He was a disciple of Rahite's assassin, Parshlo. He was a disciple of Gladna and was very skilled. The most annoying thing about him was that he could change his fighting style at will, taking advantage of his fickle nature. As a countermeasure, I signaled to Ilias and the others by clapping my hands when Parshero's mood changed. This time it's an application of that.
"Not again!
As Arcturial was not good at attacking on its own, it would not be able to break down Ilias' defense head-on. That's why he needs to take advantage of Ilias's surprise, but this move prevents him from doing so.
One of the side effects of wearing the superhuman glasses, which give him amazing dynamic vision, is that he can barely move his body. You can barely blink, but that's enough.
When he senses that Arcreal is about to make some kind of a move, he closes the open eye on the superhuman glasses side. Then switch to the naked eye and perform a handclap.
You can clap your hands with your eyes closed, but you don't know what he will do if you don't keep Arclial in your sight even for a moment.
"Upu......
The left and right eyes have different dynamic vision, and you have to switch between them over and over again. It's a small price to pay if your brain has to accept multiple pieces of information and your sense of balance is impaired.
As for Arcturial, it is unable to attack as it wishes because the Iliad becomes more cautious when it tries to attack. Even though he was attacking unilaterally, he could see the pain on his face.
You've got a cheap way of fighting. ......!
Who said it was okay to take on all of them at once? You seem to be in a great hurry for a single signal from him.
!
Ark Real can't defeat the Iliad if he's declaring that he's going to attack now. The action he should take is to stop attacking Ilias and turn his sword towards me.
But his cheap pride is getting in the way and he can't do that. Only this man has nothing at stake in this fight.
There are things that Ritual and Raheit have been determined to do throughout their lives. But Arcreal has only the curiosity to fight a strong enemy.
He doesn't want to admit that he is trapped by the mere act of slapping the hand of a man who could kill him in an instant if he wanted to. I don't want to find limits to myself that I have to do that. I don't want to find myself limited. That feeling is pushing away even the emotion of fighting for my friends.
At this rate, we'll be fine. The only thing left to do is to find the members who have entered the ....... The third signal!
"ARKREAL! We've just received word from all the members who have entered. They've broken through all of the middle levels and have confirmed that it's a dead end.
"So what? ......! Oh, come on, did Ritual lose?
That's what it means.
We defeated Ritual, that's huge. I thought about the placement of the raiders, but I didn't think about which team would be blocked by whom. I'd like to believe that Harkdock was probably the one who stirred things up.
If you play a reading game against Ritual, you will lose. So we decided to let only Ritual read each other, and let our side be free. Whether it can be called a strategy or not, I don't know.
Ritual may have been undefeated in his life because of his talent, but we were just starting out. The number of defeats I've had against opponents who are smarter than I am, who can read my thoughts, is no different than the number of victories I've had. But the experience of defeating such people has come in handy.
Their reading was sharp, and they easily outperformed my reading. But there were many times when my readings went awry when the people I was using as pawns acted on their own.
But when the people I was using as pawns acted on their own, their readings often went awry. Rytiaru, too, thought I was controlling everyone, and focused too much on reading me. Of course, there is a possibility that he will be tripped up.
I'm willing to give up the game in order to go from zero chance of winning to a chance of winning.
Isn't that a lie ......? There's no need to tell a lie that doesn't make sense.
Oh, you're going to fight to the bitter end here, aren't you?
Well, yeah. I was surprised to see that Ritual lost, but it seems that Ritual had a way to buy more time.
When Nektohar has perfected the resurrection magic, in order to prevent him from being outsmarted, he needs to use some kind of contract magic to restrict Nektohar's use of it.
Perhaps he has written down the method of constructing the spell in something and only allows it to be used after arranging for Ritual or Raheit to obtain it.
It is not possible to break a contract spell unilaterally. So if Ritual and Rahite's route is a hit, they won't be able to fill that path. Then the third route, Ceraes's route, is the winner.
Serraes is cooperating with Raheit, but his purpose is to protect the world order. If that were the case, he would not have liked to see the reanimation spell passed on to Ritual and Raheit.
Using this sentiment, Ritual induced Ceraes to fill in the correct route that he had prepared for her.
I guess he used Theresa to poke holes in the contract magic. In fact, I made her fill in the holes. ....... But, well, that's to be expected.
What the ...... hell, you're not sore losers, are you?
I'm not playing a game of charades with Ritual. I've imagined many possible outcomes of winning and losing. A certain amount of time has passed since the first team took the wrong path. I'm sure they'd have broken through by now if they had to rush to fill in the gaps.
The team that found the wrong path has been instructed to dig that path until the right path is discovered. If it was a pathway that had been reclaimed from the start, it wouldn't be too deep, but if it was a hole that Ceraes had filled in on his own after the placement, it wouldn't be too deep. In anticipation of this possibility, each team has an equal number of people who are skilled at digging into the ground.
...... I don't think people usually think that far ahead.
It's the nature of cowards to think that far ahead.
This might really get Nektohar's ass handed to him. Well, I'll give him some words of comfort then.
Arcreal's appearance changed a little. The impatience that he had been in the past is gone and he seems to have calmed down. With Ritual's defeat and the uncertainty of reaching Nektokhar, there was no need for Arcreal to rush.
It would have been nice if he'd just stepped down, but he's a man of principle. He'll keep his promise to Lityal as long as he can.
But it's a good thing that he doesn't plan to go underground, now he'll be able to protect his pride until the end. Arcturial, the greatest power in the world, is still alive and well, so Ilias will have to persevere.
"Ilias, let's move on to the next plan! You're in charge!
"Yeah, you got it!
◇
"Finally ...... finally finished ....... Resurrection magic ...... definitely the same ...... as the one Yugra invented, but this is ......!
I'm not sure if this is Nektohar talking to himself, or if he's talking to himself because I'm listening to him. It's not like he's talking to me, though.
"Congratulations. I didn't think the inhabitants of this world would be able to complete the resurrection magic by themselves. It's not like I'm talking to you.
"The Colorless Demon Lord!
Don't be alarmed. I'm just here to pay my respects. I can't touch you, your plan to build a resurrection spell is perfect. No, no, I'm afraid not.
Yes, applause. I'm not sure I'd want to do that if I had an alter ego.
...... have you come to laugh at me?
That's right. It's an amazing feat, isn't it? Nektohar, you're now free to continue creating new Demon Lords. He's a Demon Lord, he's a Demon Lord, he's a Demon Lord, right?
"You knew, didn't you? ! You knew, my ......!
Yeah, I knew it. Resurrection magic can reincarnate a person as a Demon Lord. Yes, a man.
I'm not going to be able to do that. I'm not interested in what he wants to do if he's in the same position as the Blue King. But it's an unfulfilled wish. Only humans can use resurrection magic. You can't get that benefit in a demon body. It's sad that you don't realize its specification until you use it on yourself.
There's nothing like the moment when someone else's effort goes to waste! I should've brought food, it's delicious!
Ironic, isn't it? "It's ironic, isn't it, that the miracle of betraying your master and throwing everything you've got at him is for other people only?
Hey, are you listening to me? I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not. ...... No, it's completely broken.
I'm not sure what to make of that. It's not too difficult to get rid of this.
The troublesome Ritual has been safely eliminated, and Rahite has also fallen into the hands of the Earthmen. At this rate, I don't think I'll have to do anything anymore.
Yugra's guy said to me, "If you can make it that far, you can leave me alone," but I don't want to deprive the Kuro Sister of any more of her revenge. As for me, I don't want the demon lord to increase.
"Lord, the road is open.
Lord, the road is connected.
Well, that was shorter than I thought, wasn't it?
So this is what he meant when he told us to keep digging until we found the right path if the path was wrong.
Did Serraes block the path on the assumption that he would be defeated? ...... No, it was more like he was trying to defeat both our intentions and Ritual's.
I'm sure you'll find it useful, demon. I'm a little jealous that my king's demons are all strong, but they don't force me to do chores!
You could have helped dig the hole, Neillertes.
"I don't want to get caught in the sand and gravel those two are dragging up.
Duvvreoris and his men worked very fast, but their emphasis on speed made things messy. They were so dirty that I wanted to say, "Have you guys been playing in the mud at your age? I'd like to say, "Have you been playing in the mud at your age?
"Let's get rid of the mud, both of you. Just sit tight.
Van used his magic to remove the mud from the two of them. He's an adventurer and a scout, so he's got some useful magic.
Thank you, Ban!
My clothes are woven with magic, I didn't need them.
"Duvvleiori? You just cleaned me up while I was at Wolfe's. What kind of attitude is that?
...... Thank you, human.
No, no, I didn't think of that. I'm sorry I went overboard.
Van is a good friend of his, so behave accordingly. He throws her a look with such intentions and exhales. If you don't let him adjust to human society a little more, you're going to have a lot of problems. I think I'll leave Duvraeori with Nora next time.
I think I'll leave him with Nora next time. ...... He can't fight, but he's recovered enough to walk on his own, right? Duvraeori, will you allow me to hold him?
At your service.
I can walk, but I can't run. But if Duvraeori carries me, I'll be able to run fast enough.
You don't walk after all, do you? ....... But it's nice, I'd like to be carried around by a gentleman.
"Oh, should I tell Heki?
You're going to die! You're going to die! You're going to be dismembered and then sarcastically grabbed by the neck and carried away! Please think about who you're dealing with! But I'm not going to take anyone but my king.
I can't find pleasure in anyone but him.
"But he seems to squeal when he picks you up alone, doesn't he?
Oh, that's good, isn't it? Isn't it nice that he's willing to go to so much trouble for me?
It took some time to clear a path that had been filled in, but it wasn't too much of a loss considering that it gave me time to recover. With Wulfe running with the van, we were able to reach the lower levels in a short time.
It was a large room shining with magic stones and lined with unfamiliar tools. It was similar to the one we had seen in the Blue Castle, but this one was much newer.
And in the middle of the room stood a man with the same black hair, dark eyes, and sallow-brown skin as Neillertes.
"Nektohar!
Wolfe called out the name loudly, but Nektohar made no sign of responding. Nektohar seems to be staring into the void and muttering something.
I'm not sure if he looks like that or has magical powers.
It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for. It's been a long time since I've seen you, Nektohar!
"...... I'm ...... high on ...... that man's ......
What? I'm greeting you when I would normally kill you without question! Don't ignore me! Don't ignore me!
He's even ignoring Neil Ryates' voice. I wonder if Ritual or Rahite would support such a crazy man? Should we assume that something is wrong?
"What can I do for you, Lord?
I'm the one who wants to know. I thought we were going to have to fight or chase after that escaped man.
Nektohar's head flew off. Neillertes, who had been calling out to him, cut off Nektohar's head with his hand sword without any preliminary movement.
Neillertes' hand was twisted and deformed, as if it had been trained as a weapon. I wonder if he used his regenerative power, which allows him to instantly revive even when he is decapitated, to recreate his arm as a weapon.
You have no hesitation in dealing with your former colleagues, do you?
I won't hesitate. I won't die from this. I have to crush his head clean.
Nektohar is alive. He's still muttering something even though his head has been chopped off.
Neillertes walks over to Nektohar's head, which has rolled over. This time he changed his arm into a mallet and raised it wide.
I was just going to complain, but this doesn't even make sense for me to be here. Huh, what a loss. I can't wait to be healed by the face of my king.
"...... my king ...... my king ...... ah, ah ...... ah!
Suddenly, Nektokhar screamed so loudly that I wanted to suppress my ears. Not only the air, but this room itself is shaking. The room itself was shaking. A great deal of magic was being released in his voice. There was no meaning to it, it was just letting out what came from within.
"Shut up and get on with it!
Countless spears shoot out from the ground, skewering Neillertes' entire body one after another. The holes overlap, and the body collapses, unable to retain its original form. As Neillertes' body fell to the ground, he was able to see the scene clearly.
Countless tentacle-like appendages sprouted from beneath the Nektokhar's neck and pierced through Neillertes' body. They were far more deviant from human parts than when Neillertes had transformed his arm into a weapon earlier. Not only the neck, but also the rest of the torso lost its human form and grew into a mere lump of flesh.
"Mr. Neillertes!
Van, you need to step back.
It's a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web, as well as to make sure you're getting the most out of it. The demon race that has lived for so long is about to bare its fangs.
"My king ...... why ...... ah, what ...... must be removed ...... what? "My king ...... why ...... ah, what ...... must be removed?
"My Lord--
You don't have to ask, do you? It's your turn at last. Be fierce.