If one was to ask what had caused the tide of battle to shift in her favour, Evileye would puff out her chest and reply “Companions!”
There was no doubt that Gagaran, Tia and Evileye were of an inferior race compared to this monster, but they still created opportunities nonetheless. Being able to attack and recover at the same time created a favourable situation.
In particular, having the means to do self-recovery and having supporting recovery through teammates was an enormous advantage. Gradually the situation became certain.
“As long as we don’t screw up, we can beat her like this!”
Part 3
The outcome of the battle.
Finally, the insect maid collapsed to the ground like a marionette whose strings had been cut.
Evileye’s mana consumption had been severe, and her consumables were almost depleted. From an economic standpoint, she was in a serious amount of debt.
“We’ve won!”
Gagaran who was covered in wounds declared their victory with heavy breaths. Not a single recovery potion was left, and she had external injuries, but her physical stamina was still holding up.
“Stab her throat.”
“Yes.”
Evileye agreed with Tia’s suggestion. The dying insect maid was still alive, as evidenced by the maid making chirping “Yeeh yeeh” sounds.
In this situation where it had already lost its ability to fight, the safest and most secure thing to do was to kill it without hesitation.
Tia who had taken up her sword and gone forward suddenly froze. Before Evileye could even ask “What is it?”, she already knew the reason for why she had stopped her movements.
“How about we end this right here.”
Unbelievably, and without anyone knowing when he had appeared, a man stood in front of the insect maid.
He wore strange clothing which had never been seen before. In Evileye’s knowledge, this was a set of garments which was worn in the south — a full suit. He also wore a mask which made it impossible to see his face.
However he was not human. A tail sprouted from his waist.
“Hey, a relative of Evileye?”
You idiot! Evileye hesitated. His dominating presence hit her as if her entire body had been struck by lightning. If she were to look at her right hand, she would discover that it was covered in sweat.
“—Are you alright? Leave the rest to me. You go back first to recuperate.”
He ignored the armed Blue Rose members standing in front of him and spoke in a kind tone to the insect maid. Although he was the enemy, he gave others a good impression of himself. However, Evileye knew that this wasn’t the case.
The tingling sense of fear reached the tip of her very toes, and this feeling was very real.
With her survival instincts screaming at her, she held her breath then spoke with a grim determination to Gagaran and Tia who were standing to one side.
“…Escape!..Fools, ignore the fact that I am here and listen quietly. That… is an overwhelmingly powerful existence. A monster amongst monsters. No matter what happens behind you, use your full strength to escape.”
“…Then what about you?”
Gagaran asked with a bitter voice.
“Don’t worry about that. I will drag this out until you escape, then immediately use ‘Teleport’ to get out of here.”
Not knowing what she had done, the injured insect maid which was not supposed to be able to move unsteadily stood up. She was not seen using any healing magic, nor did it seem like she had consumed any item.
Out of nowhere an insect appeared which attached itself to the insect maid’s back. Leaving behind a few “yeeh yeeh” sounds, she flew away into the night.
Helplessly watching her escape, Evileye was unable to take any action because of this man standing in front of her. The other two were the same, with their foreheads drenched in sweat and their bodies petrified, unable to move.
After watching the maid depart, the man turned towards Evileye.
Having lived for over two-hundred and fifty years, she had come across powerful beings of all sorts. Even so, the aura he gave out was exceptional. No, this was a nauseating and revolting maliciousness which, compared to others, was at an impossible level.
As a powerful being, he should be at the same level as the Platinum Dragon Lord right? Because he is far too powerful, it is already unclear which is stronger.
“You’ve waited long enough. Now then, since time is tight, shall we begin right away?”
“Quick! Escape!!!”
Evileye cried out.
The two turned around and fled like wild dogs. There was no way that they did not feel guilty about leaving a companion behind. It was precisely because of this guilt that they had only chosen to escape immediately after Evileye had finished speaking. Trust! If it was Evileye, anything could be done. If it was Evileye, escape should be possible!
However this thought was immediately overturned.
“Firstly, don’t leave during introductions. It’s not that painful, let me block your transfer,
「Dimensional Lock」. Giving a greeting before departing is the proper etiquette, and delightful.”
This was a skill which could only be used by the highest ranking devils or angels, and had the area effect of preventing anyone in the surrounding from using transfer magic. Evileye and her team’s retreating strategy was rendered useless.
However this was not the main problem. They knew since the beginning that the best strategy would be to leave someone behind as rearguard, and that it was impossible for that person to return alive.
“Death is also natural. The young survive whereas the elderly die. That is the proper course of nature.”
With a life experience of more than two hundred years, the girl bid her farewell as she provoked the opponent in front of her which she stood no chance against.
“Now then, ladies first. But if you plan to do nothing, allow me to make my attack.”
A terrifying amount of murderous intent spewed out from between his words. Evileye mentally collected herself, expelling the sense of dread from inside of her.
I am Evileye. A woman of legends. No matter how strong the enemy is— fight!
“Such kind intentions, then I shall act pre-emptively! Eat this! 「Maximize Magic: Shard Buck Shots」!”
She used the spell she was proud of from the outstart. Many crystals smaller than the size of a fist shot out in a scattered pattern.
These were crystal fragments with sharp front ends. Originally it would be used in close-quarter combat to inflict enormous harm, but it was unclear how to get close to this archdevil in front of them.
Although she had hardened her resolve, she still held herself back a bit. Evileye mocked herself. The enemy’s strength was unknown, so fighting cautiously was only natural.
The masked devil opened his arms wide in a welcoming gesture. The hail of crystal bullets arrived in front of him— and the magic spell disappeared. The magic disappeared so fast that it was as if it had never existed.
“Is that a racial talent, magic invalidation!? Or is it because the difference in strength is actually this large!?”
If there was a significant gap in strength, magic would easily be rendered ineffective.
Ignoring Evileye who had made a mistake on her first move, the man elegantly stretched his arms out sideways in a stance similar to that of a commander and acted:
“「Hellfire Wall」.”
The heatwave pounced in a direction behind her. The incredulous Evileye frantically looked backwards.
With a swishing noise, the night combusted and black flames which could not possibly exist burned.