The One Who Commands Demons

The fact that a hero had defeated the Wicked God was something that surprised even Ria and Ars.

The Gift of the hero who defeated it was Magic Creation. It allowed the creation of magic that didn't currently exist in this world, or the activation of existing magic with completely different structures.

Whether it was powerful or not aside, it was an interesting Gift. That had been the initial evaluation.

Even in the Neosis Kingdom, it had received lukewarm treatment, as Mako had said.

However, that hero had defeated an evil god—their original purpose.

Honestly speaking, even the divine dragons had found this development unexpected.

Like a last-minute scramble, they would now re-examine that Gift.

Of course, direct contact would be dangerous. After all, their opponent had defeated a highest-tier god.

Considering that even the god Ria had defeated as the Dark Dragon wasn't of that caliber, this hero was stronger than Sei and the others.

And aside from the hero problem, there was also the issue that Trado, the God of Time and Space, had mentioned.

Ria scratched her head vigorously and for now entrusted monitoring the hero to Sage.

Sage, called the Great Sage, was a user of space-time magic. While he could use several other magics up to the forbidden spell level, his specialty was still space-time magic.

And this magic was extremely convenient for monitoring targets.

Bending space to observe the target. It was an act like that of a stalker, but there was no such word in Nears. It wasn't a crime either.

Additionally, Sage tried to discover the secret of how the hero had defeated the god.

Using space-time magic to trace back time. While actually traveling through time was one thing, knowing what had happened in the past wasn't difficult.

And when he saw the scene of the Wicked God being defeated, Sage couldn't help but groan.

"Uwaa…"

"So there's even a method like this…"

Chrys, who had been monitoring the hero together with Sage in the innermost chamber of the Sage's Tower, also groaned.

Great Sage Sagittarius and Grand Witch Chrystina.

Both were magic users who ranked among the top five in the world of Nears. Though of course, that was within the category of human races.

However, what the two confirmed exceeded their imagination.

The hero hadn't used underhanded tactics, surprise attacks, or exploited loopholes in this world's system—he had defeated the god in direct confrontation through his own power.

As a comprehensive magic user, he was undoubtedly stronger than Sage. In fact, when it came to magic, he might even be stronger than Ria, who despite being a divine dragon only swung a katana, and Irina, who was still young as a divine dragon.

"Well, if you think about what magic really is, it's not impossible for a human to kill a god. Especially since he already possessed a certain level of power from the start as a hero."

There was someone else in the innermost part of the tower besides the two.

No, there was something that had taken human form.

With golden hair reaching down to the waist and calm emerald eyes that suggested deep intelligence.

While giving an androgynous impression, he claimed to be male. In other words, not a dragon.

Yet his existence surpassed even that of ancient dragons.

Demon God Luciel.

The being who should have been making the world tremble was present there without even a hint of bloodlust.

"What do you mean by what magic really is?"

Sage asked while feeling like breaking into a cold sweat.

The god before him exuded both a quiet atmosphere and overwhelming pressure simultaneously.

That was only natural. The god before him transcended Sage's level.

He wasn't even attempting to disguise or conceal himself. A god who was a magic user with space-time magic at level 10, or perhaps even higher.

"Because the magic of this world is something I created."

Luciel casually revealed one of the world's mysteries.

Once upon a time, there was no magic in the world.

The divine dragons used pure power rather than magic to manage the world.

Then gods of both good and evil crossed over from another world, transformed the world, created their followers, and the Demon God among them created magic.

After that, magic developed beyond his hands, but even so, the Demon God's existence as the one who governs magic remained a step above.

"As expected of someone who received my Gift."

The Demon God wore an elegant smile, looking truly delighted from the bottom of his heart.

Thirty-six heroes had been summoned.

All of them had been granted some kind of Gift. Who had granted these Gifts?

That would of course be the gods.

However, not all heroes had received Gifts from good gods.

Though no one had mentioned it, among the heroes summoned to defeat evil gods, some had descended into this world having received Gifts from evil gods.

The Hero of Ruin. She had received the Gift of the Violent God.

The Hero of Gluttony. She had received the Gift of the Evil God.

And the Hero of Magic Creation had received the Gift of the Demon God.

This didn't mean the three were evil people. The evil gods had sensed the presence of the hero summoning, found compatible recipients for their power, and secretly granted Gifts.

There was no reason. They simply found it interesting.

Not just those three gods, but the evil gods still lurking in the world's shadows, the good gods, and of course the neutral gods had also granted their protection.

They were interested in whether the heroes forcibly summoned from another world would truly only defeat the evil gods.

And for Demon God Luciel, the fact that the hero he had blessed had defeated the Wicked God, with whom he didn't share tastes, was an interesting result.

It had been worth interfering when he was transferred from the Neosis Kingdom to send him to the most dangerous region.

The Hero of Magic Creation, Aoi Sora.

He himself wasn't the strongest.

But the magic he used was the strongest. In addition to enormous magical power, the numerous spells he'd created out of necessity. And the means by which he'd defeated even an opponent that couldn't be dealt with through pure magic—namely, the Wicked God.

Luciel was extremely satisfied with this.

"If you wanted to forcibly return him, you should have eliminated him at the very beginning. Before he realized the true value of his Gift and grew this much."

"That's because you guided him there, isn't it? To the most dangerous place with the most potential for growth."

There was one more person who responded to Luciel's words.

Brown hair and brown eyes. Handsome with a slender build, but features that didn't seem particularly remarkable.

Yet he was a god who boasted the greatest strength among the evil gods.

Evil God Bug.

The two pillars who were the leaders of the evil gods were here.

Luciel smiled at Bug's words.

"And he produced the best results. Though I must say, the hero who received your protection still remains as well."

"The Violent God had both their hero and themselves defeated after all."

Bug let out a small laugh at that foolishness.

The Hero of Gluttony blessed by the Evil God, Tsubaki Mako. She had been transferred to the safest place, protected and strengthened by divine dragons, and had become one of the remaining two heroes.

The two gods were competing over which hero would remain until the end.

While listening to the gods' conversation, Sage and Chrys investigated the hero's combat history.

At first, he certainly hadn't been that strong. He used existing magic and steadily raised his level and skills in an ordinary manner.

However, through repeated death matches, he had changed his way of thinking.

"This is… won't Sei and the others be unable to win?"

Sage groaned once again. Chrys agreed with that analysis.

There was a clear reason why Sei and the others had fought heroes up to this point and won.

It was simple. They had prepared greater combat power than their opponents, researched their Gifts and tactics, and purely and legitimately won through differences in power and strategy.

Against opponents they couldn't defeat, they'd had support from Ria and Ars. The battle against the Hero of Ruin's party was only won because Ars held down Siegfried, and in the first place, the fact that Ria had trained Sei was significant.

But what kind of reinforcements would be needed against this hero?

In reality, if Sage, who specialized in space-time magic, participated, they could almost certainly win. In fact, Sage fighting alone might result in fewer casualties.

But it was highly dangerous for Sage, who wasn't immortal, to fight this magic user. And killing the opponent was almost certain.

This hero had become so strong and clever that holding back wasn't an option.

"If you're worried, you could ask the divine dragons for help."

Bug said as if it were obvious, but besides Lavi, the only divine dragon who could move was Lieselotte. However, Lieselotte couldn't very well leave the Temple of Stars.

And even with Lieselotte's power, since she hadn't even become an adult dragon yet and had no combat experience, she probably wouldn't add much to their fighting strength.

While it was fortunate that Lavi had evolved here, the power of a divine dragon that had evolved to adulthood was about on par with an ancient dragon.

Could they really win against a hero who had defeated a highest-tier god without casualties?

Mobilizing Sage, Chrys, Ars, and even the Great Demon Kings and demon kings under his command.

"… Even then, there might be casualties…"

Ria had said the divine dragons wouldn't move. Even so, she herself would move if necessary, and if that happened, Carla would move too.

If Ria seriously participated in combat, they would surely win. But how much collateral damage would there be?

Considering that, it wasn't simply a matter of gathering forces.

"If you just want to kill the hero, there's a certain method."

The one who said such words to Sage was none other than Evil God Bug.

"You could assassinate him."

Assassination. Not even an ambush or underhanded tactics, but straightforward theft of life.

While it went against the purpose of returning the hero, it aligned with the purpose of eliminating the hero from the world.

"How crude."

Luciel frowned theatrically. Bug, wearing a thin smile, agreed with that opinion.

"Yes, a crude method. So what should we do then?"

Bug's question was directed at Sage and Chrys.

"… When analyzing his battles, we can see one tendency, though not exactly a clear weakness…"

Chrys had little actual combat experience, but even so, she understood what kind of tactics magic users disliked.

"He's weak in close combat."

Sage said, as if continuing her words.

"His own abilities, that is."

Summoning massive monsters with summoning magic to use as shields. That was the basic way this hero fought.

His own close combat abilities weren't that high. You could call it a weakness, but he'd already established means to cover that flaw.

However, it was true that if the hero himself fought Sei or Mako in close combat, he would be the one to lose.

"Whether we can get into close combat range…"

While gazing at the image of the hero and beginning to analyze Sei's abilities in his head, Sage noticed that the hero in his created image looked toward him.

Even though this should have been one-sided monitoring, the hero had looked his way.

And a moment later, the image cut out.

"… Magic Destruction? Or space-time magic?"

"Magic Destruction."

Sage answered Chrys's question.

Magic Destruction was one of the Gifts possessed by another hero. But the Hero of Magic Creation was treating it as magic.

And magic that detected their monitoring. He was proficient even in presence-detection type magic.

Even the method of assassination might be difficult.

For now, Sage decided to consult with Ria and Ars. He couldn't make the judgment alone. As a comprehensive magic user, he was inferior to this hero.

Those two, who had lived long and possessed abundant knowledge, might find a breakthrough. Besides, Ria was a swordsman, and Ars was also strong in close combat.

They had extensive combat experience against opponents who launched ranged attacks with magic. Especially Ars had the track record of governing the demon race, skilled in magic, with human power.

Sage and Chrys teleported to join the two. Left behind were two pillars of evil gods.

"Now then, which one will survive, I wonder?"

When Luciel said this with amusement, Bug wore a smile of the same quality.

A game wagering on the heroes' survival.

The final phase was about to arrive.

Magic Creation as a Gift.

When the opponent was a magic user, Sei had an overwhelming advantage.

Because he had resistance to various types of magic received from the divine dragons.

The fact that he'd defeated the Wicked God was something that shouldn't be overlooked, but against magic users, Sei was strong.

That party of Sei's was advancing their carriage toward the southernmost tip of the Dragon Claw Continent.

The hero who had defeated the Wicked God had turned his course south.

After first pacifying the regions behind him, he'd changed course to head north once more. That was clearly known from the maps.

Still, what was concerning was how one could possibly defeat a god.

It was different from the lower gods defeated in the demon realm, or the higher god Ria had defeated.

Against a highest-tier god, how had he fought and won?

Sei's most destructive magic was Meteor Shower, but even that couldn't defeat a lower god in one hit.

Even the destructive power of magic called forbidden spells couldn't defeat a god in one strike. And when Sei heard the details of how the Wicked God was defeated, he held his head.

Besides Meteor Shower, there were forbidden spells like Thermonuclear Darkness Detonation Hell, Collapse of Heaven and Earth, Ruin, and Space-Time Severance. He knew they existed, but Sei couldn't use them.

Meteor Shower was something he'd learned from Carla simply because he wanted wide-area attack magic.

For close combat or fighting people, a katana was more convenient than magic.

That's why he hadn't learned forbidden spells for single targets. He simply hadn't had time to learn them.

"How did he even beat a god in the first place?"

Mako, who hadn't been told the details, muttered wonderingly. Speaking of magical Gifts, the Infinite Magic Power Gift seemed more powerful. A Gift that never ran out of magical power had received high evaluation in the Neosis Kingdom.

Not running out of magical power also meant being able to train in magic as much as one wanted. That's why the Hero of Infinite Magic Power was thought to have the highest combat power among magic-using heroes.

However, the Hero of Magic Creation had survived in this land ruled by evil gods and defeated the Wicked God, their original objective.

Ria had conveyed all the information obtained from Sage to Sei.

And after analyzing it, they'd reached the conclusion that victory would be difficult.

Of course, if Ria and Ars fought with full power as reinforcements, they could probably win.

But that went against the initial basic policy. In the first place, the divine dragons weren't taking the front lines because they viewed the heroes' special Gifts as dangerous.

If he could defeat even a highest-tier god, he might be able to defeat divine dragons too.

It was only a possibility, but therefore they couldn't have Ria stand on the front lines.

Even so, if Sei were to win, the methods were narrowed down.

Close combat. Just as Chrys had said.

A war of attrition was also one option. Sei's magical power was enormous, and moreover, his recovery speed was extraordinary.

However, the opposing hero had resolved the difference in magical power through a certain means.

"Maybe just charge in and punch him?"

Bungol said something simple, but in fact, if they could do that simple thing, it would probably be best.

That was also the conclusion Ria, Carla, and Ars had reached after deliberation.

Raise stats and attack physically. In games, it was the most orthodox of orthodox methods.

Close combat.

With about two days' journey remaining to the land where the hero lived, Sei was training in close combat.

This was training not just for Sei, but for Mako, Gantz, and Bungol as well.

Incidentally, Lavi would return to dragon form and unleash breath attacks from long range.

She wouldn't approach the hero. They couldn't put her, a divine dragon, in danger.

To be honest, if Lavi with her superior physical abilities could go to the front lines, she would be quite a fighting force against a hero who presumably had low close combat skills.

And two days later.

The hero's response appeared on Sei's map.

Though the hero was hiding his status with disguise and concealment magic, everything was laid bare before Sei's Omni-Identify.

Level 278. Abnormally high magical power.

As for magic skills, Summoning Magic and Necromancy were maxed out.

Common fire magic and water magic were also at high levels, but space-time magic, which should be of higher difficulty, was raised to level 9 as well.

And he had acquired Infinite Magic, which Ars and Labyrinth possessed, up to level 5.

"We'll make contact tomorrow…"

Sei muttered while thinking deeply. Starting with persuasion, how should he view the opponent's combat power?

Looking at level alone, it wasn't unwinnable. However, what kind of tactics would the opponent employ?

The distance between them narrowed to 10 kilometers.

Sei, who had been casually looking at the map, noticed in the next moment that the hero had teleported to a distance of just 3 kilometers.

"! Battle positions!"

He shouted because his lethal danger sense had reacted. After deploying a magic barrier, Lavi overwrote it with a barrier.

In the next instant, that barrier was shattered.

Sei's magic barrier, which had been angled diagonally, barely defended against that preemptive strike.

"Damn! Space-time magic…"

Everyone who jumped out of the carriage hid behind Sei. Sei created a strong magic barrier, but the next strike destroyed that too.

"Wh… what the hell is this!"

Kukuri, prostrate on the ground, screamed at the incomprehensible attack. As far as Sei could confirm on his map, that attack wasn't magic.

No, it was science reproduced with magic.

"… Probably a railgun."

A long-range attack at speeds exceeding Mach 20.

The Hero of Magic Creation had struck first.