Sousetsuka

On To Final Battle

I lost reading on Hero-kun's position a little while after I got news about Demon King capturing him.
The fact that he has disappeared from this timeline means everything is going as planned.

Things might have gotten a little dicey if we couldn't beat Black Dragon before Hero-kun disappeared.
Don't think even Alma's parents could manage that thing.
Unless they could use Energy Control, me think.

Hmm, I see most folks are done with their fights too. Nice going.
Now people we're gonna leave behind won't die off by rampaging magic beasts even after I Fast Travel away the people I've marked.

So yeah, it's Fast Travel time. Our destination is the royal castle's remains on Continent 4.
I've collected my great hammer and Black Dragon's body, no worries there. GO.

The scenery instantly changed from the apocalyptic-looking terrain full of craters and magma from our battle with Black Dragon to the dreary ruins of a castle.
Everybody I have marked are all here too.


"...Huh?"

"Oo, oh...? ...Wha?"

"Eh, what's going on? Where, am I? Eh?"


Almost all of them are bewildered. Understandable.
Just when they finally got a breather after betting their life and winning against some monstrously powerful magic beasts, they experienced this.

Once I confirmed the presence of everybody I've marked, I walked up and spoke to the Anti-demon Army Commander-in-Chief and Alma's parents.


"...Seeing as we suddenly find ourselves on continent 4, it is safe to assume we are heading for the real final battle as you discussed with us beforehand, no?"

"Yes. Hero Neo Raifu was abducted much sooner than anticipated."

"Haa, no rest for the weary huh..."

"Our opponents are supposed to be an army of 30,000-strong Chief-class demons, right? ...Ufufu, that seems downright cute compared to Demon King."


Old commander braced himself, Alma Papa sighed while Alma Mama cracked a joke as they steeled themselves.
The other Special Job Holders started pressing me for answers after witnessing our exchange.


"H, hold it right there! What's the meaning of this!?"

"...I demand an explanation."

"Thirty thousand chief-class demons, what is this about!?"


Haa, figured it'd turn this way. Guess it's inevitable, we're the only people who are in the know here while they're all in the dark.
They're gonna keep interrupting my explanation at this rate. Gotta shut them up first.


Fshhhh.....
I put in my energy as I breathed in, then I released the air from my lungs.


"Calm doooooooooooooooooown!!!"


I made sure the volume was just below eardrum-splitting level.


"Yiii!?"

"Higyaa!?"


The people inching in covered their ears with their eyes wide open.


"...Excuse me. I understand each of you has something to say about this, but please for now lend me your ears. I'll explain everything in order."


They were willing to listen to me somehow despite their hurt ears.


As to what's happening right now.

First, Hero-kun has been abducted by Demon King, current whereabouts unknown.
I actually know where he is but telling that here is only gonna invite more confusion so I opt to gloss over it.

Next up, Continent 3 has been spatially dislocated by Demon King's magic.
I evacuated all the powerful people from the continent before the magic took effect in order to prepare for the upcoming battle.


"How did you teleport us? Is there even a magic capable of teleporting multiple targets separated by distance in one go?" 

"The only possible ability is Hero's 'Fast Travel'... Could you be the real hero?"


The red haired Special Job holder, Kyaranonno-san asked me. Hey, your face is too close. Also scary.
She's the elder sister of Fifraila of the girl trio and Leviara of the hero party, but isn't she way too overbearing compared to them? Kinda like Scarymast.
The fact that she knows about Hero's abilities means she's quite well informed.


"I'm not a Hero myself but I do have access to some of Hero's abilities due to some circumstances. It'd take too long to explain in detail so I hope you get the gist with the brief version."

"...I still need explanation but let's put that aside for now."

"That was the summary of what happened thus far. But the more important matter is what lies ahead."


There are two things we must do now.


First up is defending the world against the 30,000 Chief-class demons' invasion.
The other being the slaying of Demon King.

Failing any one means the end of humanity as we know it.
The scale seems too big to be true, but it's the reality we've been thrust in.
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

"How did you find out about all that? It's as if you've always known everything about their plan."

"Yes, I have. From a certain reliable source."

"How do you back up the reliability of their intel?"


Right after Kyaranonno-san finished her sentence, a bell-like sound rang on a black phone-like thing.
Uwah, that surprised me! I'm telling you I hate the sounds of a ringing phone!
Kyaranonno-san fetched a comm magic device from her pouch. That's the source huh.


"Pardon, let me take this call... Hello, I'm in the middle of an important discussion...!?"


Just before she could probably say to call again later, somebody shouted from the other side of the device.


『It's an army of demons! We're being pushed back by unbelievably strong demons, each and every one of them! We're helpless against them, requesting immediate backup... U, uwaaaaa!!』


Psh, the comm magic device fell silent after the sound of a scream followed by a lost signal sound.
...They've started the invasion it seems like. Those demons sure act quick.


"...I cannot entirely take everything you say at a face value but it does seem like this is not the best of time to have an endless debate."

"I'm just glad we're on the same page now. I have been in touch with the king on each continent to prepare for this invasion, so matters like reorganization of forces should go smoothly."

"I have not been informed on that."

"We had to prepare through back channels and minimize the amount of people involved in order to avoid leaks to demon side."


Otherwise, there's no way they can immediately react to an invasion of all those powerful demons if they weren't told beforehand.
I asked Alma parents' assistance to get those kings prepare for this moment.

The kings had to be extremely careful laying out the groundwork as to not leak our plan to demons.
We also exterminated all the demons that were planted in every country army circles.
I was sure I'd go bald having to accommodate all that on top of dealing with Oni-sensei during a freaking war....


"Save all that annoying talk for later! Just tell us one thing! Where and who are we supposed to beat the crap out of!"


Jurou-san grew impatient and yelled out loud.
That's nice, make it simple for me too.


Special Job holders like Kyaranonno-san and Jurou-san are to fight the invading demons on every continent.
There's still plenty of forces from the national and anti-demon army left on each continent, they should regroup with them and try to last a whole day.
I distributed samples of Julian-made magic ore mines to each countries. Surely they managed to mass manufacture some in the meantime.


The individuals heading for Demon King Castle would be my party, Radia-kun, Aizawa-kun, Baredo and Rasfin.
Since the situation looks even more grim than I thought, I'll have Hyula-san and Ganan-san participate in the battle against invading demons instead.


"You're going to fight Demon King with that group? Do you have a chance with the Hero missing?"

"It's not just us, but yes, this composition has the best shot at it out of all the people here."


Kyaranonno-san's eyebrow twitched when I said that. Scary.


"...I see you are confident, but overt pride will only bring ruin upon oneself. Should we all not participate in the battle?"

"Ah, we're good. Or rather, there's no point in having more people. You're only gonna get yourself killed right away."

"Unlike you?"


...Ah geez, this is such a pain.
I get that I must sound like an overly confident novice speaking out of line. Which isn't entirely wrong.
But I don't see how these people can hold themselves off against a being capable of easily swatting off buffed Alma parents. Especially since they can't control their Mana and Energy.
But they should be more than a match against those invading demons. This is simply allocating the right people for the right job.


I buffed my Attributes with energy for a very brief moment.
The me now can reach 20,000 on Attributes values by quintupling them.
I know I look weak but having to do this every time someone like her shows up is getting tiring.

She seemingly sensed my buffed power and reflexively stiffened up without a word.


"...!?""

"I'll beat you up right here and now if that's what it takes to satisfy you. Come at me."


I don't want to act so pompous but we really don't have time.
Demon King has a Skill Ability that powers up all the demons he created but it's apparently unusable when he's engaged in battle. So having someone fight Demon King also helps softening the invasion.
Therefore, the slower we get to Demon King the harder the fight against those demons become.


"...Very well. We will resist with all our power but we cannot promise it will last forever. So please make a short work of Demon King."


Easy for you to say. We're up against Demon King here, y'know.
Also, I may have a peek on Demon King's status but it's not the whole thing.
His Status is partly bugged due to his Menu being just as bugged or something along that line.
Oh, and here's how it looks like.



Demon King (Souma Ryuta)

Lv201

State: Normal

【Attributes】

ＨＰ：５３４１１/５３４１１
ＭＰ：■■/■■
ＳＰ：■■/■■

ＳＴＲ：３０１００
ＡＴＫ：３０１００
ＤＥＦ：２９８００
ＡＧＩ：２９９７８
ＩＮＴ：２９９９１
ＤＥＸ：２８７３６
ＰＥＲ：２６８９０
ＲＥＳ：２３７８８
ＬＵＫ：０

【Skills】
Demon Lv10　■　■　■　■　■　……



That's all the info I got on him but even this is enough to send anyone spiraling in despair...
That absurd level is probably from his previous level before reincarnation added to his current level.

Only Demon King can have Demon Skill Lv10 and the Ability being a buff to all demons.
He should enter True Demon Release once he's locked in combat with us, which should undo that buff.


...Which means we're stuck to a fight against those Attributes multiplied by two huh. I might die for real this time...

Previous Chapter 

632 Skeleton, Skeleton, Skeleton

And here I am before rows of neatly lined up skeletons which are neither marching nor moving randomly in all directions.
Each has got a sword and a shield on hands. Guess you could say they're the typical game-like Skeleton Soldiers?
And in the furthest back is a big skeleton double the size of a normal one wearing a nice looking armor. It looks like it's commanding the rest.
But that doesn't matter to me. I don't need to know the how and why when I can just deal with them all.

(Now then, if I recall right, monsters move outside a dungeon by expending their internal mana.)

Just like those goblins I saw near elven village back then. They dispersed into mana when they took fatal hits.
That must be applicable with these skeletons as well.
I drew the knife on my waist and cut the nearest skeleton in half.

That was when a weird blue glimmer caught my eyes. I looked for the source and found a 3mm small blue stone inside the skeleton's breastbone.

(...Is this a mana core? Are you telling me these things will keep reviving back?)

It's gonna be a pain if every single skeleton is like this.
Monsters like undead tend to have an immortal setting. Stuff like regenerating wounds or reanimating from getting smashed into smithereens.
There's a high chance of them reviving from dead if they have ways to refill their mana outside dungeons.

(There's around... 500 of these skeletons. Judging from their line of sight, their destination must be the square. Isn't that too plot convenient?)
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
I undid Acceleration and observed the skeleton to check on that hypothesis.
Every single skeletons turned their skulls toward me all at once.
It looked so eerie from where I stood. They made that move in a perfect unison without the slightest delay despite their number.

Then I observed the skeleton I cut. Sure enough, the wound I made regenerated.
Its blue stone shone all the while which confirmed my suspicion.

"Aah, I was kinda hoping I got it wrong ever so slightly at least. But nope, it's exactly what I think it is."

This means there's no end to them if I don't do something about their cores.

(Should I just crush them along with their cores? No wait, I'm sure these stuff fetch a lot. What a waste.)

I want to end this ruckus asap. I got nothing to do with it originally.
But there's no turning back time if some people fell victim. I am aware about my capability to end this problem. Not by choice.
It would fill me with regret later on if some people got hurt or died because I didn't bother sticking my nose into this mess.

(Wait, maybe it's usually impossible because these cores are inside the skeletons? Can't I just grab and pull them out?)

As someone who lacks common sense about this world, I always choose the path with the least resistance.
I'd save coming up with more complex plans for when they're needed. I entered Acceleration.

I shoved my hand in the abdomen of the skeleton I cut earlier and took the core out.

(Ah, there's no way I could have done this if this was a creature with flesh and blood.)

Afterward, I cut the skeleton with my knife from its head down once again.
Next up, I gotta undo Acceleration and observe the fate of this skeleton.

(If things go well, I'd profit off this while dealing with the problem... But all 500 of these skeletons?)

I let out a sigh when I think about the labor awaiting me if this experiment goes well.

Previous Chapter 

Just As Planned

This chapter starts from Hero's POV

Half of the katana's blade I swung at Demon King is gone.
It's not broken, it's still there, I just can't see it.

Upon a closer inspection, it's been stabbed into a gash in space.
What the heck is even a gash in space!? What the hell is going on here!?


"Well done. This shall proceed better than anticipated."

"What are you...!?"


Demon King's power shot up through the roof.
A black flower-like tattoo surfaced on his face.
Is this, True Demon Release...!?

Oh crap, he's still got me by my neck, he's gonna separate my head from my body.
No wait, won't that actually work just fine for me? I could just die for now and regroup after getting revived.


"U, waa!?"


Right after that thought crossed my mind, Demon King flung me away instead of breaking my neck.
I crashed hard into a wall, my back and head hurt so bad.

I turned my sight at Demon King while enduring the pain and saw him staring at the spatial gash with his hand on his chin.


"Fumu, I did not expect your power to open that by itself. The present day hero is quite a capable specimen as it turns out."

"What the hell you're going on about...! What's that spatial gash anyway!?"

"Do you truly believe you will get an answer out of me? Why don't you inquire your Menu."

Dammit, Menu! What's that gash! Why can't my attacks hit him!

<<A, an unknown magical formula confirmed! It's not of this world, it comes from a different dimension! I bet that's another power he brought back from Floor 21!>>

There it is again, another Floor 21-related power!
All we got are useless crap like a power to turn potatoes into sweet potatoes or sex change once a day, why does Demon King get all the good stuff!

<<Neora-san! Off yourself immediately and let yourself be resummoned!>>

Eh, wha, what are you saying now!?

<<Just do it! If you end up getting thrown into the space beyond that gash...!!>>


"I advise against that. Let the grace of revival takes effect and this world shall be condemned, forevermore."


! He read my conversation with Menu!


"At the point you died and be resummoned to the Hero Summoning Altar on Continent 3, I shall also cast the magic to spatially sever Continent 3."

"? ...What does that mean."

"Once that is done, Continent 3 will lose access from and to outside world for about a month. No ships, airships, any physical means nor Teleportation and Fast Travel will work."


...!!
This darned Demon King! He really prepared some real nasty crap!


"Continent 3 is where all the powerful people including Special Job holders have gathered, is it not? I do not believe humanity can withstand the full brunt of 'Current generation demons' with both the hero and those people absent."

"Current generation, demons...?"

"All the demons you humans have fought thus far are orphaned demons created by the previous generation Demon King. Common demons besides Chief-class are only around Lv 50-60. Meanwhile, the common demons I create are over Lv 80 at the very least. They are on par with previous generation chief-class demons."

"What about it!"


"As of present, the total amount of current generation demons that exist are about 30.000. Even one Chief-class demon wields enough power to destroy a city by themselves, do you believe humanity stands a chance against the entirety of them without their hero or Special Job holders? Would those people continue to fight once they find out the rest of humanity has gone extinct outside?"


...S, screw that to hell and back!!
How're we supposed to win against those! Forget a month, everybody's gonna die in half that!

Even if Special Job holders stayed behind, they would probably only last for a day or two against that many.
Has he been amassing that kind of overkill firepower bit by bit all this time!?


"Our previous generation comrades have done well. Thanks to all their unceasing actions, we have succeeded building this army with no considerable loss."

"J, just how far you thought ahead, how are you...!"

"There must have been a better and smarter method than relying purely on number and firepower, but I was incapable of coming up with such. Truly, I lament my lack of wisdom."


Demon King's strategy is super simple that's for sure. Brute forcing through sheer number and power while making sure the plan goes unobstructed.
But that's exactly why it's foolproof. Any setback could be dealt with by altering how he move those 30.000 strong Chief-class demons.
This strategy is foolhardy precisely because it's super simple.


"Well now, what shall you do, Hero-dono. Will you spend a month of peace alongside those few powerful people on Continent 3 and challenge me once again afterward, or perhaps---"

"I'mma beat the crap outta you here and now! All is well once you're dead!"


I look at Demon King with my katana at the ready.
That's the only way out. Humanity is done for if he's not taken care of here!


"Indeed, you possess no other choice. Straightforward, foolish and rightful choice."

"Screw youuu!!"


I take the iai stance and get ready to cast Master Skill 'Dimensional Blade'.
There's no dodging my iai slash with the effect of Longsword Skill. Add Dimensional Blade to cover the low reach and it's perfect.

I'm gonna take Demon King's head right here and now!


"...Fssh!!"


I pull the sheath and draw the katana.
The entire blade comes out of the sheath.

The sound of cutting wind echoed as my blade came out of its sheath and hit Demon King's neck---


A shrill metallic sound so loud I thought it ruptured my eardrum reverberated.


"Iigii!!?

"...!"


I couldn't hold back my scream at this murderously shrill sound.
The sound was produced from Demon King stopping my Dimensional Blade aimed at his neck with his own sword.
I couldn't hold myself from covering my ears due to the pain.


Even though that was the poorest of move I could make.


Demon King got in front me in less than 0.01s after my hands moved to my ears.

Blood seeped out of his ears, his eardrums must have ruptured.
Yet, he didn't flinch at all. Like he's used to this stuff.


"■■■■(Got you)."

"Owaa!?"


He grabbed and hurled me away once again as he uttered some sort of word.
I immediately activated Air Step to regain my balance but a dull pain ran through my abdomen just as I was about to take a step forward.


"Guee!"


An unbecoming scream escaped my mouth. A girl shouldn't make that sound. I'm a boy though.
Demon King had shot out a Mana Blade Farslash after throwing me.
A barrage of them at that! I can't dodge, gotta guard with Shield Art!


"Ugugagaaaa!!"

"...You almost made it, o Hero."


I narrowly managed to block the attack but I couldn't stop myself from getting flung since there was no foothold anywhere.
I heard Demon King's muttering like he was sure of his victory as he kept shooting Farslashes.
Think you won already huh!? This match ain't over---


<<Neora-san!! You can't let yourself be flung behind any further....>>


Menu displayed a huge red warning sign.
Behind? What's behind, me...!?


A gash, no, a big hole in space.
Behind me was a hole big enough to barely fit one person.

Isn't that the spot where I unleashed Dimensional Blade aimed at Demon King's neck...?
I think that was also the same spatial gash from earlier, but made bigger. Is he trying to shove me in there!?

I saw a wasteland on the other side of the big hole.
A completely barren land with absolutely zero grass anywhere to be seen.


My instinct and brain rang the biggest alarm bell. 

No. I must not go in there.


There's absolutely no going back from there in a way that goes beyond my comprehension.


"Farewell."

"Ga, aaaaaaaaa!!!"


But, Demon King mercilessly shot an unstopping barrage of magic and farslashes and blew me straight into the big hole.
I gotta go back, I must go back,


...A,aa...!!


The hole closed shut before I could make my way back.



The only one left here in this barren wasteland is a beaten up me.


<<W, we're done for. Why, why, how could, this...!!>>


What are you talking about! We can go back to his castle with Fast Travel now that Demon King isn't nearby... Oh right, you can't go to where Demon King is with Fast Travel.
Then we should head to another continent! Gotta hurry or 30.000 powerful demons will invade and...

<<...It can't be done. We can't go, anywhere from this place, no, this 'time period'. This is our final, stop.>>

W, what are you on about?
Where is this place anyway...!?

<<This is the end state of a dead planet. A planet of death with no humans, demons, nothing. You can't get revived either since you have been detached from the magic formula.>>

The end state, of a dead planet?



<<Yes. This place, this 'time period'... is dead Parallecia, hundreds of millions years in the future.>>




<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >


~~~~~~~~Demon King's POV~~~~~~~






"Ha, hahaha, hahahahaha....!"


I could not hold back my laughter.
It went well. Everything, perfectly.

The hero has been banished to the end time of this planet.
I have succeeded at erasing the Hero from this time period by perusing 'Time Loop Magic Formula' I brought from Floor 21.

Reshaping this formula into a usable form took immeasurably considerable efforts.
From specifying time period, coordinates of the destination, to usage limit and maintaining the open state. The issues to solve were endless.

The biggest problem being the enormous energy required to move time forward.
I could barely supply such amount of energy by activating True Demon Release and entering my Final Form.
There was even a possibility of me dying before I could send the hero away.
But due to him possessing a power beyond my calculation, I managed to open the hole with nothing more than a clash between his power and my True Demon Release.

With that much power and the grace of revival, he should eventually succeed in his quest to exterminate me even if the rest of humanity is no more.
But that is no longer a threat now that he has been banished from this world.


The match is set now that hero is off the stage.
Once Continent 3 is spatially severed, the current generation demons shall overrun the other continents. Then our victory is assured with the dead of the last Special Job holder.


That went well. Everything went well.
Everything has gone just as planned.


The time to remain in obscurity has passed. The world shall now usher in the age of demons.



～～～～～





<<Hero Neo Raifu's erasure by way of time slip has been confirmed.>>


...I see.

Menu, Fast Travel our group and the people I marked to another continent.
Gotta evacuate before we got confined in a severed space.

<<Affirmative.>>


Phew. Hero-kun, got sent away huh~. Far, far away~.







Just as planned.





...That kinda made me sound like a certain villainous protagonist with a note of death.

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