‘All I have to do is give them a light tap, and that’s it,’ Chae Hyung-Seok thought as he sneaked toward Siegfried and Metatron. As he crept closer and closer, the Weapon Master, Shakiro, suddenly blocked his path. “Stop. I will cut you down if you take another step,” he warned icily. In each of his hands were weapons forged from his aura, an aura sword in his right and an aura saber in his left. And he was not alone... “It would be wise not to do anything reckless. My spear will pierce your heart if you move,” Michael warned while pointing the tip of his spear at him. Just like that, Chae Hyung-Seok’s grand ambition was shut down before he could even start it. ‘Damn it!’ Chae Hyung-Seok cursed inwardly, gnashing his teeth in anger. However, it was not only Shakiro and Michael who stood in his way. “I will kill you if you move.” Chaos stepped in to protect his lord, Metatron. “Stand down if you value your life, new Supreme Commander,” Balag warned with his whip in hand. ‘Ah...’ Chae Hyung-Seok muttered. The source of this content ɪs ⓝovelFire.net Just a moment ago, he was so sure that he would become the first player to ascend as a demon lord, but now, all that excitement evaporated into thin air, leaving only bitter disappointment behind. ‘What the fuck is this...’ Chae Hyung-Seok growled inwardly. He wanted to take the risk and just go for it, but he couldn't do so. He wasn't confident that he could break through these obstacles and strike Siegfried and Metatron. Even though he had grown exponentially stronger, that was still not enough to guarantee that he could pull that off. With bitter disappointment lingering in his mouth, he forced himself to give up on attacking Siegfried and Metatron. However, he still had one last backup plan, and he decided to act on it right away. He slammed his hands together... and prayed. “Please... Please fail... Please, god... help me!” As if praying was not enough, he started dancing like how ancient people would dance during a ritual to call the rain. He desperately prayed and danced that Siegfried and Metatron would fail to absorb the rampaging demonic power and that the resulting explosion would wipe them out. Siegfried and Metatron were doing everything they could to absorb the rampaging demonic power. ‘I-It’s too strong! This is too much even for both of us!’ The power of a demon lord was on par with Inkarthus’ Dragon Heart, which meant that it was extremely difficult to contain. [Alert: Warning! Warning!] A warning notification popped up in front of Siegfried’s eyes. [Alert: Your mana hall is being overloaded!] [Alert: Absorbing any more of the demon lord’s demonic power is no longer possible!] [Alert: Please stop absorbing the demonic power! Your mana hall will be destroyed at this rate!] Right after the notifications popped up, Siegfried's vision turned red. ‘Ah... Is this my limit...?’ Siegfried gritted his teeth and tried to endure further. Unfortunately, his mana hall couldn’t contain any more of a demon lord’s power. Metatron was at his limits as well. ‘I... I won’t give up!’ Metatron gritted his teeth and pushed himself to the limit. His body swelled up, as Baroque’s rampaging demonic power was now rampaging inside of him as well. Siegfried and Metatron screamed simultaneously. Their bodies turned pitch-black before an explosion of blinding light illuminated everything around them. Then, a black pillar of flame shot up from Siegfried and Metatron. A sudden flash of light followed by a pillar of black flame. The onlookers gasped in shock as Siegfried and Metatron were abruptly swept up by a strange phenomenon. However, nobody dared to intervene. The towering column of flames swallowed Siegfried and Metatron whole while piercing through the clouds and shooting up to the very edge of the Demon Realm’s sky. “K-Kyuuu... What in the hell is happening...?” Hamchi, too, could only watch from a distance. He couldn’t approach anywhere near Siegfried, as the immense heat radiating from the black flames was so strong that getting even a step closer could instantly incinerate him. After a while, the pillar of flame slowly subsided, revealing both Siegfried and Metatron. “Owner punk!” Hamchi cried out and bolted, only to come to a screeching halt with his eyes widened in shock. “W-What’s with your appearance, owner punk?!” Hamchi shrieked in sheer shock. Siegfried now looked completely different. He stood at around one hundred eighty-three centimeters tall before, but he was now way taller. His skin had also become much paler than before, and his shoulders became far broader, too. But that was not the end... A total of ten wings now spread from his back, and eight of those resembled those of demons while the remaining two resembled those of angels. Then, there were his eyes. His left eye gleamed gold while his right had a deep blood-red hue. “N-No way...” Balag muttered in disbelief, staring at Siegfried. Then, he stammered and cried out, “A-A new demon lord... has been born?!” “How can a new demon lord be born?!” The demons gathered were shocked by what they heard, but nobody was as shocked as Chae Hyung-Seok. ‘I-Impossible! That’s impossible!’ He hurriedly flashed his Rune of Insight to check Siegfried’s status. [The 13th Demon Lord: Siegfried van Proa] To his utter shock, Siegfried had indeed ascended as a demon lord just as Balag had claimed. “T-There’s no way this is real! How the hell does this make sense?!” Chae Hyung-Seok screamed in despair. He schemed to stab Baroque in the back one day and become the demon lord, but he could never put his plans into action. Now that Baroque was gone, the road toward the throne had opened up for him, as if the heavens were granting him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But before he could even take the first step, Siegfried stole it from right under his nose, becoming the first-ever player to become a demon lord. In the end, the sheer absurdity and irony of it all made Chae Hyung-Seok’s blood pressure shoot up. Meanwhile, Siegfried was too dazed to process what had just happened to him. [Alert: You have obtained a new class!] [Alert: Congratulations!] [Alert: You have obtained a third class!] Siegfried started out as the Debuff Master, which eventually evolved to his current primary class, the Lord of Despair. He obtained a second class, the Heroic Monarch, after he established the Church of Heroes. Now, another class was added, elevating him to the unprecedented status of owning three classes—a Triple Class Adventurer. [Alert: You have absorbed a portion of the demon lord’s demonic power!] [Alert: As a result, your body has transformed, and you have become a demon lord!] [Alert: You have obtained the new Class – 13th Demon Lord!] The description of his third class was the following... [The first-ever non-demon in the history of the Demon Realm to ascend as a Demon Lord.] [Traditionally, the Demon Realm is ruled by twelve Demon Lords and one Demon King.] [With the birth of a thirteenth demon lord, the hierarchy of the Demon Realm has shifted.] [The Demon Realm is now ruled by thirteen Demon Lords and one Demon King.] [Upon completing the Awakening Quest for the second advancement of your class, you will be recognized as a true sovereign of the Demon Realm, bearing the title "Demon Lord of XX"] ‘What the... This is insane... I actually became a demon lord?’ Siegfried couldn’t believe what was happening. All he had done was share Metatron’s burden by absorbing a portion of the demonic power rampaging inside Baroque, so he had never imagined that doing so would cause him to ascend. “Y-Your Majesty...?” Metatron carefully called out to him. “Have you truly... become a demon lord?” “I... think so?” Siegfried replied, still bewildered. Then, he pointed and said, “Oh? It seems like you’ve changed, too. Did you get stronger?” He noticed that Metatron’s appearance had changed as well. Metatron now exuded an overwhelming presence, one strong enough to surprise Siegfried. “Did you get stronger?” Siegfried asked. “I believe so, sire. It appears that the power from the Soul Coins has merged with the remnants of my father’s powers,” Metatron replied. “If I may, I suspect that may be the reason Your Majesty ascended as well.” Honestly, there was no better explanation, as there were no other plausible explanations. [The 13th Demon Lord: Siegfried van Proa] [Divine Power: ■■■■■■■■■■] [Demonic Power: ■■■■■■■■■■] After gaining his third class, he obtained access to an entirely new energy source that had never existed within him before. He had always possessed Mana and Divine Power, but now, Demonic Power was added to the list. “Congratulations, Your Majesty. I did not expect you to become a demon lord, sire. Ah, this is a first in the history of the Demon Realm,” Metatron said with a formal bow. “Is that really something to celebrate? I have no idea what to do or think anymore... Hahaha...” Siegfried replied while scratching the back of his head awkwardly. He couldn’t feel happy about it. Becoming a demon lord meant he had grown overwhelmingly stronger, but the changes were far too drastic. His race changed from a Human Adventurer to a Demon Adventurer, which meant that he would have to live as a demon lord from now on. “Oh, right...” Siegfried muttered upon remembering something. “Please, take this, Your Majesty,” Metatron said, handing something to him. Badump! Badump! Badump! The object that Metatron handed him was none other than Baroque’s heart, which was still beating. “I recall overhearing before that Your Majesty needs a demon lord’s heart.” “Please, take this. I am not sure if it will be of use to you, but still.” Siegfried accepted Baroque’s heart from Metatron— —And a notification popped up before his eyes. [Alert: You have obtained Demon Lord of Vengeance: Baroque’s Heart!] Although Baroque was a half-baked demon lord, his heart still met the requirements as a material item. [Herbert’s Blueprint] [A blueprint of the most powerful weapon of mass destruction. A Grandmaster blacksmith will easily understand it, and they will be able to complete Herbert’s final masterpiece as long as they have the following ingredients.] [Type: Recipe (Universal Weapon)] [Omnipotent Mechanical Gear × 1 ✓] [Horn of Chromatic Dragon × 1 ✓] [Soul of the Vampire Lord × 1 ✓] [Eye of the Storm × 1] [Universal Grade Mana Stone × 3 ✓] [Heart of the Demon King × 1 ✓] With this, only one component remained, the Eye of the Storm. Once Siegfried acquired it, he could finally enhance the Vanquisher’s Grasp and complete the Universal weapon that the Legendary Blacksmith, Herbert, had failed to craft in his lifetime. Unfortunately, he had no idea what the Eye of the Storm was, nor where to find it. ‘I guess just one material is left...’ Regardless, Siegfried was now one step closer to completing the Universal-rated weapon and fulfilling his promise to Quandt. “Shall we go somewhere more comfortable, sire? You have had a rough day, so I believe some rest would do you good. Please, allow me to escort you,” Metatron said with a bow. The battle earlier had turned the whole place into ruins, so going somewhere more accommodating seemed to be a good idea. “Please, follow me, Your Majesty.” Thus, Siegfried was escorted by the new Demon Lord of Vengeance, Metatron. “His Majesty, Demon Lord Metatron, is passing! Pay your respects!” “Demon Lord Siegfried van Proa is passing! Make way and show respect to His Majesty!” The demons gathered immediately made way for the two new demon lords, and they bowed low to the ground to pay their respects. All eyes were on Siegfried and Metatron, and those eyes were full of awe and admiration for the new demon lords.