Guy and Chloe had been locked in battle for three days.
Neither was fighting seriously, but occasionally an attack lethal enough to kill would slip through.
Both were probing, trying to discern the true depths of the other's power.
"Die! Calamity Demonic Claw!!"
"Naive."
Chloe caught Guy's fist-claws with the spirit sword in her hands.
Her Sacred Spirit Armament, now evolved to Mythical Grade. Even when withstanding the fist-claws of Guy—the strongest Demon Lord—it refused to shatter.
No, more than that—the sword's enhanced performance combined to repel Guy's strike outright.
Chloe moved to follow up without pause.
But the strength drained from her body, "*Guh!*"
Blood spurted from her mouth, and streams of crimson ran from her eyes and nose.
An attack she had supposedly blocked and deflected completely. Yet that was only the surface result.
An invisible attack was eroding at her, reaching to claim her life— "Die! Calamity Demonic Claw!!"
Chloe avoided the attack with a large, almost exaggerated movement, her expression blank.
And then, as if nothing had happened, she leveled her sword at Guy once more.
Her face, which should have been stained with blood flowing from her eyes and nose after Guy's attack, had returned to its pristine, beautiful state as though nothing had occurred.
As if, impossibly, Guy's previous attack had simply been made to never have happened— "Ahahahaha! As expected of the Hero!! Not bad at all. I tip my hat to you for dodging that one."
"—Thanks."
"If you'd tried to block it, you'd be dead, you know?"
Chloe offered a small reply to Guy's candid praise.
She gave no reaction to the provocation that followed—because she knew it was the truth.
Which was precisely why her feelings were complicated.
The strike Guy had unleashed—Calamity Demonic Claw—carried a potent poison attribute.
It was not merely poison—it was a technique that scattered the worst kind of infectious ruin particles accompanied by spiritual contamination, beginning corrosion from the point of contact.
In fact, Chloe had already died once to this technique.
Absolute defense automatically blocked attacks, but it did not protect against ruin particles that corroded through the sword she had caught them with.
Thus, the ruin particles scattered from contact with Guy's fist-claws had caused Chloe's death.
It was thanks to her Ultimate Skill, King of Space-Time, that she had been able to recall the memory of dying once in the future, allowing her to evade it.
Experience it once, then return to the past.
In other words, to put it another way—she recalls memories of the future.
To anyone watching, it might seem like Chloe had luckily chosen to evade—but the reality was different.
With absolute conviction, Chloe had chosen the optimal defense.
Yet despite fully evading Guy's attack through her ability to recall future memories, Chloe had no room to breathe.
Unlike Veldora, the strongest being she had ever fought before, every one of Guy's attacks was dangerous.
She could tell he was not remotely serious, but his attacks were interspersed with ones designed to kill, leaving no room for complacency.
Guy launched his attacks with terrifying cunning, using meticulous strategy to set traps.
The fact that he used only attacks from which resurrection would probably be possible, even if Chloe died, made his intentions clear.
He intended to free Chloe from the curse and curry favor with Rimuru.
However, Chloe knew that was impossible.
Because she remembered that when she had died once in the future, Guy had attempted to break the curse and muttered in frustration, "It failed."
It was proven that the curse Yuuki had placed could not be easily broken.
And so Chloe was stalling for time, as she had been ordered.
And Guy's strength seemed truly bottomless.
Every one of Chloe's attacks had been read.
While neither was fighting seriously, Chloe had already died approximately three times.
It was not that the attacks were undodgeable—rather, it felt as though she was being guided into positions where death became inevitable.
It seemed like she was being given choices, but in truth, every development in the battle was unfolding exactly as Guy willed it.
Once, she had died due to a momentary lapse.
Even though she had chosen to evade using time stop, he had nullified it and torn her heart apart.
In other words, Guy could move freely within the stopped world.
Having recalled that outcome, Chloe stopped using her time stop ability—doing so would only reveal her hand.
Guy had never used time stop himself or launched attacks based on it.
Had he done so, Guy would have realized that Chloe too could move in the stopped world—that is, that she possessed space-time-type abilities.
But Guy would never resort to such a straightforward attack.
That was one area where he differed greatly from Veldora.
He never attacked Chloe with techniques that relied solely on his abilities, despite having absolute confidence in them.
Which was exactly why Chloe felt ashamed of having done so herself.
When launching a technique, one must anticipate the possibility of it being blocked and ensure the attack is lethal regardless—Chloe engraved this truth into her heart once more.
It was a fundamental principle she had believed she understood after her long journey.
She had gained power so overwhelming that, without even realizing it, she had grown complacent—and Chloe reflected on this.
And once again, she faced Guy.
If both of them fought for real, the situation would be different.
Guy would lose the room to play around, and Chloe was confident she could defeat him with her unrestrained Absolute Flash.
But if she fought Guy without using her abilities, Chloe would almost certainly lose.
The power of her Ultimate Skill, King of Space-Time, was that absolute.
That was precisely why she had relied on it too much—but that would not do.
Through her battle with Guy, Chloe recalled her original mindset, returned to her humble feelings, and focused on the fight.
Guy narrowed his eyes, looking exasperated.
This was probably the most tenacious strong foe since
He had prided himself on having grown far stronger than back then, but he still had a ways to go.
Chloe refused to move as Guy's plans dictated. Attacks that should have been lethal cut through empty air, and every one of his attacks blending real and feint seemed to have been seen through.
Guy thought highly of her.
While neither was fighting seriously, the honest truth was that if asked whether he could win if he went all out, he could not give an answer.
In other words, he had no choice but to acknowledge it.
That Chloe Obert, the "True Hero," was a being on equal footing with
(*She's strong!*) Guy grinned with delight.
He had considered defeating Chloe and breaking her curse as a card to play against Demon Lord Rimuru, but that was proving quite the opposite.
Chloe was even stronger than Guy had thought.
Guy had already gone from thinking this was a farce?—to *not at all!* That was how he felt now.
Chloe, whose swordsmanship was supremely first-rate, faced Guy, who was bare-handed.
It would be rude to her not to—he thought, and drew his blade.
"You can be proud. You made me draw my sword."
He told Chloe this as he produced a single sword from thin air.
He had already given the magic sword "Heavenly Demon" to Milim.
In its place, he had prepared the magic sword "World."
The ultimate sword, forged from a substance known as Star Core—the hardest material in existence.
Unlike Milim's sword, it was well-maintained, radiating an iridescent luster.
The magic sword, pulsing as though alive, fit perfectly in Guy's hand.
He suppressed the sword's fluctuations and took aim at Chloe.
He intended to genuinely enjoy a battle of swords.
In his fights against
But facing Chloe, the strongest of all Heroes, Guy could not be certain of his own victory.
That was what it meant to face a true equal.
While he treated Leon and Velzard as friends, Guy knew their abilities did not reach his level.
Which was precisely why this made him happy.
(*You've exceeded my expectations, "Hero" Chloe!!*) With a tension not felt since his battle against
There was someone watching their battle unfold.
It was Velzard, the White Ice Dragon.
Seeing how joyful Guy looked, she bit her lip.
What churned within her was a blazing fire.
Anger? No. It was jealousy.
Ever since her brother, Veldanava the Star King Dragon, had acknowledged Guy, Velzard had been jealous the entire time.
She kept it cloaked in jokes, making sure Guy never glimpsed her true feelings.
What surfaced in her mind was the content of a message she had received the other day.
Through the special telepathic transmission unique to True Dragons, she had received a thought-message from her brother Veldanava—who should have been destroyed—and that alone was enough to leave her stunned.
—*For my sake, destroy Guy*— Recalling the contents, she let out a sigh.
She knew about the conflict with Yuuki and what Demon Lord Rimuru had commissioned Guy to do.
That the true identity of the Will of Vice dwelling within Yuuki was Veldanava...
Velzard was torn.
No—she truly had no reason to be torn.
She had originally approached Guy for the purpose of keeping an eye on him.
It was just— Yes—she had simply enjoyed the time she spent with Guy a little too much.
The arrogant Guy.
The foolish Guy.
The kind Guy.
The ruthless Guy.
The terrifying Guy.
And Guy, the friend her brother had acknowledged.
She had loved spending time with him, with all his different faces.
But if her brother said to kill Guy, then she...
Besides, Guy would never make that kind of expression toward her.
Fighting with such visible joy.
When he had fought Velzard, Guy had been considerate, holding back like an adult playing with a child, making sure not to hurt her.
Was it then?
That she recalled the jealousy that had sprouted in her heart.
Toward that Demon Lord named Guy Crimson, whom her brother had acknowledged.
And then— (*Guy is kind to me. But he won't allow me to stand beside him.*) —*That is because you are weak*— (*I am strong. I am the most powerful of all True Dragons!*) —*No, you are weak. You don't even have the right to stand beside Guy, do you?*— (*That is—*) —*Do you want power? If only you had the power, you could stand beside Guy*— (*But that is not my wish...*) —*Is that truly so? It is because you lack power that Guy does not look at you*— (*If I had power, if only I were stronger, would Guy look at me?*) —*Of course. More than that—he would grant your deepest wish*— (*Yes... I want power. I want power.*) Hearing those words, somewhere an evil will sneered.
—*Now, release that jealousy*— Those words echoed through her mind.
Yes—the words that would unleash the ability etched into Velzard's heart.
And the seal of jealousy, placed by Veldanava the Star King Dragon, broke free.
—*Kill Guy, and do as you please*— Her brother's permission had been granted.
She unleashed her original ability and obtained a new power.
In that instant, Velzard the White Ice Dragon's heart was manipulated by Veld, and her reason was blown away.
The second-greatest power among even the most ferocious of True Dragons, surpassed only by Veldanava the Star King Dragon.
Enormous waves of magicules raged and flooded the area.
Hilary stood in front to stop Velzard, but was cut in half—upper body separated from lower—by a single blow of Velzard's magic.
With overwhelming magical power, she had suppressed a massive surge of energy.
And then— She awakened.
A goddess of jealousy, faithful only to her own desires.
To kill Guy and claim him as her own, in accordance with those desires.
Having acquired not only her original ability—the Ultimate Skill King of Patience—but also the Ultimate Skill King of Envy.
(*I will kill Guy!!*) Faithful to her own desires, blindly following a single will.
Chloe and Guy both retreated from their positions at the same moment.
A cryo-wave of absurd power tore through the floor where they had been standing, unraveling molecular bonds.
Standing there was a beautiful woman with white-ice hair and deep-sea-colored eyes.
"Velzard—*you*... Right, I'd forgotten. You've been harboring jealousy this whole time, haven't you—"
At Guy's murmur, Velzard let out a soft laugh.
"Guy, I've always—been—about you—"
And the world stopped.
An isolated, absolute world of frozen time.
By the will of its ruler, all laws ceased to function.
—Except for those left behind in this stopped world.
Chloe, Guy, and Velzard.
The three of them observed each other's movements within the frozen world.
A world where even the flow of time had halted.
Yet both Chloe and Guy could move without issue.
The problem was— For Chloe, there were two enemies.
But her odds of winning had become virtually nonexistent.
Unlike her own time stop, Velzard's supply of magicules seemed virtually infinite.
It felt equal to the amount of energy she had sensed when confronting Rimuru.
If that was the case, the duration of the time stop could be maintained for a long while.
She could move, but her ability to read future memories had been sealed.
Having her trump card—her lifeline—sealed off was painful.
She absolutely had to survive until time was released once more.
There was no longer any room for talk of holding back.
Guy could not be called a full-fledged enemy, but he was no ally either.
Above all, Chloe was under the effects of a curse and could not act of her own free will.
The situation was the worst it could be.
Chloe steeled herself and guarded warily against the two of them.
Guy stood caught between a moment of hesitation and deep understanding.
*So that's it—that explains why the jealousy took so long to sprout.* At the same time, (*This is bad. I'd planned to just play around since Rimuru asked, but...*) He pondered.
Chloe was under the control of Veld's curse.
She seemed to be resisting considerably, but that did not mean she truly had free will.
In other words, an alliance could not be formed.
And Velzard— (*Tch. She's been completely manipulated.*) With a subtlety that made the victim believe she was acting of her own volition.
For the first time in ages, Guy became aware of rage welling up from the very depths of his heart.
(*Unforgivable. To lay a hand on what's mine!* *Manipulating my precious Velzard—what nerve, Veld!!* *If you want to die that badly, I'll kill you.*) With a stinging, intense fury, Guy's hair blazed crimson and stood on end.
He would continue to face Chloe without killing her—well, killing her to a survivable, resumable extent was acceptable—while dealing with this situation.
At the same time, he would protect Chloe from Velzard's attacks and bring Velzard back to her senses.
(*This is a little too much even for yours truly—*) Clicking his tongue inwardly, Guy too steeled his resolve.
And it was in this moment that Guy's decision to kill Veld became absolute.
It was also the moment when, for Guy, Veld ≠ Veldanava became certain.
(*He wouldn't resort to such underhanded tricks. If he were serious, he could destroy this entire world all on his own.*) That was Guy's true feeling.
Which was why, without hesitation, he severed his feelings toward Veld from within himself.
Veldanava was gone.
And then, with a sharpened gaze, he turned his eyes toward the two before him.
The situation was close to a three-way standoff.
But Velzard held the greatest advantage.
She could pursue her objective without doubt or hesitation.
And the battle in the stopped world began.