I Gain Infinite Gold Just By Waiting-Chapter 259: Episode 4-1_Purification (3)

3.

Light defeats darkness.

It’s a common saying, but anyone who’s seen a real battle knows it’s not that simple.

That’s how attributes work.

Nothing is ever completely one-sided.

People say fire beats water, but that only applies when they’re on the same scale. A massive enough fire will simply evaporate the water.

The same principle applies to the Five Elements.

Certain attributes have an advantage over others, but no one can guarantee an absolute outcome.

The most extreme example of this is holy versus dark.

Light and darkness. Justice wins, and evil always loses.

In modern society, where such moral tales are used for education, they’re treated as unchanging truths.

But once dungeons appeared, and players started entering them, that “truth” was shattered.

Powerful darkness is more lethal to light than anything else.

Darkness is vulnerable to strong light, which was the same principle that allowed Buja’s concept item set to shine so brightly in “The Devil’s Banquet.”

That principle didn’t change in the war against the demon legion.

In a land that had already become a demon’s domain, a little bit of holy power would actually harm the priests who tried to wield it.

The clash of two incompatible forces of mana, combined with the backlash from the overwhelming difference in strength, was why the countless priests and paladins on the continent could do little against the Demon King’s descent.

In a land saturated with demonic energy like this one, unleashing a half-baked holy power could actually backfire, flipping the attribute advantage.

Even so, the saintess did not back down. She invoked the name of God and made light sprout in the darkness.

It didn’t spread far.

It was nowhere near enough to drive out the darkness that had seeped into the land.

But it was enough.

It was enough to illuminate the path forward for the humans who had risked their lives to be here.

It was enough to keep that light from going out and to brightly reveal the demons’ attacks as they flew in from the dark.

On top of that came the princess’s song.

And the rain of spells.

Countless demons and monsters were swept away.

The holy power that filled the brave knights and soldiers who fought with spear and sword mercilessly cut down their enemies.

This was the continent’s absolute elite.

Where else could you find an army like this?

You wouldn’t find an army like this even if you combed through the history books.

Gathered for the sole purpose of protecting the continent, they advanced without a moment’s hesitation, entrusting their backs to one another.

And among them, the one who shone brightest was, of course, Kallis.

’He really is on another level.’

Up through Chapter 4, Kallis’s presence hadn’t stood out that much.

At every crucial moment, he had unfailingly proven that he was the greatest knight on the continent, but there had never been a situation where he could fully display his skills.

Most of the time, Buja had chosen to flee before a battle large enough to require Kallis’s intervention could even break out.

Because of that, Kallis had faded from his mind to the point where Buja had mistakenly thought the Empire had no real talent.

Now, that perception was being shattered.

Even someone like Buja, who had coasted through life on talent alone, couldn’t help but be impressed by how precise and instinctive Kallis’s movements were.

His bold decisions and ferocious attacks were so sharp that Buja found himself learning something new with every move, thinking, ’He chose that option there?’

It was the power that came from talent combined with decades of experience.

Added to that was a courage and sense of duty—a potential Buja knew he could never display.

At this point, he was genuinely convinced that the final battle against the Demon King could be fought with Kallis at its center.

That conviction bore fruit in the form of victory on the battlefield.

If this were a drama, this would be the point where the heat of battle cools, giving the heroes a breather before a manufactured crisis heightens the tension.

They would give the retreating demon legion some time, then have them launch some ridiculous, unexpected counterattack that inflicted heavy damage. The usual cliché.

But this was reality.

Kallis was not only an excellent knight but also a commander.

“Do not stop! Exterminate every last one of them!”

The demons didn’t know the meaning of retreat.

Even as their kin died around them, they reveled in the spilled blood and charged in even harder. The human army, which also refused to back down, kept killing demons without rest.

The battle dragged on long enough for their stamina to run dry and their minds to fray, but they did not stop.

Because they all knew.

If they got tired and gave up here, there would be no second chances.

They knew today’s victory was only a tiny fraction of the war to come.

And if they couldn’t seize even this sliver of victory when it was offered, then protecting the continent would only ever be a dream.

They burned themselves out, fighting for the future and for the families they loved.

“A Great Demon!”

And making the biggest impact right alongside Kallis was, of course, Kim Buja.

Though he’d grumbled about being overshadowed by Kallis, Buja’s own abilities—bolstered by a slew of stat boosts and optimized gear—allowed him to prove his worth in a way entirely different from the swordsman.

Woooooaaahhh—!

While Kallis crushed mid- and high-ranking demons with his overwhelming prowess in single combat, Kim Buja understood the value of showmanship.

He was confident in his own dueling skills, but he knew that boosting morale in a war required a dazzling, undeniable display of your side’s strength. And for that, nothing beats magic.

The massacre he unleashed upon weak monsters and low-ranking demons was, in truth, no different than an adult wading into a children’s brawl. But the effect was undeniable.

He didn’t need to worry about anything else.

He fulfilled the quest objective for Chapter 4-1 simply by participating in the war. He didn’t even have to hunt down high-ranking demons; they obligingly presented themselves to be killed.

He didn’t need to rush off alone to play the hero.

All he had to do was watch the demons swarm Kallis—clearly the strongest fighter on the field—and toss a few buffs his way. The quest target was met with ease.

Defeat five high-ranking demons.

The mission, which had seemed so daunting to attempt alone, was completed in no time. He then watched as the final duel between a Great Demon and Kallis brought the war to its conclusion.

[You have cleared Chapter 4-1.]

The war did not last long.

The battle between the demon legion, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, and the human army was over in less than three days.

The casualties were heavy.

Fighting from start to finish in demon territory multiplied their exhaustion. Though they’d forgotten their fatigue in the heat of battle, the moment it ended, the strain they had forced their bodies to endure came crashing down on them with interest.

Despite the efforts of countless priests, innumerable lives were snuffed out. The crushing realization that they would have to fight at least five more battles of this scale weighed on them more heavily than the joy of victory.

It was the aftershock.

It was a state everyone experiences after pouring out everything they have.

Instead of accomplishment or pride, there was only a hollow feeling, a question of what they had actually done and what they had gained.

In reality, they had gained nothing.

They had fought as if this battle were the last, but it was only the beginning.

’Could we keep going?’

’Can I push any further from here?’

’It feels like I’ve hit my limit.’

This wasn’t just because it was a war.

It was a universal human experience.

Everyone thinks the same thing when they hit a wall.

’I want to rest.’

’Can’t I just give in?’

In fact, this was a feeling Kim Buja had experienced more than anyone.

Which was why he also knew exactly how to overcome it.

“Elinel. A song, please.”

“Okay.”

The imperial princess had been singing throughout the war without a moment’s rest, yet at Buja’s request, she nodded without the slightest hesitation.

She was more exhausted than anyone, but for the sake of her people, who were suffering even more than she was, she opened her mouth and forced herself to endure the stabbing pain in her throat.

A soft melody began to rise.

On land saturated with the stench of death, amid the eerie aura cast by countless demon corpses, her song rang out once more, steadying their restless hearts.

Of course, this alone was not enough.

A song was just a song.

Even if they closed their eyes with slightly calmer hearts, all they could see was a pitch-black future.

At times like this, you had to offer a concrete, practical alternative. They needed something tangible—not some distant, unreachable future, but a hope they could grasp right here and now.

For that, Kim Buja did not hesitate.

“Alright, today’s on me! I’m splurging!”

In front of tens, no, hundreds of thousands of people, a paper-wrapped hamburger and a bottle of cola with ice cubes bobbing inside appeared.

He addressed the confused crowd.

“I was chosen by God and sent here from another world to purge evil. But I cannot do it with my strength alone. Please, help me. Do not give in. As long as we stand with God, humanity will never fall. This is the proof! This is the greatest restorative meal from the world I came from. Eat and regain your strength. It will heal your fatigue and help you recover.”

It was the most basic hamburger combo imaginable—the kind you could get for $6 after a three-minute walk from home, so basic it didn’t even come with fries. But the way he framed it transformed the simple meal into a one-of-a-kind elixir.

Not everyone believed him, but after nearly three days without food, they devoured it in a frenzy.

Then, the exclamations began.

“Wow!”

“This flavor...!”

The bulgogi burger, loaded with savory sauce, and the fizzy cola were the perfect combination to be mistaken for a restorative potion.

Thanks to that, they didn’t leave a single crumb.

One meal wouldn’t erase their fatigue or heal their wounds.

However, it was enough to steady the anxious mood of the crowd.

They discussed the taste and imagined the world Kim Buja had described.

And in fact, he had added a few simple buffs to the hamburgers, giving them a slight but real stamina-recovery effect.

Watching the people marvel and praise him, he felt a warm sense of satisfaction.

’If I’m going to spend gold, it needs to have at least this much impact to feel worth it.’

Along with that satisfaction came the sweet holographic rewards that washed over him.

Of course, right now he was more curious about what came next than about the rewards themselves.

[Demon King]

▶ Rank: Chapter 4-2

▶ Objective: Defeat the Demon King and cleanse the continent.

[90 days remain until the Chapter begins.]

’So, the inevitable has finally been scheduled.’

Through the hologram he checked before even looking at the rewards, he saw the date of the final, decisive battle.

Fortunately, he had been given some time to prepare.

’Still, I’m not sure if ninety days will be enough.’

“The final battle will start in ninety days,” he made sure to tell Kallis, just in case.

The system said the quest would begin in ninety days, but if something happened before then, the battle might already be well underway by the time Buja entered the Chapter.

Kallis simply nodded without question.

In any case, it was best to whittle down the demons’ forces as much as possible before the fight against the Demon King.

After roughly outlining his plans and Kallis’s role going forward, Buja took off the armor he was wearing and handed it to him.

Ninety days.

Given the state of the continent, even that was by no means a long time.

He worried whether even a fraction of the people he saw before him would still be alive, but he had to go.

“You have to stay alive. Keep everyone alive. Even if it means fighting every last remaining demon, hold out until I get back.”

He gave the imperial princess one last command before he left.

At their brief reunion and yet another parting, the princess threw herself into his arms.

She nodded, and the tears soaking into his chest conveyed, without words, the full weight of the burden she felt.

* * *