Chapter 24 — He's Commanding the Seventy-Two Demon Gods?!
The true reason for the devastation in the Sixth Administrative District was finally revealed: the district's executive officer had colluded with outsiders, allowing nomadic tribes to invade and pillage. The stolen goods were then split among the conspirators.
He had repeatedly requested resources from the capital under various pretexts.
And now, having confessed, his body grew even more grotesque—clearly, he had tried to hide something and was punished by an invisible force.
"I see. Then you may go to hell."
King Solomon, seated on his throne, smiled faintly and waved his hand.
In the next instant, the officer was lifted by an unseen power. His body twisted unnaturally, contorting into a shape no longer recognizable as human.
"No—noooaaahhh!"
His screams echoed as his flesh tore, bones pierced through skin, and his form became a horrifying mess.
Brünnhilde, watching in shock, saw no sign of Solomon casting magic. Had his power truly reached divine levels in just half a year?
Wait—she sensed something. Not invisible, exactly… more like distorted air rippling.
She summoned the Akasha system interface and began scanning.
Her expression changed.
There was another figure present.
A demon.
He was commanding demons now?
Though vaguely humanoid, the creature radiated a fearsome aura. Twin horns crowned its head, its face twisted and beaked like a bird, filled with jagged teeth. Its limbs were long and clawed like a sickle weasel, its skin scaled like a reptile.
Bat wings and a tail confirmed its identity.
This demon—unseen by others—was the one torturing the officer.
Humans couldn't see it because it had been cloaked in invisibility.
But demons of this rank didn't normally possess such abilities.
So… Solomon had granted it invisibility?
Brünnhilde's gaze returned to Solomon—and she gasped.
She had noticed the lion and large dog lying beside his throne earlier, but now, through the Akasha system, she saw their true forms.
They weren't ordinary beasts.
Their auras were unnatural. Even the demon looked at them with reverence.
She recognized them.
The lion was Marbas, the fifth-ranked demon god among the Seventy-Two Pillars. Commander of thirty-six legions, master of truth-seeking, healing, and mechanical arts. He could even grant transformation abilities to his summoner.
His usual form was a lion.
No wonder the officer's lies had been instantly exposed.
The giant dog was Glasya-Labolas, the twenty-fifth demon god. A winged hound who knew science, history, and could distinguish friend from foe. He also possessed the power to make others invisible.
So the cloaking spell came from him.
Two of the Seventy-Two Demon Gods… bowing at Solomon's feet.
Gray, now able to see the demon, felt a terrifying pressure and turned to Brünnhilde.
"Brünnhilde… that lion and dog… they feel terrifying. Are they magical beasts?"
"They're Marbas and Glasya-Labolas."
"Wait—those names… aren't they demon gods?"
Yes. Some demon gods took animal forms.
Gray's eyes widened.
Two demon gods serving a human?
No way. This matched too closely with the historical records she'd seen.
Was Solomon truly human? Or… the illegitimate child of a god?
If he were, this would make sense.
If not a son, then perhaps a god's adopted child?
Gray couldn't accept that a mere human could command the Seventy-Two Demon Gods.
She preferred to believe that the chief god had ordered them to obey Solomon.
"How did he make them submit?" Brünnhilde murmured.
To command the Seventy-Two, one needed the approval of the King of Hell.
But what human could earn that?
Unless… he was the son of a god.
Brünnhilde had her own candidate in this Ragnarok: a human tied to a god—Adam.
Created in the image of a god, Adam inherited divine traits. He had rebelled against the gods and even slain one—a lesser serpent god.
Though not a powerful deity, it was still a god. And Adam had killed it effortlessly.
He was, in essence, a god cloaked in human form.
So perhaps Solomon's ability to command the Seventy-Two was due to a divine connection.
Brünnhilde continued observing.
As the sun set, a sudden anomaly made her expression shift.
The sky was covered in magic circles, forming a massive hemispherical dome that enveloped the entire kingdom.
Such vast magic couldn't be cast by a single demon god.
Then—seventy-two beams of light erupted.
All seventy-two demon gods were present in the mortal realm!
"Brünnhilde—look!" Gray's voice trembled.
She pointed to the city streets, where something strange was happening.
Humans didn't panic. Most continued their routines as if nothing had changed.
But another group stunned Brünnhilde.
They lined up in orderly fashion, heading toward a stone wall.
A door appeared—like a gateway to hell. As it opened, people calmly walked through.
And there wasn't just one. There were four gates, one in each cardinal direction of the capital.
Something was deeply wrong.
Brünnhilde flew into the sky, exiting the dome's barrier, and looked down.
"What—!"
The city below appeared normal, bathed in silver moonlight.
She realized: the magic dome was concealing the truth.
She had to see what lay beyond the gates.
Chapter 25 — Is He Building a Mage Army to Fight the Gods?
Though this was a historical recording, Brünnhilde remained cautious. All seventy-two demon gods were present.
She disguised herself as a local and joined the queue.
Gulp.
Gray swallowed nervously and followed.
As Brünnhilde stepped through the eerie gate, disappearing from view, Gray clenched her teeth, shut her eyes, and stepped forward.
She felt a brief resistance—then bumped into a familiar back.
It was Brünnhilde's. Relieved, Gray opened her eyes.
"Huh?"
She was stunned. It looked like she'd returned to the exact spot she'd entered.
Had the gate rejected them?
"Brünnhilde, we—"
Her voice cut off. Her pupils dilated.
The city, once bathed in silver moonlight, was now drenched in the glow of a blood-red moon.
The sky itself was crimson, as if the moonlight had vanished and the heavens themselves bled.
The bustling night streets were now eerie and deserted—except for demons roaming freely.
A strange screech made her look up. A swarm of demons flew toward a distant point.
Had the city been overtaken?
No—had Brünnhilde fast-forwarded to a time when the city had fallen to demons?
Was that even possible?
"This is a mirror space," Brünnhilde said, equally stunned.
Mirror space?
Gray blinked, then understood.
A mirror space was a replica of the real world, created at the same coordinates.
Then—Gray's jaw dropped.
Among the queued people, some suddenly cast magic and flew off.
Another group enhanced their bodies and leapt between buildings.
"Today's lesson—we'll be doing live combat."
"Really? I thought our combat training was next week!"