<Sogou Ayaka POV>
The body of the Great Demon Emperor is still shrouded within the black mist.
However, the feeling I got from the position of its mouth
is that theyre brought to their knees.
That is from what I see.
Moreover, theres that definite feedback from my strike and that bleeding.
I suppose I could really assume that the humanoid body exists beneath that mist.
In other words
(A direct hit will go through!)
With this in mind, I touched the necklace that Hijiri entrusted to me.
I briskly made my decision.
Any hesitation here will result in missed opportunities.
At that moment though the Great Demon Emperor spat out something.
(A gem?)
A jewel-like object rolled on the stone pavement.
Seeing that though I started having a bad hunch.
Thereupon, from the black mist came out a hand
A black, humanoid hand, riddled with purple veins.
It seems to be trying to grab the gem that was thrown up.
Not coming to a stop, I flicked the nearby spear up with my toes.
Kicking it up in the air
Fwooosh!
catching it in mid-air, I threw it forward.
Thereupon, the spear struck the stone and bounced off.
I didnt manage to destroy whatever that gem is, but it still flung away from the Great Demon Emperor.
The Great Demon Emperors hand stopped, and their face their mouth turned to look at me.
It was obvious that they were planning to do something but
[Theres no way Id let you do as you want.]
The weapons made with my Inherent Skill I sent all of them to the Great Demon Emperor.
In response, the Great Demon Emperor increased their scythe-like limbs.
Just before they increased it though, I feel like they made this strange pause.
That pause that felt like one of resignation, I wonder if its just an illusion?
For the time being, Ill try resisting her.
That was what I had felt.
From this feeling I got, I suppose that gem is probably some kind of means for them to escape.
[Youre the biggest]
[ ! ]
[-miscalculation.]
They spoke.
The Great Demon Emperor just spoke.
However I wont let such a thing shake me.
Ill end everything here.
I want to go back to my original world.
Of course, that is my main motivation for bringing down the Great Demon Emperor.
However, I also had other feelings within my heart.
A lot of people died in the Anti-Demon White Castle.
All by the order of the Great Demon Emperor
(No matter what reason they have, seeing that scene)
I will never let you get away with this.
Doshuuuun!
A flash of light surged.
[No way]
The swords crafted with my Inherent Skill were blocked.
And the thing that had blocked it
A katana.
[Sogou Dont tell me you were planning on becoming Kirihara? No, that cant be.]
Kirihara Takuto.
[I am Kirihara]
(T/N: Yeah, I dont know what the heck hes saying.)
Unleashed from the side was a long-distance <Dragonic Buster>.
Riding that golden dragon was Kirihara.
No, it may be more correct to say that hes hiding within that golden dragon.
He has learned to use it as a means of movement.
It seemed like he was safe.
He must have been unconscious until now and just woke up.
He seemed to be bleeding, but he wasnt that injured.
[K- Kirihara-kun Please! Stop interfering!]
[I return those words right back at you.]
I immediately made my decision.
I dont have the luxury to be concerned about him.
Im going to knock Kirihara out as soon as possible and put an end to the Great Demon Emperor.
Making sure not to injure him, Ill neutralize him.
For a moment, I did hesitate striking him down
However, I immediately pushed such thought aside and tried to knock Kirihara unconscious
Klaaaang!
[ ! ]
However, my inherent skills weapon that had transformed to a blunt weapon was repelled.
Repelling it away was the Great Demon Emperors scythe-like limb.
(The Great Demon Emperor saved Kirihara-kun!?)
[Tsk I cant say that was a smart move. Even so, I acknowledge what you did.]
Retreating away once, Kirihara stood next to the Great Demon Emperor.
[Why is a Hero from Another World like you helping me?]
[No matter how hard you try, you wont be able to understand.]
[ ? ]
[Leave the conversation for later Shes coming.]
Im not going to wait until they finish talking.
I Immediately tried to unleash an onslaught of attacks against them.
However
[!?]
Kirihara and the Great Demon Emperor worked together to defend against it.
In the current situation Im unable to attack them at all.
If its just against a single person, I could have done something
But Im faced against two people.
Strangely, their pace is also well meshed together.
(No, thats not it. The Great Demon Emperor Theyre perfectly matching Kirihara-kuns movements! Kuhh Their learning ability really is quite high)
At this point, I started getting tired from attacking.
Ive already known that a fully defensive Great Demon Emperor is troublesome.
But now that theyre wounded, their fighting ability is somewhat diminished.
However, with the addition of Kirihara Takuto-
Im unable to attack, and a stalemate ensued.
As I had such thoughts in mind, several golden dragons began surrounding Kirihara.
[Great Demon Emperor The reason why I saved you is that the people in 2-C, including Sogou Ayaka there, just couldnt understand anything. They couldnt see the vessel of this king]
[.]
[Moreover The Holy Alliance, including that incompetent Goddess, was unable to make use of me. Thus, I pondered. What was the problem? Thereupon, I immediately understood. Because Im on their side They have never met the true me!]
The Great Demon Emperor listened in silence.
It seemed like they were somehow trying their best to understand.
[And thus, I did this. To strike them with the reality of what I am, what I was meant to be Having the definite being of the real king as proof]
As if hes trying to show it to me, Kirihara firmly clenched his upside-down fist.
[I dont have any other choice but to stand against 2-C, becoming the enemy sides king]
[The Hero from Another World you is going to side with me.]
[Thats why I saved you.]
[You are a strange man. I found no falsehood in your words.]
[A true king needs no falsehood. His very existence is equivalent to everything after all.]
Kiriharas words could be seen as betrayal.
Hearing that really made me shocked.
No matter how I think about this-
Him actually siding with the Great Demon Emperor is beyond my expectations.
I thought that such a thing couldnt have been possible.
It feels like my mind couldnt keep up with the situation.
However, realizing that this really is happening, I tried curbing my agitation.
[Ki- Kirihara-kun! If we bring down the Great Demon Emperor, we will have the means to return to our world! Now is our best chance! Please! Get out of the way!]
In response to my plea though, Kirihara let out a long sigh.
[It was because I realized it that Im doing this]
[Eh? You realized?]
[If I were to go back to the original world, I probably would be unable to make use of the kingliness within me That world has nothing left but a sense of stagnation that makes it difficult for one to move as they please. Even within the environment I was in, no matter how successful I am, I wont be able to break through the peak! Ill never be a true king! But in this world, I have the chance to even have my own country! A completely new country would have been impossible in that world! But what about here!? If you possess power, such a thing is possible! It is only in this world that I can finally be liberated As a king, I could only bloom! No matter what anyone does I will only blossom!]
[What the What in the world are you talking about, Kirihara-kun? Seriously, what in the]
[Ahh, also, Great Demon Emperor Ill drop the matter of you attacking me earlier I could see it as nothing but a joke after all]
[I dont really understand but alright.]
With those words, the Great Demon Emperor took a step forward.
[Your words held no falsehoods I acknowledge that youre not trying to deceive me, and are telling your true thoughts.]
Thereupon, the Great Demon Emperor stood next to Kirihara.
[I accept you- Kirihara, as my subordinate.]
[! Y- You cant, Kirihara-kun! Lets talk about this again! Okay? I dont know if I could be someone who could understand what Kirihara-kun meant but for example, if its someone like Hijiri-san]
[This is no time for joking, Great Demon Emperor]
[ ! ]
Have my words actually reached him?
[ ? ]
[Subordinate? This me? If youre sanely saying this, things would be dangerous for you]
[Then What is it that you desire?]
[It seems like you dont understand. We will only be allies.]
[Allies]
[The Great Demon Emperor will be my ally. In other words, you and I will stand on equal footing, a king beside another This is the only condition I accept.]
[..Alright. You and I are allies. We will stand on equal footing]
[Now I see a little bit of Kirihara in you. So youve seen it huh, what Kirihara is.]
[ ? ]
At that moment, a golden dragon moved away from Kirihara.
I did try to make my move but the Great Demon Emperor and Kirihara restrained me.
I immediately understood that this is extremely troublesome.
The Great Demon Emperor was in perfect coordination with Kiriharas movements.
With the two of them coordinating against each other to fight against me, this would really be troublesome.
No, most of all- Yes, most of all
With my classmate as the opponent, I couldnt fight them seriously.
I was prepared to kill the Great Demon Emperor.
But of course, there was no way I could kill my classmate.
I need to avert attacks that could be fatal against them.
If I fought with this in mind, no matter how hard to try, the purity of my attacks would be dulled.
Yes, against a classmate Even if Im aiming to knock them unconscious, somewhere within my consciousness, I will feel rejection in attacking them.
The brakes automatically pop within my consciousness.
At that moment, Kirihara spoke.
[Was this what youve been thinking about since a while ago?]
Brought about by a golden dragon was the same gem that I had flicked away.
Kirihara handed it to the Great Demon Emperor.
Receiving it the Great Demon Emperor firmly grasped it.
Thereupon, it started glowing.
[Kirihara Im going. Youre coming with me, right?]
[Your intentions matter not to me but I have to go. For this is also the duty of a true king.]
[I understand Well then, we will now teleport to the farthest north.]
[! Wa Wait, Kirihara-kun! Its my fault Its my fault that I didnt face Kirihara-kun! Im sorry! Even though, no matter how hard I try, I cant understand your thoughts However, I should have tried to understand! As a result, I passively left that duty to Hijiri-san but I was mistaken!]
[.]
[Thats why Give me some more time! Please!]
[Dont move, Sogou]
With his katana at the ready, Kirihara points his arm towards me.
He was trying to restrain me, telling me that he can unleash his Dragonic Buster any time he wants.
Kirihara slightly tilted his head.
[Dont worry. Im going to keep the students of 2-C alive for as long as I can If they die, Ill have no one to prove my true capabilities after all. However- Expect no mercy. At this moment, were already enemies]
[Kirihara-kun!]
Even after I throw all my words, it wouldnt work if he wont listen at all.
My words wont go through him anymore
[You are Sogou, right?]
[ ! ]
The Great Demon Emperor spoke to me.
[Failing to kill me here will be a big mistake for you later on. You better remember it for this failure is something youd definitely regret. You better wait for it For what awaits you is this worlds nightmare and I will trample everything beneath my feet. And Even though there was a miscalculation, after this battle, I completely understood. Who is the Hero from Another World that I should be wary of]
Streaks of light in the shape of what seemed to be a magic circle appeared on the ground.
The particles danced in the air, and the bluish-white light gradually became stronger.
With eyes that seemed to look down on me, I felt Kirihara silently glare at me.
[What a shame However, you all were never able to grasp my true nature. You failed to see the true king. Its already too late to ask me to come back now and no matter how much you struggle- Ill have you realize it yourself.]
Kirihara, surrounded with his golden dragons, pointed the tip of his katana at me.
[And how big of a mistake youve made. Keep this in mind, Sogou.]
As he was about to disappear, Kirihara only left a few words.
[You were unable to become Kirihara.]
That day, despite my efforts to persuade him otherwise-
[Kirihara-kun!]
Kirihara Takuto disappeared with the Great Demon Emperor.
<Authors Notes>
In the , we will return to Toukas point of view.