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In the end, even before the battle began, we had to exchange a few more words. But finally, the fight between me and the Demigod girl, Finis, was underway. Against beings of this world, I was overwhelmingly strong. I didn’t think I could possibly lose to her. Even once the battle started, not for a second did I believe defeat was possible.

Her physical abilities surpassed mine; she dodged my attacks with ease, and her counterattacks landed squarely. Yet, no matter what she used—magic, skills, or simple physical force—none of it could hurt me. I had considered myself quite strong, and though it frustrated me that I couldn’t land a blow, it was also… fun. Still, if I just kept going, I believed I’d eventually hit her.

And if I landed even a single strike, then no matter if she was a Demigod, as long as she was tied to this world, she would vanish. Her body itself didn’t seem to belong to this world, so she wouldn’t disappear entirely. But all the strength she wielded now would vanish. That would be my victory, and with it, my reason to care about her would be gone.

Unlike before, I had no hesitation about using underhanded methods. What should have been a drawn-out match ended in an instant. My greatsword cleaved her body in two, and for a bit, she returned to being nothing more than a girl. But then, she was reborn as a true god.

If that was the case, I wished her change had been a little easier to recognize.

Now, stripped of the world’s power yet standing stronger than before, and even if her strength was just the same as before, there was no future where I could win. So, following her advice, I stopped fighting early. I had wanted to erase her, since she was protecting the princess of this land, but it was better to retreat here. If I pushed it, became her enemy completely, and was struck down, I wouldn’t be able to erase anyone else. Pulling back and erasing even one more person was, from Zygos’ perspective, more worthwhile.

And it seemed that the reason Finis was protecting the princess was because, in her plans, she wished to dispose of the princess herself. I doubted any “peaceful death” awaited someone targeted by a god. So I left it to her. Before we parted, she asked me about a country I had glimpsed earlier; it seemed that was her main battlefield.

If this princess were the princess of that place that had maybe once resembled a kingdom, then indeed, dragging her back would have been cruel.

At the end, I was threatened and told I would better go “east.” So I obediently headed east.

◇◇◇

As I walked, I found myself idly thinking about the Nigel Kingdom I had visited. I’d never actually met its people. They had been at war; most had died, and the survivors surely had no strength to show themselves, so that was no wonder. Looking back at those who had worked for Zygos until now, I wondered, what do I feel about them?

Or perhaps the better question was, what did Zygos feel? Since meeting Finis, “I” had become little more than a passerby. I had gained the ability to return to my original world, and when I did, I would lose these memories. So I had no objection to acting as Zygos. If the Zygos within me ordered me to kill, then I would have slaughtered Nigel’s people without hesitation.

That, in turn, gave me… leeway in my heart. And so I began to think about the things I had always averted my eyes from. Zygos had been called the Demon Lord, an enemy to humanity. Humanity’s “good” had brought ruin to the world, and so from their perspective, Zygos was evil.

But what about the monster ruler I had slain in my world? Were they not guardians of the world in their own right?

And what of the savior, said to have rescued my own world, my ancestor? Had he, too, not simply wished to return home? I had found a path back. But perhaps he never did and remained in that world against his will.

Those thoughts began to crowd my mind when the sound of battle reached me from afar. Shaking off my doubts, I ran toward it.

◇◇◇

When I arrived, I found elves with long ears fighting Beastmen with animal traits. I had seen war only recently, but this was even more brutal. Even when wounded, even when their comrades fell beside them, neither side relented. Hatred swirled, driving them to kill until not a single one remained.

When I first came to this world, I too had felt hatred. Even now, I despised enough to kill. Indeed, I had killed children before their mothers’ eyes, and if there were brothers and sisters together, I’d start with the youngest ones. I had taken attacks head-on just to show how useless they were, plunging my enemies into despair. I had even stalked fleeing foes at a walking pace, just to let their terror linger.

And yet, I had remained somewhat rational. Surely because—when I looked again, the once-beautiful forest had become a wasteland of blood and flesh. I wondered if grass would ever grow here again. Probably not… or perhaps the world itself would collapse before it could.

(Well, let me erase them.)

If I let them be, they were bound to die anyway, but beyond this battlefield lay only a single settlement. If I destroyed the settlement first, this fight likely still wouldn’t end. I wanted to wipe them out without a word, but I also wanted them to feel at least a little fear of me. So I plunged into the thickest part of the battle, swinging my greatsword carelessly.

In an instant, allies and enemies alike were erased. The survivors froze, staring at me. Then, after hurling curses, they charged.

◇◇◇

“Damn it! Who the hell are you?!”
“Me? I’m the Demon Lord.”
“What?”

Before he could finish, I beheaded the last Beastmen. Conveniently, this sword erased even corpses. That left only the ones who had tried to flee. This time, too, I removed all of them, not letting a single one flee. I was satisfied. I had seen a scout heading toward the settlement earlier, but I left him be.

I was heading that way anyway. If the settlement tried to flee, I could chase them down easily. I already knew where it was, and in a country of this size, no one could escape me. Even if I started now, I’d catch the scout right as he arrived at the settlement.

◇◇◇

And so I arrived at the settlement. It was a place where elves and Beastmen lived together. Their faces were cheerful, but it was the kind of cheer that rang hollow, like my own expression now. I couldn’t see my face, but I was sure it looked the same.

The two races didn’t seem close, nor hostile, just… coexisting. Bare minimum contact, each staying out of the other’s domain. A twisted little settlement.

I saw the elven scout reporting something to the leaders of both groups. The two leaders looked shocked. I thought they might prepare to flee, but instead, they shook their heads, as if resigning. It was like they were saying: the time has come.

Them not running actually made things easier.

As always, I marched straight in, hefting my greatsword on my shoulder, ready to erase the nearest soul. But before I could swing, the two leaders rushed forward toward me.