C880
Raon bit his lip as he stared at the darkly split dimension.
'Just as Wrath said...'
An enormous presence that forced one to kneel and oppressed the chest. The Balrog within that dimension possessed an aura no less intimidating than the Demon Kings he had encountered so far.
[I came to rescue you, thinking you had fallen into a trap set for me, but it seems I'm too late.]
A muffled voice echoed from within the rippling black dimension. Despite the emotionless tone, Raon felt his heart sink. However, judging by those words, it seemed that the Black Tower's initial target wasn't the Balrog he had killed, but Askara, the Balrog King.
[Were you the ones who tried to take me out?]
Askara's gaze, which glowed with a red light, turned towards Raon's eyes. He felt a pain as if his eyeballs were being burnt with a red-hot iron plate.
'His power may be unknown, but his personality is different from other Demon Kings.'
Unlike other Demon Kings, Askara unleashed his fighting spirit without restraint. Just standing in front of him quickly drained Raon's mental strength.
"......"
Raon kept his mouth shut and a calm expression. Thanks to his Ever-Impassive Mind, he was able to maintain his composure even amidst the storm of Askara's powerful fighting spirit.
"What are you thinking about, you?"
Wrath frowned, finding something strange.
"In the past, you would have been strutting around, imitating this king again, wouldn't you?"
"This time it's too dangerous."
He replied to Wrath as he tried to calm his rapidly beating heart.
"I need to think carefully."
"This isn't a Demon King. Askara is a weirdo who, despite having the opportunity to sit on the Demon King's throne, gave up that position to live a life of fighting. If I acted like Wrath, as I did with other Demon Kings, Askara might immediately break through that dimension and twist my neck, so I had to be cautious with my words."
"Well, at least your head is working exceptionally well."
Wrath clicked his tongue as if he regretted something.
"That's right. If you had acted like this king, that fighting demon would have immediately jumped out and attacked. Of course, he wouldn't be able to use all his power, but still."
He snorted, saying he was as slippery as a loach.
'Did you happen to fight him too?'
"Indeed. He attacked me as soon as we met, without any warning."
Wrath narrowed his eyes as if recalling an old memory.
'Did you win?'
"Of course! Isn't it obvious?"
Wrath frowned as if Raon had asked something obvious.
"I froze that fighting demon and threw him into the depths of Devildom. But he was very tough, and in the end, he climbed back up."
He shook his head and said it was a terrifying body.
"It seems you didn't kill him."
"I quite liked him. There aren't many like him even in Devildom."
Wrath smiled, saying he admired the audacity of rejecting the monarch's throne.
'I see...'
Raon licked his lips briefly. Hearing Wrath's words, he felt even more confident. The Balrog King, Askara, was truly the battle-crazed monster he had imagined.
"Then I should just stay still like this."
Even if he were a Transcendent, he was far from enough to satisfy that fighting demon's eyes. Since Askara didn't seem to show any desire for revenge against his family, there was a high possibility that he would retreat on his own if Raon remained silent.
[You're not answering me. Well, alright. I have no interest in a battle that's already over... Hm?]
Askara, who was about to turn around, took a deep breath. His red eyes froze as he saw the silver cold energy rising above the Balrog's corpse.
[The Silver Aurora... Could it be Glacier?]
Askara's eyes burned crimson as his suddenly emanating fighting spirit intensified.
[Wrath? Is that you?]
His voice overflowed with excitement and joy. It seemed as if Raon's ears were about to burst.
'Oh, no...'
Raon bit deeply into the inside of his lip.
'He recognized Glacier.'
It seemed he recognized Glacier and the Silver Aurora from his experience fighting Wrath. This was the worst situation, no different from a beehive flying towards him on its own.
"Oh?"
Wrath's blue eyes began to gleam.
"An opportunity has finally arrived for this king!"
He licked his lips as if anticipating something.
"That fighting demon doesn't listen to reason! If he jumps like that, the only option for this king is to face him!"
Wrath said he was now fully prepared, wiggling his finger.
"Hand over that body to this king immediately!"
'Stay out of this.'
Raon pushed Wrath, who had approached wagging his tail, aside and let out a deep sigh.
"The situation has changed too much..."
One wrong word could lead to the death of not only him, but everyone present. Cold sweat ran down his nape due to the tension.
Think. As fast as you can.
He combined Askara's personality, as Wrath had described it, with his experiences so far, drawing and erasing various scenarios in his mind. After selecting the most plausible answer from hundreds of possibilities, he nodded.
[Wrath! Answer me!]
Askara unleashed a fierce aura as if he wanted to break through the dimension and come out if there was no answer. Raon's fingers trembled, and his hair stood on end.
"Ah, what a troublesome guy has shown up!"
Raon sighed briefly, imitating Wrath's way of speaking. Having heard his chatter so often, he could now imitate a similar tone without even trying.
[It really is you! Wrath!]
Askara nodded vigorously as if he had known all along.
[There's no other demon who uses such cold energy!]
His eyes shone like burning flames, as if he had met a loved one.
"Ejejejeje!"
Wrath burst into laughter as he watched Askara tremble.
"You made a mistake rushing, acting like this king! Now you won't be able to stop that guy!"
He rubbed his chubby hands and said Askara would soon explode.
"It's not a mistake, I want him to come out, just as you said."
"Eh? What do you mean?"
Wrath widened his eyes as if asking what nonsense Raon was talking about.
"Of course, not without conditions."
Raon shook his head briefly and looked towards the dimension where Askara was.
[Yes, that atmosphere. That aura can only belong to the Monarch of Wrath! But...]
Askara's red eyes narrowed to a thread-like fineness.
[Why have you become so weak?! To use your trump card against such a being?!]
As he stomped in disappointment, the impact reached that underground space outside the dimension. It was an immense power and fighting spirit that surpassed dimensional interference.
"You keep saying nonsense."
Raon snorted and shook his head.
"Does this weakened body seem to belong to this king?"
[Then...?]
"This king simply helped me because my subordinates were in danger."
He waved his hand, saying he had only sent a small portion of his power in spiritual form.
"Although I lost some strength by suddenly crossing dimensions in spiritual form, smashing a foolish Balrog was as easy as eating cold porridge."
Raon said it took no effort for him to step on and crush the Balrog's frozen corpse.
[Are you saying that was all it took to suddenly cross dimensions in spiritual form?]
Askara let out a disbelieving laugh.
"Because for this king, nothing is impossible."
He raised his chin with an arrogant look, as if asking if Askara could do the same.
[Interesting!]
Askara shouted in joy and clasped his fists. The intense shockwave made the black dimension ripple like ocean waves.
"Fighting like that would be a novel experience."
Without hesitation, he grabbed the space with both hands and tore it apart. A pure white arm shot out of the split space. Askara summoned black flames with his slender fingers, which didn't match his powerful fighting spirit, and dropped them on the Balrog's corpse.
The Balrog's corpse, enveloped in black flames, rose on its own and quickly regenerated its torn flesh and bones. Its regenerative ability surpassed even that of a troll. It was like watching an immortal phoenix come back to life.
The Balrog, revived by the black flames, stood up and clenched his fists. Soon after, his eyes contained the same powerful light that Askara had shown.
"What do you think?"
The Balrog's voice had an enormous weight. It was Askara's voice from within the black dimension.
"Are the conditions similar enough now?"
He raised his black-tinged fighting spirit and said they should fight like this. It seemed as if black lava was erupting behind him.
"You idiot! I told you fighting demons don't listen to reason!"
Wrath shouted loudly.
"Even if you defeat Askara in this state, he'll soon advance with his main body."
He yelled that it would be best to deal with this quickly and hand over the body to him.
'Just stay put and watch.'
Raon licked his lips as he gestured for Wrath to back off.
'It's going according to plan, but...'
Askara wasn't using his main body, but the body of the dead Balrog, and he had consumed a lot of power forcibly crossing dimensions. Due to these two factors, his power was greatly reduced, so Raon could at least hold his ground now.
'The problem is that I need to use a sword, which does not match Wrath's style.'
Of course, he had thought about that part too, so he threw out his final bait.
"Even your avatar is weak."
Raon clicked his tongue as if disappointed.
"There's no need for this king to use his abilities."
He said he would fight with the power of his subordinates, turning his chin sideways.
"Indeed. Such arrogance suits you, Wrath. However..."
Askara twisted the corners of his mouth into a long smile as he raised his black flames.
"It will be different from before!"
He disappeared, leaving only the afterimage of black flames, and reappeared in the upper right of Raon.
'He's fast.'
As befitting the Balrog King, Askara was more adept at using power than the Balrog Raon had just killed. Despite using less fighting spirit, his movements were faster and more mysterious.
'Then...'
Raon planted the Heavenly Drive and the Blade of Requiem in the ground. Sword Domain - Divine-Demonic Harmony. He drew the divine and demonic swords and swung them towards Askara's fist, which was charging in with black flames. A tremendous sound erupted as if massive iron blocks had collided, and powerful vibrations shook the entire underground.
"Swords?"
Askara furrowed his brow as if dumbfounded.
"You really intend to defeat me with swords?"
"What's so special about swords? They're just things to be swung."
Raon sneered, uttering words that no swordsman could say, to maintain his act as Wrath.
"Even if it's you, I can't let that comment slide."
Askara creased his forehead deeply and reached out into the air.
"Come forth, Bastar!"
His shout tore through dimensions, opening a space stained black. From a hell boiling with crimson lava, a black greatsword that seemed forged from darkness itself appeared. The black greatsword emitted a terrible heat as if containing hellfire, making the air in the entire underground boil.
"He's made up his mind."
Wrath twisted his lips as he looked at the sword named Bastar.
"His body might be fake, but that sword is real."
He wrinkled his nose, saying that sword was Askara's real weapon.
"I'll tear you apart in one strike for daring to disrespect swords!"
Askara shouted that he would make Raon use his full power as he brought down Bastar. Black flames extended endlessly, covering the entire underground. It felt as if the whole world was being buried in ashes.
"......"
Raon bit his lip as he watched the approaching black flame storm.
'This is the only chance to defeat the Balrog King.'
As much as Askara had reduced his power, the difference in their original levels was too great, so Raon could only win now that Askara was off guard. He threw Rimmer's sword behind his back and advanced towards Askara's black flames.
Since there was only one way to block the black flame sword advancing with brute force, he activated the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier to the extreme.
Sword Domain: Divine-Demonic Harmony Linked Technique. Heavenly Red-Blue Invincible Sword. As the black flames containing Askara's fighting spirit collided with the red-blue aura, an immense shockwave erupted. The lava filling the ground evaporated, scattering mist-like smoke, and the solid underground walls and ceiling crumbled as if they were scooping out mud.
If it weren't for the cracks created when Askara broke through the dimension, everything would have collapsed long ago.
"Is this all you can do with swords?"
Askara twisted his lips in disdain and imbued the black greatsword with an even denser fighting spirit. The black waves advanced, erasing the blue-red light. The force was so powerful that both the divine and demonic swords seemed about to break.
"You're still as rude as ever, resorting to brute force. Then let me show you what comes next."
Raon forced a smile and used Rimmer's sword behind his back to deploy the Space Sword. After moving the sword attack right in front of Askara's nose, he drew his final weapon. Sword Domain - Sky Rift. A golden glow that heralded a new beginning rose above the blade-shaped sword that had pierced space.
The harmonization of the Heavenly Red-Blue Invincible Sword and the Sky Rift, which he had only imagined in his mind before. A new sword path was drawn as the golden light intertwined with the red and blue paintings.
Askara's black flames split, and the black greatsword was deflected. Three swords simultaneously pierced Askara's chest, who had revealed an opening. Askara, not being in his main body, couldn't resist Raon's transcendent sword blow and crashed into the ground where the lava had dried.
"What!"
He seemed to have exhausted all the fighting spirit he had put into this avatar, unable to move even a finger as he exhaled a cloudy breath.
"Y-you, since when did you learn to use a sword...?"
"Since when, you ask."
Raon shook his head calmly, suppressing the dizziness that threatened to overwhelm him at any moment.
"This king never learned."
"N-nonsense! Your swords clearly contained willpower!"
"It's just that..."
He drew a slight smile and lowered his finger.
"This king simply imitated what his subordinates experienced."
Wrath had said before that he created his demonic incarnation by observing the path others had taken. As it was entirely plausible, Raon raised his chin arrogantly.
"Jajajajaja!"
Askara burst into laughter, clutching his head.
"As expected of the Monarch of Wrath! Only you and those three can satisfy me in the Demon Realm!"
He raised his even denser fighting spirit as he stood up.
"Let's start again! This time, you and I at full power!"
The Balrog's body containing Askara's soul crumbled, and the dimension distorted again. It seemed he was trying to break through with his main body.
"I refuse."
Raon snorted and shook his head.
"I don't fight the weak."
He said it wasn't interesting as he sheathed his swords.
"Don't talk nonsense! Even if it's you, you can't say my main body is weak!"
Askara stomped his foot and said they should fight now.
"Reveal your main body! If not, I'll kill you right here!"
He raised his flaming hand, as if he really meant it.
"Go ahead."
Raon nodded, opening his arms.
"This king never retracts his words."
He closed his eyes and told Askara to do whatever he wanted.
"How delicious..."
Askara, seemingly realizing that Raon's words were sincere, froze, unable to extend his hand any further.
"W-What's going on?!"
Wrath blinked.
"This shouldn't be happening! Askar! You idiot! Hurry up and attack!"
He shook his large head back and forth, saying he didn't understand why things had turned out this way.
"Why?", you ask.
Raon smiled slightly as he looked at the bewildered Askara and Wrath.
"Everything happened exactly as I thought."
He said this as he lightly wiggled his finger.
'Say hello.'
"What hello!"
'A greeting to welcome the new doormat.'
As Raon smiled, Wrath's face crumpled like a dry leaf.
-
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