◇
While drawing blue afterglow, I go through the Royal Capital's sky fast with Flash Drive.
--Found him.
I land before the man in black clothing who's jumping through roofs--the high level scout belonging to [Light of Liberty].
Landing while crossing my arms and with both legs straight, I want to retort myself who do you think you are.
I call out to the scout who turns around going to run away after seeing me.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Arisa retorted me, "You should've said 『Where are you going huh』 there!" through [Tactic Talk], but I'm not interested in making a joke now, so I ignore her.
"Would you return the things you've stolen in the royal castle, thief-kun?"
The scout obediently opens his Item Box and takes out a small bag out of it.
"Good prudence. I'll stop myself from tearing you limb from limb."
While still being silent, the scout throws the small bag with my [Chant] orb inside, high in the air. It's probably for making a chance.
Yosh, got it--
『Return』
--the small bag disappears just before I'm about to catch it.
The scout who's using shadow as his shield below me is currently entering his own shadow while holding the small bag on his hand.
--Tsk, shadow magic huh.
"I won't let you!"
I dive into the indefinite shadow that the scout has made.
I can't see anything since there's no light, but the AR reading and the radar are different.
I couldn't do anything when I went into the shadow created by the [No-Life King] during Mia's kidnapping, but it's different now.
Safe. I feel relieved now.
Next, I just have to escape.
I can probably do the same now.
"Retrieval complete!"
The black space is broken, and I'm back at the Royal Capital.
"I-impossible. Who are you bastard! It's too nonsensical. Interfering the space not with magic but yell....
--LWEEENN.
I heard a sound like someone's strumming glass.
"D-don't tell me, you're not a hero? Y-you bastard, are you god, no, that kind of stupid thing shouldn't be."
Red rope-like patterns appear on the skin of the scout who's begun talking in slur.
Apparently, this guy is a fiend drug habitual user.
I don't have any duty to save him, but I'll be sparing myself from seeing splatter film-like scene before my eyes.
As if obstructing me from invoking [Mana Drain], several sakurcolored feelers fall from the sky.
I invoke the magic as is, create Holy Edge on my hand and cut away the feelers.
I open the map to check, but the scout hasn't died yet.
--I might have misunderstood something.
I move to the sky above the sakuramochi demon with Flash Drive.
"Liza, beat it."
While leaving blue light tracks, Liza charges at the sakuramochi demon.
And then Liza who's approached the sakuramochi demon by combining the golden armor's Aerial Step and Flickering Movement pierces the sakurcolored body with her white spear.
However, those are meaningless.
Liza's white spear penetrates the sakuramochi demon's defensive walls as if ripping a thin film.
--Dragon fang penetrates all that exist.
The fang is effective even when it's separated from the dragon's body.
--Dragon fang ruins even demon lords, it's the ultimate blade.
In that case, no matter what defensive walls, there is no way that it won't penetrate the defense of a mere greater demon.
Liza's dragon spear, Heiron, pierces the sakuramochi demon's body, shaving its remaining health completely.
"That spear is unfair poyoooo"
While leaving that scream, the sakuramochi demon disappears into sakurcolored mist.
I'm not looking at the sakuramochi demon, but the marker I've put on it.
Looks like I misunderstood what Ten-chan said.
The way to defeat the sakuramochi demon is not by [Using forbidden magic that has enough power to destroy the surrounding space], but using forbidden magic that can [destroy the surrounding space], otherwise the demon can't be defeated.
Right about then, the shout of Mito whom I've almost forgotten echoes.
"....■■■■■■ Divine Destruction!!!"
The sound of rain like it's from countless wind-bells reverberate in the royal capital sky.
"You did well Mito. I'll leave this body to you, just leave him to me."
Ten-chan who had even less presence shouts out joyfully, and loses her strength as if her battery's been cut off.
"....Connection Lost. Confirming the user's log-out. Restoring the right for avatar's control. Shifting to autonomous mode. Mito, please order me."
If I'm to believe Ten-chan's robotic words, until just now, the real Ten-chan was controlling this homonculus from some place away.
And, judging from what Mito has just said, Ten-chan's identity is--
"Alrightt! Defeated it for the seventh time!"
Arisa's energetic words interrupt my train of thought.
Just like earlier, the sakuramochi demon is disappearing into sakurcolored mist.
I turn off all the AR readings and sharpen my mind.
--There!
The slight odd sensation when the demon is appearing in the normal space--I've caught the gap.
--However, a gap is a gap.
If I can break the shadow subspace, then there's no reason for it to not work on the same subspace.
"Woooooo!"
With a loud scream that doesn't sound like me, I wrench open the gap in space with both my hands.
"Outrageous poyo! If it isn't Origin Magic--"
I heard some interesting words, but destroying the demon takes precedence now.
--The poyo poyo is noisy, but I won't leave even one of them remain.
After destroying the last one, the log displays that I've defeated a greater demon.
The scout who's sitting on the ground with his back facing me is muttering something like he's delirious.
I move next to the scout with Sky Drive while carrying the [Thorn Foot] ivy for binding him on one hand.
--Something is bothering me.
When I rotate my thought to grasp whether I've overlooked something, the real nature of the odd feeling is revealed.
--That's right. It's the feeler of the sakuramochi demon.
Why did the sakuramochi demon save the scout?
The [Short Stun] magic is blocked by the scout's body.
Then--.
".....■ Invoke Deity"
The scout who's holding a huge magic core on his stomach, holds it up to the sky, and then the next moment, intense white light engulfs.
--It was for the sake of buying time for chanting this spell huh.
But there's nothing happening even after I've readied myself.
....Maybe, the chanting failed?
"Hey? What was that just now?"
Arisa absentmindedly asked.
"Satou! It's dangerous, the spirits are clamoring, they seem like they'll cry. Every child is trying to dive into the ground. The above seems to be scary, the above you know."
In accordance to Mia's warning in unusually long sentences, I look up to the sky.
--I see three black lines with the moon on their back.
The instant I saw those lines, I was caught in chilly fear as if icicles had gouged out my body from inside.
The fear cannot be completely removed.
Tama slips behind my mantle and holds onto my leg while trembling.
At present, it seems only me, and these two can perceive the dreadfulness of those black lines.
"Nana, activate 『Castle』! I allow the release of the limiter so use it!"
I also catch Mito and Ten-chan's cast-off with [Magic Hand], and gather them with everyone together.
"Eh? What's this magic? It's the same level as the Holy Shield and the Holy Armor, but the magic power is knitted strangely. It's too precise. Humans shouldn't be able to knit magic power like this...."
Mito who sees the defensive wall of [Castle] that our golden armor created mutters such things like she in delirium.
Even though it should have been fine with this, my Crisis Perception doesn't stop.
--Right, I've forgotten.
"Arisa, please get ready with your space magic."
--The prophecy that Sera told me was [Nightmare visits the Royal Capital, Black Calamity alight from the heaven].
"Eh? It'll interfere with Nana's defense you know?"
--The former was probably about the sakuramochi demon. Then what about the later?
Everyone is surprised at my words and turns around.
"Are those three lines falling from the sky that dangerous?"
"■ Item Box"
I thought he was just faking it, but since the marker I've put on my [Chant] orb reappears, it seems to be the real thing.
I fire around 10 [Short Stun] toward the scout, and approach the small bag with Flash Drive.
No, this guy should only have light magic and holy magic.
Then, this must be an ability of his item.
I intrude the sub-space created by the shadow vigorously.
The markers I've put on the scout and the [Chant] orb tell me his location.
I fly with Flash Drive in the shadow space, snatch the small bag from the scout and put it into my Storage.
And then, I immediately put all the orbs inside in a special folder.
I was able to go out before by yelling fiercely.
What is that sound?
His back is transforming.
I don't know the cause, but perhaps, his monster element is stimulated when his mind gets disturbed, it's probably the same reason as a reincarnated person changing into demon lord.
The fiend transformation probably stops if his magic power is drained.
The scout's marker disappears after he was swallowed by the sakuramochi demon.
His current location is in a place where map doesn't exist.
Its remaining health is only at 20%.
"Understood."
Behemoth that's controlled by Mia blocks the feelers that are trying to attack her, while Arisa uses space magic to reflect the advanced magic shot by the demon's chanting head.
Defensive magic walls repeatedly stack in front of the sakuramochi demon to block Liza's white spear.
◇
So it's really like that--
During the time before it's revived, the demon's location is like with the scout, [Space without map].
The next moment, Mito's magic destroys the magic circle that was covering the whole Royal Capital.
--What is this guy doing?
"Acchaa, victims would likely appear if Ten-chan's real body comes."
If the secret to its revival is just as I've guessed, then--
That gap might be as small as a single molecule.
I strike the 90 small sakuramochi demons lurking in the subspace with [Condense] and [Laser] combo, infringing them.
The jet black mist disappears into the sky together with the crumbling space.
◇
The radar displays the scout man once again.
I thought that he was killed together with the sakuramochi demon, but he seems to be fine.
The stimulation of the pattern on his body has stopped, it's blackened, so it seems the worst case scenario has been avoided.
It'd be troubling if his muttering is a spell, so I strike him with three [Short Stun].
From the demon's point of view, men are nothing more than toys.
The sakuramochi demon's parting gift huh!
It might be too late, but I immediately invokes [Laser] and bisect the core that the scout is holding.
The scout who's finished the spell has become mummy-like and falls to the ground.
I wonder if the core he was holding evaporated at the last moment, I don't see it anywhere.
"It seems he was trying to make god descend..."
Even though my Fear Resistance is at maximum, it's no use.
Mia is holding tightly on my other leg.
"Yes, Master. 『Castle』 Mode Start."
"Everyone gathers near Nana! Lulu, activate 『Fortress』 too."
"Y-yes!"
Following Nana, I also activate [Castle] mode like hers.
This is the superior version of the [Fortress] that was used in the fight against the floormaster, it has more than three times the defensive power.
However, I don't have the leeway to keep her company right now.
"Use it when the defense created by the three of us are broken through. When the time comes, escape from the Royal Capital."
Arisa asks on behalf of everyone.
"Ah, if my guess is correct then--"
I take out the Divine Sword from the my Storage.
--The enemy this time is god.