Chapter 40: A Battle with this Hound Dog of Hell!

Proofreader: LordVTP

Part 1

"I think I made a big mistake."

I said, while staring at the Arch-Duke of Hell, who I forcefully teleported with me to my dungeon.

Maouko is supposed to be the final boss, yet this extraordinarily OP guy shows up out of nowhere, wanting to hunt me down.

"Oh? Have you finally realized the futility of your actions? If you surrender now, I promise to not lay a hand on you until we arrive in Hell. There's no point in rushing your eternal torment. It's eternal after all! Haha!"

He started laughing as if his joke was funny at all.

"Um… Aesir-san? Is there any way we can negotiate…?"

"No. Even a Devil such as I will not make deals with a scumbag like you, who has broken the laws of Hell."

I guess that really is out of the table.

"Now, will you stop stalling? You've been sending waves and waves of monsters after me. I hope you have a better plan than that."

I ordered the monsters under my employ to keep Aesir busy, while I thought of a plan.

They kept him busy for a while, but I don't think he's even going all out.

Seriously. What am I going to do against this guy?!

I guess I can just use the wish Eris still owes us…

Maybe I can wish him away?

But even if I do that, I have a feeling that Hell will just put an even larger bounty on me.

And as Vanir demonstrated, Devils are pretty much immortal. Even if their physical bodies are destroyed, they can just keep coming back.

"Master! I've arrived as you've requested! Wait… Is that…? Aaannd I'm out…"

"Oi, don't leave me here!"

Beldia answered my summons, only to promptly back out as soon as he recognized Aesir.

"B-B-But don't you know who that is?! That's not an enemy we should be fighting! Why is he even here?!"

Beldia, with his towering, armored body, hid behind the scrawny me.

"The reason why he's here is not important. What's important is finding a way to beat him."

"It's master's fault, isn't it?! There's no way Hell would send such a big shot over unless master broke one of their laws, or something!"

He figured it out instantly.

"Technically, this means that the contract between us is void! I'm not obligated to serve you as a dungeon boss anymore!"

Beldia, upon realizing this, immediately extracted himself from me, even though he had been clinging so tightly and using me as a shield earlier.

"Beldia, what if I make it worth your time?"

"What are you talking about…"

Beldia paused as he saw the look on my face.

It is a look only a fellow pervert will understand.

"Beldia, you've seen what I can do. That hot spring bath is only one of the many pervy services I can provide for the faithful employees of this dungeon…"

"But you didn't even let me peek on Wiz-san…"

"That's only because you came barging in with that big body of yours and alerted everyone. What if…"

I leaned over and whispered where I approximated his right ear would be.

"Oho! Ohohohoho!"

He started panting creepily as I shared my plans with him.

"I've outweighed the pros and cons. I will side with you, master."

That was easy.

He picked up his sword, pointed it at Aesir, and charged.

"Hiyahh!"

"...! Aren't you a former Devil King general?! Why are you attacking me!"

A surprised Aesir leapt out of the way as Beldia slashed his sword at him.

"T-This man still has me under his contract and is forcing me to attack Aesir-sama! I can't help it!"

"I see… Truly, that man is despicable! An enemy of Hell! Don't worry, comrade Beldia, I'll soon free you!"

I get that he has to protect his own hide, but Beldia's little act still pisses me off.

While Beldia is keeping Aesir occupied, this is a good time to observe Aesir's fighting style.

Unlike Vanir's unpredictable movements and flexible body, Aesir's movements were much more controlled and stiff.

Vanir's body is made out of dirt, which made him capable of twisting and contorting to avoid fatal blows.

Aesir's body could be made of a more inflexible material.

My assumptions were proven correct when Beldia managed to land a hit. Aesir had to protect his side with his forearm, which blocked the brunt of the attack.

Sparks flew as Beldia's sword and Aesir's arm met in a collision. A distinct, sharp resonance rang out.

It seems Aesir's body is made out of some kind of steel.

Well, the body shouldn't be our target. A Devil's real body is their mask.

But I doubt Aesir will give us many chances to damage his mask.

For now, while Aesir is occupied, I used Lurk to erase myself from his immediate attention.

All of his attention is now focused on Beldia, who is proving to be an excellent distraction.

I discreetly drew my new demonic longbow. I created some ice arrows with Create Water, Freeze and the Craft skill.

After casting many strength buffs on myself, I took aim,

"Snipe!"

I aimed right at his mask.

"...!"

Aesir's inhuman reflexes let him swerve his head to the side, but I still managed to fracture a significant fraction of his mask.

He fell on one knee, his life seemingly being drained from him.

D-Did I really take him down so easily?

Even Beldia looked surprised as he stopped mid-swing and looked down at the downed Aesir.

"...I underestimated you. I should have taken Maouko's warnings more seriously."

Aesir opened his mouth, revealing a set of black canines.

"T-That is…!"

Beldia backed away as he saw Aesir's hidden fangs.

Suddenly, the air in the room shifted.

"...!"

My body, which had been in a relaxed position, returned to the combat stance I took while firing the arrow.

Then, inexplicably, the arrow that pierced through Aesir's mask and landed behind him, reversed its trajectory.

It travelled course through Aesir's pierced mask, the fragments of which started to return to its pristine, undamaged condition. The arrow I had fired returned and notched itself back into my readied bow.

It was if a tape had been rewound. Every subtle movement of the past several seconds had been readjusted as if they never occurred at all. Only the memories of those actions remained.

"Um… Excuse me? What was that?"

A shaking Beldia explained,

"T-The 'Fangs of Satan'. It is one of the legendary artifacts, which are gifted to the Arch-Dukes of Hell and the Devil King himself…"

"Fufu. Indeed. This artifact allows me to reverse any action or events that have occurred in the last five seconds, as long as I have the mana to supply the ability. With this artifact, I can bare my fangs, lash my teeth in rejection, at the course of fate itself. I admit that such a rebellious and impudent ability doesn't suit me, one who stringently abides by the rules and laws of Hell. But Lord Satan himself has chosen to give me this power, and I cannot refuse his wishes…"

Scary! This guy is too scary!

As if he couldn't get any more OP!

He said that he can only use the ability if he has the mana to supply it, but I bet that this guy has limitless mana.

"Eris-sama…! Save me! I wanna use my wish!"

In desperation, I tried to summon Eris.

Instead, I heard her voice in my head.

"S-Sorry, assistant-kun! Um… I'm kind of busy in a conference with my superiors right now! Darkness kind of did something… really stupid, and it'll be really bad if I don't get her out of this! Please, hang in there!"

Eris always had time to goof off in her Chris form, and now, of all times, she's actually busy.

And what was that about Darkness?

What did that pervert Crusader do now?!

Part 2

"Golems! Attack!"

I resorted to sending waves and waves of disposable mooks to keep Aesir busy, while I desperately tried to think of a way to defeat this OP devil.

The golems who stayed behind to keep watch of the dungeon rushed Aesir in droves.

"This is getting repetitive. Aesir-style Death Saber!"

Not only does Aesir have that broken time reversal artifact, he also has an attack similar to the Vanir-style Death Ray. But Aesir's version is more akin to Yunyun's favorite 'Light of Saber' spell.

The attack was limited in range, but it was still very destructive. He managed to take out a significant portion of the golems.

"Golem Arrows! Attack!"

Golem Arrows, a special variant of golems formed through Golem Transmutation, flew through the air at my command. But Aesir easily destroyed them as well.

"Um… Master? What's the plan now?"

"First, I need to establish my escape plan…"

While Aesir is busy, I used my new skill, Delayed Spellcasting.

This allows me to cast a spell and delay its effect for one hour, or until I choose to activate it within that time span.

I chose the Teleport spell. This will allow me to make a quick getaway without wasting time on chanting the spell, or worrying about mana expenditure.

I still have some manatite crystals in my bag, but I want to reserve those for later.

Instead, I commanded one of the golems to come to my side.

"Drain Touch."

I drained the mana from the golem with Drain Touch. As it takes a significant amount of mana to power a golem, I was able to restore my reserves to full capacity. The phantom that was residing within the golem vacated its host.

"For now, we should try and test the limits of that artifact."

"What does master mean?"

"He can reverse time for five seconds, but what if we deal constant damage on him? He can't keep reversing time forever, can he?"

"Err… Well it seems like he can, but we can try it anyway, if master wishes."

How pessimistic.

"Hah? You're all just going to rush me? I thought you'd come up with a better plan than that…"

Aesir sighed as I commanded the golems and Beldia to attack all at once. Aesir was assaulted from all angles, but he either shrugged off the attacks with his sturdy body, or dodged them completely.

"Aesir-style Death Saber!"

Or sometimes he'd just completely decimate whatever was in front of him.

Meanwhile, during all the confusion…

I used Lurk and hid in the crowd.

I timed my attack with Beldia's. While both of Aesir's arms were occupied by a mighty swing from Beldia's sword, I snuck behind Aesir, grabbing his head from behind. Then I took out one of my hidden daggers and cut across his mask.

"You got me again?! Fangs of Satan…! I bare my fangs at Fate!"

Before the mask could fully dissolve, time was reversed once more.

His mask started to reform while my blade was forcibly ejected. The time reversal made my body retrace its steps until I was hidden in the crowd once more, back where I started.

"I see. You're timing your attacks in such a way that I can't track you if I reverse time. It seems that I should give you some credit. But you're only delaying the inevitable. Only I have the ability to accomplish such a feat. On the other hand, you are a slave to fate. And your fate is to submit yourself to me…! Aesir-style Death Saber!"

He cleared away the rows of golems in front of me, revealing my location.

"I found you~!"

I grabbed the two golems beside me.

"Golem Transmutation!"

The two golems morphed around my body and formed into a full-body armor.

"What?!"

The Golem Armor defended me from Aesir's fist as he tried to take a swing at my gut.

Aesir decided to knock me out with a punch rather than tear me to shreds with his Death Saber.

It seems that Aesir was tasked to take me back alive.

That probably means that Hell doesn't have a complete claim on my soul.

I don't have a complete understanding of how the afterlife works in this world, but I am a hero who has done many great deeds.

I doubt that breaking their laws would give Hell complete dominion over the soul of a hero.

So if they want to bring me down there, Aesir needs to capture me alive.

I still have a chance…!

I grabbed Aesir into a bear hug.

"Golem Transmutation!"

I reformed the Golem Armor to form around Aesir instead. Now he's the one clad in the earthen armor. But he doesn't have control over the phantom spirits within. He's trapped.

I realize that I can just escape to heaven now, since I marked Eris's realm as a teleportation target..

But if I don't defeat Aesir here and send a message, I doubt Hell will leave me alone.

"Tsk…! You think you've captured me?! Fangs of…!"

"Not so fast…!"

Beldia drew near the captured Aesir, ready to attack at any time.

"If you reverse time, that means you'll be forgoing that Golem Armor, and it will return to me. Once that happens, Beldia will cut your exposed mask in two. Now let's see if you can use that ability of yours consecutively…!"

"...! Damn you! How dare you test me like this! Fangs of Satan! I bare my fangs at Fate!"

Forced to make a decision as the seconds ticked by, Aesir reversed time once more.

The golem armor reshaped itself around me, the earthen fragments connecting like puzzle pieces.

"Don't think that I'm completely dependent on this artifact…!"

Aesir's mask forcefully ejected itself from its metallic host. Beldia's blade cleaved cleanly through the abandoned husk, splitting it in half, vertically.

Remembering how Darkness was possessed by Vanir's mask last time, I steered clear from Beldia's reach.

Beldia also had the awareness to remove himself from the ejected mask's vicinity.

However, there were many golems around.

Aesir hijacked one of them. Then, he grabbed the surrounding golems and absorbed them into his own body. The phantoms within were forced out.

His newly acquired earthen body took on Aesir's previous appearance, while his abandoned metal body collapsed on the ground.

"...You have a lot of tricks, don't you? As a Devil, I can't help but be impressed. When I heard a rumor that you had beaten Vanir in a contest of wits before, I figured that Vanir was playing some kind of long game, that it was all part of his ruse, but maybe the all-seeing Devil gifted with the 'Eyes of Satan' really was bested by you?"

Is he saying that Vanir's near omnipresent ability is also an artifact?

"Fufu. This started out as work, a routine bounty job. But now it's personal. I won't let you make a fool out of the proud Arch-Dukes of Hell, Satou Kazuma!"

Crap.

Part 3

Aesir is tearing through the golems.

Right now, I can safely hide my presence, but that won't last.

"Master, did you come up with another plan? The last one was good, but it was pretty useless in the end…"

"Err… Well, just keep up the good work, Beldia."

"There's no plan?!"

Aesir dispatched another golem that was leaping at him, then he spotted me as I emerged out of the crowd.

"So you're going to attack me head on now? I thought you were just a clever coward, but maybe you've got the pride of a warrior in you…?"

I drew my partner, Chunchunmaru. Beside me, Beldia also poised his blade.

"Yes, come! Let us clash blades! Struggle all you wish, but you are not the masters of your own destiny! That is I, Aesir!"

This time, Aesir projected two blades of red energy from his hands.

"Hah!"

Beldia heaved his helmet into the air, giving him the perfect vantage point to watch the battle. The now headless knight made his first move.

"Doryaaa!"

Beldia's mighty swing had enough concussive force to cause Aesir to slide and shift, disturbing his stance. But Aesir was unharmed as he easily caught the blow with one energy blade.

"Excellent! Come, warriors! Fight, bleed and howl!"

As Beldia chambered his blade for another strike, I approached from Aesir's blind spot.

I attempted to stab his exposed mask.

But Aesir, without even sparing a glance, raised his free hand and swung at me.

I was able to evade the defensive swing with the ever dependable Auto-Dodge skill.

"Do you think that your sneaky little attacks will work on me again? How naive!"

After easily halting my attack, Aesir was able to prepare himself for Beldia's next strike.

This time, Aesir chose to deflect Bedlia's series of consecutive strikes instead of blocking them.

Regardless, Beldia is still putting pressure on Aesir. He's a former Devil King army general for a reason.

Aesir knows that Beldia is invulnerable to most counterattacks, while his head is up in the air. He didn't take the risk of opening himself for a counterattack by attacking Beldia without a clear opening.

This means that Aesir was on the defensive.

I sheathed Chunchunmaru and drew out my Demonic longbow. I created an ice arrow.

"Snipe! Rapid-shot!"

I launched a barrage of arrows, each one honed in on his mask.

But with Aesir's other hand still free, he was able to destroy the incoming arrows. I guess the same trick doesn't work on him twice.

It seems that Aesir is also wary of using his time reversal now that he knows we can exploit its short five second span.

After seeing how he hijacked the golems last time, I ordered the golems to stay away, limiting Aesir's methods of escape.

Maybe now, we should try to overwhelm Aesir with consecutive attacks again?

"Fireball!"

I used an Intermediate level magic.

The popular Fireball spell that you can see in most fantasy works.

The cautious Aesir evaded the attack.

He leaped over the bright orange orb. It landed behind him, missing its target.

"H-Hey! Master, be careful with those spells! I'm within range, too!"

I ignored Beldia as I drew my rope.

Those two are so focused on their sword match, they didn't notice that the Fireball has yet to combust.

That's because I used the Delayed Spellcasting skill to halt the blast.

It seems Aesir finally noticed that the seemingly errant Fireball was still hovering behind him.

But before he could run away…

"Bind!"

The rope wrapped around Aesir's torso and legs. As he was in mid stride, he fell on the ground.

"Oi, Beldia, this is your warning! Delayed Blast Fireball!"

"W-Wait, I'm still in range…?!"

"Tsk! Fangs of Satan! I bare my fangs at fate!"

Aesir, predictably, used his time reversal.

The Bind was undone and the rope snaked its way through the air and returned to me.

The Fireball, which was about to swell and detonate, was returned to its delayed state.

Aesir breathed a sigh of relief, until he noticed that the orange orb was still there.

Since the delayed spell was casted before the span of the last five seconds, the time reversal couldn't reverse its initial activation.

That means that even after the time reversal, I can attempt to detonate it for the second time…!

"Delayed Blast Fireball!"

"Master…?!"

It's unfortunate, but Beldia will also be caught in the blast.

Part 4

Aesir received significant burns, and Beldia was also a bit scorched.

But as you would expect from these powerful, boss-type individuals, they were able to tank Intermediate rank magic.

Still, every bit of irreversible damage we can deal to Aesir is welcome.

Aesir looked around for materials to absorb and repair his body.

The walls and floors are made of concrete, but it seems like Aesir can't shape such solid materials without a lot of prep time. That explains why he didn't return to his metal body and try to repair it.

That means he needs dirt or some form of malleable earth, like Vanir. It's a good thing I already asked the golems to leave.

"...You continue to surprise me, Satou Kazuma. In a short amount of time, you've figured out this artifact's weakness and have managed to inflict some damage to me."

He says he's impressed, but he still looks like he wants to seriously beat me up.

This time, he ignored Beldia and rushed at me. Without the golems to hide amongst, he now has a direct path to me.

His movements were a bit awkward due to the damage he sustained from the blast.

Auto-Dodge activated, and combined with my Acrobat skill, I was able to roll out of the way.

"Tsk…! You're starting to annoy me! Stay still!"

He yelled, as I kept deftly dodging his attacks. Then, with his attention focused on me, Beldia managed to sneak behind Aesir.

"Hiyaah!"

"Urk…!"

Aesir barely managed to dodge Beldia's downwards slash, but Beldia readjusted his sword swing before it could hit the ground. He got Aesir with a slanted, upwards strike. Chunks of dirt scattered from Aesir's body.

"Damn it…!"

We beat him before, but this Beldia guy is pretty damn strong, isn't he?

I'm glad he's my minion now.

"You… Beldia, are you really under the control of this man? It seems you're trying to take me down with all of your might!"

"Er… This guy is just that good! He has complete control of my movements! He's controlling me like I'm a puppet!"

"...! I see! You're truly despicable, Satou Kazuma! Don't worry, comrade Beldia! I'll soon save you from the clutches of this filthy human!"

"T-Thank you, Aesir-sama!"

I get that Beldia needs to keep up the act, but there's no need to keep throwing me under the bus.

Or I guess, in my case, throwing me under the tractor.

I drew Chunchunmaru and attacked while Aesir is distracted. He just managed to move his head out of the way from my thrust.

Then, taking inspiration from Beldia, I changed direction and slashed down. However, Aesir shifted his body in time, making it bend at an unnatural angle to dodge the attack.

Aesir was about to counterattack now that I've exposed myself, but Beldia was there to cover for me. Aesir had to completely disengage as Beldia tried to cleave his body in half with a sweeping slash.

As Aesir attempted to create some distance, I drew my rope.

"Bind!"

"...!"

Aesir was captured again by the reliable Bind skill.

Using the Quick-Draw skill , I dropped Chunchunmaru and immediately had the Demonic longbow in my hands.

"Surpass Limits! Power-Up! Luck-Up! Snipe!"

With Aesir disabled, he couldn't dodge the super-powered Snipe.

His mask shattered into small pieces.

My goal was to completely destroy the mask before he could reverse time.

I healed my torn arm muscles, damaged from the recoil, as I watched his mask disintegrate.

Only to see it reform once again.

This time, however, there is a roman numeral 'two' on his mask.

Even with the time reversal ability, Devils still have multiple lives.

Aesir stood once more, ready to fight.

Part 5

For now, I had Beldia distract Aesir while I took a break.

I'm throwing everything I have at him, but Aesir refuses to go down.

I used a manatite crystal to replenish my mana.

Meanwhile, it looks like Aesir still has a lot left in the tank.

This guy is too OP. Please nerf.

His only real weakness is his range. So far, Aesir hasn't shown any long ranged attacks. His Death Saber is limited to sword-distance range.

As for that artifact of his, I haven't figured out its total range yet.

I don't know if he can influence time beyond this area or not.

I used Lurk on myself once more. I don't have any hiding places, but Beldia is doing a great job occupying Aesir's attention.

I put away the Demonic longbow, picked up Chunchunmaru from the ground and sheathed it.

Instead, I drew two of my daggers, one on each hand.

I snuck my way into Aesir's blind spot, and then…

I threw the daggers, sending them whirling through the air in an arc. I aimed for that elusive mask of his.

Aesir didn't know where I would attack from, but he was well prepared for an attack, nonetheless. He easily destroyed the daggers with a sweep of his Death Saber. He didn't even need to look.

"Create Water, Freeze, Craft…"

I created two ice daggers.

"Dancing Daggers…"

I silently said the name of the skill.

Then I threw the ice daggers one at a time, delaying the throw on the last dagger.

They whizzed past Aesir's mask and continued to spin away into the farthest corners of the room.

Aesir smirked at what he assumed was my misfire as he returned his attention to Beldia.

Dancing Daggers, the skill Iris used during the tournament.

Its effect is that once a dagger is thrown…

"What?! Gurk…!"

...Like a boomerang, the dagger will return from where it's thrown.

I caught the first returning dagger as I watched Aesir's mask disintegrate once more.

But it seems like Aesir is a sore loser.

"Fangs of Satan! I bare my fangs at fate!"

Even if he has multiple lives, he refuses to give his opponents the satisfaction of victory, no matter how temporary.

His mask reformed once more.

But by this time, the second dagger I had thrown also returned.

"What?! Ahhh!"

This one, coming later, pierced through Aesir's mask, destroying it just as it had reformed.

Now there's the number '3' on his mask.

I've confirmed the range of his time reversal.

There was a time delay with the daggers I threw, but what was important was that the daggers extended beyond the time reversal's range.

"You… I'm getting sick and tired of playing with you… Both of you…"

For the first time in this fight, he looked at Beldia maliciously.

He's feeling cornered now. He must be running out of lives.

"G-Gulp. U-Um… Please remember that I am under that man's control! I'm not doing this because I want to!"

"If that's true, comrade Beldia, then you wouldn't mind if I send your soul back to Hell, yes? I'll have a much easier time taking down this man if you're out of the picture…"

"T-That makes a lot of sense! But don't think I'll make it easy for Aesir-sama! T-That man will force me to fight back to the best of my abilities!"

Aesir has had enough of Beldia's interference.

But so far, the personal match-up between those two have been even.

They are equally skilled, and Beldia's power is nothing to sneeze at.

His ability to see the fight from a bird's eye view also gives him an edge.

"Here I come…! Surpass Limits Lv. 3!"

Now that Aesir has declared his intentions to eliminate him, Beldia has pulled out all the stops.

He tripled his own strength with 'Surpass Limits Lv. 3' as he charged in for an all-out assault.

"Fangs of Satan..."

"?!"

So far, Aesir has used that ability to reverse the damage we've inflicted on him.

It's a purely defensive ability… Right?

But now, even as Beldia's movements were reversed, Aesir, within the tide of reversed time, started moving forward.

H-He can move during the time reversal…?!

He was clearly exerting himself, but even so…!

Even as Beldia's time was rewound, Aesir moved forward, readying himself for an attack.

"Fangs of Satan… I raise my sword against Fate!"

He shoved his hand through Beldia's chest, red energy pulsing through in the form of a blade.

After the five seconds of reversal had passed, the damage done to Beldia remained.

Beldia gave me one last look as his body broke into pieces.

His head fell and rolled on the ground, before Aesir stopped it with his foot.

He rolled Beldia's head under his foot like a ball.

"Oi."

"Hm? What is it, Satou Kazuma? Sad that your puppet is gone?"

"...Only I can kick that Dullahan's head around like a soccer ball."

I drew Chunchunmaru, and pointed the edge at Aesir.

"Fumu. Finally, a one on one. Face me head on, without interference, without distraction…!"

I bet he really pushed himself for that feat.

It's safe to assume that he won't be able to reverse time for a while.

He took his chances and eliminated the heavy hitter Beldia before dealing with me.

I'll make him regret that gamble…!

Aesir didn't wait for me to get in range. He met my advance with his own.

"Only one more to go!"

He cried, while preparing to strike.

I took a deep breath.

"Wind Wall! Freeze!"

"...?!"

The Wind Wall halted Aesir's movements. Then I released a full-powered Freeze to make icy winds.

Crystals began to form on his body, severely limiting his range of motion.

The momentary pause is enough.

I wound my arm for a one handed swing, and sliced his mask in half with Chunchunmaru.

"...! Damn you! Satou Kazuma!"

As I suspected. He didn't reverse time.

As his mask and body reformed, I didn't waste time and prepared myself for another swing.

"Too naive! Aesir-style Death Saber!"

"?!"

I was thrown off guard as a third arm grew from his reforming chest.

A Death Saber was unleashed from it. I was able to dodge, but…

The energy blade cut through Chunchunmaru, the severed metal burning from the heat.

Aesir probaby expects me to retreat, but this is my only chance to retaliate…!

"Steal!"

"Huh? Trying to steal my mask? I'm afraid that's…!"

I'm not aiming for the mask.

I aimed for Beldia's sword that was laying on the ground.

It appeared in my hands.

"Surpass Limits!"

I increased my strength in order to wield the heavy greatsword.

Once more, Aesir was stupefied by my unexpected moves.

I can reach him.

I attacked with a wide, horizontal slash.

The muscles I've worked hard to train rippled from the strain.

Aesir, in a desperate maneuver, tried to fall backwards to dodge the attack.

But I felt the contact.

The tip of Beldia's blade found purchase on Aesir's mask.

I gave the last push and ripped his mask.

This time, instead of reforming right away, Aesir used his incomplete dirt body to slither along the ground. He beat a quick retreat to the other side of the room.

This dungeon floor is spacious and long, but, with his speed, he gained considerable distance.

I dropped Beldia's sword and drew the Demonic longbow.

"Rapid shot! Volley! Snipe!"

I fired a volley of fast, accurate, ice arrows.

And for good measure…

"Lightning!"

Static formed above Aesir, but just then…

"Fangs of Satan! I bare my fangs at Fate!"

It seems the cooldown for that ability is over.

The ice arrows returned to me, and the bolt of lightning that was about to descend creeped back to the point it appeared, before vanishing altogether.

"Tsk…"

It's too bad mana doesn't regenerate when he reverses time. I needed to refill my reserves with a manatite crystal after going all out for the kill, and yet coming up short.

This gave Aesir enough time to fully repair his body.

My mana reserves must look like a drop in the bucket compared to his. He easily conjured another Death Saber after his body reformed.

But at least now, there's a big fat 'five' on his mask.

This time, he's not attacking or even approaching me.

And to be honest, he looks really scared.

Maybe… he's on his last life?

After I take Aesir's sixth life, this battle is over…?!

H-Hopefully.

Part 6

Aesir wasn't as chatty as he used to be, as he watched me from afar.

Maybe he really is out of lives?

I guess there's only one way to find out…

Chunchunmaru was broken, and I couldn't keep casting buffs on myself to be able to wield Beldia's greatsword.

I should focus on long ranged attacks again.

"Volley!"

I continued to rain down a barrage of ice arrows.

Aesir tried to dodge, but he couldn't perfectly evade such a wide area of attack, because his body, throughout the duration of this battle, had suffered miniscule, but steadily accruing, damage.

As I limited his range of movements, I began silent chanting a string of spells.

"Lightning! Lightning! Lightning!"

Streaks of light struck down from above.

Aesir was able to dance his way to evade from the initial lightning bolts, but…

"...?! Where did that come… froommm?!"

I mixed in some silently chanted, Delayed Lightning to catch Aesir off guard.

He protected his mask well, but now there were sintered clumps on his body, where the lightning hit.

I still have some manatite crystals on me, but I couldn't keep this up forever.

At the same time, even that inexhaustible Aesir has used his time reversal ability, and his death saber, many times now.

"Why you… A mere mortal has taken five lives from me… Do you think I can just let this go?!"

Frustrated by the one-sided beatdown he's getting, Aesir raised his hand just as lighting and a hail of ice arrows were about to fall on him.

With a swipe of his hand, he split the lightning bolt in two and crushed the ice arrows into glittering crystals.

Then his one exposed eye locked onto me.

He's intending to finish me off…!

With fast strides, he covered the long distance between us with a full sprint.

"Bind!"

"Your tricks won't work on me anymore!"

He cut through the spinning rope with Death Saber.

"I got you now! You like cheap, dirty tricks, don't you?! Have a taste of your own medicine!"

He swung his arm, releasing a blast of dirt and dust on my face. I closed my eyes as the spray blinded me.

"Owww! My eyes! My eyes!"

So that's how that feels like.

"A fitting end for a coward! And now, for the finishing blow!"

I have to admit that I didn't expect Aesir to do that.

But when it comes to dirty tricks, I won't be beat!

"Golem Transmutation!"

"W-What?!"

This dirt initially belonged from my earth golems.

Once Aesir released it from his control, the dirt becomes mine to control once more.

I reshaped the dust into the image in my mind.

The shape of an earthen arrowhead, pointed directly at Aesir's mask.

"Attack, my faithful Golem!"

With a wave of my hand, the Golem Arrow obeyed my command and flew towards Aesir.

It pierced right through Aesir's mono-eye.

"Im… possible…! This isn't… over…! Fangs of Satan…!"

"!"

The Golem Arrow returned, and I watched as it dissolved, becoming a cloud of dust that blinded my eyes again.

"This is… the end… I'm finishing this… I raise my sword against Fate!"

I can't see what's going on, but I can hear Aesir's slow footsteps as he defies his own time reversal, moving forward.

I can feel the heat of his Death Saber, inching closer…!

"...I must admit. You are a strong opponent, Satou Kazuma, the strongest I've ever faced. Be proud that you have tested me beyond my limits. But now, you must die… Huh? What's that?"

There's a humming sound in the air.

I prepared a lot of Delayed Lightning spells earlier, and I didn't use all of them attack.

I kept one of them for emergencies like this.

I released it… The Delayed Lightning trap from above…!

"Ahhhh?!"

Once I figured out the range of the time reversal, I was able to prepare spells outside of Aesir's range.

Even as time is reversed down here, the Lightning strike from above was undeterred.

It struck down.

With my eyes closed from the dirt and dust, I was saved from the blinding light as the spell struck way too close for comfort.

I felt the effects of the time reversal disperse. I opened my eyes.

I looked at Aesir now. His body is torn and crumbling. Red energy crackled from his fingertips, but they couldn't retain the shape of a blade.

It looks like he was betting everything on that last attack, but now he doesn't have anything left.

"..." x 2.

We stared at each other.

Then, he turned around and ran away.

"What the hell is wrong with you?! Seriously, are you even human?! I'm so done with this! I'm out!"

The devil who had vowed to capture me and make me go through eternal torment, made a hasty retreat.

Instead of a hound dog of hell… Why is he acting like a whipped dog?!

He's even running on all fours!

"Watching him like this is kind of pitiful… I guess I can end the fight now?"

I said to myself, as I watched Aesir hobble along through the long dungeon floor, trying to make his escape through the front entrance.

Yeah… We're several floors deep underground. Good luck getting up to the surface.

If I'm going to finish him off, I need to do it in a way that will get Hell to reconsider their plans to capture me.

I don't want them to send anymore baddies after me after this.

In order to do that, I need to send Aesir out with a bang…

"..."

W-Well, if we're talking about a 'bang'...

I took out my adventurer's card.

I scrolled through my skill list, all the way up.

Right below the 'Nature's Beauty' skill I learned from Aqua, but didn't spend a single skill point on, is a similarly untouched skill.

Back then, an eager chuunibyou Arch-Wizard leaned forward excitedly, getting way too close to my face,

"Come, now, and walk the path of explosions with me!"

I half-heartedly promised that I would… some day.

...I guess I have more than enough skill points.

But will it work?

I thought about all those times I went with that certain explosion addict.

Even when it rained, or snowed, I went with her as her explosion sommelier.

I knew the chant by heart at this point.

I can even discern the quality of the explosion just from once glance.

"Sigh… Well, why not."

I touched the skill. The card emitted a blue light as I felt something within my body shift.

No… It was only reaffirming something that was within me all along.

I smiled to myself as I put the card away.

I drained a couple more manatite crystals to put myself at full capacity.

"Darkness… Blacker than black… And darker than dark."

The image of a fluttering cape entered my mind.

"I beseech thee, combine with my deep crimson…"

With a proud expression on her face, she'd raise her staff to the sky.

"Justice, fallen upon the infallible boundary, appear now as an intangible distortion!"

Never getting tired of the same old routine, she fully dedicated herself to her beloved magic, even when others ridiculed her.

"I desire for my torrent of power, a destructive force… a destructive force without equal!"

I really can't say if explosion magic is effective or not.

But watching that small girl release an earth shattering blast of fire and destruction…

I can't think of a cooler magic!

"Return all creation to cinders, and come from the abyss!"

I held out my hand to Aesir, who was still struggling desperately to escape.

"...EXPLOSION!"

I felt an indescribable rush as all the mana left my body.

Ah… I kinda get why she's so addicted to this.

"E-Eh…? You've gotta be… Acckkk!"

A giant ball of fire and destruction engulfed Aesir and disintegrated him all at once.

Hot winds instantly washed over me.

I always forbade Megumin from using explosion magic in a dungeon, and yet here I am…

The heat started becoming unbearable.

"Ah… I should get out of here now…"

As my body started collapsing from mana exhaustion…

"Delayed Teleport…!"

I used the Delayed Teleport I casted earlier.

Part 7

I ended up in one of my marked destinations, the dungeon core room.

This is where the mana crystals, and the despair crystals that Vanir is so obsessed with, are formed.

"Uwaa…"

I finished my fall as soon as I teleported away, and face planted onto the ground.

"Oof."

Funnily enough, that fall probably hurt me more than Aesir did during the fight.

I guess it's a miracle that I got out of that pretty much unscathed.

Ah, but Beldia died.

At least he was an adequate meat shield. He should be proud of himself for properly protecting his master.

As I laid on the cold ground, I thought about the war going on outside.

Just as I was thinking about how everyone else is doing, and worrying about what Eris told me about Darkness earlier, I felt a presence enter the room.

"Moi congratulates thee! That was a splendid fight!"

Vanir entered while clapping his hands enthusiastically.

"...Oi. Don't tell me you were watching the whole time?"

"Every second of it! Even the seconds that were reversed by that Aesir! Mwahahaha!"

I tried turning my head to the cackling devil, but I couldn't do much in my current condition.

"So, how are things outside?"

"Thou can rest easy. The fighting has ceased. Thy Crusader comrade has captured the enemy leader!"

"Eh? Darkness did? I thought for sure that they'd mess up and that the capital would have to send Iris over to one-shot all the enemies…"

"...Even moi thinks that thy mistrust of thou comrades is a bit heartless. But yes, one of the possibilities this great, all-seeing Devil has seen is that the loli princess would have to come and save the day should thy comrades fail, but that would have been an unlikely event."

I stared at Vanir, while remembering Aesir's words about Vanir possessing an artifact as well… The Eyes of Satan.

"Hey, Vanir, just how much of the future have you seen? Did you know I would win against Aesir?"

"Ah, the despair crystals are looking appetizing as always! Oh? And it looks like there's a new, delicious harvest? What's this?! The despair and humiliation that has leaked out from Aesir as he was soundly defeated by a mere mortal, is stored within this harvest of new crystals?! Why, this is a completely unforeseen event!"

Vanir, with a phony voice, said all this while admiring the new set of despair crystals that have formed. Then he started absorbing the dark essences within.

"Ahhh~! Wonderful! What an exquisite taste! The despair of mortals is delicious, but the dark emotions of a devil whose ego has been shattered is an unprecedented taste! More, more! Moi must have more!"

I watched Vanir as he gleefully consumed the crystals.

"Oi, oi, oi. Just how much of this is your doing, Vanir?!"

The way he's talking, it seems like Vanir has been orchestrating things behind the scenes again.

"Hm? Thou suspects moi who came with thou to Hell, who was with thou the whole time while thou caused an incident and was arrested? Moi who knew that Hell would send the hound dog Aesir to hunt thou, and has foreseen that thou will slay the hound dog in this dungeon, where moi can harvest the hound dog's despair… Nonsense! Obviously, moi had nothing to do with these events!"

Vanir said, while attempting to smile innocently. It's hard to believe him while he's still sniffing up those dark essences, though.

"Sigh… To think Vanir would go through all of that. Aside from basically endangering the lives of everyone, especially ME, was it really worth it to get Aesir's despair? Why would you put your kinsman in danger anyway?"

"Fuu… Moi has never really liked that hound dog, Aesir. Moi has standards when it comes to eating the despair of another. But that hound dog cares not for how he gets his meals. Back then, he would target young, naive goddesses and corrupt them so they would become fallen deities… Moi disapproves of such savage methods."

For a moment, I thought that there was a serious look on Vanir's face, but the smile returned.

"Instead of bringing others into ruin and leaving no option for recovery, isn't it best to make sure that the victim is healthy and happy so that when it comes time to harvest, the negative emotions will be all the sweeter? That is why humanity should thrive, prosper, and multiply, so moi will have more targets to play with! Muwahahaha!"

I sighed while watching Vanir cackle to himself.

But even after all this, I just can't hate the guy.

"OK. I guess I can let this slide for now. It worked out in the end, anyway. Next time, just tell me if you're planning something crazy. I'd like to get a heads up next time I have to fight some ridiculous villain…"

"Well! Moi thinks that is fair! Next time Moi will give cryptic, prophetic warnings to better prepare thee!"

"...That's not what I asked for, but fine. Sigh… Just how much has Vanir been messing things up behind the scenes, anyway?"

"Oh, is thou curious? Well, doth thou wonder sometimes why exactly the Devil King suddenly appeared one day in thy front yard?"

"...Eh?"

"Ah, yes, the defeated Devil King's dark emotions were also delicious! Well, well! Look at the time! Moi must return to the shop! Surely there will be many customers after the big battle! Thou also needs thy pitiful sword with a weird name repaired, yes?! Please come by our shop! Oh, and don't worry about Hell! For giving moi this lovely meal, moi will take care of the situation! Bye-bye now!"

While gathering as many despair crystals as he could, Vanir ran away and left me in the dungeon core room, on the ground, still limp and unmoving.

…

...

A/N: Happy Thanksgiving weekend to my fellow Hamburger land compatriots! I don't think I've ever written a chapter where it's 99% combat, and it was a bit difficult at times. But I still had fun writing this chapter. I probably have a few more chapters to go before I can wrap up this story, which makes me feel kind of gloomy now that I'm actually this close to the end. I've been working on this fic for the past two years or so, and I guess I'm just starting to realize it now. Anyway, thanks for reading. I'll try to get the next one out soon.