Battle Ready

The former Demon Lord—the “Knight-King of Massacre,” Vrisera.

I stared at her form in a daze. Her pitch-black full-body armor left almost no skin exposed. The horse she straddled was clad in heavy black armor to match its master.

“I see. So you are the Demon Lord of this era,” Vrisera addressed me in a cool, clear voice.

From behind the visor of her full-face helmet, sharp golden eyes stared me down.

“To think that after my own end, a day would come where I meet another Demon Lord. Fate is a strange thing indeed.”

Even as she spoke in a tone that suggested mere small talk, a terrifying killing intent washed over us. It was a suffocating pressure that felt as if I would be cut down the instant I let my guard down. This pressure… was truly fitting for a Demon Lord.

“Look, look! More are coming out!” Rilim pointed behind Vrisera.

The light burst three more times.

A silhouette resembling a wizard in golden robes.

A beastman lion whose entire body was a burning red.

And a giant that looked to be fifty meters tall.

Each and every one of them radiated an intense pressure equal to Vrisera’s.

“Stella… don’t tell me they’re also…?”

“…Yes.” Stella nodded, her face ashen. Her entire body was trembling. She was terrified.

“It’s okay, Stella. I’m with you.”

When I called out to her, Stella managed a very faint smile.

“That’s… true. My apologies.”

Having said that, Stella fixed her gaze on them.

“Starting from the right… the ‘Magical Emperor’ Estram-sama, the ‘Crimson Lion’ Rosgart-sama, and the ‘Giant Overlord’ Born-sama. As you suspected, they are all Demon Lords of the past.”

“Are they illusions too?”

Stella nodded at my question.

“Even if they are illusions, they are all among the most powerful in the history of Demon Lords. Please be careful, my Lord.”

“Four past Demon Lords… anything goes in a dream, I guess.” I let out a wry smile beneath my mask.

—Don’t… come any closer to me.

Suddenly, a voice echoed.

“Feria?”

The demon woman inside the crystal was looking at me. She seemed to have woken up before I noticed.

“I’ve told you this before, but please deactivate this world. Many demons have been caught in it.”

—Don’t come closer.

“Hey, Feria. Listen to—”

The surrounding scenery suddenly shifted. From the forest to a reddish-brown wasteland. From the wasteland to a frozen polar field. From the ice field to a scorching mountain peak. The locations changed one after another. Was this also Feria’s doing…!?

—I’m… scared.

The Dream Demon Princess whispered with a sigh.

“Eh?” I was taken aback by her unexpected words.

—The Heroes… they’re coming to kill me. So… I won’t let anyone get near.

Color drained from the world, leaving it in monochrome black and white.

—No, I’m scared… scared… scared…

Just as I thought it had turned completely black, it regained its original colors. The world was unstable.

—Don’t come… don’t come…

“Calm down, Feria,” I called out quietly to her as her voice trembled.

Had she gone through something truly horrific? Had the Heroes’ attacks been that fierce? During that battle, Feria must have felt a staggering amount of terror. Enough to leave deep trauma…

“Perhaps this is a type of defense mechanism,” Stella said.

“Defense mechanism?”

“The story was that Feria fled and went missing after the battle with the previous Heroes. It’s possible that, at that time, a fear of Heroes was carved deeply into her heart.”

“Fear of Heroes…”

“That fear awakened a survival instinct to protect herself, and that instinct likely caused the Nightmare World to go out of control—wouldn’t you say?” Stella posited. “This world, unstable in both location and color, feels like Feria’s mental landscape itself.”

Certainly… looking at Feria’s current state, it was a plausible explanation.

“In other words, if we can release her from her fear, we might be able to stop the Nightmare World.”

“I see…”

“Feria. If it’s the Heroes you fear, the Demon Lord has already driven them away,” Stella called out to Feria.

—The Demon Lord…?

“Yeah, you’re safe now. Can you deactivate it now?”

—Is the Demon Lord… strong?

“He is stronger than any in history. You don’t have to worry anymore.”

—Strong… scary…! Really…? I don’t know… I’m anxious…

“Hey, Feria…?”

—Show me… the Demon Lord’s strength…

With those words—.

The four Demon Lords lined up in front of Feria simultaneously. As if they were guarding her.

—So that I can feel safe enough to wake from the dream.

Feria whispered.

“So you want to test my power?”

“Indeed.”

The one who responded to my murmur was not Feria, but the black knight on horseback who had drawn her sword. The other three were also bracing themselves. They were in a state of combat readiness.

—If you are truly stronger than anyone… you should be able to win, right?

Feria stared at me through the crystal.

—Win, and make me feel safe. Me.

“…Honestly.” I let out a sigh mixed with a wry smile.

Regal, Bel, and now her. No one wants to acknowledge me easily. Among my executives, Stella is the only one who followed me from the start. I looked at her by my side.

“I’m grateful, truly.”

“My Lord?” Stella looked blankly at me as I patted her shoulder.

Then, I stepped forward.

The stats for Vrisera, the knightly Demon Lord at the front, were indeed far higher than any Hero I’d fought so far. As for the other three, Estram’s total level was 698, Rosgart’s was 713, and Born’s was 707—all in a similar level range.

Comparing simple numbers, while they are all around Level 700, I am over Level 4000. My stats are proportional to that, showing a massive gap. However, I am facing four of them.

“…It might get troublesome if they coordinate,” I grunted softly beneath my mask. Judging by their stats, even if they are illusions, their strength is identical to the real thing. They are not opponents I can afford to be careless with.

“So you are the Demon Lord of this era.” The wizard-like Demon Lord, Estram the “Magical Emperor,” stared at me.

“My fangs and claws shall turn you into a thousand pieces of meat.” The beastman Demon Lord, Rosgart the “Crimson Lion,” barked ferociously.

GUOOOOOOOOOOOOH!

The giant Demon Lord, Born the “Giant Overlord,” let out a war cry.

“Now, let us begin.” The Knightly Demon Lord Vrisera leveled her sword.

“Gravity Fall!”

I immediately chanted a gravity spell. Strike first, win fast. My target—the Giant Demon Lord, who looked like the slowest mover.

“Tch…!?” Captured by the super-gravity, the Giant Demon Lord Born was immobilized.

“Thunder Arrow!”

I unleashed a barrage of lightning arrows upon him.

GUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…! Born let out a pained cry.

“Sorry. I’m too busy to be held up by illusions.” The work of a Demon Lord is quite demanding, after all.

“Ragna Bomb!”

The jet-black energy sphere pulverized the Giant Demon Lord without a trace.

“So, I’m going to quickly release Feria, make her submit—and have us return to the original world.”

I stared down the remaining Demon Lords. Three left.