Free Web NovelChapter 178: Conflict in the Demonic Throne Room
It had been a long time since Ryan had been required to have a formal meeting with important figures, that sensation made him remember his early interactions with human nobles.
And now here he was, standing before the throne of a demon queen and her high-level personal guards.
The throne room began to feel dense. A flow of dark, heavy mana began to emanate from the Abyssal demon that had planted himself right in front of Ryan, slightly distorting the air around him.
His pale face displayed an absolute confidence and arrogance, the typical expression of a superior being who is accustomed to looking down on everyone else.
’His base stats exceed Ivis’s by a narrow margin.’ Ryan analyzed in a fraction of a second, processing the system’s information.
’That confirms that the hierarchy of an Abyssal demon directly equates to the power of an SS-Rank, whether they are human heroes or dragons.’
"You stand before the imposing presence of Demon Queen Ophelia. Get on your knees immediately, human scum." The Abyssal pronounced, pointing right at Ryan’s face with evident disdain and authority.
On the fringes of the red carpet, the atmosphere livened up in the face of the hostility.
"I bet they end up fighting to the death right here." One of the Infernal twins whispered.
"Yes, yes, I will bet too. Let’s see what the S-rank does." They began to murmur among themselves, rubbing their hands together with malice.
"I figured this would happen sooner or later." Ivis muttered, crossing her arms and glancing at Ryan out of the corner of her eye, without making the slightest attempt to intervene or defend her guest.
But faced with the hall’s murmurs and the Abyssal’s aggressive insinuation, Ryan did not respond. He didn’t avert his gaze a single millimeter, either.
Probably, the elite demons guarding Ophelia had thought that, if a simple human, even one categorized as a hero, was brought into the presence of the demonic court, he would be easily intimidated by the overwhelming pressure of the place.
But instead of that, Ryan remained completely unbothered. His posture was relaxed, and his face maintained, almost out of inertia, a clear expression of annoyance and boredom.
It was the exact same frigid expression he showed when his heroines started fighting over petty things back in the village, or when a situation demanded dealing with a tedious procedure.
’Ophelia remains completely calm sitting on her throne.’ Ryan thought, shifting his gaze toward the Demon Queen for a second.
’I wonder if this is a test to measure my capabilities, or could it be that...’
Ryan didn’t respond to the threat, but he didn’t make the slightest motion to kneel, either.
In fact, submitting himself was something he would not do regardless of whose presence he was in. That ridiculous protocol demand reminded him of the occasion when he met the king of Lunar Veil.
He realized that, despite having assimilated a new power capable of wiping the floor with an S-rank, his cold mentality hadn’t changed at all.
Ryan let out a long, heavy sigh of annoyance, closing his eyes for a second.
"Damn arrogant human... I will make you obey by force right now." The Abyssal pronounced, feeling that the sigh was a direct insult to his pride.
The demon’s dark aura began to burn around his body like black flames.
The expression of the Infernal twins suddenly shifted to a malicious smile and they high-fived in the air, taking it as a given that their bet for a conflict had been fulfilled.
The demon moved. It was a burst of kinetic energy. Without a doubt, it was the greatest raw speed that Ryan had perceived from an enemy in this world thus far. In the blink of an eye, the Abyssal was no longer planted in front of him.
But Ryan had absolutely no need to frantically search for him with his gaze.
His perception and agility did the work for him. He read the trajectory of the enemy’s mana flow as if it were a simple line of code. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Ryan tilted his torso to the left. It was a minuscule movement, barely a few scant centimeters. The Abyssal’s sharp claws sliced through the air and grazed him, passing mere millimeters away from his cheek without managing to touch a single strand of his black hair.
Everything happened in a tenth of a second. The Abyssal’s furious expression abruptly shifted to one of absolute stupor, as if never in his long demonic life had he expected a human target to dodge his lethal attack with such ease.
And that reaction was normal, at least for Ryan’s way of thinking. He knew that the information Ophelia had about him and his party was that they were all S-rank heroes.
Only S-rank, there was no way for them to know that he had acquired a new rank that surpassed it.
The Abyssal demon, discombobulated and probably expecting an immediate and deadly counterattack, quickly leaped backward, skidding across the floor and ending up a few meters away from Ryan.
"Even though I was brought here as a guest of your lady, I am treated in this manner." Ryan finally pronounced, his voice completely serene.
He looked directly at Ophelia, completely ignoring the attacker. The Demon Queen didn’t flinch from her relaxed posture leaning against the throne, but she let out a faint, enigmatic smile upon seeing Ryan’s reaction.
Probably to her, this scene was the equivalent of what watching a highly entertaining action movie would be for Ryan back in his world.
’I will have to play along with Ophelia’s little game.’ Ryan thought, assimilating the politics of the place. ’They are demons after all; respect is earned by demonstrating strength.’
Then, Ryan slowly turned toward the Abyssal.
"What an annoying matter. Let’s get this over with once and for all." Ryan pronounced, observing the Abyssal directly.
High-ranking demons were usually very proud, so having someone block or dodge their attacks with such ease must be something incredibly frustrating.
For Ryan, it was almost natural now to provoke his enemies into losing their calm. He knew that no matter how much raw strength and power a demon might possess.
If they were out of control, they were easy to face and highly predictable.
And because of that, the murmurs began to resonate once again.
"He is very fast, don’t you think?" One of the Infernal twins whispered from a distance, losing his mocking smile.
"Yeah... I don’t know if Badilus can win this duel as easily as we thought anymore." The other twin murmured, looking at Ryan with caution.
On the other side of the carpet, the other two Infernals remained in silence, watching the conflict with expressions that displayed pure indifference.
On the other hand, Ivis stayed away from them, but still in the middle of the main hall.
And the last of the demons, who until this moment had remained completely expressionless and neutral, continued to occupy his same spot beside Demon Queen Ophelia’s throne.
’I thought about provoking him a little more, but... his own comrades took care of doing it for me.’
Ryan sighed, relaxing his shoulders a bit, but still maintaining his guard up.
Even though before everyone else his expression and attitude appeared highly confident, in reality he was not; he continued to maintain caution. Knowing perfectly well that an SS-rank demon was not someone you could just play around with.
’Judging by how they comment about him. Something tells me that these demons... don’t get along very well with each other.’
But the atmosphere around the Abyssal standing in front of Ryan began to grow denser. His mana turned pitch black around the Abyssal’s body.
"What do you mean I can’t win?!" Roared the Abyssal named Badilus, overhearing the whispers.
His wounded ego imposed itself over his doubt. He released a massive amount of mana from within and launched himself back into the attack with even greater speed, aiming at the human’s vital points in a frenzy of dark strikes.
One.
Two.
Three deadly attacks in a row. All of them were dodged with a disturbing fluidity. Ryan wasn’t backing down; he simply required slight, quick, and precise movements to let the demon’s fists strike the empty void over and over again.
Smack!
A dry, powerful sound echoed through the vast hall.
The fourth strike, a frontal attack loaded with all the weight and destructive mana of the Abyssal demon, landed a direct hit.
But not against Ryan’s body. It crashed against the open palm of his right hand, generating a shockwave that made the air around them vibrate.
The impact made Ryan take a single step back. In that very same instant of contact, he closed his fingers and gripped the demon’s fist, applying all of his grip strength.
’This guy... with his fragile pride and his highly temperamental combat style, he reminds me a little of Helen.’ Ryan evaluated with irony, looking into Badilus’s astonished eyes.
Suddenly, a familiar, sharp sound resonated exclusively inside his head.
Ding!
Then, Ryan shifted his gaze toward the system window that became visible before him.
[You have unlocked a new skill]
