The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years

Book 1 Chapter 207: Hell (4)

Translator: Seven

Editors: Ana_Banana, Yahiko

Lucifer left, saying that he would return the next day. He also added that he hoped Frey would have made a decision by then.

Frey was once again alone in the back alley.

He sat on the dirty ground, looking up at the sky.

He couldn’t help but think back to what Lucifer had said.

‘Iris was caught by Lord.’

‘I lost contact. I don’t know if she is alive or dead. Lord has no reason to keep her alive. Even if she is alive, there is no guarantee that she’s okay.’

Strangely enough, he felt that those words were true.

Lucifer no longer tried to force an alliance. He simply looked at him with a meaningful smile.

However, it was this attitude that shook Frey’s heart more than the persuasion tactics he’d employed before.

He slowly closed his eyes.

There were a lot of thoughts on his mind. His face was stiff, and his heart was heavy.

His worries continued to pile up.

His relationship with Iris. The things she’d done after he disappeared. What Anastasia said. Lucifer and Lord.

“…”

He suddenly felt that that wasn’t important.

‘What do I want to do?’

Frey asked himself.

The most important thing was his own thoughts.

And that answer came so quickly that his worries seemed unnecessary.

‘Regardless of the reason, I don’t want to leave her like that.’

He didn’t want Iris to end up dying at Lord’s hand. It wouldn’t solve anything.

There was still a lot that needed to be cleared up between Frey and Iris. A lot of things that he wanted to hear and a lot that he wanted to say.

In this sense, Lord was a hindrance and an uninvited guest. He did nothing but interfere.

Frey was finally able to see inside himself clearly.

He wasn’t just going to save Iris. If he met her this time, he would be able to look at her more calmly than the last time.

He couldn’t help but wonder how exactly he would treat Iris Phisfounder.

“…”

First of all, he had to meet her again.

After having this thought, Frey stood up.

He didn’t intend to act as Lucifer wished. He said he would return the next day, but Frey didn’t intend to wait until then.

He would go to Hell on his own.

Of course, there was something he needed to take care of before that.

* * *

“You go first.”

Ivan’s cheek twitched at Dro’s sudden announcement.

“What?”

“There’s something I need to do.”

“There’s nothing to do in this depressing forest where you can’t even find a single bug. Do you plan to dig up a tree? The quality of the wood isn’t too bad.”

Ivan touched a dark tree beside him while he mumbled insensibly.

But Dro shook his head firmly.

“That’s not it.”

“Then?”

“…”

“Dammit. What’s the need to hide it?”

Dro remained silent even as Ivan vented his anger. This attitude made Ivan even angrier.

But Anastasia, who was observing Dro’s expression, had a different view than Ivan.

“Let’s just go.”

“What?”

“I have a bad feeling.”

Anastasia frowned.

“Dro’s words sound like advice.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Just come. That friend needs our help.”

“…”

Anastasia pointed towards Jekid who was standing at the front of his group as she said this. But Jekid couldn’t help but make a strange expression when he heard himself being called ‘that friend’ by a girl who looked much younger than his daughter.

Ivan clicked his tongue.

He didn’t trust Dro completely, but he was at least certain that he wouldn’t try anything stupid.

Nevertheless, he turned to Anastasia and opened his mouth, showing that he didn’t back down easily.

“It’s not that you don’t understand what I’m implying, is it?”

“Something like that wouldn’t happen.”

“Ha.”

Ivan snorted before walking over to Jekid.

Anastasia gave Dro a meaningful gaze before turning around and following him.

Their figures grew further and further away.

No signs of life could be found in the entire forest. So as they disappeared, a sense of serenity settled. Like the calm before the storm.

Dro appeared to be left alone in the clearing. But he knew he was not alone.

“You’re still not very good at speaking. Well. Iris couldn’t really afford to care about that.”

A man was standing in the darkness of the forest.

He was not hiding his presence. In fact, he had been leaning against a tree since the beginning, but no one except Dro had felt his presence.

Neither Ivan, who was at the gateway to the Warrior King, Anastasia, who carried the title Great Sage, nor Jekid, leader of one of the Three Great Circles and a Knight who surpassed the Master rank, were able to.

“It’s quite amazing that you sent them away so recklessly.”

The man spoke in a strange manner.

Dro felt like he knew who he was somehow. So he wasn’t surprised.

Instead, he continued talking in his normal, blank tone.

“What if I didn’t tell them to leave first? What if they were still here?”

“I wanted to talk to you alone. I don’t want others to hear our conversation.”

His tone was light but seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

He meant that he would have killed everyone there. It wouldn’t have been difficult for him.

Looking at his pale complexion, Dro slowly opened his mouth.

“Lucifer.”

“Hoh.”

Lucifer made a sound of admiration when he heard his name called.

His voice was filled with a sense of anticipation as he asked.

“Can you remember?”

“Faintly.’

“That’s good to hear. Now, come here.”

Lucifer beckoned to him, but Dro didn’t move from his position.

Instead, he shook his head firmly.

“I was told not to trust you.”

“I don’t need to ask who told you that. Haha. I can’t believe Iris said that. She is fun and annoying at the same time.”

He still had a smile on his face as he spoke.

“Iris created me. She is my…”

“What? Hahaha!”

This time he truly burst into laughter.

Lucifer laughed for a long time before looking at Dro again.

“Kuku. You’re not wrong, but… How naive. Right. I get it now. Is this also part of Iris’ design? That woman really can’t be underestimated.”

“What are you talking about?”

The answer came from behind him.

“The one you need to believe is not her but me.”

“…!”

Snap.

Lucifer, who’d moved behind Dro, grabbed his shoulder. And in that instant, Dro felt as though lightning bolts were flashing in his mind.

“Remember, Dro. The meaning of your name.”

His voice drifted into his ears like an irresistible hypnosis. First, it flowed in smoothly like a gentle breeze before eventually becoming a storm.

“—.”

Dro’s mouth hung open, and his eyes were stretched wide.

“…I… am not the Dragon Lord.”

“Right. You’re not.”

Lucifer smiled brightly.

“You’re not just that much, Dro.”

* * *

Lilith breathed deeply as she stared at the Demigods.

She didn’t have her usual composure at all. Her well groomed hair hung wildly, and her entire body was covered in wounds.

That wasn’t all.

Most of the Black Dream Hell had been taken, and even her own castle had been destroyed.

‘This is really frustrating.’

She never would have thought that she’d be the first victim.

At first, she had the advantage, but she wouldn’t have imagined that it could become like this.

Because the Demigods were ignorant about Hell.

Lilith was confident in her territory. She had believed that since it was the Black Dream Hell, she would be able to stop the Demigods’ advance and even kill a few of them.

But it was all just an illusion.

Their patterns began changing as the battles continued. The Demigods inexplicably adapted to the terrain and environment in Hell at a quick rate.

They were not shaken by the advantages of the demons. And in the end, the difference between winning and losing became the difference in power.

Each Demigod had power that surpassed even the High rank demons’. And while they might have been weaker than the six Rulers of Hell, there were over a dozen of them.

And among them, there were also those who were exceptionally strong.

Nozdog and Ananta. Those who were called Apocalypses.

The two of them weren’t around right then, but Lilith couldn’t afford to care about them at that moment.

“It’s like we were told. The Queen of the Dream Demons is particularly weak among the Archdukes.”

“Indeed.”

The Demigods muttered these words with expressionless faces. They just muttered what they thought.

But Lilith felt humiliated as though they were actively mocking her.

And the thing that was the most humiliating was the fact that she couldn’t refute their words.

It was true that of the six Rulers of Hell, she was the weakest.

‘In the end, no one came to help.’

Lilith laughed to herself.

She wasn’t disappointed. Because she didn’t expect to get any help in the first place.

She knew the habits of demonkind well. If it was strong, they’d eat it, and if it was weak, they’d still eat it.

Hell followed the rules of the jungle. Those who couldn’t protect themselves would be eaten without hesitation.

Maybe that was why the other Archdukes didn’t view Lilith in a good light. She relied on cunning and treachery instead of simply advancing with force.

Of course, Lilith didn’t think she was wrong. She also struggled to survive. Which was why she was able to accept this death calmly.

It would have been a lie to say she wasn’t regretful, but she felt that there was nothing she could do.

She would die because she was weak.

She never would have expected to die at the hands of Demigods instead of Demons.

“Hooo.”

She closed her eyes.

Just as she tried to accept her end with one last sigh.

Woowoong-

The Demigods looked up to the sky at the same time.

The sinister, purple sky of Hell cracked open, and someone fell from it.

At first, the Demigods thought it was their own kind. Some of them even though it was Lord.

But that was an absurd misunderstanding.

“…you are…”

Shock was visible in Lilith’s eyes.

It was a face she was familiar with but not one she expected to see at that moment.

No.

Instead, it could be said that this sight made her wonder if she was dreaming.

The appearance of a human falling from the skies of Hell was not realistic in any way.

Taht.

Frey looked around.

This was his first time in Hell. He quickly noticed that there were certainly many things that were different from the continent.

The purple sky, pitch-black earth, and incredibly disgusting stench which permeated the environment were the most noticeable.

Then he saw the rivers that appeared to be made of flowing blood.

Chch-

“…”

His divine magic power fluctuated for a moment. The dimensional leap had been successful, but it wasn’t without side effects.

Frey realised that he was currently in a state of excitement.

Was the raging divine magic power affecting his mind?

“Who the hell are you?”

“I can feel divine power, but he’s definitely not our kind.”

“I don’t think he’s a demon.”

Only then did Frey turn around.

Seeing the beings standing there, it took him a moment to realise that they were Demigods.

Even Frey had never seen so many Demigods in one place. Of course, Frey did not think about having a conversation with them.

This number was a threat even to him.

Frey’s mind spun quickly.

The best strategy was to reduce their numbers before they realised who he was. If his attack went well, he would be able to get rid of two of them.

Just as lightning was about to spread out from his body.

“Wait a moment. We have no intention of fighting you.”

At those words, Frey suppressed his divine magic power.

Then he turned to the one who spoke and asked.

“Who are you?”

“I am Heimdall.”

It was a man with cloth tied around his eyes.

His aura was also different from the other Demigods’.

“We have no intention of fighting?”

“Heimdall, what are you talking about?”

It was the Demigods around him who expressed displeasure at his words. However, his next words forced them to shut up.

“Lord said it directly. If Frey Blake appears in Hell, be polite.”

Frey’s expression became strange.

After a brief silence, Heimdall added.

“Just like we treat our own kind.”