166. Demon Lord Unleashed

“Is that your p-plan, to intimidate me? Foolish, you don’t stand a chance–!”

Maximilian braved the out-of-this-world bloodlust and rushed at Shadow.

His sword followed a straight path to the man at incredible speed. Its tip surely to pierce the throat.

— Yet.

“– WHAT!?”

That tip was caught between Shadow’s fingers.

“Let me bestow you some advice…”

Shadow spoke in a soft voice.

“Let, go…!”

Try as he might, Maximilian couldn’t dislodge his sword from between the man’s fingers. It was as if the blade was stuck into a boulder. It moved not no matter how much he pushed and pulled.

“Show me all your power– if you don’t wish for a swift death…”

Shadow released the sword, causing Maximilian to pitch over and fall.

He quickly stood up and glowered at Shadow.

“You will not underestimate me…!”

He then pulled out a red lozenge and swallowed it.

“Now you’ll pay for that attitude. I will have you know despair.”

Maximilian’s mana surged and his eyes were dyed blood red.

“Behold– It is your death that will be swift!!”

Maximilian blurred.

He was suddenly behind Shadow.

“– An afterimage.”

A slash faster than sound cut Shadow from behind.

It wasn’t able to cut through Shadow’s longcoat.

Shadow turned around.

Faster than that, Maximilian once again blurred.

“That too– an afterimage.”

Yet again, Maximilian cut Shadow from behind.

“As I thought, you have no means of reacting to my speed. Yes, that is inevitable. I am not your average Awakened I’ll have you know…”

Seeing how slowly Shadow was turning back, Maximilian spoke.

“I am no 3rd– I am a 2nd.” He sneered and blurred once again.

“Slow! You’re too slow, Shadow!! Now taste the power of a true 2nd of the Order!!”

Maximilian’s voice came from all directions.

Relentlessly, he made slash after slash upon Shadow.

His afterimages seemed to be everywhere at he did.

“This is my sword– the Coldblood Kaleidoscope!”

The myriad Maximilians in the fierce blizzard truly appeared as if he came out of a cold and deadly kaleidoscope.

“Soon enough, that artifact of yours will be exhausted! That will be your end!!”

The endless slashes had numbered to more than a thousand now.

Shadow couldn’t do a thing, he just stood there and took it.

Each slash caused the snow to jump, turning everything white.

And finally, it ended.

“Huff… huff… fool.”

Maximilian wrested control of his breathing.

The ground around him was gouged.

Coldblood Kaleidoscope tended to have that effect on the landscape.

It was impossible to stay standing after a relentless onslaught like that.

Maximilian was about to sheathe his sword, when,

“WHAT–!”

Beyond the veil of snow, stood a form.

As the uplifted snow slowly drifted back to the ground, the identity of the form was made clear.

“It’s not, possible…”

That form was of course– Shadow.

Shadow was standing there, having withstood Coldblood Kaleidoscope– without injury.

Without a scratch on him, the man in black stood as if the fierce rush from just now was but an illusion.

“How are you uninjured after my Coldblood Kaleidoscope!? Th-this is impossible, no artifact like that could exist…”

“Artifact…? Might you be curious about this?”

Shadow said indicating his garment.

“There’s no other way! I am stronger than the likes of you! Just because you have that ridiculous artifact, don’t think…!”

“This, is no artifact. It is made of Slime.”

“Th-that is absurd! No Slime can withstand what I did!!”

“Correct. By itself Slime is very weak as material. However, what would happen if it were to be infused with mana of incredible proportions…?”

“H-hah, idiocy. Indeed Slimes are said to have high mana conductivity. However, handling it as material is impossible. The mana paths aren’t even similar to that of a human’s.”

“All too true… In that case, what if we mix in human flesh…?”

“Ah–!”

“Combining a great number of Slimes with one’s own flesh. It is similar to attempting to mix oil and water. But it is possible to fuse them using mana.”

“Impossible… you merged human mana paths with that of a monster… You would need an unimaginable level of control to achieve such a feat!”

“Verily. To my knowledge, those in this world who can perform such a task– is I and I alone.”

“– Y-you lie! You lying scoundrel, do you think I will believe that…”

“Oh? Even if I show you this…?”

Shadow’s longcoat warped.

Within the white blizzard, the jet black garment expanded to both sides like wings.

No, they were wings.

Jet black wings like that of the devil had manifested out of the coat.

“T-that… isn’t, no, that’s not…”

Maximilian could think of only one material able to change shape so freely.

–Slime.

And nothing else.

“M-monster… you’re, you’re no human, you monster!!”

His expression warping, Maximilian rushed at Shadow.

However, the blazing speed of his sword was easily stopped by the now transformed devil wings.

“Slow…”

“N-no… you can’t react to my speed…”

Despair dyed Maximilian’s face.

The pair of wings had split into four.

They flapped once, allowing Shadow to be lifted into the air.

Maximilian was speechless.

“Know this. The quantity of my mana is not so different from your own.”

Jet black wings flapped in the white blizzard sky.

“If well compressed, it only appears hundred-fold more powerful when released. I simply do that whenever I use it… like so.”

Shadow gathered mana in his wings.

The violet mana collected on the wings and appeared as small feathers.

“Hyii… Monster… no, Demon Lord…!”

“Quality easily trumps quantity when it concerns mana. And quality comes from control. To that end, the amount of control you can exert while you release… determines everything.”

Those feathers, were beautiful yet cruel as the devil himself–

“I. AM. ATOMIC RAIN.”

As they fell on Maximilian.

Violet mana rain dwarfed the raging snow storm.

Its light enveloped Maximilian, erased the snow and swallowed up everything.

As it fizzled out, having ended everything, only a large crater remained where the walled camp once stood.

All was quiet for a time.

Then, the jet black wings flapped, taking their bearer high into the snowy sky.