It's SpanKing Time
"Guh...! Bastard...!"
The demon is scowling hard at me.
At a glance, he looks like your ordinary relatively handsome man, but that's not gonna fool Menu-san. Unlike me, Menu-san is super competent... That makes me sad.
"No use playing the fool. I know you're the guy who shot magic at me when I was busy sealing that monster... Heck, you and your cohorts must be behind this whole incident, no?"
"W-what are talking about! I've been hiding here to get away from that monster."
"I'm telling you. I know what you are, you can skip those theatrics. Mr. Demon."
His scowl turned into surprise after I said that.
"And now it's time for a little spanKi- cough... discussion."
"You just said spanking didn't you, Kajikawa-san!?"
"Oh no not at all, I just need the guy to tell me a few things."
"You're cracking your knuckles with a seriously scary face though! That's no face open for discussion!"
I mean people almost died you know?
Even I was on the verge, all because of this guy.
I won't accept it if I don't put him through the wringer, and harsh punishments.
"So yeah, you've got lots of stuff to answer. Do so and I'll leave you half-dead... Why did you do that. So many people could have died."
Menu screen suddenly showed up in front of me after I said that.
Probably telling me to refrain from needless violence or-
<<Demons are natural enemy of humans as well as demi-humans. There is no reconciliation. Recommending delivering a quick death after getting information, not half.>>
...Or not, it's the other way around. Menu-san, you're scaring me.
I'd prefer to avoid killing if we can communicate...
<<Due to their disposition, demons may act like they can be reasoned with, however their thought process is entirely dedicated toward eradicating mankind. There is an extremely high chance of this demon harming Kajikawa Hikaru or his companions in the future if he survives.>>
...Really.
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
"Leave me half-dead? ...How dare a mere human look down on me!!"
Right after he said that, his skin turned red... Literally the primary color of red.
Apparently he was just disguising himself as a human using a demon Skill.
His attributes also grew exponentially. Around 1.5 times the previous values.
Rather than a power up, this looks more like his stats have reverted back to their original numbers.
"Why you ask? Many people could have died you say? That is precisely what we desire! Humans have no worth whatsoever, swift deaths are the only acceptable fate for them. Having your deaths provides an entertainment for us is more than you deserve, you ought to thank us instead."
"T-that's just not right! Why do you demons hate us humans so much anyway!"
"We do not hate your kind, there is no resentment involved. Have you ever felt like eating good food? There is no deep reason behind such impulses. You eat because you want to, the same way we kill humans because we want to."
"You're totally not right in the head!"
...I see, no reconciliation indeed.
Looks like their mental make-up have been made to be fundamentally different than humans'.
"Now then, any more questions?"
"...Nope."
"Do you now, I can salvage this situation if I just liberate that card. Now die and give me that card before the barrier's gone!!"
He shot a fireball with his staff as he said that. Like such a little spark's gonna work now!
I swatted it with a mana cushioned hand, closed in on the demon with Pseudo Ground Shrink and hit it head-on with a Pile Bunker.
BOOM!
"Kuh...! Fu, fufu, it's useless!"
Hit by the Pile Bunker, the demon grimaced for an instant before quickly putting on a composed look.
His HP has barely decreased as well. The damage I inflicted before he undid his disguise remained, but my last attack barely registered in comparison.
Looks like he's buffed himself with Support Magic on top of getting his original Attributes back. Ordinary Pile Bunkers aren't gonna work anymore.
"You may deploy peculiar ability to repel my magic, but your attacks are nothing to me!"
He shot a ball of conflagration this time. Equal to one of the fireballs shot by the slime earlier size-wise.
Mana cushion can't deal with that. I mean, I got burned bad when I tried earlier.
Dodging it is a simple matter, but I won't. It's too much a pain to.
BWOOM!! The conflagration blazed up along with that sound.
"K-Kajikawa-san!"
"Hmph, dead from that, how dull...!?"
The demon must have seen me, done with my preparations, coming out of the blaze as he said that cliched line.
The attack burned through a lot of my HP, but I'm unscathed. Figured its firepower didn't quite match the slime's fireball.
I closed in on the demon with Pseudo Ground Shrink again.
"Again with that move! Do it as many time as you-!?"
He was gonna intercept me as he raised his staff before it suddenly flew off his hand on its own.
It's nothing. I just flicked it away with a remote controlled mana mass boosted with energy and lifeforce.
Distracted by that, the demon left a short yet fatal opening. I'm not dumb enough to overlook that.
If ordinary Pile Bunkers don't work, then it's time to introduce my new move.
I clad my whole body especially my right arm with mana cushion and then wrapped it over with thick mana armor.
I produced an explosive liquefied air (probably hydrogen or oxygen. I don't get the detail myself) over my palm. I then wrapped it in a cup-shaped mana armor with a pointed stake made of mana as its tip.
It takes me several seconds to create all this so it's quite impractical in real combat but thanks to the conflagration earlier acting as a smokescreen, I've got it all ready now.
I pointed the stake at the demon and detonated the liquefied air!
DWOOOOOOOM!!!
An explosive sound far louder than a normal pile bunker echoed.
The recoil was far severer as well, my arm would have been plucked off clean if not for the elaborately wrapped mana cushion.
The power of this stake is capable of easily exploding a High Cave Bear's head into smithereens. The outcome of taking this head-on is naturally, way past splatters as red pieces got scattered all over the place.
Of course the demon died instantly. There's no hint of its original form left, it no longer looks grotesque even. I gotta say even as its creator, this move is pretty dang nasty...
"U-uwaa... He's turned into pieces..."
"Umu, looks like it works well enough on demons. Good to see my training on High Cave Bears paid off."
"So this was the move you used to blow that bear's head that one time. It's got some serious firepower, super dangerous even."
"Yup, that took me by surprise as well... Ah, I'mma loot the staff. Seems a bit better than the one Alma has, gotta remember to hand it over later."
Honestly speaking, I could have ended that demon by crashing it down the ground from a high altitude with mana flight, but I'm reserving that move for when I'm acting as Soarer.
No guarantee that tactic is gonna work every single time after all, there's no harm in developing high powered moves like that.
Now then, we're done here, but how about their side? I believe they're gonna be fine but I guess I'll go take a look just to be sure.
Don't let up now, Alma, Lolimast.