Their exchange was like a replay of the time Evileye had first met Momon. His high-speed, consecutive attacks were deflected by extended claws. Since they could parry his greatswords, the hardness of those claws must be beyond human understanding.
Momon leapt back in a grand, soaring arc. His jumping strength made her think that he might have been using the ‘Flight’ spell. In the moment where her view of Momon was blocked by his spinning swords, she saw him produce a spear from nothing, from the corner of her eye.
It was a crimson spear whose point was like a cyclone of fire. Momon hurled it at Jaldabaoth. So fast did it fly that all she saw was its crimson trail seared into her vision as it headed for Jaldabaoth.
"「Aspect of the Demon: Hellfire Mantle」."
As the spear struck, a roaring flame blazed up from the ground, and a massive shockwave erupted from Jaldabaoth.
“Kuh!”
In order not to be blown away by the titanic displacement of air, Evileye crouched down and tried to weather the storm. Fortunately, because she wore her mask, she was able to keep her eyes open during the tempest.
Looking ahead, she saw Momon raising his swords, which stood unwavering in the wildly-blowing wind. Then, as though he was going to cleave the air in two as well. He charged at Jaldabaoth once more.
Jaldabaoth was ready to receive the attack, his body wreathed in flames, and the spear from earlier lodged in the ground by his feet.
As Momon swung down on him, Jaldabaoth caught the sword with both hands. Smoke rose from his palms, and the metal between his fingers started to melt.
“So, you’re able to melt a weapon like this… the ability has gotten stronger.”
Since it was a blade favored by Momon, an adventurer of the highest caliber, it must have been made of an amazing material indeed.
But that was not important. What was important was that Jaldabaoth could spit flames that could melt steel, and that Momon could still talk casually to him despite being so close to the deadly flames.
“―These two are incredible.”
Evileye was terrified. She already knew how strong the two of them were, but her body was still trembling uncontrollably.
“It is as you have surmised. The fire-type damage was strengthened by a special ability.”
On closer observation, the flames wreathing Jaldabaoth had a blackish tinge to them.
“Hellfire, is it?!”
“Just so. Even a being protected with fire immunity will not escape unscathed, don’t you think?”
For the first time in their battle, Momon took a step back in retreat, but Jaldabaoth would not permit it.
This time is was Jaldabaoth’s turn to close the gap, launching a flurry of blows at Momon. That attack could have slain a human being in an instant, but Momon parried them all with his gigantic sword.
While engaged in close combat that was slowly melting his armor, Momon once again reached into nothingness and drew forth a strange weapon.
"「Frost Pain Modified— Icy Burst」!"
A wave of frigid air rushed forth from the weapon, dropping the surrounding temperature instantly. Although it seemed as though the cold could even freeze fire, Jaldabaoth’s hellfire burned hotter than normal flames. Still, for a moment, the heat was suppressed.
Jaldabaoth’s surprised exclamation reached Evileye’s ears.
“What was that? It was like the spear from just now.”
“Since I can’t use magic, I made up for it with elemental weapons. Although this was a copy of Frost Pain made as an experiment… well, I should count myself lucky it turned out stronger than the original. Granted, it’s a tool that lets me use a high-level spell three times a day, but without the special abilities to power it up, it should be nothing to you.”
The dialogue between the two of them beggared belief.
They were supposed to be engaged in an intense struggle for their lives, but the mood felt like they were merely confirming each others' strength in an easy and relaxed manner.
Evileye recalled something Gagaran had said once. When warriors put their lives on the line, sometimes they would be able to fully grasp the thoughts of their opponent, and it would create a feeling as though they were close friends who had known each other for a long time.
At that time, she had wondered what she was talking about. But now―
"Maybe she had a point after all."
Evileye was starting to become jealous of the closeness between them.
The man in the jet-black armor, which had lost its shine due to its melted surface, and the demon whose tuxedo had been shredded by countless sword blows.
The two of them who had dueled each other in a domain beyond the grasp of humanity seemed like old friends to Evileye.
"Your puissance is unparalleled."
"Indeed, so is yours, Jaldabaoth."
"In that case, might I make a proposition?"
Momon raised his chin to Jaldabaoth, as though telling him to carry on.
"If I concede this battle and the victory to yourself, perhaps we can both take a step back from the edge? Or rather, to be more precise, I will withdraw myself from this incident, and I hope you will cease your pursuit of myself."
"Are you kidding me!"
Evileye's cry was fueled by intense emotion. For someone who had filled the capital with this much chaos and death, a plea for mercy and forgiveness was nothing short of shameless.
However, a calm voice accepted Jaldabaoth's proposal.
"It's all right."
Under her mask, Evileye stared goggle-eyed at Momon. She could not understand why Momon, who was in such a superior position, was accepting Jaldabaoth's terms.
Sensing Evileye's confusion, Demiurge shrugged his shoulders. Much as she hated to admit it, he looked quite stylish while he did.
"It baffles me why Momon-san would bring an air-headed woman like yourself along. A moment's consideration should reveal why Momon-san accepted my proposition."
Turning to Evileye, Jaldabaoth continued speaking.
"In order to bring Momon-san here, and to keep others from interfering with our battle, you committed a lot of your friends and allies to the fight, did you not? Did you really think they would be enough to keep the demons from intruding into this conflict?"
Evileye felt as though she had been impaled through the spine with an icicle.
"The demon army is always waiting for a chance to assault the capital."
It was the worst-case scenario.
Although Marquis Raeven was patrolling inside the capital with his troops, she honestly could not believe he could deal with all the demons Jaldabaoth had in store. A similar conclusion awaited if the demons started taking hostages from throughout the city.
But if they defeated Jaldabaoth here—
"Even if you kill me, do you think they will vanish? I have but to give a single mental command and my infernal hordes will immediately begin rampaging through the city. Granted, their numbers might be somewhat diminished… but how many casualties do you think they will cause in the time it takes to kill them?"
"But then, how do we know that you'll actually keep your promise?"
If Jaldabaoth continued fighting with Momon, he had no guarantee of actually winning. That being the case, why not withdraw all his troops and beg off from the pursuit? If not— well, then if he died, he was going to take everyone else with him. Something like that.
However, with the capital's population as hostages, their circumstances were not even.
It was a truly manipulative and cunning offer.
I see, Evileye thought, her opinion of Momon rising even further up. He had grudgingly accepted Jaldabaoth's proposal because he had already foreseen this development. Indeed, he had no other choice.
"Then, since this outsider has accepted it as well, I will begin my withdrawal, though it is a shame I could not recover my objective. I pray we will never meet again."