[#$&HjKh]
“…What? Why is this happening?”
While attempting to resurrect Theresia, Ian noticed something strange.
The system was broken.
He didn’t know why. What could have caused it to crash in the first place?
“Ian? What’s the matter?”
“No… Something’s not right.”
Seeing Ian’s unease, Noah asked with concern in her voice, but he hesitated, unable to give a clear answer.
The system was failing—what the hell was going on? And why now?
‘Let me think…’
Everything in the world follows causality.
Sometimes, the cause is obscure—like bugs triggered by cosmic radiation affecting electron flow during a classic game speedrun. But other times, incidents seem to happen without reason.
Such things… only a god could do.
But the Almighty wouldn’t sabotage the system just to mess with Ian.
‘What did I just do?’
He had captured Theresia, retrieved her heirloom, and inserted it into the system. He had linked the system to the deceased Theresia.
Connection is interference—and interference is a two-way street. If Ian reached Theresia through the system, then Theresia, in turn, had also reached into the system.
‘Contaminated by the power of the Demon King…’
Theresia had been corrupted by the Demon King’s power. In countless stories, once something is tainted, it forms a deep bond with its source of corruption.
In other words, the Demon King’s power had infected the system.
“…Crazy.”
Ian’s eyes turned toward the Demon King.
Toward the deathly still place that hadn’t stirred since the battle ended.
***
The group quickly made their way to the Demon King’s Castle.
The interior was filled with a sickening stench.
“Ugh…”
“Don’t breathe it in.”
The castle was littered with the rotting c0rpses of demons, decomposing and releasing toxic fumes.
Judging from the still-wet blood splattered across the floor, it hadn’t been long since their deaths.
‘Is it tainted with mana?’
Even the most elegant demons had decayed grotesquely under magical corruption. The party pushed deeper, toward the place where the Demon King was likely waiting.
This was where Theresia had emerged.
At the heart of the Demon King’s Castle, Ian found a nest built into the floor. He remained on alert.
This was where the Demon King had corrupted the summoned being.
There could still be traps.
“Be careful. This place—”
“—Is empty?”
Unlike the wary Ian, the summons—blessed with various enhanced senses—quickly sensed the truth.
There was nothing here.
Only traces remained.
“Demon—!”
At the very core of the nest, they found a woman sitting cross-legged.
A level of mana so overwhelming, it defied comprehension.
Ian knew the moment he laid eyes on her.
It was the Demon King.
“—Shatter it! Let the jet-black future come!”
The Empress, upon seeing the Demon King, immediately chanted an incantation.
A powerful anti-magic spell surged toward the Demon King’s body.
It was an attack even the Demon King shouldn’t have been able to ignore.
But she didn’t move.
“…Summoner, something’s wrong.”
“I know.”
“No, I mean—the magic didn’t work. At all.”
“…What?”
No matter how powerful the Demon King was, there was no way she could completely nullify the skills of a 4-star summon.
If she were truly that invincible, she would’ve conquered an entire continent by just herself.
The Empress came to the same conclusion as Ian.
“This spell… It’s one no living being can avoid.”
“…no living being?”
“Ah.”
The Empress, who had been explaining the magic’s nature, realized the implication.
It was a spell that only affected the living—meaning it had no effect on the dead.
Ian slowly turned his gaze back to the Demon King.
She sat cross-legged, her eyes closed, unmoving—like a statue.
Tuk-tuk—
He gently tapped her body.
And it collapsed backward with a dull thud.
“…She’s dead.”
***
[Beep…Pccccc..kkkk!]
[Demon King..kkkkkkkk….beep.]
[Main Quest…trrrrrrrrrrrp!
The broken system began spitting out distorted messages.
The Demon King was dead.
No—she had already been dead.
***
The Demon King was gone.
She had passed, leaving behind only a corpse.
Ian knew what beings like this were called.
‘Transcendent…’
Those who reached a state of profound enlightenment and cast aside their physical form.
Buddhas, saints—those who transcended mortality were often labeled this way.
The Demon King’s form was no different.
It was as if she had shed her body and ascended.
‘A legendary-tier being… but there’s no way the Demon King became a Goddess—what the hell happened here…?’
Ian didn’t know exactly what had happened—but one fact was clear: the Demon King was dead. Or rather, she was closer to ‘exfoliation’ than true death.
In other words, she had only abandoned her physical body. The Demon King—the demon who had once threatened the world—still existed somewhere.
But where?
‘System.’
By now, no matter how inconspicuous the anchorage was, it was almost impossible to miss. The Demon King had moved through the system to somewhere beyond it.
Perhaps another world. Maybe even the so-called heavenly or divine realm.
“Summoner?”
“Uh, what?”
“What are you going to do? I mean… the Demon King isn’t truly dead…”
“…Let’s take the body first.”
The Demon King’s discarded corpse was still a vessel of immense magical power—a special item that could be repurposed. There was no reason to leave it behind.
Ian ordered Empress to retrieve the Demon King’s corpse.
She promptly cast a sealing spell on it.
Once that was done, Ian turned to the girls and spoke.
“You’ve all worked hard. Let’s go back.”
***
The Heroes returned.
With the Demon King’s corpse.
Word spread quickly across the continent. The movement of demons had slowed since the fall of their king, so no one doubted the rumors.
Before the emperor, Ian and his companions knelt, reporting the events of their mission.
“Ian Clark, by Your Majesty’s command, has defeated the Demon King and returned.”
“Hmm… Is that true?”
“Yes, it is.”
Ian presented the Demon King’s body.
Artia, the legendary Hero who had once faced the Demon King in single combat to protect the continent centuries ago, examined the corpse and confirmed its identity.
Even the emperor couldn’t deny that Ian had slain the Demon King.
And yet…
“Didn’t you say you would marry my daughter if you defeated the Demon King?”
“…That might’ve been the aftereffects of the battle. I don’t remember clearly.”
“There are plenty of people who remember it for you. No need to worry.”
The emperor smiled slyly.
Ian, who had fully expected to escape this world with his reward after defeating the Demon King, could only tremble at the words.
‘Why isn’t it over yet?’
The system, though broken, had acknowledged the achievement of defeating the Demon King. The main quest had been marked complete.
But Ian was still Ian Clark.
That meant he was still here. Still trapped in this world.
And now he had to deal with everything he’d done under the assumption that he would return to reality once the Demon King was dead.
“Your Majesty, there’s something I must tell you.”
“What is it? The wedding date?”
“…It’s important. Please dismiss everyone else.”
The emperor, noting the seriousness in Ian’s tone and expression, hesitated briefly before nodding and clearing the room.
When they were alone, he asked, “What is it?”
“Actually… the Demon King isn’t dead.”
“Are you saying you deceived me?”
“That’s not it. By the time we arrived… the Demon King had already died.”
“Explain.”
Artia’s eyes widened at the revelation. Ian took a moment to organize the swirl of thoughts in his mind.
Until now, he had kept secret the fact that he was a player—a system user. But even with the system broken, there was no point in hiding it anymore.
“Your Majesty, I’m not originally from this world.”
“I know.”
“…What?”
“Heroes are always like that, aren’t they?”
“Oh… yes.”
That wasn’t quite what Ian had meant, but the emperor—likely referencing ancient legends about heroes from other realms—misunderstood and brushed off Ian’s explanation.
At least it saved Ian the trouble of clarifying.
He explained instead that he possessed a special ability—one that revealed the Demon King hadn’t truly died.
“So the Demon King… still lives?”
“…She’s in the divine realm.”
“Then… we’ll need to consult some experts in that field.”
“…Experts?”
“Of course. You know, those maniacs who claim they’re connected to the divine realm—despite their minds being far from divine.”
Yes.
Even though this world had no official system, there were still people who had those kind of belief.
They were known as the Divine Church.