Ascension Through Skills
chapter-103

Transcendent skill. Divine Energy. It was the first time he had seen this type of skill.

Then there was Anti-Theology. It seemed to be a skill related to the gods.

He wanted to check, but there was something he had to do first.

Taesan flew back to the Demon’s Village. There, he saw countless demons and the captured Annetsha.

“Lord Taesan!”

Annetsha brightened up when she saw Taesan. In contrast, the demons’ faces darkened infinitely.

“Ha, haha…”

Atunikia let out a wistful laugh.

“Has God’s messenger… been defeated?”

“What will you do now?”

Atunikia, who was blankly staring at Taesan, opened his mouth.

“If only a being like you… had come a little sooner…”

There was a hint of resentment.

Atunikia, with a bitter smile, nodded to the demons.

“Everyone, let’s go.”

“What? No!”

Annetsha tried to stop them hastily, but the demons were quick. They took out the daggers they had been hiding and stabbed their own throats.

It was a move that was filled with resignation, without any fear or resistance. Fifty demons died like that.

“Ah, Ahhhh!”

Annetsha rushed to their corpses, crying aloud.

The demons had tried to abandon the god they believed in and originated from, and even attempted to sacrifice their princess. That resolve wouldn’t have been easy.

If they failed, they vowed to die, and they kept their promise.

The princess blankly looked down at the corpses of her kin.

“…What is this?”

A wheezy voice echoed. She couldn’t help but burst into laughter. It was a hollow laugh, an emptiness inside.

The kin she found with great effort betrayed her. They betrayed her god.

“Lord Taesan…”

Annetsha, who was reaching out to Taesan, dropped her hand.

Taesan was also someone who would eventually leave. He was not someone who could be with her.

Now, she was completely alone.

There was no safe place for her.

Taesan asked her.

“Do you still believe in your god?”

Unlike before, Annetsha couldn’t respond immediately.

Bowing her head in despair, she barely opened her mouth.

“…Yes.”

She bit her lip.

“I still… believe in her.”

With her wretched words, darkness descended.

A deep, deep power spread throughout the world. The darkness swallowed the village and gently enveloped the corpses of the demons.

“Huh?”

Annetsha looked up in surprise.

The darkness revealed itself in front of her.

[My child.]

The darkness took on the shape of a little girl and caressed Annetsha’s cheek. Annetsha’s eyes fluttered.

“Dark…Lord?”

[I'm sorry.]

In Lucifer’s voice, there was a deep sense of regret and gratitude.

[And thank you. Even when everyone was in despair and abandoned me, you never lost your faith in me. Do you know how much that means to a god?]

“Da, Dark Lord?”

Annetsha couldn’t suppress her confusion.

[A token of my gratitude. My child. I'll grant whatever you wish for.]

Annetsha’s eyes widened.

Lucifer whispered to her.

[Do you want revenge? Or do you want to meet your father?]

“I…”

Staring blankly up at Lucifer, Annetsha opened her mouth.

“What will happen to those who abandoned you?”

[They, at least, will not be able to return to me.]

Demons originated from the Demon God. Their souls not being able to return to the Demon God meant that they were abandoned by everything.

Annetsha’s tremors subsided.

“Then please take them into your embrace. Oh, Great Dark Lord.”

At Annetsha’s words, Lucifer laughed.

[I understand.]

Darkness enveloped Annetsha.

[Come with me.]

And then the darkness exploded. Taesan’s field of vision was dyed entirely black.

When his vision returned, he was in the Demon God’s palace.

He had returned to the place where he first met Lucifer.

Lucifer sat regally on her throne, just as she did the first time.

The Demon God then opened her mouth.

[The quest has been successful, Kang Taesan.] [Sub Quest Completed.]

The completion window appeared.

“From the start, was this your aim?”

Where would be a safe place for Annetsha?

Initially, he thought it was the land where the demons gathered. However, that place was a trap. At least, in Vekveta, there was no place for Annetsha.

Thinking about it, it was incredibly simple.

The safest place for demons is by the Demon God’s side, wasn’t it?

“If you could have descended, you should have ended it sooner.”

[I, too, was timing it. The only one who believed in me was the only one left, so there was no need to watch my back. And you made Harmon send down an angel, creating an opening. Everything worked out well.]

Lucifer’s lips curled up in what seemed like satisfaction.

“Is it over with this?”

The quest was completed. But Lucifer shook her head.

[It can't be. You've done well. You've done more than enough.]

A hint of emotion was contained in Lucifer’s gaze towards Taesan.

[So I'll show you something fun.]

Lucifer stood up from her throne. At the same time, the palace receded. In an instant, they were standing in an empty space.

[Look at that.]

Taesan looked in the direction Lucifer pointed.

There was a planet there. A blend of blue, white, and green lights, it was incredibly beautiful.

‘Space?’

[That's Vekveta, a world that is no longer mine.]

With a chilly smile, Lucifer extended her hand.

A tremendous darkness gushed out. It slowly stretched towards Vekveta and eventually wrapped around it completely.

[Uh... ]

The ghost seemed to lose its words and groaned.

[Here we go.]

Lucifer clenched her fist.

The darkness condensed and started to crush the star. Then, as if resisting, a golden light burst from the darkness.

[This is my world!]

A voice full of rage echoed from Vekveta.

[This is mine!] [Yes. That is now yours.]

Lucifer laughed wryly and put more force into her fist.

[So die with your possession.]

Crunch.

The star crumbled. The planet shriveled like a plastic bottle deflated of air.

Groan. Groan.

The compressed star began to shrink even more. The voice full of anger was no longer heard.

After a moment, there was no longer anything that could be called a planet.

There was only a compressed rock.

[It's really over now.]

Lucifer muttered with a relieved expression.

Taesan, who had returned to Lucifer’s palace, couldn’t help but ask.

“Was there a need to summon me?”

Literally a monster.

She had utterly crushed a star, a planet.

There was no lack of resistance either. A being that was likely to be Harmon spewed out golden energy, fiercely resisting. However, it was trampled in an instant by Lucifer’s power.

There was a difference in strength as if between a child and an adult. It meant that Lucifer could have handled it herself without needing to summon Taesan.

[If I do, everything that's mine will crumble.]

Lucifer, crossing her legs, said in reply.

[If I destroy that world, what is mine can't return to me. Souls, lives, will. All fly away. I hate that so much.]

“……Is that Annetsha?”

[Yes.]

Lucifer smiled.

[A poor child. And a grateful child. Despite being abandoned and suffering by everyone, she didn't let go of her feelings for me. It's not bad to save such a child.]

One thought crossed Taesan’s mind.

He had heard that hard gems were refined by colliding with each other. The gems broke each other and created beautiful shapes.

In the end, many gems were discarded, and only one beautiful gem remained.

Lucifer leaned back on her jade throne.

[I'll express my thanks. Kang Taesan. It's quite rare for me to express gratitude.]

“Is that so?”

Taesan erased his thoughts. He didn’t know which was the right answer, but now it was a story unrelated to him.

[And she also said to say thank you and sorry.]

“……Is that so.”

Annetsha was nestled in Lucifer’s arms.

He would never see her again. Taesan quickly sorted out his feelings.

Lucifer opened her mouth with a cheerful face. It was an incredibly light attitude for someone who had just destroyed a world.

[You've satisfactorily cleared my quest. So now I should give you a reward, right?]

A black aura emerged from Lucifer’s hand and entered Taesan.

[You have obtained Magic.] [You have learned [Demonic Magic].]

A separate power engulfed Taesan. Something black settled within him.

[Check your status window.]

Following Lucifer’s words, Taesan opened his status window.

[Kang Taesan] [Level: 45] [Shield: 207/207] [Health: 2400/2400] [Mana: 526/526] [Magic: 10/10] [Strength: 835] [Intelligence: 562] [Agility: 732] [Attack + 93] [Defense + 115] [Subject is in the best condition.]

His stats had significantly increased due to level-up and Soul Ascension triggered by defeating an angel. And just below Mana, a new element called Magic was added.

[The basic acquisition method is the same as other elements. It increases as the level goes up. But that would be a bit disappointing, wouldn't it?]

Taesan’s level was not low. If it were to increase from here, there was a high chance it would not mean much.

[So this is a service.]

Power imbued itself in Taesan once more.

[You have learned the special active skill [Plunder of Darkness].] [It has a similar effect to the skill Balthasar gave you. Your Magic will gradually increase each time you kill an enemy.]

Having such a skill would make the use of Magic much more convenient. Taesan gratefully received it.

[And I'll give you a title.]

A seal of darkness was drawn in front of Lucifer. It was then inscribed on the back of Taesan’s hand.

[You have acquired the title [One who is Beloved by the Demon God].]

Lucifer explained.

[If you pray to me, you can learn dark magic. Of course, it's not free. Like the god of magic, you also have to offer me something. Especially if it's related to Magic.]

Like the god of magic, the value would rise if it was related to the deity.

[And I'll give you a little more service.] [You have learned the beginner dark magic [Dekarabia's Twisted Nutrition].] [You have acquired the basic dark magic [Laum's Emotional Disturbance].]

One beginner dark magic and one basic dark magic. It was an unexpected harvest.

He received more than he thought. Taesan expressed his gratitude.

“Thank you, Demon God.”

[Hehe, you're welcome.]

The Demon God exhaled through her nose. It was a strangely emotional sight.

[Now there's only one thing left, right?]

Taesan nodded his head.

Before going to Vekveta, he had asked the Demon God for one more thing, which the Demon God granted. Lucifer then opened her mouth.

[The entity that brought ruin to your world. To put it simply, your conjecture was correct. They are beings who were Transcendents from birth, currently known as the High Gods.]

Taesan’s eyebrows twitched. He had been expecting it, but hearing the confirmation from a god made him feel quite strange.

Lucifer spoke indifferently.

[Beings who were strong from birth. Hence, they were those who did not understand the hearts of mortals. At one point, all the gods of the universe were High Gods. We usurped their positions and sealed them. The same goes for me.]

Lucifer raised her hand. A dark, intense energy gathered there.

[There was a Demon God before me. He was a Demon god from birth. Those who despised their indifferent gods then worshipped a small, young girl, and through various processes, the girl became a god.]

Lucifer clenched her fist and grumbled, shattering the darkness.

[To regard a child who has not aged as a god. Adults can indeed be irresponsible. Don't you think so?]

“I’m not sure.”

[Humph. Boring.]

Lucifer grumbled. A High God had trampled upon his world. Naturally, there was something he was curious about.

“Why did they trample on our world?”

[Your question is a bit disrespectful.]

Lucifer said calmly.

[The world that was trampled upon was not just your world. 258. That's the number of worlds that have been destroyed by the High Gods.]