Shake shake!
She raised both arms at the start of the duel. The impact that followed the collision wasn’t fully absorbed. For a short moment, Leraje was mesmerized. She couldn’t believe the reality when she saw the sword marks on both arms. If she was the only person here, she would’ve stared blankly at her arms for a few minutes.
“...Wait, let’s do it again.”
Leraje was conscious of the gazes of the thousands of demons in the great hall as she politely requested it. At the same time, she concealed her arms using her wide sleeves. Transparent mucus oozed over the pale pink skin. The sticky mucus covered and erased the wounds.
Grid caught a glimpse of Leraje’s healing ability through the gaps in her fluttering sleeves and grasped the truth.
‘This is the reason why the power of the sword dance is halved.’
The wavelength created by the first part of Transcended Linked Kill Wave Pinnacle. Grid hadn’t been fl.u.s.tered when the mental image of Kill didn’t have any effect on Leraje. The 10th great demon, Leraje—it was normal for the 10th ranked great demon to have a good body.
It wasn’t strange if she was several times stronger than h.e.l.l Gao, who lost his body, was weakened and came to the human world. It wasn’t surprising that she exerted a mental power or momentum that overwhelmed the mental image of Transcended Link Kill.
...It was just very shocking to see her blocking Transcended Linked Kill Wave Pinnacle with her bare arms.
She used the back of her soft hands that weren’t even wearing gauntlets to block the dozens of blades from Link, the wavelengths of sword energy created by Transcend and Wave were blocked with her thin wrists, and she grabbed and twisted Kill with her bare hands...
It was amazing to see her read the trajectory of Transcended Linked Kill Wave Pinnacle and react to it, but the sight of her dealing with it using her bare body was even more incredible. Now he was convinced. Leraje released mucus from the skin and her characteristic seemed to be to half and block physical force.
‘This is usually a characteristic of amphibians. Magic... She is an opponent who needs to be attacked using fire magic.’
Yura had told him that the demons must abide by their agreements. At the very least, Leraje couldn’t harm Grid while the quest was active. However, she was a great demon and he would have to risk his life fighting her one day. He had to collect as much information as possible. Characteristics and skills were the basics. It was better to understand the personality. Even if they had the same stats, they showed different battle patterns depending on their personality. He should talk a lot with her.
“Do it again? Your words...” Grid was trying to speak when he shut his mouth.
[The quest ‘Confrontation with Leraje’ has been cleared.]
[Leraje’s Pledge has been acquired as a reward for clearing the quest.]
[Leraje’s Pledge]
[The 10th Great Demon, Leraje, hates defeat. Even if she loses the fight, she hopes it will be known that she won.
If you pledge never to say you have won against Leraje, she will reward you with a gift of grat.i.tude.
Weight: 0.1]
It was a piece of paper asking him not to disclose the results of the duel to the outside world. The blank signature line required Grid’s signature.
“......”
Grid confirmed the contents of the pledge and fully grasped Leraje’s personality. Hundreds of years ago, on the Behen Archipelago, Leraje was defeated by Madra and it was even Death Knight Madra. However, Leraje concealed the truth. She didn’t tell the demons that Madra was a death knight and she also concealed her defeat, calling it a draw.
At first, Grid thought she had dementia. Now it turned out to just be serious bluffing.
‘...It would be better to sign this.’
The main reason Grid accepted Leraje’s duel was because he coveted the quest rewards. It was difficult to refuse because he had to sign it in order to get a reward. The moment he refused, it would be meaningless to perform the quest.
‘There is nothing to lose if I go along with the bluff.’
Grid calculated the maximum benefits and signed his name on the pledge without hesitation.
[You have made the pledge with Leraje.]
[The gag order is triggered due to the contract with a great demon. If you leak the result of your fight with Leraje to others, you will be severely punished by the contract.]
[The right to terminate the contract belongs only to Leraje.]
Leraje confirmed Grid signed the pledge and spoke with a stiff expression, “Undefeated King’s successor. You don’t understand the nature of this confrontation.”
“......”
The atmosphere in the hall was cold. There was doubt and confusion in the eyes of the thousands of demons staring at Leraje on the throne. They were great demon candidates who saw great demons as compet.i.tors.The reason they looked up to and respected Leraje was because they were attracted by Leraje’s saga of always winning.
However, now they witnessed Leraje’s defeat. They were stunned by Leraje using both arms straight away when she said she would only use one arm. They started to doubt Leraje’s strength. She was in danger of losing her Supreme King status, which was maintained only by victory.
Leraje was anxious and hurriedly continued, “My—ugh.”
She bit her tongue and her skin turned red with shame. Yet Leraje tried not to show it and kept insisting.
“...The reason I applied for a confrontation with you was to conclude my fight against the Undefeated King. I a.s.sumed you were the successor of the Undefeated King, not anyone else, when partic.i.p.ating in the fight. However, you were cowardly and used a technique other than the Undefeated King’s Swordsmans.h.i.+p to destroy the essence of the confrontation.”
Leraje raised both arms. The thin forearms that had been hidden by the wide sleeves appeared in front of the demons. There wasn’t even the smallest scratch on them.
“Ohh...!”
The demons admired it. The sword technique used a moment ago by the human contained an incredibly strong power. They were sure that it would be hard for them to survive if they were targeted by the sword technique. Meanwhile, Leraje wasn’t hurt at all after confronting the sword technique. Therefore, Leraje’s strength really deserved its reputation. The doubts they felt disappeared and respect rose again.
“Undefeated King’s successor. I, Supreme King Leraje, could’ve grabbed your neck and killed you instantly. I showed mercy due to the fight I didn’t win. Be thankful for the circ.u.mstances and let’s fight again with the right att.i.tude.”
“Yes! You cowardly human! Don’t play tricks and fight fairly!”
Boo!Boooooo!
The demons started booing Grid. They called him cowardly or told him to fight fairly.
‘Is this something demons should say?’
Leraje’s castle—it was decorated like a banquet hall for human n.o.bles and the atmosphere here was quite different from other places in h.e.l.l. It was cheerful and free. It felt like Leraje’s unique bluffing and stubborn persistence subtly distracted from the evils of the demons.
‘...In any case.’
Now was the time to focus on the situation. Grid checked the quest window that reappeared.
[Confrontation with Leraje (2)]
[Difficulty: SSS
Fight against the 10th Great Demon, Leraje. If you make Leraje rise from the throne or use both arms within five minutes, it will be your victory.
However, the attack skills that can be used are limited to the Undefeated King’s Swordsmans.h.i.+p.
Quest Clear Reward: Leraje’s gift.]
[Would you like to accept the quest?]
“I will give you another chance. Come.”
A small, slender body that didn’t match the huge throne—Leraje tried to be stern as she clapped her hands. The opportunity was obtained by him, but the target was trying to look her best.
Grid smiled at the absurdity and nodded. “I’m coming.”
[The quest has been accepted.]
“Sigh.”
Grid wasn’t in a hurry. The opponent declared that she would sit still on the throne. There was no need for him to roll, run around, or catch her. He could just focus on attacking. Just one strike. He recalled and implemented the essence of the Undefeated King’s Swordsmans.h.i.+p.
“100,000 Army.” Grid’s waist twisted to the limit. On the forearm holding the sword, his veins bulged like they were going to explode. “Blockade Sword.”
A sword technique that dealt 100% attack damage to all visible enemies and gave the ‘blockade’ effect for three seconds. The scariest thing about the Undefeated King’s Swordsmans.h.i.+p lay in the fact that it used the Blockade Sword as a starting point. The blockaded targets couldn’t use any skills or magic for three seconds.
The Enlightenment Sword and Fire Dragon Sword had been combined into one item. The moment it moved in a half moon shape, the air was cut and an eerie sound occured.
“...Eh?”
The demons lined up on the left and right of Leraje’s throne. The bodies of the demons in Grid’s field of view slanted. They were cut by the Blockade Sword. On the other hand, Leraje stopped it. She raised one arm in a leisurely manner. Her arm cut by the sword energy was glistening with mucus.
‘Is it lacking?’
Grid was filled with a momentary anxiety. The Undefeated King’s Swordsmans.h.i.+p was naturally an excellent skill, but its power was weak compared to the five fusion sword dances. It would be difficult to make her use both arms as long as the Blockade Sword couldn’t cut the mucus.
At this moment—
[The hidden pa.s.sive ‘G.o.d"s Command’ has reset the cooldown of 100,000 Army Blockade Sword. If reused within three seconds, no resources will be consumed.]
A light of hope shone on Grid.
“100,000 Army Blockade Sword.”
“......?”
Doubt rose in Leraje’s eyes as she sensed the energy of the Blockade Sword again. Yet once again, she blocked it with one arm. The mucus covering her skin wasn’t cut at all.
‘It isn’t magic seeing that Magic Contemplation isn’t activated.’
Is it an inherent ability, so it isn’t cut? It was tricky and annoying. Grid clicked his tongue and linked to the next sword technique without delay.
“100,000 Army Ma.s.sacre Sword.”
A sword technique that dealt damage equivalent to 3000% of his attack power to the target and all those within a radius of 30 meters. The damage even increased by 100% every time a target died, so the power of the Ma.s.sacre Sword was terrifying.
“Eek!”
“Kuaack!”
Some of the demons previously cut by the Blockade Sword were killed by the Ma.s.sacre Sword. Gradually, the stronger sword energy squeezed into Leraje’s mucus. A line of blood flowed down Leraje’s forearm.
[The hidden pa.s.sive ‘G.o.d"s Command’ has reset the cooldown of 100,000 Army Ma.s.sacre Sword. If reused within three seconds, no resources will be consumed.]
“100,000 Army Ma.s.sacre Sword.”
Grid used the Ma.s.sacre Sword again without any delay.
“......!”
Leraje’s expression stiffened. Despair was on the face of some of the demons who barely survived the Blockade Sword and Ma.s.sacre Sword. The demons who survived the previous sword techniques died and the sword energy that had grown more powerful cut at Leraje’s forearm. Her bleeding increased even further.
“200,000 Army Crus.h.i.+ng Sword.”
[The hidden pa.s.sive ‘G.o.d"s Command’ has reset the cooldown of 200,000 Army Crus.h.i.+ng Sword. If reused within three seconds, no resources will be consumed.]
“200,000 Army...”
“Wait.”
Stop.
He was lucky. The d.a.m.n G.o.d"s Command. There was a 50% chance of triggering it, but he felt like it was actually only a 10% chance. Now it burst out three times in a row. The effect was great. Leraje had blocked the previous attacks with one arm, but now she reflexively raised both arms.
In the midst of the demons’ silence—
“You... you aren’t the successor of the Undefeated King.” Leraje stared at Grid. Her shaking body looked very resentful. “Even the Undefeated King can’t use the same sword technique twice. You... you aren’t his successor. You are his teacher. Yes, you deceived me from the start.”
Leraje was the demon of struggle who had to fight and win. Her reputation was damaged when she lost and this was directly connected to a decline in status. Moreover, losing to the same target twice in a row... it was something that absolutely wasn’t allowed to happen.
“Me...! Are you mocking me? This confrontation is null and void! It is invalid!”
“......”
“......”
Leraje was wronged to the point of tears. She tried to refute it, but there were too many witnesses. It was impossible to deceive them twice.
[The quest ‘Confrontation with Leraje (2)’ has been cleared.]
[You are qualified to enter Leraje’s treasure warehouse as a reward for clearing the quest.]
“...I was lucky.”
It was easy for a winner to be relaxed. Grid was humble.