“Kuhahaha! Behold, Demon King! I shall teach you the meaning of true fear!”
Diera’s voice echoed from the distance. She was clearly in high spirits, her tone suggesting she might break into a dance at any second. I could practically feel her radiating joy at the situation.
Hearing her boisterous laughter, I shook my head slightly. It was frustrating that my body prevented me from even letting out a sigh.
Honestly, it is getting hard to tell which of us is the actual Demon King.
While I lamented inwardly, I remained vigilant. My stealth magic was still active as I prowled through the training ground. The area was currently cluttered with objects mimicking urban buildings—structures that hadn't existed moments ago. They were actually colored barriers, meticulously arranged to recreate a pseudo-urban combat zone.
With a gun in my hand, I kept a sharp eye out for the tank’s approach.
To clarify my current predicament: I was currently locked in combat with Diera. Specifically, I was maneuvering to destroy the tank piloted by her and Henry.
I’d started the exercise in a tank of my own. Though these machines were designed for a full crew, I’d been operating mine solo through magical interference. I hadn't boosted its performance, as I wanted to keep the test fair; the primary goal was to confirm the weapon's standard capabilities.
However, Diera had unleashed the full might of a former Demon King from the very start. Immediately after we began, she’d launched a series of Chains of Light to bind my vehicle before blasting it with the main cannon's beam. My tank was reduced to scrap instantly. Having escaped by the skin of my teeth, I was now forced to engage on foot.
Unlike me, Diera’s only objective was entertainment. Since we hadn't established any rules forbidding the use of personal abilities, she was attacking without a shred of restraint. I wished she understood the concept of moderation, but I doubted such a lecture would ever reach her. Henry, who was riding shotgun, showed no sign of reining her in either. He was likely savoring the chaos just as much as she was.
They were a truly troublesome duo.
What a nuisance...
I had only intended to observe today, yet things had taken an unexpected turn. Still, I had no intention of withdrawing. If I quit now, I’d never hear the end of it from those two. Besides, a part of me didn't want to back down. If I was going to fight, I might as well win.
Beyond the mock city limits, my subordinates were watching. I couldn't afford to put on a pathetic display in front of them.
It’s time to make a move.
I tightened my grip on the gun. This specific model was a Three-shot Type, boasting high stopping power and a mechanism designed for rapid reloading. The trade-off was a shorter effective range compared to the standard issue. To use it effectively, I had to get close.
I manifested a magic sword in my other hand. It was incredibly brittle—hardly more durable than a pane of glass—but its edge was second to none. Even if it shattered, I could simply manifest another. In terms of utility, it was an outstanding weapon.
I didn't intend to use any high-tier spells for this exercise. I wanted to keep my actions within the realm of "common sense." If I ignored those limits, this would devolve into a pure magical duel, defeating the purpose of testing the military hardware.
Once my armaments were ready, I stepped out from the cover of a building and onto the main street. Almost instantly, the tank appeared at the far end of the road. Diera’s voice boomed over the field.
“Oho! To show yourself so boldly... how impressive. Have you finally resigned yourself to defeat?”
“Repeating nothing but ambushes would be tedious,” I replied, using magic for voice amplification. “I simply decided to bring this to a swift conclusion.”
Diera gave a delighted shout.
“Oh! So you do understand! As expected of the current Demon King!”
The tank’s turret swiveled, locking onto me. Flanked by buildings on both sides, I was caught in a straight bottleneck with zero cover. It was the perfect killing floor for a tank.
“I shall not be modest! You had best exert your power to the fullest as well!”
Magic power began to coalesce at the tip of the tank’s barrel. She wasn't holding back; it felt like she was outputting the same level of lethality she would in a life-or-death struggle.
“Here I come!”
The tank fired. A beam of concentrated light roared toward me, gouging the earth in its wake. It was fast enough to vaporize a man in the blink of an eye. However, as long as I saw it coming, I could handle it.
I stared down the beam, reading its trajectory with clinical precision, and delivered a single, sharp lash with my magic sword. The severed beam split, piercing the buildings to my left and right. The barriers, their magic formulas disrupted, hissed with sparks before vanishing into thin air.
The magic sword shattered with a high-pitched ring. It was fragile, as expected, but it had done its job. I instantly generated a new blade and broke into a sprint, charging straight at the tank.
“That swordplay is as absurd as ever! You truly have no regard for common sense, do you?!”
Diera laughed as she fired a rapid succession of beams. I cleaved through the incoming shots one by one, or caught them on the flat of my blade to parry them away. Each deflected shot brought another building crashing down. If these hadn't been mock structures made of barriers, the cleanup would have been a nightmare.
I need to close the distance to sword range.
At point-blank, my gun would be lethal. If I stayed at a distance, I would do nothing but provide target practice. Even accounting for the tank's mobility, closing the gap was the only logical choice.
...Hm?
As I ran, weaving through the beams, I sensed a presence distinct from Diera’s. It was a killing intent suppressed to the absolute limit, blended so perfectly into the environment that a normal warrior would never have noticed it. It was masterful stealth.
—Above.
The moment I identified the source, I swung my magic sword upward. The tip of the blade sliced an arrow clean out of the air. The arrowhead grazed my temple as it tumbled away. Shifting my gaze, I spotted Henry perched atop a nearby roof. He was grinning wildly as he drew his bow again.
“Haha! As expected of the Boss! You noticed me, eh?!”
Henry loosed a volley of arrows. Even from that distance, his precision was terrifying. I raised my sword to defend myself. Despite deflecting the force of the impact, the sheer power behind the shots made my arms go numb. Still, I didn't slow down. I kept my focus on the tank. Countering Henry with the gun was pointless; he was well outside its effective range.
Henry leapt from the building, kicked off a wall, and came spinning toward me in a blur. His manic, grinning face closed in.
“HRAAA!”
He swung his bow down like a club. I caught the blow with my sword and shoved him back. I followed up with a lightning-fast thrust, but Henry nimbly twisted out of the way. His physical capabilities remained utterly inhuman.
“It’s been a while since we’ve tangled like this. You better make this fun for me, Boss!”
“...Do as you please.”
We traded blows while continuing our banter. All the while, beams of light continued to streak past us. Diera was firing with zero regard for Henry’s safety—she was clearly operating on the assumption that we were both capable of handling it.
Henry and I clashed at high speeds, neither of us yielding an inch. Scratches and small nicks began to accumulate across my body. This had moved far beyond the scope of a mere mock battle.
“Whoa, careful there!”
Henry evaded a stray beam, creating the tiniest of openings. It was a lapse barely visible to the naked eye, but I didn't miss it. I dispelled my magic sword, seized him by the collar, and hurled him away before he could react. To add extra momentum to the throw, I intentionally detached my own arm as I released him.
“Hey, Bo—!”
His protest was cut short as he vanished into the distance. Henry slammed into a building, punched straight through it, and demolished the structure behind it for good measure. An ordinary man would have been killed instantly, but Henry was unnaturally durable. A fall like that wouldn't even break his bones. He’d be back on his feet in seconds.
I regenerated a prosthetic arm from miasma and resumed my charge, batting away beams as I ran.
“Eei! To even break through our pincer maneuver! What monstrous strength!”
Diera’s voice was tinged with genuine surprise. She must have truly believed that last gambit would finish me. Their coordination had been fierce, but it was a tactic I’d already accounted for. It wasn't enough to put me in a real bind.
As I closed in, dozens of Chains of Light erupted from the tank’s hull. Roughly thirty glowing tethers lashed out at once, all seeking to ensnare me.
She’s definitely taking this too far...
Exasperated by her stubbornness, I pushed my sword speed to the limit. Each chain I deflected struck the surrounding mock-city, gouging massive holes in the pavement and walls. The environment was disintegrating at an accelerating rate.
Suddenly, the tank gave off a bizarre magical signature. A grotesque mixture of scales and carapace began to seep across its surface, plating the machine in organic armor. It was Diera’s signature ability. She was intuitively infusing the vehicle with her own magic power to reinforce it.
Diera had no formal magical training, yet she could pull off feats like this purely through instinct. She truly was a genius; the title of the preceding Demon King was not just for show.
“Now, current Demon King! This is the end for you! Witness the power of my Ultimate Weapon!”
As Diera shouted her triumph, the cannon roared. I moved to parry, then immediately changed my mind. This beam carried dozens of times the destructive force of the previous shots. My brittle magic sword wouldn't hold up against that kind of output.
I activated physical enhancement and dropped into a low, lunging sprint. The beam grazed the top of my head, but I avoided a direct hit. As long as the strike wasn't immediately fatal, I could handle it—an immortal body rarely sustains a truly "lethal" wound.
Using that momentum, I slid directly under the tank's barrel. Safe from the main gun's arc, I circled to the flank and unleashed a flurry of slashes. The organic scales and carapace were shorn away in an instant. I pressed the muzzle of my gun against the exposed hull and fired two rounds, channeling my magic into the shots.
The tank groaned, emitted a cloud of thick black smoke, and ground to a halt. The power unit was fried, rendered completely non-functional. Since I knew the machine's internal schematics, I knew exactly where to strike to disable it.
The tank was dead. A moment later, the top hatch flew open and Diera leaped out, leading with a ferocious flying kick.
“SHEEYAAA!”
I simply threw my magic sword. The hilt caught Diera squarely in the forehead with a resonant thwack. Her momentum died instantly; she tumbled through the air, sailed over my head, and hit the dirt with a heavy thud.
The impact must have been significant, as she began rolling around on the ground, clutching her forehead in pain. I walked over and leveled my gun at her.
“Is that enough?” I asked.
“I surrender...” she muttered, finally going still.
I looked back to see Henry standing amidst the rubble of a collapsed building, his hands raised in mock defeat. He looked frustrated—likely because our duel had been cut short.
Diera stood up and gave a long stretch. Her expression had already shifted back to one of sunny satisfaction.
“Umu. A pity, but I suppose it is time we headed back. I shall definitely win our next bout. Until then, farewell!”
“Wait.”
I caught her by the shoulder as she tried to walk away. She turned back, eyes sparkling with expectation.
“What is it? Do you desire a second round?”
“Hardly.”
I pointed at the ruined tank. It was a wreck, covered in charred organic matter and internal components that had been melted by her excessive magic output. The damage I’d dealt with my gun was negligible compared to the havoc she’d caused from the inside. It was beyond repair.
“You’re going to help level the training ground and perform maintenance on the remaining equipment. You’ll be working until you’ve paid off the cost of the tank you destroyed. Any objections?”
“...None.”
Diera’s shoulders slumped in immediate defeat. In that moment, there wasn't a single trace of the "dignity of the former Demon King" left in her.