hell. Tsk, I can’t even smoke or drink, it’s torture.”

Wouldn’t it be a great thing that they allowed her to come out and kill prisoners in that condition?

Dantalion, who swallowed the words that were about to come out, spat out other words.

“Getting back to the point, I want to help his followers protect themselves, so I asked for

your cooperation.”

“Protect themselves? Can’t you just share your power and be done with it?”

“That could cause problems with supporting Joanna herself, so I want to solve it with as few resources as possible. So, I’d like you to teach me some martial arts that humans can use.”

“Martial arts…”

Cheon Soyeol stared into the air with a face that seemed to be looking at a distant place.

Dantalion put down his teacup and asked, seeing her expression that could look a little foolish.

“Is it too much?”

“No, no, it’s not that…”

၇ာ

Cheon Soyeol scratched her cheek and smiled awkwardly.

“I don’t really remember how much martial arts is appropriate for humans… Should I just pick something that can erase a mountain or so?”

“Should you?”

Dantalion sighed deeply.

It seemed like he needed to spend quite a bit of time with Cheon Soyeol.

As Joanna became busy with entrance issues, Padir and Modir’s daily lives began to get busier.

Guiding people who visited the church, teaching the doctrine to new believers, and welcoming the occasional street orphans…

“Haa… I think I’m too busy these days.”

“Well, it can’t be helped. Until we find the right person, the seven of us have no choice but to coordinate and work well.”

Thanks to this, the two’s work ended quite late.

Both of them were the oldest representatives of men and women, so they were busy taking the lead with a sense of responsibility.

So, do they rest comfortably after work is over…

“A new miracle came to mind this morning too.”

“Really? It seems that Dantalion is watching over us.”

That wasn’t it either. A new miracle came to mind every morning, so they couldn’t just leave it alone.

The two of them spent time in a temporary training ground made by organizing the warehouse after finishing work.

There must be a reason why they, of all people, were given divine power, so they couldn’t be lazy.

However, the difference between the two was quite clear…

“Padir, have any new miracles come to your mind lately?”

Modir asked Padir while manipulating chains that sprang from the air.

Padir smiled bitterly and nodded. Unlike her, he hadn’t had any new miracles come to mind for several days.

“I guess that means that’s all I can learn at

my

level.”

“You don’t have to say it like that…”

“What, it was like that in my hometown too. Unlike you, ‚ I’m uneducated, so I’m good at physical labor.”

They were born in the same village, so their names were similar, but unfortunately, unlike Modir, Padir was stupid.

A stupid priest, what could be more unfitting than that?

Rather, Padir felt great gratitude to Dantalion, who had given him miracles as well.

“Padir…”

“I’m fine. Don’t look at me like you pity me, and focus on training.”

Quickly giving up on what he couldn’t have was also Padir’s strength and weakness.

Padir enthusiastically helped Modir’s training as if he had no regrets. Even if he didn’t know anything else, he had properly learned the miracle of

restoring the body.

Padir, who had a hard time tied to Modir’s chains, threw himself on the bed as if he didn’t even have the strength to wash.

He stared at the blue-stained ceiling and muttered without realizing it.

“Am I really useful?”

Padir, who couldn’t answer the question he asked himself, fell asleep as if he was sinking into water.

And the next day.

“Agh?!”

Startled by the impact that struck his face, Padir jumped up.

Looking around, Padir discovered a book that had fallen near his head and tilted his head in confusion.

“Just what is this book…?”

He had no memory of placing a book where it could fall on his face.

More than that, he had never brought a book that reeked of age into his room…

Rubbing his throbbing nose, Padir checked the book’s cover.

[■gyo Chili-ye – Seventy-Two Arts of the Demonic Sect

The book was written in characters he had never seen before.

However, this book couldn’t have just happened to smack him in the face by chance.

Without realizing it, Padir assumed a reverent posture and turned the page.

Flick… Flick…

The sound of pages turning filled Padir’s room.

The vivid illustrations and crimson, undulating sentences that filled the pages couldn’t be understood by his mind, but seemed to seep into his heart.

As if unwilling to lose this flow, Padir endlessly read the book again and again.

So that he could understand even a little of the mysteries contained within.

As if possessed by a demon, Padir couldn’t stop and continued to read the book.