Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (LN) - Volume 20 - Chapter 3.05

“I—I can’t believe it…”

“Gotta hand it to Daggrull, huh? He neutralized that magic so easily…”

Gadora and Adalmann were awestruck. As soon as Nihilistic Parade petered out, the giants resumed their march, seemingly unconcerned about the deaths of their comrades. The line had once been broken by two all-powerful spells, but before Gadora knew it, they were back on their feet. Those who escaped instant death were back to full health as if nothing had befallen them, thanks to their superb resilience. Gadora thought they had been considerably thinned out, but that turned out not to be the case. It was such an eerie sight that it aroused fear among those confronting them.

Seeing Daggrull’s army on the move, Adalmann and Gadora grew weary of the situation.

“Don’t they have any fear at all?” Adalmann wondered.

“No,” said Gadora. “Normally they’d take countermeasures, or at least pull back for a bit…”

They were facing an enemy that lacked this sort of common sense. It made for an uphill battle.

You don’t see that common sense among Sir Rimuru’s people, either, thought Gadora, although he wasn’t stupid enough to say it out loud.

“I was wondering…,” he began. “Even if it was inevitable that the demon lord Daggrull would kill off those voids, how did he ever endure Tempest Meteor? To me, it looked like the meteors were vanishing in a most unnatural way…like the magic was being wiped away.”

Adalmann was also concerned about that. There were some casualties among the lower-ranked giants, but the elite senior warriors were all unharmed. He figured they’d be injured at least a little, whether they healed up or not, but there wasn’t a scratch among them. It was unnatural.

They looked at each other again, trying to work through their thoughts. It didn’t take long for them to realize thinking about this wouldn’t give them an answer anytime soon.

“So now what do we do?” Gadora asked Adalmann.

“Well, I’ve used up too much magic power. I’m going to pull out for the time being. Good thing my Immortal Legion doesn’t fear death, at least.”

“That’s true. The giants barely fear it, either, which is a nightmare, but your force is rather similar to theirs that way…”

The two of them sighed. This unbelievable reality, right after they thought they had a big win, was a major shock.

Adalmann patted Venti on the head and ordered her to return. As originally intended, he had succeeded in dealing them a blow with his punishing magic. There was no need to linger; instead, they should quickly return and report on the threat of Daggrull’s army. Their steadfastness and resilience was truly something to be feared.

So this initial skirmish was over. Next was the meat of the battle—the clash between both their main forces. But in light of the threat they had just witnessed, it had to be said that the Immortal Legion did not have the advantage. Their foes were similarly fearless and had a similar knack for surviving anything. They feared the giants would overrun the Immortal Legion with their overwhelming destructive force. Already, they could see a future where they’d be crushed and battered before they could strike a decisive blow against the giants.

So be it. Their troops would have to gang up on each giant, overwhelm them, and just try to cull their numbers as much as possible.

“Well,” said Adalmann, “I think we should head back and report to Lady Shion.”

“I suppose so,” Gadora agreed. “We will need to discuss the future.”

They returned to Shion, thinking about what the future would bring.

Upon receiving the report, the thought on Shion’s mind was: Now what?

She was standing on the Long Wall, looking down on the battlefield. Witnessing Adalmann and Gadora’s mega-magic, she thought maybe it’d be enough to win the battle, but reality was harsher than that. She didn’t need Adalmann to remind her—she already knew this enemy would be a big headache.

Two hours had passed since the battle had begun. The struggle had shifted to the next stage: the clash between the two main forces.

The Bound Titans’ numbers seemed much smaller than their original thirty thousand, but their actual attrition rate was less than 10 percent. With their elite at the top, they had gone into an assault, clashing with the main force of the Immortal Legion. The undead were using a crane-wing formation, with two thousand bone knights in the center and ten thousand bone soldiers on both wings, each carrying their secret weapons. They were trying to surround the Bound Titans as they charged forward, but they lacked the numbers to fully encircle them.

This would normally be considered a tactical error, but Adalmann was unfazed.

“Is everything all right?” Shion asked Adalmann.

“Not a problem. If they don’t know the terror an undead legion can deliver, we will teach them.”

Adalmann, commanding next to Shion, had no intention of winning this battle from the beginning. The objective was to reduce the enemy’s strength. The real main forces were Shion’s Team Reborn and the Bloody Knights of Luminus; Adalmann and his team were de facto pawns by comparison. They wanted to defeat as many A-ranked warriors in Daggrull’s camp as possible—or at the very least figure out the enemy’s weak points. That was how this operation was planned, and Adalmann had agreed to it, of course. They had worked all this out before the war began. The consensus among Rimuru’s officers was that they wanted to avoid as many casualties on their side as was feasibly possible. That was also an effective strategy for analyzing the giants’ strength. An army of immortal undead didn’t count as “dead” if they fell, really—Adalmann’s troops never truly perished.

The key to this strategy was to make optimal use of the immortals and their characteristics. It was, in so many words, a suicide mission—lure the giants in, then go all out to reduce their numbers.

But there were limits. At first glance, the battle appeared to be in a stalemate, but the trend was tilting in favor of the giants’ forces. The bone soldiers would launch their suicide strike, blowing open the magical power that filled the battlefield. The death knights would then finish off the wounded and fallen giants, but unless they inflicted a definitive, fatal wound, the giants would revive themselves.

The giants’ massive stature proved an obstacle to this. Their huge bodies ranged from ten to sixteen feet in height, and their armor-like muscles were so thick that it was difficult to fatally injure any of them. If the death knights took too long, they’d be crushed in short order.

This strategy went well at first, but as time went by, the giants began to adapt. Those with long weapons began to check the bone soldiers, making any approach impossible without ample care taken. If they tried to force it, they’d be crushed, and once that happened, the offensively inferior bone soldiers gradually became useless.

The death knights were outnumbered and forced to fight an uphill battle, their numbers gradually dwindling.

At this point, the Bloody Knights led by Louis began to tense up, wondering if it was finally time for them to go out. Shion, too, tried to deploy the Terror Knights that she had been saving. The two thousand death knights were mostly intact. If she added the three thousand Terror Knights to that, she was sure they’d be able to compete with the giants’ top fighters.

The enemy had a thousand over-A warriors, compared to the Bloody Knights’ four hundred. If they wanted to close the gap, Team Reborn alone was not enough. If ten of them could gang up on one giant, Shion thought, maybe it’d work out? She was the “all or nothing” type in battle, but she didn’t want her own troops to suffer any casualties. But here, as a commander, she bit her lip and prepared to give the order.

She was stopped.

“Well, looks like I’ll have to break out my biggest secret of all.”

Adalmann, who had recovered his magical powers, climbed onto Venti’s back again.

“You still have something?” Shion asked curiously, to which Adalmann replied with a clattering laugh.

“No,” he said. “I’ve run out of tricks. After this, what happens happens.”

With those words, Adalmann returned to the battlefield. Then he invoked a new and improved necromancy spell, developed in preparation for this moment—Create Immortal Legion. It was a favorite spell of his, enough that he’d named his own force after it.

This magic took effect across a wide area, and that effect was nothing short of astonishing. It transformed anyone, friend and foe alike, who had died within its sphere of influence into undead soldiers loyal to his commands. It was the epitome of the forbidden art of necromancy, the culmination of Adalmann’s research—and moreover, it had already been improved to take those who had already died and have them serve as the core of a new, rebuilt undead force.

The shattered remains of the bone soldiers gathered around the death knights serving as the nucleus. Even the dead giants began to be gathered up, along with bone soldiers who were still “alive” and fighting. The result: two thousand brand-new “death giants.”

The magisteel armor worn by the death knights covered their huge bodies, reaching thirteen feet in height. The armor transformed according to the will of the wearer, which was to be expected, since it was reacting to the hateful malice of the dead. Adalmann had anticipated this war situation from the very beginning, and so he had devised a way to create immortal, allied giants for himself.

“Are you kidding me? You had this prepared the whole time? And you didn’t even tell me?”

Shion couldn’t hide her surprise. The death giants were all over-A in rank.

“I can’t believe it,” said Louis, watching the war beside Shion. “I’ve never been so glad you’re on my side.”

So the balance of power was reversed once again. The giants, who once overwhelmed by force, lost their advantage following the emergence of a greater force. These death giants were immortal; even if crushed or destroyed, they would instantly be revived under Adalmann’s authority.

But the giants were not defeated. The reports that there were close to a thousand top-level fighters were mistaken; in fact, there were more than two thousand elite fighters among their ranks, and any over-A fighter like that could use Ultraspeed Regeneration to instantly heal any wound they received. They were invincible as long as any individual strike didn’t kill them, making them evenly matched with the death giants.

The numbers on both sides continued to stay stubbornly constant. The battle was deadlocked once again.

Adalmann’s moves gave Shion and her team some more breathing room again. It was a welcome surprise; they hadn’t been told about this trick up his sleeve. Adalmann didn’t want to pump up their expectations, because Create Immortal Legion was making its first public appearance with hardly any pretesting. The results were clear, though, and no one was more relieved about it than Adalmann himself.

“That’s my best friend for you, isn’t it?”

Gadora was beyond pleased. Louis couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

“It sure is. The Seven Days had no idea what they were dealing with. How could they have let such a great talent go elsewhere?”

He sounded genuinely regretful about it.

………

……

…

Louis recalled the old days.

At that time, Adalmann and Alberto were already famed figures—the former a high priest and master of sacred magic, the latter the strongest paladin of all time. They were both qualified to be Heroes, but neither of them had a hero’s egg inside. Even so, they had reached the level of Enlightened as a matter of course, and if nothing else, they were on the verge of becoming Saints.

But both of them were too smart for their own good. That was why the Seven Days Clergy were jealous of them—which ultimately led to their demise.

Fearing they’d become a threat if they continued to grow as they were, the Clergy took measures while keeping Luminus in the dark. The plan, as Louis recalled, was termed a “purification of a large-scale undead disaster.” What the Clergy actually did was pit a dragon zombie against them in the hope both sides would be killed. They gladly accepted the request and headed for the Forest of Jura.

They never returned to the Holy City and were thus thought to be dead. Even the demon lord Luminus, master of Louis, didn’t expect they had fallen into the hands of the demon lord Kazalim after their death—and then, through a strange twist of fate, found work under the demon lord Rimuru.

………

……

…

Luminus was frustrated, and Louis was much the same. These champions really should have been kept on their side at any cost.

Now Alberto, one of these champions, was drawing his sword on the battlefield.

“Hoh… That’s Adalmann’s right-hand man. Even from a distance, you can see how skilled he is.”

Daggra, Liura, and Chonkra, who were standing behind Shion, nodded in agreement.

“Alberto’s so cool!”

“He sometimes spars with us, but he’s really strong, isn’t he?”

“Oh hey, he’s going up against Uncle Glasord! I wouldn’t be surprised if either of them won!”

The three brothers were initially supporting Alberto, but they changed their tune when they saw their opponent.

“He looks real powerful. Even the giants have a swordsman among them?” Shion muttered.

“Yeah, that’s our father’s brother,” Daggra explained, followed by his own two brothers.

“The second-in-command of the Bound Titans.”

“Our mentor! And our uncle, too!”

He was Glasord, a top-notch swordsman and one of the strongest in the Bound Titans. He couldn’t beat Daggrull in terms of magicules, but his swordsmanship was said to be superior. For a giant, as the stories went, he was mild-mannered and intelligent. Along those lines, Daggrull was also calm and collected as of late, but his past reputation made many fear him still.

Now Glasord was engaged in a one-on-one battle with Alberto. Moving his huge six-and-a-half-foot frame gracefully, Glasord swung his two-handed greatsword here and there. He was clearly a unique presence on the battlefield, boasting a strength that set him apart from the rest. But Alberto was still able to hold his own, not letting the height difference keep him from matching Glasord’s skill. Even those who knew Alberto as an excellent swordfighter would have found this scene hard to believe.

Despite his massive stature, Glasord was able to execute sophisticated techniques in the most agile ways. It was unlikely that anyone other than Alberto could compete with him, but looking at it the other way around, perhaps Alberto was the extraordinary one for being able to compete with such a person. Like a willow swaying in the wind, he could parry a heavy attack that would normally crush him with a single blow, and even counterattack afterward.

This was possible only because he had been given a set of God-class equipment. If he had been equipped with anything else, he would have been destroyed the moment he received an attack. Plus, one lesser-known characteristic of Glasord was that he could perform his Destroy Weapon skill on his opponent. This name was quite literal—it meant anyone who crossed swords with Glasord was destined to have their weapons and armor destroyed, leaving them naked and defeated.

It was fortuitous that Alberto, who didn’t know this, was equipped with a God-class sword. It was a miraculous coincidence, because not even Daggra and his two brothers could have known about this.

Thanks to such good fortune, Alberto and his allies just barely kept the front line from collapsing. It was a bit ironic that no one picked up on this. The threat was there, but the danger remained unnoticed as the battle between the two warring factions heated up.

Despite the titans of the battlefield making their moves, Shion and her companions were in spectator mode.

“Dad hasn’t moved at all, though.”

“Well, our uncle is out now. It won’t be much longer.”

“And then we’ll dive in to fight him!”

The three brothers were beyond excited. It disgusted Shion a bit.

“Think again,” she said. “I’ll be dealing with him, of course. You three can just lead the Terror Knights and keep out of the way.”

The three of them agreed without comment. It wasn’t that they thought they could win against their dad—they were just having fun getting carried away. But they still had a warning for her.

“All right, but you shouldn’t underestimate my father, okay?”

“My brother’s right. No matter how strong you are, Dad’s a real monster.”

“Fwehhh-heh-heh! I’ve sure never been able to beat him.”

Victory and defeat weren’t even the focus. Simply being exposed to Daggrull’s aura made it difficult to stand up. It was brutally obvious the three brothers wouldn’t provide a challenge to him. Nonetheless, from Shion’s point of view, this trio was capable in their own right; they gained more strength every time they staged a battle, and that growth was something she looked forward to seeing.

Right now, she could sense they were being serious about him.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “I won’t try anything rash.”

It was a very Shion-like thing to say, although she didn’t realize it. The battlefield wasn’t moving much, but it’d soon be time for her to get to work. Shion felt it vividly, and she was ready for battle.

Maybe I should try to wrap it all up at once?

Waiting wasn’t in her nature. Breaking the stalemate and grabbing victory all at once seemed like a good strategy. If she could only focus on the enemy’s leader, victory would be assured after that—such were Shion’s thoughts.

Suddenly, the battlefield changed abruptly and severely. An empty no-man’s-land had opened up. Several death giants had been blown away from it.

“What’s that?!”

Shion’s eyes widened.

With every silver glint, another over-A death giant was knocked out with ease. Standing there was a slender man with an exceptionally large physique, layers of chains covering his whole body. Even with the chains, there was no concealing his strange, intense presence, one that surpassed even Daggrull’s.

Shion’s entire body was covered in goosebumps. Her survival instincts were telling her with all their might that the man was dangerous.

“Oh, is that…the one who was sealed off?”

“Is that Uncle Fenn? The Mad Fist? Feared as a god of battle or of raging violence?”

“Fwehhh-heh-heh-heh! I’m getting really hungry!”

This irrelevant remark was met with a corkscrew punch in Chonkra’s stomach.

“Feeling fuller now?” Shion said, finding herself relaxing.

Thanks to Chonkra’s flippant remark, things were a lot less tense. Shion observed Fenn, thinking even an idiot can be lovable sometimes.

That man in chains was attracting her attention again, his ten-foot-tall figure looking massive.

“Are those Gleipnir chaos bonds?” Gadora remarked. “Very impressive.”

“Ah, Gadora? What are those?” Shion asked.

“Well, they’re part of a myth from before the history of mankind, written in ancient texts.”

Gadora, a lifelong fan of trivia like this, showed off some of his knowledge.

………

……

…

The Gleipnir chaos bonds were chains that had been sealing off rampaging evil gods since the age of myth. If the story was true, the chains must have evolved via the magicules they had absorbed from those gods.

Since that time, the chains had served as the sacred weapon of the Dragon Emperor, sealing both the holy and the demonic away. It’d be no wonder if the chains boasted performance that surpassed God-class.

But it was not the chains that should be truly feared. It was the evil god enclosed in them one needed to be wary of.

………

……

…

“It is said that in mythical times, three evil gods were sealed away by the Dragon Emperor,” Gadora continued. “Two of the three reformed their ways, but one of them remained violent and was thus sealed in divine chains. In other words, that’s Fenn rampaging over there, and the chains that bind him are the famous Gleipnir chaos bonds.”

Gadora sounded excited about it. And as if to prove he was right, the chains were wriggling and pulsing of their own accord. Despite being bound by that, Fenn was still smiling, as if to say he couldn’t be enjoying this more. Even if Fenn did nothing, the chains moved on their own to defeat his enemies; not even the over-A warriors could stop his progress.

Shion was astonished. She’d heard Fenn’s EP was comparable to Daggrull’s, but he seemed to be easily surpassing him.

“It’s almost hilarious,” said Shion. “There’s always someone better than you out there, but just look at the level he’s achieved…”

Shion’s friends boasted tons of magicules and had grown beyond imagination since the good old days, but Fenn was in a realm not even they could reach. He was on a level similar to the best Shion knew—the True Dragons like Veldora and Velgrynd.

“That’s one fearsome monster,” Shion concluded. “You guys couldn’t handle him.”

And Daggrull was still waiting in the wings. That thought depressed her further.

“What are we gonna do?” Ultima innocently asked. “Because I don’t think we can beat him. Are we gonna retreat?”

Shion didn’t like the idea. No matter how up-and-down this battle was, the balance could easily be overturned by an off-the-charts monster like this. Running was an option, like Ultima said. Rimuru didn’t want any casualties, and if they wanted to be faithful to that order, retreat needed to be considered. Adalmann and the others were holding out for now, so if it was strictly Shion and her Tempest reinforcements, it was likely possible to make good their escape.

But as easy as it’d be to retreat, the consequences after that were obvious. Those left behind, the innocent people of this land, would wind up losing everything at the hands of this tyrannical enemy. They were in human lands, and getting them needlessly mired in this would make Rimuru’s ideals an impossibility.

So what should they do? Even if they fought this monster, they’d inevitably be wiped out…

Wait. No. Shion was there to prevent that from happening. The answer was found. It wasn’t that big of an issue. Shion’s will to fight welled up within her as she made up her mind. She’d experienced this many times before, so she was used to it. She had been in lots of critical situations, and she made it through each one—a thought that drove her forward.

And not just her.

“Which one do you want, Ultima?” she asked.

Ultima innocently smiled. “You won’t run away after all? I like that about you, Shion. If you got your eye on that old guy, I’ll take the other one raging around over there.”

They were discussing who to fight as if talking about their favorite dessert. It was with that light note that they picked their roles. Ultima would be Fenn’s opponent, while Shion would go to Daggrull—leader against leader.

The Luminus forces began to move.

“Well, great,” said Louis. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it? The demon lord Rimuru’s officers don’t seem to know the meaning of fear.”

Louis, sounding exasperated, also got moving. He saw a new giant rampaging. This was Basara, leader of the Five Great Warlords and an uncle from the perspective of Daggrull’s kids. Several other powerful giants dotted around the battlefield also caught his attention. Louis flew toward them, the Bloody Knights and Lubelius’s Seven Great Nobles rushing after him.

Thus the battlefield became more chaotic.

A sandstorm swept across the land. Fenn moved, the chains dancing around him, and whenever he did, death giants were broken into pieces.

Fenn’s gaze caught Adalmann, who was commanding atop the back of Venti, the Gehenna Dragon. In any battle, targeting the general is a standard tactic. Adalmann’s skills were upgrading the undead to immortal beings. Fenn was right to do the same.

He ran through the air at tremendous speed, raising a cloud of dust behind him. It was more flying than running, and he came to Adalmann with such force he ignored the presence of anyone who blocked his path.

“…Mmm?!”

Adalmann, noticing Fenn’s approach, tried to do something to deal with him. He didn’t think being in the air kept him safe from attack or anything, but Fenn was just too fast. His chaos bonds seemed to be infinitely long, because he was ignoring the laws of physics and using them to bind Venti. These chains were God-class, and there was no way for Venti to escape. She was slammed against the ground, unable to move.

Adalmann nimbly escaped, but Fenn wasn’t about to miss him.

“You’re in my way, you know. Die!”

He struck at his foe as he shouted. Adalmann had expected that. From the beginning, he had protected himself with multiple barriers so he’d be safe from a surprise attack. However, with just one blow, Adalmann was sent rolling to the ground. It was a boundlessly heavy blow, bearing so much absolute violence that it took away not only Adalmann’s will to keep resisting, but also his will to keep existing.

A terrible silence fell over the battlefield. In an instant, Fenn was in control.

Ultima was also in motion.

Before the battle began, she had a secret meeting alone with Luminus. The demon lord, who knew the threat Daggrull posed, had anticipated the current situation well in advance. Violence has a way of overturning everything. Luminus knew this well, and so she had devised every possible strategy for victory. She wanted to defeat Daggrull for good, even if it meant tapping into the most secret and gruesome tricks in her arsenal.

So Ultima set out for Fenn, walking gracefully through this battlefield like she was on a stroll. She stood strong, in position to protect Adalmann. Looking at Fenn, she laughed, as if to say “you take from me, I’ll take from you.”

“Not too bad at all,” she said. “I rated Adalmann pretty highly, you know.”

Adalmann, like Ultima, was one of the Twelve Lordly Guardians. He had a talent for supporting the rear, yes, but they called him the Gehenna Lord for a reason.

Fenn, meanwhile, was too strong. Ultima, perhaps annoyed by this, was unhesitant in her assessment of him.

“Oh, really? He was weak,” she scoffed.

Fenn had knocked Adalmann to the ground with a blow from his fist full of fighting spirit. But he didn’t take pride in it. To him, this was just the normal result.

Ultima could see why he thought so. She could understand Fenn’s feelings because she was the same way. To the powerful, the weak are nothing more than toys. Ultima had reigned as head of the demons, so she knew she had no right to lecture Fenn about it. The difference in strength was just too great. From Fenn’s point of view, they barely even registered. This time, Ultima happened to stand on the side of the weak—that was all it was.

But she didn’t intend to give up easily. Ultima loved games, and whether she lost them or not, she’d try to win until the very end.

Just keep trying and you’ll win someday. And if so, there’s only one thing to do.

She was taking an exceedingly easygoing approach to this.

“I suppose I might as well give my name. I’m Ultima, the Pain Lord. What’s yours, you little rampager?”

“What an impertinent brat you are. I’m Fenn—not that you’ll survive long enough to memorize it!”

As soon as they exchanged names, the battle began.

Shion, still atop the Long Wall, was waiting to see what Daggrull would do.

No matter how she handled this, it was obvious that once Shion was defeated, her side would totally collapse. It seemed like Luminus had some kind of plan, so she wanted to hold out for that, too. But that alone was not enough. Expecting miracles was a good way to lose a winnable battle. But Shion was going in ready to win, even if she had to force it.

“So that’s Fenn, eh? Our younger uncle?” said Daggra. “Not even I expected him to be such a monster.”

“You’re sure right, my brother,” agreed Liura. “A lot crazier than I expected.”

“Uncle Glasord’s one thing, but Uncle Fenn’s on a whole other level!”

“Yeah, no wonder they chained him up…”

Daggra and Liura were discussing their impressions of their uncle by Shion’s side. This was the first time either of them had seen him. They had boasted about defeating their father, but they seemed much less enthusiastic about the idea now. Shion couldn’t blame them. Really, if they thought they could win, they were just fools incapable of realizing their limits.

“Fweh-heh-heh! I bet I can win against that skinny guy weight-wise!”

Yes, fools like Chonkra were the ones who could only say stuff like that. He really needs to be punished, Shion thought—but just then, things began to change.

“Hmm… Looking down at me? Not a care in the world?”

The voice came from behind Shion. They were above the Long Wall, on the front lines but also at their main base of defense. The Monster Exclusion Barrier was in operation, and several Multilayer Barriers were around Shion. How could anyone ignore all that and stand there? And more to the point, Shion herself didn’t notice until the voice spoke up. She was keeping her eyes open. Even if someone used a skill like Spatial Transport, she should still be able to detect something. Besides, Shion had Dominate Space, which took every measure to protect her surroundings.

And yet the demon lord Daggrull was right there.

“Why are you here, Sir Daggrull?” Shion asked the giant standing behind her atop the Long Wall.

Daggrull kindly answered her. He could be surprisingly gentlemanly these days, not at all like before.

“Hmm… Well, I just slowly walked over here, but did you not see me? Because if not, you’re not even qualified to stand in front of me. I’d be wasting my time if I seriously tried to fight you.”

“What?”

Shion didn’t feel like she was being mocked. Quite the opposite. Daggrull was offering his true feelings in the kindest possible voice. From his point of view, Shion must have been like a little girl.

Now she could understand. Shion had met Daggrull many times, but at that moment he was so intimidating, it was like a different person. There was no doubt Daggrull saw himself as an almighty victor.

Shion, however, silenced that aura with her own intimidation.

“I’ll be the judge of that,” she said. “I am Shion, War Lord and the demon lord Sir Rimuru’s most trusted secretary. I shall be your opponent!”

Shion gave her name, along with a couple of irrelevant facts. Then she turned to Daggrull with her beloved Goriki-maru Divine blade in hand.

Will he use some kind of skill, or maybe a trick…? I may not match him in strength, but there has to be a reason behind all his moves!

If he was using something like Spatial Interference to move, there’d always be traces left behind. Even if he was simply moving really fast, it would be impossible for not even a shimmer of a breeze to be detected.

Shion told herself not to be fooled by Daggrull’s bluff. But maybe…

Heh! What’s the point of even thinking about it? If he gets me, I’ll die as gracefully as I lived!

Shion was defiant. If things turned out as bad as she imagined, admitting to it would be tantamount to defeat. There’d be no more resisting him at that point, and no reason to think about it at all.

With Lady Luminus waiting behind me, it is my duty to analyze Daggrull’s strength, even if only a little!

That steadfast drive was one of the good things about Shion. Shouting heroically, she set her consciousness to battle mode. Her body, optimized by her unique skill Master Chef, helped boost her strength beyond her existence points. With Infinite Regeneration, surpassing even the giants’ healing skills, Shion’s physical body had been reconfigured to excel at close combat. She was physically immortal, never dying unless her heart core was broken.

Even then, Shion’s body was living up to her expectations, easily taking in power that exceeded its limits. The all-powerful blow this force would unleash would undoubtedly push all the way up to the ultimate realm. She was going to expose her full strength from the very first move and hoped to bury Daggrull.

“Uh-oh! Everyone, evacuate immediately! This whole area will be obliterated!”

Gadora, who was looking to provide support, immediately gave the call. Shion’s elite guard quickly retreated in response…and immediately after that, Shion slashed at Daggrull. Her attention was focused solely on him and nothing else around her.

Daggrull, however, remained where he stood, eyeing Shion with pity.

“So that is all you’ve got?” he muttered. And the results were in. The moment Shion’s sword made contact with his forehead, it was held in place by an invisible force.

“Wha…?!” gasped Shion.

A wall of compressed fighting force was in place between Shion and Daggrull. A wall that just blocked Shion’s sword. It was so dense, it easily drained her will to keep going. Thanks to it, Shion’s slash could not even touch Daggrull. He truly was a monster.

At that point, it was obvious Shion was no match for him. Defeat was certain for her.

“Just as I thought,” Daggrull said. “It seems you were never qualified to stand in front of me in the first place.”

Shion’s eyes widened in surprise. She stopped moving. Daggrull didn’t miss that, but he remained immobile. He didn’t need to catch her with her guard down to beat her.

So he broke the news to her softly.

“My only target is Luminus. Stay out of my way. That is my advice to you.”

Shion wasn’t about to accept that at face value. More determined to fight than ever, she began to challenge Daggrull.

Fighting was underway in several places. Daggrull’s side had the upper hand, and Ultima’s battle was proving even more desperate than Shion’s.

“This is so weird,” Ultima grumbled. “How can you just stand there like it’s nothing when my Nuclear Cannon keeps hitting you?!”

Ultima resented Fenn and was openly angry. She hated to admit it, but he was strong. Even as she used her ultimate skill Samael, Lord of Deathly Poison, to enhance her power, adding a deathly poison effect to her Nuclear Cannon, Fenn wasn’t hurt by it in the slightest.

He laughed, openly deriding her. “Like I care. It must be tough to be a weakling, huh? Can’t even fight unless you work hard to learn some tricks.”

“You sure piss me off for such a little kid,” Ultima retorted.

She was analyzing her foe the whole time, though. From the start, she didn’t think she could defeat Fenn…but that was fine, because not losing was her only requirement.

But there was something wrong.

That magic had just proved it—something was frustrating her, something more than just the difference in ability. It felt like she was overlooking something. Then she suddenly remembered a report earlier that had bothered her. Gadora described it like the magic had been drained out, didn’t he? The meteorite attack wasn’t as successful as expected, and they thought it was because of the giants’ superior healing skills, but…

Come to think of it, that didn’t do as much damage as we thought, did it? Ultima wondered. I mean, the only ones who looked injured at all were the lower-ranked warriors…

That alone wasn’t all that unnatural. If they were weak, of course they’d die or get hurt. But it was just strange that none of the higher-level fighters had so much as a scratch.

It’s like the magic’s not working…

Then a thought suddenly occurred to her.

No way…

Ultima’s instincts sounded the alarm. If this was true…she needed to inform Luminus at once. She began to get antsy.

Just around then, Shion was repeatedly attacking Daggrull, even though she knew it wasn’t working.

This could no longer be called a battle; she looked more like a child having a tantrum, and Daggrull was barely paying attention to it. Still, Shion didn’t give up, because she believed Luminus had a plan. The two of them got along surprisingly well now; in a sense, it was thanks to Luminus that Shion had become half-decent at cooking. Shion trusted her unconditionally.

“You don’t know when to give up, do you?” Daggrull asked. “You can repeat that all you want. It won’t even scratch my skin.”

“Shut up! Now that I’m done with my opening stretches, it’s time to give this a real effort!”

Shion, determined not to be outdone in spirit, tried to slash at Daggrull again. But…

“I told you not to kid yourself!”

Daggrull’s shout stopped her. The sound of his voice alone made Shion unable to move, as if she was bound in chains. He walked up to the immobile Shion, and then he simply swung his clenched fist down.

That made the corner of the Long Wall where Shion was collapse. Even two thousand years of history were powerless against this fury—as was Shion after taking a direct hit. There was nothing sad about this. It was just survival of the fittest, the natural order of the world. Someone was not conforming to the will of the absolutely powerful, and now she had been eliminated by violence.

Thus, Daggrull’s victory was about to be decided…but Shion had a smile on her face. Her eyes had caught the light of the magic circle shining under his feet.

The next moment:

“Who’s kidding now?!”

The dignified voice was released with such force, it seemed to blow away the dust that had been dancing around. A radiantly beautiful girl in a jet-black dress appeared, accompanied by a fragrance as sweet as a rose. The silver-haired girl who landed in front of Shion was none other than the demon lord Luminus, the ruler of this land. She stared at the demon lord Daggrull, her silver and gold eyes full of intelligence and logic.

Then without a moment’s pause, she completed the trap they had laid.

“You will now be destroyed,” Luminus said. “Sanctuary Disintegration!”

It was the crystallized totality of the prayers of the whole city, an iron will driving them. That was the poetic way of putting it, but in reality, it was the demon lord Luminus using the secret skills of faith and favor to break through her computing limits and gather up the holy force of her believers. The greater the number of followers, the greater the power that could be gathered. It took some time, but it was well worth it.

Taking the strongest magic against an individual target and making it a ranged attack was a feat worthy of praise. With the all-powerful Disintegration spell unleashed in this way, even a giant like Charybdis could be obliterated in an instant.

Daggrull, caught off guard, had nowhere to run. Getting hit by Sanctuary Disintegration was his only option.

“Heh! You disappoint me, Daggrull,” Luminus spat. “People like you always leave an opening when you’re gloating about your victory, huh?”

Daggrull was proving more impervious than predicted. Luminus was worried Shion might be killed at this point. Daggrull might wield vast amounts of power, but a direct hit with Disintegration would still kill him for sure. But it didn’t matter because his defensive barrier of fighting spirit couldn’t be broken.

So Luminus went with a greatly expanded Disintegration that could include the whole barrier inside it. She wasn’t much for hiding out and watching how things developed, but if she wanted to win, she had to do it. And then, after what felt like an eon of observation, Luminus struck at just the right moment.

And her patience was rewarded. The results couldn’t have been better.

“Don’t hate me for this,” she said.

She offered her tribute to Daggrull, assured of her victory.

If they were to fight head-to-head, the odds of Luminus winning were very low. She knew that, so she went with this plan, not considering it a cowardly move. Come up with a way to win in advance, then execute—that was how she lived. It was the strongest of blows to the off-guard Daggrull, and she wasn’t hesitant to show it off despite its strength. It was the perfect strategy, and if it didn’t work, there was no other way.

And so…

“Hmm, yes… Was I being careless?” mused Daggrull. “But still, not a problem. I’m not hurt at all.”

She froze at those words.

Luminus’s lucid mind correctly perceived this impossible reality. Daggrull was unharmed—the facts were clear.

“Is that all, Luminus? Then it’s my turn.”

If she couldn’t defeat Daggrull with that attack, there was no victory for Luminus and her allies.

“Careful, now,” Daggrull said. “You might die instantly if you let your guard down.”

And with that, desperation began to set in.

The battle between Alberto and Glasord was intensifying. The area around them was a wide-open circle, with nobody wanting to get dragged into the fight. But that didn’t matter to them. They were enjoying this battle, acknowledging each other as worthy foes.

“Kah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I am impressed by your skill, yes. It is an honor for any military man to cross swords with someone of your caliber!” cried Glasord.

“It is not my skill,” said Alberto. “It is this gear, given to me by our god Sir Rimuru, that lends me strength. The old me would have already been defeated, unable to withstand the pressure of your blade.”

“Ha! No need to be modest! Even among the giants, there are few who can match me. The fact you’re holding your own is proof you are a first-rate swordsman.”

Alberto calmly parried Glasord’s compliments. Glasord, perhaps appreciating this, gave him some gentle admonishment.

Alberto’s true strength lay in how he brought out the performance of God-class weapons. The fact he didn’t brag about it proved he wasn’t satisfied yet with his own skill…and not letting his enemies’ words disturb him was another strength of his.

Hmm… I must hand it to him.

Glasord was also impressed. In a battle where split seconds counted, losing one’s peace of mind meant instant defeat. Checking your foes with your lips was often just as effective a strategy as using a sword.

“Still,” he continued, moving on to his next tactic, “why do you follow someone like that?”

“…What are you driving at?”

“If you developed that much strength, what need is there to follow some weak undead king? His necromancy is worthy of adulation, but true fighting spirit is something that resides in the body.”

Glasord sounded agitated as he swung his two-handed sword. He didn’t mean anything he said; he was just trying to provoke Alberto into a rage. Emotional agitation could lead to mistakes, which then led to instant death. This, too, was one of Glasord’s great tactics, and a true warrior like him resorting to tricks like that didn’t exactly please Alberto. But his expression did not change at all.

“You seem to be mistaken. Yes, I am Adalmann’s bodyguard and the one in charge of the vanguard force. But aren’t you forgetting something? Sir Adalmann is one of the Twelve Lordly Guardians, as recognized by our god himself.”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t you understand? In other words, he is more powerful than I am.”

Alberto was just matter-of-factly telling the truth. Glasord, so firmly denied, raised one eyebrow and muttered, “Oh?” Then he held his longsword above his head, saying no more. He recognized Alberto wasn’t an opponent he could fool with his trickery. It made him sad.

“Things never work out the way you want them to, do they?” he remarked. “Here I am, facing this wonderful opponent…but this is war, not a game. I have my own duties to perform, so it’s about time to get serious.”

Glasord wasn’t trying to insult Alberto by cutting corners with him. He was enjoying the fight to the very last minute, using all the deception he could against him, but he was also all in on this, putting his life on the line. Now that all his techniques had failed, he had to put aside his own desires and defeat his opponent head-on.

He preferred simple and clear thought, and he thus quickly made up his mind. He was a warrior by nature, and his skills were all master-level. He had honed them without relying on his strength—and not because he wasn’t strong at first. That was just how he wanted to do it.

He had sealed his power within his beloved greatsword. Now that power was released. The change was instantaneous. His sword became a part of him—and Alberto had no way of knowing, but Glasord’s existence points had just gone up from less than two million to ten.

Even Alberto was blindsided by this change. Ugh. I should have gone for the win sooner, even if I had to push it…

The bitter thought came to mind as soon as he caught sight of Glasord’s swordsmanship. He knew his plan of action would be a mistake, though. If he went through with it, he would’ve been defeated before he saw Glasord make an effort.

There was only one correct answer: Alberto had to keep going head-on with him. He had to stick with it.

“Yes, you are a worthy opponent for me!” cheered Glasord.

“That’s exactly what I’d say,” replied Alberto.

The fierce sword fight started new. Alberto was at an overwhelming disadvantage. Like a willow swaying in the storm, Alberto could do nothing but deflect Glasord’s fury away from him. But there wasn’t a trace of defeat in Alberto’s eyes. The battle intensified, and before long, the two of them weren’t even paying attention to their surroundings, focusing solely on their swords.

Adalmann, knocked to the ground, seemed to have fainted.

It was a momentary blunder, one that came and went in an instant, but on the battlefield, even that could be fatal. Thankful for the good fortune not to be hurt, he began to gauge the situation ahead of anything else. He didn’t need to go back to his memory to understand what had happened. Fenn’s blow had hit him; that much was clear.

The sheer force would drive anyone to despair. Adalmann was only safe because Venti the Gehenna Dragon protected him. They took the impact together, and the only reason they weren’t attacked further was because Ultima came in to help out.

Nevertheless, Fenn was a fearsome fighter. Adalmann’s Multilayer Barrier was fully broken through; only one of its defensive measures was effective at all. If not for that one, though, a single blow would have mortally wounded Adalmann.

“Mortally wounded” is a strange way to describe a body that’s already dead. Still, magical barriers are something I’m a master of, but it wasn’t that he destroyed it so much as…

So much as, well, sliced through it without even noticing its presence.

The final surviving barrier wasn’t magical, by the way, but rather a protective coating made of fighting spirit which Adalmann applied to keep his old skills useful more than anything. Without it, Adalmann couldn’t deny the possibility that he could’ve ascended to Heaven right there and then.

Fenn might’ve just overpowered that barrier with pure force, but it seemed more natural to think he’d penetrated it somehow. This hinted at the secret behind Fenn’s power.

Oh… I didn’t think it was possible, but it’d explain a thing or two. It seems clear to me that the higher-level giants have Cancel Magic.

That was the answer Adalmann came up with. It was the same as Ultima’s view, and it was correct.

Adalmann was sure it was the truth. It’d explain how little impact his ultra-powerful magic had, and the way his magical defenses seemed to completely fail him. If he was wrong, that was fine. All it meant was he couldn’t use magic on giants, so Adalmann left it at that. His magical power was already exhausted anyway. It’d be hard to cast any more spells, so he didn’t really care if the enemy had Cancel Magic or not.

So despite the mortal blow he should have received, he stood up like nothing was amiss. His bones were cracked up and down his body, and his holy robe was covered in mud, but he remained unconcerned as he turned his attention to Fenn, who was fighting Ultima.

Looks like she realized long ago that magic was unavailable. With that big a difference in power, I’m amazed she can fight evenly with him.

They were not that evenly matched; Ultima was just stalling. Even a single direct hit would have knocked her out for good, but that didn’t stop her from audaciously attacking over and over. That was exactly why she could fight so hard against a foe with an EP more than twenty times her own.

But the limit seemed to be approaching. Adalmann had to stop goofing off. He remained unhurried, though, because he knew he’d be of no use to Ultima like this. At that point, he was little more than a pile of bones, dying from lack of magic. And if so…

“Venti, are you all right?” he asked.

“Yes. I was caught off guard…”

Venti slipped into human form to answer Adalmann’s question. Her damage was so bad, it was clear to her she needed healing at once, even if it meant revealing another one of her secrets. Once a day, Venti could perform a “super heal” by changing her body shape from dragon to human, or vice versa. This freed her from even fatal wounds, and transforming into a human right now let her fully erase the damage she had taken for her master.

Adalmann, aware of this power, looked unsurprised. “Thank you for saving my life,” he told Venti.

“I am glad you’re all right.”

“But now we have a problem.”

“What do you mean?”

“It looks like magic doesn’t work on him. If we don’t do something, Lady Ultima will be in danger.”

“I see.”

Fenn’s energy level was so extraordinary that any head-on attack was beyond reckless. Venti, who had been thinking of using magic to support Adalmann, was quite shocked by this. Adalmann, however, was unperturbed. He studied Fenn like a scientist conducting an experiment; it was hard to believe he used to be a priest.

“That giant is simply too strong. Even if magic worked, defeating him would’ve been tricky.”

That much, as Adalmann claimed, was certainly true. His battle speed, destructive power, and defensive strength were all top-notch. In terms of energy alone, he was comparable to a True Dragon. Any half-hearted attack would be promptly crushed.

Naturally, the same was true of Adalmann’s magic. And in that case, Adalmann saw fit to make a change of policy.

“Goodness,” he said. “After far too long, it looks time for my well-honed body to take center stage.”

“What?”

Venti, who loved her master Adalmann with all her heart, could not let that go unaddressed. She gave him a suspicious look, as if saying, “Did you hit your head? There are cracks in it. Are you even conscious? Or have you lost your mind? Maybe you’re just mumbling in your sleep…”

This doubt was understandable. “Well-honed body” or not, Adalmann was nothing but bones. What kind of nonsense was a skeleton like him spouting?

“Did I not tell you?” Adalmann asked, nonchalantly answering the question. “I did once hold the position of high priest, but my real job was something else.”

“Um, it was…?”

“I was a monk of the Holy Fist, the highest rank of martial arts-practicing priests.”

“Uh…okay…?”

Adalmann didn’t have to engage in close combat too often because he had Alberto, his superb bodyguard, handling the front line for him. Somewhere along the line, he had become a rearguard specialist handling healing duties. That was simply more efficient overall, but it didn’t mean Adalmann had abandoned his skills. He was still an active kenpo practitioner. The fact he’d survived that last blow with that defensive layer of fighting spirit was proof of this.

“I never had a chance to show you myself,” he said. “When I fought you, I didn’t think it’d be effective against your nonhuman form.”

“Oh, no…?”

Venti was at a loss for a response. She had known Adalmann for hundreds of years, and this was the first she was hearing about it. If he had something like that, surely there would’ve been more occasions to use it? She might have adored Adalmann, but not even she was willing to let this slide.

“I’m glad to see you’re so accepting of this,” he told her.

“Ah, um, actually, I… Um, wait just a minute!”

“Is there a problem?”

“Well, there’s just a lot going on, you know?”

“Oh? How, exactly?”

Being asked this embarrassed Venti. But she strung the words together anyway. She had to know the answer.

“I’m sure I’m mistaken, but you’re not actually going to challenge that giant with your bare hands, are you?”

Venti hoped for a denial. She had known Adalmann for a long time, but she had never seen him do anything remotely close to working out. Not that it’d make sense for a skeleton to pump iron anyway, but… And besides, what was this “monk of the Holy Fist” stuff? She’d never heard of that. And all this new, uncertain information was enough to make him think Fenn was beatable?

In short, Venti was not keen on the idea. Adalmann, on the other hand, was bullish.

“What a foolish question,” he said. “I fight with my fists, and it therefore follows I’d fight barehanded, doesn’t it? Do you have any more questions?”

That’s not what I meant, Venti wanted to retort. “No, nothing…” was what came out instead. Adalmann’s momentum simply overwhelmed her.

No wonder he was deceived by his allies in the past. Sir Adalmann seems so intelligent all the time, but sometimes he has moments like this…

Resolving to stop thinking about it, she turned her attention to the rampaging Fenn. Her beloved master was the only one she could trust. She was beginning to doubt whether she really respected that master any longer, but still Venti entrusted everything to Adalmann.

“Good,” Adalmann said. “I will now tell you the plan, then. Magic doesn’t seem to work here, so I’m going to strike at him with physical force. It’s the only way.”

Venti wanted to go straight home after hearing that. But she persevered, listening to this harebrained plan.

“Of course, your breath won’t work, either. Cancel Magic works by interfering with the spirit particles that make up magicules.”

This was surprisingly intelligent-sounding, no offense to Adalmann. He really could be dependable at times like these. But then came what he said next.

“In other words, we have no means of attack. So I have a suggestion: Let’s combine together!”

“…Um, okay?”

Adalmann’s proposal was beyond Venti’s imagination. Frankly, it made no sense. But sadly, Adalmann took Venti’s response as an agreement.

“Hee-hee-hee! Ah, I knew you would say that!”

“Ah, um, no…”

Venti’s denial was too late. In fact, without pausing for another moment, Adalmann launched his skill.

“I’ve been developing a secret technique for just this kind of crisis. Now it’s time to show it off!”

Then Venti’s strength drained from her body.

The secret move Adalmann invoked was a kind of assimilation by possession. Venti had endless questions about how long he had been developing it and so on, but both parties felt the move succeeded without a problem.

Adalmann, an undead skeleton, was as close as you could get to a spiritual life-form without actually being one. He was, in a way, “possessing” his own corpse in skeleton form. This let him physically interact with the world, but he wasn’t limited to the skeleton at all. In this case, he went over to Venti’s body, possessing it.

This alone, however, was nothing particularly unusual. The question was how the two consciousnesses mixed together, if at all. Unlike a possession, where you seized someone else’s body, Adalmann needed to preserve the consciousness of the original body owner. It was a tricky problem, but one he’d solved, which was why he was loudly boasting about it being a “secret move.”

“Don’t worry,” he said. “Your consciousness is still intact after the possession, right?”

“Y-yes…”

“Good,” he whispered. “I do have my concerns about the separation process later, but…”

Venti didn’t let that go unheard. She was one with Adalmann, after all, so she heard every word of it clearly.

“Wh-whoa! Are you sure we’re okay?”

“Well,” Adalmann said, trying to calm her, “even in the worst-case scenario, we could ask our god Sir Rimuru to prepare a new body!”

It was pretty brazen of him, but Venti had a feeling the request would be approved. Rimuru loved conducting experiments like that; he’d likely be overjoyed to see this skill in effect. But it left open the question of who’d move into the new body—but before she went down that rabbit hole, Venti devoted herself to understanding her current situation. Being possessed by Adalmann had greatly altered Venti’s body. The magicules of the Gehenna Dragon and the strong body to support all that were now in possession of Adalmann’s steely spirit.

“Hmm… I’ve missed looking like this.”

Standing there was a dark-haired young man wearing a jet-black priest’s robe. It was the very figure of Adalmann’s younger days. There were a few differences, such as the color of his hair, but otherwise it was a perfect reproduction.

Whoa, Venti thought. How surprisingly good-looking! Adalmann is worthy of my respect and love after all!

Venti had a habit of putting her interests above everyone else’s like that.

“All right. I’ll leave the rest to you, Sir Adalmann. Good luck to you!”

So she decided to completely trust Adalmann, forgetting about all the uneasiness she had before…and so was born the true Gehenna Lord, possessing both a strong body and enormous magical power.

Heh-heh… I haven’t been this excited in ages. In this state, I might make a good match for Sir Zegion. By my estimation, I should be about equal with Ultima…

Adalmann thought so anyway.

He remembered all his acquaintances, people who couldn’t engage him in the martial arts since he was a skeleton. Now, whether he beat them or not, he could at least fight them.

Yes… Now the door is open to me.

Aside from Benimaru, Diablo, and Zegion, Adalmann was confident he wouldn’t lose to any of the other Lordly Guardians.

With a fearless smile, Adalmann leaped up. His body felt light, as if he were flying. Even in his skeleton days, he had never felt so free from the forces of gravity. Still, the giant called Fenn was a formidable foe. It’d be suicidal to underestimate him after Ultima couldn’t even lay a finger on him. If Adalmann were to go it alone, victory would be impossible. But if he worked with Ultima, then maybe…

Fortunately, although Fenn’s power was the real thing, his fighting skills weren’t as great as Glasord’s, who was busy fighting Alberto. He couldn’t handle the energy of a True Dragon, which was why he hadn’t finished off Ultima.

Adalmann was confident he had a chance.

“I’m not in the mood for just a tactical victory. Instead of simply buying time, let’s make this an overwhelming win for us!”

“You can do it, Sir Adalmann!”

Venti, too, was in high spirits, although the basis for this was admittedly pretty thin. Master and servant resembled each other to a scary extent.

“Yes! I can do it! I—we are one of Sir Rimuru’s strongest fighters—a member of the Twelve Lordly Guardians, in fact!”

That fact fueled Adalmann and Venti’s confidence. Soon they were running and laughing happily together during this crisis.

Ugh, I knew it!

Ultima wanted to curse the world. She was convinced magic didn’t work on Fenn, and the fact embittered her. And even worse, the plan she devised with Luminus called for erasing Daggrull from existence with Disintegration, the most powerful magic. She wanted to tell Luminus it wouldn’t work, but Fenn was not so naive as to allow her—and so, after she saw the pillar of light in the distance that signified a Disintegration casting, Ultima realized the plan had failed.

“Some insectoid magic beasts can nullify magic, but that’s not what you are…,” she said to Fenn.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! You noticed that, huh? Our Cancel Magic is an absolute defense against all magic. It blocks the movement of spirit particles itself, so no matter what kind of magic it is, it won’t work!”

“Thanks for telling me,” cracked the annoyed Ultima.

Magic was the most powerful weapon for demons, making the giants their natural enemy. Only the higher-level types had access to that skill, but it made giants a terrible match for her in battle.

…Damn it! Guy definitely knew about this. I really wish he told me…

She could whine all she wanted, but Guy wasn’t there. Ultima understood from the bottom of her heart exactly how important it was for everyone in a group to be on the same page—just as Rimuru always said. It was too late, though. They couldn’t just give up, so they had to find some way to overcome this catastrophe…and Ultima thought she saw a clue to that in Gadora’s Nihilistic Parade.

If the old man’s on the field here, it must’ve been because it’s real dangerous magic. And why is that?

The answer was obvious: because it worked.

It had to do with the nature of magic. A spell rewrote laws by influencing magicules, and since magicules contained spirit particles, it was inevitable that Cancel Magic would be an absolute defense against them. However, unique among the dark magic family, nihilistic magic summoned the emptiness of hell, making any energy it came into contact with vanish. Thanks to that, they thought, it could even cancel out Cancel Magic.

Ultima was certain about it, so she didn’t hesitate to limit her attacks strictly to nihilistic ones.

“Time to die!” she yelled. “Dark Magic—Nihilistic Vanish!”

The emptiness flowed over Fenn.

“Tsk… What a pain in the ass. You demons are so good at harassing people!”

Fenn’s fighting spirit drowned out the emptiness, leaving him with zero damage. Nihilistic Vanish was the most powerful dark magic spell, the counterpart of Disintegration, but to Fenn it was like a pesky mosquito.

But even so, it wasn’t a meaningless move. Just as enough dust piled together can create a mountain and a stream of water can pierce through a rock over many years, Fenn would eventually fall if she kept up this attack. There was plenty of time.

Ultima, seeing a path to victory, grew more focused. She needed to repeat the same attack thousands and thousands of times, with such precision that not even a single mistake could be tolerated. If Fenn’s attack hit her even once, Ultima’s defeat would be set in stone. That was how big the gap in power was…but speed was the most important element in battle, and they weren’t that far from each other on that.

Thanks to that, Ultima could hold her own against Fenn. That and one other reason—the difference in combat experience. Ultima had trained in combat against the overwhelmingly strong Zegion. That was being put to good use—she was accustomed to fighting foes stronger than her.

The difference in EP between Ultima and Zegion wasn’t that great—his wasn’t double hers anyway. One would think Fenn, who had almost twenty times her EP, would be far more dangerous, but that wasn’t the case. To use an analogy, Zegion’s attack was like a spear. If it pierced you, you died, and that was it. Fenn’s attacks, on the other hand, were akin to a giant hammer. Even a single scratch was enough to inflict serious damage, and its sheer power was staggering.

The sole difference was between a single sharp point and a large, flat surface. If an attack had enough energy to kill a target, its threat level was the same regardless. Fenn’s attack was more powerful, but it was no different from Zegion’s, being a one-shot kill either way.

Thinking about it that way made it easier to relax a little. Ultima had been worried about Luminus and the others, but she’d already moved on. There was nothing she could do to help, so she had long since banished them from her mind.

Ultima was back to humming to herself as she toyed with Fenn. That was when Adalmann returned.

“Sorry to make you wait, Lady Ultima,” he said.

“Um…who are you?” she asked. “Not the bony guy?”

“Ha-ha-ha! It is I, Adalmann!”

“Oh. Well, whatever. You know what you have to do, right?”

“Of course I do!”

Using Hasten Thought, they divided up their roles in an instant. Adalmann would be the frontline force against Fenn, while Ultima would back him up as needed and repeatedly cast Nihilistic Vanish to whittle down Fenn’s strength. At this point, it was more like assembly-line work than anything else.

“A big, musclebound rampaging lummox isn’t any match for us, right?”

Ultima laughed wickedly as she declared victory, more than a little bit too early.

The earth trembled.

The absolute fury of the demon lord Daggrull dominated the battlefield.

This isn’t going to work, the demon lord Luminus Valentine thought, and she meant it. Her plan was to dispose of Daggrull on the first shot, even if it meant breaking out her most powerful secret techniques. If that didn’t work, defeat was inevitable. Disintegration could turn any opponent into dust; it could kill Daggrull just as well. Even a True Dragon would have no choice but to be reborn later.

And yet the results were a disaster. Daggrull’s cheat-level Cancel Magic had completely destroyed any chance of victory. Luminus had half-expected this to happen, and now it had come true.

The fight between Alberto and Glasord continued.

At first glance, it appeared to be evenly matched, with neither side giving an inch. However, if you observed the fight through the ultimate skill Asmodeus, Lord of Lust, things looked very different. Glasord’s light was shining brightly, while Alberto’s was so thin and frail that it could flicker its last at any moment. They had both shaved only a tiny percentage of life force off each other, but the overall numbers were what made the difference.

Before Alberto could whittle Glasord down, the winner was as good as decided. But Alberto wasn’t the one to blame. On the contrary, he was able to compete with a true master using his impeccable swordsmanship, a feat that should be praised.

Glasord, too, was a master swordsman. Taking into account the energy handicap, it could even be said that Alberto was superior in skill to Glasord. That, however, was not enough to change the situation. At this rate, Alberto’s defeat was only a matter of time.

Meanwhile, Ultima’s party was putting up a good fight against Fenn. The battle was raging, but it was already looking a bit like a throwaway match. Adalmann was doing beyond well. That’s what working for Rimuru can do for you, she thought.

For example, Adalmann had become one with Venti the Gehenna Dragon. Ultima didn’t know how it happened, but thanks to that, he had gained a strong body and a significant magicule boost. But even so, there was still a clear difference between him and Fenn the Mad Fist, who was as powerful as a True Dragon.

For Ultima in particular, this was an opponent who had been tormenting Luminus for many years, which gave her a lot to think about. She wanted to admire him, but at the same time, she bitterly cursed him as a major annoyance. Luminus, too, had mixed feelings. To someone like her, able to quantify other people’s life force, the gap between the two seemed to be widening to the point of hopelessness. But she still didn’t give up, even seeming to enjoy the battle. They could only keep it going thanks to an intense sort of mental concentration, akin to stepping on thin ice.

Luminus could see Adalmann, who had abandoned defending his whole body at once and instead focused his energy only on contact areas to deal with Fenn’s attacks.

Ultima did the same. She could more easily manipulate her energy than Adalmann—she was a natural at it—but a single blow would still end her anyway. To make up for the difference in energy, she was focusing all her body’s power on a single point. It was such an amazing feat, one could even call it divine…but it was doomed not to last long, and even a momentary lapse could be fatal.

Still, their objective was to wear down the enemy and prolong the battle as much as possible. It was a miracle that this was even a competitive match. And Fenn wasn’t even using his Gleipnir chaos bonds. Once those entered the picture, the battle situation would change drastically, and not in a good way.

Finally, there was Shion. She had been beaten down in front of Luminus, but she stood up again, challenging Daggrull once more. Clearly she was determined not to retreat, no matter how many times she was beaten.

But it was beyond foolhardy. The difference in fighting ability between Daggrull and Shion was so extreme that Luminus, who could read it in number form, saw Shion’s strategy as suicide. The only reason she was alive was because she was under the protection of Luminus; otherwise, she would have been instantly killed long ago.

No matter how immortal Shion’s body was, if she wasn’t given even a moment of free time to regenerate, she would lose her body. She could fully regenerate from her soul alone, but if one lost not only their material body but their spiritual body as well, the exposed astral body (or heart core) would be crushed, causing death.

Luminus was preventing that from happening. Don’t be so reckless, she thought as she looked on, wiping the cold sweat from her brow.

Daggrull’s sons were in a panic, scurrying to stop Shion.

“Hey, lady, you can’t do this!”

“Lady Shion! I don’t think that—”

“B-bad news! I think you better run away…”

But Shion wasn’t intimidated.

“Shut up!” she spat. “There is no defeat in Sir Rimuru’s book…and so I, too, will never be defeated!”

That sounded like completely unreasonable logic to Luminus, but it was typical Shion talk. Something about her words seemed to energize Daggrull’s sons, too.

“Yeahhhhhhh! C’mon, Dad! Take us on!”

“We’ve got to do it. I’m ready to go!”

“I’m gonna do it! And I’m gonna get so much praise later!”

Their minds made up, they went straight toward Daggrull.

“Hoh? You’re facing me now? You have grown a lot.”

Daggrull looked pleased, but it didn’t look like he had any intention of going easy on them. The next moment, all three of them were knocked down. They were so badly injured by that single blow that they seemed unable to stand up. They were still alive, though, so Daggrull had probably gone easy on them.

This is impossible. There’s no way I can win!

Luminus, who had half-given up, heard Shion roar in her ears.

“Hee-hee-hee! You did well, you guys! Great drive. Just rest there and leave the rest to me!”

Shion herself had been seriously injured by Daggrull. The healing was already complete, but the sheer difference in skill was insurmountable. But Shion still stood up, never faltering.

The sight of her reminded Luminus of a long-ago memory. She couldn’t help but see Shion as similar to the Hero who saved her in the past.

“Let me help you!”

Gadora swooped in to back Shion up. But it was pointless. The attacks from Shion’s side couldn’t reach Daggrull. They couldn’t even touch him.

They were at a crossroads. Should they continue to fight and face certain defeat, or should they run from the match and try to regain their footing?

A wise man wouldn’t hesitate. And…yes, the Luminus of the past would have withdrawn without hesitation. A war offering no chance to win is pointless. You can always rebuild a country, and they had no attachment to this region. With her eternal lifespan, Luminus had no need to go around fighting life-and-death battles.

But…

Am I sure about this? Is it right for me to abandon Shion?

Luminus wasn’t sure. Daggrull was after her, primarily. If she retreated at this point, that would up the chances that Shion and the others would survive. She thought that, but she also knew that was just an excuse. She couldn’t lie to herself.

Shion would never give up, just as Ultima and Adalmann continued to challenge Fenn. But there was no way to win, and Shion was certain to die at this rate. But what if Luminus helped her out? Her power—the ultimate skill Asmodeus, Lord of Lust—ruled over life and death. Even if she died instantly, as long as Luminus was there, she could be revived.

If Luminus withdrew, Shion would surely die. She didn’t want that.

So I’d abandon my friends and just run away? I refuse to accept such an ungainly way of life! I am the proud Queen of Nightmares!

Luminus, too, was dedicated to this.

“Gunther!” she yelled.

“Here.”

Gunther Strauss, her butler-like assistant, appeared from the shadows. Luminus didn’t even turn around to look at him.

“As a proud member of the Octagram, I intend to share Shion’s fate,” she said.

“You have the option of running away. There would be no shame in that.”

Luminus laughed him off. “It would be most unbecoming of me to run away in disgrace, don’t you think?”

She gave her servant a glamorous smile—bewitching, even, not the sort of smile a girl as beautiful as her would normally give you. It made Gunther recall her smiling just like this long ago, when she defeated that demigod. She always had an attachment to life, because she’d promised her friends she’d be there for them. She was, in essence, a proud queen. And no, running away would never suit Luminus Valentine, Queen of Nightmares. She was a noble vampire princess, and to Gunther and the rest, she was the greatest treasure of all.

“…Yes, my lady.”

Gunther bowed reverently. Luminus placidly nodded back at him.

“If I should perish, you may lead the people as the next king. Now go.”

Luminus’s voice was filled with determination and resolve. Gunther remained calm and unmoved. As a steward who obeyed the god of this nation, Gunther was unquestionably the apostle of Luminus.

“What kind of vassal would I be if I abandoned my queen? Not a single person under you would be foolish enough to do that.”

“You mean it?”

“The evacuations have already begun, but as for myself, I will follow you wherever you go.”

“Mmm…”

Luminus was puzzled by this unexpected reaction. For the first time today, Gunther, her ever-faithful confidant, disobeyed her.

“…When we fall, we fall together.”

Gunther waited for Luminus’s reply, a look of unwavering determination in his eyes.

She was bewildered at first, but soon her spirits rose.

“Hmph. Do as you please,” she joyfully commanded him. “You’re just as stupid as certain other people I could name.”

“Good luck to you.”

Gunther bowed and left. Reasoning he was no match for Daggrull, he went to help Louis instead.

Luminus, impressed that he was as capable as ever, stood by Shion. She still wondered if she had done the right thing, but she had no regrets.

“It seems that your strategy has ended in failure,” Luminus said. “You’re still not giving up?”

“Of course not,” Shion retorted.

Luminus shook her head in disgust, but the next moment, she grinned.

“Are you sure you don’t want to run away, Shion?”

Now Shion was disgusted.

“Absolutely not!”

The last one standing was the winner. Even if you didn’t win, you just had to survive, and all would be well.

“Our mission’s simple enough here, isn’t it?” Shion boldly stated.

It made Gadora’s head hurt, but he didn’t want to argue with her. Luminus was just as astonished.

“In that case, leave the healing to me,” Luminus said. “Even if you die instantly, I’ll bring you back to life on the spot.”

With that as a cue, they launched what could be called a reckless suicide attack.

Shion and Gadora repeatedly attacked in waves, while Luminus poised herself to provide support in the rear. Even though they were both killed instantly by Daggrull’s attack, Luminus actually managed to revive them. The power of Asmodeus is a thing to be feared, but the way she wielded it was also worthy of praise.

And then there was Gadora. Thanks to being reincarnated as a metal demon, he was able to put up a good fight against even Daggrull, who was impervious to magic. Daggrull’s Cancel Magic worked on everything, but it wasn’t without its weaknesses. By the looks of things, it could cancel all magic that affected Daggrull’s body, but it couldn’t do that for magic that affected other people.

Body-strengthening magic was a good example. Cancel Magic allowed Daggrull to ignore things like defensive barriers and body-hardening magic, but if you powered up your speed in advance, it couldn’t cancel that out. In the case of Adalmann’s Tempest Meteor, the summoned meteorites were erased by Cancel Magic because they were made of an imaginary substance, but if they had been real, they would have caused a considerable amount of damage.

What if you took a rock of a certain mass from a different dimension, brought it into the sky with flight magic, then dropped it? In that case, Cancel Magic couldn’t counteract the potential energy imparted to the rock. In other words, Gadora believed, this skill couldn’t cancel out indirect magic.

And he was right. Gadora had applied enhancement magic to his own body to fight more intelligently, and it worked. When Shion was down, Gadora would step forward; when he got knocked out, Shion promptly took his place. It was an improvised combo, but they were working together like a skilled party.

The power of Luminus was undoubtedly the most important factor, but this battle strategy wouldn’t have been possible without both of them.

The only concern, then, was that Daggrull didn’t even seem fatigued yet…

Shion rose up before Luminus’s eyes. No matter how much she was hurt, she stood up again and again, never fearing death. She was focusing on doing what she could to the point of brutal devotion. It only worked thanks to her trust in Luminus. She truly believed Luminus could revive her from instant death. It was a simple, almost childish belief, but Shion could earnestly believe in it—one of her greatest traits.

But this wasn’t the case with Gadora. As soon as he recovered from near-death, all of his injuries were healed, not even leaving a scar. At first glance, since he was unharmed, it felt like nothing had affected him…but the exhaustion was building in his mind. Unlike Shion, he was an intelligent person, and try as he could, he couldn’t help but think about how hopeless this battle was. You could really only fight this kind of thing if you completely turned off your mind. The moment you grew conscious of your anxiety and self-doubt, it would lead to mistakes.

And they were fighting Daggrull, a demon lord with a magicule count comparable to Fenn’s and a little inferior to Glasord’s. His skills, though, made him the best of the three brothers, and by far the most dangerous.

Is this fine as it is? Or is there something more I can do?

Gadora wasn’t sure—and that proved fatal.

He was just a little late in taking action. Normally, a minor delay like that couldn’t even be called a mistake, but Daggrull wasn’t slow enough to miss the opportunity—or, really, he had been letting those mistakes go so far, but he didn’t want to go along with this any longer.

“Honestly,” Daggrull grumbled. “I thought you’d be more entertaining, but this has been so disappointing.”

With a big sigh, Daggrull casually threw a punch at Gadora.

Naturally, Luminus healed him immediately, but then Daggrull butted in with a move that caught her unawares, preventing the healing spell.

Daggrull stood between Luminus and Gadora. Luminus wanted to heal Gadora, but Daggrull was in her way.

“You…”

“Oh, am I blocking you? I could have done this at the start, but I thought I’d see some more variety, so I let him have his way. I don’t expect you to be grateful, but you have no right to hold a grudge against me, either.”

Daggrull wasn’t lying. From the very beginning, he been playing along with his adversaries, trying to enjoy the fight as much as possible. Once he made his move, though, he was convinced he couldn’t lose. Daggrull’s power was that great. And yet he gave Luminus and the others a chance, because he remembered the words of his best friend, the demigod Twilight Valentine.

“That girl, you know… She’s my masterpiece. She’s so full of potential…not at all like my other work.”

The demigod always boasted to Daggrull like that. And while all the Disciples of the Demigod were talented, only Luminus was treated differently from the others…even though Daggrull didn’t see that much difference in her.

In the end, the demigod left this world without ever telling him why. Even his soul was annihilated at the hands of Luminus, the daughter he loved the most. The Sanctuary Disintegration earlier was the very magic that buried the demigod…and even that couldn’t work on Daggrull.

There were no more secret tricks up their sleeves. Daggrull was playing along, waiting to see what his opponents could do, but it all seemed meaningless. Luminus, devoted to her support role, showed no sign of joining the attack. He showed them a few opportunities, but they still kept repeating the same attack pattern.

They can play those childish games all day if they want to. It’s impossible to defeat me…

Daggrull felt he had been looked down on. So he decided there was no further point in going along with them. But that didn’t mean he stopped being vigilant. Just then, he made the rational decision to separate the front line from the rear.

“You’re talking like you were holding back,” Shion said.

“It’s true.”

Daggrull brushed off the indignant Shion.

“What are you—?”

“Hmm… You don’t seem to understand.”

Daggrull disappeared. The next moment, Shion was silenced by a fist slamming into her abdomen. It felt like her internal organs had exploded. This wasn’t just a cute little jab that’d disappear from their minds immediately. The blow kept raging inside Shion, as if it was running through all her organs.

Recovery magic will be meaningless against this…

That was Shion’s thought. And with that destructive energy still housed in her body, all the healing in the world no longer mattered.

Luminus also recognized this at a glance. Not good, she thought, biting her lip.

“Well? You must have felt very secure in the knowledge that you had someone to protect you, right?” Daggrull asked Shion.

“Ughh… Th-this is nothing…”

“Still undaunted? I applaud your will, but guts alone won’t help with that!”

The unamused Daggrull kicked Shion in the face. He had nothing against her; in fact, he rather liked her. With this, he just wanted to knock her out for good so she wouldn’t disturb him any longer. But he underestimated Shion’s stubbornness.

“D-don’t be ridiculous! This much w-won’t defeat me…”

Shion stood up, spitting blood and gruffly smiling.

“…I see my eyes must be going on me. I apologize for misjudging you.”

He had intended to just knock her out, not kill her, but Shion wasn’t about to be stopped by that. Daggrull, realizing this, finally stopped going easy on her.

“You would have been a little better if you’d never awakened,” Daggrull told her.

“What are you talking about?”

“It doesn’t matter. You’re about to die anyway.”

Daggrull clenched his fists. He didn’t appear interested in any more chitchat.

Luminus, seeing this, shouted out:

“N-no, don’t!”

She sensed the change in Daggrull. She knew Shion was in danger. But Daggrull just snickered at her.

“This woman will die, and it’s all thanks to your worthlessness.”

“Wha—?” Shion tried to argue, but was silenced again by Daggrull’s blow. She wasn’t dead, but she was finally unconscious at long last. She was lucky to survive, but Daggrull hadn’t held back at all with that blow. There was no way she could continue fighting.

Daggrull was relieved that Shion fainted. He didn’t intend to make her suffer, and if possible, he wanted to avoid killing her.

Now Luminus and Daggrull were the only two people left. Luminus finally steeled her resolve.

“Very well, Daggrull. It’s a duel between you and me. I will deal with you myself!”

Luminus prepared for Daggrull. The words honestly felt a little funny to her. She wanted to express her pride as a demon lord, but Daggrull probably saw her as nothing more than a piece of trash.

“Hmm,” Daggrull said. “All right, Luminus, show me what Twilight has entrusted to you. If you can’t do that, then die!”

The next moment, Daggrull’s entire body surged with ferocious fighting spirit. Seeing this made Luminus realize just how much he had been holding back. Daggrull wasn’t even conscious that he was, but if he had fought like this from the beginning, the match would’ve been settled long ago.

He really is a monster, isn’t he? There’s no effective way to deal with him. The only possibility is to wait for Rimuru to come to the rescue…

Her best laid plans had failed. There was no chance of winning a head-to-head battle with Daggrull like this—and yet Luminus was standing right there. For a moment, she wondered if she should have run away after all. But Luminus laughed off the idea. What kind of demon lord would abandon her friends?

Strange, though. I haven’t known Shion as long as Chloe, either…

But she was still standing, because she didn’t want to disappoint Shion and her party. And then it occurred to her.

Rimuru’s got it tough, doesn’t he? Always working beyond his limits, trying to live up to the expectations of his friends…

For the first time in her life, Luminus understood Rimuru’s feelings. Rimuru was the only one who could beat Daggrull now, with the exception of Guy.

Him, or…

The image of a free-spirited black dragon passed through Luminus’s mind.

I must be imagining things. I could never expect anything from him!

Despite this thought, a smile appeared on Luminus’s lips.

Daggrull turned curious at the sight of this. “Don’t tell me you’ve got some other secret trick to break out at this point?”

“If I did, I would have used it long ago!”

Luminus proudly puffed out her chest. If the end was coming, she wanted to stand strong and protect her pride as a demon lord.

…And maybe I believe in it, too? The idea that someone will come to help, just like long ago…?

In the past, a Hero saved her from a crisis. It was a miraculous event, one that didn’t just happen when you wanted it to. Luminus knew that was a little too convenient. But Shion, Ultima, and everyone else never losing hope inspired something in her. Maybe it was rubbing off. It must be, she thought.

It’s really tough for Rimuru, isn’t it? Even people like me who have no relationship with him can’t help but feel their hopes rising.

The idea made her laugh, really. It was strange.

“…? Come up with any bright ideas?” Daggrull asked.

“No. I know this isn’t in character for me, but I’m going to struggle against you till the bitter end!”

“Hoh.”

“Now let’s go!”

Luminus, newly inspired, broke out her magic power to the fullest. At the same time, her Nightrose sword was imbued with the power of Asmodeus, Lord of Lust. This was her preferred surefire battle style—using the power of death to steal her foe’s life force, then the power of life to convert it into energy for her. Fighting like this canceled out any slight strength differences, and the longer the battle went on, the more of an advantage she enjoyed. When it came to draining the energy of foes who far outclassed her, she was an expert.

Daggrull, too, was glad to see Luminus in this state. He had a healthy respect for his foes. They were wonderful people, no matter how he looked at them. They were so reliable as allies, and now that they were enemies, they made Daggrull’s heart soar like nothing else.

Truly a shame to kill them.

But he had to avenge the man who had been his best friend. Only then could Daggrull fulfill his destiny as a god-killer. This was the secret agreement he’d made with Feldway through Fenn. Daggrull would cooperate with Feldway’s ambition to revive Veldanava; after that, the real battle would begin.

And this secret agreement with Feldway wasn’t the only one, either. If they defeated Luminus, all the western lands would be incorporated into the domain of the giants. If they then invaded and overran the Forest of Jura, that land would also belong to Daggrull.

It was his chance to both go on a rampage to fulfill his destiny and satisfy his territorial ambitions. I can’t stop here, he thought—and by that point, his instincts were already starting to run wild.

So Daggrull decided there was no need to continue this charade any longer.

“In the first place—”

Daggrull began to speak. But at that moment, everything stopped. All hostilities no longer meant anything.

“…You can’t do very much now, can you?”

Only his muttering echoed across the world before fading.

“…?!”

In the world where only her conscious remained, Luminus was puzzled.

“Oh, you’re conscious? No wonder he boasted about you being his greatest masterpiece.”

Daggrull’s voice had a tone of admiration, but Luminus was struck by a fear that chilled her soul. As wise as she was, she might have overlooked this entirely without being aware of it—but since she was concentrating on the battle, she understood what was going on.

As much as she didn’t want to.

Time is standing still…?

It was pure despair.

From the very beginning, there was no way we could beat Daggrull…

She fully understood this…but Luminus’s thirst to live still wasn’t lost. She was gathering information, figuring out how to survive…and it only led to further despair.

Luminus continued to claw her way back, even though it felt like she was being swallowed by a deep, bottomless darkness. In this suspended world, even despair went on forever.

She closed her eyes, confronting her regrets. At the very least, I wanted to take on that hateful, irreverent, evil dragon with my own two hands…

And just as Luminus was thinking that, she heard what sounded like a high-pitched laugh. It rang out just as Daggrull’s fist was about to reach her.

Her thoughts paused there.

“Kwah-ha-ha-ha-ha! It is I!”

The moment she perceived what this voice meant, Luminus fully grasped what was going on. A mighty fist loomed in front of her…and a brown palm was there to catch it. The evil dragon, who had been nowhere near the battlefield until that moment, stopped Daggrull’s fist before it could hit her.

Time moves with the arrival of hope, so there may be no eternal nights…

At that very moment, the evil dragon that jumped through time and space—the invincible Veldora that Luminus hated but so longed for—blocked the attack by Daggrull, who had been hiding an impossibly huge amount of power from them.

The time for despair had come to an end.