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This chapter is translated by Cobalt and is rehosted with due permission. |
In the devil king castle, the audience hall, a scream echoed.
A voice calling out the name of their beloved lover sounded too sorrowful, it was like a wailing.
Hajime who was the one who raised that scream was being held down by several apostles. Right now, he was in a posture where his forehead was rubbing on the floor. His one arm that reached out looking for Yue who had left after being turned into the vessel of the creator god Ehito, was forced to his back to the limit of its joint by an apostle.
Shia and the others were pushed down on the floor by claws pushing on their back by large wolves made from the stone floor, they were crucified on the floor while blood gushed out from their bodies. Shizuku and her group were also unable to move due to the illusion shown to them by Ehito’s magic and the influence of ‘Divine Statement’.
Aiko and the rest were also being observed by the apostles and monsters. Combined with their wounds from before, they weren’t in the condition to move.
And then, the artifacts that Hajime relied on were already gone.
If an example was made using chess terminology, this situation was exactly what one would call ‘checkmate’. For that reason, even Ehito prioritized to resolve the problem of Yue’s resistance rather than dealing the final blow to Hajime and the others.
The distorted smile Ehito directed at Hajime who screamed for Yue was a satisfied smile that was colored by joy and pleasure from ‘looking to his heart content at Hajime’s suffering figure’. That too was the reason for him leaving the aftermath at his retainer Aruvheit.
With ten apostles and thirty monsters remaining behind, the audience hall now felt somewhat deserted. There, a steady footstep resounded.
“Kuku-. How unsightly, irregular. There was a slight problem at the end, but Ehito-sama seemed greatly pleased by that vessel. All of this is thanks to you who discovered ‘that’ and brought it here while granting it strength. I’m thanking you here, you know?”
With a voice that was overflowing with joy and scorn, Aruvheit spouted out muddy black words of malice.
In contrast, far from objecting, Hajime was only hanging his head down and his body didn’t even twitch. The killing intent and hatred that made even the apostles shudder before this, and then the unstoppable torrent of strength, all of that couldn’t even be felt even a bit from Hajime’s body. From his wounded state and the amount of his bleeding, in a glance it even looked like he had already stopped breathing.
Aruvheit also thought that. He tilted his head before directing his gaze at one of the apostles holding down Hajime. The apostle quietly shook her head and directed a dangerous gaze at the back of Hajime’s head. It seemed that Hajime was still properly alive.
“Hmm, just where has your might that you showed at the beginning gone? Well, I want to say that, but even you have a limit, huh. Although, there is a hole opened in your stomach, you got hit by that much magic of my lord, further you forced your body to use strength that surpassed the limit several times. I guess it’s astonishing for you to even still breath. Or else, was it your beloved lover who got stolen that became the finishing blow? Hm?”
“… Just stop screwing around desu-, this third rate villainn! If you haven’t played enough yet then I’ll take you on-“
Aruvheit said out tormenting words, however Hajime didn’t respond, as though to represent him an angry yell rose from different place. It was Shia.
By yelling, the claw pushing on Shia’s back dug in even deeper and blood flowed out more, but without even paying attention to such a thing Shia clawed on the floor while trying to advance.
Looking at such a Shia, the large wolf’s eyes that were made of stone shrewdly narrowed, and then as though saying to shut up, its jaw sunk into Shia’s shoulder. A raw sound was audible once more and blood spurted out. The spraying blood dirtied Shia’s neck and the side of her face, her figure looked ghastly.
“-!?――ngigi-gii, you think I’ll losee! I’ll send you flying, all of you together-. Just come at me desuu!”
Even so Shia didn’t even scream in pain, she yelled in anger while strengthening her struggle. The frustration of being unable to do anything, that she could only see Hajime get hurt and Yue taken away, combined with the strength that she continued to knead even now, strength was explosively heightening inside Shia.
And then, finally bakin a sound like something getting broken resounded, Shia’s arm that could only move meagerly leaped up.
BAMM!
Such a thunderous sound was raised from the head of the large wolf biting at her shoulder being blown away. From that, the wound of her shoulder was gouged and blood spurted out even more, but as expected, Shia didn’t pay it any attention. She stepped on the ground so hard that the floor split and she rapidly approached Aruvheit.
“URYAAAAAAAAA-!”
Her rabbit ears flapped, along with eyes that were tinged with clear killing intent to first slaughter the strongest enemy, Shia’s fist struck Aruvheit.
DONGON Fierce shockwaves reverberated. Shia’s fist drew a splendid trajectory and pierced Aruvheit’s face… or that was how it looked like.
However…
“Hou, after irregular you too also got free from Ehito-sama’s ‘Divine Statement’… Good grief, so an insolent fellow is being served by insolent woman. How wretched.”
“Kuh, just a barrier like this-!”
A barrier was deployed just from Aruvheit lifting his hand slightly, stopping Shia’s fist that was like a cannon dead in its track.
With a calm expression without a drop of anything like unease, Aruvheit concluded Shia as insolent. Ignoring that, Shia swung her fist once more.
Aruvheit’s expression turned annoyed feeling that it would just end up the same no matter how many times Shia punched, but Shia’s second attack raised a groan even louder, and then a crack entered the barrier of Aruvheit.
“What the?”
“Fly away desuu!”
Perhaps Aruvheit had never imagined in even his wildest dream that other than Hajime who was named as irregular, there would be someone else who could make his barrier cracked, furthermore it was by bare hand. Aruvheit looked on slightly in wonderment.
Not missing that opening, Shia made use of the recoil of her second punch and rotated on the spot, she put a lot of the centrifugal force and released a spinning kick at the place where a crack was created. Her firm long leg was reinforced to the limit, and the kick was unleashed with a incomparably beautiful form.
While her rabbit ears was flowing lithely, pyaaan a bursting sound resounded, Shia’s spinning kick pierced the barrier. And then without stopping, her kick assaulted Aruvheit who was inside.
Aruvheit immediately crossed his arms and blocked Shia’s kick, but he was unable to brace himself against the weight that surpassed his imagination, just as Shia said, he was grandly blown away.
Shia’s kicking leg didn’t stop and it was lifted until reaching the zenith, then her leg was brought down to the ground following the tenet of an axe kick. And then she spun like a pinwheel with high speed, with her legs she flicked off the many floor fragments that floated in the air from the broken floor.
The pebbles that were flicked away resembled bullets and cut through the air with high speed, becoming a pursuit attack at Aruvheit.
The pebbles assaulted like a sweep of gatling guns toward Aruvheit who crashed through a stone pillar in the audience hall, dust clouds rose due to the broken stone pillar.
“Not yet de――!?”
“Fall down.”
When Shia was about to attack further, the moment when Shia entered a crouching posture, apostles rapidly approached Shia from left and right with afterimages following behind them. In their hands were large swords clad in silver light of disintegration being swung.
Shia had been quite vigilant against the apostles and monsters, but she couldn’t deny that blood had rushed to her head. Shia who got carried away and leaped forward too far now got aimed at the moment she stepped in, in her expression cornered emotion of “Damn it” showed through.
If only she had her Doryukken, she would be able to forcefully swipe them away, yet the nonexistence of the reliable sensation that she usually felt in her hand made her grit her teeth.
Like that, Shia resolved herself to receive damage to cut her way through, it was at that time,
“That is my line!”
Two streaks of black flash blown away the two apostles who pincer attacked Shia.
“Tio-san”
“Guh, divine statement was it? … Truly, it was troublesome. Shia, I take off my hat to thy guts.”
When Shia immediately turned back, the figure of Tio in partial dragonification with her tail constricting the large wolf while making a pained expression was there. It appeared that unlike Shia, Tio wasn’t completely escaping the influence of ‘Divine Statement’.
Tio wasn’t able to understand the magic until its principle, but even so she understood that it was a magic with terrifying effect. Therefore Tio couldn’t help but giving words of praise at Shia who on top of completely removing the curse by her will alone, she was even able to give payback to Aruvheit.
Tio used the rampaging large wolf she constricted with her tail to strike at the large wolf holding down Kaori, while doing that she fired breath attack at an apostle brandishing a large sword from above to check the enemy in place. Her body was already enveloped in transparent black magic power, it showed that she was using sublimation magic.
Even so, an attack without gathering strength beforehand couldn’t stop an apostle’s charge, therefore the best Tio could do was making the apostle react immediately to take evasive action.
But, at that time, one more voice resounded.
“Tio-san, please wake up Kaori somehow! I’ll cover for you! Shia, hold back the devil king-“
At the same time with the voice, a black shadow slipped past Tio’s side. That was Shizuku who was clad in dark blue magic power and her ponytail that was her trademark.
Like that Shizuku used a unique way of walking to slip smoothly into the bosom of another apostle approaching Tio from behind, she took the wrist of the slightly surprised apostle and rolled the apostle’s body to float in the air. And then the apostle went into a losing posture due to her own rush of momentum. Shizuku grasped the stomach of the apostle and with her other arm she struck an elbow blow there. It was so to speak an aikido technique, one of Yeagashi-style taijutsu ‘Kyourai’. (TN: Taijutsu=bare handed martial art. Kyourai=Mirror Thunder.)
The elbow blow that carried power which was impossible if it was only Shizuku’s strength, coupled with the deftness of that technique succeeded in temporarily blowing away the apostle.
Shizuku was also barely driving off the curse of ‘Divine Statement’. The magic power enveloping herself came from sublimation magic. She made her body performance to evolve a level higher. As the result it was a pseudo ‘Limit Break’.
She didn’t use it until just now because of the intense pain of the illusion as well as the wavering of her mind. Actually she didn’t shake off the effect of the illusion completely, so her expression distorted from enduring intense pain and cold sweats trickled from her body.
“Thou art speaking recklessly-“
“Ro, roger desu-!”
Tio threw the stone wolf constricted in her tail as improvised hammer at the apostle that she was made to take evasive action just now with her breath attack, then she rushed at Kaori’s location. At the same time, Shia also slipped through the apostles and monsters coming to attack while dashing at where Aruvheit was.
Shizuku saw that there was further three more apostles who headed at her from all the apostles who acted after seeing the situation, she rushed to intercept them while in the way she picked a floor fragment and sent it flying with her reinforced body. It was one of Yaegashi-style throwing art ‘Senreki’. The target was the eyeball of the apostles. (TN: Senreki=Piercing Pebble)
Although her body was reinforced using sublimation magic, the accuracy of the throwing itself was depending on the skill of the user. Something like aiming accurately at really small target that was the moving opponent’s eyeball while dashing was an absurdly expert skill.
But, naturally the apostles easily lifted their sword and repelled the attack.
“Pointless.”
One of the approaching apostles directed inhuman gaze at Shizuku from the shadow of her large sword. And then she unfolded her silver wings and flapped it noisily once. Just with that countless silver feathers flew out from the wings like buckshot, they advanced to annihilate Shizuku.
Shizuku used ‘No Beat’ that realized radical motion which made it looked like the body was ignoring inertia and ‘Piled Ground shrinker’ which made it possible to consecutively executed ‘Ground shrinker’ and barely succeeded in evading the attack. While enduring the fear from her clothes, hair tip, and then her skin which got shallowly disintegrated by the grazing silver feathers, Shizuku rapidly approached with a low posture as though she was hugging the ground.
“I won’t know until I try!”
While yelling defiantly, Shizuku finally slipped through the barrage of silver feathers and she slid like a baseball player toward the apostles, she then thrust her hand below with a force that could split the floor, and then using the recoil she launched a scooping up kick.
One of Yaegashi-style taijutsu ‘Saka Shushou’. (TN: Reverse Eagle Claw) It was a kicking technique to lift up the opponent from really low posture. SO that the practitioner could still fight even after losing their sword, Yeagashi-style included sheath technique, taijutsu, and throwing skill in it.
Large eagle aimed at their prey and stretched their sharp claw from the sky――that kick drew a splendid trajectory like a reverse reproduction of that scene. Combined with the rushing momentum of ‘Ground Shrinker’ too, it contained quiet a destructive power. At the very least with the current Shizuku who was in the state of pseudo limit break using sublimation magic, if she was able to land a counter, then even an apostle could be blown away with her strength.
But, as expected, that plan was still naïve,
“No, it’s pointless.”
“――”
The kick was easily blocked by silver wing. Furthermore the part of her kicking leg’s boot that touched the wing was already disintegrating. It was disintegration ability.
Shizuku took a short breath, at the same time she rotated on the spot like pinwheel using her kicking leg as the axis. Her posture changed as though she was sleeping horizontally in the air, from there she aimed at the apostle’s face with her other leg. One of Yaegashi-style taijutsu ‘Jushusou’. (TN: Piled Eagle Claw)
However, even that was also blocked by the other wing of the apostle. And then, the apostle flapped her wings to drive off Shizuku and blew her away.
“Guh”
Shizuku struck the ground hard and she reflexively groaned. There, silver feathers poured down like heavy rain. Shizuku immediately evaded by leaping while she was on all fours like a beast. And then Shizuku was rolling unsightly and barely evaded the silver feathers that brutally dispersed the ground one after another like intense rain.
At the same time, she picked up a fragment of broken floor again and threw it at the apostle which passed her that was going to head towards Tio who was treating Kaori.
The apostle didn’t even look and repelled the pebble with her wing.
(I cannot even hold them back!? Even though I have to attract their attention until Kaori open her eyes and heal Nagumo-kun-)
Shizuku evaded the barrage of death with deathly desperate expression while yelling in her heart.
Shizuku’s aim was for Tio to use soul magic or regeneration magic and revived Kaori whose consciousness was forcefully closed. If only Kaori could move again, she could heal Hajime with her excellent healing magic. If only Hajime could move, it should be possible to break the deadlock of the current situation, Shizuku thought like that. The faith that Shizuku held toward Hajime didn’t change at all even now after he was defeated by Ehito.
Shizuku glanced with her gaze directed at Hajime who was being held down by two apostles still collapsing on his own sea of blood.
(The person that I fell in love seriously for the first time… the one that saved me many times… my heart, my life too… I can do anything if it is for that person’s sake. Just because the opponent is apostle, just because there is no weapon, those are no reason to give up! This time, I’ll be the one that save you!)
In contrast with the overwhelming heat boiling up in her heart, Shizuku began to chant with small whispering voice. Most of the artifacts were stolen, but fortunately she still possessed some things other than a weapon that might have been overlooked because it was trifling.
Those were the boots enchanted with ‘Air Force’, the hair ornament presented from Hajime for the first time that had regeneration ability attached, and then her clothes sewed with the magic circle of sublimation magic.
From the body of Shizuku who was continuously evading the fury of silver wings, abnormal dark blue magic power overflowed even more.
It was overlapping of sublimation magic. Something like a pseudo ‘Supreme Break’. Naturally it was an exercise of strength that surpassed the limit even in the best of times. It was an act that piled up unreasonableness on top of unreasonableness, it was impossible that there was no burden at all doing that.
Shizuku’s expression distorted in pain, she bit her lips hard to endure the undulation of the large power. In exchange of such pain, for a temporary time, surely it was only for a slight time, the magic power that reinforced Shizuku shined brilliantly while enveloping her body.
The apostle that passed through Shizuku heading toward Tio who was concentrating at healing Kaori, whose wicked hand even now was reaching at them. She twitched in reaction and looked back at Shizuku. However, perhaps deciding that it was nothing she needed to be concerned about the apostle turned back at Tio and brandished her sword.
Toward such apostle, Shizuku roared with rage.
“-, don’t look down on human-!”
The speed of Shizuku that amply displayed her specialty as a speed fighter, in addition with the sublimed acceleration that surpassed the limit, as expected it was at the level that even an apostle couldn’t stay indifferent at. The apostle raining down heavy rain of silver feathers at Shizuku opened her eyes wide in shock when she was passed through instantly from the side by Shizuku who dashed without any preliminary motion and everchanging step.
And then the apostle who was in the verge of swinging down her large sword also reflexively looked back at the presence that suddenly approached.
But, there was no way Shizuku would even give her the time to look back completely, without stopping she unleashed a severe spinning kick. Her aim was the back of the apostle’s head. The apostle who was going to turn her head had the direction of her head forcefully returned back by an impact, she was blown away above Tio’s head in a pitch forward.
Toward Shizuku who was hovering in the air from the recoil, one more apostle swept her large sword.
Shizuku lightly leaped using ‘Air Force’ and evaded that slash, then her body twisted in the air while when she crossed above the apostle, both her legs sandwiched the apostle’s head. And then, from there her body twisted even further and rotated with backward bending, crashing the apostle into the ground from the head.
Yeagashi-style taijutsu ‘Kaigetsu’. (TN: Circle Moon) A technique that executed a throw from twisting the body while both legs were holding the opponent’s head.
The human technique that was mysteriously polished made the apostle unable to react immediately, dangerously raw sound could be heard from the apostle’s neck when the head crashed to the floor. A small crater was created while the head was buried in an impossible angle.
In that timing, the apostle that was scattering silver feathers at Shizuku just now launched a bombing.
Shizuku naturally tried to dodge but…
“dam-!?”
She was unable to do that.
The reason was because behind her was Tio and Kaori. Before she realized, Shizuku was lined up at a firing line where she couldn’t escape.
If only she had her black katana, she could sever the space itself and she would be able to cut even the silver flash. But, the current Shizuku was barehanded. There was no way to stop the flash which carried the brutal ability of disintegration, to evade it meant to leave her comrades to death.
That hesitation was fatal. In front of the silver light of death, inside Shizuku’s head became pure white.
At that moment…
“’Sky Severance’!”
“’Holy Severance’!”
Two voices resounded. At the same time, in front of Shizuku’s eyes shining bright barriers were deployed.
One was a multiple layers barrier that had several barriers piled up――the caster was Liliana who drew a magic circle with her own blood and stretched her hand desperately to Shizuku.
The other one was a brilliantly shining powerful barrier――the caster was Suzu who even while drenched with cold sweat and her expression distorted in pain while still collapsed on the floor, she similarly drew a magic circle using blood and barely reached her hand.
The silver flash that brought about ruin was blocked by the barriers deployed by the desperate two and the speed of the advance was slightly slackened.
However, what was fired was a flash that disintegrated everything no matter if it was magic or material. Naturally the barriers of the two also held out less than a few seconds before they got dispersed.
Although that few seconds had the meaning of the time that could be bought. And then, that few seconds changed the fate of Shizuku who was exposed to that flash of death.
“Shizuku-chan-, get down!”
“-!”
Shizuku didn’t even looked back or asked back at that familiar voice and reflexively obeyed.
Immediately after, above the head of Shizuku who pressed herself on the floor a similar silver flash rushed forward. That flash which clashed at the silver flash of the apostle right from the front was unmistakably the attack launched by Shizuku’s best friend. Even though there was terrifying powers clashing above her head, the cheeks of Shizuku were naturally brimming with smile.
“Don’t think that I am the same with all of you!”
Kaori’s powerful words echoed at the space that was surging with silver light. At the same time, the magic power from Kaori burst out. It was the prove of reinforcement using sublimation magic. Just as she proclaimed, the silver flash Kaori launched went dokun-! in pulsation and simultaneously increased in momentum all at once.
And then, it swallowed the flash of the apostle.
“Overcoming us, with our body…”
At the same time when that whisper leaked out, the apostle that showed an indescribable expression was dispersed into pieces even smaller than dust and vanished.
“Somehow we made it.”
“Thank you Tio. I’ll heal everyone right awa-“
Tio revived Kaori using soul magic and regeneration magic together, but she now was in a state that couldn’t hide her exhaustion. She murmured while wiping her sweaty forehead.
Kaori spoke her gratitude while starting to use recovery magic. Not only Hajime, she was planning to heal everyone wounded all at once.
But that was obstructed by the silver large sword that jumped up right from the side. Aiming at Kaori who finished launching her attack, the two apostles that were hit by Shizuku’s technique just now moved out.
With twin large swords Kaori blocked the slash from the two apostles. The two apostles who tried to slash with two large sword style, one had her arm entwined by Tio’s dragon tail, the other one was prevented by Shizuku who averted the trajectory using Aikido to the ground. Kaori, Tio, and Shizuku, the three and the two apostles glared at each other in a deadlock.
There…
“Kyaa!”
“Aguu!”
Screams reverberated. When the gazes of the three reflexively turned there, Liliana and Suzu were currently held down there. Similar like with Shia and others before this, on their back they had sharp claws digging there.
In an effort to help them, Ryuutaro tried to move toward Suzu with a desperate look, Aiko and Nagayama and group squirmed toward Liliana. But, they too were constricted by snake type monsters or tied with the string of spider type monsters, in the end they were injected with some kind of liquid that made them convulse. They couldn’t do anything.
Furthermore…
“Good grief, bothering my hand like this. Although I don’t even reach below Ehito-sama’s feet, there is no way you will be a match with a god like me, don’t you think?”
Shizuku and the others were taken aback by that voice. They were desperate with their own battle that they didn’t pay attention there, but now they turned their gaze wondering what happened with Shia who went to hold back Aruvheit.
And then, what was there was, the figure of Shia who powerlessly dangled in the air with her neck in Aruvheit’s clutch. Furthermore, blood was flowing from her whole body as though several thousand blades had carved there, it seemed that she didn’t lose consciousness, but even her groaning voice sounded weak.
“Shia-“ X3
Kair and others opened their eyes wide and yelled.
In that instant, the attention of Kaori and others were definitely split. That opening wasn’t missed by the apostles. With their twin swords they blown away Kaori and others into one place, then the apostles instantly created magic circle using their silver feathers where grand lightning attack was generated from there.
“-a!!”
“Guuu!”
“――!”
The three raised their respective scream while convulsing. Even so, only Kaori somehow lessened the damage using magic power of disintegration, then she immediately tried to chant recovery magic.
But…
“Didn’t you listen? I said that I am also a god. I command with the name of Aruvheit――’Don’t do anything’.”
“――”
Yes, the reason Shia lost was also due to the same ‘Divine Statement’ that was done to Kaori right now, it was because her movement was restricted. Although just as the person said himself, it seemed that the restraining power was quite inferior compared to Ehito.”
In reality, Kaori and others struggled to immediately break the restraints using reinforcement of sublimation magic. Different from when Ehito was the one using the ability, their arm immediately began to move.
However, it didn’t change that they were showing fatal opening, as long as there were the apostles and monsters here then even a temporary restrain was more than enough.
Facing Kaori and others who collapsed on the ground, a lightning attack surged once more. This time following the command of ‘don’t do anything’, Kaori also couldn’t disintegrate the attack and thus got hit fully. Kaori, Tio, and Shizuku screamed soundlessly then white smoke drifted up from them.
Although the momentary signal of counterattack raised the result of one apostle defeated, they were completely suppressed easily in the end.
Aruvheit lifted his hand and threw away Shia like trash, then he stepped on the back of the collapsed Shia while lording over the surrounding.
“Hmm, how is it? Have I managed to give you fools other than the irregular a little taste of despair?”
It appeared that Shia and the others were instantly killed in order to break their hearts.
Aruvheit shouldered the role to open the heart of Yue who would become Ehito’s vessel so that Ehito could easily steal her body or carry the plan B that was to shake Yue’s heart. Because he didn’t perform his role perfectly, Ehito was forced to take his time readjusting. Because of that, not only he was unable to accomplish the command bestowed from the lord that he respected, he even made his lord to be troubled, that caused his mind to become stormy.
In other words, he permitted Shia and others to oppose him, then he suppressed and struck despair into them so he could soak in joy from that, everything came from his wish to vent his anger.
In order to drop the insolent bunches who opposed him into despair and end them while they were in the depth of hopelessness, Aruvheit opened his mouth with an expression that was filled plenty with scorn.
“But, for a punishment to those who perpetrated insolence toward god, this is a bit too light I guess. Therefore, how about I teach all of you something really lovely.”
Trampling on Shia’s back underfoot, Aruvheit made her raised pained voice while looking at Liliana’s direction.
“Just as Ehito-sama spoken, this world will end before long. Armies of apostles will be summoned from the Holy Precincts to slaughter all living things in this world. The first target will be Hairihi Kingdom. Because it’s easy to create a Divine Gate that connected to Holy Precincts in God Mountain, you see. Do you understand, princess Liliana. Your motherland will be dyed red by fresh blood of all your people in these few days, you know.”
“-, what terrifying thing are you-“
“Is it terrifying? Rather it’s an honor, right? Those people can receive the end brought about by the angels dispatched by the god they believed in without a doubt. Shouldn’t they present their head in line instead? Ku-ku-ku-“
“You are mad! All of you, you gods are insane!”
Even while being pressed down by a monster, Liliana cursed at Aruvheit with voice blurred by pain and rage. Aruvheit that received that curse with pleasant feelings then turned his gaze to the visitors from another world.
“Your birthplace will become the new playground for Ehito-sama. You can feel honored. You are able to be summoned as Ehito-sama’s pawn, and then even your birthplace will be offered to him. Even if you all are ended in this place, you can depart along with glory.”
“Don’t screw around-!”
It seemed that what Ehito said that he would march to earth was true. Although there was no magic at earth, but if Ehito maneuvered secretly there where there was a lot of country, religion, population, and also type of weapons that were far more dangerous than magic, just how much sacrifice there would be…
This world, despite its long history its population was falling far short from earth, thinking of how the reason for that was because of how Ehito was playing this world, they didn’t even want to imagine what kind of tragic future was awaiting when Ehito reached earth.
To say nothing of the family or friend, their important people that they left behind by coming here. Shizuku and Ryutaro and others glared at Aruvheit with demonic look.
But, those piercing glares that wanted very much to kill him were only fanning up Aruvheit’s sense of superiority instead. The proof of that was how his expression was increasingly turning in pleasant ecstasy.
“Now then, looks like the reception of the devil race will be over soon. I want to taste this defiant hearts and despairing gazes for a while but… I too can only play just this much.”
Aruvheit looked up at the holed ceiling. Ahead of his gaze was the scene of the devil race people being sucked with enraptured expression into the whirling golden [Divine Gate].
As a matter of fact, even while Shia and others were fighting hard, the devil race all over the city were floating toward the [Divine Gate], the majority were already collected into the Holy Precincts. It appeared the one that would be exterminated in this world was all the living things other than the devil race――that means all the human race and the demihuman race. It was unknown just what in the world their reason to invite only the devil race into the Holy Precincts, but what was certain was only that the reason must be nothing good.
Aruvheit kicked Shia flying and then he exchanged a glance with an apostle. The apostle nodded and then she went straight toward Myuu and Remia. And then, ignoring how Remia was hugging Myuu close to her chest, the apostle forcefully took Myuu from her which caused Remia’s expression to stiffen.
“Stop-! Please return back Myu――agu!?”
“Mamaa!”
The apostle’s fist hit hard at Remia who was resisting desperately. Remia was blown away until the wall that she leaked out a small groan. Different from Shia and others, her body was only that of a civilian. Her internal organ was injured by the impact that the apostle released that she vomited out blood, she kept crouching and became unable to move.
A scream of a little child resounded, however, even so there was not even one person who could move.
Myuu who was taken by the apostle was crucified on the air by Aruvheit using some kind of magic, then he walked toward the position of Hajime who was still collapsed on the floor without even a twitch or a pip.
“Irregular. How long are you going to be like that? Not only you are a nuisance at various thing in Ehito-sama’s game, you even put shame on me, are you thinking those sins can be redeemed with that degree of despair? There is no way that’s true don’t you think? Now, lift your face. And then, burn the scene of the head of the girl who idolized you as father got blown away into your eyes. Bath in her scattered brain and blood, cry and yell! Now!”
“Papaa! Don’t die! Wake uup!”
The loudly laughing Aruvheit moved Myuu in front of Hajime. And then his hand propped the back of that small head. That was just like the scythe of the god of death. If, that hand was swung, without even the slightest resistance Myuu’s future would surely sink into gruesome red, ejected into the depth of darkness.
But, even now when such death was shoved at her, Myuu didn’t even be concerned about herself, she yelled in worry at the papa that she loved.
From afar Shia and others’ desperate voice reached them. The voices that called Hajime, the voices that was worried for Myuu, the voices that asked Aruvheit to stop, the voices that proclaimed their self-sacrifice which said if he would do that then do it to them instead――everyone was desperately struggling in order to avoid the tragedy.
――It was a bizarre spectacle.
Hajime who in this kind of time should have his eyes glaring like a beast, his canine exposed as though he was going to tear the throat of the enemy with his killing intent overflowing, regardless of Myuu who he doted on was now going to get slaughtered… he was silent.
The apostles holding Hajime down didn’t show any sign of releasing their hands at all, so it was certain that Hajime was conscious. Yet despite so, he was terribly, to terrifying level, silent.
Was Yue getting stolen that shocking for him, was his heart broken from that…
Shia and others who knew of Hajime’s deep love toward Yue at first thought so looking at the unmoving Hajime, that was why they fought hard thinking that exactly because of that they had to do something somehow, but now that it had come to this point they finally felt something out of place.
And, they noticed. How unnoticed their skin felt gooseflesh rising. It was varnished by the pain running all over their body and the absolutely desperate situation, but the target of alarm bell their instinct raised was actually not at the enemy, the alarm was directed at something more different.
“Papa?”
Perhaps Myuu was also felt something the same like that, she called at Hajime somewhat timidly.
Looking at Hajime who didn’t even lift his face with Myuu who only had worth to be used as hostage in front of him, Aruvheit got tired of waiting and he exchange glance with an apostle.
The apostle, for some reason she glanced at the back of Hajime’s head with dangerous gaze that had never changed since she restrained Hajime. And then, surprisingly, after showing a gesture that looked like slight hesitance, she carefully grasped Hajime’s hair with resolved air… and lifted his face forcefully.
“――”
At that instant, without even being able to realize it himself, Aruvheit stepped back.
It didn’t stop there, he even did an elementary mistake that he had already never done for several thousand years――he showed an unsightly disarray of magic control. As the result, Myuu who was crucified in the air fell in front of Hajime.
Aruvheit who moved his arm in panic to fix the magic back at Myuu became wide eyed at an incomprehensible scene. For some reason, his hand that he held out was trembling in shivers.
The monsters standing by behind Aruvheit were also hanging their head down while shrinking back slowly. If anyone was watching, they would surely notice how the eyes of the monsters that originally emitted brutal reddish black gleam were now wavering like ripples.
――Fright.
For a monster, further for a monster of fiendish class that had received the strengthening by age of god magic, that emotion really didn’t suit them at all. The wave running in their eyes was obviously was exactly that. Aruvheit’s trembling was also the same.
The cause was one.
Abyss.
The abyss spreading in front of their eyes, was awakening their primitive instinctual fear.
Darker than darkness, deeper than even hell. Even while being a god, he would still get swallowed and vanish to became ‘nothingness’, he was made to feel such an illusion by that overwhelming nihility filling to the brim of that――eye.
Hajime’s one eye.
“――Ki, kil――”
Aruvheit was driven by an impulse that even himself was hard to comprehend, he was trying to hand down the command to the apostles to kill Hajime right now. That person should be at the death’s door, without even any weapons, and his heart snapped into pieces, even while thinking that, he couldn’t help but give that command.
Something like used Myuu for revenge or being an obstruction at his work to open Yue’s heart, or, if he was going to kill him then it would be by his own hand, or, denying how he stepped back due to his dignity as god, those kind of things only flashed for an instant at the back of his mind before they got thrown away far beyond his mind.
Anyway, the monster in front of his eyes had to be made to stop breathing, right at this instant!
Only that thinking repeated inside Aruvheit’s chaotic head, it kept reiterating along with the piercing alarm bell.
That command was quickly obeyed by the apostles holding Hajime down.
Not even a drop of magic power, far from that not even killing intent or hatred or anything could be felt from Hajime, despite so it seemed that a bad premonition had been bothering them all along.
They wanted to get rid of him even a second faster, they wanted to erase him even an instant faster.
Even though they shouldn’t have anything like emotion, the figure of the women who was going to carry out the incomplete command of the inarticulate Aruvheit like a faithful dog that snapped at the food which they had been forbidden to eat previously, was like the expression of that kind of emotion.
The blade hand of the apostles was tinged with silver light. Using the disintegration ability, they would completely erased the gruesomely wounded man before their eyes!
But, it seemed that action was a little, no, it was fatally late.
Aruvheit and others gave Hajime too much time.
As though the silence until now was a lie, demonic intent that shook everyone’s dread overflowed. Red magic power that looked like blood spread stickily as though it would swallow everything. It looked just like the lid of hell’s kettle was opened.
Like that, Hajime’s voice that was finally let out was also something that made anyone hallucinate as though it came resounding from the bottom of hell. The meaning of his words too, it was dark and heavy as though it was merely trying to boil the listener earnestly… if it had to be said, it was a ‘curse’.
“――Anything and everything, disappear(Deny All Existences)”
At that moment, a concept that denied the world was released.
