Chapter 180

CHAPTER 108 The Ex–Demon Lord and the Dark God of Death Long ago, when I was called the Demon Lord, my army had a special class known as the Four Heavenly Kings. In most armies, the highest-ranking officer was an admiral, but the Four Heavenly Kings outranked admirals. Just as the name suggested, they were both my subordinates and lords of their own large dominions. Their positions existed to streamline territorial expansion and kingdom governance, so those assigned to them possessed unilateral authority and were given lands that rivaled enemy kingdoms in size. But with that authority came responsibility. There was a long list of qualities required of the Four Heavenly Kings: battle prowess, intelligence, popularity, and steadfast fealty. The standards to assess their competence for the job were beyond the norm. In all of history, only fourteen became one of the Four Heavenly Kings. And among them, the final four were the most powerful in all of history: Olivia vel Vine, Lizer Bellphoenix, Verda Al-Hazard, and Alvarto Egzex. Battle prowess, popularity, intelligence, military excellence. Each of them met the standards perfectly. In some regard, they were equal to me in ability. On the other hand, aside from Olivia, the final four were all agents of chaos. Lizer kept his past a secret and carried a personal agenda. Verda prioritized her pleasure above all else and practically ignored my orders. And Alvarto kept trying to kill me. While the last Four Heavenly Kings were the most powerful in history, they were also the most difficult to handle. Olivia was the only one I had a fair relationship with, as we knew each other’s temperaments well and had a long history…but as for the other three, I closed myself off to the possibility of us ever truly seeing eye to eye. Despite this, after being reincarnated and experiencing the twists and turns of this new life, I’ve come to regard my former self as an idiot. It’s possible to come to an understanding with anyone. Living as Ard Meteor helped me embrace this belief. I befriended people I thought I never could, understood people I’d assumed were impossible, and held hands with people I believed were my mortal enemies. And Alvarto was one of those people. After the major incident resulting from Lizer’s scheme, he became an academy employee. I can say with confidence that Alvarto had become an irreplaceable piece of my life, although it’s uncertain if he’d say the same about me… At the very least, I had hopes for my relationship with Alvarto in the future. “Ard Meteor. You must die now.” Perhaps that’s why seeing him like this hurt so badly. Alvarto Egzex had materialized in the middle of the stone room. His eyes were vacant, and the air around him felt odd. It was sickening to behold. I averted my eyes unconsciously. I had to restore the friends Mephisto had brainwashed back to normal with words and heart instead of magic. We wouldn’t survive this crisis unless I made the impossible feat possible. And while that promised to be a tremendous obstacle, something about Alvarto’s presence struck me as odd. “That’s some confidence, pausing in thought when an enemy has appeared.” His aura was like ice. He was bouncing like a spring. I flew to the side, as if yanked by an invisible string. Elzard copied my action in the opposite direction. And when the two of us flew apart, ebony flames burst to life where we’d been, just like before. The fire lunged after us both. It was like a tentacled monster, lashing after its prey. Its trajectory was tenacious, like a snake, as it pursued us. “Dammit!” Elzard spat angrily. She and Alvarto had worked together once in the past, so they surely knew each other’s strengths and weaknesses. The ebony flames attacking us burned anything they touched to a crisp. It was pointless to block them. I finally realized what that meant, and Elzard had worked out the implications long before me. “There is no place for you in the world I seek.” Alvarto hurled magic attacks with the intent to kill. A golden magic circle materialized in front of his slender frame, firing thick beams of light at him ceaselessly. They were filled with phenomenal energy. Not even high-level defense magic could deflect them. The Frenzied King of Dragons’ attack was imbued with a terrifying level of power, and yet Alvarto remained steadfast and bold, without a shred of fear. He stood like a champion, not taking a single defensive action. Alvarto was consumed by the massive, shining flames and disappeared. Elzard sighed. “How anticlimac—” “Don’t let your guard down!” I yelled. Evidently, she wasn’t fully aware of the extent of his powers. Though her attack had burned Alvarto’s body to a crisp, leaving nothing behind, it was entirely meaningless. “I’d prefer not to be assessed by a lizard.” The words came as no surprise to me. Alvarto Egzex was immortal—and that wasn’t hyperbole. I knew that not even extraordinary tricks could kill him. “Hmp!” I dodged the attack that shot from behind me. Elzard, who lacked the critical piece of information I possessed, couldn’t react to the surprise in time. “Nn—ahh…!” She was trapped inside the ebony flames, a force that could end her with mere touch. “Elzard!!!” This is what it felt like to have the blood drain from your face. I opened my eyes wide, assessing the situation. She’s still alive… She didn’t die instantly. The ebony flames wrapped around her like a rope, slowly burning her with an ominous sound. A dragon’s regenerative powers were meaningless now. As an inexpressible pain consumed her, all Elzard could do was fall to her knees and grit her teeth. “In another five minutes, she’ll be dead,” Alvarto announced calmly, his vacant eyes on me. “If you wish to save your comrade, then kill me. If you use your supernatural ability, it should be possible.” And with that, Alvarto’s vicious attack commenced. His ebony flames ignited violently in the chamber. The fire converged on him and formed into a massive serpent, and then it attacked. Were that all, I’d repel it without issue. Unfortunately, his ebony flames were unpredictable. “Nngh!” The abrupt way they burst into being, directly on an opponent, made them tricky. Unless you preemptively dodged them, they would target the inside of your body, enveloping it with dark fire and incinerating you instantly. “Evasive action has become quite your forte, Ard Meteor.” Alvarto stared at me as I jumped all over the place. The ebony flames existed solely to incinerate me from within, gave no forewarning, and exuded no presence. They were the ultimate sneak attack. I could only dodge them thanks to years of experience on the battlefield—and pure luck. “You haven’t changed a bit. You still lack the decisiveness to make a split-second decision.” The chill in his voice brought urgency to my heart, which only made this situation feel stranger. It’s just a hunch, but…even the conjecture I’m making right now might be part of Mephisto’s plan. As I desperately evaded the ebony flames, Alvarto muttered, “Your hesitation shows a lack of conviction… You still don’t see reality for what it is.” “Nn—aah—aaaaaaaaaah!” Elzard screamed. “I decreased the limit by one minute. Now you only have three minutes, nineteen seconds remaining.” That was presumably the minimum amount of time I would need to kill Alvarto. Now that the guardian was gone, the ability-jamming barrier had vanished. If I could use my powers of analysis and control, it might be possible for me to kill Alvarto for good. His existence was linked with the underworld. Unless I attacked the piece of him that resided there, he would regenerate endlessly. Meaning that to kill Alvarto, I had to go to the underworld. That was the established rule. If I used my supernatural abilities in their ultimate manifestation, my Original, then destroying Alvarto by some other means wasn’t entirely impossible. However… “Even at the eleventh hour, you still hesitate?” He’s reading me. He knows my thoughts. “In the pursuit of protecting someone, saving someone, there are times when one must sacrifice another. You learned that lesson while living as the Demon Lord.” I had to choose—save one by sacrificing the other. Every fighter had to make this decision at some point, no matter how powerful they were. In the past, I always thought that I made the best choices. Sometimes, my decisions were hard, but I told myself that was a ruler’s duty. I made the tough calls for those I needed to keep safe, not for myself. And now I realized that I’d lost everything by following that philosophy. If anything, choosing to save one by sacrificing another had left me with nothing. Will I make the same mistake again? I meant to dismiss the question, but… “Stop stalling. Don’t run from the reality you wish was different, Ard Meteor. If you do…you’ll lose it all here.” Alvarto’s words disputed my idea. “Sacrifice one to save the other.” The words all but forced themselves on me. “Why…? Why do I have to make that choice?!” If I kill Alvarto, I can save Elzard. And if I wait any longer, Elzard will die for nothing. “Kill me. It’s the optimal choice.” He’s right…there’s no other way I can get out of this. If I had all the time in the world, I could draw upon the power of tens of thousands of words to restore Alvarto’s heart to normal. But I don’t have that luxury. “You try to be too clever. That’s why nothing ever goes your way.” Lydia’s voice broke through my consternation. I remember… That was right after we finished the great war against the Evil Gods. As we marched back from the battlefield, side by side, I’d said, “I lost just about as many soldiers as expected, yet you lost far fewer than planned… Your army not only exceeds expectations on the battlefield, but you also suffer far fewer casualties. How in the world do you manage that?” She’d answered, “Don’t try to be so clever.” Then she’d followed up with “Some problems can’t be solved by using your head. Now, I’m not knocking using your brain to produce the best outcomes. It’s just…fighters who keep winning through cunning rely on their minds too much. They freeze when faced with a sudden decision.” She looked into my eyes as though she were a wise old master speaking to her apprentice. “You’re smart, Var. That’s why your brain never shuts up. As a result, most things turn out just as you planned them—no better, no worse.” “If I want to overturn my expectations, then I have to become an idiot…is that what you’re trying to tell me?” I’d asked. Lydia had roughly tussled my hair and said, “Good answer, kid. You really are a smart guy. I’m not telling you to throw away your brain. I don’t think you could, anyway. But see, someday, you’ll have to if you want to make any progress. And when that day comes…” She abruptly dropped her masterly tone and smiled gently, speaking like a mother to her child. “Have faith in your friends. You don’t need to be an idiot. Just believe. Believe in their strength, not your brains. Believe in them, until the bitter end.” At the time, I thought such a choice required serious guts. I’d constantly relied on my strength to win, so I was reluctant to accept abandoning that, especially late into a conflict. Ultimately, that way of thinking stuck with me. That’s why I finally realized that I couldn’t keep to my old ways anymore. Continuing as I had been wouldn’t change anything. I had to reject choosing between two options and go with the third one. “Lydia…I’m taking a page from your book.” I stopped moving. In other words, I tossed aside my impulse to run away and welcomed the deadly attacks. It was suicide. “Mmf…?!” Alvarto’s eyes opened wide at the impossible development. Immediately after, the ebony flames encased me. Their power was lethal. Anything the flames touched was eradicated and sent to the underworld. Even I, someone with an infinite soul, was not immune. That’s precisely why I did it. “Have you…lost your mind?” Alvarto watched me surrender myself to the fire in disbelief. “In a way, I guess I have.” With each passing second, my existence faded. I knew I didn’t have much longer. My brain was scolding me for being so foolish. However, for that very reason, I smiled and said, “I don’t wholly trust anyone. My own strength is all I depend on. And now I feel the weight of that bad habit quite keenly. I told Elzard earlier that I would become an idiot, and yet I haven’t been able to let go of my intelligence.” But now that I’d realized how foolish I’d been… “If Lydia were here right now, she’d probably roll her eyes at me. She’d yell at me, telling me it was too late.” My remaining time was fleeting, yet I wasn’t worried at all. I was finally on the same mental plane as Lydia. “Relying solely on my intellect to guide me was all for show in the end. This fight is not a competition of beautiful feats, neither is it a place to show off a superior mind.” It was about heart. The war that devil dragged me into was a battle of spirit, so I needed to be sincere. “I believe. Until the bitter end, I believe not in my power, but in my friends…and our hearts.” And if that results in my demise, so be it. That earnest vow filled my heart, and my sincerity was swiftly answered. “Urk—ohh—ah-AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!” Elzard screamed again, but not out of anguish. She was breaking free. And thus, the fate of the battle turned in our favor. “Mnghf?!” Alvarto exclaimed, astonished. “How…did you…?!” While coughing up blood, he looked over his shoulder. There he found the dying Elzard. Her dragon bone blade had pierced Alvarto from behind. “Don’t underestimate dragon magic, you bastard!” She gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and moved the blade upward. Alvarto’s body was split in two from his waist up to his head. However… “Dammit…he won’t stay dead…!” Elzard’s dragon bone blade had the power to kill immortals, but that ability didn’t extend to Alvarto. Cursing under her breath, she kicked off the ground and raced toward me. “You tryin’ to break your promise?” she asked. “No, I believed you would rescue me.” She scowled but reached out to cast a spell. The next thing I knew, the ebony flames burning my body flew away and disappeared, leaving no traces behind. “What…is happening…?” Alvarto muttered, already fully regenerated. The confusion warping his beautiful features was genuine. “Was this all part of your calculations, too, Ard Meteor?” “Hardly. I already told you that I’m an idiot now. I had no idea this would happen.” Standing side by side with Elzard, I looked Alvarto dead in the eye and said, “I’m ashamed of how that fight went at school. My fear and the sudden betrayal of my expectations made me lose my way. Well, not anymore. My dear old friend, and…” “What? Don’t stare at me like that. You’re creeping me out.” “…my new friend showed me the way. I need to stop relying on my brain and surrender everything to faith. To answer your question from earlier, that’s the third option I had.” I paused for a few beats, and then I posed the inquiry that had been lingering in my heart. “You’re not actually under Mephisto’s spell, are you, Alvarto?” He frowned in response. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, he sighed, and the pressure left his body. “When did you find out?” “I’ve had my suspicions since the fight at the academy.” Two reasons had led me to that hypothesis. The first was that Alvarto saw me as Ard Meteor, not as an unidentified apparition like the rest of my classmates. As for the other… “Your attacks showed discretion.” Even during the last fight, Alvarto had not fought at full strength. That got me thinking he was still himself. “You pretended to be under Mephisto’s control to fool him and to let me escape. Am I right?” His silence told me I wasn’t. “Ideally, I would’ve recognized your intentions and fled immediately.” “Yeah… But you panicked instead; it almost got you killed.” Alvarto’s irritated stare told me everything in his heart. To answer him, I asked another question. “Did you play along and attack us…to test my determination?” Alvarto nodded slowly. “Your strength was a large factor in sealing Mephisto in the past. But I didn’t know if you were capable of something like that anymore. With a shattered spirit, you were nothing but deadweight. I wanted to put you out of your misery.” He sighed, and I couldn’t help but smile. “It looks like I passed your test, then.” “Don’t misunderstand,” he shot back with a snort. “I just deemed it best not to kill you. That doesn’t mean I’ve accepted your way of thinking.” I shrugged. “Regardless, how about joining m—?” “Not so fast,” Elzard interrupted, glaring at Alvarto. “I still don’t trust him. Why weren’t you affected by Mephisto’s magic? I don’t think that guy’s ever messed up before.” “Yes… You’re right. Mephisto did cast his corruption spell on me. I’d be a terrible thorn in his side if left alone. Unlike you, whom he forgot entirely.” The challenging words ruffled Elzard’s feathers, but Alvarto didn’t even flinch at the Frenzied King of Dragons. “I was born from an element of Mephisto. You could say that I’m his clone. My origins surely played a part.” “Ha! You expect me to believe that bogus claim?” “I don’t care whether you believe me or not.” The air froze as the two stared daggers of ice at each other. Then Elzard and Alvarto let the insults fly. “You were a lot cuter when you wore a clown’s mask.” “Oh? Well, maybe you should’ve maintained your Jessica disguise. Now you stink like a lizard but possess no other presence.” “Didn’t you try to kill Ard and Ireena? Damn, you’ve got some nerve, pretending to be an ally now.” “Oh dear… Even your intellect is on par with a lizard’s. Utterly useless.” “Huh?” “You don’t even realize how your own proclamations come back to bite you. It’s imbecilic, really. You’ve tried to kill Ard and Ireena, too. You’ve got some nerve pretending to be their ally. Honestly, I don’t even know why I bothered coming here. When I kidnapped Ireena, I envisioned you rushing to Ard and throwing a tantrum, yet you did nothing. You ran away to the mountains and shut yourself in to cry your eyes out. It was quite the surprise when you came waltzing out so brazenly. That’s reptiles for you—thin-skinned. That’s your one claim to—” Elzard interrupted his next quip with a light beam. It completely disintegrated Alvarto. But of course… “Be as violent as you please. I was going to toss you aside like a dirty rag after I got my use out of you. That’s the unexaggerated truth. You have a right to be vengeful. Then again, a mere newt’s strength couldn’t possibly harm me.” In the past, Alvarto had assumed the persona of a berserk pervert. He’d been a real pest. However, he’d since abandoned that facade and showed his true colors. Unfortunately, that had only made him even more of a nuisance. “Heh! Heh-heh! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” Elzard was so furious that she was reduced to maniacal laughter. Veins bulged on her face, and her white hair stood on end. “Ew. White alligator, your face is cracked. Turn back. You’re sickening me.” “Heh! Heh-heh! Mwa-ha-ha-ha. This is…ha-ha…a first. N-nobody’s ever made a fool of me this badly before.” Alvarto coolly looked down his nose at Elzard, who was ready to spring at him any second. I sighed at them both and said, “Oh, stomach pains…how I missed thee.” Even as I felt the sharp pangs in my gut that reminded me of moments like this in my past life, I couldn’t help but laugh. No matter how it looked on the surface, we’d all made great progress today. “All right, you two, bury the hatchet. Time is short. We need to get the item as quickly as possible.” “Idiot! Who died and made you leader?” “Hmm… Finally, something we can agree on. As much as I hate to be on the same side as gecko-brain.” “Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. I think you two should mind your language. I hope you haven’t forgotten that I can severely reduce your standings in Ireena’s eyes whenever I like.” “Urk…!” “Y-you dirty cheater!” “Sticks and stones,” I replied with a smirk. Then I patted them both on the shoulders and said, “I’m counting on you both. I mean it.” Thus, the ex–Demon Lord embarked on an invigorating quest with two companions in tow.