Demon King

[You can withstand a deadly blow, his words were right.]

“Indeed, no one will overcome him. So, from the premise, it’s unfortunate.”

Desperately absorbing the mana from the bullets caused a violent reaction inside of me. The shock of the bullet striking clean through me brought a name to mind.

“Barbatos.”

[I should’ve finished you off in one shot.]

Some of the bullets’ power was lost, but the change was nowhere near as dramatic as Marcocias’ circumstance. I was expecting as much; he would have arrived so boldly if he had the same protections she did.

[King, as of right now, you can’t do anything to me. Until the end, you played dirty.]

“You’re the one who fired those bullets and showed up. In other words, you were afraid of being called by name.”

[….!]

As soon as he appeared, I made fun of the newcomer who was easily angered by my provocation. He fired off one more bullet, but A prevented it from breaking through this time.

“This dirty insect…” A’s expression was really rough. Undoubtedly, the experience of someone breaking through his shields was unpleasant for him. Barbatos sneered at him.

[You are also very weak. The guard dog, yes?]

“…” It was easy to see that A was bothered by his jab, but at that moment, the light pink energy radiating out from L wrapped around us. His expression eased for a moment as L stood behind us on the wall.

“Don’t be provoked. You keep the castle safe, it’s up to Fate to kill him.”

“Cheh…”

[You’re still trapped in this dark and narrow place.]

The target of his conversation had changed. He had come to recover the wife of the Devil, and it was clear now he was referring to L. Unbridled rage began to fill me. The bullet in my chest, the hole in the sky he had punched through, looking down at us and treating L as someone else’s wife.

[Now, it is over. Please, accompany me.]

“Fate.” Ignoring Barbatos’s words, L turned to me.

“I hate hearing that voice. Please take care of it quickly.”

“Got it.” I think that was the first time she complained to me about anything. It was such a cute grievance, but laughing didn’t suit the situation.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Hm.”

[It doesn’t make sense.]

Dark clouds completely covered the underground sky. Barbatos hovered below it; unlike the other demons, he had a similar form to me.

[Fate. The next bullet will end you.]

A green jacket and hat, with a shotgun in hand that exuded impossible energy. In the first shot, I could feel he was stronger than Rain or A, but now that I had spoken his name, it had become less than that. He was still stronger than me, however.

“Whoo.” Looking at him, I had already recovered all the mana that I had been distributing throughout the battlefield, concentrating it into the Annihilation I had in hand and the Echo around my neck. It would be essential to deal with him.

[Huh.]

A third bullet shot out. I thought I had been able to avoid it, but the Goddess’ Touch deflected it away from me. It wouldn’t be usable forever, so I had to quickly find a way to deal with it myself. My body kept moving as I took in my own faults, creating alter egos as I rushed at Barbatos with Ubiquitous.

[Hahahah! What are those toys?!]

The alter egos exploded one after another. I already knew there was no way Ubiquitous, which wasn’t yet perfected, could work against him. None of my tricks would. However, the lost alter ego had its role. It slowly began to color the sky, bit by bit, with my own mana, creating an environment where I could easily move. Additionally, it would be an environment unfavorable for Barbatos.

“Are you protected by him?”

[Once the underground is destroyed and the battlefield attains completion, there will be no problem left!]

I couldn’t avoid his fourth bullet. It flew in at such a high speed that even the Goddess’ Touch couldn’t properly follow it. It exploded out of my shoulder, crushing through my muscle and bone. I didn’t stop. My ability was insufficient, but the Annihilation and Echo of the Soul, born amid countless miracles and despair, had the power necessary to defeat him.

[Huh!]

A groan escaped Barbatos. The moment I desperately used Reaper to hide and rush him with the dagger, he tried to block my attack by lifting his shotgun up with both hands. I drew a silver line with the blank, drawing blood.

Bang! An empty sound resonated in the air. The moment he was attacked, he moved around in space to aim at me anew and shot. His reaction speed was insane, but I was able to avoid it this time.

“Can you do anything but shoot a gun?”

[You’re holding a pretty dangerous toy that doesn’t match you.]

I followed him in the air. The further I let him get away, the worse it would be for me. To hold onto even a bit of hope in this desperate fight, I’d have to cling to him desperately and swing my weapon.

Another bullet, faster than before. A pair of distorted wings rose from his back. They were white-feathered with black stains- the wings of a fallen angel. Energy sprouted out from him, the energy of the elves. It filled him with pain, and at the same time, it granted him strength.

[Hoooo….]

His breathing grew harsh, and he stared at me.

[I will regain my position.]

“Will you?” I hit the air again and reached him, but my attack fell short. He was reading my movements. As I prepared for another bullet, his feet broke through the air like lighting and slammed into my abdomen. I was hit by the spirit of the elves who denied all of my existence, and pain radiated through my entire body.

“Khhh…”

[This is his strength. It is only possible for one who controls the powers of both the elves and demons!]

“It would be good to rethink the meaning of your words…!” There was something out of place when those who touted the power of the elves called their leader the Devil.

[There is no need for the underground anymore, nor a need for the humans. There is no place for you. Disappear, you relic of the past!]

“You’re talking like you have a place yourself!” Desperately using the regenerative powers I had, I used my rage to heal myself. The bullet that was flying at my head was blocked by the Goddess’ Touch, and the next one was shattered by the blade of my dagger. It happened somewhat unconsciously, but I was quickly becoming familiar with it. I rallied the mana inside me, absorbing all I could as I reached out towards the death surrounding me for strength.

[Persistent…]

What was there left to say when we both knew our words meant nothing to the other? Several bullets fired in succession from his shotgun, defying the laws of physics. My reaction was immediate. While moving through the air with Ubiquitous, I wielded Annihilation and activated the power of Destruction to stop all of the bullets.

[Is that really all?]

“Hm?!” The next moment, the muzzle of his shotgun was stuck in my mouth. I couldn’t read his movements at all, but he could see mine. It was an unnatural movement, as we both appeared in the same space, and there was no in-between his movement and his attack.

[Really, this is the end.]

And the bullet was fired, with enough power to blow my brains out and not enough time for me to think about it. At the moment, coincidentally, a death took place on the battlefield. Solas’s sharp attacks tore the leopard’s brain to shreds, swallowing it with the energy of Predation. That energy flowed through to me, filling me for an instant. The fired bullet tore through my palate to strike at my brain as the energy was fully digested.

[You have acquired an extinction skill.]

Only

[The Destruction and Annihilation skill have fused to make the skill Flame of Destruction.]

The flames poured from out of my mouth and burned the bullet.

“Plauros.” Having kept safely away from it, I muttered the name of the high-ranking demon who had just died. A demon with the power to deal with flames, just like Andras. No wonder I had felt attracted to it from the start.

[Gaining the power of only one devil won’t be enough…!]

“Only one?” The flame didn’t stop with burning the bullet and was now licking Barbatos, who was trying to fire off more. I stepped through the air to approach him with a shine in my eyes.

“This is just the beginning.” The flames enveloped his body, and a happy laugh escaped me as I watched him scream. The air opened up, and reinforcements that seemed to sense his crisis poured out. The battlefield was growing more and more chaotic as the demons let out a cheer.

“All the power will come to me!” But now, I was enjoying it.

I thought perhaps it was I who was most affected by the Devil’s Night as I slashed at the enemy before me.