Something completely unexpected had happened.
I'd found the missing Ogre-kun, but he was right in the middle of a death match with an Ice Dragon.
Whoa.
He was going berserk, no question.
Completely a rampaging demon.
Not a shred of humanity left in him.
This was bad.
The Ice Dragon was the guardian of the Demonic Mountain Range and supposed to be pretty strong, but Ogre-kun was completely dominating it.
His Skills didn't seem all that developed, but his Status was insane.
With a single strike of his demonic sword, the Ice Dragon's scales were sliced clean through.
And he was dual-wielding.
A true rampage of demons and gods.
Type disadvantage played a role too.
One of the demonic swords Ogre-kun used was fire-attribute.
Tough for an ice-attribute Ice Dragon.
Plus, the fact that he didn't use magic was a huge factor.
Even the magic-suppressing effect unique to dragon species was meaningless when the opponent didn't cast magic.
The elemental attacks of the demonic sword were technically the same magic in a broad sense, but since they weren't system magic, the system-level suppression didn't kick in.
So the Ice Dragon was taking hit after hit from its weak element—fire—and was being pushed into a corner.
Even though I had such a hard time with the Earth Dragon.
Type matchup really matters, huh.
I was some kind of special magic-type with binding skills plus magic, after all.
Ogre-kun was a hardcore physical-type.
Totally different from me in nature.
Oh right.
Speaking of dragons, I just remembered—the vampire girl seemed to have picked up some weird Skill.
She'd activated it during a class mock battle.
White scales had appeared on the vampire girl's body.
The teacher's magic, who was playing her opponent, vanished right in front of her.
It could only be a Dragon Scales-type Skill.
And the fact that it completely erased the magic meant it was an incredibly high-Level one.
How had she obtained a Skill that was supposed to be exclusive to dragon species?
My best guess was the Jealousy Skill.
I figured the bonus Skill accompanying the Title of Jealousy Dominator might be a Dragon Scales-type Skill.
How envy-inducing, I thought, feeling jealous of someone who had the Jealousy Skill.
I mean, the vampire girl already had a rare Skill, and now she also had an ultra-rare Skill exclusive to dragon species.
How extravagant.
Thanks to the Undead Skill, her already-high defense now had Dragon Scales defense layered on top of it.
Despite her appearance, the vampire girl was way too tough.
I'm one to talk, but I definitely don't plan on dying.
Oops. I'm getting off track.
And in the meantime, the battle between Ogre-kun and the Ice Dragon had reached its conclusion.
Ogre-kun won.
Well, the Ice Dragon put up a good fight.
But with the type disadvantage and an opponent with
Besides, using the blizzard as a diversion to escape at the very end—that was a smart move.
An Earth Dragon might have viewed death as honorable and kept fighting to the end, but sometimes you need to turn your back on the enemy and run.
As long as you're alive, that's what matters.
If you're alive, there might be a chance for revenge someday. If you're dead, it's all for nothing.
The Ice Dragon barely managed to escape from Ogre-kun with its life.
Ogre-kun seemed to lose interest in the fleeing Ice Dragon and headed off in a different direction.
And that direction… not good.
Well, I'd had a bad feeling ever since he started fighting the Ice Dragon.
Beyond the Demonic Mountain Range, in the direction Ogre-kun was heading, a peaceful land stretched out.
A strange space, enclosed by mountains and sea, isolated from the outside world.
There were no monsters, no conflict, no discrimination—a land where both the Human race and the Demon race lived together in equality.
An alien land within this world.
Clearly an artificial paradise, shaped by someone's hand.
There was only one person who could be responsible.
Black—the Administrator, Guhle Diest Diers.
Only that god could have created such a place.
Well, I understood the purpose.
This was a sanctuary for souls.
It was meant to protect souls that could no longer endure the System, keep them away from conflict, and extend their lifespans.
Otherwise, their souls would eventually collapse.
The number of protected humans and demons was quite large.
Enough to fill an entire country.
But that also meant that many humans and demons were already nearing their limit.
Eventually, this world would collapse.
That much was obvious.
But I thought we had a little more time.
However, discovering this protected zone forced me to reassess.
Bluntly speaking, we were screwed.
The Demon King probably didn't know about this.
He probably thought that if he could spark a major war between the Human race and the Demon race and replenish the depleted MA Energy, the world would be saved.
But it wasn't that simple.
Replenishing MA Energy was no longer enough.
The source of energy supply was starting to dwindle.
And if my prediction was correct, it wouldn't happen gradually—it would come all at once.
So fast that by the time anyone noticed, it would already be too late.
Black should have predicted this to some extent.
Yet she was unable to take effective measures.
This was part of why Black was so frustrating—caught between a rock and a hard place, unable to move.
Well, I'm sure Black had her own conflicts, but while she dithered, the world was heading toward destruction.
If she'd just been a little more decisive with her choices, it wouldn't have gotten this bad.
What an idiot.
And once Ogre-kun reached the protected zone, a massacre was inevitable.
His rationality had been completely dissolved by Wrath.
At this point, he was no longer a Reincarnator.
Nothing but an avatar of Wrath.
A single monster.
I couldn't imagine Black would just let that slide.
What should I do…
No, I'd already decided what to do.
Sure enough, Black got caught in the spatial distortion I'd set up.
Hehehe.
It worked kind of like a spider web, and I'm pretty good at these kinds of traps.
Then—mass spider hell with body clones galore!
And while I was at it, I tossed in the clock I'd swiped from D's place.
Ta-da!
The Space-Time Manipulation Clock!
A clock handmade by D that manipulated time and space.
Single use.
This time, I'd make the flow of time inside the sealed otherworld where Black was trapped move way, way slower than out here.
With that, Black would be stuck there for a few years.
I'd borrowed several other convenient items from D's place, but every single one was so overpowered that finding the right time to use them was a challenge.
I figured they were D's way of providing me with support supplies, so I was happy to put them to use.
Come to think of it, the Cursed Playing Cards had disappeared at some point.
Who would lose something that dangerous?
I just hoped they hadn't been misused somewhere.
With Black sealed away, there was no one left to interfere with Ogre-kun.
Let him go on a killing spree to his heart's content.
It would actually be better for the people in the protected zone that way.
The scary part would be when Black eventually got out.
Well, that would be a problem for then.
I'd just have Ogre-kun serve as a sacrifice.
He was already consumed by Wrath and useless for anything else anyway.