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[Ah, no! Sister! Im scared!]

[Brother! Save me!]

[Someone, please help!]

The faces of crying children.

Dantalian seemed to have captured the faces of the children trying to escape from the orphanage and devoured them.

Vikir recalled the strange regulations/rules he had seen at the orphanage not long ago. They were probably designed to scare the children to prevent them from running away and to ensure that no one would help those who escaped.

And with this newfound knowledge, Dolores was able to conjure a much more intense Holy Fire than before.

Ssshhhh!

A pure white flame began to engulf Dantalians entire body.

[Aaargh!?]

With the sound of his flesh burning, Dantalian convulsed in agony, but Dolores couldnt see it.

Evil the epitome of evil this wicked creature!

She didnt have many curses in her vocabulary.

Tears were streaming from her eyes, clouding her vision.

Shee couldnt meet the agonizing gazes of the children in the flames, and she lowered his head.

Her innate holiness was at an extraordinary level, but she hadnt yet accumulated practical experience in effectively manifesting it, which was what had happened.

But there was a skilled hand to complement that.

Sheek!

Vikir. The night hound, once again, bared his sharp fangs and bit into a chunk of Dantalians flesh.

This is a chance.

Dolores, as she created the Holy Fire, watched as Dantalian writhed in excruciating pain.

If she could slowly carve Dantalians body with her blade right now, victory was within reach.

Fwooosh!

An aura, almost solid, oozed from Vikirs blade.

Representing the Peak graduator, this viscous aura was now almost solid.

[Grrgh!? How dare a human!]

Dantalian, consumed by the white flames, rose and drew out his purple tounges.

Chaang! Chang! Thud!

Vikirs sword clashed fiercely with Dantalians purple tongues.

In the blink of an eye, the high-speed exchange of blows continued.

But the experienced Vikir, despite Dantalians demonic speed, managed to keep up the pressure.

Ttwaang!

Vikirs blade struck Dantalians tounge, and he felt his wrist vibrate.

Certainly stronger than Andromalius.

Andromalius, who had possessed the body of Seth Baskerville, was also one of the ten supreme demons. However, the difference lay in the fact that back then, the Knights of Baskerville had fought alongside him, and Hugo Le Baskerville had been the one to finish the battle. But now, Vikir was locked in a 1:1 battle with Dantalian, eventhough he had a powerful ally.

Night Hound! Step back for a moment!

Dolores channeled white flames into her hands, creating a barrier.

Amid the lightning-fast exchange of blows, without blinking an eye or taking a breath, Vikir, swinging his sword, could finally step back and recoup behind the barrier.

Zzzzz

The white-hot radiance that consumed Dantalian threw him far away.

However, Dantalian showed no sign of desperation.

[Hehehe! The first ones to corner me like this. Interesting.]

Interesting? Lets see if you can say that before you bite the dust.

[Die? Are you trying to kill me now? Hoho, your determination surely overflows.]

Dantalian extended the face of a mustached gentleman but soon spoke calmly.

[Yes, indeed. All humans believe they are special. They think theyre the chosen ones. Heroes who can kill demons and bring peace to this world. Protagonists, and all that.]

His face then transformed into that of a seductive woman, followed by that of an innocent child, a stubborn man, and a malicious old man in rapid succession.

A Thousand-Faced Demon. It was indeed one of Dantalians most powerful abilities, That directly struck the heart of the attacker.

[But no, thats not it. In reality, everyone in the world is special. They are all heroes, lovers, fools, and villains. They all have their own unique stories.]

Simultaneously, Dantalian exhaled a thick black mist from his mouth.

The mist filled the entire space in an instant, much like the smoke spewed by a fire.

Fluttering

Three unpleasant objects fell in front of Vikir and Dolores.

They were similar to the black cloth sacks that Epebo, Hebe, Peto, and Geronto had worn on their faces before.

The sack on the far left writhed.

Rustle!

The thin cloth sacks outer surface displayed pulsating blue veins.

After a while

Rustle! Rustle! Rustle!

The three black coth sacks began to move as if they had gone mad.

The eerie convulsions resembled a death row inmate writhing in his final moments when the executioner carried out his sentence.

Dantalians voice, filled with satisfaction as if he had already peered inside the sacks.

[Now, shall we hear your stories?]

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Amidst the thick mist, Dolores searched frantically for Dantalian, who was hidden behind it.

What is this mist? It doesnt even disappear with my divine power.

Be careful.

Vikir had already experienced Dantalian in his past life.

Therefore, he had some predictions about his attack patterns.

After a while, one of the three black sacks floating in mid-air suddenly opened wide.

Vikir spoke with a dry voice.

Thats the sack of Shame that Dantalian, the thousand faced demon, carries around.

?

As Dolores tilted her head in confusion, the sack of Shame seemed to change its course towards her and something was pulled out from inside.

Doloress expression turned to horror when she saw what came out of the sack.

Ah! What is that!?

What emerged from the sack was none other than Dolores herself.

[]

Fake Dolores looked at the real Dolores with an expressionless face.

Vikir calmly explained, The sack of Shame makes the target show an embarrassed expression. Its a psychological attack that brings their most shameful memories to life.

In other words, what was in front of her was the exact recreation of the most embarrassing memory of Dolores in her life.

This would not only shatter her camaraderie with her comrades in an instant, but it would also disrupt her composure, making it a truly terrifying technique.

However?

Ssshh

Fake Dolores, who had walked out of the sack of Shame, didnt do anything.

She just wet her pants.

?

?

Vikir and Dolores both fell silent as if by mutual agreement.

D-Die!

Dolores immediately used the white divine flames, blowing away the sack of Shame.

[Argh!? What is this? How did you overcome the sack of shame so easily?!]

From behind the mist, Dantalians bewildered cries were heard.

It seemed that overcoming this illusion caused damage to the demon on the other side.

Afterward, the next sack began to move as if it were alive and opened its mouth towards Dolores.

Vikirs expression stiffened.

The next is the sack of Terror. It makes the target show a terrified face. In other words, it pulls out the person the victim fears the most.

After a while, the thing that came out of the sack of terror stood in front of Dolores.

It was the face of a middle-aged man with a stern expression.

Vikir immediately recognized the face.

Humbert L Quovadis!

The leader of the Old Testament faction and Dolores father.

As Humberts face appeared, Dolores expression froze.

Ah, Father

She was so startled that she couldnt even speak properly.

[Dolores, why are you wandering outside at this hour? Have you finished all the assignments I gave you?!]

Bishop Humbert looked down at Dolores with an authoritarian attitude.

The whip on his hands was making Dolores quite nervous and fidgety.

That that

Dolores couldnt meet Humberts gaze, and cold sweat began to flow from her forehead.

At that moment

Thwack

There was a strike that beheaded Bishop Humbert.

It was Vikir. He had intervened in Doloress memory.

Illusions are just illusions. Theres nothing to be afraid of.

When Vikirs voice reached her, Dolores finally exhaled the breath she had been holding.

Cold sweat was dripping from her cheeks to her chin.

Im Im sorry. My father and I dont get along well. I forgot it was just an illusion for a moment.

I understand.

Vikir simply nodded without any further questions.

After a while, only one sack remained.

That one is the Sack of Love.'

Dolores nodded when she heard Vikirs explanation.

By now, she had a good idea of what would come out. Probably the face of the person she loved.

Dolores, on the other hand, was unable to predict which face would appear. She didnt have any memories of loving someone with certainty.

Of course, she followed the Rune Religions law to love thy neighbor, but Dantalians definition of love was likely different from that.

Afterward

Tsst, tsst, tsst, tsst

What came out of the sack of Love began to take shape.

It was the form of a common-looking man.

He was dressed in a black cloak, wearing a reversed hat, and had a strange mask resembling a cranes beak covering his face.

It was Night Hound.

?

For a moment, an awkward silence hung between Vikir and Dolores.

Is this?

Oh, its not me! This sack is strange! Its showing weird people Ha-hahaha~!

When Vikir slowly turned his head, Dolores hastily waved her hands.

At that moment, from beyond the mist, Dantalians mocking voice could be heard.

[Hoho! My sack is honest, even more so than the target! It can capture even the tiniest emotions hidden deep within! It can even extract emotions you didnt know you had!]

In response to his statement, Doloress face turned bright red.

Wait! Im innocent! I swear! Well, maybe not swear, but I really havent!

Vikir didnt say anything this time either. He simply drew his sword and prepared to confront the fake Night Hound.

ClangBark! Thud!

Vikir, backed by saintess holy fire, swiftly thrust his sword into the Night Hounds body, and the illusion was reduced to mistt.

Luckily, it seems that it cant reproduce the power of the original body.

Perhaps it was because Dantalian had not accumulated enough magical power yet.

Back before the Regression, when they had met in the era of destruction, Dantalian could reproduce not only the faces but also the powers of the individuals from the targets memories.

Vikir was relieved that he had discovered Dantalian sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile

Saint Dolores was fumbling for words, unable to say anything.

Vikir was contemplating what to say to her when

Rumble!

The three sacks started moving again.

[Hoho-ho-ho. To be honest, I didnt expect much from the saintess. What experiences can an amateur like her possibly have?]

[But I expect more from you,]

Dantalians words were directly aimed at Vikir.

A demonic technique that could draw out and manifest a targets shameful memories, fears, and loved ones.

Now, it was unfolding before Vikirs eyes.

Soon after

Tsst, tsst, tsst, tsst

The first sack, the sack of Shame, began to explore Vikirs memories and started manifesting them in the real world.

After a while

Something appeared from the mist.

EEk!?

It surprised Dolores.

[Huh?]

Even Dantalian, who had created the illusion, was speechless.

The sky was painted blood-red. Mountains of corpses. A river of blood.

In the center of the desolated world, a lone pillar stood.

Doloress gaze naturally moved to the top of that pillar.

And there, imprinted deeply in her retinas, was something.

A severed neck.

One severed neck, prominently displayed.

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