In contrast to the battle between Lilia and Neun, whose multiple clashes of swords let out loud roars, the others were still staring at each other.
The army that Sechs had prepared was filled with some of the most talented people, including Earl-levels, of which there were only a few in the wide Demon Realm.
Shea gauged their abilities from the quality of magic power they possess and their stances. Although she didn’t show it on her face, Shea understood that the situation wasn’t so good.
As she had predicted….. Lilia’s battle with Neun was closer than expected. Even if the trio who joined their group after the initial confrontation, Razelia, Acht and Eval, weren’t peerage-holders, they were still capable enough to deal with the situation and should be considered threats.
All that was left for Shea to dispatch were 5 Earl-levels, 15 Viscount-levels, and 40 Baron-levels. Then, her blade would reach Sechs, the user of this ward they’re enclosed in.
In terms of pure ability, there’s no way in a million years that Shea would be defeated…… But Shea understood that they were running out of time here……
Sechs was well aware that he couldn’t win against Shea, and his appearance showed that he was stalling. This indicated that there was not much time left before Vier would leave.
It had already been a day and a half since Kaito had heard Vier’s story, and she had probably completed most of her preparations.
However, if they were to just recklessly charge, they would be doing exactly what Sechs wants…… However, if they were to focus on evasion and defense, keeping a certain distance away from enemies and using run and hit tactics, they wouldn’t be able to make it in time.
As Sechs said, Shea is proud of her fighting style of defeating her opponents without killing them, and she has no intention of neglecting this policy. To turn away from her policy would be equivalent to defeat.
That’s why Shea remained motionless as she searched for the shortest route to eliminate all obstacles without betraying the policy that she was proud of…… However, it isn’t easy to find. The more time she spent on searching for it, the more advantageous it would be for her opponents…… but still, she continued to stare at Sechs and the others, hoping that at least an opening would be created.
However, Shea wasn’t the only one feeling frustrated with the development of the situation. Sechs and the peerage-holding, High-ranking Demons can’t afford to carelessly move…… No, “they couldn’t make their move”.
If they were to let down their guard for even a second, they would be crushed in just an instant. If they were to avert their gaze for a few tenths of a second, their consciousness will be reaped away. That’s how strong Shea is.
As long as their goal is to buy time, they don’t need to make a move on their own…… Even so, the act of continuing to confront an overwhelmingly powerful person is relentlessly chipping away at their nerves.
For Sechs and the others, there were two conditions for defeat: One is that Sechs, the one who built the ward around them, were to be defeated without having bought enough time…… And the second is that they “inflict even a single scratch on Kaito”……
Sechs himself was aware of this. It isn’t that the Six Kings tacitly agreed to not touch this matter…… It’s just that “the Six Kings respect Kaito’s will of not asking them for their help” and that’s why they aren’t making their moves……
Yes, the moment that Kaito gets even a scratch would determine their defeat.
Whether it’s the “small ice crystals floating in the air”, which can’t be seen unless one looks closely, or the “being hidden behind Kaito”…… Those two would certainly make their move if Kaito was wounded.
If that happens, the power balance will greatly turn. What’s frightening is that the Phantasmal King, in particular, will show no mercy to them.
Confronting the No. 5 of the God Realm while being attentively watched by two of the Six Kings…… Sechs was carrying a terrible amount of pressure in his shoulders.
The situation is this tense for their side…… For all it takes is a single trigger to tilt the tide of this battle towards the other direction……
And such a trigger came from the other side of the battle, as a thunderous roar resounded.
[Kuuuhhhhh……]
[Lilia-san!?]
As Lilia was countered several times and sent flying backwards, Kaito worriedly called out to her.
Comparing Lilia’s overall strength with Neun’s…… Neun had a slight edge, and it was inevitable that the longer the battle went on, the more advantageous it was for Neun.
Lilia doesn’t seem to have received substantial damage, but even so, her heavy breathing showed how considerably fatigued she was, while Neun’s breathing had not become even slightly disheveled.
[……Frustrating it may be, it seems like the current me is no match for the First Hero.]
[……Are you admitting defeat?]
Hearing Lilia say she couldn’t beat Neun, Neun asked a little suspiciously.
Thereupon, Lilia…… slightly shook her head.
[……No…… It’s just that I didn’t want to use “this” if I could help it. “This” isn’t my power, so it’s not something I’m comfortable using……]
[……What are you……]
[However, it seems like…… If I don’t use it, I would lose.]
[!? T- This is bad! Neun-dono!]
As Lilia quietly mutters, Sechs seems to have quickly understood the meaning of her words as he called out to Neun, panicked unlike ever before.
However, compared to Sechs trying to explain what was happening…… Lilia activation of “that” was far faster.
[……Oh, “blessings of time”. At this moment, give me “the miracle of the moment”!]
[What is…!?]
[Neun-dono!?]
A moment later, there was a flash of light and Neun’s body was blown away.
Of course, it was Lilia who did it…… but Neun couldn’t see it. No, she could just barely see it…… However, she couldn’t respond fast enough.
That’s because Lilia was swinging her sword at her with a speed twice as fast, no,a speed faster than ever than before……
The True Blessing of a Supreme God…… Those who receive it will be allowed to speak in the name of the Supreme God…… but that’s obviously not all there is to it.
Those who have received a Supreme God’s True Blessing will be given the “authority to acquire some of the abilities of the Supreme God”.
Yes, Lilia had received Chronois’ blessing, and Chronois allowed her to learn the “magic of accelerating her own time”.
Of course, being granted permission doesn’t necessarily mean that she can easily use that magic. No matter how extremely competent you are, the thing you were being taught is the magic holding the authority of the Supreme God…… It would be impossible for an ordinary human to learn it, even with the God’s permission.
However, Lilia was able to use the magic that she had learned from Chronois thanks to her natural talent, albeit for only a short amount of time.
But even though Lilia has a great amount of magic power, she can only use the Supreme God’s magic to “increase her speed up to three times for a few dozen seconds” and that would use up most of her magic power.
In other words, even though this may be Lilia’s trump card, at the same time, it was a double-edged sword.
However, the effect of this magic certainly is huge…… Other than the Earl-levels, the High-ranking Demons of Viscount and Baron-levels saw Lilia’s time magic and even though it might only be for a moment, they still turned their focus away from Shea.
[……Did you just neglect me? That’s a minus for you.]
[Oh no!?]
She wouldn’t let this opportunity slip, and in that instant, she reaped the consciousness of more than a dozen high-ranking Demons and directly burst forth towards where Sechs was.
The time of standoff is over…… There were still all the troublesome Earl-levels, but she couldn’t just let this opportunity pass by.
Wielding her scythe like a raging black storm, the No. 5 of the God Realm had now bared her fangs.
However…… It couldn’t be said that Shea and the others completely gained the upper hand yet. While cleaving away the Viscount and Baron-levels one after another, Shea glanced at the battle between Lilia and Neun.
[……But still…… That wasn’t enough to defeat that Hero huh……]
Lilia seemed to be overwhelming Neun with her time magic but…… Shea’s eyes could certainly see it.
The way Neun kept avoiding the attacks that would deal significant damage to her body by a paper-thin margin in the midst of the flashing sword strikes……
[……If only we had “one more card”…… No, there’s no point in thinking about what we don’t have.]
After muttering this in a voice that no one could hear, Shea removed her gaze from Lilia and Neun, and headed towards her opponent.
? ? ? : Whoa there, the battle continues to get even more heated, doesn’t it? I’m hoping that the cool Alice-chan will make her appearance here but…… It seems like it would still be unlikely. However, it looks like this battle will be over in a chapter or two.
Now then, here’s a “question”!
In the next chapter, a certain character will make her entrance! Now then, who will it be?
① The Owner of the Monster Racetrack, “Chapel-san”
② The Dripping-wet Loli, “Laguna-san”
③ The Mysterious and Extremely Beautiful Phantom Thief, “Hapti-chan”
④ Red Bear Sandwich “Auntie”
⑤ The Plaything of the Afterword, “Serious-senpai”
……Whoa there, this is quite a difficult question.
If you answer correctly, you will receive the “clothes that idiots can’t see”! Go and post your answers!!! Also, please note that I have nothing to do with either the exceedingly beautiful Alice-chan or the exceedingly beautiful Phantom Thief Hapti-chan.