Reiji immediately formed a crystal pillar beneath him, riding it back up to the top of the wall. He sensed the presence of a demon behind him, and just as he was about to turn around to intercept it...
“O Wind, run wild and become a great storm. Obey my will and wield your shapeless form. Lurk on above and crush down before me. Rampage to your heart’s content. Everything before my eyes are my enemies—Rampage Air!”
He heard Mizuki’s voice. Immediately following that, wind magic rushed toward the demon, a condensed storm strong and destructive enough to remind Reiji of the magicka Felmenia had once used against Graziella.
The concentrated gale ran past Reiji’s side, striking the demon behind him like a giant hammer and mangling it to bits before sending it crashing to the ground. Using the opening, Reiji jumped onto the wall.
“Thanks, Mizuki. You saved me.”
“It’s fine,” she said. “This is about all I can do.”
“That was pretty amazing magic,” Reiji reassured her. “You don’t need to be humble. Still, when did you learn to use something so powerful?”
“Huh? Hmm, it’s like I just suddenly could?” Mizuki said, somewhat bewildered. “Like, when I’m thinking of what magic would be best, it just pops into my head...”
Reiji didn’t find this unusual. After all, Io Kazumi would’ve been able to use this magic with ease.
Gregory, one of the knights guarding Mizuki, then chimed in to explain the situation.
“Reiji-sama, the demons have already made their way past the walls.”
“Understood,” Reiji said. “I’ll fight on the inside too. Where are Tia and Graziella-san?”
“Her Highness and Princess Graziella are doing their best to repel the demons from the top of the walls,” Gregory answered.
“Reiji-kun, what should I do?” Mizuki asked.
Reiji took stock of the battle before answering.
“Mizuki, take Gregory and the others and fall back to the second wall.”
“Huh...? But then...”
“I’m not really one to talk, but you’re not used to this kind of fighting,” Reiji elaborated. “If you stick around too long and get left behind, it’s all over. I want you to withdraw before that happens.”
“M-Mm. Okay...” Mizuki nodded, even though she was still worried. “What’ll you do?”
“The walls and the area right around them will be full of demons soon,” Reiji said. “I’ll create an escape route for the soldiers.”
With that, Reiji jumped down into the city. The top of the walls was sure to be overrun soon. Before that could happen, he had to get as many soldiers as he could back to the second wall. Reiji listened to Mizuki’s cheering him on as he hit the floor. He looked up, and in complete contrast with the beautiful scenery he’d witnessed upon returning to Metel the other day, the cityscape was a cruel sight, ravaged by the ongoing battle and the demons’ destructive powers.
“This is...”
He started to speak, but he couldn’t even find the right words to describe it. He’d never dreamed he would find himself in a situation where he was at an utter loss for words. Could this atrocity truly be allowed?
With such emotions in his heart, Reiji slashed at the nearest demon. Perhaps due to the effects of the Sacrament, all the demons within his field of vision seemed to be moving so slowly. It almost felt like cheating.
Even in this state, Reiji could hear the cries of battle. With each demon he cut down, he heard Astel’s soldiers cheering as they continued fighting back. Was the retreat actually going to work out? At that moment, Reiji sensed a bad omen, as if insects were crawling down his back.
Reiji turned around, and just as expected, the grotesque demon was there. It stood within the city walls at the head of many other demons. Where had it come from? When he took a closer look, there was a massive hole in the wall; one far larger than the one that’d already been there.
“It got in...”
A bitter taste filled Reiji’s mouth. An opponent he’d been so hard-pressed against the other day was once again before him. But the female demon wasn’t here, so Reiji still had a means of handling this creature.
“Over here!”
Reiji raised his voice to draw the grotesque demon’s attention. With its lack of intelligence, it was unclear whether it could even hear him, but it was better than doing nothing. And just as he’d hoped, the grotesque demon turned toward him.
A hot pursuit followed. Reiji felt a ghastly gale behind him and knew it was no tailwind. He kept running.
It was a three-dimensional chase; he jumped onto the rooftops to force his opponent to look up, and then he leaped around to cut off its line of sight. If he stayed in sight for too long, a fierce charge would come flying toward him. If he stopped for even a second, the houses he was using as footholds were sure to be destroyed, leaving him at an extreme disadvantage.
Jumping and sliding from roof to roof, he lured the grotesque demon away from the soldiers. After confirming that he’d put some distance between himself and the demon, Reiji returned to ground level and clenched the Ishar Cluster tight in his hand.
If the amount of power he could draw from the Lapis Judaix was influenced by time, then the longer he spent drawing from it, the stronger he would be. Certain of the power flowing through his entire body, Reiji circled around the grotesque demon in an instant and unleashed a downward slash at its defenseless back.
“Haaaaaah!”
He roared, putting every ounce of strength he had behind the blow. He used the full force of the Ishar Cluster. Nonetheless, all he’d managed was a scratch on the demon’s back.
“This still isn’t enough?!” Reiji shouted as the demon turned around.
Wha?!
That was it. It just turned around. And with that simple gesture, Reiji felt an unexpected impact against his side. Unable to comprehend what had happened, Reiji was sent flying backward, as if hit by a truck.
“Ugh! Gah!”
Reiji bounced across the ground several times, like a loose rubber ball. He wheezed for air as he gradually got back to his feet, completely unable to catch his breath. If he stayed down, he would fall prey to this demon in an instant.
Reiji clenched the Ishar Cluster in irritation. Was he just completely hopeless before this opponent? No. He didn’t have enough power. Not yet.
In that case...
What could he do to draw out more power? The answer was simple. He already knew it.
“Pray for it.
“Crave it.
“Reach out for it.
“Throw open the doors within you.”
Reiji heard the voice resonating inside his head. He couldn’t hesitate anymore.
“Give me... Give me more!”
An azure glow spread forth, pouring even more power into Reiji’s body. It surprised him momentarily, but he was able to brandish his sword just as the grotesque demon closed in on him.
“Haaaaaah!”
Reiji slammed his sword against the grotesque demon’s defending claws. However, this time, Reiji overpowered it. Its arm was knocked backward, and Reiji kept up the momentum to go on the offensive. The demon responded in kind and threw a desperate strike of its own, but Reiji blocked it. This was a huge difference from before.
“I can do it... I can do it! Hahahahaha!”
He could fight this demon without stopping to draw power before every strike. It was exhilarating. There was a sense of omnipotence in knowing he didn’t have to gather himself for every blow, and in an uncharacteristic display, that thrilled Reiji. He’d never known having a strong opponent on the back foot would have his heart dancing like this. He’d never known it could be so fun.
“Fall before my power!”
Just then, it seemed reinforcements had arrived. Reiji could see a group of demons in the city changing their course and coming toward him.
“You pests...!”
In another uncharacteristic display, Reiji turned his anger toward them. He’d been just moments away from winning. Just a little more, and he would’ve overwhelmed his opponent. The interruption enraged him—it was unforgivable. How should these interlopers be punished?
Blinded by his fury, Reiji didn’t see that the grotesque demon had closed in to cover his entire field of vision.
Crap...!
It was a fatal opening. He’d taken his eyes off the grotesque demon while in the clutches of his uncontrollable anger. He could do nothing but prepare himself for some serious pain.
Things started to unfurl as if in slow motion, like Reiji was watching events reveal themselves with the leisurely turn of a revolving lantern. However, even though everything was moving so slowly, only his eyes kept up with what was going on. Reiji couldn’t even lift his little finger. An overwhelming regret consumed him. Why had he allowed his anger to dominate him so?
And just as he thought it was over, Reiji saw a light.
“Huh?”
A pillar of light pierced the heavens and let out a thunderous roar, and a lightning bolt quite literally “ran” toward the demon’s back. It parted the wave of demons closing in on Reiji and slammed into the grotesque demon that was about to crush him. Upon impact, the flash of lightning kept up its momentum and sent the demon flying away.
“What the...?”
Reiji regained his composure, his mind still filled with doubt. He turned to look down the lightning bolt’s path, seeing demons completely burned to a crisp while others had been sent flying from the force of the blast. Farther down the carpet of demon corpses were two figures.