Chapter 216

216

—Romina.

Although his voice sounded a little cold, there was a great deal of warmth hidden within his low voice.

The Demon King Diaro El Blanditear.

Known as the pinnacle of the demon race and admired by all demons, the absolute ruler of demonic power was also rather cold toward his young daughter.

—Have you been behaving yourself?

—Take this.

—It is a statue I made by shaping ice and infusing it with my demonic power.

Perhaps because of his naturally cold and detached personality, he was not the kind and affectionate father that most fathers were.

—Do you… not like it?

But Romina knew.

Her father was simply awkward and inexperienced when it came to expressing his feelings.

His expression was stiff and his voice had no change in pitch, but she could feel the warm affection flowing within it.

—No.

—I like it, Dad.

—……I see.

—Then that is enough.

The Demon King avoided his gaze, not knowing how to react to his daughter smiling brightly while holding onto his trouser leg.

Romina genuinely loved and cherished even that awkward side of him.

But—

Kwaaaang-!

Cold, dark-blue demonic power exploded in front of her and shattered the barrier.

Romina's body was thrown backward.

“Argh!”

Romina staggered as she got back on her feet.

The man from her memories stood before her.

The man had hair and eyes the same color as hers, but his gaze was vivid yet somehow empty.

“No…….”

Romina bit her lip.

“No… that's not him…….”

It was merely copying his appearance.

It was not like her father in the slightest.

Even the cold demonic power clawing at her was incomparably weaker than her real father's.

And the amber eyes looking at her were cold, without even a trace of warmth.

Boom-!

A strong glow appeared within those amber eyes.

Then, through the Call of Caligo, dense and dark demonic power began swirling violently around Romina.

“……!”

Diaro, who had been manipulating dark-blue demonic power in his hand, kicked off the ground.

Paaang-!

Leaving a huge crack in the floor, he instantly closed the distance to Romina.

Diaro stretched out his hand toward Romina, who had been pushed against the wall and was gathering her demonic power.

The mass of dark-blue demonic power that left Diaro's hand expanded and tried to swallow Romina whole.

“You're… not my dad!”

At the same time, Romina shouted sharply while looking at the storm of dark-blue demonic power.

Kiiing- Kwaaaang!

Dense black demonic power spread out in every direction from Romina.

The next moment, it collided with the approaching dark-blue demonic power and caused a massive explosion.

Paaang-!

Diaro charged toward Romina at tremendous speed, breaking through the explosion.

Romina immediately released her demonic power to intercept him.

Kwagagagang-!

Explosions continued one after another.

Demonic power collided with demonic power, creating a thick fog.

Within the center of that fog, Romina and Diaro began a chase.

Romina was the one trying to create distance.

Diaro was the one pursuing her.

‘Damn… he's too fast!’

Diaro, who was rapidly closing the distance, was much faster than the witch Romina.

Since this was a trial created by the dungeon, he was not as powerful as her father, who had been a Nine-Star during his lifetime.

Even so, he was still troublesome.

‘This is uncomfortable.’

Romina clenched her molars.

A witch without someone to take the frontline was extremely vulnerable in close combat.

Of course, she had magic she could use in close combat.

But it could never match someone specialized in close-range fighting.

Especially when her opponent was her father, who was superior in both close combat and magical combat.

“Grrk!”

Romina stretched out her arm toward Diaro, who was rapidly closing the distance.

Kiiiiiing-!

Black demonic power stretched in every direction.

It formed spears of black demonic power and shot toward Diaro.

However, Diaro precisely released his dark-blue demonic power and neutralized the incoming spears one after another.

Although his overall level was lower, the superior combat instincts unique to the former Demon King remained intact.

Crack-!

The more she watched him, the more Romina remembered her father sparring with other demons when he was alive.

Her feelings became increasingly complicated.

Crack-crack-!

Before she knew it, Diaro had reached striking distance.

He raised his arm, and dark-blue demonic power gathered there and formed a sword.

As the sword came rushing toward her, Romina stretched out her arm and created a barrier.

The demonic sword collided with the translucent black wall.

Jjjaeeng-!

The barrier shattered into countless pieces like glass.

Romina's pupils trembled.

At the same time, Diaro's sword, which had broken through the barrier, dug into Romina's shoulder.

Swaaak-!

She barely avoided it, but it was not over.

The sword strikes continued.

Slash-!

“Urgh!”

Eventually, after being driven into a corner by the continuous attacks, Romina had no choice but to give up her shoulder.

Her shoulder burned with pain.

It was not a fatal wound, but it was far from shallow.

However, Romina had no intention of simply taking the attacks.

Kiiiiing-!

Diaro had entered the exact position Romina had planned while pressuring her.

Romina immediately activated the magic she had prepared at the very beginning of the battle.

Kiiiiiing-!

Spears of black demonic power were summoned from every direction.

There appeared to be at least several hundred spears, all pointing toward a single location.

Then Romina snapped her fingers.

“Got you.”

Snap-!

With a clear sound, the spears of black demonic power poured down like a torrential rain.

“…….”

Diaro calmly watched them.

Then he spread both arms and released dark-blue demonic power in every direction.

But Diaro did not stop there.

He pushed through the explosion and continued forward.

Likewise, Romina broke through the explosion and came face-to-face with him.

“!”

Within the distance where their noses could almost touch, Romina was the one who had already prepared to attack.

Unlike Diaro, who had broken through the explosion to pursue her, Romina had already predicted his movements.

“Die.”

Her narrow pupils became sharp.

All she had to do was make her demonic power explode.

But the moment her eyes met Diaro's, Romina's gaze wavered greatly for an instant.

“Ghk……!”

It was hesitation lasting less than a second.

But even that brief moment was enough for Diaro, the former Demon King, to create an opportunity to counterattack.

Kwaaaang-!

Once again, the two types of demonic power collided across a boundary and caused an explosion.

Both of them were thrown backward at the same time.

The distance between them widened dramatically in an instant.

Romina got up and steadied herself, but her gaze was directed downward.

She was already at a disadvantage against an opponent who was far stronger than her.

And yet she had hesitated once again when it mattered most.

She felt pathetic.

Blood with a metallic taste flowed from her bitten lip.

‘It's a fake created by the dungeon…….’

‘I just have to knock it down!’

‘Then why……?!’

But whenever the crucial moment came, her body seemed to stop obeying her.

Her mind could remain infinitely cold and rational.

But her heart had encountered an enemy it could never meet a second time, and it had broken down.

Why?

She clearly knew that it was fake.

So why did she keep hesitating like this?

But her heart, which had already become heated, was gradually swallowing even her rational mind.

“Ah…….”

Tuduk-!

The truth was, Romina knew exactly what was stopping her.

Beyond her blurred vision stood an existence she would never be able to see again.

Even though she knew it was fake.

Even though she could not feel the warmth she remembered from those empty eyes.

She was still so happy and emotional to see him again.

She simply could not bring herself to end this reunion.

“I'm sorry…….”

It seemed this was as far as she could go.

She had already consumed a considerable amount of demonic power while enduring her opponent's attacks.

That had been her final opportunity.

Even if she used everything she had now, she would not be able to win.

Perhaps she was not as cold and cruel a demon as everyone had expected her to be.

All she could feel was that she was sorry to Glen……

“Glen……?”

She quietly whispered that name.

Glen Wordsworth.

A strange human who had known about her from the very first moment they met.

The savior who had reached out his hand to her while she was dying behind cold iron bars.

The person who had given warmth to her as she slowly froze after losing all warmth.

“My benefactor.”

She had forgotten for a moment.

The name of the person who had given her a second warmth when she was dying after losing the warmth her father had given her.

Then a clear radiance appeared in her amber eyes, which had been growing dim.

He was surely waiting for her in the deepest part of the dungeon after completing his own trial.

‘If I die here…….’

Not only would she die, but Glen, who believed in her and was waiting for her, would die as well.

She knew better than anyone how painful it was to lose warmth.

She did not want to experience it a second time.

The demonic power surrounding Romina began swirling violently once again.

To use any more demonic power, she would have to stake her own life.

Gooooooo-!

But Romina willingly sacrificed her own life force and released her demonic power.

On the day she first met him, she remembered the promise she had made in her heart while holding the hand he had extended through the iron bars.

She would never again lose that warm hand.

The warm hand that had filled the emptiness left by her dead father.

At Romina's sudden change, Diaro, who had been approaching her, flinched.

Then he gathered his demonic power with a wary gaze.

Goooooo-!

Dark-blue demonic power began spreading in every direction like fog.

Anything that touched it gradually froze.

“Grrk…….”

It was much weaker than the ability of the real Diaro.

Even so, it was still threatening.

Romina knew that with her current strength, she could not overcome it.

But there was not even the slightest hesitation in her clear amber eyes.

‘I can do it too.’

Just like Glen had.

She would overturn this impossible battle.

Remembering Glen's back as he overcame countless impossible situations, Romina pushed beyond her limits and sacrificed her life force.

“……Ngh!”

A headache struck her.

Blood began flowing from her eyes and nose, warning her that her life was in danger.

But her gaze remained fixed solely on the approaching dark-blue fog.

And at the very moment it was about to swallow her, Romina released her demonic power.

The dark-blue fog rushing in from all directions was swept away and neutralized by a wave of black demonic power coming toward it.

Paaaaang-!

Her blocked vision cleared.

Diaro could be seen a short distance away.

With a cold expression as if Romina's desperate struggle was laughable, he once again spread his dark-blue demonic power.

And at that moment—

Shaaak-!

A black spike shot up from the ground and pierced through his body.

Stake Outside Perception.

A magic spell that summoned spikes of demonic power that the opponent could neither feel nor detect.

“?!”

Diaro, impaled by the spike, had an expression that showed he did not even understand what had happened to him.

Tap.

“……As I thought.”

Romina approached Diaro and looked him up and down before clicking her tongue.

Not even a drop of blood flowed from his body, including the area pierced by the spike.

“You're not my dad.”

Her amber eyes turned cold.

Thud-!

The spike scattered into tiny particles of demonic power.

Diaro's body collapsed face-first onto the ground.

As she watched Diaro's body turn to dust starting from his feet, Romina lowered her eyes.

Even though he was fake, watching her father collapse twice was not a pleasant experience.

“What a shitty trial…….”

Just as she muttered those words and turned around—

Romina sensed a faint movement of demonic power behind her.

She hurriedly turned her head and gathered her demonic power.

‘An ambush?!’

Then, the moment she confirmed Diaro—

Romina's pupils widened.

Watching Diaro's actions, Romina covered her mouth with her hand.

Sarararak-!

The fake Diaro was disappearing.

Dark-blue demonic power slowly began moving from his right hand.

It was forming an unknown shape.

It was difficult to tell what it was, but Romina realized what he was doing.

He was using his demonic power to create something.

“Ah…….”

It was the very thing his daughter had once happily received from him when he was alive.

Even in the moment he was disappearing, he had tried to make it for her.

“Ugh… ngh… ah…….”

Romina collapsed onto the spot.

She remained there for a long time, staring at the remnants of the dark-blue demonic power.

Romina returned.

Ridenhall and Rowen, who had arrived first, let out sighs of relief.

Glen smiled at Romina.

“Good work.”

“…….”

There was no answer.

Then, all of a sudden, Romina hugged Glen and buried her face against his chest.

“…….”

Seeing Romina like that, neither Rowen nor Ridenhall said anything.

Only Glen quietly stroked the head of the Romina in his arms.

“I'm sorry.”

“For bringing you to a place like this.”

He could tell what she had encountered in her trial without even seeing it.

“……No.”

“I'm okay.”

She did not look okay.

But at least there was no sign that she blamed Glen.

Soon, Glen looked down at Romina as she raised her head.

Her amber eyes were clear and unwavering.

He could tell that Romina had made some kind of determination.