I always thought I was strong, a warrior fit to carry the name of ‘Ash’ai’ even if I was of low birth myself. I fought on many battlefields and brought back many trophies as proof of my triumphs…it was all pointless.

Right now, I’m staring at the strongest demon of our generation, a demon I looked up to since his father picked me from the slums and took me in, getting tossed like a ragdoll by a monster.

Uzan is supposed to be the single most powerful demon, the pinnacle of what we can accomplish, yet he is getting treated like a toddler by this beast. C-Can such a monster even be defeated? Is this why the old bearers of knowledge refuse to speak of the dead clans, the war, or the humans?

“p-p-please I’m—”

Uzan can’t move anymore, he has resorted to begging but I can’t blame or ridicule him. I-I want to believe that I’m still sitting in place to heal Bari but…the truth is I’m too afraid to move.

I don’t think he’ll spare us as he claimed. The way he speaks about demons, and how he looks at Uzan makes it clear. To him, we are nothing but pests who happened to wander into his world.

If he leaves this forest the disaster that will follow will be immeasurable. Even if he can’t kill the demon lord, the amount of damage he’ll cause before he can be stopped will lead to the collapse of the capital.

b-but I can’t stop him. There is no way for me to win even if Bari was to join in, so…should I beg him like Uzan? Try to convince him to forgive—

“stop!”

Who is—oh no.

“why? Why would someone like you be here?”

You fool, why would you come here?

“why have you come here master Onvyr… why have you walked to your own death?”

“you don’t have to do this human, I understand that you’re confused but the war has long ended. Don’t let old grudges take control of you.”

he’s letting go of Uzan?

“what a joke, are you still trying to fool me with that lie? I don’t know why or how you managed to get here, but neither you nor he will be leaving so it doesn’t matter.”

He took a proper stance, they are about to fight. I should probably pick up Bari and leave. As heartless as it is, I need to make sure to report this back to the capital.

Master Onvyr may be wiser than Uzan but he is weaker than him, and in a fight against such a monster wisdom is about as useful as a glass sword.

m-maybe I can even reach for Uzan if—n-no If I get close to him… I can’t risk it.

“it’s clear you won’t listen to reason but can you at least tell me your name?”

“Adam Williams, commander of the 7^th Dragon Knights regiment.”

Dragon Knights? I think I heard of them before.

“ah, that explains Uzan’s…condition. Thank you for giving me your name, please allow me to return the gesture. I’m Onvyr In’shi, head of the In’shi clan.”

Master Onvyr…have gone mad?

“you think you can beat me with an unsheathed sword?”

h-he’s senile. Does he not see the state Uzan is in? I-I need to warn—

“yes.”

“Is that supposed to be leeway or conceit?”

“it is mercy.”

SO FAST!

How did Onvyr cover all that distance so fast? He’s definitely a master tactician but he shouldn’t be able to move like that, and that sword technique is insane. His slashes are lightning-fast.

“I’ll say, you are better than the other one. I guess that comes with being a clan head huh?”

“I’m honored that my skills were acknowledged by a great warrior such as yourself, so how about we stop this squabble and talk it out over wine like the old soldiers we are?”

This human…no this monster isn’t only dodging and counter-attacking Onvyr bear handed. He’s also having a conversation while doing it.

Damn it Onvyr, were you hiding your strength all this time? Were you acting weak to go under the radar along with your clan?

“sharing a table with a demon? Haha, not in a hundred years.”

“how unfortunate [SCATTER FLAM].”

What? Using that spell when he is so close is insane. He’ll get caught in it too

“Indeed, [GRAVITY BURST]”

They are both unharmed!? did such powerful attacks cancel each other out, or are those two just that durable?

Huh? Onvyr retreated. Did he tire himself out?

“[FIRE STORM], [EARTH CLAW], [SCARLET BLAZE], [INFERNAL ARROW]. Now, let’s see if you can handle parallel quadruple casting.”

How…how is such a thing even possible. Parallel quadruple casting? I-I’ve never even heard of such a thing. It’s true then, Ovnyr is the strongest demon of this era.

“hahaha, that’s more like it. I knew that idiot was lying about being the strongest. [BLACK HOLE]”

HE ABSORBED THE ATTACK!! WHAT KIND OF ABSURD POWER IS THAT?

“tsk, you’re lucky I have no weapons. Not even an anti-magic dagger let alone a rifle.”

“Indeed, luck is also an important attribute to a warrior.”

Now that I think about it, this monster is keeping up with Ovnyr with no weapons. Even if it’s only a sheathed sword it’s still crazy that he can both dodge and attack back.

“here, since I can’t attack you with a weapon nor cast spells, I’ll just use yours [WHITE HOLE].”

He can absorb spells and release them? Even ones of that caliber?

“WHA—”

H-He actually damaged Onvyr. His barrier stopped most of it but his sword arm is burned beyond recognition, is it over? Should I run?

“I have forgotten what it was like to fight a true warrior. It has been 600 years…too long if you ask me.”

“…”

He finally unsheathed his sword, why now? His arm is all messed up.

“[SHADOW STEP]”

he disappeared!?

“AGH, you bastard.”

What? How was the human hurt?

“coward!! Come out and fight already you—AGH.”

Again? he was slashed twice now but there is no trace of Onvyr. How is he doing this, what kind of spell was that?

Wait, the human… oh no he’s trying to attack Uzan to draw Ovnyr out.

“[GRAVITY BUR—] w-what?”

H-He got him…I can’t believe it. he was behind him all that time? The sword missed the heart by a few inches but it’s over… we won!!

“as I said; it was mercy. Just give up, I’ll have you healed after you faint.”

“hahaha…Idiot…you should’ve finished the job.”

is he hallucinating? Why is he taking a stance like that with an imaginary sword? Huh, Ovnyr backed away again.

“SHIIRA, TAKE BARI AND UZAN AND RUN. NOW!!!”

What is he terrified of? I feel no power from the human, and he’s barely standing to boot. I’m almost out of magic too, I don’t want to waste my stamina.

“master Ovnyr, what are you talk—”

“you fool, grab them and run, NOW. And stack as many barriers as you can on the way.”

Damn old man, why won’t you explain anything…fine…might as well leave this nightmare behind.

“hold still you two, I can’t afford to make this comfortable.”

Wait, what’s happening? The earth is shaking. The air is…HOT!! IT BURNS!!

Run, just run. Don’t look behind no matter what. I don’t even want to know what that monster is doing.