Make Dark Fantasy Great Again

-You- You...! You!! -Ah, Plea, Pleasure, Pleasure- Aaaah...!!! Even among the swarm of darkness like a cluster of insects, there were higher beings. While some beings only scattered primitive instincts, there were those who revealed fragments of ego and reason. They gazed at the transparent crystal scattered on the floor and sighed deeply. The Fragment of Pleasure that had originally sealed the immortal darkness now emanated only purity. What this meant was self-evident. Annihilation. The demons were thrown into extreme confusion. An absolute and immortal being. How could they associate such a being with the concept of annihilation? -Ah, ahh... impossible... impossible... Some felt terror at this fact. -Pleasure, ahh... my master- ahh...!!! Some felt rage at this fact. Various emotions and thoughts mixed together in the darkness. If only. If they had sufficient leisure and time, they might have organized these feelings and reached some rational conclusion. After all, they were beings who served a common master called Pleasure. Clatter. However. Riiiip- Right now, they had neither leisure nor time. The Holy-Demonic Swordsman. He was roughly tearing open the cracks in the fissure. The darkness trapped within the armor along with light seemed to hint at their future. -How, how dare- how dare you...!!! Darkness...For those who had unilaterally carried out conquest and ravaging, this was an utterly foreign experience. And it was extremely humiliating. Fear. Despair. Humiliation. Rage. To intense emotions, more intense emotions were added. Added and added and added- they lost what little reason they had possessed from the beginning. Therefore, from now on it was the realm of instinct. As they had always done, they sought to unilaterally ravage and covet the things outside the darkness. Whoosh! With both sides' interests aligned. The fissure spread wide open like an opening eyelid. -Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr- -Aaaagagagagagaaagagagagak! -Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiaaaaak! The imprisoned darkness overflowed. Countless evil spirits surrendered to instinct and rushed toward the outside of the darkness. And so, first one. The demon that rushed at the Holy-Demonic Swordsman first disappeared. It was a natural annihilation, like a shadow cast out of light. Thus the chain reaction began. The countless demons that rushed toward the Holy-Demonic Swordsman like one massive wave lost their forms without delay. At first it looked like a swarm of insects flying toward fire. But- -Kiyaaaaaaaaak-...! -Ah, ahh, ahhh-...! -You will writhe in agony and di-...! The pattern that remained unchanged despite increasing momentum gradually collapsed causality. At some point, it no longer appeared to be a charge of darkness. Though the light remained still, it seemed to be pursuing the darkness. Though the darkness was rushing forward, it seemed to be fleeing in reverse. All of this was a spectacle created by countless immortal deaths. "Good lord..." Fienne's group, who were watching the spectacle nearby, suffered from severe unreality. Risir. His influence over 'negativity' was something they had come to understand well through repeated experience. However, the one-sided slaughter unfolding before their eyes was more than enough to make all their accumulated understanding fade. "Well, they're only lesser demons after all..." All they could do was convince themselves by putting forth their own reasons. -St, stop...!!! -Get out of the way, I said get out of the way!!! Reason was paralyzed and dominated by instinct. Even in this situation, the darkness sensed something was wrong. -Ahhh, don't push- don't push!!! -I don't want to, I don't want to!!! Fear. Among the mixture of emotions, one emotion protruded. The direction of the irrationality they had been expressing became twisted. The darkness no longer rushed blindly at the Holy-Demonic Swordsman. The darkness struggled desperately to close the fissure somehow. Squeeeak- However, it was insufficient to shake off the Holy-Demonic Swordsman's grip that was widening the fissure. Crackle- So, the darkness instead began to pry open the crack with all its might. If the Holy-Demonic Swordsman was blocking the narrow entrance, they only needed to widen that entrance. Whoosh! The Holy-Demonic Swordsman immediately put more strength into his grip, but it was already too late. -Ah, Pleas, Pleasure, O Pleasure- ahh...!!! Darkness leaked out. A stream of darkness that had escaped the fissure wandered around the room. It was numerous lesser demons led by a mid-level demon who had abandoned their forms and transformed into energy. "...Ah! Everyone scatter!" Risir's companions urgently took action. They had to struggle desperately to shake off the sense of alienation that was crushing them. The sight of being miserably swept away just moments before flickered before their eyes. These beings possessed markedly lower status than the named demons. Nevertheless. They were definitely demons. Without a doubt, the most dangerous beings in this world. "Palag! Over there-" "I understand, Lunadien!" Each of them individually was a powerhouse with the force of a group, but they didn't carelessly let their guard down. Confronting demons wasn't something that could be resolved with strength alone. They moved in perfect coordination and drove back part of the leaked darkness. -Master! Can they handle it among themselves!? Risir. As he was concentrating on the fissure, he heard a voice. 'What is it, Dangaleon. Are you worried about the humans?' -Those bugs-... No, aren't those humans precious to Master!? Risir burst into laughter inside his helmet. 'That's right. They're people I like and respect. So-' Crack. Risir put more strength into the grip that was holding the fissure and stared at it. If he closed the fissure like this, the immediate situation would be resolved. But. If that had been his purpose, he wouldn't have reopened the fissure in the first place. 'When I attempted to destroy the Archdemon's fragment, they found out the exact location and came looking...' That was all the information he had. It was nowhere near enough to deduce their exact identity or principles. However. Even in this situation, there was one clear point- 'If I leave them alone, they'll definitely cause some trouble later.' Let's destroy them. Risir had already made up his mind long ago. 'The problem is, how exactly do I destroy this-' Risir stared at the interior of the fissure. -Kyaaaaaak!!! Meanwhile, the fissure was constantly spewing out darkness. It wouldn't be strange if the fissure went wild again and darkness leaked out. In other words. It was a state where the fissure could neither be completely closed nor completely opened. -You, now you, you can be seen... -Insect... companions... cherish... them... -Your companions... brutally... shred... tear apart... The sound of darkness's mockery came from inside the fissure. They were indeed cunning demons. They had read hesitation in the brief wavering Risir had shown and found a gap. The Holy-Demonic Swordsman's essence was ultimately just a soft human- And they had noticed the fact that his companions were relatively vulnerable to darkness. Now they knew how to break down the Holy-Demonic Swordsman. Creeak- The fissure fluctuated. As if closing- As if opening- The Holy-Demonic Swordsman's hand trembled at that blatant manipulation of force. -....... -....... -....... -....... The sound of darkness's mockery became even clearer. The darkness actively mocked and exploited the Holy-Demonic Swordsman's predicament of being unable to do this or that. Would he close it completely? Would he open it completely? There was nothing the Holy-Demonic Swordsman could do. The darkness certainly thought so. "Everyone! I'll leave the rear to you!" The Holy-Demonic Swordsman thrust his body toward the fissure. -........ -........ -........ -........ -........ The darkness was shaken. They had never even imagined that he would turn his back on the light and enter the darkness of his own accord. Of course. That was merely temporary bewilderment. Beings of light. They naturally feared being in the darkness. The darkness had confidence. No matter how powerful that one was, he couldn't maintain himself intact in the realm of darkness! They tried to read the Holy-Demonic Swordsman's confusion. They tried to find hesitation and fear and thoroughly exploit those gaps. "Risir!? What- are you really going to be okay!? Do you know what's in there!?" "I don't know!" And the conversation that followed. "But let's give it a try anyway!" This gave bewilderment not only to his companions but even to the enemy. There was not the slightest trace of the hesitation the darkness had so hoped for. It was before any doubts could even be raised. Risir had already moved his back foot beyond the fissure. "Ri-...!" -You bas-...!!! Both sides' cries were cut off simultaneously. The fissure closed completely. Inside the darkness, by a being from outside the darkness. Thus, it was the moment silence descended upon the place. Whoosh! The fissure suddenly reopened. "What!?" Risir's group was shocked. The most vast dark energy yet squeezed out from the gap. Snap! It was immediately caught by a grip that shot out from inside the gap and annihilated. "..." -... Complete silence descended upon the place. *** In the center of the room, the World Tree was growing. Two Archmages and numerous powerful figures were keeping watch. Containing the leaked darkness again was not such a difficult task. Of course, it wasn't a very easy task either. "Phew..." Ragged breathing sounds flowed regularly through the quiet place. A stream of darkness trapped within an invisible barrier. Gazes focused on it, and a myriad of emotions crossed. "Ha!" Someone burst into bitter laughter. The sight of themselves sweating profusely to seal just a tiny portion of darkness. Over that, the image of a certain man overlapped. Above all- -Ahhhhhhh...! -Let go, let this go...! -Before that one comes...!!! They saw it for the first time. A sealed demon trembling in such fear. The appearance of darkness that had boasted of immortality and mocked finite light had vanished without a trace. "But anyway-" A moment later. They turned their gaze away from the barrier to somewhere else. -..... The fissure. In a state where it was neither completely closed nor open, it was revealing the inner flesh of darkness. "Is Risir still-" Someone's murmur. They all moved in unison toward the fissure. "It would be right for me, who has the fewest days left to live, to take the lead." "Wait, Lord Palag!?" Palag tried to put his hand into the fissure. "Even if I can't go with Risir, at least I can greet him-...!?" His eyes widened in shock midway. Palag hastily pulled out his hand. "Sir Palag!? Are you alright!?" "..." Palag looked down at his hand in bewilderment. He had merely tried to get close to the fissure. Just that alone, and the tips of his fingers were blackened as if stained by darkness. It was an ominous color that seemed like it would never come off. But it vanished fleetingly. Just in case, he had reached toward the World Tree, and the energy was immediately purified. "As expected, the World Tree!?" Someone exclaimed in amazement. "It's a power that the World Tree didn't originally have." Lunadien countered in a weary voice. "...As expected, Risir!?" Someone corrected themselves. There was no objection. The place where silence descended once again. "Just what-" They could only stare blankly at the darkness beyond the fissure. Was it just their imagination? That void darkness that had seemed to devour even light appeared to have brightened slightly. *** The Supreme God? You ask if I believe in the Supreme God? This is another difficult question- First, to be clear, I'm not some kind of researcher. My role is merely to organize and store information that has already been refined. You could call me a librarian of an intangible library? In that regard, speculation based on clues would be presumptuous of me. Therefore. I cannot say that the Supreme God exists. Why? Because the existence of the Supreme God has not been proven at all so far. The Religious Order says that divine power is the very reason the Supreme God truly exists- but even those who don't believe in the Supreme God handle divine power just fine, don't they? Then what about the opposite? Can I say that the Supreme God does not exist? ...Actually, this is quite complicated. Please just listen to what follows for entertainment. You. Have you ever thought about this? Archdemon fragments. Just how were they created? Yes. I know too. The fragments are what was created by dividing an Archdemon into pieces and sealing them. What I mean is. Just who was it that fragmented that Archdemon? When they were first discovered in historical records. They were already in the state of being Archdemon fragments. Records detailing the process of somehow fragmenting a complete Archdemon and sealing it- such materials could not be found anywhere. And there's another thing. Somewhere in this world, there's said to be a space where a legion of Archdemons is sealed. Yes. That's right. Records about the being who sealed that legion of Archdemons...also don't exist. At this point, you can guess what I'm trying to say, right? No one. Even history itself doesn't remember, but- Someone definitely fragmented and sealed those Archdemons. Just who could it be? What kind of being could make such a thing possible? -Crawling Library Eloran <Dialogue Keyword: Supreme God>- *** The place became chaos due to a phenomenon that occurred suddenly. "Block it! By any means necessary!!! We absolutely cannot let that thing open!" They were originally forces gathered to seal the 'Fragment of Pleasure.' But now. They had completely forgotten about the fragment's existence and were focused on something else. Riiiip- Space suddenly split apart, and beyond that gap, endless darkness spread out. "For this to happen the moment we try to seal an Archdemon fragment...!" The Archdemon fragment and the crack of darkness. Feeling a reasonable connection between the two, they were doing their utmost to block the crack. "Star of Defying Heaven! Don't just stand there, do something!!! Are you planning to move only after I collapse from exhaustion!??" The giant who looked at the crack from a much higher eye level than others- The Star of Defying Heaven distorted her expression. "Yeah, that's probably right. You know that all I can do is punch things, right?" "Ah, seriously!!!" The person with a boyish appearance burst out shouting. The Star of Radiance. He pointed with his chin at the crack he had trapped with his barrier and said. "Are you serious!? Do you really think the things that will flow out from there can be solved with punching!?" "Damn it! Then what the hell do you want me to do!? What the hell is this suddenly about anyway!?" "How would I know!?" The argument between the two cornered individuals didn't last long. Zap! "Ugh...!" A massive wave was transmitted from beyond the crack. The barrier cracked. -Kiyaaaaaak!!! The screech of darkness escaping through the gaps. "No, no...!!!" Star of Radiance gritted his teeth and squeezed out his power. A picture formed in his mind. The image of darkness mocking light and trying to break down boundaries! He absolutely had to stop the invasion of darkness. However- Zap! Zap! Zap! The wave grew increasingly fierce. -Gaaaaaaaaak!!! -Hueaaaaaaaaaak!!! -Euheheheheheheuk!!! And the screaming. By now it had become intense enough to sound like screams. The Star of Radiance felt he could understand the meaning contained within them. -Yes! -Struggle all you want! -You pathetic insect!!! Zap! Zap! Zap! Repeated attacks. And mockery. "Ah..." In the end, the Star of Radiance, having exhausted his strength, clutched both hands and slumped to the ground. The barrier collapsed. Immediately, the crack of darkness widened and spewed forth the trapped darkness. It was a mass. A being that seemed to be formed by multiple demons combined let out a shriek and burst out from the gap. However, before long, that massive body stopped in place. Stab! An arm had pierced through its chest and emerged. -Ah, ah...! The mass resisted, but it was meaningless struggling. The arm hooked it like a fishhook and dragged it back into the gap. Now what could be heard from beyond the gap was not terrible shrieks, but silence that felt even more ominous than them. And- Step. He was there. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Blood overflowed from the gaps in his helmet. Blood and flesh. Traces of destruction were abundant all over his body. Inside the armor, darkness and light swirled. Chaos. It had manifested by borrowing the form of a knight. "Ah, ahh...!!!" The Star of Radiance fell backward and crawled on the ground. Overwhelmed by that destructive majesty, he muttered in a daze. "De, Demon God...!" "Hero?" "?" The Star of Radiance looked at the Star of Defying Heaven, completely forgetting his own situation. Has she lost her mind in fear? 'How can she look at something like that and call it a hero-'