Volume 2, Chapter 5: Ira’s Resentment, Part 3: I am a Coward
Rage up, my flame.
My resentment shall birth dark flames greater than the cauldrons of hell, to do the Devil’s work of reducing the universe to ash.
You unsightly insects fluttering about the skies, before my ambition, you hindrances are all no greater than flies.
The heavens that looked down on the red blazing sun were simply high, and a realm beyond the reach from us beings forced to crawl along the ground.
But that’s how it should be. That’s why it’s perfect.
To us, wings are… unnecessary.
We don’t need those white bonds that tied us down to some inept God.
This lightless soil is the land we shall rule.
“You all will learn the meaning of that soon enough.”
I’ll have them regret setting foot here in jest. I’ll carve it into those bodies, those wings.
Otherwise… I won’t be able to feel satisfied.
A flying dragon’s wings ranked equal to those of an Angel’s in speed.
Boasting the greatest influence across these lands, my steed was faster than any ordinary dragon you’d find out there.
Because of the wind, there was quite a bit of turbulence atop the dragon. From up here, sitting on the gliding beast, that was letting off rough breaths from its nose in excitement, the boundary that marked the territory of Heaven felt horribly close.
What my ancestors… no, what me and my ancestos yearned for, a world of light.
It’s not that I don’t understand that sentiment.
This faint malaise I feel in my soul core, simply by looking up at the sky. That was probably… aspiration.
Even when it’s been less than ten thousand years since I first came to be, I could feel it. For those Demon Lords of old, forced to look up at it for hundreds of thousands of years, their yearning must be much greater than I.
But at present, I held no interest in such a thing.
There’s no guarantee that dazzling light is capable of bringing about any change to us. Just as it’s not certain our darkness will drop one to depravity.
I knew that all too well.
That’s why, it’s likely that even if some Great Demon King of old had managed to subjugate that world up there, I doubt anything would have changed.
Sitting aboard a flying dragon a little smaller than the oversized one I took as a steed, Lize sat with a grim expression as she flew to my lower left.
It’s been several of tens of minutes since we first entered the Dark Prison.
In this land constantly bathed by silence, while there still wasn’t a touch of sound, there was an unrest the likes of which the land had yet to see before.
It wasn’t by much, but niisama’s perception from his 『Abyss Zone』 was vaster than mine.
My zone was currently encompassing approximately three fourths of the Dark Prison’s vast land. I probed through the contents of that without leaving a stone unturned.
Through concentrating on all the faint traces of information I picked up, my head began to hurt.
But I can tell. I can see it clearly.
The presences of all shapes and sizes gathered around this land.
Apart from the countless irritating forces adorning the sky, there were three large powers. By size, there was no doubt they were Demon Lord Class, and for three powers of that extent to be in such close proximity was usually something that never came to be.
One of them was definitely clad in light. With the presence tracing the sky, and the flock following its lead, an overwhelming amount of divinity was being released.
Even if this isn’t heaven, that would be quite a debilitating factor.
The other two were ones I knew.
Two simple ones faithful to their sinful desire. At the summit of the Demons that governed the Demon World, two Lords of Demons.
『The Prideful Kaiser』, Heard Lauder.
『The Devourer』, Zebul Glaucus.
They were the presences of two Lords top class in this Demon world.
With those two presences at the center, the air sunk. Just by being there, their massive souls caused the world to creak and grate.
Strangely enough, both of them were specialized in attack, and their power transcended that of the other Demon Lords. In this den of beasts and monsters, their power that didn’t permit pursuit was much greater than any of the divinity coming down from above.
The level of power of Angels and Demons were decided by the souls embedded in their bodies.
With Heard and Zebul, the gap between them and the Angel was close to double.
While it’s not like the quantity of power directly correlates with battle ability, that gap wasn’t something to be overturned so easily.
Heard might be able to settle this with one hand.
Then was my anxiety unfounded?
Definitely… not.
The fact I can sense them means that they can sense my location as well.
Heard was a given. Also Zebul, and likely, the enemy Angel.
On all those forces swarming towards the Castle of Shadows like moths to a flame, I remembered a scalding crimson emotion, which I frantically clenched my teeth to contain.
“They’ve stepped a little too far out of line… of all things, to set foot in the Dark Prison…”
Lize’s prediction was correct.
The Angel’s destination was undoubtedly the Castle of Shadows.
I felt that my own decision wasn’t wrong.
There would be nothing I could do if I sent a representative, and they were to fail.
The Castle of Shadows was the Lord of Sloths bedroom, and his coffin.
I won’t allow a single one to set foot in there.
I remembered niisama’s eyes when I last saw him a year ago. All he wished for was a quiet rest.
“We sure are… foolish…”
As ones with power, we cannot help but attract stronger ones to us.
When I think of such a trifle disturbing niisama’s rest, along with a helpless feeling, I felt the sensation of my gut being burned through weighing me down. It was an emotion I’m sure I‘d learned to control before.
The flying dragon raised a low voice, and tis body swayed greatly. On the smell of something burning, I finally noticed that my own Ira was inflicting damage onto my steed.
With that small voice I hear below me compared to the beast’s large build, I can’t help but find it quite lovable.
… This is no good. At this rate, I’ll break into a smile again.
I took a deep breath. Little by little, I sink my Wrath back down to the depths of my existence.
Level-headed anger. Sharm rage, honed like a blade.
I already knew all the ways to swallow my anger.
I licked my lips. The beat has already quieted down. But it’s not like my resentment had disappeared.
It was merely left without eyes. It was constantly burning up my soul. All the parts of it I didn’t show on the surface were merely sharpening themselves. In order to bring ruin to my enemies.
We got closer to the battlefield, and the information I picked up grew more vivid.
There, was a scene that raised my concern.
“Tsk… Heard… just what’s holding him up.”
As if to show himself off, I witnessed a pulsating black flash… The wave of darkness that resulted from a clashing of mana spread across the sky like an aurora.
The mass of power came into contact with the other mass, and gave off an intense flicker like stardust. But there was no sign of either light going out.
The spectacle I could even see from a distant sky felt something like a premonition of the end of the world.
The devourer, Zebul Glaucus.
Blessed with an endless hunger, a witch of Gluttony.
She was conspicuously atrocious, and conspicuously sinful, even among the Demon Lords. All to devour all creation.
Even that Heard Leader won’t be able to knock down that perpetually lived gifted child of starvation.
Or maybe he’s just playing with her…
To blow away the gloomy feelings sticking to my head, I scoffed.
But that didn’t clear away any of my inner resentment in the slightest.
“Hmm… just do whatever you want. I’ve no intent to rid myself of either of you two. Go at it as you will.”
Annoying. It’s annoying, but… otherwise, there would be no point in me coming here.
If you were to look at Heard Lauder in terms of simple power, then he would be within the top three of all Lords.
It’s not like I conceded Rank One to him simply because he was an old friend.
Direct physical strength.
Absolute confidence in himself to lord over all.
Those were the qualities of Pride. He more than accomplished his own Sin.
I’ve no doubt in his victory. Even if it were to take a bit of time.
Even if I didn’t really like him all that much, I had at least that level of trust in him.
But still, the current situation is a little too rowdy.
Far behind Heard, there was an army of around five hundred racing over the land.
To chase the sky-bound Angels, a Legion atop flightless dragons was rushing over.
While kicking the ground at a speed that didn’t fall behind those of the Angels’ wings, the ominous army that seemed uniform enough to gain a constant measurement with a meter stick was one belonging to Vanity.
I’m not sure if they were even focused on the Angel flock, as without even a sign of them using a Skill, they quietly continued their dash. Their presences were exceedingly light, and for some reason, they brought about a psychologically unpleasant feeling with them.
Lize let her shoulders tremble.
“As always, that’s a repulsing army he keeps.”
The army with such a fleeting feel to it was a rare one among the Demon Lords’ forces, which had been given a specific name.
Vanity himself had tacked it onto them, the 『Ravus Persona』.
Even from this distance, the lost individuality and colorless grey souls I felt may be the origin of the name.
It’s not like there was a gap of power between that army’s Demons and others, but their somewhat ominous atmosphere made it so even I couldn’t tell for what purpose they had come into being.
Originally, I should have been analyzing the Angels. But rather than them, I found myself naturally concentrating on the army trampling the ground.
Quite different from than those holy messengers, who were irritating from their nature opposing ours, it was that army’s lack of nature in its entirety that made them all so irritating.
In that Legion advancing over the wasteland, the presence of their Lord Vanity was… absent.
I can’t feel him anywhere in the extent of my perception. Within my Zone, there are but three existences of Demon Lord Class apart from myself.
Was he annihilated? No, even like that, he’s Rank Four… he’s not of the caliber to go down so easy. Even if he were up against a Lord of Angels, he should have held out no matter the case…
There are too few characters on this stage. It’s a strangely ominous sensation.
I can’t think that Vanity’s army would act without its master.
At the conference, he clearly declared that he would bring death to the Angels.
At this point, I’m even beginning to doubt those words of his. The warning I heard from my father long ago threw my analysis of the situation out of line.
In the first place, no matter what sort of army it may be, there’s no way that Demons could pull off such coordinated movements with no one leading them.
My thoughts, stuck in a ditch, were snapped back with a thunderous sound.
Now’s not the time to think of such things, I see.
By taking a deep breath, I calmed myself down.
An army of Angels. And army of Demons.
Zebul Glaucus. Heard Lauder. Serge Serenade…
And Kanon Iralaude.
It’s quite an extravagant lineup we have there, but to Leigie-niisama, we’re at quite a disadvantage.
No matter how strong he may be, Heard Lauder’s but a single Demon. What’s more, of all things, that lone Demon was up against another Demon Lord who should be part of my own army.
Without their master, Vanity Seidthroan, that army was… a meaningless gathering.
While five hundred was nothing to scoff at, that level would find taking anyone of Demon Lord Class on to be difficult.
A low ranking Demon Lord may be one thing, but to one who took down the Rank Seven, they won’t even be a hindrance to Serge.
A Lord for a Lord. Those were the bare bones of anti-Demon, and anti-Angel tactics.
God dammit, if only Vanity was here, I’m sure it would work itself out one way or another.
Racing like shooting stars above the ether, the Angel forces weren’t all too high in power, but they were numerous, and anyways, they were fast.
The number of them Vanity reported was ten, but this time, their forces pretty much equal the man’s army. I’m surprised they managed to get such a large army to infiltrate this place without triggering a single Lord’s zone. A strange smile started to come across my face.
The heat I should have kept confined started singing my thoughts.
Are we unlucky, or incapable? The enemy’s numbers are beyond expectations. We’ve too little hands here.
For all the enemies I imagined to be gathered here…
Just like Demons, Angels were few in number. A few of them was one thing, but it’s been a few thousand years since several hundred of them appeared at once. However, my urge for battle wasn’t worked up at all.
I had no physical enhancements born from the urge to do battle. All that was in me was simple impatience.
No matter how many Saint Lord Class Angels unify themselves, this scale isn’t going to make the Demon World fall. Rather than that, if we had an honest clash of power, it’d all be settled in an hour. It’s just a way to pile up corpses. These guys are merely needless casualties.
It’s a perfect form of harassment, mind you.
This is all just an inconvenience.
Perhaps I should have taken along another Lord.
First of all, defeat ain’t happening here, but there’s a chance of letting them escape. Once they’ve gotten away, it would be difficult to give chase.
The main point Angels overlooked Demons in was their speed.
Hard to catch even aboard a mount, the flight of an Angel’s wings was of the highest speed, and with their stamina, Demons were no match.
If there’s something out there called fate, then I can’t just spend my life placing curses on it.
Power naturally flowed to my hand, and my nails sunk into my upper arm.
Why.
Why do they head for the Castle of Shadows?
To the side of the Lord who without accomplishing a single thing, spent his peaceful time in a deep slumber.
An abyss of sorrow. Always clad in a deep and dark sea of gloom, the most sorrowful existence of this world.
Even if you look upon him as one with power, I could only see it as saw.
And at the same time, I was certain.
If that’s the burden my niisama is to carry, then it must be my role to assist him.
I smiled at my own cowardice.
Fine… it’s something I knew from times long passed.
This world will make a fool of me.
Inconvenient? Too numerous? Absurd.
Fine. I’ll swear it here.
“With my name Iralaude on the line, I’ll leave not a single one of you all alive.”
From far away, along with the sound of the collapse of a mountain, a large fissure emerged in the earth.
Right over the horizon, I finally got a view of the battlefield.
The numerous holes dotting the ground and as if lines had been drawn in, the countless cracks.
In the center of that stood the arrogant Heard Lauder, and a Demon of small build, with black miasma circulating all over her body… Zebul Glaucus’s miniscule form.
The ground rumbled, as if trembling before them. Lize’s face was colored with fright and surprise as she strongly gripped her reigns.
For a brief moment, Heard Lauder’s mana swelled up. But with just that, it felt like a normal Demon would be rendered unconscious.
So she’s an opponent he has to let out that much power to defeat. I didn’t think I would arrive in time to actually witness Zebul’s destruction.
With that much force going around, there’s no way he isn’t serious.
The wind that blew across this land was violated with a thick magic, to suck in each and every desire.
This was the wind of a battlefield.
Birthed by the clash of desire, a wind of chaos.
As if it were actually suffering wounds, the mana that soaked into the Dark Prison… niisama’s zone was torn asunder.
While it was cut through a couple of times, it’s not as if the Zone itself was effected as a whole.
But that truth was irrelevant to me.
Those that get in my way… be they Demons or Angels, or Valkyries, they’re my enemy.
Finally capturing the battle scene in her pupils, Lize opened her eyes wide.
“Absurd… what… power… They’re equal? No, Heard has the advantage, I see.”
There was affinity between Demons.
With high offensive power, it’s quite rare that a clash of Pride and Gluttony would turn into a drawn out battle.
Affinity-wise, Pride was the stronger of the two, but the gap was not a great one.
Lize’s discernment was correct. Given the time, it would likely be Heard’s victory.
But there’s no longer the time to wait for such a thing.
I cannot match the speed of those heavenly wings. No matter how proficient a dragon I ride, I cannot overturn that biological deficiency.
While I looked one, I could do nothing but measure the velocity of the encroaching Angels. That was the pure physiological difference between the Angel and Demon race.
If there was a single Demon out there to oppose it, then it would be the Superbia Demon who saw time as stagnant.
And that truth was likely what dulled Heard’s fists.
The malice the man released wasn’t only directed at the enemy before him.
Heard was a battle maniac, but he was also once niisama’s follower.
While he once waved a banner of rebellion, I don’t see his devotion weakening at present.
Battles between Demon Lords were where desires ate into one another. Each and every blow exchanged was potentially fatal, and the Lords put their very existences behind each and every one of those blows.
Zebul’s life was too powerful to be taken down so simply, even with Heard’s unfollowable speed.
She wasn’t an opponent that could be defeated merely by finding a gap in her defense.
On the other side, the holy flock was, to their natural archnemeses… to the Legion marching along the land, and to the large-scale destruction raised by the warring Demon Lords, they showed no signs of even paying the slightest attention. With what one could call pure honesty, they headed at full speed towards the Castle.
Their powers weren’t as high as I had heard. While there surely was a Saint Lord Class there, if you were to ask whether she would be capable of destroying Rank Seven, I would be left in doubt.
But that doesn’t change that it’ll become a pain if I let her off here. At the very least, it wasn’t a level of power those middle class Demons at the castle like Lorna or Medea would be able to deal with.
Me revoking his army in order to protect his silence backfired on me.
Leigie of Sloth lacked high offensive power, or dexterity, but his defense and vitality alone were extraordinary. That’s why even if he were hit around left and right, he wouldn’t die too easily, but that Angel’s actions weigh heavy on my mind.
She bore an undaunted will, as if she had some sort of scheme to surpass Leigie-niisama’s needlessly high defensive ability.
With the million to one, billion to one chance that he’ll be killed in mind, I cannot let her pass.
Even if that wasn’t the case…
“… I shall not let her disturb his sleep.”
“…”
The distance between us was but a few kilometers. But as if to avoid us, the flock had altered its path.
My luck lay in my Palace’s location in relation to the castle of Shadows, making it so they were forced to head in my direction. If that had not been the case, then I wouldn’t even be able to confront them.
My misfortune was in that my Wrath was mainly of Skills for single targeting use. With five hundred on their side… that’s a little high to capture them all.
Burn up their souls. Converge my entire being on my desire to further hone my blade.
One of my unconsciously clenched teeth snapped, and fresh blood scalded the back of my dragon. From its mouth, a small groan was audible.
I wiped it off with my sleeve.
Perhaps too much blood had rushed to my head. My footing was unstable.
Even so, while swaying, I stood upright on the dragon’s back, and silently held my staff in front.
It was the greatest treasure of the Demon Race, a gift handed down from the Evil God to the very first Great Demon King. Its height was about a meter and a half. The lumber that formed its main body was tougher than any material found in this Demon World, and its tip was garnished with an ornament made in the like of a beast’s jaw.
(TL: Its height is given as 5 Shaku, which converts to 1.515 (repeating) meters)
The inscription on it read, The Emperor of Destruction’s Staff, Weydhe. Among the countless treasure littered around the world, it was an item with the opposite nature of a holy relic, a treasure of the Evil God.
Within the reptilian jaw was inlaid a golden crystalline eye to direct at mine enemies.
The reflective surface of the finely cut jewel caught the sunlight to give an ominous shine.
Ira was the manifestation of violent emotion.
A heartless sin to burn away all other sentiment.
I took a deep breath. I let out the resentment I had been building up all these years.
Right now, I’m likely making an expression I would never display to another.
My vision is died a bright red, and viscous fury swept over my mind.
But still, I could remain calm. That was what Leigie-niisama taught me.
It’s what he sacrificed his body to teach me.
Anger isn’t something to release so recklessly. It’s something to control, and hone.
I give a short incantation. What dyed all I saw in red was channeled through my prized possession into the sky.
“『Wrath Drive』”
Countless crimson lights raced across the air.
At the speed of light, those crimson comets burned up the sky, and in the next instant, they had reached their targets. They pierced through the Angel flock from the side, and continued to go through one body after the other.
Like scraps of paper, the divine robes were bore through. No sort of defensive wall holds any meaning before me.
Several dozens of Angels were instantly reduced to nothing, leaving not but faint afterimages in the air.
I heard the ominous sound of something breaking resound through my skull.
An impact to my taste buds, the flavor of iron. I completely ignored the pain I felt, and clicked my tongue.
Having been pierced through, the Angels were halted for but a moment, before restarting their flight once more. That gesture made it feel as if they were following a set program, and there was barely any lag. An army prepared for death.
I subconsciously spat out my crushed tooth.
While I had not experienced the wars of old, I knew enough about those beings called Angels. At least, I thought I had known.
They are our sworn foe, and brutes whose tenacity lied only towards hunting us down. Their bodies themselves didn’t differ from ours at all.
That’s how it should be.
Then in that case, what is this supposed to be?
If the attack was ineffective, that would be another matter, but after so many of them had fallen, for their flock to continue to go on like that should be heresy to an Angel.
Wrath Skills weren’t suited to rapid fire.
The Angels spread out. It was likely a plan for them to not all be taken out at once. That wide formation showed off their clear knowledge of how to deal with Ira Skills, and their narrow area of effect.
And as I thought, those heavenly wings still didn’t have me set as their destination.
They didn’t fight back, and they didn’t use any Skills.
Before my wrath, these Angels’ flight… their march was surely backed by some form of strong will. Something that exceeded their innate instinct to oppose Demons.
“Even with me before their eyes… they’ll still head for niisama…”
Then there’s even less reason to let them through.
I spread that dark heat across my mind again. My instincts and emotions raged up to burn through my entire body.
In proportion to my anger, the incessant violent waves of Mana weighed down on my psych, And I only gathered them at the head of my staff.
Put all my fury into a single attack.
Formation? Plan?
Useless. It’s just a pain.
Then I’ll just have to burn up everything in the world.
I just have to turn heaven to ash in one strike.
Niisama is the King of Despair, and the most sorrowful Lord on these lands.
With just a few hundred Angels, to stand before dear niisama… it makes me sick.
Foolish Angels. Decay away on these dark lands.
Just like all that have come to oppose niisama before you.
I poured nothing but directionless Mana into the staff, dying it a strong red, and point it at those foolish heathens. The moment I was about to use a Skill, Lize, who was moving right below me, let off a shrill shout.
My subordinate’s face seemed to be at its wits end as I looked down upon her.
“Kanon-sama, is this… not the time to use Heard Lauder!?”
“… What?”
Those words released from an unexpected position made me instinctively suppress the powers I was to bring out.
Having become the Great Demon Lord, there were few out there to contest my opinion. For those that hadn’t even become Demon Lords yet, I could count them on the fingers of one hand.
Lize’s opinion often found itself to be leaning on one side, but her devotion was quite high, even among my direct subordinates.
In this land of warring powers, she was one of the few who had sworn loyalty to me. Her words held some worth in considering.
Perhaps sensing a shift in my will, the flying dragon dropped its speed a little.
“That army is moving at a considerable pace. There’s some distance between us, and when they’re spread out that vast… to burn all those Angels in the sky… Even for you, Kanon-sama, it is in my humble opinion it would be too great an expenditure of power.”
As one governing the same desire, she understood.
The sin of Ira that scaled in proportion to anger was the one boasting the highest offensive potential among the seven attributes, and… the one with the greatest consumption of power.
But I was also well aware.
Regardless of the mere dozens of minutes that have passed since we entered this Dark Prison, the heat that was currently scorching my body, and frothing at my skin was… anger.
Too great a power expenditure?
What of it? Regardless of what I use up, even if I’m to run dry, and be mocked by my subordinate Lords, I haven’t fallen low enough for me to hesitate over such a matter.
My desire… the path of my Wrath is something I’ll decide for myself.
The clear display of emotions on Lize’s face barely changed upon looking at me.
Her complexion was turning a little pale. We’ve known one another for years, and she should know me well enough, but there was no hesitation in the words she spewed.
“For Heard Lauder, and the Pride he governs, it would be a simple matter for him to overtake them.”
If you were to ask whether she was sound, well sure, she was.
But Heard is returning fire with Zebul. He’s no leisure to shoot down angels while taking her on.
On top of that, I cannot count on Vanity’s forces. Five hundred Demons would just be a nice snack to that Devourer.
That’s where Gula’s troublesome point came in. To those of them that boasted Sin deep enough to eat up their own race, going at them with numbers was nothing but a waste of resources.
A proposal to maintain the status quo.
I read what Lize had wanted to say.
I looked down upon the impertinent lass I had known from her childhood.
At some point, she had climbed up to General Class, this gifted subordinate of mine.
“So to summarize, it’s something like this. You’re proposing an exchange.”
“Yes, the right man in the right place. That Heard Lauder can keep up with any Angel.”
“You do have a point. But there’s a single problem in that.”
If you’re looking at power usage, that plan does have a greater efficiency… if you look at it like that.
But Lize has forgotten a single point.
Her opinion is grounded solely on the assumption that I would be able to destroy Zebul oh so easily.
Her Gula and my Ira have a bad affinity.
Naturally, I don’t have any intentions on losing. But fighting her will be a large power expenditure all the same. Perhaps much greater than what would be required to burn up these Angels.
That’s just how strong Zebul is.
She’s the ultimate predator, and a natural-born warrior.
With her at an affinity disadvantage against Rank One’s Heard Lauder, she has the might to persist at almost an equal level, a world apart from any standard Demon out there.
Having eaten on through ancient times beyond memory, her abilities as a Demon, her battle experience, and her ability to devour others were all realized in her extraordinary power.
I mean, the sin she holds dear, the Gluttony to even eat other Demons was… linked to the pure and honest desire to bring malice to others.
I somehow suppress the shout that was about to escape me, and try talking in a soothing voice to persuade her. This girl is smart, and na?ve.
“Heard is Leigie’s former subordinate. Before him is a stain on Leigie’s record. He’s sure to shake his head.”
“But if you consider efficiency, that’s the best option.”
Yeah, yeah.
If Heard were to take them on, then Angels of that level would be close to woodchips. He’s be able to destroy them all without using much power at all.
But if I take Zebul on, an energy waste is unavoidable.
Even if you call me the Great Demon King, at the end of the day… I’m just a single Demon girl, you know.
I hesitate to let out words.
Even as we speak, the Angels are putting up more and more distance.
But I had to say something. To my cute, cute subordinate.
Perhaps those were the words my father once imparted on me, or perhaps their contents were the same.
Even if their exteriors were to change, at the very least, the sentiment in my heart should be similar.
“Lize, we are by no means… monolithic, you know.”
“!? T-that is…”
Let me be honest here.
I am… not able to fully trust the man known as Heard Lauder.
He was Leigie-niisama’s right-hand man. But he’s also a Demon who once Overruled niisama. I don’t know when he’ll lash out again.
Leigie-niisama’s power is… strong. But at the same time, he isn’t suited to battle. His nature was the complete opposite of Heard’s. Even that power of ice I caught a glimpse of… there’s a possibility it won’t work the next time.
And the only one who can suppress that is me. I cannot trust another.
As it is, my power was around a level to compete with his.
If I were to have a loss in strength here, then it’s likely I would eventually face defeat to that man.
Rather than Zebul, who eats her kind, or Vanity, who father directly warned me about, the one I feared the most was niisama’s greatest follower, Heard Lauder.
Desire was something that ate up the soul over time. The emotions held by a Demon Lord were in no way something that could be held back by one’s rationality.
“So will you laugh upon my foolishness, Lize Bloodcross?”
I’ve always been a coward.
People say I have intellect unbecoming of the Wrath I govern, but caution is the other face of cowardice.
I can’t kill off niisama’s right hand man, nor can I let niisama get killed. I can only pray to the Demon World’s God, and wait… just as father long before me, I can only pursue a hopeless dream, and learn of an unreachable summit while I protect the seat on the empty throne.
But still, I cannot stand still.
Until some day, I’m swallowed up by the name of Ruin I carry.
Even having received my words, Lize’s gaze had yet to change, and she merely looked up at me in silence.
“… Have I become a little too sentimental?”
“… No.”
Her look told me that word held no lies or scorn.
Just as I found her long ago, her eyes, her heart, showed no distortion.
Then so be it.
I’ll offer up my Ruin to you, niisama.
Angels and Demons, and even God will turn to ash.
That is… the authority of my Wrath.
To hold hatred and resentment for all of creation.
On top of the dragon racing through the sky, I fell to one knee.
The land of the Demon World mainly consisted of spread out deserts of pebbles, and the Dark Prison was no exception.
When I looked down from the sky, I could take in the infinite expanse of land in a single glance.
That land enveloped by darkness that simply seemed to go on, and on. This jet black earth that had never changed from ancient times.
To that ground basked in the Mana of Acedia, I only ever held a single thought.
The distance to the Angels was already beyond my field of vision. But that’s no problem. I could get the particulars of their location from my Sone Skill.
At regular intervals, the ground shook to remind me of the clash of Heard and Zebul.
I drove that all out of my mind.
I put power into my staff once more. My fury acted in kind to make the entire body of it emit light like a miniature sun.
The moment I was to let it burst out, Lize’s dragon suddenly cut up in front of mine.
“… What is the meaning of this?”
What I was about to reach was far above all the power in her body.
Even if she may be one who bears the same desire, that was hellfire that wouldn’t even leave her ashes behind.
“… Hanon-sama, as I thought, I am… opposed to this.”
“… What?”
Her downcast face rose a little.
The blazing fire in her eyes blazed with a strong emotion much removed from resentment.
“This is a role you should leave to Heard Lauder.”
That idiotically repeated line was just barely able to push down my emotions.
The remnants of my anger drifted out of the staff, and the coat I wore let off a light luminescence.
It’s fine. From the Wrath I once held against niisama, something of this level is… something I can bear.
I wanted to tell her to shut up and follow. But Lize’s frantic eyes were painful for some reason.
“Truly, that man may betray you one day. I can understand your anxiety. But you should consider the present situation. Out enemy is… the Angels, and Zebul.”
Her quivering voice pierced my ears.
My enemy was present in the entire Demon World. While Heard did his share of work, the Demon World wasn’t small enough for that to let me gain control of it.
If I were to consider my army as a while, it would be a bad play to exhaust him here.
But once more, it’s a matter of future prospects.
Merits and demerits.
If I don’t use up Heard’s strength here, that man will surely be able to deal with all the opposing Demon Lords. The time to Demon World consolidation will certainly be shortened.
But at the same time, regardless of whether Heard’s power is to weaken, or if those Demon Lords out there are to survive… niisama won’t notice any of it.
Niisama’s Vitality was nothing normal. Even against Demon Lords, that remained unchanged.
Let’s say that there were some who could pierce through that. That would only be the few Demon Lords like Heard or Zebul, who specialized themselves on pure offense.
Sharpening power. Killing enemies.
There’s no right and wrong. Even if it is just to buy a little bit of time.
I must trim the sprouts of calamity.
That was something that transcended both Merit and Demerit… the initial prerequisite.
The basic standard I decided on the moment I became Great Demon King.
As long as that’s accomplished, then I won’t grieve for my power.
I don’t… need the world.
“Lize, step aside.”
While you’re standing there in my way, those Angels are just building up more distance.
My flame of impatience were already escaping my body to raise the surrounding temperature. With their high heat resistance, the dragon’s scales let off an offensive smell, as they burnt down. Letting out a low cry, it thrashed out left and right as if to drop me to the ground.
Even if you call it a dragon, in the end, it’s just a beast… no, but… Ah, this will work out.
The wind scattered my hair.
By the unrest in the dragon’s movements, Lize was far separated from me, and she raised a scream from far below my eyelevel.
I give her a single glance.
You are… a good subordinate.
With the excitation of my Mana, and the manifestation of my spirit, the song of my mind was finally satisfied.
From the depths of hell, where the light of day would never reach, the hardships in the furthest recesses of the earth, carved into my very soul, the song of a Demon Lord.
I naturally began to hum it.
From the vestiges of my widely swung staff, vivid flames continued to pour.
“Dawn Blaze. Oh jet black rain. Let the flames of creation enter my hands…”
I am a coward.
That’s why, my enemies, go to hell.
Destruction is my reprieve. So you can just dissapear to the world beyond.
How many years has it been since I chanted the incantation of that Skill on the highest tiers of the Wrath Skill Tree?’
To carry out my Ruin, I activated it.
“Shield Anchor.”
I feel the color seep from my world. Demons are being of soul, and their corporeal bodies held little meaning. Their existences were largely centered around their minds.
That was slipping away. A large portion of my thoughts had taken form and expressed itself.
The power collected at the head of the staff shined as a single light, before spreading explosively.
This was the abyss of Ira I had reached.
These flames of creation to rid myself or the rabble resembled the wrath of a form of God, and it was merely beautiful. A power to reset the world to create anew.
The expanding light cloaked the heaven and earth, and cleared away the sky into a crimson aurora.
The growing heat wave condensed to a single storm, and the ground calmed. Taking on the resultant wind, the flying dragon swayed greatly.
It was a wave of light.
Just as niisama once sealed the land in ice, an opposite force to bake everything in the world bathed the land.
No matter how much agility those wings may grant them, in the end, they cannot match up to light.
It was only an instant before the flames coming at them at the speed of light swallowed them up without a single one left remaining. Without the time to raise a scream. Without even the time to form a thought.
My resentment burned the sky.
Be they Saint Lord Class, or Demon Lord Class, before my Ruin, they hold no meaning.
The flames cleared.
The sky was a pure red, and in it, not a single thing remained.
Of Serge who flew ahead, and the angels that followed, there wasn’t a single particle of ash.
To niisama’s enemy, that disappeared before I had ever even seen her face, I held not a single deeper emotion.
The strong display of power was always accompanied by compensation.
A nihility enveloped my head. The power leaving my body caused me to kneel over the dragon. But I won’t unhand my weapon.
Until I drop all my enemies into ruin.
“Hah hah hah…”
I gripped the reigns, and had the dragon descend. The hands of the battle below, which had stopped for a moment at the flames in the sky, restarted themselves once more.
The sound of destruction echoing across the land was on a different scale from before.
I’ve cut off Heard Lauder’s hesitation. If it’s now, he should be able to give it his all.
If he’s to lose here, then… I’ll be the one to kill Zebul. That’s all there is to it.
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