The battlefield where Marius, Albert, and Franklin were fighting was in mid-air.
Marius was forced to constantly use flying and breathing support magic, but he had no intention of descending to fight on the ground.
Albert, with his colossal physique, charged at him with incredible speed.
Since Marius, a mage, found it difficult to track Albert’s speed, he chose a wide-area spell that didn’t require precise targeting.
“Burn all and trample them!
Thanks to the “Ring of Divine Words,” he cast it without incantation.
However, just as Albert was about to be engulfed in white infernal flames, Franklin’s incantation echoed.
“
The water-based support spell “Hydroveil” enveloped his entire body in mist, significantly reducing the fire attack, and the water-based defense spell “Aquashield” also covered his entire body, acting as a shield.
Both spells were extinguished by the white infernal flames, but they succeeded in halving its power.
A demon like Albert could avoid great damage with that.
While his body was being scorched by the flames, Marius, clad in a tempest, advanced and evaded with “Warp.”
Then, Franklin cast spells again.
“
Albert’s “burn status” was instantly healed, and his wounds were mended.
This two-on-one battle had been repeated several times. Marius, even with his transference, could not cast spells simultaneously and always required a brief moment of time.
A quick glance downwards revealed that the ground was ravaged by the aftermath of the battle. This was the biggest reason Marius didn’t want to land. Even though the aerial battle was taking place, it caused damage to the ground. If he had landed, how much more damage would there have been?
(I have to do something.)
Not much time had passed since the battle began, so no front lines would have collapsed yet, but he couldn’t afford to struggle for too long. The most troublesome opponent here was not Albert, but Franklin. Franklin, who moved at high speed in the air to make it hard for Marius to track him, and continuously cast multiple high-level spells at effective timings, was truly problematic. On top of that, he used healing magic, greatly recovering from any hits from Marius’s offensive spells.
However, if he changed his target to Franklin, Albert’s charge would become a threat. Marius’s physical durability was no different from that of an ordinary mage, so even one hit could be fatal.
(As expected of a high-ranking demon close to a Demon Lord.)
It would be a lie to say he hadn’t underestimated them. To win, Marius had three options: defeat Franklin first, break through Franklin’s support and defeat Albert, or defeat both of them at once. There were likely other options, but Marius couldn’t think of any plan that would lead to victory in a short time. To defeat both of them at once, he would need to increase his firepower, but it had dropped due to the constant casting of two types of magic. He had to do something.
(…Wait a minute?)
Marius suddenly had an idea. If he attacked the air from the ground, and didn’t allow them to counter, wouldn’t that prevent damage to the ground? It was a sudden flash of inspiration, but it seemed like a pretty good idea. If he landed, he wouldn’t need to use flying or breathing support magic, and for a moment, the two of them might enter the range of one spell. At that moment, he could unleash an attack with his maximum firepower. Deciding to at least try, he warped to the ground.
“Hmph.”
Albert lost sight of him for a moment, but Franklin caught him accurately.
“Down here.”
Albert spread his wings wide and descended in a straight line.
“I won’t let you escape.”
To Albert, it seemed Marius had realized his disadvantage and given up on the aerial battle. Franklin had a bad feeling about this, but he couldn’t abandon Albert, so he cast supplementary spells on both of them.
“
Marius had only used fire-based “Exharatio” and lightning-based “Tonitulus” so far. Franklin inferred that he could use other elements, but against them, he was sticking to his strong suits. He believed this was the difference between lower-ranking and higher-ranking beings. That proved to be a grave mistake immediately. Seeing Albert and Franklin enter his range, Marius smirked, “Just as planned.” Franklin skillfully maintained the distance, positioning himself at a delicate spot where they wouldn’t be hit directly and could immediately respond with magic if something happened. It was true that with “Grade 1 magic,” it would be difficult to inflict fatal damage on these high-ranking demons in one blow. However, Marius had never shown his limits.
“All things flow. O inevitable law, O transient wind, bring my enemies to their end!
Five streaks of black light swirled from Marius’s body, blowing like a fierce gale. The survival instincts of the high-ranking demons issued their highest warning, but the torrent of black light attacked with such speed that they had no time to evade. The two “Dimension Shields” Franklin hastily deployed were easily pierced by the torrent of black light, which then engulfed Albert and Franklin. When the torrent of black light disappeared, Albert and Franklin had completely vanished. The destructive black wind that annihilated all defensive magic and the durability of high-ranking demons into nothingness. Its limitation is that it extends as far as the caster’s magic power reaches, but it erases all beings it touches. It is the strongest and most detestable of special-grade spells, “Annihilation.” The reason it is called the worst of forbidden spells can be seen from the fact that even the clouds floating far above Franklin and the others had vanished. As long as the caster’s magic power reaches, it indiscriminately annihilates everything it touches. It wouldn’t reach the sun, of course, but the fear that something irrecoverable could happen if it did was not negligible. Marius exhaled deeply. Constantly casting flying and breathing support magic, using high-level offensive and teleportation spells, and finally casting a special-grade spell had, as expected, exhausted him.
(I didn’t want to use a forbidden spell… Annihilation, of all things.)
After all, he couldn’t take responsibility for it. However, with a battle for the fate of humanity unfolding, he had an almost defiant thought: was this a time to be so concerned? If he took his time, he might have been able to defeat them even with Grade 1 magic, but what would happen to the human army? Having decided to act as a member of their forces, he felt it was his duty to act to save as many people as possible, and he didn’t want to run away from that. Just in case, he drank a fatigue recovery potion he received from Barra. His magic power had already recovered most of what he had used, thanks to the combination of the Sage’s “Reduced Magic Consumption” and “Major Magic Recovery” skills, as well as the effects of his equipment.
(Still, it’s a real balance breaker.)
Extra items are almost against the rules. When Auraniess was designated the “Final Boss,” quite a few players freaked out, saying, “Has the developer decided to end the service soon?” It was understandable. However, due to Auraniess, the balance-breaker feeling was not that strong, and the number of players who quit did not increase significantly. A few seconds later, his fatigue was almost fully recovered. He figured that not much time had passed, and given that, there was a high possibility of fighting the remaining three demons consecutively. He had recovered his fatigue now in preparation for that. Marius, realizing he was starting to be seen as humanity’s beacon of hope, secretly thought it would be better not to show any unsightly behavior. Of course, there was also the masculine desire not to show his uncool side to Barra, Lovisa, and the others. First, he warped to rescue Ranleo.
When Marius returned to Ranleo’s Kabeer Fortress using “Teleport,” humanity had taken overwhelming superiority. There were a considerable number of casualties, but their morale was so high that even Marius could tell at a glance. Upon closer inspection, the movements of the zombie soldiers were unnaturally poor, and humanity was attacking them one-sidedly. Although it would take time to annihilate them due to sheer numbers, the outcome of the battle might have already been decided. As he thought this, Zofi flew towards him. She had hurried over after finding Marius when she returned to the fortress after healing.
“Master! I defeated Pal.”
“Oh, so that’s why. Good work.”
Marius, surprised, accepted the item “Onyx Owl’s Soul.” Zofi, while appearing to be of the martial type, was a Succubus. He had assumed she would struggle against demons who seemed specialized in combat.
“To be honest, it would have been dangerous if I hadn’t learned Laser.”
“I see. Good to know, I suppose.”
Marius commented on Zofi’s report but had no time to linger, so he decided to wrap things up.
“I’m going to assist elsewhere now. Can you still fight?”
“Yes. I will accompany you.”
Zofi’s reply was without hesitation. Apart from the humans, he was worried about Al and El, and also calculated that the more he performed well, the higher Marius’s evaluation of him would be.
“Marius-sama should head to Uppsala Castle in Boltner. If El focuses on buying time, she should be able to hold out against Gastark.”
“Hmm. Then, let’s do that.”
Marius accepted Zofi’s suggestion, first teleporting her to Appalachia Fortress in Seraeno, and then using “Attach” to teleport himself to Barra’s side. “Attach” is a teleportation magic that allows one to move to the vicinity of an acquaintance. It was a useful spell in his gaming days, allowing him to travel to places he had never been as long as he had an acquaintance there.
As Marius teleported, Barra had just been blown away by Rebera’s sword intent and was flying toward him. Marius silently caught Barra.
“Eh…?”
Barra, who was attempting to land using a restraining spell, turned around in surprise. Her expression then lit up with joy.
“Marius-sama!”
“Sorry to keep you waiting.”
Marius replied with a slightly dramatic tone. Al, August III, and the castle soldiers also noticed Marius’s presence, and loud cheers erupted.
“Look, it’s Marius-sama!”
“Does that mean he defeated the demons!?”
“We can win!”
With Marius, an ally, having defeated two high-ranking demons and rushed to their aid, the castle soldiers’ morale increased a hundredfold. Conversely, Rebera, the demon, experienced the opposite psychological shift compared to the humans.
“I-I-Impossible… Lord Albert and Lord Franklin… were defeated by a human?”
He dropped his greatsword in disbelief and clutched his head with both hands, groaning. Marius, after confirming there was no one around Rebera, cast:
“
He struck with a Grade 1 ice spell. Rebera, still clutching his head with both hands, instantly froze and then shattered. Unlike “Exharatio,” “Congelatio” is an excellent spell that can only attack a specific target. After Rebera’s annihilation, a small ring rolled near his greatsword. Marius confirmed it and casually observed his surroundings, thinking that humanity had actually fought surprisingly well. It was a pleasant surprise that Barra, August III, and Al were fighting well against a demon in a three-on-one situation. While he could have come to their aid earlier, the human casualties were still low.
(Was I being overconfident?)
The expectations placed upon him might have subconsciously led him to believe that “the humans in this world can’t do anything without me.” The people of this world were much stronger and tougher than Marius had imagined. In fact, although they rejoiced at his arrival, no one reacted with “Why couldn’t you come sooner?” As Marius reflected that he needed to change his thinking to avoid shame, Barra cleared her throat to get his attention. Marius had his arm around Barra’s shoulder. While Barra personally welcomed it, she had to act as Princess Ranleo in public. Moreover, they were still in the middle of a war.
“My apologies.”
“N-no. Thank you for saving me when I was in danger.”
Despite being a battlefield, a strange atmosphere developed. The pure and yearning air, exuded by the innocent boy and girl, was broken by Al.
“Master, I’m sorry, but could you do something about these undead soldiers?”
Snap-ping back to reality at his words, Marius nodded and began to consider future strategies. Barra, though disappointed, was not a girl who lacked discretion and began purifying the nearby zombies. The castle soldiers also respectfully pretended not to notice and dealt with the zombies.
(If I defeat Gastark, that should do it… but if he’s a mage and focuses on evasion, it might be tricky.)
Franklin also used “Warp” mixed with high-speed movement, making him difficult to track. It would be too optimistic to assume Gastark couldn’t do the same. It did not seem like a bad strategy to evade Marius and have the undead attack from multiple directions simultaneously. If he didn’t hold back, it might not be impossible.
“Barra-sama, could you tell me about the geography?”
Marius asked Barra about the relative positions of Uppsala Castle in Boltner, Kabeer Fortress in Ranleo, and Appalachia Fortress in Seraeno. Barra looked puzzled, but perhaps sensing that she could be useful to Marius, she happily provided the information. Marius memorized what he was taught and then teleported to the northwest of Uppsala Castle. Then, he used the “Dragon God’s Staff” as an item. The effect of using the Dragon God’s Staff as an item was to increase the range of magic. Someone had apparently shouted, “How far are the developers going?”
“O wandering souls, return to your rightful forms by following the guiding light!
Marius chose purification magic. Since it was just magic to purify the undead, there would be no problem even if he accidentally involved allies. A torrent of pure white light, which purifies the undead, fell upon the undead like a great flood. It swallowed the undead soldiers surrounding Uppsala Castle and then surged towards the direction of Kabeer Fortress in Ranleo. The Boltner front line only registered up to that point. The white flood of purification reached Kabeer Fortress, passed through the surrounding area, and headed towards Appalachia Fortress in Seraeno.
“W-what was that?”
“Is it a natural disaster?”
“Divine punishment?”
While the Ranleo front line was in chaos, only Zofi realized it was Marius’s purification magic and was astonished. Eventually, the light reached Appalachia Fortress and engulfed the encroaching undead army. When the light disappeared, millions of undead had vanished.
“W-what was that light?”
“Divine punishment?”
“An attack from the Demon Lord?”
The soldiers at Appalachia Fortress were in confusion, looking around and muttering their thoughts. No one could immediately comprehend what had happened. No, the people of Uppsala Castle understood what had happened before their eyes, but they didn’t want to believe it.
“Incredible. Marius-sama, your power is like that of a god!”
There was one exception, as Barra praised Marius loudly and innocently. However, even Barra did not fully understand what Marius had done. The distance from Uppsala Castle to Kabeer Fortress was tens of kilometers, as was the distance between Kabeer Fortress and Appalachia Fortress. It was difficult to believe that magic could reach that far. However, the fact that approximately one million undead soldiers in front of them had vanished was a clear reality, and Barra understood that much. Next, Al regained his senses and joined Barra’s cheers for Marius. As a result, others also joined in chanting for Marius. The man himself, feeling fatigued, was drinking a potion.
“As expected, super wide-area attacks are tiring.”
Only Barra, August III, and Al could hear his muttered words. Barra and Al were genuinely impressed, while August III’s face twitched, thinking, “He’s just tired,” but he managed to suppress his voice.
“Well then, I’ll go defeat Gastark.”
With a brief announcement, Marius flew to El’s side using “Attach.”
“I’m truly glad he’s on our side…”
Even August III, renowned as a valiant warrior and who had bravely fought against the demon Rebera, was dripping cold sweat from his entire body.
For Gastark, it was a too-shocking sight. The torrent of white light suddenly engulfed his subordinate undead, and then they were all annihilated.
“I-I-Impossible… How could this be…”
Gastark was stunned, repeating the same words as if in a daze. As a mage, he could not help but understand that it was a purification spell. Otherwise, the human army would not have been spared while they were engulfed. The problem was that the magic came from outside his field of vision. He wondered how much power it would take to do such a thing.
“This… is impossible… it cannot be possible…”
Gastark’s knowledge as a mage refused to accept reality. To unleash magic from an ultra-long distance, unseen by a demon like him, and maintain its power, was beyond human capability.
“You must be Gastark.”
That’s why he didn’t notice Marius’s arrival and reacted late. To Marius, spotting someone who looked like a mage floating alone in the sky, far from Appalachia Fortress, made him easy to identify.
“Y-yes… Are you Marius?”
Gastark’s voice trembled as he swallowed repeatedly, but he still mustered his courage and glared at Marius.
“That’s right. I’m going to kill you.”
Marius raised his hand to stop him, about to attack without further ado.
“W-wait! Are you a Saint? Or a Warlock?”
Gastark couldn’t help but ask. He couldn’t believe someone with such extraordinary power was merely a human. He wanted to know if they were a Warlock like himself, or their opposite, a Saint. It was beyond anyone’s guesswork. Marius didn’t understand it either, but Gastark’s question surprised him slightly. Saint and Warlock were both terms he had heard before. They were the highest-tier professions for mage-type units. Before his reincarnation, becoming a Saint was one of Marius’s goals.
“Neither. I’m a ‘Sage,’ one step below that.”
Marius, to his own surprise, answered honestly. Gastark’s eyes widened at an answer beyond his expectations.
“Sage…? What is that?”
Marius intuitively felt that Gastark’s confusion was genuine, but he decided it was not good to talk further and unleashed his magic.
“
Gastark was unable to evade or defend, and was engulfed in white infernal flames. With his death, humanity’s victory was decided, but it would take considerable time for those around him to grasp what Marius had accomplished that day. The borders of the three kingdoms were too far apart for information to be shared quickly. When people learned of Marius’s deeds accurately, a new entry was added to the legends of Marius: “Marius repels millions of demonic forces.”
“Marius is a hero, capable of surpassing even Melinda Guilford.”
This evaluation was first made during this battle, and no one disagreed.
