"We'll hold them off, you guys still have a battle you need to fight ahead of you!"

"Thanks, we'll definitely win this and return home!"

Leaving the demons to the adventurers that had accompanied them thus far, the [Heroes] continued forward. They continued on, through the blood, the screams, and the littered corpses of friend and foe. Distant flames filled the air and the clouds reigned over the darkened sky. The final battle was here: the fight to save the world. The final frontier, the castle of the [Demon Lord] at the heart of the demon's territory staged a bloody epic. The [Heroes] slowly entered the grand marble hall of the castle lined with bones and banners tinted with gold and red in the darkness.

The 7 slowly stepped within its jaws and confronted the [Demon Lord Vetheris]. He took up the throne in a nonchalant posture.

"The [Holy Kingdom]'s [Heroes] from another world, I applaud you for reaching all this way. I admit praise for the battle you've presented thus far."

Though he was expressing words of respect, they laid menacingly cold in the frigid air without reception. He stood and looked around at the faces of resolve and anger.

"Tatsumi Yamamoto, Sato Shiraishi, Ayame Suzuki, Yui Saegusa, Rino Fujiwara, Satomi Hayase, and Ryosuke Hikaru...it seems your other allies are busy outside. I've sent my own servants away as well, well, most of them are already dead."

Vetheris spat the last comment sharply as he glared down at the ones who had murdered them.

"To me, you're nothing but stubborn obstacles in the way of our mission. You are no [Heroes] but indiscriminate serial killers that prey on the weak and call it justice."

"Now, I can't let that comment slide."

He spoke in a clear tone that left no room for emotion. It was as if everything he had said was an undeniable fact. He stood at the center of the room and the center of the resistance against Vetheris, Ryosuke Hikaru of the 7 [Heroes]. You could say he's the party leader.

"It was the demons who decided to invade the humans. We are just doing what we have to do to complete our mission. The [Holy Kingdom]--no humanity and Goddess [Ervia] wishes for salvation. Us [Heroes] also need to return home."

"It seems we are at an impasse."

"I never intended to seriously converse with you anyway, [Demon Lord Vetheris]."

The [Demon Lord], an existence meant to strike fear into the hearts of those who hear of him. They are to be a symbol of power and authority for the demons, a chosen one by the majority. They are the one who unites the demons, who leads them into a new age.

[Heavenly Armament]

Ryosuke's metal-plated armor began to glow and cover with a pristine holy aura. His sword too became a [Holy Sword] capable of felling the head of a [Demon Lord]. His equipment turned crystal white as gold lined the edges. This is his exclusive ability bestowed by the Goddess [Ervia] herself, [Heavenly Armament]. His defense and attack power are temporarily vastly increased.

Vetheris summoned a staff from midair and began gathering power as Ryosuke issued strategic moves to his comrades.

"Pitifully die, [Heroes]!"

[Dark Flame Pillar]

The spell crashed violently from above onto the heroes but Satomi, the [Saint], defended the party with [Holy Shield].

"You're outnumbered [Demon Lord], looks like this is the end of the line for ya!"

Tatsumi proclaimed so as he pushed his way to close quarters with spells reinforcing his fist to the hardness of titanium. Against a mage type like Vetheris, this was the right move. But, the [Demon Lord] is a special spell caster that has overwhelming power as the ruler of demons.

Rino, the scout, shouted," Dodge it!"

Tatsumi quickly dodged the trap formation which exploded to his side. Rino threw a knife at Vetheris which was simply bat away as if it had no sharpness or weight at all.

"That can't be..."

"Satomi, buffs!"

"You got it."

[Speed Up]
[Strength Up]

Ryosuke and Ayame charge in as the main sword wielders of the party: Ryosuke with a broadsword and Ayame with a more Japanese-style blade.

"Hyaaah!"

The holy blade sunk to one side as Ayame's blade, covered and accelerated by elemental water, went to the other. Vetheris swiftly constructed a barrier and stopped both in their tracks.

[Ice Lance]

A spell was thrown from above the [Demon Lord] on a course straight to him by Yui. As he distractedly used his other hand to block it, Ayame and Ryosuke pushed harder until the initial barrier cracked and wavered.

"The holy aura should be getting to you now, does it burn?"

Ryosuke intimidatingly snarls. Vetheris was seemingly surprised at the sensational power and sudden development. He was momentarily overwhelmed. The barrier tore. He quickly dodged the slash and stepped back.

"I can see the skill honed in your time here, but..."

[Shadow Spear]

"...it's not enough!"

A plethora of spears made from shadows sprung from the ground and the area around Vetheris towards the [Heroes].

[Holy Shield]

Satomi reached to protect her allies from across the battlefield.

"We might be in for a long battle..."

---

There is another world different from our own called [Orvinus]. [Orvinus] is what many would call your standard fantasy world of swords, magic, and monsters. There were many races on the continent, but the ones with the largest populations were the human and demon races, the humans being backed up by the Goddess [Ervia]. Humans flourished with the fruits of civilization and magical technology. The demons tamed monsters and harnessed their strengths through fierce competition. Humanity created kingdoms and empires with beautiful cities. Demons worshipped the [Demon Lord] and created a singular nation surrounding the castle.

In recent times, a new [Demon Lord] is born in the cycle. Vetheris pressured the demons into war against the humans, a long-time wish for many. The humans were ill-prepared and individually weaker, thus getting pushed back by the invasion. Nations began to perish one after the other until one of the last remaining nations, the [Holy Kingdom], had had enough. They performed an ancient magic ritual passed down from generation to generation to summon [Heroes] from another world in dire times.

The [Heroes] appeared and were vigorously trained (magic, swords) so that they could defeat the demons and [Demon Lord]. They searched for a way to return to their previous world too and realized an item in the possession of the demons could help them. So, they wholeheartedly devoted themselves to the goal of [Orvinus]'s human race. They were bestowed status, power, and equipment by the kingdom as well as magic by the Goddess [Ervia] herself. They grew at an abnormal rate...though that may have been for the better.

The [Heroes], aided by the [Sword Saint Gauss] and [Great Sage Thouria], began the grueling months of demon hunting. The warzone turned into a one-sided slaughter with the introduction of humanity's saviors. The tables were turned. They reached the hall of the [Demon Lord]'s castle eventually after accomplishing many deeds and overcoming the obstacles in their way, or rather the demons. The [Heroes] changed history. It's hard to believe that they were just normal high schoolers a few months ago.

---

*panting*

The [Demon Lord] is strong, that is an irrefutable fact.

[Heal]

The wounded Ryosuke takes Satomi's spell as his shoulders slightly lighten. Yui, the magician of the group, fired off a bolt of lightning which Vetheris barely got out of unscathed.

"I've gotten a bit bored of this."

His low voice resonated with the darkness in the room. This was his signal to get a bit more serious; he activated his own exclusive ability,

[Soul Breaking Phantasm]

The [Heroes] fell and fell into the depths of their hearts. Their fear is used as a knife against them. If [Heavenly Armament] represents the power that humans hold hope in, [Soul Breaking Phantasm] represents the power that humans are taken advantage of. The ability shows you your fear, an illusion of sorts. It turns your heart and memories over searching for the nastiest way to tear at your mental fortitude. It's the perfect tool for torture, control, and maintaining authority as the lord of demons. The [Heroes] were caught off guard as illusions surrounded them. Vetheris strode forward with absolute confidence in his authority--his terrifying power while preparing a [Fireball] at point-blank range. At this range and timing, things seemed to be leaning toward Vetheris's abrupt victory...

"This is farewell, foolish [Heroes]."

He raised his hand to deliver the blow.

*slash*

"Eh?"

Ryosuke slashed down with perfect stance, a direct hit of holy mana onto the [Demon Lord]. Taken aback, Vetheris tried to create some barriers but Ryosuke took advantage of the opening and plunged the [Holy Sword] through Vetheris's chest. Deep purple blood seeped down the sword and wound.

"You forced yourself out of the illusion at the right moment I was in range to catch me off guard...?"

"That's right. After all, there's no way that could happen to my sister..."

Ryosuke muttered the last part as he recalled what had happened under the [Soul Breaking Phantasm]. Ryosuke,

"My sword can cut you down from this range without giving you time for magic."

"It can't be...you were planning this, from the start weren't you--?"

"Of course, we had data on [Soul Breaking Phantasm] beforehand that we dragged out of your servants."

Vetheris coughed out blood as the rest of the [Heroes] began recovering from the ability and took up battle stances once again: they were a bit weakened.

"Is this the end of the line for me...without granting demonkind their dream..."

"Hurry up and die."

Ryosuke forced the sword in harder as Vetheris lost his strength.

"Demonkind will live forever, our ambitions will be eternal. You [Hereos] will never understand--"

"Ryo watch out!"

[Self-Destruct]

Vetheris used the last of his mana and life force to force out an explosion to the immediate surroundings and engulf the inner castle with dark flame.

Due to Satomi's [Holy Shield], there were no major injuries though. After the explosion died down and the [Heroes] put out the ghastly flames with water magic, they relaxed a bit and made relieved faces.

"D-Did we win?"

"We did it, guys."

A few began to tear up and a few hugged each other tightly.

Well, they had room to celebrate. They had done what no one had expected and proved a victory for humankind.

"This means we can finally go home..."

The [Demon Lord]'s tattered robe floated to the ground in pieces as debris. No one noticed the inscribed magic circle embroidered carefully on them.