“……yes.”
As long as Leticia, the former Demon Lord returned to the Community, such a direction would not be much of a problem. However, with the most important part of her Soul damaged, she would have lost many of her Gifts as well.
“How is it? Do you want to stop the plan?”
Izayoi’s tone and expression was very calm as he asked Jin that question.
Facing that gaze that wasn’t accusatory or condescending, Jin gave an unmistakable shake of his head.
“There’s still you on our side, Izayoi-san. If you really do possess the power to defeat Demon Lords—Please show it to us in this arena.”
This time he would be sure to assess Sakamaki Izayoi’s true worth.
Facing Jin’s straightforward gaze and reply, Izayoi gave a loud laugh.
“OK, better keep your eyes peeled, ochibi-sama.”
And before moving forward, Izayoi gave Jin’s head one last rough ruffle.
“Well, are you ready now, Game leader?”
“Hm? Aren’t you going to team up to fight me? That boy behind you should be the leader right?”
“Oi Oi, are you trying to sell yourself higher than your worth? How can I let our bocchan lift a finger just for the likes of you.”
Izayoi’s frivolous smile made Jin feel a wave of cold malice exude from Izayoi. It would seem that Izayoi was planning to make this commotion an attempt at advertising.
But Laius seemed to be offended at the humiliating words as he shook in an angry roar:
“Hmph! What Big Words From Mere [No Names], Watch As I’LL Make You Regret Those Words!”
” Ra …… GYAAAAAaaaaaaa! “
The shining wings danced a duet with the scar covered grey wings as Laius took a higher position behind Algol to fire an arrow from his flaming bow.
"Hah!" Izayoi timed the attack as he focused into his roar to reflect the flame arrow that drew a snakey trajectory when it was travelling towards him.
Just like that, the flame arrow flew off somewhere, never to be seen again. What a nonsensical lung capacity.
“Tch! Is that to say that you do possess enough power to defeat the Kraken?!”
Realizing that firing arrows would just be a waste of strength, he stashed it back into the Gift Card and called out the recently added Gift that he had stashed into it, the [Celestial Spirit Slayer]—Harpe.
Laius who flew freely in the skies and Algol were rushing towards Izayoi in a pincer attack.
“Hold him down! ALGOL!”
“RaAAaaa! LaAAAA!”
Algol gave a sharp piercing cry while swinging down her arms.
Izayoi blocked her swing and grabbed her by her hands, locking their fingers together.
Although it was unbelievable, but it would seem that he wanted to have a direct confrontation with the Celestial spirit.
“Ha! This is good, really good, very good indeed! I can feel the elation bubbling in me……!”
“RaAAaaaGYAAAAAAaaaaaa!”
Izayoi and Algol were locked in a battle of strength however the arm battle that was pushing back and forth between the two had only maintained for just a short moment.
Algol, being unable to hold on to the end, had instead been suppressed and Izayoi had twisted her arm to pin her to the ground right at the spot she stood moments before.
“GYAAAAAAaaaaaa!”
“Haha! What’s wrong? Former Demon Lord-sama?! Didn’t that sound like a scream from your mouth?!”
Wearing a fierce smile on his face, Izayoi pressed Algol to the ground and stomped on her abdomen. And with just a few stomps, it was already sufficient to cause cracks to spread outwards like a spiderweb. For it carried strength enough to crush the White Palace to bits.
During that time, Laius had been flying behind Izayoi waiting for an opportunity to land an attack.
“Don’t be so arrogant!”
“I will return those same words back to you!”
Laius held the Harpe in a single-handed grip while swooping forward in a fast movement and Izayoi had chosen to launch a kick to counter by rotating his lower body to add to the centrifugal force. Though Laius may have barely blocked the attack with the sword’s handle, the force was still too strong to be negated and he was sent flying back some distance away.
That blow was so great that even with his timely block from a direct impact, it was still able to make him feel nauseous and off balanced. Previously, the knights had all been sent flying into the skies at the Third Cosmic Velocity by Izayoi and now Laius had been sent flying back at a speed much faster than that. Izayoi leapt forward and caught up to Laius within a moment.
“What’s wrong, even though you have those wings, it seems that it’s quite an inconvenience isn’t it?”
“You……You bastard……!”
Laius swung his Harpe.
However, Izayoi easily stopped it in mid-swing and threw Laius to the ground this time. Following that impact, Laius was directly pounded into the arena to crash into Algol who had already lost consciousness by then.
“Uugh!”,”Gya!” came the sounds of two screams.
Facing such a force that was far too absurd to be understood, Laius lifted his upper body while giving a disheveled cry:
“Are….Are you really HUMAN?! WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR GIFT?!”
Well, that was a reasonable question that would come to mind after all. For one to be able to put down a [Celestial Spirit][6] with just brute strength alone, move faster than the Hermes Boots that granted flight with just a sprint, such a Human should not exist. In response to his question, Izayoi drew his Gift Card to show it.
“The Gift is called [Unknown]—Hm, sorry, I guess you wouldn’t be able to understand with just that right?”
Izayoi gave a shrug of his shoulders while smiling calmly. Seeing Izayoi’s figure in the distance seeming to have taken the situation lightly, Jin gave a panicky shout: “Quick…..Quickly give him the last blow at this opportunity! Don’t let her activate the Gift of Petrification!”
The Celestial spirit Algol’s strength did not lie within her physical prowess.
It was the cursed light that was great enough to petrify the world, her true power— that made her dangerous.
However, Perseus was still in the mind of defeating Izayoi with his own power and decided to move another step up in the direct confrontation.
“Algol! I allow you to demonify this whole Palace! Kill that guy!”
“RaAAaaa! LaAAAA!”
The song of discordant notes echoed in the world and the walls of the white-washed Palace were instantly dyed black while the walls started to pulsate like a living being. And from the dark shadows that spread rapidly throughout the Palace, pillars that took on the shape of serpents erupted from its depths to attack Izayoi.
While dodging the attacks, Izayoi muttered to himself:
“Oh, come to think about it, Medusa also had this trick up her sleeve.”
Medusa also had a legend of producing various types of Demonic Beasts.
Moreover a [Celestial Spirit] is originally of the beings that were on the Gifters’ side of the miracles. Currently, the White Palace had already transformed into a Demonic Palace and Laius may not have noticed his surroundings for he seemed to shout like a madman: “I will never let you guys get out alive! This Palace is a creature born out of Algol’s power! You guys will never find a place to stand on! For in this Gift Game Stage, there’s nowhere left to hide!”
Laius’s roar and the discordant notes of the Demon Lord’s song merged to give new forms to the Demonified Palace walls, to spawn serpents and scorpions from the walls and pillars that launched their waves of attack on Izayoi and drowned him under their numbers.
Izayoi who was in the midst of the thousands of snakes that engulfed him, muttered his thoughts out loud:
“—……Hm, meaning that I would just need to destroy this entire Palace, is that it?”
“EH?”
Izayoi had responded flatly and that caused Jin and Kuro Usagi to have a very bad premonition about what was to come.
Lifting his fist up high, Izayoi simply let it fall onto the ground of the Palace that had been dyed black by the demonification.
Thousands and thousands of serpents and scorpions were pounded to dust and had dispersed into a cloud of smoke around Izayoi that disappeared as quickly as it was created. Following that, the entire Palace began to shake violently and the arena crumbled, bringing the rubble together with the fourth floor to crash into the third storey.
“Woah….WaWoah!”
“Jin-bocchan!”
Kuro Usagi grabbed the hand of Jin who almost got himself caught up in the collateral destruction. Those who possessed wings to fly had taken off to the skies but even then, the terrible sight before him still caused him to hold his breath in shock.
The arena was different from the other parts of the Palace and it had always been reinforced by a defensive and stable protective barrier. Unless it were to be hit by a strength that was able to cleave through mountains and rivers, there shouldn’t be any way to cause this top story to fall to the next.
“……How can…What the heck is this? Does that guy possess a fist that can shatter mountains and cleave through rivers?”
Laius who stood in the skies gave off a shout that seemed to be angry and yet terrified at the same time.
Standing on a little protrusion that was the remaining footing to be found of the arena, Izayoi looked up with displeasure evidently splashed across his face as he accosted Laius:
“Oi, Game Leader, could it be that this is the last trick up your sleeve?”
“……Uu……!”
The Demonic Palace was still alive but it would seem that it wouldn’t make much of a difference to continue using the same trick twice.
Laius’s face distorted due to his shame. For him, this was his first time hosting an actual Game on his Community ground. But never did he expect that the battle would progress to this stage. Laius’s expression continued to be distorted due to his remorse for a while longer, but he suddenly recovered his serious expression before putting on a fierce grin.