After Ten Millennia in Hell

Side Story Chapter 22 - Temple of Truth (5)

[O GREAT AKAAAAAAAAAART!! BESTOW UNTO ME THE TRUUUUUUUUTH!!!] screamed Rajang as it stomped its feet.

The charge of an eight-meter-tall giant monkey was suffocatingly intimidating.

Oh Kang-Woo calmly looked up at Rajang under immense pressure and asked, "Who is that person you keep calling Akart?"

Rajang suddenly stopped its enraged charge.

[A-Aaaahh.] It pulled on its hair and twisted madly. [O Akart! O Almighty, omnipotent, and most high Akart!!]

Rajang's eyes were filled with vivid fear as it desperately called for Akart.

[He is... He is...] Tajang's red eyes shook intensely. [He is the balancer of scales, the pursuer of truth, the eternal light.]

"For fuck's sake, can you suck up to him any harder?"

'Suck his ass any harder, and it'll get loose.'

[He is...] Rajang's eyes stopped shaking. In a clear voice unlike before, it said, [A giant born from the Primordial.]

Kang-Woo's expression crumpled. He did not know what Rajang was talking about regarding scales and the truth, but he easily understood its last sentence.

'A giant born from the Primordial— the true creators of this universe.'

Akart was a Titan.

"Haaa," Kang-Woo sighed.

'First Bael, and now a Titan? You bastards sure give me no time to rest.'

Kang-Woo frowned even more.

[Worship him, praise him, look to him in awe!] Rajang roared as it pounded its chest. [The tilted scale will take what it is owed!]

The Wikiholic had mentioned a tilted scale as well.

'No idea what it means, though. Creators sure love to say cool shit that has no meaning.'

[Fragment of the broken Law,] said Rajang as it glared ragingly at Kang-Woo. It bared its sharp teeth and said firmly as if sentencing Kang-Woo, [Perish.]

Boom!

Rajang charged at Kang-Woo again, its golden mane as magnificent as that of a lion fluttering in the wind. It reached Kang-Woo in an instant, grabbed him with its giant hand, and slowly raised him. A little more strength in his grip and the boy would be squashed to death, but the boy was smiling in the face of unavoidable death.

"Give it a try, if you think you can."

The boy's expression was full of arrogance; one would think he had a way to get out of this desperate situation if they didn't know better. Rather, they would think Rajang was the one in danger.

[Grrrrrrrr,] Rajang growled, vessels bulging from its forehead.

Kang-Woo cackled.

'It'd be bad for me if he buries me deep underground or throws me far away somewhere, but you won't do that.'

He smiled as he looked into Rajang's blazing red eyes.

'Because you don't know who I am.'

Crack.

His bones broke as Rajang slowly gripped harder.

'You don't know what I've done.'

The broken bone shards tore his muscles. Blood spewed from his mouth, nose, eyes, and ears.

'You don't know that I'm the Demon King.'

[I-I-I will... find the answer. I will... discover the truth.]

Rajang twisted the boy with both hands like wringing a rag. His skin ripped and his intestines spilled out. The boy was still smiling despite his imminent death.

"No." The boy shook his head firmly as he stared at the golden monster. He then declared, "You won't discover anything."

Wriggle.

Black mucus burst from Kang-Woo's mangled body like a broken water pipe and wrapped Rajang's hands.

[Grrr?]

Rajang tilted its head in wonder. The fluid was too viscous to be blood.

Crunch.

Sharp teeth then sprouted from the black mucus as if it were made of countless mouths and bit off Rajang's flesh.

Crunch—!

[Gaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!!] Rajang screamed as excruciating pain shot up from its hands.

It quickly stepped backward and threw aside the boy's mushy body made of black mucus, which splattered on the ground.

Wriggle.

The black mucus squirmed as it got up.

[What... are you?]

Rajang glared at Kang-Woo with extreme caution.

"It's too late to be cautious."

Kang-Woo's face came out of the black mucus. He stared at Rajang with a wicked smile. Rajang had already destroyed Kang-Woo's body; it stimulated the Demonic Sea and threatened its existence. Rajang had pressed the detonator of the bomb inside Kang-Woo.

"Abyss Summoning."

The battle was already decided.

Wriggle—!

The black mucus squirmed as it formed circular lumps and scattered them throughout the surroundings.

[A-Aaaahh.]

[I am...]

The summoned demons stood up, their eyes blank as if they were in a daze. They bared their sharp teeth and sprouted black wings. They flew into the sky and swarmed Rajang like bees.

[Graaaaaaaahhh!]

Rajang fiercely twisted around to shake off the demons sticking themselves to it. The demons thrown off of the giant monkey splattered on the ground as they turned to mush, but only for a moment.

Wriggle.

The destroyed demons returned to normal along with the sound of viscous fluid slushing. The regenerated demons once again sprouted their wings and flew at Rajang.

[What, what, what, what?!]

Rajang stared at the demons flying at it in disbelief. There did not exist among the knowledge he was bestowed by Akart, a way to face an immortal army.

[A-Aaaahh.] Rajang twisted and turned as it pulled on its golden hair. [I need, I need, I need, I NEEEEEEEEEEED!! AN ANSWEEEEEEEEEER!!]

It then straightened its back and kneeled in front of the golden wall in the middle of the temple.

[O Great Akart... Bestow unto me the truth... your knowledge!!]

Whoooom!

The golden light radiating from the wall seeped into Rajang.

[Whoaaa, O Almighty Akart!!]

Rajang lifted his arms high in tears.

Boom!

Rajang stood up and glared at Kang-Woo as it threw aside the demons gnawing at its flesh.

[Fuuuuu!] It took a deep breath and yelled, [PERIIIIIIIIIIISH!!]

If its opponents were immortal, it simply needed to obliterate them without a trace.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Rajang charged fiercely as its golden mane fluttered in the wind.

Slam!

It stomped its feet and soared into the air. It curled into a ball and fell incredibly fast toward the ground.

Rumble—!!

The force of its fall felt like that of a golden meteor, falling toward Kang-Woo as space was distorted around it. Kang-Woo simply spread out his arms calmly in the face of a meteor that could destroy everything around him, as if he were waiting for the meteor to fall on him.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM—!!!

A massive crater several hundred meters wide was formed along with an impact that shook the earth, powerful enough to destroy the entire temple.

[Huff, huff, huff,] Rajang panted heavily as it looked down at the temple made using Akart's power.

It could no longer see the leisurely boy who dared to mock him. His answer of obliterating the enemy with a trace for them to regenerate from had been correct.

[I have once again become closer to the truth.]

Rajang smiled widely and turned around. The golden wall was standing strong despite that massive impact.

Rajang's expression hardened as he stared at the golden wall with a balance scale engraved. It no longer remembered how long it had been since it was dragged into this temple. No matter how much time passed searching for an answer or desiring the truth, the golden wall did not budge.

[A-A-Aaaahh] Rajang groaned in despair as it pulled on its hair, then shook its head and staggered as he walked. [More... I need to pursue more... And someday... I will be able to get out of here.]

Fwoosh.

As Rajang was about to approach the wall, it saw a flicker of gold and black flames, resembling a black sun, in the crater. The tiny ember the size of a fingernail grew exponentially bigger and took the shape of a human.

[What, what, what, what?!!] Rajang expressed shock.

The human formed by the flames was the boy Rajang had obliterated just now.

[No...]

Rajang shook its head, its expression frozen. The black sun, taking the form of a human, could no longer be called a little boy. A young man with upturned eyes examined his body in fascination.

"It's been a while."

The man smiled as he looked down at his thick hands and toned muscles. The Demonic Sea detected a great threat from Rajang's attacks and restored his body to normal.

"Oh right, fuck!"

Kang-Woo, staring at his restored original form as he reminisced, looked into his pants made of demonic energy.

"Aah," he groaned. A single tear trickled down his cheek. "YOU'RE BAAAAAAAAAAACK!! MY FRAN?OOOOOOOOOOOOIS!!!"

Kang-Woo roared with as much madness as Rajang when he was worshiping Akart. He jumped up and down, overwhelmed by emotions.

"Fuuu."

He then took deep breaths to calm down after celebrating Fran?ois's rebirth.

'Calm down.'

Kang-Woo had only returned to his original form temporarily because the Demonic Sea felt threatened; he would revert to his childlike body once it calmed down.

'But before that...'

[A-Aaaahh. O Great Akart, knowledge... bestow unto me...]

Kang-Woo raised his head to see Rajang stepping backward as it trembled. However, he was focused on what was behind him.

"We can get out if I break that wall, right?"

He stared at the golden wall engraved with a balance scale, which did not have a scratch even after that massive explosion.

'Well, the monkey said shit about the wall being vulnerable only after realizing the truth, but fuck that. Ain't nobody got time for that.'

"I'll just smash it down and that'll be that."

Fwoosh—!

The black sun blazed fiercely. Kang-Woo lowered his stance and clenched his fist as the Flames of Voracity burned brilliantly.

"Now, then."

'It's time to get out of this fucking temple.'

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