The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody - Volume 8 - Chapter 101

CHAPTER 101

The Ex–Demon Lord Breaks His Promise

“Your mistress should never have been called an Evil God.” A great expanse of silver. A frigid space where snow and souls danced in the air. Staring at the man who was my opponent, I continued. “She did have a tendency to revel in conflict. However, she never did anything to provoke it, and the lands under her rule were a veritable paradise. That’s why I respected Luminas. I’d hoped to join forces with her and create a better world.”

I made it clear that I never hoped to kill her. Even now, I regretted how things had turned out.

The man who faced me, Alvarto Egzex, remained silent as I described what had driven me all those centuries ago. His features weren’t colored with any emotion. It was as though all human feelings had drained from him, leaving an empty doll.

It was clear that no matter what I said, he wouldn’t change. Still, I needed to make a final confirmation of intent to make sure that breaking an oath was my only option.

“I promised you then, didn’t I? That if you still desired death at the end of it all, I would kill you… At the time, I hadn’t been able to tell you, but there’s no point in concealing it any longer.” With that, I began to describe the other promise that I had kept secret all this time. “From the time you joined my ranks to today, your wishes have remained constant. You seek your doom, which is why you repeatedly tried to goad me into action. Despite that, I always ignored your taunting and refrained. That has ever been the case. I’d hoped to achieve a resolution that allowed you to live.”

That was because…

“I swore an oath with your mistress, Luminas wol Croft.”

Despite the revelation, Alvarto remained still, not even raising an eyebrow.

“As she lay dying in my arms, you were the only person in her thoughts. She smiled nostalgically as she spoke of her memories of you… And at the end, she pleaded with me to spare your life—to show mercy for her son.”

It was the last request of an opponent I deeply respected. There was no way I could ignore it.

“Luminas doesn’t want your death. If there’s even the faintest yearning within you to respect your fallen mistress and turn your eyes to the future…then put down your weapons. I’ll ignore everything that you’ve done, and I won’t make an issue of it in the future.”

Alvarto’s answer was a long sigh of exasperation. “…I don’t care anymore. Her final wish means nothing to me.” The words that came from his hollow expression reflected the emptiness of his heart.

He discarded the mask of madness and showed his true self. All this tribulation would only cease if he perished.

Alvarto did nothing to change how things were proceeding.

“Long ago, you told me…to hate you. To use my anger to fuel me and live… If I could, I wouldn’t have suffered. Ultimately, I was unable to despise you fully. All that filled my heart were disappointment and despair. There was no room for any other emotion.” With hollow eyes cast to the ground, he went on, nearly whispering the words. “Why didn’t she choose me? Was that all I was to her? Why couldn’t I have stopped her? Why couldn’t I save her heart?”

Each word was cold and biting, like the frigid wind.

“Those were the only things that I thought about. There was no space for you to come between her and me. If there was malice or evil there…that was solely mine.”

Alvarto must have directed all of his negative feelings inward. He couldn’t bring himself to blame me for destroying their world. No, the responsibility was on Luminas and Alvarto. That was how he interpreted things. In that way…Alvarto was like a mirror of myself.

“Surely, Varvatos, you of all people can understand, yes? Or perhaps I should say that you are the only one who can understand.”

“…Yeah, that’s true.”

“You, too, lost a person you loved. You claimed her life yourself. Undoubtedly, you have sunk into the same pit I have.”

“That’s right.”

When Lydia died, I experienced the same self-hatred as Alvarto. Why couldn’t she have chosen me? Why did she prioritize her suicidal decision? Was I not enough? And more than anything…how had I let it happen? That regret still lingered in my heart.

“I understand, Alvarto… I was the same way. After I lost her, I pursued a continual path of self-destruction. It’s why…I always wanted to know what defeat was like.”

Someone, please stop me. Someone, please kill me.

Given that I couldn’t simply end my own life, I had no choice but to rely on another. Yet no such person appeared…

“With no other option, I fled, through reincarnation, from the constant suffering, from the isolation… When I think about it now, that was probably born of a deeply hidden desire to stay alive. Although I had sunk so far down, as low as one could, a part of me wanted to look forward to the future.”

…and then I was born into this era, and I was able to meet an irreplaceable friend. However, Alvarto lacked that support. He had tried to continue, regardless of his suffering. He, who had no choice but to wish for destruction. While we were the same, we were polar opposites. But even then, I, more than anyone else, could sympathize.

That’s why I felt compelled to grant his request.

“Varvatos. I don’t know what you think of me, but if you pity me in the slightest…if you have any sympathy for a man who fought alongside you…then release me from this suffering as you recover your precious companion.”

“…Your death will bring everyone’s salvation?”

“Yes. The moment my life comes to an end, you’ll regain everything you value. I can guarantee it.”

“…And death is the only freedom for you?”

“It is. That’s my only wish and my only hope.”

There was no other choice. No room for doubt. I looked straight at my former comrade and declared without hesitation…

“I accept.”

I would break one promise and fulfill another. To save everyone. To save this pitiable man. I steeled my resolve, and so began our final battle.

“…I’ll vent everything I hold against you.” Even if the results were a foregone conclusion, Alvarto didn’t want to show any weakness or be humiliated. The warrior’s pride within him was screaming to fight with all his might and perish gloriously. As though to prove that point, he made the first move.

In an instant, a giant collection of magic items appeared in the center of the silvery expanse. They totaled six hundred sixty-six. They were the trump card that he had taken from me—the Armor of the Demon Lord.

“Going for the kill with the first move.”

“Don’t die on me.”

We exchanged words, and then…

…they attacked.

The blades sliced through the air, the staves loosed their energy waves, and the shields shimmered. It was no different from our duel at the capital of the Asylas Federation. The sight was just as overwhelming as it had been then, and it was enough to inspire dread in my heart, but…

“No creator would ever unwillingly be destroyed by his creations.”

…the last time, I had no intention of actually responding. Which was why it had been so one-sided. Things were different now.

I chose to destroy the weapons.

As I evaded a blade that swept at me, I grasped and crushed it. Then I fired a counterattacking spell of the five great elements into a wand that unleashed destruction magic and wiped it out, magic and all. The shields and armor that moved on their own all met their end by my fists.

“You only took control of them. That’s not enough to bring out their true strength.”

As the name implied, the items in the Armor of the Demon Lord were all designed for me and me alone. Without adjusting the spells imbued into the equipment, it was impossible for anyone else to utilize their maximum potential. Even the greatest of the Four Heavenly Kings was no exception. Alvarto had successfully wrenched control of them from me, but that was all.

“A slavering horde made up of nothing but mere curs. No matter how large that rabble, it is ants trying to move a mountain.”

While their collective appearance was overwhelming, the many powerful objects would still scatter with a strong enough blow. Thus, the entire set could not land so much as a flesh wound upon me. All Alvarto achieved was their destruction.

“…Ahh, yes. Of course this isn’t enough to defeat you.” The words contained a deep sense of relief. Alvarto then moved to his second attack. “I am the one born in chaos, who lives with cursed hatred and embraces the void at his end.” He intoned a chant as he controlled the Armor of the Demon Lord. It was the prelude to one of his trump cards. Alvarto was about to unleash the ultimate Original spell. One known as the savage godslayer. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth…!

The only way to catch someone who had spread his wings was to do the same, and I did so without hesitation.

“That past of old is pain. That is the life of a pathetic man.” I destroyed the pieces of equipment that flew at me and began reciting in time with my opponent.

No meaning hath my life. If my life must epitomize waste. Then the least I beg…

That one is alone. Even though there are those who follow him. None rule together with him.

As silvery snow fell from the sky and souls flittered in the air.

He looked only at me.

I looked only at him.

That my body be a jester that dances for death. Even if that were to bring more pain.

No one understands. Everyone leaves him.

Where ordinary chants were all manually spoken, Original ones were completely automatic.

The moment you chose to use them, the words spilled from your lips as though to express all that you were and to throw your existence against your opponent.

I abandon pain and sadness. I discard hatred. And thus, I sink into a sea of madness.

Even his one and only friend tossed him away. He sinks into a sea of madness and isolation.

Our chants melded together, as did our thoughts. We deepened our understanding of one another.

There is no rest in this life. I instead await salvation. Hiding the pain and despair behind a mask.

There will be no relief in such an end. It will be a drowning death of anguish and despair.

Alvarto Egzex. I will not let this drag on any longer.

Ahh, this indeed is—

Surely that will be…

I readied myself as I unleashed my final stanza at the same time as he unleashed his.

The truth of the epitome of hollowness. Black Mirror Bandersnatch…!

The tale of a lonely king. A Private Kingdom!

Activation.

The two spells activated at the same time.

Next to my body, Lydia, restrained in darkness, colored her restraints. She transformed into an onyx black aura and wrapped around my right arm. Meanwhile, Alvarto also underwent a change. Black flames burst from him, as though consuming him. The shadow that engulfed my arm became chains and began to form into a great sword.

“Raah. Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.”

Creation. Inflation. As though unleashing the energy from his soul, Alvarto let out a cry of pain as black fire spewed from his back. It expanded in the blink of an eye and lashed out toward me as the sword finished forming in my hand. The flames approached as a pair, one mass arcing from the left and the other, the right. They resembled the wings of a fallen angel or an abyssal flood.

“Nrrrgh.”

Darker and darker still. Blackness filled my entire line of sight. The abyssal ebon swallowed the falling snow, the souls wandering the air, and the pieces of equipment that were in the midst of attacking me. The darkness went on a savage rampage.

“As dangerous as ever…!”

I felt a chill run up my spine. My body tensed as I evaded the wildly undulating inferno. Dodge. Dodge. Dodge. At times I leaped, at others, I flew, all to avoid the deadly attacks. I couldn’t allow the blaze to touch me. Even a glancing blow would be lethal. The black flames were an instant kill spell.

It didn’t matter if it was organic or non-organic, living or dead. Thus, the souls and equipment consumed by the fire were eradicated, never to be restored. And so, the man who sought the end more than anything, who yearned for it more desperately than anyone in the world had now…transformed into a god of death.

“Fwohhhhh…”

As though answering his deep breath, the rampaging flames began to draw back. It was like watching time flow in reverse. The fire moved along the same path it had when attacking me, returning to Alvarto. The vague cloud of energy slowly began to take on a clear shape, and the simmering sensation of power began to crystallize into a more concentrated form. It was the greatest strength that Alvarto Egzex possessed, and it was his ultimate fighting form.

With a pair of bony wings protruding from his back, he loomed like the personification of doom from a fairy tale. The jet-colored blaze that enveloped his entire body gave off a pressure that was incomparably greater than it had been a few moments earlier. This power, the epitome of excess, also ate at its wielder’s body. The black flames slowly seared Alvarto’s skin, but his charred flesh always healed. The endless cycle of destruction and regeneration should have been agonizing, but in spite of that, Alvarto didn’t so much as flinch, instead simply staring in my direction.

“…Here I come.” With that declaration, Alvarto vanished. When I next caught sight of him, he had appeared in front of me. “Ffft.” He let out a sharp breath and attacked with blades of fire sprouting from each of his arms.

I somehow managed to avoid them by a hair’s breadth, and retreated a bit.

“Still just as ludicrously dangerous,” I muttered, glancing at the left side of my body. It was scorched.

My entire left arm, the left side of my chest, my flank, and my left thigh were all blackened. Alvarto, with his Original active, was truly a human-shaped supernatural disaster. His mere presence would consume everything around him. That was why, even if they avoided his attacks, almost every creature in existence would be reduced to cinders.

When Alvarto had been a member of my army, he’d used this power to rampage across the battlefield and had destroyed everything in his path, whether friend or foe. That strength seemingly embodied his isolation.

“…It inspires sadness more than it does fear.”

I was not so easily consumed, however. That’s why I alone was the only person who could rescue him.

A growing burn zone spread out from Alvarto. Yet I maintained my own existence and made it possible to continue fighting.

“Lydia. Change the settings for regeneration state. Remove limits on durability. Cut off any warning signals on overtaxing the soul. Further, disable safety margin layers one through six.”

AFFIRMATIVE. CONDUCTING TYPE II LIMITER RELEASE. RECOMMENDED TIME OF USE: SEVEN MINUTES, TWENTY SECONDS.

Her voice rang from the black sword in my hand…and the next instant, the burnt portions of my body instantly healed.

Although there was a limit on the time I could sustain it, this now meant I could approach Alvarto without danger. Even if my body and soul were reduced to ash, it was fine, because I’d be immediately restored.

Another step closer.

“Given the enemy has shown his full strength, I can’t afford to hold back. Lydia, Initiative: Phase III.”

AFFIRMATIVE. SWITCHING TO BRAVE DEMON FULL BODY: PHASE III.

A black aura enveloped me. It swiftly took on an egg-like shape… Within, my existence itself was reconstituted.

Then…

…I burst out of the aura and emerged with a completely different form than I’d possessed moments earlier.

“So, you’ve finally become your true self, Varvatos.”

Yes. The one that wore the mantle of darkness was not Ard Meteor. Pure white hair that stretched down to my hips. A beauty that everyone praised as worthy of a goddess. The Demon Lord Varvatos now stood before Alvarto.

“I won’t let this drag on. I’ll end this with all of my strength.” Grasping Lydia in her gigantic sword form, I lunged forward. That alone created a massive gust of wind that slammed into my opponent’s body and threw him backward.

“Guh…”

He wasn’t even able to react. As Alvarto floated in the void, I closed the distance in an instant.

“Ffft.”

A slash. Such a blow would’ve finished most opponents, but…there was a reason he was the greatest of the Four Heavenly Kings.

“Raah.”

Not only did he respond, but he crossed his black flame swords to try blocking my swipe. It didn’t matter, though.

Darkness clashed and the air shrieked as the energy tore at existence itself. The enemy’s blades annihilated all they touched. Any divine or magic weapon would’ve been destroyed the moment they touched those flames. However…

…that logic didn’t apply to me.

The Brave Demon Full Body: Phase III was the very definition of unfairness. Whatever the reasoning, whatever the mechanics, it would crush the opposition beneath the strength of my will. It was the ultimate ego. The ultimate hubris. And so the strike unleashed by my hand shattered Alvarto’s defenses, cutting him down, black flames and all.

“Guh…!” As a diagonal wound split his torso, Alvarto let out a yelp of pain. He toppled into the snow, and I wasted no time mercilessly delivering another attack. “Grr…” When my sword threatened to split his face, Alvarto held out his right arm to defend against it.

Now I understood that the fire around him was armor, in addition to being his armament. Still…

“It’s futile.”

…I lopped off his arm, then split his face at an angle. I had ruined Alvarto’s beautiful visage, but I hadn’t reached his brain.

“Raaaaaagh!” He let out a piercing roar, and with his left arm, he tried to pierce my stomach. That, too, was a worthless effort. All of his motions were too slow.

I slowly moved my blade, and after chopping the approaching dark fire sword to ribbons, along with Alvarto’s arm, I then kicked his chest.

“Oomph…!” The massive impact definitely destroyed all of his internal organs. Blood spurted from his mouth as his body was hurled into the distance.

A few seconds later, he hit the ground and stained the fresh snow a dark shade of red.

“Haff…! Haff…!”

Even as his legs threatened to give out from under him, he stood up. However, he was now in critical condition. Blood flooded from the stumps of his severed limbs, and crimson was caked on his face like a mask. His restoration ability had slowed. The cockiness had drained from his features.

Alvarto was no longer an immortal. He was an ordinary creature who would die when cleaved in two.

“It’s time to bring down the curtain, Alvarto Egzex.” I stepped in to land the final blow. My opponent was in the midst of regenerating. Undoubtedly, he’d be whole again by the time I reached him. Yet I was certain that my blade would cleave him in two before that happened. It was at that very instant…

“I won’t let you…!”

…that a third person entered the fray. A girl materialized between Alvarto and me. She looked familiar.

“It’s like a replay of that moment from all those years ago.”

She stood as though to protect Alvarto and glared up at me. Then she held out her right hand and released a flash of light. I neutralized the attack with a magic shield. It wasn’t enough to stop the massive shock wave that came from it, though, and my body was thrown back like a leaf in the wind. I landed upon the snow and looked closely at my enemies.

“…Yes, that’s right. I haven’t shown you everything yet.”

Alvarto’s eyes, those that had seemed to accept the end just a moment before, burned with a fiery resolve.

These two had maintained their bond over so many years. The true battle was about to begin. Alvarto, the god of death, had finally acquired his scythe.

“This is the last time. Lend me your strength.”

“…Okay.”

With her consent, Alvarto placed his regenerated hand upon the girl’s back.

“Let’s go together. Kalmia—No…”

He said her true name. The words for the one who would end the world.

“…Dilga Zervatis.”

Transformation.

The moment her name was called, a shimmering ball of seven colors swallowed the girl’s body…and she began to change, becoming a sword. The gorgeous decorations upon its hilt and the rainbow glitter of its blade gave off an appearance of sheer elegance and pride.

As far as I knew, that weapon had only ever recognized two wielders—Luminas and Alvarto. The various legendary exploits of those two were connected to that blade, as though it protected its beloved family.

It was among the greatest pieces of equipment in the world, a peerless weapon.

Dilga Zervatis, one of the three Great Holy Swords.

The moment Alvarto gripped its glittering argent hilt, I was overwhelmed by an enormous pressure that made me shudder.

“One more act. Just stay with me for one more act, Varvatos.” The bloodstained body leaped forward. It was not the movement of a man who was near death.

Ascendant Martial Strength—one of the seven powers of that blade.

With it, Alvarto had now become a warrior without equal in the world.

Which was why—

“Nraah!”

—he was fast. An attack so fast that my eyes were unable to follow it. A veritable storm of slash.

The effect of Ascendant Martial Strength was, as the name implied, ascendance. It forcibly pulled the physical abilities of the wielder several tiers above the opponent’s. Thus, I stood no chance in close combat.

“Yah!”

“Tch!” I had no choice but to go on the offensive when faced with the barrage of deadly strikes. With each passing second, another wound appeared upon my skin. The flow of the battle had completely flipped.

“Raaah.”

A kick that had been hidden among the slashing blows connected with my side. The impact ran straight through my entire body and made my organs burst. With a pain that was difficult to describe, my body flew away.

There was no winning this way. Ignoring agonizing aches, I created countless magic circles. I cast tens of thousands of elemental spells. However…

“Not enough, Varvatos.”

…another feature of Dilga Zervatis was Magic’s Assured Destruction. The array of spells that would have wiped a giant mountain off the map instantly evaporated.

No path to victory, even from a distance.

“A union of blade and wielder. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it in such perfection. Nothing else could be so troublesome.”

The truly dangerous thing about Dilga Zervatis was its extraordinarily powerful sense of self-awareness. While the other two blades were also sentient, they never showed their own thoughts when they were wielded. Dilga Zervatis would impose its will upon a duel and guard its wielder. Meaning—

“It’s pointless to try to catch us unawares.”

A moment after the voice spoke out from the blade, the magic circle I had hidden behind Alvarto under the cover of their barrage of attacks released its power. Unfortunately, the Wind Blade was immediately changed to a slight breeze.

I felt a strong will from the sword. The will to protect her partner at all costs. To win, I would need to break her resolve and remove the threat of the union between weapon and wielder. That would require a certain amount of sacrifice on my part, though. One heavy enough to risk destroying my existence.

“…You can’t pretend you have nothing left to try.”

It seemed Alvarto had detected my hesitation. To demonstrate his determination, Alvarto began a relentless attack. He activated Ascendant Marital Strength to overwhelm me at close range. When I gained some distance and tried to use spells to turn the tables, Magic’s Assured Destruction erased whatever I cast.

This was enough of a problem on its own. Yet it was only the merest hint of the true danger the blade posed.

“Sedia! Ulgu. Falmecant. Forbel. Cada Sedia!”

It meant, “I Pray! For Rebirth, for an Epiphany, for Creation. Those Things I Wish!” in the ancient tongue.

“Firma. Ober. Maduc… El Cadia. Bel Dinis.”

This part was, “I Know, The Memories, The Tragedy… Thus I Ask. The Creation Of Illusive Dreams.”

The pair wove together chants in the ancient tongue. Then…the third power, Gatekeeper of All Creation. It was the greatest cheat ability of them all. It was an absurd ability that created everything the wielder or the sword itself desired. And with that ability, the pair created.

“A re-creation of the full-scale war…!”

Innumerable warriors appeared around me. Clad in red and black clothing, they looked exactly as they had on the day they had fought me to avenge their fallen mistress.

“…I’ll stake it all. Everything I ever had.”

The moment after I felt the meaning behind his words, the army attacked from every direction. Although a reconstruction of something from the past, this situation was far more perilous.

The Gatekeeper of All Creation was essentially a power that could rewrite reality. Meaning, if the wielder and sword wished it, anything could come true. Thus, all of the warriors who attacked, from the highest ranking to the lowliest line, were strong enough to kill me.

“Blast it!” I felt an extraordinary pressure as the pike phalanx approached. I needed to avoid a direct hit at all costs. It was clear they would easily run me through.

But…even when I managed to escape their grasp, there waited a deadly set of blades.

“Tch…!”

A squad of warriors struck with a combination of swords and magic. I parried the blades, canceled out their spells, and replied with searing heat. I incinerated several hundred of the enemy in front of me, but it was a wasted effort. The army’s fighters regenerated from the ashes. It was a frightening thing to see.

“This is…!”

No matter how many I took down, they were resurrected in an instant. They were invincible—immortal. There was only one option…

…but even if I did…

…as I was hesitating…

“Damn you, Varvatos!”

…a voice and blade filled with rage flew at me from one side. I swiftly blocked the Holy Sword with my own black one. Then Alvarto and I exchanged strikes in the middle of a massive military force.

“Do you intend to make me cry again?! Are you going to disappoint me again?!” Rage. Anxiety. Sadness. Those emotions came pouring from Alvarto’s gaze. “I’m not here to kill you. I’m fighting to die. I won’t let you claim you don’t know how that feels!”

The words were a desperate plea, heavy with mourning. At this moment, Alvarto was the greatest combatant to ever live, and yet he wept. There was no warmth for him to turn to. The urchin shivered alone in the cold.

“Please, I beg you, Varvatos.” The man in front of me, my former comrade, pleaded for what only I could give him. “Don’t make me wait any longer.”

Salvation. His expression and voice both tugged at my heart.

Oh, I’ve been a fool.

What was there to hesitate about at this point? This battle wasn’t one of half measures. It wasn’t one that permitted compromise. It would either end with me taking back everything or losing it all. In which case…

“Yes, you’re right. I should bet everything, too.”

I will save you. I will give you death.

…I steeled myself. Even if it would destroy me, I had to do it.

“Lydia—release all safety protocols.”

WARNING. RISK OF SOUL DISINTEGRATION.

“I know. But there’s no other choice.”

I moved to step into the realm beyond my ultimate power.

Meaning…

“Lydia! Activate Final Phase!”

…as I shouted that with iron resolution, she responded.

ACKNOWLEDGED. BRAVE DEMON FULL BODY—MOVING TO FINAL PHASE.

Then, the moment that a sign of change appeared upon my body…

“Ah!”

…perhaps driven by his instinct as a warrior, Alvarto leaped backward as though he had been tossed. My absolute power was enough to frighten one who sought death.

It started quietly.

As powdered snow fell around us, a dark aura formed over me. Then it turned to one of pure white. Despite being in the middle of a world of white snow, it was somehow a purer shade. The energy enveloped my body and infused everything with its light. The black sword in my grasp. The dark mantle I wore. It turned everything on my body into a bright pale color.

When the transformation was complete…

“…End.”

…it wasn’t a chant. It was only a statement.

And yet. Such a simple word had an effect on the world now that I was in Brave Demon Full Body: Final Phase. The scene in front of me proved it.

Quietly, the warriors began to collapse one by one into the snow. Not a single one of them budged.

“This is beyond ridiculous…!” a girl’s voice cried from the Holy Sword.

Alvarto opened his mouth in response. “That’s exactly what it needs to be.” His wish was coming true. He gazed at me with eyes convinced of that fact.

I then stepped forward and ended everything in that instant.

Alvarto wasn’t able to do anything, and neither was his Holy Sword.

As a great horde of warriors lay dead in the snow, I remained standing, while Alvarto was now on his knees. This had ever been the outcome.

It was something that was beyond expression, far ahead of simply being described as unfair. This was what came from Brave Demon Fully Body: Final Form. About the only being who could fight this power was that devil.

Even the greatest warrior of the Demon Lord’s army, armed with the most powerful blade in creation, could not put up the slightest resistance.

However, all that might took a toll on the body of one who was a mere commoner.

“Guh…”

Even the merest exercising of that strength ravaged me. My vessel of flesh was falling to pieces. Even my soul was on the verge of destruction. Blood began to flow from my ears, nose, mouth, and the corners of my eyes. It was difficult just to keep myself together.

Still, I hadn’t yet slain Alvarto, and for a good reason.

“…Have you any final words?”

This was the duty of the one who was going to end the battle.

In response, although he was on his knees…

“I know it was to make you want to kill me, but…I truly am sorry for all that I’ve done.”

…he gave words of apology. Those were the words he needed to leave at the very end.

“…There is nothing to regret. It was all due to my own failings, my weakness.”

And then, I prepared to finally do it.

“Farewell, my friend.”

I held up my pure white blade, ready to bring it down and give this deathless monster what had evaded him for so long.

And it was at that moment…

“Hoooooooold iiiiiiiiiit!”

…that a voice came from Alvarto’s body, but it wasn’t his.

That’s… No, it can’t be, I thought.

“Urgh.”

Alvarto let out a pained grunt before his chest shimmered with light. And from that radiance, she leaped out into the world.

“I’m not going to accept this! Not this sort of ending!”

There was no mistaking her.

It was my best friend. It was Ireena.