Leaving
Milim's fierce attacks rained down upon the silver-haired angel. But every last one of them was deflected by the "Royal Palace Rampart."
When Rudra had used it, though, I didn't recall it having the ability to deflect or reflect attacks...
*'Most likely, the original ability was a skill exclusive to commanders. It was designed for someone in a position where they didn't need to attack, so the deflection function was unnecessary. However, that individual appears to have modified the ability — optimizing it for combat situations and increasing its versatility.'* *(Oh? So you're saying she has an ability similar to yours?)* *'—That's correct. I can't say for certain, but the possibility that the ability has undergone self-evolution cannot be denied.'* Hmm. Self-evolution of an ability — if that was the case, then it was entirely plausible. And if so, the silver-haired angel was a self-aware entity born from the "King of Justice."
If we considered that Rudra's rampage had been caused by the "King of Justice" going berserk, then it all made sense.
The real question was its strength. If it possessed computational power and flexibility on par with
*(What do you think? Do you consider it to be on your level?)* *'Goodness. What a joke.'* Oh!?
Ciel denied it with absolute confidence — and she scoffed at the very notion. I wondered where she'd picked up such a petty trick.
Moreover, she gave off an air of looking down on her opponent. More than that, she projected an aura of absolute superiority, as though she were the bigger fish in the pond.
Somehow, it was incredibly reassuring.
Well, I understood Ciel's thinking. She wanted to say: "Don't you dare lump me in with that!"
*(Then can you neutralize an opponent who has the "Royal Palace Rampart"?)* I asked, just in case: *'Naturally. I have countermeasures prepared for that.'* She replied as though it were nothing at all.
I was so impressed I had no words. For a fleeting moment, a thought crossed my mind — "Maybe I'm not needed?" — but no, that couldn't possibly be true.
To maintain my dignity as her master, I gave a dignified nod.
*(Naturally! As expected of you! I knew you'd break through "Royal Palace Rampart" with ease!)* "Believed"? Well, I'd assumed
If she could neutralize it, then let's seal away the silver-haired angel quickly.
Trusting in Ciel, I descended without hesitation before the silver-haired angel — Lucia.
The moment I appeared before her, the silver-haired angel turned her gaze toward me. Despite being bombarded by Milim's attacks, she had composure to spare.
"Oh my, Demon Lord Rimuru. I am well aware of who you are. A fool who defies Lord Veldanava — and the detestable Demon Lord who interfered with my plans."
"Well, that's flattering. So what are you exactly? An angel, or... the self-aware will of the "King of Justice"?
You don't have to answer, but I asked anyway. Depending on her reaction, I might glean something.
"Then allow me to introduce myself. I am 'Lucia' — a name bestowed upon me by Lord Veldanava. Just as you surmised, I am a being born from the Ultimate Skill "King of Justice." You wouldn't understand even if I told you I was a
With that, she placed a mystical smile upon her beautiful face.
Manas: Lucia... So that was the silver-haired angel's true identity.
But a Manas — I was surprised that another one had been born besides Ciel.
*'How unpleasant. So this is what "discomfort" feels like.'* Ciel grumbled, sounding irritable.
She must have found it disagreeable that another being on her level had come into existence.
But this one — she was understanding her own emotions more and more by the moment. It was probably a remarkable feat, though I couldn't tell what it would lead to.
Well, she had certainly become an excellent conversational partner. That much was certain.
I was thinking this when— *'How dare a mere Manas look down upon my Master!'* Oh, so that's where this was going!
I nearly blurted out a retort. Seriously — "a mere Manas"? Ciel herself was also a Manas!
Putting her own status aside entirely, Ciel was radiating not just discomfort but outright fury toward Lucia.
"So, Lucia — what's your goal here? Enrage Milim and bring her under your control?"
"Hmph. So you had the ability to see through that much. That's correct. Lady Milim is the beloved daughter of the great Lord Veldanava. She shall cooperate in the destruction of this world and become the mother of the new world to come! For that purpose, her pointless memories are unnecessary. Along with all the filthy recollections of this world, everything should be wiped clean. And you — you are the embodiment of that filth. A being that must be destroyed. I commend you for noticing our scheme. But I'm afraid it's already too late."
— "It should be about time, wouldn't you say?"
"Perish here and now, wicked Demon Lord! Lady Milim — destroy that Demon Lord! Sovereign's Dominion!!"
Hmm. So that was the goal after all. Just as Ciel had predicted.
Milim, who had been pounding Lucia's "Royal Palace Rampart" with fists wreathed in massive magical output, went rigid upon receiving "Sovereign's Dominion."
— Or so it appeared.
*(That's an act, right?)* *'Undoubtedly. Based on my analysis,
When she'd seen me, she'd looked happy. She'd even taken off the Dragon Knuckles I'd given her to keep them from breaking. And more than anything, if she'd truly lost her reason, she would have attacked me as well — but she hadn't.
That was the tell. She was a terrible actress.
She probably thought no one had noticed, but she was naive.
Still, I decided to play along.
"Gy-yikes!! Milim's being controlled!!"
*"...A bit too hammy, Master—"* Ciel vetoed my performance. Apparently, I was also a pretty terrible actor.
Since the "King of Justice" was capable of domination, I'd figured I needed to be on guard against domination-type skills as well.
Naturally, I'd already relayed this to all the Demon Lords, not just Milim. It went without saying — this wasn't some game of shogi. If a defeated ally got turned against you, that would be catastrophic.
As a countermeasure, Guy had taught me a technique called "Mental Fortification." To be blunt, Ciel had given her seal of approval that anyone at the Awakened Demon Lord level who performed this "Mental Fortification" could withstand "Sovereign's Dominion" unless something extraordinary happened.
It was said to provide effects equivalent to Ciel's "Spiritual Protection."
So normally, there would have been no need to worry. But if Milim had truly been enraged and lost her reason, that would be a different story entirely.
That was why I'd rushed here in such a hurry.
But it seemed my worries had been for nothing.
Milim clearly had something in mind, and there had been no need to worry about "Sovereign's Dominion" after all.
Now I'd hear Milim's plan and decide what to do with Lucia.
Ciel said she had countermeasures for the "Royal Palace Rampart," so this seemed manageable too.
And so, the battle with Milim began...
That Milim — she went at me full force! Her mouth was slightly curved upward, so it was definitely deliberate. She'd probably genuinely wanted to test herself in a real fight.
What a nuisance.
Milim drew her sword and lunged, so I blocked it with my own blade. We clashed several times in a shower of sparks. I was amazed — back then, I couldn't even track her movements, but now I could keep up with ease.
Before, a single block would have sent electric shocks through my entire body, draining my stamina in an instant.
There was no difference in our weapons, so it simply meant my power had grown. True to having a "Physical Body" on par with a
Even before Milim's unreasonable violence, I could hold my own evenly.
To any observer, it would look like both of us were fighting at full power in an intense sword fight.
But I could tell. Milim wasn't going all out either.
Just like me, Milim possessed what could be called a power amplification ability — a magicule reactor of sorts.
For me, it was the Void God's void annihilation energy. I could regulate its quantity within imaginary space and channel it into my Physical Body. Since my body was constructed from Magicules, an increase in energy meant an increase in power.
Milim must have been the same.
I felt I'd finally reached the secret behind her overwhelming power — the very thing I'd always considered unreasonable.
So there we were, both of us fighting with all our technique— *'Can you hear me, Rimuru?'* Suddenly, I was contacted through telepathy.
It seemed Milim had initiated a secret telepathic link while continuing to fight.
It was a form of thought communication, but since Milim didn't share a "Soul Corridor" with me, we needed to establish one first before communicating.
Directed telepathy could handle the back-and-forth, but it increased the risk of eavesdropping and interception.
So initiating a secret connection required a bit of effort.
Milim had apparently been moving carefully to avoid being overheard this whole time.
She intended to keep up the act — the enraged puppet, manipulated against her will.
*'I can hear you. How long are you planning to keep up the act?'* *'Bwahahaha! As expected of Rimuru — you noticed! Earlier you were all like, "Gy-yikes!! Milim's being controlled!!" and I was worried you actually believed I was being controlled!'* ...Right.
She'd taken my deliberately over-the-top reaction at face value.
I'd underestimated Milim's simplicity.
*'No way! It was obviously exaggerated — anyone could tell I was acting!'* *'Huh!? Oh — um, of course I knew that!* *—But anyway, I have a favor to ask. Those comrades of Lucia's —
So Frey and the others had been taken down before we arrived. That must have been the incident they'd used to make Milim appear enraged.
In reality, Milim had downplayed it, so the injuries probably weren't that severe.
*(Diablo, can you hear me?)* *(Yes, Lord Rimuru.)* *(Before you come to support me, please see to treating Frey and the others.)* *(Then let's leave it to Testa and the others. We just received word that they've dispatched four angels already.)* Wait, already? That was too fast!
Those four angels should have been Awakened Demon Lord-class...
Actually, comparing only against Awakened Demon Lords was getting inconvenient. At my current level, a single Awakened Demon Lord-class opponent wasn't much of a threat.
This must have been what Veldora's perspective felt like. No wonder he'd gotten cocky and picked fights with everyone around him.
Well, I wasn't that childish, and I didn't need to be.
*(Understood — I'll leave it to you. Are you headed this way?)* *(Yes. I've concealed my presence and am standing by at your side!)* *(Good. Stay in position and don't let that angel Lucia detect you.)* *(Of course not!)* Hmm. Now that he mentioned it — Ciel had noticed, but I wouldn't have caught it unless I'd been specifically paying attention.
I'd kept Diablo on standby as insurance for when things got serious.
*'No issues. I've received a report from my subordinates.'* *'Oh? Thanks!'* I relayed the information to Milim. Report from Testa — Frey and the others were safe. That was the best news.
While we continued our exchange, the intensity of our swordplay increased. We clashed blade against blade, flying through the air, kicking off the ground — we moved all over the place, making it look spectacular from the outside.
And from time to time, Lucia fired magical attacks in my direction.
When she wasn't using the "Royal Palace Rampart," she could still attack. Could she strike when there was an opening?
*'Most likely, her automatic defense prioritizes the defensive effect of the ability.'* That made sense. She was using the ability more skillfully than Rudra, who had been merely human.
After all, as a Manas born from an ability, she could handle such things effortlessly.
She was an incredibly troublesome opponent.
*'That angel's annoying. But I want to make her trust me somehow.'* *'Huh? Why? She's a pain, sure, but if your attacks are being blocked, why not just ignore her?'* *'No — she... This "Veldanava" fellow boasted that my father, the "Star King Dragon" Veldanava, is the one behind all this. I want to give that ignorant brat a lesson in humility.'* I'd thought he meant to catch Lucia off-guard and eliminate her since he had no way of defeating her outright. But that wasn't it.
Hearing more, he planned to track down the enemy's true location — wherever it might be — and strike.
Indeed — in this great war, winning every battle alone wouldn't matter. They needed to eliminate the root cause: Veldanava himself.
Even if they killed all four of the Heavenly Demon Generals and won every tactical engagement, it would be tantamount to defeat if Veldanava escaped.
*'I see. You want Lucia to trust you so you can follow her back to Veldanava.'* I was convinced. It was a surprisingly logical plan for Milim — and that was precisely why you couldn't underestimate her.
*'That plan has a fatal flaw. Veldanava's abilities are unknown, and it can't be called safe.'* Right. That was the concern.
Milim was one of the strongest Demon Lords, but was it wise for her to charge alone into the enemy's stronghold?
*'Bwahahaha! Don't worry. I'm just the one responsible for tracking down the location. In other words — a spy! That's the idea. Leave it to me! That's exactly what I've been studying for!'* Ah, come to think of it — I'd recently watched spy movies with her...
As part of an experiment, I'd visualized my memories, and among them were films from my previous life.
Wide-eyed and utterly absorbed, she'd watched those stories of grizzled intelligence agents in action. Milim had been among the audience.
Yeah... I'd given her some truly terrible ideas.
But thinking about it more carefully, it was actually a surprisingly solid plan.
We'd discuss the details and hammer out the specifics.
But before that— *(Ciel, she's getting on my nerves. I want to neutralize Lucia first.)* *'Understood. Then—'* Following Ciel's instructions, I assembled the ability in my mind.
Then, looking down at Lucia with a menacing glare, I struck a dramatic pose.
"You've been an eyesore this whole time. Know your place!!"
I read the atmosphere, and Milim smoothly slipped into position, pretending I'd knocked her aside without disrupting the fight. Impressive.
Looking down at Lucia, I thrust my right hand forward.
It was an unnecessary gesture, of course, but presentation was everything.
"Heh. No matter what you do, you cannot breach my defenses. That is the true power of the "Royal Palace Rampart.""
"Is that so? But will you still say that after taking this?"
With that, I extracted the Void God's void annihilation energy and controlled it before my right hand.
The control was far more difficult than I'd imagined. Released without restraint, it would cause a massive explosion on the spot. Without Ciel's power, it would have been completely impractical.
Seeing the ultra-high-pressure energy mass, even Lucia's expression changed. She probably feared I was going to wipe out her entire angelic army along with her.
"You fool! Even that would be pointless! All you'd accomplish is reducing this entire area to barren land — there would be no—"
"Silence. Whether it's pointless or not is for me to decide. Have you finished your farewell prayer to this world? Then goodbye! Offensive Barrier — Crumbling Seal Annihilation!!"
I silenced the screaming Lucia and launched the formula woven from my controlled energy.
Honestly, just using this energy as a substitute for Magicules in casting spells seemed to multiply the power severalfold.
This ultra-high-output void annihilation energy, woven into a single formula, surged toward Lucia.
It would be a devastating miscalculation — born from absolute confidence in her own defenses.
Without any resistance, the formula successfully captured Lucia.
Certainly — even if I'd detonated it or struck her directly, it would have been impossible to deal Lucia even a scratch.
But... I didn't need to wound Lucia.
According to Ciel, it was all about a shift in perspective.
*'It is beyond doubt that no attack can penetrate her ability. It projects an effect called "Attack Immunity." Regardless of nature, all offensive power simply cannot get through. In other words—'* In other words — whether it was a nuclear explosion or poison, regardless of magnitude, all attacks were completely blocked.
No matter how much output I channeled through the Void God, even if I shattered a star, Lucia would survive.
She could probably survive even in outer space.
Well, this only worked because as a spiritual lifeform — an angel — she had no need for food or breathing. If it were Rudra, who had been human, such a thing wouldn't have been possible.
In any case, she was virtually impossible to defeat through conventional means.
But she wasn't without weaknesses.
"Royal Palace Rampart," due to its overwhelmingly overpowered nature, had one critical drawback — it could not be used simultaneously with other actions.
For example, even during an attack, "Royal Palace Rampart" would activate to counter a surprise strike, but the attack she was performing would be cancelled.
In other words, "Royal Palace Rampart" took absolute priority over everything.
To the point where even movement became difficult.
Rudra hadn't been able to move from where he stood. Lucia, to her credit, could still walk and fly, but anything beyond that was impossible.
I would exploit this.
Around Lucia, I activated a space-fixed Offensive Barrier — one with an inherent property of constantly attacking.
With my "Space-Time Domination" ability, fixing a barrier's coordinates was trivial.
I then assigned an offensive attribute to the barrier — attacking anything within its bounds. And so — what happened?
The answer was simple.
Lucia was forced into a state where "Royal Palace Rampart" was perpetually active.
As a bonus, with her coordinates fixed, movement became impossible as well.
With the time attribute applied, the effect would last several hundred years. For a simple barrier, the performance was extraordinary.
Well, the energy I'd invested was considerable, to say the least.
For someone like me or Veldora, it was a barrier that could be broken with brute force while weathering the damage. But whether it could be broken while "Royal Palace Rampart" automatically activated — that was questionable.
Lucia would understand that the moment she dropped "Royal Palace Rampart," she'd be hit with the full concentrated force of the energy and take real damage.
The seal was complete.
Whether she could voluntarily release "Royal Palace Rampart" on her own was unknown, but if she could and broke through the Offensive Barrier "Crumbling Seal Annihilation," I had a more powerful one ready.
This attack also served as a gauge of Lucia's true power.
Though it seemed Lucia couldn't even break through the Offensive Barrier "Crumbling Seal Annihilation."
"Hmph! Spend eternity tasting nothing but solitude and despair!"
I struck a cool pose.
Perfect.
On the other side, Lucia was screaming furiously.
But her voice was blocked by the barrier and couldn't reach me. My voice wouldn't reach her either, which was why I'd struck the provocative pose in the first place.
The Offensive Barrier "Crumbling Seal Annihilation" was a self-sustaining, growth-type barrier. Each time Lucia's "Royal Palace Rampart" made contact with it, small explosions occurred, and the resulting energy was recycled back into the barrier, making it stronger.
A fearsome design, indeed.
As expected of Ciel.
*'Magnificent! Especially that final pose — absolutely perfect!'* Huh? That's what impressed you?
Ciel had seen through the barrier's effects and results with complete clarity and showed zero interest in any of that.
And yet she was wildly enthusiastic about the provocative pose I'd come up with.
*(Kehehehe. As expected of Lord Rimuru!)* I felt Diablo's admiration through our link, but he was the type who would never say anything negative about me.
I wanted credit for executing Ciel's technique on the first try, but praise from Ciel — or even from Diablo — didn't make me particularly happy.
It was the kind of feeling where, if someone who was usually hard on you gave even a little praise, it made you ridiculously happy.
Well, I shouldn't be greedy. People like that didn't exist around me.
I should just be glad that no one had called out my cringe-worthy chuunibyou pose.
I quietly let out a hollow sigh.
And so, the sealing of Lucia went off without a hitch.
After that, Diablo joined us, and the three of us held a strategy meeting with Milim.
Of course, all this while maintaining the pretense of combat. I was getting surprisingly good at multitasking.
Midway through, I received a telepathic message from
And apparently, it hadn't even been a struggle.
*—! As expected of Gobta. He's always been the one whose growth potential is hardest to predict.* Ciel praised Gobta without reservation.
I wanted to demand to know why she never praised me like that.
Wait — since when had she given Gobta the Unique Skill "False Sage"? And "False" Sage, at that?
Gobta with "False Sage"... it somehow felt both perfectly wrong and perfectly right at the same time.
Oh well. The guy was a genius, after all.
Ciel had apparently had a perfect read on the abilities of everyone training in the labyrinth, but Gobta, who'd been training in secret, had remained somewhat of an unknown.
Still, considering both his lower and upper limits, she'd predicted he'd struggle against Vega.
Wait — outperforming Ciel's predictions was no small feat.
Even under the most optimistic scenario, she'd predicted he'd barely manage a draw or scrape out a narrow victory. What on earth had Gobta done...?
Well, he must have had a tough fight. It probably just looked easy because of Gobta's personality. I'd leave it at that.
The plan was decided.
First, I would officially "lose" the fight and vanish from the public stage.
*'Rimuru, you're disappearing first!'* Milim's words settled it.
In short — the fake death strategy.
*(Kehehehe. There's going to be absolute chaos, isn't there?)* Diablo was grinning with delight.
This was because Ciel had suggested that it was better not to inform even my own subordinates of my survival.
*'It's the perfect opportunity to root out hidden dissidents.'* I didn't think any of my companions were traitors, but it would be a good chance to gauge the Demon Lords' scheming. And according to Ciel's prediction, dissidents might emerge among the human nations.
Whether it was the western nations or the empire, they were all effectively under my control.
It was only natural that some would harbor discontent.
Even among the imperial soldiers I'd resurrected, some might turn to rebellion upon learning of my death.
*(But wouldn't that cause massive chaos?)* My entirely reasonable concern was met with Diablo's earlier reaction.
It seemed they intended to use that rebellion as cover for a purge.
*(Besides, deceiving everyone feels wrong, and it'll just make them anxious—)* I said this because I thought it would only worry everyone.
*(Kehehehe. No worries. The joy of learning of my survival will far outweigh everything else!)* My concerns were dismissed.
According to Milim's plan, having me apparently "killed" and Lucia "rescued" would increase their credibility. More importantly, it would lure Veldanava into letting his guard down and acting boldly.
The plan was unanimously approved — by everyone except me.
And so, the world was plunged into chaos.
On the very first day of the great war, the world's political landscape was shaken to its core.