My Reflector Is Invincible

43. Comforting the Soul**

Gumjin was dark.

‘It’s good that I left Aiden behind.’

Jooyeon had left Aiden and the knights at the entrance. Aiden had been reluctant to let Jooyeon go alone, but-

-You wait here. And finish what I told you to do.

-Then what about you?

-I’m going… to finish what I couldn’t finish.

The debris of the barrier, such as the fallen chains and wooden stakes, was gathered as soon as the barrier was destroyed.

‘Okay. I got some good byproducts.’

Sanderson joined a little later.

He must’ve been excited, thinking of aiming for me during the meeting.

‘But that would be your downfall.’

Black fog was covering the area, making it difficult to see even an inch ahead.

But one thing was for sure.

The huge mountain range in front of my eyes.

A large crater, as if a meteorite had fallen, was carved into its entrance.

It was a sight that Jooyeon knew all too well.

‘The place where the warrior used his ultimate technique!’

Then that mountain range was….

The object that looked like a mountain was actually the body of the Demon King.

Even though it was lying down, it was such a massive body that it looked like a mountain range.

Just then, Count Sanderson’s soldiers collapsed, coughing up blood.

“Ugh….”

“Eueughhh!”

The black smoke was actually the Demon King’s miasma.

As the miasma seeped in, the soldiers with weak bodies collapsed one after another.

Count Sanderson covered his mouth with his sleeve and shouted.

“It’s miasma! Everyone, fall back!”

“Put on the items you prepared! Quickly!”

At the officers’ orders, the soldiers covered their faces with handkerchiefs.

They were handkerchiefs soaked in an antidote effective against miasma.

‘A makeshift gas mask, huh.’

Indeed, it seemed to be helping them withstand the miasma.

That was evident from the fact that there were no more soldiers coughing up blood.

But they couldn’t block all of the miasma.

The soldiers’ bodies were gradually turning black from the miasma.

‘That’s why I told the Edmer family troops to guard outside.’

If they had come in here, they would have ended up like that.

No, it would have been worse.

They wouldn’t run away or collapse like those soldiers.

Count Sanderson’s soldiers all had sullen expressions.

“Ugh… Count, there is a limit to how much we can neutralize the music. We won’t be able to stay here for long.”

“We have figured out the antidote… but we don’t know when we will become addicted to the music.”

“The uniforms soaked in the antidote are starting to burn. We should go outside and regroup…”

They were suffering from being drenched in the music.

Of course, the protagonist was also being burned by the music that was turning his body black.

Crackle! Crackle!

His flesh was also burning black since his clothes weren’t enough to protect him.

However, he didn’t care.

‘I guess I don’t need to use Reflection.’

＜Potential has been strengthened.＞

＜Physical strength potential is increasing.＞

The potential he had received from the King of Knights was resisting the poison.

And so, his potential increased.

The longer the protagonist endured, the stronger he became in real time.

He recalled information from the past.

＜The Demon King’s Music＞

– An evil grudge held by the Demon King that has materialized as an energy.

– Corrupts those who come into contact with the music and forcibly turns them into demons.

– Weak individuals gradually lose their lives and die.

If he endured for too long, he could even become a demon.

But that wasn’t important right now.

The protagonist spoke to Count Sanderson in a cold voice.

“Count Sanderson, stay here with your soldiers.”

“As you wish.”

The Count answered too easily.

At the protagonist’s words, he even ordered his soldiers to fall back.

Hmm? Why are they listening to me so well?

He didn’t need to think about that.

After all, the Count and his soldiers were only retreating to the entrance of the barrier.

They were close enough to reach on horseback at any time.

‘I guess he’s biding his time until the end.’

To attack the protagonist from behind.

But it didn’t matter much.

What was important now was that someone was calling out to the protagonist.

Rumble! Rumble!

A faint light could be felt within the Demon King’s massive body.

Like a lighthouse in the fog.

A ray of light felt like it was beckoning Juyeon toward it.

‘It’s guiding me.’

Juyeon slowly walked inside.

Thud, thud.

Toward the Demon King’s chest.

The Demon King’s interior, which looked like a cave, was a gloomy and disgusting place.

However, Juyeon did not stop walking.

A faint ray of light flowed out from the inside.

He simply walked slowly toward that light.

As Juyeon approached, the light became clearer and gradually filled the surroundings with radiance.

He could soon tell what the light was.

A single object that emitted light in the dark cave.

No, it was a white skeleton that emitted light.

The skeleton was looking somewhere, holding a shining sword stuck in the ground.

[Hero] Ryu Jin.

In the past, he was a man who was born under the holy light and was chosen by the Holy Sword.

Such a man had decayed into just bones.

As if to say that he was still protecting this land even in death.

Juyeon’s pupils shook at that sight.

“Ha… Really……. Ryu Jin, you bastard…….”

He was clearly a hero who had defeated the Demon King.

The hero’s end was so bitter.

In fact, when Juyeon told the King of Knights that he would take care of the guy, it wasn’t just out of respect for the hero.

It wasn’t just because of camaraderie with someone who had fought alongside him against the Demon King.

‘It’s just to get the [King of Knight’s] favor. I’ll deal with the guys who will become a hindrance later and take the Holy Sword while I’m at it.’

To Juyeon, Ryu Jin was nothing more than a game character.

‘What comrade.’

It was the same even as he looked at the guy’s corpse.

There was no way he would feel any affection.

That was certainly how it was at first.

But as he looked at the guy’s face.

Certain memories began to surface.

[Hey, Juyeon! Where are we going today!]

[Demons? The Demon King? I’m fated to save everyone?]

[Alright. I’ll trust you. I’ll follow you from now on.]

[From now on, I’ll swing my sword for you!]

They were Ryu Jin’s lines that he had seen over and over again while playing ‘Valentino Saga’.

There were also scenes that he had seen in in-game videos.

It didn’t feel like he was simply watching someone else’s story.

Memories of all those things began to rush in.

The tens, hundreds of thousands of games I’ve played until now.

The memories I shared with RyuJin surfaced from within them.

They felt as vivid as if the protagonist had experienced them firsthand.

‘RyuJin was the one I spent the most time with since my rookie days, and the one I nurtured the most diligently, staying up all night.’

Just as his memories were returning, so too were his feelings for RyuJin.

How much he had cherished him.

How earnestly he had supported him.

Of course, RyuJin’s affectionate feelings were the same.

JooHyun could remember the warrior’s final moments.

‘He was definitely just one final blow away from the end.’

However, the Demon King was just too strong.

He lacked that final blow to take him down.

With all of his comrades fallen, there was only one option left.

To give up his life to take him down.

Even if he had to die, it was the only way to save everyone else.

However, that was only a last resort.

It was while JooHyun was devising a way to defeat him that someone stepped in front of him.

[This is my duty as a warrior. I’ll take down the Demon King, so you live, JooHyun.]

RyuJin, who had pushed JooHyun out of the way, ran straight at the Demon King.

And used the warrior’s ultimate means.

A warrior-exclusive skill

-＜Sacrifice＞

The warrior’s ultimate and final desperate measure.

A skill that risked everything to perish together with the opponent.

He used that skill without a shred of hesitation.

KWA-A-A-ANG!

And just like that, he vanished together with the Demon King in a self-sacrificing spell.

RyuJin left his final words as he disappeared.

[Until now, you’ve protected me, so now… it’s my turn to protect you.]

That’s what he said as he smiled at me.

It was his usual bright smile.

Even as he gave up his life, even now as he was nothing but bones, that hadn’t changed.

He truly was a man befitting of a warrior.

‘In the Balantino Saga, he was nothing more than a mere colleague. But… now…’

From Noble mtl dot com

Now that he knew this place was reality, it felt different.

Moreover, he had given up his life to save JooHyun and everyone else.

JooHyun’s heart pounded.

“Yes. This isn’t where you belong.”

For now, he needed to take his remains and leave this place.

Before that, he had to take care of what needed to be taken care of.

＜Holy Sword＞

A sword that still radiated brilliantly.

The light that had guided Joo-in this far, the power that had illuminated Ryu-jin’s body, was in fact coming from the Holy Sword.

“You’ve worked hard protecting this guy.”

Let’s go together.

It was when Joo-in slowly tried to approach Ryu-jin’s bones and the Holy Sword.

Thump!

He felt a sharp pain in his heart.

“Ugh…”

Joo-in suddenly clutched his heart.

It was a powerful force, as if someone was trying to grab it with their hand and burst it open.

He could tell what it was right away.

“Curse!”

It was the curse that Count Sanderson had placed on the artifact.

As soon as it seemed like Joo-in would obtain the Holy Sword, he activated the curse.

Starting from his heart, the curse spread, and blood flowed from his lips.

“Ugh… Perfect timing.”

Waaah!

Outside, Count Sanderson and his soldiers came running.

Along with the sound of footsteps shaking the ground, a scream rang out.

“The warrior is in danger! Everyone, help him!”

“Soldiers affected by the instrument get out of the way! Only those wearing gas masks can save the warrior!”

It seemed that he was aware of the soldiers of the Edmer family at the entrance.

As if they were forced to come to Joo-in’s aid.

‘I know you’re only pretending to help so you can kill me.’

In the first place, he would have only given gas masks to soldiers he trusted. They were all filled with the sole purpose of killing Joo-in.

Whether it was because of the curse or not, Joo-in’s face was becoming increasingly pale.

The pain in his heart was also growing stronger.

So much so that anyone who saw him would think he was dying.

If he could just grab the sword, he could use the power of the Holy Sword to resist the curse.

But in Joo-in’s current state, it was impossible.

Ugh…

More and more blood was flowing out.

Only then did Joo-in realize the true nature of the artifact.

“There is only one curse that bursts the target’s heart and makes it flow in reverse.”

No. 79 ＜One Tied to the Horizon＞

It was an artifact that used blood and resentment as a medium to inflict death on the opponent.

Its performance varied depending on how many sacrifices had been gathered.

‘At this level… I’m sure even the King of Knights would have set his sights on it.’

The knight king’s body is stiffening due to the devil king’s curse.

The exterior is so hard that it’s no use even if you stare at it.

He’s aiming for the core organs like the heart.

The problem wasn’t just the curse.

Kee-aaack!

The cry of a falcon circling in the distance could be heard.

It was a falcon that Joo-yeon knew.

[Soul Hunter]

It was the falcon that Jack the Hunter used to send signals.

It was a signal they had agreed on beforehand.

They couldn’t get close to the devil king’s instrument, but the content of the signal was certain.

“I see. They’re coming.”

The demons.

It was clear that the demons had sent them.

Now that the barrier had been lifted and there was a way to retrieve the devil king’s body.

They must have intended to take the holy sword as well.

Count Sanderson, and even demons.

Normally, it would be an impossible situation to survive.

However, Joo-yeon smiled.

He had been gathering the attacks on purpose, though-.

“Ryu-jin…….”

His eyes turned to the warrior, regardless of the curse or pain.

The hero who had sacrificed himself to save the continent.

Those who were now coming to defile the hero’s death.

Joo-yeon slowly rose from his seat.

Those who were breaking the peace of this continent that his close friend had protected.

And those who were trying to turn it into hell once again.

Such beings were brazenly trying to invade the space where the warrior who had protected the continent was left alone.

They were trying to trample on Ryu-jin’s will with their dirty feet.

“Then I will comfort your soul with their blood and death.”

Killing intent poured out of his eyes.