52 Reward

I won. I cut down the person that stood in my way and because of that I won. Even though he was just a soldier doing his job, any person that obstructed me, preventing me from reuniting with my family shall be cut down without hesitation!

"Was that… incantation-less magic? That's amazing."

My eyes widened. I turned back slowly and saw that the upper half of Moore's bisected body was still alive and conscious. He was the one who had spoke, even though his body was cut in half and he lay on the floor with blood gushing out of the open stump.

No, it wasn't blood. It was black smoke. The lower half of his body started moving towards his upper half, as though drawn to it like a magnet.

A few seconds later, the two halves joined together and any injury disappeared leaving no trace of what would have assuredly been a definitively fatal wound for any normal human.

Right, I had read about this before. The immortal demon race. A race of demons that not only had immortality that allowed them to live forever, they could also regenerate any injury - even fatal ones like decapitation or in this instance, bisection. Wanting to kill a member of the immortal demon race was truly difficult.

Though I felt slightly relieved the old knight did not die from my blade, I was a little nervous at the same time. What did this mean? If this duel was intended to be a fight to the death, does that not mean I could never win? My mana was not infinite, and Moore was stronger than me to begin with. I only managed to eke out this false victory after expending my single shot at a sneak attack using Magic Sword style.

Now, my muscles were torn and the surprise factor of my incantation-less magic was also gone. My chances of winning plummeted down to near zero.

I reached towards my shoulder and pulled out the throwing knife embedded in me. Then, I channelled mana into my torn muscles and bleeding wound, regenerating them with Healing magic, as I slowly made my way to Moore who was still lying on the floor.

Killing intent poured out of me and I resolved myself to do the unthinkable. In order for me to return to the Central Continent, even if I had to dice and mince him into microscopic shreds of meat, I would still do it without mercy!

"Okay, you can stop there." My movements stopped after hearing Atoferatofe speak.

I turned back at her, and saw a look of amusement. She was grinning wildly, looking extremely entertained from the fight. Seeing the grin on her face, my overflowing killing intent was withdrawn.

"I have witnessed your resolve. Your fighting spirit… I like it! You have impressed me with your skill and strength despite your young age. Especially because you are so young. Not many can claim to be able to defeat Moore, even if he is not the strongest of my subordinates."

Atoferatofe stood up from her throne, and started walking towards me. Her gait relaxed and unhurried. Now that she stood up fully, I had a better look at her entire appearance.

The Demon King was fully clad in black armour. But the small gaps in her armour revealed a muscular and toned body similar to Ghislaine. Though her chest was covered in armour, it was also apparent that it was of a voluptuous size.

Her lower half was also covered by armour, but the inner thigh area was open, presumably for greater mobility, revealing the blue skin of her thighs as well as black lingerie that covered her privates. Her quadriceps muscles stretched and flexed with every step she took, displaying the strength and vitality within those legs.

Shit, this Demon King was really my type, maybe even more than Master Ghislaine. If I was not so concerned with leaving Fort Necross and journeying back to the Central Continent to find my family, I might have asked for her to put my head between those thighs and squeeze the life out of me.

She folded her arms and smiled, "I shall reward you for your impressive performance. Tell me, do you want this reward?"

I nodded, yes put my head between your-, I mean, "Yes, Demon King. Let me leave."

Atoferatofe tilted her head, "Why would you leave when you have accepted my reward?"

Eh? What is she saying? I was confused but I remained silent.

"I, the immortal Demon King, Atoferatofe Ryback reward you with strength!" She declared proudly, "I award you the honour of joining and training with my personal guards!"

I widened my eyes in astonishment, what did she just say? How was that a reward?

"Demon King Atoferatofe! You agreed that if I passed your test I would be allowed to leave!" I protested loudly.

She squinted her eyes, "Hmm? Did I not say that the results of the fight will determine whether you stay or leave?"

"That's right! I won, so you need to keep to your promise!"

She gazed at me with some confusion for a moment because realizing something, "Ah, I see what happened. You misunderstood me. If you had lost, then I would have let you leave. You see, I have no need for weaklings. But since you won, you have earned the right to receive my teachings. Rejoice, human child."

I staggered backwards, my mind unable to accept her twisted logic.

Behind me, Moore who had stood back up sighed and muttered to himself, "Poor child, this is why I said you should not have tried so hard to win."

Moore… I misunderstood you! I regretfully cried out in my heart, and desperately wished I had taken his advice from the beginning.

"Demon King, I… I apologize. But I cannot accept this reward." I said, a little hesitant but ending with steel in my voice.

Atofe furrowed her brows, and mountainous killing intent erupted out of her blue form.

What the- what's with this pressure!? I felt like a house kitten kneeling in front of a colossal lion. Her Battle Aura feels like an erupting volcano, reminiscent of the Sun that had been compressed into a human form. I… I can't move an inch!

God-ranked… This Demon King is God-ranked! I realized, desperately trying to hold in my breakfast. This was the most oppressive pressure I have ever felt in my life. Not even wild monsters could compare to the tyrannical aura emanating from Atofe that dwarfed my own.

"Huh…!? Are you treating me like an idiot? First you said you want a reward and now you said you don't! You must really think I am stupid huh!?"

She stepped towards me, and every step she took an even heavier pressure cascaded on me. I was not able to react even as the Demon King stepped in front of me.

Atoferatofe put a hand on my shoulder and suddenly it felt like the weight of the world crashed down on my solitary figure. I was brought to my knees without any chance of resisting. My bones creaked from the pressure, and I had to dig my nails into the palm of skin to stop myself from trembling.

"I will ask you again. Do you accept this reward or not?"

Blood leaked out of the corner of my lip as I opened my mouth to talk. I had to bite down on my inner cheek to shock my body into regaining its motor functions.

"How long… how long will I have to serve you?"

She smiled, the killing intent receding slightly, taking my question as a sign of submission.

"For your entire life, of course. But don't worry, this great one is benevolent. You can get a 2 year break after every 10 years of service."

Isn't this just slavery? Forced servitude masquerading as a reward! How could I accept this?

"This, this is…" I hesitated, not knowing whether a direct refusal would see my head flying off immediately.

"Hmm? Why are you hesitating? Do you know how many people come here just to seek to learn from me? All the guards here willingly followed me to pursue strength." She said, gesturing towards her knights.

I looked around, and saw the knights all shaking their heads in conjunction, disagreeing with her words behind her back while looking at me with pity. Like they were saying with their eyes, 'Poor thing, you are going to become one of us as well. How unfortunate.' It was obvious they had been put in the same position as I am now, forced into being her subordinate for the rest of their life.

"Listen closely," She continued, "I am the immortal Demon King, Atoferatofe Ryback. Wife of the first North God Kalman Ryback! Before he died, Kal taught me everything he knew of the sword. And the second generation North God, Alex, my son, was also taught by me! Do you understand? Becoming my subordinate means being within reach of becoming the next North God!"

Fuck. To tell the truth, it was tempting. I had initially planned on travelling to the Holy Land of Swords to become the Sword God's disciple before I was transported to the Demon Continent. And the North God style had always suited my personality the most, amongst the three main sword styles.

Learning from a legendary figure like Atoferatofe was something just anyone could ask for. But the problem was that I would have to become her subordinate for the rest of my life. And even if I could take a 2 year break, it was only after 10 years of service. 10 years! Who knew what would have happened to my family after 10 years.

So no matter how tempted I was, I could not accept this so-called reward.

"I… I am honoured by your reward. However, regretfully, I-"

I started speaking but my breathed hitched in my throat when the Demon King tightened her grip on my shoulder.

"Talk simply. Don't say stupid words."

"…I still cannot accept your reward." I finished, wincing in pain from her iron grip.

She let go of my shoulder, and pulled back the Battle Aura and killing intent that was as heavy as the weight of the world.

I let out a breath I did not realize I had been holding the entire time, finally being able to breathe properly. I could feel cold sweat all over my body. I felt like a tiny little mouse placed in front of a colossal lioness that could crush me with a casual swipe of her paw.

Atofe looked at me for a moment, pondering, before she smiled brightly. Honestly, I thought she looked beautiful, even despite having threatened me with forced slavery.

"You are really gutsy. If it was anyone else I would have already taken off their head. I like it. I have decided! You shall receive this reward, and join my personal guards. You are still a bit soft, but after 10 years of training, you will definitely grow up to become a man I am satisfied with."

I stared back in astonishment. Was her ears only for show? Did she have bad hearing or was my Demon God language faulty? I've never met someone who had selective hearing like this person before.

I set aside my thoughts about what Atoferatofe meant when she said she would train me to become a man she was satisfied with.

"Demon King, like I said, I-"

She grinned and leaned in close. The sharp features of her blue face, and bright red pupils surrounded by inky black sclera were a few inches from my face. If I leaned closer just a bit our lips would touch.

"You don't seem to understand. You don't have a choice in this matter. If I say you are now one of my personal guards, then you are!"

Her hand blurred, and the next instant, my vision darkened.