I had a question after being drawn into this game.
There was no inventory.
No space to carry various weapons, potions, and items.
Because of this, living here has been quite a hassle.
Normally, I could pull out items whenever I needed them and store them again afterwards.
Well, even if I did, it would still be cramped compared to a warehouse.
‘…I’ve heard tales about somewhere elves lived, with trees and roots.’
Like a baobab tree with an inverted structure, it’s set up that the gaps between the roots hold the inventory space.
Is that why the Demon King of Might burned the World Tree?
A space between spaces, known as “subspace.”
If the loading screen displayed the passage of time, then the black screen was jokingly called the World Tree.
“…Ugh.”
Right now, I was caught in the grasp of a giant and dragged to a strange place.
The moment I was caught, the distorted space made me lose consciousness.
Looking up at the sky, all I saw was pure darkness. An emptiness with no end in sight.
In contrast, the ground was white as if it were marble.
“What the…? Is it already over? I thought you’d at least fight back.”
My entire body felt like its bones had turned to powder. My ribs were broken, and I could barely breathe.
The one looking at me with a smirk was quite satisfied with themselves.
I had pushed back my own efforts to throw Pina into a place like this.
“There’s no way..!”
I popped the cap off the crimson potion I had just acquired and managed to pour it into my mouth.
The healing elixir.
Regardless of the wounds the user sustained, it would recover them over a period of time.
The bone that had protruded from my arm retracted and bent back in.
My body, which had turned into something like a rag, returned to its original state.
My blurry vision sharpened, and I was able to raise my stumbling body.
“Ri, Licht..? Is that really you?”
Just as I was about to draw my Mind Sword to confront, I saw a blonde-haired hero beside me.
Did Kainel get dragged here too? It seemed like only the heroes who posed a danger were picked out and dropped here.
“Kainel, are you alright?”
“Just about holding up..”
Fortunately, it looked like the light Holy Sword had protected him, as he appeared to be in better shape than I was before.
The guy was bluffing for no reason. He must have rolled around in this space and gotten himself hurt.
“…Teachers, students, they all vanished at once.”
“….”
“I should have protected Ariel…”
Watching the Demon King casually lounge before us, Kainel’s expression turned cold.
That guy seems to be toying with us. Perhaps it’s a part of his revenge for taking down his sister, Intinium.
‘If he wanted to kill us, we would have been dead earlier. And Kainel…’
He hasn’t become the Demon King of Light yet. That means Ariel must be unharmed.
“Ariel should be fine. Kainel.”
“What? How do you know that..?”
From what I gathered, that guy is Kainel’s sworn enemy.
In the original narrative of [Night Heart], he was described as the Demon King of the Hero Church who died.
Technically, he should have taken down the Demon King before moving on to the sequel.
The timing of this encounter is way too early. With Kainel’s current strength, he’s still outmatched.
“So snap out of it and draw your sword.”
The perpetrator who killed the Imperial Knights and burned down Ariel’s hometown. That was the Demon King of Might named Finn.
“Hey, leaving me out of the conversation is rude.”
BOOM─!! A massive fist charged toward us. Kainel’s movements transformed into a beam of light.
Such raw strength to bend space itself.
So that’s why Kainel got hurt. The reason I couldn’t dodge was due to that power.
Not a game of “uselessness,” but the true violence of might. At a glance, it seemed like a pun, but the Demon King’s attack felt threatening.
I barely managed to keep my opponent at bay with my concept, as a series of punches rained down on Kainel and me incessantly.
“What’s the deal?! You all look like a bunch of wimps!”
It was a relentless assault like a child playing in a sandcastle.
Before I could even think of a pattern, the white giant was trying to crush us.
Even if I swung my white blade at him, it was ineffective. A small attack wouldn’t even tickle him.
‘..Damn, is there no way..?!’
Kainel kept slashing with his sword, but it didn’t seem to affect at all.
Even trying to target Finn’s main body, he just blocked with his arm.
Think. There has to be a weakness. This cyclops imitates the user’s actions.
Wait, could it be…?
“Kainel!! Just like against the Shadow Wolf, aim for that spot!!”
In the case of the Shadow Wolf, everything except for its eye was an illusion. This might be similar.
It was a one-eyed giant. Therefore, the single eye was most likely its weak point.
Since earlier, whenever Kainel used Shine Strike, Finn had been desperately trying to shield his eyes.
“I got it. Licht!!”
Since passing the test from Tardun, his technique shifted from a direct attack to a bouncing blade.
The random beams of light gave me a hint. I signaled him and immediately, the hero ran up the giant’s arm.
“…What if the weakness is the eye?”
At that moment, Finn put on sunglasses. Instantly, the cyclops’ eye closed like he was shutting his eyelids.
Kainel was trying to stab the sword into the giant’s eye but it ended up being a miss.
So that was why he wore those shades. No matter how quirky the Demon King’s outfit was, there was a reason for wearing sunglasses at night.
“Nice try, but you just didn’t have the strength. You guys.”
Like swatting away a pesky fly, Finn waved his arm, sending the blonde-haired hero flying far away.
His motion was so indifferent that it felt like the Demon King considered us nothing more than a bothersome insect.
“Kainel!!”
I immediately moved my legs. As I raced to catch Kainel, plummeting from the sky, time seemed to slow down.
“…Struggle all you want. If you can.”
At that moment, darkness fell. A shadow cast quickly on the ground. The giant opened its mouth wide, aiming for my vulnerable spot.
“After all, you won’t be able to defeat the Demon King who made a pact with this giant.”
Those white, concrete building-like teeth approached me. In mere seconds, they would chew me up.
‘..I can’t be eaten along with Kainel.’
I quickly summoned Kiwu to make it rain glass. The glimmering droplets began to fall like gemstones from the sky.
Since this was subspace, it shouldn’t rain here normally.
But my Mind Sword was strengthened after battling Emperor Rock.
BAAAAM!
I managed to save Kainel and set him on the ground.
“..Thanks, Licht.”
It seemed like he managed to avoid major injuries, probably due to the shielding magic before getting attacked by Finn.
Just how tough is his life thread? Well, unlike me, he’s supposed to show up in the sequel, so he can’t die, right?
“See, any hero I bring will be weaker than me!”
The Demon King of Might, unaware that I had vanished, cheered while looking at the depressed ground.
The bite marks looked like a big chunk had been bitten out of a piece of cake. It was a close call, and I could have been digested alive.
“Kainel, recover your body with healing magic in advance.”
We had more fighting to do.
Only now did my concept start functioning. The fake Holy Sword replicating the opponent’s stats.
That Demon King’s powers were likely the same as Intinium—considering how slow the reactions were, it might be true.
The force of might (as in “power”) draining skill set against the gradually strengthening might (as in “combat power”) ability.
If that’s ironic, it’s a pretty peculiar relationship. The hero and the Demon King are fundamentally the same root.
‘Pina’s immense force must have been erased because of this guy….’
I held my sword and teleported. BANG─! My foot hit hard on the ground.
So that’s why I utilized the apostle in advance.
The longer time passes, the stronger the power becomes. A secret had finally begun to unravel.
Of course. Just because he’s a Demon King doesn’t mean he’s invincible.
“…What are these glass shards? Only they can invade subspace…”
At last noticing the strange falling glass rain, the Demon King of Might tilted his head.
“If the sunglasses are the problem…”
But it was too late. I’d already assumed the stance to unleash my attack as Emperor Rock.
“I’ll just smash it to bits.”
SHREEEEEEK─!! With the sound of air exploding, Finn unleashed a sonic boom from his sunglasses.
Now, even the adjustments from my concept were mixed in with the result.
“……This crazy bastard.”
Before the Demon King could even react, my sword sliced through his face.
*
Left all alone, Pina Grancia thought.
‘..Licht saved me again.’
It’s always like this. The Black Knight who takes hits directed at her.
Even knowing that she is the princess, he treats her with utmost ease and looks only at her.
If she hadn’t been wearing the masterpiece just now, she would have been targeted by the Demon King of Might.
Being the Empire’s princess and the daughter of Rock Grancia felt overwhelmingly heavy, like a weight pressing down on her.
‘Compared to that, I…’
She felt as if she could do nothing. Just now, when the Demon King attacked, she couldn’t do a thing.
For some reason, her heart started to feel heavy. The guilt of not being able to save her precious people from the Demon King overwhelmed her.
“…Oh? Are there still people left..?”
At that moment, a blue-haired girl approached Pina. Someone walking with a bright smile.
‘..How did Intinium come back to life?’
It was the same person she had seen before. The Demon King thought to be killed by Licht.
She knew the cards had fragmented, but what was her intention?
In that moment of doubt, the Demon King of Might tilted her head while looking at the girl.
“Well, I don’t mind… if I can help Finn…”
As if acting like someone she had never seen before, the Demon King’s demeanor caught Pina’s moment of distraction.
Just as she tried to strike Intinium’s neck with her sword.
“You too…come play with me in subspace…”
A massive, pure white foot descended from the sky and slammed Pina deep underground.
