The Demonic Slash

I left the Demon Castle with Judas.

Our method of travel was, as usual, the Emperor Dragon Bel-ga-Elfieda—Bel. Judas, however, used flight magic. The fact that he could easily keep up with Bel’s high-speed flight was a testament to his skill.

We arrived at the wasteland stretching outside the Demon Capital.

“Is this a good place for training?”

“Yeah, there are no towns nearby, so it’s perfect,” Judas nodded in response to my question. This was the same place I had used for my own magic training before.

Judas and I landed on the ground.

“Magic Wall.”

I deployed a magical barrier spanning several square kilometers. It’s weak against physical attacks but incredibly strong against magic. Since it can’t block swords and physical strikes, it’s difficult to use in actual combat, but it’s the perfect spell for this kind of training.

“I’ll put one up as well, just in case. Magic Wall.”

Judas layered another barrier over mine. A double-layered defense formed by our combined mana. With this, we should be able to withstand even high-firepower spells.

“Then let’s begin the training,” Judas said with a smirk. “You have immense mana, but you’re practically an amateur when it comes to sorcery. I’ll teach you from the ground up—in a combat format, of course.”

“…I appreciate it.”

Whether it was Stella, Regal, or Feria, none of them were experts in the “Art of Sorcery.” Until now, I hadn’t had anyone capable of being a magic coach.

“First, a condition. You are not to fight at full power. We don’t know how much damage would be dealt to the Demon Realm, and even I would be in danger if I took a direct hit from your massive mana,” Judas explained.

“It should be fine with the double barrier.”

“Barriers aren’t absolute. Things happen. And above all—you won’t always have the luxury of setting up a barrier in real combat,” Judas added. “In fact, in your past magical battles, haven’t you found yourself unable to go all out because you were worried about collateral damage?”

He saw right through me.

“Understood.”

“This training assumes that situation. Oh, and I’ll be going all out. Try not to die.”

“So I’m the only one with a handicap?”

“You’re the Demon Lord. Show me you can overcome a little adversity like that,” Judas laughed mischievously.

“Good grief…”

“Alright, here I come. Mega Fire!”

Judas unleashed a top-tier fire spell.

“Lucifer’s Shield.”

I immediately deployed my mana barrier. The crimson flames struck the barrier in front of me and dissipated.

“Fire Arrow.”

I fired back with dozens of flaming arrows, but—

“Mana Shield.”

Judas blocked them effortlessly with his own barrier. His mana pool was truly deep.

“Alright, continuing. Rune Conversion—”

Judas held out his right hand toward me. This formula is…?

“Mega Water!”

A top-tier water torrent spell. The water appeared with enough force to wash away the entire area, but in the next instant, it condensed into a sphere of water the size of a palm and was launched at me. I deployed my barrier again and deflected it.

“That was—”

I noticed something.

“What’s wrong, little Demon Lord? Are you lost in thought?”

With a smile, Judas held out his right hand again. “Rune Conversion—Mega Thunder.”

This time, it was a sphere of lightning the size of a palm. I deflected this with my barrier as well.

“It’s different from my Mega-class spells…?”

Was it because of the difference in mana control ability? He was concentrating the power and firing it in a focused burst.

“Did you notice? You just fire your magic while relying on your immense mana. That’s why the damage spreads over such a wide area,” Judas explained. “I condensed that power into a single point. This way, the destructive force is concentrated in a narrow range. It’s a technique called Rune Conversion.”

“Rune… Conversion.”

I repeated his words.

“In your case, it’ll be faster to learn by doing rather than by explanation. Now, try to neutralize my attacks.”

“Got it.”

“Naturally, keep the damage to the surroundings to a minimum. Mega Fire!”

With that, Judas unleashed the top-tier fire spell.

“One more—Mega Thunder!”

Without a moment’s pause, he fired the top-tier lightning spell.

“And this one too—Mega Wind!”

He even unleashed a top-tier wind spell. He could handle three different Mega-class spells simultaneously…!?

I was stunned. While I was superior in the sheer volume of mana, this guy might be superior to any demon I’d met so far in the “Technique of Manipulating Magic.” Probably even better than Estram, the “Magical Emperor” I met in the dream world. Well, he did say he was Estram’s teacher, so it made sense.

Fire, wind, and lightning. They closed in from three directions.

“Now, break through them.”

Of course, if I unleashed a full-power attack spell, I could neutralize them. But that would scatter the aftershocks of destruction everywhere. That wasn’t the power I wanted. That wasn’t the power I needed.

“The power I want to grasp is—”

The power I must grasp is…

“—Image it.”

I told myself, thrusting my right hand out.

“Like he just did.”

Like the magic he fires.

“I will also—”

More power… narrow the effective range. Image the mana concentrating there. Conversion. Concentration. Convergence.

“Slice through and burst!”

I roared.

The Mega Fire, Mega Thunder, and Mega Wind—all three were blown away at once.

“Phew…”

A black, misty mana drifted from my right hand. It looked like a distorted sword, created by compressing my massive Demon Lord mana into a narrow space. Unlike a spell like Meteor Blade which naturally creates a sword of fire, I had condensed what was originally a wide-range explosion spell. Though the shape was crude, it worked well for an impromptu creation.

“Heh… the concentration is still a bit loose, but that was incredible…!” Judas muttered, looking surprised.

The space in front of us was split in a straight line. The slash I unleashed had cut through space itself, causing the enemy mana to dissipate.

“If you perfect that, you might be able to sublimate it into magic capable of destroying any enemy while suppressing collateral damage.”

“I want to get a better feel for that sensation. Keep them coming, Judas,” I said, still holding the sword of mana.

“Power only has meaning when it can be controlled. Your power is no longer just something that scatters destruction. You’ve taken a step forward.”

Judas smiled.

—Thump!

It was then that something pulsated deep within my chest.

“Tch…!?”

A feeling of intense wrongness. The core of my chest was hot. Something hot was swirling.

What is this—!?

It—quietly woke up.

A massive mana. It was the first time since the Age of Myth that it had sensed such overwhelming mana. No, it was an energy that surpassed even the Primal Demon Lord Velpher, whom it had fought back then.

And that made it the Great Enemy of God. Its target for annihilation.

Therefore, the time for activation had come.

It—shook its massive crimson frame and stood up.