‘You are an idiot who hasn’t experienced the suffering and harassment that they had to go through… if you see them, you might get another chance even in the darkness that has consumed you.’
That was what Khun had said to him. Because of these words, Carl became interested in the Warrior’s Festival, and he began to pay attention to the four people, including Airn Pareira.
However, he didn’t feel anything.
There was no difference between him and them.
Like himself, they were born with a one-of-a-kind talent, and just like he was, they were frustrated and hurt by people superior to them.
Even so, they stood up bravely and moved forward, right?
‘I am the same.’
The gap between him and his opponent was clearly felt even though they were both geniuses. Rather than narrowing it down, it was understandable that the difference in their talents would continue to widen even further.
However, he didn’t give up. He forsook his family, turned away from the light and set his feet into the darkness without knowing anything other than the sword, and faced his enemy like this.
He was able to raise his head proudly in front of Ignet, who was a being in the sky that he thought he could never catch up to.
Or so he thought.
“Look at your sword.”
“Cool your head for a moment and look at the blade of your sword.”
“You are no longer Carl or Carl Lindsay.”
… at his opponent’s cold words, Carl looked at his sword. Confirmed his appearance.
Only then did he realize how he was different from the four.
Bratt Lloyd.
Judith.
Ilya Lindsay and...
Airn Pareira.
Even if they stood up holding someone’s hand, they stood dignified.
Even though it might have been painful, hard, and depressing despite leaning on someone, they still didn’t lose themselves. That was the reason they could laugh despite losing in the Warrior's Festival.
Carl Lindsay.
He wasn’t like that. He despised and denied himself for being lacking.
When he was tired, he didn’t lean back to rest but got back up and was drawn to the devils from the start to the end. Carried by that darkness, he appeared in this place, hiding behind the same darkness.
Wearing that pitch-black mask.
Without even revealing his face proudly.
The moment he realized he was standing as a demon and not himself, he was able to fully understand the message of Khun.
“…”
“…”
Silence fell.
He looked at his sword and was in deep thought and was unable to take his eyes off it. No, he looked like an accursed being.
And as the commander of the Black Knights, he was a target who had to be subjugated right away, but Ignet Crescentia waited for him. She gave him time to reflect on himself.
She wouldn’t have done it in the past. The change that occurred within her led her to show mercy... to give Carl another chance. So that he could have hope to escape from the darkness and come back to the light with a new life.
Time passed.
It continued to flow.
So much time passed that any normal person would feel impatient, but Ignet waited.
Like the four juniors who broadened their view in swords and life through themselves, this existence in front of her also had to break out of his shell. At least, that was what she hoped for.
She hoped that he could get out of the dark and build up the courage to face the light once again.
Clack.
But her heart didn't reach him.
As he took a step ahead with a fighting stance, disgusting magi flowed from his body.
Tttttttssssssss…
A black haze rose over his shoulders. They were so thin that they looked more like strands, and it was soon reborn into a new form as they entangled him.
The magi went down his shoulder and wrapped around every nook and cranny of his body, and a wing-like cloak appeared on his back.
Flap!
Even if someone tried, they wouldn’t see a single inch of human skin. Now the being in front of her was a demon with black armor.
No, something it was something more demonic than a demon, and it was looking down at Ignet from a higher position.
“I will trample you.” the devil said.
“I will crush you, trample you and subdue you.”
It continued to speak.
Right. This was the right tone.
To be an arrogant and disrespectful existence who didn’t pay attention to those below them... they were the ones who would rise to the top.
In order to make Ignet look back at him, he had to be stronger than her. He had to look down at her from a higher position.
If he hit his opponent with an overwhelming difference in power, then she would have no choice but to look at him, no matter how arrogant she was.
And not with her usual arrogant eyes, but with more deep and intense emotions!
“I will make you look back... No, I will make you look up.”
“…”
“Let’s check, if the space you had till now can be taken over by me.”
“Phew.”
Ignet Crescentia sighed.
The devil was declaring his victory by hiding behind a mask and armor.
It felt sad.
And pathetic.
Of course, apart from that, the momentum he was giving out was amazing. The power of his sword, which had transcended over demons and entered the true realm of devils, was a disastrous one.
Even if her current ability was similar to the top ten on the continent, this devil wasn’t an opponent she could overcome. If the situation continued in this way, she would be defeated.
But she wasn’t worried.
She wasn’t afraid or scared.
“But it is annoying.”
“… bluffing till the end!” Carl shouted.
There was no leeway. He was looking down from the top, but his heart still held the same emotions from 15 years ago.
How she thought he was boring and insignificant. That only added more darkness. And the darkness was the most important thing in this situation.
'If he was in human form, I don’t know what the result would have been,' thought Ignet.
If it was Carl Lindsay or just Carl who trained like a human...
Ignet didn’t know, but she thought that she could have lost to him as she wasn’t perfect. She learned from Airn that she couldn’t always win.
Despite their fears, the four of those friends still had the courage to move ahead.
But this current fight had nothing to do with that.
She had to win. Unconditionally.
‘I do not want to lose in a place like this. I didn’t want to use it, but…’
Tch, Ignet Crescentia clicked her tongue and raised her sword, and struck it into the ground. The devil flinched but didn’t move.
In an instant, a mysterious energy flowed from the sword, which was now embedded in the ground.
Wooong!
It wasn’t aura.
It wasn’t holy power.
It was something she had been harvesting for a long time... it was cultivated from the dream she had to create her own Kingdom.
It was another miracle created by her will... her desire to protect those who entered the fence of darkness.
“Sorcery, territorial deceleration.”1
‘…!’
A low voice flowed from her lips.
The elaborate fantasy that had been created showing the room in the Lindsay family mansion from 15 years ago was shattered.
Two years before the Warrior’s Festival, swordsmanship wasn’t the only thing Ignet Crescentia developed.
She was preparing to become a King at any time and create a nation for people to live in peace. The moment the boundary against a devil was overlaid, her inner will would be materialized as an external power.
Territorial declaration.
A sorcery-based command which she could use only once in her lifetime, which designated the desired place as the King's territory.
In that designated place, the abilities of the subordinates and the King would increase slightly…
Crucially, it exerted great power against demons and devils.
That was the reason why Ignet was sure of her victory.
If Carl Lindsay had appeared here as a human without losing himself, then it wouldn’t have made much difference to her.
No, she wouldn’t have even used it at all. Because this was something she was aiming to use in the center of her Kingdom when she became a true king.
However, as long as they were facing such evil, there was no need to spare it.
Since Carl appeared as a greater evil, there was no hope for him anymore.
“This is bad, devil.”
“…”
In a space dyed bright like the sun, Ignet Crescentia opened her lips.
The devil flinched.
And then it looked. Seeing his opponent rise to a higher place than him, his shameful defeat from 15 years ago flashed through his mind once again.
He didn’t want to remember it.
He didn't want it to repeat.
It had been his goal his whole life to get away from that poor form and look at Ignet confidently.
He wanted to look straight into his opponent's eyes and hold the sword. Unlike in the past, he wanted to fight in a cool way.
But he couldn’t.
The devil’s shoulders dropped. Even the wings on his back that were giving out ferocious energy lost their strength, and the dark armor that dominantly covered his body was losing its power.
His sword fell to the floor, along with darkness flowing into it.
Tuk!
A groan escaped from his mouth.
It hurt. It was painful, and worst of all, it was scary. Without the armor of darkness, he dared not raise his head against Ignet.
The devil covered his face. After realizing that the mask was there, he sighed in relief.
He didn’t have the confidence to receive the command from the King with his bare face.
“R-run, I need to run.”
“I need to hide.”
“I need a dark place. A place to hide from the light…”
“… really pathetic.”
Seeing the devil looking for shadows to escape from the light, Ignet put on a bitter expression. It was unavoidable.
The four of those friends had set such high expectations that this scene looked odd. It was for that reason that she looked down on him.
Until the very end, the four of them were the only beings who moved ahead without losing their dream... they were people who protected their surroundings and their people without forgetting their intentions.
‘I need to thank Georg and Anya as well.’
Ignet felt grateful to the two of them and looked at the devil with a nod.
It was truly a depressing sight. She looked at him, crawling on the floor in shame, forgetting what he came here for. No matter how much assistance she got from the sorcery, he wasn’t an easy opponent.
If the devil had fully demonstrated his abilities, then Ignet would have suffered considerable damage.
“So futile.”
Ignet raised her sword.
It wasn’t the best outcome. She couldn’t find the existence which made this illusion, and the situation had also made her waste her territorial declaration.
However, she came to know about the fact that there was another unknown evil that was corrupting the continent.
It was fortunate that she survived, and she wasn't being arrogant about it either.
Considering how the Warrior’s Festival changed her, she was thinking a lot more rationally.
It was the moment when she thought that and was about to lower the sword.
Kwaang!
“…”
“Oh? Hello? Hahaha. Long time no see? Ah, Carl Lindsay! What is this! I will look after you!”
The barrier shattered with a roar.
Through the commotion came the voice of the clown.
After looking down at the creature with a frown, Ignet saw him walking towards Carl. She didn’t stop it.
She couldn’t afford to do it.
A devil in the dress of a priest was walking behind the clown.
The moment his eyes met Ignet’s, Ignet moved with her best force.
And the same so did the priest... no, The Heart Demon.
Kwang!
Kwaang!
A King.
And The Devil King.
The moment the two giants with overwhelming power collided.
---!
A deafening roar resounded all around them.
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! ↩️
