The Fierce Battle Of The Demon Kings

My attack magic had completely obliterated the giant Demon Lord—Born, the “Giant Overlord.”

“Lord Born is…!”

“To destroy his massive frame in an instant… what terrifying mana.”

“Hmph. His offensive power is quite something.”

The three remaining Demon Lords growled simultaneously.

“Your offense may be high, but I wonder about your defense!”

The wizard-like Demon Lord—Estram, the “Magical Emperor”—shouted. He brandished a staff tipped with a jewel as red as blood. The jewel emitted a blinding light.

“Mega Wind!”

Twelve tornadoes surrounded me. The forest trees were uprooted and blown away, and the ground was gouged out, turning into a series of craters.

The highest-tier wind magic—Mega Wind.

To be able to manifest a spell of this level instantly, and twelve of them at once, no less. As expected of a Demon Lord, his mana was immense.

However—

“Burst Wind!”

I repelled them with my own wind magic. Though the rank of the spell I chanted was lower, my mana stat was overwhelmingly higher. I used a brute-force approach to forcibly erase his magic.

“Muu, to repel my magic so easily,” Estram groaned.

“His mana is indeed immense…!”

“Then we shall simply overwhelm him with physical attacks!”

From behind, the beastman Demon Lord—Rosgart, the “Crimson Lion”—pounced.

“Shatter, novice Demon Lord!”

Five claws approached, exploding through the atmosphere and generating a violent gale. Defense wouldn’t be in time. I took a large sidestep to dodge. Immediately after, Rosgart’s claws slammed into the ground.

CRASH!

The earth split deep with a thunderous roar.

“That’s some absurd raw strength…” I muttered, half in shock and half in exasperation. To create a fissure with just claws was power beyond common sense.

“You dodged well! But a beast’s weapons are not limited to claws. Fangs, tail—dodge them all if you can!”

Rosgart immediately followed up. Fangs that sliced the air created vacuum blades. A swinging tail scattered shockwaves. Even if I dodged, the aftershocks of the energy threatened to tear my body to shreds.

“Lucifer’s Shield.”

But because I had increased the distance, I had the luxury of time to chant a spell. The high-level mana barrier I manifested repelled every one of Rosgart’s rapid strikes.

“It’s too hard…! Even my attacks cannot break it!?”

“Goodbye.”

As Rosgart’s movements stopped for a split second after finishing his combo, I held out my right hand.

“Belphegor Sword!”

I generated a blade of mana and pierced through his body from behind the protection of my barrier.

“Gaha… aaaaah…”

With a pained cry, the beastman Demon Lord fell and ceased to move. Two left.

“Indeed, your stats are high. Far too high.”

The knightly Demon Lord stood before me. His black steed neighed as if to intimidate me.

“But a battle is not decided by simple power or speed alone. Allow me to teach you that.”

“I’d love for you to give me a lesson, Senior.”

I leveled my Belphegor Sword and spoke defiantly to my predecessor. My opponent was clearly a close-quarters specialist. While it would be faster to take him out one-sidedly from a distance with attack magic, using a spell with too much power risked destroying this world itself. And if the world broke, Stella and the others would take damage.

“Very well. It is time for instruction.”

With that, Vrisera spurred her horse forward.

Fast—!

Truly, rider and horse were as one. Before I could even chant a counter-spell, Vrisera had invaded my range.

“Nun!”

I barely caught the sword swung from horseback with my mana blade. Then came a second strike, a third—. I couldn’t fully parry the tip of her sword, which was being thrust with lightning speed and skillful feints.

“Belphegor Sword!”

I generated another mana blade in my left hand, managing to defend with dual-wielding.

“Too slow!”

Vrisera’s sword accelerated further. Both of my mana blades were sliced clean in half. This woman—can she even cut through the mana I’ve manifested!?

“Ragna Bomb!”

Startled, I unleashed an attack spell as a counter.

“Guh…!”

Vrisera gave a pained grunt and was blown back. I faced the knightly Demon Lord again, having regained some distance. The spell made it in time by a hair’s breadth, but that was a bit close for comfort. As expected of a Demon Lord. Furthermore, her swordsmanship looked familiar.

“It looks like the Zylas-style…?”

“Zylas? Hmph, that is the name of the human I once taught for sport.”

Vrisera gave a faint smile.

Zylas-style swordsmanship—. It was the school I used back when I was a human Hero, and it’s one of the strongest styles widely known across the continent. The founder, Zylas, was a once-in-a-century genius knight hailed as a “Sword Saint” several hundred years ago. Based on what she just said, it means Vrisera was the one who taught Zylas…

“I see. So he left his style to future generations,” the knightly Demon Lord muttered. “But you seem well-versed in human swordsmanship for a current Demon Lord.”

“…!”

“What’s wrong? I see hesitation.”

Vrisera spurred her horse again, once more invading my range.

“Meteor Blade!”

I generated a sword of fire, pushing my reflexes to the limit to parry her slashes. However, I was immediately forced onto the defensive. Vrisera attacked; I blocked and dodged. After a dozen exchanges—

“Tch…”

A hot pain pierced my right shoulder. Simultaneously, blood splattered. Her blade, woven with brilliant feints, had slightly outmaneuvered my perception.

“My sword is not so naive that it can be blocked by physical ability alone.”

Vrisera spoke flatly. Her slashes accelerated even further, swarming me from all directions like countless meteors. I didn’t have the luxury to chant a high-rank spell.

“Fire Arrow!”

Instinctively, I generated and fired dozens of flaming arrows.

“Useless!”

Vrisera sliced through every single one in an instant. The blast erupted, and I was pushed back significantly by the wind pressure.

“No, it was exactly as I planned.”

“I see. That wasn’t an attack, but a move to use the blast to gain distance.”

Vrisera laughed again.

“It seems you can do more than just use brute force; you can use your own power tactically.”

“I’ve been through my fair share of battles.”

Mostly back when I was human.

“I see. You are indeed worthy of inheriting the mantle of Demon Lord.”

Vrisera’s stance changed.

“Then, can you withstand this strike?”

She held the sword in her left hand, gripped the reins with only her right, and took an extreme forward-leaning posture. Simultaneously, Vrisera’s sword was enveloped in pale-blue lightning.

“Ultimate Technique: Magi Breaker—a slash that heightens anti-magic to the limit, slicing through any magical defense. And its speed is a super-velocity that no demon can react to. Can you break this?”

In other words, an absolute finishing move that can’t be dodged or blocked—.

“That’s quite troublesome.”

I groaned softly beneath my mask. …I have a way to win. If I use a top-tier Mega-class attack spell, I could likely defeat Vrisera. At the very least, it would deal massive damage. But that attack could destroy the Nightmare World itself.

“Stella and the others might take fatal damage…”

So, that option is rejected. I needed magic that would finish Vrisera alone without damaging this world. I summoned the spell list and searched. But only Mega-class spells were being displayed. This list basically shows the spells most suited for the situation. However, the definition of “best suited” seems to prioritize “defeating the enemy” above all else. It doesn’t seem to consider “protecting allies,” so I have to choose for myself.

“Right, what do I do…!”

I groaned. I didn’t have time left to hesitate. I had to decide now.

To win. To protect Stella and the others—.