Facing the sensation of being dragged in, I leapt back instantly.
It was still a close call; I had to thrust my sword into the ground just to hold my position against the force.
The suction was tremendous. Troublesomely, it only grew stronger as the seconds ticked by.
I looked toward the Demigod. A spatial hole had opened within his ruptured torso, and it was devouring the very fabric of the subspace.
Upon closer inspection, I saw the Demigod’s skin being pulled inside out as he bled. He was gradually being swallowed by the hole. He was using his own body as a catalyst to sustain the spatial distortion, forcing the suction to continue even as he destroyed himself.
(He likely judged that after being afflicted by miasma, conventional space magic would no longer work against me.)
Truly, this was his final trump card. Squeezing out every last drop of his remaining strength, he was determined to carry out my execution.
I unleashed a barrage of Lightning Strikes and Fireballs at the Demigod. However, every spell was sucked into the spatial hole. The void continued its consumption as if nothing had happened.
Cracks began to spiderweb across the subspace. Under the immense burden of the suction, the dimension was on the verge of total collapse. I doubted whether even I would remain safe if I were caught in the breakdown.
I tried other binding spells, interference via space magic, and even Forbidden Magic, but the hole neutralized every attempt. This spatial hole was incomparable to any space magic I had encountered before; it was something else entirely. It was closer to a Unique Ability permitted only to a Demigod. It was a technique worthy of a man who had activated it by staking his life.
I had a premonition that if I were dragged into that void, I would not survive.
That said, I could not simply leave it be. If this hole were to finish devouring the subspace, it would likely begin to interfere with the original world. I could not even imagine the scale of the damage that would occur before the Demigod finally expired. I was certain it was a threat I could not afford to ignore.
(I must stop it here.)
Steeling my resolve, I pulled my sword from the ground. My body floated into the air, naturally drawn toward the Demigod.
(—Please, lend me your strength.)
Knowing full well I was a man for whom prayer was not permitted, I held the thought tightly in my heart.
The spatial hole that swallowed all things loomed directly before me. Gauging the distance, I delivered a single flash of the keepsake sword. The full-force slash cut through the spatial hole without the slightest resistance.
Immediately, the suction force weakened. The two halves of the severed hole began to cancel each other out.
I followed up with another strike. The keepsake sword pierced the Demigod’s heart and jerked upward with force, the blade tearing through his shoulder.
"A-ah..."
The Demigod let out a faint, strangled sound. His clouded eyes remained fixed on me. His one cracked eye stared back with the same intensity. No emotion could be glimpsed within them.
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
Following the trajectory of my sword, the Demigod’s upper body split vertically. With his death, the spatial hole's suction resumed, but this time it began to devour the Demigod’s flesh preferentially. Because I had delivered the finishing blow, the magic had completely spiraled out of control.
The blood spurting from his wounds immediately flowed backward into the void. Flesh and bone tore with a sickening sound, turning inside out before vanishing into the hole. The Demigod’s mass dwindled, and he gradually lost his human shape.
I watched the entire process until the end. Eventually, his entire body was consumed, leaving only the spatial hole behind.
With the death of the caster, the hole’s stability rapidly decayed, and its duration was significantly shortened. It would likely finish devouring this subspace, but it would no longer be able to manifest in the original world.
Although I had witnessed a gruesome end, my objective was achieved for now.
(I must get out as well...)
Even though I had defeated the Demigod, it would be a poor joke if I were killed by his death throes. Fortunately, I had already devised an escape plan.
I activated space magic, channeling the power into the keepsake sword before swinging. The slash tore through the dimension, prying open a gap. However, the space immediately tried to repair itself, closing the rift.
I jumped through the gap to escape the subspace. My lower half didn't make it through in time and was caught in the rift as it shut. Unable to resist the spatial shear, my body was severed, and I tumbled pathetically onto the ground on the other side.
For a living being, this would have been a fatal wound, but I am an immortal. I reconstructed my lower half from miasma and recovered without issue.
(That was a close call...)
I stood up slowly.
Dawn had arrived in the wasteland. Inevitably, I was bathed in the morning sun, which caused my body to ache. It was a sensation like salt being rubbed into raw wounds. However, for the current me, that was a mere trifle.
I looked around the area. Not a single trace of the Demigod remained; he had vanished entirely. No suctioning holes appeared. There were no signs of lingering abnormalities—only the empty wasteland stretched out before me.
(He is dead, without a doubt.)
The Demigod had fulfilled his justice.
Reflecting on him now, he had been a fearsome individual. While I could not agree with his rigid convictions, his determination to uphold his justice was undeniably real. Yes, the Demigod had desired world peace. In that general objective, he and I were the same.
(Why did we walk such different paths?)
I asked myself the question, but I didn't need to think long for the answer. What the Demigod and I had seen was different.
I had defeated the great evil alongside that person and seen the world that lay beyond that victory. In contrast, the Demigod had seen nothing yet. He was still in the midst of executing his justice. That difference was vast and impossible to bridge.
Having learned that mere justice was insufficient, I had resolved to become the immortal evil. It was, in a sense, a compromise. Even though I knew it wasn't the best choice, I couldn't bring myself to give up on the path to world peace. So, I decided to be thorough from a different perspective.
In that regard, the Demigod had consistently struggled for the sake of justice. He believed in people. He believed that if he could only destroy the evil standing before him, the world would move in a better direction.
It was a dazzling way to live—one I could never hope to imitate now. It was like looking at a reflection of myself from when I was still alive.
The Demigod must have died with regrets, but from my perspective, he was fortunate. He was able to die without ever knowing that his convictions were flawed. He died as a champion against evil, spared from the taste of profound despair.
In future generations, the Demigod will likely be remembered as a tragic hero. That was probably what he wanted.
I know the truth. Deep down, the Demigod sought recognition. He went through the trouble of making a formal declaration of war and requesting a duel at a specific time and place. If his only goal was to kill me, there was no reason for such theatrics. He had countless opportunities for assassination.
He refrained from doing so because he wanted to leave his name for posterity. The Demigod wanted to be the hero who saved the world. That desire wasn't a bad thing. it was the irreplaceable wish of a nameless mage. He had challenged the world's enemy even at the cost of his own life. It was an endlessly noble spirit.
(He’s the complete opposite of me.)
I looked at my skeletal body, decayed in various places, and let out a self-deprecating laugh. I felt a stirring in my chest. It wasn't self-loathing; it was likely envy. I harbored a small amount of admiration for the Demigod, who had died as a hero of justice.
(My past choices have led me to this present.)
I have made many mistakes. If even one small thing had been different, perhaps it wouldn't have turned out this way. There might have been a future where I never became the Demon King.
However, no matter how much I regret it, it changes nothing. I must live in this reality.
The path I must walk is a single one. I must continue to exist as the immortal evil that triumphs over every form of justice. It comes down to that, and nothing more. For someone as prone to agonizing as I am, that simplicity is a blessing.
—And thus, I killed the Demigod.