The first to move was Guy.
In a motion that seemed to shift frame by frame from a still image, he swung casually at
"Heh heh heh. Lord Veldora, I can handle these two on my own, you know?"
"Kuhahaha, what are you saying? No need to hold back — let me lend a hand as well!"
Veldora blurted that out in a panic at Diablo's cool, composed smile.
The truth was, Veldora simply didn't want to be anywhere near his elder sister
"Then, Lord Veldora, shall I—"
"Indeed. That fellow in the uniform — he's the one who riddled me with bullets. Consider this both repayment and a chance to settle the score right here."
"Understood. In that case, I'll take this one."
With that brief exchange, Veldora and Diablo moved simultaneously.
Damrada and Diablo clashed fists.
Kondo, saber in his right hand and pistol in his left, met Veldora head-on.
The violent collisions sent shockwaves rippling across the Celestial World.
The two pairs then broke away, each dragging their respective quarry with them.
Watching them go from the corner of her eye, Velgrynd thought.
Damrada and Kondo had served Emperor Rudra loyally for a long time as his closest confidants. Velgrynd knew them well — their personalities, their abilities.
They were beings of extraordinary power, even by human standards, and utterly free of arrogance or carelessness.
That such men had now obtained power far surpassing the Awakened Demon Lords was, without question, a threat.
Still— "Don't you dare get careless, Veldora!"
That was all Velgrynd said to her brother before fixing her gaze on Rudra.
Their power was immense, certainly, but even so, it didn't compare to that of a
(Though if you put on a pathetic show, there will be consequences.)
With that thought — the kind that would make Veldora's blood run cold — Velgrynd moved.
In the instant Guy's sword was about to descend on Veldanava, a blade of light slashed in from the side and deflected it.
Standing before Veldanava — it was Rudra's doing.
The two repositioned as if cutting and flowing, trading sword strikes in a seamless dance.
Neither carried a shield. Both were in a stance of pure offense.
For these two, their swords served as both weapon and shield.
"Heh, not bad. You haven't gone dull, have you, Guy?"
"Draw your sword, you impostor — don't you dare get in my way!!"
With a roar, the two lunged and struck each other with everything they had.
The blow carried killing intent of the highest order. Yet both deflected it skillfully, unable to leave so much as a scratch on the other.
The fake Rudra embodied power of a truly terrifying caliber.
He had complete control over his Temporary Physical Body — one condensed from staggering energy.
Velgrynd couldn't believe it, but the man's strength was on par with Guy's.
"Guy, I'm coming to help!"
"Don't you dare, you idiot!!"
It all happened in an instant.
Velgrynd, intending to back up Guy, had dashed toward the fake Rudra with her claws transformed into a blade — her Godspeed Claw — when a searing pain lanced through her arm.
(Impossible!? I have
Shocked, Velgrynd leapt back.
"Heh heh — guess my arm is duller than I thought. I was aiming for your head. Or maybe your strength has actually grown — right, Velgrynd?"
For the first time, Velgrynd stared hard at the fake Rudra.
This young man who was supposed to be a counterfeit.
Rudra in his youth.
The impostor before her had perfectly replicated even his wild, untamed power — so perfectly that even Velgrynd's eyes couldn't tell the difference…
(That's impossible. I was there when Rudra… passed on…)
"…You're a fake!"
"Ha! Don't make me laugh, Velgrynd. I'm the one who decides whether I'm real or not. No soul means I'm fake? Came back to life means I'm fake? Being controlled means I'm fake? Wrong. The moment I acknowledge I'm fake — that's when I become a fake, and my will dies. But I'm alive, aren't I? I think, I choose, I move forward. I am me and no one else! You should understand that, Velgrynd? Fine — I'll admit it looks like I died once. So I'm starting over from the beginning. I'll beat all of you into submission and make you acknowledge my greatness. And then I'll change your hearts and make you my allies. I am a man who will one day conquer this world. That's my promise to the 'Star King Dragon' Veldanava — my master."
Velgrynd's outburst was met with nothing but a scoff.
Rudra dismissed the light sword born from his own Aura and grinned fearlessly.
"Fighting with something like this toy is just rude, isn't it? Let me show you what I'm really made of."
He brought both hands together and whispered, "Divine Sword Summoning."
In that instant, space between Rudra's palms warped and a radiant sword materialized from the gleam of distorted light.
Seeing it, Guy's crimson eyes filled with joy and his grin deepened.
Velgrynd took a step back, stunned and bewildered.
And Rudra, smiling at Guy, raised the sword and declared: "Today, I'll settle this once and for all, Guy!"
"Hmph. Suit yourself, Rudra!!"
Divine Sword Summoning was the ritual Rudra used only against an opponent worthy of his full power.
The sword that chose its wielder — the Divine Sword "Star King" — could only be called forth by someone who carried a will close to Guy's friend Rudra. The man before him could be real or fake; it didn't matter.
(You died and still you stand in my way? You just can't stand letting me win and walk off, can you? What a sore loser.)
Guy couldn't help but smile, unable to hide it any longer.
Veldanava no longer mattered to him. Guy was consumed entirely by his battle with Rudra.
And Velgrynd— She decided to simply watch.
For eons, this had been the unwritten rule between Guy and Rudra. Velgrynd,
And so, as Velgrynd watched, the battle between the two grew ever more ferocious…
◆◆◆ Velzard had felt the same shock as Velgrynd.
However, she was Guy's partner, and her surprise was less overwhelming than her sister's.
More importantly, thanks to the bond she had felt with Guy just moments ago, seeing Rudra didn't shake her composure.
Without so much as a change in expression, Velzard calmly treated Milim's wounds.
She noticed that Chloe had taken the field against Veldanava at some point, using her swordwork to buy time.
Milim's injuries weren't as severe as expected — Velzard was relieved to see she would recover soon at this rate.
"Sorry about that. I'm good now."
Just as expected, Milim recovered almost immediately.
What's more, despite having been utterly overpowered moments ago, she showed no sign of learning her lesson and was ready to charge at Veldanava again.
"Milim, do you see a path to victory?"
"Hmm? Not really. But hey, maybe something will click while I'm fighting?"
Oh no, thought Velzard.
Sure enough, Milim was being toyed with by Veldanava.
"Damn it, you're fast!!"
Watching from the sidelines, Velzard could see that Milim was grumbling but still channeling her energy properly…
But Milim's energy hadn't grown as much as one might expect.
It was greater than an Awakened Demon Lord's, sure, but compared to a True Dragon, it was barely a tenth.
(…Something doesn't add up. If I think about the enormous amount of energy Guy fought her with before, Milim's current power seems far too small…)
Guy and Rudra were locked in a dead-even battle.
Interfering would obviously set off Guy's fuse — there was no question about that. That front was best left alone.
Her brother Veldora, meanwhile, had gotten absurdly tenacious somehow; he'd be fine on his own.
And with Guy and Rudra now fully absorbed in their duel, Velgrynd had the bandwidth to keep an eye on Veldora and the others as well. Velzard could see that her sister was watching the fight while remaining prepared for any contingency.
Seeing that, Velzard decided she could leave things to Velgrynd if anything came up.
The real problem was Veldanava.
Chloe was being characteristically cautious, holding back and measuring Veldanava's power with careful, cool precision.
Milim, by contrast, was throwing herself into reckless suicidal charges.
Velzard was contributing a shield to block attacks aimed at Milim, but even so, the cumulative damage must have been adding up.
Milim didn't look like she was holding back, yet she appeared far weaker than when she had fought Guy long ago.
Velzard found it suspicious.
"Milim, you…"
"Milim, you fool! Give it everything you've got!"
Just as Velzard was about to voice her suspicion, Guy shouted in exasperation.
Milim looked put out and retorted.
"I am giving it my all! I'm not holding back!?"
"You idiot. The old you was way more intense! You haven't even used ' King of Wrath ,' have you!?"
"Huh!?"
Called out by Guy, Milim's eyes darted away for a split second as if to say she'd completely forgotten.
But as if admitting it would hurt her pride, she stammered: "B-But! That ability might become uncontrollable! Last time, even you and
"Oh, shut up! Just do it! I'm barely keeping up with this guy as it is! Go blast that bastard away already!"
Half out of sheer frustration, Guy pressured Milim into action.
The truth was, Guy and Rudra were evenly matched, and Guy had no margin to spare for conversation.
Having said his piece, he turned back to Rudra.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Don't worry about it. Wouldn't be fun if we weren't going all out."
Guy thanked Rudra, who had apparently been pulling his punches during the lecture.
Rudra nodded magnanimously.
The two then struck simultaneously, scattering a storm of brilliant sparks.
Velzard watched them with an exasperated sigh — and felt her doubts melt away.
Milim hadn't been holding back. She simply hadn't been using her ultimate ability.
That said, Milim's words were entirely valid.
The power too formidable to control — the "Magicule Breeding Reactor" — that was the true nature of the "King of Wrath."
An ultimate force that fueled itself on violent rage and Magicules, multiplying them without end.
The Magicules fed in as fuel were returned as even greater power. It multiplied, literally and without limit.
As long as this ability was active, Milim's Magicule count would skyrocket. And unlike other abilities, it never diminished no matter how much was spent — a truly ultimate power.
She who wielded infinite power as an individual — that was the Demon Lord called Milim.
The legacy of Veldanava's daughter was no empty title.
But Milim had not activated the "King of Wrath" in the slightest.
Only Guy, who had successfully reproduced the ability in a previous battle, had noticed.
Guy had managed to replicate the "King of Wrath" with his own "King of Pride," but the power was so overwhelmingly intense that he'd abandoned the idea of keeping it active at full output. He maintained it at roughly forty percent, using the remaining capacity for other abilities. Even at his absolute limit, he estimated ninety percent was his ceiling while retaining his sense of self.
But Milim — If anyone could control such a staggeringly powerful ability, it would be Milim. Guy was certain of it.
And now Velzard, seeing Milim before her, recalled what Guy had told her before.
Milim, who had possessed Magicule reserves far exceeding even the Awakened Demon Lords, never needed to use an ultimate ability.
If Milim were to activate the "King of Wrath," there was no telling how far her power would soar.
(Perhaps she could even embody power that surpasses us True Dragons—) The thought sent a chill through her.
But to defeat Veldanava before her, it was necessary. And Velzard chose to believe that Milim's iron will would allow her to fully control the "King of Wrath."
And Milim — Despite fierce inner conflict, she understood that her current strength fell short of Veldanava's.
That was precisely why she steeled her resolve and poured her anger into the "King of Wrath."
Perhaps sensing the shift in Milim's aura— "Rudra! Stop playing around and finish this!"
Veldanava shouted.
But the response he received— "Shut the hell up! This isn't some easy opponent I can beat while holding back! My master would understand that — if you're saying things that shallow, then you really aren't my master. But fine, whatever. I'll be grateful to you for giving me the chance to settle things with this guy. So keep your mouth shut. In return, I'll give it everything I have. Got it? Don't you dare give me orders!!"
Without a shred of mercy, Rudra fired his words back at Veldanava.
The only thing on Rudra's mind was his showdown with Guy.
He was savoring every moment of the fight from the bottom of his heart, and Veldanava's words were nothing but an irritant.
As Rudra's reaction made Veldanava's expression darken, Milim's voice rang out.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. This time — I'm going all in!"
Across Milim's entire body, pale blue sigils resembling dragon scales emerged— Cycling the vast Demon Aura emanating from her form into a perfect defensive membrane capable of countering any attack.
The Dragon Princess