Published: September 10, 2025
This is Satou. The saying "a cornered mouse will bite the cat" is a famous proverb, but while it might manage to retaliate, seizing victory is quite difficult. Especially if the opponent is on guard and never lets their guard down—it's even tougher.
◇
“—Sitting still?”
Despite just saying, "I will destroy your soul so completely that you can't even resurrect," the demon god remained seated on the throne, showing no sign of standing up.
The Void Blade and Dimensional Sword hanging loosely in both hands suggested that the body, corrupted by defilement, hadn’t recovered yet.
If that's the case, I might be able to seize an opening and cleanse the defilement without much trouble—
Just as I was thinking this casually, I found myself pulled right in front of the demon god.
An empty blade loomed.
—That was close.
I barely dodged in the nick of time, almost having my head and torso separated.
Even so, my body felt heavy.
The omnipotent feeling I had during death was gone like a lie, and my body wouldn’t respond as I wished.
It felt dull, as if I wanted to apply magnet coating to it.
“—How did you dodge that?”
The demon god asked with a surprised expression.
“You shouldn’t be able to dodge, having had your level and skills stolen.”
Ah, this dullness must be because my level dropped to 1.
I dodged the demon god’s sloppy attack again by the skin of my teeth.
Normally, this type of attack would be easy to evade.
To purge the defilement from the demon god, I needed to get close, but every time I tried to circle behind, I was teleported right back in front of the demon god.
This teleportation wasn’t caused by the demon god’s authority or magic, but seemed to be from the Dimensional Sword.
If the demon god wasn’t unwell, I’d have experienced a second death by now.
I glanced briefly at the log.
Normally, I’d gain skills at this point, but the log was completely unresponsive this time.
“—”
Because of this unnecessary movement, the Void Blade closed in where I couldn’t dodge.
I drew the Divine Sword from storage and blocked the Void Blade with it.
The moment the Divine Sword touched the blade, the Void Blade’s edge dispersed into mist, then reassembled back onto the demon god’s hilt.
My plan to take out one of the demon god’s troublesome weapons at the right moment was apparently futile.
“That is…”
The demon god muttered with a loathsome expression.
Even the demon god couldn’t overlook the god slayer Divine Sword.
At that moment, a map popped up in my vision.
◇
—Red.
The map showed a swarm of red glowing dots rapidly moving toward the Demon God's Fortress.
I instinctively shifted my attention there.
“You noticed.”
The demon god sneered.
“Those are my elite troops granted with my authority, sent to conquer the divine realm.”
The demon god projected hordes of the demon race into the air.
Along with general and avenger types, many demons resembling battleships and ghost ships were visible.
Every demon seemed corrupted, trailing a black aura.
More footage appeared.
It was my comrades.
Ms. Zena and the others were clearing demons around a Large Void Ship, while Arisa and the others fought female-type demons in a corridor.
—No way.
“Watch as your women are trampled and gnash your teeth in frustration.”
It seemed the demon god intended to send the elite troops not against me, but against my allies.
“—I won’t let that happen.”
“The system remains sealed. You, who have been stripped of your temporary powers, can do nothing.”
What I could do—
An AR display appeared in my vision.
There it was. Something I could do.
“—I can.”
I manipulated the menu.
I restored the icon I had turned off before because it was too dangerous.
“Nonsense—”
The demon god smiled with twisted delight.
It was a face unlike the one I’d seen before, as if from another world.
Surely, it was because of the defilement.
Ms. Zena and company in the footage pointed to the sky.
They must have seen the demon race’s elite troops as well.
“—Now, the rampage begins.”