Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss

Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss – 85

EP.85 Terror

Upon returning to his quarters, Jeong-hyeon spotted the golden goblin being harassed by Hana. He had initially intended to use the goblin for a terror attack against the church, but then realized a significant issue.

‘Wait, unlike the teleportation device, the golden goblin has to carry the dimensional shift itself.’

In other words, he would need to manifest the divine power into some form and then set it to explode “later.” The realization left him in a quandary.

‘I’ve never created divine power in any tangible form, let alone made it detonate on a delay. I can’t quite grasp how to do this.’

If it were simply a matter of triggering an immediate explosion, it wouldn’t be so difficult. He decided to figure things out through trial and error, so he made his way to the back mountain.

***

Upon reaching the back mountain, he began to gather divine power into one spot, compressing it.

‘Compressing it isn’t hard, but the real challenge is…’

Transforming it into a shape and making it detonate later. He attempted to drop the divine energy onto the ground to see how it would react, but—

KABOOM!

Instead of a delayed explosion, the divine power detonated immediately, blowing everything around it apart.

‘… Ugh.’

Seeing this, Jeong-hyeon realized he needed to try a different approach, and he took a moment to think about what that might be.

Shape… shape…

How does one turn divine power into a form? Was that even possible? Lost in thought and wondering if it was even feasible, he suddenly noticed Lucia approaching him.

“Is something troubling you, hero…? I mean, Jeong-hyeon!”

She asked, trying to sound casual, though her neck flushed with embarrassment at talking to him.

Despite her apparent embarrassment, Jeong-hyeon thought it impressive that she could feign nonchalance. He decided to ignore her blush and instead explained the problem he was facing.

Upon hearing his concerns, Lucia perked up, adjusting her voice with a sense of confidence.

“I think I might have a solution!”

His eyebrows raised in surprise at her unexpected enthusiasm, and Lucia, flustered by his gaze, looked away as she continued,

“It’s not too complicated. You can think of it as building a wall using divine power!”

“A wall?”

“Yes! Um… to explain it, it’s kind of like frying food? The outside is hard, while the inside is soft and moist. You solidify the divine power and then push the real explosive divine power inside…”

Her explanation was somewhat convoluted, but Jeong-hyeon understood the gist of what she meant.

‘She’s suggesting I encase the explosive divine power in a solid outer layer.’

The real problem lay in figuring out how to create that outer layer. As he pondered, he suddenly realized he could gain insights from an unexpected source.

‘Body reinforcement.’

The nature of body reinforcement was to protect and harden the body. What if he encapsulated the previously enhanced area and then compressed the divine power inside it?

He decided to try this method. As he began, Lucia, her face still flushed, suddenly blurted out,

“Since you probably won’t get it just by hearing, I’ll take your hand and show you! Your hand!”

Was it really necessary to hold hands? Confused, he asked her to calm down before deciding to give the theory a shot first.

‘If it works, great. If it doesn’t, then I’ll just keep practicing without worrying too much.’

As he tried it out, he felt a spark of realization. …

‘It’s working?’

Just as he had imagined, Jeong-hyeon succeeded in creating the divine power bomb in one go. Lucia, watching him, began to question him with an expression that conveyed her frustration.

“Why did you succeed…?!”

Caught off guard by her accusation, Jeong-hyeon found himself at a loss for words. Noticing her own mistake, Lucia quickly shut her mouth, lowering her gaze. In a quiet voice, she murmured,

“C-congratulations.”

As if her congratulations now held little weight, Jeong-hyeon chuckled softly at her awkwardness. He took her hand in his, saying,

“If you just want to hold hands, you can do that anytime. No need to make excuses.”

“…”

His gaze fell upon Lucia’s face, which had turned as red as the divine bomb he had created. He laughed at her embarrassment before taking a moment to collect himself and holding her hand while contemplating.

‘This feels so innocent.’

He hadn’t anticipated that something as simple as holding hands would bring such joy, so he decided to continue doing it and asked,

“Shall we go?”

“… Huh? Yes!”

Her startled response was palpable, making him chuckle even more as he led her back to the quarters.

***

“Wow!”

Miria, exhausted from parenting, glared at Hana. When she caught sight of Jeong-hyeon and Lucia, she sighed heavily and began to lament her situation.

“Some people can’t even go outside to play with Hana, while others are holding hands like it’s a big deal… Soon enough, they’ll be taking off their clothes and hugging!”

“M-Miria! You shouldn’t say such things!”

“Honestly, Lucia, you’re the worst here. Acting all innocent and pure, yet you’re so blatantly forward. This is why I say you shouldn’t associate with those high-ranking mages and divine powers.”

Miria, evidently with much pent-up frustration, started firing harsh words at Lucia. Typically, Jeong-hyeon would intervene at this point, but the situation was amusing enough that he decided to watch.

When the moment felt right, he turned away and approached Hana.

“Hana, can you ask the golden goblin to take these over to the church in the capital?”

He pointed to the pile of bombs he had created with Lucia, and Hana nodded enthusiastically before asking the golden goblin for him.

Upon hearing her, the golden goblin stood up straighter and nodded firmly before beginning to gather the bombs into a cloth bag.

Jeong-hyeon considered getting the golden goblin a subspace pouch to help with carrying them, but then he remembered,

‘I heard before that high-ranking magicians can easily detect subspace pouch and even seize items within them.’

It would be better to send him off without that. He watched in silence for a moment before offering one piece of advice.

“Oh, and try not to just drop them anywhere in the church. Aim for places where high-ranking clergy are located… wait a moment.”

He called to Lucia, who was slumped over, seemingly drained.

“Do you happen to know any symbols that indicate a high-ranking clergy member’s room?”

Nodding, Lucia responded,

“If there’s a statue of the goddess in front of the room, it means it’s a high-ranking clergy member’s room.”

Jeong-hyeon relayed this information to Hana to pass on to the golden goblin.

“Just drop one divine power bomb in each room that has a statue of the goddess.”

He added a slight condition.

“Kiik.”

The golden goblin nodded vigorously, wrapping up the bag before activating his dimensional shift skill. Watching this unfold, Jeong-hyeon smiled with satisfaction and waved him off, wishing him a safe journey. The golden goblin glanced back at him before disappearing inside.

‘Now that I’ve sent the gift, all that’s left is to wait for the Demon King’s response.’

He crossed his arms, feeling excited at the prospect of what the demon king might say next.

***

Within the kingdom’s capital, situated inside a temple crafted from immense divine stones forged by overwhelming divine power, the value of the divine stones alone was incalculable. Given that the fate of both the demon race and the beings of this realm hinged upon the display held within, the worth of this place surpassed that of any great architectural marvel.

As a result, all devotees who set foot within this church felt an overwhelming sense of reverence. They often directed their praise toward the pope, who had constructed this temple. However, what was once a source of pride for the congregation transformed in a fleeting moment—an instant so brief it was almost too quick to comprehend—as the temple erupted, leaving no trace behind.

“…”

Hermos, the Paladin, the highest rank attainable by the guardians of the church, could only stand in stunned silence at the sight of his cherished temple reduced to nothingness, its shape utterly obliterated.

‘What on earth…?’

Despite his usual self-assuredness in maintaining a calm demeanor, he found it impossible to retain his composure at the destruction of the main church. All he could do was stare blankly at the burning remnants.

‘Is this a dream?’

Yet the sharp sensations in his skin told him this was no dream, leaving him only able to watch the chaos unfold before him.

“Everyone, flee!”

“This is surely the wrath of the goddess, a punishment upon us!”

“AAAH!”

Screams and pained cries echoed around him. Just as his mind began to numb with the horror, a fellow knight urgently called his name, bringing him back to his senses.

“First, scatter to rescue survivors! Then return immediately—”

But as he spoke, he noticed the lodging where the high-ranking clergy resided was also ablaze, prompting him to revise his command mid-sentence.

“No… we will leave this place and rescue the high-ranking clergy first.”

Even stepping just outside would yield many souls to save, yet the thought of ignoring them for the sake of the high-ranking clergy felt less than palatable. The assembled knights showed visible discontent at the order, but Hermos disregarded it.

‘The lower-ranked members can be replaced, but the high-ranking clergy cannot.’

Thus, he decided to head toward the quarters of the high-ranking clergy, but something strange caught his attention.

‘There’s not a hint of magic or mana, yet the divine power is so thick?’

This meant that the destruction had been wrought solely by something comprised of divine power. The intensity of such divine force was unprecedented, leaving his mind in disarray.

As if sensing the same peculiar unease, the other knights around him began to show signs of apprehension. Just as he intended to say something to calm them, a relatively new knight spoke up, his voice trembling with fear.

“I-it seems the goddess has passed down her judgment.”

The goddess’s judgment. Hermos pondered the possibility that this statement could hold truth, but the very act of voicing such thoughts constituted a grave sin. In a swift motion, he beheaded the new knight and shouted,

“There must be demons among us!”