With a body that was five meters long and weighed at least a ton, a single blow from Pride would reduce a human to chunks of meat. Yet its most intimidating attribute was the speed that turned it into a blur when it moved.

- ■■■■■■!

The loud roar caused Theo’s newly healed eardrums to throb. However, he didn’t have time to care about such minor pain. Theo didn’t dare blink as he kept his eyes on Pride. Judging by its movements a moment ago, Pride was so fast that Theo couldn’t afford to blink even once. The monster took two steps forward.

Huuk!

Then the monster seemed to almost expand forward. No, it only appeared to be growing because it was approaching so rapidly. As Pride neared Theo, it accelerated even further.

Kwaang!

The ground cracked as Pride bowled straight toward Theo. However, the brief earthquake caused Theo to wobble for a moment as he tried to find his balance again. Pride’s claws didn’t miss that momentary gap and sliced through Theo’s body. However, Theodore’s body scattered like a haze again. This time, a total of twelve Theodores appeared around Pride. The sophisticated illusion that couldn’t be distinguished from reality was the power of the artifact which symbolized the legendary thief, Orwell.

However, Pride just laughed instead of panicking.

- You... I knew you were going to do this again.

The peak predator, Pride, could find a countermeasure to anything it saw once. It now had flames which could melt rocks, a tail which was sharper than a blade, and a shell which was harder than steel. However, it was the same for countering illusions. The ability to deceive the eyes of other creatures was unexpectedly common, while the ability to see through deception was rare but not impossible to find.

Another red eye appeared in the middle of Pride’s face - the eye of the observer. It was the eye of a famous creature known as the Magician Killer. The eyeball could see any magic which entered its field of view and counter it. Since Pride didn’t have magic power, it could only reproduce its insight ability, but that was enough.

Pride’s eye revealed the truth of the illusions. The real Theodore was…

- None of them?!

Pride stiffened. All twelve figures were all illusions, and there was no sign of the body which had created them. Before Pride could understand the situation, it felt a gentle touch underneath its chin. However, that soft touch sent a terrifying chill down Pride’s neck.

“... It took me a while.”

Pride was canny enough to never fall for the same trick twice, so Theo used a lavish new ability as bait. Pride was so used to being the strongest, it had never expected a counterattack when its opponent was in a clearly disadvantageous position. What could Theodore do when his flames as well as his greatest weapon, Magic Bullet, were blocked?

If I can’t break through normally, then I only have this!

Theo’s determined expression was proof of his belief in his strike.

Battle Song. Rhapsody of Power. Sforzando.

Theo concentrated Battle Song’s effects on his right arm. As the muscles swelled, his sleeves tore, revealing bulging veins. There were going to be consequences later for forcibly strengthening his body like this, but that was for later. If he didn’t do this, he wouldn’t be able to withstand the shock of his next move.

[In fact, Magic Bullet is an incomplete spell. To be more accurate, it is a spell that can’t be completed.]

Alfred Bellontes had said so himself. There was a natural limitation, since one’s fingers could only cope with Magic Bullet’s backlash up to a point. However, if he used his palm, then the pressure and range of Magic Bullet would be greatly reduced. The extra output in power would also destroy his arm. In the end, Magic Bullet was a defective spell that could only wreak havoc at a medium distance.

So Theo decided to gamble it all on a desperate strike.

Memorize. All Slots Open. Magic Missile-Penta United.

All five Magic Bullets stored at maximum power gathered in the palm of his right hand. Even though Theo felt like his right forearm was going to burst, Battle Song kept his arm from exploding. He compressed one more Magic Bullet into his palm.

There were now six Magic Bullets compressed in his palm. One blow concentrated at six times the power would be able to penetrate any 6th Circle defense spell.

Bududuk... Buduk...

His muscles tore as blood spurted from nearly invisible wounds on his forearm. This was a blow that he wouldn’t be able to deliver unless he sacrificed an arm. As Pride finally noticed him, Theo stared right into Pride’s eyes and used all his strength.

“Die!”

The blue flash of light that erupted surpassed anything Alfred had produced in his prime.

***

A pillar of blue light soared into the night sky of the Nadun Mountains. It blasted apart all the clouds in its path like a reverse lightning bolt, before petering out to a thin trail of light that dissipated into nothing.

Theo lay on the ground as he panted.

Succe... ss.

Black blood sprayed from the decapitated beast like a fountain, drenching the scales and carapace. Despite its terrifying defense, Pride’s body hadn’t been able to take a Magic Bullet that had been amplified six times over. It tottered for a moment before falling to the ground.

Theodore chuckled. “One blow, I did it properly.”

[Yes, well done.]

Alfred smiled from inside Theodore and squeezed his shoulder. It was a feat that would’ve been impossible if they hadn’t worked together. They had managed to land a decisive blow against a Seven Sins grimoire. If he had made a single mistake, then Theo would’ve been the one with the missing head. The winner and loser of this battle had been decided.

Of course, the loser was Theodore who didn’t have the raw power to kill Pride, and the winner was Pride who had survived a number of fatal blows.

Kududuk...! Kudu...! Kududuk...!

The beast’s neck frothed as a skull grew out of the wound. Flesh, muscles, and nerves started to regenerate visibly as Pride began to reform itself.

As Alfred had said, this wasn’t in the realm of regeneration but immortality. They never had a way to beat it in the first place, since they didn’t have a sufficiently powerful attack.

- Your last hurrah ends here.

Pride sounded convinced of its victory.

Why did it need to be agitated in front of prey that was already too weak to move? Pride lay a sharp claw on Theo’s neck. At the same time, it wasn’t dumb enough to leave a threat alive. Pride would tear off the head of the being which irritated it and eat it slowly.

Well, it looks like I only made it this far. I fought well. 

Theodore closed his eyes in the face of death. He felt a bit sad about his parents, but he believed that his mentor would take care of them.

Finally, Pride’s sharp claw moved.

Kakang!

Theo mused that it was quite a cheerful sound for someone’s head being cut off.

“... Kid.”

A cold, but beautiful voice rang in his ears.

Theo’s eyes snapped open. “T-Tower Master?”

“Sorry for being so late.”

Veronica’s red robe was swaying in the wind as she stood in front of Theo. Her cheery voice sounded subdued, which made him wonder what she’d seen on the way. Blood was dripping from Veronica’s firmly closed fists. Theodore thought the blood almost looked like her tears.

Veronica took a step forward toward the monster before her.

“Wait a bit. I’ll end it quickly.”

Kwaang!

Half of Pride’s head had just disappeared as its eye dangled uselessly from a crushed socket. It was one beat too late to recognize the damage. Then as it opened its mouth to scream...

“Be a sword, fire of purgatory.”

Veronica compressed Inferno into a sword of fire - Inferno Blade. No matter how fire resistant a monster was, it couldn’t withstand a temperature that would melt it in an instant. No monster could block this fire sword with pure durability.

However, Pride gave its best as it focused on regenerating. In a matter of moments, there was no trace of the wounds Veronica had inflicted on it. Yet Veronica’s expression was as cold as ice as she leaped forward. She was already bringing her fist down as she sprang forward.

Kwaang!

It was a huge blow. The slender fist of the beautiful woman contained the weight of several tons, throwing the creature back.

-A-A monster like you! This mixed-blood monkey!

“What?”

Veronica’s dragon senses picked up Pride’s low-frequency voice. As she pointed at the creature who was scrambling backwards, she sentenced it to death. It was the most destructive attack spell of the 7th Circle, the flame of the Demon World.

“Hell Fire.”

A black fire storm appeared without a sound around Pride.

-■■■■■!! 

This time, Pride screamed.

Pride’s senses were extraordinarily sharp, so its perception of pain was different. The sensation of its body’s cells burning was magnified ten times over until it couldn’t endure it anymore. It assessed that its opponent’s firepower exceeded its regeneration, so Pride, who only had encountered a few monsters in this age, decided to escape.

Simultaneously, Veronica decided to deal the last blow.

“Suuuuop...” She breathed in, swallowing the air around her. “Huwaaaack―――――!”

A fearsome jet of fire erupted from her mouth!

D-Dragon Breath?!

Theo didn’t know why a quarter dragon like Veronica could use that ability, but a red dragon’s breath was famous for being equivalent to the 8th Circle in destructive ability.

The flames caught up to the airborne Pride, enveloping it in even more flame. Dragon Breath’s power truly couldn’t be captured accurately by a book. It left nothing but ash in its wake.

Her mouth was still smoking as Veronica let out a tired, annoyed sigh. “Huuuu...” She grumbled in an annoyed voice, “Tch. It ran away? It is more annoying than a master level aura user.”

Veronica had definitely missed out on the kill. She didn’t know what it was, but it was more tenacious than she thought.

“Indeed, he wouldn’t have died if it was only this much.” A bitter expression crossed Veronica’s face as she remembered Elder Herman’s body which she had passed by along the way. Elder Herman had been one of the elders who had known Veronica for decades and treated her like his own daughter. She had never thought he would die in a place like this.

Even though they lived in a time where death was always lurking around the next corner, she couldn’t help feeling regret.

After a moment of silence for her dead colleagues, she turned toward Theodore. “You did well, kid.”

Theo was barely clinging to consciousness. “Yes...”

“Don’t answer and stay still. Your wounds are deep.” As the sense of urgency and tension faded away, the fatigue of the battle threatened to overwhelm him. Veronica realized this and placed his head on her lap as she called out, “Hey, you can come out now.”

Theo’s heavy eyes found green hair among the trees. She had probably met Veronica while fleeing and guided her toward the fight. The high elf, Ellenoa, came out with Veronica’s permission and grabbed Theo’s right hand gently.

“Theodore, Theodore...!” Her worried voice echoed in his ears.

Vitality flowed from her fingertips and gradually started healing his right arm and body. He wanted to reply, but the damage accumulated in Theo’s body didn’t allow him to remain conscious any further.

Ah, how long will I sleep this time?

He could sense it. This was the aftermath of forcefully having Alfred ‘transmitted’ to him. Theodore fell unconscious as the two women called his name. Shortly before he sank fully into unconsciousness, he heard a voice.

[The 4th Seal which unlocked through an unusual path has been resealed. The user won’t be able to use Overwrite until the 4th Seal is released normally.]

[You were mentally hurt by Transmission. Time is needed to restore your mental state.]

[At the present time, there is no knowing how long it will take.]

[Entering a forced dormancy.]