[Territory Quest Completed!]

[Issuing Rewards...]

[Dense World Merit has been detected!]

[Recalculating Rewards…]

[Rewards:

1. Instant level up by 5 levels for all subordinates and Lord!

2. 8 SSS-grade skills issued across high-leveled members!

3. Territorial resources blessings (only available after territory upgrade.)

4. Territory Relic: Armada issued!]

Roy quickly assimilated the information as he bathed in the streaming healing divine radiance of Trion.

His situation was dire. Belzebub, as though not absurdly powerful enough already, was still undergoing a power-up.

But thankfully, his subordinates had proven their capabilities — vanquishing their foes and completing the Territorial Quest.

The best part was that the rewards weren't just beneficial to him. As the name implied, a Territory Quest's rewards benefited the territory as a whole.

He had also been wondering what use the intangible World Merit served — and this answered it.

Though he was sure it had more uses than boosting quest rewards, he was satisfied with this for now.

Across the entire battlefield — those tucked away in safe bunkers, those in Aegis, and those on the frontlines — their levels shot up by five.

Since the foes they had been battling were Variants, harborers of corruption, they received zero benefits from each kill apart from the intangible World Merit.

So the level-up was a surprise — and a very important factor that helped turn the tide of battle. Morale rose with their levels and stats.

Additionally, seven high-leveled individuals — the opponents of the Six Fingers — experienced further boons.

Richard, Alpha, Ashley, Dio, Layla, Ethan, and Jake all received powerful broken skills.

Roy as well. He received a skill in a category he desperately needed: a defense skill.

Skill Acquired: Absolute Defense (SSS)

Roy had it all — pure brute attack, elemental attack, martial arts knowledge to make up for movement skills, and an ocular skill that helped with aim, seeing through illusions, detecting weaknesses, and more.

He had even thought he was balanced across all aspects — until he met an unreasonable foe like Belzebub, whose every strike could lead to instant death.

It was now he realized he needed a defense skill.

Without tanking some attacks, there's always so little follow-up you can deliver.

And the heavens saw his plight — delivering exactly what he needed.

[This is not a coincidence, Host. The immense merit earned from vanquishing the Fingers' avatars played a crucial role in this…]

The system was quick to explain.

"I see," Roy nodded in realization.

By now, his body was fully healed — but his armor was in ruins. At this stage, he didn't care.

Before a foe of Belzebub's caliber, such armor was of no use anyway.

All he worried about was the corruption affecting him — but thanks to Trion's divine capabilities, all traces of corruption in his system were cleansed.

Now he could focus fully on devices that could support him in this battle. He set his sights on the fourth reward: Armada.

Unfortunately, as he inquired about it, he discovered that regardless of what it was, it wouldn't be useful.

According to the system, a Territory Relic was a unique immortal item whose strength heavily depended on the territory's tier and strength.

And at this stage, his territory was still Tier One — with few inhabitants and overall weak strength. So the relic could at most display the strength of a level 16 ordinary weapon.

Which was really disappointing.

Suddenly, Roy's expression turned ugly at the sight of something worrisome.

Belzebub's figure hadn't morphed, nor were there any visible changes — but the quality of corruption in his system was on a constant rise. It rose so much that ethereal chains began protruding from the void.

Arcana was intervening — which was meant to be a good thing. Under the furious suppression of the plane, Belzebub would be easier to kill.

But Roy had become relieved too quickly. The devious Hand had clearly accounted for this scenario.

A mysterious black jade round crystal appeared in its abyssal claws — and it crushed it in an instant.

A multicolored fog exhaled from the crushed jade crystal fragments, clouding the Hand's figure.

And under Roy's dumbstruck gaze, the World Suppression shackles — which had plunged toward Belzebub with frenzied purpose — drifted out of aim.

The chains paused in the air, as though trying to sense the anomaly they were after. After a few seconds, under Roy's terrified gaze, the chains retreated.

Roy's gaze turned back to the shattered fragments of the mysterious black jade… What the hell was that?

He wondered, reeling from shock.

What could mask the presence of a creature from the world?

Roy's gaze gradually turned grim. He realized these Variants weren't so simple.

Previously, he had assumed Variants to be mindless zombies — and even after the system's grim warning, deep down he still hadn't fathomed the horror these devils could wrought.

But after today… well, if he survived today, he'd be doing so with a changed perspective.

He silently summoned the legendary horn. There was still a powerful function of the legendary item he had yet to use…

On Belzebub's side, its corrupt force had undergone a more deadly and dangerous change.

Growing both in quality and quantity, its frame still retained the same humanoid fly figure — but the aura around it had changed.

Its numerous crimson lenses stared toward Roy, its chitin clinking together.

Roy could barely react or register when the Hand suddenly appeared before him — practically teleporting faster than a blink — its feet swinging with full force.

Boom!

It delivered a brutal kick straight to Roy's waist, which cracked upon impact — his figure flying out of sight.

After a rough terrain-scraping landing, Roy discovered his spine was most likely broken — he couldn't feel his legs.

There he lay on the ground, his back sitting on his legs in an odd, uncomfortable posture.

Fortunately, Trion stayed true to his duties — already healing him.

As for Velra, she went to stall the foe — but unlike previous times, she could barely cast before Belzebub was already right before her.

His claws ripped through her shadowy frame, the other taking hold of her staff and shattering it.

Flinging her battered body aside, he continued on his path toward Roy — this time slowly, as though aiming to cement terror and fear in the heart of his opponent.

"You know the dimensional veil can only hide my presence for so long. Give or take, it should be about five minutes."

Belzebub chuckled as it made its way toward Roy's distant figure, step after step.

"It sounds short, right? Five minutes. If only you can withstand five minutes… this nightmare might just end."

As the Hand spoke, void rippled around its frame — dense corruption blooming, shaking reality and bending the atmosphere through sheer pressure.

Eyes glinting, the Fly added:

"Well, the question now is… can you survive that long?"

These words had barely finished being spoken when Belzebub vanished — moving so fast, even a blur wasn't seen.

Beside Roy, only shattered fragments of Trion's armor were left — remnants of the furious but absurdly quick attack delivered by Belzebub.

Roy's gut tightened…

Was… was there really no hope?

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