Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyusoukyoku (LN) - Volume 21 - Chapter 9

The Sage and the Fool

The world is made up of a vast majority of fools and a tiny minority of intellectuals. Those fools who recognize their own foolishness can yet have the opportunity to learn and gain intelligence. But none are more difficult to deal with than fools who think themselves intellectuals. (Sorijeyro the Sage)

“…I made it.”

From a shadow that fell in the Heavenly Room of the cathedral emerged a heavily wounded Sorijeyro the Sage.

“I cannot say I am unharmed, but at least I did not get lost deep in the shadows.”

The sage dragged himself across the floor and up to the pontiff’s chair.

“Nothing ever seems to go to plan…”

Slumping into the chair, the sage sank into thought.

(We were prevented from using the demon lord to open the seal on the Evil God’s Prison by the Saga Empire hero. Lord Green’s betrayal caused our puppet pontiff to turn into a demon lord and be defeated by the Shiga Kingdom hero.)

On top of his physical injuries, deep mental exhaustion was turning his limbs to lead.

(Worst of all, the linchpin of my plan—Demon Lord Shizuka—had been eliminated.)

The sage heaved a deep sigh of regret.

“Even so, I suppose it’s still better than when I was in the burnt remains of a village surrounded by corpses…”

The sage looked up to the night sky and muttered to himself.

(I still have sympathizers in this province. If I bring them all together, surely I can take control of this land and create a first step toward world domination.)

Twin flames of ambition reignited in the sage’s eyes.

Just then, the sound of footsteps charging through the hallway reached his ears.

“So the fools have caught wind of my presence already…”

He turned his gaze toward the entrance to the Heavenly Room.

“We have you now, Sorijeyro!”

The door flew open, and in barged Cardinal Dobbunaf, Parion Province’s second-in-command to Pontiff Zarzaris.

“How dare you sit in the place of honor reserved for His Holiness!”

Right behind the cardinal came Mezzalt, the Holy Sword–wielding Temple Knight.

Despite being weakened by the effects of Demon Lord Zarzaris’s inverted Unique Skill, he’d managed to recover enough to move, thanks to the bishops’ Holy Magic and potions.

However, his weight was being supported by a subordinate, so he must still be far from his usual strength.

“Men! Surround him!”

The Temple Knights and battle-experienced priests who crowded into the room behind them quickly encircled Sorijeyro the Sage as he sat in the pontiff’s seat.

But they couldn’t hide their anxiety in the face of someone who was powerful enough to fight alongside the former hero and Mezzalt against the Sandstorm Lord.

“You’re too late, Cardinal. You’ve always been a bit too slow.”

The sage toyed with an eerie jar on his lap as he spoke.

It was a Chaos Jar. He had collected much of the miasma produced by the pontiff, and the pain of the people in the holy city.

“Sorijeyro! Where is the real pontiff?!”

“The ‘real’ pontiff? Have you no eyes? That was him. It is what happened to him as a result of wearing down his soul for the sake of responding to the endless pleas of the greedy and ignorant masses.”

The sage sounded somewhat forlorn.

“Th-then His Holiness really did turn into a demon lord?”

At this murmur from the cardinal, shock spread through the rest of the group.

“Harrumph. I do not believe your lies. Now, where is the demon lord?! There is no hero around this time. I, Mezzalt, chosen wielder of the Holy Sword Blutgang, shall defeat it forthwith!”

Mezzalt drew his Holy Sword, showing off the blue light to his allies as he pointed it at the sage.

“Impossible.”

“How dare you! As if anything is impossible to the great Mezzalt!”

“I told you, it is impossible. Demon Lord Zarzaris is no longer with us.”

“What? Has he already run loose outside the holy city?!”

The sage heaved a sigh, looking down at the uncomprehending Mezzalt.

“He is no longer of this world. Nanashi the Hero of Shiga Kingdom defeated him.”

The sage didn’t witness this moment firsthand, but he knew from a brief chance encounter that the hero was no slouch. At the very least, a suddenly newborn demon lord would be no match for such an opponent.

“Hero!” Mezzalt bellowed. “Damn you! You’ve stolen the achievement of defeating a demon lord away from me yet again?!”

The sage leveled a cold glare at the indignant knight. “How foolish…as if you could hope to rival a hero.”

The sage put the Chaos Jar away in his Item Box and stood.

“What?! You, a traitor who turned the pontiff into a demon lord, dare to mock me?!”

Ignoring the furious Mezzalt, the sage turned to the cardinal. “Join me, Dobbunaf. I will grant you fame and utility alike. With you as my cover, I will…”

“…unlock the seal of the Evil God’s Prison, perhaps?”

The sage blinked in surprise that the cardinal had seen through his plot.

“Did you truly think I was unaware? Since you style yourself as a sage, I suppose you assume that everyone else is an utter buffoon.”

“What would you know about me?!”

“More than you think, I suspect. After you release the seal on the Evil God’s Prison and wreak havoc on the world, you intend to force the reincarnation you call the ‘Holy Woman’ to use her cursed Unique Skill to create an all-powerful army and bring the world under your control, or something absurd like that, don’t you?”

The sage’s face flushed red with fury, a vein throbbing, at the implied insult.

“Your acting could use some work. I suppose you keep your hood over your face not to hide your monkeyfolk identity, but to keep your thoughts from showing on your face, hmm?”

The sage growled. “I will ask you one more time. Serve me, Dobbunaf. If you agree—”

“I will not. Besides, you’ve given me all the time I needed.”

“Time…? No, surely—”

As the sage’s eyes widened, pure blue light flooded up beneath his feet, and a multitude of multilayered magic circles appeared around him, forming a powerful barrier.

“Ritual Magic! You gathered priests on the floor below this one?!”

“You only just noticed? How disappointing. And here Mezzalt and I came storming in with some troops just to distract you.”

“This barrier cannot hold me!”

The sage used Practical Magic, Dark Magic, and other kinds of spells to break the barrier, all of which were canceled out immediately.

“It’s no use,” the cardinal said coolly. “This is a ritual originally gifted to us by the Goddess Parion to seal demon lords. A mere monkeyfolk like yourself could never destroy a barrier built by a thousand priests and priestesses.”

The magic circles moved like gears, folding the barrier smaller and smaller.

“Damn yoooou!”

The sage gritted his teeth in fury.

He knew for a fact that if he stopped resisting now, the barrier around him would be banished into the space between dimensions, subjecting him to eternal torment.

“If magic will not work…”

The sage produced the City Core terminal from his breast pocket.

“  City Portal Toshinai Teni.”

He raised the terminal and spoke the words, but his body remained firmly stuck in place.

“You have authority here no longer. I reported you as a traitor. The only person who can overturn that is a person of higher rank than me—in other words, only the missing pontiff.”

The cardinal, who evidently refused to accept the pontiff’s death, explained why the sage couldn’t use the City Core.

“Higher rank? Then look no further!   Acquittal Menzai!”

The sage raised the terminal again and spoke the City Core command to remove the crime that had been carved into his status. However, the terminal simply flickered and caused no changes.

“Impossible! But why?! As vice-lord, I should rank higher than a cardinal!”

“You think too little of His Holiness. After he appointed you vice-lord, he registered me as a vice-lord as well.”

The cardinal suspected that the pontiff had only done this out of a kindly wish for the sage and the cardinal to be the same rank, not in case of an unlikely betrayal, but he didn’t mention this part to the sage.

“You failed to see the depth of His Excellency’s wisdom, and your students have betrayed you. Any favorable reputation you had was only a house built on sand, forged with heretical methods.”

“Betrayed by my students? What an absurd notion.”

“I do not know if you used Psychic Magic or a Charm skill to win over your pupils. Either way, you underestimated the prejudice and hatred held by bigots. Even under your psychic influence, this student still looked down on you as a monkeyfolk. It was the same student who reported all of your plans to us.”

“Those damned traitors…!”

The sage snarled in rage.

“Hmph. Curse your own depravity instead…   Punish Chuubatsu.”

The cardinal produced a City Core terminal and used it to attack the sage inside the barrier with a lightning strike.

“So one can attack from outside the barrier…” The sage trailed off, realizing something. “…I can see outside, and the inside is visible from without. In other words, light can travel through the barrier freely.”

“Light Magic will not work, you know. That barrier blocks all magic.”

The cardinal mercilessly rejected the sage’s attempt to plot a breakthrough.

“I do not need you to tell me that. I am well aware that magic cannot pass through. But if light can, then that means the boundary is not absolute!”

“And so what if it isn’t?!   Punish Chuubatsu!”

The cardinal attacked the confident sage with another lightning bolt.

The sage blocked it with Dark Magic and went on muttering to himself.

“If the barrier is made with the borrowed power of a god, I need only use the power of a god to break it.”

Purple light tinged the sage’s body, and eight purple orbs appeared around his head.

“Allow me to show you the true worth of my Unique Skill Copy Plagiarism.”

The sage took a karate-like stance.

“Consume slot six. Imbue my fist with Unstoppable Strike.”

One of the orbs burst open, and the sage’s fist glowed with blue light.

“Th-that’s Hayato the Hero’s special skill!”

Paying no attention to the surprised cardinal, the sage thrust his fist forward.

It crashed into the barrier, producing shock waves of blue and purple light.

“Barrier, break before me!”

With the sage’s dogged shout, the balance broke, and the enormous amount of magic that made up the barrier reversed direction and exploded into the Heavenly Room.

The ceiling crumbled, and the stained glass depictions of mythology that were akin to a national treasure shattered into pieces. The floor buckled, and a storm of magic power was blown down below, overwhelming the priests who created the barrier.

“Mezzalt, take him down!   Crusade Seisen,   King’s Armor Okai,   King’s Blade Oken!”

“Nnngah! Such power!”

The City Core’s power flowed into Mezzalt’s body, changing his physique from that of one recently recovered to that of a dauntless warrior.

“With this, I can make short work of a curse user or two…”

The Holy Sword Blutgang traced an arc of blue light in the air as Mezzalt closed in on the sage using “Blink.”

“‘Arc Blazer’!”

The knight unleashed his special attack faster than the eye could follow, slashing into the sage’s neck.

Everyone present was certain they were seeing the sage’s head fly through the air.

But then…

“Too slow.”

The sage was above Mezzalt in the air, his head still squarely on his shoulders.

Purple light ran through his body, and seven glowing purple orbs floated above him, one of which was glowing brightly.

“  Punish Chuubatsu!”

The cardinal fired a lightning attack at the sage.

“It’s no use.”

The sage was gone before the lightning reached him, appearing next to the cardinal with a flash of purple light and snatching away the man’s City Core terminal.

Then another flash, and he reappeared elsewhere.

“Hrm. The ‘Pickpocket’ skill does come in handy from time to time.”

The sage used the Earth Magic spell Toss Beryl to destroy the terminal, then struck the cardinal with the Lightning Magic spell Piercing Bolt as if in revenge for the earlier strikes.

“How dare you harm the cardinal!”

Even when Mezzalt used an “Arc Blazer” sneak attack, the sage dodged it so quickly, it was as if he’d instantly disappeared.

“So this is the power of that elusive Shiga Kingdom hero. Perhaps it was this ‘Flashrunning’ that allowed him to defeat Doghead and the Boar Lord.”

The sage murmured to himself, continuing to dodge Mezzalt’s fierce flurry of attacks like an afterthought.

“You are no match for me, it would seem.”

He used Toss Beryl to limit Mezzalt’s movements, then combined Dark Magic and Shadow Magic on the knight’s predicted path to steal his magic and life force.

“Save Sir Mezzalt!”

“Yes, sir!”

The Temple Knights rushed in between Mezzalt and the sage.

“How bothersome. I shall reduce you all to ash, the cardinal included.”

The sage floated into the air and readied a staff from his Item Box.

Sensing what he was about to do, the cardinal piled on Defense Magic from the City Core and made a break for the exit.

“As if I would let you get away now…”

The Firelight Pearl in the sage’s staff glowed bright red, and crimson flames whirled through the room.

Then the flames grew even bigger, as if to plunge the knights deeper into despair.

It was a scene of utter ruination, enough to seal the fates of everyone in the room.

“…Inferno.”

The sage spoke the invocation and pointed his staff forward, and a blaze of hellfire raged toward the knights, as if from the gates of hell itself.

But just as the flames were licking at their fleeing backs…

“I will protect you, I declare.”

A figure in dazzling silver armor stepped in and shouted the word “Fortress.”

Instantly, a many-layered magic barrier formed, blocking the Inferno.

The massive amount of heat clashed against the Fortress, and waves of radiant heat singed the silver knight—Nana.

“I am having slight difficulties, I report.”

Several other girls in silver armor arrived to back her up.

“Deracinator!”

“Falliiinks?”

“Sir!”

A Space Magic barrier cut off the radiant heat, and three uses of the beastfolk girls’ disposable defense system, Phalanx, pushed back the Inferno.

“Aim…and fire!”

A sniper rifle shot a bullet at the sage, who was still floating in the air.

“Urgh!”

The sage’s defense barrier just barely made it in time to block the bullet.

But it couldn’t cancel out the shock waves, which knocked into the sage’s shoulder and sent him spinning out in midair.

“Splash Needle.”

Water Magic burst up beneath the sage and was immediately vaporized by the heat from the Inferno—creating a phreatic eruption that sent the sage flying into the sky.

Mia gaped at the unexpected results of her spell, her stunned expression like a character’s from a gag manga.

“Cardinal, are you all right?”

A man in silver armor called out to the cardinal, who was struggling to keep up with the sudden turn of events. It was Satou.

“My injuries are minor. But I thought you were staying in Sorijeyro’s village, Sir Pendragon?”

“Yes, we learned of the sage’s plot there and came running to stop him.”

Satou reassured the cardinal that his suspicions that they were on the sage’s side were unfounded.

“So you’ve come as I suspected, Pendragon!”

The sage floated back down, reinforced with layers of Defense and Support Magic.

The surprisingly effective steam explosion had left his vestment in tatters.

“I see they do not call you ‘Untouchable’ for nothing… I did not think anyone could emerge from my Inferno unharmed.” The sage drank an advanced magic recovery potion as he muttered. “But how long can you keep that up, I wonder? You may have defenses that rival the legendary Heavenslight Protection of the kingdom of sorcery Lalagi, but surely that must come at a high cost. Even if you had Philosophium, you could not use it many times.”

Despite the sage’s attempts to goad him, the young Satou’s expression didn’t waver in the slightest.

“Or can you…? No, surely not. Unless you were foolish enough to burn Philosophium as fuel, you could only produce that defense once or twice. Which means victory is as good as mine.”

Satou kept his face blank, though he winced inwardly at the insult to his Holytree Stone Furnace.

“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to surrender?” Satou asked. “I don’t want to kill someone who I studied under, even if it was only for a short time.”

“Hmph, what a pitiful bluff. More importantly, what happened to the Holy Woman you kidnapped from the ceremony hall? Have you killed her already?”

“Holy Woman? I only rescued a few kids that we knew. One of Lord Kuro’s subordinates was at the ceremony, so maybe he’s the one who rescued the Holy Woman?”

“…Kuro?”

“A servant of Sir Nanashi the Hero.”

“That damned Shiga Kingdom hero again?!”

Satou’s “Fabrication” skill managed to surpass the sage’s sharp perception.

“…The Holy Woman? You didn’t hurt her, did you?”

The cardinal grabbed Satou by the shoulders and shook him.

Before Satou could open his mouth to clear up the misunderstanding, another element of chaos appeared in the Heavenly Room.

“I’m fine, Dobbs.”

It was the elderly Holy Woman on her palanquin. She had fainted earlier from overextending herself trying to turn Pontiff Zarzaris from a demon lord back into a human, but she had evidently been fully healed by her entourage and hurried to the scene.

Dobbs must be her nickname for Cardinal Dobbunaf.

“Madam!”

The cardinal exclaimed with joy to see that the Holy Woman was safe, but his joy quickly turned into horror.

The sage, who was floating in the air just moments ago, appeared behind the old Holy Woman in an instant and knocked her entourage away.

“Eek!”

“Don’t move, Pendragon!”

Glowing with purple light, the sage held a dagger to the Holy Woman’s throat.

As he did so, he drew her inside his defense barrier.

Now, no matter how nimble Satou might be, it was doubtful that he could break the barrier and steal the dagger before the sage could slash the Holy Woman’s throat.

“This is an infamous dagger called the ‘Unlife Curse Blade’ that was found in the Bloodsucker Labyrinth of the Saga Empire. Anyone it cuts is inflicted with a fatal curse and a neurotoxin that surpasses even hydra venom in potency. No magic potion can save the victim. It is the worst imaginable means of murder.”

The sage didn’t mention that an elixir would be able to save the victim.

He suspected there was a small chance that a labyrinth explorer like Satou might actually have one. And as it happened, he was correct.

“It seems the tables have turned. Now you are the ones who must surrender.”

The sage opened his Item Box and tossed ten collars toward his opponents.

“You wouldn’t dare…”

“Indeed, I would.” The sage looked triumphant. “These are enslavement collars. If you wish to save the Holy Woman’s life, put them on of your own free will.”

“Have you fallen that far into heresy, Sorijeyro? Free the Holy Woman at once!”

“I have already stated my demands. You can have her life in exchange for your freedom!”

“H-help me, Dobbs…”

The Holy Woman pleaded for the cardinal’s help.

“Madam! Grrr, is there no other way…?”

The Temple Knights who had snuck up behind the sage touched his blade barrier and sank into a puddle of blood.

The cardinal looked back and forth between the enslavement collars and the Holy Woman, grimacing.

As he did so, Satou’s Magic Hand crept toward the sage but was unable to interfere through his barrier. Though he didn’t show it on his face, Satou was evidently searching for a way to salvage the situation, too.

Whether she knew this or not, Tama stepped forward, approaching the sage.

“…Tama?”

Satou noticed her movement.

Tama stopped in front of the enslavement collars.

“Clever girl. Come to put on your collar, have you?”

Tama picked up the collar and looked up at the sage.

“Mr. Sage, it’s wrong to pick on the weeeak?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You said to help people in trouble and not pick on people weaker than you, remembeeer?”

It was then that the sage remembered that this was Satou’s simplified translation of what the sage himself told Tama: “True power exists to aid and guide the powerless. Be careful not to let it go to your head.”

“Ah, yes. I did say that.”

Tama and the sage gazed at each other.

The girl’s eyes filled with tears under the pressure.

“Pochi thinks it’s bad to bully the weak, too, sir! You shouldn’t be unfair, sir!”

Pochi rushed to Tama’s side to back her up.

“Unfair? Then would you say it is fair for many people to attack a single opponent?”

“Uh-oh, sir!”

Pochi was flustered by this counterargument.

“Let’s see you fight one-on-one, then!”

“Mmm. Representative match.”

Arisa and Mia stepped up next to Pochi and Tama.

“A representative, you say? You think you can defeat me just because you can also use chantless magic, girl-child?”

“No, I’m not the one who’ll be fighting you.” Arisa shook her head.

“The spear user who was invited to the Shiga Eight, then!”

“No, there is someone much stronger than the likes of me.”

When Liza denied him, the sage turned his gaze to Lulu, who flapped her hands frantically.

“N-not me, either!”

“Of course, it is not me, either, I declare. It is Master’s turn to shine, I announce.”

Nana moved in front of the cardinal, freeing up Satou from his protective position.

“You, eh? As if a fighter who is only light on his feet can oppose me with magic tools alone.”

“Oh, I’m not just going to oppose you. I’m going to defeat you once and for all.”

At this uncharacteristically self-assured statement from Satou, Arisa and the rest of his companions broke into smiles.

“Such foolishness!”

The sage’s body was bathed in purple light, and seven purple spheres appeared above his head.

One of them went out, and the sage shouted down at Arisa.

“Reincarnated girl-child! Behold my level!”

“Level? What about it—level ninety-nine?!”

Arisa’s face twisted with surprise.

The others all wore similar expressions of shock.

No, not quite. Satou briefly looked like he wanted to say “Uh-huh…” before he pasted on a surprised expression as well. Fortunately, no one else noticed this.

“That’s right. Now that I have cast off my false guise, there is no one within the limits of human ability who could hope to defeat me.”

“How—?! I know you didn’t have a Brace of Stolen Divinity! Was that purple light the secret?!”

“Quite a curious mind you have.” The sage smirked with amusement at Satou’s unusual outburst. “The answer is this: As you suspected, I used my Unique Skill Copy Plagiarism to reproduce and maintain the effects of a Brace of Stolen Divinity.”

“What an unfair skill…!”

Arisa bit her lip furiously.

“Once I have canceled a skill once, I must copy it again. However, I can simply retrieve the Brace of Stolen Divinity from the cathedral’s treasure room again. That piece of equipment turned out to be the most useful object I found in the ruins of the Evil God’s Prison.”

After he muttered this, the sage looked one by one at team Pendragon, the Temple Knights, and finally the cardinal.

“Then allow me to ensure that we have no boorish interlopers.”

“Th-the shadows!”

“Uh-oooh?”

“Waaah, sir!”

“Mrrr.”

Shadows swelled up from beneath their feet and ensnared them within seconds.

The nimble Tama and Liza managed to evade the shadows, but everyone else was bound by shadows and could no longer move. Pochi was a bit of an exception, as she initially escaped with her natural instincts, only to trip and get caught anyway.

“Mew!”

“…Damn it.”

The two who escaped at first were eventually captured when more and more tendrils emerged from the shadows.

“Now then, let our battle begin.”

The sage released the old Holy Woman, holding the Unlife Curse Dagger in one hand and producing his favored multi-attribute-stone staff in the other.

“You’re not taking a hostage this time?”

“Hmph. I have no need for such tricks against a boy of only level fifty-four who just happens to be light on his feet. I am only wary of the girl-child there.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t get involved.”

Arisa shrugged, not bothering to free herself with Space Magic.

Off to one side, Tama was wiggling around and trying to get rid of the shadows holding her by using shadow powder ninjutsu. Unfortunately for her plan, the sage’s magic seemed to have stronger control over the shadows.

“Come at me, Pendragon.”

“All right, then—”

Instead of drawing the fairy sword at his waist, Satou picked up a nearby spear and rock.

“—Here I go.”

Deliberately announcing his intentions, Satou threw the rock at the sage with all the speed and force of a fastball.

The sage vanished.

He reappeared in a wash of purple light at Satou’s side—only to lose his balance and go tumbling dramatically across the floor.

In the dust cloud the sage left as he rolled, a broken spear became visible tumbling close behind him. It was the one Satou had been holding moments ago.

“Wh-what just…?”

The sage looked around, trying to comprehend what had happened to him; seeing the broken spear and the empty-handed Satou, he realized he must have been tripped by Satou’s spear.

“…Did you predict my trajectory?” The sage looked shocked, then quickly realized this was impossible. “No, surely not. The skill I copied from Nanashi the Hero works similarly to ‘Warp.’ The user moves instantly, too fast to see and react. You could not have intentionally tripped me.”

Satou made no comment on the sage’s muttering, as if he couldn’t hear him. Instead, he picked up a different spear and swung it around experimentally.

Noticing that the sage was staring at him doubtfully, Satou beckoned him as if to say, You can try coming at me this time.

“Damn you! You think yourself strong?!”

The sage flew into a rage at being treated like a lesser opponent.

He put his staff away in the Item Box and held the dagger in his other hand.

It appeared that he intended to slash Satou with the dagger on his way past and kill him in one go.

“Prepare to pay the price for that arrogance!”

The sage vanished, reappeared far to Satou’s side, then vanished again.

He repeated this several times, until no one could keep track of his location. Then there was an explosive sound behind Satou.

“Mew!”

“Ouchie, sir!”

The butt end of the spear struck the sage’s solar plexus, and he doubled over, eyes rolling back in pain.

The spear’s tip was stuck into the marble floor; the handle quickly reached its limit and snapped, flying along with the sage past Satou and crashing into a nearby pillar.

The plaster veneer of the column crumbled, and a cloud of dust went up from where it connected to the ground, demonstrating the force of the impact for all to see.

“Maybe you should watch where you’re going?”

Satou watched the sage politely.

“What just happened?”

“I thought I saw Sir Pendragon thrust the spear into the floor, and then somehow Sorijeyro crashed into it?”

It seemed that ordinary people couldn’t tell what had happened.

“That’s our Master for you.”

“So Master was able to see the sage’s movements.”

Those who were able to follow the action, like Liza and Lulu, applauded Satou.

Tama and Pochi were scrunching up their faces in sympathy at the painful-looking crash.

“What an amazing special move.”

“He must have predicted Sorijeyro’s position…”

Mezzalt murmured in admiration of Satou’s technique, while the cardinal wondered aloud.

“Sir Sage is so logic-driven that he’s very easy to read,” Satou said casually.

If the sage were awake to hear this comment, he probably would have been furious with the humiliation.

“Uuurgh…”

A faint groan came from near the wall.

“Satou.”

“Master, the enemy is still afoot, I report.”

“That was like a top-speed highway collision. I’m surprised he’s even alive.”

Mia and Nana were alert, while Arisa commented with a phrase that only Satou would understand.

He’d crashed into the pillar faster than the speed of sound. If it weren’t for the multiple layers of barriers, it would have undoubtedly pierced his stomach through, even if it was only the butt end of the spear.

Satou ran over at a speed rivaling that of the “Blink” skill, pointing his fairy sword at the sage’s neck as the latter regained consciousness.

“Is it safe to say that I’ve won the match?”

Satou held out a potion with a smile. The sage rejected it, producing one from his Item Box instead and drinking it down.

“…It couldn’t be coincidence that it happened twice. You must be an expert in countering. So striking back after an attack is your forte…”

The sage coughed, then muttered in a hoarse voice.

The attack to his solar plexus must not have healed completely even after the magic potion.

After a moment of silent thought, the sage threw the empty vial aside and spoke again.

“…The match is yours, Pendragon.”

“Hooraaay!”

“Master won, sir!”

“Good gaaame?”

The girls cheered when the sage admitted defeat.

The empty vial flew through the air and began to fall. Tama followed it instinctively with her eyes, a habit of cat-eared folk.

When it hit the ground and shattered, there was suddenly a billow of white smoke.

“Mew!”

Before Tama could call out a warning, a man behind the pillar in priest’s robes snuck up behind Satou and stabbed him in the back with the dagger the sage had dropped.

“Master…!”

Arisa’s chantless Space Magic blew the smoke away instantly.

When it cleared, it revealed the sage sending shadow spears toward Satou—who had been stabbed in the back by a dagger.

“It’s not fair to stab from behind, sir!”

“Masteeeer!”

Pochi shouted, and Tama freed herself from the shadows using ninjutsu and ran to his side.

“We can’t waste time on these things.”

Arisa used Space Magic to escape the shadow tendrils, while Nana used the Foundation version of Break Magic to destroy hers.

Liza and Pochi forced their way free, and Lulu managed to point her gun at her shadow tendrils with flexibility that would make the Kunoichi go pale, shooting her way free.

“Mrrr.”

Mia was the only one who couldn’t escape on her own. Nana freed her, and they all ran to Satou.

This all transpired in a matter of seconds after they saw that Satou was in trouble.

On the other hand, the assassin who’d struck Satou…

“Impossible!”

…couldn’t hide his shock that Satou had caught the tip of the dagger between his fingers.

It must have taken unbelievable skill to expertly prevent the attack from behind in the midst of a smoke screen, without even turning around.

“But you were too focused on your back.”

The sage’s shadow spears had pierced Satou’s forehead, heart, and a dozen other vital points.

“I wouldn’t say that.”

The sage’s mouth dropped open when Satou replied calmly.

Then, noticing that there wasn’t a single drop of blood coming from any of the points where his shadow spears had supposedly pierced, he realized he had failed.

“You can use Shadow Magic, too…?!”

“No, this is thanks to the ninjutsu Tama taught me and the shadow stones you gave me.”

Satou revealed the shadow stone powder in the palm of his hand.

The assassin behind him drew back the dagger and prepared to throw another one, but Satou didn’t even turn around, because…

“Nin-niiin!”

“Hi-ya, sir!”

Tama’s ninjutsu created a gust that blew the would-be assailant backward, and Pochi jumped into the wind and body-slammed the man, knocking him out cold.

Liza scooped up Pochi as she rolled across the floor, and used her Magic Spear to pin the man to the ground.

Behind them, Mia began a chant, Lulu readied her sniper rifle, and Nana protected the cardinal and company with her shield.

“You have excellent subordinates.”

“They’re my friends, and I’m very proud of them. So, are you willing to surrender now?”

Satou didn’t move the sword from the sage’s throat as he inquired.

“I am not intimidated by threats from someone who cannot kill me. If you are going to point your sword at me, you had better be willing to use it.”

Satou scratched his cheek under his helmet, looking flummoxed. The sage had him there.

“Mr. Sage, please give uuup?”

Tama appeared in front of the sage and pleaded with him earnestly.

“That’s right, sir! We already won, sir!”

Pochi cheered on Tama from a distance, while Satou and the others watched the exchange.

“You would ask me to cast aside everything and surrender?”

“Aye.” Tama nodded.

“How foolish…”

“Meeew!”

The sage grabbed the defenseless Tama by the collar of her armor and lifted her into the air.

“Those garbage lines I fed you were only to serve my own interests,” he declared. “All lies, told for the purpose of controlling fools like you. The weak are devoured, those who cannot resist are trampled underfoot. That is the way of the world. It is a cruel reality where only the strong can gain anything.”

Tama’s eyes filled with tears at the sage’s cold words.

“Tears and pity are the hallmark of the weak,” he said, and threw Tama aside.

“The whole world doesn’t work like that.”

Satou caught Tama in midair and wiped her tears away.

“Master is right! We don’t need to listen to a villain’s flimsy excuses for being evil!”

“Mm. Hasty.”

“Yes, Mia. The true foolishness is giving up, I declare.”

Arisa scolded the sage, and Mia and Nana agreed.

The other girls nodded along with their words.

“Hmph. I have no time to waste on the sugary delusions of little girls.”

The sage’s body glowed with purple light. He saw at the end of his outstretched hand that his fingernails were hardening and turning purple, and he hid them in the sleeve of his robe.

Whether it was because he had overused his Unique Skill or reproduced that of the hero, the sage was clearly paying the price for using power beyond his means, his body slowly but surely transforming.

“So you intend to keep resisting?”

“Of course. Besides…”

One of the six purple spheres above his head burst, and Reflective Scales made of purple light appeared behind Satou.

“…there is no point surrendering to one who is about to die!”

The Reflective Scales closed in to cut through Satou’s neck. Without turning around, Satou bent backward to avoid them.

His momentum carried him into a backward somersault, and he kicked the Reflective Scales on his way by, then removed his cloak to catch the lightning strike that the sage threw after him.

“That was the Sandstorm Lord’s Unique Skill, right? That leaves five more. What other abilities are you hiding?”

Despite the fact that an enemy far stronger than he was using the powers of demon lords and heroes, there was no fear in Satou’s face.

If anything, he even had the calm confidence of one with absolute strength.

“Untouchable! What are you really?!”

The sage jumped back from Satou as he bellowed.

“How do you evade all of my attacks like nothing?!”

There was undeniable fear in his voice.

“You… I must dispose of you here and now at any cost…”

The sage glared at Satou as he spoke.

“…Nanashi the Hero.”