CH 56

Surrounded by Hakuto and Erika, and even Lulu Noah and Celestia, the Demon King continued to engage in a leisurely fight.

That’s right, at this point his movements themselves were definitely not considered fast.

He wasn’t relying on that great strength and magic power, but rather he was dominating the battle simply by dodging by walking, as well as by his pure sword skills.

“- That’s not enough yet.”

He manipulated the black decorative sword, dancing and using the magnificent swordplay that had captivated even the four people he was fighting.

“Uso! There are four of us!” (Hakuto)

“Don’t talk so much, hurry up and help Anee-sama!” (Erika)

And there were two of them, Celestia and Lulu Noah, the most powerful warrior in the Kingdom of Light.

“Uhh!”

“Uhhhh!”

As Celestia chopped away, the heavy war club struck down at the demon king who had stopped in his tracks.

However.

“Uh!! Hey, what are you doing!” (Lulu Noah)

“He can easily parry my attacks, I’m really sorry.”

Celestia’s sword rubbed against the Demon King’s sword and then just bounced off in the direction of Lulu Noah.

“…… really weak, it’s not even fun anymore…. Haa… , it couldn’t be helped.”

The demon king who was attacked from all sides in one breath but still fought leisurely muttered feeling a bit bored.

“……”

In the middle of the battle, the demon king unknowingly glanced at the ‘relic’ in his hand.

“-Cerestia.”

“Yes!!!”

The Demon King very gently threw the decorative sword towards Celestia.

“What! Why is it ……”

“This ‘relic’, I’ll leave it to you.”

Hakuto and Erica were completely unable to understand the meaning of the Demon King’s move and were frozen.

“……”

The eyes are glued to the stunning jet-black decorative sword that Celestia has at hand.

“…… What exactly do you have in mind? Is it some kind of trap?” (Lulu Noah)

“What is mine will always be mine, forever, and everything will belong to me in the end. Celestia …. I’ll take it again one day. Besides, I still have a lot of cards in my hand. There’s no need in rely on that. But… is a necessity for the weak ones, isn’t it?”

In response to Lulu Noah’s questioning, the Demon King replied calmly.

Immediately afterwards he drew the sword on his belt and continued.

“So, Princess Celestia. Can you show me that you are worthy of it?”

“Of course. ……”

With her sparkling eyes full of energy, Celestia raised her decorative sword.

“I am the one who brings light-”

A pillar of light rose from the dark cloud that shrouded the royal capital.

The church was filled with that dazzling light, and with a flick of her ornamental sword, Celestia’s light disappeared as if on command.

“-I must do it.”

After she said that the decorative sword shone with a divine glow, creating several lances of light around its wielder.

“…… seriously?”

The demon lord who didn’t think that it was really a ‘relic’ made a somewhat foolish voice in a volume that no one heard.

“As the one who received this sword, I will make sure you are satisfied.”

As if sarcastic, Celestia said that humbly while wielding the Relic.

It was a battle between light and darkness.

The spear and sword of light flashed towards the demon king.

“Hmm ”

“—!”

At the Demon King, who had dodged the attacks by a hair’s breadth, Celestia moved in a flash and swung her decorative sword at his back.

Even so, he dodged it, but as if she knew this in advance, she took the back at the speed of a blink,

and continued her fierce attack with grace.

“–Hoo.”

“……”

Then this time the demon king finally drew the sword hanging from his waist once again and caught the decorative sword down.

It was an attack and defense at the speed of light that was beyond the realm where Hakuto and the others could see.

The shadow of the sword, needless to say, and even Celestia’s figure they could only catch intermittently.

Leaving them, who were still in the realm of the normal people, to one side, Celestia’s knotted dress figure left only a few particles of light behind, and just kept cutting at the Demon King.

“….”

“Has that girl always been this strong …?”

Celestia’s shining sword skill had reached a level of power that even Lulu Noah was left behind.

The beauty and flowing blonde hair with the glowing fighting stance can be said to be the [Goddess of War of Light] herself in general, with the light wrapped around her body.

However ……

“As expected of Celestia. You’ve just gotten your hand on that ‘relic’ and you’re already using it beautifully.”

The attack of light that kept coming at all times, the king dodged it effortlessly as if he was playing with it by mixing it with juggling-like movements.

Only every now and then did he use his sword a little.

Even a combination like ‘Relic’ plus Celestia couldn’t break the Demon King’s defense.

“I have to go too …. It’s too dangerous to let that demon king escape here. He also just said something about have many cards in his hand, so he probably has many other hidden secrets like ability to see the future.”

“Eh!?”

“Seeing …… the future ……?”

Both Hakuto and Erika had a surprised look at the words of Lulu Noah, who had picked up her battle stick and was ready to take action.

The ability to see the future can be said to be beyond imagination and like a god.

Could it be that the demon king in that boy’s form really possessed powers that were far beyond comprehension?

But when they saw the sight before them, they immediately accepted it.

“Then, you guys stay back!” (Lulu Noah)

The Demon King, who was fighting in front of Lulu Noah, who had run away, dodged all the attacks from Celestia at that moment.

It was as if he had predicted it perfectly.

“…… No!” (Erika)

“Eh …… Erika ……? (Hakuto)

Erika, who was standing at the side, also stood up and set her sheathed sword at her waist.

“I’m going too. You wait here for a moment, Hakuto!”

At Erika’s departing back, Hakuto just watched like this.

He was tormented by the same deep sense of powerlessness that he had felt when facing Kelly.

He was definitely not weak.

He had inherited Shiro’s cause as a Hero and had undergone the same rigorous training as the Hero’s of the past generations.

To be sure he was slowly getting stronger.

But this place doesn’t wait for his growth.

“I got you!!!”

Aiming for a gap in the fierce white-knuckle battle between her opponent and Celestia, who was undoubtedly the main force, Lulu Noah leapt from behind him and struck down with her bat.

“If you want to make a surprise attack, you should keep quiet until the last moment.”

“No way!!”

Without looking behind him at all, the demon lord sidestepped the blow with a smooth movement.

“Evil shall be cut off! Stretch the Devil’s Thrust!”

It was Erika’s Blast Blade that broke straight in like an arrow without hesitation.

“It’s useless.”

“Ku!!!”

The Demon King extended his index finger, deflecting the blade’s trajectory just a little and rendering it powerless.

Sure enough, it was as if he had seen through his opponent’s trajectory and technique …… as if he could actually see the future.

“Half-assed strikes are useless against me!!”

Celestia, who full of energy, thrust the shining decorative sword into the earth.

And with that, the huge blade of light burst out from under the Demon King’s feet.

“Mm.”

He showed a little surprise, but then he turned around lightly and pulled back halfway to avoid the attack.

“Except for Celestial, all of you so weak.”

“….”

“Cough… cough.. Fufu…. It’s an honor.”

“Didn’t I tell you …… he’s clearly used to being on the defensive side of the battle ……”

Erika clenching her teeth, Celestia after a dry cough in a hurry to change back to a sinister expression, while Lulu Noah is a little bitter that way.

“…… the defensive side of the battle?”

Not expecting Lulu Noah words to bring them even greater terror and despair.

The Demon King turned his body towards Erika and stepped forward while she was defenseless.

“Ah!!!”

“Did you notice? The only reason you are still alive is because of my mercy.”

The Demon King made Erica’s blade pass under her ribs and caught it with a jerk.

In that gap Lulu Noah swung her club from the side…

“–Huh!?”

He stretched out his leg again and caught it easily, then pinned it to the ground with a deft step.

“That’s!!!”

“Did you notice? The reason why I didn’t kill the people of the capital was because of my whim.”.

He deflected the shining decorative sword that Celestia kept slashing at him with the black sword in his hand.

“Are you aware that there is nothing you can protect with your hands …”

The dark magic came at the trio.

“Agh!!”

“Buhoo!!”

“Guh!!”

The trio tumbled away as if blown by a storm, the demon lord’s body filled with magic as if it were wrapped in flames.

The black wave, which felt even more powerful than the one the Black Knight possessed, caused Hakuto and Erica’s fighting spirit to be completely extinguished.

“…… Hey, let’s make a deal!”

“Huh?”

A desperate looking Hakuto said.

“We will prepare what you want! So please stop there!!!”

There was no way to win.

Even Lulu Noah was sure of that.

Therefore, no one objected or disagreed with Hakuto who shouted to the demon king ……

“…… doesn’t sound too bad.”

“Well, then–”

“But it’s only at first sight that I think so.”

“……”

….. However silly this is, no one disputes him.

(It looks like we should have a demon king seminar.)

“…… It’s true, it’s stupid to use me as an opponent. There is no way you will win. That’s why you have to negotiate, and making a deal is the only means you can think of. Besides, it has the good advantage of buying time for reinforcements.”

“……”

As if to correct him, the Demon King continued.

“But, a deal is a deal where both sides have the right cards and both sides need them.”

“If so, we will try to prepare as much as we can…”

Not waiting for Hakuto to finish his naive words, the Demon King gave him despair in a soft tone.

“– I just have to go and snatch it.”

Hakuto’s thoughts stopped.

To Celestia and Lulu Noah, what the Demon King said was a statement that was taken for granted.

Even Erica, vaguely, understood the meaning of that statement.

“O Hero man. The so-called evil is called evil precisely because it deviates from the right path.”

“……”

“There are also those who find loopholes in the rules and commit evil acts. It is because you’re justice that you have to correct them.”

Hearing the words of the demon king as if he were teaching a young child, Hakuto realized how shallow his proposal was.

“I am very strong. So I don’t need anything from your side, just take it away from you. If you don’t know what the rules are, then just use your power to take all the benefits into your own hands. For example, money, food, and ……”

The eyes of the Demon King, who was staring at each other with Hakuto, – turned in the direction of Celestia.

“…… Remember the deal that you mentioned? Even if I had agreed to the deal, I would have chosen her if I were to make a request now.”

“That’s!”

“That’s not going to work, is it? Well, the deal you’re proposing seems to be something that’s quite convenient for me. But if that doesn’t work, I just need to forcefully take it from you.”

“…”

Although the proposal was made for the safety of himself and the others, even if they avoided the dilemma before them, they would still lose something important.

After noticing this, Hakuto finally understood …… that he had no choice in the matter from the beginning.

“…… understand? After all, we were originally standing on different stages. Me and you guys. The strong and the weak. Evil and justice.”

The Demon King made his magic boil up, laying out this unrelenting reality before his eyes.

“Trampling on others, playing with life, taking everything away without reason …… desperately struggling to survive lives that would be taken at will for the sake of selfishness alone.”

The devil king said quietly.

Only the words, as if he was trying not to let people from the heart to understand this point seems to struggle to say in an emotionless tone.

“…… You who are weak can’t protectc anything. Nothing can be corrected. The only thing you can do is to look on with reluctance and helplessness.”

A feeling of anger arose in Hakuto’s heart that he had never felt before.

It was anger at having been seen through the naivety of his heart and being lectured by the demon king about evil and justice.

The fire of will was rekindled in the eyes that had been left with tears of shame.

“That’s why evil is born. Anything can be forgiven if you have power …… just like I do now.”

The passion that should have been known for a long time because of the sighs of the weak, swirled within him.

“Looks like you can’t do anything right now. So that is why I will still stand by my claim. …… These three are also good to take away as my properties.”

“……”

Not only Celestia, but the Demon King also looked at the other two beauties at the same time and said so.

The variety in those words sobered Hakuto up.

“Don’t expect anything from evil.”

“…… yeah, that’s right.”

White magic power seeped out of Hakuto’s body.

The dark magic pressed down on his body like a heavy weight, and Hakuto’s power was crushed.

Slowly, slowly, it became stronger and heavier ……

Like it was trying to seal the power within Hakuto’s body.

“This world is full of all kinds of unreasonable things.”

“It’s like that ……”

The figures of people who had been kidnapped just to find Hero flashed through his mind.

He acted like a child as if he was about to cry out.

The horror of it all would still feel fearful no matter what.”

“……”

“Ha …… ha ……”

Even Lulu Noah and Erika, in front of a fraction of the strength the Demon King had liberated, had become weaker than a candle flame in their hearts.

“It’s going to be too late if you keep dawdling —- there,” he said.

“I hate it ……”

He resisted in a childlike tone, staring at the demon king with eyes that left tears.

He injected power into his legs …… that were trembling with fear of the power of the Demon King as a transcendent.

The sword was also clenched in his hand.

In order to overcome the fear, he injected excess power into his thighs and forearms as well, and veins emerged and remained there.

“You hate it. …… So, what are you going to do in front of me as a demon king? You’re going to continue the bargaining, the Hero, Hakuto?”

Beeping, his body shone with a dazzling light as if it were radiating heat.

“…… to fight it. Whether it’s naivety or what you think is impossible, I will prove it this to you……”

It was a pure white awakening.

A riotous magical power that was completely different from the one that had been present until now covered his body.

“Hakuto ……?

“…… Magic power has risen to this level, what the hell is he?”

The change in Hakuto made Erika and Lulu Noah feel as if they were mistaking others for him.

Everyone in the room could see the vision of the white wings on Hakuto’s back.

“This magic is ……”

Celestia’s expression turned sinister, and so did the Demon King.

Although Celestia immediately then requested instructions from Chrono with her sight, Chrono shook her head slightly in a way that only she could understand, refusing her intervention.

“I’m a little surprised that you’ve awakened at the last minute …… but unfortunately you’ll still be killed, won’t you? It’s just a rise in magic power. It’s still much weaker than Celestia’s.”

“Ha~, haa~, …… that’s might be true, but …… if I can’t escape, I’ll have to fight. If it’s for the sake of my companions’ crisis and the kingdom’s crisis, I’ll have to face it. Anyway ……”

A white power burst out from the steel sword of Hakuto who charged forward.

“There is no other way but to defeat you!”

The demon king laughed happily through his mask as he looked at Hakuto, who was wielding a white light like a sunflame and cutting down.

Then.

“Has the blood of the Hero awakened ……?”

The sharp blades of white and black intertwined.

“Haaaa!!!!”

“..!!!!”

The impact of the head-on collision caused the Church, already in tatters, to crumble.

“Haaaaa!!!”

“That’s how Hero should be, I’d better ask just in case.”

Strike after strike, the white and black swords clashed together.

In the midst of the disintegrating church, a somewhat foolhardy white-knuckle battle with no technique at all was being repeated.

“If you get this wrong, I won’t be able to recognize you as a Hero.”

“Shut up!!”

After being catapulted out of the way, Hakuto further increased the amount of magic power that was spilling out of his body.

The sudden overpowering magic power in his body caused blood to pour out from his nose, mouth, ears, and wounds.

The muscles and bones in his body were screaming, making him want to utter the deflating words of weakness.

But he ignored them and drew out more magic.

He fought with no regard for his body.

If he could not cross this hurdle, there would be no tomorrow for himself and the others, and now Hakuto had understood this.

So, be stronger —-

“Uraaaaaaa!!!

He raised his blade, which burst out with even more magic power in a flash, and ran towards the Demon King who stood there quietly.

“This is a question that you could not answer before.”

Against his blade, which was wrapped in white magic as it spilled out its overflowing power without reservation, was a black blade that seemed to be carefully coated without a drop leaking out.

The two opponents were locked in a short battle.

The Demon King gazed at the pupils of Hero’s righteous eyes at close range and asked pleasantly.

“I will give you half of the world in general. How about coming to my side?”

“I refuse!!! If the remaining half of the world were tainted with evil …… it would be rendered meaningless.”

The demon king swung his lacquered black blade and Hakuto was knocked out of the room while spilling blood.

“Ugh!!!”

“That’s a good point! As a demon king, I admit it! You are a true Hero, Hakuto!”

The demon king continued with a look of uncontainable joy in his heart in response to the unexpected answer.

“When you become stronger, when you become indispensable to the kingdom together with Celestia and Erika, when you become a hero who can defeat all the evils that no one can doubt……”

The magic that was beautifully gathered in the shape of a sword blade wavered like a black flame.

“What kind of despair would have come if you lose everything at that time? I can’t bear to think of it now. …… Until that day comes, I’ll leave Celestia and the sword to you.”

The demon king, who was playing like a child, raised his sword towards the clouds and sky.

“I hereby declare. From this day onwards, the ‘Ancient Legend’ will be resurrected.”

“Ancient …… legend ……?”

Without answering Erika’s question, the Demon King released the magic power from his sword.

–This is the beginning of the end.

The Tower of Black Flames burned the sky.