TL/Editor: raei
Status: ongoing
Illustrations: none
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"Kihihihi! Stupid humans! To think you'd walk right in here!"
With a chilling laugh, a spider-like high-ranking demon sprayed its poison in all directions.
"Detoxification forma- ARGH!"
The bodies of knights and soldiers touched by this poison melted without time to react.
"As if such pathetic formations could neutralize my poison!"
As the spider demon, having instantly cleared its surroundings, rolled its eight eyes searching for new targets-A streak of silver light slashed diagonally from its side.
"...What!"
The spider demon reacted quickly, gathering spider webs for defense, but SLASH!
The silver light instantly cut through the web shield and proceeded to bisect the demon's body.
With a thud, the demon's corpse fell to the ground as a knight appeared before it.
It was Diernead, captain of the Gray Lion Corps' first division.
Though he had instantly dealt with a high-ranking demon, his face remained dark.
"...They're endless."
A wave of demons filled his vision.
Their numbers stretched from horizon to horizon, beyond counting.
"I never imagined so many demons would be gathered here."
Because of this, they still hadn't reached their destination despite being well past the expected time.
Their advance speed kept slowing.
Moreover, demons continued swarming from behind, cutting off their retreat.
Then-
SLASH!
With a streak of golden light, dozens of nearby demons' bodies split in two.
The light's owner appeared beside Diernead.
It was Evelyn.
"Your Highness, the situation looks dire."
"I know."
The Lion Princess's eyes were subdued as she answered Diernead's words.
"What will you do? Our troop losses are too high at this rate. Perhaps we should retreat while we still can..."
"No."
Evelyn shook her head before the knight could finish.
"If we turn our forces now, we'll be completely surrounded. We must increase speed and keep advancing."
Her eyes looked beyond the battlefield.
"But there are too many demons blocking our path ahead."
"Doesn't matter."
With this brief answer, Evelyn drew back her sword like pulling a bowstring.
"I'll clear a path now."
As if this were a signal-
SCREECH!
Brilliant light burst forth with a clear sound.
Small stars began rising one by one from her sword tip pointed forward.
Heaven Opposition Sea.
The one authority that reigned above all other powers in the world.
Evelyn was the being who most deeply understood and best wielded this Heaven Opposition Power in this world.
FLASH!
As the stars increased in number, the light grew brighter and the surrounding space burned like flames.
The battle stopped from the overwhelming power radiating from this.
Simultaneously, everyone's attention - human and demon alike - turned to Evelyn, now visible only as a form of light.
Finally, with seven stars risen-
WHOOSH!
The princess's sword thrust forward.
There was no sound.
Only brilliant starlight covering the entire field of vision existed.
Everything caught in this starlight turned to ash and disappeared.
How long did this world of light continue?
When people's vision returned, they saw Evelyn still standing with sword extended forward, and-
"!!!!!!!"
Traces of annihilation stretching from right before her to the horizon.
"Advance at full speed now."
With this quiet command, Evelyn's form shot forward along the path she had created.
"F-follow Her Highness Evelyn's command!!!"
The knights and soldiers, belatedly regaining their senses, shouted as they followed behind her.
Momentum greatly influenced battle.
"Don't stop!! Break through!!"
CRASH!
Evelyn's strike was enough to reverse this momentum, and as if their previous struggles had been a lie, the mounted knights began advancing at tremendous speed. ṘäŊố฿Εs̈
"S-stop them... ARGH!"
"How dare these inferiors... GUH!"
Their unstoppable advance, piercing and cutting down all blocking demons, was truly overwhelming.
'We did it! We can break through!'
The soldiers' eyes, including Diernead's, brightened at this.
Not only had momentum shifted to their side, but at this speed they could reach their destination soon.
'To think all this was reversed by just one person...'
Diernead inwardly clicked his tongue while glancing at the Lion Princess, who had fallen slightly back to coordinate the entire force.
Even after decades together, she still continued to exceed his expectations and amaze him.
Just as he felt pride in serving such a lord-
"Stop immediately!!"
A great shout burst from Evelyn's lips.
As he turned back toward her at this, his eyes beheld Evelyn's face showing urgency incomparable to before - no, greater than he had ever seen in his life.
As the knight's eyes filled with confusion at this strange sight-
WHOOSH!
There was no warning.
The step Diernead was about to take.
Using that step as a baseline, the heads of all knights before it exploded.
SCREECH!
Ringing filled their ears as blood spurting from hundreds of headless corpses dyed their vision red.
As everyone's eyes, including Diernead's, filled with blank light at this surreal scene-
"Good instincts."
A cold voice devoid of any emotion echoed in the ears of every being there.
Simultaneously-
RUMBLE!
The entire visible sky split apart, and from the pitch-black void within, a palanquin appeared.
A magnificent palanquin decorated with all manner of jewels and gold.
Though the palanquin's appearance was quite unusual, its occupant was even more so.
Dense tattoos covering his entire body and dozens of ornaments over them.
Like ancient kings, a man with jet-black makeup around his eyes sat in the palanquin looking down at everything.
Though his appearance was beyond unusual to the point of being bizarre, none who saw him reacted.
No, they couldn't react.
RUMBLE!
From the moment he appeared, his naturally spreading presence perfectly pressed down on every being there.
Like prey wrapped in spider webs, they couldn't move even a finger, no, not even a hair.
All they could do was watch him with trembling eyes.
A truly insurmountable gap, as if they lived in different worlds.
'H-how can such a being exist in this world...'
Diernead's eyes filled with despair.
Evelyn's eyes also began trembling at this moment.
THUD.
Every demon present prostrated themselves, showing absolute submission to the man as they spoke:
"O Pride."
Agdravar reappeared pierced perfectly through Cteon's core after vanishing from Zion's hand.
Slightly after, a single line drew through this space.
SLASH!
Terrifying shockwaves bursting along this line began causing secondary damage to surrounding demons.
The Border Corps soldiers watched this scene with dazed expressions.
"...This is."
A matching dazed voice flowed from Girard's lips next.
Though ranked lower among the Six Claws, Cteon was still easily classified among the demon realm's strongest overall.
Moreover, he had been their greatest wall and trouble blocking them here for nearly decades.
Yet a single spear strike from Zion had ended such a Cteon.
Was Cteon weaker than expected?
'No, that's not it.'
Rather, Prince Zion's martial power exceeded Girard's expectations to an unimaginable degree.
'I knew he was strong since his battles with demons at the Sinking Star Palace, but...'
He hadn't imagined it would be to this extent.
Almost a different dimension entirely.
Then-
"What are you doing? Aren't you going to deal with the remaining demons?"
Zion spoke to the dazedly standing Girard while retrieving Agdravar using Shadow Current.
"Ah, yes!"
Regaining his senses, Girard shouted to his soldiers.
"As you can see, the enemy has lost its head! Don't lose this momentum - charge!!!"
Perhaps truly befitting an elite corps?
ROAR!
Even while not fully recovered, the Border Corps began charging at the demons at their commander's single shout.
An intense battle unfolded.
But this intensity didn't last long.
"You insect humans!"
CRUNCH!
"ARGH!"
They had already lost their center before the battle could properly begin.
Though the demon executives below tried desperately to control their forces, it was futile.
Moreover-
"H-how can Zion Agnes be here...!"
Zion's very presence crushed the demons' morale.
The achievements Zion had built against the demon realm over the past year had spread even to the demon realm, causing many demons to not just recognize but fear his existence.
An adversary equal to the hero.
"Kyahahahaha!"
Liushina and the Twilight Sword leaped into the rapidly clearing demon army, further accelerating their established advantage.
SCREECH!
Evil Hands endlessly crawling from the blood dyeing the entire ground dark red mercilessly tore apart nearby demons.
The masked swordsmen entering behind perfectly finished off these demons.
Yet perhaps befitting their name as an elite demon army-
"Die!!!"
Several high-ranking demons broke through the Border Corps and Evil Hands to swing claws and weapons at Zion.
No, more precisely, they tried to swing.
SPLAT!
Before that, the first charging demon's head had already exploded.
"UWAAH!"
The second demon vertically swung a massive greatsword at Zion's head, not stopping even after seeing his comrade's headless corpse collapse.
However-
Tap-
His attack using all his strength was blocked by a single finger Zion placed on the blade, unable to advance further.
"Ah, aah..."
As a terrified voice flowed from the demon's mouth at this overwhelming difference in power-
"You should have used more strength."
RUMBLE!
As Zion's eyes curved slightly, cracks spread from where his finger touched, beyond the greatsword to the demon's body.
CRACK!
The demon's body crumbled along these cracks.
"M-monster...!"
Seeing this, the third demon behind lost all will to fight and stepped backward, only to be devoured whole by nearby Evil Hands.
'This should let us depart without further delay.'
Just as Zion gauged the time while watching the nearly perfectly cleared battlefield-
!!!!!!!!!
The heads of all beings above a certain strength level on the battlefield turned simultaneously toward one place.
Their gazes pointed toward the pitch-black sky in the border's outermost region, far from the battlefield.
"Master, could what you're planning to hunt be..."
Unlike usual, Liushina spoke while watching that sky with trembling eyes, even stopping her beloved combat.
'Already appeared, has it?'
Zion's eyes grew cold as he looked toward the same place.
A presence that seemed to crush the very soul itself, despite being too far away to even see.
Only two types of demons in the world possessed such presence.
The Demon King, and Archdemons.
"I'm departing first. Follow after cleaning up here."
After saying this to Girard, Zion immediately turned.
Though he had planned to enter with the Border Corps if possible, the situation was developing urgently.
The Archdemon's movements were much faster than expected, and they might have already encountered Evelyn.
'Should I use Chronos's Questions now to move there?'
Just as this thought crossed Zion's mind-
"Prince Zion!"
Girard called out while running toward him from behind.
"If you must hurry, please use this!"
Seeming to recognize the urgency of the situation, he immediately pulled out and offered something to Zion as he turned.
"This is..."
Zion's eyes gleamed as he saw it.
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