Chapter 300: Sacrifice
"You bastard! What the hell do you know about the education system?!"
FSHUK! FSHUK! FSHUK!
Enraged, the director randomly shot beams of divine light at me.
She slowed down my body and accelerated her beams of light, disabling me from avoiding her attacks.
But I could still defend myself.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The light beams were intercepted by dark matter and were completely absorbed.
The First Angel was right in front of me, giving her an array of other means to attack, but she didn't dare approach me and instead kept a safe distance, which ultimately led to her limiting herself.
"How boring."
I felt like yawning.
Although my movements were sluggish, I didn't need time to defend myself.
Sped up at least 100 times, or slowed down at least 100 times!
I didn't know if her attacks were faster than my cognitive abilities, but from that distance, she certainly wouldn't be able to hurt me.
I fended off her onslaught over and over again.
It might seem strange, but I understood why this was happening.
No one in the Fantasy dimension could fight toe-to-toe against the all-powerful director. And no one really had any reason to.
She was also the First Angel, ruler of the entire race of angels, who were always ready to fight for her.
This was the result.
She was like a newcomer who didn't even know how to fight. No, she really was a rookie.
"Well, isn't this just funny?"
"You still dare call yourself a Hero even after calling me a newcomer and taking pleasure from it, bastard?!"
"Don't confuse the concepts."
Right now, the evil that I needed to defeat was right before me.
Love, friendship, sacrifice, loyalty, weakness…
If I compromised and decided to forgive the enemy for any reason, I could no longer be called a hero.
I would just be a powerful criminal like her.
"How dare you…"
"Hahaha! Come on! Stimulate my spine! Simplify the calculation with compound interest! This is so exciting! Continue! Keep going!"
"…"
"Hey. What are you doing? Do something already."
"Let's resolve our differences through conversation."
"How?"
What did this bitch suddenly come up with?
"So far, only eighty years have passed. If we stop now and get rid of our past grievances, we'll be able to reach an ending where everyone can be happy…"
"There's no such path."
"There is."
"No, and I'm certain of it."
Those who had succumbed to force couldn't sincerely desire reconciliation and coexistence.
As soon as they gained strength, they would immediately stab them in the back.
I was even willing to argue about it.
"How can you be so sure of that?"
"Because I've done it before."
"What?"
"I've done it before."
I knew I wouldn't be able to immediately cope with companions who would abuse me the moment we met, so I did nothing but develop my power for ten years.
At that point, I hit the jackpot.
Ironically, it turned out they were hatching the same idea.
They were going to get rid of me while I was exhausted after defeating Demon Lord Pedonar.
"Funny, isn't it?"
"Well, that's…"
"There's no room for compromise, director. Hence, we need to fight to the end. That way, we won't regret anything."
"…"
"Or do you want to surrender?"
"Don't look down on me. I was just trying to avoid sacrifices. But keep this in mind. Since you forced me to do so anyway, there will be no mercy for you in the future."
"Haha! That's the spirit!"
"Laugh while you can! Green Cake!"
SKRRRRR!
When the giant green creature appeared, the shrinking Demon Vault creaked.
The dragon who became my adopted son appeared.
"GRRRARRR!" Roared Green Cake, who seemed much stronger than before.
The space around us wasn't destroyed, but the speed of its compression was significantly reduced.
The reason was simple.
▷ Race: Green Chaos Dragon
▷ Level: 999+
▷ Job: Brave (Everyone = Level 1)
▷ Skills: Chaos G, Divinity G, Vitality G, Dark Energy G, Dragon Scale ZZZ, Large Size ZZZ, Acceleration ZZZ, Slowdown ZZZ, Magic ZZZ, Love ZZ, Flying ZZ, Friendship ZZ, Hope ZZ, Luck ZZ, Giftedness ZZ, Genius ZZ, Versatility ZZ, Magic Power ZZ, Immunity ZZ, Witchcraft ZZ, Politics ZZ, Society ZZ, Literature ZZ, Friendship ZZ, Diplomacy ZZ, ■■ Z…
▷ Status: Submission, Brainwashed, Obsessed, Empowered, Unique…
His stats were absurd.
Among them, the most annoying were his Brave job and his Black Box skill.
In particular, the latter.
▷ Type: Skill
▷ Name: ■■
▷ Rank: Z
▷ ZZ: □□□ □□□□.
▷ Z: Record the target.
▷ SSS: Change.
▷ SS: Reproduce.
▷ S: Record.
▷ A: Confuse the target.
▷ B: Destroy the target.
▷ C: Make the target forget.
▷ D: Will never become confused.
▷ E: Cannot ever be destroyed.
▷ F: You will not forget.
I ditched my SS-rank Black Box and went my own way.
To my surprise, Green Cake's skill was upgraded to Z-rank without my knowledge.
It was probably because of one of the director's tricks.
"Hoho! Surprised?"
"Yes."
I was genuinely surprised.
Black Box was a buggy skill that the First Hero used to fight the system.
I didn't think the system operator would use it herself.
"It isn't a system bug."
"What is it, then?"
"Contrary to what you think, the First Hero didn't create this skill. He's simply the only one who's been authorized to use this power."
"Authorized?"
Was she saying that it was her who created the Black Box?
"Unfortunately, I wasn't the one who gave him the authorization. If it had been my power, I wouldn't be having this debilitating confrontation with you right now, would I?"
"Sure."
The Brave job and the Black Box skill could destroy system rules and balance.
I was personally convinced of this.
Based on this, I concluded that their creator had to be on the same level or higher than the "First Angel" and "the First Demon," the creators of this system.
So who was it?
"Some reckless Demon God. The most impatient creature in the universe."
"Demon God?"
Was there someone else besides me?
The director explained it to me without hesitation.
"He's a deity who raised heroes using any means and methods, which were often so reckless that they began to call him a demon. Nevertheless, his power cannot be ignored."
"GRRAAAA!"
Green Cake's paw fell vertically on my head as he roared.
SKRRR!
His claws collided with dark matter and immediately tore through it.
"Of course… It's the Black Box."
Although my wings saved me, the Demon Lord's power, which was considered absolute, was broken.
This was becoming a little annoying.
"Hoho! Green Cake is a unique dragon. In his veins courses the blood of Noebius, the strongest dragon, and Erdanti, the first Saintess. While he was growing, you and I also endowed him with our own powers. Technically speaking, he has four extremely strong parents."
"Were you aiming for this from the very beginning?"
"Not really, no. He's a product resulting from a chain of coincidences. If he couldn't resist regression thanks to the Black Box you inherited, he wouldn't have grown so strong. All I did was hasten this beautiful child's growth."
"You feel sorry for having to sacrifice him without being able to raise him further."
"Yes. Green Cake has such an excellent bloodline and even has the impatient Demon God's support. Even his personality perfectly embodies what a true hero should be."
"A pet that is devoted only to you…"
I snapped my finger.
TCK!
The dark matter hovering around me began to envelop Green Cake.
It was impossible to avoid it or defend himself from it. Regardless of his size, he couldn't be larger than the world he lived in.
"GRRRAAAA?!"
KHHHHHH!
I was going to crush him in an instant without causing unnecessary pain, but defeating him proved difficult.
Was my heart wavering?
I couldn't deny it.
"His growth would've made him into someone so incredible he'd surpass everyone's expectations…"
It pained me that I wouldn't be able to see him grow.
"I'm sorry."
Pshshshshshh!
Dark matter completely devoured my son.
Not long after…
"GRRRAAAAHHH!!"
A deafening roar thundered through my space as my dark matter began to burst.
SKRRRR!
He managed to resist thanks to his life force, and even though he couldn't escape, he caused a crack in the Demon Vault.
He was a truly absurd adopted son…
"Ah!"
I hastily checked the director's location.
"Tsk! Too late!"
The director had ripped off one of her wings but not to inflict senseless self-harm.
BOOM!
The First Angel impaled her bloodied wing into the microscopic crack in space.
"Shit!"
I cursed as she used her own body part to widen the crack, which would allow her to escape.
"For the Goddess!"
"Defeat the Demon Lord!"
"Break it faster!"
"We don't have much time!"
Countless angels flew in immediately.
I could easily destroy them, but then I wouldn't be able to maintain the Demon vault.
There was only one thing I could do now.
"Come!"
"Waah!"
A cute baby appeared, crushing many angels.
Captain Fantasy!
The resulting chaos caused the Demon Vault to shake dangerously, but now wasn't the time to pay attention to it.
"Hey! Why don't you two help as well?!"
I called out to my cowardly wife and the pitiful spirit.
"I can't really help since the space has been cut off, but I'll at least pretend that I am."
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm serious. I'm not lying."
Ssosia, spreading her ethereal purple wings, flew toward the director.
Her flight speed was too slow, however, due to her aunt's ability to manipulate time.
She definitely wouldn't be able to help me…
"What about you?"
"It's finally my turn!"
"Can I count on you?"
First Spirit.
She wore one of my paired rings, which copied the strength of whoever was wearing the other.
It was time to finally put the true power of these rings to good use.
"Trust me, Drug Demon Lord!"
"Just go already."
"Ha-ah! Mollan Power!"
"…"
"Something's wrong! Why didn't it work?"
"Because it's not a skill."
Controlling dark matter was more of a technique than a skill.
Master Mollan.
Father-in-law Pedonar.
This technique couldn't be without having a high understanding of the teachings received from those two beings.
And what's even worse…
SKRR
"No!"
The ring that the First Spirit wore on her thigh was shattered.
"I warned you, didn't I? From this moment on, I'm ready to make sacrifices. Kha-kha-kha!"
It was the director's doing.
I didn't know how she did it, but she coughed up blood after destroying the item I received as a reward.
"Hmmm. Stop fooling around in the sky, cowardly wife. Come down here and explain."
"Oh."
Ssosia returned to me and picked up the shattered ring.
"What happened to the director?"
"Ex officio abuse."
"What?"
"She paid for the destruction of another teacher's property. Employees of the Fantasy Institution are members of the Mollan Union, the fairest union in the universe. Once you join, it will no longer matter if you are a dictator or a major shareholder. Mollan Union will punish you for any violations you commit."
"That is indeed fair."
Was there any limit to Master Mollan's greatness?
"Kha-kha-kha! Oh…"
"So, director. How exactly will you be punished?"
I was curious.
"What makes you think I'll tell you? Kha-kha-kha!"
"I can see you're not feeling well at all, at least."
"Victory will still be mine."
SKRRRR!
The angels who darted back and forth to avoid Captain Fantasy's attacks finally made a hole in my space.
That wasn't all.
"Father, I'm sorry…"
▷ Race: Green Chaos Dragonian
▷ Level: 999+
▷ Job: Brave (Everyone = Level 1)
▷ Skills: Chaos G, Divinity G, Vitality G, Dark Energy G, Dragon Scale ZZZ…
▷ Status: Submission, Transformation, Wounded, Fractured, Weakened…
Green Cake escaped the captivity of my dark matter by transforming into his dragonian form.
Brainwashed and Obsessed had disappeared from his Status.
However, the Submission remained in effect.
The director said approvingly. "Hoho! Well done, my dear son Green Cake. Rest until your wounds are healed."
"You're not my mother—"
Clap!
She forcibly de-summoned him, causing him to disappear.
It was the worst development of events possible.
It seemed it would take a little longer to get paid with compound interest.
"Hohoho!"
"…"
"This will be our first and last meeting. You better be ready, Master."
"What?"
"Are you deaf? I said you'd better be ready, Master… Hmm?"
"Say it again."
"Kang Han… Kh… Master! What's happening?! Why am I calling him Master? Get out of my head! Begone! You're just a puppet!
"Rice Cake?"
"Yes, Master… Enough! How dare you! I am the First Angel, Hippolia— Aaaaahhhh—!" The director grabbed her head with both hands and began to scream.
It didn't look like she was trying to trick me.
If so…
"This is my chance!"
"Waaah!"
Captain Fantasy and I jumped towards the director almost simultaneously.
"Stop them!"
"Protect Mistress Parmael!"
"Get out of my way!"
"We'll defend— Huh?!"
Countless angels stood before us and recklessly struggled.
But it wasn't pointless.
"Tsk!"
Having lost her mind, the director fled from their support, leaving behind mountains upon mountains of her kind's corpses.
The terrible sight didn't last long, however.
Exactly ten seconds later, the world of Fantasy collapsed due to the death of the director's grandson.
And everything began anew.