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Arcreal, who was sent flying in the air, fixed his posture in midair, and faced Zahava again while sliding on the ground.

He probably got cut from the fragments of the broken sword. There are small lacerations on his cheeks, but I don’t see any other thing resembling a wound.

“Aah, damn it. Please spare me from attacks that I can’t avoid… It reminded me of a nasty person.” (Arcreal)

“Arcreal, can you still go on?” (Ilias)

“Hmm, I will manage.” (Arcreal)

Arcreal grabbed a sword that was on the ground nearby.

That’s a sword from a Taizu knight. One that was held by a subordinate of Lord Leano.

“Can you swing the sword of someone else?” (Ilias)

“That just now was a memento of my master. I am not really choosing my swords.” (Arcreal)

“I am jealous. But an attack that even Arcreal can’t return, huh…” (Haaku)

I observe the transformed body of Zahava in detail.

It is barely keeping the human shape of the head and torso, but that’s already not a human but a spider monstrosity.

I can react to the swung arm, but it easily managed to destroy the sword of Arcreal that was protected with mana strengthening.

My sword probably won’t come out fine if I were to take it on from the front.

“No, that was me letting my guard down. I can counter it, you know. I was just a tiny bit surprised that her arm transformed.” (Arcreal)

“…Really?” (Haaku)

“I am returning it to a serious topic. Her mana strengthening specializes in the joints. She uses mana strengthening to augment her speed and strength efficiently in times of emergency and at the moment of impact, but that isn’t the case for the other spots. If I can tell apart the impulsive movements and avoid them, I should have enough of an opportunity to slash her with a returning slash.” (Arcreal)

This man…really is something else.

I am here desperately trying to get used to her movements, but Arcreal is leaving the survival to his talent as an Illegitimate within this life or death struggle, and is using the surplus created from this to calmly analyze her.

The transformation of Zahava’s body must have calmed down, she directed her gaze at us and dashed in.

Her physical strength must have increased to a certain degree, she is somewhat faster than before.

But what stands out the most is…

“Fu…! Aha! Ahahaha!” (Zahava)

I couldn’t take her on from the front, so I deflected the power of her attack with my whole body. I should be able to take it on as well if I concentrate my mana strengthening in specific points, but my bones and joints wouldn’t come out unscathed if I do something like that.

I concentrate on killing the impact with my whole body so that it doesn’t link to a counterattack.

“What’s the matter? Your movements are beginning to dull, you know.” (Zahava)

Heavy and fast consecutive attacks that leave no time to rest.

Air was pushed out from my lungs each time I took them on with my sword, and I had no time to inhale more air.

I jumped the moment I got hit by an attack after judging it would be bad for things to keep on as it is, and create distance by being sent flying.

I take a deep breath and fix my breathing.

I need to get close to her for my attacks to reach, but the relentless attacks of those 8 spider legs aren’t allowing this.

The aftermath of deflecting the impact had wrapped around my whole body already and dulling my movements.

It feels as if I am caught in the web of a spider.

“Don’t forget me.”

“Of course, I can see you.” (Zahava)

Arcreal slashed at her, targeting the moment when Zahava took a deep step to follow up on her attack.

But Zahava immediately reacted to this.

She swung several spider legs at the same time to blow Arcreal away.

A single leg fell on the ground.

Arcreal succeeded in slicing down one spider leg in that exchange.

But the expression of Arcreal as he watched the leg regenerate was telling me that he got a result worse than what he was aiming for.

“Looks like I can’t reach your neck when you are that fast. Your field of view is also wider.” (Ilias)

“That. Each one of them is independent and has their own vision.” (Arcreal)

I managed to read the flow of Zahava’s attacks to a certain degree by using her eyes.

But now she has 4 pairs of eyes; it has increased to 8.

Zahava is changing her aim while in the middle of her attacks.

You need to grasp the movements of her 4 pairs of eyes in order to see through her attacks, and we have to get through the surveillance of those eyes in order for our attacks to reach.

“Hmm, this is troubling. I can’t step into that, you know?” (Girista)

“You just wait for an opportunity, Girista. Arcreal and I will open up a path somehow.” (Ilias)

Girista is having a harder time to attack now that Zahava has transformed.

No matter how much we overwhelm her, she would be able to easily see the movements of Girista as long as she has those 4 pairs of eyes.

On top of that, there’s the attacks from her strengthened spider legs.

Even so, the reason for the presence of Girista’s demonic sword has not been lost.

It can deal damage and steal mana.

If her whole body has been strengthened, the mana she will lose when those parts are cut will be amplified as well.

“Open a path? You are inside the spider’s nest. It is a dead end with no road ahead. Overlap your own future with that of a fly!” (Zahava)

“Shut up. I have 4 limbs here. I can’t imagine myself becoming an insect.” (Arcreal)

Arcreal’s body was showing inhuman movements within the barrage of attacks from Zahava.

He was reading the movements of the enemy as if he was seeing the future, slipping his body deeper and deeper.

He understood that he couldn’t take them all on and couldn’t avoid them all, so he would deflect them by using his sword and body, and use that rotation to move forward.

It is the exquisite skill that only he could pull off and has budded here at this very moment.

I would have been fascinated by that technique if I weren’t a sword user too.

That’s the level of technique Arcreal has obtained in the middle of battle.

“You…” (Zahava)

“What’s the matter? It is a distance where we could hug,you know. How about giving me a warm embrace if you are a spider.” (Arcreal)

Zahava’s body moved back as if snapped away.

High speed movements using 4 strengthened spider legs.

Her posture practically didn’t break even when it was after moving.

But the single line running through the neck of Zahava told the story that the attack of Arcreal certainly reached her.

It proves that he isn’t falling behind against Zahava who has unleashed her power.

“If only you made one more move on me, I could have been able to drop…that head of yours.” (Arcreal)

“…You are better than I thought. But I also learned from that just now. Your sword and my attacks are unleashed at almost the same time. I can evade it if I know when it is coming. Your blade won’t reach me anymo—!” (Zahava)

“Ooh, so you have learned. But, too late. I went beyond that in the time you were learning. Ain’t that right…Girista?” (Arcreal)

“?!”

The footing of Zahava sank.

She is currently standing in the place where Girista was standing not that long ago.

Girista was circling around Zahava so that she wouldn’t be targeted because of her demonic sword.

She was tinkering the ground with magic at that time.

“It is hard to move with unstable footing, right? It is a move that a certain knight-sama did to me, but I was infatuated by it~.” (Girista)

“I see, that’s one dirty knight!” (Arcreal)

Arcreal and I noticed that there was such a trap set.

That’s why Arcreal led Zahava to that spot…and I was charging my strength in this manner to slam it all on her in one attack.

The ground bursted and my body soared in the sky.

A single thrust that has all of my power gathered in one spot.

I won’t be able to participate in the coordinated attack later on, but this one attack is enough in this situation.

I know I will be able to break through Zahava’s spider legs and reach her body with my past experience.

Zahava chose to defend instead of counterattack after seeing me charging in.

But my sword pierced through the spider legs that were placed in front of me together with her chest.

There’s already enough mana in my sword. It is enough to blow up her body like before—

“Don’t, Sis! Let go of your sword and get away!”

“?!”

I reacted to the voice that echoed from behind, let go of my sword, and jumped to the back.

The moment I did, 8 spider legs went by at high speed in the place I was standing before.

I managed to grasp what happened now that I had taken distance.

Zahava’s body appeared from the bottom of the ground that turned into sand.

The sword that I stabbed Zahava with was also there.

In other words, there’s currently two Zahava’s in my vision.

“I thought I managed to act as if I got caught in the trap though. That’s a shame.” (Zahava)

The Zahava that showed from the ground slowly got up, and moved to the side of the Zahava that was already there.

The Zahava that was stabbed by the sword is not moving at all.

It is as if there’s no life… No, there’s something coming out from her mouth and eyes… Sand?

I looked behind and there was Haakudoku who had come back from evacuating the injured Lord Leano.

“Thanks for the save, Haakudoku. Do you know what she did?” (Ilias)

“I was following her with detection magic, so I could see her movements completely. The moment you stabbed her with your sword, she left only her outer shell and suddenly moved to the ground. To be more precise, she switched places with the sand on her footing. The one not moving is just the outer part only; an empty shell.” (Haaku)

Shedding. I can understand that much.

It is not unnatural for her to be able to shed if she has the abilities of a spider.

But there’s no doubt there’s some other trick with moving after shedding. What I can think of is…

“The ring… The demonic tool!” (Ilias)

Zahava showed a smile and stuck her tongue out as if saying I am right.

That ring has the ability to teleport the user.

Judging from how the inside of the shed skin was filled with sand, it is not simply a teleport, but switching places with the matter in the location.

I still haven’t analyzed the details, but there’s the fear that she might be able to use it in the middle of this battle to change in an instant.

In this situation where we need to get through those spider legs and have our attacks reach her head, we have to see whether the one we are attacking is the real one or not.

An enemy whose difficulty increases the more we fight.

Losing my weapon against an enemy like that hurts quite a lot.

“I showed you the power of my demonic tool, and yet, I didn’t manage to kill you. That’s a shame. But I managed to steal your annoying weapon.” (Zahava)

Zahava took out the sword stabbed in her empty shell, and wrapped her spider legs around it as if showing it off to me.

And then, the moment strength entered her spider legs, my sword broke as if it screamed.

“You…!” (Ilias)

Zahava closed the distance and got in front of me.

The only thing I can do after losing my weapon is to avoid her attacks.

It may not be possible to avoid completely, but if I make the best use of my armor, and can deflect the trajectory…!

Zahava suddenly disappeared from in front of me.

She teleported with the ring?

Then, where is she? Use detection magic to locate—

“I can kill an insect with its limbs torn off at any moment. Let’s go for the annoying sword of Poshimakku first!” (Zahava)

“Agh… Girista!” (Ilias)

“?!”

The ground behind Girista exploded and Zahava jumped out from there.

Girista tried to stop the 4 spider legs unleashed at the same time as this happened, but she could only stop half of them.

The remaining two stabbed deep into the body of Girista.

◇◇

I have not had the experience of having a hard time attacking an opponent that’s not only not attacking but not even defending properly.

The heat emitted from Ofaro was eating away at my body without mercy, and was trying to take away my faculties.

The heat went through even the layers of the barrier I cast around my body. It is far more troublesome than I imagined.

Even someone like me with regeneration has this much trouble.

Maya, who also specializes in close combat, must be even more exhausted.

The barriers of the Yugura Church are sturdy, but they can’t move while it is up.

If you punch him, your arms are burned; if you kick him, your legs are charred; your skin will get dry just from being nearby, and your lungs shrivel from breathing.

Being able to still fight despite that is most likely proof of how much of an immediate effect the healing magic of Maya has.

But even if she manages to heal, the pain she feels is certainly building up.

“…This is the first time I meet someone with this little motivation. Do you not have any intention of fighting?” (Maya)

“Putting in effort to move my limbs against opponents that would die just from lighting them up is stupid. Also, I am sowing the seeds.” (Ofaro)

“Sowing seeds?” (Maya)

“One village is gone. Just that piece of information alone won’t relay my existence properly. I need to show you thoroughly just how fearsome I am right into your bone marrow.” (Odaro)

Ofaro crouched slowly and slipped his hand into the ground.

And then, he spread the melted earth he scooped with both hands into the air in our direction.

Maya and I jumped back and avoided the earth that rained down.

The earth that fell to the ground soaked up the fresh air, and began to burn while spreading fire.

“I don’t have time to play in the mud with you.” (Maya)

“…I am not that good with magic. I spray water at most to get the opponent wet. But that’s enough.” (Ofaro)

“?!”

The sea of earth at the footing of Ofaro raised splashes and scattered in the surroundings.

The scale is different from the amount that Ofaro scooped with his hands. No matter how fast we move, it would be difficult to slip through the openings of those splashes to evade.

But beat it down if you can’t evade it.

I smash my Right Leg of Roaring onto the air, and repel the assailing splashes with the air pressure.

Maya must have reached the same conclusion, she used wind magic to change the trajectory of the attack.

The burning earth raised even stronger fire, stirred up by the wind. My vision was filled with fire, and the light dazzled my eyes.

I used the Right Leg of Roaring again to blow away the fire, and secure my vision.

I don’t see Ofaro where he was.

“…He is not around!” (Maya)

“Maya, behind you!” (Dyuvuleori)

Ofaro was standing behind Maya.

There’s no way she wouldn’t notice his heat when he is that close. The fact that Maya was late in reacting despite that means that he is currently not releasing high heat.

We had forgotten to be conscious about the position of Ofaro at some point in time.

We thought we would be able to tell where he moved with that much heat coming out from him.

He didn’t move to make us think he is someone who fights without moving.

The reason why he scooped the melted earth with his hands was to direct our attention to the danger of the melted earth.

The reason why he unleashed it all in a way that can’t be avoided was because he was going to sneak into this wide area attack, and use the flames as a screen.

I ended up realizing that we fell into his trap by the time I noticed that reality.

“?!”

Maya turned around and tried to take distance, but Ofaro grabbed her. No, grabbing her is not the correct way to describe this.

He simply hugged her.

It looked like a gentle embrace from a beloved one. But this sight was even more terrifying than having claws and fangs dug into your throat.

“There’s no need for killing intent when murdering people. I can just embrace them like this while being calm.” (Ofaro)

I ran full speed towards Maya.

Maya and I could easily imagine what’s going to result from this.

“…I don’t really respect that you are hugging a woman without her permission!” (Maya)

“Hahaha, you are so pure unlike appearances.” (Ofaro)

Maya put strength in her body, but the world was covered in heat faster than she could move her fists.

Ofaro once again ate into everything with his heat while hugging her.

The body of Maya burned, and I could see her shadow struggling within the curtain of fire.

“Uoooh!”

I kick Ofaro with everything I have without showing any reservation for Maya who was caught.

He let go, so I jumped into the lump of fire that was flung onto the air, and immediately swallowed it into the Stomach of Perplexion.

She definitely won’t survive if I extinguish that thoughtlessly.

I forcefully take away the fire inside of me and spit the heat out from my mouth.

“Haah… Haah… Haah…”

I ignore the painful burning sensation, and confirm the state of Maya who is inside of me.

I can hear her heartbeats.

She is pretty badly injured, but she is in a state that has a better chance of survival than Archbishop Ukka.

She is far less injured than I imagined. She must have used the Taizu style barrier magic to cover her insides.

But she has already lost consciousness, and is in a state where she can’t heal her own burns. It would be better for her to rest inside of me for now.

“To think you would kick a hugging man and woman. Such a jealous man.” (Ofaro)

Ofaro slowly got up and his lips warped slightly.

I understood from the attacks until now, but the regeneration rate of Ofaro really is as outstanding as that of Niruryates.

I know from the sensation of the kick just now that I destroyed his lungs, ribs, and several organs. But he has already recovered from those injuries.

But what’s more abnormal is his nature.

Even if he has the power to heat up like the sun, can you erase that heat in an instant?

Heated up iron would continue shining red for a while even after soaking it in water.

Even if you manage to stop the heat that you added, it should still take time to cool down.

What I can think of here is that he used a different power to steal away heat. If he doesn’t excel in magic, there’s only one answer I can think of.

“A demonic tool that steals heat, huh. To think you would have something that is opposite to your own power.” (Dyuvuleori)

“Look like you are perceptive. But you are misunderstanding a bit, I guess.” (Ofaro)

Ofaro pulled the earring he has in one ear with his fingers. That must be his demonic tool.

It should be possible to do physical combat if I take into account the heat that’s rebounding on me.

In that case, it should be possible to steal the demonic tool along with his ear…but my Nose of Sniffing is warning me to not carelessly aim for it.

“A misunderstanding?” (Dyuvuleori)

“Heat is a power that appears in this world. Just its presence alone changes matter, and can allow for living beings to live or die. Don’t you think a demonic tool that just takes it away is way too inefficient?” (Ofaro)

“Then…” (Dyuvulero)

A flash passed by my side.

My body couldn’t react at all until I could recognize that reality.

My blown up right arm was still not telling me about the pain.

“I am just a sun. I simply eat into the world with heat. But the living beings with intelligence can use that heat. This demonic tool doesn’t steal heat. It has the ability to change heat into a variety of powers.” (Ofaro)

——

Author: Supplemental information. The demons aside from Ekdoik form their clothes and accessories with mana. It is clothes and a part of their body, so they have the same properties.

If that wasn’t the case, Zahava would be naked every time she transformed, and Ofaro would always be naked.

It is an absolutely necessary skill for demons to rampage.

That said, Niruryates didn’t care about being seen, so she didn’t learn it for a while, but the Green Demon Lord forced her to learn it.

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