Summoned As A Mere Nobody-Yet Possesses An SSS-Rank Ability-Chapter 242: Dwarf back in control

the Iron King pushed one trembling hand into the cracked ground. His movements were painfully slow, each breath wheezing through his shattered chest. Most of his armor—once a towering symbol of demon royalty—lay in pieces around him. What remained was dented, burned, and peeling away.

His exposed body was mangled, cuts glowing faintly with demonic energy leaking out like smoke. Yet his eyes, glowing blood-red, still burned with fury and disbelief. He lifted his head, staring at Nolan as though looking upon an impossibility.

"H...How...?" his voice rasped, jagged and raw. "How is a human this strong...?"

He staggered to his feet, swaying like a failing pillar. "A human isn’t meant to surpass a demon! A human isn’t meant to be superior to me!" His claws clenched as he shouted. "Tell me, Nolan... how are you superior to the Iron King? HOW?!"

Nolan stood silently, dust settling across his shoulders. His clothes were torn, his arm still faintly smoking from the earlier blasts—but his posture never wavered. His eyes were calm. Sharp. Focused. He tilted his head just slightly.

"You really want to know?"

The Iron King bared his teeth. "Tell me! TELL ME!"

Nolan took a step forward, the ground cracking beneath his heel. Power rippled outward in a slow shockwave. "It’s simple," he said quietly. The wind shifted, swirling around him like an unseen aura. "You’re weaker than me."

The Iron King froze—shock spreading across his ruined face.

"Demons claim they’re superior to humans..." Nolan continued, voice steady as steel. "...but I just proved you wrong."

"LIAR!!" the Iron King screamed, the sound shaking the cavern. "YOU BASTARD! DON’T YOU EVER SAY THAT AGAIN!"

His remaining armor flared with demonic sigils as he thrust his hand upward. The ground split, metal shards rising around him like a cyclone. "IRON—DARK—BEAM!"

A colossal surge of black iron energy erupted toward Nolan, filling the chamber with a violent purple glow.

Nolan didn’t move.

He raised his hand.

The beam collided with him directly—

BOOOOOOM!!!

The explosion lit the entire chamber white. The ground cratered instantly. Shockwaves tore through the air. Stone pillars collapsed. Even dwarven soldiers far behind cover felt the tremor shaking their bones.

But Nolan did not fall.

He gritted his teeth and held the beam in place, forcing it downward with his bare hand. If I dodge even a little... half the Dwarf Kingdom will be destroyed. He planted his feet deeper, channeling raw power into his arm.

The Iron King roared and fired again, then again, beams raining down like a storm of shrieking darkness. The battlefield flashed in blinding bursts of light and shadow. But Nolan advanced through the barrage step by step, pushing through the torrent like a man walking into a hurricane.

The Iron King’s eyes widened. "Impossible... this is... impossible!"

Before he could charge another attack, Nolan vanished in a burst of speed.

"What—?!"

A fist slammed into the Iron King’s jaw—

BAAAM!!!

His enormous body spun through the air, smashing into the ground and skidding in a trail of sparks.

Nolan was on him in an instant. He seized the demon by the throat and lifted him like he weighed nothing.

"Let... go...!" the Iron King choked, rolling and twisting his body in an attempt to escape. But this time, his strength wasn’t enough.

Nolan hurled him into the ground—

WHAM!

The demon tried to kick Nolan in the face, but Nolan released him at the last second, causing him to crash onto his back. The Iron King tried a desperate punch—

Nolan intercepted and sliced his hand sharply across the demon’s shoulder.

A brutal ripping crack echoed.

The Iron King’s entire arm separated and fell to the ground with a heavy metallic thud.

The demon stared at the stump, horrified, then screamed, "MY ARM! YOU CUT OFF MY ARM!" His voice twisted with rage and disbelief. "MY PRIDE! MY POWER! YOU DARE?! YOU DARE, HUMAN?!" He writhed on the ground, snarling and spitting.

"How can a human be this strong?! Tell me! HOOOW?!"

Nolan looked down at him with cold calmness. "You keep blabbering." He raised his hand again. "Just tell me how you want to die."

The Iron King hesitated, for the first time showing fear. "You... you monster."

Nolan’s eyes shifted—glowing with a deeper, darker power. "Shut up."

In the next instant he moved.

His fist plunged into the Iron King’s chest—

BOOM!

Then another—

BOOM!

And another—

BOOM!

Each punch echoed like cannon fire. Dust burst with every blow. The demon’s body flew backward, but Nolan appeared behind him instantly and punched him forward again. The Iron King became nothing more than a ragdoll caught in a storm of fists.

Nolan grabbed him mid-air and slammed his head into the ground—

KRAAASH!

Then unleashed a relentless barrage.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Rocks shattered outward. Shockwaves split the earth. The Iron King’s roars weakened... then cracked... then faded into silence.

Nolan stood over the crumpled body.

"I might have spared you..." he said slowly, voice quiet but firm. "But you’re a demon who slaughtered countless people in this kingdom." His fist tightened. "Your only punishment... is death."

Dust drifted in the cold air as the Iron King demon staggered, clutching his ruined chest. His voice trembled with madness.

"The Demon Lord... he is no longer a god. Even sealed by the previous hero, he still exists. And I—I will be there when he returns. I will serve him. I will witness his revival. I will—"

He gasped, trembling violently.

"No... no, I won’t die... I won’t die... I WON’T DIE!"

The Iron King demon turned and ran. His heavy footsteps scraped against the stone, armor shards falling from his mangled body as he fled in pure terror.

Nolan didn’t chase him.

He didn’t even raise a hand.

"...Pathetic."

His voice echoed like a cold wind through the silent ruin.

Nolan snapped his fingers.

And the world... stopped.

Time froze instantly.

The Iron King demon halted mid-step, his body locked in place.

The dwarves, still under the protective dome they built, froze as well—faces filled with fear and awe.

Even the bird flying overhead hung motionless in the air, wings suspended like painted feathers.

Only Nolan moved.

He kept both hands in his pockets as he walked forward through the frozen world, each step echoing unnaturally loud in the stillness. His eyes remained fixed on the Iron King demon.

"I thought demons were strong," he said quietly. "And you were strong... one of the strongest I’ve fought." He exhaled, shaking his head. "But this is only the Demon Lord’s former knight. The Demon Lord himself... is sealed."

He stepped right in front of the frozen Iron King.

"And even this much power... was all you had."

Nolan reached out and gripped the demon’s head.

With one hand, he lifted the Iron King’s entire body into the air as if it weighed nothing. His fingers tightened slowly, crushing bone and demonic flesh alike.

A sickening crack echoed through the still world.

Blood burst from the demon’s nose.

His body twitched once, then fell limp.

The Iron King demon was dead.

Nolan let the corpse drop onto the shattered ground, then snapped his fingers again.

Time resumed.

The dwarves gasped—breath returning all at once as the protective dome dissolved around them. Dust that had been frozen mid-air crashed to the ground. Birds resumed their flight.

And the Iron King’s corpse lay motionless in front of Nolan.

The dwarves erupted.

"He did it!"

"He defeated the Iron King!"

"We’re free—after all these years, we’re finally free!"

They rushed toward Nolan, shouting, crying, lifting their arms in celebration. The dwarven warriors dropped to their knees before him.

"Human... thank you!"

"Thank you, human!"

"You saved us from the demon who ruled this kingdom for generations!"

A dwarf stepped forward, tears streaming down his beard.

"For years... our children, our wives, our families... the demons killed so many. They even reached the royal castle. They killed our king... our beloved dwarf king... all by the hand of this monster."

He pointed to the fallen Iron King demon.

"And you avenged them all. You and your companions saved us."

Every dwarf fell to their knees.

Nolan raised his hand.

"Stand up. I see you as friends."

He gave a faint smile. "And... you don’t even know my name. I’m Nolan."

The dwarves murmured in awe, repeating his name like a legend being born.

One dwarf stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Please, Nolan. Tell us what you want. Any reward. Anything you desire, for we are in your debt. All of us. Our families owe you our lives." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Nolan scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"Well, I wasn’t planning on asking for anything... but since you insist..."

He glanced around the ruined kingdom.

"I heard the dwarves are the best blacksmiths in the world."

The dwarves straightened proudly.

"Yes. We are."

Nolan nodded.

"Then I want a sword. One stronger than the current Holy Sword."

Silence hit the group.

Then every dwarf began murmuring in excitement and disbelief.

"A sword stronger than the Holy Sword?"

"It’s possible... but..."

"We’ll do it!" one shouted.

"However," another said nervously, "there are materials... that even we cannot obtain."