The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 74



Only Krnovel

Episode 74. Every Moment, Every Time (3)

On the surface, the difference between a high-ranking devil and a high-ranking devil is only one horn. But the real gap was as big as heaven and earth.

While a high-ranking devil is a being who has reached perfection, a high-ranking devil is a being who has reached the threshold of transcendence.

Greater demons have no names, but higher demons have names. High-ranking devils lead monsters, but high-ranking devils lead other devils. High-ranking devils are limited to tricky tricks at best, but high-ranking devils flout the principles and rules of the world. To deal with a high-ranking demon, you must lead a large army, but bringing a large army to a high-ranking demon will only lead to a catastrophe.

That’s why Kadim came prepared. I thought it would be a difficult fight and I was fully prepared. I never let my guard down and used every means possible.

All of that determination and effort was in vain when I met an extremely unreasonable opponent.

“Uuuuuuup!”

――――――― Kwa-jik!!

After struggling to break the bones, he succeeded in splitting the head again. However, the counter-rotating clock once again rendered Kadim’s efforts in vain. A demon that sucks flesh into a mask that clings to it and gives applause.

– congrats… … this time… … ‘Me 7 seconds ago’… … now… … It’s time.

[… … Stand up, Kadim! … … I knew there would be… … … … I know something about… … At best, we’ll fight the Great Demon together… … .]

“… … .”

Kadim tightened his grip. The red shade covering his vision was becoming darker. The whispering in his ears was gradually changing into words that had meaning. It meant that he was on the verge of going mad.

Creak – !

Kadim took out his thumbnail and pulled it out. To awaken the mind through pain. Fortunately, the auditory hallucinations temporarily subsided and the shadows that covered my eyes like red tide became slightly more transparent.

He exhaled harshly and glared at the demon.

“Whew… … What a filthy, tenacious life. I think I’ve killed it five times already… … .”

– Strictly speaking, life is not hard. ‘Me at that moment’ is definitely dead.

“… … Stop talking nonsense. So, how many more moments do you have to kill to completely destroy it?”

It wasn’t a question I expected an answer for. But the devil was happy to answer, drawing a clock pattern across his mask.

– Every moment, every time.

“… … .”

– To completely destroy me, you have to kill me ‘at every moment, at every time’, you insignificant creature.

The devil’s beauty was filled with arrogance. The margin of invincibility. The composure of a being of a different class, knowing that no matter how small the creature at your feet squirms, you will not be hurt.

Kadim burst into laughter in vain.

It was absurd. You already have countless lives, and you have the power to add one more life at every moment. Among the powers of ‘high-ranking demons’ I have encountered so far, it was unusually powerful. The five times I went through all the hardships, the only thing I could do was scoop up seawater with a teaspoon and throw it away.

Still, that wasn’t everything. Anyway, there was a way to kill the ‘Great Devil’, who was even more unanswerable than this guy. There must be at least one strategy to exploit the vulnerability.

For example, breaking that pocket watch.

“… … .”

Unfortunately, that was a wrong guess.

Kadim had already tried to break it three times. Each time, it was restored in an instant, just like when he had slaughtered the demon’s body. Perhaps it was not a relic or a magical tool, but a part of the demon that had embodied its power.

No matter how hard I racked my brain, no sharp idea came to mind. Just like hot iron cooling down, the blood in my body was slowly disappearing. The devil urged Kadim on, ticking the second hand of the clock pattern drawn on his mask.

– Are you tired already? It’ll be difficult if you waste time like this. While you were just standing there, ’21 seconds’ more of me were already created.

“… … .”

Kadim quickly came to his senses. For now, he had no choice but to recharge his blood and continue fighting, looking for weaknesses. With trembling hands, he grabbed the vial filled with demon blood.

At that moment, the devil’s mask emitted a strange blue light.

– It’s only once or twice that I’ve let it slide. How long did you think I’d let that obvious behavior go unnoticed?

Following the devil’s gesture, the magic energy that had been condensed on the ceiling poured out all at once.

――――― Kwaaaaaaaa – !!

The heavy Magi situation pressed down on Khadim. The bottle he was holding broke, and all the bottles on his belt and in his arms were smashed. The leather canteen was crushed by the heavy pressure and burst, turning Kadim’s clothes dark red. There were puddles of blood all around.

Kwaaaah, wow –

The demonic spirit sucked up all the blood and floated away, scattering into the air. The color of blood stains was overlaid on the petroglyphs carved on the ceiling.

– From now on, fight back with only your own natural strength. Will you be able to face the ‘current me’ without drinking the devil’s blood? … This is really something I can’t stand because I’m looking forward to it.

Kadim sat up in a daze. The situation had become even more desperate. There was no blood left, his vitality was fading, his vision was turning red, and auditory hallucinations were creeping into his ears… … .

[…] … I can’t believe it… … Hissing, I mean the truth… … … … You’ll find out eventually… … .]

However, instead of kneeling in frustration, he grabbed the hilt of his sword.

The devil’s blood is there too. Right in front of your eyes, right there, right there, just split that damn mask open and take the blood that’s pooling on the skinless face.

“Uuuuuuuuuup!!”

Kadim roared and lunged at the demon.

Avoiding the flying remnants of the scythe, avoiding the demonic traps and arrows of the demonic energy, avoiding the returning remnants, and running desperately to chase after the disappearing demon that changed its location in an instant. Even though my heart and lungs were pounding as if they were going to burst, and even if all my muscles were tearing and screaming in pain, I never stopped. Just to get drunk on the tip of the knife, even just one drop of blood.

It was a futile struggle.

Thinking has become dull. My senses became dull. My muscles weakened. Agility fell. Khadim, who had lost his stamina, could no longer compete on equal terms with the high-ranking demon. Let alone taking the blood, he did not even reach the devil’s feet.

The demon also blatantly let his strength go and moved around lazily. He watched with pleasure as the berserker ran wild in his grasp, slowly increasing the number of wounds as if he were a child playing with bugs.

“Whoop, whoop, whoop…” … .”

Creak, creak!

Even after pulling out all my fingernails, I no longer came to my senses. Her eyes could barely see and her ears could barely hear. She feels like she is sinking little by little into the red mire.

The faces of his old comrades suddenly flashed through Kadim’s mind.

If Melissa had been there, she would have burned the demon with magic and bound it so it couldn’t escape.

If Gordon had been there, he would have healed me and weakened the demon with holy magic.

If Cyril were here, he would have used sorcery to block the devil’s power.

If Gale was there… … He must have already found that devil’s weak spot and stabbed it with the holy sword.

But all of that was just a weak and uncertain excuse. Kadim knew too. The true reason why he was defeated and fell into the abyss was not the absence of his comrades, but this.

Because I don’t have the strength.

I don’t have the power to take the blood of a piece of that mask and tear ‘every moment, every moment’ to pieces.

[… … Someday, in a field where the sun never sets… … … … I hope we can build and meet together… … .]

Finally, the rope that supported my spirit suddenly broke. My vision turned red and muffled whispers penetrated my eardrums. As he sank deep into the red mire, Kadim prayed one last time.

Even if I lose my mind, I want my body to fight against that dirty demon until the end.

Atala, I hope you get a chance to face that damn god and break his skull.

And please.

… … I hope that the place I arrive at after a while is not just a room with no exit and the words ‘Game Over’ written on it.

*

Pebbletus pressed the pattern on his mask tightly.

“Khaaaaaaaa!”

– … … .

Something was different. Memories from old dreams.

The giant I met again did not show overwhelming life or presence like 300 years ago. At least when it was full of blood, it was quite threatening, but compared to the mountain-like pressure of his first meeting, it was no more than a small mound.

Pevillatus roughly guessed the cause.

‘I guess I’ve become too strong. Really, to the point where I regard that giant as nothing more than an insignificant creature… … .’

After dying in the Demonic World and falling into hell, he continued to grow like never before. From humble low-level devils to ‘high-ranking devils’ with transcendent power.

Once you become an adult, everything that seemed big as a child starts to look small. I concluded that since I had grown to the point where I could say I was born as a completely different being, my perspective was bound to be different from before.

“Khaaaaaa!!”

The giant, drained of his blood, was nothing more than a loud-voiced worm. It was almost laughable that he had ever been scared and trembled at such a thing. Now, killing him was easier than crushing an ant underfoot.

Nevertheless, Pevillatus had no intention of killing the giant right away.

A sudden change that occurred just now. Intense pain and foreign body sensation stabbing the forehead from the inside.

This was a sign that another ‘horn’ would sprout.

The eye holes behind the mask opened wide.

To advance from a high-level demon to the next level, you must slaughter at least millions of higher-level creatures or destroy at least one powerful nation. But you want to grow horns just because you tormented a single human? The ‘pain and despair’ of a high-level being is much more valuable… … But can that small creature be considered worthy of that level?

I couldn’t understand it, but it was an opportunity I couldn’t miss.

The next level up from the ‘higher level demon’ is the ‘great demon’. The highest position in the universe that all demons look up to and worship.

Even if it wasn’t necessarily for authority and fame, there were plenty of reasons to become a ‘Great Devil’. His power, the ‘Clock of Life and Death’, seemed like a transcendent power on the outside, but in reality, it had many limitations.

As I said before, he didn’t really have ‘all moments’ of life. He could only manipulate living things and magic, and couldn’t interfere with inanimate objects or other energy. Even then, if the target’s magic resistance was high, he had to make them inhale enough magic, and he couldn’t manipulate the time of ‘beings of a higher rank’ than himself.

But if only I could be promoted to ‘Great Devil’… … .

‘… … Not only will you gain near-immortal life, but you will also be able to control the time of all things without any restrictions.’

So I decided to torture that guy as much as I could, and kill him as miserably as if I were trampling on a mere insect.

… … 300 years ago, he suffered as he did.

“Khaaaaaaaa!”

He had just absorbed enough magic energy to be able to control the guy’s time. If he were to suddenly grow old enough to not be able to control his body while he was running wild like that, he would surely be filled with despair.

Pebillatus smiled sinisterly and shook his pocket watch.

Ting –

But the hands of the clock stopped spinning, and the giant did not age much.

“Khwah, kehwahhhhhhhhhh!!!”

Rather, only his hair and beard had grown thicker, and he was running wild with even more ferocity and ferocity than before. In addition, the tattoos that had grown to cover his entire upper body began to emit an ominous red light all at once.

Woooooooooo –

Pevillatus was frightened and turned his pocket watch backwards. Fortunately, he was able to return the giant’s appearance to its original state before he invoked the power of tattoos.

Pebillatus is wondering why such a result came about.

– … … .

I soon realized what the cause was. This power could only age the subject’s body to a point several years before death. In other words, the author does not have that long left in his physical life.

It wasn’t a big problem. If getting older doesn’t work, you can do the opposite. Even if he was a fearless and ferocious madman, he must have had a timid and weak childhood.

‘I wouldn’t feel that much despair now if I broke my bones and dug out my flesh, but if I were to go back to when I was young and do the same thing… … .’

I couldn’t wait to see the reaction right now. Pevillatus smiled in delight, showing his red teeth, and vigorously shook his pocket watch in the opposite direction.

I realized it was a mistake.

What I realized was that it was an irreversible, fatal, and destructive mistake.

It was after a little more time had passed.

At first, it seemed like everything was going according to plan. Pingrrrr, this time the hands of the clock turned smoothly. The giant’s shaggy hair became shorter and his energy waned. The tattoos and scars on his body disappeared. The madness in his eyes faded and his muscles shrunk.

The giant was gradually shedding his monstrous appearance and transforming into a somewhat more sensible one. Pebillatus leisurely drew a clock pattern on his mask, waiting for the terrified barbarian boy to appear.

But when the reversal of time crossed a certain line, something completely unexpected happened.

A new spirit of destruction who appeared in place of his childhood form without any warning.

– … … ?

In an instant, the air in the entire space changed.

The clock hands stopped as if it were a lie. Pebillatus frowned. However, it wasn’t just the clock hands that had stopped, it was as if time itself had stopped. In the trembling silence of the unknown, the demon slowly raised his gaze and glanced at the giant’s figure.

– … … hmm?

For some reason, the giant’s size had grown even larger than before. The atmosphere also seemed to have changed. However, at first glance, it felt like something fundamental had completely changed, not just the size or the atmosphere.

The moment you look closely, wondering what it is, you find it.

The tension that makes someone’s heart feel like it’s about to explode. The intimidating feeling of being brutally strangled by the ropes of the gallows. The pressure of a giant in iron shoes stepping on your shoulders with all his might. Thousands of blades fly in, slicing flesh and splitting bones.

The fear created by the combination of all those images. Overwhelming fear that makes your teeth tremble, nausea rises, you scream with tears in your eyes, and without even realizing it, you want to cry out the name of the Absolute One who will save you.

– Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh… … .

It was a feeling I had never experienced since becoming a high-ranking devil. Pevillatus could not believe it at all. He let out a groan like a strangled animal and tried his best to deny reality, thinking it was an illusion and that he had fallen into an old dream like before.

However, a voice I had never heard before reminded me that everything happening before my eyes was not fiction.

“… … It’s been a while.”

The giant with empty eyes turned around and stepped forward.

――――― Boom – !

That simple gesture made the devil’s heart drop to the top of his foot.

A cold intuition of destruction entangled my waist like a snake. I took a step back, trembling, but tripped over a rock and fell. The face behind the mask throbbed like crazy. The devil’s spirit fell to the bottom of a cliff of distant time, forgetting his status and reverting to the lowest being in his demon world.

– Kiiiii, kiiiii… … .

Just like that time, the giant stood before the devil and cast a shadow as vast as Mt. Tai.

“Did you say that I should kill ‘every moment, every time’?”

Just like that time, the devil humbly begged for his life, begging for his palms to be peeled off.

– Kiiik, kiiii… … Please save me… … I’ll do anything, anything… … .

The place and time, the devil’s status, appearance, and power, everything changed, but the devil’s fate did not change. In front of that unreasonable judge, the devil was still nothing more than an insignificant creature. No matter how hard I struggled, a mortal grip that I could not escape was approaching.

Just like when we faced each other in the Demonic Mirror 300 years ago, a long time ago.

“… … It’s not that difficult.”

――――――― Per – Oops!

The berserker from the first round returned, grabbed the high-ranking devil’s head with one hand and lightly exploded it.