“No need,” I replied.
Being astute was his strong point, but I didn’t need his care. Though I only had one hand and could hardly eat standing up, I didn’t know how it would benefit me if he brought me food. Was he going to feed me in front of the crowd? I’d much prefer to skip a meal than to act so disgraceful.
“Then perhaps something that allows you to eat with one hand...” he said.
“I said there’s no need!” I snapped.
I scolded my butler and flapped my coat around as I headed for the balcony.
“I’m going outside for some fresh air,” I said. “You don’t need to tag along with me.”
“If that is your wish,” Carlos replied.
I stepped out onto the balcony alone. The crescent moon shone down on us tonight, and I leaned on the handrail as I took in the nighttime breeze. As I bathed in the moonbeams, I felt my exhaustion from greeting the other nobles melting away. But this brief moment of tranquility was shattered by a person in the darkness.
“Are you enjoying your time, Lofus?” he asked.
He spoke in a friendly tone as though we were lifelong friends, but in this timeline, this was my first meeting with him. In stark contrast to my dark coat, he wore a suit of pure white, his sapphire eyes accentuated by his brown hair. This boy was none other than the eldest son of this party’s host, and the one called the second Demon Lord within my dream: Raymond Roi Nodens Galleon. I hadn’t seen him when I greeted the duke... Was he waiting for an opportunity to speak with me?
“Could I have a moment?” Raymond asked. “I’d like to talk with you, Lofus.”
He flashed a fearless smile at me.
✶✶✶
Raymond guided Lofus to the garden of the party venue. Aside from them, there was another boy and girl who looked to be the same age as Lofus. The boy was tall and muscular for his age, while the girl was petite and pale, wearing a green dress. Though Lofus had met neither of them in this world, he was rather familiar with them thanks to his dream.
They were also a part of the Elite Four who worked under the second Demon Lord. Lofus narrowed his eyes and glanced around, but Warm was nowhere to be seen.
Raymond smiled after gathering these three.
“Sorry to keep you guys waiting,” he said. “Now we’re all assembled.”
The other two furrowed their brows with confusion.
“Now you brought the eldest son of Lightless?” the boy asked. “What kind of group is this?”
The tall and muscular boy was Orgus Roé Diamante, the eldest son of Count Diamante. The frowning, quiet girl in her green dress who stared at Lofus was Annegelt Loue Triantafyllia, the second-eldest daughter of Count Triantafyllia. Both were considered geniuses in magic, much like how Lofus was seen as a child prodigy. The two were at the top of their respective fields.
Raymond stood in the middle of the garden, then turned around and silently smiled as he emitted a wave of dense mana. The wave was so thick and condensed that even Lofus felt a cold sweat run down his back; it reminded him of the Wicked Whale he’d fought above the Devil’s Sea. Orgus and Annegelt both turned pale, the former falling to one knee while the latter trembled and refused to look up.
Only Lofus remained standing, due in no small part to his ridiculous amount of mana, but Raymond was clearly capable of making high-ranked nobles cower at his presence. Lofus glared at Raymond, quietly demanding to know what exactly was going on.
Raymond immediately stopped his burst of mana, and both Orgus and Annegelt breathed a sigh of relief. He then proceeded to create a small ball of light on the palm of his hand; at first glance it looked like a tiny version of Light Ball, a rather elementary spell, but both Lofus and Annegelt were visibly surprised when they realized what it was.
Raymond had just used a spell without uttering a single word. This was a feat that could only be considered exceptional. Lofus often did this as well, where he managed to completely skip the chanting of a spell and activate his magic as quickly as possible. A nonverbal spell was seen as a godlike ability in recent times, but Raymond’s ball of light was in a league of its own.
This small light wasn’t inscribed with any sort of magical formula—every spell was usually required to have one in some shape or form. Yet Raymond had manifested an element without the use of a formula, implying that this was no longer just a simple use of mana but an ability that went beyond the use of magic. Needless to say, even Lofus wasn’t capable of this. Orgus, who wasn’t all that adept at magic, only stood there, perplexed.
Raymond rolled the ball of light across his hand, almost toying with this seemingly divine work, before he made it vanish. He then swung his enhanced arm down and punched the ground again and again, paying no heed to the deafening sound and quakes he created, creating a crater in seconds. This sort of power was far beyond the realms of the norm; simply possessing a lot of mana wasn’t enough to create this sort of destruction. While Raymond’s raw potential was impressive enough, one needed to synchronize their body almost perfectly with their mana to attain a level this high. It was an unbelievable accomplishment. How compatible was Raymond’s body with his mana? He was undoubtedly suitable for channeling copious amounts of magic without any ill effects. Lofus and Annegelt were astonished by this, but above all, Orgus was the most impressed. Raymond had shown it all: mana, technique, and power. His calm smile shifted to one of proud fearlessness.
“I’ll get straight to the point,” he said. “I’m the most powerful person in the kingdom. Any facet of my abilities are second to none within this nation, and when it comes to overall power, I doubt that anyone could trump me in any conceivable way. This is an objective fact.” Raymond paused before he continued, “And yet, I’ve realized that in this kingdom, there is not one, but four people who trump me in specific fields. Furthermore, we’re all around the same age. Honestly, I felt that this was fated to be. One person isn’t here today, but the remaining three are, of course, you guys.”